bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The needs of Muslim hotel customers: evidence from Russian guests
Authors: Shnyrkova Anna , Predvoditeleva Marina
Published: January 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to identify Halal hotel attributes demanded by the Russian Muslim travelers. Following this, the study aims to investigate whether gender and types of travelers influence the demand for Halal hotel attributes.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi-structured interviews were conducted to localize the list of Halal hotel attributes for the Russian business context. A self-administrated online questionnaire was designed, distributed and collected from 191 Russian Muslim customers, who have stayed at Halal hotels in the past 12 months. Data analysis includes at-test and analysis of variance.

Findings

The study revealed a list of Halal attributes demanded by Russian Muslim customers. Also, the findings indicate that the list of the attributes demonstrated the differences in the requested attributes between gender and types of travelers.

Research limitations/implications

The study came across three main limitations. The first was that the respondents surveyed were leisure tourists. Second, the majority of the respondents have university degrees. Third, the research sample is limited to approximately 200 respondents. This research primarily contributes to tourism and hospitality management, and consumer behavior literature, as this is the first study yielding insights on a new demographic: Russian Muslim tourists.

Practical implications

The study provides a clear understanding of the Halal hotel attributes demanded by Russian Muslims that can help hotel managers to accommodate the needs of this group while, at the same time, meeting the requirements of guests of different religions.

Social implications

The study contributes to improving social relationships within the Russian Federation as it improves society’s understanding of the life principles of Muslims.

Originality/value

This is the first study investigating the demand for Halal attributes by Russian Muslim tourists. By partly covering the empty research field on this topic, the study provides meaningful direction to future research of the Russian hotels’ Halal services from both supply and demand perspectives.
Clinicians’ perceptions of the Bipolar Disorder diagnosis: a Q-study
Authors: Wakelin Rachel , Oakes Peter
Published: January 2020

Purpose

Research indicates that the diagnostic label of Bipolar Disorder is being both over and under-used in mental health services. Disagreement between clinicians in how the diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder is perceived and how the label is used can make it difficult to establish and uphold consistent care. This may lead to the experience of negative emotions for service users and poor engagement with intervention. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore whether clinicians do hold different perceptions of the diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder, with the view of providing insight into how this may impact service provision.

Design/methodology/approach

Q-methodology was used to investigate the subjective viewpoints of 19 clinicians from mental health community teams supporting individuals with a diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder. The completed Q-sorts were subject to analysis using Q-methodology analysis software.

Findings

Three main factors representing the viewpoints of participants were identified: seeing the person and their experience, promoting quality through standardised processes and understanding the function of diagnostic labels. All three factors agreed that more than one assessment appointment should be required before a diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder was given and that the focus should be on the difficulties experienced rather than the diagnostic label.

Originality/value

These three viewpoints provide different perspectives of the diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder, which are likely to impact on service provision. Services may benefit from a better integration of the viewpoints, noting the important functions of each viewpoint and being guided by individuals’ needs.
Popular reporting: learning from the US experience
Authors: Manes-Rossi Francesca , Aversano Natalia , Tartaglia Polcini Paolo
Published: January 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore a citizen-centered tool for public accountability, the popular report (PR). Elaborating on previous studies and on content analysis of a sample of municipalities in the USA, this paper aims to identify the qualitative characteristics and content elements that PR should have to serve as a legitimation tool.

Design/methodology/approach

The study adopts a mixed methodology. After the analysis of previous studies on PR and best practices in US municipalities, a list of content elements and qualitative characteristics of PR is compared with results emerging from the content analysis of PR published by of a sample of municipalities in the USA.

Findings

The analysis reveals that the PR should embed information about the government’s sources of revenues and taxes, expenditures, cost of government services, liveability and governance of the city.

Research limitations/implications

The paper offers new knowledge on reporting centered on citizens, framing the analysis in the legitimacy theory. Even though the research relates only to the US context, the results may assist standard setters in preparing guidelines for local governments to communicate financial data to citizens and stimulate further research in other contexts.

Practical implications

The results may encourage local governments to prepare a PR suitable to discharge accountability and gain legitimation.

Originality/value

This study is the first to discuss the PR within a theoretical framework, in this case, legitimacy theory. Moreover, a further novelty lays in the analysis carried out on the PRs published by US municipalities in order to derive qualitative characteristics and content elements with which the PR should comply.
Why has growth of user fees and other nontraditional sources of local education revenues been so limited? Evidence from Colorado
Authors: Downes Thomas , Killeen Kieran
Published: January 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore why school districts in the USA made so little use of local sources of non-tax revenues, even when faced with declines in traditional revenue as occurred during the Great Recession? The analysis uses the case of Colorado, where historically districts have made more use of alternative revenues.

Design/methodology/approach

Data for the analysis are drawn from the NCES’s Common Core of Data with administrative data to create a panel of Colorado school districts. The paper presents estimates of traditional panel models, as well as spatial panel models, that give the correlates of variation in alternative revenue for education.

Findings

As is true nationally, in Colorado school districts made no increased use of non-tax revenues in fiscal downturns, while the presence of expenditure limits does increase use, though not as might be expected. Revenues from overrides of the limits and alternative local revenues appear to be complements. Further, there is no evidence of spatial relationships for the alternative revenue sources considered.

Originality/value

This paper uses richer data than has ever been used to explore the determinants of alternative revenues, making it possible to explore relationships others could not. In addition, synthetic cohort analysis is used to generate plausible instrumental variables for passage of an override of an expenditure limitation. Further, no existing analysis of nontraditional revenues considers the possibility that use of those revenues might be spatially correlated.
Structural relationships among critical failure factors of microbusinesses
Authors: del Pilar Eunice Cristyl , Alegado Irish , Bongo Miriam Fabroa
Published: January 2020

Purpose

The premature closure of microbusinesses has become a prevalent issue that demands to be seriously addressed due to the major economic contribution it provides particularly to developing countries. The purpose of this paper is to establish and further analyze a set of critical failure factors (CFFs) that aid in the systematic decision-making and strategic management of stakeholders.

Design/methodology/approach

A comprehensive literature review is conducted to gather CFFs and an interpretative structural modeling with Matriced’ Impacts Croise’s Multiplication Appliquée a UN Classement (ISM-MICMAC) analysis is applied to investigate the structural relationships among CFFs by extracting its inherent characteristics according to its driving power and dependence power. In order to illustrate the methodology, a case study is conducted in Cebu, the Philippines.

Findings

It is interesting to note that inadequate government programs information is deemed the most crucial for stakeholders to tackle as its impact on the premature closure of microbusinesses is highly significant. Drawing from this key result, directions for potential strategies for getting evidence-based research into policy and practice in the micro-business sector in the Philippines, and other developing countries, are provided.

Originality/value

Lastly, the contribution of this work is two-fold and is aimed at policymakers and managers. For one, this study is the first to establish a set of CFFs specifically aimed at the level of microbusinesses, a seriously under-researched business sector, which can aid and influence domestic policymakers. For another, a framework that will facilitate business managers in carrying out organization’s strategy development process have been provided.
Panama Canal vs alternative routes: estimating a logit model for grains
Authors: Ho Javier Daniel , Bernal Paul
Published: January 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to fit a logit model for dry bulkers transporting grains through the Panama Canal versus alternative routes destined to East Asia, originating on the US Gulf and East Coast. This is with the purpose of better understanding the attributes.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, grain transits both through the Panama Canal and alternative routes, which are examined, and a logit model is developed to explain the route decision from a carrier/vessel operator point of view.

Findings

Transit draft is the most important attribute in the route decision process for grains according to this study. Also, Panamax bulkers are the preferred vessel size into China, especially through the Cape of Good Hope route, impacting Panama Canal’s market share for grains.

Research limitations/implications

This research used only a full year of grain traffic data approximating fiscal year 2018 (October 1, 2017 to September 30, 2018). Data will come mostly from the Panama Canal transit data and observations using IHS’s Market Intelligence Network (MINT).

Originality/value

This paper is highly dependent on visual observations of grains vessels through alternative routes using AIS data from MINT software.
Using concept mapping to understand motivational interviewing practice
Authors: Atkinson Cathy , Thomas George , Parry Sarah
Published: January 2020

Purpose

Motivational interviewing (MI) has developed considerably since its inception, which may have led to diverse practice across contexts and differential understanding of core principles. Concept mapping is one potential method for offering insight into practitioner awareness, understanding and application of MI. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 29 professionals from a range of disciplines, including counselling, education and health, completed concept maps about MI, following brief training at the UK regional MI interest network. In total, 17 completed maps were submitted for analysis using quantitative and qualitative methods.

Findings

A total of 186 concepts and 175 propositional links were found within the 17 maps. The most commonly identified concepts were: change, empathy, collaboration, open-ended questions, affirmations, reflections, summaries (OARS), client centred and compassion. The concept maps also suggested differing levels of expertise across network members using concept mapping morphology classification.

Research limitations/implications

The sample was small scale and located in one region of the UK. Maps were submitted anonymously meaning that participant data could not be matched to the maps.

Practical implications

Concept mapping is a potentially useful method for auditing practice and developing skills in MI, as well as exploring participants’ understanding of related concepts and therapeutic mechanisms.

Social implications

MI has a strong evidence-based across a variety of disciplines and contexts. Refining practitioner skills in MI has implications for the integrity of delivery, and improved client outcomes in areas such as substance use, health promotion and educational disaffection.

Originality/value

This is the first study to investigate concept mapping as a means of understanding MI practice. It has potential implications for training, monitoring, supervision and development in MI practice.
The Saudi–US Alliance challenges and resilience, 2011: 2019
Authors: Abdel Aziz Ghada Ahmed
Published: January 2020

Purpose

This paper aims to explore to what extent can the Saudi–US alliance endure, given the several challenges it has faced over the past decade. Using a conceptual framework from the alliance theory, the paper will trace the historical evolution of the alliance between the two countries, then will identify some of the challenges that have faced the alliance on both the regional and bilateral levels, and finally will assess the impact of these challenges on the resilience of the Saudi–US alliance.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper will use the alliance theory literature to analyze the challenges and the resilience of the Saudi–US relations.

Findings

The Saudi–US alliance has encountered several challenges in the past decade such as the Arab spring, the Iranian nuclear deal and the Civil War in Syria and Yemen. However, this alliance proved to be resilient, and the strategic partnership between the two countries managed to overcome these challenges.

Originality/value

The importance of this paper stems from the fact that the USA and the Saudi Arabia are two pivotal countries, and their relationship affects regional and international dynamics. The paper contributes to the literature on the Saudi–US bilateral relations as well as their views on recent regional issues such as the Arab Spring, the civil war in Yemen and Syria. Assessing the limits and potentials of the alliance between the two countries could also help us understand the future of regional developments in the Middle East.
A challenge most bigly: academic archives and higher education in the Trump Era
Authors: Wiles Bradley
Published: January 2020

Purpose

This paper aims to provide a critical perspective on emergent issues in the Trump era directly or indirectly relevant to academic archives. It describes current operational characteristics and trends in academic archives and considers the implications of the “Trump Effect” on academic archives in support of higher education.

Design/methodology/approach

The author examines archival studies literature pertaining to academic archives in combination with recent research and reporting on Trump Administration higher education policy to argue for increased professional awareness and vigilance.

Findings

The author asserts that Trump Administration rhetoric and policies aimed at remaking American higher education and undermining democratic norms pose a threat to academic archives as institutions that support learning, memory and historical accountability.

Originality/value

This paper adds to scholarly discussions in the library and information studies and archival studies fields about the merits of neutrality, the legacy of memory institutions and the obligation of information professionals to take a stance on difficult issues. Additionally, there are few (if any) sources that discuss the role of academic archives specifically in the contemporary political context.
A turbulent time: government sources post-2016 presidential election
Authors: Kubas Alicia
Published: January 2020

Purpose

Since the 2016 presidential election, hyper-partisanship has become a regular facet of the political landscape with Democrats and Republicans in increasing conflict. The purpose of this paper is to determine if perception of government sources related to trust and credibility has changed since the 2016 election and if the experiences and strategies of librarians who teach or consult about government information has changed in response to this environment.

Design/methodology/approach

A 24-question survey was distributed to garner qualitative and quantitative responses from librarians who teach or consult about government information in an academic environment. A total of 122 responses were used for analysis.

Findings

Academic librarians are seeing more concern from patrons about disappearing online government information and wider distrust of government information. Librarians also noticed that the political leanings of students color their perspective around government sources and that librarians also need to keep their political beliefs in check. Respondents emphasized a need for more government literacy and information literacy topics when discussing evaluation of government sources.

Research limitations/implications

The data collection only included responses from academic librarians. Further research could include in-depth interviews and look at experiences in various library types.

Originality/value

With the timeliness of this topic, there has not been an in-depth investigation into how the Trump administration has changed user trust and perception of government sources from the librarian’s point of view. This paper continues the conversation about how librarians can address the growing distrust of government information and give us insight into the effects of a turbulent political climate on government sources.
Decoupling: customer-centric perspectives on disruption and competitive advantage
Authors: Leavy Brian
Published: January 2020

Purpose

The masterclass describes how companies are rapidly moving away from firm-centric views of value to a more customer-centric perspective of how value is created and co-created in an age of ubiquitous connectivity and producer-consumer real-time interaction.

Design/methodology/approach

This masterclass focuses on the insights of Harvard marketing expert Thales Teixeira’ book Unlocking the Customer Value Chain: How Decoupling Drives Consumer Disruption.

Findings

Professor Teixeira argues that change in consumer behavior, rather than technology, is the primary source of disruption in many industries, particularly in those likely to be most impacted by digitization. By paying close attention to the customer’s value chain, entrepreneurs can spot potential new opportunities for disruption and incumbents can figure out how best to respond to potential challenges.

Practical implications

When delving deeply into the customer value chain for disruptive innovation opportunities, it is important to recognize that customers always pay you with three ‘currencies,’ their money, their time and their effort.

Originality/value

By highlighting the common phenomenon of decoupling and how it operates, Teixeira helps make its disruptive potential more transparent and predictable for both disruptors and incumbents alike. Teixeira’s research identified three different types of decoupling: value-creating decoupling, value-eroding decoupling and value-charging decoupling.
How leadership teams can face and fix their “undiscussable” dysfunctions
Authors: Sterling John
Published: January 2020

Purpose

This interview of two IMD professors examines how leadership teams that are struggling to make decisions or experiencing tensions, can address the root causes of dysfunctionality -- "undiscussables" of some kind – unexpressed thoughts and feelings that, if addressed effectively, could help the team work more productively.

Design/methodology/approach

The interviewees identify four varieties of undiscussables, each with its own drivers and solutions: 10;∙9; “Things we think but don’t say.” 10;∙9; “Things we say but don’t mean.” 10;∙9; “Things we feel but can’t name.” 10;∙9; “Things we do but don’t realize.” 10;

Findings

Several high profile corporate disasters from Enron to Theranos are rooted in undiscussables with dysfunctional top teams stifling questioning voices and slowly creating a culture of fear denial and delusion that ends up leading the company astray. Team members are either unable or unwilling to express what ails them which systematically distorts their formal and informal interactions.

Practical implications

One key insight for leaders who are part of the “undicussable” proble: they need to demonstrate to followers that they prefer it when people push back and make them think.

Originality/value

By distinguishing the four types of undiscussables and delineating a fix for each the interview shows how to create a team context where criticism is an expected norm and questioning each other’s reasoning is not viewed as disloyal but rather as a valuable chance to learn and improve together.
Understanding online shopping behaviours and purchase intentions amongst millennials
Authors: Dharmesti Maria , Dharmesti Theresia Rasika Seta , Kuhne Sarah , Thaichon Park
Published: January 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine online purchase behaviours amongst young consumers in Australia and the USA. It also aims to develop and test a theoretical framework of young consumers’ online purchase behaviour.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected through online surveys targeting young online shoppers in Australia and the USA. A multi-group structural equation modelling was used to test the proposed structural model and hypotheses.

Findings

The model shows a good fit with the data. Young consumers in Australia and the USA have positive attitude towards online shopping that significantly affects their online purchase intentions. Social motive negatively impacts online purchase intentions in the Australian sample. Escapism and value motives positively affect Australian and American young shoppers’ online purchase intentions. Young consumers in Australia and the USA are very familiar with the online shopping process. The familiarity strongly triggers their information search behaviour that leads to online purchase intentions.

Practical implications

The results of this paper assist the marketers and policy makers to target and appeal to this young segment, based on their unique motivations, values and characteristics.

Originality/value

Using the generational cohort theory, this paper contributes to the extant literature by providing insights on the Australian and American young generation’s unique values and characteristics that influence their online purchase behaviours. This research also contributes insights for the marketers and policy makers to improve their marketing efforts and services and appeal to this young segment, based on their unique values and characteristics.
Terminal osseous dysplasia with pigmentary defects in a Chinese girl with the FLNA mutation: A case report and published work review
Authors: Li Zhongtao , Xie Yao , Xiao Qiankun , Wang Lin
Published: January 2020

Terminal osseous dysplasia with pigmentary defects (TODPD) is an extremely rare X‐linked dominant syndrome characterized by pigmentary skin defects, cutaneous digital fibromas and skeletal anomalies. Recent studies have identified that TODPD is caused by a unique variant, c.5217G>A (p.Val1724_Thr1739del), in the FLNA gene, which could in turn lead to the elastic fiber abnormality in TODPD. We herein present a rare case of TODPD in a Chinese girl due to an FLNA c.5217G>A heterozygous mutation, but the skin lesion biopsy showed that the elastic fibers were within normal limits in the dermis. A published work review of TODPD with the FLNA mutation from various origins is also included in this paper. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on TODPD with the FLNA mutation in China.
Alternatives to Resistance? Comparing Depoliticization in Two British Environmental Movement Scenes
Authors: de Moor Joost
Published: January 2020

Processes of politicization and depoliticization are increasingly studied in relation to urban contexts, and cities have been depicted as incubators of social movements. What has been largely ignored is why, in some cities, forces of politicization or depoliticization are stronger than in others. To address this question, this article compares two British cities—Manchester and Bristol—which have historically been central hubs of environmental resistance, but currently face similar depoliticizing forces: austerity, anti‐squatting laws, police repression and activists’ disillusion with environmentalism. Curiously, these conditions have had very different impacts on the two environmental scenes. In Manchester they have caused environmental resistance to become replaced almost entirely by non‐confrontational ‘alternatives’. In Bristol alternatives have emerged that tend to be in synergy with environmental resistance. The comparison thus suggests that Bristol is more conducive to maintaining environmental resistance under depoliticizing conditions. Findings suggest that differences can be attributed to features of the physical urban environment, including city size. Historically, these differences were not decisive. Yet, after a period of dwindling environmentalist energy in the UK, the number of environmentalist hubs has been reduced. This has prompted a reputational snowball that increasingly concentrates environmental resistance in the one city that best insulates the environmental movement from broader depoliticizing forces.
Contaminant, Commodity and Fuel: A Multi‐sited Study of Waste's roles in Urban Transformations from Italy to Austria
Authors: Behrsin Ingrid , De Rosa Salvatore Paolo
Published: January 2020

This article traces the flow of municipal solid waste from southern Italy through a waste‐to‐energy facility and district heating system in Austria, examining the roles that waste's transformation from contaminant to commodity to fuel plays in interconnected, distributed, and contested urbanization processes. It contends that, while metabolic circulation hides socioecological costs in one place to facilitate valorization in another, specific spatial configurations emerge through territorialization—of waste economies, in this case—providing the spatial base to realize metabolic flows and to anchor political narratives. A decisive effect is that certain patterns of urbanization become locked‐in, impeding alternative metabolic transitions and spatial configurations. Attending to the coproduction of three sites—Naples, Italy; Zwentendorf, Austria; and St Pölten, Austria—through the circulation and transformation of waste and energy the article provides an empirical multi‐sited case study of a political ecology of urbanization.
Fatal Methemoglobinemia Due to Acute Inhalation of Methyl Nitrite in an Industrial Accident
Authors: Huang Sizhe , Wang Rongshuai , Guo Bingbing , Ruan Hongbin , Ma Jinghong , Ren Liang , Liu Liang
Published: January 2020

Methyl nitrite is suggested to cause methemoglobinemia by generating methemoglobin, which may be lethal when the methemoglobin concentration exceeds 70%. However, intoxication with methyl nitrite is seldom reported compared with that with other nitrites. Here, we present an industrial accident involving methyl nitrite inhalation during its synthesis process that resulted in three fatalities and one survivor. The autopsy revealed conspicuous blue‐gray discoloration in various parts of the body, including the skin, airway mucosa, vessels, brain, heart, and among other areas. The toxicological tests on the deceased showed methemoglobin concentrations in the blood over the lethal level and increased nitrite ion levels in the blood, gastric contents, liver, and lung tissue compared with those in control samples. The cause of death was determined to be methemoglobinemia‐induced hypoxia due to methyl nitrite inhalation. This report provides evidence that in methyl nitrite intoxication, exposure duration has a significant influence on the postmortem changes and likelihood of a fatal outcome may be related to the age of the victim. More attention is required regarding the industrial hazards of this substance.
Threat assessment as a school violence prevention strategy
Authors: Cornell Dewey G.
Published: January 2020

Research Summary

This paper describes the immense difficulty of predicting that someone is going to carry out a school shooting and then turns to threat assessment as a more promising violence prevention strategy. In schools, a multidisciplinary threat assessment team investigates reported threats and develops responses that are calibrated to the seriousness of the threat and the student's educational needs. Researchers have found that school teams have been able to resolve thousands of student threats with no serious acts of violence, yet permitting the majority of students to return to school. Controlled studies have found that schools using this approach can have reductions in the use of school suspension and improvements in student and teacher perceptions of school climate.

Policy Implications

Threat assessment represents a fundamental shift in the risk assessment field away from the pursuit of predictive accuracy toward a broader approach to the prevention of violence by helping troubled individuals. Threat assessment offers schools a proactive alternative to reactive practices such as zero tolerance discipline and costly investment in building security measures.
Space between concern and crime
Authors: Silver James
Published: January 2020

Amid widespread agreement that public mass violence is generally the result of understandable and often discoverable thoughts and behaviors, the threat assessment model of identifying, assessing, and managing potential offenders has proven an effective safety approach across different offender types. In this article I describe two impediments to the model's efficacy – incomplete national adoption of the model, and the disinclination of some bystanders to report concerning behaviors potentially related to public mass violence. I propose addressing the first of these obstacles by encouraging use of dissemination and implementation science, and the second by extending emerging application of social norms concepts. Each approach leverages the strength of existing (and developing) threat assessment strategies and highlights potentially productive areas for research and policy innovation.
Koe: Web‐based software to classify acoustic units and analyse sequence structure in animal vocalizations
Authors: Fukuzawa Yukio , Webb Wesley H. , Pawley Matthew D.M. , Roper Michelle M. , Marsland Stephen , Brunton Dianne H. , Gilman Andrew
Published: January 2020

Classifying acoustic units is often a key step in studying repertoires and sequence structure in animal communication. Manual classification by eye and ear remains the primary method, but new tools and techniques are urgently needed to expedite the process for large, diverse datasets.

Here we introduce Koe, an application for classifying and analysing animal vocalizations. Koe offers bulk‐labelling of units via interactive ordination plots and unit tables, as well as visualization and playback, segmentation, measurement, data filtering/exporting and new tools for analysing repertoire and sequence structure – in an integrated environment.

We demonstrate Koe with a real‐world case study of New Zealand bellbird Anthornis melanura songs from an archipelago metapopulation. Having classified 21,500 units in Koe, we compare repertoires and sequence structure between sites and sexes.

Koe is web‐based (koe.io.ac.nz.) and easy to use, making it ideal for collaboration, education and citizen science. By enabling large‐scale, high‐resolution classification and analysis of animal vocalizations, Koe expands the possibilities for bioacoustics research.
IL33 contributes to diesel pollution‐mediated increase in experimental asthma severity
Authors: Brandt Eric B. , Bolcas Paige E. , Ruff Brandy P. , Khurana Hershey Gurjit K.
Published: January 2020

Background

Exposure to traffic pollution, notably diesel exhaust particles (DEP), increases risk for asthma and asthma exacerbations. The contribution of cytokines generated by stressed lung epithelial cells (IL25, IL33, TSLP) to DEP‐induced asthma severity remains poorly understood.

Methods

BALB/c mice were exposed intratracheally once to DEP or 9 times over 3‐weeks to either saline, DEP, and/or house dust mite extract (HDM). Airway hyper‐responsiveness (AHR), pulmonary inflammation, and T‐cell subsets were assessed 24 hours after the last exposure in mice sufficient and deficient for the IL33 receptor ST2.

Results

DEP exposure induces oxidative stress, IL6, neutrophils and pulmonary accumulation of IL33, but not IL25 or TSLP or other features of allergic disease. When mice are co‐exposed to DEP and low doses of HDM, DEP increases IL33 lung levels and Th2 responses. ST2 deficiency partially protected mice from HDM + DEP induced AHR in association with decreased type 2 inflammation and lung levels of IL5+IL17A+ co‐producing T‐cells. Upon in vitro HDM challenge of lung cells from HDM ± DEP exposed ST2−/− mice, secretion of IL5, IL13, IL6 and IL17A was abrogated by a mechanism involving IL33 signaling in both dendritic cells and T‐cells. HDM + DEP exposed bone marrow derived dendritic cells and IL33 pulsed BMDC promote a mixed Th2/Th17 response that was dependent on ST2 expression by CD4+ T‐cells.

Conclusion

IL33 contributes to DEP mediated increase in allergen‐induced Th2 inflammation and AHR in a mouse model of severe steroid resistant asthma, potentially through the accumulation of pathogenic IL5+IL17A+ CD4+ effector T‐cells.
Numerical study of a new ventricular assist device
Authors: Bounouib Mohamed , Benakrach Hind , Es‐Sadek Zeriab Mohamed , Taha‐Janan Mourad , Maazouzi Wajih
Published: January 2020

The present work presents a numerical study of two axial ventricular assist devices (VADs) with two different designs. The geometry of the first design was inspired by DeBakey's rotary blood pump and the geometry of the second design is based on BioCirc’s pediatric VAD. The goal is to see which of the two designs has promising capabilities in terms of pressure differential, flow rate, and thrombosis before proceeding to deeper investigations. In this study a computational fluid dynamics tool was used to simulate and calculate the hemodynamics in the two investigated models. Both models were investigated for a flow rate of 5 L/min at rotational speeds between 10 000 and 15 000 rpm.
Value, vulnerability and voice: An integrative review on research assent
Authors: Hart Sarah M. , Pascucci Mikayla , Sood Sheetal , Barrett Emily M.
Published: January 2020

Accessible summary

Everyone can be part of research.

Some may need extra time and attention to decide if they want to take part in a research study, also called assent.

This paper gives ideas to support people with learning disabilities in making their own choices.

Background

Research assent is a term used with those deemed vulnerable, for whom modifications and additional considerations are required when requesting their voluntary agreement to participate in research.

Methods

The authors’ research experiences and inclusive research principles were integrated with a review of literature on research assent with individuals with significant learning disabilities.

Findings

Vulnerability can be reconceived through the value and voice of participation in research. We provide practical suggestions for those who oversee social science research, as well as offer guidance to researchers considering inclusive research but for whom practical considerations are required.

Conclusion

To enhance participant diversity and a generative contribution to knowledge, consideration about research assent is needed. The absence from research can perpetuate exclusion from society.
How far can social role valorisation theory help in transition planning for a school‐leaver with significant special needs?
Authors: Connaughton Helen , Cline Tony
Published: January 2020

Accessible Summary

After they leave school, lots of young people with disabilities do not enjoy the good things in life such as going to college, having a paid job and meeting friends.

Social role valorisation (SRV) theory says that in order to enjoy the good things in life, people need to have valued social roles.

This project used SRV theory to help to plan for a good life for a 17‐year‐old student with a learning disability during her final year in school.

As a result of the individualised supports she received, which were guided by SRV theory, Rutchelle gained many valued social roles including employee, commuter, gym member, girlfriend, consumer and adult. However, she still did not have as many relationships or as good a social life as other 18‐year‐olds. Most importantly, she did not have many choices about what she could do when she left school.

The research shows that SRV theory is useful in transition planning, but that other theories such as inclusion and the social model of disability are very important if people with disabilities are to enjoy the good things in life.

Background

Research suggests that, in spite of legislation, the process of transition from school is problematic for most young people with disabilities. Best practices in transition emphasise the importance of providing personalised transition supports. This study, which took place in Ireland, aimed to explore the application of social role valorisation (SRV) theory to the transition process for one school leaver with a moderate Intellectual Disability.

Materials and Methods

A single case research design was used. Data was collected over a period of nine months through interviews, observations and document analysis. Thematic analysis based on SRV principles and themes was conducted to analyse the data.

Results

This research found that, while the participant experienced many of ‘the good things of life’ by the end of the project, she had fewer relationships and a more limited social life than would be typical for an 18 year old. In addition, she was restricted in her post‐school choices in spite of her enhanced image, competencies and valued social roles.

Conclusions

This study suggests that, while SRV theory is useful in guiding the transition process, it may need to be adapted in order to reconcile with more contemporary movements in the field of disability, such as the Social Model of Disability and Inclusion, if it is to become a guiding theory in the delivery of personalised supports during the period of transition from school to adult life.
WHAT HAS BEEN HAPPENING TO AGGREGATE CONCENTRATION IN THE U.S. ECONOMY IN THE TWENTY‐FIRST CENTURY?
Authors: White Lawrence J. , Yang Jasper
Published: January 2020

This paper extends earlier data series on aggregate concentration in the U.S. economy—the percentage of aggregate economic activity that could be attributed to the largest “X” companies—into the first two decades of the twenty‐first century. We find that there has been a moderate but continued increase in aggregate concentration since the mid‐1990s. This increase appears in data on employment and payrolls that have been compiled by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, as well as employment and profits data that are drawn from the annual “Fortune 500” lists. This increase does not, however, appear to have raised aggregate concentration above the levels of the early 1980s. (JEL L10, L11, L19)
Digital conservation in biosphere reserves: Earth observations, social media, and nature's cultural contributions to people
Authors: Vaz Ana Sofia , Moreno‐Llorca Ricardo A. , Gonçalves João F. , Vicente Joana R. , Méndez Pablo F. , Revilla Eloy , Santamaria Luis , Bonet‐García Francisco J. , Honrado João P. , Alcaraz‐Segura Domingo
Published: January 2020

In the “digital conservation” age, big data from Earth observations and from social media have been increasingly used to tackle conservation challenges. Here, we combined information from those two digital sources in a multimodel inference framework to identify, map, and predict the potential for nature's cultural contributions to people in two contrasting UNESCO biosphere reserves: Doñana and Sierra Nevada (Spain). The content analysis of Flickr pictures revealed different cultural contributions, according to the natural and cultural values of the two reserves. Those contributions relied upon landscape variables computed from Earth observation data: the variety of colors and vegetation functioning that characterize Doñana landscapes, and the leisure facilities, accessibility features, and heterogeneous landscapes that shape Sierra Nevada. Our findings suggest that social media and Earth observations can aid in the cost‐efficient monitoring of nature's contributions to people, which underlie many Sustainable Development Goals and conservation targets in protected areas worldwide.
Diagnostic success of transthoracic needle biopsy and PET‐CT for 1 to 2 cm solid indeterminate pulmonary nodules
Authors: Susam Seher , Çinkooğlu Akın , Ceylan Kenan Can , Gürsoy Soner , Kömürcüoğlu Berna Eren , Mertoğlu Aydan , Çırak Ali Kadri , Tuksavul Fevziye , Gayaf Mine , Güldaval Filiz , Polat Gülru , Yıldırım Eylem , Koparal Hakan , Yücel Nur
Published: January 2020

Objectives

Among the nodule types, the most controversial group are indeterminate solid nodules from 1 to 2 cm in size with the first choice being transthoracic needle biopsy (TTNB) or positron emission tomography (PET‐CT) or both methods together. However, no single diagnostic algorithm could be applied to all cases. This research discusses the diagnostic success of PET‐CT and TTNB.

Materials and Methods

407 Patients who referred to our hospital for any reason, with solid nodules with the size from 1 to 2 cmincidentally identified on the thoracic CT tests were investigated. Among the patients who underwent biopsy, 312 cases had PET‐CT, and maximum SUV (SUVmax) values of the nodules were examined. Values of ≥2.5 were accepted as hypermetabolic.

Results

The mean age of the patients was 61 ± 10.8 years. 84 patients were female (20.6%) and 323 were male (79.4%). For TTNB; sensitivity, specificity and accuracy rates of all cases, who were correctly diagnosed, were 76.9%, 83.3% and 78.9%, respectively (P < .001). The 2.5 SUVmax cutoff value had sensitivity of 91%, specificity of 35.6%, accuracy of 75% (P = .034). The cutoff value of 49 years of age, nodule size of 16.4 mm, gender and 2.5 SUVmax value had high accuracy for benign‐malignant differentiation. No statistically significant difference was found in the upper lobe localization of nodule.

Conclusion

A positive result from TTNB is a reliable finding; however, a negative result is not definitive. The high negative predictive value of PET‐CT is effective in preventing the unnecessary biopsies and surgical procedures.
Advance Selling and Advertising: A Newsvendor Framework
Authors: Wu Meng , Zhu Stuart X. , Teunter Ruud H.
Published: January 2020

Many firms offer consumers the opportunity to place advance orders at a discount when introducing a new product to the market. Doing so has two main advantages. First, it can increase total expected sales by exploiting valuation uncertainty of the consumers at the advance ordering stage. Second, total sales can be estimated more accurately based on the observed advance orders, reducing the need for safety stock and thereby obsolescence cost. In this research, we derive new insights into trading off these benefits against the loss in revenue from selling at a discount at the advance stage. In particular, we are the first to explore whether firms should advertise the advance ordering opportunity. We obtain several structural insights into the optimal policy, which we show is driven by two dimensions: the fraction of consumers who potentially buy in advance (i.e., strategic consumers) and the size of the discount needed to make them buy in advance. If the discount is below some threshold, then firms should sell in advance and they should advertise that option if the fraction of strategic consumers is sufficiently large. If the discount is above the threshold, then firms should not advertise and only sell in advance if the fraction of strategic consumers is sufficiently small. Graphical displays based on the two dimensions provide further insights.
Politics of success stories in the path towards Universal Health Coverage: The case of Turkey
Authors: Agartan Tuba I.
Published: January 2020

Motivation

Turkey has been acknowledged as a “successful” example of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) reforms and has recently gained donor “darling status.” While the literature on UHC and health reforms in various countries has increased significantly in recent years, there is still little research on the political dynamics of the rise of UHC in national and global development agendas.

Purpose

This study examines the politics of UHC in Turkey’s Health Transformation Program (HTP). It investigates how various policy actors, such as international organizations, policy experts and national political leaders, use UHC framing for different purposes.

Approach & Methods

The article develops an interdisciplinary conceptual framework that combines elements of ideational scholarship and critical policy analysis. The analysis is based on a review of the secondary literature and primary sources. Qualitative content analysis is used to identify major themes and analyse patterns of interactions across the various policy levels.

Findings

The article’s main findings demonstrate the ways in which international actors and national policy‐makers engage in policy work and use their relationships, global policy ideas and experiences to build legitimacy and support for their respective agendas. Reforms in Turkey were proposed and implemented before the rise of UHC in the global agenda, suggesting an ex post facto rebranding of its reforms as UHC. For Turkey’s policy‐makers, rebranding worked to tie their policy solutions, summarized in the HTP, to UHC as a widely accepted cultural symbol. The Ministry of Health’s deliberate strategy to encourage data collection and monitoring was also a key part of its efforts to construct a success narrative in collaboration with global policy actors. For the global‐level advocates of UHC, Turkey provided evidence that UHC works. Before it became a target under the health‐related Social Development Goals (SDGs), advocates needed to demonstrate that they had the right framing and metrics for a UHC agenda. After 2015, successful examples have served as strategic tools for building support and political momentum as the agenda was diffused, and as these diverse agendas and interests overlapped.

Policy Implications

This article contributes to the current debates on policy diffusion, translation and implementation of the UHC agenda. It unpacks the use of success stories to navigate the political dynamics among national governments and global policy communities. Success stories, alongside an emphasis on country ownership, may serve to encourage the co‐production of policy across local, national and global levels.
Colletotrichum siamense: A novel leaf pathogen of Sterculia nobilis Smith detected in China
Authors: Zhang Yaowen , Shen Rong , Mo Yixue , Li Qiqin , Lin Wei , Yuan Gaoqing
Published: January 2020

Sterculia nobilis is an important tropical woody plant with high ornamental and economic value. At present, there are few reports of diseases on this plant. In August 2018, an unknown leaf spot disease was observed on S. nobilis in Nanning, China, affecting the inner leaves of the canopy and causing considerable defoliation. The pathogen was isolated, and pathogenicity tests carried out on detached leaves to verify Koch's postulates. Based on morphological observations and polygenic analyses, the pathogen causing leaf spots on S. nobilis was identified as Colletotrichum siamense.