bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Financial burden and financial aid for medical students in Singapore: a national survey across all three medical schools
Authors: Tan YTW , Sayampanathan AA , Chidambaram K , Koh YQ , Fong JM , Low JRI , Ng CL , Tambyah PA
Published: June 2020

INTRODUCTION Singapore has had three medical schools since 2013. We undertook a cross-sectional quantitative national survey to determine the financial impact of medical education on medical students in Singapore. METHODS All 1,829 medical students in Singapore were invited to participate in this study. Information on demographics, financial aid utilisation and outside work was collected and analysed. RESULTS 1,241 (67.9%) of 1,829 students participated in the survey. While the overall proportion of students from households with monthly incomes < SGD 3,000 was only 21.2% compared to the national figure of 31.4%, 85.4% of medical students expected to graduate with debts > SGD 75,000. There were significant differences in per capita incomes among the schools, with 54.5%, 23.3% and 7.8% of Duke-NUS Medical School (Duke-NUS), NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (NUS Medicine) and Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine) students, respectively, reporting a per capita income of < SGD 1,000 (p < 0.001). There were significant differences in financial support: 75.0%, 34.1% and 38.8% of Duke-NUS, NUS Medicine and LKCMedicine students, respectively, received financial aid (p < 0.001). The top reasons for not applying for aid included a troublesome application process (21.4%) and the perception that it would be too difficult to obtain (21.0%). CONCLUSION Students in the three medical schools in Singapore differ in their financial needs and levels of financial support received. A national approach to funding medical education may be needed to ensure that financial burdens do not hamper the optimal training of doctors for Singapore’s future.
Comparative Study on the Antibacterial Activity and Efficacy of Linezolid and Vancomycin in Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Rat Pneumonia Model
Authors: Hou Sicong , Zhou Li , Wu Hongying
Published: June 2020

Methieillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) can lead to pneumonia and septicemia with a rising incidence. As the first choice drug of MRSA, vancomycin causes more side effects and reduces sensitivity. Oxazolidinone antibiotics linezolid is confirmed to be used in the treatment
of MRSA infection. This study compared the antibacterial activity and efficacy of linezolid and vancomycin on rat MRSA pneumonia model. SD rats were randomly separated into pneumonia group; vancomycin group and linezolid group. Survival rate was calculated and compared. PaO2 and
pH were tested by blood gas analysis. Pulmonary wet/dry (W/D) ratio was determined. Serum TNF-α and IL-1β contents were detected by ELISA. Colony counting was performed by pulmonary tissue homogenate. Diameter of inhibition zone was measured. Minimum inhibition concentration
(MIC) was evaluated by broth microdilution method. Both vancomycin and linezolid significantly improved survival rate, elevated PaO2 and pH, decreased W/D, and reduced TNF-α and IL-1β (P < 0.05). Bacterial inhibition diameter was 28±2 mm,
colony counting was 22±6, and MIC was 1.2±0.3 μg/ml in linezolid group, which was obviously than that bacterial inhibition diameter at 21±3 mm, colony counting at 85±12, and MIC at 2.5±0.7 μg/ml in vancomycin group (P < 0.05).
Both vancomycin and linezolid can treat MRSA pneumonia, inhibit inflammation, and improve survival rate. Linezolid exhibited stronger antibacterial action than vancomycin.
LncRNA Maternally Expressed 3 (MEG3) Reduces Cell Proliferation and Promotes Cell Apoptosis in Rat Synovial Cell Line 364 (RSC-364) Cells via Stimulating Phosphatase and Tensin Homolog (PTEN) Expression
Authors: Zhou Zhengxin , Zhu Lei , Li Liang , Kang Jinping , Liu Tao , Han Shiding
Published: June 2020

Previous studies have shown that both lncRNA MEG3 and PTEN inhibits cell proliferation and promotes cell apoptosis. However, it is not known whether lncRNA MEG3 can affect PTEN expression. We aimed to study whether lncRNA MEG3 can regulate the proliferation and apoptosis of rat synoviocytes
via modulating PTEN expression. RSC-364 rat synoviocytes were cultured in vitro, and treated with PBS (NC group) or lncRNAMEG3-overexpressing lentivirus (LncRNA MEG3 group). LncRNA MEG3 and PTEN mRNA expression was detected by qRT-PCR. PTEN, Cyclin D1, P21, Bcl-2 and Tubulin level was
detected by Western blotting. Cell proliferation was evaluated by MTT assay. Cell apoptosis was evaluated using FITC/PI double staining. Compared to NC group, LncRNA MEG3 group had significantly elevated lncRNA MEG3 and PTEN level (both p < 0.05), reduced cell proliferation (p
< 0.05), increased apoptosis (p < 0.05), as well as downregulated Cyclin D1 and Bcl-2 and upregulated P21 (all p < 0.05). LncRNA MEG3 reduces proliferation and promotes apoptosis of RSC-364 cells via stimulating PTEN expression.
Effect of Silent Information Regulator on the Survival and Osteogenic Differentiation of Inflammatory Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells by Regulating NF-κB Signaling Pathway
Authors: Lu Wenkun , Wang Tao , Gao Xunjian , Yang Fuqiang , Ge Jianjian
Published: June 2020

Osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs is beneficial for osteoarthritis (OA) treatment. Silent information regulator (SIRT1) plays a role in endocrine diseases and aging-related diseases. However, the role of SIRT1 in OA has not yet been elucidated. Rat BMSCs were isolated and divided
into control group, inflammation group (BMSCs were cultured with IL-6), SIRT1 group (SIRT1 agonist Resveratrol was added under the action of IL-6) followed by analysis of cell proliferation by MTT assay, Caspase 3 activity, ALP activity, expression of osteogenic genes Runx2 and OC and adipogenic
differentiation gene PPARγ2 by Real time PCR, NF-κB expression by western blot and secretion of TNF-α and IL-6 by ELISA. In inflammation group, SIRT1 expression was significantly decreased, cell proliferation was significantly inhibited, and Caspase 3
activity was increased. Meanwhile, ALP activity, Runx2 and OC expression was decreased, PPARγ2 and NF-κB expression was increased, along with elevated TNF-α and IL-6 secretion compared to control (P < 0.05). Resveratrol can significantly promote
the expression of SIRT1 in BMSCs of inflammation group, promote cell proliferation, decrease Caspase 3 activity, and increase Runx2 and OC expression. In addition, it decreased PPARγ2 and NF-κB expression and reduced the secretion of TNF-α and IL-6 (P
< 0.05). The expression of SIRT1 was decreased in BMSCs under inflammation. SIRT1 overexpression in BMSCs under inflammation inhibits inflammation, promotes proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs through regulating NF-κB signaling pathway.
Dynamic Effect of Last Glacial Maximum Ice Sheet Topography on the East Asian Summer Monsoon
Authors: Gao Yu , Liu Zhengyu , Lu Zhengyao
Published: June 2020

The effect of ice sheet topography on the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) during the Last Glacial Maximum is studied using CCSM3 in a hierarchy of model configurations. It is found that receding ice sheets result in a weakened EASM, with the reduced ice sheet thickness playing a major role. The lower ice sheet topography weakens the EASM through shifting the position of the midlatitude jet, and through altering Northern Hemisphere stationary waves. In the jet shifting mechanism, the lowering of ice sheets shifts the westerly jet northward and decreases the westerly jet over the subtropics in summer, which reduces the advection of dry enthalpy and in turn precipitation over the EASM region. In the stationary wave mechanism, the lowering of ice sheets induces an anomalous stationary wave train along the westerly waveguide that propagates into the EASM region, generating an equivalent-barotropic low response; this leads to reduced lower-tropospheric southerlies, which in turn reduces the dry enthalpy advection into East Asia, and hence the EASM precipitation.
Fingerprints for Early Detection of Changes in the AMOC
Authors: Jackson L. C. , Wood R. A.
Published: June 2020

Different strategies have been proposed in previous studies for monitoring the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC). As well as arrays to directly monitor the AMOC strength, various fingerprints have been suggested to represent an aspect of the AMOC based on properties such as temperature and density. The additional value of fingerprints potentially includes the ability to detect a change earlier than a change in the AMOC itself, the ability to extend a time series back into the past, and the ability to detect crossing a threshold. In this study we select metrics that have been proposed as fingerprints in previous studies and evaluate their ability to detect AMOC changes in a number of scenarios (internal variability, weakening from increased greenhouse gases, weakening from hosing and hysteresis) in the eddy-permitting coupled climate model HadGEM3-GC2. We find that the metrics that perform best are the temperature metrics based on large-scale differences, the large-scale meridional density gradient, and the vertical density difference in the Labrador Sea. The best metric for monitoring the AMOC depends somewhat on the processes driving the change. Hence the best strategy would be to consider multiple fingerprints to provide early detection of all likely AMOC changes.
A Physically Based Multisensor Quantitative Precipitation Estimation Approach for Gap-Filling Radar Coverage
Authors: Martinaitis Steven M. , Osborne Andrew P. , Simpson Micheal J. , Zhang Jian , Howard Kenneth W. , Cocks Stephen B. , Arthur Ami , Langston Carrie , Kaney Brian T.
Published: June 2020

Weather radars and gauge observations are the primary observations to determine the coverage and magnitude of precipitation; however, radar and gauge networks have significant coverage gaps, which can underrepresent or even miss the occurrence of precipitation. This is especially noticeable in mountainous regions and in shallow precipitation regimes. The following study presents a methodology to improve spatial representations of precipitation by seamlessly blending multiple precipitation sources within the Multi-Radar Multi-Sensor (MRMS) system. A high spatiotemporal resolution multisensor merged quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) product (MSQPE) is generated by using gauge-corrected radar QPE as a primary precipitation source with a combination of hourly gauge observations, monthly precipitation climatologies, numerical weather prediction short-term precipitation forecasts, and satellite observations to use in areas of insufficient radar coverage. The merging of the precipitation sources is dependent upon radar coverage based on an updated MRMS radar quality index, surface and atmospheric conditions, topography, gauge locations, and precipitation values. Evaluations of the MSQPE product over the western United States resulted in improved statistical measures over its individual input precipitation sources, particularly the locally gauge-corrected radar QPE. The MSQPE scheme demonstrated its ability to sufficiently fill in areas where radar alone failed to detect precipitation due to significant beam blockage or poor coverage while minimizing the generation of false precipitation and underestimation biases that resulted from radar overshooting precipitation.
Sinonasal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Presentation and Outcome: A National Perspective
Authors: Al-Qurayshi Zaid , Smith Ryan , Walsh Jarrett E.
Published: June 2020

Background:

examine presentation and outcomes of sinonasal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).

Methods:

A retrospective study utilizing the National Cancer Database, 2004 to 2015. The study population included adult patients diagnosed with primary sinonasal SCC.

Results:

A total of 537 patients were included. The mean age of the study population was 62.6 ± 12.7 years. The median follow-up time was 35.6 months (interquartile range: 8.6-55.9). The histological variants identified are: (i) 66.7% keratinizing SCC, (ii) 21.6% non-keratinizing SCC, (iii) 8.0% papillary SCC, and (iv) 3.7% spindle cell carcinoma. Stage at presentation was: (i) 33.3% T1-2, N0, (ii) 31.8% T3-4a, N0, (iii) 13.8% T1-4a, N+, (iv) 17.0% T4b,N0-3, (v) 4.1% M1. Human papilloma virus (HPV) status was available for 96 patients and tested positive in 24 (25.0%) patients. By histological variants, 5-year survival was lowest for spindle cell carcinoma (40.0%), and highest for papillary SCC (70.1%). HPV negative tumors had a 5-year survival of 26.4%, while HPV positive tumors had a 5-year survival of 57.1% ( P = <.001). Of the 255 patients with T1-4a, N0-3, M0 who had surgery of the primary site, 31 (12.2%) patients underwent endoscopic approach. The risk of positive postsurgical margins was not significantly different comparing endoscopic to open approach (23.8% vs 24.1%, P >.99).

Conclusions:

Sinonasal SCC could present at advanced stages in two-thirds of the population and exhibit a variety of histological subtypes. Like other sites of head and neck, HPV positive tumors are associated with a favorable prognosis. Endoscopic approach is comparable to open approach in terms of post-surgical margins.
Book review: Nitin Sinha, Nitin Varma and Pankaj Jha, eds, Servants’ Pasts: Sixteenth to Eighteenth Century South Asia, Vol. I
Authors: Roy Kumkum
Published: June 2020

Nitin Sinha, Nitin Varma and Pankaj Jha, eds, Servants’ Pasts: Sixteenth to Eighteenth Century South Asia, Vol. I, Hyderabad: Orient BlackSwan, 2019, 421 pp.
Wage Differentials, Bargaining Protocols, and Trade Unionism in Mid-Twentieth-Century American Labor Markets
Authors: Pencavel John
Published: June 2020

Income inequality in the United States has been lower in periods when trade unionism has been strong. Using observations on wages by occupation, by geography, and by gender in collective bargaining contracts from the 1940s to the 1970s, patterns in movements of wage differentials are revealed. As wages increased, some contracts maintained relative wage differentials constant, some maintained absolute differences in wages constant, others combined these two patterns, and some did not reveal an obvious pattern. The patterns persisted even as price inflation increased in the 1970s. The dominant pattern implies a reduction in inequality as usually measured.
The Homogenization of Ethnic Differences in Singapore English? A Consonantal Production Study
Authors: Kalaivanan Kastoori , Sumartono Firqin , Tan Ying-Ying
Published: June 2020

Past research on Singapore English (SgE) has shown that there are specific segmental and prosodic patterns that are unique to the three major ethnic groups, Chinese, Malay, and Indian in Singapore. These features have been highlighted as the “stereotypical” ethnic markers of SgE speakers, assuming substrate influence from the speakers’ “ethnic” languages (Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil). However, recent research suggests that Singaporeans are becoming increasingly English dominant and has challenged the position of the ethnic languages as true “mother tongues” of Singaporeans. Hence, this study seeks to question if such “stereotypical” ethnic features exist, and if so, the extent to which a less dominant ethnic language would affect the phonology of speakers’ English. This study looks specifically at the production of consonants /f/, /θ/, /t/, /v/, and /w/ as salient segmental features in SgE. Participants’ phonetic behavior of /θ/, which was produced similarly across the three ethnic groups, disputed substrate influence. Tamil speakers were the most disparate, particularly with the /v/-/w/ contrast production. However, these deviations were often sporadic phonetic changes, which scarcely reflect robust speech patterns in the community. As a result, consonantal production in SgE is found to be largely independent of substrate influence and relatively uniform across the three ethnicities. The homogeneity observed in this study sheds light on bilinguals’ acquisition of sounds, and it also provides phonological evidence toward the understanding of the evolutionary process of postcolonial Englishes.
On Martyrdom, Suicide, and Christian Bioethics
Authors: Schimmoeller Ethan M.
Published: June 2020

Christ has fashioned a remedy for the human condition out of mortality, making death the paradoxical means of salvation. Thus, the early Church saw martyrdom as the best kind of death, epitomized in the story of St. Ignatius of Antioch. He saw his death in Christ to be a birth into eternal life. Yet martyrdom and suicide can be conflated under crafty definitions and novel terminology, leading inevitably to calls to soften prohibitions against physician-assisted suicide. Whereas martyrdom locates death within the Christian lived experience of the Paschal mystery, suicide transfers the sovereignty of God over life and death to the individual, necessarily denying the goodness of creation in the process. I point to a liturgical foundation for bioethics as a better starting point for understanding martyrdom and suicide. Entering Christ’s sacrifice, Christians receive divine life and new vision to locate suffering, death, and health care within the Christian salvation narrative.

Confusing martyrdom and suicide locates ethics outside the Church by bending language around the 5th commandment. St. Ignatius of Antioch's martyrdom clarifies the role of the Christian bioethicist to situate health care in the Church's life-giving liturgical experience.
A Parallel Process Model of Integration and Multidimensional Prosocial Behaviors in Recent Immigrant U.S. Latinx Adolescents
Authors: McGinley Meredith , Davis Alexandra N. , Carlo Gustavo , Schwartz Seth J. , Lorenzo-Blanco Elma I. , Unger Jennifer B. , Szapocznik José , Baezconde-Garbanati Lourdes , Soto Daniel W. , Des Rosiers Sabrina E. , Villamar Juan A. , Lizzi Karina M.
Published: June 2020

With a growing population of Latinx youth immigrating to the United States, it is important to understand how Latinx youth adapt to mainstream U.S. culture. Given that the majority of research examining social development among recent immigrant adolescents has focused on negative adjustment outcomes, research examining positive social behaviors is needed to avoid deficit approaches to their development, gain a holistic understanding of youth development, and improve interventions with this population.This study examined the associations among trajectories in cultural integration and multiple prosocial behaviors among recent immigrant U.S. Latinx adolescents in Miami, Florida and Los Angeles, California. Adolescents ( N =  302; 53.3% males; M age = 14.51 years) completed measures of integration and prosocial behaviors across six time points. Latent growth curve models indicated that integration significantly increased, though this growth tapered off over time. The growth in prosocial behaviors depended on the specific form of helping assessed. While the growth in altruistic and compliant prosocial behaviors was stagnant, there was an increase in anonymous prosocial behaviors and a decrease in public and dire prosocial behaviors. Emotional behaviors did not linearly change, though slightly tapered off by the final time points. Parallel process latent growth curve model results indicated positive correlations between the slopes of cultural integration and most forms of prosocial behaviors. These findings highlight the positive role of cultural integration as an acculturative process for U.S. Latinx youth and the multidimensionality of prosocial behaviors.
John Eliot, John Veniaminov, and Christian engagement with the indigenous peoples of North America: A comparative missiology
Authors: Black Joseph William
Published: June 2020

John Eliot was the 17th-century settler Puritan clergyman who sought to engage his Wampanoag neighbors with the Christian gospel, eventually learning their language, winning converts, establishing schools, translating the Bible and other Christian literature, even establishing villages of converted native Americans, before everything was wiped out in the violence of the King Philip War. John Eliot is all but forgotten outside the narrow debates of early American colonial history, though he was one of the first Protestants to attempt to engage his indigenous neighbors with the gospel. John Veniaminov was a Russian Orthodox priest from Siberia who felt called to bring Christianity to the indigenous Aleut and Tinglit peoples of island and mainland Alaska. He learned their languages, established schools, gathered worshiping communities, and translated the liturgies and Christian literature into their languages. Even in the face of later American persecution and marginalization, Orthodoxy in the indigenous communities of Alaska remains a vital and under-acknowledged Christian presence. Later made a bishop (Innocent) and then elected the Metropolitan of Moscow, Fr. John (now St. Innocent) is lionized in the Russian Church but almost unknown outside its scope, even in Orthodox circles. This article examines the ministries of these men, separated by time and traditions, and yet working in similar conditions among the indigenous peoples of North America, to learn something of both their missionary motivation and their methodology.
Were California’s Decarceration Efforts Smart? A Quasi-Experimental Examination of Racial, Ethnic, and Gender Disparities
Authors: Gottlieb Aaron , Charles Pajarita , McLeod Branden , Kjellstrand Jean , Bonsu Janaé
Published: June 2020

Over the last decade, California has undertaken one of the largest criminal justice reform efforts in recent U.S. history. However, little is known about the causal impact of these reforms on the overall incarceration rate and disparities in incarceration rates across demographic subgroups. Using a quasi-experimental synthetic control method and data from the Vera Institute of Justice and the U.S. Census Bureau, our results provide strong evidence that California’s reforms have substantially reduced the state’s overall incarceration rate, but that they have resulted in an increase in Latinx-White incarceration disparities. We also find suggestive evidence that the reforms have exacerbated Black-White incarceration disparities and disparities between men and women. Our study is especially relevant at a time when the United States is increasingly interested in reducing the population of people incarcerated and suggests that care must be taken to ensure that reform efforts do not increase incarceration disparities among demographic subgroups.
A robust method for the identification of non-Gaussian autoregressive systems in colored Gaussian noise
Authors: Al-Smadi Adnan
Published: June 2020

This paper introduces a novel technique for parameter estimation of an autoregressive (AR) all-pole process under non-Gaussian noise environment using third order cumulants of the observed sequence. The proposed AR parameters estimation technique is based on formulating a particular structured matrix with entries of third order cumulants of the observed output sequence only. This matrix almost possesses a full rank structure. The observed sequence may be contaminated with additive Gaussian noise (white or colored), whose power spectral density is unknown. The system is driven by a zero-mean independent and identically distributed (i.i.d) non-Gaussian sequence. Simulation results confirm the good numerical conditioning of the algorithm and the improvement in performance with respect to well-known methods even when the observed signal is heavily contaminated with Gaussian noise.
Robust adaptive fuzzy sliding mode controller for nonlinear uncertain hysteretic systems
Authors: Rebai Aissa , Guesmi Kamel
Published: June 2020

This paper deals with the problem of adaptive fuzzy control for a class of nonlinear uncertain systems with hysteresis input. Fuzzy logic systems are employed to approximate the unknown nonlinear behaviors, and the sliding mode technique is used to synthesize an adaptive fuzzy controller. A proportional integral control term is adopted to reduce the chattering phenomenon engendered by both sliding mode control technique and hysteretic characteristic of the system. The proposed control scheme ensures the boundedness of all closed-loop signals, and forces the tracking error to converge to zero. The main contribution of this work is the development of a control strategy for a class of nonlinear hysteretic systems subject to external disturbances and uncertainties. Two case studies are given to illustrate and to prove the effectiveness of the presented approach.
Institutional Evolution and the Collaborative Development of Technology Transfer Capabilities
Authors: Donegan Mary , Feldman Maryann
Published: June 2020

This article examines the development of university technology transfer operations at the Research Triangle region’s three universities. Organized to commercialize university-based scientific inventions, this expertise was essential to university engagement in the region’s long-term development. Early collaborative efforts to jump-start technology transfer in the region were promoted via a joint licensing consortium. Those early efforts—and their eventual devolution to the universities—are critical to understanding the region’s subsequent development. We document a process of competing institutional logics and institutional interpretation, with officials from each campus continually interpreting the collaborative’s value against their own institution’s evolving needs.
Burr, Lomax, Pareto, and Logistic Distributions from Ultrasound Speckle
Authors: Parker Kevin J. , Poul Sedigheh S.
Published: June 2020

After 100 years of theoretical treatment of speckle patterns from coherent illumination, there remain some open questions about the nature of ultrasound speckle from soft vascularized tissues. A recent hypothesis is that the fractal branching vasculature is responsible for the dominant echo pattern from organs such as the liver. In that case, an analysis of cylindrical scattering structures arranged across a power law distribution of sizes is warranted. Using a simple model of echo strength and basic transformation rules from probability, we derive the first order statistics of speckle considering the amplitude, the intensity, and the natural log of amplitude. The results are given by long tailed distributions that have been studied in the statistics literature for other fields. Examples are given from simulations and animal studies, and the theoretical fit to these preliminary data support the overall framework as a plausible model for characterizing ultrasound speckle statistics.
Intimal sarcoma of the pulmonary artery without 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake
Authors: Masuda Shinya , Itagaki Kota , Naganuma Masaaki , Suzuki Nobuaki , Kurotaki Hidekachi , Nagaya Koichi
Published: June 2020

Primary pulmonary intimal sarcoma is rare. Differentiating it from pulmonary thromboembolism is difficult because of similarities in clinical symptoms and imaging findings. Positron-emission tomography-computed tomography has been useful for diagnosing primary pulmonary intimal sarcoma. We describe a rare case of primary pulmonary intimal sarcoma that showed no abnormal 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake on positron-emission tomography. We resected the mass and performed right ventricular outﬂow tract reconstruction. Proper diagnosis is necessary to determine appropriate therapy, Clinicians must consider the possibility of primary pulmonary intimal sarcoma even if imaging findings are inconsistent with the disease.
The influences of facial expression and conducting gesture on college musicians' perceptions of choral conductor and ensemble expressivity
Authors: Nápoles Jessica , Silvey Brian A , Montemayor Mark
Published: June 2020

The purpose of this study was to examine the influences of facial expression and conducting gesture on perceptions of choral conductor and ensemble expressivity. College musicians ( N = 156) viewed excerpts of two choral conductors who had been recorded conducting with either an expressive conducting gesture and a neutral/static face or an expressive facial expression and a neutral/static conducting gesture. They then rated the expressivity of the conductor and of the ensemble. Results indicated no significant differences in participant ratings of choral conductor expressivity or ensemble expressivity ( p > .05) between conditions. Responses to open-ended questions revealed four themes that impacted perceptions of ensemble and conductor expressivity: facial expression, conducting gestures, musical elements, and conductor investment.
Management of anemia in patients with cancer: 2019 Italian Association of Medical Oncology (AIOM) guidelines
Authors: Sbrana Andrea , Antonuzzo Andrea , Brunello Antonella , Petrelli Fausto , Pronzato Paolo , Tralongo Antonino , Turrini Marianna , Zoratto Federica , Danova Marco
Published: June 2020

This article summarizes the latest Italian Medical Oncology Association (AIOM) guidelines on the management of cancer-related and chemotherapy-related anemia with a particular attention to the use of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents and iron supplementation.
Vulnerability Assessment of Urban Intersections apropos of Incident Impact on Road Network and Identification of Critical Intersections
Authors: Ghosh Kaniska , Maitra Bhargab
Published: June 2020

One of the major challenges in a transportation network management program is responding to traffic incidents such as traffic crashes, disabled vehicles, spilled cargo, road debris, and so forth, at or near intersections. Intersections are vulnerable with respect to their susceptibility to incidents, therefore, it is important to assess their vulnerability to identify critical intersections for preparing traffic incident management strategies. In the present work, vulnerability of an intersection was measured in relation to the incident impact on surrounding road network using average aggregate network delay. Taking the case study of an urban arterial road network in Kolkata city, a methodology was demonstrated to assess the vulnerability of intersections using traffic microsimulation during peak and off-peak periods. A traffic microsimulation model was developed for this purpose and different incident scenarios were simulated to assess the vulnerability of various intersections. The intersections were then ranked in order of their vulnerability. Some key factors governing vulnerability of intersections were identified and an expert opinion survey was also conducted to assess the location-specific relevance of those factors for both peak and off-peak hour conditions using fuzzy analysis. Based on the analysis of expert opinion data, intersections were also ranked as per their vulnerability for comparative purposes. The rankings of intersections as obtained from traffic microsimulation and expert opinion analyses were found to be in agreement in the present context. However, traffic microsimulation as an approach is preferred over expert opinion because of its inherent strengths for vulnerability assessment and identification of critical intersections.
Incidence of Lower Extremity Injury in the National Football League: 2015 to 2018
Authors: Mack Christina D. , Kent Richard W. , Coughlin Michael J. , Shiue Kristin Y. , Weiss Leigh J. , Jastifer James R. , Wojtys Edward M. , Anderson Robert B.
Published: June 2020

Background:

Lower extremity injuries are the most common injuries in professional sports and carry a high burden to players and teams in the National Football League (NFL). Injury prevention strategies can be refined by a foundational understanding of the occurrence and effect of these injuries on NFL players.

Purpose:

To determine the incidence of specific lower extremity injuries sustained by NFL players across 4 NFL seasons.

Study Design:

Descriptive epidemiology study.

Methods:

This retrospective, observational study included all time-loss lower extremity injuries that occurred during football-related activities during the 2015 through 2018 seasons. Injury data were collected prospectively through a leaguewide electronic health record (EHR) system and linked with NFL game statistics and player participation to calculate injury incidence per season and per 10,000 player-plays for lower extremity injuries overall and for specific injuries. Days lost due to injury were estimated through 2018 for injuries occurring in the 2015 to 2017 seasons.

Results:

An average of 2006 time-loss lower extremity injuries were reported each season over this 4-year study, representing a 1-season risk of 41% for an NFL player. Incidence was stable from 2015 to 2018, with an estimated total missed time burden each NFL season of approximately 56,700 player-days lost. Most (58.7%) of these injuries occurred during games, with an overall higher rate of injuries observed in preseason compared with regular season (11.5 vs 9.4 injuries per 10,000 player-plays in games). The knee was the most commonly injured lower extremity region (29.3% of lower body injuries), followed by the ankle (22.4%), thigh (17.2%), and foot (9.1%). Hamstring strains were the most common lower extremity injury, followed by lateral ankle sprains, adductor strains, high ankle sprains, and medial collateral ligament tears.

Conclusion:

Lower extremity injuries affect a high number of NFL players, and the incidence did not decrease over the 4 seasons studied. Prevention and rehabilitation protocols for these injuries should continue to be prioritized.
Russia’s ‘fortresses of solitude’: Social imaginaries of loneliness after the fall of the USSR
Authors: Akopov Sergei
Published: June 2020

Based on the distinction between three approaches to loneliness, and the development of the phenomenological and existential framework of loneliness studies, this article explores Russia’s discourse of national loneliness on three levels: a) the level of the official discourse of the Russian government; b) the level of political and philosophical concepts; and c) the level of popular media and cinema (with a specific focus on a case-study of the post-Soviet Russian blockbuster film Brother and its sequel, Brother 2). In this article I concentrate on the particular experiences of loneliness and their interpretations in Russia after the fall of the USSR. The case of the fall of the USSR has shown that social and political exploitations of different forms of national loneliness can become the flip side of the doctrine of autonomy, equal individual rights and freedom from authoritarian rule. This should be considered and never disregarded within our analysis of the contours and new transformations of emerging hegemonic discourses, including the different forms of nationalism in Russia, and in a wider cross-cultural perspective.
Pathology or Inconvenience? A Meta-Analysis of the Impact of Red Tape on People and Organizations
Authors: Blom Rutger , Borst Rick T. , Voorn Bart
Published: June 2020

Red tape has been viewed as a key concept in public administration for decades and one that can significantly impact the human resource management (HRM) process. Theoretically, red tape is argued to (a) constrain organizational practices, (b) alienate employees from their organization and, ultimately, (c) lower performance. However, there is some debate about how detrimental red tape is, and empirical evidence is mixed. Using a meta-analytic approach, we aggregated findings from previous studies to test the impact of red tape and to assess sources of heterogeneity across studies. The results provide support for the constraining and alienating effects of red tape, although red tape’s impact on performance seems negligible. Furthermore, operationalizations of red tape and study context moderate some meta-analytic correlations. The lack of longitudinal and intervention studies and the use of single respondents remain the key limitations of current research, and therefore, future research is still needed.
Exploring the Landscape of Published Mixed Methods Research in Special Education: A Systematic Review
Authors: Corr Catherine , Snodgrass Melinda R. , Love Hailey , Scott Ian M. , Kim Jiye , Andrews Laurie
Published: June 2020

Mixed methods research is a robust and growing methodology in many fields, including education. We drew upon the influential work of Greene et al., Ivankova and Kawamura, and Alise and Teddlie to explore the landscape of published mixed methods research in special education. We conducted a systematic literature review of 15 top-ranked journals in special education from 2007 to July 2019. Specifically, we used the seminal work of Greene et al. as a conceptual framework for describing how researchers designed and implemented their mixed methods research studies. We found a very small proportion of the total number of original research studies purported to use mixed methods (0.62%; N = 43). Within this small set of mixed methods research studies, very few explicitly articulated and defended how they addressed the recommended components identified by Greene et al. Implications for applying mixed methods to special education research are discussed.
A Cross-Sectional Exploration of Cytokine–Symptom Networks in Breast Cancer Survivors Using Network Analysis
Authors: Henneghan Ashley , Wright Michelle L. , Bourne Garrett , Sales Adam C.
Published: June 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to (a) visualize the symptom–cytokine networks (perceived stress, fatigue, loneliness, perceived cognitive impairment, daytime sleepiness, sleep quality, and 13 cytokines) and (b) explore centrality metrics of symptom–cytokine networks in breast cancer survivors who completed chemotherapy treatment.

Methods

Cross-sectional analysis of data collected from 66 breast cancer survivors who were on average three years post chemotherapy completion. Perceived stress, fatigue, loneliness, perceived cognitive impairment, daytime sleepiness, and sleep quality were measured with self-report instruments, and a panel of 13 cytokines was measured from serum using multiplex assays. Symptoms and cytokines were simultaneously evaluated with correlations, network analysis, and community analysis.

Results

Network analysis revealed the nodes with the greatest degree and closeness were interleukin-2, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, interleukin-13, and perceived cognitive impairment. Node betweenness was highest for perceived cognitive impairment and interleukin-2. Community analysis revealed two separate communities of nodes within the network (symptoms and the cytokines). Several edges connected the two communities including perceived cognitive impairment, stress, fatigue, depression, interleukin-2, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, interleukin-8, interleukin-13, and interleukin-10. Partial correlation analyses revealed significant negative relationships between interleukin-2 and fatigue, loneliness, stress, and perceived cognitive impairment ( rs = −.27 to −.37, ps < .05) and a significant negative relationship between perceived cognitive impairment and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor ( r =  −.34, p <  .01).

Conclusions

Our analyses support that perceived cognitive impairment, stress, loneliness, depressive symptoms, and fatigue co-occur and extend the literature by suggesting that interleukin-2 may contribute to the underlying mechanistic pathway of these co-occurring symptoms. Our findings add to a growing body of literature that is shifting to study symptoms as they co-occur, or cluster, rather than individual symptoms.
The Adolescent Peer Relations Instrument- Bully/Target: Measurement Invariance Across Gender, Age, and Clinical Status
Authors: Balan Raluca , Dobrean Anca , Balazsi Robert , Parada Roberto H. , Predescu Elena
Published: June 2020

Adolescent Peer Relations Instrument–Bully/Target (APRI-BT) is a multidimensional scale designed to assess bullying involvement both as target and perpetrator. Although existing research has shown that the APRI-BT satisfies the assumption of measurement invariance across age and gender, these findings come from western individualistic countries (e.g., Australia). This study aimed to investigate the factorial structure and measurement invariance across age, gender, and clinical status in a sample of Romanian youths. Participants were 1,024 adolescents, 10 to 18 years, recruited from both community and clinical setting. Our results confirmed a six first-order factor structure and two second-order factors (Bully including Bullying Physical, Bullying Verbal, Bullying Social and Victimization including Physical Victimization, Verbal Victimization, Social Victimization). In addition, measurement invariance across age, gender, and clinical status was demonstrated. This study identifies APRI-BT as an instrument with solid psychometric proprieties for measuring bullying and victimization among preadolescents and adolescents.
Policies on Consensual Sexual Activity in State Prisons
Authors: Gross Sarah , Stickle Ben
Published: June 2020

During times of imprisonment, inmates have limited opportunities to relieve sexual urges. Nearly all sexual behaviors (e.g., coerced, consensual, masturbation) are restricted or outright banned in most prison systems. The restriction on sexual behavior is implemented, in part, to maintain control and limit possible violence. However, the policies set forth by prisons restricting sexual behavior do not remove sexual urges and, by some estimates, between 2% and 60% of inmates engage in consensual sexual activities during incarceration. This study explores 51 Department of Correction (DOC) policies on sexual behavior in prisons and examines how DOCs define and punish consensual sexual activity. Findings indicate that most DOCs have policies, which do not differentiate between consensual and nonconsensual behaviors and allow for the punishment of consensual and nonconsensual sexual activity with the same penalties. These findings are evaluated considering current research, and policy implications are discussed.
Which Australian Women Do Not Exclusively Breastfeed to 6 Months, and why?
Authors: Moss Katrina M. , Dobson Annette J. , Tooth Leigh , Mishra Gita D.
Published: June 2020

Background

Rates of exclusive breastfeeding in Australia lag behind international targets. Reasons for non-exclusive breastfeeding are poorly understood.

Research aims

To describe demographic profiles of participants reporting different feeding practices, and reasons for not exclusively breastfeeding to 6 months.

Methods

Demographics for 2888 mothers (5340 children) and reasons for 1879 mothers (3018 children) from the Mothers and Their Children’s Health Study (a sub-study of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health) were examined using descriptive statistics and multivariable regression.

Results

Only 34.4% of children were exclusively breastfed to 6 months. Five non-exclusive feeding practices were identified: never breastfed (3.9%), breastfed < 6 months (20.8%), and breastfed to 6 months but had formula (6.8%), solids (24.5%), or both formula and solids (9.7%). Mothers of children who received < 6 months of human milk were more likely to have a lower education, be overweight/obese, smoke, and live in cities (compared to mothers of children exclusively breastfed). Reasons for never breastfeeding and for breastfeeding < 6 months were primarily insufficient milk and breastfeeding difficulties (e.g., latching issues). Reasons for introducing solids were primarily cues for solids (e.g., showing interest). Reasons for formula were insufficient milk and practical considerations (e.g., return to work). Reasons for both solids and formula were diverse, including insufficient milk, weaning cues, and practical considerations.

Conclusions

Mothers who did not exclusively breastfeed to 6 months were a heterogeneous group, indicating that both targeted and universal strategies are required to increase rates of exclusive breastfeeding. Support should encompass the broad range of feeding practices.
Air and ground ambulance location-allocation-routing problem for designing a temporary emergency management system after a disaster
Authors: Memari Pedram , Tavakkoli-Moghaddam Reza , Navazi Fatemeh , Jolai Fariborz
Published: June 2020

Disasters cause a huge number of injured patients in a short time while existing emergency facilities encountered devastation and cannot respond properly. Here, the importance of implementing temporary emergency management becomes clear. This study aims to locate some temporary emergency stations across the area by maximal covering after a disaster. Furthermore, a multi-mode fleet is used for transferring patients using different modes of transportation (e.g. helicopter ambulance and bus ambulance). Since the type of patients may change over periods, medical servers can displace among temporary emergency stations dynamically according to disaster severity. For this purpose, a new bi-objective dynamic location-helicopter ambulance allocation-ambulance routing model with multi-medical servers is presented. The first objective function minimizes the operational costs related to the newly designed Emergency Medical Service along with the rate of human loss. The second objective function minimizes the critical time spent before the medical treatment. To validate the developed model, the augmented ε-constraint method is used and applied for the Tehran city, which shows the applicability of the model. Finally, two meta-heuristic algorithms are customized for large-sized problems, and the related results are compared based on multi-objective algorithms’ performance comparison metrics to find the more efficient one.
Screening for and Personalizing Prevention of Adolescent Depression
Authors: Hankin Benjamin L.
Published: June 2020

Depression is a prevalent, distressing, and often recurrent disorder. Adolescence represents a vulnerable developmental period when rates of depression surge and many people experience their first episode. Some professional agencies now recommend universal screening starting at age 12. In this article, I advocate for a risk-based approach to screening for adolescent depression that can improve on current approaches and facilitate more seamless connections to enable personalizing the prevention of depression on the basis of risk-group classification. I review empirical examples for screening based on established risk factors that predict later depression and provide evidence that risk groups can reliably and validly classify adolescents at risk for future development of depression based on cognitive and interpersonal vulnerabilities. These risk groups inform one approach to personalizing prevention of depression by matching youths’ risk to established, evidence-based prevention programs (cognitive or interpersonal). Promising data from a randomized trial suggest that this personalized depression-prevention strategy can reduce depression better than a one-size-fits-all approach.
Comparison of anticoagulant rodenticide concentrations in liver and feces from apparently healthy red foxes
Authors: Seljetun Kristin O. , Sandvik Morten , Vindenes Vigdis , Eliassen Elin , Øiestad Elisabeth L. , Madslien Knut , Moe Lars
Published: June 2020

Exposure of wildlife and domestic animals to anticoagulant rodenticides (ARs) is a worldwide concern, but few methods exist to determine residue levels in live animals. Traditional liver detection methods preclude determining exposure in live wildlife. To determine the value of assessing AR exposure by fecal analysis, we compared fecal and liver residues of ARs in the same animals. We collected liver and fecal samples from 40 apparently healthy red foxes ( Vulpes vulpes) potentially exposed to ARs, and quantified brodifacoum, bromadiolone, coumatetralyl, difenacoum, difethialone, and flocoumafen residues by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Residues of ARs were detected in 53% of the fecal samples and 83% of the liver samples. We found good concordance between AR residues in feces and liver for coumatetralyl, difenacoum, and difethialone. Bromadiolone occurred in significantly greater frequency in livers compared to feces, but no significant difference in concentration between feces and liver in individual foxes could be detected. Brodifacoum displayed a significant difference in concentration and occurrence of positive samples between liver and feces. Our findings demonstrate that fecal analysis of ARs provides a feasible and valuable non-lethal means of determine AR exposure in live wildlife.