bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Burning Daylight
Authors: Williams Tony
Published: January 2017

Burning Daylight reflects the personal and political contradictions in Jack London’s work in terms of his own version of the “American Adam” discourse. Taking well-known elements from London’s fiction such as the Klondike narrative, the urban nightmare of capitalist corruption, and the new Edenic promise of a now defunct Jeffersonian ideal available to only the privileged few, the novel exhibits both the failure of the American dream of material success as well as the fantastic premises behind the agrarian dream. The hero passes from innocence into urban decline but experiences a regeneration via a romantic union with the “ideal woman” and a return to a much more positive version of the wilderness within which he earlier thrived. Yet Daylight’s nightmare vision of a return of the repressed capitalist economy within his “Promised Land” reveals that total escape from American industrialism and economic pollution of the land is problematic at best.
Sex and Science in Jack London’s America
Authors: Craig Layne Parish
Published: January 2017

English-language developments in sexual science were tied to literary communities from their earliest incarnations, as sexologists like Havelock Ellis and Marie Stopes also wrote novels and plays, and literary writers like George Bernard Shaw, H. G. Wells, and Radclyffe Hall wrote fiction that can be read as extending and complicating, as well as adopting, the language and ideas of sexological discourse. Like their British counterparts, American writers of fiction developed a wide range of responses to the theories of sexologists, as well as those theories’ political implications. London and his contemporaries not only referenced the research of sexologists but also adjusted and challenged the assumptions of the field as they spread it to new audiences, creating and spreading knowledge about human sexuality.
A Bestiary from the Age of Jack London
Authors: Lundblad Michael
Published: January 2017

Readers of Jack London might well think that a taxonomy of animal species at the turn of the twentieth century would represent ways of thinking about animals that would be quite familiar to us today. Yet there were animals at that time, along with striking cultural events, that seem to belong to different epistemologies altogether, to earlier times: from a circus elephant publicly electrocuted at Coney Island to human beings displayed in zoos and natural history museums; from wolf populations eradicated by government programs to other kinds of wolves inhabiting psychoanalytic and sexual discourses; from racist connections between apes and human “savages” to an octopus and cattle representing the market and class struggle. This chapter opens up a bestiary from the turn of the century in order to illustrate the insights that animal and animality studies can bring to the study of Jack London and his various cultural contexts.
Women’s Rights, Women’s Lives
Authors: Campbell Donna
Published: January 2017

In his fiction, London insisted that his women are not mere “puppet[s] of Dame Nature,” for they live apart from their capacity to reproduce. They are rarely mothers, or even daughters, and when they are tagged as daughters they are daughters of natural forces or totemic entities. They exist in an uneasy tension between the demands of the body and those of the social order, a tension arising from the narrative’s attempts to square the biological nature of woman, traditionally conceived, with her place in political, social, and technological modernity, the classic conflict of the naturalistic novel. The repeated presence of women who embody a “post-Darwinian, technologized modernity” balances London’s reputation for writing a hypermasculine version of naturalism.
Regional and Local Government
Authors: Pasquier Romain
Published: January 2017

The French state is increasingly exposed to new economic, social, and cultural logics. The growing power of local and regional authorities in the public policy process is one of the most striking features of the erosion of the Jacobin myth of the unity and indivisibility of the Republic. The governance paradigm has fundamentally shifted the terms of the debate and brought French analysis further into the mainstream of international and European local and regional studies. The object of this chapter is to understand precisely how the paradigmatic changes of the international territorial politics literature have impacted on the French research agenda on local and regional governments.
Identity, Culture, and Politics
Authors: Kastoryano Riva , Escafré-Dublet Angéline
Published: January 2017

Ambiguous, yet proliferous, the concept of identity has taken an important place in the analysis of individuals, groups, and nations. The chapter introduces the literature on identify formation and identity politics, and clarifies why French political and sociological tradition has long rejected group identity as a notion that conflicts with the universalist understanding of the state. However, it also shows how recent studies have been influenced by the rich development of the literature on identity politics abroad and how France is now moving beyond the representative case of a universalist state. It discusses how the debate on identity has been shaped, with “national identity” on one hand, and the identity of the Other on the other hand, and how the question of identity has been crystallized on Islam. It demonstrates that French scholarship on identity is increasingly integrated into a larger scholarly community on transnational politics and practices.
Equality
Authors: McMillan John , Snelling Jeanne
Published: January 2017

This chapter discusses the role that equality plays within liberal theory. We show how the concept of treating citizens as equals is integral to the legitimization of the state and its regulations, including those involving new technologies. We suggest that equality is a fundamental value when exploring the scope of relevant freedoms with respect to new technologies. However, understanding the role of equality for such issues requires sensitivity to important differences in the way in which it can be theorized. We explain how equality can be valued intrinsically, instrumentally, or constitutively. We also explain three different accounts of what egalitarian justice demands that are particularly relevant to framing policy involving new technology.
Water, Energy, and Technology
Authors: Craig Robin Kundis
Published: January 2017

The water–energy nexus describes the reality that the provision of water always requires energy, while the production of most forms of energy requires significant amounts of water, particularly electricity production in thermoelectric power plants. As a result, electricity production and water supply are always intimately related, and changes in one of these arenas directly affect the other. However, law and policy rarely acknowledge this technology-mediated interrelationship, even though climate change will impose increasing stresses on both sides of the equation. While technology can help to mitigate these stresses, water law and energy policy could both do more to consider the trade-offs among water supply, energy production, and environmental protection.
Imaging the Networks of Voluntary Actions
Authors: Kilintari Marina , Papanicolaou Andrew C.
Published: January 2017

The concept of voluntary actions is inextricably related to the concept of the will. Accordingly, in the first section of this chapter, the authors examine briefly the neuroimaging evidence for a neuronal mechanism of human will and decision-making and conclude that what evidence is brought to bear on the issue may not be relevant to it after all. In the second section, a review of the known mechanism for self-initiated as well as externally mediated voluntary actions is presented against which the contributions of functional neuroimaging to improving our knowledge for simple and complex actions can be judged. In the final section differences in the neuronal networks mediating decisions as to when to act and what action to select are explored.
The Politics of Homelessness in the United States
Authors: Williams Jean Calterone
Published: January 2017

As the United States grapples with increasing economic inequality and significant poverty, homelessness represents a thorny political and policy issue. This article explores the debates that contrast two primary responses to homelessness, Housing First and the linear, or treatment first, model. Both are employed to address homelessness, though Housing First has been directed almost exclusively to chronic homeless people who are on the streets for long periods of time and contend with mental illness and substance abuse problems. By reviewing the strengths and weaknesses of each type of policy, this article analyzes the philosophy underlying each approach and its impact on homeless people.
Secularization in Israel
Authors: Ben-Porat Guy
Published: January 2017

Neither the study of the political system nor surveys of individual religiosity capture the full picture of secularization in Israel. The power of religious parties seems unshaken, and formal changes in religious policies and legislation are few. A large number of Israelis maintain their attachment to Jewish religion in beliefs and practices, and the Jewish majority agrees that Israel is and must remain a “Jewish state.” However, economic and demographic trends in the past two decades have caused incremental changes, not registered in formal political channels, toward the partial yet significant secularization of Israel. Religion still has a hold on private beliefs and practices, but secularization will unfold in societal changes involving a decline of religious authority over significant spheres of life. A more complex concept of secularization allows for contradictions observed in Israel and helps to explain how secularization can occur while religion remains embedded in state and society.
Religious Freedom in a Secular Society
Authors: Trigg Roger
Published: January 2017

In the West, the distinction between the forms of secularism in France and the United States is instructive. The attitudes and legal approaches of both have their roots in the European Enlightenment, but their treatment of religion is significantly different due to their distinctive views on human reason. The first takes reason to be intrinsically liberating. Its watchword is human freedom and autonomy, but it takes these as given, just as it assumes a fundamental equality among all people. The second understands reason, freedom, and equality within a religious context. Freedom is God-given and must be respected as such, so freedom of religion must be recognized. Beyond these two positions, aggressive secularism regards all religious claims as beyond reason or even irrational and potentially dangerous. That kind of secularism can never achieve the neutrality to which aspires and always creates second-class citizens out of some religious believers.
A Secular Critique of Religious Ethics and Politics
Authors: Cliteur Paul
Published: January 2017

This chapter discusses the difference between a nonsecular or religious critique of religious ethics and politics and a specifically secular critique. It introduces the central notion of a secular critique, autonomy, and its two types, moral and political. Moral autonomy entails the separation of religion from ethics. The ideal of making that separation is called “moral secularism.” The opposite of moral autonomy is “moral heteronomy.” An extreme case of moral heteronomy is discussed: Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his own son when God commanded him to do so. Next, the importance of political autonomy and political secularism is illustrated with reference to the conflict between the king Ahab (the model of a secular ruler) and the prophet Elijah (the model of a religious leader). Some stories in the holy scriptures of the monotheist religions held in common by Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are unfavorable toward secularism (both moral and political).
Secularism and the Science of Well-Being
Authors: Yaden David , Iwry Jonathan , Smith Emily Esfahani , Pawelski James O.
Published: January 2017

This chapter draws from emerging research areas in positive psychology, the study of well-being, to consider evidence-based recommendations helping to fill some of the psychological and existential gaps in secular society. It discusses the development of positive psychology and its shift toward a meaning-oriented conception of human well-being, as well as scientific findings about meaning and its role in a flourishing life. Further, it argues for the importance of the humanities, alongside the methods of science, in exploring subjective and personal aspects of meaning. The chapter also discusses the study of self-transcendent experiences and how they can provide profound joy and meaning while influencing the relationship between the self and the world at large.
Agency and Responsibility in a Natural World
Authors: Wielenberg Erik J.
Published: January 2017

This chapter examines the question of whether key features expected from moral conduct, such as freedom, choice, agency, and responsibility, can sufficiently exist within the natural world as understood by science. A secular, naturalistic view of the universe excludes the existence of nonphysical souls standing outside of the physical universe yet able to causally influence it, and it excludes the existence of a nonphysical deity that could be responsible for human agency and responsibility. Absent those possibilities, this chapter considers the prospects for freedom in a naturalistic universe, together with the issue of what sort of freedom (if any) is required for agency and moral responsibility. Three models of naturalistic agency are explained and discussed: compatibilism, event-causal libertarianism, and agent-causal libertarianism.
Secularization, Biomedical Technology, and Life Extension
Authors: Turner Brian S.
Published: January 2017

This chapter is concerned with the contemporary impact of the biomedical sciences on life expectancy and how the so-called life-extension project. A promise of more or less indefinite human survival or the end of aging represents a critical challenge, not just to religious assumptions about life, aging and death but to traditional moral assumptions about the just distribution of resources in society. Medical consumption is simply a subset of general consumption, and the idea of living forever is central to modern secular lifestyles. The tensions between religion and medicine, and therefore the nature of “medical secularization,” can be understood by recognizing that many critical problems for the Christian churches in modernity are raised by questions about the changing status of the human body. As modern societies are driven by technological and scientific advances, the choices that confront humans fall broadly into two camps, namely posthumanism and transhumanism.
The Pop-Music Industry and the British Musical
Authors: Sapiro Ian
Published: January 2017

This chapter discusses the intersection of the pop music industry and the British musical through the genre of the rock opera. In the late 1960s British artists started using the LP to create longer songs and projects, and theatrical practice began to move away from a reliance on narrative linearity and towards increased spectacle. The result of this experimentation was the concept album, and where such albums contained narratives they were termed rock operas. This chapter considers Tommy (1969) and Jesus Christ Superstar (1970)—two works fundamental to the establishment of rock opera—as well as the War of the Worlds (1978) and The Hunting of the Snark (1984), albums from the end of the genre’s short life. Consideration is given to their creation and formulation, and the issues and difficulties of adapting these and other such works for stage and screen are evaluated.
‘Everybody’s Free to Fail’
Authors: Browne Sarah
Published: January 2017

This chapter explores the ways in which the British model of subsidizing arts-related activities has encouraged theatres to programme ambitiously and afforded directors the freedom to adopt a fresh, innovative, and often daring approach to their work for the stage. Whilst staging a revival of a Broadway musical classic may seem far from daring, the case studies in this chapter elucidate the ways in which subsidy has allowed directors to address this material in a radical fashion. Exploring two very different theatrical venues reveals methods of programming: whilst the National Theatre chooses to present well-loved golden age Broadway musicals, the Donmar Warehouse focuses on intimate chamber musicals, rarely staged or revived in Britain. This chapter analyses how these musicals have been cast, staged, and received and, in doing so, highlights the manner in which directors have reimagined the Broadway musical for British audiences.
‘Humming the Sets’
Authors: White Christine
Published: January 2017

This chapter discusses the impact of stage design on musical theatre, and the development of musical theatre as a product packaged for consumption across the world. Its focus is chiefly on British musicals of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, during which ‘scenography’ has become recognized as the term for describing the whole theatre-designed space, encompassing, set, costume, sound, light, and more recently including film, animations, and a host of projection technologies and digital media. The chapter refers to contemporary reviews of productions, their success and failure, and the nature of the musical as a form in harmony with new scenic production aesthetics. What becomes apparent in this chapter is the interconnectedness of scenic practices and production aesthetics, which relates directly to the visual impact of musicals on the British stage and the interchange of production styles and modes of the UK and North America.
It's All How You “Spin” It
Authors: Turrentine Mark
Published: January 2017

Scientific publications can be subject to varying degrees of interpretive bias, also known as spin. The rate of spin in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with nonsignificant primary outcomes in the general obstetrics and gynecology literature is unknown. A decade (January 2006 through December 2015) of the tables of contents of Obstetrics & Gynecology and the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology were screened, with 503 RCTs identified. Limiting assessment to only parallel-group RCTs with a nonsignificant primary outcome (P≥.05) resulted in the identification of 194 studies. The abstracts of the articles reported the primary outcome in 93% of studies with 79% containing a precision estimate but only 25% noting an effect size. The extent of any type of spin occurred in 43% of abstracts and 50% of the main text. In articles that contained spin in the abstract, the more common types were: emphasizing statistically significant secondary results despite a nonsignificant primary outcome (40%); interpreting statistically nonsignificant primary results as showing treatment equivalence or comparable effectiveness (37%); and emphasizing the beneficial effect of the treatment despite statistically nonsignificant results (15%). Half of parallel-group RCTs with nonsignificant primary outcomes published in the two leading journals in general obstetrics and gynecology contains some level of spin. As readers of the medical literature, we should be aware of the concept of spin, the diversity and heterogeneity of spin in the reporting of conclusions, and its effects, particularly when discussing articles that may change clinical practice.
Association of Intended Route of Delivery and Maternal Morbidity in Twin Pregnancy
Authors: Easter Sarah Rae , Robinson Julian N. , Lieberman Ellice , Carusi Daniela
Published: January 2017

OBJECTIVE:

To evaluate maternal morbidity in twin pregnancies according to intended mode of delivery.

METHODS:

We assembled a 7-year retrospective cohort (2007–2014) of women delivering viable, vertex-presenting twins at or beyond 32 weeks of gestation without contraindication to labor or uterine scar. We classified women as undergoing a trial of labor to attempt vaginal birth or choosing an elective cesarean delivery. Our primary outcome was a measure of composite maternal morbidity including death, postpartum hemorrhage, infection, major procedure, readmission for infection or reoperation, need for dilation and evacuation for hemorrhage or infection, venous thromboembolism, small bowel obstruction or ileus, or intensive care unit admission. Postpartum hemorrhage was defined as estimated blood loss greater than or equal to 1,500 mL or need for transfusion. The rate of lacerations in each group was also determined. Using logistic regression to control for confounders, we examined the odds of maternal morbidity according to intended mode of delivery.

RESULTS:

Of 2,272 twin pregnancies at or beyond 32 weeks of gestation, 1,140 (50%) met inclusion criteria with 571 (50%) electing cesarean delivery and 569 (50%) undergoing a trial of labor to attempt vaginal birth. Vaginal delivery of both twins was achieved in 74% (n=418) of women choosing a trial of labor. The rate of maternal morbidity was 12.3% in the trial of labor group compared with 9.1% in the elective cesarean delivery group (P=.08, adjusted odds ratio [OR] 1.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1–2.4). Postpartum hemorrhage was more common among women who attempted vaginal delivery (n=52) compared with those electing cesarean delivery (n=28) with rates of 9.1% compared with 4.9%, respectively (P<.01, adjusted OR 2.2, 95% CI 1.4–3.6) and was responsible for the difference in the composite morbidity rate between groups.

CONCLUSION:

When adjustment is made for potential confounders, women undergoing a trial of labor with twins experience a higher odds of maternal morbidity than those electing cesarean delivery, primarily as a result of hemorrhage. In pragmatic terms, the tradeoff for a 74% chance of vaginal delivery is a 4% absolute increase in the rate of serious postpartum hemorrhage.
Delirium in Critically Ill Children: An International Point Prevalence Study*
Authors: Traube Chani , Silver Gabrielle , Reeder Ron W. , Doyle Hannah , Hegel Emily , Wolfe Heather A. , Schneller Christopher , Chung Melissa G. , Dervan Leslie A. , DiGennaro Jane L. , Buttram Sandra D. W. , Kudchadkar Sapna R. , Madden Kate , Hartman Mary E. , deAlmeida Mary L. , Walson Karen , Ista Erwin , Baarslag Manuel A , Salonia Rosanne , Beca John , Long Debbie , Kawai Yu , Cheifetz Ira M. , Gelvez Javier , Truemper Edward J. , Smith Rebecca L. , Peters Megan E. , O’Meara AM Iqbal , Murphy Sarah , Bokhary Abdulmohsen , Greenwald Bruce M. , Bell Michael J.
Published: January 2017

Objectives:

To determine prevalence of delirium in critically ill children and explore associated risk factors.

Design:

Multi-institutional point prevalence study.

Setting:

Twenty-five pediatric critical care units in the United States, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, and Saudi Arabia.

Patients:

All children admitted to the pediatric critical care units on designated study days (n = 994).

Intervention:

Children were screened for delirium using the Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium by the bedside nurse. Demographic and treatment-related variables were collected.

Measurements and Main Results:

Primary study outcome measure was prevalence of delirium. In 159 children, a final determination of mental status could not be ascertained. Of the 835 remaining subjects, 25% screened positive for delirium, 13% were classified as comatose, and 62% were delirium-free and coma-free. Delirium prevalence rates varied significantly with reason for ICU admission, with highest delirium rates found in children admitted with an infectious or inflammatory disorder. For children who were in the PICU for 6 or more days, delirium prevalence rate was 38%. In a multivariate model, risk factors independently associated with development of delirium included age less than 2 years, mechanical ventilation, benzodiazepines, narcotics, use of physical restraints, and exposure to vasopressors and antiepileptics.

Conclusions:

Delirium is a prevalent complication of critical illness in children, with identifiable risk factors. Further multi-institutional, longitudinal studies are required to investigate effect of delirium on long-term outcomes and possible preventive and treatment measures. Universal delirium screening is practical and can be implemented in pediatric critical care units.
Parasite vulnerability to climate change: an evidence-based functional trait approach
Authors: Cizauskas Carrie A. , Carlson Colin J. , Burgio Kevin R. , Clements Chris F. , Dougherty Eric R. , Harris Nyeema C. , Phillips Anna J.
Published: January 2017

Despite the number of virulent pathogens that are projected to benefit from global change and to spread in the next century, we suggest that a combination of coextinction risk and climate sensitivity could make parasites at least as extinction prone as any other trophic group. However, the existing interdisciplinary toolbox for identifying species threatened by climate change is inadequate or inappropriate when considering parasites as conservation targets. A functional trait approach can be used to connect parasites' ecological role to their risk of disappearance, but this is complicated by the taxonomic and functional diversity of many parasite clades. Here, we propose biological traits that may render parasite species particularly vulnerable to extinction (including high host specificity, complex life cycles and narrow climatic tolerance), and identify critical gaps in our knowledge of parasite biology and ecology. By doing so, we provide criteria to identify vulnerable parasite species and triage parasite conservation efforts.
Clever mothers balance time and effort in parental care: a study on free-ranging dogs
Authors: Paul Manabi , Sau Shubhra , Nandi Anjan K. , Bhadra Anindita
Published: January 2017

Mammalian offspring require parental care, at least in the form of nursing during their early development. While mothers need to invest considerable time and energy in ensuring the survival of their current offspring, they also need to optimize their investment in one batch of offspring in order to ensure future reproduction and hence lifetime reproductive success. Free-ranging dogs live in small social groups, mate promiscuously and lack the cooperative breeding biology of other group-living canids. They face high early-life mortality, which in turn reduces fitness benefits of the mother from a batch of pups. We carried out a field-based study on free-ranging dogs in India to understand the nature of maternal care. Our analysis reveals that mothers reduce investment in energy-intensive active care and increase passive care as the pups grow older, thereby keeping overall levels of care more or less constant over pup age. Using the patterns of mother–pup interactions, we define the different phases of maternal care behaviour.
Temporally and spatially partitioned behaviours of spinner dolphins: implications for resilience to human disturbance
Authors: Tyne Julian A. , Johnston David W. , Christiansen Fredrik , Bejder Lars
Published: January 2017

Selective forces shape the evolution of wildlife behavioural strategies and influence the spatial and temporal partitioning of behavioural activities to maximize individual fitness. Globally, wildlife is increasingly exposed to human activities which may affect their behavioural activities. The ability of wildlife to compensate for the effects of human activities may have implications for their resilience to disturbance. Resilience theory suggests that behavioural systems which are constrained in their repertoires are less resilient to disturbance than flexible systems. Using behavioural time-series data, we show that spinner dolphins (
Stenella longirostris
) spatially and temporally partition their behavioural activities on a daily basis. Specifically, spinner dolphins were never observed foraging during daytime, where resting was the predominant activity. Travelling and socializing probabilities were higher in early mornings and late afternoons when dolphins were returning from or preparing for nocturnal feeding trips, respectively. The constrained nature of spinner dolphin behaviours suggests they are less resilient to human disturbance than other cetaceans. These dolphins experience the highest exposure rates to human activities ever reported for any cetaceans. Over the last 30 years human activities have increased significantly in Hawaii, but the spinner dolphins still inhabit these bays. Recent abundance estimates (2011 and 2012) however, are lower than all previous estimates (1979–1981, 1989–1992 and 2003), indicating a possible long-term impact. Quantification of the spatial and temporal partitioning of wildlife behavioural schedules provides critical insight for conservation measures that aim to mitigate the effects of human disturbance.
Why are we not evaluating multiple competing hypotheses in ecology and evolution?
Authors: Betini Gustavo S. , Avgar Tal , Fryxell John M.
Published: January 2017

The use of multiple working hypotheses to gain strong inference is widely promoted as a means to enhance the effectiveness of scientific investigation. Only 21 of 100 randomly selected studies from the ecological and evolutionary literature tested more than one hypothesis and only eight tested more than two hypotheses. The surprising rarity of application of multiple working hypotheses suggests that this gap between theory and practice might reflect some fundamental issues. Here, we identify several intellectual and practical barriers that discourage us from using multiple hypotheses in our scientific investigation. While scientists have developed a number of ways to avoid biases, such as the use of double-blind controls, we suspect that few scientists are fully aware of the potential influence of cognitive bias on their decisions and they have not yet adopted many techniques available to overcome intellectual and practical barriers in order to improve scientific investigation.
Entropy in sound and vibration: towards a new paradigm
Authors: Le Bot A.
Published: January 2017

This paper describes a discussion on the method and the status of a statistical theory of sound and vibration, called statistical energy analysis (SEA). SEA is a simple theory of sound and vibration in elastic structures that applies when the vibrational energy is diffusely distributed. We show that SEA is a thermodynamical theory of sound and vibration, based on a law of exchange of energy analogous to the Clausius principle. We further investigate the notion of entropy in this context and discuss its meaning. We show that entropy is a measure of information lost in the passage from the classical theory of sound and vibration and SEA, its thermodynamical counterpart.
Reconfiguration of a smart surface using heteroclinic connections
Authors: Zhang Jiaying , McInnes Colin R. , Xu Ming
Published: January 2017

A reconfigurable smart surface with multiple equilibria is presented, modelled using discrete point masses and linear springs with geometric nonlinearity. An energy-efficient reconfiguration scheme is then investigated to connect equal-energy unstable (but actively controlled) equilibria. In principle, zero net energy input is required to transition the surface between these unstable states, compared to transitions between stable equilibria across a potential barrier. These transitions between equal-energy unstable states, therefore, form heteroclinic connections in the phase space of the problem. Moreover, the smart surface model developed can be considered as a unit module for a range of applications, including modules which can aggregate together to form larger distributed smart surface systems.
The correlated evolution of antipredator defences and brain size in mammals
Authors: Stankowich Theodore , Romero Ashly N.
Published: January 2017

Mammals that possess elaborate antipredator defences such as body armour, spines and quills are usually well protected, intermediate in size, primarily insectivorous and live in simple open environments. The benefits of such defences seem clear and may relax selection on maintaining cognitive abilities that aid in vigilance and predator recognition, and their bearers may accrue extensive production and maintenance costs. Here, in this comparative phylogenetic analysis of measurements of encephalization quotient and morphological defence scores of 647 mammal species representing nearly every order, we found that as lineages evolve stronger defences, they suffer a correlated reduction in encephalization. The only exceptions were those that live in trees—a complex three-dimensional world probably requiring greater cognitive abilities. At the proximate level, because brain tissue is extremely energetically expensive to build, mammals may be trading off spending more on elaborate defences and saving by building less powerful brains. At the ultimate level, having greater defences may also reduce the need for advanced cognitive abilities for constant assessment of environmental predation risk, especially in simple open environments.
Dog-directed speech: why do we use it and do dogs pay attention to it?
Authors: Ben-Aderet Tobey , Gallego-Abenza Mario , Reby David , Mathevon Nicolas
Published: January 2017

Pet-directed speech is strikingly similar to infant-directed speech, a peculiar speaking pattern with higher pitch and slower tempo known to engage infants' attention and promote language learning. Here, we report the first investigation of potential factors modulating the use of dog-directed speech, as well as its immediate impact on dogs' behaviour. We recorded adult participants speaking in front of pictures of puppies, adult and old dogs, and analysed the quality of their speech. We then performed playback experiments to assess dogs' reaction to dog-directed speech compared with normal speech. We found that human speakers used dog-directed speech with dogs of all ages and that the acoustic structure of dog-directed speech was mostly independent of dog age, except for sound pitch which was relatively higher when communicating with puppies. Playback demonstrated that, in the absence of other non-auditory cues, puppies were highly reactive to dog-directed speech, and that the pitch was a key factor modulating their behaviour, suggesting that this specific speech register has a functional value in young dogs. Conversely, older dogs did not react differentially to dog-directed speech compared with normal speech. The fact that speakers continue to use dog-directed with older dogs therefore suggests that this speech pattern may mainly be a spontaneous attempt to facilitate interactions with non-verbal listeners.
Odour-based discrimination of similarity at the major histocompatibility complex in birds
Authors: Leclaire Sarah , Strandh Maria , Mardon Jérôme , Westerdahl Helena , Bonadonna Francesco
Published: January 2017

Many animals are known to preferentially mate with partners that are dissimilar at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) in order to maximize the antigen binding repertoire (or disease resistance) in their offspring. Although several mammals, fish or lizards use odour cues to assess MHC similarity with potential partners, the ability of birds to assess MHC similarity using olfactory cues has not yet been explored. Here we used a behavioural binary choice test and high-throughput-sequencing of MHC class IIB to determine whether blue petrels can discriminate MHC similarity based on odour cues alone. Blue petrels are seabirds with particularly good sense of smell, they have a reciprocal mate choice and are known to preferentially mate with MHC-dissimilar partners. Incubating males preferentially approached the odour of the more MHC-dissimilar female, whereas incubating females showed opposite preferences. Given their mating pattern, females were, however, expected to show preference for the odour of the more MHC-dissimilar male. Further studies are needed to determine whether, as in women and female mice, the preference varies with the reproductive cycle in blue petrel females. Our results provide the first evidence that birds can use odour cues only to assess MHC dissimilarity.
Deep sequencing analysis of tick-borne encephalitis virus from questing ticks at natural foci reveals similarities between quasispecies pools of the virus
Authors: Asghar Naveed , Pettersson John H.-O , Dinnetz Patrik , Andreassen Åshild , Johansson Magnus
Published: January 2017

Every year, tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) causes severe central nervous system infection in 10 000 to 15 000 people in Europe and Asia. TBEV is maintained in the environment by an enzootic cycle that requires a tick vector and a vertebrate host, and the adaptation of TBEV to vertebrate and invertebrate environments is essential for TBEV persistence in nature. This adaptation is facilitated by the error-prone nature of the virus’s RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, which generates genetically distinct virus variants called quasispecies. TBEV shows a focal geographical distribution pattern where each focus represents a TBEV hotspot. Here, we sequenced and characterized two TBEV genomes, JP-296 and JP-554, from questing Ixodes ricinus ticks at a TBEV focus in central Sweden. Phylogenetic analysis showed geographical clustering among the newly sequenced strains and three previously sequenced Scandinavian strains, Toro-2003, Saringe-2009 and Mandal-2009, which originated from the same ancestor. Among these five Scandinavian TBEV strains, only Mandal-2009 showed a large deletion within the 3′ non-coding region (NCR), similar to the highly virulent TBEV strain Hypr. Deep sequencing of JP-296, JP-554 and Mandal-2009 revealed significantly high quasispecies diversity for JP-296 and JP-554, with intact 3′NCRs, compared to the low diversity in Mandal-2009, with a truncated 3′NCR. Single-nucleotide polymorphism analysis showed that 40 % of the single-nucleotide polymorphisms were common between quasispecies populations of JP-296 and JP-554, indicating a putative mechanism for how TBEV persists and is maintained within its natural foci.
Cell fixation and preservation for droplet-based single-cell transcriptomics
Authors: Alles Jonathan , Karaiskos Nikos , Praktiknjo Samantha D. , Grosswendt Stefanie , Wahle Philipp , Ruffault Pierre-Louis , Ayoub Salah , Schreyer Luisa , Boltengagen Anastasiya , Birchmeier Carmen , Zinzen Robert , Kocks Christine , Rajewsky Nikolaus
Published: January 2017

Background

Recent developments in droplet-based microfluidics allow the transcriptional profiling of thousands of individual cells, in a quantitative, highly parallel and cost-effective way. A critical, often limiting step is the preparation of cells in an unperturbed state, not compromised by stress or ageing. Another challenge are rare cells that need to be collected over several days, or samples prepared at different times or locations.

Results

Here, we used chemical fixation to overcome these problems. Methanol fixation allowed us to stabilize and preserve dissociated cells for weeks. By using mixtures of fixed human and mouse cells, we showed that individual transcriptomes could be confidently assigned to one of the two species. Single-cell gene expression from live and fixed samples correlated well with bulk mRNA-seq data. We then applied methanol fixation to transcriptionally profile primary single cells from dissociated complex tissues. Low RNA content cells fromDrosophilaembryos, as well as mouse hindbrain and cerebellum cells sorted by FACS, were successfully analysed after fixation, storage and single-cell droplet RNA-seq. We were able to identify diverse cell populations, including neuronal subtypes. As an additional resource, we provide ‘dropbead’, an R package for exploratory data analysis, visualization and filtering of Drop-seq data.

Conclusions

We expect that the availability of a simple cell fixation method will open up many new opportunities in diverse biological contexts to analyse transcriptional dynamics at single cell resolution.
An analysis of product-place co-branding: the case of Ceylon Tea
Authors: Ranasinghe Wasanee Tharanga , Thaichon Park , Ranasinghe Malanee
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the applicability of the strategic place brand-management model (SPBM) for a product-place co-branding context, focussing on Sri Lanka’s tea industry.

Design/methodology/approach

Conducted as an exploratory case study, pattern matching and explanation building methods are employed to analyse data from secondary sources such as archival data and documentation.

Findings

Strategic components of place branding in SPBM are applicable for product-place co-branding, as evidenced in Sri Lanka’s tea industry, although key strategies appear to be reactive rather than proactive in this context.

Practical implications

The findings provide reassuring guidance to practitioners on applying strategic place branding models in product-place co-branding settings, given the unique risks associated with product-place co-branding.

Originality/value

Given the novelty of and the need to advance knowledge on product-place co-branding as a component of place branding, this study extends extant literature on the use of SPBM in a successful product-place co-branding setting. Additionally, it extends the value of place branding concepts for industries other than popularly studied tourism.
E-grocery supply chain management enabled by mobile tools
Authors: Cagliano Anna Corinna , De Marco Alberto , Rafele Carlo
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study mobile services for supply chain management (SCM) in the electronic grocery (e-grocery) sector. The authors investigate their diffusion and formulate policies in order to stimulate the adoption.

Design/methodology/approach

A System Dynamics model is proposed for a short fresh food supply chain (SC). The model predicts how product traceability, mobile payment, and time-based delivery management functionalities contribute to the adoption of a SCM mobile application.

Findings

The three services drive the diffusion of the application. A high level of real time information brings decreased inventory levels and more frequent order placing, leading to an increased number of logistics transactions managed by the mobile application and growth in the associated revenue for the service provider company.

Research limitations/implications

The proposed study fosters research on overcoming the barriers that prevent integration, collaboration, and better visibility in e-grocery SCs.

Practical implications

This work constitutes a roadmap to identify the key enabling factors of e-grocery expansion.

Originality/value

This is one of the few contributions focussing on increasing the efficiency of e-grocery SCs by applying management strategies supported by mobile devices.
The complexity of co-opetitive networks
Authors: Lacam Jean Sébastien , Salvetat David
Published: January 2017

Purpose

Many firms engage in co-opetitive projects during which they have simultaneously competitive and collaborative relationships with many rivals in a complex network. A co-opetitive network offers them access to a large volume of resources and knowledge, for example, to support new markets and/or territories. So, does the network grow with the scope of the co-opetition project? The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

An empirical study of 106 French boating intermediate-sized enterprises (ETIs) and small and medium enterprises provides a descriptive and explanatory analysis of co-opetitive networks.

Findings

The results support this definition of a complex co-opetitive network only when the objectives of a firm are part of the geographical expansion of its activities. In contrast, these relations remain simple (dyadic) when a firm favours a strategy of diversifying its activities while maintaining its unique local geographical market.

Research limitations/implications

First, the work is based on a quantitative methodology, so is static. It would be interesting to analyze the process of the building of co-opetitive relationships and opportunism between rival firms, for example, through a qualitative study. Second, this work focusses on boating companies in France. It may be appropriate to consider the sanctions placed on the opportunism of foreign firms in co-opetition. Third, future work could increase understanding, not only of the nature of reprisals inflicted on individualistic co-opetitors, but also on the structure, objectives and results of these reprisals.

Originality/value

The study deepens our knowledge of the definition, composition and determinants of co-opetitive networks.
Logistic regression analysis for factors influencing cost performance of design-bid-build and design-build projects
Authors: Lu Wenxue , Hua YuanYuan , Zhang SuJuan
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the influencing factors of cost performance of design-bid-build (DBB) and design-build (DB) projects and comparing the differences of influencing factors between these two delivery methods.

Design/methodology/approach

This research identified and refined 14 influencing factors through literature review and academic expert discussions. Questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data about the influencing factors and project cost performance. Then those factors were reduced to four components by factor analysis. Logistic regression analysis is used to investigate the relationship between four principal components and project cost performance.

Findings

The results indicate that the significant influencing factors of project cost performance of DBB projects and DB projects are different. For DBB projects, owner abilities, such as owner team ability, owner experience, and owner finance, are important influencing factors causing cost overruns, while for DB projects cost performance is more sensitive to the contractor abilities, namely, contractor team ability, contractor finance, contractor experience, etc.

Research limitations/implications

The results of the paper are mainly derived by quantitative research method based on the survey of 144 samples, so the results may need validation by qualitative studies. Further research could apply case study or interview to validate the findings in this research. In addition, project type and location are not considered as control variables due to the limited number of samples, future research could be conducted to investigate their relationship with project performance.

Practical implications

The findings of this research not only help practitioners have a better understanding of the factors influencing project cost performance, but also provide some guidelines for practitioners to pay attention to different factors to better control the cost performance within different delivery systems.

Originality/value

Owner ability and contractor ability are found to be of different importance in influencing cost performance of DBB and DB projects. This research extends previous research on cost management by considering different significant factors in influencing project cost performance within DBB and DB projects.