bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Efficient Inverted Perovskite Solar Cells by Employing N‐Type (D–A1–D–A2) Polymers as Electron Transporting Layer
Authors: Said Ahmed Ali , Xie Jian , Wang Yang , Wang Zongrui , Zhou Yu , Zhao Kexiang , Gao Wei‐Bo , Michinobu Tsuyoshi , Zhang Qichun
Published: October 2018

It is highly desirable to employ n‐type polymers as electron transporting layers (ETLs) in inverted perovskite solar cells (PSCs) due to their good electron mobility, high hydrophobicity, and simplicity of film forming. In this research, the capability of three n‐type donor–acceptor1–donor–acceptor2 (D–A1–D–A2) conjugated polymers (pBTT, pBTTz, and pSNT) is first explored as ETLs because these polymers possess electron mobilities as high as 0.92, 0.46, and 4.87 cm2 (Vs)−1 in n‐channel organic transistors, respectively. The main structural difference among pBTT, pBTTz, and pSNT is the position of sp2‐nitrogen atoms (sp2‐N) in the polymer main chains. Therefore, the effect of different substitution positions on the PSC performances is comprehensively studied. The as‐fabricated p–i–n PSCs with pBTT, pBTTz, and pSNT as ETLs show the maximum photoconversion efficiencies of 12.8%, 14.4%, and 12.0%, respectively. To be highlighted, pBTTz‐based device can maintain 80% of its stability after ten days due to its good hydrophobicity, which is further confirmed by a contact angle technique. More importantly, the pBTTz‐based device shows a neglected hysteresis. This study reveals that the n‐type polymers can be promising candidates as ETLs to approach solution‐processed highly‐efficient inverted PSCs.
Improving Gene Editing Outcomes in Human Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cells by Temporal Control of DNA Repair
Authors: Lomova Anastasia , Clark Danielle N. , Campo-Fernandez Beatriz , Flores-Bjurström Carmen , Kaufman Michael L. , Fitz-Gibbon Sorel , Wang Xiaoyan , Miyahira Eric Y. , Brown Devin , DeWitt Mark A. , Corn Jacob E. , Hollis Roger P. , Romero Zulema , Kohn Donald B.
Published: October 2018

Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated system (Cas9)-mediated gene editing of human hematopoietic stem cells (hHSCs) is a promising strategy for the treatment of genetic blood diseases through site-specific correction of identified causal mutations. However, clinical translation is hindered by low ratio of precise gene modification using the corrective donor template (homology-directed repair, HDR) to gene disruption (nonhomologous end joining, NHEJ) in hHSCs. By using a modified version of Cas9 with reduced nuclease activity in G1 phase of cell cycle when HDR cannot occur, and transiently increasing the proportion of cells in HDR-preferred phases (S/G2), we achieved a four-fold improvement in HDR/NHEJ ratio over the control condition in vitro, and a significant improvement after xenotransplantation of edited hHSCs into immunodeficient mice. This strategy for improving gene editing outcomes in hHSCs has important implications for the field of gene therapy, and can be applied to diseases where increased HDR/NHEJ ratio is critical for therapeutic success. Stem Cells  2019;37:284–294
LncRNA-OG Promotes the Osteogenic Differentiation of Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Under the Regulation of hnRNPK
Authors: Tang Su'an , Xie Zhongyu , Wang Peng , Li Jinteng , Wang Shan , Liu Wenjie , Li Ming , Wu Xiaohua , Su Hongjun , Cen Shuizhong , Ye Guiwen , Zheng Guan , Wu Yanfeng , Shen Huiyong
Published: October 2018

Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) are the main source of osteoblasts in vivo and are widely used in stem cell therapy. Previously, we analyzed long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) expression profiles during BM-MSC osteogenesis, and further investigation is needed to elucidate how lncRNAs regulate BM-MSC osteogenesis. Herein, we used customized microarrays to determine lncRNA expression profiles in BM-MSCs on days 0 and 10 of osteogenic differentiation. In addition, we identified a novel osteogenesis-associated lncRNA (lncRNA-OG) that is upregulated during this process. Functional assays showed that lncRNA-OG significantly promotes BM-MSC osteogenesis. Mechanistically, lncRNA-OG interacts with heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein K (hnRNPK) protein to regulate bone morphogenetic protein signaling pathway activation. Surprisingly, hnRNPK positively regulates lncRNA-OG transcriptional activity by promoting H3K27 acetylation of the lncRNA-OG promoter. Therefore, our study revealed a novel lncRNA with a positive function on BM-MSC osteogenic differentiation and proposed a new interaction between hnRNPK and lncRNA. Stem Cells  2018 Stem Cells  2019;37:270–283
Criteria air pollutants from cement production in Nigeria
Authors: Oki Abisola A. , Fakinle Bamidele Sunday , Sonibare Jacob Ademola
Published: October 2018

This study aims at determining the impact of uncontrolled criteria air pollutants on air quality. The research estimates the emissions of criteria air pollutants from existing and proposed cement production facilities using the emission factor approach. The emissions from the existing plants for particulate matter (PM), sulfur dioxide (SO2), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), carbon dioxide (CO2), and lead ranged between 0.031 and 354,240 tons per annum; 9.07 and 31,953.6 tons per annum; 5.04 and 17,750 tons per annum; 0.173 and 621.12 tons per annum; and 0.033 and 354.72 tons per annum; respectively, while estimated values for proposed plants for PM, SO2, NOx, CO, and lead ranged between 1.2 and 134,995.2 tons per annum; 35.52 and 13,497.6 tons per annum; 19.728 and 7,497 tons per annum, 0.67 and 264 tons per annum; and 0.096 and 148.80 tons per annum; respectively. PM emissions had the highest values, while values for SO2, NOx, CO, and Pb followed in decreasing order. Consistent use of emission control systems and substitution of kiln fuels with alternative fuels can help reduce the impact of cement production on air quality.
Computer‐aided drug design in new druggable targets for the next generation of immune‐oncology therapies
Authors: Acúrcio Rita C. , Scomparin Anna , Satchi‐Fainaro Ronit , Florindo Helena F. , Guedes Rita C.
Published: October 2018

Immune modulatory pathways have emerged as innovative and successful targets in cancer immunotherapy. Current therapeutics include monoclonal antibodies, which have shown impressive clinical results in the treatment of several types of tumors. However, the failure to show response in the majority of patients and the induction of severe immune‐related adverse effects are among the major drawbacks. Latest efforts to achieve new approaches to target additional pathways and/or protein responsible for immune evasion toward the development of immune modulatory small molecules have been devised. The potential of innovative computational‐aided drug design tools to accelerate the identification and design of new optimized and validated immune small molecules modulators will play a key role in the next generation of cancer immunotherapy drug discovery. Nevertheless, the lack of structural information regarding the immune modulatory pathways and other components within tumor microenvironment has hampered the rational design of those small‐molecule modulators, by preventing the use of such methodologies. Herein we provide an overview on structural elucidation on known regulators of immune modulatory pathways (adenosine A2A receptor [A2AR], stimulator of interferon genes [STING], indoleaine 2,3‐dioxygenase 1 [IDO1], and 4‐1BB) within cancer microenvironment. This knowledge on immune modulatory molecular targets is essential to advance the understanding of their binding mode and guide the design of novel effective targeted anticancer medicines.

This article is categorized under:

Molecular and Statistical Mechanics > Molecular Dynamics and Monte‐Carlo Methods

Structure and Mechanism > Molecular Structures

Software > Molecular Modeling
Systems biology of robustness and homeostatic mechanisms
Authors: Nijhout H. Frederik , Best Janet A. , Reed Michael C.
Published: October 2018

All organisms are subject to large amounts of genetic and environmental variation and have evolved mechanisms that allow them to function well in spite of these challenges. This property is generally referred to as robustness. We start with the premise that phenotypes arise from dynamical systems and are therefore system properties. Phenotypes occur at all levels of the biological organizational hierarchy, from gene products, to biochemical pathways, to cells, tissues, organs, appendages, and whole bodies. Phenotypes at all these levels are subject to environmental and genetic challenges against which their form and function need to be protected. The mechanisms that can produce robustness are diverse and several different kinds often operate simultaneously. We focus, in particular, on homeostatic mechanisms that dynamically maintain form and function against varying environmental and genetic factors. Understanding how homeostatic mechanisms operate, how they reach their set point, and the nature of the set point pose difficult challenges. In developmental systems, homeostatic mechanisms make the progression of morphogenesis relatively insensitive to genetic and environmental variation so that the outcomes vary little, even in the presence of severe mutational and environmental stress. Accordingly, developmental systems give the appearance of being goal‐oriented, but how the target phenotype is encoded is not known. We discuss why and how individual variation poses challenges for mathematical modeling of biological systems, and conclude with an explanation of how system population models are a useful method for incorporating individual variation into deterministic ordinary differential equation (ODE) models.

This article is categorized under:

Models of Systems Properties and Processes > Mechanistic Models

Physiology > Mammalian Physiology in Health and Disease

Physiology > Organismal Responses to Environment

Biological Mechanisms > Regulatory Biology
The Imino Stannylene SnNH Incorporated in a Molecular Tin‐Nitrogen Cage and other Tin(II)‐Nitrogen Derivatives
Authors: Veith Michael , Opsölder Michael , Huch Volker
Published: October 2018

The iminostannylene HNSn was successfully incorporated in a molecular cage of composition (Me2RSi–NSn)3(HNSn) with group R either being a methyl (1) or vinyl (2) substituent. An X‐ray structure analysis reveals that 2 consists of a distorted Sn4N4 cube. The Sn–N(H) bond lengths [2.189(2) Å] are in the range for Sn4N4 hetero cubanes. When stored in a toluene solution the clusters 1 and 2 decompose slowly into the symmetric cubanes (Me2RSi–NSn)4 [R = Me (3), CHCH2 (4)] and an amorphous and insoluble powder of composition HNSn. The decomposition follows a first order rate law as established for 2 with a half life time t1/2 = 320 d at 20 °C. The compounds 1 and 2 can thus be regarded as a result of interaction between three entities {Me2RSi–NSn} and one entity {HNSn}. We also isolated the twistane‐like Me2Si(NtBu)2Sn2NtBu (5) in a crystalline form. The central structure of this molecule, which has almost C2v symmetry, has a trigonal bipyramid Sn2N3 unit with the nitrogen atoms occupying the equatorial plane. Each nitrogen atom has a tert‐butyl ligand and two of the N atoms are further connected by the dimethylsilyl group. There is one nitrogen atom in an almost planar environment (only bonding to tert‐butyl and two tin atoms) with a remarkable short Sn–N bond length of 2.048(5) Å. Both tin atoms in cage 5 can bond to Cr(CO)5 to form [Me2Si(NtBu)2Sn2NtBu][Cr(CO)5]2 (6) with an almost linear Cr–Sn···Sn–Cr arrangement and Sn–Cr bond lengths of 2.581(1) Å (X‐ray diffraction).
Perfluorinated tert‐Butoxides of Tin(II): The Dimeric Alkoxide and Its Monomeric Ate Complex
Authors: Schleep Mario , Hettich Clarissa , Glatz Jana Maren , Kratzert Daniel , Beichel Witali , Velázquez Rojas Jennifer , Scherer Harald , Krossing Ingo
Published: October 2018

Surprisingly little is known about fluorinated tin(II) alkoxides. Here the synthesis and characterization of Sn(ORF)2 [ORF = OC(CF3)3] and the crystal structures of its adducts with phenanthroline and dppe are reported. In addition, its ate complex [Sn(ORF)3]– was synthesized with lithium or sodium as cation and as acetonitrile adduct. The thermolytic behavior of both, the alkoxide and the lithium stannate(II), was investigated together with first electrochemical measurements of Li[Sn(ORF)3].
Out of Breath: Respiratory Aesthetics from Ruskin to Vernon Lee
Authors: Garratt Peter
Published: October 2018

This chapter examines the roles played by respiration—as physiological process, and embodied response—in the development of aesthetic theories at the end of the nineteenth century, traced from Ruskin to Vernon Lee. Late nineteenth-century attempts to define aesthetic experience in terms of its attendant physiological reactions still drew on breath’s immaterial poetic associations (air, wind and spirit) while being alert to the way respiratory control shifts easily between voluntary and involuntary modes of experience (will/automation). Lee’s idea of aesthetic experience envisages a complex, perhaps mystifying, action of involvement with works of art, dependent upon physiological, sensorimotor and respiratory movement. Exploring her understanding of empathetic identification, and relating it to current models of enactive cognition, the chapter recovers an entangled art and science of breath in nineteenth-century aesthetic theory.
Global and optimal probes for the top-quark effective field theory at future lepton colliders
Authors: Durieux Gauthier , Perelló Martín , Vos Marcel , Zhang Cen
Published: October 2018

Abstract

We study the sensitivity to physics beyond the standard model of precise top-quark pair production measurements at future lepton colliders. A global effective-field-theory approach is employed, including all ten dimension-six operators of the Warsaw basis which involve a top-quark and give rise to tree-level amplitudes that interfere with standard-model

$$ {e}^{+}{e}^{-}\to t\overline{t}\to b{W}^{+}\overline{b}{W}^{-} $$

e
+

e
−

→
t

t
¯

→
b

W
+

b
¯

W
−

ones in the limit of vanishing b-quark mass. Four-fermion and CP-violating contributions are taken into account. Circular-collider-, ILC- and CLIC-like benchmark run scenarios are examined. We compare the constraining power of various observables to a set of statistically optimal ones which maximally exploit the information contained in the fully differential

$$ b{W}^{+}\overline{b}{W}^{-} $$

b

W
+

b
¯

W
−

distribution. The enhanced sensitivity gained on the linear contributions of dimension-six operators leads to bounds that are insensitive to quadratic ones. Even with statistically optimal observables, two centre-of-mass energies are required for constraining simultaneously two- and four-fermion operators. The impact of the centre-of-mass energy lever arm is discussed, that of beam polarization as well. A realistic estimate of the precision that can be achieved in ILC- and CLIC-like operating scenarios yields individual limits on the electroweak couplings of the top quark that are one to three orders of magnitude better than constraints set with Tevatron and LHC run I data, and three to two hundred times better than the most optimistic projections made for the high-luminosity phase of the LHC. Clean global constraints can moreover be obtained at lepton colliders, robustly covering the multidimensional effective-field-theory space with minimal model dependence.
From species to individuals: does the variation in ant–plant networks scale result in structural and functional changes?
Authors: Koch Elmo B. A. , Dáttilo Wesley , Camarota Flávio , Vasconcelos Heraldo L.
Published: October 2018

Predicting the outcomes of any mutualistic interaction between ants and plants can be a very difficult task, since these outcomes are often determined by the ecological context in which the interacting species are embedded. Network theory has been an important tool to improve our understanding about the organizational patterns of animal–plant interactions. Nevertheless, traditionally, network studies have focused mainly on species‐based differences and ignoring the importance of individual differences within populations. In this study, we evaluated if downscaling an ant–plant network from species to the individual level results in structural and functional changes in a network involving different‐sized plant individuals. For this, we studied the extrafloral‐nectar producing‐tree Caryocar brasiliense (Caryocaraceae) and their associated ants in a Neotropical savanna. We observed 254 interactions involving 43 individuals of C. brasiliense and 47 ant species. The individual‐based ant–plant network exhibited a nested pattern of interactions, with all developmental stages contributing equally to structuring this non‐random pattern. We also found that plants with greater centrality within the network were better protected by their ant partners. However, plants with higher levels of individual specialization were not necessarily better protected by ants. Overall, we presented empirical evidence that intra‐population variations are important for shaping ant–plant networks, since they can change the level of protection against herbivores conferred by the ants. These results highlight the importance of individual‐based analyses of ecological networks, opening new research venues in the eco‐evolutionary dynamics of ant–plant interactions.
What is Deep Disagreement?
Authors: Ranalli Chris
Published: October 2018

What is the nature of deep disagreement? In this paper, I consider two similar albeit seemingly rival answers to this question: the Wittgensteinian theory, according to which deep disagreements are disagreements over hinge propositions, and the fundamental epistemic principle theory, according to which deep disagreements are disagreements over fundamental epistemic principles. I assess these theories against a set of desiderata for a satisfactory theory of deep disagreement, and argue that while the fundamental epistemic principle theory does better than the Wittgensteinian theory on this score, the fundamental epistemic principle theory nevertheless struggles to explain the variety of deep disagreement.
Learning 3D Shape Completion Under Weak Supervision
Authors: Stutz David , Geiger Andreas
Published: October 2018

We address the problem of 3D shape completion from sparse and noisy point clouds, a fundamental problem in computer vision and robotics. Recent approaches are either data-driven or learning-based: Data-driven approaches rely on a shape model whose parameters are optimized to fit the observations; Learning-based approaches, in contrast, avoid the expensive optimization step by learning to directly predict complete shapes from incomplete observations in a fully-supervised setting. However, full supervision is often not available in practice. In this work, we propose a weakly-supervised learning-based approach to 3D shape completion which neither requires slow optimization nor direct supervision. While we also learn a shape prior on synthetic data, we amortize, i.e.,learn, maximum likelihood fitting using deep neural networks resulting in efficient shape completion without sacrificing accuracy. On synthetic benchmarks based on ShapeNet (Chang et al. Shapenet: an information-rich 3d model repository, 2015.arXiv:1512.03012) and ModelNet (Wu et al., in: Proceedings of IEEE conference on computer vision and pattern recognition (CVPR), 2015) as well as on real robotics data from KITTI (Geiger et al., in: Proceedings of IEEE conference on computer vision and pattern recognition (CVPR), 2012) and Kinect (Yang et al., 3d object dense reconstruction from a single depth view, 2018.arXiv:1802.00411), we demonstrate that the proposed amortized maximum likelihood approach is able to compete with the fully supervised baseline of Dai et al. (in: Proceedings of IEEE conference on computer vision and pattern recognition (CVPR), 2017) and outperforms the data-driven approach of Engelmann et al. (in: Proceedings of the German conference on pattern recognition (GCPR), 2016), while requiring less supervision and being significantly faster.
The effects of emotional lability, mind wandering and sleep quality on ADHD symptom severity in adults with ADHD
Authors: Helfer Bartosz , Cooper Ruth E. , Bozhilova Natali , Maltezos Stefanos , Kuntsi Jonna , Asherson Philip
Published: October 2018

Mind wandering, emotional lability and sleep quality are currently mostly independently investigated but are all interlinked and play a major role is adult attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Emotional lability is a core feature of the disorder, excessive mind wandering has recently been linked to symptoms and impairments of ADHD and poor sleep quality is experienced by a clear majority of adults with ADHD. All three phenomena lead to functional impairment in ADHD, however their relationship to each other and to ADHD symptom severity is not well understood. Here we used serial multiple mediation models to examine the influence of mind wandering, sleep quality and emotional lability on ADHD symptom severity. 81 adults diagnosed with ADHD participated in this study. We found that mind wandering and emotional lability predicted ADHD symptom severity and that mind wandering, emotional lability and sleep quality were all linked and significantly contributed to the symptomatology of adult ADHD. Mind wandering was found to lead to emotional lability which in turn lead to ADHD symptom severity; and poor sleep quality was found to exacerbate mind wandering leading to ADHD symptoms. Future research should employ objective on-task measures of mind wandering, sleepiness and emotional lability to investigate the neural basis of these impairing deficits in ADHD.
Carbon fiber 3D printing propels bike development
Authors: Nickels Liz
Published: October 2018

Composites specialist Hexcel recently teamed up with a 3D printing manufacturer to develop a lightweight commuter bike. Liz Nickels spoke to the companies to find out more.
MAYNOOTH, HISTORY, AND THE INTELLECTUAL ORIGINS OF JOHN HUME'S POLITICAL THINKING
Authors: DOLAN THOMAS
Published: October 2018

Visions of history, Irish and otherwise, ancient and modern, critically inflected through St Patrick's College, Maynooth, the National Roman Catholic Seminary of Ireland, are central to John Hume's intellectual formation. This can be dated back to his experiences as a seminarian at St Patrick's during the mid-1950s – particularly his schooling in history under Tomás Ó Fiaich – long before the ideological gestation suggested in the existing literature. There the emphases are on the wider evolution of nationalist politics in Northern Ireland during the mid-1960s, as opposed to Hume's early intellectual biography. Thus, a wider context to his influential thought is suggested, one supplied by a discourse on the concept of patriotism evolving amongst Ireland's Catholic intelligentsia during the 1950s, indicative of the modernization of Catholic thought on the island in the era preceding the convening of the Second Vatican Council in 1962. Yet the article also situates Hume's once-progressive mode of nationalist ideology within a much older tradition of Catholic loyalism in Ireland. The conspicuously Platonic dimension of his thinking is likewise observed, facilitating a conceptually driven exploration of the relationship between Hume's vision of his native walled city of Derry, and of that larger partitioned entity, Northern Ireland.
Tapeworm larvae in Artemia franciscana (Crustacea: Anostraca) in the Godolphin lakes of Dubai (United Arab Emirates) throughout an annual cycle
Authors: Sivakumar S. , Hyland K. , Schuster R.K.
Published: October 2018

A total of 1840 brine shrimps (Artemia franciscana) were examined for cestode larvae at monthly intervals between November 2015 and June 2016. Of these, 663 (36.03%) specimens were infected with cysticercoids of seven cestode species in numbers between one and sixteen. During the first four months of examination, the percentage of infected shrimps was low but rose significantly with increasing temperatures in March, reaching maximum values in May. Flamingolepis liguloides and Flamingolepis flamingo showed the highest prevalence overall, at 25.3 and 10.7%, respectively. The intensity of infection was 1–10 and 1–4 cysticercoids, respectively. Eurycestus avoceti, Wardium stellorae, Gynandrotaenia stammeri, Anomotaenia tringae and Confluaria podicipina occurred at lower prevalence of 4.5, 3.2, 1.7, 0.3 and 0.05%, respectively. Up to four species were detected in one host.
Studying the result of underlay myringoplasty using platelet-rich plasma
Authors: Yadav S P S , Malik J S , Malik P , Sehgal P K , Gulia J S , Ranga R K
Published: October 2018

Objective

Perforations of the tympanic membrane are treated with various surgical techniques and materials. This study aimed to determine the efficacy of platelet-rich plasma during underlay myringoplasty.

Methods

The study included 40 patients. Autologous platelet-rich plasma was applied in-between temporalis fascia graft and tympanic membrane remnant during underlay myringoplasty in group 1 (n = 20). The outcome was evaluated after three months and compared with group 2 (n = 20), a control group that underwent routine underlay tympanoplasty.

Results

After three months’ follow up, graft uptake was 95 per cent in group 1 and 85 per cent in group 2 (p < 0.03). Mean hearing threshold gain was 18.62 dB in group 1 and 13.15 dB in group 2. This difference was statistically significant (p < 0.01).

Conclusion

Platelet-rich plasma, with its ease of preparation technique, availability, low cost, autologous nature and good graft uptake rate, justifies its use in tympanoplasty type I procedures.
Turning over our fat stores: the key to metabolic health Blaxter Award Lecture 2018
Authors: Frayn Keith N.
Published: October 2018

The present paper results from my receiving the Nutrition Society's first Blaxter Award, and describes briefly my academic history. My interest in human fat metabolism began in the Medical Research Council's Trauma Unit, studying metabolic changes in critically ill patients and their responses to nutrition. On moving to Oxford in 1986, I began to study pathways for depositing fat in adipose tissue. This involved the development of new methodologies, in particular, a technique for measurement of arterio-venous differences of metabolite concentrations across human adipose tissue beds, primarily the subcutaneous anterior abdominal depot. Our early studies showed that this tissue is dynamic in its metabolic behaviour, responding rapidly (within minutes) to changes in nutritional state. This led to an understanding of adipose tissue as playing an essential role in metabolic health, by capturing incoming dietary fatty acids, storing them as TAG and releasing them when needed, analogous to the role of the liver in glucose metabolism; we called this ‘buffering’ of fatty acid fluxes. In obesity, the mass of adipose tissue expands considerably, more than is often appreciated from BMI values. We confirmed other observations of a strong suppression of release of NEFA from adipose tissue in obesity, tending to normalise circulating NEFA concentrations. A corollary, however, is that fatty acid uptake must be equally suppressed, and this disrupts the ‘buffering’ capacity of adipose tissue, leading to fat deposition in other tissues; ectopic fat deposition. This, in turn, is associated with many metabolic abnormalities linked to obesity.
The Unbearable Lightness of Being Retired
Authors: Silver Michelle Pannor
Published: October 2018

Dans cette étude qualitative, j’ai utilisé une approche fondée sur la gérontologie narrative pour examiner les perceptions liées à la retraite dans un groupe de 26 hommes et femmes qui ont pris leur retraite après un mandat de chef de la direction. Le guide d’entrevue a pris en compte la perspective du parcours de vie. Trois thèmes clés ont émergé : 1) l’importance de la productivité et du réseautage, alors que les participants gravissaient les échelons de l’entreprise ; 2) le sentiment d’avoir une date « meilleur avant » et d’avoir cédé aux pressions de la société en faveur de la retraite ; et 3) l’impression troublante de se sentir insignifiant à la retraite tout en ayant le désir de poursuivre l’épanouissement personnel en continuant à travailler contre rémunération. Après une carrière marquée par des réalisations pionnières, les participants ont éprouvé un sentiment insoutenable de légèreté lors de l’abandon des responsabilités professionnelles. Ces résultats mettent en lumière l’importance de la perspective de parcours de vie pour examiner la retraite à la fois comme une expérience personnelle et un phénomène social. Les résultats contribuent également à la compréhension théorique du vieillissement productif en illustrant comment les idées préconçues sur la productivité contrastent avec les aspirations associées à une retraite remplie de loisirs, d’une manière qui pourrait réduire les contributions à l’emploi de certaines personnes.
Bayesian spatial and spatio-temporal approaches to modelling dengue fever: a systematic review
Authors: Aswi A. , Cramb S. M. , Moraga P. , Mengersen K.
Published: October 2018

Dengue fever (DF) is one of the world's most disabling mosquito-borne diseases, with a variety of approaches available to model its spatial and temporal dynamics. This paper aims to identify and compare the different spatial and spatio-temporal Bayesian modelling methods that have been applied to DF and examine influential covariates that have been reportedly associated with the risk of DF. A systematic search was performed in December 2017, using Web of Science, Scopus, ScienceDirect, PubMed, ProQuest and Medline (via Ebscohost) electronic databases. The search was restricted to refereed journal articles published in English from January 2000 to November 2017. Thirty-one articles met the inclusion criteria. Using a modified quality assessment tool, the median quality score across studies was 14/16. The most popular Bayesian statistical approach to dengue modelling was a generalised linear mixed model with spatial random effects described by a conditional autoregressive prior. A limited number of studies included spatio-temporal random effects. Temperature and precipitation were shown to often influence the risk of dengue. Developing spatio-temporal random-effect models, considering other priors, using a dataset that covers an extended time period, and investigating other covariates would help to better understand and control DF transmission.
Intra-ooplasmic injection of a multiple number of sperm to induce androgenesis and polyploidy in the dojo loach Misgurnus anguillicaudatus (Teleostei: Cobitidae)
Authors: Yasui George Shigueki , Saito Taiju , Zhao Yan , Fujimoto Takafumi , Yamaha Etsuro , Arai Katsutoshi
Published: October 2018

Polyspermy was initiated by microinjecting a multiple number of sperm into the activated and dechorionated eggs of dojo loach Misgurnus anguillicaudatus (Teleostei: Cobitidae). A 10-nl sperm suspension from an albino (recessive trait) male (105, 106, 107 or 108 sperm ml −1) was microinjected into eggs from a wild-type female. Although the rates of embryos developing into the blastula stage in the injection group at the highest sperm concentration were similar to that of the control group, the hatching rates of the injection group were much lower. A large proportion of embryos that developed from the injected eggs was haploid and were mosaics containing haploid cells. Most of the haploid and mosaic embryos inherited only paternally derived alleles in the microsatellite markers (i.e. androgenesis was initiated by injecting multiple sperm). In contrast, some haploid embryos contained both paternal and maternal alleles despite haploidy, suggesting that they were mosaics consisting of cells with either paternal or maternal inheritance. The injected eggs displayed diploid, hypotriploid and triploid cells, all of which included both maternally and paternally derived alleles. One albino tetraploid with only paternal alleles was also observed from the injected eggs. These results suggested that part of the sperm microinjected into the ooplasm should form a male pronucleus/pronuclei, which could develop by androgenesis or could fuse with the female pronucleus/pronuclei. Therefore, microinjection of multiple sperm should be considered a potential technique to induce androgenesis and polyploidy.
Problematic Internet use two decades later: apps to wean us off apps
Authors: Aboujaoude Elias
Published: October 2018

Two decades of research into problematic Internet use have not yielded an established definition, much less an accepted treatment algorithm that is based on the psychopharmacological and psychotherapeutic interventions that have been tested. Meanwhile, technology-mediated tools that purport to curb unnecessary use of Internet-related technologies and the associated negative consequences are gaining in popularity, despite the lack of rigorous clinical trials into their efficacy and safety. Some popular new offerings that vary in browser, operating system and platform compatibility are reviewed. While they share similar goals as “traditional” treatments, they may be more efficient, scalable, and affordable. Using technology against itself may be counter-intuitive, but the popularity of these tools and their potential advantages make them worthy of researchers’ attention. Telepsychiatry platforms, which are gaining a foothold in the treatment of established disorders, may, paradoxically, also prove beneficial for the management of problematic use of Internet-related technologies.
A Trump Effect on the EU’s Popularity? The U.S. Presidential Election as a Natural Experiment
Authors: Minkus Lara , Deutschmann Emanuel , Delhey Jan
Published: October 2018

Did the election of Donald Trump affect the popularity of the European Union (EU) in Europe? Theoretically, both a positive rally effect (due to a perceived external threat) and a negative domino effect (due to resignation among Europhiles and/or reinforcement among europhobe nationalists) are plausible. We treat Trump’s unexpected victory as an external shock and use a Eurobarometer survey that was conducted in all EU-28 member states four days prior to (control group) and six days after the election (treatment group) as source material for a natural experiment. The analysis reveals that the election of Trump caused a significant increase in the EU’s popularity in Europe immediately after the election. This “Trump effect” is considerable in size, roughly equivalent to three years of education. Gains in popularity were particularly high among respondents who perceived their country as economically struggling and, surprisingly, among the political right, suggesting that Trump’s victory broadened and ideologically diversified the EU’s base of support.
The Differential Effects of Economic Conditions and Racial Attitudes in the Election of Donald Trump
Authors: Green Jon , McElwee Sean
Published: October 2018

Debates over the extent to which racial attitudes and economic distress explain voting behavior in the 2016 election have tended to be limited in scope, focusing on the extent to which each factor explains white voters’ two-party vote choice. This limited scope obscures important ways in which these factors could have been related to voting behavior among other racial sub-groups of the electorate, as well as participation in the two-party contest in the first place. Using the vote-validated 2016 Cooperative Congressional Election Survey, merged with economic data at the ZIP code and county levels, we find that racial attitudes strongly explain two-party vote choice among white voters—in line with a growing body of literature. However, we also find that local economic distress was strongly associated with non-voting among people of color, complicating direct comparisons between racial and economic explanations of the 2016 election and cautioning against generalizations regarding causal emphasis.
Democratic Decline in the United States: What Can We Learn from Middle-Income Backsliding?
Authors: Kaufman Robert R. , Haggard Stephan
Published: October 2018

We explore what can be learned from authoritarian backsliding in middle income countries about the threats to American democracy posed by the election of Donald Trump. We develop some causal hunches and an empirical baseline by considering the rise of elected autocrats in Venezuela, Turkey, and Hungary. Although American political institutions may forestall a reversion to electoral autocracy, we see some striking parallels in terms of democratic dysfunction, polarization, the nature of autocratic appeals, and the processes through which autocratic incumbents sought to exploit elected office. These processes could generate a diminished democratic system in which electoral competition survives, but within a political space that is narrowed by weakened horizontal checks on executive power and rule of law.
PEIRCE’S CALCULI FOR CLASSICAL PROPOSITIONAL LOGIC
Authors: MA MINGHUI , PIETARINEN AHTI-VEIKKO
Published: October 2018

This article investigates Charles Peirce’s development of logical calculi for classical propositional logic in 1880–1896. Peirce’s 1880 work on the algebra of logic resulted in a successful calculus for Boolean algebra. This calculus, denoted byPC, is here presented as a sequent calculus and not as a natural deduction system. It is shown that Peirce’s aim was to presentPCas a sequent calculus. The law of distributivity, which Peirce states in 1880, is proved using Peirce’s Rule, which is a residuation, inPC. The transitional systems of the algebra of the copula that Peirce develops since 1880 paved the way to the 1896 graphical system of the alpha graphs. It is shown how the rules of the alpha system reinterpret Boolean algebras, answering Peirce’s statement that logical graphs supply a new system of fundamental assumptions to logical algebra. A proof-theoretic analysis is given for the connection betweenPCand the alpha system.
Secular–Religious Competition and the Exclusion of Islam from the Public Sphere: Islamic Welfare in Western Europe
Authors: Kortmann Matthias
Published: October 2018

This paper deals in a qualitative discourse analysis with the role of Islamic organizations in welfare delivery in Germany and the Netherlands. Referring to Jonathan Fox's “secular–religious competition perspective”, the paper argues that similar trends of exclusion of Islamic organizations from public social service delivery can be explained with discourses on Islam in these two countries. The analysis, first, shows that in the national competitions between religious and secular ideologies on the public role of religion, different views are dominant (i.e., the support for the Christian majority in Germany and equal treatment of all religions in the Netherlands) which can be traced back to the respective regimes of religious governance. However, and second, when it comes to Islam in particular, in the Netherlands, the perspective of restricting all religions from public sphere prevails which leads to the rather exclusivist view on Islamic welfare that dominates in Germany, too.
Evaluating Resilience: Development and Validation of the Situated Subjective Resilience Questionnaire for Adults (SSRQA)
Authors: Alonso-Tapia Jesús , Garrido-Hernansaiz Helena , Rodríguez-Rey Rocío , Ruiz Díaz Miguel , Nieto Carmen
Published: October 2018

Although resilience varies depending on the specific type of adverse situation faced by the individual, to date resilience questionnaires do not consider its situational character. This study aims to develop and validate the Situated Subjective Resilience Questionnaire for Adults (SSRQA), which assesses resilience in five different adverse contexts. A total of 584 Spanish adults (including general population and clinical samples individuals) completed the SSRQA and other measures of resilience, optimism, and self-efficacy. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the SSRQA structure fitted the situational model better (χ2/df = 1.90; CFI = .96; TLI = .95; RMSEA = .07) than the non-situational version (χ2/df = 4.99; CFI = .79; TLI = .76; RMSEA = .15). The SSRQA was shown to be reliable (α = .90) and to be significantly and positively correlated with other resilience measures (p < .001) and, to a lower degree, with optimism and self-efficacy (p < .001). Degree of exposure to each adverse situation was negatively correlated with resilience in the face of that situation (p < .05), supporting a vulnerability to stress model. The SSRQA has been demonstrated to be a reliable and valid situated measure for resilience towards different adverse contexts.
Responses of Nitrogen Oxide to High‐Speed Solar Wind Stream in the Polar Middle Atmosphere
Authors: Lee Ji‐Hee , Jee Geonhwa , Kwak Young‐Sil , Hong Sang‐bum , Hwang Heejin , Song In‐Sun , Lee Young‐Sook , Turunen Esa , Lee Dae‐Young
Published: October 2018

During high‐speed solar wind stream (HSS) events, energetic electrons from the Earth's inner magnetosphere transfer solar wind energy to the high‐latitude upper atmosphere, which may affect chemical compositions in the region. We conduct a study on the production of nitrogen oxides (NOx) in the polar middle atmosphere by energetic electron precipitation (EEP) during HSS events in the period of international polar year 2007–2008 northern winter. During this period, the geomagnetic activity was generally quiet and there were no major solar events, which indicates that the EEPs were mostly associated with HSS events. The electron flux immediately increases with the onset of HSS events and remains elevated during the passage of the events. The estimation of the directly produced NOx by EEPs was attempted by using the correlation between NOx and dynamic tracers such as CO and CH4. It was found that the direct effect of EEPs on NOx reaches down to about 55‐km altitude and the amount is estimated to be about 2 ppbv. This result indicates that the variations of polar stratospheric NOx in winter are mostly associated with dynamical processes such as vertical transport and horizontal mixing. We also found that the middle atmospheric O3 depletion during HSS events seems to be related to the EEP‐induced NOx at least in the uppermost stratosphere in the polar region.
Analysis of the Super‐Resolution Effect on Microwave Tomography
Authors: Simonov Nikolai , Jeon Soon‐Ik , Kim Bo‐Ra , Son Seong‐Ho
Published: October 2018

This study investigates the spatial resolution (SR) and super‐resolution effect in microwave tomography in terms of single‐frequency measured data. The applied method is based on our recently proposed concept of average SR (ASR). We apply truncated singular value decomposition to calculate a regularized forward‐modeling matrix and to limit the truncation index by the acceptable level of the imaging noise. A simple relation of the ASR with the truncation index calculates the ASR in the imaging zone. The described method to calculate SR is quite common, and it considers not only the geometrical parameters of the microwave tomography system and object under test but also the noise in the measured data. This method is applicable to the linear and nonlinear considerations of the inverse scattering problem with respect to two‐ or three‐dimensional solutions. In particular, our investigation confirms the conclusion of some other authors that applying nonlinear inverse scattering methods can achieve the super‐resolution imaging even when based on far‐field measured signals only.
Unifying Particle‐Based and Continuum Models of Hillslope Evolution With a Probabilistic Scaling Technique
Authors: Calvert J. , Balázs M. , Michaelides K.
Published: October 2018

Relationships between sediment flux and geomorphic processes are combined with statements of mass conservation, in order to create continuum models of hillslope evolution. These models have parameters that can be calibrated using available topographical data. This contrasts the use of particle‐based models, which may be more difficult to calibrate but are simpler and easier to implement and have the potential to provide insight into the statistics of grain motion. The realms of individual particles and the continuum, while disparate in geomorphological modeling, can be connected using scaling techniques commonly employed in probability theory. Here we motivate the choice of a particle‐based model of hillslope evolution, whose stationary distributions we characterize. We then provide a heuristic scaling argument, which identifies a candidate for their continuum limit. By simulating instances of the particle model, we obtain equilibrium hillslope profiles and probe their response to perturbations. These results provide a proof of concept in the unification of microscopic and macroscopic descriptions of hillslope evolution through probabilistic techniques and simplify the study of hillslope response to external influences.
Fiber‐Optic Sensing for Environmental Applications: Where We Have Come From and What Is Possible
Authors: Shanafield M. , Banks E. W. , Arkwright J. W. , Hausner M. B.
Published: October 2018

The use of fiber‐optic sensors has flourished in many fields over the past 30 years. One particular branch of fiber‐optic sensing, distributed temperature sensing, has become a well‐explored and widely‐accepted tool for a diverse range of environmental applications over the past decade. Peer‐reviewed work on fiber‐optic distributed temperature sensing advanced significantly, moving from innovations in instrumentation, deployment techniques, calibration, and analysis methods to applications. However, exciting advancements in other branches of fiber optics, such as fiber Bragg gratings, optical frequency domain reflectometry, and distributed acoustic sensing, have thus far been underutilized in environmental studies and await exploitation by environmental scientists. These additional techniques offer immense possibilities for novel applications in hydrology, hydrogeology, geophysics, and other environment fields where high‐accuracy, high‐frequency, and/or high spatial resolution measurements are needed.
Seasonal Precipitation Forecast Over Morocco
Authors: Tuel A. , Eltahir E. A. B.
Published: October 2018

Interannual variability of precipitation is a challenge for water management in semiarid Morocco, where droughts are common and take a heavy toll on agricultural production. The question of forecast potential for winter and spring rainfall is therefore crucial for the country. As an addition to dynamical seasonal predictions, taking the case of the Oum Er Rbia watershed, the present study builds simple statistical forecasting models for Morocco's winter and spring precipitation, making use of oceanic forcing of atmospheric circulation. Previous results on the teleconnections between North Atlantic wintertime circulation and lagged ocean surface temperatures are confirmed. Based on a careful identification and selection of predictors, about 35–40% of interannual variability of precipitation may be robustly predictable with a lead time of 1 month.