bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Relative baseline features for impedance-based structural health monitoring
Authors: Jung Hwee Kwon , Jo HyeJin , Park Gyuhae , Mascarenas David L , Farrar Charles R
Published: September 2014

Various experimental studies have demonstrated that an impedance-based method is an effective means of structural damage detection. Using the self-sensing and active-sensing capabilities of piezoelectric materials, the electromechanical impedance response can be monitored to provide a qualitative indication of the overall health of a structure. In this article, two new signal processing tools for the impedance method are described in order to improve the damage detection capability and to reduce the amount of data to process for structural health assessment. The first approach is to instantaneously correlate the impedance data between different sensor sets, as opposed to be correlated to pre-stored baseline data. Another approach is to use the pre-defined parameter of impedance data to establish a generalized baseline for bolted joint monitoring. These approaches could reduce the number of data sets and could be efficiently used for low-power impedance devices. The proposed signal processing techniques are applied to several experimental structures, and the efficiency in damage detection is demonstrated.
A Problem-Solving Therapy Intervention for Low-Income, Pregnant Women at Risk for Postpartum Depression
Authors: Sampson McClain , Villarreal Yolanda , Rubin Allen
Published: September 2014

Postpartum Depression (PPD) occurs at higher rates among impoverished mothers than the general population. Depression during pregnancy is one of the strongest predictors of developing PPD. Research indicates that non-pharmacological interventions are effective in reducing depressive symptoms but engaging and retaining low-income mothers remains a challenge. A brief, educational intervention delivered through home visits may be an ideal setting for low-income pregnant mothers at risk for PPD. Problem Solving Therapy (PST) is an effective treatment for depression. However, its effectiveness has not been tested among low-income mothers at risk of postpartum depression. This research tests the feasibility and pretest to posttest outcome of an adaptation of PST among a sample of low-income, expectant mothers. This research used a pre-post pilot study. Fourteen pregnant women at risk for postpartum depression were provided 5 home visits of motivational interviewing introduction for engagement and PST for symptom reduction. The intervention had a 93% retention rate. Analysis revealed statistically significant improvements on measures of depression symptoms after intervention This pilot study demonstrates the feasibility of implementation of a home visiting PPD intervention in a community based agency and provides the grounds for optimism about the effectiveness of a PST intervention for low-income women at risk for postpartum depression.
Patients’ Understanding of Shared Decision Making in a Mental Health Setting
Authors: Eliacin Johanne , Salyers Michelle P. , Kukla Marina , Matthias Marianne S.
Published: September 2014

Shared decision making is a fundamental component of patient-centered care and has been linked to positive health outcomes. Increasingly, researchers are turning their attention to shared decision making in mental health; however, few studies have explored decision making in these settings from patients’ perspectives. We examined patients’ accounts and understanding of shared decision making. We analyzed interviews from 54 veterans receiving outpatient mental health care at a Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in the United States. Although patients’ understanding of shared decision making was consistent with accounts published in the literature, participants reported that shared decision making goes well beyond these components. They identified the patient–provider relationship as the bedrock of shared decision making and highlighted several factors that interfere with shared decision making. Our findings highlight the importance of the patient–provider relationship as a fundamental element of shared decision making and point to areas for potential improvement.
Negotiating Futility, Managing Emotions
Authors: Broom Alex , Kirby Emma , Good Phillip , Wootton Julia , Yates Patsy , Hardy Janet
Published: September 2014

Nurses play a pivotal role in caring for patients during the transition from life-prolonging care to palliative care. This is an area of nursing prone to emotional difficulty, interpersonal complexity, and interprofessional conflict. It is situated within complex social dynamics, including those related to establishing and accepting futility and reconciling the desire to maintain hope. Here, drawing on interviews with 20 Australian nurses, we unpack their accounts of nursing the transition to palliative care, focusing on the purpose of nursing at the point of transition; accounts of communication and strategies for representing palliative care; emotional engagement and burden; and key interprofessional challenges. We argue that in caring for patients approaching the end of life, nurses occupy precarious interpersonal and interprofessional spaces that involve a negotiated order around sentimental work, providing them with both capital (privileged access) and burden (emotional suffering) within their day-to-day work.
Disentangling the Moral Integrity Construct
Authors: Tomlinson Edward C. , Lewicki Roy J. , Ash Steven R.
Published: September 2014

Research on the relationship between integrity and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) has been inconsistent and confusing. We trace some of the confusion to the way that the integrity construct has been defined in the literature. Some researchers have conceptualized integrity as word-action consistency and congruence between the actor’s values and the values of observers judging that action, often through a moral lens (moral integrity [MI]). More recently, a second group of researchers has restricted the domain of integrity to word-action alignment alone (behavioral integrity [BI]), separating out the values congruence component. In this article, we consider word-action consistency and values congruence as separate but linked constructs that interact when predicting OCBs. Across two samples, we present evidence that the positive relationship between BI and certain OCBs is strengthened when values congruence is higher. We elaborate on the implications of these findings for both theory and practice.
Reducing the structural complexity and transaction cost of collaborative networks using extended axiomatic design theory and virtual brokerage
Authors: Kandjani Hadi , Bernus Peter , Wen Lian
Published: September 2014

The paradigm of forming and sustaining collaborative networks as environments that create virtual organisations assumes that effective (and efficient) enterprise engineering capabilities and processes are available. However, these processes are only effective if they produce virtual organisations that have sufficiently limited complexity, because as complexity grows, the virtual organisation’s behaviour becomes increasingly harder to predict under all circumstances. This article demonstrates that the efficiency of virtual organisation creation by collaborative networks can be limited by the complexity of the network itself. This article proposes the use of enterprise engineering methods based on extended axiomatic design theory to limit the complexity of virtual organisations – and of the collaborative network itself. This article also formulates methods to calculate and reduce the structural complexity of collaborative networks and the cost of virtual organisation creation transactions through virtual brokerages. The method is demonstrated through an example and also yields a heuristic rule regarding the optimal size of such brokerages. Also, process and people capability maturity levels were introduced for the use of enterprise engineering methods based on extended axiomatic design theory, whereupon higher maturity implies higher probability of success of collaborative networks in creating and maintaining virtual organisations, and success of the virtual organisations themselves (i.e. higher capability to limit the complexity of virtual organisations and of collaborative network itself). This article also formulates strategies for capability improvement, intended to achieve higher levels of enterprise engineering maturity.
Experimental studies on active vibration control of smart plate using a modified PID controller with optimal orientation of piezoelectric actuator
Authors: Simonović Aleksandar M , Jovanović Miroslav M , Lukić Nebojša S , Zorić Nemanja D , Stupar Slobodan N , Ilić Slobodan S
Published: September 2014

This paper presents a design, development and experimental verification of an active vibration control system of aluminum plate. The active structure consists of an aluminum rectangular plate as the host structure, strain gages as the sensor element and a piezoceramic patch as the actuation element. Based on characteristics of the integrated elements with use of the fuzzy optimization strategy based on the pseudogoal function the optimal orientation of piezoelectric actuator is found, and the whole active vibration control system is designed and developed. The active vibration control system is controlled by proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control strategy. Control algorithm was implemented on the PIC32MX440F256H microcontroller platform. In order to prevent it from negative occurrences from derivative and integral terms in a PID controller, the first-order low-pass filters are implemented in the derivative action and in the feedback of integral action. The experiment considers active damping control under periodic excitation. Experiments are conducted to verify the effectiveness of the vibration suppression and to compare the damping effect with different adjustment of PID gains. Experimental results corresponding to the developed active vibration control system are presented. The system suppresses more than 90% of vibration amplitude, which confirms the high level of effectiveness in vibration active damping at the proposed active structure.
Vibrations of deep and shallow hemi-spheroidal domes with non-uniform thickness having a top cut-out
Authors: Kang Jae-Hoon
Published: September 2014

A three-dimensional (3-D) method of analysis is presented for determining the free vibration frequencies of hemi-spheroidal domes with non-uniform thickness having a top cut-out. Unlike conventional shell theories, which are mathematically two-dimensional (2-D), the present method is based upon the 3-D dynamic equations of elasticity. The edges of the shell may be free or may be subjected to any degree of constraint. Displacement components ur, uθ, and uz in the radial, circumferential, and axial directions, respectively, are taken to be sinusoidal in time, periodic in θ, and algebraic simple polynomials in the r and z directions. Potential (strain) and kinetic energies of the hemi-spheroidal domes with non-uniform thickness having a top cut-out are formulated, and the Ritz method is used to solve the eigenvalue problem, thus yielding upper bound values of the frequencies by minimizing the frequencies. As the degree of the algebraic polynomials is increased, frequencies converge to the exact values. Convergence to four-digit exactitude is demonstrated for the first five frequencies. Numerical results are presented for shallow and deep hemi-spheroidal domes with non-uniform thickness having a top cut-out of five values of aspect ratios, which are free at the inner edge and free or fixed at the bottom of the domes. The frequencies from the present 3-D Ritz method are compared with those from other 3-D analysis and a 2-D thin shell theory by previous researcher.
Nonlinear modeling and tracking control of a single-link micro manipulator using controlled Lagrangian method
Authors: Tavallaeinejad Mohammad , Eghtesad Mohammad , Mahzoon Mojtaba , Khalghollah Mahmood , Yazdi Ehsan Azadi
Published: September 2014

In this paper a dynamical model and the governing equations of motion of a micro-cantilever beam with rotating joint as an application of under-actuated systems will be developed. The model is based on the geometrically nonlinear equations of motion of the microbeam, employing strain gradient elasticity theory. The Rayleigh–Ritz method is used to discretize partial differential equations to obtain a set of nonlinear ordinary differential equations of motion. Then, a controlled Lagrangian method as a robust procedure for controller design is employed to achieve an acceptable tracking on the hinge’s angle of rotation of a micro-cantilever beam while undesirable vibration of the under-actuated flexible variable is damped. A stability analysis of the closed-loop system is also discussed. The advantages of the controlled Lagrangian method lie in its ability to find the Lyapunov function to prove the stability of the system and its capability of handling under-actuated devices. The performance of the designed control scheme is illustrated through several numerical simulation results and some comparisons are made in various situations.
An enhanced empirical mode decomposition method for blind component separation of a single-channel vibration signal mixture
Authors: Wang Dong , Guo Wei , Tse Peter W
Published: September 2014

Blind component separation aims to decompose a single-channel vibration signal mixture into periodic components and random transient components. In addition to periodic components, random transient components with a high degree of impulsiveness are signals of interest in practice. An adaptive signal processing method called empirical mode decomposition (EMD) decomposes a nonlinear and non-stationary signal into the sum of simple components termed intrinsic mode functions (IMFs). Ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) is an improvement of EMD and aims to relieve a mode mixing problem that exists in EMD. However, there is no universal standard formula that can be used to select appropriate parameters of EEMD. Improper parameters of EEMD still cause a mode mixing problem that makes a signal of a similar scale reside in some successive IMFs. An enhanced EEMD for the purpose of blind component separation is developed in this paper to respectively extract periodic components and random transient components from a single-channel vibration signal mixture. A revised spectral coherence is proposed to measure the spectral dependence between two successive IMFs. The closer the revised spectral coherence is to one, the higher the spectral dependence of two successive IMFs is. Additionally, a fusion rule based on locations of local minima of the revised spectral coherence is proposed to automatically fuse successive IMFs with similar characteristics into a new IMF, called an enhanced IMF (EIMF). Vibration signals including simulated and real multi-fault signals are used to verify the enhanced EEMD. A comparison with EEMD is conducted to show the superiority of the enhanced EEMD. The results demonstrate that the enhanced EEMD has better performance than EEMD for automatically extracting periodic components and random transient components from a single-channel vibration signal mixture.
Solving optimal control problems of the time-delayed systems by Haar wavelet
Authors: Nazemi Alireza , Mansoori Masoomeh
Published: September 2014

We consider an approximation scheme using Haar wavelets for solving time-delayed optimal control problems with terminal inequality constraints. The problem is first transformed, using a Páde approximation, to one without a time-delayed argument. Terminal inequality constraints, if they exist, are converted to equality constraints via Valentine-type unknown parameters. A computational method based on Haar wavelets in the time domain is then proposed for solving the obtained nondelay optimal control problem. The Haar wavelets integral operational matrix and direct collocation method are utilized to find the approximated optimal trajectory and the optimal control law of the original problem. Numerical results are also given for several test examples to demonstrate the applicability and the efficiency of the method.
A transfer matrix method for free vibration analysis of Euler-Bernoulli beams with variable cross section
Authors: Boiangiu Mihail , Ceausu Valentin , Untaroiu Costin D
Published: September 2014

To perform vibration analysis, many structures could be modeled entirely or partially as beams with variable or constant cross section. In this study, the differential equations for free bending vibrations of straight beams with variable cross section are solved using Bessel’s functions. Then, the general equations for one-step conical beams are used together with corresponding equations of cylindrical beams to model multi-step beams with various boundary conditions. The natural frequencies of a cantilever conical beam, calculated using its derived field matrix, were shown to be close to those obtained experimentally. In addition, the influence of geometrical factors upon the value of fundamental frequencies is investigated for both cantilever and clamped-clamped conical beams. It was shown numerically that changing a cantilever cylindrical beam into a conical beam by reducing the diameter of the free end increases its fundamental natural frequency even though its rigidity decreases. This property was not observed in a clamped-clamped conical beam. Finally, the effectiveness of a proposed transfer matrix on the calculation of natural frequencies for a multi-step beam was verified. It is believed that the current method could help in the design of various structures, including beams with variable cross section.
Effectiveness and toxicity of high-dose cyclophosphamide in obese versus non-obese patients receiving allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant
Authors: Hunter Melissa R , Sabo Roy T , McCarty John M , Newland Ashley M
Published: September 2014

Purpose

To determine if there is a difference in toxicity and effectiveness between obese and non-obese patients who receive high-dose cyclophosphamide (Cy) prior to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (allo-HCT).

Methods

Patients were included in this study if they were at least 18 years of age and received high-dose Cy in combination with total body irradiation (CyTBI) or busulfan (BuCy) prior to allo-HCT between 1 January 2008 and 29 February 2012. The primary endpoint was the difference in overall toxicity between obese and non-obese patients. Secondary objectives examined differences in effectiveness between groups assessed by relapse at day +100, relapse at 1 year, death at 1 year, chimerisms at days +30, +60, and +90, and incidence of acute graft versus host disease (aGVHD).

Results

Sixty-one patients met the inclusion criteria, 28 obese and 33 non-obese. Overall toxicity was greater in obese patients compared to non-obese patients (82% vs. 52%, OR 4.3 [95% CI 1.3–14.1]; p = 0.01), which was driven by a greater incidence of renal dysfunction (79% vs. 48%, OR 3.9 [95% CI 1.3–12.1]; p = 0.02). There were no differences in rates of grade 3 or 4 toxicity, hepatic dysfunction, or any measure of effectiveness between groups.

Conclusion

Obese patients receiving high-dose Cy and allo-HCT are at increased risk for toxicity, although there appears to be no difference in the rate of relapse or survival between obese and non-obese patients.
Hyperammonemia secondary to asparaginase: A case series
Authors: Nussbaum Vicki , Lubcke Nicole , Findlay Russell
Published: September 2014

Objective

To report on hyperammonemia noted in a series of patients receiving asparaginase products at our institution.

Summary of cases

We present four patients who experienced symptomatic hyperammonemia after receiving either pegaspargase (three patients) or Erwinia asparaginase (one patient). Presenting symptoms included lethargy, difficulty awakening, confusion, dizziness, numbness and tingling, hallucinations, and paranoia. All patients were treated with lactulose, which led to a decrease in ammonia level and resolution of symptoms.

Discussion

Hyperammonemia secondary to asparaginase products has been reported in the literature. The signs and symptoms of increased ammonia should be included in consent documents and discussed with patients and their families. Monitoring of ammonia or asparagine levels may help individualize therapy with asparaginase products in the future.

Conclusion

Hyperammonemia can occur during treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia with asparaginase products. Lactulose appears to be a useful treatment strategy. Further study is warranted to determine whether dose modifications are required for pegaspargase in some patients. Whether these dose modifications would be in the dose itself or frequency of administration remains to be determined.
Coordinate representations for rigid parts in multibody dynamics
Authors: Afzali-Far B , Lidström P
Published: September 2014

The paper is concerned with coordinate representations for rigid parts in multibody dynamics. The discussion is based on the general theory of the dynamics of multibody systems under constraints. General configuration coordinates are introduced and the requirement of their regularity is discussed. The use of Euler angles, quaternions and linear coordinates, where quaternions and linear coordinates require constraint conditions, is analysed in detail. These coordinate systems are all shown to be regular. Equations of motion are formulated, using Lagrange’s as well as Euler’s equations, and they are supplemented by the appropriate constraint conditions in the cases of quaternions and linear coordinates. Mass matrices are derived, and in terms of the Euler angles the mass matrix components are products of trigonometric functions whereas in terms of quaternions the matrix components are quadratic polynomials. Using linear coordinates gives rise to a constant mass matrix. Thus, there is a decreasing degree of complexity, regarding mass matrix components, when going from Euler angles to linear coordinates. This is obtained at the expense of an increasing gross number of degrees of freedom and the necessary introduction of constraint conditions. The different equations of motion obtained are compared with respect to their structural complexity. In all representations the components of the angular velocity are explicitly calculated. This is not always the case in previous investigations of this subject. The paper also gives a new proof of the well-known relation between angular velocity and unit quaternions and their time derivative.
“I’d rather we be neighbours than lovers”: The two-sidedness of multiculturalism
Authors: Ng Tseung-Wong Caroline , Verkuyten Maykel
Published: September 2014

Multiculturalism can be viewed as promoting positive intergroup relations in the public domain (neighbours, classmates) and heritage culture maintenance in the romantic domain (marriage). The present study examined this “two-sidedness” of multiculturalism by focusing on intergroup social distance in relation to endorsement of multiculturalism, group identifications, and group status. The study was conducted in Mauritius amongst 1,784 adolescents from the three main ethnic groups, Hindus ( n = 844), Muslims ( n = 630), and Creoles ( n = 310). In agreement with the “two-sidedness,” participants made a distinction between public and romantic social distance, and intergroup differentiation in social distance was stronger in the romantic compared to the public domain. The endorsement of multiculturalism was associated to lower out-group public distance and lower in-group romantic distance. National identification predicted lower public and romantic out-group social distance. Ethnic identification was associated with higher out-group social distances and lower in-group social distances, particularly for the high-status group of Hindus.
‘Big Brother welcomes you’: exploring innovative methods for research with children and young people outside of the home and school environments
Authors: Harris Catherine , Jackson Lucy , Mayblin Lucy , Piekut Aneta , Valentine Gill
Published: September 2014

This article discusses some of the challenges involved in conducting research with children and young people outside of the home and school environments. We respond to the need to develop new child-centred research techniques which move beyond existing power relations among children and adults by anchoring our approach in the idea of mystery. The paper reports on research utilising a mixed-method design which includes one new technique – the Big Brother diary room. We discuss the unpredictable nature of the fieldwork, reflect on the ‘messiness’ of the research process, and critically evaluate our own research design.
Conducting fieldwork at and away from home: shifting researcher positionality with mobile interviewing methods
Authors: Wiederhold Anna
Published: September 2014

In this article, I begin from the premise that a meaningful difference exists between being a member of the same broad cultural group as your participants and actually sharing a personal history, a social network, and an assumed place-based investment in the future with them – as experienced by those scholars who conduct their research in the places they call home. I draw upon my own research experiences in order to argue that manipulating mobile interviewing methods can shift the positionality of both researchers-at-home and researchers-not-at-home. For researchers-at-home, these methods can help to move beyond the familiar to capitalize on the resources of the researchers’ personal local knowledge in conversation with study participants. For researchers-not-at-home, mobile interviewing methods can help to build familiarity with local places and interpretations, while also facilitating access.
Unearthing Atlantis and performing the past: Ancient things, alternative histories and the present past in the Baroque world
Authors: Herva Vesa-Pekka , Nordin Jonas M
Published: September 2014

This article discusses fabrications and alternative histories, and their relationship with antiquarian and early archaeological practice, in the Baroque world through the case of an alabaster urn reportedly found in the garden of a Swedish royal castle in 1685. The urn, decorated with a strange inscription, is used to address broader issues of how the past was conceived in the Baroque world, and how the relationship between the past and present was manipulated through antiquarian research. Certain characteristics of the urn and its cultural life have led modern scholarship to dismiss the artefact as ‘unauthentic’ and hence uninteresting, whereas this article seeks to reconsider the nature and meanings of fabricating the past in the 17th century. It will be argued that the past was not fixed in the Baroque world, but various material and magical practices enabled altering the past. It is against that background, and within the Baroque relational understanding of reality, that the 17th-century interest in and manipulations of the urn must be understood.
Historic enchantments – materializing nostalgia
Authors: Kitson Jennifer , McHugh Kevin
Published: September 2014

Efforts to remedy existential anxiety and the sense of ‘homelessness’ permeating modern life invariably invoke ideas and practices swirling around dwelling and nostalgia. Geographies probing the materiality of loss and memory have elaborated and critiqued nostalgia in both regressive and progressive postures. We argue that amorphous and sensual qualities of nostalgia make it a propulsive force in dwelling. Moving beyond nostalgia as a representation of, or personal longing for, ‘the past’ or ‘home’, we engage historic practice as transpersonal, affective currents coursing through bodies, objects, and things. Nostalgia is an enchantment with distance that cannot be bridged. We explore nostalgic distance vis-a-vis practices in residential historic preservation in the Coronado district in Phoenix, Arizona. Practice, performance, and materiality of historic inhabitation illuminate nostalgic distance as an undertow in the making of historic sensibilities, subjectivities, and places. The elusiveness of nostalgia whispers enchantments, engendering attentiveness to what is near, to sensing closely. Nostalgic practice, performance, and materiality give rise to an everyday aesthetic of pastness, an embodied ethics of care rather than strict adherence to historic preservation codes and guidelines. We contribute to rethinking nostalgia and residential historic preservation as modes of sensing in which all bodies, objects, and things – human–nonhuman, animate–inanimate – have capacities to affect and to be affected.
Field Survey Measures of Olfaction
Authors: Kern David W. , Wroblewski Kristen E. , Schumm L. Philip , Pinto Jayant M. , McClintock Martha K.
Published: September 2014

Population-based field research on human olfaction has been limited by a lack of feasible assessment tools. Previous olfactory survey research has measured only odor identification, with no research being done on odor detection (i.e., a person’s sensitivity to detect a particular odor). Laboratory studies suggest that deficits in both aspects of olfactory function may be related to physical health, mental health and cognition, social function, including overall quality of life, and even mortality. However, field studies are needed to validate and extend these findings in large representative samples. Here we describe the olfactory function field exam, an instrument that can be deployed in field environments by lay interviewers to evaluate both odor identification and odor detection rapidly, practically, and accurately. Use of this new survey tool in future field-based population health studies will elucidate the impact of olfactory function on a myriad of health and social conditions.
Self-administered Questions and Interviewer–Respondent Familiarity
Authors: Rodriguez Leslie A. , Sana Mariano , Sisk Blake
Published: September 2014

We examine the effects of interviewer–respondent familiarity on both response patterns and rates of item nonresponse when self-administered questions (SAQs) are used. We use SAQ data from a survey in which the researchers experimentally ensured that there would be varying degrees of familiarity between interviewers and respondents. Our results reveal only minimal differences in response patterns by degree of prior acquaintance between interviewer and respondent, indicating that SAQs are effective at eliminating potential bias stemming from such relationships. Our results for item nonresponse depend on how we measure the relationship between interviewer and respondent; but in all cases, it is clear that prior knowledge of one another, far from harmful, leads to low nonresponse rates to SAQs. Thus, researchers using SAQs may not need to adhere to the norm that interviewers and respondents must be strangers, with practical and cost-effective consequences for data collection.
Improvement in in vitro fertilization outcome following in vivo synchronization of oocyte maturation in mice
Authors: Taiyeb Ahmed M , Muhsen-Alanssari Saeeda A , Dees WL , Ridha-Albarzanchi Mundhir T , Kraemer Duane C
Published: September 2014

Synchronization of oocyte maturation in vitro has been shown to produce higher in vitro fertilization (IVF) rates than those observed in oocytes matured in vitro without synchronization. However, the increased IVF rates never exceeded those observed in oocytes matured in vivo without synchronization. This study was therefore designed to define the effect of in vivo synchronization of oocyte maturation on IVF rates. Mice were superovulated and orally treated with 7.5 mg cilostazol (CLZ), a phosphodiesterase 3A (PDE3A) inhibitor, to induce ovulation of immature oocytes at different stages depending on frequency and time of administration of CLZ. Mice treated with CLZ ovulated germinal vesicle (GV) or metaphase I (MI) oocytes that underwent maturation in vitro or in vivo (i.e. in the oviduct) followed by IVF. Superovulated control mice ovulated mature oocytes that underwent IVF directly upon collection. Ovulated MI oocytes matured in vitro or in vivo had similar maturation rates but significantly higher IVF rates, 2–4 cell embryos, than those observed in control oocytes. Ovulated GV oocytes matured in vitro showed similar maturation rates but significantly higher IVF rates than those observed in control oocytes. However, ovulated GV oocytes matured in vivo had significantly lower IVF rates than those noted in control oocytes. It is concluded that CLZ is able to synchronize oocyte maturation and improve IVF rates in superovulated mice. CLZ may be capable of showing similar effects in humans, especially since temporal arrest of human oocyte maturation with other PDE3A inhibitors in vitro was found to improve oocyte competence level. The capability of a clinically approved PDE3A inhibitor to improve oocyte fertilization rates in mice at doses extrapolated from human therapeutic doses suggests the potential scenario of the inclusion of CLZ in superovulation programs. This may improve IVF outcomes in infertile patients.
Using Relevance Feedback to Distinguish the Changes in EEG During Different Absence Seizure Phases
Authors: Li Jing , Liu Xianzeng , Ouyang Gaoxiang
Published: September 2014

We carried out a series of statistical experiments to explore the utility of using relevance feedback on electroencephalogram (EEG) data to distinguish between different activity states in human absence epilepsy. EEG recordings from 10 patients with absence epilepsy are sampled, filtered, selected, and dissected from seizure-free, preseizure, and seizure phases. A total of 112 two-second 19-channel EEG epochs from 10 patients were selected from each phase. For each epoch, multiscale permutation entropy of the EEG data was calculated. The feature dimensionality was reduced by linear discriminant analysis to obtain a more discriminative and compact representation. Finally, a relevance feedback technique, that is, direct biased discriminant analysis, was applied to 68 randomly selected queries over nine iterations. This study is a first attempt to apply the statistical analysis of relevance feedback to the distinction of different EEG activity states in absence epilepsy. The average precision in the top 10 returned results was 97.5%, and the standard deviation suggested that embedding relevance feedback can effectively distinguish different seizure phases in absence epilepsy. The experimental results indicate that relevance feedback may be an effective tool for the prediction of different activity states in human absence epilepsy. The simultaneous analysis of multichannel EEG signals provides a powerful tool for the exploration of abnormal electrical brain activity in patients with epilepsy.
Diagnosis and management of a ruptured popliteal mycotic pseudoaneurysm
Authors: Dua Anahita , Kuy SreyRam , Desai Sapan S , Kumar Naveen , Heller Jennifer , Lee Cheong J
Published: September 2014

Infected popliteal aneurysms are a rare but high-risk pathology that may present as a surgical emergency with acute rupture and sepsis. Management of acute ischemia in the presence of systemic sepsis is challenging and requires timely diagnosis, rapid intervention, and multidisciplinary communication to ensure an optimum outcome for both life and limb in these patients. We report on a case of a ruptured mycotic popliteal artery aneurysm as a consequence of septic embolization from infective endocarditis managed by reverse saphenous vein bypass. The clinical presentation, diagnostic process, and approach to management along with a literature review on mycotic popliteal aneurysm are presented in this case report.
Serum and tissue endothelin-1 are independent from intima-media thickness of peripheral arteries in patients with chronic kidney disease
Authors: Nezami Nariman , Sepehrvand Nariman , Mirchi Mohammad , Salari Behzad , Shokouhi Behrooz , Ghojazadeh Morteza , Naghavi-Behzad Mohammad , Ghorashi Sona , Mirzaie Fariba , Noshad Hamid , Zomorrodi Afshar , Gharedaghi Abasad , Babapoor-Farrokhran Savalan , Mirbagheri Saeedeh , Tarzamni Mohammad Kazem
Published: September 2014

Aim

We aimed to study the relationship of peripheral arteries’ atherosclerosis with serum and tissue endothelin-1 in chronic kidney disease patients.

Methods

Ninety patients were enrolled, including 35 patients with chronic kidney disease (case group), 31 patients with coronary artery diseases who were candidates for coronary artery bypass grafting (positive control group), and 24 living kidney donors (negative control group). Intima-media thickness of the common carotid and femoral arteries was determined by ultrasonography. Serum and tissue endothelin-1 were measured by ELISA method.

Results

The mean serum and tissue endothelin-1 levels in the donor group were significantly lower than other groups ( p < 0.001 for both). The coronary artery bypass grafting group had higher carotid and femoral intima-media thickness than other groups ( p < 0.001), and the chronic kidney disease group had higher carotid and femoral intima-media thickness than the donor group ( p < 0.001). Regression analysis in all groups did not reveal any correlation between the carotid intima-media thickness/femoral intima-media thickness and the serum/tissue endothelin-1. There was a direct linear correlation between the carotid and femoral intima-media thickness ( p < 0.001) in all groups.

Conclusions

Endothelin-1 level and intima-media thickness were higher in the chronic kidney disease patients and coronary artery bypass grafting candidates, without any correlation between endothelin-1 and peripheral arteries’ intima-media thickness of both groups. Perhaps endothelin-1 rises and remains high upon endothelial damage and initiation of atherosclerosis.
Investigation of relation between visceral and subcutaneous abdominal fat volumes and calcified aortic plaques via multislice computed tomography
Authors: Efe Duran , Aygün Fatih , Acar Türker , Yildiz Melda , Gemici Kazım
Published: September 2014

Objective

The present study investigated effect of subcutaneous fat volume and abdominal visceral fat volume on aortic atherosclerosis via multislice computed tomography.

Materials and methods

The present study comprised 424 subjects who underwent non-contrast-enhanced abdominal CT in our clinic between June 2012 and June 2013. Using dedicated software visceral fat volume was calculated for each individual and then subcutaneous fat volume was calculated by subtracting visceral fat volume from total fat volume. By dividing visceral fat volume/subcutaneous fat volume participants were assigned to three groups according to their mean visceral fat volume/subcutaneous fat volume: Group 1 consisted of subjects with visceral fat volume/subcutaneous fat volume lower than 0.48 (Group 1 < 0.48); Group 2 consisted of subjects with visceral fat volume/subcutaneous fat volume equal to or higher than 0.48 and lower than 0.69 (0.48 ≤ Group 2 < 0.69); and Group 3 consisted of subjects with visceral fat volume/subcutaneous fat volume equal to or higher than 0.69 (Group 3 ≥ 0.69).

Results

The mean abdominal aortic calcium scores according to Agatston scoring (au) were 136.8 ± 418.7 au in Group 1, 179.9 ± 463 au in Group 2 and 212.2 ± 486.9 in Group 3, respectively.

Conclusions

We have demonstrated a significant correlation between visceral fat volume and abdominal aorta atherosclerosis, while there was absence of significant correlation between subcutaneous fat volume and abdominal atherosclerosis.
Curating memories of armed state actors in Peru’s era of transitional justice
Authors: Milton Cynthia E
Published: September 2014

Ten years have passed since the Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (Comisión de la Verdad y Reconciliación) published their findings on the conflict that claimed over 69,000 lives from 1980 to 2000. While the Comisión de la Verdad y Reconciliación placed primary responsibility for deaths and disappearances (54%) on the insurrectionary group Shining Path ( Sendero Luminoso), it also named armed state actors as having systematically committed acts of violence. Publicly shamed for their collusion in the corrupt Fujimori government, state security forces initially lent their support to the Comisión de la Verdad y Reconciliación and to the transition to democracy. Yet, over the last decade, armed state actors have appropriated the language, imagery and mechanisms of human rights memory entrepreneurs to advance their own versions of Peru’s recent past which oppose the Comisión de la Verdad y Reconciliación’s findings while highlighting state actors’ heroism. This article examines two such endeavors to reframe this past, the National Police Terrorism Unit (DINCOTE) museum and the Armed Forces Monument to the Heroes of Chavín de Huántar.
Nutrient Intake and Consumption of Fruit and Vegetables in Young Children
Authors: Ramsay Samantha A. , Eskelsen Ashlee K. , Branen Laurel J. , Armstrong Shultz Jill , Plumb John
Published: September 2014

Children’s fruit and vegetable consumption (FVC) is below recommendations. Objectives of the study were to (a) describe the type and frequency of FVC, (b) analyze the average nutrient intake from young children’s fruit consumption and vegetable consumption separately, and (c) determine the contribution of demographic factors on FVC. Children aged 2 to 5 years (n = 821) were identified using the 2009-2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Average servings and nutrient intake from FVC were estimated. Multiple comparisons among age, gender, body mass index (BMI), ethnicity, and poverty index ratio (PIR) were analyzed using an ANCOVA. Akaike’s information criterion determined relative contribution of each factor to FVC. Children consumed 3 times as many fruit servings as vegetable servings regardless of age, gender, BMI, ethnicity, and PIR. Potato products and fruit juice were consumed most frequently and in the greatest amounts. In general, children obtained more nutrients from fruits than vegetables. No differences in total fruit consumption were identified for age, gender, and BMI. Total vegetable consumption did not differ for age, gender, ethnicity, BMI, and PIR. Health care professionals should promote a variety of both fruits and vegetables for children but also recognize the nutrient value of fruit in building the recommended fruit and vegetable base for young children’s diets.
Scanning electron microscopical observation of an osteoblast/osteoclast co-culture on micropatterned orthopaedic ceramics
Authors: Halai Mansur , Ker Andrew , Meek RM Dominic , Nadeem Danish , Sjostrom Terje , Su Bo , McNamara Laura E , Dalby Matthew J , Young Peter S
Published: September 2014

In biomaterial engineering, the surface of an implant can influence cell differentiation, adhesion and affinity towards the implant. On contact with an implant, bone marrow–derived mesenchymal stromal cells demonstrate differentiation towards bone forming osteoblasts, which can improve osteointegration. The process of micropatterning has been shown to improve osteointegration in polymers, but there are few reports surrounding ceramics. The purpose of this study was to establish a co-culture of bone marrow–derived mesenchymal stromal cells with osteoclast progenitor cells and to observe the response to micropatterned zirconia toughened alumina ceramics with 30 µm diameter pits. The aim was to establish whether the pits were specifically bioactive towards osteogenesis or were generally bioactive and would also stimulate osteoclastogenesis that could potentially lead to osteolysis. We demonstrate specific bioactivity of micropatterns towards osteogenesis, with more nodule formation and less osteoclastogenesis compared to planar controls. In addition, we found that that macrophage and osteoclast-like cells did not interact with the pits and formed fewer full-size osteoclast-like cells on the pitted surfaces. This may have a role when designing ceramic orthopaedic implants.
Patients’ perspectives regarding long-term warfarin therapy and the potential transition to new oral anticoagulant therapy
Authors: Gebler-Hughes Elizabeth S. , Kemp Linda , Bond Malcolm J.
Published: September 2014

Objectives:

To examine patients’ perspectives regarding long-term vitamin K antagonist (VKA) therapy and the potential transition to new oral anticoagulants (NOACs) such as dabigatran and rivaroxaban, and to determine if factors such as residential location affect these opinions.

Design, setting and participants:

Patients on VKA therapy for at least 12 weeks completed a questionnaire specifically designed for the study. They were recruited while attending point-of-care international normalized ratio (INR) testing at six South Australian general practice clinics during the period July–September 2013.

Main outcome measures:

Opinions of current VKA therapy, level of awareness of NOACs, and ratings of potential benefits and deterrents of transition to NOACs were sought.

Results:

Data from 290 participants were available for analysis (response rate 95.4%). The majority of the sample (79.5%, 229/288) were either satisfied or very satisfied with current VKA therapy. The mean score for the potential benefits of transition to NOACs was 7.6 (±4.2) out of a possible 20, which was significantly lower than the mean score 10.9 (±4.5) for the perceived deterrents to transition ( p < 0.001). Rural patients (82.0%, 82/100) were significantly more likely ( p = 0.001) to have not heard of NOACs than metropolitan patients (50.3%, 95/189) and also perceived significant less benefits in a transition to NOACs ( p = 0.001).

Conclusion:

When considering potential transition from VKAs to NOACs it is important for prescribers to consider that some patients, in particular those from a rural location, may not perceive a significant benefit in transitioning or may have particular concerns in this area.
Are public opinion polls self-fulfilling prophecies?
Authors: Rothschild David , Malhotra Neil
Published: September 2014

Psychologists have long observed that people conform to majority opinion, a phenomenon sometimes referred to as the ‘bandwagon effect’. In the political domain people learn about prevailing public opinion via ubiquitous polls, which may produce a bandwagon effect. Newer types of information – published probabilities derived from prediction market contract prices and aggregated polling summaries – may have similar effects. Consequently, polls can become self-fulfilling prophecies whereby majorities, whether in support of candidates or policies, grow in a cascading manner. Despite increased attention to whether the measurement of public opinion can itself affect public opinion, the existing empirical literature is surprisingly limited on the bandwagon effects of polls. To address this gap, we conducted an experiment on a diverse national sample in which we randomly assigned people to receive information about different levels of support for three public policies. We find that public opinion as expressed through polls affects individual-level attitudes, although the size of the effect depends on issue characteristics.