bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Recognizing Unintentional Touch on Interactive Tabletop
Authors: Xu Xuhai , Yu Chun , Wang Yuntao , Shi Yuanchun
Published: March 2020

A multi-touch interactive tabletop is designed to embody the benefits of a digital computer within the familiar surface of a physical tabletop. However, the nature of current multi-touch tabletops to detect and react to all forms of touch, including unintentional touches, impedes users from acting naturally on them. In our research, we leverage gaze direction, head orientation and screen contact data to identify and filter out unintentional touches, so that users can take full advantage of the physical properties of an interactive tabletop, e.g., resting hands or leaning on the tabletop during the interaction. To achieve this, we first conducted a user study to identify behavioral pattern differences (gaze, head and touch) between completing usual tasks on digital versus physical tabletops. We then compiled our findings into five types of spatiotemporal features, and train a machine learning model to recognize unintentional touches with an F1 score of 91.3%, outperforming the state-of-the-art model by 4.3%. Finally we evaluated our algorithm in a real-time filtering system. A user study shows that our algorithm is stable and the improved tabletop effectively screens out unintentional touches, and provide more relaxing and natural user experience. By linking their gaze and head behavior to their touch behavior, our work sheds light on the possibility of future tabletop technology to improve the understanding of users' input intention.
FluSense
Authors: Al Hossain Forsad , Lover Andrew A. , Corey George A. , Reich Nicholas G. , Rahman Tauhidur
Published: March 2020

We developed a contactless syndromic surveillance platform FluSense that aims to expand the current paradigm of influenza-like illness (ILI) surveillance by capturing crowd-level bio-clinical signals directly related to physical symptoms of ILI from hospital waiting areas in an unobtrusive and privacy-sensitive manner. FluSense consists of a novel edge-computing sensor system, models and data processing pipelines to track crowd behaviors and influenza-related indicators, such as coughs, and to predict daily ILI and laboratory-confirmed influenza caseloads. FluSense uses a microphone array and a thermal camera along with a neural computing engine to passively and continuously characterize speech and cough sounds along with changes in crowd density on the edge in a real-time manner. We conducted an IRB-approved 7 month-long study from December 10, 2018 to July 12, 2019 where we deployed FluSense in four public waiting areas within the hospital of a large university. During this period, the FluSense platform collected and analyzed more than 350,000 waiting room thermal images and 21 million non-speech audio samples from the hospital waiting areas. FluSense can accurately predict daily patient counts with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.95. We also compared signals from FluSense with the gold standard laboratory-confirmed influenza case data obtained in the same facility and found that our sensor-based features are strongly correlated with laboratory-confirmed influenza trends.
AssessBlocks
Authors: Wang Xiyue , Takashima Kazuki , Adachi Tomoaki , Finn Patrick , Sharlin Ehud , Kitamura Yoshifumi
Published: March 2020

Natural disasters cause long-lasting mental health problems such as PTSD in children. Following the 2011 Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan, we witnessed a shift of toy block play behavior in young children who suffered from stress after the disaster. The behavior reflected their emotional responses to the traumatic event. In this paper, we explore the feasibility of using data captured from block-play to assess children's stress after a major natural disaster. We prototyped sets of sensor-embedded toy blocks, AssessBlocks, that automate quantitative play data acquisition. During a three-year period, the blocks were dispatched to fifty-two post-disaster children. Within a free play session, we captured block features, a child's playing behavior, and stress evaluated by several methods. The result from our analysis reveal correlations between block play features and stress measurements and show initial promise of using the effectiveness of using AssessBlocks to assess children's stress after a disaster. We provide detailed insights into the potential as well as the challenges of our approach and unique conditions. From these insights we summarize guidelines for future research in automated play assessment systems that support children's mental health.
Teacher Tracking with Integrity
Authors: Martinez-Maldonado Roberto , Mangaroska Katerina , Schulte Jurgen , Elliott Doug , Axisa Carmen , Shum Simon Buckingham
Published: March 2020

Automatic tracking of activity and location in the classroom is becoming increasingly feasible and inexpensive. However, although there is a growing interest in creating classrooms embedded with tracking capabilities using computer vision and wearables, more work is still needed to understand teachers' perceived opportunities and concerns about using indoor positioning data to reflect on their practice. This paper presents results from a qualitative study, conducted across three authentic educational settings, investigating the potential of making positioning traces available to teachers. Positioning data from 28 classes taught by 10 university teachers was captured using sensors in three different collaborative classroom spaces in the disciplines of design, health and science. The contributions of this paper to ubiquitous computing are the documented reflections of teachers from different disciplines provoked by visual representations of their classroom positioning data and that of others. These reflections point to: i) the potential benefit of using these digital traces to support teaching; and ii) concerns to be considered in the design of meaningful analytics systems for instructional proxemics.
Abstracts of recent doctoral dissertations in computer algebra
Authors: CCA editors
Published: March 2020

Each quarter we are pleased to present abstracts of recent doctoral dissertations in Computer Algebra and Symbolic Computation. We encourage all recent Ph.D. graduates who have defended in the past two years (and their supervisors), to submit their abstracts for publication in CCA.
15 PhD positions in GRAPES
Authors: Emiris Ioannis
Published: March 2020

We are pleased to announce 15 open PhD Positions within the new European Network GRAPES: Learning, Processing and Optimising Shapes. GRAPES is a Marie Sk lodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network in the framework of H2020, started on December 1st, 2019, and lasting for 4 years. It includes 11 academic/industrial groups o.ering 15 PhD's, and 6 associated partners; it is coordinated by ATHENA Research & Innovation Center, Greece.

GRAPES aims at advancing the state-of-the-art in Mathematics, Computer-Aided Design, and Machine Learning, in order to promote game changing approaches for generating, optimising, and learning 3D shapes, along with a multisectoral training for young researchers, supported by the active participation of SMEs. Recent advances in the above domains have solved numerous tasks concerning multimedia and 2D data. However, automation of 3D geometry processing and analysis lags severely behind, despite their importance in science, technology and everyday life, and some well-understood underlying mathematical principles. Concrete applications include simulation, manufacturing and 3D printing, visualisation and naval design, retrieval and mining, reconstruction and urban planning.
Modeling the Impact of Manufacturing Uncertainties on Lithium-Ion Batteries
Authors: Schmidt Oke , Thomitzek Matthias , Röder Fridolin , Thiede Sebastian , Herrmann Christoph , Krewer Ulrike
Published: March 2020

This paper describes and analyzes the propagation of uncertainties from the lithium-ion battery electrode manufacturing process to the structural electrode parameters and the resulting varying electrochemical performance. It uses a multi-level model approach, consisting of a process chain simulation and a battery cell simulation. The approach enables to analyze the influence of tolerances in the manufacturing process on the process parameters and to study the process-structure-property relationship. The impact of uncertainties and their propagation and effect is illustrated by a case study with four plausible manufacturing scenarios. The results of the case study reveal that uncertainties in the coating process lead to high deviations in the thickness and mass loading from nominal values. In contrast, uncertainties in the calendering process lead to broad distributions of porosity. Deviations of the thickness and mass loading have the highest impact on the performance. The energy density is less sensitive against porosity and tortuosity as the performance is limited by theoretical capacity. The latter is impacted only by mass loading. Furthermore, it is shown that the shape of the distribution of the electrochemical performance due to parameter variation aids to identify, whether the mean manufacturing parameters are close to an overall performance optimum.
Admixture mapping of asthma in southwestern Europeans with North African ancestry influences
Authors: Guillen-Guio Beatriz , Hernández-Beeftink Tamara , Marcelino-Rodríguez Itahisa , Rodríguez-Pérez Héctor , Lorenzo-Salazar Jose M. , Espinilla-Peña Marta , Corrales Almudena , Pino-Yanes Maria , Callero Ariel , Perez-Rodriguez Eva , Villar Jesús , González-Montelongo Rafaela , Flores Carlos
Published: March 2020

The prevalence of asthma symptoms in Canary Islanders, a southwestern European population from Spain, is almost three times higher than the country average. Because the genetic risks identified so far explain <5% of asthma heritability, here we aimed to discover new asthma loci by completing the first admixture mapping study in Canary Islanders leveraging their distinctive genetic makeup, where significant northwest African influences coexist in the European genetic diversity landscape. A 2-stage study was conducted in 1,491 unrelated individuals self-declaring having a Canary Islands origin for the 4 grandparents. Local ancestry estimates were obtained for the shared positions with reference data from putative ancestral populations from Europe, North Africa, and sub-Saharan Africa. Case-control deviations in local ancestry were tested for each ancestry separately using logistic regressions adjusted for principal components, followed by fine-mapping analyses based on imputed genotypes and analyses of the likely deleterious exonic variants. The admixture mapping analysis of asthma detected that local North African ancestry in a locus spanning 365 kb of chromosome 16q23.3 was associated with asthma risk at study-wide significance [lowest P = 1.12 × 10−4; odds ratio (OR) = 2.05; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.41–3.00]. Fine-mapping studies identified a variant associated with asthma, and results were replicated in independent samples (rs3852738, OR = 1.34; 95% CI = 1.13–1.59, P = 7.58 × 10−4). Whole exome sequencing data from a subset of individuals revealed an enrichment of likely deleterious variants among asthma cases in 16q23.3, particularly in the phospholipase Cγ2 ( PLCG2) gene ( P = 3.67 × 10−4). By completing the first mapping study of asthma in admixed populations from Europe, our results revealed a new plausible asthma locus.
Exploration of cardiometabolic and developmental significance of angiotensinogen expression by cells expressing the leptin receptor or agouti-related peptide
Authors: Sapouckey Sarah A. , Morselli Lisa L. , Deng Guorui , Patil Chetan N. , Balapattabi Kirthikaa , Oliveira Vanessa , Claflin Kristin E. , Gomez Javier , Pearson Nicole A. , Potthoff Matthew J. , Gibson-Corley Katherine N. , Sigmund Curt D. , Grobe Justin L.
Published: March 2020

Angiotensin II (ANG II) Agtr1a receptor (AT1A) is expressed in cells of the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus that express the leptin receptor ( Lepr) and agouti-related peptide ( Agrp). Agtr1a expression in these cells is required to stimulate resting energy expenditure in response to leptin and high-fat diets (HFDs), but the mechanism activating AT1Asignaling by leptin remains unclear. To probe the role of local paracrine/autocrine ANG II generation and signaling in this mechanism, we bred mice harboring a conditional allele for angiotensinogen ( Agt, encoding AGT) with mice expressing Cre-recombinase via the Lepr or Agrp promoters to cause cell-specific deletions of Agt ( AgtLepr-KOand AgtAgrp-KOmice, respectively). AgtLepr-KOmice were phenotypically normal, arguing against a paracrine/autocrine AGT signaling mechanism for metabolic control. In contrast, AgtAgrp-KOmice exhibited reduced preweaning survival, and surviving adults exhibited altered renal structure and steroid flux, paralleling previous reports of animals with whole body Agt deficiency or Agt disruption in albumin ( Alb)-expressing cells (thought to cause liver-specific disruption). Surprisingly, adult AgtAgrp-KOmice exhibited normal circulating AGT protein and hepatic Agt mRNA expression but reduced Agt mRNA expression in adrenal glands. Reanalysis of RNA-sequencing data sets describing transcriptomes of normal adrenal glands suggests that Agrp and Alb are both expressed in this tissue, and fluorescent reporter gene expression confirms Cre activity in adrenal gland of both Agrp-Cre and Alb-Cre mice. These findings lead to the iconoclastic conclusion that extrahepatic (i.e., adrenal) expression of Agt is critically required for normal renal development and survival.
Bone Defect Repair Using a Bone Substitute Supported by Mesenchymal Stem Cells Derived from the Umbilical Cord
Authors: Kosinski Michal , Figiel-Dabrowska Anna , Lech Wioletta , Wieprzowski Lukasz , Strzalkowski Ryszard , Strzemecki Damian , Cheda Lukasz , Lenart Jacek , Domanska-Janik Krystyna , Sarnowska Anna
Published: March 2020

Objective. Bone defects or atrophy may arise as a consequence of injury, inflammation of various etiologies, and neoplastic or traumatic processes or as a result of surgical procedures. Sometimes the regeneration process of bone loss is impaired, significantly slowed down, or does not occur, e.g., in congenital defects. For the bone defect reconstruction, a piece of the removed bone from ala of ilium or bone transplantation from a decedent is used. Replacement of the autologous or allogenic source of the bone-by-bone substitute could reduce the number of surgeries and time in the pharmacological coma during the reconstruction of the bone defect. Application of mesenchymal stem cells in the reconstruction surgery may have positive influence on tissue regeneration by secretion of angiogenic factors, recruitment of other MSCs, or differentiation into osteoblasts.Materials and Methods. Mesenchymal stem cells derived from the umbilical cord (Wharton’s jelly (WJ-MSC)) were cultured in GMP-grade DMEM low glucose supplemented with heparin, 10% platelet lysate, glucose, and antibiotics.In vitroWJ-MSCs were seeded on the bone substitute Bio-Oss Collagen® and cultured in the StemPro® Osteogenesis Differentiation Kit. During the culture on the 1st, 7th, 14th, and 21st day (day in vitro (DIV)), we analyzed viability (confocal microscopy) and adhesion capability (electron microscopy) of WJ-MSC on Bio-Oss scaffolds, gene expression (qPCR), and secretion of proteins (Luminex).In vivoBio-Oss® scaffolds with WJ-MSC were transplanted to trepanation holes in the cranium to obtain their overgrowth. The computed tomography was performed 7, 14, and 21 days after surgery to assess the regeneration.Results. The Bio-Oss® scaffold provides a favourable environment for WJ-MSC survival. WJ-MSCs in osteodifferentiation medium are able to attach and proliferate on Bio-Oss® scaffolds. Results obtained from qPCR and Luminex® indicate that WJ-MSCs possess the ability to differentiate into osteoblast-like cells and may induce osteoclastogenesis, angiogenesis, and mobilization of host MSCs. In animal studies, WJ-MSCs seeded on Bio-Oss® increased the scaffold integration with host bone and changed their morphology to osteoblast-like cells.Conclusions. The presented construct consisted of Bio-Oss®, the scaffold with high flexibility and plasticity, approved for clinical use with seeded immunologically privileged WJ-MSC which may be considered reconstructive therapy in bone defects.
Hydraulic Fracturing Behavior in Shale with Water and Supercritical CO2 under Triaxial Compression
Authors: He Jianming , Zhang Yixiang , Yin Chao , Li Xiao
Published: March 2020

Comparing to the water fracturing fluid regularly used in the hydraulic fracturing operation, supercritical CO2 (SC-CO2) as a promising nonaqueous fracturing fluid has the great potential for the improvement of production and protection of shale reservoir. This paper presents an experimental study of the mechanical response and fracture propagation of shale fractured using water and SC-CO2 under the different stress status and injection rate. According to the experimental results, SC-CO2 fracturing is more time-consuming due to its compressibility which takes about 20 times more time than hydraulic fracturing using water under the same preset conditions. The breakdown pressure of shale can be affected by not only the anisotropy of itself but also the external factors like injection rate and deviator stress. Similar tendency of the breakdown pressure with the variation of bedding orientation can be observed in both of the fracturing using water and SC-CO2. However, all of the shale specimens fractured using SC-CO2 show smaller breakdown pressure if compared with the shale specimens fractured using water. According to the results of fracture width evolution monitored by circumference during the fracturing, the fracture propping and proper size of the proppant are really important for the hydraulic fracturing.
The Role of Adverse Childhood Experience on Depression Symptom, Prevalence, and Severity among School Going Adolescents
Authors: Tsehay Mekonnen , Necho Mogesie , Mekonnen Werkua
Published: March 2020

Background and Objectives. Adverse childhood experiences include stressful and potentially traumatic events associated with a higher risk of long-term behavioral problems and chronic illnesses. In this study, we had estimated the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and association with depression symptoms prevalence and severity as a function of ACE counts. Methods. A cross-sectional school-based study was employed. Five hundred forty-six secondary school students were selected using multistage sampling technique from 5 selected secondary schools. We obtained retrospective information on adverse childhood experiences of adolescents by ACEs, self-reported 10-item questionnaire, and current depression prevalence and severity by PHQ-9. Multivariate linear regression models were used to estimate child depression severity by retrospective ACE count. Results. Among the 546 adolescents who participated in this study, 285 (50.7%) of the participants answered yes to at least one or more questions among the total 10 questions of ACEs. Experiences of ACEs increased the risk for depressive symptoms, with unstandardized β = 1.123 (β = 1.123, 95% CI (0.872, 1.373). We found a strong, dose–response relationship between the ACE score and the probability of lifetime and recent depressive disorders (p<0.0001). Conclusions. The number of ACEs has a graded relationship to both the prevalence and severity of depressive symptoms. These results suggest that exposure to ACEs is associated with an increased risk of depressive symptoms up to decades after their occurrence. Early recognition of childhood abuse and appropriate intervention may thus play an important role in the prevention of depressive disorders throughout the life span.
Knowledge and Attitude towards Pain Management among Nurses Working at University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia
Authors: Liyew Bikis , Dejen Tilahun Ambaye , Habtie Bayu Netsanet , kassew Tilahun
Published: March 2020

Introduction. Pain is unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual and potential tissue damage. Inadequate pain management has been shown to affect patient outcomes by potentially increasing hospital stay and delaying recovery; thus, the management of pain has major implications for nursing. The study was aimed to identify gaps in knowledge and attitude of nurse’s level of pain management.Objective. This study aimed to assess knowledge and attitude towards pain management among nurses working at University of Gondar comprehensive specialized referral hospital, Northwest Ethiopia, 2019.Methods. Institution-based cross-sectional study was carried out during May 20–30, 2019. A stratified random sampling technique was used to select 422 nurses. Hospital departments were classified into 5 main strata having nearly the same working conditions: (1) Internal Medicine, (2) Pediatrics, (3) Surgical, (4) Outpatient Clinics, and (5) Emergency and Intensive Care Departments. The proportional allocation was taken from each stratum, and then a simple random technique was applied. Descriptive statistics like frequency, mean, median, standard deviation, and percentage were used to describe the distribution of data. Independent samplest-test was used in comparing the gender knowledge and attitude mean score of the nurses towards pain management. One-way ANOVA was also used in determining the differences between knowledge and attitude towards pain management with sociodemographic characteristics at thep=0.05level of significance.Result. A total of 411 study participants were involved in this study. More than half of the nurses, 225 (58.1%), were males; 308 (79.5%) of them were in the age category of 19–29 years. The magnitude of good knowledge towards pain management among nurses was 66.9% with a mean score of 7.14 (1.74 SD). The magnitude of favorable attitude towards pain management among nurses was 51.7% with a mean score of 49.33 (7.13 SD).Conclusion and Recommendation. This study revealed that nurses working at University of Gondar hospital had good knowledge and a lower level of attitude towards pain management than those reported in previous studies. Thus, the situation demands various educational and quality improvement initiatives that could enhance the nurse‘s knowledge and attitude in the area of pain management.
Research on Hybrid Wind Speed Prediction System Based on Artificial Intelligence and Double Prediction Scheme
Authors: Nie Ying , Bo He , Zhang Weiqun , Zhang Haipeng
Published: March 2020

Wind energy analysis and wind speed modeling have a significant impact on wind power generation systems and have attracted significant attention from many researchers in recent decades. Based on the inherent characteristics of wind speed, such as nonlinearity and randomness, the prediction of wind speed is considered to be a challenging task. Previous studies have only considered point prediction or interval measurement of wind speed separately and have not combined these two methods for prediction and analysis. In this study, we developed a novel hybrid wind speed double prediction system comprising a point prediction module and interval prediction module to compensate for the shortcomings of existing research. Regarding point prediction in the developed double prediction system, a novel nonlinear integration method based on a backpropagation network optimized using the multiobjective evolutionary algorithm based on decomposition was successfully implemented to derive the final prediction results, which enable further improvement of the accuracy of point prediction. Based on point prediction results, we propose an interval prediction method that constructs different intervals according to the classification of different data features via fuzzy clustering, which provides reliable interval prediction results. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed system outperforms existing methods in engineering applications and can be used as an effective technology for power system planning.
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Bevacizumab plus Paclitaxel versus Bevacizumab plus Capecitabine for HER2-Negative Locally Recurrent or Metastatic Breast Cancer
Authors: Wu Qiuji , Wang Xinyuan , Zhang Mengxi , Liao Weiting , Wang Feng , Li Qiu
Published: March 2020

Background: The aim of the current study was to estimate two protocols for HER2-negative locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer patients, bevacizumab combined with paclitaxel versus bevacizumab combined with capecitabine, from the economic view. Methods: The process of HER2-negative locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer treated with bevacizumab combined with paclitaxel or bevaciz­umab combined with capecitabine made up the decision model in our analysis. The primary objective was to show the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). The critical parameters and the robustness of the model on the results of the analysis were assessed by univariate sensitivity analysis and probabilistic sensitivity analysis. Results: In the analysis, quality-adjusted life year (QALY) increased by 0.4 with bevacizumab plus paclitaxel compared with bevacizumab plus capecitabine, and incremental cost of USD 4,340.46. Therefore, the ICER was USD 27,252.875. The ICER exceeded the commonly accepted willingness to pay on the recommendation of the World Health Organization, which is defined as 3 times of the gross domestic product per capita of China in the model (USD 25,840.88 per QALY). On univariate analysis, it is found that the most significant affecting factor is the cost of progression-free survival state in the bevacizumab plus paclitaxel group. Besides, bevacizumab plus paclitaxel had a 47.8% probability of being cost-effective versus bevacizu­mab plus capecitabine according to probabilistic sensitivity analysis. Conclusions: Based on the results of the analysis, bevacizumab plus paclitaxel is unlikely to be a cost-effective option for patients with HER2-negative locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer compared with bevacizumab plus capecitabine.
Sphenoid Sinus Giant Cell Tumor: A Case Report and Literature Review
Authors: Pousti Bobak T. , Andera Luke , Haugen Thorsen W.
Published: March 2020

We describe a 27-year-old female with a giant cell tumor of her sphenoid sinus, presenting with nasal obstruction and cranial neuropathies. Both the surgical and subsequent medical management are reviewed. Additionally, we review the overall presentation, pathophysiology, and management of giant cell tumors of the skull base. Current treatment recommendations are presented.
A Case of Trisomy 13 Mosaicism Presenting with a Severe Aortic Root Dilatation and Marfanoid Habitus due to an Unpredictable Cytogenetic Mechanism
Authors: Monin Pauline , Reynaud Nicolas , Hanna Nadine , Dupuis-Girod Sophie , Till Marianne , Arnaud Pauline , Labalme Audrey , Alix Eudeline , Poizat-Amar Coline , Faoucher Marie , Ravella Lucie , Debost Bernard , Obadia Jean-François , Zech Jean-Christophe , Boileau Catherine , Sanlaville Damien , Edery Patrick , Putoux Audrey , Schluth-Bolard Caroline
Published: March 2020

In this report, we present a new case of mosaic trisomy 13 with prolonged survival, firstly detected by array-CGH analysis which was carried out because of moderate intellectual disability with postaxial hexadactyly, dermatologic features, ventricular septal defect, bicuspid aortic valve, and aortic dystrophy in a 19-year-old male patient. In a subset of 15% of the cells, the patient carried a derivative chromosome 10 generated by a nonreciprocal (10;13) translocation inherited from his healthy mother who carried the translocation in a balanced and homogeneous state. FISH analyses showed interstitial telomeric sequences at the breakpoints. To our knowledge, this is the second report of a patient with trisomy 13 mosaicism displaying a severe aortic root dilatation. We also discuss the mechanisms which could explain the mosaic state, the most likely one being related to the instability of the interstitial telomere.
Uses of Arterial Stiffness in Clinical Practice
Authors: Wilkinson Ian B. , Mäki-Petäjä Kaisa M. , Mitchell Gary F.
Published: March 2020

As far back as the ancient Egyptians and Greeks, physicians have observed and interpreted the arterial pulse to diagnose disease. In the last 20 years, advances in modern engineering have rendered quantitative pulse wave analysis widely available, reliable, and reproducible. To date, measurement of arterial stiffness has remained almost exclusively a research activity. However, ongoing technological improvements coupled with already strong and growing evidence of clinical value should facilitate integration of arterial stiffness measures into clinical practice in the near future. This brief review will highlight clinical areas where arterial stiffness measures are likely to be the most informative in clinical practice.
Left Bundle Branch Block
Authors: Tan Nicholas Y. , Witt Chance M. , Oh Jae K. , Cha Yong-Mei
Published: March 2020

Left bundle branch block may be due to conduction system degeneration or a reflection of myocardial pathology. Left bundle branch block may also develop following aortic valve disease or cardiac procedures. Patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction and left bundle branch block may respond positively to cardiac resynchronization therapy. Lead placement via the coronary sinus is the mainstay approach of cardiac resynchronization therapy. However, other options, including physiological pacing, are being explored. In this review, we summarize the salient pathophysiologic and clinical aspects of left bundle branch block, as well as current and future strategies for management.
Outcomes of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement in Patients With Bicuspid Aortic Valve Disease
Authors: Halim Sharif A. , Edwards Fred H. , Dai David , Li Zhuokai , Mack Michael J. , Holmes David R. , Tuzcu E. Murat , Thourani Vinod H. , Harrison J. Kevin , Brennan J. Matthew
Published: March 2020

Background:

Patients with bicuspid aortic valve (AV) stenosis were excluded from the pivotal evaluations of transcatheter AV replacement (TAVR) devices. We sought to evaluate the outcomes of TAVR in patients with bicuspid AV stenosis in comparison with those with tricuspid AV stenosis.

Methods:

We used data from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons/American College of Cardiology Transcatheter Valve Therapy Registry (November 2011 through November 2018) to determine device success, procedural outcomes, post-TAVR valve performance, and in-hospital clinical outcomes (mortality, stroke, and major bleeding) according to valve morphology (bicuspid versus tricuspid). Results were stratified by older and current (Sapien 3 and Evolut R) generation valve prostheses. Medicare administrative claims were used to evaluate mortality and stroke to 1 year among eligible individuals (≥65 years).

Results:

After exclusions, there were 170 959 eligible procedures at 593 sites during the specified interval. Of these, 5412 TAVR procedures (3.2%) were performed in patients with bicuspid AV, including 3705 with current-generation devices. In comparison with patients with tricuspid valves, patients with bicuspid AV were younger and had a lower Society of Thoracic Surgeons Predicted Risk of Operative Mortality score. When current-generation devices were used to treat patients with bicuspid AV, device success increased (93.5 versus 96.3;
P
=0.001) and the incidence of 2+ aortic insufficiency declined (14.0% versus 2.7%;
P
<0.001) in comparison with older-generation devices. With current-generation devices, device success was slightly lower in the bicuspid (versus tricuspid) AV group (96.3% in bicuspid versus 97.4% in tricuspid,
P
=0.07), with a slightly higher incidence of residual moderate or severe aortic insufficiency among patients with bicuspid AV (2.7% versus 2.1%;
P
<0.001). A lower 1-year adjusted risk of mortality (hazard ratio, 0.88 [95% CI, 0.78–0.99]) was observed for patients with bicuspid AV versus patients with tricuspid AV in the Medicare-linked cohort, whereas no difference was observed in the 1-year adjusted risk of stroke (hazard ratio, 1.14 [95% CI, 0.94–1.39]).

Conclusions:

Using current-generation devices, procedural, postprocedural, and 1-year outcomes were comparable following TAVR for bicuspid AV versus tricuspid AV disease. With newer-generation devices, TAVR is a viable treatment option for patients with bicuspid AV disease.
Smoking Paradox in Stroke Survivors?
Authors: Wang Hao-Kuang , Huang Chih-Yuan , Sun Yuan-Ting , Li Jie-Yuan , Chen Chih-Hung , Sun Yu , Liu Chung-Hsiang , Lin Ching-Huang , Chang Wei-Lun , Lee Jiunn-Tay , Sung Sheng-Feng , Yeh Po-Yen , Lai Ta-Chang , Tsai I-Ju , Lin Mei-Chen , Lin Cheng-Li , Wen Chi-Pang , Hsu Chung Y. ,   for the Taiwan Stroke Registry Investigators
Published: March 2020

Background and Purpose—

The observation that smokers with stroke could have better outcome than nonsmokers led to the term “smoking paradox.” The controversy of such a complex claim has not been fully settled, even though different case mix was noted. Analyses were conducted on 2 independent data sets to evaluate and determine whether such a paradox truly exists.

Methods—

Taiwan Stroke Registry with 88 925 stroke cases, and MJ cohort with 541 047 adults participating in a medical screening program with 1630 stroke deaths developed during 15 years of follow-up (1994–2008). Primary outcome for stroke registry was functional independence at 3 months by modified Rankin Scale score ≤2, for individuals classified by National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score at admission. For MJ cohort, mortality risk by smoking status or by stroke history was assessed by hazard ratio.

Results—

A >11-year age difference in stroke incidence was found between smokers and nonsmokers, with a median age of 60.2 years for current smokers and 71.6 years for nonsmokers. For smokers, favorable outcome in mortality and in functional assessment in 3 months with modified Rankin Scale score ≤2 stratified by the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score was present but disappeared when age and sex were matched. Smokers without stroke history had a ≈2-fold increase in stroke deaths (2.05 for ischemic stroke and 1.53 for hemorrhagic stroke) but smokers with stroke history, 7.83-fold increase, overshadowing smoking risk. Quitting smoking at earlier age reversed or improved outcome.

Conclusions—

“The more you smoke, the earlier you stroke, and the longer sufferings you have to cope.” Smokers had 2-fold mortality from stroke but endured stroke disability 11 years longer. Quitting early reduced or reversed the harms.
White Matter Integrity in Tanzanian Children With Sickle Cell Anemia
Authors: Jacob Mboka , Stotesbury Hanne , Kawadler Jamie M. , Lapadaire Winok , Saunders Dawn E. , Sangeda Raphael Z. , Chamba Clara , Kazema Ramadhan , Makani Julie , Kirkham Fenella J. , Clark Chris A.
Published: March 2020

Background and Purpose—

Widespread reductions in white matter integrity are associated with cognitive dysfunction in sickle cell anemia. Silent cerebral infarction (SCI), vasculopathy (VSC), and low hemoglobin concentration (Hb) are implicated; we aimed to determine independent contributions to microstructural white matter injury and whether white matter integrity differs across arterial territories.

Methods—

Sixty two children with sickle cell anemia aged 6 to 19 years were prospectively studied at Muhimbili National Hospital, Tanzania. SCI± and VSC± were identified on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)/magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) scans by 2 neuroradiologists. Tract-based spatial statistics tested for voxel-wise differences in diffusion tensor imaging metrics (ie, fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, radial diffusivity, and axial diffusivity) between SCI± and VSC± groups, with correlations between diffusion tensor imaging metrics and Hb. In tract-based spatial statistics analyses, potentially mediating factors (ie, age, sex, as well as Hb, SCI, and/or vasculopathy) were covariates. Differences in mean diffusion tensor imaging metrics across regions of interest in arterial territories were explored.

Results—

Compared with SCI− patients (n=45), SCI+ patients (n=17) exhibited increased radial diffusivity in multiple regions; negative relationships were observed between mean diffusivity, axial diffusivity, and Hb (
P
<0.005). Compared with VSC− patients (n=49), mild (n=6) or moderate (n=7) VSC+ patients exhibited reduced fractional anisotropy in widespread regions (
P
<0.05) including the anterior longitudinal fasciculi, corpus callosum, internal capsule, corona radiata, and corticospinal tracts. Overall, the posterior cerebral arterial territory had higher mean mean diffusivity and mean radial diffusivity than the anterior and middle cerebral arterial territories, although no patient had vasculopathy in this area. There was an interaction between territory and vasculopathy.

Conclusions—

SCI, vasculopathy, and Hb are independent risk factors, and thus treatment targets, for diffuse white matter injury in patients with sickle cell anemia. Exacerbation of hemodynamic stress may play a role.
Deployment of Armed Forces: Swedish Constitutional Considerations
Authors: Österdahl Inger
Published: March 2020

This article investigates the Swedish constitutional framework for international military action. The constitutional provisions on self-defence and on the sending of armed forces to other countries are in focus. The provisions mainly concern the division of powers between the government and parliament and generally contain little substance. In the context of a relatively recent revision of the entire Swedish Constitution also the constitutional provisions on the government’s power to deploy the armed forces were subject to review. In the end not much was changed, but several suggestions for change were put forward by the official commission of inquiry on constitutional reform. Even though the suggestions for change were for the most part rejected, they are discussed in this article as a backdrop to the rules that remained. An ambition to tie the Swedish constitutional regulation even closer to international law was part of the suggested change which was eventually approved.
The Assumptions underlying the Kosovo Specialist Chambers and Their Implications
Authors: Hehir Aidan
Published: March 2020

Since 1999 international actors have presented Kosovo’s problems as stemming exclusively from endogenous factors that locals cannot solve. International oversight is thus as essential and benign; the ksc is the latest initiative premised on this assumption. I argue, however, that the idea that international oversight is more efficient than local control is questionable given that since 1999 international judicial mechanisms have endured corruption, witness intimidation, and political interference. Additionally, the fact that the ksc’s creation was driven by external actors has had a negative impact on its legitimacy amongst the general public within Kosovo; this will influence their response to its proceedings. Finally, I argue that those who supported the establishment of the ksc advanced a narrative that implies they were in no way culpable for the crimes committed between 1998–2000; in fact, both unmik and kfor manifestly failed in their duty to provide security in Kosovo.
Educational Children’s Rights Research 1989–2019: Achievements, Gaps and Future Prospects
Authors: Quennerstedt Ann , Moody Zoe
Published: March 2020

Since the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989, research into children’s rights issues in educational contexts has grown significantly. This paper takes stock of the evolution of educational children’s rights research, and provides a characterisation of the research field. By means of a systematic analysis of the published scholarship, the main achievements of the research are identified, as well as gaps in knowledge production. Major research foci are highlighted, the theoretical and methodological characteristics of the field are demonstrated, and concerns are identified. Based on the insights gained from analysis of the research field, future prospects are identified and discussed, and some possible routes forward for educational children’s rights research are suggested.
The Site of Foreign Policy: A Field Theory Account of MFAs
Authors: Balzacq Thierry
Published: March 2020

This essay argues that the work of ministries of foreign affairs (MFAs) centres on three modes of articulation; namely, intersubjective, practical and material articulations. However, much research in diplomatic studies has yet to come to terms with the specific ways in which these modes of articulation coalesce to produce a distinctive foreign policy. I suggest that a field theory account of MFAs offers a reliable set of tools that enables us to understand how a foreign policy takes shape, the dynamics that sustain it and the circumstances under which it is likely to change. Because a field’s existence is often derived from its relational consequences, the essay clarifies the link between a field and its effects, using the concept of ‘affordance’. In this sense, theorising MFAs connects a philosophy of action — which focuses on the field theory’s concepts — and a philosophy of science — which emphasises relations within and between different modes of articulation.
Playing Soldiers: The War Game in Late Qing and Republican China
Authors: Schillinger Nicolas
Published: March 2020

In the early twentieth century, Chinese military reformers introduced the war game to improve the training of officers and professionalize their education according to foreign role models. The war game or Kriegsspiel was a tabletop device used to simulate tactical and strategic problems, which originated from the Prussian army and was very popular among German officers. It was adopted in other European countries and the United States as well as Japan, and was eventually played in the late Qing New Armies and the Guomindang’s National Revolutionary Army. From its inception at the turn of the century until the end of the Republican era, it was supposed to increase tactical abilities, leadership skills, discipline, and knowledge of specific procedures and regulations. Besides improving their skills as military commanders, wargaming enabled Chinese officers to incorporate transnational military cultural codes of conduct, and thus emulate and perform “modern” military professionalism.
Ecological niche and microhabitat use of Australian geckos
Authors: Riedel Jendrian , Nordberg Eric , Schwarzkopf Lin
Published: March 2020

Modern biological research often uses global datasets to answer broad-scale questions using various modelling techniques. But detailed information on species–habitat interactions are often only available for a few species. Australian geckos, a species-rich group of small nocturnal predators, are particularly data-deficient. For most species, information is available only as scattered, anecdotal, or descriptive entries in the taxonomic literature or in field guides. We surveyed gecko communities from 10 sites, and 15 locations across central and northern Queensland, Australia, to quantify ecological niche and habitat use of these communities. Our surveys included deserts, woodlands, and rainforests, examining 34 gecko species. We assigned species to habitat niche categories: arboreal (9 species), saxicoline (4), or terrestrial (13), if at least 75% of our observations fell in one microhabitat; otherwise we classified geckos as generalists (8). For arboreal species, we described perch height and perch diameter and assigned them to ecomorph categories, originally developed for Anolis lizards. There was lower species richness in rainforests than in habitats with lower relative humidity; the highest species richness occurred in woodlands. Most arboreal and generalist species fit the trunk-ground ecomorph, except those in the genus Strophurus, whose members preferred shrubs, twigs of small trees, or, in two cases, spinifex grass hummocks, thus occupying a perch space similar to that of grass-bush anoles. Habitat use by Pseudothecadactylus australis, Saltuarius cornutus, and Gehyra dubia fit the trunk-crown ecomorph. We provide quantified basic ecological data and habitat use for a large group of previously poorly documented species.
Machine vision for field-level wood identification
Authors: de Andrade Bruno Geike , Basso Vanessa Maria , de Figueiredo Latorraca João Vicente
Published: March 2020

Identifying wood species using wood anatomy is an important tool for various purposes. The traditionally used method is based on the macroscopic description of the physical and anatomical characteristics of the wood. This requires that the identifier has thorough technical knowledge about wood anatomy. A possible alternative to this task is to use intelligent systems capable of identifying species through an analysis of digital images. In this work, 21 species were used to generate a set of 2000 macroscopic images. These were produced with a smartphone under field conditions, from samples manually polished with knives. Texture characteristics obtained through a gray level co-occurrence matrix were used in developing classifiers based on support vector machines. The best model achieved a 97.7% accuracy. Our study concluded that the automated identification of species can be performed in the field in a practical, simple and precise way.
Warm Spells and Climate Risk to Human Health in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area
Authors: Vargas Nuria , Magaña Víctor
Published: March 2020

During the second half of the twentieth century, rapid demographic growth and urban expansion led to the development of the Mexico City metropolitan area (MCMA) urban heat island (UHI). The thermal gradient between rural and urban regions is used to define the UHI in the transition zone along the 26°C isotherm of mean maximum temperature. As the MCMA expands, more natural vegetation is replaced with urbanization, and the spatial extent of the 26°C isotherm grows. The loss of natural vegetation, in a densely populated region of Mexico, leads to the formation of a canopy-layer UHI. The intensification of the MCMA UHI results in an increase in the frequency of daily maximum temperatures above 30°C (above 26°C on a weekly average), a threshold value that constitutes a natural hazard. Warm-spell occurrences are related to an increase in the number of acute diarrhea diseases (ADD), mainly in zones of the MCMA where the socioeconomic and environmental conditions are low (e.g., insufficient access to potable water). Vulnerable people are mostly located in new settlements along the periphery of the MCMA, where large numbers of hospital discharges due to ADD are reported. The combined effect of more frequent warm spells and increasing vulnerability results in higher levels of risk of suffering this type of health problem, mainly during the warmest part of the year. This analysis may serve to develop UHI mitigation strategies and early warning systems to manage high levels of ADD risk during warm spells.
Criteria for Determining Eligibility for Extended School Year Services
Authors: Barnard-Brak Lucy , Stevens Tara
Published: March 2020

Extended school year (ESY) services has been an understudied area of special education research. There is limited information available regarding ESY practices by local education agencies (LEAs) in determining eligibility as well as who receives what types of services. We surveyed special education directors across the nation to examine ESY practices by LEAs. Most notably, approximately two out of three special education directors (63%) reported that ESY services were only received by students in self-contained classrooms in their LEA. These LEAs that had no students outside of a self-contained classroom receiving ESY services also had a significantly lower percentage of students receiving ESY services as a whole. We recommend that this practice be discouraged as it effectively excludes students in inclusive settings who could benefit from ESY services and can steer parents away from inclusive placements if ESY services in the future will cease.