bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Gaze-Shift Patterns during a Jump with Full Turn in Male Gymnasts
Authors: Sato Yusuke , Torii Shuko , Sasaki Masaharu , Heinen Thomas
Published: November 2016

When airborne, gymnasts skillfully control their movements to achieve a successful landing. Utilizing visual information from task-specific eye-body coordination patterns (i.e., visual spotting) is thought to be important for gymnasts in the performance of aerial skills. The purpose of this study was to assess the interplay of eye movements and body movements in an aerial skill with a rotation about the longitudinal axis, namely a straight jump with full turn. Participants were 10 skilled male gymnasts (age [ M ±  SD], 23.90 ± 3.28 years) and 14 male nongymnasts (20.57 ± 2.90 years). Gaze behavior during each jump was determined by measuring and integrating eye and head movement data. Results revealed two distinct gaze-shift patterns: a single-step gaze-shift pattern and a multistep gaze-shift pattern. In both patterns, skilled gymnasts stabilized their gaze prior to takeoff and again prior to landing. Whichever pattern was used, gymnasts started to stabilize their gaze on average about 110 milliseconds before landing, which was earlier than nongymnasts. The results suggest that gymnasts use visual information obtained by a particular gaze behavior to generate the necessary amount of rotation and to perform a precise landing in aerial skills involving whole-body rotations.
Reliability of Sargent Jump Test in 4- to 5-Year-Old Children
Authors: Ayán-Pérez Carlos , Cancela-Carral José M. , Lago-Ballesteros Joaquín , Martínez-Lemos Iván
Published: November 2016

We assessed the test–retest reliability of the Sargent jump (VJ) for vertical jumping performed by 4 and 5 years old pre-schoolers. The VJ was administered three times (familiarization, test, and retest) to 163 children (mean age: 4.48 ± 0.5 years; 55.8% girls). The results were compared with those obtained in the standing long jump (SLJ) and in the 25 -m dash test to identify how its performance correlated with other measures of leg power. Systematic change in the mean and retest correlations with these other measures were used to help analyze VJ test–retest reliability. Additionally, Pearson correlation coefficients were used to examine the degree of association between the test and retest trials of the VJ. The VJ showed a higher correlation and agreement in the 4-year-old, compared with the 5-year old, group (rc = 0.956 vs. 0.796; α = 0.95 vs. 0.84; ICC: 0.828; 95% CI: 0.730–0.891 vs 0.739; 95% CI: 0.589–0.834). Effect sizes were small ( d ≤ 0.285) for all the VJ tests performed. Fair to poor significant relationships were established between the VJ (test), VJ (retest), and the SLJ. No significant association was observed between the VJ and the 25 -m dash tests. Our findings suggest that the Sargent jump test is reliable when executed by 4- and 5-year-olds. The lack of a strong association with other measures of leg power should be taken into account at the time of selecting the most appropriate test to assess this strength dimension.
Acute Effects of Resistance Exercise With Continuous and Intermittent Blood Flow Restriction on Hemodynamic Measurements and Perceived Exertion
Authors: Neto Gabriel R. , Novaes Jefferson S. , Salerno Verônica P. , Gonçalves Michel M. , Piazera Bruna K. L. , Rodrigues-Rodrigues Thais , Cirilo-Sousa Maria S.
Published: November 2016

This study compared the acute effects of low-intensity resistance exercise (RE) sessions for the upper limb with continuous and intermittent blood flow restriction (BFR) and high-intensity RE with no BFR on lactate, heart rate, double product (DP; heart rate times systolic blood pressure), and perceived exertion (RPE). Ten recreationally trained men (1–5 years strength training; age mean = 19 ± 0.82 years) performed three experimental protocols in random order: (a) low-intensity RE at 20% one-repetition maximum (1RM) with intermittent BFR (LI + IBFR), (b) low-intensity RE at 20% 1RM with continuous BFR (LI + CBFR), and (c) high-intensity RE at 80% 1RM. The three RE protocols increased lactate and DP at the end of the session ( p < .05) and increased heart rate at the end of each exercise ( p < .05). However, greater local and general RPE was observed in the high-intensity protocol compared with LI + IBFR and LI + CBFR in the lat pull-down, triceps curl, and biceps curl exercises ( p < .05). A greater percentage change in DP and lactate was observed for continuous BFR compared with intermittent BFR; however, RPE was lower for intermittent BFR. In conclusion, intermittent BFR appears to be an excellent option for physical training because it did not differ significantly from continuous BFR in any variable and promoted a lower percentage change in DP and RPE.
Simulation Integrated Management: A new type of simulation platform application for aerospace systems engineering
Authors: Sun Fuyu , Wang Hua , Zhou Jianping
Published: November 2016

In this paper, we propose a new simulation platform called SIM (Simulation Integrated Management) for analyzing parallel and distributed systems in the aerospace domain. This platform aims to test parallel and distributed architectures and applications. The main characteristics of SIM are its flexibility, scalability, and expandability. SIM has five management functions: model, experiment, distribution, operation, and node management functions. To improve the efficiency of project development, new sub-functionalities and assistive tools were designed for aerospace system simulation missions combined with SIM. Finally, a validation process and evaluation tests were developed and conducted, respectively, to evaluate the SIM simulator. SIM will become an excellent simulation platform with intelligence, versatility, and flexibility, laying the foundation for further validations of autonomy technology used in researches in the aerospace systems engineering domain.
Study on the coiler drive mechanism of the capacity increasing function
Authors: Zhihong Sun , Tianxin Tang , Bocheng Zhao , Yanting Chen
Published: November 2016

In textile factories, the sliver can is used to deposit and transport sliver in the process of carding, combing and drawing. Increasing the capacity of the sliver can will reduce the frequency of changing the sliver can; hence, the working efficiency can be improved. A belt drive mechanism with the driven pulley eccentrically installed was developed in this study. This mechanism was used as the driving mechanism of the coiler, which has the effect of increasing the capacity of the sliver can. In this study, several commonly used methods of increasing the capacity of the sliver can were introduced first. Then, the equation of motion of the eccentric belt drive mechanism was established, and the law of motion of the driven eccentric pulley was calculated. Finally, the relationship between the eccentricity ( e) of the driven eccentric pulley and the capacity increment ( δ) of a sliver can was analyzed by utilizing the evaluation indicators of density of per sliver lap. The result indicates that with the increase in the value of eccentricity ( e), the capacity increment ( δ) of a sliver can also increases.
Investigation of the properties of polynorbornene rubber/EPDM blends
Authors: Qu Ming , Ma Yan , Li Chengliang , Shi Xinyan
Published: November 2016

Polynorbornene rubbers (PNRs) used in this article were commercial compounds of polynorbornene filled with paraffin oil and fillers. The properties of PNR and ethylene-propylene-diene rubber (EPDM2650) blends with ratios of 100/0, 75/25, 50/50, 25/75, and 0/100 were investigated. Blends were cured by sulfur and accelerator at 150°C and 160°C, respectively. Moving die rheometer, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and rubber process analyzer were used to examine the properties of the blends. The PNR exhibited significant reversion that was reduced by blending with EPDM. The thermal cross-linking of PNR occurred during hot air aging. The hot air aging resistance of PNR was improved by blending with EPDM. After 72 h of ozone aging, no obvious cracks were observed on the surface. The DMA results showed that the effective damping temperature range (tanδ ≥ 0.3) of vulcanized PNR was the broadest at 113°Cand then narrowed at higher temperature as the content of EPDM in the blend increased. With an increase in the ratio of EPDM, the glass transition temperature ( Tg) of EPDM moved to higher temperatures, as measured by DSC. The tensile strength of neat PNR is the greatest. PNR/EPDM = 75/25 blends showed yield behavior as the Tg of PNR moved to the higher temperature. These effects are attributed to a transfer of the extended oil from the PNR to the EPDM.
Ecological Validity of the Testing Effect
Authors: Batsell W. Robert , Perry Jennifer L. , Hanley Elizabeth , Hostetter Autumn B.
Published: November 2016

The testing effect is the enhanced retention of learned information by individuals who have studied and completed a test over the material relative to individuals who have only studied the material. Although numerous laboratory studies and simulated classroom studies have provided evidence of the testing effect, data from a natural class setting with motivated students are scant. The present two-class quasi-experiment explored the external validity of the testing effect in the Introductory Psychology classroom. The control class studied assigned chapters from the textbook whereas the quiz class studied chapters and completed daily quizzes on those readings. Subsequently, both classes completed exams over this textbook information. The quiz class scored significantly higher than the control class on these test questions about the textbook information; these differences were significant both when the test questions were the same as the quiz questions and when they were new, related questions from the textbook. These data suggest the use of daily quizzes to embed the testing effect into the Introductory Psychology classroom can improve student learning.
Curbing Our Enthusiasm: An Analysis of the Check-In/Check-Out Literature Using the Council for Exceptional Children’s Evidence-Based Practice Standards
Authors: Mitchell Barbara S. , Adamson Reesha , McKenna John W.
Published: November 2016

Check-in/Check-out (CICO) is an intervention designed to improve behavioral outcomes for students identified as at-risk for school failure. Core principles of the intervention include clearly defined behavioral expectations and rules, precorrections for meeting behavioral expectations, high rates of feedback and reinforcement for demonstration of desired behavior, use of data to monitor outcomes, and a system for school-to- home communication. The purpose of this investigation was to use the 2014 Council for Exceptional Children’s quality indicators and standards for establishing evidence-based practices in special education to review the existing research for CICO. Implications regarding the use of different sets of quality indicators to evaluate extant research are provided, and recommendations for future research are discussed.
Looking in the Wrong (La)place? The Promise and Perils of Becoming Big Data
Authors: Busch Lawrence
Published: November 2016

Laplace once argued that if one could “comprehend all the forces by which nature is animated,” it would be possible to predict the future and explain the past. The advent of analysis of large-scale data sets has been accompanied by newfound concerns about “Laplace’s Demon” as it relates to certain fields of science as well as management, evaluation, and audit. I begin by asking how statistical data are constructed, illustrating the hermeneutic acts necessary to create a variable. These include attributing a certain characteristic to a particular phenomenon, isolating the characteristic of interest, and assigning a value to it. In addition, a population must be identified and a sample must be “taken” from that population. Next, I examine how statistical analyses are conducted, examining the interpretive acts there as well. In each case, I show how big data add new challenges. I then show how statistics are incorporated into audits and evaluations, emphasizing how alternative interpretations are concealed in the audit process. I conclude by noting that these issues cannot be “resolved” as Laplace suggested. His Demon, already banished from physics, needs to be banished from other fields of science, management, audits, and evaluations as well.
What Does It Mean to Be a “Breadwinner” Mother?
Authors: Chesley Noelle
Published: November 2016

Historically, breadwinning is linked to cultural ideologies about masculinity and fatherhood, suggesting contemporary breadwinner mothers confront a gendered cultural ideal. I draw on 42 in-depth interviews with mothers and fathers in 21 couples in which women provide 80% to 100% of the family income to better understand mothers’ breadwinning. Few mothers self-identify as providers; just 38% of women (and their husbands) reported that wives were the family’s primary financial provider. Interviews indicate that while these mothers feel financial pressures similar to those reported by male breadwinners, their experience can also be characterized by the role it plays in undermining husbands’ masculinity and in deepening conflicts between employment and mothering. Overall, while adopting gender-atypical roles may promote change in the direction of greater equality, as when mothers get more serious about paid work or feel accomplishment as a breadwinner, this process is constricted by embedded cultural ideals of mothering and masculinity.
Successful endovascular repair of spontaneous aortic rupture early postpartum
Authors: Furukawa Tomokuni , Uchida Naomichi
Published: November 2016

Endovascular repair of pregnancy-associated aortic disease is controversial because the long-term result is still unclear. We report a rare case of early postpartum spontaneous aortic rupture that was successfully treated by endovascular repair, with a good midterm result. Multiangle thin-slice images of contrast-enhanced computed tomography revealed a very small rupture point. It was successfully repaired by minimally invasive treatment.
Plights of Migrant Construction Workers
Authors: Singh Guru Prakash
Published: November 2016

This study attempts to examine the conditions of construction workers and problems faced by them in Gandhinagar city. From the analysis, it is clear that economic condition of the workers has slightly improved, but demographic–social and working–living situations of the workers are extremely pathetic and vulnerable till now. The demand and supply of migrant workers is managed through the contract system. Contractors and sub-contractors play a crucial role in providing facilities and obtaining desired employment within a short time span. From the employment point of view, the industry is totally male dominant and preponderant and female workers are unskilled and remain unskilled during their entire life. Of the many theories of migration, the Harris–Todaro model of migration is partially applicable in the rural-to-urban migration process. Unlike government employees, a construction worker has no social security, no earned leave, no sick leave and no pension or gratuity. Finally, it is clear that the objective of decent work for migrant workers will remain a major challenge for years to come.
Book Review: John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge, The Company: A Short History of a Revolutionary Idea
Authors: Elembilassery Varun
Published: November 2016

John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge, The Company: A Short History of a Revolutionary Idea. New York: The Modern Library, 2003, pp. 227, ₹ 735/-.
City Everywhere
Authors: Tadiar Neferti X.M.
Published: November 2016

This article explores the defining tendencies of urban expansion taking place in mega-cities of the Global South, as exemplified by recent trends in Metropolitan Manila and elsewhere. What I call the process of ‘uber-urbanization’ entails the construction of city emulants as platforms for the value-productive movements of globopolitical urban life, a fractal enterprise whose animating program involves the mediatization of human capacities in technologized forms of servitude. Such meditatized human capacities can be understood as comprising a kind of vital infrastructure exemplified in long-standing experimental, risk-taking, shifting, multi-tasking modes of living developed out of urban conditions in the Global South. I discuss the liquidity of such modes of living on the part of surplus populations and its temporal dynamics as the newly discovered resource undergirding the expansion of city everywhere.
(De)territorializing the home. The nuclear bomb shelter as a malleable site of passage
Authors: Berger Ziauddin Silvia
Published: November 2016

This paper explores the worldwide unprecedented bunker infrastructure of Switzerland. Since the 1960s, the country has built hundreds of thousands of nuclear bomb shelters in family homes. Drawing on poststructural theories of social practice and ritual theory, the all-pervasive structures in the private sphere are analyzed as transitory spaces that coordinate the movement and connections between different milieus, regimes, and bodies. By studying the operational scripts of the authorities and the spatial arrangements and artifacts of the shelter, the paper argues that a sequenced set of “rites of passage” were to be practiced in order to guarantee a transition into the postapocalypse without any violations of norms, social roles, and affective regimes. However, this “territorializing” process launched by the state with the aim of engineering a “bomb-proof” society met with little success. By ignoring, distorting, or violating the constant prewar situation in their homes, Swiss people, as early as in the 1970s, started to undermine the shelter as an instance of concrete governmentality. Being traversed by various processes of “deterritorialization” the bunker lost its function as a locus of secured passage and transformed into a highly dynamic “empty space” that hides, till this day, residua for creativity and difference.
Evaluation of a pharmacy managed heparin protocol for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation patients
Authors: Fitousis Kalliopi , Klasek Robin , Mason Phillip E , Masud Faisal
Published: November 2016

Introduction:

Unfractionated heparin is the preferred anticoagulant in extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) patients. However, there is a lack of consensus on its titration and monitoring. The objective of this study was to describe the efficacy and safety of a pharmacy managed heparin protocol utilizing activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) in comparison to our standard physician-managed activated clotting time (ACT)-based anticoagulation in ECMO patients.

Methods:

Patients administered a heparin drip while on ECMO were included in the study. The primary endpoints were the incidence of hemorrhagic and thrombotic complications.

Results:

A total of 122 adult patients were identified who were on ECMO with heparin anticoagulation; sixty-one patients were managed with each of the physician-managed ACT and pharmacy managed aPTT protocols. No statistically significant difference was observed between the physician ACT and the pharmacy aPTT groups in overall hemorrhagic (69% vs 80%, p=0.145) or thrombotic complications (41% vs 39%, p=0.853).

Conclusion:

There was a similar rate of thrombotic and bleeding events between the two study groups. A pharmacy managed heparin protocol utilizing aPTT monitoring appears to be a safe and effective method of providing anticoagulation in adult ECMO patients.
Identifying professionals’ needs in integrating electronic pain monitoring in community palliative care services: An interview study
Authors: Taylor Sally , Allsop Matthew J , Bekker Hilary L , Bennett Michael I , Bewick Bridgette M
Published: November 2016

Background:

Poor pain assessment is a barrier to effective pain control. There is growing interest internationally in the development and implementation of remote monitoring technologies to enhance assessment in cancer and chronic disease contexts. Findings describe the development and testing of pain monitoring systems, but research identifying the needs of health professionals to implement routine monitoring systems within clinical practice is limited.

Aim:

To inform the development and implementation strategy of an electronic pain monitoring system, PainCheck, by understanding palliative care professionals’ needs when integrating PainCheck into routine clinical practice.

Design:

Qualitative study using face-to-face interviews. Data were analysed using framework analysis

Setting/participants:

Purposive sample of health professionals managing the palliative care of patients living in the community

Results:

A total of 15 interviews with health professionals took place. Three meta-themes emerged from the data: (1) uncertainties about integration of PainCheck and changes to current practice, (2) appraisal of current practice and (3) pain management is everybody’s responsibility

Conclusion:

Even the most sceptical of health professionals could see the potential benefits of implementing an electronic patient-reported pain monitoring system. Health professionals have reservations about how PainCheck would work in practice. For optimal use, PainCheck needs embedding within existing electronic health records. Electronic pain monitoring systems have the potential to enable professionals to support patients’ pain management more effectively but only when barriers to implementation are appropriately identified and addressed.
Middle cerebral artery diameter changes during rhythmic handgrip exercise in humans
Authors: Verbree J , Bronzwaer AGT , van Buchem MA , Daemen MJAP , van Lieshout JJ , van Osch MJP
Published: November 2016

Transcranial Doppler (TCD) sonography is a frequently employed technique for quantifying cerebral blood flow by assuming a constant arterial diameter. Given that exercise increases arterial pressure by sympathetic activation, we hypothesized that exercise might induce a change in the diameter of large cerebral arteries. Middle cerebral artery (MCA) cross-sectional area was assessed in response to handgrip exercise by direct magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) observations. Twenty healthy subjects (11 female) performed three 5 min bouts of rhythmic handgrip exercise at 60% maximum voluntary contraction, alternated with 5 min of rest. High-resolution 7 T MRI scans were acquired perpendicular to the MCA. Two blinded observers manually determined the MCA cross-sectional area. Sufficient image quality was obtained in 101 MCA-scans of 19 subjects (age-range 20–59 years). Mixed effects modelling showed that the MCA cross-sectional area decreased by 2.1 ± 0.8% (p = 0.01) during handgrip, while the heart rate increased by 11 ± 2% (p < 0.001) at constant end-tidal CO2 (p = 0.10). In conclusion, the present study showed a 2% decrease in MCA cross-sectional area during rhythmic handgrip exercise. This further strengthens the current concept of sympathetic control of large cerebral arteries, showing in vivo vasoconstriction during exercise-induced sympathetic activation. Moreover, care must be taken when interpreting TCD exercise studies as diameter constancy cannot be assumed.
Capsular stroke modeling based on somatotopic mapping of motor fibers
Authors: Song Hanlim , Jung Wonbin , Lee Eulgi , Park Ji-Young , Kim Min Sun , Lee Min-Cheol , Kim Hyoung-Ihl
Published: November 2016

Recently, several capsular stroke models have been reported with different targets of destruction. This study was performed to establish an accurate internal capsule (IC) target for capsular stroke modeling in rats. We injected adeno-associated virus serotype 5 (AAV)-CaMKII-EYFP into forelimb motor cortex and AAV-CaMKII-mCherry into hindlimb motor cortex (n = 9) to anterogradely trace the pyramidal fibers and map their somatotopic distribution in the IC. On the basis of the neural tracing results, we created photothrombotic infarct lesions in rat forelimb and hindlimb motor fiber (FMF and HMF) areas of the IC (n = 29) and assessed motor behavior using a forelimb-use asymmetry test, a foot-fault test, and a single-pellet reaching test. We found that the FMFs and HMFs were primarily distributed in the inferior portion of the posterior limb of the IC, with the FMFs located largely ventral to the HMFs but with an area of partial overlap. Photothrombotic lesions in the FMF area resulted in persistent motor deficits. In contrast, lesions in the HMF area did not result in persistent motor deficits. These results indicate that identification of the somatotopic distribution of pyramidal fibers is critical for accurate targeting in animal capsular stroke models: only infarcts in the FMF area resulted in long-lasting motor deficits.
Association of Early Stress and BDNF Genotype With Response Inhibition During Emotional Distraction in Adolescence
Authors: Cohen-Gilbert Julia E. , Stein Elena R. , Gunnar Megan R. , Thomas Kathleen M.
Published: November 2016

This study investigated whether brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) genotype moderated inhibitory control during an emotionally valenced task in a sample of internationally adopted adolescents ( N = 109, ages 12-13 years) who spent their early years in institutional care. Participants were genotyped for the Val66Met polymorphism of the BDNF gene. Inhibitory control in different emotional contexts was assessed via a Go-NoGo task where letters appeared at the center of positive, negative, neutral, or scrambled images. Carriers of one or more methionine (Met) alleles demonstrated a significant association between poorer performance and increased adversity, indexed by age at adoption, while valine/valine (Val/Val) carriers did not. Thus, Val/Val genotype was associated with resilience to increased impulsivity with more prolonged deprivation. These results do not converge with research suggesting differential susceptibility effects for this polymorphism, but more closely reflect a diathesis-stress model for the impact of BDNF genotype on a behavioral measure of impulsivity during emotional distraction.
Computed tomography is not necessary to assess rotation of the femoral component in navigation-assisted total knee replacement
Authors: Hernández-Vaquero Daniel , Noriega-Fernandez Alfonso , Perez-Coto Ivan , Sandoval García Manuel A. , Sierra-Pereira Andres A. , Roncero-Gonzalez Sergio , Fernandez-Carreira Jose Manuel
Published: November 2016

Objective

To demonstrate that postoperative computed tomography (CT) is not needed if navigation is used to determine the rotational position of the femoral component during total knee replacement (TKR).

Methods

Preoperative CT, navigational, and postoperative CT data of 70 TKR procedures were analysed. The correlation between the rotational angulation of the femur measured by CT and that measured by perioperative navigation was examined. The correlation between the femoral component rotation determined by navigation and that determined by CT was also assessed.

Results

The mean femoral rotation determined by navigation was 2.64° ± 4.34°, while that shown by CT was 6.43° ± 1.65°. Postoperative rotation of the femoral component shown by CT was 3.09° ± 2.71°, which was closely correlated with the angle obtained through the intraoperative transepicondylar axis by navigation (Pearson’s R = 0.930).

Conclusions

Navigation can be used to collect the preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative data and final position of the TKR. The rotation of the femoral component can be determined using navigation without the need for CT.
Growth of Headache Research: A 1983–2014 bibliometric study
Authors: Robert Claude , Wilson Concepción S , Lipton Richard B , Arreto Charles-Daniel
Published: November 2016

Aim

This study charts the growth of the scientific journal literature on headache for 30+ years (1983–2014).

Methods

Using the Web of Science, articles published in four two-year periods (1983–1984, 1993–1994, 2003–2004, 2013–2014) from journals indexed in the Science Citation Index Expanded database were retrieved and analyzed.

Results

From 1983–1984 to 2013–2014, the scientific literature on headache increased nearly fourfold (3.8) from 468 to 1776 articles; the number of participating countries more than doubled (26 to 67); and the two most prolific countries in each period were the USA and Italy. While several European countries (Italy, Germany, UK and Denmark) were among the top 10 in each period, the notable appearance of Turkey, China and Brazil among the top 10 in 2013–2014 indicates the growing geographic spread of publications on headache research. Meanwhile, the comet-like distribution of journals has not changed: two journals, Headache and Cephalalgia, persist throughout as the nucleus, with the tail increasing more than threefold from 141 journals in 1983–1984 to 462 in 2013–2014.

Conclusion

Our study follows the recent growth and spread of the scientific literature on headache research and should stimulate further bibliometric investigation in this field.
Optimization of infinite orthotropic plates with hypotrochoid cutout under tensile loading using genetic algorithm
Authors: Jafari M , Mahmodzade Hoseyni SA
Published: November 2016

The effect of geometric discontinuities can be reduced by appropriate choice of parameters affecting the stress distribution around cutout. This is possible if the effective parameters are accurately calculated. In this study, using genetic algorithm, the optimum parameters are introduced in order to achieve the minimum value of stress around cutout. Here, design variables are fiber angle, load angle, aspect ratio of cutout, shape of cutout, rotation angle of cutout, and bluntness parameters. Using the Lekhnitskii’s method, stress distribution around various cutouts is determined. The effect of the aforementioned parameters on the stress values around various shapes of cutouts such as quasi-triangular, quasi-square, and hypotrochoid cutouts is examined. Also, the optimal parameters for each cutout are introduced. The results showed that these parameters have significant effects on stress distribution around the cutouts and the structural load-bearing capacity will increase without changing the type of material if the parameters are correctly chosen.
Molecular dynamics simulations on the effects of carbon nanotubes on mechanical properties of bisphenol E cyanate ester validating experimental results
Authors: Subba Rao P , Renji K , Bhat MR
Published: November 2016

This paper presents molecular dynamics (MD) simulations on the effects of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) without and with chemical functionalization, on the mechanical properties of bisphenol E cyanate ester (BECy) – a potential structural resin. Atomistic models of CNTs, functionalized CNTs (fCNTs), BECy resin, CNT-BECy and fCNT-BECy resins with definite quantity of CNT/fCNT are built. Using these atomistic models, mechanical properties of the above nanosystems are estimated through a computational method involving geometric optimization and equilibration through MD by judiciously establishing various parameters. Adoptability of the approach taken up in this work to model and solve complex nanosystems capturing interactions in the interfacial region between CNT/fCNT and the resin to understand the mechanical behaviour has been highlighted. These investigations have yielded interesting and encouraging results to arrive at optimum quantity of CNTs/fCNTs to be added to achieve enhanced mechanical properties of BECy resin that validate the previous experimental studies carried out by the authors infusing similar quantities of CNTs and fCNTs into BECy.
The Residential Long-Term Care Role in Health Care Transitions
Authors: Berish Diane E. , Applebaum Robert , Straker Jane K.
Published: November 2016

The objective of the current study is to describe the activities long-term care facilities are undertaking to reduce hospital admissions and readmissions by working to improve health care transitions. The data were collected via an online survey from 888 nursing facilities (NFs) and 527 residential care facilities (RCFs) that completed the care integration module of the Ohio Biennial Survey of Long-Term Care. Questions focused on partnerships, current work, type of care model, and perceived barriers to reducing hospital readmissions. More than nine in 10 (93.1%) of NFs and 63.6% of RCFs reported being engaged in a program to reduce hospital admissions/readmissions. Evidence-based care models were utilized by two thirds of NFs and one third of RCFs. Financial barriers were the most frequently cited challenges faced by facilities. Long-term care settings are increasingly becoming transitional care stops for short-term stay residents. Ensuring that facilities are well versed in current transition research and practice is critical to improve system outcomes.
W Scores: Background and Derivation
Authors: Benson Nicholas F. , Beaujean A. Alexander , Donohue Ashley , Ward Emily
Published: November 2016

W scores are used in a number of commercially available tests. Due to their complex nature, it can be hard for applied researchers and practitioners to understand them or even acquire information about them beyond what is provided in technical manuals. In this article, we provide information regarding the background and derivation of W scores that can aid in understanding and appropriate utilization of these scores.
Nurses’ Labor Conditions, Gender, and the Value of Care Work in Post-Neoliberal El Salvador
Authors: Kowalchuk Lisa
Published: November 2016

Neoliberal cut-backs in health-care spending have had numerous negative impacts on nurses, but we know less about how they fare when governments move from neoliberal austerity to reinvestment in their health-care systems. El Salvador is an apt case to examine for how a post-neoliberal health-care reform, launched in 2010 by the newly elected FMLN government, addresses the deterioration in nurses’ work conditions caused by austerity policies. Based mainly on focus groups, interviews and participant observation conducted in the first three years of the reform’s implementation, the analysis finds important strides for nurses, especially in increased hiring in the expanded components of public health-care, and the reduction of labor precarity in formal employment. But several problems continue to imperil nurses’ well-being, reflecting, in part, a persistent devaluation of the care work that is performed mainly by women.
The Oxytocin Receptor Gene (OXTR) and Face Recognition
Authors: Verhallen Roeland J. , Bosten Jenny M. , Goodbourn Patrick T. , Lawrance-Owen Adam J. , Bargary Gary , Mollon J. D.
Published: November 2016

A recent study has linked individual differences in face recognition to rs237887, a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of the oxytocin receptor gene ( OXTR; Skuse et al., 2014). In that study, participants were assessed using the Warrington Recognition Memory Test for Faces, but performance on Warrington’s test has been shown not to rely purely on face recognition processes. We administered the widely used Cambridge Face Memory Test—a purer test of face recognition—to 370 participants. Performance was not significantly associated with rs237887, with 16 other SNPs of OXTR that we genotyped, or with a further 75 imputed SNPs. We also administered three other tests of face processing (the Mooney Face Test, the Glasgow Face Matching Test, and the Composite Face Test), but performance was never significantly associated with rs237887 or with any of the other genotyped or imputed SNPs, after corrections for multiple testing. In addition, we found no associations between OXTR and Autism-Spectrum Quotient scores.
Protection of resveratrol on acute kidney injury in septic rats
Authors: Gan Y , Tao S , Cao D , Xie H , Zeng Q
Published: November 2016

Aim:

The aim of the study is to investigate protective effect of resveratrol (Res) on acute kidney injury (AKI) in sepsis.

Methods:

Rats in sham group received sham operation; in sham + Res received sham operation and Res (3 mg/kg); in cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) established as sepsis; in CLP + Res (3 mg/kg) with sepsis and Res (3 mg/kg); and in CLP + Res (10 mg/kg) with sepsis and Res (10 mg/kg). Survival rate, serum indexes, inflammatory factors, NF-κB-P65, and SIRT1 were detected. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) mesangial cell was with Res and SIRT1 silencing.

Results:

(1) Res intervention improved survival rate of CLP rat. (2) Compared to sham, serum creatinine, blood urine nitrogen, serum cystatin C, neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin, kidney injury molecule-1, tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1β, IL-6, and renal injury index increased in CLP group, while decreased in CLP + Res (3 mg/kg) and CLP + Res (10 mg/kg), significantly, as dose-dependent ( p < 0.05). (3) With Res, NF-κB-P65 and de-acetylated SIRT1 decreased, while SIRT1 and de-acetylated Nuclear factor kB-p65 9 NF-κB-P65) increased, significantly ( p < 0.05). (4) SIRT1 and de-acetylated NF-κB-P65 decreased in LPS cells, while SIRT1 increased after Res intervention, significantly ( p < 0.05). After silencing SIRT1, de-acetylated NF-κB-P65 increased, significantly ( p < 0.05).

Conclusions:

Res increases the survival rate of septic rats by inhibiting inflammatory factors to ease AKI and promotes NF-κB-P65 de-acetylation by upregulating SIRT1.
Abnormal thymic maturation and lymphoproliferation in MRL-Faslpr/lpr mice can be partially reversed by synthetic oligonucleotides: implications for systemic lupus erythematosus and autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome
Authors: Ashman R F , Singh N , Lenert P S
Published: November 2016

MRL-Fas lpr/lpr mice represent an excellent animal model for studying non-malignant lymphoproliferation, regeneration and systemic autoimmunity. Retro-transposon insertion into the second intron of the pro-apoptotic Fas gene appears to be responsible for both lymphoproliferation and autoimmunity, while other genes are more likely to contribute to the regenerative healing characteristic of this mouse strain. Previous studies have shown that neonatal thymectomy can halt the development of abnormal lymphoproliferation. Whereas at four weeks of age primary and secondary lymphoid organs appear to be grossly intact, vigorous lymphoproliferation and autoantibody production subsequently ensues. This is first noticeable at six weeks of age, at which time lymph nodes, spleens and thymuses, but not the bone marrow, become infiltrated with abnormal B220+CD3+CD4−CD8− T cells. Around the same time, thymuses show a significant drop in CD4+CD8+double-positive T cells generating an abnormal ratio between double-positive and single-positive thymocytes. The objective of current study was to evaluate the effect of synthetic oligonucleotides-toll-like receptor antagonists on early lymphoid development in this strain of mice. Herein, we demonstrate the ability of synthetic oligonucleotides made with the nuclease-resistant phosphorothioate backbone to partially reverse abnormal lymphoproliferation and thymic involution in pre-diseased MRL-Fas lpr/lpr mice when administered intraperitoneally starting from week four of age. This curative effect of oligonucleotides was primary sequence/secondary oligonucleotide structure-independent, suggesting an effect through the toll-like receptor 7. A similar approach may potentially benefit patients with autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome who, like MRL-Fas lpr/lpr mice, carry a mutation in the Fas gene.
Book Review: Adrian Furnham, 2015, Backstabbers and Bullies: How to Cope with the Dark Side of People at Work
Authors: Jena Lalatendu Kesari , Patra Banita
Published: November 2016

Adrian Furnham, 2015, Backstabbers and Bullies: How to Cope with the Dark Side of People at Work, UK: Bloomsbury Publishers, pp. 352, $13.38 (Hard Cover), ISBN-13: 978-1472915504
Financialization of government debt? European government debt management approaches 1980–2007
Authors: Preunkert Jenny
Published: November 2016

The aim of this article is to explore the strategies European government debt managers used in response to the growing demand for credit by governments since the 1980s and how the introduction of the common currency area influenced the nature of government debt management. The analysis indicated that in the 1980s, a paradigm shift emerged as bilateral debt relationships became negligible, while the role of financial market principles became much stronger. A financialization of the relationship with private investors took place, although still highly regulated. The introduction of the euro resulted not only in the new European rules but also in the financialization of the regulatory framework. The participating governments lost the privilege to encapsulate their markets. Because of these two processes, managing government debt in the common currency area meant developing a strategy to successfully issue in a transnational market without support from public authorities at least until the crisis.
Role Variability in Self-Organizing Teams Working in Crisis Management
Authors: Jobidon Marie-Eve , Turcotte Isabelle , Aubé Caroline , Labrecque Alexandre , Kelsey Shelley , Tremblay Sébastien
Published: November 2016

Crisis management teams face situations characterized by high risk, time pressure, and uncertainty and must adapt to a wide range of circumstances. Self-organizing teams have been proposed as an alternative to more traditional functional teams as they are described as adaptive and promptly reconfigurable. This study investigated whether self-organizing teams display more role flexibility than functional teams and the impact on performance and coordination. Teams were assigned to either a functional or a self-organizing structure and completed scenarios in a functional simulation. Results revealed that self-organizing teams performed and coordinated better than functional teams. As expected, self-organizing teams showed more role variability across and within teams. However, greater variability in role allocation within teams was associated with poorer performance and coordination. We conclude that flexibility in roles can be beneficial but that too much variability can be associated with role ambiguity and negatively affect a team’s ability to achieve its goals.
Geographic Variation in California Pediatric Hospice Care for Children and Adolescents: 2007-2010
Authors: Lindley Lisa C. , Edwards Sheri L.
Published: November 2016

Objective:

To map and describe the geographic distribution of pediatric hospice care need versus supply in California over a 4-year time period (2007-2010).

Methods:

Multiple databases were used for this descriptive longitudinal study. The sample consisted of 2036 children and adolescent decedents and 136 pediatric hospice providers. Geocoded data were used to create the primary variables of interest for this study—need and supply of pediatric hospice care. Geographic information systems were used to create heat maps for analysis.

Results:

Almost 90% of the children and adolescents had a potential need for hospice care, whereas more than 10% had a realized need. The highest density of potential need was found in the areas surrounding Los Angeles. The areas surrounding the metropolitan communities of Los Angeles and San Diego had the highest density of realized hospice care need. Sensitivity analysis revealed neighborhood-level differences in potential and realized need in the Los Angeles area. Over 30 pediatric hospice providers supplied care to the Los Angeles and San Diego areas.

Conclusion:

There were distinctive geographic patterns of potential and realized need with high density of potential and realized need in Los Angeles and high density of realized need in the San Diego area. The supply of pediatric hospice care generally matched the needs of children and adolescents. Future research should continue to explore the needs of children and adolescents at end of life at the neighborhood level, especially in large metropolitan areas.
“They’re on the Fast Track”: Older Blacks Describe Experiences of Nursing Care Quality During Hospitalization
Authors: Brooks Carthon J. Margo , Rearden Jessica , Pancir Darcy , Gamble Kerry , Rothwell Helyn
Published: November 2016

Older Black patients are at increased risk for experiencing a hospital readmission. This disparity may be related to a variety of factors, including care received during hospitalization. The purpose of this study was to elicit the perceptions of older Black patients at high risk for readmission, and explore their nursing care needs and preferences during and following hospitalization. A qualitative descriptive design was used, including individual interviews with 19 Black members of a Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly facility located in a northeastern urban setting. Four themes were captured encompassing characteristics of nursing care quality, unmet care needs, nurse–patient communication, and observations of competing nursing demands. Efforts to improve care transitions and prevent readmissions must address the needs and preferences of high-risk older Black patients while also attending to system-level inefficiencies that decrease the ability for nurses to complete all aspects of care.
Loneliness in Professional Caring Relationships, Health, and Recovery
Authors: Karhe Liisa , Kaunonen Marja , Koivisto Anna-Maija
Published: November 2016

This study investigated patients’ experiences of loneliness in professional caring relationships and their associations with perceived recovery, health, psychological distress, and general loneliness in life. The sample consisted of 406 patients who had undergone breast cancer or heart surgery 6 months earlier. The data were collected in May 2014-March 2015 using a postal survey including the Caring Loneliness Scale (CARLOS), questions concerning perceived health and recovery, 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), and a question concerning perceived general loneliness in life. Data analysis was done using Mann–Whitney U test and Kruskal–Wallis test. The variables showing a statistically significant association with professional caring loneliness were perceived health, recovery, psychological distress, and general loneliness in life. It is necessary for health care professionals to identify the phenomenon of this dimension of loneliness because it is bound to affect patients’ experiences. Further studies with different patient groups are required.
Learn by Doing or Learn by Failing? The Paradoxical Effect of Public Policy in Averting the Liability of Newness
Authors: DeVaughn Michael L. , Leary Myleen M.
Published: November 2016

Public policy regulations, designed to legitimate and protect fragile, fledgling new firms from failure, on the surface, appear to be of great value. According to Stinchcombe, to the extent that such policies serve as “standard social routines,” they may even work to decrease the liability of newness. Using a sample of more than 2,600 new banks chartered in the United States over a 15-year span under the supervision of three different regulatory agencies, we find that failure rates vary according to nuances in the differences in regulations levied by these agencies. Paradoxically, banks that are initially subject to more stringent regulations, intended to limit their strategic choices to a set of “safe and sound” practices, and protect them from failure during their early stages of existence, in fact, have a higher likelihood of failure after those restrictive regulations are lifted. Our results suggest that public policy attempts to thwart the liability of newness are in fact a “fix that fails,” as public policy regulations designed to reduce the liability of newness merely delay the inevitable.