bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Microdata and Policy Evaluation at CPB
Authors: Douven Rudy , Geest Laura van , Gerritsen Sander , Jongen Egbert , Lejour Arjan
Published: October 2018

The role of microdata and policy evaluation has become more important over time at CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. CPB’s value added is the focus on the Dutch context: the data, the underlying institutions and the research topics. This chapter provides four examples of microeconometric research at the CPB: labour participation of parents with young children, tax shifting by small corporations, teacher quality and student achievement and performance-based pay in mental health care. In these examples, CPB combines the strengths of structural models and policy evaluation models with large datasets. Next to this research, the importance of good communication strategies to policy-makers is emphasized.
The Impact of Age of Entry on Academic Progression
Authors: Cáceres-Delpiano Julio , Giolito Eugenio P.
Published: October 2018

Using a regression discontinuity design and public educational administrative data for Chile, this chapter studies the impact of age at school entry on children’s outcomes. In contrast to previous studies, the authors are able to track this impact on school achievement over 11 years of the school life of a cohort of students. The results confirm previous findings that a higher age at entry has a positive effect on grade point average (GPA) and the likelihood of passing a grade, but also that this impact tends to wear off over time. However, we also find that this impact on school achievement is still present 11 years after a child has started school.
Microdata for Social Sciences and Policy Evaluation as a Public Good
Authors: Trivellato Ugo
Published: October 2018

The balance between the right to privacy and the right to freedom of information is altered when scientific research comes into play, because of its inherent needs and societal function. This paper argues that, for research purposes, microdata should be characterised as a public good. The evolution of the rules and practices in the European Union (EU) for protecting confidentiality, while allowing access to microdata for research purposes is reviewed. Two key directions are identified for further improvement: remote access to confidential data and the enlargement of the notion of ‘European statistics’ to include microdata produced for evaluating interventions (co)financed by the EU.
Overview of Data Linkage Methods for Policy Design and Evaluation
Authors: Shlomo Natalie
Published: October 2018

This chapter provides an overview of data linkage for exploiting and combining information about the same entities across data sources. Data linkage can be deterministic (exact), where each matching variable needs to agree exactly to determine a correct match, or probabilistic, where users allow for errors in the matching variables and assign a probability of a correct match. Through classic decision theory, the chapter determines the set of matches (and non-matches) and provides a linked dataset for further analysis. The chapter also describes some recent advances in record linkage and concludes with some initial research on compensating for linkage errors in the analysis of linked data.
Privacy in Microdata Release: Challenges, Techniques, and Approaches
Authors: Livraga Giovanni
Published: October 2018

Releasing and disseminating useful microdata while ensuring that no personal or sensitive information is improperly exposed is a complex problem, heavily investigated by the scientific community in the past couple of decades. Various microdata protection approaches have then been proposed, achieving different privacy requirements through appropriate protection techniques. This chapter discusses the privacy risks that can arise in microdata release and illustrates some well-known privacy-preserving techniques and approaches.
Experimental and Longitudinal Data for Scientific and Policy Research: Open Access to Data Collected in the Longitudinal Internet Studies for the Social Sciences (LISS) Panel
Authors: Das Marcel , Knoef Marike
Published: October 2018

This chapter presents the Dutch Longitudinal Internet Studies for the Social sciences (LISS) panel. This infrastructure provides an innovative method of data collection and data access. It offers researchers the opportunity to field surveys and conduct experiments, to analyze the effect of interventions, and to link collected survey data to administrative data available from Statistics Netherlands. The infrastructure is used mostly by academic researchers but also by applied researchers, in a wide variety of studies in various disciplines. The authors demonstrate how the LISS infrastructure can be used to carry out relevant scientific and policy research to tackle contemporary societal challenges. The examples of policy-relevant research presented here focus on the adequacy of retirement savings, retirement expenditure goals, and the behavioral responses of individuals to certain policies through stated preference analyses.
Performing Indigeneity in Bolivia: The Struggle Over the TIPNIS
Authors: Fabricant Nicole , Postero Nancy
Published: October 2018

Addressing how indigeneity in Bolivia is actualised in social mobilisation as well as by the Morales regime, Fabricant and Postero’s chapter examines the different ways in which indigeneity is performed and represented. Focusing on protests against the construction of a highway through indigenous territories, they consider how performance can play a central role in what they call moral reflection about indigeneity, gender, and the articulation of alternative social worlds. Using the concept of ‘ethical substance’, the authors explore how, through performance, indigeneity serves as a central site of moral reflection and conduct. In so doing, they show how protests and performance also call into question the legitimacy of the Morales government’s claim to stand for all indigenous peoples. The chapter demonstrates how distinct actors can claim access to indigeneity, and that multiple actors perform indigeneity to push through their own ethical and political agendas.
Controlling Abandoned Oil Installations: Ruination and Ownership in Northern Peruvian Amazonia
Authors: Guzmán-Gallegos María A.
Published: October 2018

The chapter by Guzmán-Gallegos’ examines the diverse and changing ways in which the Kichwa people relate to the leftovers of oil extraction in their everyday lives in the borderlands of Ecuador and Peru. She investigates these remains as part of a landscape of rubble saturated by ruination processes. The chapter shows how ruination embodies capitalist expansion through its persistent disdain of Kichwa as disposable and of their lands as a sacrifice zone. It considers ongoing attempts to take control over the toxic leakages and abandoned installations as acts of contestation that actualise singular notions and enactments of ownership. In turn, through their relational co-constitution of persons and objects, these Kichwa conceptions and practices challenge hegemonic divides concerned not only with ownership but also with the constitution of the political realm itself. Finally, the author proposes that the articulation of distinct indigenous enactments and understandings of ownership redefine the asymmetries that characterise their relations with non-indigenous actors.
Translating Wealth in a Globalised Extractivist Economy: Contrabandistas and Accumulation by Diversion
Authors: Vindal Ødegaard Cecilie
Published: October 2018

The chapter by Ødegaard leaves the rural scenarios of this book for an urban one, focusing on smugglers of fuel operating in the frontier between Peru and Bolivia. She considers the labour of contrabandistas as a redirection of commodity flows from the official fuel distribution and as contributing to subsume wealth to particular modes of sociality, including contrabandistas’ relations with market colleagues, kin, and earth-beings. This redistribution entails a semiotic multiplication involving systems of meaning that exceed the capitalist system of commensuration: a hegemonic vision accompanying narratives of progress and extractivism in South America. When exploring contrabandistas’ relations to the powerful earth-beings, Ødegaard finds a particular relational understanding of wealth which reveals entanglements of locally embedded worldings and dominant extractive practices. Without dismissing the consequences of accumulation and inequality, she describes a set of strategies to mediate extractivism’s forces and wealth while paying attention to the relational and cosmological aspects of mediation; here termed accumulation by diversion.
Carbon and Biodiversity Conservation as Resource Extraction: Enacting REDD+ Across Cultures of Ownership in Amazonia
Authors: Brightman Marc
Published: October 2018

The chapter by Brightman discusses the works of international environmental NGOs that seek to conserve biodiversity among native Amazonian people in Suriname as a nonconventional form of extractivism. Based on his fieldwork in Suriname, he investigates the Carib-speaking Trio people’s understanding of this relatively new economic, political, and ideological scheme promoted through the marketisation of conservation. What emerges is an account of how Trio conceptualisations (in particular, those regarding land ownership) contrast and entangle with the perspectives of technical and governmental agents intervening in their territory. Thanks to this comparative approach, Brightman is able to contribute an ethnographically informed insight into the different sets of distinctions and continuities between carbon and biodiversity accounting and other more conventional forms of extractivism.
Risikomanagement ohne Risikominderung? Soziale Verwundbarkeit im Wiederaufbau nach Hochwasser in Deutschland
Authors: Kammerbauer Mark , Wamsler Christine
Published: October 2018

Environmental and climate hazards, such as floods, increasingly cause damages in cities and urbanised areas in Germany. The capacity of the impacted populations to cope with the outcome of related disasters is, amongst others, influenced by their vulnerability. Vulnerability reduction is thus key for creating social or structural resilience. This is particularly the case during post-disaster recovery and reconstruction. Recovery planning is, per definition, supposed to enable improvement, rather than a reconstruction of the status quo. However, which role does vulnerability play in recovery projects, and what kind of a recovery can improved planning lead to as a result? Based on a case study of the flood disaster of the river Danube in 2013, and particularly the Bavarian city of Deggendorf, we investigate these questions. From 2013 to 2018, data was collected by means of a survey, a spatial analysis and qualitative interviews. The results show how particular social vulnerabilities strongly influence the individual access to resources required during recovery and reconstruction as well as the capacity to deal with long-term disaster impacts. We conclude that recovery and development planning needs to acknowledge such vulnerabilities to a higher degree. The article contributes to discussions on the societal and governance causes for social vulnerability and is oriented towards actors responsible for planning and disaster management as well as the increasingly impacted public.
NAFLD and cardiovascular disease
Authors: Martins Elisabete , Oliveira Ana
Published: October 2018

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an important cause of chronic hepatic disease and liver transplant in Western societies. The increasing prevalence is related to dietary changes and sedentarism and follows the increasing frequency of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Growing evidence of association of NAFLD with cardiovascular diseases (CVD), independent of cardiovascular risk factors, has prompted the clarification of whether the liver is mainly a key-effector or a target-organ of the metabolic disarrangements in the metabolic syndrome. The therapeutic strategies able to alter liver disease progression and, through this, reduce the cardiovascular risk have also been tested in the last 2 decades.

This review focus on the possible interactions between hepatic disease, metabolic syndrome, and CVD, and on their implications for clinical practice.
Heart sound classification using Gaussian mixture model
Authors: Shervegar Madhava Vishwanath , Bhat Ganesh V.
Published: October 2018

Background:

This article represents a new method of classifying the heart sound status using the loudness features from the heart sound.

Materials and methods:

The method includes the following 3 main steps. First, the heart sound, which is usually found noisy, is heavily filtered by a 6th-order Chebyshev-I filter. The heart sound is then segmented using the event synchronous method to separate the sounds into the first heart sound, the systole and the second heart sound, the diastole. In the second step, the heart sound features namely maximum loudness index and minimum loudness index are obtained from the spectrogram of the sound by taking the row means. As a third step, the heart sound is classified using the Gaussian mixture model approach to categorize the sounds.

Results:

This method has been tested on a very large database of heart sounds consisting of over 3000 heart sounds recordings with a success rate of 97.77%.

Conclusion:

Only 2 features are used in this method namely, minimum loudness index and maximum loudness index. Classification of sounds using these 2 features yields high accuracy even under noisy conditions and is comparable to any state-of-the-art technique.
Prediction of MMP-9 inhibitory activity of N-hydroxy-α-phenylsulfonylacetamide derivatives by pharmacophore based modeling and 3-D QSAR studies
Authors: Rathee Dharmender , Lather Viney , Dureja Harish
Published: October 2018

Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), also known as gelatinase B, is a MMP that is strongly associated with multiple cellular processes including proliferation, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Various studies have shown that N-hydroxy-α-phenylsulfonylacetamide (HPSAs) derivatives are promising and selective for the MMP-9 inhibition. In the present study, we have selected and reported 80 HPSAs derivatives as inhibitors of MMP-9 and performed structure-based 3-dimensional quantitative structure–activity relationship (3D-QSAR) studies to elucidate the important structural elements responsible for binding affinity. Developed pharmacophore models; QSAR model I contains 2 hydrogen-bond acceptors (A), 2 hydrogen-bond donors (D), and 1 aromatic ring (R) and QSAR model II contains 3 hydrogen-bond acceptors (A), 1 positive ionic (P), and 1 aromatic ring (R). The statistical results of QSAR models (I and II) such as good correlation coefficient (0.61 for I and 0.63 for II), good predictive power (0.84 and 0.77 for I and II, respectively) with low standard deviation (SD\0.3 for both) strongly suggest that the developed models are virtuous for the future prediction of MMP-9 inhibitory activity of HPSAs derivatives. The geometry and features of pharmacophore were expected to be useful for further design and development of selective MMP-9 inhibitors.
Evaluation of skills acquisition using a new low-cost tool for CPR self-training
Authors: Sá-Couto Carla , Ferreira Ana Margarida , Almeida Diana , Nicolau Abel , Vieira-Marques Pedro
Published: October 2018

Background:

High-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) remains essential to improve the outcome of patients in sudden cardiorespiratory arrest. Feedback on performance is a crucial component of the learning processes associated with simulation and has been shown to improve CPR quality during simulated cardiac arrest on mannequins. This study aims to evaluate skills acquisition using a new low-cost feedback device for CPR self-training when compared to standard training methods.

Methods:

Thirty-nine pregraduated medical and biomedical engineering students were recruited for a longitudinal double-blinded randomized control study. For training Basic Life Support skills, the control group used a standard task-trainer and received feedback from an instructor. The intervention group used the same standard task-trainer, instrumented with the CPR Personal Trainer that provided automated performance feedback (with no instructor) on compression-related parameters. Students’ knowledge and skills were assessed before and after training, through a theoretical knowledge test and 2 minutes of CPR practical performance.

Results:

The theoretical tests showed an improvement both in the intervention and in the control group. For each compression-related parameters (hands position, recoil, rate, and depth), significant increase in scores is observed, between the pre- and the post-test, in both groups. The intervention and control groups presented identical mean differences for the total score (0.72 vs 0.72), with no statistical difference (P = 0.754).

Conclusions:

The proposed tool proved to be effective in the acquisition of compression-related skills, with similar outcomes as the traditional instructor-based method, corroborating the hypothesis that a low-cost tool with feedback for CPR self-training can provide an alternative or a complementary extension to traditional training methods. The system can also be considered cost-efficient as it reduces the permanent presence of an instructor for the chest compressions training, promoting regular training outside formal training courses.
Prenatal diagnosis: the clinical usefulness of array comparative genomic hybridization
Authors: Freitas Marta , Pinto Joel , Ramalho Carla , Dória Sofia
Published: October 2018

Background:

Array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) has been replacing karyotype in neurodevelopment diseases or intellectual disability cases. Regarding prenatal diagnosis (PND) karyotyping is still the criterion standard technique; nevertheless, the application of aCGH in this field has been increasing dramatically and some groups recommended it as the first-tier prenatal genetic test in cases of fetal ultrasound abnormalities. Despite aCGH greater resolution, the detection of variants of unknown significance (VOUS) is not desirable, so it's need some reflexion before generalized application on PND.

Objective:

The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence and type of copy number variants (CNVs) detected in the 55 PND samples collected from pregnancies with indication to perform aCGH.

Methods:

aCGH was performed using Agilent 4 × 180K microarrays and results were analyzed using CytoGenomics software.

Results and conclusion:

Eight (14.5%) cases had pathogenic or likely pathogenic CNVs. VOUS were found in 21.8% of the cases, but this frequency could be minimized if only large CNVs above 1 million base pairs that are outside the clinically curated targeted regions were considered.
The open abdomen: analysis of risk factors for mortality and delayed fascial closure in 101 patients
Authors: Morais Marina , Gonçalves Diana , Bessa-Melo Renato , Devesa Vítor , Costa-Maia José
Published: October 2018

Introduction:

The core concepts of damage control and open abdomen in trauma surgery have been expanding for emergent general surgery. Temporary closures allow ease of access to the abdominal cavity for source control.

The aim of the current study was to assess the outcomes of patients who underwent open abdomen management for acute abdominal conditions and evaluate risk factors for worse outcomes and inability of fascial closure during the initial hospitalization.

Methods:

We conducted a retrospective analysis of 101 patients submitted to laparostomy in a single institution from January 2009 to March 2017. The evaluated outcomes were mortality, local morbidity, and rate of primary fascial closure.

Results:

The most common indications for open abdomen were bowel perforation, bowel ischemia, and necrotizing pancreatitis. Global in-hospital mortality rate was 62.4%. For the 37 patients discharged from the hospital, a definitive abdominal closure was attained in 28.

Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that people older than 60 years of age and with Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II) scores over 18.5 had higher in-hospital mortality rates. Definitive fascial closure was statistically associated with a lower number of re-interventions and ICU stay.

Conclusions:

Open abdomen management may be appropriate in these critically ill patients; however, it continues to be associated with significantly high mortality, especially in elder patients and with higher APACHE II scores. Recognition of risk factors for fascia closure failure should promote the investigation for a tailored surgical approach in these patients.
Intractable hiccups as the presenting symptom of toxic nodular goiter
Authors: Teles Luís Miguel Fernandes , Neto Inês Domingues , Macedo Bernardo Luís Fernandes , Moreira Fernando
Published: October 2018

Hiccups differential diagnosis is a challenging one often being inconclusive and sometimes attributed to malignancies, and so of extreme importance to an internist. Seventy-five-year-old man with history of alcohol abuse, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia presented to the emergency department after having initiated diarrhea, hiccups, and vomiting for 4 days. Physical examination revealed signs of dehydration and persistent hiccups at rest. Laboratory investigations revealed acute renal failure (creatinine 3.7 mg/dl, reference value: 0.7–1.3 mg/dl; urea 195 mg/dl, reference value: 18–55 mg/dl) and no elevation of inflammatory parameters. Findings were consistent with a gastroenteritis, it was started fluids and the patient was admitted in the internal medicine ward. As the gastroenteritis symptoms ceased and the acute renal failure was resolved, the hiccups continued and physical examination revealed 2 palpable thyroid nodules. Laboratory findings shew subclinical hyperthyroidism (serum TSH 0.02 uUI/ml, reference value: 0.35 –4.94 uUI/ml; free T4 levels 18.5 pmol/L, reference value: 9.0–19 pmol/L). It was conducted an ultrasonography that revealed an increase of thyroid dimensions and 2 nodules. One nodule in the right lobe with 32 mm of dimension and one nodule in the left lobe with 58 mm of dimension. Both nodules were hypoechoic. Patient started antithyroid medication with propylthiouracil (PTU), 200 mg every 12 hours, and a cervical CT scan was conducted. CT scan revealed images compatible with diving goiter (Fig. 1) and tracheal deviation, for the right side (Fig. 2), inducted by the thyroid left nodule. Patient was discharged with antithyroid medication and hiccups were meliorated with chlorpromazine although persisting. After thyroid function normalization thyroidectomy was conducted, a few months later, and hiccups ceased.
Xanthohumol and 8-prenylnaringenin reduce type 2 diabetes–associated oxidative stress by downregulating galectin-3
Authors: Luís Carla , Costa Raquel , Rodrigues Ilda , Castela Ângela , Coelho Pedro , Guerreiro Susana , Gomes Joana , Reis Celso , Soares Raquel
Published: October 2018

Background:

Galectin-3 (Gal3) expression is associated with accumulation of Advanced Glycation End products (AGE), a common feature in diabetes mellitus (DM). The role of Gal3 in oxidative stress is, however, controversial, being considered in the literature to play either a protective role or exacerbating disease.

Methods:

Herein, we examined the interplay between Gal3 and oxidative stress in a high-fat diet -induced type 2 DMC57Bl/6 mice model. Because natural polyphenols are known to play antioxidant and anti-inflammatory roles and to modulate metabolic activity, we further evaluated the effect of xanthohumol and 8-prenylnaringenin polyphenols in this crosstalk.

Results:

Gal3 expression was accompanied by 3-nitrotyrosine and AGE production in liver and kidney of diabetic mice compared to healthy animals (fed with standard diet). Oral supplementation with polyphenols decreased the levels of these oxidative biomarkers as evaluated by immunohistochemistry and western blotting. Interestingly, blocking Gal3 by incubating human microvascular endothelial cells with modified citrus pectin increased 3-nitrotyrosine protein expression.

Conclusions:

These findings imply that Gal3 overexpression is probably controlling oxidative stress in endothelial cells. In conclusion, our results indicate that supplementation with 8-prenylnaringenin or xanthohumol reverses diabetes-associated oxidation in liver and kidney, and consequently decreases this diabetic biomarker that predispose to cardiovascular complications.
The role of flavonoid antioxidant, morin in improving procarbazine-induced oxidative stress on testicular function in rat
Authors: Olayinka Ebenezer Tunde , Ore Ayokanmi , Adeyemo Oluwatobi Adewumi , Ola Olaniyi Solomon
Published: October 2018

Background:

Procarbazine (PCZ) is an effective chemotherapeutic drug used in the treatment of lymphoma; however, oxidative stress–mediated testicular toxicity is a major side effect. Recently, therapeutic intervention using flavonoids against oxidative stress–related pathologies is gaining more attention. Morin (MOR) is a natural flavonoid with proven antioxidant activity. This study was designed therefore to evaluate the potential role of MOR in ameliorating PCZ-induced testicular oxidative stress and altered sperm quality in rat model.

Methods:

A total of 24 male Wistar rats (170–180 g) were randomly assigned into 4 treatment groups: I, control; II, PCZ (2 mg/kg b.w.); III, PCZ (2 mg/kg b.w.) + MOR (100 mg/kg b.w.) simultaneously administered and IV, MOR (100 mg/kg b.w.), and all treatments lasted 14 days.

Results:

PCZ treatment displayed significant reduction in sperm number, sperm motility, percentage normal sperm cells, and daily sperm production rate. Meanwhile the activities of testicular enzymes: gamma-glutamyl transferase, acid phosphatase, and lactate dehydrogenase were significantly altered in the PCZ group compared to control. Furthermore, PCZ caused a significant reduction in levels of glutathione and ascorbic acid as well as activities superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione S-transferase in the testes of PCZ-treated rats. A significant increase in testicular malondialdehyde level was also observed in the PCZ group. MOR treatment, however, significantly restored the altered sperm parameters and biochemical markers in the testis.

Conclusions:

Our data suggest that MOR administration protected against PCZ-induced testicular and spermatotoxicity in rat, by improving testicular antioxidant system.
Prevalence and risk factors of sonographically detected non alcoholic fatty liver disease in a screening centre in Klang Valley, Malaysia: an observational cross-sectional study
Authors: Khammas Abdul Sattar Arif , Hassan Hasyma Abu , Salih Sarah Qahtan M. , Kadir Hayati , Ibrahim Ramlah Mohamad , Nasir Nurul Nadiah Mohamad , Mahmud Rozi
Published: October 2018

Objectives:

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a very common liver disorder in Western countries. As of late, it has been found to be prevalent in Asia as well. It is a benign disease unless it develops into necroinflammation and fibrosis. This study was proposed to determine the prevalence and risk factors of sonography-detected NAFLD among Malaysian adults in Klang Valley, West Malaysia.

Study design:

An observational cross-sectional study.

Methods:

The participants were aged between 45 and 75 years who participated in a screening program at the Golden Horses Health Sanctuary in Klang Valley. Lipid profile and anthropometric measurements were collected from the subjects’ medical records. Ultrasound machine and a structured self-administered questionnaire were used as instruments for recruiting data from the subjects. The subjects who consumed alcohol (>140 g/wk for men and >70 g/wk for females), had hepatitis B or C viruses, liver insults, and surgery, and taken lipid-lowering medications were excluded from the study.

Results:

A total of 628 subjects were analyzed, and 235 (37.4%) subjects were diagnosed with definite NAFLD. They comprised 518 (82.5%) Chinese, 92 (14.6%) Malays, and 18 (2.9%) Indians. Peak prevalence of NAFLD was found in 53 to 60 years age group. The higher prevalence of NAFLD was among men (48.3%) than women (27.3%) and among Indians (61.1%) and Malays (51.1%) than among Chinese (34.2%). NAFLD has been found to be strongly correlated with male sex, high body mass index (≥23.0 kg/m2), hypertriglyceridemia, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension.

Conclusion:

NAFLD is quite common among adults in Malaysian urban population. The prevalence of NAFLD was inordinately high among the 53 to 60 years age group, male sex, Indians, and Malays (as compared with Chinese). Age >60 years, male sex, high body mass index (≥23.0 kg/m2), hypertriglyceridemia, and diabetes mellitus were proven to be risk predictors for NAFLD.
Evaluation of Glucomannan Powder as an Ultrasound Transmission Gel Alternative for Resource-Constrained Environments: A Prospective, Comparative Study
Authors: Milton Sandra C. , Cronin Aaron J. , Monti Jonathan D.
Published: October 2018

Introduction

Resource and logistical constraints may limit the availability of commercial ultrasound (US) transmission gel (USTG) in austere environments. Glucomannan powder, a dietary fiber supplement, can be mixed with tap water to form a gel that may be a field-expedient substitute for USTG. We compared glucomannan gel with a commercial USTG for US image adequacy and quality.

Methods

A single clinician obtained 193 US video clips from 14 different examinations on live-tissue and simulation training models using both commercial and glucomannan USTGs. Four US fellowship–trained providers, blinded to type of gel used, independently reviewed the randomized US video clips. The primary outcome of US image adequacy was scored as “yes” or “no” and analyzed using Pearson χ2 analysis. The secondary outcome of image quality was rated on a 0 to 5 Likert scale and analyzed with the independent t test.

Results

For US image adequacy, commercial USTG was superior to glucomannan gel ( P=0.042, 95% CI: 96.5–96.6%), with commercial USTG adequate in 96.6% of images (375 of 388 “yes”), whereas glucomannan USTG was adequate in 93.5% (359 of 384 “yes”) of images. For US image quality there was no statistically significant difference between the 2 USTGs ( P=0.176, 95% CI: 93.4–93.5%), with commercial USTG rated at 3.4±1.0 and glucomannan gel at 3.3±1.1.

Conclusion

Despite a high image adequacy rate, glucomannan gel proved inferior to commercial USTG for US image adequacy but produced equivalent image quality. Glucomannan USTG may be a reasonable substitute when commercial USTG is unavailable.
Novel guidance model and its application for optimal re-entry guidance
Authors: Jiang C.W. , Zhou G.F. , Yang B. , Gao C.S. , Jing W.X.
Published: October 2018

Aiming at three-dimensional (3D) terminal guidance problem, a novel guidance model is established in this paper, in which line-of-sight (LOS) range is treated as an independent variable, describing the relative motion between the vehicle and the target. The guidance model includes two differential equations that describe LOS’s pitch and yaw motions in which the pitch motion is separately decoupled. This model avoids the inaccuracy of simplified two-dimensional (2D) guidance model and the complexity of 3D coupled guidance model, which not only maintains the accuracy but also simplifies the guidance law design. The application of this guidance model is studied for optimal re-entry guidance law with impact angle constraint, which is presented in the form of normal overload. Compared with optimal guidance laws based on traditional guidance model, the proposed one based on novel guidance model is implemented with the LOS range instead of time-to-go, which avoids the problem of the time-to-go estimation of traditional optimal guidance laws. Finally, the correctness and validity of the guidance model and guidance law are verified by numerical simulation. The guidance model and guidance law proposed in this paper provide a new way for the design of terminal guidance.
Comparison of Disaster Preparedness Between Urban and Rural Community Hospitals in New York State
Authors: Vick Dan J. , Wilson Asa B. , Fisher Michael , Roseamelia Carrie
Published: October 2018

Objective

The intent of this study was to determine whether there are differences in disaster preparedness between urban and rural community hospitals across New York State.

Methods

Descriptive and analytical cross-sectional survey study of 207 community hospitals; thirty-five questions evaluated 6 disaster preparedness elements: disaster plan development, on-site surge capacity, available materials and resources, disaster education and training, disaster preparedness funding levels, and perception of disaster preparedness.

Results

Completed surveys were received from 48 urban hospitals and 32 rural hospitals.There were differences in disaster preparedness between urban and rural hospitals with respect to disaster plan development, on-site surge capacity, available materials and resources, disaster education and training, and perception of disaster preparedness. No difference was identified between these hospitals with respect to disaster preparedness funding levels.

Conclusions

The results of this study provide an assessment of the current state of disaster preparedness in urban and rural community hospitals in New York. Differences in preparedness between the two settings may reflect differing priorities with respect to perceived threats, as well as opportunities for improvement that may require additional advocacy and legislation. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2019;13:424-428)
Needs Assessment for a Targeted Health Promotion Campaign
Authors: Tam Greta
Published: October 2018

Since the first human A/H7N9 infection in Hong Kong, there has been an ongoing threat of human-to-human transmission, potentially causing a pandemic. Because there is no vaccine for A/H7N9, the individual preventive measures become all the more important for reducing transmission. However, due to the ongoing threat of numerous avian influenza viruses, the public may suffer from pandemic-media-fatigue. This study was done to assess the need for a targeted A/H7N9 health promotion campaign. Steven and Gillam’s framework using epidemiological, comparative, and corporate approaches was used to assess the need for a targeted A/H7N9 health promotion campaign.

Local surveillance data showed that Hong Kong faces a double burden of increasing seasonal influenza activity and threat of an avian influenza pandemic. Experts warned of potential severity and difficulties in A/H7N9 control. In contrast, surveys showed that the Hong Kong public were suffering from pandemic-media-fatigue, lacked anxiety, had misconceptions, and were not vigilant in preventive practices. This was more evident in certain demographics. Content analysis showed that health promotion materials were not targeted or tailored in countries with human A/H7N9 cases. Targeted health promotion campaigns and framing the issue to increase public and media awareness are crucial in preventing the current pandemic-media-fatigue. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness.2019;13:596-604)
Self-organized criticality of turbulence in strongly stratified mixing layers
Authors: Salehipour Hesam , Peltier W. R. , Caulfield C. P.
Published: October 2018

Motivated by the importance of stratified shear flows in geophysical and environmental circumstances, we characterize their energetics, mixing and spectral behaviour through a series of direct numerical simulations of turbulence generated by Holmboe wave instability (HWI) under various initial conditions. We focus on circumstances where the stratification is sufficiently ‘strong’ so that HWI is the dominant primary instability of the flow. Our numerical findings demonstrate the emergence of self-organized criticality (SOC) that is manifest as an adjustment of an appropriately defined gradient Richardson number, $Ri_{g}$, associated with the horizontally averaged mean flow, in such a way that it is continuously attracted towards a critical value of $Ri_{g}\sim 1/4$. This self-organization occurs through a continuously reinforced localization of the ‘scouring’ motions (i.e. ‘avalanches’) that are characteristic of the turbulence induced by the breakdown of Holmboe wave instabilities and are developed on the upper and lower flanks of the sharply localized density interface, embedded within a much more diffuse shear layer. These localized ‘avalanches’ are also found to exhibit the expected scale-invariant characteristics. From an energetics perspective, the emergence of SOC is expressed in the form of a long-lived turbulent flow that remains in a ‘quasi-equilibrium’ state for an extended period of time. Most importantly, the irreversible mixing that results from such self-organized behaviour appears to be characterized generically by a universal cumulative turbulent flux coefficient of $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E4}_{c}\sim 0.2$ only for turbulent flows engendered by Holmboe wave instability. The existence of this self-organized critical state corroborates the original physical arguments associated with self-regulation of stratified turbulent flows as involving a ‘kind of equilibrium’ as described by Turner (1973, Buoyancy Effects in Fluids, Cambridge University Press).
Early Miocene shallow-water corals from La Guajira, Colombia: part I, Acroporidae–Montastraeidae
Authors: Flórez Paola , Zapata-Ramírez Paula , Klaus James S.
Published: October 2018

We document for the first time Miocene corals from the Siamaná and Jimol formations of the Cocinetas Basin in La Guajira Peninsula, northern Colombia. This is the first of two contributions dedicated to the description and detailed illustration of morphospecies collected during two scientific expeditions (2011, 2014) to the remote region. Here we report coral morphospecies attributed to the families Acroporidae, Agathiphylliidae, Astrocoeniidae, Caryophylliidae, Diploastraeidae, Merulinidae, and Montastraeidae. Eighteen species belonging to these seven families, included in nine genera, are described. Fifteen species are assigned to established taxa, while three remain in open nomenclature. Of the species identified, onlyMontastraea cavernosa(Linnaeus, 1767) exists today. The coral taxa described are typical of the Oligocene–Miocene transition and were important components of shallow-water reefs in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico region during this period. The occurrence ofAgathiphylliaspp.,Antiguastrea, andDiploastreaspp. confirms the presence of these genera in the Miocene of the Southern Caribbean. Coral assemblages suggest that the La Guajira coral community thrived in calm and shallow waters.
Discourse context modulates the effect of implicit causality on rementions
Authors: VAN DEN HOVEN EMIEL , FERSTL EVELYN C.
Published: October 2018

abstract

Certain verbs tend to elicit explanations about either their subject or their object. The tendency for one of the verb’s arguments to be rementioned in explanations is known as the implicit causality bias. In this paper we investigate the conditions underlying implicit causality remention biases by means of sentence and story completion studies. On one account of implicit causality, remention biases are the product of a combination of a particular lexico-semantic structure with a causal coherence relation. According to a competing account, the biases arise from a perceived lack of information in the discourse, and thus depend on knowledge about the world and the discourse context. To distinguish between the two accounts, it first needs to be established that information that potentially competes with implicit causality, such as relevant information from the discourse context, can reliably influence remention biases. We provide evidence that a violation of implicit assumptions underlying the standard use of implicit causality verbs leads to different inferences, and an alteration of the remention bias. We thereby lay the groundwork for future studies to distinguish between the two accounts.
The role of the English courts in alternative dispute resolution
Authors: Koo AKC
Published: October 2018

The purpose of this article is to examine the interaction between the court and alternative dispute resolution (ADR) in the legal administration of civil justice. It addresses the following questions. What is the relationship between ADR and the concept of justice? How do we make sense of the anti-ADR views, in particular the serious threat to the rule of law? What role does, and should, the court play in alternative processes? It argues that integrating ADR into the court system broadens the notion of justice and its access, and that, under the rule of law, judges should play a more central role to ensure the use, quality and integrity of alternative processes. This paper extends our understanding of the relationship among justice, ADR and the court from an internal perspective. It also points out the need to expand the case management responsibilities of judges, and their delegates in the Online Court, on ADR.
HIGHER IDELES AND CLASS FIELD THEORY
Authors: KERZ MORITZ , ZHAO YIGENG
Published: October 2018

We use higher ideles and duality theorems to develop a universal approach to higher dimensional class field theory.
Power-relational core–periphery structures: Peripheral dependency and core dominance in binary and valued networks
Authors: NORDLUND CARL
Published: October 2018

With origins in post-war development thinking, the core–periphery concept has spread across the social and, increasingly, the natural sciences. Initially reflecting divergent socioeconomic properties of geographical regions, its relational connotations rapidly led to more topological interpretations. In today's network science, the standard core–periphery model consists of a cohesive set of core actors and a peripheral set of internally disconnected actors. Exploring the classical core–periphery literature, this paper finds conceptual support for the characteristic intra-categorical density differential. However, this literature also lends support to the notions of peripheral dependency and core dominance, power-relational aspects that existing approaches do not capture. To capture such power-relations, this paper suggests extensions to the correlation-based core–periphery metric of Borgatti and Everett (2000). Capturing peripheral dependency and, optionally, core dominance, these extensions allow for either measuring the degree of such power-relational features in given core–periphery partitions, or as part of a criteria function to search for power-relational core–periphery structures. Applied to the binary and valued citation data in Borgatti and Everett (2000), the proposed extensions seemingly capture dependency and dominance features of core–periphery structures. This is particularly evident when, circling back to the original domains of the concept, examining the network of European commodity trade in 2010.
AMS-14C Determination of the Biogenic-Fossil Fractions in Flue Gases
Authors: Quarta Gianluca , Calcagnile Lucio , Cipriano Domenico , D’Elia Marisa , Maruccio Lucio , Ciceri Giovanni , Martinotti Valter
Published: October 2018

The determination of the proportion between the biogenic and the fossil-derived fraction in carbon dioxide emissions from industrial stationary sources is a relevant aspect in the frame of the worldwide efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. In this field the 14C-based method has gained importance over the years and has been included in standard protocols accepted at both the national and international levels. The advantages of the method, based on the large difference in terms of 14C signature between fossil and biogenic carbon, are reviewed as well as some critical aspects related to its application. In particular the results of a study aimed at validating the method by analyzing synthetic gas mixtures produced in a dedicated plant and with a tuneable proportion between fossil and biogenic carbon dioxide are presented.
The Challenge of Domesticating Children's Rights Treaties in Nigeria and Alternative Legal Avenues for Protecting Children
Authors: Ogunniyi Daniel
Published: October 2018

The domestication of child-related treaties is not a straightforward process in Nigeria. Unlike treaties with another thematic focus, the majority of constituent states must give their full consent before any child-related instrument may be domesticated at the federal level and subsequently re-enacted in the domestic states. In many ways, the plural legal orders in the country and the differing perceptions of childhood make consensus difficult to achieve in terms of child rights legislation. In this regard, even though the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child has been domesticated (through a contestable procedure), 11 of Nigeria's 36 constituent states have failed to re-enact the domesticating instrument. This study elaborates on this problem, and then examines some instruments that are not affected by the domestication challenges and may offer useful protection to children with regard to certain sectoral aspects, especially child labour and child trafficking.
Effect of mid-line or low-line milking systems on lipolysis and milk composition in dairy goats
Authors: Beltrán M. C. , Manzur A. , Rodríguez M. , Díaz J. R. , Peris C.
Published: October 2018

Two experiments were carried out to investigate how milking in mid-line (ML) affects the lipolysis level and milk composition in goat livestock, in comparison with low-line (LL) milking. The first experiment took place, in triplicate, on an experimental farm. For each replicate, a crossover design (62 goats, two treatments, ML and LL, in two periods each lasting 4 days) was used. Milk samples were taken daily at 0 and 24 h after milking. In the first experimental replicate, some enzymatic coagulation cheeses were made, which were assessed by a panel of tasters at 50 and 100 days of maturation. In the second experiment, the lipolysis level and composition of tank milk from 55 commercial dairy goat farms (25 ML and 30 LL) were analysed, in milk samples taken in three different weeks. The results of the first experiment showed that ML milking increased free fatty acid (FFA) concentration in raw goat's milk significantly (0.71 v. 0.40 mmol/l, respectively). However, in the milk samples taken from commercial farms the FFA concentration remained unaffected by the milking pipeline height (0.59 v. 0.58 mmol/l for ML and LL, respectively). No significant differences were found in the milk composition, nor in the sensory characteristics in the cured cheeses, which suggests that factors other than the milkline height are able to influence the level of lipolysis under commercial conditions. Therefore, ML milking should not be discouraged, provided that the correct functioning and management of the milking operation and milk storage on the farm is guaranteed.