bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
T2-weighted IDEAL fast spin echo imaging of the brachial plexus: comparison with STIR
Authors: Tomura Noriaki , Saginoya Toshiyuki , Kokubun Mika , Tsuchiya Mario , Yamamoto Teiji
Published: October 2014

Background

Short TI inversion-recovery (STIR) imaging is widely used, but its signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) is relatively low. Iterative decomposition of water and fat with echo asymmetric and least-squares estimation (IDEAL) imaging has demonstrated promising results in several areas.

Purpose

To compare T2-weighted fast spin-echo IDEAL (T2W IDEAL-FSE) with STIR to determine which sequence is superior to image the brachial plexus.

Material and Methods

The brachial plexus was imaged in 18 patients and six volunteers. The patients’ diseases comprised of: suspected chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP), brachial plexus palsy of unknown origin, and suspected amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Frontal partial MIP images were acquired. Image quality was qualitatively and independently scored by two radiologists on a three-point grading scale for noise, visibility of the nerve roots, and overall image quality. Inter-observer agreement of the rating by two readers was assessed. The SNR and contrast-to-noise-ratio (CNR) were quantitatively calculated, and differences between T2W IDEAL-FSE and STIR were compared.

Results

Qualitatively, each score for T2W IDEAL-FSE was significantly higher ( P < 0.01) than that for STIR. Quantitatively, both SNR and CNR for T2W IDEAL-FSE (45.3 ± 12.6 and 27.1 ± 12.1, respectively) were significantly higher ( P < 0.001) than those for STIR (17.4 ± 6.1 and 8.2 ± 4.7, respectively).

Conclusion

T2W IDEAL-FSE could be used to replace STIR for visualization of the brachial plexus.
Improved sensitivity of 3.0 Tesla susceptibility-weighted imaging in detecting traumatic bleeds and its use in predicting outcomes in patients with mild traumatic brain injury
Authors: Liu Guobing , Ghimire Prasanna , Pang Haopeng , Wu Guangyao , Shi Hongcheng
Published: October 2014

Background

The efficacy of susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) for detecting intracranial bleeds (ICBs) in patients with mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) has not been directly compared to that of T2*-weighted gradient-recalled-echo imaging (T2*WI). Further, its prognostic value for MTBI patients remains unproven.

Purpose

To compare the sensitivity of ICB identification between SWI and T2*WI and examine the prognostic value of SWI for MTBI patients.

Material and Methods

T2*WI, SWI, and clinical information of 63 MTBI patients were collected. Sensitivity was compared between T2*WI and SWI for ICB identification, and statistical analysis was conducted to understand the correlations between SWI and clinical characteristics.

Results

ICBs were detected in more patients (47 vs. 35, P < 0.001) and more ICBs were detected (276 vs. 147, P < 0.001) on SWI than T2*WI. On SWI, patients with conscious disturbance showed higher ICBs prevalence (84.6% vs. 58.3%, P = 0.020), and more patients from the post-concussive syndrome (PCS)(+) group than the PCS(−)group were ICBs positive (86.1% vs. 59.3%, P = 0.015). The numbers of ICBs were significantly higher in the PCS(+) group than the PCS(−) group ( P < 0.001). Significant correlation was found between PCS and ICBs number (r = 0.510, P < 0.001). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that ICB number was an independent variable predicting occurrence of PCS.

Conclusion

SWI is more sensitive than T2*WI in detecting hemorrhagic foci in MTBI patients and may offer valuable prognostic information regarding these patients, for example, information on PCS. Further, cerebral parenchymal hemorrhage may affect long-term outcomes in MTBI patients.
Recurrent steroid-responsive cerebral vasogenic edema in status migrainosus and persistent aura
Authors: Kim Yeon-Jung , Kwon Sun U
Published: October 2014

Background

Status migrainosus (SM) and persistent aura (PA) without infarction are complications of migraine. Although several patients have been reported to have reversible brain lesions associated with complications of migraine, their nature and pathophysiology remain unclear.

Case

We report on a 38-year-old male who presented with nine episodes of SM and PA over eight years. Serial neuroimaging studies including brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), blood flow single photon emission tomography (SPECT),18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) and11 C-flumazenil PET (FMZ-PET) demonstrated cerebral vasogenic edema (CVE) with hypoperfusion and hypometabolism in the area, anatomically corresponding to the area with PA. SM and PA were effectively controlled by corticosteroid therapy. Follow-up MRI revealed complete reversibility of the CVE, which was supported by normal FMZ-PET and FDG-PET findings.

Conclusion

We have described a patient with transient brain lesions associated with complications of migraine who was diagnosed with fully reversible and steroid responsive CVE.
Knee Contact Force Asymmetries in Patients Who Failed Return-to-Sport Readiness Criteria 6 Months After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction
Authors: Gardinier Emily S. , Di Stasi Stephanie , Manal Kurt , Buchanan Thomas S. , Snyder-Mackler Lynn
Published: October 2014

Background:

After anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, contact forces are decreased in the injured knee when compared with the uninjured knee. The persistence of contact force asymmetries after ACL reconstruction may increase the risk of reinjury and may play an important role in the development of knee osteoarthritis in these patients. Functional performance may also be useful in identifying patients who demonstrate potentially harmful joint contact force asymmetries after ACL reconstruction.

Hypothesis:

Knee joint contact force asymmetries would be present during gait after ACL reconstruction, and performance on a specific set of validated return-to-sport (RTS) readiness criteria would discriminate between those who demonstrated contact force asymmetries and those who did not.

Study Design:

Descriptive laboratory study.

Methods:

A total of 29 patients with ACL ruptures participated in gait analysis and RTS readiness testing 6 months after reconstruction. Muscle and joint contact forces were estimated using an electromyography (EMG)–driven musculoskeletal model of the knee. The magnitude of typical limb asymmetry in uninjured controls was used to define limits of meaningful limb asymmetry in patients after ACL reconstruction. The RTS testing included isometric quadriceps strength testing, 4 unilateral hop tests, and 2 self-report questionnaires. Paired t tests were used to assess limb symmetry for peak medial and tibiofemoral contact forces in all patients, and a mixed-design analysis of variance was used to analyze the effect of passing or failing RTS testing on contact force asymmetry.

Results:

Among all patients, neither statistically significant nor meaningful contact force asymmetries were identified. However, patients who failed RTS testing exhibited meaningful contact force asymmetries, with tibiofemoral contact force being significantly lower for the involved knee. Conversely, patients who passed RTS testing exhibited neither significant nor meaningful contact force asymmetries.

Conclusion:

Joint contact force asymmetries during gait are present in some patients 6 months after ACL reconstruction. Patients who demonstrated poor functional performance on RTS readiness testing exhibited significant and meaningful contact force asymmetries.

Clinical Relevance:

When assessing all patients together, variability in the functional status obscured significant and meaningful differences in contact force asymmetry in patients 6 months after ACL reconstruction. These specific RTS readiness criteria appear to differentiate between those who demonstrate joint contact force symmetry after ACL reconstruction and those who do not.
Women’s Status and Intimate Partner Violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Authors: Tlapek Sarah Myers
Published: October 2014

Women’s greatest risk of violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) may come from an intimate partner, but few studies have analyzed context-specific risk and protective factors for intimate partner violence (IPV) in the DRC. This study analyzed data from the most recent Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) in Congo to assess risk and protective factors for IPV and the role of women’s status, a factor implicated in prior IPV research. Using a sample of 1,821 married or cohabiting women between the ages of 15 and 49, four logistic regression models tested relationships between physical, sexual, emotional, or any violence and independent variables of interest. Results indicated that 68.2% of respondents had experienced at least one of the three types of IPV. An attitude of acceptance toward spousal violence was associated with increased risk for physical and emotional IPV. Women who were the only wife of their husband were half as likely to experience IPV compared with women whose husbands had other wives or women who did not know their husbands’ marital status. Partner’s use of alcohol was associated with nearly doubled risk for both physical and sexual IPV. The study’s results indicate that IPV occurs frequently and is justified as acceptable by many women in the DRC. Findings suggest that awareness-raising campaigns may be a helpful intervention and that partner characteristics should be considered when assessing women’s risk for IPV.
Predictors of Traditional and Cyber-Bullying Victimization
Authors: Hemphill Sheryl A. , Tollit Michelle , Kotevski Aneta , Heerde Jessica A.
Published: October 2014

The purpose of the present article is to compare the individual, peer, family, and school risk and protective factors for both traditional and cyber-bullying victimization. This article draws on data from 673 students from Victoria, Australia, to examine Grade 7 (aged 12-13 years) predictors of traditional and cyber-bullying victimization in Grade 9 (aged 14-15 years). Participants completed a modified version of the Communities That Care youth survey. There were few similarities and important differences in the predictors of traditional and cyber-bullying victimization. For Grade 9 cyber-bullying victimization, in the fully adjusted model, having been a victim of traditional bullying in Grade 7 and emotional control in Grade 7 were predictors. For Grade 9 traditional bullying victimization, predictors were Grade 7 traditional bullying victimization, association with antisocial peers, and family conflict, with family attachment and emotional control marginally statistically significant. The use of evidence-based bullying prevention programs is supported to reduce experiences of both traditional and cyber-bullying victimization, as is the implementation of programs to assist students to regulate their emotions effectively. In addition, traditional bullying victimization may be reduced by addressing association with antisocial friends, family conflict, and bonding to families.
Smooth trajectory planning methods using physical limits
Authors: Lee An Yong , Choi Youngjin
Published: October 2014

In order for robots to be operated in a variety of environmental conditions, a smooth motion trajectory to goal point is needed in accordance with actuators specifications of the robot. In this paper, a conventional cubic polynomial method for symmetric curve (S-curve) trajectory planning is extended to the smooth (infinitely differentiable and continuous) symmetric and asymmetric curve (AS-curve) trajectory planning derived from a smooth jerk function. In other words, the proposed methods are able to generate the trajectory as S/AS-curve form as well as to satisfy several physical limits such as jerk limit, acceleration limit, and velocity limit. The effectiveness of the proposed methods is shown through comparative studies with existing method.
Stepping back from queer theory: Language, fieldwork and the everyday in sexuality studies in France
Authors: Provencher Denis M.
Published: October 2014

In a 2012 special issue of French Cultural Studies, Didier Eribon urges French studies scholars to step back from critical theory, and in particular queer theory as it has emerged in cultural and literary studies. He is also particularly critical of a version of queer theory conjugated with psychoanalysis. For Eribon, cultural studies scholars and those working in sexuality studies should move away from the ‘master narrative’ of the family and (re)turn to the cultural, the social, the field and empirical evidence. Over the last 15 years, I have conducted fieldwork and ethnographic interviews with self-identified same-sex desiring men in France. Their life stories can be read at times through the Anglo-American lens of a gay-identified, Western coming-out narrative with a telos of ‘progress’ that involves moving from the closet to being ‘out’. At the same time, however, a queer linguistic approach can help us to read against the grain of several norms and hence provide us with a broader understanding of their lived experiences. In this essay, I present empirical language data from my interview with ‘Tahar’ one of my self-identified same-sex desiring Maghrebi and Maghrebi-French interlocutors to illustrate how his speech acts are situated at the crossroads of multiple discourses, temporalities, identities and traditions. As we shall see, Tahar’s story involves being ‘beur’, ‘being homosexual’ and ‘being fat’. This subject speaks back against the empire, against heteronormativity, and against corporeal norms. While a postcolonial critique based on a ‘postcolonial identity’ (looking at ethnicity or religion, for example) or a linguistic analysis based on ‘gay identity’ could be helpful here, my point is that a queer linguistic analysis – one that takes a position counter to the normative broadly defined by considering simultaneously multiple subaltern subject positions – could provide a better approach for those of us working in an interdisciplinary French cultural studies context.
A continuing preoccupation with the Occupation
Authors: Flower John
Published: October 2014

In addition to a number of commemorative and traditional events and a steady stream of new publications, references and allusions to the period of the Occupation appear to have increased over the last few years. One basic reason, sometimes supported by evidence, is that after seventy years there is a danger that those years and their traumatic events will gradually be forgotten or remembered incorrectly. It may also be, however, that they are being recalled to help assuage a collective sense of guilt, or in some cases used more consciously for political and socio-political purposes with the result that they feed deep-rooted and sometimes unrealised prejudices with direct consequences for contemporary society. After rapidly rehearsing the ways in which the Occupation has hitherto been assessed, the article focuses precisely on some of this apparent modern development.1
Reading laïcité
Authors: Sachs Leon
Published: October 2014

Beginning with the observation that in recent years laïcité has taken on connotations that its nineteenth-century republican proponents would not have foreseen, this article reflects on the way laïcité’s evolving meaning bears on questions of literary experience and literary education. It argues that there are important structural similarities between recent theories of laïcité and theories of literary reading, both of which rely on similar conceptions of intellectual and cultural space and the kinds of identity formation that occur there. The first half of the article builds on arguments by political philosophers Marcel Gauchet and Catherine Kintzler, who assert that aesthetic and cultural experiences enact the psychic phenomena of self-distancing inherent in laïcité. From there, the article goes on to suggest linkages between this view of laical distanciation and the process of individuation outlined in D. W. Winnicott’s concept of transitional space, an influential concept for reader-oriented critics seeking to explain literary experience as an act of ‘getting out of the self’.
Introduction
Authors: Hewitt Nicholas
Published: October 2014

This introduction provides an overview of the articles contained in the anniversary volume of French Cultural Studies, putting them in a wider context of the choice of Marseille as a venue and the journal’s coverage over the past 25 years.
Dynamic performance of unimorph piezoelectric bending actuators
Authors: Nabawy Mostafa R A , Parslew Ben , Crowther William J
Published: October 2014

Piezoelectric bending actuators utilise the inverse piezoelectric effect to convert input electric energy to useful mechanical work. A comprehensive analytical model of the dynamic electromechanical behaviour of a unimorph piezoelectric actuator has been developed and successfully validated against experimental data. The model provides a mapping between force, displacement, voltage and charge. Damping is modelled using experimental data. Experimental validation is based on measurement of mode shape and frequency response of a series of unimorph beams of varying length but of the same thickness and material. The experimental frequency response is weakly nonlinear with excitation voltage, with a reduction in natural frequency and increase in damping with increasing excitation amplitude. An expression for the electromechanical coupling factor has been extracted from the analytical model and is used as the objective for parametric design studies. The design parameters are thickness and Young’s modulus ratios of the elastic and piezoceramic layers, and the piezoelectric constant k31. The operational design point is defined by the damping ratio. It is found that the relative variation in the electromechanical coupling factor with the design parameters for dynamic operation is similar to static operation; however, for light damping, the magnitude of the peak electromechanical coupling factor will typically be an order of magnitude greater than that of static operation. For the actuator configuration considered in this study, it is shown that the absolute variation in electromechanical coupling factor with thickness ratio for dynamic operation is same as that for static operation when the damping ratio is 0.44.
Antimalarials in the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus: a registry-based cohort study in Denmark
Authors: Nørgaard J C , Stengaard-Pedersen K , Nørgaard M , de Thurah A
Published: October 2014

Background

Evidence-based international guidelines for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) recommend treatment with antimalarials (AMs) for all patients with SLE irrespective of disease activity. Only a few studies have investigated the use of AMs among newly diagnosed patients with SLE.

Objectives

The objective of this paper is to analyze prescription patterns of AMs in newly diagnosed SLE patients in Denmark from 2000 to 2011.

Methods

Using the Danish Prescription Register (DNPR), we conducted a nationwide cohort study including all patients with a first-time diagnosis of SLE (the Danish National Registry of Patients (NPR)). We used Kaplan-Meier estimates to compute the cumulative probability of starting AM treatment within a year and Cox regression analysis to compare time to treatment between patient groups.

Results

AMs were prescribed to 37.7% of the newly diagnosed SLE patients within the first year of follow-up. Approximately 20% did not receive any medical treatment. Women were more likely than men to start AM (adjusted HR of 1.28 (95% CI 1.08–1.52)). Patients diagnosed with SLE between 2005 and 2011 were more likely to start treatment than patients diagnosed between 2000 and 2004 (HR of 1.21 (95% CI 1.07–1.36)). Patients with renal disease were less likely to start AM treatment than patients without this condition (adjusted HR of 0.50 (95% CI 0.36–0.68)). Current users of corticosteroids were more likely to start AM treatment than non-users (adjusted HR 1.81 (95% CI 1.59–2.06)).

Conclusion

Time to start of AM treatment following SLE diagnosis could be further reduced, especially among patients with renal disease. However, our results showed that treatment practice in recent years has changed toward initiating AM treatment earlier.
Systemic lupus erythematous and clinical outcomes in peritoneal dialysis
Authors: Proença de Moraes T , Massignan B , Figueiredo A E , Barretti P , Olandoski M , Kirk A , Pecoits-Filho R
Published: October 2014

Background: The prevalence of systemic lupus erythematous (SLE) patients requiring renal replacement therapy (RRT) is increasing but data on clinical outcomes are scarce. Interestingly, data on technique failure and peritoneal-dialysis (PD)-related infections are rarer, despite SLE patients being considered at high risk for infections. The aim of our study is to compare clinical outcomes of SLE patients on PD in a large PD cohort. Methods: We conducted a nationwide prospective observational study from the BRAZPD II cohort. For this study we identified all patients on PD for greater than 90 days. Within that subset, all those with SLE as primary renal disease were matched with PD patients without SLE for comparison of clinical outcomes, namely: patient mortality, technique survival and time to first peritonitis, then were analyzed taking into account the presence of competing risks. Results: Out of a total of 9907 patients, we identified 102 SLE patients incident in PD and with more than 90 days on PD. After matching the groups consisted of 92 patients with SLE and 340 matched controls. Mean age was 46.9 ± 16.8 years, 77.3% were females and 58.1% were Caucasians. After adjustments SLE sub-hazard distribution ratio for mortality was 1.06 (CI 95% 0.55–2.05), for technique failure was 1.01 (CI 95% 0.54–1.91) and for time to first peritonitis episode was 1.40 (CI 95% 0.92–2.11). The probability for occurrence of competing risks in all three outcomes was similar between groups. Conclusion: PD therapy was shown to be a safe and equally successful therapy for SLE patients compared to matched non-SLE patients.
Anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor and anti-ribosomal-P autoantibodies contribute to cognitive dysfunction in systemic lupus erythematosus
Authors: Massardo L , Bravo-Zehnder M , Calderón J , Flores P , Padilla O , Aguirre J M , Scoriels L , González A
Published: October 2014

Objective

Autoantibodies against N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (anti-NMDAR) and ribosomal-P (anti-P) antigens are potential pathogenic factors in the frequently observed diffuse brain dysfunctions in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Although studies have been conducted in this area, the role of anti-NMDAR antibodies in SLE cognitive dysfunction remains elusive. Moreover, the specific contribution of anti-P antibodies has not been reported yet. The present study attempts to clarify the contribution of anti-NMDAR and anti-P antibodies to cognitive dysfunction in SLE.

Methods

The Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) was used to assess a wide range of cognitive function areas in 133 Chilean women with SLE. ANCOVA models included autoantibodies, patient and disease features.

Results

Cognitive deficit was found in 20%. Higher SLEDAI-2K scores were associated with impairment in spatial memory and learning abilities, whereas both anti-NMDAR and anti-P antibodies contributed to deficits in attention and spatial planning abilities, which reflect fronto-parietal cortex dysfunctions.

Conclusions

These results reveal an association of active disease together with specific circulating autoantibodies, such as anti-NMDAR and anti-P, with cognitive dysfunction in SLE patients.
Learning by Communicating in Natural Language With Conversational Agents
Authors: Graesser Arthur C. , Li Haiying , Forsyth Carol
Published: October 2014

Learning is facilitated by conversational interactions both with human tutors and with computer agents that simulate human tutoring and ideal pedagogical strategies. In this article, we describe some intelligent tutoring systems (e.g., AutoTutor) in which agents interact with students in natural language while being sensitive to their cognitive and emotional states. These systems include one-on-one tutorial dialogues, conversational trialogues in which two agents (a tutor and a “peer”) interact with a human student, and other conversational ensembles in which agents take on different roles. Tutorial conversations with agents have also been incorporated into educational games. These learning environments have been developed for different populations (elementary through high school students, college students, adults with reading difficulties) and different subjects spanning science, technology, engineering, mathematics, reading, writing, and reasoning. This article identifies some of the conversation patterns that are implemented in the dialogues and trialogues.
Applying Psychological Science to Examine Prospective Memory in Simulated Air Traffic Control
Authors: Loft Shayne
Published: October 2014

Failures to remember to perform deferred task actions in work settings such as air traffic control can have serious consequences. Most research examining the cognitive mechanisms underlying prospective memory has used simple, static tasks, which may make it difficult to generalize results to work settings. I describe a body of research that has applied theory and methods from the basic prospective-memory and attention-capture literatures to simulations of air traffic control. These theories and methods can be used to anticipate many findings, such as the finding that prospective-memory demands incur performance costs in ongoing air traffic control tasks, and that prospective-memory error and costs to ongoing air traffic control tasks can be reduced by the use of spatial context or prospective-memory aids. Research in laboratory settings that simulates work contexts such as air traffic control can both establish the utility of psychological theory and produce application-relevant information.
The Development of Self-Esteem
Authors: Orth Ulrich , Robins Richard W.
Published: October 2014

In this article, we review new insights gained from recent longitudinal studies examining the development of self-esteem and its influence on important life outcomes. The evidence supports the following three conclusions. First, self-esteem increases from adolescence to middle adulthood, peaks at about age 50 to 60 years, and then decreases at an accelerating pace into old age; moreover, there are no cohort differences in the self-esteem trajectory from adolescence to old age. Second, self-esteem is a relatively stable, but by no means immutable, trait; individuals with relatively high (or low) self-esteem at one stage of life are likely to have relatively high (or low) self-esteem decades later. Third, high self-esteem prospectively predicts success and well-being in life domains such as relationships, work, and health. Given the increasing evidence that self-esteem has important real-world consequences, the topic of self-esteem development is of considerable societal significance.
Psychotherapy for borderline personality disorder
Authors: Beatson Josephine , Rao Sathya
Published: October 2014

Objective:

This paper aims to provide a succinct overview of the factors common to empirically validated psychotherapies for borderline personality disorder (BPD), including the treatment structure required.

Conclusion:

Individual psychotherapy remains the cornerstone of treatment for BPD. Factors common to empirically validated modalities of therapeutic treatment have been identified. These need to be provided within an individualised and structured treatment framework. Improved outcome of treatment for BPD can then be achieved.
Field evaluation of a quantitative polymerase chain reaction assay for Mycoplasma hyorhinis
Authors: Clavijo Maria J. , Oliveira Simone , Zimmerman Jeffrey , Rendahl Aaron , Rovira Albert
Published: October 2014

Mycoplasma hyorhinis has emerged as an important cause of systemic disease in nursery pigs. However, this bacterium can also be found in the upper respiratory tract of healthy swine. The current study describes the development of a quantitative polymerase chain reaction assay for the detection of M. hyorhinis and the evaluation of the assay in both disease diagnosis and disease surveillance using a large number of field samples. The analytical sensitivity was estimated to be 12 genome equivalents/μl. The assay was highly specific, detecting all 25 M. hyorhinis isolates tested and none of the 19 nontarget species tested. Assay repeatability was evaluated by testing different matrices spiked with known amounts of M. hyorhinis. Overall, assessment of the repeatability of the assay showed suitable precision within and between runs for all matrices. The coefficient of variation ranged from 10% to 24%. Mycoplasma hyorhinis DNA was detected in 48% of samples (pericardium, pleura, joints, nasal cavity, and lungs) from pigs with systemic disease. Mycoplasma hyorhinis was detected in nasal (92%) and oropharyngeal swabs (66%), as well as in oral fluids (100%). Potential uses of this tool involve the characterization of the prevalence of this pathogen in swine herds as well as bacterial quantification to evaluate intervention efficacy.
A thermo-mechanical model for shape memory alloy–based crank heat engines
Authors: Niccoli Fabrizio , Maletta Carmine , Sgambitterra Emanuele , Furgiuele Franco
Published: October 2014

A thermo-mechanical model to simulate the mechanical response of a shape memory alloy heat engine has been developed. In such a kind of engine, the thermally induced shape recovery capabilities of shape memory alloys are exploited to obtain mechanical work from low-grade energies, such as warm wastewater, geothermal, and solar sources. As a consequence, these engines represent simple and environmentally friendly solutions, and several architectures have been proposed in the last years. However, none of these devices has been industrialized, mainly due to the lack of robust design tools as well as to several technological and economic issues. To this aim, a simple semi-empirical numerical model has been developed to analyze the mechanical response of a shape memory alloy–based crank heat engine. In particular, the engine output characteristics (e.g. torque, specific power, efficiency) have been studied as a function of several geometrical configurations (e.g. dimensions, number of cranks) as well as of different thermo-physical properties of the heating and cooling thermal sources.
Direct compensation of lift-off oscillation effect in magnetic impedance–based damage detection
Authors: Shuai Qi , Tang Jiong
Published: October 2014

Owing to its magneto-mechanical coupling characteristics, a magnetic transducer such as the electro-magnetic acoustic transducer can excite a metallic structure by means of the Lorenz force, and its electrical impedance is actually directly related to the mechanical impedance of the structure. Therefore, the change in electrical impedance measured can be used as an indicator of damage occurrence. As such, this type of magnetic transducer can be used in impedance-based structural damage detection, which features a non-contact advantage. Nevertheless, one key issue is that the coupling between the magnetic transducer and the structure monitored is strongly influenced by the lift-off distance (i.e. the distance from the transducer to the structure) which oscillates as the structure is oftentimes subject to oscillation/movement due to environment disturbance. In this research, we propose a new data analysis approach of transformed impedance that is immune to the lift-off distance oscillation during measurements. This data analysis approach takes advantage of the lift-off distance information embedded in the impedance measurement and is capable of removing the lift-off oscillation effect without explicitly measuring it. By doing so, the damage signature can be highlighted directly. Numerical simulations and experimental validations are carried out to demonstrate the effectiveness.
Examination of the Effects of Thiamine and Thiamine Pyrophosphate on Doxorubicin-Induced Experimental Cardiotoxicity
Authors: Polat B. , Suleyman Halis , Sener E. , Akcay F.
Published: October 2014

Background and Purpose:

To investigate the effect of thiamine and thiamine pyrophosphate on doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity biochemically and histopathologically and to examine whether doxorubicin cardiotoxicity is related to the conversion of thiamine into thiamine pyrophosphate and inhibition of thiamine pyrophosphokinase (TPK) enzyme.

Experimental Approach:

A total of 48 Albino Wistar male rats were used. Rats were divided into groups as thiamine + doxorubicin (TIA + DOX), thiamine pyrophosphate + doxorubicin (TPP + DOX), DOX, and healthy (HEA) groups. One hour after the administration of thiamine and TPP in 25 mg/kg doses, 5 mg/kg doxorubicin were injected to all groups except HEA group during 7 days. Then, the samples were collected for biochemical (glutathione [GSH], malondialdehyde [MDA], DNA damage, creatine kinase (CK), CK-MB, and troponine I [TP-I]), molecular (TPK), and histopathological examinations.

Key Results:

Oxidant parameters (MDA and DNA damage) decreased and antioxidant parameter (GSH) increased in TPP + DOX group. In addition, levels of CK, CK-MB, and TP-I were low in the TPP + DOX group and high in the TIA + DOX and DOX groups. Cardiac tissue was protected in TPP + DOX group, and no protective effect was observed in TIA + DOX and DOX groups. Messenger RNA expression of TPK was decreased in DOX and TIA + DOX groups.

Conclusion and Implications:

The cardiotoxic effect of doxorubicin originated from the inhibition of TPK enzyme resulting in insufficient production of thiamine pyrophosphate.
Improving attendance in psychiatric outpatient clinics by using reminders
Authors: Kunigiri Girish , Gajebasia Niman , Sallah David
Published: October 2014

We compared non-attendance rates at follow-up appointments in an adult psychiatry outpatient clinic using three different reminder methods: letters, telephone prompts and text message reminders. Two of the three strategies resulted in a significant increase in the rate of attendance. Reminder letters increased attendance from 62% to 85% ( P < 0.001) and text messaging increased attendance from 72% to 80% ( P < 0.002). The attendance rate was not significantly different between the two groups when telephone reminders were used ( P = 0.068). However, telephone prompts resulted in an 8% higher cancellation rate compared to controls. When all factors were taken into consideration, no method demonstrated clear superiority. Efforts should be made to reduce patient non-attendance, as this is a predictor of patients being unwell and at higher risk of relapse. Text messages are an inexpensive method of reminding patients, although appropriate safeguards for patient confidentiality are required.
The experience of mental distress and recovery among people involved with the service user/survivor movement
Authors: Chassot Carolina S , Mendes Felismina
Published: October 2014

This article examines how the personal experiences of mental distress of people involved in the British service user/survivor movement were shaped or transformed by this involvement, and the impact of involvement on their recovery journeys. The analysis was based on 12 in-depth interviews with service users/survivors who are, or were once, involved with the service user/survivor movement. Three large themes were identified regarding the ways in which social movement involvement affected the personal experience of mental distress: (a) making sense and reframing mental distress, (b) the social experience of involvement and (c) identity and identity reconstruction. We discuss how some features of the service user/survivor movement, such as self-help, user involvement, the centrality of experience to collective action, and the range of political positions adopted by activists can affect experience and recovery in different forms. As an exploratory study that looks into a complex topic, our findings illuminate the ways of surviving, recovering and experiencing mental distress in the context of a significant social movement.
Aspect acquisition in Russian as the weaker language: Evidence from a Turkish–Russian child
Authors: Antonova-Ünlü Elena , Wei Li
Published: October 2014

Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions:

This study aims to contribute to the discussion about the weaker language development by examining the effect of restricted input and use on the acquisition of the morphological category of aspect in Russian by a Turkish–Russian bilingual child in a Turkish-dominant environment. The main goal the study pursues is to investigate whether the reduced input and restricted use of Russian, mainly through communication with a Russian-speaking mother, is still sufficient for monolingual-like acquisition of Russian aspect.

Design/methodology/approach:

This study is a longitudinal case study.

Data and analysis:

The main source of data collection is video and audio recordings. Twenty-five recordings are available. They cover the period of between two years and 11 months (2;11) and 4;0. First, the data is examined in terms of the availability of perfective and imperfective forms and meanings they (these forms) express in the Russian language. Then, we look into whether the data of the bilingual child is marked with deviations from the monolingual Russian data in terms of error rates and patterns.

Findings/conclusions:

The findings of the study suggest that despite the reduced input, the acquisition of Russian aspect in the Turkish-dominant environment follows the same pattern as a monolingual acquisition does.

Originality, and significance/implications:

The study contributes to the discussion about the weaker language development in bilingual contexts and adds to the growing body of research looking at the development of a particular language in a variety of different contexts.
On-line relative clause attachment strategy in heritage speakers of Spanish
Authors: Jegerski Jill , Keating Gregory D. , VanPatten Bill
Published: October 2014

Aims:

Previous research on relative clause attachment has found that late Spanish–English bilinguals tend to parse both languages with a single strategy that is consistent with that of the language in which they are currently immersed. One recent investigation using an off-line measure has suggested that the same may not be true of early Spanish–English bilinguals, who did not show effects of greater exposure to English in the comprehension of ambiguous relative clauses (RCs). The present study sought to determine whether on-line RC attachment behavior in heritage Spanish was similarly unaffected by extensive exposure to English.

Design:

Forty-six monolinguals and 28 heritage speakers of Mexican Spanish participated in a self-paced reading experiment in which stimuli contained temporarily ambiguous relative clauses that were biased toward either high or low syntactic attachment.

Data and analysis:

Analysis of variance by subject and by item was performed on reading time data and on responses to post-stimulus comprehension questions.

Findings:

Statistical analyses revealed similar preferences for high attachment in Spanish among both monolinguals and heritage speakers.

Originality:

These results suggest that Spanish heritage speakers, as early bilinguals, may be less affected by ongoing exposure to English than the late bilinguals tested in prior studies.

Significance:

The outcome also suggests that, within Spanish as a heritage language, relative clause attachment may be unique compared to other aspects of sentence processing in that it shows little influence from English.
“It’s just not that exciting anymore”: The changing centrality of SMS in the everyday lives of young Danes
Authors: Fibæk Bertel Troels , Ling Rich
Published: October 2014

This article considers the centrality of short message system (SMS) texting in the communication repertoires of young Danes. Recent years have seen dramatic changes in the mediascape with a multitude of new possibilities for text-based communication; Facebook, in particular, has become popular among young Danes. Some have suggested that the role of SMS texting, a technology that was previously an entrenched part of young people’s communication repertoires, has changed in this diversified media environment. Based on interviews with 31 Danish high school students and drawing on the domestication approach, this article examines the use practices and meanings associated with SMS texting in today’s complex and evolving mediascape. This article argues that SMS texting is becoming re-domesticated, its meanings changing, and the technology finding a new position in the communication repertoires of users.
Thirst in the global brandscape: Water, milk and Coke at the Shanghai World Expo
Authors: Tran Van Troi
Published: October 2014

This article draws on ethnographic fieldwork at the Shanghai World Expo in 2010. It examines the socio-material life of three brands of refreshments featured at the 2010 World Expo: the local Chinese water purification company Litree, the Inner-Mongolian dairy manufacturer Yili and the soft-drink multinational Coca-Cola. Whereas international events nowadays play a key role in the intensification of the circulation of information, this article pays attention rather to the carnal dimension of the Expo and to the importance of the sensuous experience of the event in the promotion of these brands. It shows that close attention to the materiality of branding practices and the varieties of a brand’s existence can unveil a universe of constant tensions, uncertainties and immanent adjustments, even in the pacified and sanitized ecology of the World Expo.
Optimal design of constant stress accelerated degradation test plan with multiple stresses and multiple degradation measures
Authors: Wang Yashun , Zhang Chunhua , Zhang Shufeng , Chen Xun , Tan Yuanyuan
Published: October 2014

High-reliability and long-lifetime products are often exposed to a variety of stresses in use condition, and there are usually multiple performance indicators of the products which gradually degrade over time. The technology of constant stress accelerated degradation test with multiple stresses and multiple degradation measures provides an efficient and feasible way for lifetime prediction of such products. It is one of the core issues in accelerated degradation test research how to design the plan of constant stress accelerated degradation test with multiple stresses and multiple degradation measures to result in the most accurate lifetime prediction for such products under the constraint of test budget. Existing methods of optimal design for accelerated degradation test are only for cases of a single stress or a single degradation measure which cannot be applied to solve the complex problem of optimal design for test plans under an occasion of multiple stresses and multiple degradation measures. Aimed at an occasion that analytical form of optimization objective function is difficult to derive or even does not exist, a novelty method of optimal design for constant stress accelerated degradation test with multiple stresses and multiple degradation measures is presented by incorporating Monte Carlo simulation into dealing with this problem, setting up a optimization model including design variables, optimization objective function and constraints, presenting optimization algorithm based on Monte Carlo simulation and surface fitting. Optimal design for constant stress accelerated degradation test with multiple stresses and multiple degradation measures of rubber sealing O-ring is taken as an illustrative example to demonstrate validity of the presented method. The results of sensitivity analysis of the optimal test plan show that the plan is robust when the deviation of parameters of the model is within 10%.
Diez años del Movimiento de Universidades Promotoras de la Salud en Iberoamérica y la contribución de la Red Iberoamericana de Universidades Promotoras de la Salud (RIUPS)
Authors: Arroyo-Acevedo Hiram , Durán Landazabal Gloria , Gallardo Pino Carmen
Published: October 2014

Las universidades de Iberoamérica han desarrollado importantes acciones para el fortalecimiento de la promoción de la salud en la región. Las acciones universitarias incluyen: la capacitación profesional especializada, el desarrollo de actividades de investigación, el desarrollo de publicaciones, el apoyo a las redes académicas-profesionales, el desarrollo de eventos científicos y profesionales, la incorporación en las universidades de los Centros Colaboradores de la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) y Organización Panamericana de la Salud (OPS), vinculados a la promoción de la salud y el desarrollo de las cátedras de promoción de la salud, entre otras actividades. El Movimiento de Universidades Promotoras de la Salud surge a partir del año 2003 en América Latina con alcance Iberoamericano. El Movimiento de Universidades Promotoras de la Salud ha demostrado, en sus 10 años de implantación en Iberoamérica, que es una iniciativa idónea para fortalecer la salud mediante el ideario y la praxis de la promoción de la salud.
Legionella pneumophila cases in a community hospital: A 12-month retrospective review
Authors: Touray Sunkaru , Newstein Michael C , Lui Justin K , Harris Maureen , Knox Kim
Published: October 2014

Background:

Legionella pneumonia has long been recognized as an important cause of community-acquired pneumonia associated with significant morbidity and mortality; however, the description of the incidence of this disease is restricted to sporadic cases in the literature. With the advent of an inexpensive and rapid urine antigen test, routine testing has become more common. We report findings of a retrospective review of 266 patients who were admitted with a clinical diagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia over a 12-month period and were tested for Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1, reporting the prevalence and determinants of Legionella infection.

Methods:

Chart reviews of 266 patients admitted for community-acquired pneumonia and who underwent urine antigen testing for Legionella pneumophila during a 1-year time period were conducted, looking at demographic information as well as clinical and laboratory presentation, reporting on the prevalence and determinants of urine antigen positivity using multivariate logistic regression analysis.

Results:

Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 was found in 2.3% of cases of community-acquired pneumonia. We also found that altered mental status, diarrhea, history of lung disease, and alcohol intake were significantly associated with pneumonia associated with Legionella. The presence of these four factors had a low sensitivity in predicting Legionella infection (33%); however, they had a positive predictive value of 98%, with a specificity of 100. All the Legionella-infected patients in our study required admission to the intensive care unit, and one of them developed Guillain–Barré syndrome, which to our knowledge represents the only reported case of this syndrome related to Legionella infection in an adult in the English scientific literature.

Conclusion:

Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 is a common cause of sporadic cases of community-acquired pneumonia associated with a high morbidity and protean manifestations. Clinical features have a poor sensitivity in identifying cases, and routine urine antigen testing in patients with suggestive clinical symptoms appears to be a rational approach in the evaluation of community-acquired pneumonia.