bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Development, intervention, and international order
Authors: WILLIAMS DAVID
Published: September 2013

The project of international development involves the reordering of states (or at least attempts to do so), it sits at the intersection between transnational forces and bounded political entities and it is a manifestation of the will to order of powerful states. It would seem then to be closely connected to practices of intervention. At times, the practices of development agencies have taken on a more interventionist character, but in recent years their relationship to many developing countries has taken on a more intricate, subtle, and everyday form. It has in important respects moved ‘beyond’ intervention. This has significance beyond international development. Development agencies have been recruited to wider projects of international ordering, especially the construction of regimes of global governance and the ‘development’ of post-intervention states.
The cognitive and neural correlates of psychopathy and especially callous–unemotional traits in youths: A systematic review of the evidence
Authors: Herpers Pierre C. M. , Scheepers Floor E. , Bons Daniëlle M. A. , Buitelaar Jan K. , Rommelse Nanda N. J.
Published: September 2013

It is unclear whether the concepts and findings of the underlying neurobiology of adult psychopathy apply to youths as well. If so, a life span approach to treatment should be taken. Because youths’ brains are still developing, interventions at an early age may be far more effective in the long run. The aim of this systematic review is to examine whether the neurocognitive and neurobiological factors that underlie juvenile psychopathy, and specifically callous–unemotional (CU) traits, are similar to those underlying adult psychopathy. The results show that youths with CU traits show lower levels of prosocial reasoning, lower emotional responsivity, and decreased harm avoidance. Brain imaging studies in youths with CU traits are still rare. Available studies suggest specific neural correlates, such as a reduced response of the amygdala and a weaker functional connectivity between the amygdala and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. These findings are largely in line with existing theories of adult psychopathy, such as the dual-hormone serotonergic hypothesis and the integrated emotions systems theory. We recommend that future studies investigate the role of oxytocin, invest in the study of neural mechanisms, and study the precursors, risk factors, and correlates of CU traits in early infancy and in longitudinal designs.
Hunger Strikers: Ethical and Legal Dimensions of Medical Complicity in Torture at Guantanamo Bay
Authors: Dougherty Sarah M. , Leaning Jennifer , Greenough P. Gregg , Burkle Frederick M.
Published: September 2013

Physicians and other licensed health professionals are involved in force-feeding prisoners on hunger strike at the US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay (GTMO), Cuba, the detention center established to hold individuals captured and suspected of being terrorists in the wake of September 11, 2001. The force-feeding of competent hunger strikers violates medical ethics and constitutes medical complicity in torture. Given the failure of civilian and military law to end the practice, the medical profession must exert policy and regulatory pressure to bring the policy and operations of the US Department of Defense into compliance with established ethical standards. Physicians, other health professionals, and organized medicine must appeal to civilian state oversight bodies and federal regulators of medical science to revoke the licenses of health professionals who have committed prisoner abuses at GTMO.

DoughertySM, LeaningJ, GreenoughPG, BurkleFMJr. Hunger strikers: ethical and legal dimensions of medical complicity in torture at Guantanamo Bay. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2013;28(6):1-9.
D2receptor occupancy following lurasidone treatment in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder
Authors: Potkin Steven G. , Keator David B. , Kesler-West Marilyn L. , Nguyen Dana D. , van Erp Theo. G. M. , Mukherjee Jogeshwar , Shah Nikunj , Preda Adrian
Published: September 2013

Objective/Introduction

Lurasidone is an atypical antipsychotic medication approved for the treatment of schizophrenia over a dose range of 40–160 mg/day. This study examined D2receptor occupancy and its association with clinical improvement and side effects in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder following repeated doses of 80, 120, or 160 mg/day of lurasidone.

Methods

Twenty-five patients withThe Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed. (DSM-IV) diagnoses of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder were washed out of their antipsychotic medications (5 half-lives) and randomly assigned to 80, 120, or 160 mg/day of lurasidone. Subjects were imaged with 18F-fallypride at baseline and at steady-state lurasidone treatment to determine D2receptor occupancy.

Results

Blood lurasidone concentration (plus major metabolite), but not dose, significantly correlated with D2receptor occupancy. D2receptor occupancy in several subcortical structures is associated with positive but not negative symptom improvement or the presence of movement symptoms.

Discussion

Blood concentrations greater than 70 ng/mL may be required to achieve a 65% occupancy level in subcortical areas. Intersubject blood concentrations at fixed dose were highly variable and may account for the lack of dose correlations.

Conclusions

Positron emission tomography (PET) occupancy data suggest that greater than 65% occupancy can be achieved across the dose range of 80–160 mg/day and that some patients require higher doses to achieve antipsychotic efficacy; this finding supports prior randomized clinical trial results.
NORMAL CYCLIC POLYTOPES AND CYCLIC POLYTOPES THAT ARE NOT VERY AMPLE
Authors: HIBI TAKAYUKI , HIGASHITANI AKIHIRO , KATTHÄN LUKAS , OKAZAKI RYOTA
Published: September 2013

Let $d$ and $n$ be positive integers such that $n\geq d+ 1$ and ${\tau }_{1} , \ldots , {\tau }_{n} $ integers such that ${\tau }_{1} \lt \cdots \lt {\tau }_{n} $. Let ${C}_{d} ({\tau }_{1} , \ldots , {\tau }_{n} )\subset { \mathbb{R} }^{d} $ denote the cyclic polytope of dimension $d$ with $n$ vertices $({\tau }_{1} , { \tau }_{1}^{2} , \ldots , { \tau }_{1}^{d} ), \ldots , ({\tau }_{n} , { \tau }_{n}^{2} , \ldots , { \tau }_{n}^{d} )$. We are interested in finding the smallest integer ${\gamma }_{d} $ such that if ${\tau }_{i+ 1} - {\tau }_{i} \geq {\gamma }_{d} $ for $1\leq i\lt n$, then ${C}_{d} ({\tau }_{1} , \ldots , {\tau }_{n} )$ is normal. One of the known results is ${\gamma }_{d} \leq d(d+ 1)$. In the present paper a new inequality ${\gamma }_{d} \leq {d}^{2} - 1$ is proved. Moreover, it is shown that if $d\geq 4$ with ${\tau }_{3} - {\tau }_{2} = 1$, then ${C}_{d} ({\tau }_{1} , \ldots , {\tau }_{n} )$ is not very ample.
Accelerating materials property predictions using machine learning
Authors: Pilania Ghanshyam , Wang Chenchen , Jiang Xun , Rajasekaran Sanguthevar , Ramprasad Ramamurthy
Published: September 2013

The materials discovery process can be significantly expedited and simplified if we can learn effectively from available knowledge and data. In the present contribution, we show that efficient and accurate prediction of a diverse set of properties of material systems is possible by employing machine (or statistical) learning methods trained on quantum mechanical computations in combination with the notions of chemical similarity. Using a family of one-dimensional chain systems, we present a general formalism that allows us to discover decision rules that establish a mapping between easily accessible attributes of a system and its properties. It is shown that fingerprints based on either chemo-structural (compositional and configurational information) or the electronic charge density distribution can be used to make ultra-fast, yet accurate, property predictions. Harnessing such learning paradigms extends recent efforts to systematically explore and mine vast chemical spaces and can significantly accelerate the discovery of new application-specific materials.
Paper-based photoelectrochemical immunosensing based on CdS QD sensitized multidimensional porous ZnO spheres promoted by carbon nanotubes
Authors: Wang Panpan , Sun Guoqiang , Ge Lei , Ge Shenguang , Song Xianrang , Yan Mei , Yu Jinghua
Published: September 2013

An ultrasensitive photoelectrochemical (PEC) immunoassay was introduced into microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (μ-PADs) based on a multiple electron transfer system for the first time.
Performance analysis of adaptive modulation and transmit antenna selection with channel prediction errors and feedback delay
Authors: Prakash Shiva , McLoughlin Ian V.
Published: September 2013

Rate‐adaptive modulation and transmit antenna selection require channel knowledge at the transmitter, typically achieved using a feedback communications path from receiver to transmitter. Feedback delay in such systems causes outdated channel knowledge at the receiver and thus suboptimal switching decisions. This study evaluates the effect of degraded switching and proposes a channel prediction scheme to mitigate against delay‐induced performance degradation, specifically when deployed in Rayleigh fading channels using maximum ratio combining at the receiver. Shannon capacity expressions are found and then closed form bit‐error‐rate and average spectral efficiency expressions derived – all derivations supporting arbitrary number of antennas at both receiver and transmitter. These expressions are developed to allow optimal switching boundaries to be determined for M‐quadrature amplitude modulation rate adaptation under different degrees of channel prediction error, system arrangement and number of antennas.
Distributed orthogonal space–time block coding in wireless relay networks
Authors: Phan Hoc , Duong Trung Q. , Zepernick Hans‐Jürgen , Tsiftsis Theodoros A.
Published: September 2013

In this study, the authors consider distributed orthogonal space–time block coding for relay‐based channel state information‐assisted amplify‐and‐forward networks. Specifically, they show that opportunistic relaying (OR) is an optimal solution in terms of instantaneous signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR), that is, it provides the maximum instantaneous SNR under the constraint of fixed transmit power for the relays. In particular, instead of allocating the given transmit power to all relays, letting the best relay transmit with this power is an optimal solution for maximising the received SNR. To exhibit this benefit, Monte Carlo simulations are presented showing superior performance of the OR scheme compared to equal power allocation policy for the considered relay networks. For the considered optimal scenario, the authors further derive analytical expressions for the outage probability and symbol error rate (SER) over quasi‐static independent, not necessarily identically distributed Nakagami‐m fading channels. They further present asymptotically tight approximations for the outage probability and SER in the high SNR regime, rendering insights into the cooperative diversity behaviour. Finally, numerical results are provided to examine the effect of network parameters on the system performance of the considered network.
Synchronisation of linear high‐order multi‐agent systems: an internal model approach
Authors: Xiang Ji , Li Yanjun , Wei Wei
Published: September 2013

This study investigates the synchronisation problem of identical linear high‐order multi‐agent systems. A new dynamical controller is constructed by the internal model approach, which does not depend on the controller state information of neighbouring agents, but only on the weighted sum of relative output errors and the local measured output. The proposed controller can work for some classes of agents having unstable modes and always work well for the agents having all its eigenvalues in the closed left‐half complex plane. A simulation example illustrates the efficacy of the analytic results.
Neural‐network‐based online optimal control for uncertain non‐linear continuous‐time systems with control constraints
Authors: Yang Xiong , Liu Derong , Huang Yuzhu
Published: September 2013

In this study, an online adaptive optimal control scheme is developed for solving the infinite‐horizon optimal control problem of uncertain non‐linear continuous‐time systems with the control policy having saturation constraints. A novel identifier‐critic architecture is presented to approximate the Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman equation using two neural networks (NNs): an identifier NN is used to estimate the uncertain system dynamics and a critic NN is utilised to derive the optimal control instead of typical action–critic dual networks employed in reinforcement learning. Based on the developed architecture, the identifier NN and the critic NN are tuned simultaneously. Meanwhile, unlike initial stabilising control indispensable in policy iteration, there is no special requirement imposed on the initial control. Moreover, by using Lyapunov's direct method, the weights of the identifier NN and the critic NN are guaranteed to be uniformly ultimately bounded, while keeping the closed‐loop system stable. Finally, an example is provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the present approach.
Survey on blind image forgery detection
Authors: Qazi Tanzeela , Hayat Khizar , Khan Samee U. , Madani Sajjad A. , Khan Imran A. , Kołodziej Joanna , Li Hongxiang , Lin Weiyao , Yow Kin Choong , Xu Cheng‐Zhong
Published: September 2013

With the mushroom growth of state‐of‐the‐art digital image and video manipulations tools, establishing the authenticity of multimedia content has become a challenging issue. Digital image forensics is an increasingly growing research field that symbolises a never ending struggle against forgery and tampering. This survey attempts to cover the blind techniques that have been proposed for exposing forgeries. This work dwells on the detection techniques for three of the most common forgery types, namely copy/move, splicing and retouching.
Morphology and Rubisco turnover characteristics of perennial ryegrass breeding populations after two and four cycles of divergent selection for long or short leaf length
Authors: Khaembah Edith N. , Gastal François , Carre Serge , Irving Louis J. , Barre Philippe , Matthew Cory
Published: September 2013

Perennial ryegrass populations previously subjected to two or four cycles of selection for short or long leaf length were studied to determine the response of morphological traits to selection and interaction to determine yield. Measured morphological traits were leaf length, leaf appearance interval, ligule appearance interval, leaf elongation duration, leaf elongation rate, tiller number, tiller dry weight, and herbage dry matter. Additionally, Rubisco concentration during leaf development was measured to determine the association of Rubisco turnover with morphological characteristics and yield. Rubisco was measured and modelled as a three-parameter (D, peak Rubisco concentration; G, time of D; and F, curve width measure), log-normal curve. Leaf length, leaf elongation rate, tiller weight, and plant dry matter diverged after two cycles of selection and further divergence occurred, with these traits being, respectively, 35, 28, 53, and 61% greater in the long- than the short-leaved plants after four cycles of selection. Opposite trends were displayed by Rubisco turnover, with selection for long leaves co-selecting for increased Rubisco turnover time and selection for short leaves resulting in increased leaf Rubisco concentration. There was indication of coupling of leaf appearance with Rubisco turnover. Across populations, multivariate analysis indicated that plant yield was associated with Rubisco concentration rather than Rubisco turnover. The association between higher yield and lower Rubisco concentration could be targeted in the breeding of high-yielding, nitrogen-efficient forage grasses. Plant yield was mainly associated with increased leaf area, indicating that yield could be improved by selecting for longer leaves and faster rates of leaf expansion.
Contact tracing using provider referral: how difficult is it?
Authors: McCann Lisa , Allan Warwick , Read Phillip , McNulty Anna
Published: September 2013

Contact tracing using provider referral is often perceived as time-consuming. To assess the workload involved in provider referral at a sexual health clinic, we studied the number of attempts required, the contact method used, the time taken and the success of provider referral for 230 contacts referred over a 3-year period. For 87% of these contacts, a mobile number was available; 78.7% of these were successfully contacted. A median of two calls was required and the median time to complete the contact tracing process was within the same day. In 91% of cases, contact tracing was successful. In our setting, provider notification was not time-consuming.
Hydrologic impacts of past shifts of Earth’s thermal equator offer insight into those to be produced by fossil fuel CO
2
Authors: Broecker Wallace S. , Putnam Aaron E.
Published: September 2013

Major changes in global rainfall patterns accompanied a northward shift of Earth’s thermal equator at the onset of an abrupt climate change 14.6 kya. This northward pull of Earth’s wind and rain belts stemmed from disintegration of North Atlantic winter sea ice cover, which steepened the interhemispheric meridional temperature gradient. A southward migration of Earth’s thermal equator may have accompanied the more recent Medieval Warm to Little Ice Age climate transition in the Northern Hemisphere. As fossil fuel CO
2
warms the planet, the continents of the Northern Hemisphere are expected to warm faster than the Southern Hemisphere oceans. Therefore, we predict that a northward shift of Earth’s thermal equator, initiated by an increased interhemispheric temperature contrast, may well produce hydrologic changes similar to those that occurred during past Northern Hemisphere warm periods. If so, the American West, the Middle East, and southern Amazonia will become drier, and monsoonal Asia, Venezuela, and equatorial Africa will become wetter. Additional paleoclimate data should be acquired and model simulations should be conducted to evaluate the reliability of this analog.
Redefining the dynamics of intergenerational family solidarity in spain
Authors: Caïs Jordi , Folguera Laia
Published: September 2013

This article analyses the dynamics of family solidarity in Spain. The existing literature so far has defined the Spanish caring model as familistic due to the primacy of the family in the protection of dependants. However, this article shows that recent data on Spaniards' preferences concerning the care of their family dependents might question the sustainability of the bases of such model. This is consistent with the results of the OASIS Project, according to which societal changes may be leading to family care becoming less duty-driven and more dependent on personal affection and attachment. 1 The Spanish welfare state is labelled as familistic because family makes up for the lack of public benefits dampening adverse economic cycles and the problems of its more fragile members: children, young people and, especially, the elderly. Family solidarity is considered beneficial because it contains public spending and generates positive effects of solidarity and security in the population. Moreover, the expectations of the dependent elderly are focused on family, not on social services that always have been scarce in Spain and they are worsening with the economic crisis. But the Spanish welfare state based on familist values appears to be increasingly ineffective and more difficult to sustain. This article explains how changes in family structure and dynamics, along with the high rates of female labour force that Spain has recently achieved, affect family caregiving preferences and strategies.
The Interplay of Bottom-Up and Top-Down Mechanisms in Visual Guidance during Object Naming
Authors: Coco Moreno I. , Malcolm George L. , Keller Frank
Published: September 2013

An ongoing issue in visual cognition concerns the roles played by low- and high-level information in guiding visual attention, with current research remaining inconclusive about the interaction between the two. In this study, we bring fresh evidence into this long-standing debate by investigating visual saliency and contextual congruency during object naming (Experiment 1), a task in which visual processing interacts with language processing. We then compare the results of this experiment to data of a memorization task using the same stimuli (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, we find that both saliency and congruency influence visual and naming responses and interact with linguistic factors. In particular, incongruent objects are fixated later and less often than congruent ones. However, saliency is a significant predictor of object naming, with salient objects being named earlier in a trial. Furthermore, the saliency and congruency of a named object interact with the lexical frequency of the associated word and mediate the time-course of fixations at naming. In Experiment 2, we find a similar overall pattern in the eye-movement responses, but only the congruency of the target is a significant predictor, with incongruent targets fixated less often than congruent targets. Crucially, this finding contrasts with claims in the literature that incongruent objects are more informative than congruent objects by deviating from scene context and hence need a longer processing. Overall, this study suggests that different sources of information are interactively used to guide visual attention on the targets to be named and raises new questions for existing theories of visual attention.
PLP inhibits the activity of interphase centrosomes to ensure their proper segregation in stem cells
Authors: Lerit Dorothy A. , Rusan Nasser M.
Published: September 2013

Centrosomes determine the mitotic axis of asymmetrically dividing stem cells. Several studies have shown that the centrosomes of the Drosophila melanogaster central brain neural stem cells are themselves asymmetric, organizing varying levels of pericentriolar material and microtubules. This asymmetry produces one active and one inactive centrosome during interphase. We identify pericentrin-like protein (PLP) as a negative regulator of centrosome maturation and activity. We show that PLP is enriched on the inactive interphase centrosome, where it blocks recruitment of the master regulator of centrosome maturation, Polo kinase. Furthermore, we find that ectopic Centrobin expression influenced PLP levels on the basal centrosome, suggesting it may normally function to regulate PLP. Finally, we conclude that, although asymmetric centrosome maturation is not required for asymmetric cell division, it is required for proper centrosome segregation to the two daughter cells.
Synaptic mutant huntingtin inhibits synapsin-1 phosphorylation and causes neurological symptoms
Authors: Xu Qiaoqiao , Huang Shanshan , Song Mingke , Wang Chuan-En , Yan Sen , Liu Xudong , Gaertig Marta A. , Yu Shan Ping , Li He , Li Shihua , Li Xiao-Jiang
Published: September 2013

Many genetic mouse models of Huntington’s disease (HD) have established that mutant huntingtin (htt) accumulates in various subcellular regions to affect a variety of cellular functions, but whether and how synaptic mutant htt directly mediates HD neuropathology remains to be determined. We generated transgenic mice that selectively express mutant htt in the presynaptic terminals. Although it was not overexpressed, synaptic mutant htt caused age-dependent neurological symptoms and early death in mice as well as defects in synaptic neurotransmitter release. Mass spectrometry analysis of synaptic fractions and immunoprecipitation of synapsin-1 from HD CAG150 knockin mouse brains revealed that mutant htt binds to synapsin-1, a protein whose phosphorylation is critical for neurotransmitter release. We found that polyglutamine-expanded exon1 htt binds to the C-terminal region of synapsin-1 to reduce synapsin-1 phosphorylation. Our findings point to a critical role for synaptic htt in the neurological symptoms of HD, providing a new therapeutic target.
ReportingTools: an automated result processing and presentation toolkit for high-throughput genomic analyses
Authors: Huntley Melanie A. , Larson Jessica L. , Chaivorapol Christina , Becker Gabriel , Lawrence Michael , Hackney Jason A. , Kaminker Joshua S.
Published: September 2013

Summary: It is common for computational analyses to generate large amounts of complex data that are difficult to process and share with collaborators. Standard methods are needed to transform such data into a more useful and intuitive format. We present ReportingTools, a Bioconductor package, that automatically recognizes and transforms the output of many common Bioconductor packages into rich, interactive, HTML-based reports. Reports are not generic, but have been individually designed to reflect content specific to the result type detected. Tabular output included in reports is sortable, filterable and searchable and contains context-relevant hyperlinks to external databases. Additionally, in-line graphics have been developed for specific analysis types and are embedded by default within table rows, providing a useful visual summary of underlying raw data. ReportingTools is highly flexible and reports can be easily customized for specific applications using the well-defined API.

Availability: The ReportingTools package is implemented in R and available from Bioconductor (version ≥ 2.11) at the URL: http://bioconductor.org/packages/release/bioc/html/ReportingTools.html. Installation instructions and usage documentation can also be found at the above URL.

Contact: hackney.jason@gene.com or kaminker.josh@gene.com
STAR: an integrated solution to management and visualization of sequencing data
Authors: Wang Tao , Liu Jie , Shen Li , Tonti-Filippini Julian , Zhu Yun , Jia Haiyang , Lister Ryan , Whitaker John W. , Ecker Joseph R. , Millar A. Harvey , Ren Bing , Wang Wei
Published: September 2013

Motivation: Easily visualization of complex data features is a necessary step to conduct studies on next-generation sequencing (NGS) data. We developed STAR, an integrated web application that enables online management, visualization and track-based analysis of NGS data.

Results: STAR is a multilayer web service system. On the client side, STAR leverages JavaScript, HTML5 Canvas and asynchronous communications to deliver a smoothly scrolling desktop-like graphical user interface with a suite of in-browser analysis tools that range from providing simple track configuration controls to sophisticated feature detection within datasets. On the server side, STAR supports private session state retention via an account management system and provides data management modules that enable collection, visualization and analysis of third-party sequencing data from the public domain with over thousands of tracks hosted to date. Overall, STAR represents a next-generation data exploration solution to match the requirements of NGS data, enabling both intuitive visualization and dynamic analysis of data.

Availability and implementation: STAR browser system is freely available on the web at http://wanglab.ucsd.edu/star/browser and https://github.com/angell1117/STAR-genome-browser.

Contact:  wei-wang@ucsd.edu
A C library for retrieving specific reactions from the BioModels database
Authors: Neal M. L. , Galdzicki M. , Gallimore J. T. , Sauro H. M.
Published: September 2013

Summary: We describe libSBMLReactionFinder, a C library for retrieving specific biochemical reactions from the curated systems biology markup language models contained in the BioModels database. The library leverages semantic annotations in the database to associate reactions with human-readable descriptions, making the reactions retrievable through simple string searches. Our goal is to provide a useful tool for quantitative modelers who seek to accelerate modeling efforts through the reuse of previously published representations of specific chemical reactions.

Availability and implementation: The library is open-source and dual licensed under the Mozilla Public License Version 2.0 and GNU General Public License Version 2.0. Project source code, downloads and documentation are available at http://code.google.com/p/lib-sbml-reaction-finder.

Contact:  mneal@uw.edu
Delayed induction of proinflammatory cytokines and suppression of innate antiviral response by the novel Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus: implications for pathogenesis and treatment
Authors: Lau Susanna K. P. , Lau Candy C. Y. , Chan Kwok-Hung , Li Clara P. Y. , Chen Honglin , Jin Dong-Yan , Chan Jasper F. W. , Woo Patrick C. Y. , Yuen Kwok-Yung
Published: September 2013

The high mortality associated with the novel Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) has raised questions about the possible role of a cytokine storm in its pathogenesis. Although recent studies showed that MERS-CoV infection is associated with an attenuated IFN response, no induction of inflammatory cytokines was demonstrated during the early phase of infection. To study both early and late cytokine responses associated with MERS-CoV infection, we measured the mRNA levels of eight cytokine genes [TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IFN-β, monocyte chemotactic protein-1, transforming growth factor-β and IFN-γ-induced protein (IP)-10] in cell lysates of polarized airway epithelial Calu-3 cells infected with MERS-CoV or severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV up to 30 h post-infection. Among the eight cytokine genes, IL-1β, IL-6 and IL-8 induced by MERS-CoV were markedly higher than those induced by SARS-CoV at 30 h, whilst TNF-α, IFN-β and IP-10 induced by SARS-CoV were markedly higher than those induced by MERS-CoV at 24 and 30 h in infected Calu-3 cells. The activation of IL-8 and attenuated IFN-β response by MERS-CoV were also confirmed by protein measurements in the culture supernatant when compared with SARS-CoV and Sendai virus. To further confirm the attenuated antiviral response, cytokine response was compared with human HCoV-229E in embryonal lung fibroblast HFL cells, which also revealed higher IFN-β and IP-10 levels induced by HCoV-229E than MERS-CoV at 24 and 30 h. Whilst our data supported recent findings that MERS-CoV elicits attenuated innate immunity, this represents the first report to demonstrate delayed proinflammatory cytokine induction by MERS-CoV. Our results provide insights into the pathogenesis and treatment of MERS-CoV infections.
Outcomes of kidney allograft in recipients with kidney disease of unknown etiology
Authors: Kim Hyo Jin , Kim Hyunsuk , Cho Hyun Seop , Hwang Jin Ho , Jung In Mok , Ahn Curie , Ha Jongwon , Oh Yun Kyu , Lim Chun Soo , Chae Dong‐Wan , Kim Yon Su , Lee Jung Pyo
Published: September 2013

The etiology of renal disease is important because the primary renal pathology may affect the outcomes of kidney allograft with respect to recurrence, rejection, and survival. However, for a significant number of patients who undergo kidney transplantation, the disease etiology is unknown. Here, allograft outcomes for patients with kidney disease of unknown etiology (UEK) at three affiliated Korean hospitals were identified. The incidence of biopsy‐proven acute rejection (BPAR) for UEK was 22.9%, which was similar to the rates for diabetic nephropathy (DN, 24.4%) and IgA nephropathy (IgAN, 20.0%; p = 0.345). The cumulative incidence of post‐transplant glomerulonephritis (PTGN) among patients with UEK was significantly lower than that among patients with IgAN (p < 0.001). Overall graft survival of the UEK group was superior to that of the DN group (hazards ratio 0.39, 95% confidence interval 0.17–0.92, p = 0.030). Preemptive transplantation for UEK significantly reduced the incidence of BPAR (preemptive vs. non‐preemptive 9.6% vs. 30.3%, p = 0.001), but graft survival and recurrence were not affected by preemptive transplantation. The outcomes of kidney transplantation for patients with UEK were not inferior to those for patients with IgAN or DN. Preemptive kidney transplantation may be encouraged for UEK patients.
Flow Boiling Heat Transfer of Liquid Nitrogen in Heated U-Tubes
Authors: Deng D. , Xie S. W. , Li X. D. , Wang R. S.
Published: September 2013

The flow boiling heat transfer characteristics of liquid nitrogen in three U-tubes with different curvature ratios were investigated experimentally. The effects of inlet pressure, heat flux, and curvature ratio on heat transfer characteristic are analyzed. The results indicate that the local heat transfer characteristics change obviously as fluid flows through the return bend, especially in the case of high heat flux. The drying out occurs near the inner wall of the return bend under high heat flux. A parameter Rh (down/up), which is defined as the ratio of heat transfer coefficient between the downstream and upstream section of U-bend, is proposed to evaluate the contributions of the curvature ratio to the heat transfer. It is found that the Rh (down/up) increases with the decrease of the curvature ratios. Furthermore, the experiments results of the average heat transfer coefficient are compared with the calculated results of the empirical correlations.
Efficient Predictions of Unsteady Viscous Flows Around Bluff Bodies by Aerodynamic Reduced Order Models
Authors: Ebrahimnejad L. , Janoyan K. D. , Yadollahi Farsani H. , Valentine D. T. , Marzocca P.
Published: September 2013

This paper describes an efficient reduced order model (ROM) applied in the aerodynamic analysis of bluff bodies. The proposed method, which is based on eigensystem realization algorithm (ERA), uses the impulse response of the system obtained by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis to construct a ROM that can accurately predict the response of the system to any arbitrary input. In order to study the performance of the proposed technique, three different geometries including elliptical and rectangular sections as well as the deck cross section of Great Belt Bridge (GBB) were considered. The aerodynamic coefficients of the impulse responses of the three sections are used to construct the corresponding ROM for each section. Then, the aerodynamic coefficients from an arbitrary sinusoidal input obtained by CFD are compared with the predicted one using the ROM. The results presented illustrate the ability of the proposed technique to predict responses of the systems to arbitrary sinusoidal and other generic inputs, with significant savings in terms of CPU time when compared with most CFD codes. The methodology described in this paper has wide application in many offshore engineering problems where flexible structures interact with unsteady fluid flow, and should be useful in preliminary design, in design optimization, and in control algorithm development.
Tangential Damping and its Dissipation Factor Models of Joint Interfaces Based on Fractal Theory With Simulations
Authors: Zhang Xueliang , Wang Nanshan , Lan Guosheng , Wen Shuhua , Chen Yonghui
Published: September 2013

Based on contact fractal theory, a modified MB fractal model, and from the energy dissipation point and considering the mechanism of energy dissipation of joint interfaces, tangential damping and its dissipation factor models of joint interfaces are proposed. Numerical simulations reveal the varying relations of tangential damping and its dissipation factor versus corresponding parameters such as fractal dimension, fractal roughness, friction factor, and plastic index. A micro convex nonlinear relation (when fractal dimension is between 1.1 and 1.4) or near linear relation(when fractal dimension is between 1.4 and 1.9) between dimensionless tangential damping and dimensionless normal contact force over the joint interfaces varies with the fractal dimension of the surface profiles, dimensionless tangential damping increases(when fractal dimension is between 1.1 and 1.7) or decreases (when fractal dimension is between 1.7 and 1.9) with the increment of fractal dimension, and decreases with the increase of dimensionless fractal roughness. While the influences of plastic index, the ratio of hardness to yield strength, and the ratio of total tangential force to total normal force on dimensionless tangential damping are similar, and a concave nonlinear relation between tangential damping dissipation factor and the normal contact force over the joint interfaces, the tangential damping dissipation factor, meanwhile, decreases with the increment of the friction factor. In addition, the validation of the tangential contact damping model is implemented in indirect ways, which make comparison between the proposed tangential stiffness model and the literature.
An Experimental Investigation of Pressure Drop in Expanding Microchannel Arrays
Authors: Miner Mark J. , Phelan Patrick E. , Odom Brent A. , Ortiz Carlos A.
Published: September 2013

The pressure effects of expanding the cross section of microchannels along the direction of flow are investigated across four rates of channel expansion in the flow boiling of R-134a. Prior investigation by the authors detailed the fabrication of four copper microchannel arrays and the pumped-loop apparatus developed to facilitate interchange of the microchannel specimens, allowing consistency across experiments. Significant beneficial pressure effects are observed to result from the expansion, including reduction by half of the pumping cost per flow rate at critical heat flux. The improvements are seen with small expansions, and greater expansion yields diminishing returns. The high pressure drops associated with microchannel evaporators are effectively reduced by expanding channel geometry, and the low-frequency system spectral response indicates that expanding channel arrays typically carry less energy in oscillations up to 2.5 Hz, suggesting amelioration of oscillatory instabilities. Results are discussed in light of a comparative force analysis, with the balance of these forces linked to the observed behavior of the pressure drop and heat flux relationship.
Non-Darcy Natural Convection From a Vertical Cylinder Embedded in a Thermally Stratified and Nanofluid-Saturated Porous Media
Authors: Rashad A. M. , Abbasbandy S. , Chamkha Ali J.
Published: September 2013

In recent years, nanofluids have attracted attention as a new generation of heat transfer fluids in building heating, heat exchangers, plants, and automotive cooling applications because of their excellent thermal performance. Various benefits of the application of nanofluids include improved heat transfer, heat transfer system size reduction, minimal clogging, microchannel cooling, and miniaturization of systems. In this paper, a study of steady, laminar, natural convection boundary-layer flow adjacent to a vertical cylinder embedded in a thermally stratified nanofluid-saturated non-Darcy porous medium is investigated. The model used for the nanofluid incorporates the effects of Brownian motion and thermophoresis, and a generalized porous media model, which includes inertia and boundary effects, is employed. The cylinder surface is maintained at a constant nanoparticles volume fraction, and the wall temperature is assumed to vary with the vertical distance according to the power law form. The resulting governing equations are nondimensionalized and transformed into a nonsimilar form and then solved by Keller box method. A comparison is made with the available results in the literature, and our results are in very good agreement with the known results. A parametric study of the physical parameters is made, and a representative set of numerical results for the velocity, temperature, and volume fraction, as well as local shear stress and local Nusselt and Sherwood numbers, are presented graphically. The salient features of the results are analyzed and discussed. The results indicate that, when the buoyancy ratio or modified Grashof number increases, all of the local shear stress, local Nusselt number, and the local Sherwood number enhance while the opposite behaviors are predicted when the thermophoresis parameter increases. Moreover, increasing the value of the surface curvature parameter leads to increases in all of the local shear stress and the local Nusselt and Sherwood numbers while the opposite behaviors are obtained when either of the thermal stratification parameter or the boundary effect parameter increases.
Prediction of Cutting Time When Crosscutting Rounds, Pipe, and Rectangular Bar With a Gravity Fed Portable Bandsaw
Authors: Sagar Amrit , James Thomas P.
Published: September 2013

Portable bandsaws are gaining in popularity for their use on remote jobsites to efficiently cut structural materials such as bar, pipe, and channel. Some of their increased popularity is due to the recent introduction of high watt-hour lithium ion batteries, which has further improved the portability of bandsaws by making them cordless. However, with cordless bandsaws, knowledge of cutting rates becomes more important as battery runtime limits productivity. Unlike industrial cutoff bandsaws that typically have feed rate control, the cutting rate of portable bandsaws is determined by operator applied pressure and gravity. While some research has highlighted the cutting mechanics of bandsaws and related wear processes, there is a lack of progress in the area of predicting cutoff time as a function of sawing parameters, such as applied thrust force, blade speed, workpiece material properties, and geometry of the cross section. Research was conducted to develop and experimentally verify a mechanistic model to predict cutting rates of various cross sectional geometries with a gravity fed portable bandsaw. The analytical model relies upon experimental determination of a cutting constant equation, which was developed for a low carbon steel workpiece cut with an 18 teeth per inch (TPI) blade. The model was employed to predict crosscutting times for steel rounds, squares, and tubes for several conditions of thrust force and blade speed. Model predictions of cutting time were in close agreement with experimental results.
Numerical and Experimental Investigations of Key Assumptions in Analytical Failure Models for Sheet Metal Forming
Authors: Hasan Raed , Kasikci Tugce , Tsukrov Igor , Kinsey Brad L.
Published: September 2013

In this paper, the key assumptions in the M-K and effective stress ratio models are investigated for AISI 1018 steel specimens with a thickness of 0.78 mm using experimental and numerical data from Marciniak tests. The experimental procedure included Digital Imaging Correlation (DIC) to measure the major and minor in-plane strains. Strain components were obtained at points inside (i.e., the defect region) and adjacent (i.e., the safe regions) to the high strain concentrations for four different strain paths. In the numerical analysis, FEA simulations with Marc Mentat were performed with shell elements to investigate the four specimen geometries. The key assumptions of interest are the incremental major strain ratio from M-K model and the critical stress concentration factor from effective stress ratio model. Thus, the mechanics- and material-based failure phenomena in these two analytical models are examined in this paper to provide insight into the material behavior at failure. Also, data are presented that shows clearly the localization (both size and strain value) for the various strain paths.
Development of an Experimental Procedure for Thermal Contact Resistance Estimation at the Glass/Metal Contact Interface
Authors: Abdulhay B. , Bourouga B. , Alzetto F. , Challita C.
Published: September 2013

In this paper, an experimental device is designed and developed in order to estimate thermal conditions at the glass/metal contact interface. This device is made of two parts: The upper part contains the tool (piston) made of bronze and a heating device to raise the temperature of the piston to 700 °C. The lower part is composed of a lead crucible and a glass sample. The assembly is provided with a heating system, an induction furnace of 6 kW for heating the glass up to 950 °C. The developed experimental procedure has permitted the estimation of the thermal contact resistance (TCR) using a developed measurement principle based on the inverse technique developed by Beck et al. (1985, Inverse Heat Conduction: III Posed Problems, Wiley Inter-science, New York). The semitransparent character of the glass has been taken into account by an additional radiative heat flux and an equivalent thermal conductivity. After the set-up tests, reproducibility experiments for a specific contact pressure have been carried out. Results show a good repeatability of the registered and estimated parameters such as the piston surface temperature, heat flux density, and TCR. The estimated value of TCR reaches 2 × 10−3 K m2/W with a maximum dispersion that does not exceed 6%.
The Effect of Airfoil Clocking on Efficiency and Noise of Low Pressure Turbines
Authors: Vázquez Raúl , Torre Diego , Serrano Adolfo
Published: September 2013

The effect of airfoil clocking (stator-stator interaction) on efficiency and noise of low pressure turbines (LPT) was investigated experimentally in a multistage turbine high-speed rig. The rig consisted of three stages of a state-of-the-art LPT. The stages were characterized by a very high wall-slope angle, reverse cut-off design, very high lift, and very high aspect ratio airfoils. The rig had identical blade count for the second and third stators. The circumferential position of the second stator was individually adjusted with respect to the third stator. Eight different circumferential clocking locations over one pitch were back-to-back tested. The rig was heavily instrumented with miniature five hole probes, hot wires, hot films, total pressure and temperature rakes, pressure tappings on the airfoil surface, two array of Kulites in a rotatory module, etc. Every clocking location was tested with the same instrumentation and at the same operating conditions with the intention of determining the impact of the clocking on the overall efficiency and noise. Due to the large amount of data, the results of this test will be reported in several papers. The present paper contains the impact on the overall efficiency, radial traverses, static pressure fields on the airfoils and averaged sound pressure levels in the duct. The comparison of the results suggests that the efficiency is weakly affected by clocking; however the effect on noise is noticeable for some acoustic tones at certain operating conditions.
Investigation and Optimization of Laser Welding of Ti-6Al-4 V Titanium Alloy Plates
Authors: Caiazzo Fabrizia , Alfieri Vittorio , Corrado Gaetano , Cardaropoli Francesco , Sergi Vincenzo
Published: September 2013

Titanium alloys are employed in a wide range of applications, from aerospace to medicine. In particular, Ti-6Al-4 V is the most common, thanks to an excellent combination of low density, high specific strength, and corrosion resistance. Laser welding has been increasingly considered as an alternative to traditional techniques to join titanium alloys. An increase in penetration depth and a reduction of possible welding defects are indeed achieved; moreover, a smaller grain size in the fused zone (FZ) is benefited in comparison to either tungsten inert gas (TIG) or plasma arc welding, thus improving the tensile strength of the welded structures. This study was carried out on 3 mm thick Ti-6Al-4 V plates in square butt welding configuration. The novelty element of the investigation is the use of a disk-laser source, which allows a number of benefits thanks to better beam quality; furthermore, a proper device was developed for bead protection, as titanium is prone to oxidation when in fused state. A three-level factorial plan was arranged in face-centered cubic scheme. The regression models were found for a number of crucial responses and the corresponding surfaces were discussed; then a numerical optimization was carried out. The suggested condition was evaluated to compare the actual responses to the predicted values; X-ray inspections, Vickers micro hardness tests, and tensile tests were performed for the optimum.