bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Les sources de Victor Hugo par rapport à la Perse
Authors: Tavakoli Hélia
Published: May 2019

En tant que le chef de file du romantisme, Victor Hugo a énormément influencé le XIXe siècle par ses idées et sa philosophie. Comment pouvons-nous étudier l’Orient et ne pas parler des Orientales ? C’est en lisant Les Orientales de Hugo que nous avons aperçu à notre grand étonnement, en tête de ses poèmes, les épigraphes de poètes persans. Cet article illustre une étude sur Victor Hugo et la Perse et essaie de répondre aux questions suivantes : Que savait Hugo de la Perse ? Comment pouvait-il connaitre les poètes persans ? Qui étaient ses poètes persans préférés ? Ses informations sur la Perse étaient-elles seulement littéraires ou étaient-elles également inspirées par l’histoire et la religion de ce pays dans lequel n’avait jamais voyagé ? S’il connaissait la Perse ancienne, avait-il eu des idées sur Zoroastre et Mani ?
Between Sciences of Origins and Religions of the Future: Questions of Philology
Authors: Olender Maurice
Published: May 2019

The antique Christian “appropriation” of Hebrew by the Early Church Fathers was succeeded historically by a kind of scholarly appropriation that resulted in the emergence of a “ready-made India” founded on a new discourse about Sanskrit. In a world governed by romanticist visions undergirded with colonial aspirations, in a historical period between a Christianity weakened by Enlightenment philosophers and the advancement of scientistic secularism, certain scholarly fables about a primordial India came to resemble the fables about Hebrew. In this race toward the discovery of human origins, the new “Aryan Bible” required a new language of paradise: Sanskrit. Can one then say that India was appropriated within a scholarly environment that was being pulled between Christianity, secularism and scientism? Since our investigations have allowed us to demonstrate that this hypothesis is plausible, it is necessary to test this hypothesis through the clarification of the historical contexts, intellectual dynamics, and theological and political fields of action in which myth and reason mutually reinforce one another. While underlining the political stakes of the comparative method of anthropology, this article also recalls that not so long ago, knowledge of ancient and modern humanities often bore the mark of racial sciences that influenced all university disciplines from the early 19th century to the late 1940s.
Crossing Interpretive Boundaries in Sixteenth-Century Istanbul: Aḥmed Sūdī on the Dīvān of Ḥāfiẓ of Shiraz
Authors: Inan Murat Umut
Published: May 2019

This article discusses an Ottoman commentary by Aḥmed Sūdī (d. ca. 1600) on the Dīvān (poetry collection) of Ḥāfiẓ of Shiraz (d. ca. 1390), a Persian literary masterpiece that enjoyed wide readership in the Ottoman world for centuries. In the first part of the article, I introduce Sūdī’s life and works and delineate the structure of his commentary, noting how that structure is underpinned by his philological approach to commentary writing. In the second part, I focus on Sūdī’s interpretation of the opening verse of the Dīvān and compare it with that of his predecessors to highlight and contextualize Sūdī’s commentarial approach. I conclude by illustrating how his grammatical-lexicographical analysis aimed to liberate the celebrated Dīvān from the dominant tradition of allegorical interpretation.
The Font that Never Was: Linotype and the “Phonetic Chinese Alphabet” of 1921
Authors: Mullaney Thomas S.
Published: May 2019

Since the invention and globalization of hot metal printing in the United States and Europe, engineers and entrepreneurs dreamt of a day when linotype and monotype technologies would absorb Chinese script into its growing repertoire of non-Latin writing systems, just as they had Arabic, Armenian, Burmese, Devanagari, Hebrew, Korean, and over one hundred other scripts. In the early 1920s, the much-celebrated release of a new font—the “Chinese Phonetic Alphabet” by Mergenthaler Linotype, and later by the Monotype corporation—led many to believe that the day had finally come. This article charts out the quixotic history of Linotype and Monotype’s efforts to enter the Chinese market, examining the linguistic challenges that had long prevented China’s absorption into a Western-dominated “hot metal empire,” the design process by which artists in Brooklyn and London crafted these new fonts, and ultimately the cultural misunderstandings that doomed the projects to failure.
Arabic Hot Metal
Authors: Nemeth Titus
Published: May 2019

This article investigates the beginnings of Arabic typographic composition with typesetting machinery. It discusses different claims in literature of the first instance of mechanical composition and juxtaposes them with findings from original research in archives of typesetting machinery manufacturers active at the beginning of the twentieth century. Based on this evidence, it suggests a new account of the development and use of the first Arabic casting machine. The article raises geographical and socio-cultural aspects that provided the circumstances for this development and re-situates it from the Middle East to the United States. It identifies the manufacturer of the first Arabic composition machine and type founts, as well as the customer who initiated and contributed to its development. It then considers how the Arabic Linotype was likely conceived in a collaboration between the customer and the manufacturer, pooling cultural and technical expertise for this pioneering effort. Finally, the article discusses the resulting type fount and considers its characteristics from a technical and a typographic-aesthetic perspective, illustrating some of the effects mechanisation had on Arabic typography.
Philological Reversion in Post-Apartheid South Africa: The Sand Writing and Alternate Alphabets of Willem Boshoff
Authors: Campbell Kurt
Published: May 2019

This article focuses on the conceptual implications of specific works of contemporary artist and wordsmith Adriaan Willem Boshoff. Boshoff uses his creations to challenge the terms of the current debate around indigenous languages in southern Africa through artworks such as Blind Alphabet and his Sand Writing Series. These works call viewers to an emphatic return to an understanding of scripts (and the worlds they produce) as embodied systems of tradition that occupy the central place not only in the groups they serve, but indeed in a larger vision of a culturally tolerant and affirmative nation. The article tracks key South African educational policies such as the Apartheid era Bantu Education Act of 1953, and the Corrective Language Act of 1998 after the first democratic elections to contextualize the politics of legislative development in South Africa as related to indigenous scripts and languages. Beyond this bureaucratic history, the article foregrounds partisan agency that individuals such as Wilhelm Bleek, Lucy Lloyd and Magrieta Jantjies displayed as custodians of endangered scripts and languages, culminating in a discussion of the provocative works Boshoff created to stimulate critical thought on contemporaneous philological concerns in South Africa.
Enabling Modernity: Innovation in Original Modulated Greek Typefaces, 1998–2007
Authors: Leonidas Gerry
Published: May 2019

This article discusses the associations with tradition, modernity, innovation, and revivalism contained within, and enabled by, three seminal Greek typefaces for continuous reading in a modulated style, developed from 1998 onwards outside Greece. It starts with an analysis of the historical model of types cut by Firmin Didot; this style was later adopted by the Monotype Corporation for hot-metal composition, and survived across technologies well into the digital era. It provides a reference point for subsequent work, and informed new digital typefaces, starting with Adobe Systems’ Minion Pro (1998). The article discusses Adobe’s programme of developing large typographic families with Greek complements, which explicitly pushed the design envelope with each iteration. It examines the approaches taken for features such as the first pairing of monotonic and polytonic diacritics, the pioneering of functionally correct diacritics over small capitals, and their impact on wider practice. Parallel efforts that reinforced this trend by Microsoft, as well as notable independent work, are referenced in the context of active explorations of the relationship between Latin and Greek styles by non-Greek designers. The article concludes that the period between 1998–2007 has been revolutionary for Greek typefaces for continuous text.
The Incompatibles? Socialism, Academia, Populism
Authors: Brass Tom
Published: May 2019

Traced here is the historical role of academia in the way revolution and socialism have vanished from the leftist agenda, together with its political and ideological effects and implications. Thus a similar path was followed from the late 19th century onwards by the reformism/revisionism of katheder-socialists, and from the 1980s onwards by the ‘new’ populist postmodernism in academia. Both privileged culture and reified peasant and ethnic identity, thereby replacing Marxist theory and concepts (class, revolution, socialism, state capture) with other forms of empowerment (parliamentary, resistance-to-the-state) that did not involve a transcendence of the accumulation process. In each instance, reformist/revisionist compromise with capitalism, together with a failure to address both the presence of the industrial reserve army labour and the resulting intensification of labour market competition, has helped to pave the way for the rise of the far right.
Semiaquilegia danxiashanensis (Ranunculaceae), a new species from Danxia Shan in Guangdong, southern China
Authors: ZHOU JIAN-JUN , HUANG ZHANG-PING , LI JIA-HUI , HODGES SCOTT , DENG WEI-SHENG , WU LEI , ZHANG QIANG
Published: May 2019

Based on morphological and molecular phylogenetic studies, Semiaquilegia danxiashanensis, a new species from Danxia Shan in northern Guangdong, southern China, is described and illustrated. This species is easily distinguishable from each of other three known species in the genus by characters of the flowers and fruits. In addition, molecular phylogenetic analyses of both the nuclear ITS and the plastid trnL-F region strongly supported S. danxiashanensis as a separate species from other species of Semiaquilegia. We provide a detailed morphological and habitat description, distribution, as well as colour photographs and illustrations of the new species.
A review of the Oriental Campeprosopa species (Diptera: Stratiomyidae)
Authors: MASON FRANCO , ROZKOŠNÝ RUDOLF
Published: May 2019

The Oriental species of Campeprosopa Macquart are re-examined based on material (149 specimens) from 9 institutions worldwide. Special attention was focused on the taxonomic value of diagnostic characters and variability of individual species. A thorough revision resulted in discovering four new synonyms of C. flavipes Macquart, 1850: C. munda OstenSacken, 1881, syn.nov.; C. bella Edwards, 1919, syn.nov.; C. ornata Edwards, 1919, syn.nov.; C. pulchra Edwards, 1919, syn.nov. Lectotypes were designated for Campeprosopa munda and Ampsalis longispina Brunetti, 1913. According to present knowledge, the distribution of three valid species seems to be allopatric. The distribution area of C. borneensis Lindner, 1937 is very probably confined to the Malaysian part of Borneo, while C. flavipes occupies the southernmost part of Thailand and entire Sumatra and Java and C. longispina (Brunetti, 1913) occurs in eastern India and northern Thailand and Laos.
Keys, phylogenies and biogeography of Polypedilum subgenus Uresipedilum Oyewo et Saeher (Diptera, Chironomidae)
Authors: SÆTHER OLE A. , OYEWO EMMANUEL ADEOYE
Published: May 2019

Keys to the males of the 48 known species of the subgenus Uresipedilum Oyewo et Sæther of Polypedilum Kieffer, and of the known pupae and larvae are presented. P. (U.) chubetudeeum Sasa et Suzuki is regarded as a synonym of P. (U.) aviceps Townes. Parsimony analyses show that the subgenus can be divided into four tentative main groups: the cultellatum group, the pedatum group, the albicorpum group, and the convictum group. Brooks parsimony analyses (BPA) and Bremer estimate was used to assess the geographic co-evolution and make comparisons with other subgenera. Dispersal via a Beringian connection between East Asia and the Nearctic Region is clear with further dispersal south to Guatemala and Peru more tenuous. There also are indications of connections between the Afrotropical region, South and East Asia, Australia and New Zealand. This may be direct dispersal by mean of floating detritus rather than Gondwanian vicariance as Polypedilum is common on several oceanic islands. The same distribution patterns are apparent in other subgenera as well as in other basal Chironomini. However, while there are no clear indication of vicariance between the Neotropical and Afrotropical regions in Uresipedilum such vicariance is evident in the subgenera Tripodura Townes and Cerobregma Oyewo et Sæther as well as in Nilothauma Kieffer.
A review of the genus Brassolis Fabricius in Colombia and Ecuador with description of two new taxa (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae)
Authors: BRISTOW C. ROGER
Published: May 2019

The nymphalid genus Brassolis in Ecuador and Colombia is reviewed. One subspecies (granadensis) is raised to species status, one subspecies (sophorae philomela) is synonymised (with sophorae luridus) and two new subspecies (daisye and wallengreni) of isthmia are described. As a result of the refined taxonomy, a clearer pattern of the distribution of Brassolis in these two countries emerges.
Hyphessobrycon oritoensis (Characiformes: Characidae), a new species from the Putumayo River drainage, Colombian Amazon
Authors: GARCÍA-ALZATE CARLOS A. , ROMÁN-VALENCIA CÉSAR , TAPHORN DONALD C.
Published: May 2019

Hyphessobrycon oritoensis (Characiformes: Characidae) is described from the Putumayo River drainage of the Colombian Amazon. The new species belongs to the H. heterorhabdus group and is distinguished from all other known species by the following combination of characters: iii,8 dorsal–fin rays, iv, 26–27 anal–fin rays, 19 teeth on dentary, 35 scales in longitudinal series, 10–11 perforated scales in lateral line, 7 scales between lateral line and dorsal–fin origin, 14 predorsal scales and a dark lateral band that extends from the posterior border of the humeral spot to the tips of the middle caudal fin rays.
Description of Penia mantillerii sp. nov. (Coleoptera: Elateridae: Dimini), with a key to Penia species from Vietnam and nearby areas
Authors: KUNDRATA ROBIN , NÉMETH TAMÁS
Published: May 2019

Penia Laporte, 1838 is the most species-rich genus in the click-beetle tribe Dimini. Penia is distributed in the Himalayas, East and South East Asia. In this paper, we describe P. mantillerii sp. nov. from northern Vietnam. This species is easily recognizable due to its elongate body and large window-like elytral punctures. The most morphologically similar species to P. mantillerii sp. nov. are P. costipennis Fleutiaux, 1936 and P. sucinea Schimmel, 2001, which also occur in northern Vietnam. Male pregenital segments and genitalia are figured for the first time for P. sucinea. An identification key to the Penia species from Vietnam and surroundings is provided.
A new species of Agnetina from China with redescription of Paragnetina indentata Wu & Claassen, 1934 (Plecoptera: Perlidae)
Authors: QIAN YU-HAN , XIANG JIN-HONG , JIAO JUN-YING , DU YU-ZHOU
Published: May 2019

A new species of genus Agnetina (Plecoptera: Perlidae), Agnetina donans Qian & Du sp. nov. from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China is described from males and females. Additionally, Paragnetina indentata Wu & Claassen, 1934 is redescribed from two males and a female collected from Mt. Gaoligong, Yunnan Province in southwestern China.
Updraft Constraints on Entrainment: Insights from Amazonian Deep Convection
Authors: Anber Usama M. , Giangrande Scott E. , Donner Leo J. , Jensen Michael P.
Published: May 2019

Mixing of environmental air into clouds, or entrainment, has been identified as a major contributor to erroneous climate predictions made by modern comprehensive climate and numerical weather prediction models. Despite receiving extensive attention, the ad hoc treatment of this convective-scale process in global models remains poor. On the other hand, while limited-area high-resolution nonhydrostatic models can directly resolve entrainment, their sensitivity to model resolution, especially with the lack of benchmark mass flux observations, limits their applicability. Here, the dataset from the Observations and Modeling of the Green Ocean Amazon (GoAmazon2014/5) campaign focusing on radar retrievals of convective updraft vertical velocities is used with the aid of cloud-resolving model simulations of four deep convective events over the Amazon to provide insights into entrainment. Entrainment and detrainment are diagnosed from the model simulations by applying the mass continuity equation over cloud volumes, in which grid cells are identified by some thresholds of updraft vertical velocity and cloud condensates, and accounting for the sources and sinks of the air mass. Entrainment is then defined as the environmental air intruding into convective cores causing cloud volume to shrink, while detrainment is defined as cloudy grid cells departing the convective core and causing cloud volume to expand. It is found that the diagnosed entrainment from the simulated convective events is strongly correlated to the inverse of the updraft vertical velocities in convective cores, which enables a more robust estimation of the mixing time scale. This highlights the need for improved observational capabilities for sampling updraft velocities across diverse geographic and cloud conditions. Evaluation of a number of assumptions used to represent entrainment in parameterization schemes is also presented, as contrasted against the diagnosed one.
The Southern Ocean Sea Surface Temperature Response to Ozone Depletion: A Multimodel Comparison
Authors: Seviour W. J. M. , Codron F. , Doddridge E. W. , Ferreira D. , Gnanadesikan A. , Kelley M. , Kostov Y. , Marshall J. , Polvani L. M. , Thomas J. L. , Waugh D. W.
Published: May 2019

The effect of the Antarctic ozone hole extends downward from the stratosphere, with clear signatures in surface weather patterns including a positive trend in the southern annular mode (SAM). Several recent studies have used coupled climate models to investigate the impact of these changes on Southern Ocean sea surface temperature (SST), notably motivated by the observed cooling from the late 1970s. Here we examine the robustness of these model results through comparison of both previously published and new simulations. We focus on the calculation of climate response functions (CRFs), transient responses to an instantaneous step change in ozone concentrations. The CRF for most models consists of a rapid cooling of SST followed by a slower warming trend. However, intermodel comparison reveals large uncertainties, such that even the sign of the impact of ozone depletion on historical SST, when reconstructed from the CRF, remains unconstrained. Comparison of these CRFs with SST responses to a hypothetical step change in the SAM, inferred through lagged linear regression, shows broadly similar results. Causes of uncertainty are explored by examining relationships between model climatologies and their CRFs. The intermodel spread in CRFs can be reproduced by varying a single subgrid-scale mixing parameter within a single model. Antarctic sea ice CRFs are also calculated: these do not generally exhibit the two-time-scale behavior of SST, suggesting a complex relationship between the two. Finally, by constraining model climatology–response relationships with observational values, we conclude that ozone depletion is unlikely to have been the primary driver of the observed SST cooling trend.
Perspectives on exercise participation among Canadian university students
Authors: Silver Michelle Pannor , Easty Laura Kathleen , Sewell Karen M. , Georges Rosemary , Behman Amy
Published: May 2019

Objective:

University has been identified as an important time to develop exercise habits. The aim of this study was to examine factors that enhanced exercise participation among a diverse set of undergraduate students and their perceived facilitators as well as barriers to exercising regularly.

Setting:

A large public university in one of the largest and most ethno-culturally diverse regions of Canada.

Method:

A mixed-methods design was employed to examine factors associated with regular exercise participation among diverse Canadian undergraduate students ( N = 477). Survey data were analysed using logistic regression analyses to predict regular exercise participation. In addition, six focus group sessions explored barriers and facilitators to regular engagement in exercise ( n = 41).

Results:

Survey findings indicated that being male, having a parent that attended college, and religious affiliation were predictive of exercising regularly. Thematic analysis of qualitative findings highlighted the complex roles that religion, intimidation, peer support and priority-setting played in college students’ exercise participation.

Conclusion:

Findings can inform ongoing strategies to promote exercise participation in early adulthood, particularly among diverse college students.
A review on fatigue damages in the wind turbines: Challenges in determining and reducing fatigue failures in wind turbine blades
Authors: Ravikumar Karthikeyan , Subbiah Rajkumar , Ranganathan Nalini , Bensingh Joseph , Kader Abdul , Nayak Sanjay K
Published: May 2019

The wind energy has been recognised as one of the rising sustainable energies in the world. The wind turbines are subjected to high aerodynamic loads and they cause vibrations due to the wake formation. The magnitude of the applied loads has significant effects on the crack propagation. The fatigue loads have been identified as one of the key sources of damage, with delamination as the main cause for the failure of the turbine blades. The article presents a review of fatigue damages that have been experienced in the wind turbine blades, and factors that are influenced due to the fatigue loads are discussed. The causes and effects of the fatigue loads have been highlighted, and the ways for preventing the fatigue damage by improving the design lifetime are mainly concentrated in review. The overall review gives an idea for determining and reducing the crack growth in wind turbine blades.
Analysis of sequential dual immobilization of type I collagen and BMP-2 short peptides on hydrolyzed poly(buthylene succinate)/β-tricalcium phosphate composites for bone tissue engineering
Authors: Singhatanadgit Weerachai , Sungkhaphan Piyarat , Theerathanagorn Tharinee , Patntirapong Somying , Janvikul Wanida
Published: May 2019

Although attempts have been made to immobilize dual short peptides on a biomaterial surface, the optimization, characterization and functional analysis of the peptide immobilization onto poly(buthylene succinate)/β-tricalcium phosphate (PBSu/TCP) composites have not yet been reported. The present study was, therefore, carried out to optimize and characterize the dual immobilization of type I collagen short peptide (COLsp) and bone morphogenetic protein-2 short peptide (BMP-2sp) onto hydrolyzed PBSu/TCP (HPBSu/TCP) composites, and the bioactivity of the resulting dual peptide-immobilized surfaces was also determined in vitro. The results demonstrated that sequential immobilization of the dual short peptides was successfully established. Each of the peptides was chemically bound to the 1.5 M NaOH-treated composite (with the PBSu to TCP weight ratio of 60:40) (HPBSu/TCP-6040–1.5); bright red fluorescence of COLsp (25 µM) and vividly green fluorescence of BMP-2sp (50 µM) were individually observed explicitly on the dual peptide-immobilized material. As a result, the HPBSu/TCP-6040–1.5 composite film conjugated with both 25 µM Col I and 50 µM BMP-2 was examined for its osteogenic efficacy. The results showed that COLsp/BMP-2sp-immobilized HPBSu/TCP composite significantly enhanced hMSC proliferation as well as osteoblast differentiation of hMSCs under osteogenic induction. Most importantly, COLsp/BMP-2sp-immobilized HPBSu/TCP composite induced biomineralization in the absence of any additional osteogenic stimulus. The present study has successfully demonstrated the sequential immobilization of the dual short peptides, i.e., COLsp and BMP-2sp, on HPBSu/TCP surface, with each short peptide being chemically bound to the hydrolyzed composite surface. The COLsp/BMP-2sp-immobilized HPBSu/TCP film possessed the bioactivities of the respective full-length proteins by stimulating hMSC proliferation, osteoblast differentiation and, most importantly, mineralization without the requirement of exogenous osteogenic supplements. This suggests highly improved performance of the biologically responsive HPBSu/TCP composite and thus its potential use in bone tissue engineering.
Classroom Pivotal Response Teaching: Teacher Training Outcomes of a Community Efficacy Trial
Authors: Suhrheinrich Jessica , Rieth Sarah R. , Dickson Kelsey S. , Roesch Scott , Stahmer Aubyn C.
Published: May 2019

Classroom Pivotal Response Teaching (CPRT) is a naturalistic behavioral intervention for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that was systematically adapted for teacher use. In this study, the authors evaluate outcomes of a large randomized trial training teachers ( n = 126) to use CPRT. Training involved 12 hours of small group sessions and additional 1:1 coaching in each teacher’s classroom. Overall, CPRT fidelity was significantly higher at the end of the training year relative to the observation year ( B = 0.24, p = .001) and teachers report using CPRT an average of 47 minutes per day. Moderator analyses indicate that training, teacher, and classroom- and school-level characteristics affected CPRT fidelity. Teachers report high overall satisfaction ( M = 4.37, SD = 0.45; 1-5 Likert-type scale) and confidence in their ability to use CPRT with their students ( M = 4.2, SD = 0.57). In this study, the authors indicate the acceptability and feasibility of the CPRT training protocol and adds to the limited number of school-based randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating interventions for students with ASD.
Assessment of the Role of the Mandibular First Molar Tooth in Mandibular Fracture Patterns of 29 Dogs
Authors: Scherer Ellen , Hetzel Scott , Snyder Christopher J.
Published: May 2019

Mandibular fractures at the level of the first molar tooth (M1) were assessed in 29 dogs. Patients included in this study demonstrated fractures involving the M1 tooth, tooth bud, or alveolus (if tooth was absent). Diagnostic imaging evaluation included intraoral dental radiography and/or computed tomography (CT) with 3D reconstruction. The distal root was involved in 55.2% of cases, mesial root involvement in 34.5% of cases, and the tooth was absent in 10.3% of cases. Fractures were described in the rostral-to-caudal direction. Fractures tended to occur in the caudoventral direction ( P = .057). Cases with CT imaging were also evaluated in the buccolingual direction. Fractures were found to occur significantly more frequently in the caudolingual direction ( P = .022). When classifying fracture patterns along M1 according to a previously published fracture classification system, it was noted that fractures occurred significantly more frequently in either the mesial ( P < .001) or distal ( P < .001) roots by coursing along the periodontal ligament space and communicating with the periapical region. Active or nonworsening periodontitis was described as radiographic or tomographic evidence of (>25%) bone loss in the vertical or horizontal direction. Periodontitis was associated with 7 (24.1%) cases. These results help frame the challenges associated with fracture repair at the M1 location. Treatment planning considerations should include limited structural support caudal to fractures involving the distal root, more frequent involvement of the distal root over the mesial root, risk for poor endodontic prognosis, and the predilection for unfavorable fracture patterns to occur.
NIR spectroscopy vs. food pests: The case of stored rice
Authors: Biancolillo Alessandra , Firmani Patrizia , Bucci Remo , Magrì Andrea , Marini Federico
Published: May 2019

Rice is one of the most widely consumed cereals, and it represents a staple food for several populations all over the world. One of the main peculiarities of this food commodity is that it can be stored for relatively long periods, maintaining its nutritional properties and its organoleptic attributes. Nevertheless, it is not uncommon that pests infest granaries, altering the characteristics of cereals, making them less valuable and/or un-edible. Avoiding the presence of insects in storehouses is a task difficult to accomplish; consequently, different methods for detecting pests’ infestation in food commodities have been developed. In general, they are based on physical sensors, or they exploit analytical techniques such as high-performance liquid chromatography, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays or other bio-chemical devices to detect insects’ byproducts. Despite these approaches providing accurate results, they all present the same inconvenience: they are destructive. In the light of these considerations, the present work aims at developing a non-destructive NIR-based strategy to detect the presence of Plodia interpunctella, one of the most common intruders of granaries, in rice parcels. In order to achieve this goal, 1525 samples of rice have been analysed by NIR spectroscopy and then partial least squares discriminant analysis was used to discriminate the edible grains from the infested ones. The proposed methodology provided extremely good results, properly assigning 484 test samples over 500.
Europe’s Bank and Europe’s Citizens: Accountability, transparency – legitimacy?
Authors: Koop Christel , Reh Christine
Published: May 2019

Since the Eurozone crisis, critique of the European Central Bank (ECB) has centred on the Bank’s lack of acceptance by Europe’s citizens. One prominent strand of the debate argues that such acceptance can be enhanced by ensuring higher levels of compliance with the democratic standards of accountability and transparency. This article critically assesses this ‘standards-support nexus’ and its underlying assumptions. We suggest that three conditions need to be fulfilled for the argument to hold: (i) citizens are aware of the ECB and its design; (ii) citizens prioritise democratic standards over alternative motivations for acceptance; and (iii) citizens are able to differentiate between the ECB and the European Union’s wider multilevel system. Drawing from the established literature on support for European integration and trust in the ECB and from descriptive Eurobarometer data, we conclude that these three conditions are unlikely to bear out empirically. Moreover, increasing the ECB’s accountability and transparency in times of crisis and heightened politicisation could adversely affect the Bank’s policy-performance and public image. Hence, whilst not questioning the normative desirability of accountability and transparency, we caution against assuming too easily that such democratic standards alone will enhance citizen support, and against assuming that they come without trade-offs.
Positive and Negative Activation in the Mood Disorder Questionnaire: Associations With Psychopathology and Emotion Dysregulation in a Clinical Sample
Authors: Carpenter Ryan W. , Stanton Kasey , Emery Noah N. , Zimmerman Mark
Published: May 2019

The Mood Disorder Questionnaire is a screening measure for bipolar disorder, previously found to comprise separate Positive and Negative Activation subscales. We sought to replicate these factors and examine their associations with a range of psychopathology. To further explicate the nature of Negative Activation, we examined associations with the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, a measure of emotion dysregulation. The sample consisted of 1,787 participants from an outpatient treatment facility. Confirmatory factor analysis replicated the existence of Positive and Negative Activation subscales. Logistic regressions, as hypothesized, found that Positive Activation was positively associated only with bipolar disorder, while Negative Activation was associated with almost all disorders. The Impulse and Goals subscales of the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale were uniquely associated with Negative Activation, suggesting it may specifically assess impulsive behavior in emotional situations. The findings suggest that it may be important to attend to both Mood Disorder Questionnaire subscales.
Evaluation on ultimate load-carrying capacity of concrete-filled steel tubular arch structure with preload
Authors: Huang Fuyun , Cui Yulong , Dong Rui , Wei Jiangang , Chen Baochun
Published: May 2019

When casting wet concrete into hollow steel tubular arch during the construction process of a concrete-filled steel tubular arch bridge, an initial stress (due to dead load, etc.) would be produced in the steel tube. In order to understand the influence of this initial stress on the strength of the concrete-filled steel tubular arch bridge, a total of four single tubular arch rib (bare steel first) specimens (concrete-filled steel tubular last) with various initial stress levels were constructed and tested to failure. The test results indicate that the initial stress has a large influence on the ultimate load-carrying capacity and ductility of the arch structure. The high preloading ratio will reduce significantly the strength and ductility that the maximum reductions are over 25%. Then, a finite element method was presented and validated using the test results. Based on this finite element model, a parametric study was performed that considered the influence of various parameters on the ultimate load-carrying capacity of concrete-filled steel tubular arches. These parameters included arch slenderness, rise-to-span ratio, loading method, and initial stress level. The analysis results indicate that the initial stress can reduce the ultimate loading capacity significantly, and this reduction has a strong relationship with arch slenderness and rise-to-span ratio. Finally, a method for calculating the preloading reduction factor of ultimate load-carrying capacity of single concrete-filled steel tubular arch rib structures was proposed based on the equivalent beam–column method.
Long-term field test of temperature gradients on the composite girder of a long-span cable-stayed bridge
Authors: Liu Jiang , Liu Yongjian , Jiang Lei , Zhang Ning
Published: May 2019

Bridges are inevitably affected by daily, seasonal and annual air temperature and solar radiation. The thermal effects on bridges, especially for long-span cable-stayed bridges with composite girders, are significant and complicated. The evaluation of temperature distribution has been a primary concern to bridge engineers and researchers. This article presents a more than one-year temperature database of a long-span cable-stayed bridge with a small cantilever length-to-web depth ratio in the composite girder. Uniform temperature, linear temperature difference, thermal curvature, and self-equilibrated thermal stress are considered to imply the characteristics of the temperature distribution in such composite girders. Two profiles (profile 1 and profile 2) for positive vertical temperature gradient and one profile (profile 3) for negative vertical temperature gradient are proposed. The extreme temperature differences with a 100-year return period are determined for each profile with extreme value analysis. Among the three profiles, profile 2 is unique for composite girders with a small cantilever length-to-web depth ratio. Based on parametric studies, profile 2 is revised with the cantilever length-to-web depth ratio for wide applications. Finally, comparisons of vertical temperature gradients are made between the investigated composite girder and the recommendations in Chinese Specification.
An analytical model for the rotational behavior of concrete segmental joints with gaskets
Authors: Yang Fan , Cao Shengrong , Li Qingbin
Published: May 2019

To investigate the rotational behavior of concrete segmental joints with gaskets, bending tests are performed by detailed three-dimensional continuum numerical models for joints with and without gaskets. Based on the numerical results, an analytical model is proposed to analyze the rotational stiffness of the segmental joint and extend the simulation with related parametric studies. The bending tests reveal that the rotational behavior of the segmental joint with gaskets can be divided into four stages for both the sagging and hogging moment cases. The analytical results reveal that the sealing gasket has little inﬂuence on the joint rotational behavior, while the elastic gasket has a significant effect of reducing the joint rotational stiffness. Besides, the rotational behavior of the joint with gaskets is affected by the axial force and the bolt pre-tightening force to a certain degree. The proposed analytical model allows the effect of the properties of bolts and various gaskets, the concrete contact force, the geometry of the joint section, and the subjected loads to be taken into consideration. The analytical results are well consistent with the numerical results, and the analytical model can be adopted for simulation of the segmental joint with various gaskets.
Enhancing Student Learning by “Building a Caring Climate”: School Counselors’ Experiences With Classroom Management
Authors: Goodman-Scott Emily
Published: May 2019

To address a gap in the literature and inform school counseling practice, this investigation explored school counselors’ experiences with classroom management. A qualitative thematic analysis triangulated data from a national archival survey and two focus groups. Participating school counselors communicated two overarching themes: appreciating and utilizing classroom management strategies and factors that influenced their classroom management. This article provides discussion and implications, including applicable recommendations for practicing school counselors.
Outcome of expandable endoprosthesis: A single centre retrospective review
Authors: Ajit Singh Vivek , Earnest Kunasingh Dinesh , Haseeb Amber , Yasin Nor Faissal
Published: May 2019

Purpose:

Expandable endoprosthesis allows limb salvage in children with an option to leading a better life. However, the revision rate and implant-related complications impose as a limitation in the skeletal immature. This study investigates the functional outcomes and complications related to expandable endoprosthesis in our centre.

Materials and Methods:

Twenty surviving patients with expandable endoprosthesis from 2006 till 2015 were scored using Musculoskeletal Tumour Society (MSTS) outcomes instrument and reviewed retrospectively for range of motion of respected joints, limb length discrepancy, number of surgeries performed, complications and oncological outcomes. Patients with less than 2 years of follow-up were excluded from this study.

Results:

Forty-five percentage patients reached skeletal maturity with initial growing endoprosthesis and 25% of patients were revised to adult modular prosthesis. One hundred fifty-seven surgeries were performed over the 9-year period. The average MSTS score was 90.83%. The mortality rate was 10% within 5 years due to advanced disease. Infection and implant failure rate was 15% each. The event-free survival was 50% and overall survival rate was 90%.

Conclusion:

There is no single best option for reconstruction in skeletally immature. This study demonstrates a favourable functional and survival outcome of paediatric patients with expandable endoprosthesis. The excellent MSTS functional scores reflect that patients were satisfied and adjusted well to activities of daily living following surgery despite the complications.
A Deep Learning–Based Decision Support Tool for Precision Risk Assessment of Breast Cancer
Authors: He Tiancheng , Puppala Mamta , Ezeana Chika F. , Huang Yan-siang , Chou Ping-hsuan , Yu Xiaohui , Chen Shenyi , Wang Lin , Yin Zheng , Danforth Rebecca L. , Ensor Joe , Chang Jenny , Patel Tejal , Wong Stephen T.C.
Published: May 2019

PURPOSE

The Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) lexicon was developed to standardize mammographic reporting to assess cancer risk and facilitate the decision to biopsy. Because of substantial interobserver variability in the application of the BI-RADS lexicon, the decision to biopsy varies greatly and results in overdiagnosis and excessive biopsies. The false-positive rate from mammograms is estimated to be 7% to approximately 10% overall, but within the BI-RADS 4 category, it is greater than 70%. Therefore, we developed the Breast Cancer Risk Calculator (BRISK) to target a well-characterized and specific patient subgroup (BI-RADS 4) rather than a broad heterogeneous group in assessing breast cancer risk.

METHODS

BRISK provides a novel precise risk assessment model to reduce overdiagnosis and unnecessary biopsies. It was developed by applying natural language processing and deep learning methods on 5,147 patient records archived in the Houston Methodist systemwide data warehouse from 2006 to May 2015, including imaging and pathology reports, mammographic images, and patient demographics. Key characteristics for BI-RADS 4 patients were collected and computed to output an index measure for biopsy recommendation that is clinically relevant and informative and improves upon the traditional BI-RADS 4 scores.

RESULTS

For the validation set, we assessed data from 1,247 BI-RADS 4 patients, including mammographic images and medical reports. The BRISK model sensitivity to predict malignancy was 100%, whereas the specificity was 74%. The total accuracy of our implemented model in BRISK was 81%. Overall area under the curve was 0.93.

CONCLUSION

BRISK for abnormal mammogram uses integrative artificial intelligence technology and has demonstrated high sensitivity in the prediction of malignancy. Prospective evaluation is under way and can lead to improvement in patient-physician engagement in making informed decisions with regard to biopsy.
Rising and Falling Trends in the Use of Chemotherapy and Targeted Therapy Near the End of Life in Older Patients With Cancer
Authors: Fang Penny , Jagsi Reshma , He Weiguo , Lei Xiudong , Campbell Eric G. , Giordano Sharon H. , Smith Grace L.
Published: May 2019

PURPOSE

End-of-life (EOL) chemotherapy has been described as the most widespread, wasteful, and unnecessary practice in oncology, with benchmarking aimed to reduce physician use of chemotherapy within 14 days of EOL. We evaluated the recent transformation of EOL chemotherapy and targeted therapy practices nationally.

METHODS

In patients older than 65 years of age who died as a result of breast (n = 19,887), lung (n = 79,613), colorectal (n = 29,844), or prostate (n = 17,910) cancer between 2007 and 2013, we evaluated the guideline-benchmarked measure of chemotherapy use within 14 days of EOL in SEER-Medicare. Comparison outcomes were nonbenchmarked measures of chemotherapy and targeted therapy across time points within 6 months of EOL. Cochran-Armitage test was used to evaluate temporal trends. Multilevel logistic models and intraclass correlation coefficient was used to evaluate variation in EOL chemotherapy use at the physician level.

RESULTS

From 2007 to 2013, chemotherapy within 14 days of EOL declined from 6.7% to 4.9% of patients ( Ptrend < .001; ∆ = −1.8%). Similar declines occurred for chemotherapy within 1 month ( Ptrend < .001; ∆ = −1.8%) and 2 months ( Ptrend < .001; ∆ = −1.3%) of EOL. In contrast, chemotherapy within 4 to 6 months of EOL rose ( Ptrend ≤ .04; ∆ = 0.7% to 1.7%), and 43.0% of all patients received chemotherapy within 6 months of EOL. Frequency of targeted therapy use across all time points within 6 months of EOL was stable to marginally rising from 2007 to 2013 ( Ptrend = .09 to .82; ∆ = −0.2% to 1.8%); overall, 1.2% received targeted therapy within 14 days and 3.6% within 1 month of EOL. By 2013, 13.2% of patients received any targeted therapy within 6 months of EOL. In a multilevel model, 5.19% (intraclass correlation coefficient) of variation in 14-day EOL chemotherapy was attributed to the physician level.

CONCLUSION

With national benchmarking, chemotherapy within 14 days of EOL successfully declined to less than 5%, with comprehensive benchmark uptake by physicians. Results may inform current strategies to help to achieve high-value EOL oncology practice.
Influence of arm swing on cost of transport during walking
Authors: de Graaf Myriam L. , Hubert Juul , Houdijk Han , Bruijn Sjoerd M.
Published: May 2019

Normal arm swing plays a role in decreasing the cost of transport during walking. However, whether excessive arm swing can reduce the cost of transport even further is unknown. Therefore, we tested the effects of normal and exaggerated arm swing on the cost of transport in the current study. Healthy participants (n=12) walked on a treadmill (1.25 m/s) in seven trials with different arm swing amplitudes (in-phase, passive restricted, active restricted, normal, three gradations of extra arm swing), while metabolic energy cost and the vertical angular momentum (VAM) and ground reaction moment (GRM) were measured.

In general, VAM and GRM decreased as arm swing amplitude was increased, except for in the largest arm swing amplitude condition. The decreases in VAM and GRM were accompanied by a decrease in cost of transport from in-phase walking (negative amplitude) up to a slightly increased arm swing (non-significant difference compared to normal arm swing). The most excessive arm swings led to an increase in the cost of transport, most likely due to the cost of swinging the arms. In conclusion, increasing arm swing amplitude leads to a reduction in vertical angular moment and ground reaction moments, but it does not lead to a reduction in cost of transport for the most excessive arm swing amplitudes. Normal or slightly increased arm swing amplitude appears to be optimal in terms of cost of transport in young and healthy individuals.
Acid Sphingomyelinase regulates the localization and trafficking of palmitoylated proteins
Authors: Xiong Xiahui , Lee Chia-Fang , Li Wenjing , Yu Jiekai , Zhu Linyu , Kim Yongsoon , Zhang Hui , Sun Hong
Published: May 2019

In human, loss of Acid Sphingomeylinase (ASM/SMPD1) causes Niemann-Pick Disease, type A. ASM hydrolyzes sphingomyelins to produce ceramides but protein targets of ASM remain largely unclear. Our mass-spectrometry-based proteomic analyses have identified >100 proteins associated with the ASM-dependent, detergent-resistant membrane microdomains (lipid rafts), with >60% of these proteins being palmitoylated, including SNAP23, Src-family kinases Yes and Lyn, and Ras and Rab family small GTPases. Inactivation of ASM abolished the presence of these proteins in the plasma membrane, with many of them trapped in the Golgi. While palmitoylation inhibitors and palmitoylation mutants phenocopied the effects of ASM inactivation, we demonstrated that ASM is required for the transport of palmitoylated proteins, such as SNAP23 and Lyn, from the Golgi to the plasma membrane without affecting palmitoylation directly. Importantly, ASM delivered extracellularly can regulate the trafficking of SNAP23 from the Golgi to the plasma membrane. Our studies suggest that ASM, acting at the plasma membrane to produce ceramides, regulates the localization and trafficking of the palmitoylated proteins.