bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ethnic differences in childhood right and left cardiac structure and function assessed by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging
Authors: van Genuchten Wouter J. , Toemen Liza , Roest Arno A. W. , Vernooij Meike W. , Gaillard Romy , Helbing Willem A. , Jaddoe Vincent W. V.
Published: November 2020

Ethnic differences in cardiovascular risk factors and disease are well-known and may originate in early-life. We examined the ethnic differences in cardiac structure and function in children using cardiac magnetic resonance imaging in a European migrant population, and whether any difference was explained by early life factors. We used a prospective population-based cohort study among 2317 children in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. We compared children from Dutch (73%), Cape Verdean (3.5%), Dutch Antillean (3.3%), Moroccan (6.1%), Surinamese-Creoles (3.9%), Surinamese-Hindustani (3.4%), and Turkish (6.4%) background. Main outcomes were cMRI-measured cardiac structures and function. Cardiac outcomes were standardized on body surface area. Cape Verdean, Surinamese-Hindustani, and Turkish children had smaller right ventricular end-diastolic volume and left ventricular end-diastolic volume relative to their body size than Dutch children (p < 0.05). These results were not fully explained by fetal and childhood factors. Right ventricular ejection fraction and left ventricular ejection fraction did not differ between ethnicities after adjustment for fetal and childhood factors.

Conclusion: Right ventricular end-diastolic volume and left ventricular end-diastolic volume differ between ethnic subgroups in childhood, without affecting ejection fraction. Follow-up studies are needed to investigate whether these differences lead to ethnic differences in cardiac disease in adulthood.

What is Known:• Ethnic differences in cardiovascular risk factors and disease are well-known and may originate in early-life.• The prevalence of cardiovascular disease differs between ethnic groups.What is New:• We examined ethnic differences in left and right cardiac structure and function in children using cMRI.• Right and left cardiac dimensions differ between ethnic groups in childhood and are only partly explained by fetal and childhood factors.
EAES Recommendations for Recovery Plan in Minimally Invasive Surgery Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors:   The EAES Group of Experts for Recovery Amid COVID-19 Pandemic, Arezzo Alberto , Francis Nader , Mintz Yoav , Adamina Michel , Antoniou Stavros A. , Bouvy Nicole , Copaescu Catalin , de Manzini Nicolò , Di Lorenzo Nicola , Morales-Conde Salvador , Müller-Stich Beat P. , Nickel Felix , Popa Dorin , Tait Diana , Thomas Cenydd , Nimmo Susan , Paraskevis Dimitrios , Pietrabissa Andrea
Published: November 2020

Background

COVID-19 pandemic presented an unexpected challenge for the surgical community in general and Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) specialists in particular. This document aims to summarize recent evidence and experts’ opinion and formulate recommendations to guide the surgical community on how to best organize the recovery plan for surgical activity across different sub-specialities after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

Recommendations were developed through a Delphi process for establishment of expert consensus. Domain topics were formulated and subsequently subdivided into questions pertinent to different surgical specialities following the COVID-19 crisis. Sixty-five experts from 24 countries, representing the entire EAES board, were invited. Fifty clinicians and six engineers accepted the invitation and drafted statements based on specific key questions. Anonymous voting on the statements was performed until consensus was achieved, defined by at least 70% agreement.

Results

A total of 92 consensus statements were formulated with regard to safe resumption of surgery across eight domains, addressing general surgery, upper GI, lower GI, bariatrics, endocrine, HPB, abdominal wall and technology/research. The statements addressed elective and emergency services across all subspecialties with specific attention to the role of MIS during the recovery plan. Eighty-four of the statements were approved during the first round of Delphi voting (91.3%) and another 8 during the following round after substantial modification, resulting in a 100% consensus.

Conclusion

The recommendations formulated by the EAES board establish a framework for resumption of surgery following COVID-19 pandemic with particular focus on the role of MIS across surgical specialities. The statements have the potential for wide application in the clinical setting, education activities and research work across different healthcare systems.
Joint Model of Probabilistic-Robust (Probust) Constraints Applied to Gas Network Optimization
Authors: Adelhütte Dennis , Aßmann Denis , Grandòn Tatiana Gonzàlez , Gugat Martin , Heitsch Holger , Henrion René , Liers Frauke , Nitsche Sabrina , Schultz Rüdiger , Stingl Michael , Wintergerst David
Published: November 2020

Optimization problems under uncertain conditions abound in many real-life applications. While solution approaches for probabilistic constraints are often developed in case the uncertainties can be assumed to follow a certain probability distribution, robust approaches are usually applied in case solutions are sought that are feasible for all realizations of uncertainties within some predefined uncertainty set. As many applications contain different types of uncertainties that require robust as well as probabilistic treatments, we deal with a class of joint probabilistic/robust constraints. Focusing on complex uncertain gas network optimization problems, we show the relevance of this class of problems for the task of maximizing free booked capacities in an algebraic model for a stationary gas network. We furthermore present approaches for finding their solution. Finally, we study the problem of controlling a transient system that is governed by the wave equation. The task consists in determining controls such that a certain robustness measure remains below some given upper bound with high probability.
Performance evaluation for the outsourcing of military base management services in the Republic of Korea using SERVQUAL and IPA
Authors: Kim Jinho , Lee Seongyoon , Lee Jaiill , Kang Seokjung
Published: November 2020

This study was conducted to evaluate the performance of a contracting-out project for military base management in response to recent defense reforms in the Republic of Korea that require military forces to concentrate on operations and combat missions. In this study, the service quality perspective via SERVQUAL was applied to the ROK defense sector for the first time, with the soldiers viewed as customers receiving a service. In addition, to improve the effectiveness of the contracted services, the importance-performance analysis framework was employed to identify the tasks that required urgent attention. We conducted a large-scale survey of 2,112 uniformed members within pilot project units. To avoid problems such as insincere responses or low response rates, we held interviews with the officers managing the units on the subject of the importance and purpose of the questionnaire. As a result, it was found that the outsourcing of cleaning services was the most successful initiative, while mowing/landscaping had the most urgent tasks for improvement, with some respondents believing that reliability and assurance should be improved.
Correction to: The Psychobiology of Hunger – A Scientific Perspective
Authors: Beaulieu Kristine , Blundell John
Published: November 2020

In the original article, the section heading was incorrectly published. The heading of Section 8 should read as “Nomothetic and Idiographic Principles” rather than “Omothetic and Idiographic Principles”.
Wear Prediction in Oscillating Cold Forging Processes
Authors: Groche Peter , Schmidt Wilhelm
Published: November 2020

Oscillating forming processes allow forming with reduced process forces when liquid lubricants are used. They are industrially applied as oscillating cold forging processes for the production of splines. Previous investigations revealed that the force reduction is provoked by relubrication of the workpiece—tool contact zone. So far, the effect of the oscillation on tool wear remains unknown. The results presented in this paper show that the wear critical region of the tool is the calibration zone. Tool wear is emulated on a test bench under loads of representative cold forging processes. The results disclose several relevant phenomena. Friction conditions can vary considerably in the course of the oscillations. Wear protection layers are effective measures to prolong tool life also under these conditions. Prediction of wear development based on established models fails due to neglecting the local state of lubrication.

Graphical Abstract
Schule als Kontext für die Entstehung von supranationaler politischer Unterstützung bei 14-Jährigen in Europa
Authors: Hahn-Laudenberg Katrin , Abs Hermann Josef
Published: November 2020

Der Beitrag nutzt die Theorie der politischen Unterstützung aus der politischen Kulturforschung zur Analyse von Daten derInternational Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS 2016)aus 14 europäischen Bildungssystemen (N = 46.500 14-jährige Schüler*innen). Er analysiert, inwiefern schulische Kontexte (Lerngelegenheiten zu Europa, Sozialbeziehungen zwischen Lehrer*innen und Schüler*innen und bereits erworbenes allgemeines politisches Wissen) politische Unterstützung gegenüber der EU auf Seiten der Schüler*innen wahrscheinlicher werden lassen. Dabei werden Einstellungen zur Supranationalität, Vertrauen in politische Institutionen und die Bewertung der Performanz der EU differenziert. Es zeigen sich systematisch variierende Effekte für das nationale und überstaatliche institutionelle Vertrauen in Abhängigkeit vom politischen Wissen und der Korruptionsfreiheit im jeweiligen EU-Mitgliedsstaat. In vertiefenden Analysen für NRW (N = 1451 Schüler*innen) erweist sich der schulische Kontext als bedeutsam für Vertrauen und Akzeptanz von Supranationalität. Politisches Wissen führt dabei nicht zu einer generell positiveren Bewertung der Performanz der EU.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Versus Usual Care Before Bariatric Surgery: One-Year Follow-Up Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Paul Linda , van der Heiden Colin , van Hoeken Daphne , Deen Mathijs , Vlijm Ashley , Klaassen René A. , Biter L. Ulas , Hoek Hans W.
Published: November 2020

Background

Although early results of bariatric surgery are beneficial for most patients, some patients regain weight later. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been suggested as a way to improve patients’ psychological health and maintaining weight loss in the longer term. The added value of preoperative CBT to bariatric surgery was examined. Pre- and posttreatment and 1-year follow-up data are presented.

Methods

In a multi-center randomized controlled trial, CBT was compared to a treatment-as-usual (TAU) control group. Measurements were conducted pre- and posttreatment/pre-surgery (T0 and T1) and at 1-year post-surgery (T2). Patients in the intervention group received 10 individual, weekly sessions of preoperative CBT focused on modifying thoughts and behaviors regarding eating behavior, physical exercise, and postoperative life style. Outcome measures included weight change, eating behavior, eating disorders, depression, quality of life, and overall psychological health.

Results

Though no significant differences between conditions were found per time point, in the CBT, condition scores on external eating, emotional eating, depressive symptoms, and psychological distress decreased significantly more over time between pre- (T0) and posttreatment (T1) pre-surgery compared to TAU. No significant time x condition differences were found at 1-year post-surgery (T2).

Conclusions

Compared to TAU, preoperative CBT showed beneficial effects on eating behavior and psychological symptoms only from pretreatment to posttreatment/pre-surgery, but not from pre-surgery to 1-year post-surgery. Preoperative CBT does not seem to contribute to better long-term outcomes post-surgery. Recent studies suggest that the optimal time to initiate psychological treatment may be early in the postoperative period, before significant weight regain has occurred.

Trial Registration

https://www.trialregister.nlIdentifier: Trial NL3960.
Understanding the impact of moderate-intensity pulsed electric fields (MIPEF) on structural and functional characteristics of pea, rice and gluten concentrates
Authors: Melchior Sofia , Calligaris Sonia , Bisson Giulia , Manzocco Lara
Published: November 2020

Aim

The effect of moderate-intensity pulsed electric fields (MIPEF) was evaluated on vegetable protein concentrates from pea, rice, and gluten.

Methods

Five percent (w/w) suspensions of protein concentrates (pH 5 and 6) were exposed to up to 60,000 MIPEF pulses at 1.65 kV/cm. Both structural modifications (absorbance at 280 nm, free sulfhydryl groups, FT-IR-spectra) and functional properties (solubility, water and oil holding capacity, foamability) were analyzed.

Results

MIPEF was able to modify protein structure by inducing unfolding, intramolecular rearrangement, and formation of aggregates. However, these effects were strongly dependent on protein nature and pH. In the case of rice and pea samples, structural changes were associated with negligible modifications in functional properties. By contrast, noticeable changes in these properties were observed for gluten samples, especially after exposure to 20,000 pulses. In particular, at pH 6, an increase in water and oil holding capacity of gluten was detected, while at pH 5, its solubility almost doubled.

Conclusion

These results suggest the potential of MIPEF to steer structure of proteins and enhance their technological functionality.
A multivariate morphometric analysis of diagnostic traits in southern Italy and Sicily pubescent oaks
Authors: Di Pietro Romeo , Conte Antonio Luca , Di Marzio Piera , Gianguzzi Lorenzo , Spampinato Giovanni , Caldarella Orazio , Fortini Paola
Published: November 2020

Species identification within the species complex ofQ. pubescensis a well-known taxonomic challenge among European botanists. Some of the specific pubescent oak binomials currently accepted in various European floras and checklists were originally described in Sicily and southern Calabria. As a consequence, several species belonging to the pubescent oaks group (Q. pubescens,Q. amplifolia,Q. congesta,Q. dalechampii,Q. leptobalanaandQ. virgiliana) are reported in the taxonomic and phytosociological literature. To verify whether it was possible to associate a diverse set of morphological characters with each of these different taxa, thirteen natural populations of pubescent oak from Sicily and southern Calabria were sampled. A total of 391 trees, 3,887 leaves and 1,047 fruits were collected. Overall, 28 morphological characters of oak leaves and fruits were statistically analysed using univariate and multivariate procedures. The results showed that neither the groups of morphological diversity identified by cluster analysis, nor those obtained by our expert identification through the use of analytical keys, matched with the current taxonomical frameworks as proposed by the most recent floras and checklists. Nearly all of the morphological characters considered displayed a more or less continuous trend of variation, both within and among populations. In the light of these findings it seems unlikely that more than one biological species of pubescent oak occurs in Sicily and southern Calabria.
Reforming the individual income tax in Spain
Authors: Guner Nezih , López-Segovia Javier , Ramos Roberto
Published: November 2020

Can the Spanish government generate more tax revenue by making personal income taxes more progressive? To answer this question, we build a life-cycle economy with uninsurable labor productivity risk and endogenous labor supply. Individuals face progressive taxes on labor and capital incomes and proportional taxes that capture social security, corporate income, and consumption taxes. Our answer is yes, but not much. A reform that increases labor income taxes for individuals who earn more than the mean labor income and reduces taxes for those who earn less than the mean labor income generates a small additional revenue. The revenue from labor income taxes is maximized at an effective marginal tax rate of 51.6% (38.9%) for the richest 1% (5%) of individuals, versus 46.3% (34.7%) in the benchmark economy. The increase in revenue from labor income taxes is only 0.82%, while the total tax revenue declines by 1.55%. The higher progressivity is associated with lower aggregate labor supply and capital. As a result, the government collects higher taxes from a smaller economy. The total tax revenue is higher if marginal taxes are raised only for the top earners. The increase, however, must be substantial and cover a large segment of top earners. The rise in tax collection from a 3 percentage points increase on the top 1% is just 0.09%. A 10 percentage points increase on the top 10% of earners (those who earn more than €41,699) raises total tax revenue by 2.81%.
Algebraic analysis of the hypergeometric function $$\,{_1F_{\!\!\;1}}\,$$ of a matrix argument
Authors: Görlach Paul , Lehn Christian , Sattelberger Anna-Laura
Published: November 2020

In this article, we investigate Muirhead’s classical system of differential operators for the hypergeometric function $$\,{_1F_{\!\!\;1}}\,$$

1

F

1

of a matrix argument. We formulate a conjecture for the combinatorial structure of the characteristic variety of its Weyl closure which is both supported by computational evidence as well as theoretical considerations. In particular, we determine the singular locus of this system.
Beyond Growth Factors: Macrophage-Centric Strategies for Angiogenesis
Authors: Nolfi Alexis L. , Behun Marissa N. , Yates Cecelia C. , Brown Bryan N. , Kulkarni Mangesh
Published: November 2020

Functional angiogenesis is a critical therapeutic goal in many pathological conditions. Logically, the use of pro-angiogenic growth factors has been the mainstay approach despite obvious limitations and modest success. Recently, macrophages have been identified as key regulators of the host response to implanted materials. Particularly, our understanding of dynamically plastic macrophage phenotypes, their interactions with biomaterials, and varied roles in different stages of angiogenic processes is evolving rapidly. In this review, we discuss changing perspectives on therapeutic angiogenesis, in relation to implantable materials and macrophage-centric strategies therein. Harnessing the different mechanisms through which the macrophage-driven host response is involved in angiogenesis has great potential for improving clinical outcome.
Representations for complex numbers with integer digits
Authors: Surer Paul
Published: November 2020

We present the zeta-expansion as a complex version of the well-known beta-expansion. It allows us to expand complex numbers with respect to a complex base by using integer digits. Our concepts fits into the framework of the recently published rotational beta-expansions. But we also establish relations with piecewise affine maps of the torus and with shift radix systems.
Creating a 3D Model of the Existing Historical Topographic Object Based on Low-Level Aerial Imagery
Authors: Smaczyński Maciej , Horbiński Tymoteusz
Published: November 2020

The aim of the research was to create 3D cartographic visualization based on various sources and data types of an existing historical topographic object. The authors will present the stages of the research for the historical windmill located in Poland. The most recent surveying methods, such as GNSS method, low-level aerial photogrammetry and advanced IT tools, including computer software, will be applied for this purpose. The sequence of research procedures adopted by the authors of this article allowed for the creation of a 3D model of the tested windmill and its implementation into the Internet environment. This allowed to increase the cartographic range of spatial information. In addition, the research results allow for the extension of research in the field of history and can be the basis for their implementation.
Talking War: Representation, Veterans and Ideology in Post-War Parliamentary Debates
Authors: Mochtak Michal , Glaurdić Josip , Lesschaeve Christophe
Published: November 2020

How do politicians in post-war societies talk about the past war? How do they discursively represent vulnerable social groups created by the conflict? Does the nature of this representation depend on the politicians’ ideology or their record of combat service? We answer these questions by pairing natural language processing tools and a large corpus of parliamentary debates with an extensive data set of biographical information including detailed records of war service for all members of parliament during two recent terms in Croatia. We demonstrate not only that veteran politicians talk about war differently from their non-veteran counterparts, but also that the sentiment of war-related political discourse is highly dependent on the speaker's exposure to combat and ideological orientation. These results improve our understanding of the representational role played by combat veterans, as well as of the link between descriptive and substantive representation of vulnerable groups in post-war societies.
Exploring teachers’ competence in immediately intervening in school bullying: developing a valid intervening process
Authors: Sung Yu-Hsien , Valcke Martin , Chen Li-Ming
Published: November 2020

This study aimed to explore the constructs related to teachers’ competence in immediately intervening in school bullying (CIISB) in order to develop a valid intervention process. In this study, 16 secondary school teachers in Taiwan with experience of dealing with school bullying were interviewed. In total, 26 interview transcripts were analysed. The results highlight two key constructs that are central to CIISB. The first is structuring prompt management of school bullying. This involves three phases: identifying the incident, stabilising the incident, and clarifying incidents as well as implementing incidental and intentional learning. The second construct is setting the appropriate atmosphere. This refers to teachers’ capacity to build a positive relationship with students by maintaining a calm, serious and fair attitude, and creating a positive atmosphere to implement an immediate intervention. The results suggest that teachers should master the above constructs of CIISB, thereby providing a suitable immediate intervention when school bullying occurs.
Self-esteem and perceived social competence protect adolescent students against ostracism and loneliness
Authors: Sakız Halis , Mert Abdullah , Sarıçam Hakan
Published: November 2020

The purpose of this research was to examine the associations between self-esteem, perceived social competence, ostracism and loneliness among adolescent students. For the investigation of self-esteem and perceived social competence as key developmental constructs concerning negative experiences such as ostracism and loneliness, it is important to understand the experiences that may inhibit individual development in adolescence. Participants were 542 presecondary and secondary school students who completed the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, the Perceived Social Competence Scale, the Ostracism Experience Scale for Adolescents, and the Loneliness Scale for Children. The data were analysed with Pearson moments correlation analysis and multiple regression analysis. Findings showed that: (1) self-esteem, perceived social competence, ostracism and loneliness were related to each other; (2) self-esteem and perceived social competence were negatively related to ostracism and loneliness; (3) ostracism had a positive relationship with loneliness and a negative impact on self-esteem; and (4) an increase in the level of perceived social competence predicted a decrease in the levels of ostracism and loneliness. The results were discussed in the light of relevant literature.
Aldegondabreen glacier change since 1910 from structure-from-motion photogrammetry of archived terrestrial and aerial photographs: utility of a historic archive to obtain century-scale Svalbard glacier mass losses
Authors: Holmlund Erik Schytt
Published: November 2020

Photogrammetric reconstructions of the Aldegondabreen glacier on Svalbard from 17 archival terrestrial oblique photographs taken in 1910 and 1911 reveal a past volume of 1373.7 ± 78.2 · 106 m3; almost five times greater than its volume in 2016. Comparisons to elevation data obtained from aerial and satellite imagery indicate a relatively unchanging volume loss rate of − 10.1 ± 1.6 · 106 m3 a−1 over the entire study period, while the rate of elevation change is increasing. At this rate of volume loss, the glacier may be almost non-existent within 30 years. If the changes of Aldegondabreen are regionally representative, it suggests that there was considerable ice loss over the entire 1900s for the low elevation glaciers of western Svalbard. The 1910/11 reconstruction was made from a few of the tens of thousands of archival terrestrial photographs from the early 1900s that cover most of Svalbard. Further analysis of this material would give insight into the recent history and future prospects of the archipelago's glaciers. Photogrammetric reconstructions of this kind of material require extensive manual processing to produce good results; for more extensive use of these archival imagery, a better processing workflow would be required.
Free Expression and Judicial Power in Colombia, India, and South Africa
Authors: Botero Sandra , Ellett Rachel , Keck Thomas M. , Stohler Stephan
Published: November 2020

The growth of judicial power globally has renewed scholarly debates about who benefits from increased judicial authority. Using original data, we examine the full universe of constitutional free expression decisions issued by three apex courts—in Colombia, India, and South Africa—across three categories of disputes that feature a diverse array of rights claimants. By so doing, we shed light on the limits of elite-driven accounts of judicial empowerment. We find that even where constitutional courts are empowered by elites seeking to advance their own interests, activist courts can develop a practice of rights-protection that benefits a diverse range of less powerful actors. Moreover, regardless of whether the speech claimants are elite or non-elite actors, these three apex courts regularly rule in favor of free expression for dissenting or unorthodox speech acts. In sum, where issues are peripheral to the governing regime’s core interests, relatively powerless actors are sometimes able to use legal processes to advance their rights and interests.
Population Registration in Germany, 1842–1945: Information, Administrative Power, and State-Making in the Age of Paper
Authors: Frohman Lawrence
Published: November 2020

Population registration has figured only peripherally in histories of state formation in modern Europe. Although the registries never fully shed their original security function, the emergence of the interventionist state transformed the personal data or information collected by the registries into a central element of state administrative power. However, the ways in which this information could be used by both the civilian administration and the police to govern individuals and populations were limited by the use of paper as a means of data storage and transmission and by the information processing technologies available at the time. Rather than viewing the population registries and, later, the National Registry (Volkskartei) primarily as instruments of the Holocaust, this article embeds them in a longer, alternative history, which explores the relationship between population registration, information, information processing, and state formation between the mid-nineteenth and the mid-twentieth century.
Imperial Currencies after the Fall of Empires: The Conversion of the German Paper Mark and the Austro-Hungarian Crown at the End of the First World War
Authors: Rigó Máté
Published: November 2020

Following the 1918 collapse of the two major empires that ruled central Europe, Austria-Hungary and Germany, successor states inherited billions of increasingly depreciating paper monies. The conversion of imperial currencies posed enormous difficulties for successor states and exposed the limits of an emerging international order that rendered the pan-European predicament of defunct imperial currencies the problem of individual states. This article compares the first, and one of the last, conversions of imperial currencies, taking monetary transitions in Alsace-Lorraine (1918) and Transylvania (1920) as case studies. Although historians usually treat western and east-central European history separately, the conversion of imperial currencies produced similar outcomes in both the former Alsace-Lorraine and Transylvania. Differences emerge where one would not expect them: the phasing out of the paper mark was coupled with systematic ethnic discrimination against Germans in Alsace and Lorraine, while in Transylvania, some ethnic minorities even managed to benefit from the process.
Assessing effects of tannin-rich sainfoin supplements for grazing dairy goats on feed protein efficiency
Authors: Leiber Florian , Arnold Nadine , Heckendorn Felix , Werne Steffen
Published: November 2020

This research communication presents a study evaluating the effects of dried sainfoin (Onobrychis viciifolia) supplemented to dairy goats on their milking performance and feed protein efficiency under commercial conditions. During July and August 2015, a herd of 20 Alpine goats was divided into two treatments (n = 10), balanced by milk yield and days in milk. They were supplied with either 700 g/d sainfoin pellets (condensed tannins: 4.0 g/kg DM) or 700 g/d lucerne (Medicago sativa) pellets (condensed tannins: 0.3 g/kg DM). The goats remained in one herd and were separated by treatments only during milking. In the milking parlour each goat received 350 g of the respective pellets, twice daily. During the day, the herd had 5 h access to a high-quality pasture (crude protein >200 g/kg DM), whilst during the rest of the day and the night animals were housed and offered grass hay ad libitum. The experiment lasted for seven weeks. Individual milk yields and composition were controlled in weeks 1, 3, 5, and 7 after the start of the experiment. No differences between the treatments were found, either for milk, protein or urea yields, nor for protein, urea and fat concentrations. Urea to protein ratio in milk was lower with the sainfoin treatment. In conclusion, sainfoin compared to lucerne, supplied for 7 weeks to dairy goats at approximately 25% of the diet, had only weak beneficial and no adverse effects on milking performance, milk composition and feed protein efficiency under commercial conditions of pasture-based dairy production.
Expertise, experience, and excellence. Twenty years of patient involvement in health technology assessment at NICE: an evolving story
Authors: Norburn Laura , Thomas Lizzie
Published: November 2020

From its inception in 1999, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) committed to including the expertise, experiences, and perspectives of lay people, patients and carers, and patient organizations in its health technology assessments (HTAs). This is our story of patient involvement in HTA: from early methods designed for use when assessing medicines, widening to address the different requirements of HTAs for interventional procedures, medical technologies, and diagnostic technologies. We also chart the evolution and development of all our patient involvement methods over the past 20 years through regular evaluation and by responding to external challenge. However, we know that processes and methods alone are not enough. Through case studies we demonstrate the value of patient involvement in HTA and highlight the unique perspectives and experiences that patients bring to HTA committees. Finally, we discuss the underpinning principles and commitments that have made NICE a world leader in delivering meaningful and legitimate patient involvement.
Socioeconomic profiles of timber consumers in the buffer zones of Bu Gia Map National Park, Vietnam
Authors: Nguyen Toai , Lawler Susan , Paul Warren
Published: November 2020

People who live on the edges of protected areas may harvest timber to make their living from this natural forest product. Therefore, understanding timber consumption at the household level is critical for developing effective conservation policies. Previous studies have highlighted relationships between the consumption of forest products and socioeconomic status, but they have failed to examine timber consumption under cultural contexts. In this study, we interviewed 121 villagers to examine the socioeconomic profiles of timber consumers with regards to their indigenous culture in the buffer zones of Vietnam’s Bu Gia Map National Park. We found that indigenous identity, landownership, number of crops grown by villagers and proximity to markets are statistically significant for explaining the consumption of timber from natural forests. Given the high likelihood that most of this timber was collected illegally, we make several recommendations for forest managers on how to interact with villagers to improve park protection.
Regulatory foundations of financialisation: May Day, Big Bang and international banking, 1975–1990
Authors: Schenk Catherine R.
Published: November 2020

From the 1970s to the 1990s there was a revolution in international financial markets, which combined the processes of financialisation and globalisation. Deregulation and financial innovation were the two underlying forces that facilitated this transformation. At the same time, distinctive national characteristics of banking structures and cultures influenced the way that financial globalisation affected the geographic distribution of financial activity. This article addresses these seismic shifts through three perspectives: changes in regulation and the geographic pattern of international banking activity, reform of the main stock markets in New York and London and the rise of financial conglomerates. It identifies complementarity as well as competition among international financial centres.
The effect of oral triiodothyronine supplementation on lactate and pyruvate after paediatric cardiac surgery
Authors: Marwali Eva M. , Caesa Putri , Rayhan Muhammad , Roebiono Poppy S. , Fakhri Dicky , Haas Nikolaus A. , Kajimoto Masaki , Portman Michael A.
Published: November 2020

Objective:

To determine if triiodothyronine alters lactate, glucose, and pyruvate metabolism, and if serum pyruvate concentration could serve as a predictor of low cardiac output syndrome in children after cardiopulmonary bypass procedures.

Methods:

This study was ancillary to the Oral Triiodothyronine for Infants and Children undergoing Cardiopulmonary bypass (OTICC) trial. Serum pyruvate was measured in the first 48 patients and lactate and glucose were measured in all 208 patients enrolled in the OTICC study on the induction of anaesthesia, 1 and 24 hours post-aortic cross-clamp removal. Patients were also defined as having low cardiac output syndrome according to the OTICC trial protocol.

Result:

Amongst the designated patient population for pyruvate analysis, 22 received placebo, and 26 received triiodothyronine (T3). Lactate concentrations were nearly 20 times greater than pyruvate. Lactate and pyruvate levels were not significantly different between T3 and placebo group. Glucose levels were significantly higher in the placebo group mainly at 24-hour post-cross-clamp removal. Additionally, lactate and glucose levels peaked at 1-hour post-cross-clamp removal in low cardiac output syndrome and non-low cardiac output syndrome patients, but subsequently decreased at a slower rate in low cardiac output syndrome. Lactate and pyruvate concentrations correlated with glucose only prior to surgery.

Conclusion:

Thyroid supplementation does not alter systemic lactate/pyruvate metabolism after cardiopulmonary bypass and reperfusion. Pyruvate levels are not useful for predicting low cardiac output syndrome. Increased blood glucose may be regarded as a response to hypermetabolic stress, seen mostly in patients with low cardiac output syndrome.
From the Margins to the Center: A Bottom-Up Approach to Welfare State Scholarship
Authors: Michener Jamila , SoRelle Mallory , Thurston Chloe
Published: November 2020

In this article we reassess conceptions of the welfare state with an eye towards the limits of current scholarly approaches. In particular, we propose centering the study of the welfare state around those who occupy the margins of American society. We argue that concentrating on populations at the proverbial “bottom” of standard economic and political hierarchies productively reorients research on social policy and politics by bringing crucial but often overlooked facets of the welfare state into sharper view. Specifically, the bottom-up approach we offer here entreats political scientists to re-considerwherethey look in their efforts to delineate the welfare state,howto examine what they find, andwhatkinds of questions to ask in the process. Ultimately, studying the welfare state from the bottom up suggests a host of new directions for scholars seeking to understand its politics.
MUSLIM AMERICAN DOUBLE CONSCIOUSNESS
Authors: Islam Inaash
Published: November 2020

This article engages in a theoretical discussion and application of Du Boisian double consciousness to understand the formation of the Muslim American self. Du Boisian double consciousness, and its three elements (the Veil, Twoness, and Second Sight) are used to understand phenomenological processes of Muslim American self-formation as being situated within and conditioned by structural contexts of racialization. By drawing on critical scholarship that highlights the operation of the Muslim racial project in contemporary U.S. contexts, I show how double consciousness emerges through the Othering of Muslim Americans at the macro, meso, and micro levels of society, which then defines them as outside of the U.S. national imaginary, and denies them their equal civic status as citizens of the state. By utilizing double consciousness to understand the Muslim American self as it is embedded in racialized U.S. contexts, this article fills a crucial gap in the literature by theoretically expanding on racialized processes of Muslim American identity formation in the racialized contexts of the United States.
Will prenatal exposure to SARS-CoV-2 define a birth cohort with accelerated aging in the century ahead?
Authors: Easterlin Molly Crimmins , Crimmins Eileen M. , Finch Caleb E.
Published: November 2020

The 1918 Influenza pandemic had long-term impacts on the cohort exposed in utero which experienced earlier adult mortality, and more diabetes, ischemic heart disease, and depression after age 50. It is possible that the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic will also have long-term impacts on the cohort that was in utero during the pandemic, from exposure to maternal infection and/or the stress of the pandemic environment. We discuss how COVID-19 disease during pregnancy may affect fetal and postnatal development with adverse impacts on health and aging. Severe maternal infections are associated with an exaggerated inflammatory response, thromboembolic events, and placental vascular malperfusion. We also discuss how in utero exposure to the stress of the pandemic, without maternal infection, may impact health and aging. Several recently initiated birth cohort studies are tracking neonatal health following in utero severe acute respiratory syndrome virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) exposure. We suggest these cohort studies develop plans for longer-term observations of physical, behavioral, and cognitive functions that are markers for accelerated aging, as well as methods to disentangle the effects of maternal infection from stresses of the pandemic environment. In utero exposure to COVID-19 disease could cause developmental difficulties and accelerated aging in the century ahead. This brief review summarizes elements of the developmental origins of health, disease, and ageing and discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic might exacerbate such effects. We conclude with a call for research on the long-term consequences of in utero exposure to maternal infection with COVID-19 and stresses of the pandemic environment.
A Ternary Mixing Model Approach Using Benthic Foraminifer δ13C‐δ18O Data to Reconstruct Late Pliocene Deep Atlantic Water Mass Mixing
Authors: van der Weijst Carolien M. H. , Winkelhorst Josse , Lourens Lucas , Raymo Maureen E. , Sangiorgi Francesca , Sluijs Appy
Published: November 2020

Late Pliocene deep Atlantic δ13C data have been interpreted as evidence for enhanced Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) compared to the present, but this hypothesis is not supported by the Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project (PlioMIP). Here, we adopt a new approach to assess variability in deep ocean circulation based on paired stable carbon (δ13C) and oxygen isotopes (δ18O) of benthic foraminifera, both (semi)conservative water mass tracers. Assuming that deep Atlantic benthic δ13C‐δ18O variability is predominantly driven by mixing, we extrapolate the δ13C‐δ18O data outside the sampled range to identify the end‐members. At least three end‐members are needed to explain the spatial δ13C‐δ18O variability in the deep North Atlantic Ocean: two Northern Component Water (NCW) and one Southern Component Water (SCW) water masses. We use a ternary mixing model to quantify the mixing proportions between SCW and NCW in the deep Atlantic Ocean. Our analysis includes new data from Ocean Drilling Program Sites 959 and 662 in the eastern equatorial Atlantic and suggests that the AMOC cell was deeper during the M2 glacial than during late Pliocene interglacials. Moreover, we identify a new cold and well‐ventilated water mass that was geographically restricted to the southeast Atlantic Ocean between 3.6 and 2.7 Ma and did not contribute significantly to the δ13C‐δ18O variability of the rest of the basin. This high‐δ13C high‐δ18O water mass has led to the misconception of a reduced latitudinal δ13C gradient. Our analyses show that the late Pliocene δ13C gradient between NCW and SCW was similar to the present‐day value of 1.1‰.
Advancing Knowledge of ENSO in a Changing Climate
Authors: McPhaden Michael , Santoso Agus , Cai Wenju
Published: November 2020

A new book highlights research progress on El Ni�o Southern Oscillation dynamics and impacts and how they may change in a warmer world.
An Analysis of Abandoned Oil Well Characteristics Affecting Methane Emissions Estimates in the Cherokee Platform in Eastern Oklahoma
Authors: Saint‐Vincent Patricia M. B. , Reeder Matthew D. , Sams James I. , Pekney Natalie J.
Published: November 2020

Anthropogenic activities increase methane emissions, contributing to greenhouse gas levels and adversely affecting the environment. Abandoned oil and gas wells potentially leak methane, but data are limited. We analyze methane emissions from abandoned wells (n = 179) in the Cherokee Platform in Oklahoma, a previously unaccounted basin, and compare emissions factors (EFs) to those in the Greenhouse Gas Inventory. We compare the contribution of various characteristics to the propensity for leakage. Higher emissions were observed with shallower wells and with unplugged wells. Plugged wells (n = 20) had an average EF of 96 ± 429 g/day and 65 ± 294 g/day for unplugged wells (n = 159). The majority of wells had no detectable leak. We calculated ethane EFs based on geochemical analysis of gas samples, finding higher EFs for unplugged (1.2 ± 5.5 g/day) versus plugged (0.9 ± 4.6 g/day) wells. The data indicate that in addition to the location of abandoned wells, physical characteristics are necessary to consider in estimating methane emissions.
Dominant Process for Northward Propagation of Boreal Summer Intraseasonal Oscillation Over the Western North Pacific
Authors: Yang Young‐Min , Lee June‐Yi , Wang Bin
Published: November 2020

Northward propagation of boreal summer intraseasonal oscillation (BSISO) over the Western North Pacific (WNP) has significant impacts on extreme events over Asia and Europe. Here we test hypotheses that northward propagation mechanisms over the WNP may differ from those over the Indian Ocean (IO) by performing numerical experiments with changing mean states through lowering the Tibetan Plateau (TP). Our results suggest that air‐sea interaction plays a dominant role in the propagation over the WNP, whereas the mean vertical wind shear mechanism is the major driver over the IO. Lowering TP significantly reduces sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies to the north of BSISO center due to the enhanced surface wind and latent heat flux anomalies. This air‐sea interaction reduces upward transport of heat and moisture from surface to lower troposphere, weakening the northward propagation over the WNP. This study implies changes in SST patterns under global warming may influence BSISO propagation.
Nutrient Distribution in East Antarctic Summer Sea Ice: A Potential Iron Contribution From Glacial Basal Melt
Authors: Duprat L. , Corkill M. , Genovese C. , Townsend A. T. , Moreau S. , Meiners K. M. , Lannuzel D.
Published: November 2020

Antarctic sea ice can incorporate high levels of iron (Fe) during its formation and has been suggested as an important source of this essential micronutrient to Southern Ocean surface waters during the melt season. Over the last decade, a limited number of studies have quantified the Fe pool in Antarctic sea ice, with a focus on late winter and spring. Here we study the distribution of operationally defined dissolved and particulate Fe from nine sites sampled between Wilkes Land and King George V Land during austral summer 2016/2017. Results point toward a net heterotrophic sea‐ice community, consistent with the observed nitrate limitation (<1 μM). We postulate that the recycling of the high particulate Fe pool in summer sea ice supplies sufficient (∼3 nM) levels of dissolved Fe to sustain ice algal growth. The remineralization of particulate Fe is likely favored by high concentrations of exopolysaccharides (113–16,290 μg xeq L−1) which can serve as a hotspot for bacterial activity. Finally, results indicate a potential relationship between glacial meltwater discharged from the Moscow University Ice Shelf and the occurrence of Fe‐rich (∼4.3 μM) platelet ice in its vicinity. As climate change is expected to result in enhanced Fe‐rich glacial discharge and changes in summer sea‐ice extent and quality, the processes influencing Fe distribution in sea ice that persists into summer need to be better constrained.