bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Autism Phenotypes in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex
Authors: Gipson Tanjala T. , Poretti Andrea , Thomas Emily A. , Jenkins Kosunique T. , Desai Sonal , Johnston Michael V.
Published: August 2015

Tuberous sclerosis complex is a multisystem, chronic genetic condition characterized by systemic growth of benign tumors and often accompanied by epilepsy, autism spectrum disorders, and intellectual disability. Nonetheless, the neurodevelopmental phenotype of these patients is not often detailed. The authors describe 3 individuals with tuberous sclerosis complex who share common characteristics that can help to identify a distinct profile of autism spectrum disorder. These findings include typical cognitive development, expressive and pragmatic language deficits, and anxiety. The authors also describe features specific to tuberous sclerosis complex that require consideration before diagnosing an autism spectrum disorder. Identifying distinct profiles of autism spectrum disorder in tuberous sclerosis complex can help optimize treatment across the life span.
Strategizing Safety: Theoretical Frameworks to Understand Women’s Decision Making in the Face of Partner Violence and Social Inequities
Authors: Velonis Alisa J. , Daoud Nihaya , Matheson Flora , Woodhall-Melnik Julia , Hamilton-Wright Sarah , O’Campo Patricia
Published: August 2015

Women in physically and psychologically abusive relationships face numerous decisions related to their safety: decisions that historically have been viewed by researchers and human service practitioners as related to individual or interpersonal factors, such as how they feel about their partner, what they (or those they are close to) think is best for their children, or whether they have a safe place to go to. Social and structural factors, such as poverty, sexism, and barriers related to disability, are either left out or viewed at their individual-level consequence, such as a woman’s employment status. Using interview data and case studies from a larger study on housing instability, partner violence, and health, the authors apply ecological and macro-level theoretical models that go beyond the individual level to the stories of women who struggled with partner violence, arguing that it is critical to examine the large social and structural forces that impact women’s lives if we are to understand the decisions women make when facing a violent partner.
The gender wage gap in highly prestigious occupations: a case study of Swedish medical doctors
Authors: Magnusson Charlotta
Published: August 2015

The gender wage gap within a highly prestigious occupation, the medical profession, is investigated both longitudinally and cross-sectionally using Swedish administrative data. This is done by investigating: to what extent the gender wage gap among physicians varies between fields of medicine (within-occupation segregation) and across family status; whether there is an association between parenthood and wages among physicians and, if so, whether there is a gender difference in this association; and changes in the gender wage gap among physicians over time. The results indicate a large overall gender wage difference for medical doctors. Even when gender differences in specialization are taken into account, men have higher wages than women do. For both men and women physicians, there is a positive association between parenthood and wages. The longitudinal analyses show that the gender wage gap among physicians was greater in 2007 than in 1975.
Influence of nanosilica and methyl methacrylate–butadiene–styrene core–shell rubber particles on the physical-mechanical properties and cure kinetics of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol-A-based epoxy resin
Authors: Mousavi Sayed Rasoul , Amiri Amraei Iraj
Published: August 2015

The influence of nanosilica and methyl methacrylate–butadiene–styrene (MBS) core–shell rubber particles on the physical-mechanical properties and cure kinetics of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol-A-based epoxy resin (EP)/dicyandiamide were investigated using tensile test, dynamic mechanical thermal analysis, and differential scanning calorimetry under dynamic conditions. The results indicated that inclusion of core–shell rubber particles and nanosilica (NS) into EP increased cure onset, peak and end temperatures of the modified EP relative to the neat EP. Studies on cure kinetics based on Kissinger and Ozawa method also showed that there was decrease in the values of Ea and A. Also, the order of the overall reaction was found to be approximately equal to 2. Differential scanning calorimetry graphs obtained by the experimental data had good agreement with that calculated theoretically. Young’s modulus and tensile strength of the EP increase with the inclusion of NS; however, the corresponding values decrease when the core–shell particles are included in the EP. The tensile strength and the modulus of the EP modified with NS and core–shell particles also decreased relative to the neat EP. On the other hand, by adding core–shell particles and NS, the glass transition temperature of the samples remained approximately constant as obtained from dynamic mechanical thermal analysis.
Noise source identification for industrial sewing machines based on non-linear partial least squares regression model
Authors: Zhang Zhi-yong , Liu Xin , Huang Cai-xia , Pan Da
Published: August 2015

This paper introduces an application of non-linear partial least squares for vibro-acoustic regression modeling and for an industrial sewing machine. In the vibro-acoustic regression model, the vibration accelerations of reference points are defined as explanatory variables, while the noise sound pressure of target points is defined as response variables, and the number of explanatory variables is determined initially by a correlation analysis in the time domain. To improve predictive accuracy while a non-linear relationship exists between the explanatory and response variables, the explanatory variables are preprocessed by kernel function transformation. The comparison of regressive noise sound pressure to experimental data indicates that the non-linear partial least squares regression model has high predictive accuracy. Furthermore, the contributions of vibration accelerations to noise sound pressure are analyzed, by which the structure optimizations are guided and practiced. The comparison of noise test results before and after optimization testifies to the effectiveness of the contribution analysis.
Efficiency of worm gearboxes
Authors: Mautner Eva-Maria , Sigmund Werner , Stemplinger Johann-Paul , Stahl Karsten
Published: August 2015

Within a research project, experimental investigations of large-sized worm gears (pairing steel worm with bronze worm wheel) with centre distance a = 315 mm are carried out. The primary aim is to gain verified knowledge regarding load-carrying capacity and efficiency for this worm gear size. The paper describes the conducted tests in detail and shows basic examples of experimental test results. In the course of these investigations, an overall worm gearbox efficiency of up to η = 96% is measured.
Warm forging of an aluminium alloy for the differential case in an automobile transmission
Authors: Lee Sangik , Kim Byungmin , Lee Hye-Jin , Yoon Jonghun
Published: August 2015

This paper presents a warm-forging process for the manufacture of an aluminium alloy differential case in an automobile, which has usually been produced from ductile cast iron. In order to replace the conventional ductile cast iron with a lightweight material in the differential case, aluminium alloy 6082 is utilized in the proposed warm-forging process, which is then analysed by numerical simulations using DEFORM-3D. Experimental warm forging using aluminium alloy 6082 was conducted in a 1600 tonf press shop to evaluate the proposed design in the die and the punch as well as the forgeability of the aluminium alloy differential case. The as-forged aluminium alloy differential case not only provides a net shape but also has a crack-free volume internally, while reducing the total weight by about 40% based on the proposed design.
Levels of uric acid may predict the future development of pulmonary hypertension in systemic lupus erythematosus: a seven-year follow-up study
Authors: Castillo-Martínez D , Marroquín-Fabián E , Lozada-Navarro A C , Mora-Ramírez M , Juárez M , Sánchez-Muñoz F , Vargas-Barrón J , Sandoval J , Amezcua-Guerra L M
Published: August 2015

Objective

The objective of this paper is to assess whether pulmonary hypertension (PH) may be detected at one point in time or longitudinally predicted by serum uric acid (sUA) levels in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods

We conducted a post-hoc analysis of a long-term followed cohort of Mexican SLE patients. Echocardiography-based definitions of PH by the ESC/ERS/ISHLT and its associations with clinical and laboratory data on enrollment were studied. Especially, the impact that sUA levels at baseline may have on the future development of PH in patients with normal pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) was explored.

Results

Out of the 156 SLE patients originally enrolled in the cohort, 44 met the inclusion criteria for the present study and were grouped as having ( n = 10) or not having ( n = 34) PH. At baseline, sUA levels of 5.83 ± 1.79 and 5.82 ± 1.97 mg/dl ( p = ns) were found in patients with and without PH, respectively. No association between PASP and other markers was found. In patients with normal PASP, the presence of sUA ≥ 7 mg/dl at baseline predicted future development of PH (relative risk 8.5, 1.0009 to 72; p = 0.04).

Conclusion

In SLE, sUA levels at one point in time are useless to detect PH. However, steady hyperuricemia may predict the future development of PH in patients with normal PASP at baseline.
Sample size considerations for split-mouth design
Authors: Zhu Hong , Zhang Song , Ahn Chul
Published: August 2015

Split-mouth designs are frequently used in dental clinical research, where a mouth is divided into two or more experimental segments that are randomly assigned to different treatments. It has the distinct advantage of removing a lot of inter-subject variability from the estimated treatment effect. Methods of statistical analyses for split-mouth design have been well developed. However, little work is available on sample size consideration at the design phase of a split-mouth trial, although many researchers pointed out that the split-mouth design can only be more efficient than a parallel-group design when within-subject correlation coefficient is substantial. In this paper, we propose to use the generalized estimating equation (GEE) approach to assess treatment effect in split-mouth trials, accounting for correlations among observations. Closed-form sample size formulas are introduced for the split-mouth design with continuous and binary outcomes, assuming exchangeable and “nested exchangeable” correlation structures for outcomes from the same subject. The statistical inference is based on the large sample approximation under the GEE approach. Simulation studies are conducted to investigate the finite-sample performance of the GEE sample size formulas. A dental clinical trial example is presented for illustration.
PAP assays in newborn screening for cystic fibrosis: a population-based cost-effectiveness study
Authors: Seror Valerie , Cao Caroline , Roussey Michel , Giorgi Roch
Published: August 2015

Objectives

To compare the cost effectiveness of adding a pancreatitis-associated protein (PAP) assay to common immunoreactive trypsinogen (IRT) and DNA cystic fibrosis (CF) newborn screening strategies.

Methods

Using data collected on 553,167 newborns, PAP cut-offs were calculated based on non-inferiority of the detection rates of classical forms of CF. Cost effectiveness was considered from the third-party payer's perspective using only direct medical costs, and the unit costs of PAP assays were assessed based on a micro-costing study. Robustness of the cost-effectiveness estimates was assessed, taking the secondary outcomes of screening (ie. detecting mild forms and CF carriers) into account.

Results

IRT/DNA, IRT/PAP, and IRT/PAP/DNA strategies had similar detection rates for classical forms of CF, but the strategies involving PAP assays detected smaller numbers of mild forms of CF. The IRT/PAP strategy was cost-effective in comparison with either IRT/DNA or IRT/PAP/DNA. IRT/PAP/DNA screening was cost-effective in comparison with IRT/DNA if relatively low value was assumed to be attached to the identification of CF carriers.

Conclusions

IRT/PAP strategies could be strictly cost-effective, but dropping DNA would mean the test could not detect CF carriers. IRT/PAP/DNA strategies could be a viable option as they are significantly less costly than IRT/DNA, but still allow CF carrier detection.
Temperature-dependent electrorheological effect and its description with respect to dielectric spectra
Authors: Plachy Tomas , Sedlacik Michal , Pavlinek Vladimir , Stejskal Jaroslav , Graça Manuel Pedro , Costa Luís Cadillon
Published: August 2015

Electrorheological fluids consisting of large number and type of electrically polarizable particles have been presented in the literature. Nevertheless, there is a lack of temperature-dependent electrorheological effect analysis, which is their major feature from the application point of view. In this work, aniline oligomers were synthesized and carbonized in order to obtain suitable materials to be used in electrorheological fluids. The silicone oil suspensions were prepared and their temperature-dependent electrorheological performance was investigated in the temperature range between 25°C and 65°C. The electrorheological fluid based on particles with larger size exhibits higher sensitivity to the increase in temperature than the electrorheological fluid based on smaller particles. As an evaluative tool, dielectric spectra of the prepared electrorheological fluids were investigated. It has been shown that the activation energy of the relaxation process is higher for the electrorheological fluid based on larger size particles. The enhanced electrorheological effect at high temperature was ascribed to the shift of dielectric relaxation of the electrorheological fluids to higher frequencies.
The Dark Side of Men
Authors: Javaid Aliraza
Published: August 2015

This theoretical and conceptual article critically examines the issue of male rape in England and Wales, United Kingdom. Bringing different studies together from disparate disciplines reveal that men’s experiences of rape and sexual assault are similar to women’s sexual assaults and rapes, although there are some gendered differences as to how men deal with these crimes, particularly in regard to men’s willingness to report to officials and masculine ways wherein some men frame their experiences. To understand men’s experiences of rape and sexual assault, the theoretical frameworks of symbolic interactionism and hegemonic masculinity are used. I argue that men draw on “masculine” behaviors to cope with their victimization, and hegemonic masculinity constructs and shapes men’s experiences of rape. The analysis in this article is vital to understand how men respond and cope with rape, and it encourages further theoretical and empirical research on this neglected issue in England and Wales, United Kingdom. This article contributes theoretically to discourses on unacknowledged and unreported rape, and also to a broader literature on non-reported crime.
Epic Glory and Manhood Acts in Fantasy Role-Playing
Authors: Martin James S. , Vaccaro Christian A. , Heckert D. Alex , Heasley Robert
Published: August 2015

Based on a yearlong observational study of participants in a “Live Action Role Playing” group called “Dagorhir,” using the manhood acts perspective, we focus on how masculinity is constructed among low-status, subordinate men who self-define as “nerds.” We demonstrate that through fantasy role-playing, men are given opportunities to increase their group status, while women are typically relegated to subordinate positions. Increasing status in Dagorhir involved a type of self-enhancement strategy that we termed “epic glory,” which positioned men as social dominants. Epic glory was earned through training activities, at Dagorhir events, and through simulating dramatic death scenes. Such actions served as a performance of masculinity that was not possible for these men outside the role-playing experience. Importantly, women were excluded from many of the opportunities to enact epic glory, which helped reproduce inequalities both among males and between males and females participating in the events.
Predictors of Sexual Assault–Specific Prosocial Bystander Behavior and Intentions
Authors: Murphy Austin Megan J. , Dardis Christina M. , Wilson Milo S. , Gidycz Christine A. , Berkowitz Alan D.
Published: August 2015

This study prospectively examined the impact of men’s own attitudes and behaviors and perceptions of peer attitudes and behaviors on intentions and engagement in prosocial bystander behavior. Undergraduate men completed surveys at baseline and 4- and 7-month follow-ups. Men’s perceptions of peer attitudes and behaviors and their own attitudes and behaviors were both important predictors of intentions. However, men’s own attitudes and behaviors appeared to be more robustly predictive of behavior. Intentions to engage in bystander behavior were not predictive of behavior. Results support two specific areas of bystander intervention programming addressing misperceptions of social norms and personal attitudes and behaviors.
Young Adults’ Risk Perceptions of Various Tobacco Products Relative to Cigarettes
Authors: Wackowski Olivia A. , Delnevo Cristine D.
Published: August 2015

Objectives. Tobacco product risk perceptions may influence whether individuals use those products instead of or in addition to regular cigarettes. This study aimed to explore risk perceptions of various tobacco products relative to traditional cigarettes with young adults, a group with higher rates of tobacco use. Method. We examined risk perception responses among a nationally representative sample of young adults (age 18-34 years; n = 2,871, including tobacco and non–tobacco users) from the 2011 National Young Adult Health Survey. Results. Most (57.8%) respondents believed that e-cigarettes were less risky than cigarettes. Respondents were more likely to rate combustible products hookah (24.5%) and cigars (13.9%) as being less risky compared to noncombustible snus (10%) and other smokeless tobacco (SLT) products (7.1%) relative to cigarettes. Few (2.5%) rated menthol cigarettes as less risky. For e-cigarettes, hookah, and SLT, less risky beliefs were significantly higher among ever or current versus never product users. Between 22% and 33% of all respondents believed that SLT, snus, menthol cigarettes, and cigars were more risky than cigarettes, but differences in this belief between current and nonusers of these products were small and insignificant. Younger young adults were more likely to rate e-cigarettes and hookah as being “less risky” and rate cigars and SLT as being “more risky” than older young adults. Conclusion. The public’s views of comparative tobacco risk perceptions vary widely by tobacco product type and age-group. While “less risky” perceptions may be associated with product use, perceptions that products are “more risky” than cigarettes may not necessarily dissuade people from their use.
Effectiveness of a new dietetic weight management food to achieve weight loss in client-owned obese cats
Authors: Christmann Undine , Bečvářová Iveta , Werre Stephen R , Meyer Hein P
Published: August 2015

Objectives

The aim of the study was to evaluate weight loss and maintenance parameters in cats fed a novel weight management food and to assess the owner’s perception of the cat’s quality of life.

Methods

This study was designed as a prospective, uncontrolled/unmasked clinical trial. One hundred and thirty-two overweight/obese, otherwise healthy, client-owned cats were enrolled. Initial evaluation included physical examination, nutritional assessment, ideal body weight determination and weight-loss feeding guidelines development. Follow-up evaluations (monthly for 6 months) encompassed determination of body weight, body condition score, body fat index, muscle condition score and feeding practices. Quality of life assessment by owners included the cat’s level of energy, happiness, appetite, begging behavior, flatulence, stool volume and fecal score.

Results

Eighty-three percent of the cats lost weight, with an average ± SEM weight loss of 11.0 ± 1.8% over 6 months and an average ± SE weekly weight loss rate of 0.45 ± 0.02%. The mean ± SEM duration of weight loss was 134.0 ± 4.8 days. Fourteen percent of cats achieved an ideal body weight. Seventy-nine percent of cats ate more calories from novel weight management food than the recommended daily energy requirement for weight loss, and the majority of these cats still lost weight. Body condition score and body fat index decreased over time compared with baseline from weeks 12–24 and from weeks 8–24, respectively. Owners perceived an increase in energy and happiness (>week 12) in the cats that lost weight, without changes in appetite or begging behavior.

Conclusions and relevance

This study confirmed the effectiveness of the novel weight management food in achieving weight loss in overweight/obese client-owned cats. Owners reported significant improvements in their cat’s quality of life without negative side effects.
Emphysematous pyelonephritis in a domestic shorthair cat
Authors: Gould Emily N , Cohen Todd A , Trivedi Sameer R , Kim James Y
Published: August 2015

A 3-year-old male castrated domestic shorthair cat was presented with an acute history of lethargy and decreased appetite. Pertinent physical examination abnormalities included palpable irregularity of the right kidney and pain on palpation of the left kidney. Ultrasonographic imaging of the abdomen revealed gas present at the corticomedullary junction of the left kidney, consistent with emphysematous pyelonephritis, as well as emphysematous cystitis. While quantitative urine culture via pyelocentesis yielded a negative culture, a sample via cystocentesis was positive for Escherichia coli and emphysematous changes were presumed most likely secondary to an ascending infection. The purpose of this report is to describe the temporary management of ureteral obstruction secondary to emphysematous pyelonephritis using a ureteral stent in a cat.
Marketing with working consumers: The case of a carmaker and its brand community
Authors: Cova Bernard , Pace Stefano , Skålén Per
Published: August 2015

Consumers have entered the world of contemporary organizations. They are even being reconsidered as workers. This article contributes to the body of literature on this theme by focusing on collaborative marketing, which is the organization of marketing work conducted jointly by marketing professionals and consumers. This article draws on the ethnographic study of a collaborative marketing programme organized by the carmaker Alfa Romeo that engaged Alfisti, the enthusiastic consumers of the Alfa Romeo brand. Previous research has analysed work carried out by consumers. This article instead analyses the organization of consumer work and what marketing professionals do to integrate consumer work into their marketing work. This article concludes that marketing professionals control working consumers as if they were wage labourers, which most consumers do not appreciate. Conversely, working consumers compel marketers to engage in social and emotional labour, which marketers are not accustomed to and try to limit.
On the case of the missing detail and the twisted truth about hard work
Authors: Schreven Stephanie
Published: August 2015

This text, its politics, and erotics originate in ‘the case of the missing detail’: the alliance between Warner Brothers Entertainment Inc. and the author J.K. Rowling during a trial over copyright infringement and fair use concerning a lexicon, which, I argue, puts at stake, as an opportunity, ownership in the properties of the story and world of Harry Potter. During the trial, the author alone takes center stage. In investigating the alliance and making a case for its shared interests, this text brings together work and consumption. I look at the role work and specifically ‘hard work’ by the author plays in criminalizing and containing consumption that is disorderly, disrespectful, and excessive: consumption by fans. Fans who write fan fiction are not content to merely read and consume; they disrespect the symbolic authority of the author to write their own and different stories and create symbolic value in excess of and for the original story. However, in the end, and in this case, at stake in criminalizing and containing consumption by fans are interests that have nothing to do with hard work, but with collecting rent instead, on the license to use the Harry Potter trademark for branding. Consumption that is disorderly, disrespectful, and excessive undermines the symbolic value of the brand, embodied in a distinctive identity, and hence its attractiveness to be licensed, by diluting it. The law functions to regulate consumption as proper to secure brand value, which legally renders the story of Harry Potter undead to the imagination.
After Rana Plaza: Building coalitional power for labour rights between unions and (consumption-based) social movement organisations
Authors: Reinecke Juliane , Donaghey Jimmy
Published: August 2015

Global labour governance has typically been approached from either industrial relations scholars focusing on the role of organised labour or social movement scholars focusing on the role of social movement organisations in mobilising consumption power. Yet, little work has focused on the interaction of the two. Using an exploratory case study of the governance response to the 2013 Rana Plaza disaster, this article examines how complementary capacities of production- and consumption-based actors generated coalitional power and contributed to creating the ‘Accord for Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh’, making it binding and convincing more than 180 brand-name companies to sign up. The research has implications for understanding how the interface between production and consumption actors may provide leverage to improve labour standards in global supply chains.
Organisations as producers of consumers
Authors: Fontenelle Isleide Arruda
Published: August 2015

The main objective of this article is to show how organisations can be understood as producers of consumers and that the sphere of consumption should, therefore, become an integral part of the field of Organisation Studies. In order to achieve this objective, we have adopted a Marxist dialectical approach to the centrality of consumption in the value realisation process of capital, within a historical reconstitution of the production of the consumer, and we offer two empirical illustrations of contemporary transformations involving the spheres of consumption and work in the context of for-profit and non-profit organisations. We analyse how the restructuring of production that started in the 1980s altered organisational practices and forms: consumer management began to inform production; the boundaries between work and consumption became blurred, and the logic of value started permeating even non-profit organisations. In this new scenario, the sphere of consumption itself is modified and comes to be understood in terms of new categories, such as prosumption. We conclude by discussing how insights from our analysis will contribute to the field of Organisation Studies so as to build a bridge between work and consumption, and to take into consideration the complex web within which work management, consumer management and organisational forms overlap in the value realisation process.
‘Moving to stay in the same place?’ Academics and theatrical artists as exemplars of the ‘mobile middle’
Authors: Loacker Bernadette , Śliwa Martyna
Published: August 2015

This article provides insights into mobility in the context of geographical, economic, professional, temporal and imaginary movements of academics and theatrical artists. It explores how these dimensions of mobility intersect in the narratives of academics and theatrical artists, thereby producing a position ‘in between’ choice and necessity, and privilege and disadvantage with regard to movement. The analysis shows how both academics and theatrical artists engage in mobility to secure, maintain or improve their professional and economic position. On this basis, we suggest that they are part of an emerging category of professionals: the ‘mobile middle’, for whom mobility is a crucial part and principle of life. We argue that the phenomenon of the ‘mobile middle’ and mobility in general have wide-ranging implications for our understanding of contemporary careers, work and life organisation.
Narrative approaches in mental health: Preserving the emancipatory tradition
Authors: Fisher Pamela , Lees John
Published: August 2015

Narrative approaches have exercised an emancipatory influence within mental health. In this article, it is suggested that there is a risk that the emancipatory tradition associated with narrative may be co-opted through contemporary mental health strategy by a narrow agenda which promotes a particular Western and neoliberal form of citizenship. This may limit the way recovery can be imagined by equating it solely with the future-orientated individual who strives, above all, to be economically independent. To resist this, it is suggested that narrative in mental health should be approached with recourse to therapeutic thinking which promotes a relational ethos of ‘recovery together’. The ‘recovery together’ model is subsequently considered in relation to narrative research on temporal understandings which have been conducted in disability studies and in the area of chronic illness. These studies point towards the value of a relational orientation towards well-being in the present, rather than fixating on future goals. It is suggested that a relational philosophy of the present might be usefully incorporated into narrative approaches when working therapeutically with people suffering from mental distress. It is argued that this might enable users and practitioners to extend the available narrative templates and to imagine recovery in diverse ways which support personal transformation and, ultimately, contribute to social change.
The School-Community Integrated Learning pathway: Exploring a new way to prepare and induct final-year preservice teachers
Authors: Hudson Suzanne , Hudson Peter , Adie Lenore
Published: August 2015

Universities and teacher employment bodies seek new, cost-effective ways for graduating classroom-ready teachers. This study involved 32 final-year preservice teachers in an innovative school–university partnership teacher education programme titled, the School-Community Integrated Learning (SCIL) pathway. Data were collected using a five-part Likert scale survey with extended written responses. Survey results showed that preservice teachers involved in the SCIL pathway learnt more about the teaching profession, which extended their usual university coursework. Furthermore, written responses suggested ways for advancing their understandings to ensure preservice teachers receive a quality school experience towards readiness for teaching.
Neoliberalism, curriculum development and manifestations of ‘creativity’
Authors: Hakala Juha T , Uusikylä Kari , Järvinen Esa-Matti
Published: August 2015

There is a manifest tendency for national education policy to follow global economic trends. In many Western industrialized countries, this relationship has intensified or strengthened within the last decades. The strengthening of this relationship has been seen, among other things, as evidence of the growing power of neoliberal ideology. The background reference for this article is the emergence of a neoliberal education policy ideology in the two creativity-related strategies implemented by the Finnish government during the first decade of the 21st century. The main focus of the study was the concept of creativity, for it has appeared to be the prevailing trend within the Finnish basic education renovation programme from 2010 to 2014. The sample ( n = 1163) of research was composed of expert teachers, artists and university-level educated engineers. The results from the study revealed the demanding influence of the concept of creativity on curriculum planning. Perspectives on the significance or importance of creativity and creative education vary a lot and, for instance, are influenced by the respondent’s professional background. The results obtained from the study also provide the basis to reflect on the functionality of national democracy within the context of the educational policy decision-making process.
The worldliness of Stuart Hall
Authors: Wright Handel Kashope
Published: August 2015

This special issue addresses the worldliness of Stuart Hall, both in the naïve sense of the global scope of reception and influence of his work and in the more specific Saidian sense of the impact of his work in the formation of cultural studies generally and on specific praxis and intellectual projects. With articles addressing projects such as the Black arts movement in Britain; intellectual versus academic cultural studies in Australia; making meaning of the rise of right-wing populism in Finland; Hall’s reception in Latin America and influence on the formation of Latin American cultural studies; a specific media court case in South Africa; addressing the phenomenon of jihadi brides in Britain and reconceptualising continental African blackness, this collection represents Hall as both specific and global intellectual. It also takes us beyond the initial phase of grief to one in which we must go on doing cultural studies, without Stuart Hall’s leadership, without guarantees.
Stuart Hall’s relevance for the study of African blackness
Authors: Wright Handel Kashope
Published: August 2015

In this article I draw on Stuart Hall’s extensive writing on blackness generally, touch on the few instances of him directly addressing Africa and continental African blackness and on what Gayatri Spivak rightly sees as the missed articulation of Africa(ns) and the postcolonial cultural studies project in Hall’s work in order to undertake, à la Hall’s essay on Gramsci’s relevance for the study of race and ethnicity, a brief exercise on Hall’s relevance for the study of continental African blackness. The premise of my arguments is that Hall’s insistence on the importance of both difference and complexity should give us pause about the neat dualism of hybrid, evolving diasporic blackness and originary fixed continental blackness on the one hand and the assumptions of a spatio-temporally seamless homogeneous blackness from the continent to the far reaches of the diaspora on the other. Africa in general, and African blackness in particular, I argue, are in fact rather complex and this ought to be taken up more seriously and rigorously in conceptualizations of blackness and the field of cultural studies. Continued failure to do so, I conclude, has potentially serious consequences for the politics of representation and beyond.
‘Playing the Chinese card’: Globalization and the aesthetic strategies of Chinese contemporary artists
Authors: Zhang Lin , Frazier Taj
Published: August 2015

This article examines the art and travels of two contemporary Chinese artists – Ai Weiwei and Cai Guo-Qiang – to explore how each of them successfully navigates the rapidly shifting terrains and interests of the Chinese state and the global high art industry while simultaneously articulating a distinct politics and practice of creative ambivalence. We argue that these two artists’ creative productions and strategies: (1) refute various western critics’ critique of Chinese artists as inauthentic imitators of western art who produce exotic representations of China and Chinese identity for western consumption; (2) call into question the Chinese government’s numerous efforts to simultaneously promote and control Chinese contemporary art for nationalist/statist purposes. Furthermore, we unpack how both artists deploy various resources to produce complex works that interrogate and demonstrate the clashes of power, culture and identity in global spaces of encounter.
Optimization of friction stir welding parameters using multiple response surface methodology
Authors: Ghaffarpour Morteza , Aziz Ahmad , Hejazi Taha-Hossein
Published: August 2015

Improving quality in today’s complicated industrial systems is gaining more and more importance every day. Since applying these systems costs a lot, companies should try to offer the best outcomes and processes possible. One of the products most applied is Tailor Welding Blanks, which is widely used in automobile, aerospace, and other industries. One of the best methods of producing Tailor Welding Blanks is Friction Stir Welding. Using this technology, sheets dissimilar in material and thickness can be joined. In this paper, the possibility of welding thin sheets of 5083-H12 and 6061-T6 aluminum alloy by Friction Stir Welding with the thickness of 1.5 mm is examined. To detect the impact of Friction Stir Welding parameters, i.e. rotational speed (r/min), linear speed (mm/ min), shoulder diameter (mm), and tilt angle (°), a Box-Behnken design was used and using multiple Response Surface Methodology values of robust optimization of tensile strength and elongation were derived. The optimization and experiment results were then compared. The results of the comparison showed a good correspondence.
Optimization of the process parameters in generic thermal barrier coatings using the Taguchi method and grey relational analysis
Authors: Kumar Dipak , Pandey KN
Published: August 2015

The purpose of this paper is to develop 7 wt% yttria stabilized zirconia (7YSZ) thermal barrier coatings by optimization of the atmospheric plasma spraying process parameters. Multiple-performance characteristics, such as coating thickness and surface roughness were considered for optimization. Eighteen experimental runs based on the L18 orthogonal arrays of the Taguchi method were used to show the best conditions among the plasma spraying parameters. Thereafter, best possible process parameters were obtained by the analysis of variance using grey relational analysis as the quality guide. Results signify the application possibility of the grey-based Taguchi technique for continuous development of quality coating in the area of advanced manufacturing technology.
Influence of flicker characteristics on stroboscopic effects
Authors: Bullough JD , Marcus D
Published: August 2015

This paper describes two human factors experiments designed to assess the influence of flicker characteristics on the perception of stroboscopic effects from flickering light. Specifically, the following factors were investigated: temporal waveform shape, frequency, duty cycle, percent flicker and flicker index. For a given frequency, the flicker index appears to be more predictive of the detection and acceptability of stroboscopic effects than the percent flicker value.
Recombinant Newcastle Disease Virus Encoding IL-12 and/or IL-2 as Potential Candidate for Hepatoma Carcinoma Therapy
Authors: Ren Guiping , Tian Guiyou , Liu Yunye , He Jinjiao , Gao Xinyu , Yu Yinhang , Liu Xin , Zhang Xu , Sun Tian , Liu Shuangqing , Yin Jiechao , Li Deshan
Published: August 2015

Interleukins as immunomodulators are promising therapeutic agents for cancer therapy. Previous studies showed that there was an improved antitumor immunity in tumor-bearing mice using recombinant Newcastle disease virus carrying for interleukin-2. Interleukin-12 is a promising antitumor cytokine too. So we investigated and compared the antitumor effect of genetically engineered Newcastle disease virus strains expressing both interleukin-12 and/or interleukin-2 (rClone30–interleukin-2, rClone30–interleukin-12, and rClone30–interleukin-12–interleukin-2). In vitro studies showed that rClone30s could efficiently infect tumor cells and express interleukin-12 and/or interleukin-2. 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-y)-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide results showed rClone30s possessed strong cytotoxic activities against multiple tumor cell lines (U251, HepG2, A549, and Hela). Animal studies showed that rClone30–interleukin-12–interleukin-2 was more effective in inhibition of murine hepatoma carcinoma tumors, with the mean tumor volume (day 14) of 141.70 mm3 comparing 165.67 mm3 of rClone30–interleukin-12 group, 210.47 mm3 of rClone30–interleukin-2 group, 574.70 mm3 of rClone30 group, and 1206.83 mm3 of phosphate-buffered saline group. Moreover, the rClone30–interleukin-12–interleukin-2 treated mice secreted more interferon γ (333.518 pg/mL) and its downstream cytokine interferon-γ induced protein 10 (16.006 pg/mL) in tumor than the rClone30–interleukin-12 group (interferon γ: 257.548 pg/mL; interferon-γ induced protein 10: 13.601 pg/mL), rClone30–interleukin2 group (interferon γ: 124.601 pg/mL; interferon-γ induced protein 10: 9.779 pg/mL), or rClone30 group (interferon γ: 48.630 pg/mL; interferon-γ induced protein 10:1.650 pg/mL). For the survival study, rClone30–interleukin12–interleukin2 increased the survival rate (12 of 16) of the tumor-bearing mice versus 11 of 16 in rClone30–interleukin–12 group, 10 of 16 in rClone30–interleukin-2 group, 7 of 16 in Clone30 group, and 0/16 in phosphate-buffered saline group, respectively. To determine whether the mice treated with recombinant virus developed protective immune response, the mice were rechallenged with the same tumor cells. The results showed that viral-treated mice were significantly protected from rechallenge. These results suggest that expressing both interleukin-2 and/or interleukin-12 could be ideal approaches to enhance the antitumor ability of Newcastle disease virus, and rClone30–interleukin-12–interleukin-2 is slightly superior over rClone30–interleukin-12 and rClone30–interleukin-2 alone.
A study of grip strength among 20–49-year-old British adults and comparison to existing norms
Authors: Wozny Robyn , Pratt Anna L , Pereira Christine
Published: August 2015

Introduction

Hand grip strength is frequently assessed to evaluate interventions or guide treatment. When using calibrated equipment in a standardised method, hand-held dynamometry is a reliable measure for hand grip strength and can be compared to normative data. However, existing British grip strength normative data were published 20 years ago.

Methods

A non-experimental quantitative study was carried out to establish if existing UK hand grip norms and consolidated multinational norms were representative of today’s 20–49-year-old British adult population. The methodology used was modelled on a previous British study using the mean Jamar dynamometer maximal grip strengths and reported within age bands.

Results

A total of 135 healthy British citizens of various ethnicities between 20 and 49 years were recruited. Grip strength is decreased in comparison to the existing British normative data for both males and females in all age bands. A significant difference exists ( p < 0.05) for male right hand aged 40–44 years and right and left hands for women 25–29 years and 45–49 years, respectively. Significant differences were also noted in 5 and 8 of the 12 multinational means for men and women respectively.

Conclusions

Due to small sample size, the ability of this study to demonstrate a significant difference in mean grip strength to the earlier British norms is low. However, a small increase in sample size may have resulted in further significant differences with both studies. A larger study, taking into consideration ethnicity, is recommended to ensure valid and reliable grip strength norms are used in practice.
The Effects of Self-Enhancement and Self-Improvement on Recovery From Stress Differ Across Cultural Groups
Authors: Tsai William , Chiang Jessica J. , Lau Anna S.
Published: August 2015

Extant research shows that individuals can reflect either adaptively or maladaptively over negative experiences. However, few studies have examined how culture influences this process. We examined the effects of self-enhancement and self-improvement reflection on emotional and physiological recovery from a laboratory social stressor among 56 Asian Americans (interdependent cultural group) and 58 European Americans (independent cultural group). The extent to which people gained emotional and physiological benefits from self-reflection depended on whether the self-reflection processes were congruent with individuals’ heritage cultural backgrounds. When there was a cultural match, participants showed improved emotional recovery, quicker return to baseline levels of cortisol, and greater persistence following the stressor. These findings provide evidence suggesting culturally distinct processes through which individuals recover from negative experiences.
Teaching urban youth about controversial issues: Pathways to becoming active and informed citizens
Authors: Lin Alex Romeo , Lawrence Joshua Fahey , Snow Catherine Elizabeth
Published: August 2015

Although American schools are required to meet civic education goals of preparing students to become active and informed citizens, high-quality civic opportunities (e.g. service learning and volunteering) are consistently less available to youth of color who are typically enrolled in schools located in high-poverty communities. The purpose of this study is to evaluate efficacy of the Word Generation program to improve students’ self-reported civic engagement ( N = 5798) in the context of a randomized trial that was conducted in several middle schools located in a West Coast metropolitan area of the United States. Word Generation is a cross-content literacy program that instructs students to learn academic words, which are embedded in brief passages covering a different controversial issue each week. Participants completed survey items on how often they helped their friends, community, and school, as well as voting interest. Results provide support for the primary research question – participation in the Word Generation program has a significant impact on students’ self-reported civic engagement, but not for voting interest. These results suggest that students’ opportunities to debate on social issues are crucial to envisioning oneself as an active participant in civic affairs.
Peers as Facilitators of Medication Adherence Interventions
Authors: Enriquez Maithe , Conn Vicki S.
Published: August 2015

Background: Difficulty taking essential medications as prescribed is a prevalent problem among people living with chronic diseases. Numerous interventions to enhance medication adherence have been developed; the majority facilitated by health care professionals. Objective: This review examined medication adherence interventions delivered by peers (ie, lay individuals living with the same chronic disease) and reports what is known about the impact of peer-facilitated interventions. Data Sources: PubMed, CINAHL, Google Scholar, Google, and PsychInfo, and ancestry searches. Study Selection: Solely peers delivered the intervention and follow-up occurred for at least 24 weeks postintervention. Electronic databases were searched from their start date to December 31, 2014. Results: Eleven studies were located that reported 10 different interventions focused on 6 chronic disease conditions. Most interventions were delivered in clinical settings and grounded in a theoretical framework. Formats were evenly split between individual and group level, with one intervention using both. Length of training for the interventionists and the number of intervention sessions that subjects received varied across studies. Limitations: Self-report was frequently used as a measure of adherence. Biomarkers were sometimes used to assess medication adherence; however, lifestyle modification may have also affected biomarker levels. Conclusions: Overall, the interventions had positive effects and attrition was quite low. Peer-facilitated interventions appear to enhance medication adherence as well as other healthful behaviors, such as exercise.