bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Informationization of small-scale agribusinesses in rural areas of Korea
Authors: Kang Chunghan , Hwang Yoonmin , Moon Junghoon
Published: June 2015

Despite the significance of IT for small-scale agribusinesses (SSAs) in rural areas, little work has been done to identify the determinants of their informationization. Prior studies also overlook the social influences of informationization among SSAs in rural areas. Therefore, this study presents a model to explore and describe the roles played by institutional forces in the informationization of rural SSAs. To empirically test the presented model, partial least squares (PLS) analysis was conducted using the survey responses of 180 ginseng farmers. The results show that mimetic forces related to other farmers’ successful adoption and usage of IT positively affect states of informationization and intentions towards future informationization among rural SSAs. Innovative SSAs are less likely to be affected by these forces, and normative forces from partners and customers are positively related to states of informationization. For the government, the results suggest that policy interventions should focus on mimetic forces rather than coercive forces to aid in creating more effective SSAs and foster rural development.
Appropriation of Community Knowledge
Authors: Beninger Stefanie , Francis June N. P.
Published: June 2015

In Base of the Pyramid (BoP) and subsistence marketplaces literature, a general consensus prevails that the process of creating solutions for the poor is most successful when marketers gain a local perspective. This paper highlights that, as companies seek this local perspective within impoverished communities, they can appropriate community knowledge. Drawing on research in the area of community knowledge, an area of growing importance that is all but missing from the marketing literature, this paper explicates key features of community knowledge. Appropriation of community knowledge can have potential benefits to communities, but also can cause social harm, including undermining financial, economic, and cultural safety, in the BoP community. The papers proposes a framework, bridging ethical and legal approaches, that guides marketers to consider consent, cognitive justice, capacity, and community impact in order to mitigate harm and generate social benefits.
Multi-step prediction of nonlinear Gaussian Process dynamics models with adaptive Gaussian mixtures
Authors: Hardy Jason , Havlak Frank , Campbell Mark
Published: June 2015

This paper presents an adaptive Gaussian Mixture Model (aGMM) formulation for performing multiple-step probabilistic state predictions using a nonparametric Gaussian Process (GP) regression model. The presented prediction algorithm is applicable to any dynamic system that is challenging to model parametrically, but where data is available. Gaussian mixture elements are propagated through the GP by analytically evaluating expectation integrals for the moments of the output distribution. Two metrics are presented and compared for adaptively splitting the initial state distribution into a sum of Gaussians to reduce the effect of nonlinearities on prediction accuracy: (1) an analytical evaluation of the excess kurtosis which measures the non-Gaussianity of the output distribution, and (2) a weighted least-squares regression model which evaluates the local nonlinearity of the GP mapping with respect to the input distribution. In addition, an on-the-fly data selection method is presented to reduce the computational complexity associated with analytically evaluating the higher-order moments of the GP output distribution. The proposed adaptive GP-aGMM formulation is applied to the case of anticipating driver behavior at road intersections using a GP driver behavior model in combination with a parametric vehicle model. Prediction performance for this scenario is evaluated using driving data collected from three human subjects navigating a standard four-way intersection. Results demonstrate that the presented prediction algorithm is capable of accurately capturing multimodal behavior in the GP training data.
Corneal Opacity in Domestic Ducks Experimentally Infected With H5N1 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Virus
Authors: Yamamoto Y. , Nakamura K. , Yamada M. , Mase M.
Published: June 2015

Domestic ducks can be a key factor in the regional spread of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus in Asia. The authors performed experimental infections to examine the relationship between corneal opacity and H5N1 HPAI virus infection in domestic ducks ( Anas platyrhyncha var domestica). A total of 99 domestic ducks, including 3 control birds, were used in the study. In experiment 1, when domestic ducks were inoculated intranasally with 2 H5N1 HPAI viruses, corneal opacity appeared more frequently than neurologic signs and mortality. Corneal ulceration and exophthalmos were rare findings. Histopathologic examinations of the eyes of domestic ducks in experiment 2 revealed that corneal opacity was due to the loss of corneal endothelial cells and subsequent keratitis with edema. Influenza viral antigen was detected in corneal endothelial cells and some other ocular cells by immunohistochemistry. Results suggest that corneal opacity is a characteristic and frequent finding in domestic ducks infected with the H5N1 HPAI virus. Confirming this ocular change may improve the detection rate of infected domestic ducks in the field.
Ego boundaries and self-esteem: Two elusive facets of the psyche of performing musicians
Authors: Swart Inette
Published: June 2015

This article presents a heuristic inquiry into ego boundary development and functioning in aspiring musicians. In their role as communicators in society, challenging and stretching existing boundaries form an integral aspect of the work of artists. This has an impact on ego boundary functioning. The relevance of both aspiring musicians and their mentors understanding psychodynamic processes at work in musical relations is explained, and implications of technological advancements briefly highlighted. The article shows how Alice Miller’s definition of self-esteem – as being based on the authenticity of one’s own feelings and not on the possession of certain qualities – is narrowly related to ego boundary functioning. The processes involved in ego boundary formation, the development of self and the development of musical identity are shown to be closely related, also neurologically, and a mutual interrelationship between self-esteem, identity and the effectiveness of musical communication was discovered. Writers who portray ego boundary thickness as existing along a continuum are referred to, and possible implications for pathology in musicians are briefly highlighted. The article illustrates that great pedagogues have an intuitive grasp of the importance of these concepts; it makes suggestions for future research and highlights the need for developing a measuring instrument.
Development and Verification of a Protocol to Quantify Hip Joint Kinematics
Authors: Frayne Ryan J. , Kelleher Leila K. , Wegscheider Peter K. , Dickey James P.
Published: June 2015

Background:

The butterfly save technique is commonly used by ice hockey goaltenders and has recently been identified as a potential mechanism for hip joint injuries due to the extreme body positions involved. Unfortunately, commonly used kinematic marker sets that determine these body positions are heavily influenced by skin motion artifact and are obscured by protective equipment, making it difficult to obtain reliable measures of hip motion.

Purpose:

To create a new kinematic protocol that could be used when protective equipment prevents typical marker placements and to use this protocol to quantify hip kinematics and butterfly performance in 4 different goalie pad conditions.

Study Design:

Controlled laboratory study.

Methods:

A new marker set consisting of marker clusters attached to the lateral thigh and posterior leg was developed. This marker set was verified by evaluating the root mean square (RMS) difference between the developed testing marker set and the calibrated anatomic systems technique marker set during passive range of motion (ROM) tests. The testing marker set was then used in a repeated-measures study in which 12 junior goaltenders performed 5 butterfly movements on synthetic ice, in 4 different goalie pad conditions (control, flexible-wide leg channel, flexible-tight leg channel, and stiff-wide leg channel).

Results:

The grouped RMS differences and SDs calculated during verification were 1.43° ± 0.41°, 1.0° ± 0.39°, and 3.32° ± 1.32° for hip flexion-extension, abduction-adduction, and internal-external rotation, respectively. There was no significant main effect of goal pad condition on the peak amount of hip internal rotation; however, there was a significant main effect of goal pad condition on the butterfly width ( P = .022). Post hoc comparisons revealed that the butterfly width was significantly smaller in the control pad condition compared with the flexible-tight pad condition ( P = .03).

Conclusion:

The new marker set enabled measurements of hip joint kinematics while subjects are wearing protective equipment that are not possible with other marker sets. Interindividual variations in performance of the butterfly technique influenced the amount of hip internal rotation achieved; however, on average, goaltenders exceeded their active internal ROM during butterfly movements.

Clinical Relevance:

Exceeding internal rotation range of hip motion may make goaltenders susceptible to hip injuries such as femoral acetabular impingement.
Thermal conductivity and compressive properties of hollow glass microsphere filled epoxy–matrix composites
Authors: Qiao Yingjie , Wang Xiaodong , Zhang Xiaohong , Xing Zhipeng
Published: June 2015

The density, thermal conductivity, and compressive properties of hollow glass microsphere (HGM)-filled epoxy composites were investigated in the present paper. The volume fraction of HGM was varied from 0 to 50 vol.%. The results showed density, thermal conductivity, compressive modulus, and compressive strength of the composites decreased with the increase of HGM volume fraction, which indicated that the properties related above were mainly dependent on the content of HGM. To conveniently predict thermal conductivity in the investigated materials system, five effective thermal conductivity models were analyzed and compared with the experimental data. The Agari model was applied to predict thermal conductivity of HGM-filled epoxy composites, and the results indicated thermal conductivity and compressive properties of epoxy–matrix composites can be modified by changing the HGM volume fraction, this discover would make it become a promising engineering material in the related fields.
The Spell of Marx and Jeffrey Sachs
Authors: Ganev Venelin I.
Published: June 2015

The article offers a critical analysis of the view that Marx’s critique of capitalism provides the analytical lenses necessary to understand post-communist transformations. The author examines the problematic premises underpinning this view—for example, that capitalism can be created by design, and that in the early 1990s the former “second world” constituted a tabula rasa—and insists that a proper answer to the question “How did capitalism emerge in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union?” is yet to be given. The text also identifies the conceptual, theoretical, and empirical difficulties that might ensue if analyses of post-communist politics are reduced to a critique of neoliberal capitalism.
Conceptualizing Historical Legacies
Authors: Wittenberg Jason
Published: June 2015

In the nearly quarter century since the collapse of communism, a great many outcomes in East Europe and the former Soviet Union, from patterns of democratic consolidation to state–society relations, have been attributed to legacies of the past. Yet despite the common goal of understanding the influence of the past, there is little consensus on how to conceptualize historical legacies. Through a focus on post-communist outcomes and their relation to prior outcomes and causal precursors, this article assesses what counts as a historical legacy and how legacies differ from non-legacies.
Generating Data
Authors: Knott Eleanor
Published: June 2015

This article argues that bottom–up, people-centered research which uses ethnographic and everyday approaches is crucial but underutilized in research on identity politics in Eastern Europe. In order to understand what concepts such as ethnicity and citizenship mean in the context of people’s everyday lives, it is vital to understand whether taken-for-granted political concepts are appropriate and the make-up of data such as census data. The article first introduces the methods of political ethnography and bottom–up interviews by discussing how they can be applied and their value within political science. The paper uses data gathered from interviews in Moldova and Crimea (when it was still a de jure and de facto part of Ukraine) to demonstrate the value of this approach. It shows how interview data can add significantly to the understanding of kin-state relations within political science by adding a richness of context and a bottom–up perspective that quantitative and elite-level interviews fail to provide. Lastly, the paper draws on experiences gained from research design to discuss how bottom–up research in political science can be conducted rigorously. The article argues that this approach can deepen the understanding of identity politics and kin-state relations or, more broadly, important post-communist questions such as democratization and Europeanization.
Modeling of geared positioning systems: An object-oriented gear contact model with validation
Authors: van der Linden Franciscus LJ
Published: June 2015

In aerospace positioning actuators, gear efficiencies of 85% as well as breakout forces as high as 50% of the stall load of the actuator are observed at very low temperature conditions. Due to the low efficiency and high loading, stiction in these actuators is common which can lead to limit cycles or problems with controlling the actuators. To be able to correctly predict and assess these effects using simulations, a complete actuator, including motor, inverter, load, and controller is needed. This article presents an object-based, numerically efficient gear contact in a planar environment with user-defined friction and stiffness laws. The emphasis of the modeling is not a fully detailed contact model, but the description of a gear contact model which can be used for system simulations like complete aircraft electromechanical actuators including control surfaces. The presented model is suitable for complex gearing configurations (e.g. compound planetary gears). This is enabled by breaking down the transmission into the basic gear contacts. By adding masses and constraints from an existing component library, a complete transmission can be modeled. The generated model can be used for standalone simulations or can be used in multi-domain simulations like actuator modeling, in order to analyze the complete actuator model including parts such as drives, controllers and mechanical systems. The presented models have been validated using a gear test rig for a single stage spur gear.
Vibration control of a rotating two-connected flexible beam using chattering-free sliding mode controllers
Authors: Qiu Zhi-cheng , Xu Yan-fei
Published: June 2015

Two-connected flexible beam systems with rotating boundary conditions are widely used in spacecraft applications. The dynamics equation of the two-connected flexible beam system is obtained by using finite element method. Considering the connected parts in the rotating two-connected flexible beam, plate elements are used instead of beam elements for the finite element analysis. The optimal placement of piezoelectric sensors/actuators is studied using a singular value decomposition method. To suppress the excited vibration, a kind of fast terminal sliding mode (FTSM) control algorithm and a fuzzy fast terminal sliding mode (FFTSM) control algorithm are investigated. Also, a local linearization switching construction and a fuzzy logical adaptation system for feedback control gain are brought in FFTSM, to achieve a balance between the control performance and chattering phenomenon. A rotating two-connected flexible beam system is built up to simulate the vibration and control performance of the space flexible manipulator and solar panel under the expending and locking situation. Experiments on set-point vibration control, respectively driven by PZT actuators and AC motor torque using harmonic drive gear as speed reducer are conducted by utilizing the designed control algorithms, compared with the classical proportional derivative control algorithm. The experimental results demonstrate that the designed FTSM and FFTSM algorithms can significantly improve the vibration reduction performance and eliminate the chattering phenomenon effectively.
A design of active elastic metamaterials for control of flexural waves using the transformation method
Authors: Chen Yangyang , Hu Jin , Huang Guoliang
Published: June 2015

The ability to control flexural wave propagation is of fundamental interest in many areas of structural engineering and physics. Metamaterials have shown a great potential in subwavelength wave propagation control due to their inherent local resonance mechanism. In this study, we propose a transformation method to derive the material properties of a flexural waveguide and implement the functionality based on a design of active elastic metamaterials. The numerically demonstrated flexural waveguide can not only steer an elastic wave beam as predicted from the transformation method but also exhibit various unique properties including extraordinary wave beam deflection and tunabilities over a broad frequency range and various steering directions. The waveguide is equipped with an array of active elastic metamaterials composed of the electrorheological elastomer subjected to adjustable electric fields. Such metamaterial-based waveguides provide a new design methodology for guided wave signal modulation devices and could be useful for applications such as tunable beam steering, high signal-to-noise sensors, and structural health monitoring.
Interpersonal Trust in Ecuador, the United States, and Zimbabwe
Authors: Mealy Marisa , Stephan Walter G. , Mhaka-Mutepfa Magen , Alvarado-Sanchez Luis
Published: June 2015

This study examined the patterns of variables that predict interpersonal trust in three distinct countries. Findings indicated that interpersonal trust is highest in the United States, followed by Ecuador and Zimbabwe. A similar ordering occurred with perceptions of social cohesion, whereas the reverse order occurred for perceptions of competition for scarce resources. Path analyses indicated that perceptions of social cohesion positively predicted interpersonal trust in all three cultures, whereas perceptions of competition for scarce resources negatively predicted interpersonal trust in two cultures. Path analyses also revealed that one or more of the following personal attributes predicted interpersonal trust: Independence, interdependence, uncertainty avoidance, and optimism. Results provide support for a three-stage model of the causes of interpersonal trust. In the first stage, the economic and political stability of a country influence perceptions of societal characteristics. In the second stage, these perceptions affect the personal attributes of individuals in that country. Finally, in the third stage, both the societal characteristics and the personal attributes predict interpersonal trust.
Analysis of the influence of engine torque excitation on clutch judder
Authors: Yang Li-kun , Li He-yan , Ahmadian Mehdi , Ma Biao
Published: June 2015

A simplified three-degree-of-freedom dynamic model with nonlinear friction torque and engine torque excitation, capable of identifying the effect of the engine excitation on clutch judder, is presented. The analysis of harmonic order is performed and a sinusoidal contact pressure between friction surfaces is considered, along with an analytical solution for the relative angular velocity of the clutch plates. The average fluctuation amplitude of the clutch relative angular velocity is used to evaluate the judder. Numerical calculations indicate that the clutch judder increases significantly when the angular velocity of the crankshaft, corresponding to the harmonic orders of the engine, is equal or close to the natural frequency of the driveline. An identical frequency of the engine excitation and the oil pressure fluctuation contributes little to the clutch judder, unless the excitation is at or near the resonance frequency. The amplitudes of oscillations due to the engine excitation grow when the pulsating torque of the engine increases. The mean torque of the engine has little influence on the judder, although it governs the clutch engagement time. The results further show that clutch judder attenuates as the torsional stiffness of the system increases.
A model for elastic flexoelectric materials including strain gradient effects
Authors: Enakoutsa Koffi , Corte Alessandro Della , Giorgio Ivan
Published: June 2015

A constitutive model for elastic flexoelectric materials under small deformation based on second gradient continuum theory is developed, using a Toupin-like variational formulation to simultaneously obtain constitutive relations, balance equations and boundary conditions. The model includes three different electromechanical “stresses”: a higher-order stress, an extended local electric force and a generalized Cauchy stress tensor. The constitutive equations of the model are obtained by postulating an internal energy density function which depends on both the strain and its gradient as well as the polarization. Finally, as an application of the model, we derive the explicit analytical expressions of the polarization and displacement vector fields for the problem of the polarization induced over a thin spherical shell subjected to hydrostatic loading conditions.
Impact of high pressure processing on color, bioactive compounds, polyphenol oxidase activity, and microbiological attributes of pumpkin purée
Authors: González-Cebrino Francisco , Durán Rocío , Delgado-Adámez Jonathan , Contador Rebeca , Bernabé Rosario Ramírez
Published: June 2015

Physicochemical parameters, bioactive compounds’ content (carotenoids and total phenols), total antioxidant activity, and enzymatic activity of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) were evaluated after high pressure processing (HPP) on a pumpkin purée (cv. ‘Butternut’). Three pressure levels (400, 500, and 600 MPa) were combined with three holding times (200, 400, and 600 s). The applied treatments reduced the levels of total aerobic mesophilic (TAM), total psychrophilic and psychrotrophic bacteria (TPP), and molds and yeasts (M&Y). All applied treatments did not affect enzymatic activity of PPO. Pressure level increased CIE L* values, which could enhance the lightness perception of high pressure (HP)-treated purées. No differences were found between the untreated and HP-treated purées regarding total phenols and carotenoids content (lutein, α-carotene, and β-carotene) and total antioxidant activity. HPP did not affect most quality parameters and maintained the levels of bioactive compounds. However, it did not achieve the complete inhibition of PPO, which could reduce the shelf-life of the pumpkin purée.
Normalizing extreme work in the Police Service? Austerity and the inspecting ranks
Authors: Turnbull Peter J. , Wass Victoria
Published: June 2015

Using rich and extensive data collected from police Inspectors over an extended period (2011–2014), this study explores two research questions that seek to (1) define extreme work in policing and (2) understand how it is maintained and reproduced. For some, by definition, the work of the emergency services is understood to be extreme, but the urgent and dangerous elements of policing form only a small part of an Inspector’s job and for these incidents they are well-trained in advance and well-cared for afterwards. When police Inspectors describe their work in times of austerity, it is not the emergency aspects that they experience as extreme work. Rather, it is the intensity of work over long hours above contract, which are both involuntary and unrewarded. In seeking to understand what drives extreme work and why it is accepted, especially when it is not preferred, not paid for and has detrimental effects on health and wellbeing, we uncover a process of institutional maintenance through which over-work: (1) is intensified via the extra demands imposed by austerity; (2) is maintained through work practices, a strong professional identity and a masculine police culture; but (3) is not ‘normalized’ in the sense of being embraced or celebrated by police Inspectors.
Illness as Assemblage
Authors: Diedrich Lisa
Published: June 2015

This article explores illness as an assemblage of bodies, discourses, and practices by tracing a genealogy of the condition hystero-epilepsy in order to show the precarity of dominant bio-psychiatric ideology in the present. I read Siri Hustvedt’s case study of her own nervous condition with and against other histories of nerves, including Charcot’s treatment of hystero-epilepsy in the 1870s, Foucault’s treatment of hysteria, simulation, and the ‘neurological body’ presented in his lectures in 1974, and Elizabeth Wilson’s recent treatment of the Freudian concept of ‘somatic compliance.’ I assemble this eclectic hystero-epileptic archive not in order to present a definitive history of hystero-epilepsy, but rather to think about how illness is made, unmade, and remade in the clinic and narrative.
Disciplining Pain
Authors: Cohen Emily
Published: June 2015

Colombia, a country at civil war for over 50 years, has one of the highest rates of landmine injury in the world. This article is based on ethnographic research conducted at the Amputation and Rehabilitation Unit of Bogota’s Central Military Hospital. Through an ethnographic description of surgical amputation and rehabilitation, I examine medical understandings of vitality and masculinity in respect to the senses – primarily that of pain in the act of amputation.
Estranged Bodies
Authors: Shildrick Margrit , Steinberg Deborah Lynn
Published: June 2015

This introductory article provides a contextual and theoretical overview to this special issue of Body & Society. The special issue presents five selected case studies – focusing on the contexts of transplantation, psychiatry, amputation and war, and a transvalued media ecology of cancer – to offer meditations on a number of interlinked questions. The first of these is the entanglement of biomedical governance – political/economic as well as self-disciplinary – with the nexus of estrangement, which can denote both the distancing of otherness and self-division. Second is the realm of feeling, of phantasmatic projection and of the ways in which the biopolitical becomes reciprocally, discursively, enmeshed in a wider cultural imaginary. Third is the shifting terrain of gender and feminist politics, a key dimension of which is the necessary reworking of feminist thought in the wake of a radically altered biomedical and biotechnological landscape. Under the rubric of Estranged Bodies, the collection considers themes of dissolution and the fragility of the body/subject read through bodily catastrophe, radical body modification and extreme medical intervention. Also considered is the notion of assemblage – the provisional coming together of disparate parts – which encourages a rethinking of questions of reconstituted, displaced and re-placed bodies.
Putting Habitus Back in its Place? Reflections on the Homines in Extremis Debate
Authors: Atkinson Will
Published: June 2015

This commentary reflects on Loïc Wacquant’s interpretation of the concept of habitus as developed in his response to critics of his article published in this journal, Homines in Extremis. His comments on collective habitus and fieldless habitus in particular are deemed questionable, not just on the grounds that they break from the relational logic of Bourdieu’s sociology but because they sit uneasily with findings unearthed in a diverse array of empirical studies. Some constructive comments are offered on notions he rejects or obscures, and a distinction between ‘field analysis’ and ‘lifeworld analysis’ is introduced to encapsulate the difference between analysing habitus in relation to an individual field and examining individual habitus in relation to multiple fields.
One woman’s journey of recovery from mental illness—Hopes, back-up plans, rebuilding self and service support
Authors: Thomas Kerry A , Rickwood Debra J
Published: June 2015

Recovery from mental illness is a personal experience, unique to each individual. The purpose of this study was to explore the changing focus of one woman’s continuing recovery from mental illness, exploring the domains of hope, self-identity, a meaningful life, and responsibility. A case study was conducted using semi-structured interviews with a woman during three separate admissions to a residential mental health unit, and analyzed using a theory-driven approach. Aspects of the service that were instrumental in the woman’s recovery journey were analyzed, using a content analysis of the transcripts. The analysis demonstrated changes over time in the hopes the woman expressed; redefining self-identity was an ongoing objective; seeking a meaningful life involved overcoming addictions as a priority over pursuing hobbies and work; and there were indications she was taking more responsibility for her own recovery. Features of the residential service that were instrumental in her recovery progress were the therapeutic groups, tailored clinical support, support towards self-management, instrumental support, and social interaction. Repeat admissions to the residential unit assisted this woman to progress in her recovery. Her story demonstrates how personal responsibility can be increasingly achieved with the support of a recovery-oriented service.
Structural health monitoring: An orthopaedic perspective
Authors: Wong Lydia CY , Chiu Wing K , Russ Matthias , Liew Susan M , Ilahee Nabil A
Published: June 2015

Having unstable sacral fractures requires patients to be bedridden for a significant period of time for healing to take place without complications. This causes severe muscle atrophy, along with blood circulation problems in older patients. It is therefore highly beneficial to fast-track weight-bearing activities to reduce these complications by monitoring the recovery of the fracture. Past experimental work shows that dynamic response of a fixated synthetic (fourth-generation composite sawbone) pelvis is affected by the change in stiffness at the fracture location. The changes in this dynamic response can be observed by placing sensors on the pelvis and on the fixation. However, placing sensors on the pelvis is not practical. The aim of this article is to report on a set of computational investigation on the potential of placing sensors on the fixation to determine the stiffness restoration of the fractured region of the pelvis. This work will focus on the Denis I fracture, where the fracture is located in the sacrum. The ability to relate the dynamic response of a particular section of the fixation that is remote to the fracture location will have significant implication in the extending structural health monitoring concept to determine the state of healing of a fractured pelvis. A fourth-generation composite sawbone pelvis was used in the work reported in this article.
Adult Sibling Relationships With Brothers and Sisters With Severe Disabilities
Authors: Rossetti Zach , Hall Sarah
Published: June 2015

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine perceptions of adult sibling relationships with a brother or sister with severe disabilities and the contexts affecting the relationships. Adult siblings without disabilities ( N = 79) from 19 to 72 years of age completed an online survey with four open-ended questions about their relationship with their brother or sister with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and extensive or pervasive support needs. Inductive analysis yielded findings related to perceptions of the sibling relationship and contexts that influence the sibling relationship. More than half of the relationships were described as being close. The emotional impact of the relationships included feelings of guilt and joy, as well as frustration and stress that were often related to current caregiving and future planning responsibilities. The contextual factors influencing relationship development included several characteristics of their brother or sister with IDD related to his or her disability, as well as sibling proximity. Implications for research and practice related to sibling relationships are provided for professionals, families, and the siblings themselves.
Ameliorative Effects of Curcumin on Artesunate-Induced Subchronic Toxicity in Testis of Swiss Albino Male Mice
Authors: Desai Ketaki R. , Rajput Dhrupadsinh K. , Patel Pragnesh B. , Highland Hyacinth N.
Published: June 2015

India is one of the endemic areas where control of malaria has become a formidable task. Artesunate is the current antimalarial drug used to treat malaria, especially chloroquine resistant. The objective of the present study was to investigate the dose-dependent effect of oral administration of artesunate on the oxidative parameters in testes of adult male Swiss albino mice and ameliorative efficacy of curcumin, a widely used antioxidant. An oral dose of 150 mg/kg body weight (bwt; low dose) and 300 mg/kg bwt (high dose) of artesunate was administered for a period of 45 days to male mice, and ameliorative efficacy of curcumin was also assessed. The results revealed that artesunate caused significant alteration in oxidative parameters in dose-dependent manner. Administration of artesunate brought about significant decrease in activities of superoxide dismutase, glutathione, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione reductase, whereas lipid peroxidation and glutathione-S-transferase activity were found to be significantly increased. The results obtained show that oxidative insult is incurred upon the intracellular antioxidant system of testis tissue by artesunate treatment. Further, administration of curcumin at the dose level of 80 mg/kg bwt along with both doses of artesunate attenuated adverse effects in male mice.
Home visits and the housebound
Authors: Gowing Alice , Robinson Professor Louise
Published: June 2015

Home visits remain an important and integral part of general practice. Many home visits are on an unscheduled acute basis, but for permanently housebound patients home visits are often the only way of seeing a GP. Housebound patients have higher rates of co-morbidity, functional impairment and mortality than their non-housebound counterparts. As the elderly population and potentially the number that are housebound continues to rise; the value and importance of home visits to enable continuity of care to this frail subset of patients is also likely to grow. Home visits can undoubtedly be difficult but they offer many advantages that can easily be overlooked, including gaining valuable insight into the home life of the patient. This article aims to improve awareness of the needs of the housebound as well as highlighting the advantages of home visiting in general. It gives useful advice on how to get the most out of a home visit.
Midtarsal Reconstructive Arthrodesis Using a Multi-Axial Correction Fixator in Charcot Midfoot Arthropathy
Authors: Matsumoto Takumi , Parekh Selene G.
Published: June 2015

Reconstructive surgeries for Charcot foot are challenging due to complicated conditions and comorbidities including poor bone quality, sensory abnormalities, poor vascularity, and immunity impairment. Although various ﬁxation devices, including screws, plates, and external ﬁxators, have been used in the surgical reconstruction of the Charcot midfoot, all of these devices are associated with some disadvantages. This study aims to evaluate the outcome of the Multi-Axial Correction (MAC) monolateral external ﬁxation system for the reconstructive surgery of midfoot Charcot neuroarthropathy. A total of 11 feet with midfoot Charcot arthropathy were treated surgically using the MAC fixation system solely or accompanied with minimal internal fixation. The mean postoperative follow-up was 29 (range = 12-44) months. The mean postoperative timing of the MAC system removal was 8.7 (range = 5-14) weeks. No pin tract infections were observed. All patients went on to successful union and correction of a rocker bottom deformity. No cases resulted in limb amputation. All patients were able to ambulate with custom diabetic shoes and insoles in 9 patients (10 feet) and commercially available shoes in 1 patient (1 foot). This study suggests that the MAC system can be an acceptable, easy option for the surgical treatment of midfoot Charcot arthropathy.

Level of Evidence: Therapeutic, Level IV: Case series
Steenbeek Brace
Authors: Agarwal Anil , Shaharyar Abbas , Kumar Anubrat , Bhat Mohd Shafi , Mishra Madhusudan
Published: June 2015

Steenbeek foot abduction brace (SFAB) is an essential orthotic for maintaining correction in congenital talipes equinovarus treated with Ponseti method. As the brace is used up to 3 to 4 years of age, we examined the brace wear pattern according to a child’s development and age. We studied 100 SFABs that were rendered unusable or returned by parents due to advanced brace wear. SFABs returned due to other reasons such as foot outgrowing shoe size were excluded. Each part of the brace (outer sole, insole, upper leather, abduction bar, shoe laces) was carefully inspected to observe any pattern of damage. We grouped the pattern of brace wear as per the probable causative factors into 3 broad categories: due to general use in all age groups, sitters and crawlers, and walking children. Shredded tongue, elongated/torn shoelace hole, peeled paint of metal abduction bar, shredded outer sole, and frayed shoelace were due to general use. Due to sitting and crawling with the brace on, shoe wore on its anteromedial, anterolateral, and posterolateral parts at the junction of the upper leather and outer sole. The commonest area of shoe wear in walkers was the abduction bar, which either broke from the welded junction between bar and metal or was bent at midpoint. The SFAB wear pattern was related to the age of the child and his/her activities. The reusability of the brace can probably be extended with simple improvisations and instructing parents about the correct use of the brace.

Levels of Evidence: Prognostic, Level IV: Case series
Evaluating the Quality, Accuracy, and Readability of Online Resources Pertaining to Hallux Valgus
Authors: Tartaglione Jason P. , Rosenbaum Andrew J. , Abousayed Mostafa , Hushmendy Shazaan F. , DiPreta John A.
Published: June 2015

Background. The Internet is one of the most widely utilized resources for health-related information. Evaluation of the medical literature suggests that the quality and accuracy of these resources are poor and written at inappropriately high reading levels. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the quality, accuracy, and readability of online resources pertaining to hallux valgus. Methods. Two search terms (“hallux valgus” and “bunion”) were entered into Google, Yahoo, and Bing. With the use of scoring criteria specific to hallux valgus, the quality and accuracy of online information related to hallux valgus was evaluated by 3 reviewers. The Flesch–Kincaid score was used to determine readability. Statistical analysis was performed with t tests and significance was determined by P values <.05. Results. Sixty-two unique websites were evaluated. Quality was significantly higher with use of the search term “bunion” as compared to “hallux valgus” ( P = .045). Quality and accuracy were significantly higher in resources authored by physicians as compared to nonphysicians (quality, P = .04; accuracy, P < .001) and websites without commercial bias (quality, P = .038; accuracy, P = .011). However, the reading level was significantly more advanced for websites authored by physicians ( P = .035). Websites written above an eighth-grade reading level were significantly more accurate than those written at or below an eighth-grade reading level ( P = .032). Conclusion. The overall quality of online information related to hallux valgus is poor and written at inappropriate reading levels. Furthermore, the search term used, authorship, and presence of commercial bias influence the value of these materials. It is important for orthopaedic surgeons to become familiar with patient education materials, so that appropriate recommendations can be made regarding valuable resources.

Levels of Evidence: Level IV
Santa Rosalia and Mamma Schiavona: Popular Worship between Religiosity and Identity
Authors: Piraino Francesco , Zambelli Laura
Published: June 2015

Despite the secularization process, popular religion in modern or post-modern societies still retains a central role. In this article, we analyze the worship of Santa Rosalia and Mamma Schiavona. The former is worshiped by Romani and Tamil people; the latter, the Mary of Montevergine Sanctuary, is also venerated by groups of homosexuals and transsexuals. The reworking of religious categories made by these subaltern groups reminds us of the dynamic nature of Catholicism, which changes thanks to continuous contact with external and internal elements. Through Gramsci’s interpretation of popular religion as a symbolic instrument of social recognition and affirmation in opposition to the hegemonic culture, we demonstrate that popular religion plays a central social role in the construction of worldviews, sometimes in contrast with the hegemonic culture, not only as an affirmation of a different identity but as an affirmation of presence.
What Are the Stakes in Doing Critical Research on Social Media Platforms?
Authors: Langlois Ganaele
Published: June 2015

One of the key challenges facing social media studies is the capacity to undertake independent, critical research. As the field of social media is massively dominated by corporate players with a vested interest in both privatizing social data and developing proprietary social analytical tools, it is now crucial to advocate for a politics of public social media research.
Role of Anoctamin-1 and Bestrophin-1 in Spinal Nerve Ligation-Induced Neuropathic Pain in Rats
Authors: Pineda-Farias Jorge Baruch , Barragan-Iglesias Paulino , Loeza-Alcocer Emanuel , Torres-Lopez Jorge E , Rocha-Gonzalez Héctor Isaac , Perez-Severiano Francisca , Delgado-Lezama Rodolfo , Granados-Soto Vinicio
Published: June 2015

Background

Calcium-activated chloride channels (CaCCs) activation induces membrane depolarization by increasing chloride efflux in primary sensory neurons that can facilitate action potential generation. Previous studies suggest that CaCCs family members bestrophin-1 and anoctamin-1 are involved in inflammatory pain. However, their role in neuropathic pain is unclear. In this investigation we assessed the involvement of these CaCCs family members in rats subjected to the L5/L6 spinal nerve ligation. In addition, anoctamin-1 and bestrophin-1 mRNA and protein expression in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and spinal cord was also determined in the presence and absence of selective inhibitors.

Results

L5/L6 spinal nerve ligation induced mechanical tactile allodynia. Intrathecal administration of non-selective CaCCs inhibitors (NPPB, 9-AC and NFA) dose-dependently reduced tactile allodynia. Intrathecal administration of selective CaCCs inhibitors (T16Ainh-A01 and CaCCinh-A01) also dose-dependently diminished tactile allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia. Anoctamin-1 and bestrophin-1 mRNA and protein were expressed in the dorsal spinal cord and DRG of naïve, sham and neuropathic rats. L5/L6 spinal nerve ligation rose mRNA and protein expression of anoctamin-1, but not bestrophin-1, in the dorsal spinal cord and DRG from day 1 to day 14 after nerve ligation. In addition, repeated administration of CaCCs inhibitors (T16Ainh-A01, CaCCinh-A01 or NFA) or anti-anoctamin-1 antibody prevented spinal nerve ligation-induced rises in anoctamin-1 mRNA and protein expression. Following spinal nerve ligation, the compound action potential generation of putative C fibers increased while selective CaCCs inhibitors (T16Ainh-A01 and CaCCinh-A01) attenuated such increase.

Conclusions

There is functional anoctamin-1 and bestrophin-1 expression in rats at sites related to nociceptive processing. Blockade of these CaCCs suppresses compound action potential generation in putative C fibers and lessens established tactile allodynia. As CaCCs activity contributes to neuropathic pain maintenance, selective inhibition of their activity may function as a tool to generate analgesia in nerve injury pain states.
Analysis of the talocrural and subtalar joint motions in patients with medial tibial stress syndrome
Authors: Akiyama Kei , Noh Byungjoo , Fukano Mako , Miyakawa Shumpei , Hirose Norikazu , Fukubayashi Toru
Published: June 2015

Background

The rearfoot motion during sports activities in patients with the medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS) is unknown. This study aimed to investigate the difference in kinematics of the rearfoot in MTSS patients (eight male soccer players) and control participants (eight male soccer players) during a forward step.

Methods

Sixteen male soccer players, including eight players with MTSS, participated. Forward step trials were recorded with cineradiographic images obtained at a sampling rate of 60 Hz. Geometric bone models of the tibia and talus/calcaneus were created from computed tomography scans of the distal part of one lower limb. Following a combination of approaches, anatomical coordinate systems were embedded in each bone model. The talocrural joint motion (relative motion of the talus with respect to the tibia) and subtalar joint motion (relative motion of the calcaneus with respect to the talus) were examined.

Results

A significantly larger range of internal/external rotation and inversion/eversion motion was observed in the subtalar joint of MTSS patients compared to healthy controls (P < 0.05) from heel contact to heel off. There were no significant differences between the MTSS patients and healthy participants in the ranges of all talocrural joint angles during the forward step.

Conclusion

Our results indicate that the range of subtalar joint motion is greater in patients with MTSS during the stance phase of the forward step. The kinematic results obtained of this study may have important clinical implications and add quantitative data to an in vivo database of MTSS patients.