bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Affective dimensions of teaching and doing development
Authors: Tschakert Petra , Henrique Karen Paiva , Bitmead Robert , Dassu Fahima , Crowther Michelle , Yukhnevich Zoya , Anderson Christopher , Roddy Abby , Bye Veronica , Rawlinson Akheam , O'Hara Nicola , Mottershead Amanda , Obeng James , Gerard Kelly
Published: July 2018

Like the development industry, development pedagogy and practice have begun to take into account the role of emotions and the deeper, affective and embodied experiences of understanding and doing development. In her ground‐breaking piece ‘Emotional geographies of development’, Sarah Wright illustrates how emotions not only create development subjects and associated subjectivities, but also provide a powerful entry point for resistance that may ultimately lead to transformative social change. Post‐colonial and feminist scholars have long emphasised the role of emotions such as anger, fear, shame, joy and hope in discursive construction of the ‘Other’ and the persistence of false binaries that obscure layers of struggle, exclusion and disenfranchisement. In this paper, we (students and educators) reflect on the role of emotions and affective engagements with development, drawing upon classroom discussions as well as reading and reflection logs of those studying for a Master in International Development (MID) at the University of Western Australia. We explore how explicit efforts to be attentive to our own emotions while digesting and deliberating material for this unit allow us to better grasp our own positionality while revisiting our personal entanglements with the ‘Other’ – the quintessential development subject. Making space for ‘more‐than‐rational’ aspects of development enables scholars and educators to experiment with affective options for interdisciplinary teaching in a distinctly more personal way than students may expect from a postgraduate degree in international development.
Rethinking Asian poverty in a time of Asian prosperity
Authors: Rigg Jonathan
Published: July 2018

Southeast Asia is a development success story. By 2025, it is forecast that extreme poverty in the region will have been ‘eradicated’. Does this mean that the challenges so evident in the 1960s when the countries of the region began to pursue development have been met, and the objectives achieved? The paper makes a case for thinking afresh about development and the poverty project, recognising that development is never neatly achieved but, rather, re‐worked, re‐engineered and re‐imagined over time. This is done through identifying different categories of ‘poor’, each produced through different poverty‐making processes, measured and viewed in different ways, and their poverty addressed using different approaches and policies. With specific reference to the cases of Laos and Thailand, and drawing on longitudinal research in the latter country, it is argued that while economic growth does trickle down, it trickles down in quite discrete and often contingent ways. Furthermore, there is always development work to be done, because development creates its own work.
Growth performance, apparent digestibility, and N balance in Mongolian lambs and hoggs fed diets supplemented with a Chinese traditional herbal medicine complex
Authors: Du Zhumei , Risu Na , Gentu Ge , Jia Yushan , Cai Yimin
Published: July 2018

We evaluated the effects of dietary supplementation with Chinese traditional herbal medicine (CTHM) on the growth performance, apparent digestibility, and nitrogen balance in Mongolian lambs and hoggs. The CTHM used as a dietary supplement consisted of 30% pine needles, 20% mugwort, 40% garlic, and 10% Astragalus mongholicus on a dry matter (DM) basis. The basal diet was prepared from corn stover, corn grain, wheat bran, rapeseed meal, shell meal, dicalcium phosphate, salt, vitamin premix, and mineral premix. In total, 16 Mongolian lambs (20.75 kg initial body weight [BW]) and 16 hoggs (33.81 kg initial BW) were allocated randomly to one of two treatments, the basal diet without and with CTHM, with the group receiving CTHM fed 98.5% basal diet + 1.5% CTHM complex on a DM basis. Lamb and hogg growth trials showed that CTHM supplementation improved the final live weight, gain, and feed conversion ratio (p < 0.01). A digestibility trial showed that the diet with CTHM improved the digestibility of DM, organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), and neutral detergent fiber in lambs and hoggs. Finally, CTHM supplementation decreased (p < 0.0001) fecal and urinary nitrogen and increased (p = 0.0004) nitrogen (N) retention. Overall, the addition of CTHM to the diets of lambs and hoggs has beneficial effects on growth.
Diversity and population density of methanogens in the large intestine of pigs fed diets of different energy levels
Authors: Matsui Hiroki , Ishimoto‐Tsuchiya Tomoyo , Maekawa Sakiko , Ban‐Tokuda Tomomi
Published: July 2018

Marker gene analysis was performed to assess the effect of energy level on the diversity and population density of methanogens in pig fecal material. Crossbred pigs were fed high or low energy level diets, a high‐energy (HE) diet that satisfied daily gain at 1.2 kg, and a low‐energy (LE) diet with amount of 0.6 times of the HE diet. Growth performance and short‐chain fatty acid in feces were examined. Diversity of methanogen was analyzed by the α‐subunit of methyl coenzyme‐M reductase gene (mcrA) clone library from fecal DNA. The DNA copy numbers of mcrA were quantified by real‐time PCR. There was no difference in the concentration and composition of short‐chain fatty acid between treatments. Differences in the mcrA clone library were observed between HE and LE treatments (p < 0.05). Ninety‐five percent of cloned sequence affiliated genus Methanobrevibacter in the feces of the pig regardless of treatments. During the experimental period, no significant difference in the proportion of copy numbers of mcrA against that of 16S rRNA gene of total bacteria was observed between treatments. In conclusion, feeding energy level affected composition of methanogens in the large intestine of the pig, while population density of methanogen was not affected.
Relationship Banking and Loan Syndicate Structure: The Role of Private Equity Sponsors
Authors: Huang Rongbing , Zhang Donghang , Zhao Yijia (Eddie)
Published: July 2018

Using a sample of syndicated loans to private equity (PE)‐backed initial public offering companies, we examine how a third‐party bank relationship influences the syndicate structure of a loan. We find that a stronger relationship between the lead bank and the borrower's PE firm enables the lead bank to retain a smaller share of the loan and form a larger and less concentrated syndicate, especially when the borrower is less transparent. A stronger PE‐bank relationship also attracts greater foreign bank participation. Our findings suggest that the lead bank's relationship with a large equity holder of the borrower facilitates information production in lending.
A heuristic approach to the automated analysis of drying curves
Authors: Cavion Carolina , Tonet Júlia , Miola Luísa de S. , Perottoni Cláudio A. , Zorzi Janete E.
Published: July 2018

In the context of ceramics production, the purpose of drying is to remove water from a ceramic body after forming. Drying should be performed at an appropriate rate, at an acceptable cost, and in such a way as not to damage the ceramic body. Although the determination of the best drying conditions is critical to ceramics production, the experimental determination of drying parameters, particularly of the critical moisture content, use to be very subjective. In this work, we propose an empirical mathematical expression, based on the generalized logistic model, which is capable of describing the complete drying curve. The critical moisture is thus unambiguously obtained as the intersection point of two straight lines derived from the mathematical modeling of the full drying curve. The heuristic proposed in this work may find particular application in automated procedures, data acquisition, and analysis of drying curves of ceramic masses.
Religious tides: The time‐variant effect of religion on morality policies
Authors: Knill Christoph , Fernández‐i‐Marín Xavier , Budde Emma , Heichel Stephan
Published: July 2018

Morality policies evince a much closer relationship to religious doctrines than is the case in other policy areas and hence constitute a most likely case for the observation of religious effects on policymaking and regulatory change. Yet we still lack generally accepted answers to the questions of whether and how religion matters to morality policy. In this paper, we present a theoretical argument that helps to overcome the seemingly contradictory expectations derived from the secularization and religion matters hypotheses. We postulate a bottleneck effect of religious opposition: while religious influence matters most during early stages of the policy process when the problem definition of a moral issue is still in flux, it diminishes during later stages when the issue has made it onto the political agenda. We find evidence of the bottleneck effect in a dataset of policy permissiveness covering 26 countries and spanning 50 years for five morality policies (abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality, pornography, and same‐sex marriage). The data is analyzed via a multilevel model and using Bayesian inference.
Reviewer Acknowledgements
Authors: Walter Andrew
Published: July 2018

Studies in Engineering and Technology (SET) would like to acknowledge the following reviewers for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Many authors, regardless of whether SET publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Their comments and suggestions were of great help to the authors in improving the quality of their papers. Each of the reviewers listed below returned at least one review for this issue.Reviewers for Volume 5, Number 1 Girish Upreti, University of Tennessee, USAHala Abd El Megeed, National Institute for Standards, EgyptHossam Zaqoot, Ministry of Environmental Affairs, GazaLoc Nguyen, Sunflower Soft Company, VietnamMarco A Ruano, Economics Department Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, SpainMohammad Reza Barati, Flinders University, AustraliMohsen Sheikholeslami, Babol University of Technology, IranTangming Yuan, University of York, UKWael Salah, Multimedia University, Malaysia                  Andrew WalterEditorial AssistantStudies in Engineering and Technology-------------------------------------------Redfame Publishing9450 SW Gemini Dr. #99416Beaverton, OR 97008, USATel: 1-503-828-0536 ext. 504Fax: 1-503-828-0537E-mail: set@redfame.comURL: http://set.redfame.com
Historiografía y curaduría: relatos visuales a partir de imágenes de archivo
Authors: Ordóñez Robayo Camilo Andrés , Barón Pino Maria Sol
Published: July 2018

El desarrollo de propuestas curatoriales a partir de la elaboración de fondos documentales que se constituyen en archivos resulta común hoy y enlazan campos como la museografía, la curaduría y los procesos artísticos. La práctica curatorial nos ha posibilitado confrontar la elaboración del relato histórico para elaborar pesquisas que conducen a la elaboración y consolidación de fondos documentales de imágenes que redundan en lo visual y que, caracterizados en torno a un archivo, permiten establecer hipertextos de contenido que se vuelcan en la apuesta museográfica como un campo de lectura abierto para el observador. Este artículo busca presentar la articulación creativa de procesos historiográficos y postulados curatoriales alrededor de la elaboración de relatos alternativos a la historia y la historia del arte. A partir de la reflexión sobre el desarrollo de dos proyectos de investigación y curaduría histórica (Múltiples y originales: arte y cultura visual en Colombia: años 70 [2010] y Rojo y más rojo. Taller 4 Rojo: producción gráfica y acción directa [2012]) presentamos cómo hemos procurado asimilar contenidos que son arrojados por repertorios visuales, parcialmente articulados iconográfica o iconológicamente, que buscan confrontar la cultura visual a través de la relectura que implica el contexto expositivo.
Un dios que sepa bailar: la performance privada, el gesto más radical.
Authors: Jiménez Morato Antonio
Published: July 2018

La escritura se realiza siempre en privado. Incluso cuando tiene lugar en un entorno público nadie es consciente de estar presenciando el acto de escritura. Y, sin embargo, es una performance, ya que cumple con las características de una representación performática. Si no es concebida o recibida como tal, es tan solo porque no se explicita tal deseo. Este trabajo va tanteando, como una performance de danza contemporánea, esta posibilidad. Estructurado en movimientos que asemejan la estructura coreográfica de un montaje de danza, tantea hitos históricos, conceptos estéticos y filosóficos, incluso críticos, que van trenzando la relación entre la escritura y la danza contemporánea y, por extensión en última instancia, la performance. Se trata de la bitácora de la toma de consciencia de esa reverberación que se produce entre ambas disciplinas y que, posiblemente, estaba apenas esperando a ser alumbrada. El trabajo, tras el tanteo coreográfico, llega a la conclusión de que la escritura es, de todas las performances, la más radical por, precisamente, negar la necesidad del público para legitimar su existencia. La escritura es la performance de más ardua valoración, porque termina siendo invisible como tal, pese a existir. Como el concepto de infradelgado de Duchamp, uno debe admitir su existencia, incluso puede intuirla, pero no puede afirmar haberla presenciado. Esta visión de la escritura como performance privada es totalmente inédita en el campo crítico.
A New Age of Rail
Authors: Webber Michael E.
Published: July 2018

This article discusses the need of reinvesting in freight railroads that could prove to be an infrastructure solution to multiple challenges. One straightforward way to encourage the switch from road to rail is to put a price on carbon. A carbon tax would harness the efficiency of markets while sending a price signal that rewards the more energy efficient and cleaner option of rail transportation. The article also highlights that while a carbon price and update to highway tax model would likely encourage a lot of switching to rail for freight, increasing throughput (ton-miles) on rail without other improvements could degrade key performance metrics such as delivery time and reliability. As a pair of major studies by the RAND Corporation in 2008 and 2009 noted, increasing the national rail freight capacity will need a variety of strategies beyond direct infrastructure investments. Such measures include revised regulations, flexible pricing, deploying modern technology, and implementing improved operating practices.
A Specific Single Nucleotide Polymorphism in the ATP Synthase Gene Significantly Improves Environmental Stress Tolerance of Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942
Authors: Lou Wenjing , Tan Xiaoming , Song Kuo , Zhang Shanshan , Luan Guodong , Li Cheng , Lu Xuefeng
Published: July 2018

Two closely related
Synechococcus
strains showed significantly different tolerances to high light and high temperature but limited genomic differences, providing us opportunities to identify key genes responsible for stress acclimation by a gene complementation approach. In this study, we confirmed that a single point mutation in the α subunit of F
o
F
1
ATP synthase (AtpA) contributes mainly to the improved stress tolerance of
Synechococcus elongatus
UTEX 2973. The point mutation of AtpA, the important ATP-generating complex of photosynthesis, increases AtpA protein levels, intracellular ATP synthase activity, and ATP concentrations under heat stress, as well as photosystem II activity. This work proves the importance of ATP synthase in cyanobacterial stress acclimation and provides a good target for future improvement of cyanobacterial stress tolerance by metabolic engineering.
Cooperative Involvement of Glycosyltransferases in the Transfer of Amino Sugars during the Biosynthesis of the Macrolactam Sipanmycin by Streptomyces sp. Strain CS149
Authors: Malmierca Mónica G. , Pérez-Victoria Ignacio , Martín Jesús , Reyes Fernando , Méndez Carmen , Olano Carlos , Salas José A.
Published: July 2018

The rapid emergence of infectious diseases and multiresistant pathogens has increased the necessity for new bioactive compounds; thus, novel strategies have to be developed to find them. Actinomycetes isolated in symbiosis with insects have attracted attention in recent years as producers of metabolites with important bioactivities. Sipanmycins are glycosylated macrolactams produced by
Streptomyces
sp. CS149, isolated from leaf-cutting ants, and show potent cytotoxic activity. Here, we characterize the
sip
cluster and propose a biosynthetic pathway for sipanmycins. As far as we know, it is the first time that the cooperation between two different glycosyltransferases is demonstrated to be strictly necessary for the incorporation of the same sugar. Also, a third protein with homology to P450 monooxygenases, SipO2, is shown to be essential in the second glycosylation step, forming a complex with the glycosyltransferase pair SipS9-SipS14.
Temporal Viral Genome-Protein Interactions Define Distinct Stages of Productive Herpesviral Infection
Authors: Dembowski Jill A. , DeLuca Neal A.
Published: July 2018

Herpesviruses utilize multiple mechanisms to redirect host proteins for use in viral processes and to avoid recognition and repression by the host. To investigate dynamic interactions between herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) DNA and viral and host proteins throughout infection, we developed an approach to identify proteins that associate with the infecting viral genome from nuclear entry through packaging. To accomplish this, virus stocks were prepared in the presence of ethynyl-modified nucleotides to enable covalent tagging of viral genomes after infection for analysis of viral genome-protein interactions by imaging or affinity purification. Affinity purification was combined with stable isotope labeling of amino acids in cell culture (SILAC) mass spectrometry to enable the distinction between proteins that were brought into the cell by the virus or expressed within the infected cell before or during infection. We found that input viral DNA progressed within 6 h through four temporal stages where the genomes sequentially (i) interacted with intrinsic antiviral and DNA damage response proteins, (ii) underwent a robust transcriptional switch mediated largely by ICP4, (iii) engaged in replication, repair, and continued transcription, and then (iv) transitioned to a more transcriptionally inert state engaging
de novo
-synthesized viral structural components while maintaining interactions with replication proteins. Using a combination of genetic, imaging, and proteomic approaches, we provide a new and temporally compressed view of the HSV-1 life cycle based on input genome-proteome dynamics.

IMPORTANCE
Herpesviruses are highly prevalent and ubiquitous human pathogens. Studies of herpesviruses and other viruses have previously been limited by the ability to directly study events that occur on the viral DNA throughout infection. We present a new powerful approach, which allows for the temporal investigation of viral genome-protein interactions at all phases of infection. This work has integrated many results from previous studies with the discovery of novel factors potentially involved in viral infection that may represent new antiviral targets. In addition, the study provides a new view of the HSV-1 life cycle based on genome-proteome dynamics.
The Main Role of Srs2 in DNA Repair Depends on Its Helicase Activity, Rather than on Its Interactions with PCNA or Rad51
Authors: Bronstein Alex , Gershon Lihi , Grinberg Gilad , Alonso-Perez Elisa , Kupiec Martin
Published: July 2018

Homologous recombination (HR) is a mechanism that repairs a variety of DNA lesions. Under certain circumstances, however, HR can generate intermediates that can interfere with other cellular processes such as DNA transcription or replication. Cells have therefore developed pathways that abolish undesirable HR intermediates. The
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
yeast Srs2 helicase has a major role in one of these pathways. Srs2 also works during DNA replication and interacts with the clamp PCNA. The relative importance of Srs2’s helicase activity, Rad51 removal function, and PCNA interaction in genome stability remains unclear. We created a new
SRS2
allele [
srs2
(
1-850
)] that lacks the whole C terminus, containing the interaction site for Rad51 and PCNA and interactions with many other proteins. Thus, the new allele encodes an Srs2 protein bearing only the activity of the DNA helicase. We find that the interactions of Srs2 with Rad51 and PCNA are dispensable for the main role of Srs2 in the repair of DNA damage in vegetative cells and for proper completion of meiosis. On the other hand, it has been shown that in cells impaired for the DNA damage tolerance (DDT) pathways, Srs2 generates toxic intermediates that lead to DNA damage sensitivity; we show that this negative Srs2 activity requires the C terminus of Srs2. Dissection of the genetic interactions of the
srs2
(
1-850
) allele suggest a role for Srs2’s helicase activity in sister chromatid cohesion. Our results also indicate that Srs2’s function becomes more central in diploid cells.

IMPORTANCE
Homologous recombination (HR) is a key mechanism that repairs damaged DNA. However, this process has to be tightly regulated; failure to regulate it can lead to genome instability. The Srs2 helicase is considered a regulator of HR; it was shown to be able to evict the recombinase Rad51 from DNA. Cells lacking Srs2 exhibit sensitivity to DNA-damaging agents, and in some cases, they display defects in DNA replication. The relative roles of the helicase and Rad51 removal activities of Srs2 in genome stability remain unclear. To address this question, we created a new Srs2 mutant which has only the DNA helicase domain. Our study shows that only the DNA helicase domain is needed to deal with DNA damage and assist in DNA replication during vegetative growth and in meiosis. Thus, our findings shift the view on the role of Srs2 in the maintenance of genome integrity.
Metatranscriptome Analysis of the Vaginal Microbiota Reveals Potential Mechanisms for Protection against Metronidazole in Bacterial Vaginosis
Authors: Deng Zhi-Luo , Gottschick Cornelia , Bhuju Sabin , Masur Clarissa , Abels Christoph , Wagner-Döbler Irene
Published: July 2018

Bacterial vaginosis is a serious issue for women in their reproductive years. Although it can usually be cured by antibiotics, the recurrence rate is very high, and some women do not respond to antibiotic therapy. The reasons for that are not known. Therefore, we undertook a study to detect the activity of the complete microbiota in the vaginal fluid of women who responded to antibiotic therapy and compared it to the activity of the microbiota in women who did not respond. We found that one of the most important pathogens in bacterial vaginosis,
Gardnerella vaginalis
, has activated genes that can repair the DNA damage caused by the antibiotic in those women that do not respond to therapy. Suppressing these genes might be a possibility to improve the antibiotic therapy of bacterial vaginosis.
TNFα inhibitors exacerbateMycobacterium paratuberculosisinfection in tissue culture: a rationale for poor response of patients with Crohn’s disease to current approved therapy
Authors: Qasem Ahmad , Naser Saleh A
Published: July 2018

BackgroundThe role ofMycobacteriumaviumsubspeciesparatuberculosis(MAP) in Crohn’s disease (CD) is increasingly accepted as evident by detection of the bacteria in the blood and intestinal tissue from patients with CD, and by supporting data from several open-label anti-MAP treatment studies. Tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) monoclonal antibodies (anti-TNFα) have been widely used for CD treatment. Despite the short-term benefit of anti-TNFα in controlling CD symptoms, most patients suffer from detrimental adverse effects, including higher susceptibility to mycobacterial infections.MethodsWe investigated the effect of recombinant cytokines and anti-TNFα therapeutics on macrophages infected with clinical MAP strain isolated from CD patient blood. MAP viability was measured in macrophages pulsed with PEGylated and non-PEGylated anti-TNFα monoclonal antibodies at concentrations 0 to 50 µg/mL and with rTNFα, rIL-6, rIL-12, rIL-23 and IFNγ at a final concentration of 1000 U/mL. Expression of proinflammatory cytokines was measured by RT-PCR following MAP infection.

ResultsBoth PEGylated and non-PEGylated forms of anti-TNFα increased MAP viability by nearly 1.5 logs. rIL-6 and rIL-12 induced MAP viability at 5.42±0.25 and 4.79±0.14 log CFU/mL, respectively. In contrast, rTNFα reduced MAP survival in infected macrophages by 2.63 logs. Expression ofTNFα,IL-6andIL-12was upregulated threefold following MAP orM. tuberculosisinfection compared with other bacterial strains (p<0.05), while expression ofIL-23andIFNγwas not significant after MAP infection.

ConclusionThe data indicate MAP-positive patients with CD receiving anti-TNFα treatment could result in favourable conditions for MAP infection, which explains the poor response of many patients with CD to anti-TNFα therapy.
Experiences of returning to work and maintaining work 7 to 8 years after a stroke: a qualitative interview study in Sweden
Authors: Palstam Annie , Törnbom Marie , Sunnerhagen Katharina Stibrant
Published: July 2018

Objective

To explore how persons experienced return to work (RTW) and their work situation 7 to 8 years after a stroke.

Design

An explorative qualitative design with individual interviews. The data analysis was inductive thematic and three researchers collaborated during the analysis process.

Participants

The study population included five women and eight men who had a stroke during 2009–2010, received care at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg, Sweden and RTW after stroke and it was a heterogenic sample based on age, occupation, stroke severity and time to RTW.

Results

The analysis led to four themes;motivated and RTW while struggling with impairments,mixed feelings in the RTW process, still at work though restrictedandsocial support for a sustainable work situation.The themes revealed that participants were motivated to RTW while struggling with impairments. The RTW process evoked mixed feelings of worry and grief over lost functions but also acceptance and gratitude for being able to work. Although maintaining work 7 to 8 years after experiencing a stroke, most were restricted in some way. Fatigue and cognitive impairments meant having to set limits, omit work tasks and rest at work, but also rest during free time and refraining from social activities in order to manage work. Participants avoided work-related stress if they could because of aggravated symptoms and/or fear of a new stroke. Support from supervisors and colleagues was often crucial for a sustainable work situation.

Conclusion

Maintaining work can be a continuous struggle with invisible impairments many years after a stroke. Strategies for managing work are dependent on each individual work situation, where support and understanding at work seem to be crucial for a sustainable work situation.
How do Australian women cope with pelvic girdle pain during pregnancy? A qualitative study protocol
Authors: Ceprnja Dragana , Chipchase Lucinda , Liamputtong Pranee , Gupta Amitabh
Published: July 2018

Introduction

Pelvic girdle pain is commonly experienced during pregnancy and results in significant physical, psychosocial and work-related challenges. Few studies have investigated the lived experiences of pregnant women with pelvic girdle pain and their coping strategies. There is a need to develop a greater understanding of this prevalent condition among Australian women. Thus, this study seeks to gain information about the impact of pelvic girdle pain on daily life and how women cope with this condition during pregnancy.

Methods and analysis

A qualitative research design, situated within a phenomenological framework, is adopted. The participants will be invited to describe their lived experiences of pregnancy-related pelvic girdle pain, the impact on their daily life and the strategies they use to cope with the condition. A stratified purposive sample will be undertaken to ensure the sample provides information-rich cases representative of women with pregnancy-related pelvic girdle pain. Face-to-face, individual, semistructured interviews will be conducted with participants at Westmead Hospital, Sydney, Australia. A solicited diary will be offered to any participants who may find attending the interview difficult. All participants will also be invited to attend a focus group session. The different methods of data collection used in this study will allow for triangulation, thereby increasing the trustworthiness of findings.

Ethics and dissemination

Ethical approval has been granted by the Human Research Ethics Committees of Westmead Hospital, Sydney, and Western Sydney University, Sydney. Dissemination of results will be via journal articles and conference presentations.
Prognostic implications of left ventricular strain by speckle-tracking echocardiography in population-based studies: a systematic review protocol of the published literature
Authors: Al Saikhan Lamia , Park Chloe , Hardy Rebecca , Hughes Alun
Published: July 2018

Introduction

Left ventricular (LV) strain by speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE) is a comparatively new prognostic marker. Meta-analyses relating LV strain by STE to outcomes have been conducted in selected patient-based populations with established or suspected cardiovascular (CV) diseases. However, the evidence related to population-based studies of community-dwelling individuals is uncertain. The aim of this study is to provide a comprehensive systematic review and analysis of the current available literature regarding LV strain by STE as a predictor of adverse outcomes in population-based studies.

Methods and analyses

Thesaurus and text-word searching will be used to search two online databases (MEDLINE and EMBASE) and additional sources will be identified from citation metrics and reference lists’ search. Dual search results’ screening, data extraction and quality assessment will be performed. Cohort studies of community/population-based samples who have had STE and followed up longitudinally for mortal and morbid events, and published in English and peer-reviewed journals will be included. Primary outcome will be all-cause mortality whereas secondary outcomes will be composite cardiac and CV end points. Risk of bias will be assessed using Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale of cohort studies that will be modified as appropriate. Any arising discrepancies will be discussed and resolved through consensus.

Ethics and dissemination

Ethical approval is not required as this is a protocol for a systematic review. The findings of this study will be presented at scientific conferences and published in a peer-reviewed journal. Any amendments to the protocol will be documented and updated in the PROSPERO registry.

PROSPERO registration number

CRD42018090302.
Protocol for process evaluation of CIVIC randomised controlled trial: Community-based InterVentions to prevent serIous Complications following spinal cord injury in Bangladesh
Authors: Hossain Mohammad Sohrab , Harvey Lisa A , Liu Hueiming , Islam Md. Shofiqul , Rahman Md. Akhlasur , Muldoon Stephen , Biering-Sorensen Fin , Cameron Ian D , Chhabra Harvinder S , Lindley Richard I , Jan Stephen
Published: July 2018

Introduction

People with spinal cord injuries in low-income and middle-income countries are highly vulnerable to life-threatening complications in the period immediately after discharge from hospital. We are conducting a randomised controlled trial in Bangladesh to determine whether all-cause mortality at 2 years can be reduced if health professionals regularly ring and visit participants in their homes following discharge. We will conduct a process evaluation alongside the trial to explain the trial results and determine the feasibility of scaling this intervention up in low-income and middle-income countries if it is found to be effective.

Methods and analysis

Our process evaluation is based on the Realist and Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation and Maintenance frameworks. We will use a mixed methods approach that uses both qualitative and quantitative data. For example, we will audit a sample of telephone interactions between intervention participants and the healthcare professionals, and we will conduct semistructured interviews with people reflective of various interest groups. Quantitative data will also be collected to determine the number and length of interactions between the healthcare professionals and participants, the types of issues identified during each interaction and the nature of the support and advice provided by the healthcare professionals. All quantitative and qualitative data will be analysed iteratively before the final analysis of the trial results. These data will then be triangulated with the final results of the primary outcome.

Ethics and dissemination

Ethics approval was obtained from the institutional ethics committee at the site in Bangladesh and from the University of Sydney, Australia. The study will be conducted in compliance with all stipulations of its protocol, the conditions of ethics committee approval and the relevant regulatory bodies. The results of the trial will be disseminated through publications in peer-reviewed scientific journals and presentations at scientific conferences.

Trial registration number

ACTRN12615000630516.
Electromagnetic quasinormal modes of the nearly-extremal higher-dimensional Schwarzschild–de Sitter black hole
Authors: Panotopoulos Grigoris
Published: July 2018

We obtain an analytical expression for the electromagnetic quasinormal (QN) spectrum of the higher-dimensional nearly-extremal Schwarzschild–de Sitter black hole. The WKB method is used to verify the results, and a comparison with known results from previous works is briefly made as well.
Threshold singularities in the one-dimensional supersymmetric boson–fermion gas mixture
Authors: Schlottmann P.
Published: July 2018

A one-dimensional gas mixture consisting of bosons and fermions without spin interacting via a repulsive [Formula: see text]-function potential is considered. The model is integrable and soluble via two nested Bethe ansatz, if all particles are assumed to have equal masses and the interaction strength between the bosons and among the bosons and fermions is the same. The low energy excitation spectrum is a two-component Luttinger liquid and can be parametrized by a conformal field theory with conformal charges c = 1. In the low-energy limit, where the band curvature terms in the dispersion can be neglected, the linear dispersion of a Luttinger liquid is asymptotically exact. The spectral function, however, displays deviations from the Luttinger behavior for higher energy excitations. In the neighborhood of the single-particle (hole) energy, the spectral function is represented by an effective X-ray edge type model. Expressions of the critical exponents for the single-hole Green’s function are obtained using the Bethe ansatz solution in the limit of the bosonic gas. The results could be of relevance in the context of ultracold atoms confined to an elongated optical trap.
On isospectral compactness in conformal class for 4-manifolds
Authors: Liu Xianfu , Wang Zuoqin
Published: July 2018

Let [Formula: see text] be a closed 4-manifold with positive Yamabe invariant and with [Formula: see text]-small Weyl curvature tensor. Let [Formula: see text] be any metric in the conformal class of [Formula: see text] whose scalar curvature is [Formula: see text]-close to a constant. We prove that the set of Riemannian metrics in the conformal class [Formula: see text] that are isospectral to [Formula: see text] is compact in the [Formula: see text] topology.
Existence and concentration of ground states of fractional nonlinear Schrödinger equations with potentials vanishing at infinity
Authors: Shang Xudong , Zhang Jihui
Published: July 2018

In this paper, we study the existence and concentration behaviors of positive solutions to the following fractional nonlinear Schrödinger equation: [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] is a positive parameter, [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] is the fractional Laplacian. When the potential [Formula: see text] decays to zero like [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text] like [Formula: see text] with [Formula: see text], we will show that the existence of ground states [Formula: see text] belonging to [Formula: see text], which concentrates at a minimum point of the auxiliary function [Formula: see text].
Structural Deterioration Detection Using Enhanced Autoregressive Residuals
Authors: Monavari Benyamin , Chan Tommy H. T. , Nguyen Andy , Thambiratnam David P.
Published: July 2018

This paper presents a study on detecting structural deterioration in existing buildings using ambient vibration measurements. Deterioration is a slow and progressive process which reduces the structural performance, including load-bearing capacity. Each building has unique vibration characteristics which change in time due to deterioration and damage. However, the changes due to deterioration are generally subtler than the changes due to damage. Examples of deterioration include subtle loss of steel-concrete bond strength, slight corrosion of reinforcement and onset of internal cracks in structural members. Whereas damage can be defined as major sudden structural changes, such as major external cracks of concrete covers. Herein, a deterioration detection method which uses structural health monitoring (SHM) data is proposed to address the deterioration assessment problem. The proposed novel vibration-based deterioration identification method is a parametric-based approach, incorporated with a nonparametric statistical test, to capture changes in the dynamic characteristics of structures. First, autoregressive (AR) time-series models are fitted to the vibration response time histories at different sensor locations. A sensitive deterioration feature is proposed for detecting deterioration by applying statistical hypotheses of two-sample [Formula: see text]-test on the model residuals, based on which a function of the resulting [Formula: see text]-values is calculated. A novel AR model order estimation procedure is proposed to enhance the sensitivity of the method. The performance of the proposed method is demonstrated through comprehensive simulations of deterioration at single and multiple locations in finite element models (FEM) of 3- and 20-storey reinforced concrete (RC) frames. The method shows a promising sensitivity to detect small levels of structural deterioration prior to damage, even in the presence of noise.
Stability Analysis of a Simple Strut with Elastic Springs Through Sensitivity Surfaces and Gradients
Authors: Uroš Mario , Lazarević Damir , Demšić Marija , Atalić Josip
Published: July 2018

The global elastic stability of a strut supported by three inclined springs is studied using the exact displacement geometry. The discrete phenomenological model in the theory of stability, described by Thompson and Gaspar, exhibits different postbuckling behaviors, depending on the initial geometry for large imperfections, and this has various applications in engineering. Using the total potential energy method, a system of nonlinear algebraic equations is derived for the nondissipative system. The arc length method is adopted to solve the system of nonlinear equations, considering the stability of equilibrium points at each position, while detecting and traversing the critical points with the possibility of intervention. The characteristic equilibrium paths and their corresponding trajectories are shown and compared with the asymptotic solutions at the first critical point. A parametric analysis is performed, and sensitivity surfaces are constructed for several initial positions of the springs, represented by the initial angle in the horizontal plane. A wide range of independent imperfections with large amplitudes in two directions is considered. The concept of load capacity gradient functions of sensitivity surfaces is introduced and used to qualitatively and quantitatively analyze the stability behavior of the system located far away from the initial position. A few interesting observations and conclusions are obtained from the sensitivity analysis of a simple strut in the postcritical region. The critical combinations of imperfections for each static system are determined through analysis of the gradients. Further, the “stable” and “unstable” regions of the sensitivity surfaces are identified, with some observations made. Finally, the applications of load capacity gradient functions in structural optimization and form findings are reviewed.
Encapsulation of Vitamin C with its Protection from Oxidation by Poly(Vinyl Alcohol)
Authors: Karim Anis Abdul , Tan Eric , Loh Xian Jun
Published: July 2018

Vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid) has been widely used in dermatological and cosmetic formulations primarily as an antioxidant owing to its excellent electron-donating ability. This property also makes it highly reactive and therefore degradation is unavoidable in the presence of reactive species. Polymers have been used for encapsulation purposes as micelles vesicles or gels.11–19 A water-soluble polymer, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) has been investigated as one of the polymeric materials for encapsulation. In cosmetic formulations, PVA is used as emulsion stabilizer, forming protective films, viscosity increasing agent, or a binder. This study used PVA to encapsulate Vitamin C in an attempt to slow down the rate of degradation and therefore preserve the bioactivity of Vitamin C. PVA of varying molecular weights and concentrations were used and the PVA-Vitamin C solutions were subjected to different temperature over seven days. UV and NMR analyses were performed to support the study. It was shown that PVA of Mw 79.2[Formula: see text]kDa provided the best protection for Vitamin C. Based on the analysis, it was demonstrated that molecular weight (Mw) 9[Formula: see text]kDa did not provide optimal protection due to shorter chain length. PVA of Mw 130[Formula: see text]kDa was too big that the polymer prefers to form noncovalent bonds with each other instead of Vitamin C.
Computing the Expected Value and Variance of Geometric Measures
Authors: Tsirogiannis Constantinos , Staals Frank , Pellissier Vincent
Published: July 2018

LetPbe a point set in ℝd, and letMbe a function that maps any subset ofPto a positive real. We examine the problem of computing the mean and variance ofMwhen a subset inPis selected according to a random distribution. We consider two distributions; in the first distribution (the Bernoulli distribution), each pointpinPis included in the random subset independently, with probability π(p). In the second distribution (the fixed-size distribution), exactlyspoints are selected uniformly at random among all possible subsets ofspoints inP.

We present efficient algorithms for computing the mean and variance of several geometric measures when point sets are selected under one of the described random distributions. We also implemented four of those algorithms: an algorithm that computes the mean 2D bounding box volume in the Bernoulli distribution, an algorithm for the mean 2D convex hull area in the fixed-size distribution, an algorithm that computes the exact mean and variance of the mean pairwise distance (MPD) ford-dimensional point sets in the fixed-size distribution, and an (1 − ε)-approximation algorithm for the same measure. We conducted experiments where we compared the performance of our implementations with a standard heuristic approach, and we show that our implementations are very efficient. We also compared the implementation of our exact MPD algorithm and the (1 − ε)-approximation algorithm; the approximation method performs faster on real-world datasets for point sets of up to 13 dimensions, and provides high-precision approximations.
Introduction of Store Brands Considering Product Cost and Shelf Space Opportunity Cost
Authors: Duan Yongrui , Mao Zhixin , Huo Jiazhen
Published: July 2018

This paper studies the introduction of store brands (SBs) when the product cost, shelf space opportunity cost, and baseline sales are taken into consideration. We construct a Stackelberg model in which one retailer, acting as the leader, sells a national brand (NB) and its SB and maximizes the category profit by allocating shelf space and determining the prices for the SB and NB products. Meanwhile, an NB manufacturer, acting as the follower, maximizes its profit based on the decisions of the retailer. Our results demonstrate that the product cost of the SB (NB) and the shelf space opportunity cost are the dominating factors that determine the optimal pricing strategy. If the two costs are low, then the optimal pricing strategy is the me-too strategy (competitive strategy); otherwise, the optimal pricing strategy is the differentiation strategy. There exists a threshold of the product cost, shelf space opportunity cost, and baseline sales to decide the pricing strategy and introduction of SB.
A Novel Bayesian Method for Calculating Circular Error Probability with Systematic-Biased Prior Information
Authors: Liu Bowen , Duan Xiaojun , Yan Liang
Published: July 2018

Circular Error Probability (CEP) is defined as the radius of a circle where the probability of an impact point being inside is 50%, which is also widely used as a measure of the guidance weapon systems’ precision. In order to achieve a fusion of various test information, Bayesian methods and improved Bayesian methods have been extensively studied in calculating the CEP. Nevertheless, these methods could fail when there exists unknown systematic bias in the prior information. Therefore, a novel method called Bayesian estimation based on representative points (BERP) with an optimization procedure for determining the optimal number of representative points is proposed in this paper. Explicit theoretical analyses demonstrate that the BERP outperforms the classical Bayesian methods when fusing the slightly biased prior information and also give the bound of the systematic bias for stopping using the heavily biased prior information. Moreover, when the systematic bias is within the bound, simulation results indicate that our method is credible and outperforms the classical Bayesian method in calculating the CEP of guidance weapon systems.
Traumatic Obturator Hip Dislocation with Marginal Femoral Head Fracture in a 15-Year-Old Adolescent: A High-Energy Trauma—A Case Report and a Review of the Literature
Authors: Durand Yoann , Bruyère Clémence , Saglini Marco , Michel-Traverso Aurélien
Published: July 2018

We report the case of a 15-year-old boy brought to the emergency department after a bike accident, complaining of an isolated left hip pain. The X-rays showed an obturator hip dislocation treated by closed reduction under general anaesthesia, followed by 6 weeks of discharge. The follow-up MRI performed 6 weeks after the trauma showed an avascular femoral head necrosis, for which we performed multiple retrograde femoral head drilling, completed by the injection of autologue stem cells from the iliaq crest. One year later, the patient has no hip pain, no joint limitation, and can practice BMX at a high level again. The purpose of this report is to make the physicians aware of this rare problem that may be damaging for hip function, especially in young people.