bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
3D-Printed high performance PEEK/CF-PEEK polymer composites—An investigation on microstructural characteristics and mechanical performance
Authors: Bala Santhosh Mathan S , Chandramohan Palanisamy , Raghu Raman
Published: October 2024

This study investigates the microstructural characteristics and mechanical properties of 3D-printed polyether ether ketone (PEEK) and carbon fiber-reinforced PEEK (PEEK CF20) composites. Using a specifically optimized 3D printing process parametric condition, samples of pure PEEK and PEEK CF20 (containing 20% carbon fiber) were fabricated. Mechanical properties were estimated by tensile, flexural, and interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) tests, performed as per ISO and DIN standards. Results indicated that PEEK CF20 exhibits significantly enhanced mechanical properties compared to pure PEEK. The tensile strength of PEEK CF20 was 81.069 MPa, compared to 76.070 MPa for pure PEEK. Maximum load values were 1456.608 N for PEEK CF20 and 1286.137 N for pure PEEK, while ILSS values were 15.76 MPa for PEEK CF20 and 11.82 MPa for pure PEEK. Microstructural analysis through field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) revealed that PEEK CF20 had better fiber-matrix bonding and fewer defects compared to pure PEEK.
Study on the effects of ultrasonic vibration-assisted wire-EDM machining parameters on material removal rate and surface roughness of NiTiV shape memory alloy
Authors: Arun A. , Santosh S. , Rajkumar K. , Balasubramaniyan C.
Published: October 2024

Nickel-titanium (NiTi)-based shape memory alloys (SMAs) exhibit remarkable properties, making them increasingly demanding in various engineering and medical applications especially when these SMAs are manufactured with intricate shapes and sizes. This present study examines the machining of Ni50Ti48V2 SMA using ultrasonic-assisted WEDM with input parameters of pulse ON time (TON), pulse OFF time (TOFF), peek current (I), and servo voltage (SV) along with 20 kHz constant ultrasonic vibration on the responses of material removal rate (MRR) and surface roughness (Ra). RSM-BBD response surface methodology was used to conduct the experiments. It was inferred from analysis of variance (ANOVA) analysis, that as the peak current (I) and pulse ON time (TON) increased, the MRR increased by 65.76% and Ra decreased by 54.44%. The confirmation was carried out in USV-WEDM under optimal conditions, which shows that both the predicted and actual MRR and Ra are close to each other. When compared with conventional WEDM, the USV-WEDM shows significant improvement in MRR by 8.6% and also improved surface quality by 6.3%. The surface characteristics of Ni50Ti48V2 after machining were examined using field-emitted scanning electron microscopy, showing small irreularisation peaks and wavy surface topography at optimised parameter conditions. USV-WEDM showed a lower-order micro-hardness variation due to effective flushing of molten layer re-accumulation as compared to WEDM. When comparing the base and machined samples, the temperatures of austenite and martensite are nearly the same, indicating that shape memory effects are unaffected by the USV-WEDM process.
Analysis of friction vibration characteristics of the end face of a T-slot sealing ring under thermal deformation
Authors: Ahmat Mutellip , Liu Fangming , Qiu Wei
Published: October 2024

Aiming at the friction vibration problem caused by dry friction contact during the start-stop process of a dry gas sealing device, this paper takes the end face of a T-slot dry gas sealing ring as the research object and establishes a numerical calculation model of the end face of the T-slot sealing ring. The thermal coupling method is used to obtain the thermal deformation law of the seal ring end face. The transient dynamics analysis method was applied to study the frequency and vibration mode of the friction vibration instability of the seal ring end face under thermal deformation. A vibration test bench was set up for the friction ring, and the friction vibration signals of the test pieces were collected, and the characteristic frequencies were extracted. The results show that: After thermal deformation, the end face of the sealing ring changes from a parallel surface to an inward converging surface, and the friction system of the sealing ring will become unstable. When considering the influence of thermal deformation, there are more unstable frequencies and lower frequency values that are most prone to frictional vibration. As the thermal deformation of the sealing ring increases, the frictional vibration becomes greater. In areas where the characteristic frequency values of frictional vibration are concentrated during thermal deformation, the occurrence rate of frictional vibration noise is higher.
Racial Minorities Face Discrimination From Across the Political Spectrum When Seeking to Form Ties on Social Media: Evidence From a Field Experiment
Authors: Nair Krishnan , Mosleh Mohsen , Kouchaki Maryam
Published: October 2024

We conducted a preregistered field experiment examining racial discrimination in tie formation on social media. We randomly assigned research accounts varying on race (Black, White) and politics (liberal/Democrat, conservative/Republican, neutral) to follow a politically balanced sample of Twitter (i.e., X) users ( N = 5,951) who were unaware they were in a research study. We examined three predictions from the social and political psychology literatures: i) individuals favor White over Black targets, ii) this tendency is stronger for conservatives/Republicans than for liberals/Democrats, and iii) greater discrimination by conservatives/Republicans is explained by the assumption that racial minorities are liberal/Democrat. We found evidence that individuals were less likely to reciprocate social ties with Black accounts than White accounts. However, this tendency was not moderated by individuals’ political orientation, shared partisanship, or partisan mismatch. In sum, this work provides field experimental evidence for racial discrimination in tie formation on social media by individuals across political backgrounds.
Poverty constructions and discursive strategies employed by participants in the Finnish Basic Income Experiment
Authors: Tarkiainen Laura , Blomberg Helena , Kroll Christian
Published: October 2024

In this article, we examine how eighty-one participants in the Finnish Basic Income Experiment discursively construct and make sense of their own and others’ poverty in face-to-face interviews. Using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), we identified three discursive strategies the interviewees use to engage with and challenge culturally dominant poverty discourses. First, poverty was constructed as a tragic experience attributed to external causes beyond individual control, such as precarious labour markets and governmental policies. Second, poverty was managed discursively through explicit and implicit moral judgements about other welfare recipients, which also highlighted the speakers’ own moral values regarding responsibility and self-sufficiency. Third, some interviewees discursively constructed their low-income status as a personal and deliberate choice to live an intentionally modest, sustainable or ‘deviant’ lifestyle. Overall, our results reveal how ideologically controversial sociopolitical experiments create a particular argumentative context in which poverty talk is constructed.
Fitness to stand trial: 415 consecutive defendants assessed by a New Zealand forensic psychiatry service
Authors: Wakefield Amber , Every-Palmer Susanna , Foulds James A
Published: October 2024

Background

New Zealand defendants found unfit to stand trial following a Court-ordered forensic mental health assessment cannot be detained in prison and must either be released, or made subject to a mental health or intellectual disability order. There is increasing awareness of the need to identify these people and protect their rights.

Methods

Retrospective audit of 8 years of Court-ordered health assessor reports addressing fitness to stand trial prepared by a New Zealand regional forensic mental health service with a catchment area of around 850,000.

Results

Between 2014 and 2022, Courts referred 415 defendants for assessment of fitness to stand trial. The number of reports requested increased by 20% between 2014 and 2022. Report subjects were 81% male and had a median age of 31. Commonest primary diagnoses were psychotic disorders (37%), intellectual disability (13%) and acquired neurocognitive disorders (15%). Few people with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder were identified. Despite the increase in assessments, the number of defendants considered unfit by report writers remained stable over time.

Conclusion

The increasing number of referrals for assessment of fitness to stand trial has resourcing implications for forensic mental health services.
Improvement of tracking performance of SMA-actuated rotary actuator via thermocouple delay compensation using adaptive predictor
Authors: Naseri Payam , Zakerzadeh Mohammad Reza , Hasanzadeh Moghadam Mahyar
Published: October 2024

This paper investigates the impact of bounded and unknown delay of a J-type thermocouple sensor on controlling a Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) actuated rotary actuator. To compensate for the delay, a nonlinear adaptive predictor is utilized, which predicts the exact temperature of the present moment using the output of the sensor. A robust sliding mode control is then designed to track the reference input, which is the rotation angle of the pulley. In addition to temperature estimation, the inner system identification algorithm of the predictor identifies the heat transfer coefficients of the experimental setup. Experimental tests demonstrate the precise control of the proposed algorithm. The tracking error of the adaptive predictor with sliding mode control is compared to that of a regular sliding mode controller without temperature delay compensation consideration, showing the superior performance of the proposed control algorithm.
Aberrant Expression of Pneumocytic Markers (TTF-1 and Napsin-A) in Biliary Duct and Gallbladder Adenocarcinomas; A Potential Diagnostic Pitfall
Authors: Khedkar Rutvij , Agrawal Radhika , Yadav Subhash , Kaushal Rajiv Kumar
Published: October 2024

Cholangiocarcinomas and gallbladder carcinomas are epithelial tumours with biliary differentiation. On histology and immunohistochemistry, they resemble adenocarcinomas and possess overlapping immunohistochemical profiles. Diagnosing these tumours is best done using appropriate imaging and clinical features with compatible immunohistochemistry. Immuno-staining for thyroid transcription factor-1 (TTF-1) and novel aspartic proteinase of pepsin A (Napsin-A) is believed to be specific for primary pulmonary adenocarcinomas. We herein report uncommon instances of strong and diffuse expression of these markers in two examples of adenocarcinomas arising from the bile duct and gallbladder. A review of the literature and a summary of similar studies relating to aberrant TTF-1 and Napsin-A expression in biliary tract adenocarcinomas are presented.
Study of role of melanoma-associated antigen D1 (MAGE-D1) in hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: El-Masry Muhammad Ibrahim
Published: October 2024

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) ranks as the fifth most common neoplasm and the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Current serum biomarkers for HCC surveillance and early diagnosis, particularly alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) the most commonly used marker, lack satisfactory sensitivity and specificity, highlighting an urgent need for more effective markers with higher accuracy for early HCC detection. The downregulation of melanoma-associated antigen D1 (MAGE-D1) transcription plays a crucial role in apoptosis and inhibits cancer cell proliferation when expressed ectopically. Moreover, reduced MAGE-D1 expression correlates with improved prognosis in many cancers. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the diagnostic role of MAGE-D1 in HCC, proposing it as a novel biomarker for early diagnosis and monitoring of tumor progression. Serum MAGE-D1 expression was measured using RT-qPCR on 198 subjects, divided into three groups: 88 with HCC, 56 with chronic liver conditions, and 54 as healthy controls. With a sensitivity of 93.3% and a specificity of 97.5%, MAGED-1 shows strong potential as a diagnostic marker for HCC. The performance of serum MAGED-1 expression in discrimination between HCC and chronic liver condition revealed an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.939 using the cutoff (0.752) yielded a sensitivity of 90%, specificity of 85%, and an accuracy of 91%. Evaluation of the diagnostic significance of MAGED-1 demonstrated an AUC value of 0.726, with a sensitivity of 63.6% and a specificity of 73.5%. In conclusion, MAGED-1 might be a specific and sensitive biomarker for HCC, potentially improving the malignancy diagnosis and prognosis.
Ethics in a Culture of Dharma
Authors: Tuli Mila , Gupta Deepti
Published: October 2024

The diversity of human existence and survival calls for multiple reconsidered approaches to knowing and understanding lives. The standard procedures of knowing have so far been reflective of an understanding which is distant from the everyday realities of people. Ethical approaches used in research need to be sensitive not just to the context of enquiry but also to the varied ways of experiencing, engaging and negotiating with everyday life. The present article discusses the everyday ethics of engagements in the field through examples from ethnographic enquiries in different ecologies within India. Ethics of transparency, accountability, sensitive procedures, authenticity and mutuality in the relationships established in the field and beyond are argued to be vital to the research process. Dharma is understood as the basis of the universe in the Indian philosophy. Dharma encourages openness, sensitivity, and mutual respect towards all forms of life, embracing multiplicity and alterity. The article explores the nuances of four ethnographic studies from India to understand the choices and positions of the researchers in the light of Dharma as an approach while navigating the dynamic elements of the field enabling them to reduce the distinction between self and other.
Evaluation of a Workplace Diabetes Prevention Program Delivered via Distance Learning: A Qualitative Study
Authors: Audet Carolyn M. , Roller Lance J. , Aliyu Muktar H. , Rolando Lori , Alva Maria , Ali Mohammad , Schildcrout Jonathan S. , Chakkalakal Rosette
Published: October 2024

Little is known about how distance learning impacts delivery of the National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) despite a rapid shift to this platform during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) public health emergency. We explored how a workplace DPP, delivered via distance learning, impacted knowledge, motivation, and behavioral skills of participants throughout the program. We conducted repeated qualitative interviews with distance learning participants at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months from September 2020 to July 2022. Three study team members coded interview data using individual responses as the unit of analysis. We used a thematic approach, using the information–motivation–behavioral skills framework, to analyze responses and generate understanding of the program’s impact. The 27 individuals who participated in the interviews (89% women, mean age 56 years) reported the distance learning platform was effective in changing their behavior. The program’s focus on food logging and setting limits on specific types of caloric intake was perceived as essential. Education on ideal levels of fat and sugar consumption, lessons on how to read food labels, and dissemination of recipes with healthy food substitutions allowed participants to initiate and sustain healthy decision-making. Strategies to increase physical activity, including breaking up exercise throughout the day, made reaching their goals more feasible. Participants reported food logging and weight reporting, as well as group support during sessions, either sustained or increased their motivation to adhere to the program over time. A workplace DPP delivered via distance learning successfully prompted improvements in the knowledge, motivation, and behavioral skills necessary to increase healthy eating and physical activity among participants.
The inferior sacral iliac line as a horizontal reference plane in paediatric pelvic radiographs
Authors: Berault Thomas J , Wyatt John M , Olsen Aaron A , Mantooth Clark , Balazs George C , Goldman Ashton H , Rocchi Vanna J
Published: October 2024

Background:

While often used, Hilgenreiner’s line may not always be a reliable reference plane following triple innominate pelvic osteotomy or trauma to the triradiate cartilage. The inferior sacral-iliac line is a horizontal line connecting the sclerotic corners of the inferior sacral-iliac joints. This is a consistent landmark in the ossifying infant pelvis as well as the fully developed adult pelvis. The goal of this study was to determine if there is a difference in measurements between the inferior sacral-iliac line and Hilgenreiner’s line in order to identify an alternative horizontal reference plane.

Methods:

3 reviewers (fellowship-trained paediatric orthopaedic surgeon, junior orthopaedic resident, senior orthopaedic resident) reviewed 100 paediatric non-osteotomized pelvises. The difference between Hilgenreiner’s line and the inferior sacral-iliac line were measured and reported. Measurements were repeated a minimum of 48 hours apart, resulting in 600 comparisons between Hilgenreiner’s line and the inferior sacral-iliac line. The standard error of measurement was calculated to assess the variation in measurements between each individual observer and the group as a whole.

Results:

The mean standard error of measurement between Hilgenreiner’s line and the inferior sacral-iliac line was 0.44° (95% CI, ± 0.86). Reviewers 1–3 demonstrated a mean standard error of measurement of 0.38, 0.28, and 0.35 (95% CI, ± 0.74, 0.55, and 0.86) respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between reviewers ( p > 0.05). Intra-observer reliability for reviewers 1, 2, and 3 was 0.64 (0.47–0.76), 0.75 (0.63–0.83), and 0.54 (0.32–0.69) respectively, with an inter-observer reliability of 0.42 (0.20–0.60) degrees.

Conclusions:

In this proof-of-concept study, the inferior sacral-iliac line was found to be an appropriate alternative to Hilgenreiner’s line that is easily identifiable for all levels of orthopaedic training. Future inferior sacral-iliac line studies should demonstrate the reliability of multiple acetabular measurements, both pre- and post-osteotomy.
Teaching with the test: Using fitness tests to teach paradoxically in physical education
Authors: Quennerstedt Mikael , Barker Dean , Johansson Anna , Korp Peter
Published: October 2024

In many countries, fitness testing is used in physical education (PE). Advocates of fitness testing maintain that testing promotes physical activity and has long-term health benefits. Other scholars question using fitness tests for children in educational contexts and describe them as demotivating, embarrassing, and humiliating. The purpose of the study is to contribute to this educational dilemma with knowledge on the use of “fitness tests” in PE practice. This is done by exploring a pedagogical intervention in Sweden where tests were used to teach from a norm-creative perspective and considering how bodies with different weight and form could be included. We draw on “new materialist” methodologies, asking what tests do and can do in PE practice. In our analysis, we brought together six affective elements of what tests do. Many tests produced traditional PE practices, and there were apparent silences regarding body hierarchies, which often render big bodies invisible. Teaching tests paradoxically, however, also produced opportunities for creativity in moving and opportunities to reflect upon norms about justice and “normal” bodies. This analysis highlights the potential of teaching with the test in order for fitness tests to become educational.
Stay safe, stay home? Majority world children, the COVID-19 pandemic, and (everyday) security politics
Authors: Staples Kelly , O’Reilly Michelle , Hassan Sajida , Vostanis Panos
Published: October 2024

This article explores children in the majority world’s experiences of the stringent health security practices implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on original empirical research in five majority world countries, it examines children’s own accounts of their experiences of lockdowns and stay-at-home orders. Our analysis of the children’s narratives draws out the spatial, temporal, and affective dimensions of home-making under stay-at-home orders. In turn, we highlight complex and ambivalent connections between the notable and the mundane, between security and the everyday, and between home-making and world-building, and offer conclusions informed by majority world children on the ‘(important) banality of security and security politics’.
An interactional linguistics study of Shi ba in Mandarin conversation
Authors: Liu Feng
Published: October 2024

From the perspective of interactional linguistics and adopting the methodology of conversation analysis, this study explores some fine-grained interactional uses of shi ba in Mandarin conversation. It first classifies shi ba into unmarked and marked forms generally in terms of their prosodic manifestations with the assistance of Praat, the speech analysis tool. Then it demonstrates that the unmarked shi ba fulfills three interactional functions: requesting confirmation, seeking affiliation and maintaining floor; the marked shi ba registers dissatisfaction and displays affiliation. However, shi ba is basically a tag question, and serves to invite the recipient to proffer certain interactional response. The specific function that shi ba performs in conversation is tied to three decisive factors – its prosodic manifestations, position in specific turns and sequences as well as the relative epistemic status of interlocutors. The study also suggests that there lies a common motivation for the emergence of various interactional functions of shi ba, that is – the demand for an on-line alignment, which reflects the cross-fertilization between language and interaction.
A novel valve strategy for particulate matter reduction in a gasoline direct injection engine operated at cold conditions
Authors: Liu Haoye , Liu Qingyang , Wang Chongming
Published: October 2024

In this study, we proposed a novel intake strategy to reduce Particulate matter (PM) emissions from gasoline direct-injection (GDI) engines during cold-start conditions emissions. This strategy is characterized by generating strong intake turbulence and low in-cylinder pressure during fuel injection through delayed intake valve opening, which theoretically promotes fuel atomization and fuel-air mixture, thereby suppressing PM formation during combustion. Experiments were conducted on a single-cylinder GDI research engine, operating at 1500 rpm, 3, 6, and 8 bar IMEP, and stoichiometric air-fuel ratio conditions with low coolant and lubricant temperatures to experimentally demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed valve strategy in reducing PM emissions. Benchmark tests were performed using an intake camshaft with intake valve opening (IVO) at −13 °aTDC and intake valve closing (IVC) at 227 °aTDC. The novel strategy uses an intake camshaft with very late IVO at 66 °aTDC and IVC at 226 °aTDC. Two injection pressures (Pinj = 100/200 bar) were used to evaluate the pressure requirement for achieving low PM emissions with both strategies. Start of injection was swept and optimized to match the valve strategy. The results showed that the novel valve strategy leads to a 50%–90% reduction in particle number and mass emissions in cold-start conditions, and a lower injection pressure requirement to achieve comparable particle number and mass emissions compared with the normal one. For the novel valve strategy, the fuel impingement with early injection timings is largely mitigated, and thus an early injection timing shortly before the IVO is recommended.
Bamboo spatial structure, developing an integrated computational workflow and a tailored semi-automated fabrication apparatus
Authors: Saghafi Moghaddam Sara , Keramat Danial , Ashjazadeh Yasaman , Baqershahi Mohammad Hassan , Masoudi Mahran , Hauptman Jonas , Haghnazar Ramtin
Published: October 2024

This paper studies the development of a semi-automated process for designing and fabricating node-based lattice spatial structures using bamboo as an ecological material. The study addresses the challenges of integrating bamboo—a naturally variable material—into spatial structures and was conducted through a hybrid workshop at the Digital Craft House, University of Art, Tehran, during COVID-19. Traditional CAD tools are often limited when applied to non-industrialized, organic materials like bamboo. This research introduces a tailored computational workflow and a semi-automated fabrication apparatus explicitly designed to create complex, freeform bamboo structures. Combining online and in-person sessions allowed participants to engage with both the theoretical and practical aspects of the design-to-fabrication process. This approach enabled the continuous development and refinement of custom tools and methods during COVID. The workshop showcased how synthesizing advanced computational approaches and natural materials could trigger new architectural solutions and autonomy by developing a single-layer, freeform spatial structure, promoting ecological and advanced architectural practices.
Family Care for Children with Disabilities in Czechoslovak Documentaries in the 1960s and the 1970s
Authors: Shmidt Victoria
Published: October 2024

This article discusses the approaches to family care for children with disabilities depicted in documentaries produced by prominent film directors in the 1960s and 1970s, the period explored as re-establishing patriarchal order in socialist Czechoslovakia. Interpreting the documentaries in the context of public campaigns on child welfare reveals mental deprivation as a central concept that brought together the biopower of institutions and patriarchal values. The success and dissemination of Deprivation Theory is shown to have resulted in multiple internal contradictions in the medicalization of public care for children that was initiated in the late 1940s. The article traces the grounding of the dichotomy of public care versus family care by re-constructing the social ideals around child development and family care. These ideals remain one of the obstacles to the deinstitutionalization of care for children with disabilities to this day.
From Institutions to Families? The Changing Allocation of Responsibility for Cognitively Disabled Children in Dutch Postwar Long-Term Care Policies
Authors: Trigt Paul van
Published: October 2024

Who is responsible for health care? Neoliberal policies since the 1970s seem to place this responsibility increasingly on the individual, in a process that is called responsibilization. The recent literature on neoliberalism, however, has questioned the preference of free-market liberalism for individual responsibility and shows how neoliberals often made common cause with communitarian conservatives on social policies. Melinda Cooper, for instance, has argued in her book Family Values that free-market liberals and social conservatives in the US both identified the family as a ‘wholesale alternative to the 20-century welfare state’. This article investigates whether this coalition of neoliberals and social conservatives, who agree on the importance of familial solidarity in addition to market freedom, has also played a role in the making of Dutch health care policies. By tracing how responsibility for long-term care has been allocated in the postwar Netherlands in the specific case of children with (cognitive) disabilities, the author will show how ‘the family’ has increasingly been embraced by policymakers as the main responsible party. This is remarkable because the Dutch postwar welfare state sought to loosen family ties in favour of individual arrangements. However, attempts by different stakeholders to deinstitutionalize Dutch health care during the 1990s unintentionally moved the state's responsibility for long-term care not so much onto individuals as onto families.
“Dear John”: Overriding institutional axiology by privileging Indigenous relational ethics
Authors: John Jodi , Castleden Heather
Published: October 2024

Institutional ethical oversight of research involving humans conducted at Canadian universities is guided by the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS2). Beginning in 2010, the TCPS2 included a chapter specific to research involving First Nations, Inuit, and Metis Peoples of Canada, which is intended to provide a framework for the ethical conduct of research with Indigenous communities. These institutional guidelines reflect progress in the way research is done with Indigenous communities. However, concerns remain about the ways in which these guidelines are taken up, interpreted, and operationalized by institutional research ethics boards, which include creating tensions and challenges for Indigenous scholars conducting research together with their own communities. The purpose of this paper is to describe some of the challenges and conflicting expectations we faced as an Indigenous doctoral student and non-Indigenous academic supervisor, navigating the axiological differences between institutional ethical oversight and community relational ethics with the aim of supporting other Indigenous scholars who may experience similar challenges and influencing policy change and relational engagement in ethical review processes in university settings. We outline the various critiques of institutional oversight of Indigenous research, share several examples of how we experienced the tensions and potential/actual harm that institutional power interference caused in the review process and how we worked through them, and demonstrate how, in our experience, it was not bureaucratic institutional procedures that protected community participants from risk, it was community relationships. We conclude by discussing implications and offering our suggestions for change.
When the past meets the present: The role of memory sites in time of crisis in Chile
Authors: Ferrara Anita
Published: October 2024

In October 2019, massive social unrest broke out in Chile, triggering unprecedented violence and destruction unseen since the Pinochet dictatorship. The State responded with harsh repression, curfews, a state of emergency, and torture reminiscent of past violence. The Social Outbreak reopened old wounds in Chilean society that had never fully healed. Since the return of democracy in the 1990s, numerous sites of memory have been erected, created, or rescued from civil society organisations with the scope of preserving the memory of those brutally killed, tortured, or made disappear during the Pinochet dictatorship. During the 2019 social protests, several sites of memory played an active role, either by providing first aid to protesters or by documenting the crimes committed by the military and police in the streets. Other sites of memory actively engaged with the Constitutional Convention process that followed the social protests. The paper examines and compares the roles played by two renowned memory sites, Londres 38 and the Museum of Memory and Human Rights, during and after the Social Outbreak. It delves into the potential of memory sites as a tool for present-day activism. It analyses how Chile’s 2019 social uprising was a critical instance where memory sites played a significant role in supporting and promoting social change. The utilisation of memory sites as a tool for activism has successfully broken down the temporal barrier between the past and the present and raised awareness regarding the relevance of memory in comprehending contemporary social issues in Chile.
Hodgkin’s lymphoma presenting as thoracic telangiectasias: A case report
Authors: Fadaei Kermani Mandana , Desrochers Julie
Published: October 2024

The rarity of cutaneous manifestations in Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) complicates diagnosis in affected patients. We present the case of a 31-year-old male presenting with a patch of thoracic telangiectasia that led to a dx of HL.
Outcomes and Cost-Effectiveness of Hospital Outpatient Versus Ambulatory Surgery Center Lumbar Decompression Surgery
Authors: Rana Parimal , Brennan Jane , Johnson Andrea , Patton Chad M. , Turcotte Justin J.
Published: October 2024

Study Design

Retrospective Chart Review.

Objectives

Outpatient spinal surgeries in Ambulatory Surgery Centers (ASCs) have gained traction due to their potential cost efficiencies and improved perioperative processes. This study aims to compare the cost-effectiveness and patient outcomes of lumbar laminectomies performed in hospital settings vs ASCs.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was conducted on 771 patients who underwent 1 or 2-level outpatient laminectomy between 2019 and 2023. Patient demographics, 90-day and one-year clinical and patient-reported outcomes (PROs), and one-year episode of care costs were evaluated. A one-year cost-effectiveness analysis was performed using the EQ-5D to measure quality-adjusted life years (QALYs).

Results

ASC patients demonstrated lower body mass index and American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) scores, with a higher prevalence of 1-level laminectomies compared to hospital patients. ASC-based laminectomy was associated with lower initial surgery cost and one-year episode of care costs ($5662 ± 4748 vs $10229 ± 9202, P < 0.001), with similar rates of complications and postoperative resource utilization. These trends remained after controlling for patient demographics, comorbidities, and number of levels treated. In patients completing baseline and 1-year EQ-5D scores, ASC-based laminectomy was over twice as cost-effective as hospital procedures ($64873/QALY gained vs $152630).

Conclusions

The findings support the safety and one-year cost effectiveness of ASCs for appropriately selected patient populations undergoing lumbar laminectomy. Additional studies are needed to replicate these findings across institutions, and to assess the cost effectiveness of ASC-based laminectomy beyond one-year postoperatively.
Agrarian Movements in the Neoliberal Era: : The Case of MVIWATA in Tanzania
Authors: Martiniello Giuliano , Nyamsenda Sabatho
Published: October 2024

This article explores the emergence and growing significance of the National Network of Small-scale Farmers Groups in Tanzania ( Mtandao wa Vikundi vya Wakulima Tanzania, MVIWATA), a national peasant organization established in Tanzania in 1993. The article seeks to understand political agency in the current phase of neoliberal restructuring and state authoritarianism, not by romanticizing or homogenizing the movement, but by analyzing the internal social (class) idiosyncrasies, dynamics, discourses and practices, as well as the relationship with NGOs and the state. Anchoring the study in the changing agrarian political economy, it is argued that MVIWATA is crossed by several contradictions and tensions, which have bifurcated the organization along two competing currents, one more ‘politically oriented’ and the other more ‘project focused’. Whether the movement will be able to absorb the pressures from donors and re-orient them or become increasingly NGO-ized remains an open question.
Peasant Internationalism in South America: Political Training, Experiences and Practices of Resistance
Authors: Rubbo Deni Alfaro
Published: October 2024

Ândrea Francini Batista. (2014). Consciência e territorialização contra-hegemônica: Uma análise das políticas de formação da Via Campesina América do Sul [Consciousness and Counter-hegemonic Territorialization: An Analysis of the Political Training Policies of via Campesina South America], São Paulo: CulturaAcadêmica. Digital Collection, ISBN: 9788579836084, 310 pp.
Farmers’ Seed Systems in Southern Africa: Alternatives to Philanthrocapitalism
Authors: Mushita Andrew , Thompson Carol
Published: October 2024

Farmer seed systems survive by engaging changing conditions and by sharing seeds and indigenous knowledge. Although the systemic change attracting the most attention as a challenge to farmer seed systems is climate change, another systemic threat needs equally urgent analysis. The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) of the Gates Foundation is trying to transform farmer seed systems through ‘business rule’ and ‘business practices’ of philanthrocapitalism. Outlining the trajectories of philanthrocapitalism, this analysis explores fundamental differences in how large foundations are interjecting their private goals into public spaces, while extracting public funds for private use. Although much has been written about philanthrocapitalism in the fields of education and health, this article focusses on its role in farmers’ seed systems. Grounded in Southern Africa, it explains how smallholder farmers are not just resisting the insertion of philanthrocapitalism into their seed systems, but are offering alternatives.
Conditions of Employment and Livelihood Security of Informal Workers: A Study of Four Villages in Jalpaiguri District, West Bengal
Authors: Bose Mampi , De Roy Shantanu
Published: October 2024

The article analyses the conditions of employment of informal workers in four different villages with varying livelihood opportunities. Based on the secondary database, it argues that the labor market is characterized by widespread unemployment, and there has been an increase in the share of marginal workers over the years in the study villages, as well as in rural Jalpaiguri. The analysis of primary data reveals that tea cultivation and agriculture were main sources of employment of informal workers; however, these did not provide livelihood security. The wage rate was lower than the legally prescribed minimum wage in West Bengal. Also, the workers, most of whom were either Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes, did not receive year-round employment in the study villages. In the absence of remittances from the migrant workers, a substantial number of households were poor. The research shows that informal wage work in the study area was insufficient for a decent level of living. The article argues that agrarian changes in the study area did not lead to desirable outcomes for substantial sections of the population.
“Possibly Include Maybe a Fact. . .Perhaps”: Language in Business Communication Students’ Peer Feedback
Authors: Ploeger-Lyons Nicole A. , Strong Jane
Published: October 2024

What characterizes the language choices of untrained student peer reviewers? Undergraduate students ( N = 83) were randomly assigned to provide peer feedback on persuasive presentation manuscripts to three peers from their same and/or different course section. A total of 233 peer reviews were analyzed in terms of politeness, quality, and valence. Content and statistical analyses revealed similar politeness levels and quality regardless of the assessors’ identified gender or section of the assessee. However, students produced significantly more positively valenced reviews for same-section classmates, suggesting that students soften feedback through warmer language for peers with whom they have frequent interaction.
Combined Treatment With Inverted Internal Limiting Membrane Flap and Subretinal Injection of Balanced Salt Solution to Repair Chronic Macular Holes
Authors: Kanai Akira , Takeuchi Jun , Koto Takashi , Inoue Makoto
Published: October 2024

Purpose: To present a surgical technique that combines an inverted internal limiting membrane (ILM) flap and subretinal injection of balanced salt solution for the closure of chronic macular holes (MHs). Methods: Two cases were evaluated. Results: A 74-year-old man and a 63-year-old woman presented with decreased visual acuity (VA) of 20/600 and 20/200, respectively, resulting from a chronic MH. Both patients had vitrectomy, during which the ILM flap was inverted and a 38-gauge subretinal needle was used to inject balanced salt solution near the vascular arcade, creating a retinal bleb. Injection of the balanced salt solution into the MH with a backflush needle completed the detachment. The MH was then closed by a gas tamponade with improvements in VA in both patients to 20/50 and 20/40, respectively. Conclusions: The combined inverted ILM flap and subretinal injection of balanced salt solution into the MH, extending the detachment, led to the successful closure of a chronic MH.
简帛材料所反映的汉代特色用字习惯
Authors: 张 再兴
Published: October 2024

汉代有一些具有鲜明特色的用字习惯。本文以秦汉简帛为主要材料，深入考察以“贲”记{奔}、以“柏”记 {伯}、以“蜚”记{飞}三组用字的情况，深化其在流行时间、流行程度等用字特征方面的认识。
Potential Sampling Errors in Stability Studies Due to Dead Volume in Closed System Transfer Devices
Authors: Closset Mélanie , Colsoul Maire-Lise , Bihin Benoît , Hecq Jean-Daniel , Odou Pascal , Galanti Laurence
Published: October 2024

Background:

Closed system transfer devices (CSTD) help to reduce the exposure of healthcare professionals to hazardous drugs. They may be used in stability studies conducted on anticancer drugs. During a stability study about polyolefin bags of gemcitabine, Tevadaptor® device was suspected of causing a bias in the evaluation of the concentrations of the first aliquots extracted from the bags.

Objective:

The objectives are to determine whether the use of a CSTD to prepare a drug solution and to withdraw it from a bag can interfere on the measured concentration compared to the expected one and to suggest hypothesis to explain the phenomenon.

Method:

In the first experiment, three polyolefin bags of gemcitabine (5.4 mg/mL) were prepared under aseptic conditions using the Tevadaptor Luer Lock Adaptor®. The day of preparation, five aliquots of 3.8 ml each were sequentially withdrawn from each polyolefin bag using the same device. After one day, a new aliquot was withdrawn from each bag. In the second experiment, three polyolefin bags of gemcitabine (5.4 mg/ml) were prepared under aseptic conditions using a needle. One aliquot was extracted using a needle after the preparation from each bag, and another aliquot was extracted after one day. The concentrations of all aliquots were measured by liquid chromatography coupled to a photodiode array detector during the same run.

Results and discussion:

The concentrations of the first aliquots extracted on day zero from the polyolefin bags using the Tevadaptor Luer Lock Adaptor® exhibit an overestimation of 26% ([95%CI: 23%-29%] P<0.001) compared to the others. Overestimation is not found for subsequent aliquots, or while using a needle to bypass the Tevadaptor® device.

Conclusion:

This case highlights the bias that may arise when using CSTDs in stability studies. They should be used with comprehensive understanding of their technical specifications.
PI3Kδ activation, IL-6 overexpression, and CD37 loss cause resistance to naratuximab emtansine in lymphomas
Authors: Arribas Alberto J. , Napoli Sara , Gaudio Eugenio , Herbaux Charles , Cannas Eleonora , Tarantelli Chiara , Bordone-Pittau Roberta , Cascione Luciano , Munz Nicolas , Aresu Luca , Sgrignani Jacopo , Rinaldi Andrea , Kwee Ivo , Rossi Davide , Cavalli Andrea , Zucca Emanuele , Stussi Georg , Stathis Anastasios , Sloss Callum , Davids Matthew S. , Bertoni Francesco
Published: October 2024

CD37-directed antibody and cellular-based approaches have shown preclinical and promising early clinical activity. Naratuximab emtansine (Debio 1562; IMGN529) is an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) incorporating an anti-CD37 monoclonal antibody conjugated to the maytansinoid DM1 as payload, with activity as a single agent and in combination with rituximab in patients with lymphoma. We studied naratuximab emtansine and its free payload in 54 lymphoma models, correlated its activity with CD37 expression, characterized two resistance mechanisms, and identified combination partners providing synergy. The activity, primarily cytotoxic, was more potent in B- than T-cell lymphoma cell lines. After prolonged exposure to the ADC, one diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) cell line developed resistance to the ADC due to the CD37 gene biallelic loss. After CD37 loss, we also observed upregulation of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and related transcripts. Recombinant IL-6 led to resistance. Anti-IL-6 antibody tocilizumab improved the ADC’s cytotoxic activity in CD37+ cells. In a second model, resistance was sustained by a PIK3CD activating mutation, with increased sensitivity to PI3Kδ inhibition and a functional dependence switch from MCL1 to BCL2. Adding idelalisib or venetoclax overcame resistance in the resistant derivative and improved cytotoxic activity in the parental cells. In conclusion, targeting B-cell lymphoma with the naratuximab emtansine showed vigorous antitumor activity as a single agent, which was also observed in models bearing genetic lesions associated with inferior outcomes, such as Myc Proto-Oncogene (MYC) translocations and TP53 inactivation or R-CHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, Oncovin [vincristine], and prednisone) resistance. Resistant DLBCL models identified active combinations of naratuximab emtansine with drugs targeting IL-6, PI3Kδ, and BCL2.
Measurable residual disease as predictor of post–day +100 relapses after allografting in adult AML
Authors: Ali Naveed , Othus Megan , Rodríguez-Arbolí Eduardo , Orvain Corentin , Milano Filippo , Sandmaier Brenda M. , Davis Chris , Basom Ryan S. , Appelbaum Frederick R. , Walter Roland B.
Published: October 2024

Measurable residual disease (MRD) by multiparametric flow cytometry (MFC) before allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) identifies patients at high risk of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) relapse, often occurring early after allografting. To examine the role of MFC MRD testing to predict later relapses, we examined 935 adults with AML or myelodysplastic neoplasm/AML transplanted in first or second morphologic remission who underwent bone marrow restaging studies between day 70 and 100 after HCT and were alive and without relapse by day +100. Of 935 adults, 136 (15%) had MRD before HCT, whereas only 11 (1%) had MRD at day +70 to +100. In day +100 landmark analyses, pre-HCT and day +70 to +100 MFC MRD were both associated with relapse (both P < .001), relapse-free survival (RFS; both P < .001) overall survival (OS; both P < .001), and, for post-HCT MRD, nonrelapse mortality (P = .001) after multivariable adjustment. Importantly, although 126/136 patients (92%) with MRD before HCT tested negative for MRD at day +70 to +100, their outcomes were inferior to those without MRD before HCT and at day +70 to +100, with 3-year relapse risk of 40% vs 15% (P < .001), 3-year RFS of 50% vs 72% (P < .001), and 3-year OS of 56% vs 76% (P < .001), whereas 3-year nonrelapse mortality estimates were similar (P = .53). Thus, despite high MRD conversion rates, outcomes MRD positive/MRD negative (MRDneg) patients are inferior to those of MRDneg/MRDneg patients, suggesting all patients with pre-HCT MRD should be considered for preemptive therapies after allografting.