bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
“Constitution (Written or Unwritten)”: Legitimacy and Legality in the Thought of John Rawls
Authors: Michelman Frank I.
Published: November 2018

John Rawls proposed, as what he called “the liberal principle of legitimacy,” that coercive exercises of political power can be justified to free and equal dissenters when “in accordance with a constitution (written or unwritten) the essentials of which all citizens, as reasonable and rational, can endorse.” Does “unwritten constitution” there refer to norms of constitutional import, but that subsist only as custom, not as law? To norms that subsist as common law but not as code law? To empirical regularities of political practice, as opposed to normative rules and standards? Which interpretation is best?
Troubled waters – Where is the bridge? Confronting marine plastic pollution from international watercourses
Authors: Finska Linda , Howden Julie Gjørtz
Published: November 2018

A considerable volume of marine plastic pollution derives from watercourses, and many of the world's largest and most heavily polluted watercourses are international. In spite of the clear factual link between the utilization and protection of international watercourses and marine plastic pollution there is hardly any interaction between the legal sub‐fields of international water law and marine environmental law. This lack of interaction also reflects the absence of a global treaty, or even a shared global understanding, of the environmental threat from plastic pollution and the universal responsibility this generates also for landlocked States. This article investigates the possibilities for more integrated measures to prevent pollution of international watercourses and oceans, and argues that regimes within international water law and marine environmental law must cooperate to create awareness of the plastic pollution risk from watercourses and take steps to harmonize their legal rules and policies to contribute to the control and mitigation of marine plastic pollution. Regional coordination, such as improved cooperation between the regional seas organizations and river basin organizations, could provide a tool to better address transboundary sources of plastic. Potentially, such developments could be adopted to control marine plastic pollution from the most heavily polluted international watercourses.
Marine plastics: Fragmentation, effectiveness and legitimacy in international lawmaking
Authors: Kirk Elizabeth A. , Popattanachai Naporn
Published: November 2018

Much of the plastic rubbish that is now found in our oceans comes from land‐based sources. From plastic bags, to toothbrushes and plastic nurdles, plastic enters the oceans through, for example, discharges or dumping in rivers, from waste dumped on land blowing into watercourses, and from landfill sites which have been built too close to the coastline and are damaged by storms. This article explains the weaknesses in the current law on marine pollution from land‐based sources and activities that pave the way for such widespread pollution of our oceans, before examining possible legal solutions to this problem. The article assesses potential solutions to this problem using insights from literature on fragmentation and on effectiveness and legitimacy of regimes. In constructing this analysis, the article thus develops understandings of when and why the adoption of treaties may be both appropriate and effective.
REACH in a circular economy: The obstacles for plastics recyclers and regulators
Authors: de Römph Thomas J. , Van Calster Geert
Published: November 2018

The European Union (EU) Regulation on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) applies to chemical substances on their own, in mixtures or in articles. Manufacturers using either virgin or recycled substances have to comply with these rules, which do not explicitly distinguish between the two sources. This contribution considers REACH in the circular economy, with a particular focus on its role in the circularity of plastics through recycling. We show that the lack of information about the specific composition of the plastic waste arriving at the recycling facility greatly affects the ability of recyclers to comply with REACH. Over and above several other obstacles plastics recyclers encounter, this creates legal uncertainty about the use of recycled plastics and uncertainty about their market outlet. The recycling industry can in effect either choose to carry on in a regulatory vacuum or to continue the old, linear as opposed to circular scenario. On the face of it, this hardly supports the circular economy philosophy. We reflect how EU regulators may reconcile the objectives of creating a low‐risk life cycle of plastics (REACH) with the creation of a cycle with enough throughputs of plastics (Waste Framework Directive). We also propose practical solutions.
Toward an Epidemiology of Safety and Security Risks: An Organizational Vulnerability Assessment in International Airports
Authors: Bongiovanni Ivano , Newton Cameron
Published: November 2018

International airports are complex sociotechnical systems that have an intrinsic potential to develop safety and security disruptions. In the absence of appropriate defenses, and when the potential for disruption is neglected, organizational crises can occur and jeopardize aviation services. This investigation examines the ways in which modern international airports can be “authors of their own misfortune” by adopting practices, attitudes, and behaviors that could increase their overall level of vulnerability. A sociotechnical perspective, the macroergonomic approach, is applied in this research to detect the potential organizational determinants of vulnerability in airport operations. Qualitative data nurture the case study on international airports produced by the present research. Findings from this study highlight that systemic weaknesses frequently reside in areas at the intersection of physical, organizational, and social spaces. Specific pathways of vulnerability can be drawn across these areas, involving the following systemic layers: individual, task, tools and technology, environment, and organization. This investigation expands the existing literature on the dynamics that characterize crisis incubation in multiorganization, multistakeholder systems such as international airports and provides practical recommendations for airport managers to improve their capabilities to early detect symptoms of organizational vulnerability.
FPwatch: Facility‐based Survey Data for Family Planning Market Analysis in Five FP2020‐focus Countries
Authors: Babazadeh Saleh , Thanel Katherine , Garfinkel Danielle , Riley Christina , Bertrand Jane , Shaw Bryan
Published: November 2018

This article describes datasets for the FPwatch Project, a comprehensive facility‐based family planning survey conducted by Population Services International in five countries in Africa and Asia from 2015 to 2017. Contents cover research design and background, methodology, sample selection, data collection, an overview of FPwatch indicators, and quality assurance measures taken. These datasets from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, India, Myanmar, and Nigeria complement other facility‐based family planning surveys and are unique in their large‐scale, standardized methodology, and comprehensive sampling approach. In addition, all datasets but Myanmar (private only) include both private and public facilities, a feature that gives a more complete picture of the family planning supply environment. Because of these factors, the data is well suited to inform global family planning efforts.
Assessing Suicidal and NonSuicidal Self‐Injury via In‐Depth Interview or Self‐Report: Balancing Assessment Effort and Results
Authors: Lungu Anita , Wilks Chelsey R. , Coyle Trevor N. , Linehan Marsha M.
Published: November 2018

Objective

Both suicide and nonsuicidal self‐injury (NSSI) represent major public health concerns, and effective assessment, management, and treatment requires assessment tools that can simultaneously be quick and accurate. This study compared the validity of a self‐report measure of suicide attempts and NSSI acts with a gold standard in depth interview.

Method

Ninety women answered questions about their suicidal behavior history using both a self‐report assessment and in‐depth interview.

Results

The plurality of patients over estimated their suicidal acts using the self‐report measure when compared to the gold standard interview.

Conclusion

Self‐report assessments may not be an accurate method of retrieving information about suicide.
Measuring Thwarted Belongingness and Perceived Burdensomeness in Clinically Depressed and Suicidal Youth: Refinement and Reduction of the Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire
Authors: El‐Behadli Ana F. , Beitra Danette , Zullo Lucas , Mbroh Hayden , Stewart Sunita M.
Published: November 2018

Objective

The Interpersonal‐Psychological Theory of Suicide (IPTS) posits two constructs (thwarted belongingness (TB) and perceived burdensomeness (PB)) contribute to suicide ideation. These constructs are typically measured by the Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire (INQ); however, available INQ versions have demonstrated poor psychometric properties with youth. This study examined the INQ using Item Response Theory (IRT) to refine and reduce the scale for clinically depressed and suicidal youth.

Methods

Participants were 378 youth (Age M (SD) = 14.78 (1.41), 82.54% female) who completed the INQ. The INQ contains 25 items across two subscales (i.e., TB and PB) rated on a 7‐point Likert‐type scale. Rating scale performance, dimensionality, model fit, and instrument‐level statistics were examined using IRT methodology. Post hoc analyses were performed to further reduce the scale.

Results

The INQ was reduced from 25 to 10 items (five per subscale), and response options were refined to four choices. Correlations between original and IRT‐refined items were large (r = .97 for PB; r = .98 for TB). Additional item‐level (e.g., fit, difficulty) and instrument‐level (e.g., dimensionality) characteristics were examined.

Conclusions

The newly refined INQ resulted in improved scale reliability and validity. The psychometrically improved INQ can assist clinicians and researchers identify adolescents at risk of experiencing suicide ideation.
Land Struggles in Vulnerable Coastal Territories: Tourism Development in Mancora, Peru
Authors: González Velarde Fernando
Published: November 2018

By strengthening transnational linkages, and those between urban centres, and rural and coastal areas, the tourism industry has fostered new dynamics around the use of land, including territories subjected to extreme environmental hazards. Using the case of Mancora, Peru, this paper explores how a lack of land governance structures, resulting from conflicts between local authorities in the context of coastal tourism development, has triggered processes of uncontrolled urbanisation within fishing villages cyclically affected by the El Niño event. Based on ethnographic material collected via semi‐structured interviews, participant observation, and archival research, the study demonstrates how new dynamics around the use of land are increasing land conflicts, while raising the degree of environmental vulnerability to which the population is exposed, and threatening the reproduction of local models of development. It stresses the need for land governance structures to ensure the sustainability of coastal territories where land markets have intensified due to tourism.
A partial converse to the Andreotti–Grauert theorem
Authors: Yang Xiaokui
Published: November 2018

Let $X$ be a smooth projective manifold with $\dim _{\mathbb{C}}X=n$. We show that if a line bundle $L$ is $(n-1)$-ample, then it is $(n-1)$-positive. This is a partial converse to the Andreotti–Grauert theorem. As an application, we show that a projective manifold $X$ is uniruled if and only if there exists a Hermitian metric $\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}$ on $X$ such that its Ricci curvature $\text{Ric}(\unicode[STIX]{x1D714})$ has at least one positive eigenvalue everywhere.
Feasibility Study and Design of an Automatic System for Electronic Components Disassembly
Authors: Marconi Marco , Palmieri Giacomo , Callegari Massimo , Germani Michele
Published: November 2018

The improvement of the waste management efficiency and sustainability in the electronics sector requires the disassembly and reuse of valuable electronic components, instead of their recycling for precious materials recovery. In this context, this study proposes a robotic system for the disassembly of electronic components, grounded on the revamping of an existing soldering machine. First, the feasibility of an automated process for the end of life (EoL) management of electronic boards is investigated: the disassembly and reuse of electronic components represents a potential cost saving opportunity for producers of industrial electronic boards, other than an effective means to improve the environmental sustainability of the electronics sector. Then, the automatic system has been designed; it is mainly composed by a wave soldering machine, a two-axis manipulator equipped with a suction cup for components picking, and a central control unit to coordinate the motion. Finally, the prototype of the disassembly equipment has been realized. The experimental tests aimed at setting the most relevant process parameters (e.g., working temperatures) and verifying the performance of the developed disassembly equipment. Results confirmed the effectiveness and the reliability of the prototype: all the 450 microprocessors disassembled from 50 boards resulted to be not damaged and thus directly reusable in new boards without the need of additional treatments (e.g., washing).
Investigating User Emotional Responses to Eco-Feedback Designs
Authors: Bao Qifang , Burnell Edward , Hughes Ann M. , Yang Maria C.
Published: November 2018

Emotional responses to a product can be critical in influencing how the product will be used. This study explores the emotions that arise from users' interaction with eco-feedback products, and investigates links between emotions and users' resource conservation behaviors. In-lab experiments were conducted with 68 participants of varying backgrounds. Each participant was shown sketches of four conceptual designs of eco-feedback products and reported how they would feel and behave in different scenarios using the products. Two styles of eco-feedback design, quantitative and figurative, were compared to each other and were compared to neutral designs, which had little or no feedback information. Results showed that taking resource conservation actions such as turning off lights was highly correlated with negative emotions toward wasting resources, such as guilt, upset, embarrassment, and annoyance. Users' evaluations of esthetics, usefulness, and overall quality of eco-feedback products, however, were highly correlated with positive emotions toward resource conservation, described as satisfied, proud, interested, and joyful. Figurative designs were observed to evoke much stronger emotions among younger participants than older ones. Ultimately, we hope our findings are useful to the designers of eco-feedback products.
Investigation on Heat Transfer Performance and Flow Resistance Characteristics in Finned-Tube Heat Exchangers With Different Vortex Generator Positions
Authors: Qiang Wang , Zuoqin Qian , Junlin Cheng , Jie Ren , Weilong Huang
Published: November 2018

The numerical simulation was carried out to investigate mechanism of the heat transfer enhancement in the fin-and-tube heat exchangers. As known, the vortex generators (VGs) were widely used to improve the thermal performance with bad flow resistance characteristics and led to bad comprehensive performance. This paper aims to expound the mechanism of thermal hydraulic characteristics and explore the effect of VGs position on the comprehensive performance. Three types of fins (type 1, type 2, and type 3) were discussed in this paper. The j factor, f factor, and performance evaluation (PEC) of three types of VGs in different positions were discussed and compared. Based on the numerical results, a detailed description of the effect of three types of VGs on the heat transfer performance and flow resistance characteristics was presented at different Reynolds number in the range between 1300 and 2000. In addition, local velocity distribution, local temperature distribution, and local pressure drop distribution were analyzed and discussed. And the effect of VG angle on the thermal performance and flow resistance was presented. It can be concluded that the main heat transfer occurred in the region before the tube, and the wake region behind the tube was harmful to improve the thermal performance and reduce the flow resistance. Besides, VG in the wake region was obviously beneficial to the enhancement of the thermal performance with less energy loss.
Impact of Calcium Quantifications on Stent Expansions
Authors: Dong Pengfei , Bezerra Hiram G. , Wilson David L. , Gu Linxia
Published: November 2018

Severely calcified plaque is of great concern when planning and implementing a stenting intervention. In this work, computational models were developed to investigate the influence of calcium characteristics on stenting outcomes. The commonly used clinical measurements of calcium (i.e., the arc angle, maximum thickness, length, and volume) were varied to estimate stenting outcomes in terms of lumen gain, stent underexpansion, strut malapposition, and stress or strain distributions of the stenotic lesion. Results have shown that stenting outcomes were most sensitive to the arc angle of the calcium. A thick calcium with a large arc angle resulted in poor stenting outcomes, such as severe stent underexpansion, D-shaped lumen, increased strut malapposition, and large stresses or strains in the plaque. This was attributed to the circumferential stretch of the tissue. Specifically, the noncalcium component was stretched significantly more than the calcium. The circumferential stretch ratios of calcium and noncalcium component were approximately 1.44 and 2.35, respectively, regardless of calcium characteristics. In addition, the peak stress or strain within the artery and noncalcium component of the plaque occurred at the area adjacent to calcium edges (i.e., the interface between the calcium and the noncalcium component) coincident with the location of peak malapposition. It is worth noting that calcium played a protective role for the artery underneath, which was at the expense of the overstretch and stress concentrations in the other portion of the artery. These detailed mechanistic quantifications could be used to provide a fundamental understanding of the impact of calcium quantifications on stent expansions, as well as to exploit their potential for a better preclinical strategy.
Reliable and Failure-Free Workspaces for Motion Planning Algorithms for Parallel Manipulators Under Geometrical Uncertainties
Authors: Vieira Hiparco L. , Fontes João V. C. , Beck André T. , da Silva Maíra M.
Published: November 2018

Manufacturing tolerances and other uncertainties may play an important role in the performance of parallel manipulators since they can affect the distance to a singular configuration. Motion planning strategies for parallel manipulators under uncertainty require decision making approaches for classifying reliable regions within the workspace. In this paper, we address fail free and reliable motion planning for parallel manipulators. Failure is related to parallel kinematic singularities in the motion equations or to ill-conditioning of the Jacobian matrices. Monte Carlo algorithm is employed to compute failure probabilities for a dense grid of manipulator workspace configurations. The inverse condition number of the Jacobian matrix is used to compute the distance between each configuration and a singularity. For supporting motion planning strategies, not only failure maps are constructed but also reliable and failure-free workspaces are obtained. On the one hand, the reliable workspace is obtained by minimizing the failure probabilities subject to a minimal workspace area. Differently, a failure-free workspace is found by maximizing the workspace area subject to a probability of failure equal to zero. A 3RRR manipulator is used as a case study. For this case study, the usage of the reliable strategy can be useful for robustifying motion planning algorithm without a significant reduction of the reliable regions within the workspace.
Modification of Tool Orientation and Position to Compensate Tool and Part Deflections in Five-Axis Ball End Milling Operations
Authors: Habibi M. , Tuysuz O. , Altintas Y.
Published: November 2018

Tool-workpiece deflection is one of the major error sources in machining thin walled structures like blades. The traditional approach in industry to eliminate this error is based on modifying tool positions after measuring the error on the machined part. This paper presents an integrated model of cutting force distribution on the tool–blade contact, automatic update of blade static stiffness matrix without resorting to time-consuming finite element solutions as the material is removed, the prediction and compensation of static deflection marks left on the blade surface. The main focus of the paper is to compensate the deflection errors by respecting the maximum form errors, collision of tool/machine/workpiece, cutting speed limit at the tool tip, and ball end—blade surface contact constraints. The compensation has been carried out by two modules. The first module adjusts the tool orientation along the path to reduce the error by constructing an optimization problem. This module is computationally inexpensive and results in about 70% error reduction based on the conducted experiments. The modified tool path resulted from the first module is fed to the second module for further reduction of the form errors if needed at the violated cutter locations; hence it takes less computational time than the stand alone approach proposed in the literature. The proposed algorithms have been experimentally validated on five-axis finish ball end milling of blades with about 80% reduction in cutting force induced form errors.
Enhancement of Central Processing Unit Liquid Cooling Performance Using Hexagonal Boron Nitride Nanofluids
Authors: Atik Özgür , Ertürk Hakan
Published: November 2018

Cooling performance enhancement of computer liquid cooling (LC) systems using hexagonal boron nitride (hBN)–water nanofluids is investigated experimentally. Particle volume fractions of 0.1–2% are considered at constant flow rates varying from 0.3 to 2 L/min for two different cold plates (CPs), with and without fins. A commercial closed-loop LC system is also tested to examine performance of hBN–water nanofluids at constant pumping power. It was observed that the thermal performance can be improved by using hBN nanofluids, and higher improvements are achieved for systems with limited convection rates.
An Equivalent-Plane Cross-Coupling Position Control for Contour-Accuracy Improvement in Three-Axis Free-Form Contour Following Tasks
Authors: Ma Jian-Wei , Song De-Ning , Jia Zhen-Yuan , Jiang Wen-Wen , Wang Fu-Ji , Liu Wei
Published: November 2018

To reduce the contouring errors in computer-numerical-control (CNC) contour-following tasks, the cross-coupling controller (CCC) is widely researched and used. However, most existing CCCs are well-designed for two-axis contouring and can hardly be generalized to compensate three-axis curved contour following errors. This paper proposes an equivalent-plane CCC scheme so that most of the two-axis CCCs or flexibly designed algorithms can be utilized for equal control of the three-axis contouring errors. An initial-value regeneration-based Newton method is first proposed to compute the foot point from the actual motion position to the desired contour with a high accuracy, so as to establish the equivalent plane where the estimated three-dimensional contouring-error vector is included. After that, the signed contouring error is computed in the equivalent plane, thus a typical two-axis proportional-integral-differential (PID)-based CCC is utilized for its control. Finally, the two-axis control commands generated by the typical CCC are coupled to three-axis control commands according to the geometry of the established equivalent plane. Experimental tests are conducted to verify the effectiveness of the presented method. The testing results illustrate that the proposed equivalent-plane CCC performs much better than conventional method in both error estimation and error control.
RMPC-Based Directional Stability Control for Electric Vehicles Subject to Tire Blowout on Curved Expressway
Authors: Yang Lu , Yue Ming , Wang Jie , Hou Wenbin
Published: November 2018

This paper presents a directional stability control based on robust tube-based model predictive control (RMPC) approach for an overactuated electric vehicle after tire blowout on curved expressway, in the presence of the exogenous disturbances, such as cross wind and road variation. To begin with, the vehicle dynamic simulation platform allowing for the tire vertical force redistribution after tire blowout is presented, and the reliability of the platform is further analyzed by comparing with the existing experimental test results. After that, a RMPC-based controller is designed to enhance the directional stability performance of the vehicle on curved expressway after tire burst. Also, a pseudo inverse switch control allocator is developed to realize the allocation of the desired resultant signal for the remained effective wheels at the last stage. In the end, the simulation results conducting on the depicted simulation platform demonstrate the favorable maneuverability of the proposed method over the conventional model predictive control (MPC) in enhancing directional stability performance of the vehicle after a tire blowout on curved expressway.
Simultaneous Longitudinal and Lateral Control of Vehicle Platoon Subject to Stochastic Communication Delays
Authors: Xu Liwei , Zhuang Weichao , Yin Guodong , Li Guangmin , Bian Chentong
Published: November 2018

In addition to the longitudinal dynamics, the lateral control of the platoon can significantly affect its performance on winding road. This paper presents a platoon control framework on winding road for electric vehicles subject to stochastic communication delay and interference. The intervehicle spacing errors (ISEs) in both longitudinal and lateral directions are transformed to an arc-length-based form first. Then, the relationship between single vehicle dynamics and the ISEs is created based on the feedback linearization of the nonlinear system and the arc-length parametric representation of the directed curve. In this way, the whole platoon can be represented by three decoupled linear single-input and single-output systems, i.e., the longitudinal, lateral, and yaw. To assure the steady-state stability of the platoon on a winding road, a robust controller based on the H∞ method is designed to suppress the affection of the communication delay and interference. Also, sufficient conditions that achieve the transient stability of the platoon are derived. Simulations are conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method. Results show that the proposed platoon control can realize the stability of the platoon as well as the supernal road traceability.
Convergence Analysis and Experimental Validation of a Fused Numerical/Experimental Active System Optimization Framework
Authors: Deodhar Nihar , Vermillion Christopher
Published: November 2018

This paper presents a convergence analysis and experimental validation of an iterative design optimization framework that fuses numerical simulations with experiments. At every iteration, a G-optimal design generates a set of simulations and experiments that are used to characterize response surfaces. A subset of the experiments termed as the training points are used to fit a combined numerical/experimental response. This numerical response is obtained as a result of numerical model correction via experiments. The quality of fit for this combined response is evaluated using the remaining validation points. Based on the quality of fit, the feasible design space is reduced for a given confidence interval using hypothesis testing. A convergence analysis of the framework quantifies the closeness of the corrected numerical model to the true system as a function of response estimation error. This design optimization framework, along with the convergence result, is validated through an airborne wind energy (AWE) application using a lab-scale water channel setup. The quality of flight is greatly improved by optimizing the center of mass location, pitch angle set point, horizontal and vertical stabilizer areas using an effective experimental infusion as compared to a pure numerically optimized design.
Developing Swirl Boundary Layer and Flow Separation at the Inlet of a Coaxial Rotating Diffuser or Nozzle
Authors: Cloos Ferdinand-J. , Pelz Peter F.
Published: November 2018

When an axial flow enters a rotating diffuser or nozzle, a swirl boundary layer appears at the wall and interacts with the axial boundary layer. Below a critical flow number φc, there is a flow separation, known in the turbomachinery context as part load recirculation. This paper extends the previous work for a cylindrical coaxial rotating pipe still considering the influence of the centrifugal force by varying the pipe's radius, yielding a coaxial rotating circular diffuser or nozzle. The integral method of boundary layer theory is used to describe the flow at the inlet of a rotating circular diffuser or nozzle, obtaining a generalized von Kármán momentum equation. This work conducts experiments to validate the analytical results and shows the influence of Reynolds number, flow number, apex angle, and surface roughness on the boundary layers evolution. By doing so, a critical flow number for incipient flow separation is analytically derived, resulting in a stability map for part load recirculation depending on Reynolds number and apex angle. Hereby, positive apex angles (diffuser) and negative apex angles (nozzle) are considered.
Guided acoustic wave interaction with flanged junctions in water-filled steel pipelines
Authors: Li Zhao , Jing Liwen , Wang Wenjie , Lee Pedro , Murch Ross
Published: November 2018

The interactions of guided acoustic waves with pipelines and associated components has become a topic of interest due to their application in water pipeline condition assessment. In this paper, guided acoustic wave interactions with flanged junctions in a water-filled pipeline are investigated by an analytical model and experimental measurements. In the model, axial wavenumbers, displacement, and stress profiles of the main pipeline and flange junction components are calculated by an existing cylindrical waveguide analytical model. These components are then concatenated together using mode matching to determine the overall theoretical characteristics. Experiments with a flanged water-filled steel pipeline are carried out to verify model predictions. Transmitted signals are acquired using acoustic transducers uniformly spaced along the pipeline axis to separate individual modes and extract mode amplitudes. Transmission losses are estimated by comparing the extracted amplitudes in a pipeline with and without the flanged junction. Both theoretical predictions and experimental results indicate that the flanged junction interacts with pipeline wall dominant modes by transforming them into waterborne modes and as a result guides acoustic power into the water medium. The flange is shown to cause a small transmission loss in waterborne modes as compared to the pipeline without flanges.
A straightforward method for estimating the size of leaks in water pipelines using acoustic transients
Authors: Wang Wenjie , Li Zhao , Jing Liwen , Lee Pedro , Murch Ross
Published: November 2018

A straightforward explicit expression is derived for estimating the size and position of leaks in a water pipeline using the acoustic transient response. Experimental results are provided for a water pipeline with multiple leaks to demonstrate the usefulness and performance of the proposed approach. The form of the leak estimation expression can be further combined with an existing explicit expression derived for blockage detection. Using this combined expression it is also demonstrated that the proposed approach can detect and estimate leaks and blockages when they are simultaneously present in pipelines.
Sport in the Aspirational Corporate University: A Genealogy of Athletic Programming Development at Towson University
Authors: King-White Ryan , Beissel Adam
Published: November 2018

This project will specifically focus on the symbiotic relationship between the intercollegiate athletics program and corporatization of educational functions and leadership at Towson University as emblematic of the influence that neoliberal corporate capitalism has had on institutions of higher education and its stakeholders. We offer a genealogy of Towson University athletics to interrogate how the athletics program is a byproduct of, and vehicle for, the ascent of commercial imperatives and growing the consumer experience at the corporate university through authoritarian leadership and centralized governance. We conclude by making the argument that the corporate university lacks any real semblance of shared governance and that it has been to the very real detriment of the many stakeholders administrators suggest they are beholden to.
Streptococcus agalactiae Induces Placental Macrophages To Release Extracellular Traps Loaded with Tissue Remodeling Enzymes via an Oxidative Burst-Dependent Mechanism
Authors: Doster Ryan S. , Sutton Jessica A. , Rogers Lisa M. , Aronoff David M. , Gaddy Jennifer A.
Published: November 2018

Streptococcus agalactiae
, also known as group B
Streptococcus
(GBS), is a common pathogen during pregnancy where infection can result in chorioamnionitis, preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM), preterm labor, stillbirth, and neonatal sepsis. Mechanisms by which GBS infection results in adverse pregnancy outcomes are still incompletely understood. This study evaluated interactions between GBS and placental macrophages. The data demonstrate that in response to infection, placental macrophages release extracellular traps capable of killing GBS. Additionally, this work establishes that proteins associated with extracellular trap fibers include several matrix metalloproteinases that have been associated with chorioamnionitis. In the context of pregnancy, placental macrophage responses to bacterial infection might have beneficial and adverse consequences, including protective effects against bacterial invasion, but they may also release important mediators of membrane breakdown that could contribute to membrane rupture or preterm labor.
Prion Seeds Distribute throughout the Eyes of Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Patients
Authors: Orrù Christina D. , Soldau Katrin , Cordano Christian , Llibre-Guerra Jorge , Green Ari J. , Sanchez Henry , Groveman Bradley R. , Edland Steven D. , Safar Jiri G. , Lin Jonathan H. , Caughey Byron , Geschwind Michael D. , Sigurdson Christina J.
Published: November 2018

Cases of iatrogenic prion disease have been reported from corneal transplants, yet the distribution and levels of prions throughout the eye remain unknown. This study probes the occurrence, level, and distribution of prions in the eyes of patients with sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD). We tested the largest series of prion-infected eyes reported to date using an ultrasensitive technique to establish the prion seed levels in eight regions of the eye. All 11 cases had detectable prion seeds in the eye, and in some cases, the seed levels in the retina approached those in brain. In most cases, prion deposits could also be seen by immunohistochemical staining of retinal tissue; other ocular tissues were negative. Our results have implications for estimating the risk for iatrogenic transmission of sCJD as well as for the development of antemortem diagnostic tests for prion diseases.
k
-mer Similarity, Networks of Microbial Genomes, and Taxonomic Rank
Authors: Bernard Guillaume , Greenfield Paul , Ragan Mark A. , Chan Cheong Xin
Published: November 2018

Genome evolution of microbes involves parent-to-offspring descent, and lateral genetic transfer that convolutes the phylogenomic signal. This study investigated phylogenomic signals among thousands of microbial genomes based on short subsequences without using multiple-sequence alignment. The signal from ribosomal RNAs is strong across all taxa, and the signal of plasmids is strong only in closely related groups, particularly
Proteobacteria
. However, the signal from other chromosomal regions (∼99% of the genomes) is remarkably restricted in breadth. The similarity of subsequences is found to correlate with taxonomic rank and informs on conserved and differential core functions relative to niche specialization and evolutionary diversification of microbes. These results provide a comprehensive, alignment-free view of microbial genome evolution as a network, beyond a tree-like structure.
Cardiorespiratory sleep studies at home: experience in research and clinical cohorts
Authors: Kingshott Ruth N , Gahleitner Florian , Elphick Heather E , Gringras Paul , Farquhar Michael , Pickering Ruth M , Martin Jane , Reynolds Janine , Joyce Anna , Gavlak Johanna C , Evans Hazel J , Hill Catherine M
Published: November 2018

Objective

To evaluate the success rates of home cardiorespiratory polygraphy in children under investigation for sleep-disordered breathing and parent perspectives on equipment use at home.

Design

Prospective observational study.

Setting

Sheffield, Evelina London and Southampton Children’s Hospitals.

Patients

Data are reported for 194 research participants with Down syndrome, aged 0.5–5.9 years across the three centres and 61 clinical patients aged 0.4–19.5 years from one centre, all of whom had home cardiorespiratory polygraphy including respiratory movements, nasal pressure flow, pulse oximetry, body position and motion.

Main outcome measures

Percentage of home cardiorespiratory studies successfully acquiring ≥4 hours of artefact-free data at the first attempt. Parental report of ease of use of equipment and preparedness to repeat home diagnostics in the future.

Results

143/194 (74%; 95% CI 67% to 79%) of research participants and 50/61 (82%; 95% CI 71% to 90%) of clinical patients had successful home cardiorespiratory polygraphy at the first attempt. Some children required multiple attempts to achieve a successful study. Overall, this equated to 1.3 studies per research participant and 1.2 studies per clinical child. The median artefact-free sleep time for successful research studies was 515 min (range 261–673) and for clinical studies 442 min (range 291–583). 84% of research and 87% of clinical parents expressed willingness to repeat home cardiorespiratory polygraphy in the future. 67% of research parents found the equipment ‘easy or okay’ to use, while 64% of clinical parents reported it as ‘easy’ or ‘very easy’.

Conclusions

Home cardiorespiratory polygraphy offers an acceptable approach to the assessment of sleep-disordered breathing in children.
Migraine, tension-type headache and medication-overuse headache in a large population of shift working nurses: a cross-sectional study in Norway
Authors: Bjorvatn Bjørn , Pallesen Ståle , Moen Bente E , Waage Siri , Kristoffersen Espen Saxhaug
Published: November 2018

Objectives

To investigate associations between different types of headaches and shift work.

Design, participants and outcome measures

Nurses with different work schedules (day work, two-shift rotation, night work, three-shift rotation) participated in a cohort study with annual surveys that started in 2008/2009. In 2014 (wave 6), a comprehensive headache instrument was included in the survey, in which 1585 nurses participated. Headaches were assessed according to the International Classification of Headache Disorders IIIb. Frequent headache (≥1 day per month), migraine, tension-type headache, chronic headache (headache >14 days per month) and medication-overuse headache (chronic headache + acute headache medication ≥10 days last month) comprised the dependent variables. Adjusted (for sex, age, percentage of full-time equivalent, marital status, children living at home) logistic regression analyses were conducted with work schedule, number of night shifts worked last year, number of quick returns (<11 hours in-between shifts) last year, shift work disorder and insomnia disorder as predictors.

Results

Frequent headache, migraine and chronic headache were associated with shift work disorder (OR 2.04, 95% CI 1.62 to 2.59; 1.60, 1.21 to 2.12; 2.45, 1.25 to 4.80, respectively) and insomnia disorder (OR 1.79, 95% CI 1.43 to 2.23; 1.55, 1.18 to 2.02; 3.03, 1.54 to 5.95, respectively), but not with work schedule, number of night shifts or number of quick returns. Tension-type headache was only associated with >20 night shifts last year (OR 1.41, 95% CI 1.07 to 1.86). Medication-overuse headache was only associated with insomnia disorder (OR 7.62, 95% CI 2.48 to 23.41).

Conclusions

We did not find any association between different types of headaches and work schedule. However, tension-type headache was associated with high number of night shifts. Nurses with sleep disorders (insomnia disorder and shift work disorder) reported higher prevalence of frequent headaches, migraine, chronic headache and medication-overuse headache (only insomnia) compared with nurses not having insomnia disorder and shift work disorder, respectively.
Cross-sectional analysis on publication status and age representation of clinical studies addressing mechanical ventilation and ventilator-induced lung injury in infants and children
Authors: Patry Christian , Kranig Simon , Rafat Neysan , Schaible Thomas , Toenshoff Burkhard , Hoffmann Georg F , Ries Markus
Published: November 2018

Objectives

We determined the number and time-to-public availability of study results of published and unpublished clinical studies in paediatric mechanical ventilation (MV) and ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI), which were registered as completed on ClinicalTrials.gov. Furthermore, we explored the pattern of represented research study subtopics and the corresponding study populations.

Setting

Literature search based on ClinicalTrials.gov, PubMed and Google Scholar from 9 July 2017 to 27 September 2017.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

Assessment, if studies included in our analysis had been published. Assessment of primary research focus, patient enrolment and age representation of the analysed studies.

Results

We identified n=109 registered and completed clinical studies on paediatric MV and VILI (enrolment: 22 233 participants). 71% were published, including data from 18 647 subjects. 29% of studies were unpublished, containing data from 3586 subjects. Median time-to-public availability of study results was 22 (IQR, 12.8–41.5) months. The most important study subtopics were biophysical and technical aspects of MV (32 studies), administration of drugs to mitigate VILI through various mechanisms (40 studies) and diagnostic procedures (16 studies). n=66/109 (61%) studies exclusively focused on children below 1 year of age and n=2/109 (2%) exclusively on children between 1 and 14 years.

Conclusions

One-third of clinical studies in paediatric MV and VILI registered as completed on ClinicalTrials.gov remained unpublished and contained data on 3586 study participants. The overall median time-to-public availability of study results was longer than the deadline of 12 months mandated by the Food and Drug Administration Amendment Act of 2007. Important and clinically relevant research study subtopics were represented in the research questions investigated in paediatric MV and VILI. The study population was skewed towards children younger than 1 year which indicates, that there is a substantial need for clinical VILI research in older children.
Sleep quality of offshore wind farm workers in the German exclusive economic zone: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Velasco Garrido Marcial , Mette Janika , Mache Stefanie , Harth Volker , Preisser Alexandra Marita
Published: November 2018

Objectives

To assess the quality of sleep of employees in the German offshore wind industry and to explore factors associated with poor sleep quality.

Design

Web-based cross-sectional survey.

Setting

Offshore companies operating in wind farms within the German exclusive economic zone.

Participants

Workers with regular offshore commitments and at least 28 days spent offshore in the past year (n=268).

Outcome measures

Sleep quality in the past 4 weeks, troubles falling asleep or sleeping through in the past 4 weeks, differences in sleep quality between offshore deployments and onshore leaves.

Results

Having problems with sleep onset was reported by 9.5% of the respondents. 16.5% reported troubles with maintaining sleep three or more times per week. The overall quality of sleep was rated as very bad by only 1.7% of the participants. 47.9% of the workers reported their quality of sleep to be worse during offshore commitments than when being onshore. Higher levels of exposition to noise, vibrations and poor air quality were associated with sleeping troubles and poorer sleep quality. Sharing the sleep cabin with colleagues was associated with troubles sleeping through. No association was found for working in rotating shifts and for regularity of the offshore commitments.

Conclusions

Workers in our study showed frequent sleep problems and poorer sleep quality offshore than onshore. Our results indicate that higher degrees of exposure to noise, vibrations and artificial ventilation are associated with poor sleep quality rather than organisational factors such as shift-work and type of working schedule. In view of the high demands of the offshore workplace and the workers’ particular recovery needs, addressing sleep disorders should be part of any health and safety management strategy for this workplace.