bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
RNA Structure Duplication in the Dengue Virus 3′ UTR: Redundancy or Host Specificity?
Authors: de Borba Luana , Villordo Sergio M. , Marsico Franco L. , Carballeda Juan M. , Filomatori Claudia V. , Gebhard Leopoldo G. , Pallarés Horacio M. , Lequime Sebastian , Lambrechts Louis , Sánchez Vargas Irma , Blair Carol D. , Gamarnik Andrea V.
Published: January 2019

Flaviviruses constitute the most relevant group of arthropod-transmitted viruses, including important human pathogens such as the dengue, Zika, yellow fever, and West Nile viruses. The natural alternation of these viruses between vertebrate and invertebrate hosts shapes the viral genome population, which leads to selection of different viral variants with potential implications for epidemiological fitness and pathogenesis. However, the selective forces and mechanisms acting on the viral RNA during host adaptation are still largely unknown. Here, we found that two almost identical tandem RNA structures present at the viral 3′ untranslated region are under different selective pressures in the two hosts. Mechanistic studies indicated that the two RNA elements, known as dumbbells, contain sequences that overlap essential RNA cyclization elements involved in viral RNA synthesis. The data support a model in which the duplicated RNA structures differentially evolved to accommodate distinct functions for viral replication in the two hosts.
Measuring patient-centred system performance: a scoping review of patient-centred care quality indicators
Authors: Santana Maria-Jose , Ahmed Sadia , Lorenzetti Diane , Jolley Rachel J , Manalili Kimberly , Zelinsky Sandra , Quan Hude , Lu Mingshan
Published: January 2019

Objectives

The shift to the patient-centred care (PCC) model as a healthcare delivery paradigm calls for systematic measurement and evaluation. In an attempt to develop patient-centred quality indicators (PC-QIs), this study aimed to identify quality indicators that can be used to measure PCC.

Methods

Design: scoping review. Data Sources: studies were identified through searching seven electronic databases and the grey literature. Search terms included quality improvement, quality indicators, healthcare quality and PCC. Eligibility Criteria: articles were included if they mentioned development and/or implementation of PC-QIs. Data Extraction and Synthesis: extracted data included study characteristics (country, year of publication and type of study/article), patients’ inclusion in the development of indicators and type of patient populations and point of care if applicable (eg, in-patient, out-patient and primary care).

Results

A total 184 full-text peer-reviewed articles were assessed for eligibility for inclusion; of these, 9 articles were included in this review. From the non–peer-reviewed literature, eight documents met the criteria for inclusion in this study. This review revealed the heterogeneity describing and defining the nature of PC-QIs. Most PC-QIs were presented as PCC measures and identified as guidelines, surveys or recommendations, and therefore cannot be classified as actual PC-QIs. Out of 502 ways to measure PCC, only 25 were considered to be actual PC-QIs. None of the identified articles implemented the quality indicators in care settings.

Conclusion

The identification of PC-QIs is a key first step in laying the groundwork to develop evidence-based PC-QIs. Research is needed to continue the development and implementation of PC-QIs for healthcare quality improvement.
Patient vs provider perspectives of 30-day hospital readmissions
Authors: Smeraglio Andrea , Heidenreich Paul A , Krishnan Gomathi , Hopkins Joseph , Chen Jonathan , Shieh Lisa
Published: January 2019

Objective

To compare patients’ and providers’ views on contributors to 30-day hospital readmissions.

Design

Analysis of a qualitative interview survey between 18 May–30 June 2015.

Setting

Interviews were conducted during the 30-day readmission hospitalisation at a single tertiary care academic hospital.

Participants

We conducted 178 interviews of readmitted patients.

Measures

We queried opinions of what factors patients believed contributed to their rehospitalisation and compared this with the perspective of the index admission provider. The primary outcome was the view that the readmission was preventable. A review by a RN (nurse) case manager also provided an assessment based on patient report, provider report and chart review.

Results

Patients were more likely to view a readmission as preventable compared with physicians (p<0.0001). Patients identified system issues (defined as factors controlled by the hospital discharge process) as contributors to their readmission in 58% (103/178) of cases while providers identified system issues as the contributor to a patients’ readmission in 2% (2/101) of cases. Patients with poor functional status were more likely to feel the cause of their readmission was due to system issues than patients with better functional status (p=0.03). A RN case manager review determined that in 48% (86/178) of cases the system had some amount of contribution to a patient’s readmission. There was no significant difference in belief that the readmission was preventable between the RN case manager and the patient (p=0.47).

Conclusions

Readmitted patients often feel that the hospital system contributed to their readmission. Providers did not recognise patient and RN case manager identified issues as contributors to hospital readmissions.
MRI quantitation of abdominal skeletal muscle correlates with CT-based analysis: implications for sarcopenia measurement
Authors: Khan Amir Ishaq , Reiter David A. , Sekhar Aarti , Sharma Puneet , Safdar Nabile M. , Patil Dattatraya H. , Psutka Sarah P. , Small William C. , Bilen Mehmet A. , Ogan Kenneth , Master Viraj A.
Published: January 2019

Sarcopenia is associated with poor outcomes in a variety of conditions, including malignancy. Abdominal skeletal muscle area (SMA) segmentation using computed tomography (CT) has been shown to be an accurate surrogate for identifying sarcopenia. While magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) segmentation of SMA has been validated in cadaver limbs, few studies have validated abdominal SMA segmentation using MRI at lumbar level mid-L3. Our objective was to assess the reproducibility and concordance of CT and MRI segmentation analyses of SMA at mid-L3. This retrospective analysis included a random sample of 10 patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and CT abdomen/pelvis, used to assess intra-observer variability of SMA measurements using CT. An additional sample of 9 patients with RCC and both CT and T2-weighted (T2w) MRI abdomen/pelvis was used to assess intra-observer variability of SMA using MRI and concordance of SMA between MRI and CT. SMA was segmented using Slice-O-Matic. SMA reproducibility was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). SMA concordance was analyzed using Bland–Altman plot and Pearson correlation coefficient. The intra-observer variability of CT and MRI SMA at mid-L3 was low, with ICC of 0.998 and 0.985, respectively. Bland–Altman analysis revealed bias of 0.74% for T2w MRI over CT. The Pearson correlation coefficient was 0.997 (p < 0.0001), demonstrating strong correlation between CT and T2w MRI. Abdominal SMA at mid-L3 is reproducibly segmented for both CT and T2w MRI, with strong correlation between the 2 modalities. T2w MRI can be used interchangeably with CT for assessment of SMA and sarcopenia. This finding has important clinical implications.
Shear deformable super-convergent finite element for steel beams strengthened with glass-fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) plate
Authors: Pham Phe Van , Mohareb Magdi , Fam Amir
Published: January 2019

The present study investigates the flexural behaviour of steel beams strengthened by adhesively bonding a glass-fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) plate to one of the flanges. The model captures shear deformation effects and partial interaction between the steel and GFRP owing to the relative flexibility of the adhesive. A general closed form solution is first developed for the governing coupled system of differential equations. The solution is then used to formulate mechanics-based shape functions and develop a finite element with superior convergence characteristics. The model is used to investigate the response of multi-span continuous beams, determine the strength gained by GFRP strengthening, and quantify shear deformation effects on the response of strengthened beams. A technique capturing partial interaction effects is devised to characterize the flexural strength of Class 3 strengthened beams. A classification limit for strengthened Class 3 sections is also proposed within the framework of the Canadian Standard CAN-CSA S16 (2014).
Magnetic characterisation of magnetite and hematite from the Blötberget apatite – iron oxide deposits (Bergslagen), south-central Sweden
Authors: Almqvist Bjarne S.G. , Björk Andreas , Mattsson Hannes B. , Hedlund Daniel , Gunnarsson Klas , Malehmir Alireza , Högdahl Karin , Bäckström Emma , Marsden Paul
Published: January 2019

Rock magnetic measurements were carried out on drill core material and hand specimens from the Blötberget apatite – iron oxide deposit in the Bergslagen ore province, south-central Sweden, to characterise their magnetic properties. Measurements included several kinds of magnetic susceptibility and hysteresis parameters. Petrographic and scanning electron microscopy were used to independently identify and quantify the amount and type of magnetite and hematite. Two hematite-rich samples were studied with laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry to quantify the trace element chemistry in hematite and investigate the potential influence of trace elements on magnetic properties. Three aspects of this study are noteworthy. (1) Hematite-rich samples display strong anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility, which is likely to affect the appearance and modelling of magnetic anomalies. (2) The magnitude-drop in susceptibility across Curie and Néel temperature transitions shows significant correlation with the respective weight percentage of magnetite and hematite. Temperature-dependent magnetic susceptibility measurements can therefore be used to infer the amounts of both magnetite and hematite. (3) Observations of a strongly depressed Morin transition at approximately −60 to −70 °C (200 to 210 K) are made during low-temperature susceptibility measurements. This anomalous Morin transition is most likely related to trace amounts of V and Ti that substitute for Fe in the hematite. When taken together, these magnetic observations improve the understanding of the magnetic anomaly signature of the Blötberget apatite – iron oxide deposits and may potentially be utilised in a broader context when assessing similar (Paleoproterozoic) apatite – iron oxide systems.
Cyanobacteria biomass in shallow eutrophic lakes is linked to the presence of iron-binding ligands
Authors: Du Xue L. , Creed Irena F. , Sorichetti Ryan J. , Trick Charles G.
Published: January 2019

Iron (Fe) is an important regulator of phosphorus and nitrogen use efficiency by phytoplankton. We tested the prediction that pelagic cyanobacteria biomass in surface waters of shallow eutrophic lakes with low ferric ion concentration is linked to the presence, and potential utilization, of low molecular weight Fe-binding ligands. We sampled 30 lakes in Alberta, Canada, in 2012 for nutrients, cyanobacteria biomass, Fe-binding ligands (hydroxamates and catecholates), and toxins. Bioavailable ferric ion concentration (estimated as pFe) was significantly correlated to cyanobacteria biomass (curvilinear relationship, r2= 0.45, P < 0.05). Nonmetric multidimensional models indicated that high cyanobacteria biomass corresponded to lakes with low ferric ion concentration (pFe ∼ 19), and regression tree analyses identified a threshold in ferric ion concentration (pFe = 22.1) that separated lakes with relatively low versus high cyanobacteria biomass. Where ferric ion concentration was low, hydroxamate-reactive compound concentration was positively correlated to cyanobacteria biomass. As the environment goes from higher to lower ferric ion concentration, the presence of cyanobacteria increases, and with further reduction of Fe, the environmental need for Fe-binding ligands becomes manifest.
Herbal Medicines with Antiviral Activity Against the Influenza Virus, a Systematic Review
Authors: Lee Ju-Young , Abundo Michael Edward C. , Lee Chang-Won
Published: January 2019

The rapidly changing influenza virus has remained a consistent threat to the well-being of a variety of species on the planet. Influenza virus’ high mutation rate has allowed the virus to rapidly and continuously evolve, as well as generate new strains that are resistant to the current commercially available antivirals. Thus, the increased resistance has compelled the scientific community to explore alternative compounds that have antiviral effects against influenza virus. In this paper, the authors systematically review numerous herbal extracts that were shown to have antiviral effects against the virus. Specifically, the herbal antiviral targets mainly include hemagglutinin, neuraminidase and matrix 2 proteins. In some instances, herbal extracts inhibited the replication of oseltamivir-resistant strains and certain pentacyclic triterpenes exhibited higher antiviral activity than oseltamivir. This paper also explores the possibility of targeting various host-cell signaling pathways that are utilized by the virus during its replication process. Infected cell pathways are hijacked by intracellular signaling cascades such as NF-kB signaling, PI3K/Akt pathway, MAPK pathway and PKC/PKR signaling cascades. Herbal antivirals have been shown to target these pathways by suppressing nuclear export of influenza vRNP and thus inhibiting the phosphorylation signaling cascade. In conclusion, copious amounts of herbal antivirals have been shown to inhibit influenza virus, however further studies are needed for these new compounds to be up to modern pharmacological standards.
Rhein, An Anthraquinone Drug, Suppresses the NLRP3 Inflammasome and Macrophage Activation in Urate Crystal-Induced Gouty Inflammation
Authors: Chang Wan-Chun , Chu Mu-Tzu , Hsu Chih-Yuan , Wu Yeong-Jian Jan , Lee Jing-Yi , Chen Ting-Jui , Chung Wen-Hung , Chen Der-Yuan , Hung Shuen-Iu
Published: January 2019

Rhein, an anthraquinone drug, is a widely used traditional Chinese medicine. Rhein is a major bioactive metabolite of diacerein which has been approved for treating osteoarthritis with a good safety profile in humans. Gouty arthritis is an inflammatory disease characterized by urate crystal-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation with up-regulated caspase-1 protease and IL-1[Formula: see text] in macrophages. Inhibition of the NLRP3 inflammasome formation has been considered as a potential therapeutic avenue for treating or preventing many inflammatory diseases. This study aimed to evaluate the anti-inflammatory effects of rhein on gouty arthritis. Rhein within the physiological levels of humans showed no toxicity on the cell viability and differentiation, but significantly decreased the production of IL-1[Formula: see text], TNF-[Formula: see text] and caspase-1 protease in urate crystal-activated macrophages. Compared to medium controls, rhein at the therapeutic concentration (2.5[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]g/mL) effectively inhibited IL-1[Formula: see text] production by 47% ([Formula: see text]). Rhein did not affect the mRNA levels of CASP1, NLRP3 and ASC, but suppressed the protein expression and enzyme activity of caspase-1. Immunofluorescence confocal microscopy further revealed that rhein suppressed the aggregation of ASC speck and inhibited the formation of NLRP3 inflammasome. Rhein of 5[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]g/mL significantly decreased the ASC speck to 36% ([Formula: see text]), and reduced the NLRP3 aggregates to 37.5% ([Formula: see text]). Our data demonstrate that rhein possesses pharmacological activity to suppress caspase-1 protease activity and IL-1[Formula: see text] production by interfering with the formation of NLRP3 multiprotein complex. These results suggest that rhein has therapeutic potential for treating NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated diseases such as gouty arthritis.
Anticolitic Effect ofViscum coloratumthrough Suppression of Mast Cell Activation
Authors: Yoo Jae-Myung , Park Kwang Il , Ma Jin Yeul
Published: January 2019

Viscum coloratum has been used as a component for traditional medicine for therapy of inflammatory diseases. Nonetheless, effect of Viscum coloratum on inflammatory bowel disease is unknown. Therefore, we investigated whether the ethanol extract of Viscum coloratum (VCE) could suppress inflammatory responses in dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-treated mice and mast cell-derived inflammatory mediator (MDIM)-activated Caco-2 cells. VCE significantly attenuated body weight loss, shortened colon length, enteric epithelium disruption, enterorrhagia and colonic edema in DSS-treated mice. Additionally, VCE decreased the levels of immunoglobulin E, interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-[Formula: see text] in serum and the activity of myeloperoxidase in colonic tissue. Moreover, VCE inhibited the infiltration of immune cells as well as the activity and expression of both matrix metalloprotease-2 and matrix metalloprotease-9. Furthermore, VCE restored zonula occludens-1 expression. Consistent with in vivo studies, VCE suppressed the activity and expression of matrix metalloprotease-2 and matrix metalloprotease-9 in MDIM-activated Caco-2 cells. In addition, VCE reinstated the expression of zonula occludens-1 through inhibiting activation of janus kinase 2/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 in the cells. In conclusion, VCE exerts anticolitic action through inhibiting the activation of mast cells. Therefore, VCE may be useful as a phytomedicine or functional food for inflammatory bowel disease.
Generating functions of wormholes
Authors: Rahaman Farook , Sarkar Susmita , Singh Ksh. Newton , Pant Neeraj
Published: January 2019

It is known that wormhole geometry could be found solving the Einstein field equations by tolerating the violation of null energy condition (NEC). Violation of NEC is not possible for the physical matter distributions, however, it can be achieved by considering distributions of “exotic matter”. The main purpose of this work is to find generating functions comprising the wormhole-like geometry and discuss the nature of these generating functions. We have used the Herrera et al. [Phys. Rev. D 77, 027502 (2008)] approaches of obtaining generating functions in the background of wormhole spacetime. Here we have adopted two approaches for solving the field equations to find wormhole geometry. In the first method, we have assumed the redshift function f(r) and the shape function b(r) and solve for the generating functions. In another attempt, we assume generating functions and redshift functions and then try to find shape functions of the wormholes.
D = 4 topological gravity from gauging the Maxwell-special-affine group
Authors: Kibaroğlu Salih , Senay Mustafa , Cebecioğlu Oktay
Published: January 2019

In this paper, the Maxwell extension of the special-affine algebra is obtained and corresponding nonlinear realization is constructed. We give also the differential realization of the generators of the extended symmetry. Moreover, we present the gauge theory of the Maxwell special-affine algebra and the topological gravity action in four dimensions. As a conclusion, we show that the Bianchi identities can be found by using the solution of the equations of motion.
Consensus dynamics on a family of weighted recursive trees
Authors: Dai Meifeng , Zong Yue , He Jiaojiao , Ju Tingting , Sun Yu , Su Weiyi
Published: January 2019

The consensus dynamics with additive stochastic disturbances are characterized by the network coherence, which is the robustness of consensus algorithms when the nodes are subject to external perturbations. In this paper, the research goal is to obtain the first- and second-order network coherence quantifying as the sum and square sum of reciprocals of all nonzero Laplacian eigenvalues. One innovation point of this paper is the structure of a family of the weighted recursive trees with weight factor. We mainly obtain the exact expressions and scalings of network coherence on the family of weighted recursive trees. The scalings of first-order network coherence with network size obey three laws along with the range of the weight factor, while the scalings of second-order network coherence obey four laws along with the range of the weight factor. In addition, the scalings of first- and second-order network coherence on our studied networks are smaller than those performed on other studied networks when [Formula: see text]. The obtained results indicate that the efficiency of network coherence on the weighted network has close relation to the weight distribution, and we can design a better weight distribution to make the coherence of network more efficient.
Unaffected electrical resistance with change of sample sizes: A theoretical study on some electrical parameters of silicene
Authors: Das D. K. , Sarkar Jit
Published: January 2019

Silicene, the honeycomb 2D structured silicon, is addressed as cousin of graphene, by many researchers. Its unique properties draw the attention of researchers round the globe. Electrical properties of silicene are also reported by other researchers. In this paper, we estimate electrical resistivity, electrical conductivity and Lorenz number for silicene within the temperature range from 100 K to 500 K. Variation of these parameters with respect to sample size is also reported. The novelty of our work is that till now the Lorenz number and variation of electrical properties within this wide temperature range of 100–500 K for silicene have not yet been reported. We also observed that with variation of sample sizes electrical resistance of silicene sheet remains unaffected whereas the other electrical properties vary. This is due to tunneling effect of semiconductors, which is due to uneven distribution of atoms (buckled structure) in planes.
Boosted thermoelectric properties of molybdenum oxide thin films deposited on Si substrates
Authors: Zhang Jiahua , Song Weijia , Ge Xue , Luo Zhi , Yue Song
Published: January 2019

[Formula: see text] has novel peculiarities and complexities due to multiple valence states of 4d molybdenum, but high carrier density impedes its thermoelectric (TE) application. Recent investigation has demonstrated that the TE performance of transition metal oxide films can be greatly enhanced by activating a parallel conduction channel in the perovskite substrates through reversible incorporation of oxygen. In this work, we report the TE properties of [Formula: see text] thin films deposited on single crystalline Si and quartz glass substrates by magnetron sputtering. The TE power factor (PF) in the former is above 40 times bigger than that in the latter. Such a large enhancement originates mainly from the significantly enhanced Seebeck coefficient, correlated with the contribution of the Si substrate. The highest PF value 1.78 mW/(m[Formula: see text]⋅[Formula: see text]K2) at 700 K in this [Formula: see text]/Si system is comparable to the state-of-the-art in other TE thin films. Based on the preceding research, our experimental results suggest a more economic and scalable route to explore high-performance TE thin films.
Refractive index and temperature sensing based on defect resonator coupled with a MIM waveguide
Authors: Chen Fang , Li Jijun
Published: January 2019

In this paper, a refractive index and temperature sensor based on Fano resonance is realized. The proposed structure is composed of a MIM waveguide and a defect cavity which is filled with sealed ethanol. The Fano spectra and field distribution is numerically investigated by the two-dimensional finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. Due to the symmetry breaking, the sharp and asymmetric transmission spectra can be used as a sensor with high sensitivity. The sensitivity of the proposed structure can be up to 652 nm/RIU and [Formula: see text]. Because of the high sensitivity, the proposed plasmonic structure may have potential application in nanosensing.
Hidden Attractor in a Passive Motion Model of Compass-Gait Robot
Authors: Nourian Zavareh Mahdi , Nazarimehr Fahimeh , Rajagopal Karthikeyan , Jafari Sajad
Published: January 2019

Many studies have been done on different aspects of biped robots such as motion, path planning, control and stability. Dynamical properties of biped robot on a sloping surface such as equilibria and their stabilities, bifurcations and basin of attraction are investigated in this paper. Basin of attraction is an important property since it can determine the unseen conditions which affect the attractor of the system with multistabilities. By the help of basin of attractions, the paper claims that the strange attractors of compass-gait robot are hidden.
Effects of spectral diffusion on the nonlinear optical properties in two- and three-state quantum systems in a four-wave mixing signal
Authors: Moncada F. , Paz J. L. , Lascano L. , Costa-Vera C.
Published: January 2019

Effects of spectral diffusion on the third-order nonlinear susceptibility for two- and three-level quantum systems, immersed in a thermal reservoir, are evaluated with a four-wave mixing (FWM) signal through the density matrix formalism. For this, inhomogeneously broadened two- and three-level quantum systems are used. In these models, the distribution of natural frequencies follows a Lorentzian function. The absorptive and dispersive nonlinear optical responses are determined for the considered quantum models. The results presented in this work show potential applications in the development of optical switches and provide a potential method to measure spectral diffusion relaxation times in three-level quantum systems.
Random attractors of FitzHugh–Nagumo systems driven by colored noise on unbounded domains
Authors: Gu Anhui , Wang Bixiang
Published: January 2019

We investigate the pathwise asymptotic behavior of the FitzHugh–Nagumo systems defined on unbounded domains driven by nonlinear colored noise. We prove the existence and uniqueness of tempered pullback random attractors of the systems with polynomial diffusion terms. The pullback asymptotic compactness of solutions is obtained by the uniform estimates on the tails of solutions outside a bounded domain. We also examine the limiting behavior of the FitzHugh–Nagumo systems driven by linear colored noise as the correlation time of the colored noise approaches zero. In this respect, we prove that the solutions and the pullback random attractors of the systems driven by linear colored noise converge to that of the corresponding stochastic systems driven by linear white noise.
EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF INFORMAL SECTOR COMPETITION ON FIRM PERFORMANCE: SOME LESSONS FROM SOUTH-EAST EUROPE
Authors: WILLIAMS COLIN C. , BEZEREDI SLAVKO
Published: January 2019

A widespread assumption is that competition from the informal sector has a negative impact on the firm performance of legitimate enterprises. This is because of the unfair competition they face from such enterprises in the informal sector. The aim of this paper is to provide an evidence-based evaluation of whether this is the case based on an analysis of the relationship between the firm performance of enterprises and their perception of the prevalence of informal sector competition. To do so, data is reported from a representative sample of 1,430 enterprises in Bulgaria, Croatia and FYR Macedonia. The finding is that enterprises asserting that their competitors participate in the informal economy have significantly lower real annual sales growth rates compared with those who assert that their competitors do not participate in the informal economy. The theoretical and policy implications are then discussed.
THE INDIVIDUALISTIC VIEW OF CULTURE AND THE NASCENT ENTREPRENEURSHIP: AN EXAMINATION OF SCHWARTZ’S CULTURAL VALUES
Authors: ALSAAD ABDALLAH
Published: January 2019

The paper examines the impact of individual culture orientations on the nascent entrepreneurship at the individual level. The cultural orientations investigated in this study were based on Schwartz’s values model. Using data from World Value Survey collected from seven countries ([Formula: see text]), we investigate the direct effect of Open to Change, Self-enhancement, Conservation and Self-transcendence values on nascent entrepreneurship. The results show that the Open to Change values, including Stimulation and Self-direction values, significantly and positively affect nascent entrepreneurship. Only one of the Self-enhancement values has a positive effect on nascent entrepreneurship — the Power value. Meanwhile, Conservation values, including Tradition and Security, negatively and significantly affect the nascent entrepreneurship. Finally, the results show no support for the association between Self-transcendence values and nascent entrepreneurship. Our findings highlight that some values are more conducive to driving or inhibiting nascent entrepreneurship. Investigating the effect of individual cultural orientations on nascent entrepreneurship in the lens of personal values benefits us to comprehend individual motivations toward entrepreneurship, and will light many features of entrepreneurship behavior at the individual level and within and across cultures.
Effectiveness of the EIA for the Site C Hydroelectric Dam Reconsidered: Nature of Indigenous Cultures, Rights, and Engagement
Authors: Muir Bruce R.
Published: January 2019

Numerous publications have emerged relating to the Site C dam on the Peace River in northern British Columbia, Canada. This paper focuses on a recently published study that examined the effectiveness of Indigenous peoples’ participation in the environmental impact assessment of the dam. Although the study identifies several important deficiencies, it is incomplete with a number of inconsistencies and suggests a path that is unlikely to be a sufficient remedy. The objective of this paper is to address key shortcomings that could foster crucial misunderstandings. Environmental decisions and actions were organised based on the typologies of impact assessment for context and to identify interconnections and sources of ineffectiveness. Results confirm that the effectiveness framework has considerable utility and improves measurement accuracy. This paper also presents supplemental insights into engagement, consent, legitimacy as a dimension of impact assessment effectiveness when Indigenous peoples are involved, and concludes with suggestions for future research.
Mapping the bathymetric evolution of the Northern North Sea: from Jurassic synrift archipelago through Cretaceous–Tertiary post-rift subsidence
Authors: Roberts Alan M. , Kusznir Nick J. , Yielding Graham , Beeley Hugh
Published: January 2019

The post-rift history of the North Viking Graben has been backstripped in 3D, producing a sequence of palaeobathymetric maps that culminates at the Late Jurassic synrift stage. The backstripping takes into account the three main processes which drive post-rift basin development: thermal subsidence, flexural-isostatic loading and sediment compaction. Before backstripping was performed, the Norwegian Trench, a bathymetric feature within the present-day seabed, was smoothed in order to remove associated decompaction artefacts within the backstripping results.

Palaeobathymetric restorations at the top and base of the Paleocene take into account regional transient dynamic uplift, probably related to the Iceland Plume. 350 m of uplift is incorporated at the Base Tertiary (65 Ma) and 300 m at the Top Balder Formation (54 Ma), followed by rapid collapse of this same uplift.

At the top of the Lower Cretaceous (98.9 Ma), very localized fault-block topography, inherited from the Jurassic rift, is predicted to have remained emergent within the basin. At the Base Cretaceous (140 Ma), the fault-block topography is much more prominent and numerous isolated footwall islands are shown to have been present. At the Late Jurassic synrift stage (155 Ma), these islands are linked to form emergent island chains along the footwalls of all of the major faults. This is the Jurassic archipelago, the islands of which were the products of synrift footwall uplift. The predicted magnitude and distribution of footwall emergence calibrates well against available well data and published stratigraphic information, providing important constraints on the reliability of the results.
Building LEGO Towers
Authors: Šāblis Aivars , Gonzalez-Huerta Javier , Zabardast Ehsan , Šmite Darja
Published: January 2019

Global software engineering has changed the way software is developed today. To address the new challenges, many universities have launched specially tailored courses to train young professionals to work in globally distributed projects. However, a mere acknowledgment of the geographic, temporal, and cultural differences does not necessarily lead to a deep understanding of the underlying practical implications. Therefore, many universities developed alternative teaching and learning activities, such as multi-university collaborative projects and small-scale simulations or games. In this article, we present a small-scale exercise that uses LEGO bricks to teach skills necessary for global work. We describe the many different interventions that could be implemented in the execution of the exercise. We had seven runs of the exercises and report our findings from executing seven runs of the exercise with the total of 104 students from five different courses in two different universities. Our results suggest that the exercise can be a valuable tool to help students dealing with troublesome knowledge associated with global software engineering and a useful complement to the courses dedicated to this subject.
PIMap
Authors: Liu Gai , Zhang Zhiru
Published: January 2019

Modern FPGA synthesis tools typically apply a predetermined sequence of logic optimizations on the input logic network before carrying out technology mapping. While the “known recipes” of logic transformations often lead to improved mapping results, there remains a nontrivial gap between the quality metrics driving the pre-mapping logic optimizations and those targeted by the actual technology mapping. Needless to mention, such miscorrelations would eventually result in suboptimal quality of results.

In this article, we propose PIMap, which couples logic transformations and technology mapping under an iterative improvement framework for LUT-based FPGAs. In each iteration, PIMap randomly proposes a transformation on the given logic network from an ensemble of candidate optimizations; it then invokes technology mapping and makes use of the mapping result to determine the likelihood of accepting the proposed transformation. By adjusting the optimization objective and incorporating required time constraints during the iterative process, PIMap can flexibly optimize for different objectives including area minimization, delay optimization, and delay-constrained area reduction. To mitigate the runtime overhead, we further introduce parallelization techniques to decompose a large design into multiple smaller sub-netlists that can be optimized simultaneously. Experimental results show that PIMap achieves promising quality improvement over a set of commonly used benchmarks, including improving the majority of the best-known area and delay records for the EPFL benchmark suite.
Searching for Global Employability
Authors: Isomöttönen Ville , Daniels Mats , Cajander Åsa , Pears Arnold , Mcdermott Roger
Published: January 2019

Literature on global employability signifies “enabling” learning environments where students encounter ill-formed and open-ended problems and are required to adapt and be creative. Varying forms of “projects,” co-located and distributed, have populated computing curricula for decades and are generally deemed an answer to this call. We performed a qualitative study to describe how project course students are able to capitalize on the promise of enabling learning environments. This critical perspective was motivated by the circumstance of the present-day education systems being heavily regulated for the precipitated production of human capital. The students involved in our study described education system-imposed and group-imposed narratives of narrowed opportunities, as well as many self-related challenges. However, students welcomed autonomy as an enjoyable condition and linked it with motivation. Whole-group commitment and self-related attributes such as taking care of one’s own learning appeared as important conditions. The results highlight targets for interventions that can counteract constraining study conditions and continue the march of projects as a means to foster complex learning for the benefit of students and professionalism in global software engineering.
Ensuring High-Quality Private Data for Responsible Data Science
Authors: Srivastava Divesh , Scannapieco Monica , Redman Thomas C.
Published: January 2019

High-quality data is critical for effective data science. As the use of data science has grown, so too have concerns that individuals’ rights to privacy will be violated. This has led to the development of data protection regulations around the globe and the use of sophisticated anonymization techniques to protect privacy. Such measures make it more challenging for the data scientist to understand the data, exacerbating issues of data quality. Responsible data science aims to develop useful insights from the data while fully embracing these considerations.

We pose the high-level problem in this article,
“How can a data scientist develop the needed trust that private data has high quality?”
We then identify a series of challenges for various data-centric communities and outline research questions for data quality and privacy researchers, which would need to be addressed to effectively answer the problem posed in this article.
LB-IDS: Securing Wireless Sensor Network Using Protocol Layer Trust-Based Intrusion Detection System
Authors: Ghugar Umashankar , Pradhan Jayaram , Bhoi Sourav Kumar , Sahoo Rashmi Ranjan
Published: January 2019

Wireless sensor network (WSN) faces severe security problems due to wireless communication between the nodes and open deployment of the nodes. The attacker disrupts the security parameters by launching attacks at different layers of the WSN. In this paper, a protocol layer trust-based intrusion detection system (LB-IDS) is proposed to secure the WSN by detecting the attackers at different layers. The trust value of a sensor node is calculated using the deviation of trust metrics at each layer with respect to the attacks. Mainly, we consider trustworthiness in the three layers such as physical layer trust, media access control (MAC) layer trust, and network layer trust. The trust of a sensor node at a particular layer is calculated by taking key trust metrics of that layer. Finally, the overall trust value of the sensor node is estimated by combining the individual trust values of each layer. By applying the trust threshold, a sensor node is detected as trusted or malicious. The performance of LB-IDS is evaluated by comparing the results of the three performance parameters such as detection accuracy, false-positive rate, and false-negative rate, with the results of Wang’s scheme. We have implemented jamming attack at the physical layer, back-off manipulation attack at the MAC layer, and sinkhole attack at the network layer using simulations. We have also implemented a cross-layer attack using the simulation where an attacker simultaneously attacks the MAC layer and network layer. Simulation results show that the proposed LB-IDS performs better as compared with Wang’s scheme.
A Novel Hierarchical Algorithm for Bearing Fault Diagnosis Based on Stacked LSTM
Authors: Yu Lu , Qu Jianling , Gao Feng , Tian Yanping
Published: January 2019

Faced with severe operating conditions, rolling bearings tend to be one of the most vulnerable components in mechanical systems. Due to the requirements of economic efficiency and reliability, effective fault diagnosis methods for rolling bearings have long been a hot research topic of rotary machinery fields. However, traditional methods such as support vector machine (SVM) and backpropagation neural network (BP‐NN) which are composed of shallow structures trap into a dilemma when further improving their accuracies. Aiming to overcome shortcomings of shallow structures, a novel hierarchical algorithm based on stacked LSTM (long short‐term memory) is proposed in this text. Without any preprocessing operation or manual feature extraction, the proposed method constructs a framework of end‐to‐end fault diagnosis system for rolling bearings. Beneficial from the memorize‐forget mechanism of LSTM, features inherent in raw temporal signals are extracted hierarchically and automatically by stacking LSTM. A series of experiments demonstrate that the proposed model can not only achieve up to 99% accuracy but also outperform some state‐of‐the‐art intelligent fault diagnosis methods.
Antihypertensive Activity of Leersia hexandra Sw. (Poaceae) Aqueous Extract on Ethanol-Induced Hypertension in Wistar Rat
Authors: Bilanda Danielle Claude , Tcheutchoua Yannick Carlos , Djomeni Dzeufiet Paul Désiré , Fokou Daniel Lauré Dongmo , Fouda Yannick Bekono , Dimo Théophile , Kamtchouing Pierre
Published: January 2019

Leersia hexandra (L. hexandra) is used in traditional medicine to treat many diseases including hypertension. This study aimed to evaluate the curative effects of the aqueous extract of L. hexandra on hypertension. Hypertension was induced in rats by oral administration of ethanol (5 g/kg/day) for five weeks. The animals were divided into 2 groups: one group of 5 rats receiving distilled water (10 mL/kg) and another group of 20 rats receiving ethanol. At the end of the 5 weeks of administration of ethanol, the animals were divided into 4 groups of 5 rats each: one group of hypertensive rats receiving distilled water (10 mL/kg), another one receiving nifedipine (10 mg/kg), and two groups of hypertensive rats receiving L. hexandra at doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg, respectively. The results showed that ethanol induced a significant increase in the mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate of normotensive rats. The administration of the extract (100 and 200 mg/kg) or nifedipine caused a significant decrease of MAP compared to hypertensive rats. Ethanol induced a significant increase of lipid profile, the atherogenic index, creatinine, and transaminase activities. Ethanol also induced a significant decrease in serum HDL-cholesterol and antioxidant markers evaluated. Treatment of hypertensive rats with L. hexandra or nifedipine significantly improved lipid profile, hepatic and renal functions, and antioxidant status. The curative effect of L. hexandra extract on hypertension is probably related to its antihypertensive, hypolipidemic, and antioxidant activities, which justifies its empirical use in the treatment of hypertension.
Knee Sepsis after Suprapatellar Nailing of an Open Tibia Fracture: Treatment with Acute Deformity and External Fixation
Authors: Minoughan Chelsea E. , Schumaier Adam P. , Avilucea Frank R.
Published: January 2019

Case. A 31-year-old male was involved in a dirt bike accident and sustained an isolated type II open mid-distal tibia fracture. The patient underwent suprapatellar intramedullary nailing and subsequently developed knee sepsis. Conclusion. This patient was managed with irrigation and debridements of the knee, fracture site, and intramedullary canal. A resultant soft-tissue defect over the fracture site obviated primary closure. Creation of an acute deformity stabilized by a Taylor spatial frame allowed primary wound closure. After soft tissue healing occurred, the frame was used to correct the intentional deformity and maintain reduction until full healing occurred.
Determination of the Lipophilicity of Ibuprofen, Naproxen, Ketoprofen, and Flurbiprofen with Thin-Layer Chromatography
Authors: Czyrski Andrzej
Published: January 2019

The lipophilicity is an important parameter that influences the activity of the drugs in the human body. The reversed phase high performance thin layer chromatography was applied to determine the Log P values of ibuprofen, ketoprofen, naproxen, and flurbiprofen. The stationary phase used in the study was silica-gel coated plates. The mobile phase was the mixture of acetonitrile and water in different proportions. The content of acetonitrile varied in 5% increments from 50% to 80%. The Rm0 values were determined for the compounds with a known Log P and for the analyzed substances (ibuprofen, naproxen, ketoprofen, and flurbiprofen). The Log P values were calculated for the analyzed compounds using the regression curve Rm0 = f(Log P) parameters for the compounds with the known lipophilicity. Flurbiprofen is characterized by the highest Log P value: 3.82. The lowest one is noted for ketoprofen: 2.66. The determined Log P values of tested compounds were similar to the values calculated by the software.
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody-Associated Vasculitis (AAV) Overlap Syndrome: Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: Itikyala Sathish , Pattanaik Debendra , Raza Syed
Published: January 2019

We report here the first case of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis overlap syndrome (SLE/AAV) who had granulomatous polyangiitis (GPA) as the initial presentation. SLE/AAV overlap syndrome is an uncommon entity recently described in the literature. Prior reported patients with SLE/AAV overlap syndrome presented with SLE and microscopic polyangiitis (MPA). Our patient initially presented with granulomatous gastric ulcer and later developed respiratory failure. She was diagnosed with GPA. While on maintenance treatment with azathioprine 150 mg/day, she developed hematuria and proteinuria which turned out to be from class V lupus nephritis instead of relapse of vasculitis. Currently, the patient is doing well after treatment with rituximab. Although rare, this entity should be recognized and need to be treated appropriately.
The Effect of Pelvic Floor Muscles Exercise on Quality of Life in Women with Stress Urinary Incontinence and Its Relationship with Vaginal Deliveries: A Randomized Trial
Authors: Ptak Magdalena , Ciećwież Sylwester , Brodowska Agnieszka , Starczewski Andrzej , Nawrocka-Rutkowska Jolanta , Diaz-Mohedo Esther , Rotter Iwona
Published: January 2019

Introduction. Urinary incontinence (UI) is a health problem affecting the quality of women’s lives (QOL) at various life stages. Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) can be caused by previous vaginal deliveries and is especially likely to occur in the perimenopausal period. The most commonly recommended first-choice treatment methods involve exercises for the pelvic floor muscles (PFM). The aim of this study was to assess the impact of isolated PFM exercises and combined training of the PFM and the m.transversus abdominis (TrA) muscle on the QoL of patients with SUI with regard to the number of vaginal deliveries.Material and Methods. 137 women with SUI were qualified for analysis (mean age 53,1 ± 5,5). To assess the effectiveness of PFM training QOL questionnaire was used (ICIQ-LUTS qol). PFM training for groups A (PFM+TrA) and B (PFM) was intended for 12 weeks. Statistica v. 12.0 PL, StatSoft, USA, was used for statistical calculations.Results. The analysis demonstrated that conservative treatment based on the A training program (PFM + TrA) yielded statistically significantly better results than the B program (PFM), with the improvement observed in such QoL domains as the performance of household duties, physical activity and travelling, social limitations, emotions, sleep problems and fatigue, the frequency of changing panty liners, fluid intake control, and embarrassment.Conclusion. Both the combined training of the PFM and the synergistic (TrA) muscle and the isolated PFM exercises improve the QoL of women with SUI. Nonetheless, the combined PFM and TrA muscle physiotherapy is more effective. The exercises for the PFM and the synergistic muscle give better results in women who have given birth fewer than three times than isolated PFM exercises.