bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of experimental muscle pain on the acquisition and retention of locomotor adaptation: different motor strategies for a similar performance
Authors: Bouffard Jason , Salomoni Sauro E. , Mercier Catherine , Tucker Kylie , Roy Jean-Sébastien , van den Hoorn Wolbert , Hodges Paul W. , Bouyer Laurent J.
Published: January 2018

As individuals with musculoskeletal disorders often experience motor impairments, contemporary rehabilitation relies heavily on the use of motor learning principles. However, motor impairments are often associated with pain. Although there is substantial evidence that muscle pain interferes with motor control, much less is known on its impact on motor learning. The objective of the present study was to assess the effects of muscle pain on locomotor learning. Two groups (Pain and Control) of healthy participants performed a locomotor adaptation task (robotized ankle-foot orthosis perturbing ankle movements during swing) on two consecutive days. On day 1 (acquisition), hypertonic saline was injected in the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle of the Pain group participants, while Control group participants were pain free. All participants were pain free on day 2 (retention). Changes in movement errors caused by the perturbation were assessed as an indicator of motor performance. Detailed analysis of kinematic and electromyographic data provided information about motor strategies. No between-group differences were observed on motor performance measured during the acquisition and retention phases. However, Pain group participants had a residual movement error later in the swing phase and smaller early TA activation than Control group participants, thereby suggesting a reduction in the use of anticipatory motor strategies to overcome the perturbation. Muscle pain did not interfere with global motor performance during locomotor adaptation. The different motor strategies used in the presence of muscle pain may reflect a diminished ability to anticipate the consequences of a perturbation.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY This study shows that experimental muscle pain does not influence global motor performance during the acquisition or next-day retention phases of locomotor learning. This contrasts with previous results obtained with cutaneous pain, emphasizing the risk of directly extrapolating from one pain modality to another. Muscle pain affected motor strategies used when performing the task, however: it reduced the ability to use increased feedforward control to overcome the force field.
Non-gait-specific intervention for the rehabilitation of walking after SCI: role of the arms
Authors: Zhou Rui , Alvarado Laura , Ogilvie Robert , Chong Su Ling , Shaw Oriana , Mushahwar Vivian K.
Published: January 2018

Arm movements modulate leg activity and improve gait efficiency; however, current rehabilitation interventions focus on improving walking through gait-specific training and do not actively involve the arms. The goal of this project was to assess the effect of a rehabilitation strategy involving simultaneous arm and leg cycling on improving walking after incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI). We investigated the effect of 1) non-gait-specific training and 2) active arm involvement during training on changes in over ground walking capacity. Participants with iSCI were assigned to simultaneous arm-leg cycling (A&L) or legs only cycling (Leg) training paradigms, and cycling movements were assisted with electrical stimulation. Overground walking speed significantly increased by 0.092 ± 0.022 m/s in the Leg group and 0.27 ± 0.072m/s in the A&L group after training. Whereas the increases in the Leg group were similar to those seen after current locomotor training strategies, increases in the A&L group were significantly larger than those in the Leg group. Walking distance also significantly increased by 32.12 ± 8.74 m in the Leg and 91.58 ± 36.24 m in the A&L group. Muscle strength, sensation, and balance improved in both groups; however, the A&L group had significant improvements in most gait measures and had more regulated joint kinematics and muscle activity after training compared with the Leg group. We conclude that electrical stimulation-assisted cycling training can produce significant improvements in walking after SCI. Furthermore, active arm involvement during training can produce greater improvements in walking performance. This strategy may also be effective in people with other neural disorders or diseases.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY This work challenges concepts of task-specific training for the rehabilitation of walking and encourages coordinated training of the arms and legs after spinal cord injury. Cycling of the legs produced significant improvements in walking that were similar in magnitude to those reported with gait-specific training. Moreover, active engagement of the arms simultaneously with the legs generated nearly double the improvements obtained by leg training only. The cervico-lumbar networks are critical for the improvement of walking.
Regulation of Eag by Ca2+/calmodulin controls presynaptic excitability inDrosophila
Authors: Bronk Peter , Kuklin Elena A. , Gorur-Shandilya Srinivas , Liu Chang , Wiggin Timothy D. , Reed Martha L. , Marder Eve , Griffith Leslie C.
Published: January 2018

Drosophila ether-à-go-go ( eag) is the founding member of a large family of voltage-gated K+channels, the KCNH family, which includes Kv10, 11, and 12. Concurrent binding of calcium/calmodulin (Ca2+/CaM) to NH2- and COOH-terminal sites inhibits mammalian EAG1 channels at submicromolar Ca2+concentrations, likely by causing pore constriction. Although the Drosophila EAG channel was believed to be Ca2+-insensitive (Schönherr R, Löber K, Heinemann SH. EMBO J 19: 3263–3271, 2000.), both the NH2- and COOH-terminal sites are conserved. In this study we show that Drosophila EAG is inhibited by high Ca2+concentrations that are only present at plasma membrane Ca2+channel microdomains. To test the role of this regulation in vivo, we engineered mutations that block CaM-binding to the major COOH-terminal site of the endogenous eag locus, disrupting Ca2+-dependent inhibition. eag CaMBD mutants have reduced evoked release from larval motor neuron presynaptic terminals and show decreased Ca2+influx in stimulated adult projection neuron presynaptic terminals, consistent with an increase in K+conductance. These results are predicted by a conductance-based multicompartment model of the presynaptic terminal in which some fraction of EAG is localized to the Ca2+channel microdomains that control neurotransmitter release. The reduction of release in the larval neuromuscular junction drives a compensatory increase in motor neuron somatic excitability. This misregulation of synaptic and somatic excitability has consequences for systems-level processes and leads to defects in associative memory formation in adults.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY Regulation of excitability is critical to tuning the nervous system for complex behaviors. We demonstrate in this article that the EAG family of voltage-gated K+channels exhibit conserved gating by Ca2+/CaM. Disruption of this inhibition in Drosophila results in decreased evoked neurotransmitter release due to truncated Ca2+influx in presynaptic terminals. In adults, disrupted Ca2+dynamics cripples memory formation. These data demonstrate that the biophysical details of channels have important implications for cell function and behavior.
Methods for chair restraint and training of the common marmoset on oculomotor tasks
Authors: Johnston Kevin D. , Barker Kevin , Schaeffer Lauren , Schaeffer David , Everling Stefan
Published: January 2018

The oculomotor system is the most thoroughly understood sensorimotor system in the brain, due in large part to electrophysiological studies carried out in macaque monkeys trained to perform oculomotor tasks. A disadvantage of the macaque model is that many cortical oculomotor areas of interest lie within sulci, making high-density array and laminar recordings impractical. Many techniques of molecular biology developed in rodents, such as optogenetic manipulation of neuronal subtypes, are also limited in this species. The common marmoset ( Callithrix jacchus) possesses a smooth cortex, allowing easy access to frontoparietal oculomotor areas, and may bridge the gap between systems neuroscience in macaques and molecular techniques. Techniques for restraint, training, and neural recording in these animals have been well developed in auditory neuroscience. Those for oculomotor neuroscience, however, remain at a relatively early stage. In this article we provide details of a custom-designed restraint chair for marmosets, a combination head restraint/recording chamber allowing access to cortical oculomotor areas and providing stability suitable for eye movement and neural recordings, as well as a training protocol for oculomotor tasks. We additionally report the results of a psychophysical study in marmosets trained to perform a saccade task using these methods, showing that, as in rhesus and humans, marmosets exhibit a “gap effect,” a decrease in reaction time when the fixation stimulus is removed before the onset of a visual saccade target. These results are the first evidence of this effect in marmosets and support the common marmoset model for neurophysiological investigations of oculomotor control.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY The ability to carry out neuronal recordings in behaving primates has provided a wealth of information regarding the neural circuits underlying the control of eye movements. Such studies require restraint of the animal within a primate chair, head fixation, methods of acclimating the animals to this restraint, and the use of operant conditioning methods for training on oculomotor tasks. In contrast to the macaque model, relatively few studies have reported in detail methods for use in the common marmoset. In this report we detail custom-designed equipment and methods by which we have used to successfully train head-restrained marmosets to perform basic oculomotor tasks.
Storage and Dissipation Limits in Resonant Switched-Capacitor Converters
Authors: Mayo-Maldonado Jonathan C. , Maupong T. M. , Valdez-Reséndiz Jesús E. , Rosas-Caro Julio C.
Published: January 2018

The purpose of this manuscript is twofold, first we introduce an energy-based modeling framework for the analysis of resonant switched-capacitor (SC) converters and second we demonstrate that energy storage and dissipation in resonant SC with ideal switches are bounded by a fundamental physical limit that, up until now, has been only associated with the special case of pure SC topologies. For instance, we show that the maximum energy stored in the small size inductors in resonant SC converters is equal to the energy that would be dissipated by their purely SC counterpart. The presented analysis permits the computation of resonant inductances in terms of maximum current peak values, which is experimentally validated. Furthermore, we introduce a relative loss factor that permits determining the efficiency of a design for a general case in the presence of parasitic resistances. These results corroborate that migrating to resonant SC technologies is one of the most compelling alternatives to overcome well-known disadvantages in pure SC topologies.
Efficacy and Safety of the Injection of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Puerarin for the Treatment of Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis of 53 Randomized Controlled Trials
Authors: Xie Baocheng , Wang Qinghui , Zhou Chenhui , Wu Jiahuan , Xu Daohua
Published: January 2018

Objective. The injection of the traditional Chinese patent medicine puerarin has been widely used in the treatment of various diseases such as angina pectoris or ischemic stroke. We aim to evaluate the efficacy and safety of puerarin injection for the treatment of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). Methods. A systematic literature search was performed in seven medical databases from their inception until June 2017. 53 studies with RCTs, totaling 3284 patients, were included in this meta‐analysis. The included studies were assessed by the Cochrane risk of bias and analyzed by Review Manager 5.3 software. Results. The meta‐analysis showed that puerarin injection for the treatment of DPN was significantly better compared with the control group in terms of the total effective rate. The result showed that puerarin injection for the treatment of DPN can significantly increase the probability of sensory nerve conduction velocity (SNCV) and motor nerve conduction velocity (MNCV) of the median and peroneal nerves. Conclusions. This meta‐analysis demonstrated that puerarin injection may be more effective and safe for the treatment of DPN. However, further and higher quality RCTs are required to prove its efficacy and provide meaningful evidence for clinical treatment due to the poor methodological quality.
Analysis of Iterative Erasure Insertion and Decoding of FH/MFSK Systems without Channel State Information
Authors: Park Jinsoo , Kim Gangsan , Song Hong-Yeop , Kim Chanki , No Jong-Seon , Kim Suil
Published: January 2018

We analyze the symbol measures for iterative erasure insertion and decoding of a Reed-Solomon coded SFH/MFSK system over jamming channels. In contrast to conventional erasure insertion schemes, iterative schemes do not require any preoptimized threshold or channel state information at the receiver. We confirm the performance improvement using a generalized minimum distance (GMD) decoding method with three different symbol measures. To analyze performance, we propose a new analysis framework considering the “trapped-error” probability. From analysis and the simulation results, we show that ratio-based GMD decoding has the best performance among the one-dimensional iterative erasure insertion and decoding schemes.
Linearized and Kernelized Sparse Multitask Learning for Predicting Cognitive Outcomes in Alzheimer’s Disease
Authors: Liu Xiaoli , Cao Peng , Yang Jinzhu , Zhao Dazhe
Published: January 2018

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been not only the substantial financial burden to the health care system but also the emotional burden to patients and their families. Predicting cognitive performance of subjects from their magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures and identifying relevant imaging biomarkers are important research topics in the study of Alzheimer’s disease. Recently, the multitask learning (MTL) methods with sparsity-inducing norm (e.g., l2,1-norm) have been widely studied to select the discriminative feature subset from MRI features by incorporating inherent correlations among multiple clinical cognitive measures. However, these previous works formulate the prediction tasks as a linear regression problem. The major limitation is that they assumed a linear relationship between the MRI features and the cognitive outcomes. Some multikernel-based MTL methods have been proposed and shown better generalization ability due to the nonlinear advantage. We quantify the power of existing linear and nonlinear MTL methods by evaluating their performance on cognitive score prediction of Alzheimer’s disease. Moreover, we extend the traditional l2,1-norm to a more general lql1-norm (q≥1). Experiments on the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative database showed that the nonlinear l2,1lq-MKMTL method not only achieved better prediction performance than the state-of-the-art competitive methods but also effectively fused the multimodality data.
Sodium Silicate Gel Effect on Cemented Tailing Backfill That Contains Lead‐Zinc Smelting Slag at Early Ages
Authors: Guo Lijie , Li Wenchen , Yang Xiaocong , Xu Wenyuan
Published: January 2018

This paper presents the results of an experimental study on the priming effect of sodium silicate gel (SS) on cemented tailing backfill (CTB) that contains lead‐zinc smelting slag. CTB and cemented paste (CP) containing lead‐zinc smelting slag samples with SS of 0 and 0.4% of the mass of the slag were prepared and cured at 20°C for 1, 3, 7, and 28 days. Mechanical test and pore structure analyses were performed on the studied CTB samples, microstructural analyses (X‐ray diffraction analysis and thermal gravity analysis) were performed on the studied CP samples, whereas the electrical conductivity of CTB was monitored. The results reveal that SS has a significant positive effect on cementitious activity of binder mixed by cement and lead‐zinc smelting slag. This activation leads to the acceleration of binder hydration process, the formation of more cement hydration products in the CTBs, and the refinement of their pore structure, which is favorable for the strength development of CTB.
OverWatch: A Cross-Plane DDoS Attack Defense Framework with Collaborative Intelligence in SDN
Authors: Han Biao , Yang Xiangrui , Sun Zhigang , Huang Jinfeng , Su Jinshu
Published: January 2018

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks are one of the biggest concerns for security professionals. Traditional middle-box based DDoS attack defense is lack of network-wide monitoring flexibility. With the development of software-defined networking (SDN), it becomes prevalent to exploit centralized controllers to defend against DDoS attacks. However, current solutions suffer with serious southbound communication overhead and detection delay. In this paper, we propose a cross-plane DDoS attack defense framework in SDN, called OverWatch, which exploits collaborative intelligence between data plane and control plane with high defense efficiency. Attack detection and reaction are two key procedures of the proposed framework. We develop a collaborative DDoS attack detection mechanism, which consists of a coarse-grained flow monitoring algorithm on the data plane and a fine-grained machine learning based attack classification algorithm on the control plane. We propose a novel defense strategy offloading mechanism to dynamically deploy defense applications across the controller and switches, by which rapid attack reaction and accurate botnet location can be achieved. We conduct extensive experiments on a real-world SDN network. Experimental results validate the efficiency of our proposed OverWatch framework with high detection accuracy and real-time DDoS attack reaction, as well as reduced communication overhead on SDN southbound interface.
Bipartisanship Breakdown, Functional Networks, and Forensic Analysis in Spanish 2015 and 2016 National Elections
Authors: Fernández-Gracia Juan , Lacasa Lucas
Published: January 2018

We present a social network and forensic analysis of the vote counts of Spanish national elections that took place in December 2015 and their sequel in June 2016. We initially consider the phenomenon of bipartisanship breakdown by analyzing spatial distributions of several bipartisanship indices. We find that such breakdown is more prominently close to cosmopolite and largely populated areas and less important in rural areas where bipartisanship still prevails, and its evolution mildly consolidates in the 2016 round, with some evidence of bipartisanship reinforcement which we hypothesize to be due to psychological mechanisms of risk aversion. Subsequently, a functional network analysis detects an effective partition of municipalities which remarkably coincides with the first‐level political and administrative division of autonomous communities. Finally, we explore to which extent vote data are faithful by applying forensic techniques to vote statistics. Results based on deviation from Benford’s law are mixed and vary across different levels of aggregation. As a complementary metric, we further explore the cooccurring statistics of vote share and turnout, finding a mild tendency in the clusters of the conservative party to smear out towards the area of high turnout and vote share, what has been previously interpreted as a possible sign of incremental fraud.
Regulation of Hypertension for Secondary Prevention of Stroke: The Possible ‘Bridging Function' of Acupuncture
Authors: Zheng Haizhen , Han Yuhui , Du Yuzheng , Shi Xuemin , Huang Huiyuan , Yu Xiaoyang , Tan Xiaochan , Hu Chunxiao , Wang Yue , Zhou Shiyuan
Published: January 2018

Worldwide, stroke is the leading cause of mortality and disability, with hypertension being an independent risk factor for a secondary stroke. Acupuncture for the treatment of hypertension gains more attention in alternative and complementary medicine, but the results are inconsistent. Few studies regarding the secondary prevention of stroke by managing hypertension with acupuncture have been carried out as there are some problems regarding the antihypertensive drug status in the secondary prevention of stroke. Still, the potential of acupuncture in regulating the blood pressure for secondary stroke prevention deserves our focus. This review is based on papers recorded in the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases, from their inception until March 28, 2017, and retrieved with the following search terms: hypertension and acupuncture, limited in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs), stress-induced (or cold-induced) hypertensive or pre-hypertensive models. We find that, in these hypertensive animals, acupuncture could mainly influence factors related to the nervous system, oxidative stress, the endocrine system, cardiovascular function, and hemorheology, which are closely associated with the stroke outcome. This trend may give us a hint that acupuncture might well participate in the secondary prevention of stroke through these pathways when used in the management of hypertension.
Ten-Year Survival after Liver Resection for Breast Metastases: A Single-Center Experience
Authors: Ercolani Giorgio , Zanello Metteo , Serenari Matteo , Cescon Matteo , Cucchetti Alessandro , Ravaioli Matteo , Del Gaudio Massimo , D’Errico Antonietta , Brandi Giovanni , Pinna Antonio Daniele
Published: January 2018

Background: The role of liver resection for metastatic breast carcinoma is still debated. Methods: Fifty-one resected patients were reviewed. All patients received adjuvant chemotherapy after resection of the primary tumor. Clinicopathological characteristics and immunohistochemistry expression of estrogen (ER), progesterone (PR), human epidermal growth factor (HER2), or Ki67 were evaluated. Results: The median number of metastases was 2; single metastases were present in 24 (47%) patients. The median tumor diameter was 4 cm. Major hepatectomies were performed in 31 (61%) patients. Postoperative mortality was null. Postoperative morbidity was 13.7%. The 1-, 5-, and 10-year survival rates were 92, 36, and 16% respectively. Eleven (21.6%) patients survived longer than 5 years and 8.9% are alive without recurrence 10 years after surgery. At the univariate analysis, tumor diameter, lymph node status, PR receptor status, and triple positive receptors (ER+/PR+/Her2+) were significantly related to survival. At the multivariate analysis, tumor diameter, PR receptor, and triple negative status were significantly related to the long-term outcome. Conclusion: Liver resection seems to be a safe and effective treatment for metastases from breast cancer, and encouraging long-term survival can be obtained with acceptable risk in selected patients. Tumors less than 5 cm and positive hormone receptor status are the best prognostic factors.
Dietary Sodium/Potassium Intake Does Not Affect Cognitive Function or Brain Imaging Indices
Authors: Nowak Kristen L. , Fried Linda , Jovanovich Anna , Ix Joachim , Yaffe Kristine , You Zhiying , Chonchol Michel
Published: January 2018

Background: Dietary sodium may influence cognitive function through its effects on cerebrovascular function and cerebral blood flow. Methods: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of dietary sodium intake with cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults. We also evaluated the associations of dietary potassium and sodium:potassium intake with cognitive decline, and associations of these nutrients with micro- and macro-structural brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) indices. In all, 1,194 participants in the Health Aging and Body Composition study with measurements of dietary sodium intake (food frequency questionnaire [FFQ]) and change in the modified Mini Mental State Exam (3MS) were included. Results: The age of participants was 74 ± 3 years with a mean dietary sodium intake of 2,677 ± 1,060 mg/day. During follow-up (6.9 ± 0.1 years), 340 (28%) had a clinically significant decline in 3MS score (≥1.5 SD of mean decline). After adjustment, dietary sodium intake was not associated with odds of cognitive decline (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.50–1.84 per doubling of sodium). Similarly, potassium was not associated with cognitive decline; however, higher sodium:potassium intake was associated with increased odds of cognitive decline (OR 2.02 [95% CI 1.01–4.03] per unit increase). Neither sodium or potassium alone nor sodium:potassium were associated with micro- or macro-structural brain MRI indices. These results are limited by the use of FFQ. Conclusions: In community-dwelling older adults, higher sodium:potassium, but not sodium or potassium intake alone, was associated with decline in cognitive function, with no associations observed with micro- and macro-structural brain MRI indices. These findings do not support reduction dietary sodium/increased potassium intake to prevent cognitive decline with aging.
Skeletal Extracellular Matrix Supports Cardiac Differentiation of Embryonic Stem Cells: a Potential Scaffold for Engineered Cardiac Tissue
Authors: Hong Xian , Yuan Yin , Sun Xiaoxi , Zhou Meiling , Guo Guangyu , Zhang Quan , Hescheler Jürgen , Xi Jiaoya
Published: January 2018

Background/Aims: Decellularized cardiac extracellular matrix (cECM) has been widely considered as an attractive scaffold for engineered cardiac tissue (ECT), however, its application is limited by immunogenicity and shortage of organ donation. Skeletal ECM (sECM) is readily available and shows similarities with cECM. Here we hypothesized that sECM might be an alternative scaffold for ECT strategies. Methods: Murine ventricular tissue and anterior tibial muscles were sectioned into 300 mm-thick, and then cECM and sECM were acquired by pretreatment/SDS/TritonX-100 three-step-method. Acellularity and morphological properties of ECM was assessed. SECM was recellularized with murine embryonic stem cells (mESCs) or mESC-derived cardiomyocytes (mESC-CMs), and was further studied by biocompatibility assessment, immunofluorescent staining, quantitative real-time PCR and electrophysiological experiment. Results: The relative residual contents of DNA, protein and RNA of sECM were comparable with cECM. The morphological properties and microstructure of sECM were similar to cECM. SECM supported mESCs to adhere, survive, proliferate and differentiate into functional cardiac microtissue with both electrical stimulated response and normal adrenergic response. Purified mESC-CMs also could adhere, survive, proliferate and form a sECM-based ECT with synchronized contraction within 6 days of recellularization. Conclusion: ECMs from murine skeletal muscle support survival and cardiac differentiation of mESCs, and are suitable to produce functional ECT patch. This study highlights the potential of patient specific of sECM to replace cECM for bioengineering ECT.
O antigo e o moderno na teoria literária de Friedrich Schlegel no Primeiro Romantismo Alemão
Authors: Medeiros Constantino Luz de
Published: January 2018

A compreensão histórica de literatura no primeiro romantismo alemão decorre, entre outros aspectos, dos escritos de Winckelmann, Herder, Lessing, assim como da relação dialética entre o clássico e o romântico estabelecida por Goethe e Schiller. Nesse contexto, a aproximação antitética entre o antigo e o romântico tem um papel central na determinação das principais teorias românticas de literatura. O artigo investiga e discute a importância da antinomia entre o antigo e o moderno na constituição e desenvolvimento das teorias literárias de Friedrich Schlegel no primeiro romantismo alemão.
A imagem de pensamento como forma
Authors: Durão Fabio Akcelrud
Published: January 2018

Este texto busca caracterizar a imagem de pensamento (Denkbild) como um gênero particular de composição que mistura filosofia e literatura, conceito e imagem. O argumento central é o de que, devido às suas peculiaridades formais, a imagem de pensamento possui tanto um forte teor intersubjetivo, quanto a capacidade como de fazer surgir o não-idêntico em experiências cotidianas. Desse combinação surge um tipo de escrita prática, que merece ser recuperada no presente.
Exploring Guanxi in a Cross-Cultural Context
Authors: _ _
Published: January 2018

Using a case study of recently arrived Cantonese-speaking migrants, this article examines the role of guanxi in shaping Chinese newcomers’ economic activities and opportunities in South Africa. In Johannesburg, Cantonese-speaking migrants tend to be employed in restaurant and fahfee (gambling) sectors, which are partially inherited from the early generations of South African Chinese. Through narratives and stories, this article reveals that Cantonese newcomers often strengthen personal and employment relationships through the practice of guanxi, but that doing so can also constrain their employment decisions. Moreover, the ambiguous boundary between the act of bribery and the practice of guanxi may facilitate Chinese participation but can also result in the victimization of the newcomers.
A new sexually dichromatic species of Telenomus Haliday (Platygastroidea: Scelionidae) from India
Authors: KAMALANATHAN VEENAKUMARI , MOHANRAJ PRASHANTH
Published: January 2018

A new species of Telenomus which is sexually dichromatic is described and imaged from India.
Carbon Flux Phenology from the Sky: Evaluation for Maize and Soybean
Authors: McCombs Alexandria G. , Hiscox April L. , Wang Cuizhen , Desai Ankur R. , Suyker Andrew E. , Biraud Sebastien C.
Published: January 2018

Carbon flux phenology is widely used to understand carbon flux dynamics and surface exchange processes. Vegetation phenology has been widely evaluated by remote sensors; however, very few studies have evaluated the use of vegetation phenology for identifying carbon flux phenology. Currently available techniques to derive net ecosystem exchange (NEE) from a satellite image use a single generic modeling subgroup for agricultural crops. But, carbon flux phenological processes vary highly with crop types and land management practices; this paper reexamines this assumption. Presented here are an evaluation of ground-truth remotely sensed vegetation indices with in situ NEE measurements and an identification of vegetation indices for estimating carbon flux phenology metrics by crop type. Results show that the performance of different vegetation indices as an indicator of phenology varies with crop type, particularly when identifying the start of a season and the peak of a season. Maize fields require vegetation indices that make use of the near-infrared and red reflectance bands, while soybean fields require those making use of the shortwave infrared (IR) and near-IR bands. In summary, the study identifies how to best utilize remote sensing technology as a crop-specific measurement tool.
Simon Gathercole’s, Defending Substitution: Why I Am Unconvinced and Concerned
Authors: Duke Rodney K.
Published: January 2018

This article is a reflective review of Simon Gathercole’s book, Defending Substitution, in which he defended the position that Paul held a substitutionary position of atonement. That position contends that Jesus died ‘instead of sinners’, replacing them in his death. I primarily offer an exegetical critique based on an Old Testament understanding of Paul’s language, in which I do not find a mechanism of substitution. That critique is followed by some reflections on why I find Gathercole’s substitutionary view to fall short of the portrayal of God’s offers of grace and atonement that are found in the OT and picked up on by the New Testament writers as they use the OT language.
Three-dimensional mechanical properties of dry carbon fiber tows subjected to cyclic compressive loading
Authors: Lectez Anne-Sophie , El Azzouzi Khalid , Binetruy Christophe , Comas-Cardona Sébastien , Verron Erwan , Lebrun Jean-Michel
Published: January 2018

Characterizing the response of compressed dry fibrous reinforcements is a key feature to control liquid composite molding processes. Considering preforms manufactured by automated dry fiber placement, supplementary information are needed, since cyclic loading occurs, during which the mechanical properties of tows evolve. In this way, an extensive characterization procedure is proposed in this article. Each mechanical feature, such as nonlinearity, springback, irreversibility, stabilization, and strain rate dependence, is analyzed, and when possible, related to microstructural observations. Particular attention is paid to the response in other directions than the compressed one. Finally, from this characterization, a route to modeling is drawn: analogies with other classes of materials are proposed, leading to choices on the modeling of each mechanical property.
The Involved Observer: A Simmelian Analysis of the Boundary Work of Aunthood
Authors: May Vanessa , Lahad Kinneret
Published: January 2018

The aims of this article are to, first, empirically investigate the experiences of aunts, who to a large extent have been ignored by family sociologists. Second, we aim to add to the existing theorising of everyday family life by bringing Simmel’s work – hitherto under-utilised in the field – into dialogue with the sociological literature on doing and negotiating families. Based on a textual analysis of online accounts posted on a US advice forum entitled ‘Dear Savvy Auntie’, we argue that Simmel’s notion of the stranger allows us to understand the position of some aunts as ‘involved observers’ who are both inside and outside the ‘family unit’ constituted by parents and children. Third, our article contributes to the literature by exploring the boundary work that being an involved observer entails as aunts negotiate simultaneously rigid and permeable boundaries that exist between the family unit and extended kin.
Molecular weight and organization of cellulose at different stages of cotton fiber development
Authors: Liyanage Sumedha , Abidi Noureddine
Published: January 2018

There is a continuous change in cell wall composition and organization during cotton fiber development. Cotton fiber strength correlates to the molecular weight (MW) and molecular weight distribution (MWD), and organization of cellulose chains in the secondary cell wall. These parameters change drastically during fiber development. This study reports on the MW, MWD, and organization of cellulose in cotton fibers harvested from two cotton cultivars of Gossypium hirsutum L., (Texas Marker-1 and TX55) at different levels of maturity. Fiber dissolution is necessary to estimate the molecular properties of cellulose. Cellulose in mature cotton fibers is larger in MW and highly crystalline and, therefore, poorly dissolves in common solvent systems. To facilitate the dissolution, fibers were first pretreated with 23% sodium hydroxide and then dissolved in a dimethylacetamide/lithium chloride solvent system. Gel permeation chromatography of dissolved fibers indicated that cellulose in both cultivars reaches its maximum MW around 30 days post anthesis. Fourier transform infrared microspectroscopy imaging in the transmission mode indicates changes in cellulose distribution in cotton fibers with fiber development. The distributions of infrared vibrations of cellulose at 897 (β-linkage of cellulose), 1161 (anti-symmetrical C-O-C stretching of cellulose), and 1429 cm−1 (CH2 scissoring of cellulose) provided information on cellulose deposition in intact cotton fibers.
The Witch, the Goat and the Devil: A Discussion of Scapegoating and the Objectification of Evil in Robert Eggers’ The Witch
Authors: McGill Alan Bernard
Published: January 2018

The demise of a child, a tragedy that occurs every few seconds on the face on this planet, marred by starvation and abject poverty, always constitutes a grim mystery, challenging every religious outlook and philosophy. Robert Eggers’ 2015 movie, The Witch, depicts the tragic loss of a baby, in this case posing the additional mystery as to exactly how it occurred. Though the specters of malnutrition and malady haunt this film, the precise circumstances surrounding the child’s fate are left largely to the viewer’s imagination.

The film explores the question as to where we can lay blame for ostensibly senseless tragedy. Within its narrative world, and arguably, within the worldview of the religious imagination more broadly, humanity seeks someone or something to blame for horrific events. Recent tragedies and world history attest to the human tendency, in the face of immense suffering, to scapegoat some alleged culprit, perhaps going so far as to allege their complicity with the devil, to directly identify them as Satan—or to more subtly demonize them. No single religion or worldview can boast sole claim to this propensity that to this present day claims lives.

The Witch raises the question as to whether culpability for evil resides ultimately with the self, with social structures, with humanity as a whole, with inhuman forces of nature, or within the supernatural realm. The mystery is at its most agonizing when conventional moralizing is befuddled and there is no obvious culprit, no free-willed villain caught with a smoking gun. Eggers’ screenplay sustains the ambiguity that can enshroud tragedy such as the unresolved abduction of a child or sudden infant death, blurring the line between facticity and the archetypal imagery through which the psyche seeks to express that which it cannot explain.
Agency and Restraint in Interpretation
Authors: Brueggemann Walter
Published: January 2018

With the work of Theodore Ziolkowski as a model, this article probes the work of biblical interpretation with reference to both agency and restraint. The exercise of interpretive agency means the interpreter has immense freedom. We are able to see how that interpretive freedom has played out in creedal readings, in scholastic interpretation, and in the work of historical criticism.

At the same time, however, it is clear that restraints of method and perspective cannot contain all of the richness of scripture. Thus after creedal reading, there is still evidence of the quixotic in the narrative of God. In the midst of scholastic reductionism there is still an inexplicable dynamism, and in the work of historical criticism, there is still testimony to the Holy One that will not be contained in the modes of Enlightenment rationality. Responsible interpretation must at the same time recognize certain restraints and allow for surges in the textual testimony that move against such restraints.
The Problem with Evil
Authors: McFarland Ian A.
Published: January 2018

This article contends that there are significant theological problems connected with the use of the term “evil” to label states of affairs, and that the “problem with evil” is that we are too quick to presume to know what evil is. If evil is defined as that which is against the good, and the good is identified with God’s will, then the use of “evil” should be restricted to those actions of free creatures that oppose the divine will. The classic understanding of evil as a privation of good will therefore be rejected, on the grounds that it depends on an expectation that the good of individual creatures should conform to a general type. It follows that instances of what is traditionally termed “natural evil” are not properly categorized either as evil or as good, but rather as occasions for the discernment of how God’s will for creaturely flourishing is to be realised in a particular context.
Sanctifying the Settler-Colonial Gaze: Nineteenth-Century American Christian Pilgrimage to the Holy Land
Authors: Smith Robert O.
Published: January 2018

American Christian pilgrimage to the Holy Land started within a historical and ideological context shaped by American territorial expansionism. The settler-colonial impulses informing that expansionism were carried to Palestine, where Palestinians were encountered as “savages” compared explicitly to American Indians. Erasure of the Holy Land’s Indigenous inhabitants is thus sanctioned. Herman Melville’s Clarel and Mark Twain’s Innocents Abroad record this encounter. We must be aware of this history if it is not to be repeated in contemporary pilgrimage practices.
Antenatal care attendance and uptake of skilled delivery, Lokitaung Sub-County Hospital, Turkana County, Kenya
Authors: Okoth Vic Albert , Maina Joyce W , Ransom James
Published: January 2018

Globally, nearly 500,000 women die annually from pregnancy- and childbirth-related complications. Antenatal care (ANC) is one of the most important factors in preventing maternal and infant mortality. This study investigated whether ANC attendance and sociodemographic characteristics of pregnant women influence uptake of skilled delivery at Lokitaung Sub-County Hospital, Turkana County, Kenya.
Disturbance-observer-based l2–l∞ control for discrete-time Markovian jump system
Authors: Hou Linlin , Sun Haibin
Published: January 2018

This paper considers the problem of anti-disturbance control for discrete-time Markovian jump systems with multiple disturbances. The controller is constructed via disturbance-observer-based control and l2– l∞ control. The disturbances are divided into two parts. One, in the same channel as the control inputs, is described by an exogenous system. The other is assumed to be bounded with an [Formula: see text] norm. A disturbance observer is presented to estimate and reject the first-case disturbances for discrete-time Markovian jump systems, and an l2– l∞ control scheme is used to attenuate the second-case disturbances. By using linear matrix inequalities, a solvable sufficient condition is developed. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed control scheme is demonstrated via a numerical example.
On designing a robust double exponentially weighted moving average control chart for process monitoring
Authors: Raji Ishaq Adeyanju , Abbas Nasir , Riaz Muhammad
Published: January 2018

A double exponentially weighted moving average chart has been proven more efficient for monitoring process mean in comparison to the classical exponentially weighted moving average chart. We, in this article, made a careful investigation on how well this scheme performs with the presence of disturbances in the process under consideration. This investigation was motivated in exploring the scheme with some robust statistic, as the mean estimator performs woefully. We also evaluated the effects of parameter estimation on the phase II assuming the parameters are unknown. Adopting a 20% trimmed mean of trimeans (robust) reveals the effect of parameter estimations. We substantiated these claims by applying the scheme on a real-life data set. The findings of the study pronounced the trimean estimator to be the best of all the five estimators used, including the mean.
A rotor initial position estimation method for sensorless field-oriented control of permanent magnet synchronous motor
Authors: Saadaoui Oussama , Khlaief Amor , Abassi Moez , Chaari Abdelkader , Boussak Mohamed
Published: January 2018

In this paper, a new technique to improve initial rotor position detection at standstill of a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) is presented. Sensorless field-oriented control (FOC) of a PMSM at low speed remains a difficult task. In order to estimate the position and rotor speed, we proposed a novel structure of a full-order sliding mode observer (FO-SMO) in a sensorless FOC. At standstill, we used a voltage pulse sequence applied to the windings in order to detect the initial rotor position. With this technique, we managed to minimize the error on the estimated rotor position to 3.75° (electrical) compared with others. The validity of the proposed approach with a 1.1-kW low-speed PMSM sensorless FOC has been proved by experimental results.
The Political Import of Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations
Authors: Gakis Dimitris
Published: January 2018

The present article aims at investigating the political aspects of Wittgenstein’s later philosophy, focusing mainly on the Philosophical Investigations. This theme remains rather marginal within Wittgensteinian scholarship, facing the key challenge of the sparsity of explicit discussions of political issues in Wittgenstein’s writings. Based on the broader anthropological and synecdochic character of Wittgenstein’s later philosophy, the main objective of the article is to make explicit the implicit political import of some of the main themes of the Philosophical Investigations. This is done by correlating them with certain political concepts and issues, such as reification, mystification, emancipation, self-institution and the common(s). In such a way, a new light is shed on Wittgenstein’s influence on and his relevance to contemporary political theory, while at the same time the first steps are taken for the enrichment of the discussion regarding personal and social autonomy and the critique of late capitalism with a distinctive Wittgensteinian direction.
Correlation of Inflammatory Markers, Survival, and COX2 Expression in Oral Cancer and Implications for Prognosis
Authors: Sano Yoshie , Kogashiwa Yasunao , Araki Ryuichiro , Enoki Yuichiro , Ikeda Tetsuya , Yoda Tetsuya , Nakahira Mitsuhiko , Sugasawa Masashi
Published: January 2018

Objective

Peripheral blood–derived inflammation‐based scores, such as the neutrophil‐lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet‐lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and the combination of platelet count and NLR, have recently been proposed as prognostic markers in solid tumors. The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity of inflammatory markers as predictive prognostic factors for locally advanced oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). In addition, we evaluated the potential correlation between systemic inflammation and local expression of COX2.

Study Design

Retrospective chart review and histologic analysis.

Setting

Tertiary referral academic center.

Subjects and Methods

We conducted a retrospective analysis of 94 patients with advanced OSCC treated with surgery at our hospital between 2007 and 2015. The relationship among patient survival, systemic inflammatory markers, and local COX2 expression was evaluated. Local COX2 expression in surgical specimens was measured by immunohistochemistry.

Results

High NLR and high PLR were associated with significantly shorter overall survival and cancer‐specific survival. Multivariate analysis revealed that cN stage, NLR, and postoperative radiation/chemoradiation were significantly associated with overall survival and cancer‐specific survival. PLR and combination of platelet count and NLR were significantly correlated with tumor expression of COX2. Finally, patients with cN2 stage disease and high local COX2 expression had a significantly worse prognosis than other patient groups.

Conclusion

Pretreatment inflammatory markers are useful as prognostic factors in advanced OSCC. Our study suggests that local COX2 may be affected by systemic inflammation and that the prognostic impact of COX2 expression depends on host factors and tumor characteristics.