bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Analysis of Diaphragm Wall Deflection Induced by Excavation Based on Machine Learning
Authors: Zhao Huajing , Liu Wei , Guan Hao , Fu Chunqing
Published: February 2021

For the concrete diaphragm wall (CDW) supported excavation, excessive wall deflection may pose a potential risk to adjacent structures and utilities in urban areas. Therefore, it is of significance to predict the CDW deformation with high accuracy and efficiency. This paper investigates three machine learning algorithms, namely, back-propagation neural network (BPNN), long short-term memory (LSTM), and gated recurrent unit (GRU), to predict the excavation-induced CDW deflection. A database of field measurement collected from an excavation project in Suzhou, China, is used to verify the proposed models. The results show that GRU exhibits lower prediction errors and better robustness in 10-fold cross validation than BPNN and executes less computational time than LSTM. Therefore, GRU is the most suitable algorithm for CDW deflection prediction considering both effectiveness and efficiency, and the predicted results can provide reasonable assistance for safety monitoring and early warning strategies conducted on the construction site.
The Impact of Risk Preference in Decision Behavior on Urban Expansion Morphology
Authors: Lu Zhangwei , Xu Lihua , Wu Yaqi , Shi Yijun , Deng Jinyang , Shen Xiaoqiang
Published: February 2021

With the rapid development of urbanization, the urban expansion morphology has been changing with complex driving mechanisms behind the urban evolution process. This article simulates the results of urban land development contingent upon decision‐makers’ risk preferences and reveals the inherent law of the effect of risk preferences on urban expansion morphology. Results show that cautious decision‐makers lead to the urban expansion morphology being relatively compact, and the reckless decision‐makers lead the urban expansion to sprawl. Moreover, there are obvious differences in strengths of planning constraints on the decision‐makers with different risk preferences. The reckless decision‐makers, driven by the economic interests, are more likely to break through the planning, especially when the planning is not reasonable. It is also found that enhancing executive ability of planning for the reckless decision‐makers can promote compactness of the urban expansion morphology. However, the effect of enhancing executive ability of planning on the cautious decision‐makers is limited. Thus, in the case of unreasonable planning, the executive ability of planning to the reckless decision‐makers should be enhanced so as to avoid urban sprawl.
Valuing Multirisk Catastrophe Reinsurance Based on the Cox–Ingersoll–Ross (CIR) Model
Authors: Chao Wen
Published: February 2021

Catastrophe risks lead to severe problems of insurance and reinsurance industry. In order to reduce the underwriting risk, the insurer would seek protection by transferring part of its risk exposure to the reinsurer. A framework for valuing multirisk catastrophe reinsurance under stochastic interest rates driven by the CIR model shall be discussed. To evaluate the distribution and the dependence of catastrophe variables, the Peaks over Threshold model and Copula function are used to measure them, respectively. Furthermore, the parameters of the valuing model are estimated and calibrated by using the Global Flood Date provided by Dartmouth College from 2000 to 2016. Finally, the value of catastrophe reinsurance is derived and a sensitivity analysis of how stochastic interest rates and catastrophe dependence affect the values is performed via Monte Carlo simulations. The results obtained show that the catastrophe reinsurance value is the inverse relation between initial value of interest rate and average interest rate in the long run. Additionally, a high level of dependence between catastrophe variables increases the catastrophe reinsurance value. The findings of this paper may be interesting to (re)insurance companies and other financial institutions that want to transfer catastrophic risks.
Member Selection for the Collaborative New Product Innovation Teams Integrating Individual and Collaborative Attributions
Authors: Su Jiafu , Zhang Fengting , Chen Shan , Zhang Na , Wang Huilin , Jian Jie
Published: February 2021

As the first stage of the formation of a collaborative new product innovation (CNPI) team, member selection is crucial for the effective operation of the CNPI team and the achievement of new product innovation goals. Considering comprehensively the individual and collaborative attributions, the individual knowledge competence, knowledge complementarity, and collaborative performance among candidates are chosen as the criteria to select CNPI team members in this paper. Moreover, using the fuzzy set and social network analysis method, the quantitative methods of the above criteria are proposed correspondingly. Then, by integrating the above criteria, a novel multiobjective decision model for member selection of the CNPI team is built from the view of individual and collaborative attributions. Since the proposed model is NP‐hard, a double‐population adaptive genetic algorithm is further developed to solve it. Finally, a real case is provided to illustrate the application and effectiveness of the proposed model and method in this paper.
Endoscopic Decompression in Colonic Distension
Authors: Belle Sebastian
Published: February 2021

Background: Acute colonic distension is a medical emergency with high morbidity and mortality. Clinically important causes of colonic distension are acute colonic pseudo-obstruction, colonic volvulus, and malignant obstruction. Endoscopic decompression is one established therapeutic strategy. Summary: This therapeutic review will give an overview of possible therapeutic strategies based on the recently published literature, focusing on endoscopic decompression and summarizing the other therapeutic possibilities. The review discusses separately the therapeutic options of acute colonic pseudo-obstruction, colonic volvulus, and malignant obstruction, providing an evidence-based orientation for clinical use. Key Messages: Endoscopic decompression of colonic distension is an established therapy with high clinical success. The technique and its position in the therapy sequence differ depending on the medical condition, the trigger of the colonic distension, and the local expertise.
Se eu fosse você: liminal spaces of gender and sexuality
Authors: Gregoli Roberta
Published: February 2021

The body swap comedy is a privileged genre for investigating norms related to gender and sexuality in popular culture. This article explores these norms through the close analysis of the film Se eu fosse você (Daniel Filho, 2006), using Mikhail Bakhtin’s thesis on the carnivalesque and Judith Butler’s theory of gender performativity. Despite the film’s overall strong conservative framework, it is argued that just as revealing as what the film tries to regulate is what it exposes: double standards, failures in the heteronormative matrix, and disruptive sex acts and gendered behavior.
Anticytomegalovirus CD4
+
T Cells Are Associated With Subclinical Atherosclerosis in Persons With HIV
Authors: Wanjalla Celestine N. , Mashayekhi Mona , Bailin Samuel , Gabriel Curtis L. , Meenderink Leslie M. , Temu Tecla , Fuller Daniella T. , Guo Liang , Kawai Kenji , Virmani Renu , Jenkins Cathy , Abana Chike O. , Warren Christian M. , Gangula Rama , Smith Rita , Madhur Meena S. , Finn Aloke V. , Gelbard Alexander H. , Su Yan Ru , Tyska Matthew J. , Kalams Spyros A. , Harrison David G. , Mallal Simon A. , Absi Tarek S. , Beckman Joshua A. , Koethe John R.
Published: February 2021

Objective:

Persons with HIV have double the risk of developing cardiovascular disease compared with the general population. A persistent and heightened immune response to cytomegalovirus coinfection may be one contributing factor, but the relationship between cytomegalovirus replication, virus-specific immune cells, and plaque burden is unclear.

Approach and Results:

We assessed the relationship between CD4
+
T-cell subsets and carotid plaque burden in a cohort of 70 HIV-positive participants with sustained viral suppression on a single antiretroviral regimen and without known cardiovascular disease. We evaluated relationships between immune parameters, carotid plaque burden, and brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation using multivariable linear and logistic regression models. We found that participants with carotid plaque had increased circulating CX3CR1
+
~GPR56
+
~CD57
+
(ie, C~G~C)
+
CD4
+
T cells (
P
=0.03), which is a marker combination associated with antiviral and cytotoxic responses. In addition, a median of 14.4% (IQR, 4.7%–32.7%) of the C~G~C
+
CD4
+
T-cells expressed antigen receptors that recognized a single cytomegalovirus glycoprotein-B epitope. Using immunofluorescence staining, we found that CX3CR1
+
CD4
+
T cells were present in coronary plaque from deceased HIV-positive persons. C~G~C
+
CD4
+
T cells were also present in cells isolated from the aorta of HIV-negative donors.

Conclusions:

HIV-positive persons with carotid atheroma have a higher proportion of circulating CD4
+
T-cells expressing the C~G~C surface marker combination associated with antiviral and cytotoxic responses. These cells can be cytomegalovirus-specific and are also present in the aorta.
Greater Visual Working Memory Capacity for Visually Matched Stimuli When They Are Perceived as Meaningful
Authors: Asp Isabel E. , Störmer Viola S. , Brady Timothy F.
Published: February 2021

Almost all models of visual working memory—the cognitive system that holds visual information in an active state—assume it has a fixed capacity: Some models propose a limit of three to four objects, where others propose there is a fixed pool of resources for each basic visual feature. Recent findings, however, suggest that memory performance is improved for real-world objects. What supports these increases in capacity? Here, we test whether the meaningfulness of a stimulus alone influences working memory capacity while controlling for visual complexity and directly assessing the active component of working memory using EEG. Participants remembered ambiguous stimuli that could either be perceived as a face or as meaningless shapes. Participants had higher performance and increased neural delay activity when the memory display consisted of more meaningful stimuli. Critically, by asking participants whether they perceived the stimuli as a face or not, we also show that these increases in visual working memory capacity and recruitment of additional neural resources are because of the subjective perception of the stimulus and thus cannot be driven by physical properties of the stimulus. Broadly, this suggests that the capacity for active storage in visual working memory is not fixed but that more meaningful stimuli recruit additional working memory resources, allowing them to be better remembered.
Conversational Disgust and Social Oppression
Authors: Tsai George
Published: February 2021

In recent years, philosophers have begun to uncover the role played by verbal conduct in generating oppressive social structures. I examine the oppressive illocutionary uses, and perlocutionary effects, of expressives: speech acts that are not truth-apt, merely expressing attitudes, such as desires, preferences, and emotions. Focusing on expressions of disgust in conversation, I argue for two claims: (1) that expressions of disgust can activate in the local, conversational context the oppressive power of the underlying structures of oppression; (2) that conversational expressions of disgust can, via the pragmatic process of presupposition accommodation, contribute to morally problematic cases of disgust contagion.
Distribution and diversity of meiofauna along an aquatic-terrestrial moss ecotone
Authors: Kreuzinger-Janik Bianca , Majdi Nabil , Traunspurger Walter
Published: February 2021

This study provides first insights into the moss-dwelling meio-invertebrate community inhabiting mosses collected from underwater, splash-water and adjacent terrestrial habitats along a Swedish lake. Additionally, changes in both species and functional diversity of the nematode community were followed. Total meio-invertebrate mean densities and biomass peaked at 10 644.2 ± 2391.8 individuals (g dry weight (DW) moss)−1 and 14 199.3 ± 5037.3 μg DW (g DW moss)−1 underwater, 1 m away from the shoreline, where the community was strongly dominated by rotifers, followed by nematodes. Total invertebrate biomass in terrestrial mosses was much lower, indicative of a significantly higher carrying capacity of moss patches in aquatic environments, which provide a high level of resource turnover as well as a buffer against desiccation and extreme temperature fluctuations. We found a total of 74 nematode species and maximum diversity was attained 1 m away from the shoreline and at the splash-water zone. The underwater mosses at the shoreline thus housed the most diverse and abundant assemblages of meio-invertebrates, suggesting they may play an important ecological role at the land-water interface. Evidenced by the multiple shifts in dominance, our study clearly showed that feeding types differed between habitats. The taxonomic and functional segregation of the nematode community along the ecotone further indicated that the composition of nematode species assemblages has the potential to mirror the ecological changes of the study site, even at small scales.
Building up Oneself as an Ascetic in the Shadow of Devotional Artifacts: The Case of the malañg-fuqarā of Pakistan
Authors: Ortis Delphine
Published: February 2021

This essay presents a reflection on the building process of ascetics belonging to an order “outside religious law” (be sharʿ), the Qalandarī, through the case of the malañg-fuqarā of a Pakistani Sufi lodge. I hypothesize that being an ascetic is a form of technique of the body and the subject, which results in producing, configuring, and using them, in relation to the Sufi and Twelver Shiʿism artifacts dispensing the healing and miraculous potency of the saint to whom he dedicates his life, and through which he builds himself as potential saint.
Can DNA barcoding be used to identify closely related Clunio Haliday, 1855 species (Diptera: Chironomidae, Orthocladiinae)?
Authors: MICHALOVA PARASKEVA , LENCIONI VALERIA , NENOV MOMCHIL , NIKOLOV SVETOSLAV
Published: February 2021

DNA barcoding based on a fragment of mitochondrial Cytochrome C Oxidase subunit 1 gene (COI) was applied to the two chironomids Clunio balticus Heimbach (690 base pairs) and C. ponticus Michailova (691 base pairs). The two species differed by one deletion in the nucleotide sequence Adenine. However, the 658-nucleotide long sequences of DNA from the mitochondrial Cytochrome C Oxidase subunit 1 gene (COI) of C. balticus and C. ponticus were identical upon comparison. Further, they compared with homologous sequences for C. marinus Holiday and C. tsushimensis Tokunaga from the Barcode of Life (BOLD) database and the results plotted as a weighted graph, where C. tsushimensis, C. marinus and C. balticus C. ponticus formed three almost equidistant groups. From this, we established that the genetic distance between the respective COI sequences of C. balticus and C. ponticus is minimal, indicating a close relationship between the species indicative of recent common origin. However, the comparative analysis between C. tsushimensis, C. marinus, C. balticus and C. ponticus showed a wider divergence in their respective nucleotide sequences. Overall, our results emphasized that the COI region does not work well as a DNA barcode to identify species within the Clunio genus. Either longer sequences or a multifaceted methodological approach, including morphology, cytogenetic and ecology is needed to distinguish some members of Clunio genus.
Two new species of Aufidus (Hemiptera, Cercopidae) from New Guinea
Authors: CESNE MAXIME LE , SOULIER-PERKINS ADELINE
Published: February 2021

Two new species of the cercopid genus Aufidus Stål, 1863, A. alacaligus sp. nov. and A. albonigrus sp. nov., are described and illustrated, Photos of the type specimens with the illustrations of the male terminalia are provided. A key to the species found in New Guinea is presented.
Multiple original spellings, living authors and the Code: The case of Malachius raniansis Mawlood, Hammamurad & Abdulla, 2017 (Coleoptera: Melyridae)
Authors: PLONSKI ISIDOR S.
Published: February 2021

The present communication is primarily nomenclaturial–classical taxonomy is only touched in a side note on a diagnosis. It uses technical terminology coined by Alain Dubois, who is interested in the study of the concepts and theory of biological nomenclature (i.e. the “objective connection between the real world of populations of organisms and the world of language” (Dubois & Ohler 1997)), and who discusses the current ‘International Code for Zoological Nomenclature’ [hereafter just called ‘the Code’] in great detail. The terms are explained where necessary–but see also the glossaries in Dubois et al. (2019) and the works by A. Dubois cited below.
A survey on poorly known rainforest litter-dwelling spiders of Orchid Island (Lanyu, Taiwan) with the description of a new species (Araneae: Linyphiidae, Tetrablemmidae, and Theridiosomatidae)
Authors: BALLARIN FRANCESCO , YAMASAKI TAKESHI , SU YONG-CHAO
Published: February 2021

Representatives of some poorly known spider species collected in the rainforest litter of the Orchid Island (Taiwan) are illustrated and discussed here. A new species, Brignoliella tao sp. nov. (Fam. Tetrablemmidae), endemic to Orchid Island, is described based on both sexes. The previously unknown female of Theridiosoma triumphale Zhao & Li, 2012 (Fam. Theridiosomatidae), is described for the first time. Zoma taiwanica (Zhang, Zhu & Tso 2006) comb. nov., from the same family, is illustrated and its transfer from the genus Theridiosoma O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1879 to Zoma Saaristo, 1996 is proposed on the basis of morphological characters. Habitus and genitalia of the endemic species Gongylidioides angustus Tu & Li, 2006 (Fam. Linyphiidae) are also illustrated.
On the identity of some taxa of Coryphiina Zerche, 1990 from Kazakhstan (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Omaliinae: Coryphiini)
Authors: SHAVRIN ALEXEY V.
Published: February 2021

Three taxa of the subtribe Coryphiina Zerche, 1990 (Omaliinae: Coryphiini) from south-eastern Kazakhstan are redescribed and illustrated: the genera Murathus Kastcheev, 1999 and M. montanus Kastcheev, 1999, and Coryphiodes tchyldebayevi (Kastcheev, 1999) comb. nov. (ex Coryphium Stephens, 1834).
A new genus and species, Panamapisa guaymii gen. nov. sp. nov., the first record of the family Eriopisidae Lowry & Myers, 2013 from Central America
Authors: ALVES JESSIKA , LOWRY JAMES K. , NEVES ELIZABETH G. , JOHNSSON RODRIGO
Published: February 2021

Eriopisidae is a widespread amphipod family, whose members have subcylindrical bodies, often do not have eyes, showing elongate third uropods in which the endopod is reduced and the exopod can become very long. This is the first record of Eriopisidae from Central America. Here, we describe the new genus and species Panamapisa guaymii gen. nov., sp. nov. from Bocas del Toro, Panama. The taxon differs from other members of the family in having a greatly enlarged merus on gnathopod 1, marginal setae on the dactyls of pereopod 5 to 7 and a third uropod nearly as long as the body.
Energy Flow Diagnosis of ENSO from an Ocean Reanalysis
Authors: Toyoda Takahiro , Nakano Hideyuki , Aiki Hidenori , Ogata Tomomichi , Fukutomi Yoshiki , Kanno Yuki , Urakawa L. Shogo , Sakamoto Kei , Yamanaka Goro , Nagura Motoki
Published: February 2021

A method is introduced for diagnosing the time evolution of wave energy associated with ENSO from an ocean reanalysis. In the diagnosis, time changes of kinetic and available potential energy are mainly represented by energy inputs caused by surface wind stress and horizontal energy fluxes for each vertically decomposed normal mode. The resulting time evolutions of the wave energy and vertical thermocline displacements in the 1997/98 and 2014–16 El Niño events are consistent with our previous knowledge of these events. Further, our result indicated that representation of several vertical modes is necessary to reproduce the broadly distributed downward thermocline displacements in the central to eastern equatorial Pacific, generated by a westerly wind event in the western equatorial Pacific (e.g., in March 1997), that are preconditioning for El Niño development. In addition, we investigated the wave energy budget, including the influence of data assimilation, on the complicated time evolution of equatorial thermocline displacements caused by repeated westerly and easterly wind events during the 2014–16 El Niño event. Our result suggests that noise from a momentum imbalance near the equator associated with data assimilation, which possibly affected the El Niño prediction failure in 2014, was much reduced by our developed ocean data assimilation system and reanalysis. This study, which provides a new connection between the theoretical works and reanalysis products that use sophisticated systems for synthesizing OGCMs and observations, should be useful for climate research and operational communities interested in ENSO.
An Assessment of Land–Atmosphere Interactions over South America Using Satellites, Reanalysis, and Two Global Climate Models
Authors: Baker Jessica C. A. , Castilho de Souza Dayana , Kubota Paulo Y. , Buermann Wolfgang , Coelho Caio A. S. , Andrews Martin B. , Gloor Manuel , Garcia-Carreras Luis , Figueroa Silvio N. , Spracklen Dominick V.
Published: February 2021

In South America, land–atmosphere interactions have an important impact on climate, particularly the regional hydrological cycle, but detailed evaluation of these processes in global climate models has been limited. Focusing on the satellite-era period of 2003–14, we assess land–atmosphere interactions on annual to seasonal time scales over South America in satellite products, a novel reanalysis (ERA5-Land), and two global climate models: the Brazilian Global Atmospheric Model version 1.2 (BAM-1.2) and the U.K. Hadley Centre Global Environment Model version 3 (HadGEM3). We identify key features of South American land–atmosphere interactions represented in satellite and model datasets, including seasonal variation in coupling strength, large-scale spatial variation in the sensitivity of evapotranspiration to surface moisture, and a dipole in evaporative regime across the continent. Differences between products are also identified, with ERA5-Land, HadGEM3, and BAM-1.2 showing opposite interactions to satellites over parts of the Amazon and the Cerrado and stronger land–atmosphere coupling along the North Atlantic coast. Where models and satellites disagree on the strength and direction of land–atmosphere interactions, precipitation biases and misrepresentation of processes controlling surface soil moisture are implicated as likely drivers. These results show where improvement of model processes could reduce uncertainty in the modeled climate response to land-use change, and highlight where model biases could unrealistically amplify drying or wetting trends in future climate projections. Finally, HadGEM3 and BAM-1.2 are consistent with the median response of an ensemble of nine CMIP6 models, showing they are broadly representative of the latest generation of climate models.
The Vice and Virtue of Increased Horizontal Resolution in Ensemble Forecasts of Tornadic Thunderstorms in Low-CAPE, High-Shear Environments
Authors: Lawson John R. , Potvin Corey K. , Skinner Patrick S. , Reinhart Anthony E.
Published: February 2021

Tornadoes have Lorenzian predictability horizons O(10) min, and convection-allowing ensemble prediction systems (EPSs) often provide probabilistic guidance of such events to forecasters. Given the O(0.1)-km length scale of tornadoes and O(1)-km scale of mesocyclones, operational models running at horizontal grid spacings (Δx) of 3 km may not capture narrower mesocyclones (typical of the southeastern United States) and certainly do not resolve most tornadoes per se. In any case, it requires O(50) times more computer power to reduce Δx by a factor of 3. Herein, to determine value in such an investment, we compare two EPSs, differing only in Δx (3 vs 1 km), for four low-CAPE, high-shear cases. Verification was grouped as 1) deterministic, traditional methods using pointwise evaluation, 2) a scale-aware probabilistic metric, and 3) a novel method via object identification and information theory. Results suggest 1-km forecasts better detect storms and any associated rapid low- and midlevel rotation, but at the cost of weak–moderate reflectivity forecast skill. The nature of improvement was sensitive to the case, variable, forecast lead time, and magnitude, precluding a straightforward aggregation of results. However, the distribution of object-specific information gain over all cases consistently shows greater average benefit from the 1-km EPS. We also reiterate the importance of verification methodology appropriate for the hazard of interest.
Eye Tracking to Evaluate the Effects of Interruptions and Workload in a Complex Task
Authors: Kanaan Dina , Moacdieh Nadine Marie
Published: February 2021

Objective

To use eye tracking to understand the effects of interruptions in different workload conditions as part of a monitoring and change detection task.

Background

Interruptions are detrimental to performance in complex, multitasking domains. There is a need for better display design techniques that help users overcome interruptions regardless of their workload level. This requires understanding a user’s attentional state immediately after an interruption in order to determine what type of display adjustments are most suitable.

Method

An emergency dispatching simulator was developed with a visual primary task and auditory interruptive task. Two levels of workload were induced by varying the number of emergency vehicles to monitor for changes and the rate of changes to monitor. Eye tracking, performance, and subjective measures (NASA-Task Load Index) were collected and analyzed for 41 participants.

Results

As expected, high workload interacted with interruptions to further degrade primary task performance and alter participants’ attention allocation immediately after the interruption. Participants in the high workload condition had more narrowed, slower scan patterns immediately after the interruption as compared to before the interruption, as evidenced by lower scanpath length per second and mean saccade amplitude. However, this change was not observed in low workload.

Conclusion

High workload modulates the effects of interruptions on performance and eye movements. Users in the high workload condition struggle to quickly scan the display in the seconds following an interruption.

Application

The results can provide insight into the type of display adjustments needed right after an interruption in a high-workload environment.
Study of mechanical performance of polymer nanocomposites reinforced with exfoliated graphite of different mesh sizes using micro-indentation
Authors: Khammassi S , Tarfaoui M , Lafdi K
Published: February 2021

The first phase of this work aims to use the right additive nano-fillers choices, such as exfoliated Graphite (ExG), increasing the mechanical, electrical, and thermal performances. In this work, we are interested in quantifying the effect particles' size on a polymer matrix's performance. For this, three sets of exfoliated polymers filled with Graphite, characterized by three particle sizes, called meshes 50, 100, and 150, were investigated. In this analysis, exfoliated Graphite reinforced polymers were subjected to indentation tests to define local mechanical properties. The sample is an epoxy 862 matrix reinforced with exfoliated graphite additives. For each specific size, the additives are mixed in percentages of 0% in the act of control, 0.5%, 4%, 8%, and 16% by weight. Matching pure polymers, polymers reinforced by exfoliated Graphite have proven to have significant improvements in local elastic properties (such as modulus, hardness, stiffness, etc.). Results showed that the reinforced epoxy's local mechanical properties are affected by the size and the percentage of nano-additives. Through the inspection of the load-displacement curve, it can be concluded that the nano-additive has a significant influence on the plastic mechanical properties of the sample. Therefore, the size of nanoparticles has significantly improved in material properties.
Investments in Nascent Project-Based Enterprises: The interplay between role-congruent reputations and institutional endorsement
Authors: Tomaselli Angelo , Ebbers Joris J. , Torluccio Giuseppe
Published: February 2021

We study nascent project-based enterprises (PBEs) through the lens of upper echelons and institutional theory. We analyse the interplay between the different role-congruent reputations of their project entrepreneurs and the institutional endorsement of their project idea, theorizing how these affect PBEs’ ability to attract private investments. In the context of the Italian film industry, we find that the commercial reputation of the project entrepreneur in the producer role is crucial for attracting investors, while the artistic reputation of the project entrepreneur in the creative director role is crucial for attaining institutional endorsement of the project idea. Finally, we find that the effect of the commercial reputation of the project entrepreneur in the producer role on attracting investments is mediated by the institutional endorsement. We contribute to the literature on PBEs by demonstrating how specific combinations of project entrepreneurs’ roles and (role-congruent) reputations can directly and indirectly attract investments.
Oceans as the Paradigm of History
Authors: Duara Prasenjit
Published: February 2021

The temporality of historical flows can be understood through the paradigm of oceanic circulations of water. Historical processes are not linear and tunneled but circulatory and global, like oceanic currents. The argument of distributed agency deriving from the ‘ontological turn’ dovetails with the oceanic paradigm of circulatory histories. The latter allows us to grasp modes of both natural and historical inter-temporal communication through the medium of the natural and built environment. Yet the inclination in these new studies to deny any particular privilege to human will or design risks neglecting the changing role of human agency. Analytically I distinguish historiographical time from historical time. Historiographical time may be seen as the purposive capture of historical processes for various goals whereas historical time is more continuous with natural flows. More than origins and causes, the paradigm emphasizes the ramifying con-sequences of purposive actions. The gap in our understanding of the two temporalities has had a devastating impact on the planet.
Influence of Early Adolescents’ Mastery Goals on Inter- and Intra-Individual Relationships Between Metacognitive Monitoring and Academic Outcomes
Authors: Jo Eunjin , Lee Minhye , Lee Woogul
Published: February 2021

We aimed to investigate the inter- and intra-individual relationships between early adolescents’ achievement goals, metacognitive monitoring, and academic outcomes. Korean sixth graders responded to achievement goal questionnaires, solved four quizzes, monitored their own confidence in these four quizzes, and took a final exam. Given the nested data structure, we conducted multi-level path modeling, which can distinguish between inter- and intra-individual effects in a single model. We found significant between-person indirect effects of mastery goals on the final exam score via individual’s average scores for the four calibrations and for the four quizzes. We also found a positive within-person relationship between the calibration and quiz scores. The students’ pursuit of personal mastery goals positively moderated this within-person relationship. These findings indicate that pursuing mastery goals can be more effective for metacognitive monitoring and knowledge acquisition, particularly for early adolescents.
Hearing the ‘Voice’ of the Niphal: A Response to Ellen van Wolde
Authors: Jones Ethan C.
Published: February 2021

This article responds to the innovative and stimulating research by Ellen van Wolde in a previous volume of Journal for the Study of the Old Testament. She claims that the Niphal is middle voice and can be passive, ‘if (and only if) an external argument, coded as an external Agent, is present’. My research however, demonstrates that such a description of the passive is both inadequate in view of the world’s languages and incongruent with Niphal. In addition, my response lays bare how such a prescription of the middle voice to the Niphal in the Hebrew Bible is circulus probando and unconvincing.
Superselective prostatic artery embolization in the treatment of large benign prostatic hyperplasia
Authors: Neymark Alexander Izrailevich , Karpenko Andrey Anatoljevich , Neymark Boris Alexandrovich , Tachalov Mikhail Alexandrovich , Arzamastsev Denis Dmitrievich , Torbik Demid Vjacheslavovich , Gameeva Elena Vladimirovn , Bobrov Boris Yuryevich , Spivak Leonid Grigoryevich , Korolev Dmitry Olegovich , Tsarichenko Dmitry Georgievich , Rapoport Leonid Moiseevich
Published: February 2021

Purpose:

To evaluate the use of prostatic artery embolization (PAE) as a treatment option for patients with symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) with prostate volumes of 80 cc and more.

Materials and Methods:

The study included 75 patients with high anesthesia-related risks for conventional surgery (TURP). All patients were surveyed for symptom burden, using IPSS and quality of life score. The prostate volume was determined by transrectal ultrasonography (TRUS). At baseline, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level was obtained in all patients. Urodynamics was evaluated using uroflowmetry. Clinical outcomes were assessed at follow-up 1, 3, 6, 12, and 24 months after PAE.

Results:

The prostate volume decreased significantly at months 1 and 3 post-treatment; the prostate continued shrinking until month 12, and the size was then stabilized. At month 24, prostate volume decreased by 40.82%, from 134.0 ± 8.3 mL at baseline to 79.3 ± 6.6 mL. Postvoid residual (PVR) urine volume was significantly decreased from 55.9 ± 5.3 mL to 22.0 ± 1.8 mL 1 month after PAE ( p < 0.001). Qmax increased from 9.2 ± 0.3 mL/s to 15.7 ± 0.4 mL/s. IPSS score following PAE decreased from 28.2 ± 0.7 to 9.7 ± 0.8 ( p < 0.001). QoL improvement was observed from 4.8 ± 0.2 at baseline to 1.8 ± 0.2 at month 24 ( p < 0.001). Decreased activity and density of adenomatous tissue resulted in decreased total PSA levels: from 5.9 ± 1.1 ng/mL to 2.6 ± 0.2 ng/mL ( p < 0.001). TURP became feasible in 35 patients due to reduction of prostate volumes below 80 mL after PAE.

Conclusions:

PAE was effective in relieving LUTS and reducing prostate size, and may be considered as a preoperative approach for patients with large prostate.
Using a Warm Hand-Off Approach to Enroll African American Caregivers in a Multi-Site Clinical Trial: The Handshake Protocol
Authors: Epps Fayron , Brewster Glenna , Phillips Judy S. , Nash Rachel , Shah Raj C. , Hepburn Kenneth
Published: February 2021

“Testing Tele-Savvy” was a three-arm randomized controlled trial that recruited participants from four National Institute on Aging (NIA)–funded Alzheimer’s Disease Centers with Emory University serving as the coordinating center. The enrollment process involved each center providing a list of eligible caregivers to the coordinating center to consent. Initially, the site proposed to recruit primarily African American caregivers generated a significant amount of referrals to the coordinating center, but a gap occurred in translating them into enrolled participants. To increase the enrollment rate, a “Handshake Protocol” was established, which included a warm handoff approach. During preset phone calls each week, the research site coordinator introduced potential participants to a culturally congruent co-investigator from the coordinating center who then completed the consent process. Within the first month of implementation, the team was 97% effective in meeting its goals. This protocol is an example of a successful, innovative approach to enrolling minority participants in multi-site clinical trials.
Out-of-round tram wheels – Multibody simulation study based on measured wheel rim geometry
Authors: Staśkiewicz Tomasz , Firlik Bartosz , Kominowski Julian
Published: February 2021

The article discusses the influence of out-of-roundness ( OOR) type of wheel shape deviations on its interaction with the rail. The analysis was carried out using multibody simulation technique ( MBS). Measurements of tram wheel rims and sample models of flat spots were used as input data. It has been observed that the presence of wheel OOR deviations caused a significant increase in vertical impact loads at the interface between the wheel and the rail, which favours rolling contact fatigue formation. Deviations created at the stage of manufacturing the wheel rim (usually while the profile of the rim itself is turned on a lathe) were amplified by increasing amplitudes and were also visible during the measurement of worn rims, thus creating inequalities with dominant amplitudes. Flat spots present on the rolling surfaces of the wheels cause cyclic jumps of vertical force at the contact point of the wheel and the rail, with maximum values depending on the depth and radius of the rounded edges of the flat spot, and thus subject to change in subsequent stages of the flat spot development. Taking into account the observations made, preventive measures have been proposed against the development of OOR deviations in tram wheels, the origin of which is primarily in the machining process.
Association between relationship characteristics and willingness to use PrEP among same-sex male couples: a cross-sectional actor-partner analysis in Guangzhou, China
Authors: Qiu Jialing , Chen Sha , Yang Qingling , He Juan , Gu Jing , Li Jinghua , Xu Huifang , Cheng Weibin , Liu Hongjie , Hao Chun , Hao Yuantao
Published: February 2021

The association between relationship characteristics and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) acceptability among same-sex male couples has been limitedly examined. Dyadic survey data of 139 concordant HIV-negative same-sex male couples in Guangzhou, China were collected. The willingness to use PrEP was measured assuming that the participant’s partner was HIV-positive. The actor–partner interdependence model was used to examine how one’s relationship characteristics affected the PrEP willingness of the subject and his partner. Most participants (79.5%) were willing to use PrEP. The two individuals of the couple were distinguished by sex role in relationship, namely one usually playing the insertive role and the other usually playing the receptive role in anal intercourse. The former was labeled as “top” and the latter labeled as “bottom”. The PrEP willingness of the top partner increased when he would think his partner is having sex with other people if the partner requests condom use in relationship (AOR: 5.74, 95% CI: 1.10–29.87), and decreased when his partner would get violent upon condom use requests in relationship (AOR: 0.19, 95% CI: 0.04–0.88). The PrEP willingness of the bottom partner increased when he trusted his partner (AOR: 1.13, 95% CI: 1.02–1.25) and when he or his partner disclosed the relationship to parents (AOR: 10.57, 95% CI: 1.91–58.61). Considering the sex role and relationship characteristics in couple-based interventions are important to optimize PrEP uptake among HIV-discordant same-sex male couples.
Centralizing the cut: a feminist, queer, crip response to powerful playgrounds
Authors: van Saarloos Simon(e)
Published: February 2021

Responding to Erik Rietveld’s inaugural lecture, this commentary asks which bodies and what sites of design and architecture are centralized when thinking about “The Affordances of Art for Making Technologies”? Departing from personal experience and Nicholas Mirzoeff’s counterhistory of visuality, I analyze what it means to imagine “the end of sitting.” Through an engagement with crip theory and disability activism, I aim to understand which architectural sites should be disrupted. RAAAF’s practice of cutting and splitting closely relates to the work of the ‘70s artist Gordon Matta-Clark. But the radical proposals of both RAAAF and Matta-Clark engage with power in almost oppositional ways. While Matta-Clark offers the cut as a final space, RAAAF aims to create new worlds. I question the need for new worlds, since they are built on current power structures, instead of dismantling them.
Neoliberalism’s prologue: Keynesianism, myths of class compromises and the restoration of class power
Authors: Baca George
Published: February 2021

Many anthropologists interpret neoliberalism as a radical break from and dangerous rupture in post-war societies that featured Keynesian economic policies and welfare provision. The allure of a mythic welfare state has boosted John Maynard Keynes’s popularity to many who embrace certain facets of socialism. Many critical social scientists have embraced Keynesianism in ways that overlook how the US used Keynesian policies to reengineer and redeploy state power. Keynes’s liberal synthesis inspired managers in the US Treasury Department to understand depression-era problems of unemployment and poverty in ways that were consonant with the expansion of corporate power. For understanding Keynesianism, as it actually existed during the Cold War, we must analyse how the US Treasury and State Departments used Keynesian principles to rebuild the social reproductive capacities necessary for capitalist accumulation both domestically and in Western Europe. I focus on how the architects of post-war capitalism used full employment policies, labour laws and welfare provision to renovate the nexus of political practices and institutional structures in ways that formed a benevolent and caring image of ‘the state’ and the myth of a class compromise. Through these reforms, governmental planners and administrators used the ‘state idea’ to reorganize capital accumulation as if the post-war economy would represent ordinary people’s best interests. In the process, these sophisticated practices of power became reified as the ‘welfare state’ and the ‘Keynesian compromise’ in ways that endow these institutions and policies with a character divorced from practices of power. The post-war state embodied a dialectic of repression and reform that combined criminalizing dissent with full employment policies and welfare provision. Taking these aspects of power into account, we can see post-war Keynesianism in ways that inspire a robust and far-reaching criticism of the contemporary predicament of economic uncertainty, political instability and environmental degradation.
Ginkgolide B promotes oligodendrocyte precursor cell differentiation and survival via Akt/CREB/bcl-2 signaling pathway after white matter lesion
Authors: Huang Jian , Yang Jun , Zou Xingju , Zuo Shilun , Wang Jing , Cheng Jing , Zhu Hao , Li Weiwang , Shi Ming , Zhao Gang , Liu Zhirong
Published: February 2021

White matter lesion (WML) is caused by chronic cerebral hypoperfusion, which are usually associated with cognitive impairment. Evidence from recent studies has shown that ginkgolide B has a neuroprotective effect that could be beneficial for the treatment of ischemia; however, it is not clear whether ginkgolide B has a protective effect on WML. Our data show that ginkgolide B can promote the differentiation of oligodendrocyte precursor cell (OPC) into oligodendrocytes and promote oligodendrocyte survival following a WML. Ginkgolide B (5, 10, 20 mg/kg) or saline is administered intraperitoneally every day after WML. After 4 weeks, the data of Morris water maze suggested that rats’ memory and learning abilities were impaired, and the administration of ginkgolide B enhanced behavioral achievement. Also, treatment with ginkgolide B significantly attenuated this loss of myelin. Our result suggests that ginkgolide B promotes the differentiation of OPC into oligodendrocytes. We also found that ginkgolide B ameliorates oligodendrocytes apoptosis. Furthermore, ginkgolide B enhanced the expression of phosphorylated Akt and CREB. In conclusion, our data firstly show that ginkgolide B promotes oligodendrocyte genesis and oligodendrocyte myelin following a WML, possibly involving the Akt and CREB pathways.
Exosomal microRNAs in cancer-related sarcopenia: Tumor-derived exosomal microRNAs in muscle atrophy
Authors: Li Chenyuan , Wu Qi , Li Zhiyu , Wang Zhong , Tu Yi , Chen Chuang , Sun Si , Sun Shengrong
Published: February 2021

Cancer-associated sarcopenia is a complex metabolic syndrome marked by muscle mass wasting. Muscle wasting is a serious complication that is a primary contributor to cancer-related mortality. The underlying molecular mechanisms of cancer-associated sarcopenia have not been completely described to date. In general, evidence shows that the main pathophysiological alterations in sarcopenia are associated with the degradation of cellular components, an exceptional inflammatory secretome and mitochondrial dysfunction. Importantly, we highlight the prospect that several miRNAs carried by tumor-derived exosomes that have shown the ability to promote inflammatory secretion, activate catabolism, and even participate in the regulation of cellular degradation pathways can be delivered to and exert effects on muscle cells. In this review, we aim to describe the current knowledge about the functions of exosomal miRNAs in the induction of cancer-associated muscle wasting and propose potential treatment strategies.
Improving Limb Salvage for Chronic Limb-Threatening Ischemia With Spinal Cord Stimulation: A Retrospective Analysis
Authors: Cyrek Anna E. , Henn Nora , Meinhardt Fabian , Lainka Martin , Pacha Arkadius , Paul Andreas , Koch Dietrich
Published: February 2021

Introduction:

Chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI) represents the most severe form of peripheral artery disease (PAD). Up to a third of CLTI patients are not eligible to receive first-line treatments such as bypass surgery or endovascular interventions. Epidural spinal cord stimulation (SCS) has been used as a method to improve microcirculatory blood flow and relieve ischemic pain in CTLI patients. The aim of the study was to evaluate limb salvage, ulcer closure, and clinical changes of SCS implanted CTLI patients at 1-year follow-up.

Methods:

Eligible patients had end-stage lower limb PAD unresponsive to medical therapy and not amenable to surgical reconstruction. Patients were candidates for amputation, but limb loss was not inevitable (Fontaine stage III and IV). Pain intensity and skin temperature in the ischemic area (visual analogue scale), quality of life (WHOQoL-BREF), and ankle/brachial blood pressure index (ABI) were recorded at routine follow-up visits. Data were analyzed retrospectively.

Results:

29 patients underwent SCS implantation at one vascular center. The minimum follow-up period was 30 months. Limb survival at 1-year follow-up was 97% (28/29) and 73% (11/15) had complete closure of limb ulcers. Pain intensity, skin temperature, and quality of life progressively improved up to 12 months after implant, with Fontaine stage III patients improving more substantially than Fontaine stage IV patients. SCS therapy did not affect ABI measurement. No complications related to the device or procedure occurred.

Conclusions:

SCS is a valid alternative in patients unsuitable for revascularization. The quality of results depends on both a strict selection of patients by vascular specialists and the frequency of follow-up controls. The therapy may be more beneficial in patients classified as Fontaine stage III.