bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Distance Constrained Based Adaptive Flocking Control for Multiagent Networks with Time Delay
Authors: Zhang Qing , Li Ping , Yang Zhengquan , Chen Zengqiang
Published: June 2015

The flocking control of multiagent system is a new type of decentralized control method, which has aroused great attention. The paper includes a detailed research in terms of distance constrained based adaptive flocking control for multiagent system with time delay. Firstly, the program on the adaptive flocking with time delay of multiagent is proposed. Secondly, a kind of adaptive controllers and updating laws are presented. According to the Lyapunov stability theory, it is proved that the distance between agents can be larger than a constant during the motion evolution. What is more, velocities of each agent come to the same asymptotically. Finally, the analytical results can be verified by a numerical example.
Primary Small Cell Carcinoma of the Hypopharynx: A Case Report of a Rare Tumor
Authors: Bayram Ali , Akay Ebru , Göksu Sema S. , Özcan İbrahim
Published: June 2015

Introduction. Primary hypopharynx involvement of small cell carcinoma is very rare and very few cases have been reported in the literature. Here, we report a case of primary small cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx in a male patient.Case Report. A 50-year-old man presented with a 6-month history of sore throat and swellings in the right side of the neck. Direct laryngoscopy and biopsy revealed small cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx located in the right pyriform sinus.Discussion. Small cell carcinoma of the hypopharynx has no clear treatment modality due to the rarity of the disease. Systemic chemotherapy and radiotherapy should have priority among the therapy regimens because of the high metastatic potential of the tumor.
A Paracrine Role for IL6 in Prostate Cancer Patients: Lack of Production by Primary or Metastatic Tumor Cells
Authors: Yu Shu-Han , Zheng Qizhi , Esopi David , Macgregor-Das Anne , Luo Jun , Antonarakis Emmanuel S. , Drake Charles G. , Vessella Robert , Morrissey Colm , De Marzo Angelo M. , Sfanos Karen S.
Published: June 2015

Correlative human studies suggest that the pleiotropic cytokine IL6 contributes to the development and/or progression of prostate cancer. However, the source of IL6 production in the prostate microenvironment in patients has yet to be determined. The cellular origin of IL6 in primary and metastatic prostate cancer was examined in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues using a highly sensitive and specific chromogenic in situ hybridization (CISH) assay that underwent extensive analytical validation. Quantitative RT-PCR showed that benign prostate tissues often had higher expression of IL6 mRNA than matched tumor specimens. CISH analysis further indicated that both primary and metastatic prostate adenocarcinoma cells do not express IL6 mRNA. IL6 expression was highly heterogeneous across specimens and was nearly exclusively restricted to the prostate stromal compartment—including endothelial cells and macrophages, among other cell types. The number of IL6-expressing cells correlated positively with the presence of acute inflammation. In metastatic disease, tumor cells were negative in all lesions examined, and IL6 expression was restricted to endothelial cells within the vasculature of bone metastases. Finally, IL6 was not detected in any cells in soft tissue metastases. These data suggest that, in prostate cancer patients, paracrine rather than autocrine IL6 production is likely associated with any role for the cytokine in disease progression. Cancer Immunol Res; 3(10); 1175–84. ©2015 AACR.
Molecular, chromosomal and morphological characters reveal a new diploid species in the Smilax china complex (Smilacaceae)
Authors: Zhao Yunpeng , Sun Zhongshuai , Wang Yihan , Fu Chengxin
Published: June 2015

The Smilax china complex (Smilacaceae) is a typical mixoploid species complex including five extant diploid taxa with a widespread distribution across eastern Asia. The diploid population (mHB, 2n = 32), which was originally considered to be diploid S. china, together with two newly discovered diploid populations (mZZ and mYXS) is supported here as a distinct species by morphological, karyotypic and molecular data. These three populations present consistent morphological characters of sub-erect stems, rudimentary tendrils and minutely serrulate leaf margins, in which they differ from S. china. Molecular phylogenetic analyses also confirm its monophyly with a closer relationship to the other two erect species S. biflora and S. trinervula in the complex. These three populations are thus proposed to be a clear new diploid species and described with the name of Smilax microdontus Z. S. Sun & C.X. Fu, sp. nov. The discovery of this new species highlights the importance of closer examinations on species complexes by integrating multiple evidence.
Quattro riflessioni sul canto popolare
Authors: Marini Giovanna
Published: June 2015

Quattro frammenti estratti da interventi tenuti dall’autrice in varie occasioni (tra cui una lezione alla scuola di Testaccio), e poi registrati e trascritti, offrono, in uno stile mantenuto opportunamente “orale”, una penetrante analisi dei canti popolari ancora vivi nell’Italia meridionale. “L’estetica del canto contadino” illustra alcune delle radicali differenze della musica popolare rispetto a quella accademica: tra esse, l’assenza di un ritmo mensurale (la battuta), l’improvvisazione, l’inscindibilità del canto dalla sua originaria funzione rituale. Ne “La voce degli invisibili”, l’autrice racconta il suo periodico viaggio-ricerca a Montedoro, in Sicilia, per osservarne e studiarne i tradizionali cantori. Pur minacciato dall’erosione del contesto etico-sociale che lo motivava, il canto popolare è mantenuto in vita dall’interesse di molti giovani che, dopo aver ottenuto un’educazione musicale accademica, ritornano al loro paese per prenderne parte. Il terzo frammento – un’intervista all’autrice – spiega come gli avvenimenti della storia italiana di Ottocento e Novecento sopravvivono nell’affabulazione dei canti popolari. In “Una piccola spiegazione a me utile” l’autrice argomenta che la musica contadina è conservatrice nella forma, in quanto indissolubilmente legata alle sue funzioni primordiali, ma rivoluzionaria per la sua semplice esistenza, in quanto portatrice della “scomoda” voce degli umili, da sempre sdegnata dalla cultura dominante e osteggiata dal potere.
Canti di donne in lotta. L’esperienza veneta
Authors: Serra Ilaria
Published: June 2015

Negli anni 1970, all’apice delle proteste femministe italiane, il Veneto vede sorgere un’esperienza unica: il Comitato per il salario al lavoro domestico di Padova e Venezia. Le domande del comitato sono rivoluzionarie ed il metodo di protesta da credito alla creatività femminile: è una protesta cantata. Esiste una particolare relazione tra donne e canto che trova intense espressioni in Veneto. La protesta femminile in musica, che in Italia affonda le radici nel canto medievale de “La malmaritata”, assume una speciale sfumatura nella laguna veneta e nel suo entroterra. In queste zone anfibie, i canti delle donne combinano melodia e rabbia, ironia e dura determinazione. Oltre alle fonti tradizionali, l’articolo include testimonianze di donne che furono protagoniste di quegli anni e che, lungi dal tornare “in casa”, continuano oggi a mettere in musica il loro impegno civile. L’articolo si dipana dai primi anni del Novecento alle recenti proteste contro la privatizzazione dell’acqua a Venezia nel 2011, dove si raccoglievano firme a suon di “contrafacta” (canzoni con parole modificate); e alla creazione del coro multietnico “Voci dal Mondo”, ultima espressione di quella potenzialità della canzone che ritorna a farsi universale in risposta all’emergenza dell’immigrazione.
Why engage in co-production of public services? Mixing theory and empirical evidence
Authors: Van Eijk Carola , Steen Trui
Published: June 2015

Through processes of co-production, citizens collaborate with public service agents in the provision of public services. Despite the research attention given to co-production, some major gaps in our knowledge remain. One of these concerns the question why citizens engage in processes of co-production of public services. In this article, a theoretical model is built that brings the human factor into the study of co-production. The model explains citizens’ engagement in co-production referring to citizens’ perceptions of the co-production task and of their competency to contribute to the public service delivery process, citizens’ individual characteristics, and their self-interested and community-focused motivations. Empirical evidence from four co-production cases in the Netherlands and Belgium is used to demonstrate the model’s usefulness. The academic and practical relevance of the findings and suggestions for further research are discussed.

Points for practitioners

Governments seek ways to engage a broad range of citizens, especially as only a limited number of citizens respond to government’s initiatives to involve citizens. Insights about citizens’ engagement are tested in four cases: Client councils in health care organizations for elderly persons and in organizations for disabled people, representative advisory councils at primary schools, and neighborhood watches. Practitioners can learn more about what drives citizens to engage in co-production. This enables them to improve their methods of participant recruitment.
How Government Coordination Controlled Organized Crime
Authors: Rios Viridiana
Published: June 2015

This article provides empirical evidence showing that when a multilevel government is well coordinated, organized crime can be more effectively controlled. Using a time-variant data set of Mexico’s cocaine markets at the subnational level and Cox proportional-hazards regressions, I show that when Mexico’s democratization decreased the probability of government coordination—the same party governing a municipality at every level of government—drug traffickers were more likely to violate the long-standing informal prohibition on selling cocaine within the country. It was this decrease in government coordination that would set the conditions for a violent war between drug cartels to erupt in the mid-2000s.
How Civil Wars Help Explain Organized Crime—and How They Do Not
Authors: Kalyvas Stathis N.
Published: June 2015

Large-scale organized crime occupies a gray zone between ordinary crime and political violence. The unprecedented scale of drug-related crime in Mexico has led to its description as an insurgency or even a civil war, a conceptual move that draws on recent studies that have associated civil war with large-scale criminality. By questioning both the “crime as civil war” and “civil war as crime” models, I argue that instead of folding the two phenomena, we should draw primarily from the micro-dynamics of civil war research program to identify areas of potentially productive cross-fertilization. I point to four such areas, namely, onset and termination, organization, combat and violence, and governance and territory. I conclude by sketching a theoretical and empirical agenda for the study of large-scale organized crime.
Discrimination and Ethnic Identity as Predictors of Substance Use and Delinquency Among Immigrant Adolescents From the FSU and Ethiopia in Israel
Authors: Walsh Sophie D. , Fogel-Grinvald Haya , Shneider Sabrina
Published: June 2015

The current study explores perceived discrimination and ethnic identity as predictors of delinquency and substance use among adolescent immigrants in Israel. Theoretically, the study draws from strain theory, immigration-related theories of ethnic identity formation in adolescence, bi-dimensional theories of acculturation, and the rejection-identification model. The study involved 250 adolescents, 140 from the Former Soviet Union (FSU) and 110 from Ethiopia, aged 15 to 18 years ( M = 16.7 years). Adolescents were assessed on substance use (cigarettes, marijuana, binge drinking, drunkenness), delinquent behavior, parental relationships (support, limit setting), perceived discrimination, host identity (Jewish Israeli), and ethnic identity (Russian/Ethiopian). Results from structural equation modeling showed that delinquency was predicted directly by greater discrimination, a weaker ethnic (Russian/Ethiopian) identity, and greater substance (alcohol and cigarette) use. Higher levels of parental limit setting and lower levels of parental support predicted higher levels of substance use, but only predicted delinquency indirectly through their impact on substance use. Findings support the hypotheses that perceived discrimination and a weaker ethnic identity predict involvement in delinquency and partially support a hypothesis that higher levels of a positive host identity are related to lower levels of substance use and delinquency among immigrant adolescents. A perceived lack of equal opportunities may lead to stress, anger, and frustration toward society leading to delinquent behavior, whereas difficulties in consolidating a positive cultural identity may lead the young adolescent to fill a void through substance use.
Regulatory Forum Commentary* Counterpoint
Authors: Darbes Jarig , Sistare Frank D. , DeGeorge Joseph J.
Published: June 2015

High-dose selection for 6-month carcinogenicity studies of pharmaceutical candidates in Tg.rasH2-transgenic mice currently primarily relies on (1) estimation of a maximum tolerated dose (MTD) from the results of a 1-month range-finding study, (2) determination of the maximum dose administrable to the animals (maximum feasible dose [MFD]), (3) demonstration of a plateau in systemic exposure, and (4) use of a limit dose of 1,500 mg/kg/day for products with human daily doses not exceeding 500 mg. Eleven 6-month Tg.rasH2 carcinogenicity studies and their corresponding 1-month range-finding studies conducted at Merck were reviewed. High doses were set by estimation of the MTD in 6, by plateau of exposure in 3, and by MFD in 2 cases. For 4 of 6 studies where MTD was used for high-dose selection, the 1-month study accurately predicted the 6-month study tolerability whereas in the remaining 2 studies the high doses showed poorer tolerability than expected. The use of 3 or more drug-treated dose levels proved useful to ensure that a study would successfully and unambiguously demonstrate that a drug candidate was adequately evaluated for carcinogenicity at a minimally toxic high dose level, especially when the high dose may be found to exceed the MTD.
An appropriate tool for entrepreneurial learning in SMEs? The case of the 20Twenty Leadership Programme
Authors: Clifton Nick , Huggins Robert , Morgan Brian , Thompson Piers
Published: June 2015

The 20Twenty Leadership Programme was developed by Cardiff Metropolitan University as an executive education programme to be delivered within South Wales to small businesses. It is funded by the European Social Fund, administered by the Welsh European Funding Office and has the key aim of developing small and medium sized enterprises’ growth potential via a range of leadership and management skills, including a focus on ‘soft’ skills. The aim of this paper is to place the 20Twenty Leadership Programme within the wider context of entrepreneurship policy and small and medium sized enterprise training initiatives in particular, and then to examine the rationale and delivery methods of the Programme in relation to these. It also reflects on the Programme’s success (or otherwise) to date where possible. Finally, the paper seeks to suggest fruitful areas of further research both in terms of the 20Twenty Leadership Programme itself and also with regard to evaluation in relation to other parallel programmes and to small and medium sized enterprise training initiatives more generally.
The effect of materials and surface preparation on joining methods: A review
Authors: Carnes Marcella D , Mtenga Primus V
Published: June 2015

Materials have been the primary element of the structural community from the existence of ceramics to the more durable and efficient polymers. The uniqueness of these materials stems from a necessity of a particular era. Because of the uniqueness of each material, the study of damage is of key interest in materials research. In conjunction with the essential materials, proper joining techniques are also fundamental in infrastructure; however, joints represent one of the greatest challenges in the design of structures. Current forms of joining include mechanical and adhesive, where adhesive bonding is preferred. However, no joint can be properly designed without adequate surface preparation. Proper methods for surface preparation and joining techniques will be reviewed for composite materials. This review will highlight some of the common approaches used to enhance the strength of the joint and, therefore, the structure itself.
Gender differences in time pressure and health among journalists
Authors: Tyrkkö Arja , Karlqvist Lena
Published: June 2015

The aim was to examine how different aspects of time pressure are associated with health and gender. The study is based on data collected by cross-sectional questionnaire from 153 female and 167 male journalists at three editorial offices in Sweden. Spearman correlation coefficients by gender were analysed between six different time pressure variables and seven health measures. For women three health indicators correlated significantly with time pressure expressed as “short of time for reflection”. For men, health as expressed by four indicators was primarily related to “lack of efficiency”. Severe time pressure correlated especially highly with stress but only to an almost negligible degree with neck and shoulder symptoms. Our analysis showed that the relation between time pressure and health differs between women and men and that time pressure can be interpreted in several different ways.
Decision-theoretic designs for small trials and pilot studies: A review
Authors: Hee Siew Wan , Hamborg Thomas , Day Simon , Madan Jason , Miller Frank , Posch Martin , Zohar Sarah , Stallard Nigel
Published: June 2015

Pilot studies and other small clinical trials are often conducted but serve a variety of purposes and there is little consensus on their design. One paradigm that has been suggested for the design of such studies is Bayesian decision theory. In this article, we review the literature with the aim of summarizing current methodological developments in this area. We find that decision-theoretic methods have been applied to the design of small clinical trials in a number of areas. We divide our discussion of published methods into those for trials conducted in a single stage, those for multi-stage trials in which decisions are made through the course of the trial at a number of interim analyses, and those that attempt to design a series of clinical trials or a drug development programme. In all three cases, a number of methods have been proposed, depending on the decision maker’s perspective being considered and the details of utility functions that are used to construct the optimal design.
Anatomic Feasibility Study of Posterior Arthroscopic Tibiotalar Arthrodesis
Authors: Malekpour Louis , Rahali Said , Duparc Fabrice , Dujardin Franck , Roussignol Xavier
Published: June 2015

Background:

Operative indications for an anterior arthroscopic tibiotalar arthrodesis are well defined. A posterior approach with the patient in a prone position may be indicated when the anterior approach is precluded by the soft tissue condition or for a 1-step procedure associated with posterior approach subtalar fusion.

Methods:

An anatomic study assessed the feasibility of posterior arthroscopic tibiotalar fusion and sought to determine arthroscopy entry points, mortise cartilage freshening quality, and the risk of osseous, tendinous, vascular, and neural complications. Twenty-two zones of the fibular tibiotalar mortise were mapped from 10 specimens. Medial and lateral para-Achilles arthroscopic portals were used with a 4 mm 30-degree arthroscope. Chondral resection was performed with a motorized burr, curette, and osteotome.

Results:

The entire plafond of the tibia could be debrided in all cases, whereas the talar dome was debrided in its entirety in 20% of cases; in 80%, only the posterior two-thirds could be treated with the anterior portion approaching the neck of the talus being poorly accessible. More than 50% of the area of the malleolar grooves was debrided. There was 1 medial malleolar fracture and 1 peroneal artery lesion.

Conclusion:

The technique was shown to be feasible if there was no frontal hindfoot deformity or tibiotalar equinus preventing satisfactory resection of the posterior and anterior talar cartilage.

Clinical Relevance:

This study demonstrated that a posterior approach arthroscopic ankle fusion would lead to adequate joint preparation. This procedure reduces the risk of nerve damage.
Background Predictors and Event-Specific Characteristics of Sexual Aggression Incidents
Authors: Davis Kelly Cue , Danube Cinnamon L. , Stappenbeck Cynthia A. , Norris Jeanette , George William H.
Published: June 2015

Sexual assault in the United States is an important public health concern. Using prospective longitudinal methods and responses from 217 community men, we examined whether background characteristics predicted subsequent sexual aggression (SA) perpetration during a 3-month follow-up period. We also examined event-specific characteristics of reported SA occurrences. Consistent with predictions, SA perpetration history, aggressive and impulsive personality traits, rape myth attitudes, and alcohol expectancies predicted SA (both non- and alcohol-involved) at follow-up. In addition, alcohol-involved assaults occurred more often with casual (vs. steady) partners but were more likely to involve condom use with casual (vs. steady) partners. Results suggest important avenues for future research and SA prevention efforts.
Annual effective dose of radon due to exposure in indoor air and groundwater in Bathinda district of Punjab
Authors: Mehra Rohit , Kaur Kirandeep , Bangotra Pargin
Published: June 2015

In the present study, an attempt has been made to estimate the actual dose received by the residents due to their exposure to indoor radon, indoor thoron and radon concentration in water of Bathinda district of Punjab considering the different factors like dissolution of gases in blood and contribution of waterborne radon in increasing indoor radon levels following various protocols set up by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The calculated values have shown a good positive correlation (R2 = 0.80) between indoor radon concentration and concentration of radon gas in soil in Bathinda district of Punjab, India. The correlation has been successfully established by using alpha spectrometry technique. Along with this, another linear relationship has also been established between indoor radon concentration and indoor thoron concentration keeping site conditions constant. The ratio of indoor thoron concentration to indoor radon concentration ranges from 0.68 to 1.53 with an average value of 1.10 which indicates that thoron contribution is not negligible in comparison to radon and hence its measurements cannot be neglected. The annual effective dose contributed due to inhalation of radon is 0.86 mSv and due to thoron is 0.96 mSv which is lower than the world average value of annual effective dose reported by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation, 2000.
The Rule of Rescue: An investigation into age-related preferences and the imperative to save a life
Authors: Watters Sarah
Published: June 2015

The dominant rule of economic evaluation within health care posits that resources are distributed in order to maximize health benefit. There are instances, however, where the public has demonstrated that they do not prefer such an allocation scheme, particularly in the context of life-saving interventions.

Objectives

Deviations from preferences of maximizing health benefit have important implications on both financial and distributive levels. This study sought to specify the circumstances in which respondent preferences are inconsistent with maximizing health benefit.

Methods

Ninety respondents recruited from the London School of Economics and Political Science completed a questionnaire comprised of a series of paired profiles involving various combinations of life-saving or quality-of-life enhancing interventions.

Results

The results indicate that saving a life holds value beyond that captured by traditional health benefit measurement and that the value of saving a life is not consistent across ages. More specifically, the value of saving a life was age-dependent and markedly attenuated for older-age patients.

Conclusions

Many respondents were willing to overlook maximizing health benefit in order to rescue a life in immediate peril, and showed a diminished sense of moral imperative to rescue older-age patients. In light of difficulties related to the implementation of larger-scale policies incorporating Rule of Rescue concerns, the most realistic approaches will likely involve adopting smaller-scale policies that address issues such as do not resuscitate (DNRs) and living wills. Potential policy solutions such as age or monetary thresholds for life-saving interventions may be favoured in a research context; however, their overall social feasibility is questionable.
Images of Leadership Development From the Inside Out
Authors: Cairns-Lee Heather
Published: June 2015

The Problem

With the codification of leadership into frameworks, models, and theories that can be taught, leadership, an art that is essentially subjective, symbolic, and context-specific, is “translated into” an objective, pragmatic, and universal domain. Development can be elusive when approached from this universal perspective if external models distract leaders from exploring their own views and practices of leadership.

The Solution

This article explores the subjective and symbolic reality of those in leadership roles to discover what leaders can learn about their leadership and its development from awareness of their own mental models. These models are illuminated by an exploration of leaders’ naturally occurring metaphors and implicit leadership theories (ILTs) using clean language to acknowledge experience exactly as described while minimizing external influence or interpretation.

The Stakeholders

Leadership development practitioners can benefit from the innovative personalized approach to surfacing and exploring leaders’ own metaphors facilitated by clean language, offered in this article. Examples are given of the range of leadership metaphors surfaced with this method. Researchers can appreciate a novel approach to qualitative research interviewing and identify future research in surfacing ILTs through naturally occurring metaphor facilitated by clean language.
Antipsychotic therapeutic drug monitoring: psychiatrists’ attitudes and factors predicting likely future use
Authors: Law Suzanne , Haddad Peter M. , Chaudhry Imran B. , Husain Nusrat , Drake Richard J. , Flanagan Robert J. , David Anthony S. , Patel Maxine X.
Published: June 2015

Background:

This study aimed to explore predictive factors for future use of therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) and to further examine psychiatrists’ current prescribing practices and perspectives regarding antipsychotic TDM using plasma concentrations.

Method:

A cross-sectional study for consultant psychiatrists using a postal questionnaire was conducted in north-west England. Data were combined with those of a previous London-based study and principal axis factor analysis was conducted to identify predictors of future use of TDM.

Results:

Most of the 181 participants (82.9%, 95% confidence interval 76.7–87.7%) agreed that ‘if TDM for antipsychotics were readily available, I would use it’. Factor analysis identified five factors from the original 35 items regarding TDM. Four of the factors significantly predicted likely future use of antipsychotic TDM and together explained 40% of the variance in a multivariate linear regression model. Likely future use increased with positive attitudes and expectations, and decreased with potential barriers, negative attitudes and negative expectations. Scientific perspectives of TDM and psychiatrist characteristics were not significant predictors.

Conclusion:

Most senior psychiatrists indicated that they would use antipsychotic TDM if available. However, psychiatrists’ attitudes and expectations and the potential barriers need to be addressed, in addition to the scientific evidence, before widespread use of antipsychotic TDM is likely in clinical practice.
Influence of a Suggestive Placebo Intervention on Psychobiological Responses to Social Stress
Authors: Zimmermann-Viehoff Frank , Steckhan Nico , Meissner Karin , Deter Hans-Christian , Kirschbaum Clemens
Published: June 2015

We tested the hypothesis that a suggestive placebo intervention can reduce the subjective and neurobiological stress response to psychosocial stress. Fifty-four healthy male subjects with elevated levels of trait anxiety were randomly assigned in a 4:4:1 fashion to receive either no treatment (n = 24), a placebo pill (n = 24), or a herbal drug (n = 6) before undergoing a stress test. We repeatedly measured psychological variables as well as salivary cortisol, alpha-amylase, and heart rate variability prior to and following the stress test. The stressor increased subjective stress and anxiety, salivary cortisol, and alpha-amylase, and decreased heart rate variability (all P < .001). However, no significant differences between subjects receiving placebo or no treatment were found. Subjects receiving placebo showed increased wakefulness during the stress test compared with no-treatment controls ( P < .001). Thus, the suggestive placebo intervention increased alertness, but modulated neither subjective stress and anxiety nor the physiological response to psychosocial stress.
Chemotherapy-only treatment effects on long-term neurocognitive functioning in childhood ALL survivors: a review and meta-analysis
Authors: Iyer Neel S. , Balsamo Lyn M. , Bracken Michael B. , Kadan-Lottick Nina S.
Published: June 2015

Key Points

Children treated for ALL without cranial radiation display significant IQ deficits of 6 to 8 points compared with healthy controls. Moderate deficits occur in other neurocognitive domains including working memory, information processing speed, and fine motor functioning.
Fixed lag smoothing target tracking in clutter for a high pulse repetition frequency radar
Authors: Khan Uzair , Shi Yi Fang , Song Taek Lyul
Published: June 2015

A new method to smooth the target hybrid state with Gaussian mixture measurement likelihood-integrated track splitting (GMM-ITS) in the presence of clutter for a high pulse repetition frequency (HPRF) radar is proposed. This method smooths the target state at fixed lag N and considers all feasible multi-scan target existence sequences in the temporal window of scans in order to smooth the target hybrid state. The smoothing window can be of any length N. The proposed method to smooth the target hybrid state at fixed lag is also applied to the enhanced multiple model (EMM) tracking algorithm. Simulation results indicate that the performance of fixed lag smoothing GMM-ITS significantly improves false track discrimination and root mean square errors (RMSEs).
The generation of macrophages with anti-inflammatory activity in the absence of STAT6 signaling
Authors: Fleming Bryan D , Chandrasekaran Prabha , Dillon Laura A L , Dalby Elizabeth , Suresh Rahul , Sarkar Arup , El-Sayed Najib M , Mosser David M
Published: June 2015

Macrophages readily change their phenotype in response to exogenous stimuli. In this work, macrophages were stimulated under a variety of experimental conditions, and phenotypic alterations were correlated with changes in gene expression. We identified 3 transcriptionally related populations of macrophages with immunoregulatory activity. They were generated by stimulating cells with TLR ligands in the presence of 3 different “reprogramming” signals: high-density ICs, PGE2, or Ado. All 3 of these cell populations produced high levels of transcripts for IL-10 and growth and angiogenic factors. They also secreted reduced levels of inflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, and IL-12. All 3 macrophage phenotypes could partially rescue mice from lethal endotoxemia, and therefore, we consider each to have anti-inflammatory activity. This ability to regulate innate-immune responses occurred equally well in macrophages from STAT6-deficient mice. The lack of STAT6 did not affect the ability of macrophages to change cytokine production reciprocally or to rescue mice from lethal endotoxemia. Furthermore, treatment of macrophages with IL-4 failed to induce similar phenotypic or transcriptional alterations. This work demonstrates that there are multiple ways to generate macrophages with immunoregulatory activity. These anti-inflammatory macrophages are transcriptionally and functionally related to each other and are quite distinct from macrophages treated with IL-4.
Hathrasi Rasiya : An Intermediate Song Genre of North India
Authors: Manuel Peter
Published: June 2015

Hathrasi rasiya is a traditional song genre of North India’s Braj region, performed by semi-professional members of music clubs ( akhāṛās ) and informed by a complex set of prosodic schemes, with secondary melodic aspects. As these schemes involve, however tangentially, a kind of music theory, and the genre is patronized by local elites and enjoyed by connoisseurs, it constitutes a member of the “intermediate sphere” of regional genres that share features of both classical and folk musics. Although currently in a state of decline, Hathrasi rasiya flourished vigorously in the twentieth century. This article surveys its formal features and its place in Braj music culture and in the broader category of North Indian intermediary genres.
A Score Full of Grief: Fumio Hayasaka’s Music for Sanshō the Bailif (1954)
Authors: Harris Michael W.
Published: June 2015

When Fumio Hayasaka began work on the music for Kenji Mizoguchi’s 1954 cinematic adaptation of the Japanese legend Sanshō the Bailif , he found a film that had turned the tale into an allegory of postwar Japan’s struggle for a national identity following the American occupation. To depict this, Hayasaka wrote a sound track that mixed traditional Japanese and European instruments, making them aural stand-ins for Mizoguchi’s narrative theme of conflict between new (Western) and old (Japanese) values. This article focuses on the music’s three main elements and discusses how they articulate Mizoguchi’s narrative interrogation of Japan’s postwar struggle.
Retuning Javanese Identities: The Ironies of a Popular Genre
Authors: Cooper Nancy I.
Published: June 2015

In this ethnographic analysis of the popular Javanese-Indonesian fusion genre campur sari , I focus on embedded cultural meanings while following the career trajectory of the late popularizer of the genre, Manthou’s [ sic ]. A key site of contention lies in the choice of either indigenous or Western tuning systems by particular performing groups. Their choices reveal ambivalence toward modernization itself, resulting not only in renewed identities and musical fusions but also in alternative modernities. Ironically, gamelan musicians who play campur sari may also be preserving their treasured traditional music in an era in which social and economic support for classical genres is declining. Ini analisa etnografi tentang aliran musik Jawa-Indonesia campur sari. Saya akan menyetel lensa terhadap arti budaya dalam secara serempak ikut karir Manthou’s, yang bikin populer musik hiburan tersebut. Tempat pertandingan penting adalah pilihan laras Jawa atau laras Barat oleh bermacam rombongan-rombongan campur sari. Pilihan mereka menyatakan dua perasaan yang bertentangan terhadap modernisasi yang mengakibatkan tidak hanya identias baru dan music perpaduan, tetapi kemoderan cadangan. Yang ironis bahwa niyaga gamelan yang main campur sari boleh juga cagar musik adi luhung di jaman ketika sokongan atas aliran klasik menurun.
Our Village Is Watching: Sociocultural and Attitudinal Factors Related to HIV Sexual Risk Behaviors among Black South African Men Who Have Sex with Men
Authors: Icard Larry D. , Jemmott John B. , Barnes Gisoo , Mayekiso Thoko , Ngwane Zolani , O’leary Ann , Heeren G. Anita
Published: June 2015

The aim of this study is to explore the attitudes, cultural norms, and social factors among South African black men who have sex with men ( msm ) residing in the Eastern Cape in the context of hiv sexual risk behavior. Data were collected from demographic questionnaires and six focus group discussions with 41 men residing in the cities of East London and Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Participants were in agreement that many black South Africans in their locality view homosexuality as something that Western whites do, and that South African black msm are generally not open about their sexual identity. Participants expressed, “our village is watching,” as a concern among some South African black msm for not being open about being gay and their same sex sexual orientation. The findings provide additional insights into the nature of hiv risk behavior of South African black msm , and offer considerations for future research and intervention efforts.
How Adopting Stereotypical Roles May Impact Sexual Risk Behavior among African American College Women
Authors: Hall Essie M. , Witherspoon Karen McCurtis
Published: June 2015

One hundred ten African American undergraduate women attending a predominantly Black and urban university were recruited to participate in this study. Self-report surveys accounting for group demographics, and measures of sexual knowledge, stereotypical role adoption for Black women, and sexual risk-behavior were completed. Pearson product moment correlations and multiple regression analyses were run to assess the relationships among variables. Findings support a significant relationship between stereotypical role adoption for Black women and sexual risk behavior. However, relationships between sexual knowledge, religious attendance and sexual risk behavior were not supported as hypothesized. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.
Internalization of the Thin Ideal, Media Images and Body Image Dissatisfaction in African American College Women: Implications for Black Female Sexuality
Authors: Watson Kena L. , Livingston Johnathan N. , Cliette George , Eaton Sherry
Published: June 2015

There is a need to understand how body image dissatisfaction influences African American women’s perception of self and sexuality. Using social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954), the current study investigated whether internalization of media images moderated the relationship between exposure to media images and body image. One hundred thirty-five African American college women were recruited. Pearson product moment correlations, standard and hierarchical regression analyses were conducted. Results indicate that internalization influences the relationship between media imagery and body image. More research is needed to investigate the correlation between media imagery and body image of African American women as well as levels of satisfaction/dissatisfaction. Implications for this research are discussed.
Historical Consciousness and Being Québécois : Exploring Young English-Speaking Students’ Interactions with Quebec’s Master Historical Narrative
Authors: Zanazanian Paul
Published: June 2015

In revisiting a dataset of secondary school students’ historical narratives on Quebec’s past, this article’s exploratory study examines five English-speaking youths’ historical consciousness as members of a French-speaking society. Given their community’s simplistic portrayal in the province’s school history program, the study attempts to understand the impact of transmitting a Franco-centric collective historical identity that differentiates and distances Anglophones on these students’ structuring of group boundaries and negotiations of national belonging. A repertory of ideal-type tendencies of historical consciousness is operationalized as an open-ended interpretation key for reading students’ interactions with Quebec’s master narrative. In relying on pre-given significations of the past, the only Traditional-leaning student seeks a hybrid sort of national identity and thereby structures boundaries softly. In contradicting pre-given significations, the remaining Critical-leaning ones seek fuller understandings of being Québécois and structure boundaries more rigidly, either seeking to overcome important narrative gaps or amend the proffered storyline’s perceived shortsightedness. As these five students can think the nation in its intended terms, their affective appropriation of Quebec’s narrative varies. Despite preserving boundaries, they betray a desire for inclusion and acceptance. Further research is, however, called for to verify these findings’ generalizability and to expand on their other potential variations. En revisitant une base de données des récits estudiantins sur l’histoire du Québec, cet article examine la conscience historique de cinq jeunes de langue anglaise vivant dans une société majoritairement francophone. Vu la représentation simpliste de leur communauté dans le programme d’histoire québécois, cet article essaie de mieux comprendre l’impact de la transmission d’une identité collective historique, qui confine les anglophones dans une catégorie d’altérité, sur leurs structurations des frontières groupales et leurs négociations d’appartenance nationale. Un répertoire des idéaux-types de la conscience historique sert comme grille de lecture ouverte pour interpréter les interactions de ces étudiants avec le récit national. En se basant sur des significations préétablies du passé, un de ces étudiants de tendance traditionnelle cherche une identité nationale hybride et structure ses frontières souplement. En contredisant ces significations, ceux de tendance critique visent des compréhensions du Québec plus complètes et structurent leurs frontières rigidement, soit pour surmonter des lacunes dans le récit ou pour amender sa vision étroite. Les cinq peuvent penser la nation selon la trame collective, mais leur connexion émotive envers elle varie. Malgré le maintien des frontières, ils cherchent à être inclus et accepté. D’autres recherches sont toutefois nécessaires pour vérifier et élaborer ces données.
Ethnicity, Religion, and Socialism in Canada: The Twenties through the War
Authors: Wiseman Nelson
Published: June 2015

This article articulates the idiosyncratic socialist affinities of ethnic and religious groups in Canada between the 1920s and the end of the Second World War by surveying a multitude of diverse secondary sources about the groups. Specific ethno-cultural groups accounted for the differences in support for the most prominent socialist parties, an unwieldy mixture of largely labour parties and the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), and the Communist Party (CP). The study points to the uneven immigrant settlement patterns in Canada’s regions at the turn of the twentieth century to account for the uneven regional strength of the parties. As acculturation, intermarriage, integration, and assimilation proceeded, domestic issues increasingly informed the politics of subsequent generations to the benefit of the CCF at the expense of the CP. Cet article expose les affinités socialistes idiosyncrasiques des groupes ethniques et religieux au Canada entre les années 1920 et la fin de la deuxième guerre mondiale à travers un sondage auprès d’une multitude de sources secondaires sur divers groupes. Les groupes ethnoculturels spécifiques participent aux différentes formes de soutien pour les partis socialistes les plus en vue, un mélange compliqué de partis pratiquement ouvriers et la Fédération Coopérative de Commonwealth (FCC) et le Parti Communiste (PC). L’étude met en parallèle les modèles d’établissement cahoteux des immigrants dans les régions du Canada au tournant du vingt-et-unième siècle qui contribuent au renforcement irrégulier des partis. Comme procédés d’acculturation, d’endogamie, d’intégration et d’assimilation, les questions nationales informent graduellement les politiques sur les générations à venir au profit de la FCC et au détriment du PC.
“Canadian-First”: Mixed Race Self-Identification and Canadian Belonging
Authors: Paragg Jillian
Published: June 2015

Not being read or identified by others as “Canadian” was a common thread in semi-structured in-depth interviews I conducted with 19 young adults of mixed race in a Western Canadian urban context. In this paper, I address moments of (in)ability for people of mixed race to claim “Canadian.” Mixed race people have a complex relationship with identifying and narrating their identities as “Canadian” through the operation of race and ethnicity in the Canadian context, and because of ambivalent and contradictory readings of their bodies. I found that they deploy the term in three ways: by expressing a sense of being “Canadian-first,” by stating that there exists an understanding that “Canadian means white,” and by strategically using the term “Canadian” in their interactions with others, signaling an active appropriation of the term. However, none of these deployments are mutually exclusive: they overlap and bleed into each other, playing off and impacting one another. This paper adds to nascent Canadian Critical Mixed Race studies and also redresses a gap in the literature on “Canadian identity” by examining how the ability to claim “Canadian” is racialized through a consideration of the experiences of mixed race people. Le fait de ne pas être lus ou identifiés par d’autres comme “Canadiens” était le dénominateur commun dans les entrevues semi-structurés que j’ai menées en profondeur avec 19 jeunes adultes de races mixtes dans un contexte urbain de l’Ouest Canadien. Dans cet article, je mets en exergue les moments d’ (in)aptitude des personnes de races mixtes de se réclamer “Canadiens”. Les gens de races mixtes ont une relation complexe avec l’identification et la narration de leurs identités en tant que “Canadiens”, à cause des perceptions ambivalentes et contradictoires de leurs corps. J’ai trouvé que ceux-ci déploient leur terme de trois façons: en exprimant le sens d’être “Canadien en premier”, en affirmant qu’il existe une compréhension du “Canadien qui veut dire Blanc” et en usant stratégiquement du terme “Canadien” dans leur interactions avec les autres, signalant une appropriation active du ce terme. Cependant, aucuns de ces déploiements ne s’excluent mutuellement: ils se chevauchent et s’empiètent entre eux, jouant au large et s’impactant l’un de l’autre. Ce papier s’ajoute aux études critiques canadiennes naissantes sur les races mixtes et répare aussi une lacune dans la littérature des “identités canadiennes”, en examinant comment l’aptitude de se réclamer “Canadien” est radicalisée à travers une considération des expériences des personnes de races mixtes.