bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Numerical modeling of the dynamic unsteadiness with global mode decomposition approach in a high-speed compressor with abnormal diffuser vane
Authors: Hu Chenxing , Yang Ce
Published: July 2022

Adjustable vane diffuser is addressed as one of the main techniques in centrifugal compressor in seeking of wider stability margin. Flow instabilities, however, may be driven by the three-dimensional flow separation induced by the abnormal vane in the diffuser. In the present work, a numerical investigation of the radial vaned diffuser with abnormal vane was applied to identify the correlation between stall inception and asymmetric flow distribution. Unsteady numerical simulations of the centrifugal compressor with vaned diffuser was carried out and validated against experimental data. Then, the aerodynamic characteristics and evolution process of the flow instabilities in vaned diffuser was analyzed with the compressed dynamic mode decomposition in term of perturbation frequency and dominating flow mode. Finally, concerning the relative position of the volute tongue and abnormal vane, the influence of the abnormal vane on the matching between the diffuser and volute regarding the stall mechanism was summarized. The results indicate that the abnormal vane needs to be altered large enough, which is above 10°, to trigger the flow instability of vaned diffuser before the spike stall in impeller. With the increase of stagger angle alternation, the stall mechanism turns from a global flow separation in multiple passages into a regional and abrupt phenomenon in limited passages. With the mode composition approach, the flow separation near diffuser outlet and the tornado-type vortices at the leading edge of the abnormal vane are responsible for the flow instability of the case with 15° vane alternation. When combined with the volute, the case with abnormal vane close to the volute tongue tends to be more unstable than that 180° away from volute tongue. The tornado-type vortices are also moved to the trailing edge rather than the leading edge under the influence of the asymmetric volute.
Non-target RNA depletion strategy to improve sensitivity of next-generation sequencing for the detection of RNA viruses in poultry
Authors: Parris D. Joshua , Kariithi Henry , Suarez David L.
Published: July 2022

PCR-based assays have become the benchmark for detecting pathogens of poultry and other livestock; however, these techniques are limited in their ability to detect multiple infecting agents, provide limited genetic information on the pathogen, and, for RNA viruses, must be reviewed frequently to assure high sensitivity and specificity. In contrast, untargeted, high-throughput sequencing can rapidly detect all infecting agents in a sample while providing genomic sequence information to allow more in-depth characterization of viruses. Although next-generation sequencing (NGS) offers many advantages, one of its primary limitations is low sensitivity to pathogens given the abundance of host and other non-target sequences in sequencing libraries. We explored methods for improving the sensitivity of NGS to detect respiratory and enteric viruses in poultry from RNA extracts of swab samples. We employed commercial and custom-designed negative enrichment strategies to selectively deplete the most abundant rRNA reads from the host and non-target bacteria; host RNA was diminished from up to 40% of total reads to as low as 3%, and the total number of reads assigned to abundant bacterial classes were reduced greatly. Our treatment resulted in up to a 700-fold increase in the number of viral reads, detection of a greater number of viral agents, and higher average genome coverage for pathogens. Depletion assays added only 2 h to the NGS library preparation workflow. Custom depletion probe design offered significant cost savings (US$7–12 per sample) compared to commercial kits (US$30–50 per sample).
Black Audiences’ Identity-Focused Social Media Use, Group Vitality, and Consideration of Collective Action
Authors: Stamps David L.
Published: July 2022

Black individuals use social media at higher rates than their racial counterparts, and these relationships often promote favorable group-based outcomes. However, quantitative examinations of these relationships are lacking. Using a cross-sectional U.S. Black adult sample ( N = 295) and applying social identity gratifications, the present work examines individuals’ social media use, racial adherence, perceptions of group vitality, and motivations toward collective action. Results suggest that racial adherence positively mediates the relationship between identity-focused social media use and perceptions of group vitality. Moreover, this relationship is positively related to individuals’ motivations to engage in collective action on behalf of Black communities.
The Choice to Discriminate: How Source of Income Discrimination Constrains Opportunity for Housing Choice Voucher Holders
Authors: Hangen Forrest , O’Brien Daniel T.
Published: July 2022

The “choice” in the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program signals the mobility offered to voucher holders. However, some landlords use source of income (SOI) discrimination to exclude voucher holders—limiting their locational choices. We propose several factors likely to influence this landlord strategy including, market competitiveness, stereotypes, and racial discrimination. We examine the prevalence of express SOI discrimination and the effectiveness of SOI antidiscrimination laws. We utilize a novel dataset of 1,107,110 rental listings from the Craigslist pages of 77 mid-sized US cities. We find significant amounts of express SOI discrimination, even where there are SOI antidiscrimination laws. Using multilevel models, we find that landlords are more likely to expressly discriminate in lower-opportunity neighborhoods and when they own market-competitive units. We also find that these factors are moderated by the concentration of voucher holders. These findings underscore how landlord strategies can combine to undermine the choice afforded to voucher holders.
The effect of local random defects on the response of pantographic sheets
Authors: La Valle Gabriele , Ciallella Alessandro , Falsone Giovanni
Published: July 2022

In the last decade, pantographic structures have attracted the attention of many scientists because of their exotic mechanical behaviors. Despite several studies conducted on this field, probabilistic remarks cannot be found in the literature. This paper aims to fill this gap by providing the first stochastic study on pantographic sheets. A new simplified procedure is proposed to investigate the effects of local axial, bending, and torsional defects on their mechanical responses. The suggested approach involves a generalization of an existing theoretical result and the use of Monte Carlo simulations to derive probability density functions, mean values, standard deviations, and coefficients of variation of the random kinematic unknowns. It, surely, can be applied to any mechanical system. The achieved results allow stating that pantographic structures are not particularly affected by local random defects thanks to their redundant and complex microstructures. Moreover, the interdependencies among their substructures, beams, and pivots, make it not easy to find the positions of defects that minimize, once fixed all the other things, the randomness of the mechanical responses. A minimization problem should be solved and a work on this topic is in progress.
Age-based comparison of vascular access outcomes in maintenance hemodialysis population
Authors: Einbinder Yael , Rozenberg Ilan , Benchetrit Sydney , Raigorodetsky Michael , Cohen-Hagai Keren
Published: July 2022

Introduction:

The hemodialysis population is aging, worldwide. In Israel, more than half of the dialysis population is older than 68 years. The policy for vascular access among this population is still a matter of debate, with several studies demonstrating conflicting results. This study compared vascular access outcomes across age groups (<65, 65–75, >75 years) in a single hemodialysis center in Israel.

Methods:

This was a retrospective, single center analysis of all vascular accesses created in adult hemodialysis patients in our institution, from January 1, 2006, through December 31, 2012. Patient characteristics, primary and secondary access failure, and complications were collected from electronic medical records. Follow-up was until death or up to 5 years.

Results:

A total of 612 vascular accesses created among maintenance hemodialysis patients were included, of which 196 were in patients >75 years, 184 in patients 65–75 years, and 232 in patients <65 years. Mean age of the >75 years group was 80.5 ± 4.3 years and 60.7% were men. Vascular access site was the most important predicator for primary access failure (odds ratio for primary failure of radiocephalic arteriovenous fistula was 3.5 (95% CI 2.1–6), whereas age did not affect the primary failure rate (odds ratio 1.5, p = 0.648). Radiocephalic fistulas were more prone to secondary failure than other vascular access sites were. Complications were slightly more common in the oldest group. Eight percent of the patients >75 years died before access was used.

Conclusions:

In our cohort, age did not affect vascular outcomes, whereas VA site seemed to be the most important parameter in primary and secondary VA failures. Our results support considering VA on an individual basis and supply valuable information regarding complication and failure rates of VA among patients >75 years.
Tertiary music students’ perspectives on activist-musicianship: Approaches, challenges, and perceived role of higher music education
Authors: Coutts Leah , Hill Julia
Published: July 2022

While tertiary music programs traditionally focus on developing musicians’ craft, there is an increasing emphasis on the need to develop students’ ability to use their craft in socially engaged ways. This has led to an increase in community music, mobility programs, and performance outreach opportunities being embedded into tertiary music programs. There is also, however, potential for students to develop their craft more explicitly in service of social change through activist-musicianship, but little academic exploration into how this might be embedded into tertiary music programs. This article, through interviews and focus groups, investigates tertiary music students’ perspectives on music’s role in activism, their social values and aspirations, and perceived opportunities and challenges for musicians and tertiary music institutions. Music activism was seen to be possible through focusing on the musician as embodying the message or the music communicating the message, with repertoire choice and the degree of explicit messaging deemed important considerations regarding potential impact. Students highlighted a desire to plant seeds for change, to encourage audience members to become aware of and question unconscious biases and values, and to spark ongoing conversations. Within their programs, students expressed a desire for more autonomy in repertoire selection, for training on the inclusion of extra-musical features to support messaging, and for strong integration and alignment of academic and performance courses that could provide opportunities to practice activist-musicianship as part of their programs. Further to this, there are a range of ethical considerations educators need to be mindful of, which are outlined throughout this article. Insights shared highlight a need for further understanding of the activist-musician and how associated skill sets and opportunities might be embedded within existing tertiary music programs.
‘The key to this is not so much the technology. It’s the individual who is using the technology’: Perspectives on telehealth delivery for autistic adults during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Ali Dorota , O’Brien Sarah , Hull Laura , Kenny Lorcan , Mandy Will
Published: July 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted a large-scale move to remote delivery of healthcare services. However, little research has directly explored telehealth experiences of autistic adults, a population strongly affected by health inequalities and care access barriers. This study sought telehealth experiences of 11 autistic adults (aged 27–67 years), seven family members/carers (aged 44–75) reporting about autistic people and six service providers. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with all participants, which were then thematically analysed. Two over-arching themes identified were technology aids communication and access – except when it doesn’t, and in/flexibility, with a number of sub-themes. The themes, on one hand, highlighted positives of telehealth delivery, including easing some aspects of communication and decreased stress and, on the other hand, negatives, such as increased rigidity of the healthcare system, amplifying pre-existing barriers. Considering autistic people experience barriers to accessing healthcare, this study highlights such barriers could be, in some instances, addressed via remote delivery, as well as possible limitations of telehealth for some autistic adults.

Lay abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic meant that a lot of healthcare services had to move online, such as to video-calls, or to telephone. However, not many studies have looked at how autistic adults feel about this kind of service delivery. It is important to know this, as autistic people may have poorer health than non-autistic people, and they may also struggle to access services more than non-autistic people. This study asked 11 autistic adults (aged 27–67 years), seven family members/carers (aged 44–75) reporting about autistic adults and six service providers about their experiences of accessing or providing a telehealth service. These experiences were collected through interviews, which were then analysed through thematic analysis. Two main themes were: technology aids communication and access – except when it doesn’t, and in/flexibility. The themes pointed out some positive aspects of telehealth delivery, including improved communication and decreased stress. The themes also pointed out negative aspects of telehealth, such as increased rigidity of the healthcare system, amplifying pre-existing barriers. Because autistic people have many barriers to accessing healthcare, this study encourages researchers and healthcare providers to think about how such barriers could be addressed through telehealth, and about the possible limitations of telehealth for some autistic people.
It’s a Sin: AIDS as incipient crisis
Authors: Griffin Hollis
Published: July 2022

The HBO miniseries It’s a Sin (2021) offers viewers a kind of social history of the AIDS epidemic in the U.K. Across its five episodes, the program depicts ordinary people’s first encounters with the pandemic as they manage misinformation, overcome their disbelief, and, eventually, come to terms with the shock and trauma of its impact on the gay male communities of 1980s-era London. The result is a program in which viewers are asked to question how they might have navigated past events under such circumstances, a period in which a mysterious illness moved from the shadowy periphery to the very center of a community’s existence.
Development and axial behavior of precast concrete wrapped square steel tube columns
Authors: Li Xingqian , Huang Shimin , Xu Shengbo , Zhang Xizhi , Zhang Shaohua , Yan Jia-Bao
Published: July 2022

Conventional thin-walled square steel tube columns are vulnerable to local buckling, carbon steel is susceptible to corrosion, and complicated fireproof measures increase the maintenance expenditures. As a result, a novel composite component, namely precast concrete wrapped square steel tube (PCWST) column is developed in this study. Seven PCWST columns subjected to axial compression load were investigated experimentally with different width-to-thickness ratios, specimen sizes, types and configurations of shear connectors in comparison to three square steel tube columns. The distinctive behavior of PCWST columns and square steel tube columns included failure modes, axial load-axial shortening responses, stiffness, buckling respond, load-carrying capacity and ductility were compared. Based on experimental results, nonlinear finite element (FE) models with full detailing were established and validated. Meanwhile, a simplified formula for predicting the load-carrying capacity of PCWST columns was proposed. Tested and simulated results show that steel tube and reinforced concrete (RC) encasement worked together for PCWST columns, and the head studs and the developed kinked rebars can enhance their interaction. The existing of RC encasement dramatically improves stiffness and load-carrying capacity, and it also delays the occurrence of local buckling of steel tubes.
Nonlinear dynamics of the rotor system with a floating raft isolation structure under the coupled motion of ship heaving and rolling
Authors: Xie Xuan , Li Ming , Wang Junwei , Zhu Leilei
Published: July 2022

A floating raft isolation structure is adopted to reduce the vibration of the marine rotor-bearing system, however, the system on the moving hull will be affected by the ship implicate motion, and its vibration will be difficult to predict. In this study, a dynamic model of the system under heaving and rolling coupled motion is established after considering the nonlinear oil film reaction force, unbalance inertia force, restoring force of the structure and inertia force of the ship motion. A numerical method is introduced to present the responses of the system, such as the amplitude and rotating speed curve, waterfall diagrams, and the rotor orbit and its Poincaré maps, etc. Moreover, the effects of rotating speed, amplitudes and frequencies of the coupled motion on the dynamic behaviours of the system are studied. The results indicate that the unstable region of rotating speed of the system increases under the coupled motion, the vibration of the system is greatly affected by the parameters of coupled motion, and the vibration amplitudes of rotor and raft can be effectively limited due to the displacement restrictor.
Impact of rotating magnetic field on the microstructure, thermal properties, and creep behavior during the solidification of Sn–2.0Ag–0.5Cu solder alloy
Authors: Hammad A.E. , El-Molla Sara , Ragab M.
Published: July 2022

Recently, the application of the magnetic field during the solidification process of alloys has become of great interest, owing to its ability to enhance microstructures. Hence, the present work aims to study the impact of a rotating magnetic field on the microstructure, thermal, and creep properties of the Sn–2.0Ag–0.5Cu (SAC205) alloy during solidification. Results demonstrated that applying a rotary magnetic field homogenized the distribution of intermetallic compounds and improved the microstructure. Additionally, the magnetic field diminished undercooling from 22.5 oC to 11.4 oC, indicating that the magnetic field is very useful in enhancing the microstructure and the alloy’s reliability. The pasty range values for SAC205 and SAC205-B were 7.2 oC and 8.6 oC lower than 11.0 oC for lead-tin, leading to a reduction of the alloy porosity. The SAC205-B alloy exhibited the longest creep rupture time of 158.5% compared to the SAC205. The n values of SAC205-B were higher than those of SAC205. Consequently, the SAC205-B alloy displayed the highest creep resistance and lowest creep rate (28.53%) compared to the SAC205. The Q values were 51.2 and 67.5 kJ/mol for SAC205 and SAC205-B, respectively, controlled by pipe diffusion. This research will provide practical advice for the manufacture of the solder alloy.
The association among neighborhood mutual support, well-being, and social work
Authors: Yang Hualei , Zhang Wenchao , Wu Yuanyang , Yao Yidan , Su Mohan
Published: July 2022

With the increase in urbanization in China, people's neighborhood has an important influence on their well-being. This study aims to explore the impact of neighborhood mutual support on well-being from the perspective of social work. A total of 13,486 samples from the 2016 China Labor-force Dynamics Survey were utilized. The data were analyzed by the ordered logit model and propensity score matching while controlling for individual, family, and socioeconomic features.

Findings

(1) The more the neighborhood mutual support, the higher individuals' degree of well-being; this conclusion is robust. 2) Neighborhood mutual support has a larger improvement effect on the well-being of groups with low social status. (3) Neighborhood mutual support improves well-being through two mechanisms: it can grow an individual's support network, helping them obtain more material support, and it enhances individuals' integration into society, improving their well-being through increased feelings of community security. (4) The influence of neighborhood mutual support is weakened when a community has formal social support (full-time social workers) because individuals can resolve their problems through formal social support, reducing their reliance on neighbors.

Applications

Based on the perspective of community development, understanding the influence of neighborhood mutual support on well-being is important. Social workers should adopt different intervention approaches according to characteristics of different groups to improve residents' level of neighborhood mutual support. Moreover, to promote community development, the government should consider arranging social work for less-developed communities.
Automatic pixel-level detection method for concrete crack with channel-spatial attention convolution neural network
Authors: Li Yuanyuan , Yu Meng , Wu Decheng , Li Rui , Xu Kefei , Cheng Longqi
Published: July 2022

Concrete crack detection is a significant research problem in structural safety. However, the traditional manual inspection is a laborious and time-consuming method, and the detection accuracy is greatly limited by the work experience of engineers. Hence, automatic image-based crack detection has attracted wide attention from both academia and industry. In this study, a novel crack detection method using attention convolution neural networks, ATCrack, is proposed for automatic crack identification. ATCrack uses a symmetric structure consisting of an encoder and a decoder by imposing channel-spatial attention to achieve end-to-end crack prediction. Channel attention module is introduced in the encoder to improve the effective utilization of crack features, and spatial attention is added in the decoder to suppress the background features. Combining with channel and spatial attention modules, the codec network will be more sensitive to the characteristics of cracks and increase detection accuracy and robustness. Moreover, a complex crack dataset of buildings and pavements is collected to verify the effectiveness and feasibility of ATCrack. Finally, experiment results are tested on several public datasets and self-collected (CBCrack) database, and it shows that the proposed method during the five-fold cross-validation can achieve state-of-the-art performance compared with other existing methods in terms of precision, recall, F1-score, and mIoU.
Image-guided in-Vivo Needle-Based Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy in the Prostate: Safety and Feasibility Study in 2 Patients
Authors: van Riel Luigi A.M.J.G. , Swaan Abel , Mannaerts Christophe K. , van Kollenburg Rob A.A. , Savci Heijink C. Dilara , de Reijke Theo M. , de Bruin Daniel M. , Freund Jan Erik
Published: July 2022

Purpose: To assess the safety and technical feasibility of in-vivo needle-based forward-looking confocal laser endomicroscopy in prostate tissue. Methods: For this feasibility study, 2 patients with a suspicion of prostate cancer underwent transperineal needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy during ultrasound-guided transperineal template mapping biopsies. After intravenous administration of fluorescein, needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy imaging was performed with a forward-looking probe (outer diameter 0.9 mm) in 2 trajectories during a manual push-forward and pullback motion. A biopsy was taken in a coregistered parallel adjacent trajectory to the confocal laser endomicroscopy trajectory for histopathologic comparison. Peri- and postprocedural adverse events, confocal laser endomicroscopy device malfunction and procedural failures were recorded. Needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy image quality assessment, image interpretation, and histology were performed by an experienced confocal laser endomicroscopy rater and uro-pathologist, blinded to any additional information. Results: In both patients, no peri- and post-procedural adverse events were reported following needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy. No confocal laser endomicroscopy device malfunction nor procedural failures were reported. Within 1.5 min after intravenous administration of fluorescein, needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy image quality was sufficient for interpretation for at least 14 min, yielding more than 5000 confocal laser endomicroscopy frames per patient. The pullback confocal laser endomicroscopy recordings and most of the push-forward recordings almost only visualized erythrocytes, being classified as non-representative. During the push-forward recordings, prostate tissue was occasionally visualized in single frames, insufficient for histopathologic comparison. Prostate carcinoma was identified by biopsy in one patient (Gleason score 4 + 3 = 7, >50%), while the biopsy from the other patient showed no malignancy. Conclusion: Needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy imaging of in-vivo prostate tissue with a forward-looking confocal laser endomicroscopy probe is safe without device malfunctions or procedural failures. Needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy is technically feasible, but the acquired confocal laser endomicroscopy datasets are non-representative. The confocal laser endomicroscopy images’ non-representative nature is possibly caused by bleeding artifacts, movement artifacts and a lack of contact time with the tissue of interest. A different confocal laser endomicroscopy probe or procedure might yield representative images of prostatic tissue.
Simultaneous Individual Complicated Grief Treatment With a Couple
Authors: Kalakovic Sanela , Katte Kyra , Smith Brooke M. , Gaynor Scott T.
Published: July 2022

Persistent complex bereavement/complicated grief occurs when, after a period of 12 months following a death, there remains an ongoing intense yearning and sorrow for the deceased, preoccupation with the death and its circumstances, difficulty accepting its reality, and disruption in personal identity. This case study illustrates the successful application of Complicated Grief Treatment (CGT), a manualized research-supported intervention, with a husband and wife each receiving individual therapy simultaneously with separate clinicians. The core of CGT involves graded completion of imaginal and situational revisiting (i.e., exposure) exercises. To target maladaptive rumination and counterfactual thinking more explicitly, strategies from a research-based treatment for trauma, Cognitive Processing Therapy, were also incorporated for one member of the couple. To our knowledge, CGT has not been examined with couples receiving individual therapy delivered simultaneously. As such, practitioners have little information about how to proceed with cases where multiple members of the same family are experiencing complicated grief. We will detail the treatment provided, outlining the course of care for each member of the couple, highlighting unique adjustments made to tailor implementation to each individual and to deliver the intervention simultaneously. Quantitative and qualitative data show the effects of treatment on symptoms of complicated grief, depression, and relationship satisfaction.
Is in-Shoe Microclimate a Neglected Contributor in the Pathway to Diabetic Foot Ulceration?
Authors: Mizzi S. , Swaine I. , Springett K.
Published: July 2022

The identification of the key contributing factors which predispose the foot to ulceration, increasing the risk of recurrence and slow wound healing in diabetes mellitus (DM), has led to some significant research studies over the last 30 years, providing valuable insight into the mechanism leading to diabetic foot ulceration (DFU). Although, these contributory factors are similar to those identified in pressure ulceration occurring in other parts of the body (such as “bed pressure sores’) where magnitude and/or duration of mechanical stress in the presence of sensory deficits are key causal factors, research investigating pressure ulceration has also included measurement of temperature and relative humidity at the interface between the skin and supporting surface. The possible influence of these parameters (in-shoe temperature and humidity) does not appear frequently in diabetic foot ulceration research. Referred to as “microclimate”, this has an important role in the pathway to tissue breakdown evidenced in pressure ulcer research and may be particularly relevant in countries with warm and humid climates. As the microclimate is influential in the ulceration pathway for other body sites, its role in the DFU causal pathway justifies further investigation.
Public administration at a crossroad: Five enduring challenges
Authors: Holzer Marc
Published: July 2022

The field of public administration has long promised to produce a wide range of services, and for millennia government did so. However, in the course of the last 50 years, public trust has declined precipitously in the US. The public sector faces five crosscutting challenges in reversing that decline. Although the public sector does produce at a high level, there are serious deficiencies in the utilization of human resources, in making the case for government performance to the public, in identifying innovations that could enhance services, in speaking to the agendas of elected officials, in confronting the naïve assumptions of the business model of government, and in empowering bureaucratic resistors to help avoid disastrous decisions.
Indigenous Conflict Management and Contemporary Water Resource Governance in Rural Zimbabwe
Authors: Shoko Evans
Published: July 2022

Indigenous conflict management has been a key feature of pre- and post-colonial African societies in managing varied community disputes related to natural resources. In Zimbabwe, the Dare, the traditional court works similarly. However, there have been few insights on the effectiveness of indigenous community-based mechanisms in managing primary water conflicts. The paper argues that although there are widespread and varied water conflicts within the rural setting, the grassroots nature, combined with simple and clear procedures of the traditional court systems makes it a viable option in managing emergent primary water conflicts at the community level. There is a need to synchronise this indigenous community-based conflict management mechanism with the state-run judicial system. However, the operation of the indigenous conflict management mechanism within the framework of competitive African politics has made it vulnerable to political intrusions. Water governance, using traditional court systems would likely benefit from equal gender representation in the decision-making structures.
Branding devices in place: Neoliberal academic event posters in a Hong Kong university
Authors: Huang Corey Fanglei
Published: July 2022

Operating as a hegemonic, market-driven governmentality, neoliberalism has been colonizing academic institutions and academic professionals’ everyday lives globally. This article demonstrates how several sets of academic event posters displayed at a public Hong Kong university work as spatialized multimodal branding devices that discursively entangle certain types of individuals, activities, institutions, and political economy under a specific mode of neoliberal governmentality. It shows that the posters position the university and its academic units as internationally competitive, Global-North-oriented knowledge enterprises in a mutually shaping relationship with a globalized neoliberal political economy par excellence in Asia. The study signals the need for research on neoliberal academic discourses to pay closer attention to the spatialized, multi-semiotic nature of discursive practices and the multi-layered institutional, politico-economic and cultural contexts in which the neoliberal discourses are situated.
Spain’s democratic anxieties through the lens of Franco’s reburial
Authors: Wildeboer Schut Rachelle , Dujisin Zoltán
Published: July 2022

Through a qualitative content analysis of an ideologically representative sample of influential media outlets in Spain, this article identifies three principal discursive frameworks surrounding Franco’s exhumation. These frameworks expressed not only deep disagreements over the direction of Spain’s regime of remembrance, but reflected deeper anxieties over the state of a democracy in crisis. More broadly, this analysis responds to calls to engage with journalistic sources in the memory studies literature, while illustrating the role of collective memory in collapsing past, present, and future in the articulation of political identities.
Reliability of the KiSprint force starting block to evaluate different push-off variables in high-level sprinters
Authors: Garcia-Ramos Amador , Mirkov Dragan M , Knežević Olivera M , Čoh Milan , Šarabon Nejc
Published: July 2022

This study aimed to determine the within- and between-session reliability of different variables collected during the starting block phase with the KiSprint force starting block and to identify the number of trials that maximise the reliability of the measurement. Thirty high-level sprinters (23 men and 7 women) completed two sessions separated by 1 week. The first session consisted of two sets of five sprints and the second session of one set of five sprints. Outcomes of each set were calculated as Aver3 (average of the first three sprints), Aver5 (average of the five sprints) and CENTRAL (average of the three central sprints). The instrumented sprint starting blocks (KiSprint system) served to record a total of 20 push-off variables. Within-session reliability was acceptable (coefficient of variation (CV)<15%; intraclass correlation coefficient >0.70) for 103 out of 117 comparisons and between-session reliability was acceptable for 60 out of 117 comparisons. Aver5 provided a lower CV (within-session: 4.8% ± 2.9%; between-session: 13.0% ± 6.4%) than Aver3 (within-session: 8.2% ± 6.6% (CV ratio = 1.72); between-session: 14.5% ± 7.1% (CV ratio = 1.11)) and CENTRAL (within-session: 5.3% ± 3.6% (CV ratio = 1.10); between-session: 15.2% ± 9.7% (CV ratio = 1.17)). These results indicate that the KiSprint system can collect several variables with acceptable reliability in high-level sprinters, while the Aver5 procedure is recommended to maximise the reliability of the measurement.
Potential role of biochemical markers in the prognosis of COVID-19 patients
Authors: Niraula Apeksha , Baral Nirmal , Lamsal Madhab , Bataju Mahima , Thapa Saroj
Published: July 2022

The global pandemic due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has posed an overall threat to modern medicine. The course of the disease is uncertain with varying forms of presentation that cannot be managed solely with clinical skills and vigor. Since its inception, laboratory medicine forms a backbone for the proper diagnosis, treatment, monitoring, and prediction of the severity of the disease. Clinical biochemistry, an integral component of laboratory medicine, has been an unsung hero in the disease prognosis and severity assessment in COVID-19. This review attempts to highlight the biomarkers which have shown a significant role and can be used in the identification, stratification, and prediction of disease severity in COVID-19 patients. It also highlights the basis of the use of these biomarkers in the disease course and their implications.
Safety evaluation of antibacterial and analgesic autoinjector devices for rapid administration during emergency situations: a crossover study in rabbits
Authors: Vijayaraghavan Rajagopalan , Senthilkumar Sivanesan , Roy Anitha , Sheela Durairajan , Geetha Royapuram Veeraragavan , Magesh Anitha
Published: July 2022

Objective:

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the safety and tolerability of autoinjector devices (AIDs) in rabbits by intramuscular (i.m.) administration, using haematological and biochemical markers.

Introduction:

Emergency and mass casualty situations require immediate drug delivery for which AIDs are preferred. The tolerability of amikacin as antibacterial and buprenorphine as analgesic AID has been studied in rats by intraperitoneal administration. In the present study, it was evaluated in rabbits by i.m. administration.

Methods:

Water-filled glass cartridges (2.3–2.4 mL) were converted to amikacin (106 mg/mL) and buprenorphine (0.128 mg/mL) cartridges. Dual dose AID was used for i.m. administration (1.2 mL). The study was done as a crossover design on 12 rabbits. Initially, three rabbits each were given manually or AID, 57 mg/kg amikacin, and three rabbits each by manual or by AID, 0.07 mg/kg buprenorphine for 7 days. After 1 month, the injections were changed in the rabbits. In the place of manual injection, AID and in the place of amikacin, buprenorphine injection was given. This ensured that all rabbits received 14 injections, 7 manual and 7 AID consisting of 7 amikacin and 7 buprenorphine. 24 h before and 24 h after last drug administrations, blood was withdrawn from ear vein for haematological and biochemical estimations.

Results:

The rabbits were healthy, active and no sign of any injection-related changes were observed after administration of amikacin and buprenorphine by manually or by AID. The haematological and biochemical parameters showed similar changes in manual and AID administration of amikacin and buprenorphine.

Conclusion:

The present study of amikacin and buprenorphine by AID shows the safety of the device and is recommended for further experimentation. These AIDs are intended for self-administration during emergency and mass causality situation and are suitable for adults and children, as well as farm and pet animals.
Challenges in inpatient care coordinators’ clinical workflow and opportunities in designing a health IT solution: A mixed methods study
Authors: Wu Danny TY , Murdock Paul , Vennemeyer Scott , Mynatt Janie M , Chih Ming-Yuan
Published: July 2022

Introduction

Inpatient care coordinators (ICCs) in the United States play a critical role in case management and care transition. ICCs spend a large amount of time in chart review and documentation through electronic health record (EHR) systems. However, significant knowledge gaps exist regarding their workflow barriers and their use of health information technology (Health IT). Using only quantitative or quantitative methods does not provide a comprehensive picture about ICC’s workflow due to its complex and dynamic nature. This work aimed to address this gap by conducting a mixed-methods study to understand the workflow of ICCs and identifying challenges in care deliver and documentation activities.

Methods

The study adopted a concurrent triangulation design including qualitative interviews with 12 ICC staff members in the United States followed by extraction of their EHR event logs for one month. The qualitative interview data were analyzed thematically, and the log data were analyzed statistically. The results were triangulated and interpreted.

Results

Three major workflow barriers faced by ICCs were identified: long travel time, heavy documentation load, and suboptimal communication. The event logs provided empirical evidence to support the workflow barriers identified in the interviews, especially in travel time and documentation load.

Discussion

ICC workflow has several inefficiencies. The study generated four design considerations to develop a Health IT solution: Mobility, EHR integration, Team-based Communication, and User Adoption to improve workflow efficiency and care coordination. Using a mixed-methods approach is effective and efficient in collecting and analyzing clinical workflow.
Three central triggers for the emergence of Central and Eastern European anti-gender alliances
Authors: Fábián Katalin
Published: July 2022

The anti-gender movements began in the West but have thus far been most influential and governmentally supported in Hungary, Poland and Russia. Anti-genderism has served multiple functions to entrench what proponents label as traditional values, while promoting specific class and racialised interests in the cloak of rejecting both the communist past and Western European political and social expectations. Why did anti-genderism develop and become pronounced in otherwise different post-communist countries? This article traces the origins of these movements based on news coverage and scholarly sources, arguing that anti-gender movements signal authoritarian trends and thus matter deeply for open, democratic societies. The Hungarian, Polish and Russian cases offer similar but distinct variations in the political trajectory of their respective movements, highlighting the feedback between conservative, expressively patriarchal, and populist forces and their embracing of anti-genderism.
Fast Tracking Assessment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Tertiary Care
Authors: Burrows Katherine , Rysdyk Sarah
Published: July 2022

Current pediatric practice guidelines recommend children with complex attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) receive a psychological evaluation. However, obtaining such an evaluation in a timely manner can be difficult. The authors present a framework for an economical, efficient, and efficacious approach to diagnosing complex ADHD based on a 5-year project to “fast track” these types of assessments in a tertiary care setting. Patients were triaged to the “fast track” for a streamlined assessment, by a psychologist, within a developmental pediatrics center. Assessment data, diagnoses, and recommendations were recorded for 79 participants. For most of the children, not only was ADHD confirmed, but diagnostic criteria were also met for at least one comorbid condition. For 64% of children the diagnostic picture changed, resulting in an ADHD diagnosis with corresponding changes to treatment planning. Fast track programming cut the wait time for evaluations in half. Preliminary data shows it is possible to clarify diagnoses for this complex population and provide much needed treatment recommendations in a timelier manner through utilization of a “fast track” approach to triage and assessment.
Challenges and solutions to the implementation of studies within a trial: The experiences of the PROMETHEUS programme
Authors: Arundel Catherine E , Clark Laura , Coleman Elizabeth , Doherty Laura , Parker Adwoa , Torgerson David J
Published: July 2022

Background

Effective and efficient conduct of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) ensures accurate, timely results and prevents research waste. There is however limited evidence available to inform the design, conduct and reporting of RCTs. A self-contained, randomised Study Within A Trial (SWAT), embedded within a host RCT or cohort study, offers an opportunity to fill this evidence gap. While SWATs are generally easy to implement, a range of challenges to undertaking SWATs have also been identified, however there is limited detail regarding practical solutions to tackle these.

Methods

Information and observations collected from PROMETHEUS members and participating trials, focusing on SWATs across a wide range of questions and settings, was reviewed to identify the challenges and solutions of delivery of a programme of SWATs.

Results

A range of challenges to undertaking SWATs (e.g., obtaining governance approvals) were identified along with potential solutions to these, which were implemented accordingly during programme delivery. Central to the solutions to resolve SWAT challenges is education to develop knowledge and understanding in the wider research community on the importance, purpose, and key methodological principles in relation to SWATs. In addition, the sharing of experience, best practice or resources to prevent or help negotiate the barriers to undertaking SWAT evaluation is also recommended.

Conclusions

Potential solutions to the barriers experienced in the design, conduct and implementation of a programme of SWATs have been identified. As more SWATs are completed, this will further develop evidence to support the mitigation or removal of barriers and in doing so this should increase the efficiency of randomised controlled trials.
Effects of the media conditioned by various macrophage subtypes derived from THP-1 cells on tunneling nanotube formation in pancreatic cancer cells
Authors: Lee Chia-Wei , Kuo Chia-Chen , Liang Chi-Jung , Pan Huei-Jyuan , Shen Chia-Ning , Lee Chau-Hwang
Published: July 2022

Background

Tunneling nanotubes (TNTs) are special membrane structures for intercellular communications. Vital cargoes (such as mitochondria) could be delivered from healthy cells to rescue damaged ones through TNTs. The TNTs could be utilized for the purpose of systematic delivery of therapeutic agents between cells. However, there are insufficient studies on the controlled enhancement of TNT formations. The purpose of this study is to understand how macrophages influence the TNT formation in cancer cells.

Results

Here we compared the capabilities of inducing TNTs in human pancreatic cancer cells (PANC-1) of the media conditioned by M0, M1 and M2 macrophages derived from THP-1 cells. The M0 and M1 macrophage conditioned media promoted TNT formation. Using a focused ion beam to cut through a TNT, we observed tunnel-like structures inside dense cytoskeletons with scanning electron microscopy. The TNT formation correlated with raised motility, invasion, and epithelial–mesenchymal transition in the PANC-1 cells. Mitochondria and lysosomes were also found to be transported in the TNTs.

Conclusions

These results suggest that TNT formation could be one of the responses to the immune stress in pancreatic cancer cells caused by M0 and M1 macrophages. This finding is valuable for the development of macrophage-targeting cancer therapy.
Evaluation of nine statistics to identify QTLs in bulk segregant analysis using next generation sequencing approaches
Authors: de la Fuente Cantó Carla , Vigouroux Yves
Published: July 2022

Background

Bulk segregant analysis (BSA) combined with next generation sequencing is a powerful tool to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL). The impact of the size of the study population and the percentage of extreme genotypes analysed have already been assessed. But a good comparison of statistical approaches designed to identify QTL regions using next generation sequencing (NGS) technologies for BSA is still lacking.

Results

We developed an R code to simulate QTLs in bulks of F2 contrasted lines. We simulated a range of recombination rates based on estimations using different crop species. The simulations were used to benchmark the ability of statistical methods identify the exact location of true QTLs. A single QTL led to a shift in allele frequency across a large fraction of the chromosome for plant species with low recombination rate. The smoothed version of all statistics performed best notably the smoothed Euclidean distance-based statistics was always found to be more accurate in identifying the location of QTLs. We propose a simulation approach to build confidence interval statistics for the detection of QTLs.

Conclusion

We highlight the statistical methods best suited for BSA studies using NGS technologies in crops even when recombination rate is low. We also provide simulation codes to build confidence intervals and to assess the impact of recombination for application to other studies. This computational study will help select NGS-based BSA statistics that are useful to the broad scientific community.