bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Independent Association of Overhydration with All-Cause and Cardiovascular Mortality Adjusted for Global Left Ventricular Longitudinal Systolic Strain and E/E’ Ratio in Maintenance Hemodialysis Patients
Authors: Huang Jiun-Chi , Tsai Yi-Chun , Wu Pei-Yu , Lee Jia-Jung , Chen Szu-Chia , Chiu Yi-Wen , Hsu Ya-Ling , Chang Jer-Ming , Chen Hung-Chun
Published: August 2018

Background/Aims: Fluid overload is common and associated with morbidity and mortality in patients with end-stage renal disease. The relationship between fluid overload and cardiac function is complex, and whether fluid overload is associated with adverse outcomes in patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD) independently of systolic and diastolic function of the left ventricle (LV) remains unclear. Methods: The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between overhydration and all-cause and cardiovascular (CV) mortality after adjusting for LV function in 178 maintenance HD patients. The relative hydration status (overhydration/ extracellular water, ∆HS) was measured using a body composition monitor, and then used to assess the fluid status. A ∆HS ≥7% was defined as fluid overload. Global left ventricular longitudinal systolic strain (GLS), and the early filling and early diastolic mitral annular velocity (E/E’) ratio were assessed using speckle-tracking and tissue Doppler echocardiography. Results: During a mean follow-up period of 2.7 years, 24 patients died, including 11 CV deaths. An increased ∆HS was significantly associated with all-cause and CV mortality in the univariate analysis. This prognostic significance remains after multivariate adjusting for GLS and E/E’ ratio for all-cause (HR, 1.123; 95% CI, 1.063–1.186; p-value < 0.001) and CV (HR, 1.088; 95% CI, 1.005–1.178; p-value =0.037) mortality. Moreover, ∆HS significantly improved the prognostic value beyond conventional clinical and echocardiographic parameters. Conclusion: A higher ∆HS was independently associated with increased all-cause and CV mortality after adjusting for systolic and diastolic function of the LV. This suggests that ∆HS may be a relevant target for improving outcomes in maintenance HD patients.
Augmented Fauna and Glass Mutations: A Dialogue Between Material and Technique in Glassblowing and 3D Printing
Authors: Klein Tobias
Published: August 2018

3D printing allows unprecedented freedom in the design and manufacturing of even the most geometric complex forms—seemingly through a simple click of a button. In comparison, the making of glass is an analogue craftsmanship, coordinating an intricate interplay of individual tools and personal skills, giving shape to a material during the short time of its temperature-based plasticity. The two artworks discussed in this article, Augmented Fauna and Glass Mutations, were created during the artist’s residence at the Pilchuck Glass School and articulate a synthesis between digital workflows and traditional craft processes to establish a digital craftsmanship.
Holojam in Wonderland: Immersive Mixed Reality Theater
Authors: Gochfeld David , Brenner Corinne , Layng Kris , Herscher Sebastian , DeFanti Connor , Olko Marta , Shinn David , Riggs Stephanie , Fernández-Vara Clara , Perlin Ken
Published: August 2018

Holojam in Wonderland is a prototype of a new type of performance activity, “Immersive Mixed Reality Theater” (IMRT). With unique and novel properties possessed by neither cinema nor traditional theater, IMRT promises exciting new expressive possibilities for multi-user, participatory, immersive digital narratives. The authors describe the piece, the technology used to create it and some of the key aesthetic choices and takeaways.
Robotype: Studies of Kinetic Typography by Robot Display for Expressing Letters, Time and Movement
Authors: Katsumoto Yuichiro
Published: August 2018

Humans use letters, which are two-dimensional static symbols, for communication. Writing these letters requires body movement as well as spending a certain amount of time; therefore, it can be demonstrated that a letter is a trajectory of movement and time. Based on this notion, the author conducted studies regarding multidimensional kinetic typography, primarily using robots to display a letter and visualize its time and movement simultaneously. This paper describes the project background and design of the three types of robotic displays that were developed and discusses possible expressions using robotic displays.
Knowledge, Tradition, and Community Predict Success for BLM Wild Horse Adoptions in Colorado and Texas
Authors: Koncel Mary A. , Rutberg Allen T.
Published: August 2018

With almost 50,000 wild horses in holding facilities and declining adoption rates, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s wild horse adoption program is in crisis. To improve our understanding of Bureau of Land Management wild horse adopters, we conducted three in-depth interviews with 52 adopters in Colorado and Texas, spaced over their first year of adoption. Questions sought information on the adopters, their adopted horses, and their adoption experiences. The participants who completed all three interviews were uniformly satisfied with their adoptions. We argue that three factors inherent to wild horse culture in these states supported adopter satisfaction: adopters’ previous knowledge about horses, a western North American tradition that values wild horses, and participation in wild horse organizations. A lack of this culture in other regions may explain why they are less welcoming to wild horses and have lower rates of adoptions.
Conjunctures of the “New” World Literature and Migration Studies
Authors: Friedman Susan Stanford
Published: August 2018

The essay explores the overlapping discourses in the fields of the “new” world literature and the “new” migration studies, with a focus on their related discourses of circulation and cosmopolitanism. It examines the transnational circulation of writers in addition to texts in twenty-first century world literature with specific discussions of the cosmopolitan treatment of religion in the work of selected diasporic Muslim women writers, featuring Elif Shafak’s The Bastard of Istanbul and Mohja Kahf’s E-Mails from Scheherazad and The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf. The essay considers the importance for diasporic Muslim women writers of Scheherazade as a learned woman and clever storyteller who saves the realm through words, not violence. Confronting Islamophobia and Orientalist fantasies of Muslim women, these authors locate traditions of cosmopolitanism and religious tolerance within their own heritage, not as an exclusive property of the West.
Island Politics
Authors: Ungureanu Delia
Published: August 2018

In 1929, the father of surrealism André Breton and his friends published a “world map in the time of the surrealists,” which placed the Pacific in the center with a disappearing Europe and a nonexistent USA, and showing oversized islands from New Guinea to Ireland. During the 1930s, surrealist ideas and practices were creatively transformed beyond recognition by marginal writers who had emigrated to and/or excommunicated surrealists living in Paris. Looking beyond Casanova’s and Moretti’s centers and (semi)peripheries that organize the world system, I argue that by thinking instead of cultural centers like Paris as inhabited simultaneously both by central but also by (semi)peripheral writers we may get new and more nuanced insights into the circulation and transformation of ideas beyond the traditional story of surrealism told by literary histories. Using the example of the French translation of Joyce’s “Anna Livia Plurabelle,” I uncover the hidden story of the transformation of Joyce’s text into a surrealist cognate from the peripheries of surrealism itself.
Multilingual Code-Stitching in Ultraminor World Literatures
Authors: Mani B. Venkat
Published: August 2018

This essay explores strategies of world literary comparison when ultraminor literatures are juxtaposed with dominant literary traditions such as the global Anglophone. By bringing an English and a Hindi novel in conversation, the essay underlines their “multilingual” composition, whereby one language becomes a vehicle for several other languages, dialects, sociolects, regional linguistic variations and creole, thus calling for a new critical framework of evaluation within the national and the world-literary sphere. The essay engages with a new theoretical term in world literary studies, “ultraminor literature” in order to re-evaluate two other terms: the “great unread,” and the “untranslatable.” The essay argues that the idea of “untranslatability” denies any room for multi-locational and multilingual histories of linguistic traditions. Furthermore, untranslatability creates hierarchies of readerships and access, which can be confronted by engaging with linguistic code-stitching and the multilingual composition of ultraminor literatures.
National Populism and the European Union
Authors: Martinelli Alberto
Published: August 2018

The diffusion of both nationalism and populism is the symptom of a crisis in European democracies. The convergence of nationalist ideology and populist rhetoric is the major challenge that the European Union faces today and can be effectively countered by developing the political project of a truly democratic and supranational union. In this article, I will first outline the distinctive features of nationalism and populism. I will then analyse the major factors fostering the rise of national populism in the European Union countries, and I will conclude by discussing its more effective alternative.
Resolving Surface Rain from GMI High-Frequency Channels: Limits Imposed by the Three-Dimensional Structure of Precipitation
Authors: Guilloteau Clément , Foufoula-Georgiou Efi , Kummerow Christian D. , Petković Veljko
Published: August 2018

The scattering of microwaves at frequencies between 50 and 200 GHz by ice particles in the atmosphere is an essential element in the retrieval of instantaneous surface precipitation from spaceborne passive radiometers. This paper explores how the variable distribution of solid and liquid hydrometeors in the atmospheric column over land surfaces affects the brightness temperature (TB) measured by GMI at 89 GHz through the analysis of Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) reflectivity profiles along the 89-GHz beam. The objective is to refine the statistical relations between observed TBs and surface precipitation over land and to define their limits. As GMI is scanning with a 53° Earth incident angle, the observed atmospheric volume is actually not a vertical column, which may lead to very heterogeneous and seemingly inconsistent distributions of the hydrometeors inside the beam. It is found that the 89-GHz TB is mostly sensitive to the presence of ice hydrometeors several kilometers above the 0°C isotherm, up to 10 km above the 0°C isotherm for the deepest convective systems, but is a modest predictor of the surface precipitation rate. To perform a precise mapping of atmospheric ice, the altitude of the individual ice clusters must be known. Indeed, if variations in the altitude of ice are not accounted for, then the high incident angle of GMI causes a horizontal shift (parallax shift) between the estimated position of the ice clusters and their actual position. We show here that the altitude of ice clusters can be derived from the 89-GHz TB itself, allowing for correction of the parallax shift.
Topographic Effects on Radiation in the WRF Model with the Immersed Boundary Method: Implementation, Validation, and Application to Complex Terrain
Authors: Arthur Robert S. , Lundquist Katherine A. , Mirocha Jeffrey D. , Chow Fotini K.
Published: August 2018

Topographic effects on radiation, including both topographic shading and slope effects, are included in the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model, and here they are made compatible with the immersed boundary method (IBM). IBM is an alternative method for representing complex terrain that reduces numerical errors over sloped terrain, thus extending the range of slopes that can be represented in WRF simulations. The implementation of topographic effects on radiation is validated by comparing land surface fluxes, as well as temperature and velocity fields, between idealized WRF simulations both with and without IBM. Following validation, the topographic shading implementation is tested in a semirealistic simulation of flow over Granite Mountain, Utah, where topographic shading is known to affect downslope flow development in the evening. The horizontal grid spacing is 50 m and the vertical grid spacing is approximately 8–27 m near the surface. Such a case would fail to run in WRF with its native terrain-following coordinates because of large local slope values reaching up to 55°. Good agreement is found between modeled surface energy budget components and observations from the Mountain Terrain Atmospheric Modeling and Observations (MATERHORN) program at a location on the east slope of Granite Mountain. In addition, the model captures large spatiotemporal inhomogeneities in the surface sensible heat flux that are important for the development of thermally driven flows over complex terrain.
The School a Community Centre
Authors: Waggoner K. C.
Published: August 2018

Emphasis in the Junior High School of Owensboro is put upon the providing of social outlets. Even the ratings of pupils are published in the school paper. The school has a “business district”—and the home room is a home.
Why the Professor of Books?
Authors: Holt Hamilton
Published: August 2018

Three-quarters of a century elapsed between the suggestion made by an American philosopher and its fulfillment in the Professorship of Books at Rollins College. President Holt here tells how the plan is working out.
It's Great to be Superintendent
Authors: Dulebohn Irl H.
Published: August 2018

This frank exposure of one Superintendent's innermost thoughts may strike a responsive chord in many a schoolman's heart.
A Well-Rounded Health Program
Authors: Reilly Frederick J.
Published: August 2018

No longer can we think of health in terms of physical training only; nor should we let practice lag too far behind our thinking.
Can There be a Science of Education?
Authors: Burr Samuel Engle
Published: August 2018

From the viewpoint of a practical administrator, trained in research, the author makes this contribution to clear thinking.
English as College Gateway
Authors: Iler Eleanor C.
Published: August 2018

An adventure in adapting high school English to the prospective needs of the college freshman.
High Schools May Have Empty Seats
Authors: Smith Rufus D.
Published: August 2018

The author predicts a drop in high school enrollments after 1937 — and gives his reasons.
Is He a Strephosymbolic?
Authors: Coombs Caro Dallas
Published: August 2018

The child you brand “impossible” in reading and spelling may be victim of a queer but not uncommon mental malady, as David was.
Vocation Day at Taft, California
Authors: Reisman Leon
Published: August 2018

Students were aided in their choice of occupations by this project in which Kiwanis co-operated.
Adolescent English
Authors: Champlin Carroll D.
Published: August 2018

It is an injustice to say that adolescents are able to use “nothing but slang.”
Curriculum Far from Final
Authors: Miller Frank B.
Published: August 2018

Our elementary course of study continues to be inadequate - and must never be pegged.
How Some People “Get Literary”
Authors: Foley Louis
Published: August 2018

Some of the most ridiculous errors of grammar are the result of an effort to be “elegant.”
These War-Time Chores
Authors: Sutton Willis A.
Published: August 2018

They keep us busy after hours. But they are richly rewarding to ourselves and our schools in many ways
Interest your Students in Politics
Authors: Waltermire Helen M.
Published: August 2018

Here are some “starting points from which we may work toward more direct and personal teaching of citizenship.”
Team Teaching During Field Experiences in Teacher Education: Investigating Student Teachers’ Experiences With Parallel and Sequential Teaching
Authors: Simons Mathea , Baeten Marlies , Vanhees Claudio
Published: August 2018

During field experiences in teacher education, student teachers are generally placed individually with a mentor. Teacher education institutes search for alternative field experience models, inspired by collaborative learning such as team teaching. This study explores two team teaching models, parallel and sequential teaching, by investigating the student teachers’ perspective. Quantitative (survey) and qualitative (self-report) methods were used to map their attitudes toward both models, their perception on collaboration, advantages and disadvantages, and the conditions for implementation they consider critical. Student teachers adopt positive feelings toward both models. In sequential teaching, collaboration is experienced significantly higher than in parallel teaching. Both models have their own advantages and disadvantages, but advantages clearly outweigh disadvantages. In comparison with previous research, decreased workload and better management are new advantages, interdependence and complex management new disadvantages. “Preparation for new roles” is the most important condition in order to successfully implement both models.
Optimization of single locking cotton feeder for maximizing ginning output and minimizing specific energy of double roller gin
Authors: Arude Vishnu G , Deshmukh Suresh P , Patil Prashant G , Shukla Sujeet K
Published: August 2018

The aim of the study was to improve the efficiency of the double roller cotton gin in terms of ginning output and energy consumption. Therefore a spike cylinder–type gin feeder with the concept of single locking of cotton bolls was developed and optimized. The speed of the spike cylinder of the single locking feeder and cotton moisture were optimized using response surface methodology for long and medium staple cotton. Ginning output of the double roller gin was maximized and the specific energy requirement for ginning was minimized during optimization. Quadratic models were fitted for prediction of ginning output and specific energy. Optimum cotton moisture of 7.38 and 7.15% and optimum spike cylinder speed of 307 and 297 rpm with desirability of 0.9185 and 0.8923 were arrived at using multiple regression analysis for long and medium staple cotton, respectively. Use of the single locking cotton feeder for long and medium staple cotton resulted in a 22 and 25% increase in ginning output, respectively, and a 12 and 13.5% reduction in specific energy requirement, respectively, compared to the conventional system, the auto-feeder. The single locking feeder showed significant improvement in the color grade of cotton. Other high volume instrument and advanced fiber information system fiber quality parameters remained unaffected.
Bonhoeffer’s “Religionless Christianity” and the Evangelical Rejection of “Religion”:A Comparison
Authors: Hamilton Stephen James
Published: August 2018

The following article compares Bonhoeffer’s writings on “religionless Christianity” with the opinion, common among evangelicals, that Christianity is not about “religion,” based on a study of members of the Vineyard Church in T.M. Lurhmann’s When God Talks Back. While there are important similarities between Bonhoeffer and the evangelical rejection of religion, the article argues that the two theologies part ways on a number of points, most importantly concerning the theology of suffering.
Gerrymandering Ukraine? Electoral Consequences of Occupation
Authors: D’Anieri Paul
Published: August 2018

The occupation of Crimea and part of the Donbas will prevent roughly 12 percent of Ukrainian voters from participating in elections. These voters voted disproportionately for candidates and parties that supported closer ties with Russia. This article quantifies the changes to the electorate and projects the likely partisan impact. The changes decisively tip the Ukrainian electorate away from the east and south. Candidates and parties can no longer expect to build a national majority primarily in eastern and southern Ukraine, as Viktor Yanukovych did in 2010 and the Party of Regions did in 2012. Anticipating these effects, Ukraine’s government could seek to prolong these voters’ exclusion, while Russia could actually seek to end the occupation to get them re-included. The implication is that various actors could try to “gerrymander” the entire Ukrainian state, a phenomenon that previously has only been explored at the district level, within states. This raises the broader question of how electoral effects shape the many territorial disputes around the world.
Justifying homeschooling in Czech Republic: How “good parents” and their children use time
Authors: Beláňová Andrea , Machovcová Kateřina , Kostelecká Yvona , McCabe Marta
Published: August 2018

In our study of Czech homeschooling families, we discovered that the unifying theme of their justifying narratives was how the families rearranged the norm of “good parenting,” defined as the amount of time families spent together. The parents argued the importance of sacrificing their own time and educating their children themselves. They distinguished themselves from parents who are not willing to attend the children’s needs as much. Finally, we show that homeschooled children also actively adopt the family time management.
Diagnostic Utility of HPV16 E6 mRNA or E7 mRNA Quantitative Expression for Cervical Cells of Patients with Dysplasia and Carcinoma
Authors: Wu Ming-Zhe , Li Wei-Nan , Cha Na , Tian Li-Xiang , Zhang YI , Wu Xin , Guo Ke-Jun , Wu Guang-Ping
Published: August 2018

Current human papillomavirus (HPV)16 DNA testing has high sensitivity but low specificity, while mRNA testing (qualitative) improves the specificity. However, both techniques are not able to discriminate between transient and persistent infections. To overcome the disadvantages, we quantitatively detected E6 and E7 mRNAs by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) in cervical brushing cells from 87 HPV16+ and 31 HPV16− patients. Our results showed that the expression levels of E6 mRNA or E7 mRNA were significantly increased in HPV16-positive cases than that in the negative cases. Furthermore, in HPV16+ cases, the expression levels of E6 mRNA were significantly increased in invasive cancer compared with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL; p < 0.01), and HSIL compared with low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (LSIL; p < 0.01). There were no significant changes between LSIL and benign lesions. The expression levels of E7 mRNA presented no significant difference among the above-mentioned four groups. To test whether qRT-PCR can discriminate between transient and persistent infections, 57 HPV16+ patients were followed up for 1 year, and our results demonstrated that the expression levels of both E6 mRNA and E7 mRNA in the persistent infection group were significantly increased relative to the transient infection group ( p < 0.01 or 0.05). Thus, a quantitative detection of the expression levels of E6 mRNA in cervical brushing cells may not only be used as an ancillary tool to cytological diagnosis of cervical neoplasia, but may also help to determine the severity of the lesions and the triage of transient infection.
The Knowledge Base of Social Work Practice: Theory, Wisdom, Analogue, or Art?
Authors: Goldstein Howard
Published: August 2018

Lured by the promise of the scientific method, social work turned away from its own foundations of practice wisdom and therefore has not entirely succeeded in developing its own value base, theories, and methods. A historical overview traces the tendency to accumulate theories that are, in many ways, alien to the profession's original mission. An alternative approach is proposed based on the combination of practice wisdom, the humanities, and the contributions of the emerging interpretive human sciences.
Community Partners and Early Childhood Music
Authors: Koops Lisa Huisman
Published: August 2018

In this column, I share the experience of learning about community partnerships in early childhood in my region and consider how music educators might play a role in a range of outreach services to children in the area. I encourage readers to reach beyond their current settings to engage in culturally sensitive service learning and community engagement.
Indoor air quality of newly built low-energy preschools – Are chemical emissions reduced in houses with eco-labelled building materials?
Authors: Persson Josefin , Wang Thanh , Hagberg Jessika
Published: August 2018

The use of an airtight frame in low-energy buildings could increase the risk of health-related problems, such as allergies and sick building syndromes (SBS), associated with chemical emissions from building materials, especially if the ventilation system is not functioning properly. In this study, the indoor air quality (IAQ) was investigated in newly built low-energy and conventional preschools by monitoring the indoor air temperature, relative humidity, particle-size distribution and levels of carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), formaldehyde and total volatile organic compounds (TVOC). The thermal comfort was satisfactory in all preschools, with average indoor air temperature and a relative humidity at 21.4°C and 36%, respectively. The highest levels of TVOC (range: 130–1650 µg/m3 toluene equivalents) and formaldehyde (range: 1.9–28.8 µg/m3) occurred during the first sampling period associated with strong emissions from building materials. However, those preschools constructed with environmental friendly building materials (such as Swan Eco-label) had lower initial TVOC levels compared to those preschools constructed with conventional building materials. The IAQ and indoor chemical emissions were also strongly dependent on the functioning of the ventilation system. Preliminary risk assessment indicated that exposure to acrolein and crotonaldehyde might lead to respiratory-tract irritation among occupants.
Mothers’ views on shared reading with their two-year olds using printed and electronic texts: Purpose, confidence and practice
Authors: Nicholas Maria , Paatsch Louise
Published: August 2018

This paper investigates mothers’ views regarding the purpose of shared reading with their two-year-old children, confidence in using printed and electronic texts, and self-reported practice, framed around a focus on mothers’ motivation to engage in shared reading with their children. Research into adult–child shared reading experiences has traditionally focused on early reading behaviours and talk patterns captured in video data, reporting on the literacy or cognitive benefits of these experiences as viewed by researchers. Parent contributions have typically been sought to provide background information such as parent education, frequency of home reading and socio-economic factors. There is limited research that invites parents' voices. Findings from this study have been drawn from quantitative and qualitative data, collected from questionnaires and individual interviews with 12 reading-proficient mothers of two-year-old children in Victoria, Australia. Findings show that mothers acknowledged the educational affordances of shared reading, and the love of reading that the practice invites. Self-reported practices and confidence levels showed a strong preference for using printed picture storybooks as part of a bedtime routine, and that access to electronic texts does not necessarily equate to the same guided engagement with electronic texts as with printed texts.
Climate actions in a changing world
Authors: Pasini Antonello , Mastrojeni Grammenos , Tubiello Francesco Nicola
Published: August 2018

Our Anthropocene era is characterized by an increasingly complex and inter-connected world, where problems such as climate change, food security, conflicts, terrorism and migrations are strongly linked and must be faced with common strategies. In this framework, climate actions represent a critical component of effective integrated responses.
A Unified Framework to Quantify the Credibility of Scientific Findings
Authors: LeBel Etienne P. , McCarthy Randy J. , Earp Brian D. , Elson Malte , Vanpaemel Wolf
Published: August 2018

Societies invest in scientific studies to better understand the world and attempt to harness such improved understanding to address pressing societal problems. Published research, however, can be useful for theory or application only if it is credible. In science, a credible finding is one that has repeatedly survived risky falsification attempts. However, state-of-the-art meta-analytic approaches cannot determine the credibility of an effect because they do not account for the extent to which each included study has survived such attempted falsification. To overcome this problem, we outline a unified framework for estimating the credibility of published research by examining four fundamental falsifiability-related dimensions: (a) transparency of the methods and data, (b) reproducibility of the results when the same data-processing and analytic decisions are reapplied, (c) robustness of the results to different data-processing and analytic decisions, and (d) replicability of the effect. This framework includes a standardized workflow in which the degree to which a finding has survived scrutiny is quantified along these four facets of credibility. The framework is demonstrated by applying it to published replications in the psychology literature. Finally, we outline a Web implementation of the framework and conclude by encouraging the community of researchers to contribute to the development and crowdsourcing of this platform.
The STEP-up programme: Engaging all staff in patient safety
Authors: Hamblin-Brown DJ , Ingram Judi
Published: August 2018

We discuss how Aspen Healthcare measurably reduced patient harm by engaging staff in ‘STEP-up’, a programme to improve the culture of patient safety. This focused on helping staff to understand their role in the reduction of preventable harm. The organisation admits 45,000 inpatients and has 300,000 outpatient contacts per year. We describe how we worked with all our 1500 staff, across nine sites, during a 12-month period. We used a short film and a four-level programme of training and development, which included elements specifically aimed at sustaining cultural changes. The results have been substantial: 95% reduction in never events, 77% reduction in serious incidents, 38% fewer falls with harm and 19% fewer falls overall. We have seen a 24% increase in incident reporting, on a background of an 11% increase in activity. Overall, the number of incidents with harm has fallen by 5%. Staff perception of our organisation as ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ safe has increased from 73% to 77%. The financial cost of this has been modest and has, we estimate, been recouped in reduced cost of serious incidents. We make the case that a programme such as this is possible, at minimal cost, in any healthcare organisation. Given the results, we argue that all healthcare leaders have a duty to implement something similar.
Palliative care for older people: the psychiatrist's role
Authors: Aziz Victor M. , Saeed Rugiyya
Published: August 2018

In this overview we discuss the palliative psychiatric care of older people towards the end of life. We briefly consider ethics, dementia care, delirium, depression, anxiety, grief and physician-assisted suicide. We also discuss hope, dignity, spirituality and existentialism. We hope that this article will encourage clinicians to reflect on the effects of terminal illnesses on the mental health of dying people and the current provision of palliative psychiatric care.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

•

Appreciate that patient-centred care builds on providing individualised care for the dying person to meet their needs and wishes

•

Understand the collaborative role of psychiatry in assessing the aetiology and appropriate response to patients presenting with problems of loss, grief, anxiety, depression, hopelessness, suicidal ideation, personality change and confusion

•

Recognise that maintaining hope and living with hope is a way for terminally ill patients to endure and cope with their suffering

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

None.
Avoidable Mortality: The Core of the Global Cancer Divide
Authors: Knaul Felicia Marie , Arreola-Ornelas Hector , Rodriguez Natalia M. , Méndez-Carniado Oscar , Kwete Xiaoxiao Jiang , Puentes-Rosas Esteban , Bhadelia Afsan
Published: August 2018

Purpose

The incidence of infection-associated cancers and lethality of cancers amenable to treatment are closely correlated with the income of countries. We analyzed a core part of this global cancer divide—the distribution of premature mortality across country income groups and cancers—applying novel approaches to measure avoidable mortality and identify priorities for public policy.

Methods

We analyzed avoidable cancer mortality using set lower- and upper-bound age limits of 65 and 75 years (empirical approach), applying cancer-specific and country income group–specific ages of death (feasibility approach), and applying cancer-specific ages of death of high-income countries to all low- and middle-income countries (LMICs; social justice approach). We applied these methods to 2015 mortality data on 16 cancers for which prevention is possible and/or treatment is likely to result in cure or significant increase in life expectancy.

Results

At least 30% and as much as 50% of cancer deaths are premature, corresponding to between 2.6 and 4.3 million deaths each year, and 70% to 80% are concentrated in LMICs. Using the feasibility approach, 36% of cancer deaths are avoidable; with the social justice approach, 45% of cancer deaths are avoidable. Five cancer types—breast, colorectal, lung, liver, and stomach—account for almost 75% of avoidable cancer deaths in LMICs and worldwide.

Conclusion

Each year, millions of premature cancer deaths could be avoided with interventions focused on four priority areas: infection-associated cancers, lifestyle and risk factors, women’s cancers, and children’s cancers. Our analysis of the global burden and the specific cancer types associated with avoidable cancer mortality suggests significant opportunities for health systems to redress the inequity of the global cancer divide.
Comparison of a Novel Cadaver Model (Fix for Life) With the Formalin-Fixed Cadaver and Manikin Model for Suitability and Realism in Airway Management Training
Authors: van Emden Michael W. , Geurts Jeroen J. , Schober Patrick , Schwarte Lothar A.
Published: August 2018

BACKGROUND:

Manikins are widely used in airway management training; however, simulation of realism and interpatient variability remains a challenge. We investigated whether cadavers embalmed with the novel Fix for Life (F4L) embalmment method are a suitable and realistic model for teaching 3 basic airway skills: facemask ventilation, tracheal intubation, and laryngeal mask insertion compared to a manikin (SimMan 3G) and formalin-fixed cadavers.

METHODS:

Thirty anesthesiologists and experienced residents (“operators”) were instructed to perform the 3 airway techniques in 10 F4L, 10 formalin-fixed cadavers, and 1 manikin. The order of the model type was randomized per operator. Primary outcomes were the operators’ ranking of each model type as a teaching model (total rank), ranking of the model types per technique, and an operator’s average verbal rating score for suitability and realism of learning the technique on the model. Secondary outcomes were the percentages of successfully performed procedures per technique and per model (success rates in completing the respective airway maneuvers). For each of the airway techniques, the Friedman analysis of variance was used to compare the 3 models on mean operator ranking and mean verbal rating scores.

RESULTS:

Twenty-seven of 30 operators (90%) performed all airway techniques on all of the available models, whereas 3 operators performed the majority but not all of the airway maneuvers on all models for logistical reasons. The total number of attempts for each technique was 30 on the manikin, 292 in the F4L, and 282 on the formalin-fixed cadavers. The operators’ median total ranking of each model type as a teaching model was 1 for F4L, 2 for the manikin and, 3 for the formalin-fixed cadavers (P < .001). F4L was considered the best model for mask ventilation (P = .029) and had a higher mean verbal rating score for realism in laryngeal mask airway insertion (P = .043). The F4L and manikin did not differ significantly in other scores for suitability and realism. The formalin-fixed cadaver was ranked last and received lowest scores in all procedures (all P < .001). Success rates of the procedures were highest in the manikin.

CONCLUSIONS:

F4L cadavers were ranked highest for mask ventilation and were considered the most realistic model for training laryngeal mask insertion. Formalin-fixed cadavers are inappropriate for airway management training.
Thermal Behavior Differs between Males and Females during Exercise and Recovery
Authors: VARGAS NICOLE T. , CHAPMAN CHRISTOPHER L. , SACKETT JAMES R. , JOHNSON BLAIR D. , GATHERCOLE ROB , SCHLADER ZACHARY J.
Published: August 2018

Introduction

This study tested the hypothesis that females rely on thermal behavior to a greater extent during and after exercise, relative to males.

Methods

In a 24°C ± 1°C; (45% ± 10% RH) environment, 10 males (M) and 10 females (F) (22 ± 2 yr) cycled for 60 min (metabolic heat production: M, 117 ± 18 W·m−2; F, 129 ± 21 W·m−2), followed by 60-min recovery. Mean skin and core temperatures, skin blood flow and local sweat rates were measured continually. Subjects controlled the temperature of their dorsal neck to perceived thermal comfort using a custom-made device. Neck device temperature provided an index of thermal behavior and mean body temperature provided an index of the stimulus for thermal behavior. Data were analyzed for total area under the curve for exercise and recovery time points. To further isolate the effect of exercise on thermal behavior during recovery, data were also analyzed the minute mean body temperature returned to preexercise levels within a subject.

Results

There were no sex differences in metabolic heat production (P = 0.71) or body temperatures (P ≥ 0.10) during exercise. Area under the curve for neck device temperature during exercise was greater for F (−98.4°C·min−1 ± 33.6°C·min−1 vs −64.5°C·min−1 ± 47.8°C·min−1, P = 0.04), but did not differ during recovery (F, 86.8°C·min−1 ± 37.8°C·min−1; M, 65.6°C·min−1 ± 35.9°C·min−1; P = 0.11). In M, mean skin (P = 0.90), core (P = 0.70) and neck device (P = 0.99) temperatures had recovered by the time that mean body temperature had returned to preexercise levels. However, in F, neck device temperature (P = 0.04) was reduced while core temperature remained elevated (P < 0.01).

Conclusions

Females use thermal behavior during exercise to a greater extent than M. During recovery, thermal behavior may compensate for elevated core temperatures in F despite mean body temperatures returning to preexercise levels.
How Sickle Cell Disease Impairs Skeletal Muscle Function: Implications in Daily Life
Authors: MERLET ANGÈLE N. , CHATEL BENJAMIN , HOURDÉ CHRISTOPHE , RAVELOJAONA MARION , BENDAHAN DAVID , FÉASSON LÉONARD , MESSONNIER LAURENT A.
Published: August 2018

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the most frequent life-threatening genetic hemoglobinopathy in the world and occurs due to the synthesis of abnormal hemoglobin S (HbS). hemoglobin S-containing red blood cells (RBC) are fragile, leading to hemolysis and anemia, and adhere to the endothelium, leading to hemorheological and hemodynamical disturbances. In its deoxygenated form, HbS may polymerize, leading to sickling of red blood cells and potentially to vasoocclusive crises. Recent findings observed that SCD patients demonstrate significant skeletal muscle remodeling and display reduced muscle functional capacities, contributing to exercise intolerance and poor quality of life. Although acute high-intensity exercise is not recommended for SCD patients because it may increase the risk of sickling, regular moderate-intensity physical activity could have beneficial effects on skeletal muscle and more generally on the well-being of SCD patients. This article reviews the literature regarding the impact of the disease on muscular tissue characteristics and function, as well as the corresponding implications for SCD patients’ quality of life.
Signal transduction-dependent small regulatory RNA is involved in glutamate metabolism of the human pathogen Bordetella pertussis
Authors: Keidel Kristina , Amman Fabian , Bibova Ilona , Drzmisek Jakub , Benes Vladimir , Hot David , Vecerek Branislav
Published: August 2018

Bordetella pertussis is the causative agent of human whooping cough, a highly contagious respiratory disease which despite vaccination programs remains the major cause of infant morbidity and mortality. The requirement of the RNA chaperone Hfq for virulence of B. pertussis suggested that Hfq-dependent small regulatory RNAs are involved in the modulation of gene expression. High-throughput RNA sequencing revealed hundreds of putative noncoding RNAs including the RgtA sRNA. Abundance of RgtA is strongly decreased in the absence of the Hfq protein and its expression is modulated by the activities of the two-component regulatory system BvgAS and another response regulator RisA. Whereas RgtA levels were elevated under modulatory conditions or in the absence of bvg genes, deletion of the risA gene completely abolished RgtA expression. Profiling of the ΔrgtA mutant in the ΔbvgA genetic background identified the BP3831 gene encoding a periplasmic amino acid-binding protein of an ABC transporter as a possible target gene. The results of site-directed mutagenesis and in silico analysis indicate that RgtA base-pairs with the region upstream of the start codon of the BP3831 mRNA and thereby weakens the BP3831 protein production. Furthermore, our data suggest that the function of the BP3831 protein is related to transport of glutamate, an important metabolite in the B. pertussis physiology. We propose that the BvgAS/RisA interplay regulates the expression of RgtA which upon infection, when glutamate might be scarce, attenuates translation of the glutamate transporter and thereby assists in adaptation of the pathogen to other sources of energy.
Zu einer phrygischen Grabstele in Athen
Authors: Vlizos Stavros
Published: August 2018

H στήλη στο Μουσείο Μπενάκη με αρ. ευρ. 31520 εντάσσεται τυπολογικά στην κατηγορία των επιτύμβιων μνημείων από τη μικρασιατική Φρυγία. Μέσα σε νάΐσκόμορφο περίγραμμα παριστάνονται κατά μέτωπο δύο όρθιες ντυμένες μορφές (Α —αριστερά—, Β —δεξιά—), οι οποίες περιβάλλονται από πλήθος συμβολικών αντικειμένων, όπως άροτρο, βιβλίο, κάτοπτρο κ.ά. Στο κάτω τμήμα της στήλης υπάρχει ελληνική επιγραφή, όπου μνημονεύονται ο ανάθετες του μνημείου και τα ονόματα των νεκρών. Η στατική και άκαμπτη απόδοση των μορφών και των ενδυμάτων καθώς και οι σχηματικά αποδιδόμενες ανατομικές λεπτομέρειες επιτρέπουν μια χρονολόγηση του έργου στο β' τέταρτο του 3ου αι. μ.Χ. Ο ακριβής προσδιορισμός της γεωγραφικής προέλευσης της στήλης από τη βόρεια Φρυγία, και συγκεκριμένα την περιοχή του Altintaç, προκύπτει από το ναϊσκόμορφο αρχιτεκτονικό πλαίσιο και τα διακοσμητικά του στοιχεία. Η στήλη εντάσσεται σε μία παράδοση μαζικής παραγωγής επιτύμβιων μνημείων στην περιοχή της βόρειας Φρυγίας κατά τον 2ο και κυρίως τον 3ο αι. μ.Χ., μία περίοδο από την οποία προέρχεται ο μεγαλύτερος αριθμός των σωζόμενων έργων της κατηγορίας αυτής. Η έντονη καλλιτεχνική δραστηριότη- τα στην περιοχή της κεντρικής Μικράς Ασίας σχετίζεται με τη γενικότερη οικονομική ευμάρεια του τοπικού αγροτικού πληθυσμού κατά τη μέση αυτοκρατορική περίοδο. Εξάλλου, τη σχέση της παράστασης της στήλης με την οικονομικά εύρωστη τάξη των γαιοκτημόνων, δηλώνουν τόσο το άροτρο όσο και το δίκρανο, που συνοδεύουν τη μορφή Α. Παράλληλα, είναι φανερή η προσπάθεια του γλύπτη να προσδώσει στην ίδια μορφή πνευματικές αξίες, τοποθετώντας στα χέρια της ανοικτό βιβλίο και κύλινδρο όπου είναι χαραγμένα τα γράμματα Α και Ω. Επιπλέον, η απόδοση του κάλαθου, της κτένας και του κατόπτρου πάνω ακριβώς από τη μορφή Β τονίζει τις ιδιαίτερες αρετές της γυναίκας, όπως η ευταξία, η υπακοή και η εκπλήρωση των καθηκόντων της ως συζύγου και κυρίας του σπιτιού. Είναι φανερό ότι η παράσταση και τα σύμβολα που συνοδεύουν τόσο τη στήλη του Μουσείου Μπενάκη όσο και τα πολυάριθμα άλλα δεί\ματα της κατηγορίας των επιτύμβιων στηλών της Φρυγίας, αντικατοπτρίζουν την οικονομική και την κοινωνική δομή του πληθυσμού της περιοχής, ενώ ταυτόχρονα παρέχουν πληροφορίες για την καθημερινή ζωή, τον πολιτισμό και τις θρησκευτικές δοξασίες των ανθρώπων της Φρυγίας κατά την αυτοκρατορική περίοδο
Δείγματα μαρμαρογλυπτικής του Αιγαίου στο Μουσείο Μπενάκη
Authors: Γουλάκη-Βουτυρά Αλεξάνδρα
Published: August 2018

Δεν διατίθεται περίληψη.
Ο νέος θησαυρός των βυζαντινών ασημένιων δίσκων: τεχνική ανάλυση
Authors: Κοτζαμάνη Δέσποινα
Published: August 2018

Δεν διατίθεται περίληψη.
Γερμανικό θέατρο (Papiertheater) των Schmidt & Romer από τη Λειψία
Authors: Αργυριάδη Μαρία
Published: August 2018

Δεν διατίθεται περίληψη.
Drei Ölbilder mit Motiven von Zakynthos
Authors: Schiering Wolfgang
Published: August 2018

Κεντρικό θέμα της παρούσας μελέτης αποτελεί μία ελαιογραφία με απεικόνιση τοπίου (49 x 76 εκ.), η οποία αγοράστηκε από τον συγγραφέα στο Würzburg το I960. Το 2002, υστέρα από αυτοψία, το τοπίο ταυτίστηκε με τη Ζάκυνθο. Η χρονολόγηση του έργου στηρίζεται στην ατμοκίνητη τροχήλατη κορβέτα που απεικονίζεται στο αριστερό άκρο του πίνακα καθώς και σε λεπτομέρειες της πόλης της Ζακύνθου, οι οποίες παραπέμπουν στην όψη που αυτή είχε πριν από τον σεισμό του 1820. Παράλληλα, στη μελέτη παρουσιάζονται δυο ενδιαφέροντα σχέδια του 1812 και του 1814 με θέματα που ταυτίζονται με αυτό της ελαιογραφίας —το Κάστρο και οι δυο προσκείμενοι λόφοι Στράνη και Ακρωτήρι—, και τα οποία βοήθησαν στην αναγνώριση της τοποθεσίας. Κατά τη διάρκεια της έρευνας του ο συγγραφέας εντόπισε δυο ελαιογραφίες στο Μουσείο Μπενάκη, οι οποίες παρουσιάζουν εκπληκτικές ομοιότητες με την υπό εξέταση ελαιογραφία. Μία επίσκεψη στο νησί επέτρεψε την ταύτιση του τοπίου στις ελαιογραφίες του Μουσείου Μπενάκη, στο έργο της συλλογής του συγγραφέα και στα τοπία των σχεδίων -που χρονολογικά προηγούνται— με την τοποθεσία στη Ζάκυνθο. Ως δημιουργός των ελαιογραφιών στο Μουσείο Μπενάκη αναφέρεται ο Γάλλος ζωγράφος και σχεδιαστής Jean Baptiste Hilaire, ο οποίος σχεδίασε αναρίθμητα σχέδια για το βιβλίο του M. G. F. Α. Choiseul-Gouffier, Voyage pittoresque de L· Grece. Δεδομένου ότι ο συγγραφέας χρονολογεί την ελαιογραφία μεταξύ των ετών 1810 και 1820, θα μπορούσε κανείς να προτείνει την ίδια χρονολόγηση για τις δύο ελαιογραφίες του Μουσείου Μπενάκη, και με επιφύλαξη να προτείνει ως ζωγράφο και των τριών έργων τον Hilaire.