bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Social Class As Racialized Political Experience
Authors: Michener Jamila
Published: May 2017

Common markers of social class include income, wealth, education and family background. Though these capture staple pedestrian elements of class, they understate something substantial – social class is produced by political experiences. Building on this observation, I argue that social class is constructed and reinforced via political institutions that differentially affect the daily experiences and life trajectories of Americans. Viewing class through this lens (instead of more simply as a function of income or education) enables clarity on two critical features of the American political system: (1) its deeply racialized institutional practices (2) its dual inclusionary/exclusionary governance structures. Most broadly, this essay pushes us beyond a view of class as a set of variables that affect political outcomes and towards inquiry into the ways that political institutions produce class. Ultimately, such a conceptual pivot illuminates additional pathways for transforming economic and political relations in the United States.
Adam Smith Would Be Spinning in His Grave
Authors: Carnes Nicholas
Published: May 2017

Politicians in the US tend to be vastly better off than the people they represent. But why, and does it matter? In the last decade, scholar of US politics have revived an old line of inquiry into the causes and consequences of government by the privileged, or what I call white-collar government. This article briefly reviews what scholars have learned, and what we still need to know. Most research to date has focused on the effects of government by the privileged; just as the shortage of female politicians seems to bias policy on gender issues, the shortage of politicians from lower-income and working-class backgrounds appears to tilt economic policy in favor of the more conservative positions typically favored by more affluent Americans. Why, then, do so few lower-income and working-class Americans go on to become politicians? On this point, scholars have more hunches than hard evidence.
Introduction to Liouville Numbers
Authors: Grabowski Adam , Korniłowicz Artur
Published: May 2017

The article defines Liouville numbers, originally introduced by Joseph Liouville in 1844 [17] as an example of an object which can be approximated “quite closely” by a sequence of rational numbers. A real number x is a Liouville number iff for every positive integer n, there exist integers p and q such that q > 1 and

It is easy to show that all Liouville numbers are irrational. Liouville constant, which is also defined formally, is the first transcendental (not algebraic) number. It is defined in Section 6 quite generally as the sum

for a finite sequence {ak}k∈ℕ and b ∈ ℕ. Based on this definition, we also introduced the so-called Liouville number as

substituting in the definition of L(ak, b) the constant sequence of 1’s and b = 10. Another important examples of transcendental numbers are e and π [7], [13], [6]. At the end, we show that the construction of an arbitrary Lioville constant satisfies the properties of a Liouville number [12], [1]. We show additionally, that the set of all Liouville numbers is infinite, opening the next item from Abad and Abad’s list of “Top 100 Theorems”. We show also some preliminary constructions linking real sequences and finite sequences, where summing formulas are involved. In the Mizar [14] proof, we follow closely https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liouville_number. The aim is to show that all Liouville numbers are transcendental.
FGF21-receptor agonists: an emerging therapeutic class for obesity-related diseases
Authors: Sonoda Junichiro , Chen Mark Z. , Baruch Amos
Published: May 2017

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) analogs and FGF21 receptor agonists (FGF21RAs) that mimic FGF21 ligand activity constitute the new “FGF21-class” of anti-obesity and anti-diabetic molecules that improve insulin sensitivity, ameliorate hepatosteatosis and promote weight loss. The metabolic actions of FGF21-class proteins in obese mice are attributed to stimulation of brown fat thermogenesis and increased secretion of adiponectin. The therapeutic utility of this class of molecules is being actively investigated in clinical trials for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). This review is focused on various FGF21-class molecules, their molecular designs and the preclinical and clinical activities. These molecules include modified FGF21 as well as agonistic antibodies against the receptor for FGF21, namely the complex of FGF receptor 1 (FGFR1) and the obligatory coreceptor βKlotho (KLB). In addition, a novel approach to increase endogenous FGF21 activity by inhibiting the FGF21-degrading protease fibroblast activation protein (FAP) is discussed.
Galanin suppresses proliferation of human U251 and T98G glioma cells via its subtype 1 receptor
Authors: Mei Zhu , Yang Yutao , Li Yun , Yang Feiya , Li Junfa , Xing Nianzeng , Xu Zhi-Qing David
Published: May 2017

Galanin is a neuropeptide with a widespread distribution throughout the nervous and endocrine systems, and recent studies have shown an anti-proliferative effect of galanin on several types of tumors. However, whether and how galanin and its receptors are involved in the regulation of cell proliferation in glioma cells remains unclear. In this study, the roles of galanin and its subtype 1 receptor (GAL1) in the proliferation of human U251 and T98G glioma cells were investigated. We found that galanin significantly suppressed the proliferation of U251 and T98G cells as well as tumor growth in nude mice. However, galanin did not exert apoptotic or cytotoxic effects on these two cell lines. In addition, we showed that galanin decreased the proliferation of U251 and T98G cells via its GAL1 receptor. Finally, we found that the GAL1 receptor was involved in the suppressive effects of galanin by activating ERK1/2.
I36T↑T mutation in South African subtype C (C-SA) HIV-1 protease significantly alters protease-drug interactions
Authors: Maseko Sibusiso B. , Padayachee Eden , Govender Thavendran , Sayed Yasien , Kruger Gert , Maguire Glenn E.M. , Lin Johnson
Published: May 2017

The efficacy of HIV-1 protease (PR) inhibition therapies is often compromised by the emergence of mutations in the PR molecule that reduces the binding affinity of inhibitors while maintaining viable catalytic activity and affinity for natural substrates. In the present study, we used a recombinant HIV-1 C-SA PR and a recently reported variant for inhibition (Ki, IC50) and thermodynamic studies against nine clinically used inhibitors. This is the first time that binding free energies for C-SA PR and the mutant are reported. This variant PR harbours a mutation and insertion (I36T↑T) at position 36 of the C-SA HIV-1 PR, and did not show a significant difference in the catalytic effect of the HIV-1 PR. However, the nine clinically approved HIV PR drugs used in this study demonstrated weaker inhibition and lower binding affinities toward the variant when compared to the wild type HIV-1 PR. All the protease inhibitors (PIs), except Amprenavir and Ritonavir exhibited a significant decrease in binding affinity (p<0.0001). Darunavir and Nelfinavir exhibited the weakest binding affinity, 155- and 95-fold decreases respectively, toward the variant. Vitality values for the variant PR, against the seven selected PIs, confirm the impact of the mutation and insertion on the South African HIV-1 subtype C PR. This information has important clinical implications for thousands of patients in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Role of sigma 1 receptor in high fat diet-induced peripheral neuropathy
Authors: Song Tieying , Zhao Jianhui , Ma Xiaojing , Zhang Zaiwang , Jiang Bo , Yang Yunliang
Published: May 2017

The neurobiological mechanisms of obesity-induced peripheral neuropathy are poorly understood. We evaluated the role of Sigma-1 receptor (Sig-1R) and NMDA receptor (NMDARs) in the spinal cord in peripheral neuropathy using an animal model of high fat diet-induced diabetes. We examined the expression of Sig-1R and NMDAR subunits GluN2A and GluN2B along with postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD-95) in the spinal cord after 24-week HFD treatment in both wild-type and Sig-1R−/− mice. Finally, we examined the effects of repeated intrathecal administrations of selective Sig-1R antagonists BD1047 in HFD-fed wild-type mice on peripheral neuropathy. Wild-type mice developed tactile allodynia and thermal hypoalgesia after 24-week HFD treatment. HFD-induced peripheral neuropathy correlated with increased expression of GluN2A and GluN2B subunits of NMDARs, PDS-95, and Sig-1R, as well as increased Sig-1R-NMDAR interaction in the spinal cord. In contrast, Sig-1R−/− mice did not develop thermal hypoalgesia or tactile allodynia after 24-week HFD treatment, and the levels of GluN2A, GluN2B, and PSD-95 were not altered in the spinal cord of HFD-fed Sig-1R−/− mice. Finally, repeated intrathecal administrations of selective Sig-1R antagonists BD1047 in HFD-fed wild-type mice attenuated peripheral neuropathy. Our results suggest that obesity-associated peripheral neuropathy may involve Sig-1R-mediated enhancement of NMDAR expression in the spinal cord.
Strength training with vascular occlusion: a review of possible adaptive mechanisms
Authors: Castro Fábio Marzliak Pozzi De , Aquino Rodrigo , Júnior José Artur Berti , Gonçalves Luiz Guilherme Cruz , Puggina Enrico Fuini
Published: May 2017

Strength training with blood flow restriction, or KAATSU training, has been shown to be as effective as conventional strength training to promote muscular strength and hypertrophy. Several mechanisms have been suggested as hypotheses to explain the adaptations arising from this training method. Among these is metabolic stress, which exerts important physiological effects and may influence the training adaptations in question. In addition, hypoxia produced by the technique may change the neural recruitment pattern. Growth hormone (GH) concentrations increase as a result of practicing this method, which can trigger an increase in plasmatic and, perhaps, muscular insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) concentrations. The increase in concentrations of these factors can play a leading role in responses to KAATSU training. Among the effects of the GH/IGF-1 axis in muscle cells is the increase in the signalling pathway activity of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), which has been associated with increased protein synthesis. On the other hand, the decrease in the activity of the myostatin pathway, which has an antagonistic effect to mTOR, has been demonstrated after training with occlusion. Other factors, such as increases in the expression of heat shock proteins, may play an important role in adaptations to exercise. Nitric oxide synthase could increase nitric oxide concentration, which in turn has an effect on satellite cells and blood flow. However, despite the results obtained, the transfer to other situations (e.g. speed sports) is not yet clear.
Intra- and inter-examiner reliability in angular measurements of the knee with a smartphone application
Authors: Derhon Viviane , Santos Rafael Aparecido , Brandalize Michelle , Brandalize Danielle , Rossi Luciano Pavan
Published: May 2017

Purpose

Goniometric smartphone applications to measure joint angles offer greater practicality and accessibility, which makes them potential alternatives to a conventional goniometer. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the intra- and inter-examiner reliability in measuring the angles of the range of motion of the knee with the use of the ROM© goniometric smartphone application.

Method

The total of 34 young healthy women with an at least 20° limitation in knee extension range of motion participated in the study. Angular measurements of knee flexion in the dominant leg were performed with the aid of the smartphone application by three trained examiners for the evaluation of the inter-examiner reliability. The second evaluation was carried out after a 48-hour period for the determination of the intra-examiner reliability.

Results

The proposed method demonstrated excellent intra-examiner (intra-class correlation coefficient [ICC] > 0.80) and inter-examiner (ICC > 0.90) reliability, with good intra-examiner (r > 0.85) and strong inter-examiner (r > 0.90) correlations (p < 0.0001), an intra-examiner coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.75, inter-examiner R2 of 0.91, and good level of agreement on the Bland-Altman plots for the measures.

Conclusions

The findings reveal that the ROM© goniometric smartphone application can be considered a useful tool for the evaluation of the knee range of motion in healthy women.
Comparing Four Methods for Estimating Tree-Based Treatment Regimes
Authors: Sies Aniek , Van Mechelen Iven
Published: May 2017

When multiple treatment alternatives are available for a certain psychological or medical problem, an important challenge is to find an optimal treatment regime, which specifies for each patient the most effective treatment alternative given his or her pattern of pretreatment characteristics. The focus of this paper is on tree-based treatment regimes, which link an optimal treatment alternative to each leaf of a tree; as such they provide an insightful representation of the decision structure underlying the regime. This paper compares the absolute and relative performance of four methods for estimating regimes of that sort (viz., Interaction Trees, Model-based Recursive Partitioning, an approach developed by Zhang et al. and Qualitative Interaction Trees) in an extensive simulation study. The evaluation criteria were, on the one hand, the expected outcome if the entire population would be subjected to the treatment regime resulting from each method under study and the proportion of clients assigned to the truly best treatment alternative, and, on the other hand, the Type I and Type II error probabilities of each method. The method of Zhang et al. was superior regarding the first two outcome measures and the Type II error probabilities, but performed worst in some conditions of the simulation study regarding Type I error probabilities.
The role of text type and strategy use in L2 lexical inferencing
Authors: Shen Ming-yueh
Published: May 2017

This study aimed to determine as to whether or not the text type and strategy usage affect the EFL learners’ lexical inferencing performance. The participants were comprised of 87 first-year English majors at a technical university. Data were collected from (1) a lexical inferencing test with excerpts of narrative and expository texts, for which both multiple-choice and definition tasks were designed, respectively, and then (2) the responses from the learners’ self-reported strategy usage. The quantitative analyses demonstrated that the text types significantly affected the EFL learners’ lexical inferencing performance, in which the EFL learners performed better for the narrative excerpt than for the expository texts. However, significant coefficients between the strategy use and the lexical inferencing performance were not found in this study. The results further implied that the text structure and the lexical inferencing strategies should be explicitly taught to the EFL learners.
The effectiveness of corrective feedback for the acquisition of L2 pragmatics: An eight month investigation
Authors: Nguyen Minh Thi Thuy , Do H.T. , Pham T.T. , Nguyen A.T.
Published: May 2017

This study investigates effects of pragmatics-focused instruction using different types of written corrective feedback (CF) on the development of pragmatic competence of Vietnamese learners of English as a foreign language. Five intermediate-level groups of learners who were learning syntactic downgraders for mitigating their email requests were randomly assigned to either the control or one of the four treatment conditions: instruction + clarification requests, instruction + recasts, instruction + metapragmatic feedback, and instruction + explicit correction. The performance of the treatment groups on a DCT pre-test, immediate post-test, and two follow-up tests at one and eight months after the treatments was compared with that of a control group who received only routine instruction. Results showed that the four treatment groups performed significantly better than the control group when measured at all three post-tests, but there was no difference among the treatment groups in their post-treatment scores.
Developing EFL learners’ morphological awareness: Instructional effect, teachability of affixes, and learners’ perception
Authors: Lin Ming-Fang
Published: May 2017

Morphological instruction has been proved to be facilitative of second language learners’ vocabulary learning. However, studies on the effect of teaching affixes on Chinese EFL learners’ vocabulary learning were relatively less explored. Therefore, this study was aimed at investigating the effect of teaching six affixes on Chinese EFL learners’ vocabulary learning, the teachability of affixes, and the learners’ perception toward the instruction. The participants were 40 seventh-graders from two intact classes in a junior high school in southern Taiwan. One class of 20 students served as the control group, and the other class of 20 students was assigned as the experimental group to receive the six-session training of affixes. Instruments were a morpheme identification task, a vocabulary translation test, students’ learning journals, and a questionnaire of perception toward the instruction. The results indicated the positive effect of instruction on the experimental group’s receptive learning of the affixes. In addition, the data also showed the students’ positive perception toward morphological instruction. This study concluded with theoretical implications for future studies and pedagogical implications for teaching affixes.
Accounting for the asymmetrical interpretation of thematic and non-thematic verbs in L2 English
Authors: Kong Stano
Published: May 2017

This study presents data from an experiment on the interpretation of thematic and non-thematic verbs in second language (L2) English by three groups of adult native Chinese speakers and a group of native English speakers. English allows non-thematic verbs to raise but requires thematic verbs to remainin-situ. In contrast, neither thematic nor non-thematic verbs are allowed to raise in Chinese. The results indicate that there is a discrepancy between native and non-native mental representations of the grammars concerned; whereas native grammars require English thematic verbs to remainin-situbut allow non-thematic verbs to raise, neither thematic nor non-thematic verbs are allowed to raise in learners L2 English grammars. Results of the study argue against theValueless Features Hypothesis(Eubank 1993/94. On the transfer of parametric values in L2 development.Language Acquisition3. 183–208, 1994. Optionality and the initial state in L2 development. In T. Hoekstra & B. Schwartz (eds),Language acquisition studies in generative grammar: Papers in Honour of Kenneth Wexler from the 1991 GLOW Workshop, 369–388. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 1996. Negation in early German-English interlanguage: More valueless features in the L2 initial state.Second Language Research12. 73–106.), which posits that the L1 syntactic features of INFL are initially inert and are not transferred. Instead, the results support theInterpretability Hypothesis(Tsimpli and Dimitrakopoulou 2007. The interpretability hypothesis: Evidence from wh-interrogatives in second language acquisition.Second Language Research23. 215–242.), which argues for the inaccessibility of uninterpretable syntactic features beyond a critical period. In particular, it is argued that uninterpretable syntactic features not selected during early stages of primary language acquisition become inaccessible in subsequent language acquisition. The results suggest that there may be cases where apparent target-like performance conceals non-target-like underlying competence.
A note on properties of the restriction operator on Sobolev spaces
Authors: Hewett David P. , Moiola Andrea
Published: May 2017

In our companion paper [3] we studied a number of different Sobolev spaces on a general (non-Lipschitz) open subset Ω of

ℝ
n

{\mathbb{R}^{n}}

, defined as closed subspaces of the classical Bessel potential spaces

H
s

⁢

(

ℝ
n

)

{H^{s}(\mathbb{R}^{n})}

for

s
∈
ℝ

{s\in\mathbb{R}}

.
These spaces are mapped by the restriction operator to certain spaces of distributions on Ω.
In this note we make some observations about the relation between these spaces of global and local distributions.
In particular, we study conditions under which the restriction operator is or is not injective, surjective and isometric between given pairs of spaces.
We also provide an explicit formula for minimal norm extension (an inverse of the restriction operator in appropriate spaces) in a special case.
On the conjecture of Hayami and Owa concerning the class ℛ(α)
Authors: Zaprawa Paweł
Published: May 2017

In the paper we discuss the functional
Review. Anticoagulant Therapy in Sepsis. The Importance of Timing
Authors: Scarlatescu Ecaterina , Tomescu Dana , Arama Sorin Stefan
Published: May 2017

Sepsis associated coagulopathy is due to the inflammation-induced activation of coagulation pathways concomitant with dysfunction of anticoagulant and fibrinolytic systems, leading to different degrees of haemostasis dysregulation. This response is initially beneficial, contributing to antimicrobial defence, but when control is lost coagulation activation leads to widespread microvascular thrombosis and subsequent organ failure. Large clinical trials of sepsis-related anticoagulant therapies failed to show survival benefits, but posthoc analysis of databases and several smaller studies showed beneficial effects of anticoagulants in subgroups of patients with early sepsis-induced disseminated intravascular coagulation. A reasonable explanation could be the difference in timing of anticoagulant therapy and patient heterogeneity associated with large trials. Proper selection of patients and adequate timing are required for treatment to be successful. The time when coagulation activation changes from advantageous to detrimental represents the right moment for the administration of coagulation-targeted therapy. In this way, the defence function of the haemostatic system is preserved, and the harmful effects of overwhelming coagulation activation are avoided.
Case Report. Non-Obvious, Post-Traumatic, Life-Threatening Bleeding in Two Elderly Patients
Authors: Carretero Rafael García
Published: May 2017

The main complication of anticoagulant therapy is major bleeding. Clinicians are usually aware of these side effects and are careful when managing the therapeutic range of vitamin K antagonist drugs. But major bleeding, while lifethreatening, can be overlooked if there are no visible signs of bleeding. Two cases are described in which inaccurate diagnoses lead to inadequate treatment.
Universal statistical steganalytic method
Authors: Broda Martin , Hajduk Vladimír , Levický Dušan
Published: May 2017

Novel image steganalytic method used to detection of secret message in static images is introduced in this paper. This method is based on statistical steganalysis (SS), where statistical vector is composed by 285 statistical features (parameters) extracted from DCT (Discrete Cosine Transformation) domain and 46 features extracted mainly from DWT (Discrete Wavelet Transformation) domain. Classification process was realized by Ensemble classifier that was helpful in reduction of computational and time complexity. Proposed steganalytic method was verified by detection of popular image steganographic methods. Novel method was also compared with existing steganalytic methods by overall detection accuracy of a secret message.
Simulation of cooling efficiency via miniaturised channels in multilayer LTCC for power electronics
Authors: Pietrikova Alena , Girasek Tomas , Lukacs Peter , Welker Tilo , Müller Jens
Published: May 2017

The aim of this paper is detailed investigation of thermal resistance, flow analysis and distribution of coolant as well as thermal distribution inside multilayer LTCC substrates with embedded channels for power electronic devices by simulation software. For this reason four various structures of internal channels in the multilayer LTCC substrates were designed and simulated. The impact of the volume flow, structures of channels, and power loss of chip was simulated, calculated and analyzed by using the simulation software Mentor Graphics FloEFDTM. The structure, size and location of channels have the significant impact on thermal resistance, pressure of coolant as well as the effectivity of cooling power components (chips) that can be placed on the top of LTCC substrate. The main contribution of this paper is thermal analyze, optimization and impact of 4 various cooling channels embedded in LTCC multilayer structure. Paper investigate, the effect of volume flow in cooling channels for achieving the least thermal resistance of LTCC substrate that is loaded by power thermal chips. Paper shows on the impact of the first chips thermal load on the second chip as well as. This possible new technology could ensure in the case of practical realization effective cooling and increasing reliability of high power modules.
Analysis and comparison of end effects in linear switched reluctance and hybrid motors
Authors: Barhoumi El Manaa , Abo-Khalil Ahmed Galal , Berrouche Youcef , Wurtz Frederic
Published: May 2017

This paper presents and discusses the longitudinal and transversal end effects which affects the propulsive force of linear motors. Generally, the modeling of linear machine considers the forces distortion due to the specific geometry of linear actuators. The insertion of permanent magnets on the stator allows improving the propulsive force produced by switched reluctance linear motors. Also, the inserted permanent magnets in the hybrid structure allow reducing considerably the ends effects observed in linear motors. The analysis was conducted using 2D and 3D finite elements method. The permanent magnet reinforces the flux produced by the winding and reorients it which allows modifying the impact of end effects. Presented simulations and discussions show the importance of this study to characterize the end effects in two different linear motors.
Structure and magnetic properties of powdered and compacted FeNi alloys
Authors: Olekšáková Denisa , Kollár Peter , Füzer Ján
Published: May 2017

The crystalline ferromagnetic alloys are known as materials with excellent soft magnetic properties. These alloys have been intensive studied during last decades due to their mechanical and magnetic properties and they are challenge for scientists to extend research of these materials with the aim to broaden their technical applications. FeNi based alloys exhibit very good soft magnetic properties with near-to-zero magnetostriction. This property renders this material as a potential candidate for a differently of industrial applications.
Skew-morphisms of cyclic p-groups
Authors: Kovács István , Nedela Roman
Published: May 2017

Let G be a finite group having a factorisation

G
=

A
⁢
B

{G=AB}

into
subgroups A and B with B cyclic and

A
∩
B

=
1

A\cap B=1

,
and let b be a generator of B. The associated skew-morphism is the bijective mapping

f
:

A
→
A

{f:A\to A}

well-defined by the equality

b
⁢
a
⁢
B

=

f
⁢

(
a
)

⁢
B

{baB=f(a)B}

, where

a
∈
A

{a\in A}

. In this paper, we shall classify all skew-morphisms of cyclic p-groups, where p is an odd prime.
A secure anonymous proxy signcryption scheme
Authors: Saraswat Vishal , Sahu Rajeev Anand , Awasthi Amit K.
Published: May 2017

We introduce a new cryptographic primitive identity-based anonymous proxy
signcryption which provides anonymity to the proxy sender while
also providing a mechanism to the original sender to expose the
identity of the proxy sender in case of misuse. We introduce a
formal definition of an identity-based anonymous proxy signcryption
(IBAPS) scheme and give a security model for it. We also construct
an IBAPS scheme and prove its security under the discrete logarithm
assumption and computational Diffie–Hellman assumption. Moreover,
we do an efficiency comparison with the existing identity-based
signcryption schemes and anonymous signcryption schemes and show
that our scheme is much more efficient than those schemes, we also
compare the efficiency of our scheme with the available proxy
signcryption schemes and show that our scheme provides anonymity to
the proxy sender at cost less than those of existing proxy
signcryption schemes.
Comprehensive Polling and Scheduling Mechanism for Long Reach Gigabit Passive Optical Network
Authors: Butt Rizwan A. , Idrus Sevia M. , Rehman Shahid-Ur , Shah Pir Meher Ali , Zulkifli Nadiatulhuda
Published: May 2017

Dynamic bandwidth assignment (DBA) schemes for long reach PONs face a suffer from higher upstream channel idle time due to long round trip time (RTT). In ITU PONs, the DBA schemes; Immediate allocation with colorless grant (IACG), Efficient bandwidth utilization (EBU) and GPON redundancy eraser algorithm (GREAL) minimize idle time by sending bandwidth grants to the optical network units (ONUs) every downstream frame (DF). EBU further improves IACG by utilizing unused bandwidth (UBW) of other traffic classes. Sending the grant results every DF requires optical line terminal (OLT) to remember all previous grants sent to ONU during RTT and subtract them from the received queue reports. Since, both IACG and EBU assign the excess bandwidth equally to ONUs. Therefore, the OLT is actually not aware of the complete grant to each traffic class and thus do not subtract these completely from receiving reports. This leads to wastage of bandwidth and higher US delays due to over granting. GREAL resolves this problem by not utilizing the excess bandwidth which also leads to increased US delays. The proposed scheme in this study eliminates this shortcoming by allocating excess bandwidth to each traffic class completely at the OLT. Moreover, the UBW assignment mechanism of EBU is also improved. Simulation results show a 50–85 % reduction in delays of type-2 (T2) and type-3 (T3) traffic classes versus GREAL and IACG and up to 40 % reduction in delays for type-4 (T4) versus EBU.
Excellent Quality Factor Ultra-Compact Optical Communication Filter on Ring-Shaped Cavity
Authors: Naghizade S. , Sattari-Esfahlan S. M.
Published: May 2017

In this paper, we propose a high-quality factor (QF) ultra-compact structure for designing all optical filter based on two dimensional (2D) photonic crystals that can operate in third communication window range (1550 nm). The simulation results calculated by using 2D finite difference time domain (FDTD) method and photonic band gap (PBG) region are calculated by plane wave expansion (PWE) method. The average transmission efficiency, average QF and optical full width at half maximum (FWHM) bandwidth more than 95 %, 4300 and 0.4 nm obtained, respectively. The value of QF for the proposed structure is a major QF for ring resonator-based filters. We studied the effect of changing the air background to liquid crystal (LC) surrounding the dielectric rods. Results showed that by increasing LC refractive index (n) peak of wavelengths red shifted. The footprint of proposed filter is 160
${{\mu}}{{\rm{m}}^{\rm{2}}}$ which make the proposed structure promising candidate for optical integrated circuits.
The New Paternalism as Intercultural Management Mode in the Relocated Businesses in Central Europe
Authors: Bogalska-Martin Ewa
Published: May 2017

Since twenty years, many Western firms in search of new markets and labour force cheaper, relocate their production units to countries of Central Europe, Asia or South America. Faced with the problem of transfer of know-how and technical training in new cultural contexts, they develop the methods of HRM which aim their employees loyalty, and raise the skills of labour to produce in context of respectful very demanding standards. In this article we will analyze strategies that apply not only to employees but also their families, and more generally to the local environment and which suggest a return to paternalism skilfully renovated in terms of «corporate social responsibility of firms».
Organizational Culture in Mergers and Acquisitions
Authors: Chmielecki Michał , Sułkowski Łukasz
Published: May 2017

Mergers are a very important aspect of corporate growth. But so many mergers fail to achieve their aim. A lot of mergers won’t produce value for the acquiring firms. Evidence and surveys have shown that corporate culture is very important for the success of mergers and acquisitions. This evidence also points to the fact that cultural differences are a very important factor that could lead to failures in mergers. Currently there is not much empirical evidence or theory on the importance of cultural differences for the performance of mergers and acquisitions. Though, there is a growing rate of interest in this area.
Association Between Two Common Polymorphisms of Vitamin D Binding Protein and the Risk of Coronary Artery Disease: a Case-Control Study
Authors: Tarighi Shahriar , Najafi Mahdi , Hossein-Nezhad Arash , Ghaedi Hamid , Meshkani Reza , Moradi Nariman , Fadaei Reza , Kazerouni Faranak , Shanaki Mehrnoosh
Published: May 2017

Background: Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) is one of the most widespread non-communicable diseases. Vitamin Dbinding protein (VDBP) and its genetic poly morphisms have been highlighted as the susceptible components for CAD. The aim of the present study was to examine the association of VDBP single nucleotide poly morphisms (SNPs) - rs7041 and rs4588 - with CAD susceptibility among the Iranian population. Methods: A total of 143 men with CAD and 145 healthy age-sex matched controls underwent genotyping for the - rs7041 and rs4588 polymorphisms using the polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method. Serum level of 25(OH)D was assayed using microplate colorimetric enzyme immunoassay. Results: We found a significant association between GG genotype (rs7041) and CAD (p=0.02, OR=0.537 95% CI =0.306-0.944). Regarding rs4588 polymorphism, a significant difference was observed in which the CA genotype (p=0.00032, OR=2.578, 95% CI=1.579-4.208) and allele A (P=0.028, OR=1.491, 95% CI=1.043-2.132) were significantly higher in CAD patients compared to controls. In spite of lower serum levels of 25(OH)D in CAD patients, we found no significant association between these SNPs and Vitamin D serum concentrations. Conclusion: We concluded that VDBP polymorphisms affect the susceptibility to CAD in Iranian men. Therefore, further studies are required to clarify the association of VDBP phenotypes and its serum levels with CAD.
Laboratory Information System – Where are we Today?
Authors: Lukić Vera
Published: May 2017

Wider implementation of laboratory information systems (LIS) in clinical laboratories in Serbia has been initiated ten years ago. The first LIS in the Railway Health Care Institute has been implemented nine years ago. Before the LIS was initiated, manual admission procedures limited daily output of patients. Moreover, manual entering of patients data and ordering tests on analyzers was problematic and time consuming. After completing tests, laboratory personnel had to write results in patient register (with potential errors) and provide invoices for health insurance organisation. First LIS brought forward some advantages with regards to these obstacles, but it also showed various weaknesses. These can be summarised in rigidity of system and inability to fulfil user expectation. After 4 years of use, we replaced this system with another LIS. Hence, the main aim of this paper is to evaluate advant ages of using LIS in laboratory of the Railway Health Care Institute and also to discuss further possibilities for its application. After implementing LIS, admission procedure has proven to be much faster. LIS enabled electronic requests, barcoded specimens prevent identification errors, bidirectional interface replaces redundant data entry steps, QC data are transferred automatically, results are electronically validated and automatically archived in data base, billing information is transferred electronically, and more. We also use some advanced options, like delta check, HIL feature, quality indicators and various types of reports. All steps in total testing process are drastically improved after the implementation of LIS, which had a positive impact on the quality of issued laboratory results. However, we expect development of some new features in the future, for example auto-verification and inventory management. On the example of the laboratory of the Railway Health Care Institute, we show that it is crucial that laboratory specialists have the main role in defining desirable characteristics of LIS which institution aims to buy. This paper suggests that the main feature of LIS should be the flexibility of system and capability of adjustment to user needs and requests.
Association study of LIN28B in girls with precocious puberty
Authors: Chen Yen-Chun , Chen Li-Min , Lin Hung-Hsun , Chen Bai-Hsiun , Chao Mei-Chyn , Hsiao Hui-Pin
Published: May 2017

Background:

Central precocious puberty (CPP), predominant in girls, is defined by early development of secondary sexual characteristics driven by the early secretion of hypothalamic gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) and subsequent gonadotropin. Recent studies have shown variation in the

Methods:

This study attempted to investigate the relation between single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in

Results:

We found genotype frequencies in rs314276 and rs221634 were significantly correlated with girls with CPP; while the C allele frequency in rs314276 showed the dominant trait. Standard deviation score (SDS) of weight and body mass index (BMI) were higher in CC homozygotes of rs314276 in girls with CPP.

Conclusions:

Our results demonstrate that the genotype of rs314276 in
Original Article. Effect of cold plasma on degradation of organophosphorus pesticides used on some agricultural products
Authors: Mousavi Seyyedeh Mahbubeh , Imani Sohrab , Dorranian Davoud , Larijani Kambiz , Shojaee Mahmoud
Published: May 2017

This study investigated the potential effect of cold plasma on reducing residues of pesticides diazinon and chlorpyrifos in apples and cucumbers and its effects on property of products. Two separate concentrations of each pesticide with 500 and 1,000 ppm were prepared and the samples were inoculated by dipping them into the solutions. All samples treated with pesticides were exposed to cold plasma in a monopole cold plasma apparatus (DBD) run at 10 and 13 kV voltages. Liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) was used to remove pesticide residues from the samples. Eventually, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to measure the amount of pesticides in the samples. Also, to investigate generated metabolites, extracts were injected into a GC/MS apparatus. In addition, the effects of cold plasma on humidity, tissue hardness, color and the sugar percentage of products were analyzed. The results revealed that treatment of samples with cold plasma considerably reduced pesticide residues without leaving any traces of harmful or toxic substances. Furthermore, it did not have any undesirable effects on the color and texture of the samples. The efficiency of this method increased with higher voltage and longer exposure time. In general, the best results were obtained by the combination of 500 ppm concentration, 10 min exposure and 13 kV voltages. The residues of diazinon were reduced better than the residues of chlorpyrifos. Apples were detoxified much better than cucumbers. Also, cold plasma treatment transformed diazinon and chlorpyrifos pesticides into their less toxic metabolites. The results showed that with increased voltage and longer exposure time, cold plasma caused few changes in moisture and glucose content, texture hardness and color of products. Th ere were no significant difference between treated samples and control in all treatments.
Original Article. Efficacy of electrospun bionanofibers as fumigant pesticides in foodstuff storage
Authors: Allahvaisi Somaye , Jahromi Khalil Talebi , Imani Sohrab , Khanjani Mohammad
Published: May 2017

Essential oils as alternative synthetic pesticides for pest management of foodstuffs have recently received increased attention. Controlled and slow release formulations of essential oils are used to enhance their efficiency. Two volatile essential oils of Mentha piperita L. and Salvia officinalis L. were investigated for release rate and mortality percentage by fumigant toxicity against 1st instar larvae of Plodia interpunctella. Electrospinning was used to incorporate various concentrations of essential oils in nanofibers. The essential oils can be released from the nanofibers for long periods of time, from several days to several weeks. Poly(lactic acid) was used as a green polymer carrier and the essential oils were incorporated into the nanofibers (8-15v/v% PLA). Insecticidal bioassay revealed that oil-loaded nanofibers (NFOs) were more toxic than pure essential oils (PEOs) against tested larvae. The LC50 and LT50 of NFOs were 1.2 and 4 times, respectively, more than PEOs. Our results indicated that PEOs completely lost their insecticidal activity after 14 days, whereas at the same period, NFOs had an average of 93% mortality when applied against P. interpunctella. Therefore, it can be concluded that nanofibers improved the persistence of the oil. This study presents S. officinalis has more toxicity and M. piperita had more persistence for controlling the larvae of indian meal moth.
Rapid Communication. Tamarixia monesus (Walker) (Hym.: Eulophidae) parasitoid of Bactericera tremblayi (Wagner, 1961) (Hemiptera: Triozidae) in Iran
Authors: Lotfalizadeh Hossein , Sadeghi-Nasab Fereshteh
Published: May 2017

Bactericera tremblayi (Wagner, 1961) (Hemiptera: Triozidae) is reported on Brassica oleracea var. capitata (Brassicaceae) in northwestern Iran. Tamarixia monesus (Walker) (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea, Eulophidae) was reared for the first time on B. tremblayi, and compared with Tamarixia tremblayi, another parasitoid of B. tremblayi. This is a new record of T. monesus from the Middle East.
The Metaphysics of Economic Exchanges
Authors: Massin Olivier , Tieffenbach Emma
Published: May 2017

What are economic exchanges? The received view has it that exchanges are mutual transfers of goods motivated by inverse valuations thereof. As a corollary, the standard approach treats exchanges of services as a subspecies of exchanges of goods. We raise two objections against this standard approach. First, it is incomplete, as it fails to take into account, among other things, the offers and acceptances that lie at the core of even the simplest cases of exchanges. Second, it ultimately fails to generalize to exchanges of services, in which neither inverse preferences nor mutual transfers hold true. We propose an alternative definition of exchanges, which treats exchanges of goods as a special case of exchanges of services and which builds in offers and acceptances. According to this theory: (i) The valuations motivating exchanges are propositional and convergent rather than objectual and inverse; (ii) All exchanges of goods involve exchanges of services/actions, but not the reverse; (iii) Offers and acceptances, together with the contractual obligations and claims they bring about, lie at the heart of all cases of exchange.
Morality, Ontology, and Corporate Rights
Authors: Walt Steven , Schwartzman Micah
Published: May 2017

Does the ontology of corporations matter for corporate rights? Much of the philosophical literature on corporate rights focuses on whether corporations are real entities, aggregations of individuals, or fictions to which rights or other entitlements can be ascribed. We argue that this focus is misplaced. Whether corporations have rights, and the sort of rights they have, is a question of moral theory. It is not fundamentally a matter of ontology, as F.W. Maitland thought, or a matter of legal or moral semantics, as H.L.A. Hart once argued. The going moral theory, not conceptual requirements or explanatory criteria, determines the conditions a corporation must satisfy to have various rights and duties. We argue that this truth is independent of the deontic, consequentialist, or hybrid character of the moral theory. This paper defends three claims. First, the ontological status of a group as an intentional agent is neither necessary nor sufficient for its moral status or entitlements. A moral theory in principle could recognize groups that are not intentional agents, and a group’s existence as an intentional agent does not by itself require moral recognition. A moral commitment to corporate rights and duties is therefore not determined by the indispensability of groups in explaining group behavior. Second, the substantive claims of a moral theory (understood broadly) determine the conditions for assigning rights and duties to corporations. Third, this moral conception of corporate rights has both legal and moral implications for the treatment of corporations.
Corporate Crime and Plea Bargains
Authors: Procaccia Uriel , Winter Eyal
Published: May 2017

Corporate entities enjoy legal subjectivity in a variety of forms, but they are
not human beings. Hence, their legal capacity to bear rights and obligations of
their own is not universal. This article lays out a stylized model that
explores, from a normative point of view, one of the limits that ought to be set
on corporate capacity to act “as if” they had a human nature
− the capacity to commit crime. Accepted wisdom states that corporate
criminal liability is justified as a measure to deter criminal behavior. Our
analysis supports this intuition in one subset of cases, but also reveals that
deterrence might in fact be undermined in another subset of cases, especially in
an environment saturated with plea bargains involving serious violations of the
law.
Lithuanians on the jubilee of the 125th birth anniversary of the great linguist Jan Szczepan Otrębski
Authors: Marcinkiewicz Józef
Published: May 2017

This article draws attention to the jubilee scientific conference which was held on 28th November 2014 in Vilnius, in the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania, on the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary of the great Polish linguist Jan Szczepan Otrębski. A one-day seminar in Vilnius was attended by Lithuanian and Polish linguists, as well as politicians who opened the conference, thus emphasizing importance and significance of this event. During the conference nine interesting papers were read out about the life and work of Jan Sz. Otrębski, a linguist who devoted a large part of his life to research of the Lithuanian language. In general, the papers highlighted inter alia the genius of this scholar and his great contribution to the study of both the Lithuanian language as well as the other Indo-European languages. In other words, let background anniversary be a good opportunity to recall the figure of this great scholar.
Józef Darski (1942–2016) and his contribution to the German linguistics and grammar
Authors: Taborek Janusz
Published: May 2017

The linguist and grammarian, Józef Darski (born 30thAugust 1941) died on 18thMarch 2016 in Poznan. This contribution presents his life and innovative and original work. His outstanding achievement was a holistic, original, generic and empirical-based model of linguistic analysis, concerning all of its levels. Based on his model, Darski proposed original ways of presenting stems and exponents, a system of word classes, regular and irregular verbs, as well as noun and adjective declension. Józef Darski was a respected and esteemed teacher and a master for many Polish Germanists as well as a successful university administrator serving as dean of his faculty for several years. His death was a loss for German studies in Poland.