bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Three‐Dimensional Metal‐Organic Polymer of Multivalent Hexaphenylbenzene
Authors: Madhu Suresh , Gonnade Rajesh G. , Sanjayan Gangadhar J.
Published: December 2018

Metal‐Organic Frameworks(MOFs) synthesized from ligands more than ten co‐ordinating sites may offer material applications due to their structural architecture. Herein, a synthesis of metal‐organic framework is reported from a ligand featuring 12‐aryl carboxylic acid groups appended on a hexaphenylbenzene and s‐block element potassium. The synthesized MOF was characterized by thermogravimetric analysis, infrared spectroscopy and X‐diffraction studies. The X‐ray crystal structure of MOF was shown to have a significant number of trapped and coordinated water molecules in its three‐dimensional framework.
Asymmetric Addition of Propargylic Silanes to Aldehydes Catalyzed by Chiral Phosphine‐Silver Alkoxide Complex
Authors: Yanagisawa Akira , Bamba Kentaro , Kawada Aiko
Published: December 2018

A catalytic asymmetric addition of propargylic silanes to aldehydes was achieved using a DM‐BINAP⋅AgBF4 complex as the chiral pre‐catalyst and triethylamine as the base pre‐catalyst in the presence of potassium fluoride and methanol. Optically active homoallenylic alcohols and homopropargylic alcohols were obtained in moderate to high combined yields via the in situ generated chiral organosilver species. Allenylated alcohols were formed predominantly with up to 95% ee.
Tailorable and Flexible Conducting Films via Interfacial Modification of Polymer Fibers
Authors: Ding Baojun , Wei Siqi , Zhu Huichao , Tao Shengyang
Published: December 2018

Portable devices have become lightweight, flexible, and even stretchable such that skin‐like electronics are widely applicable, including in biomedical devices, soft robotics, and human/machine interfaces. Rendering these devices soft and flexible is highly desirable, as this would enable them to interact seamlessly with human skin and improve their wearing comfort. We demonstrate a convenient but effective method to fabricate flexible conducting films. These films consist of electrospun polyurethane (PU) fibers as the flexible substrate onto which copper was deposited. These Cu‐PU films have excellent conductivity, and their resistance only increases slightly after extensive folding, even when folded into a paper crane with a resistance of 1.8 Ω. Furthermore, Cu‐PU films can sense tension strength and exhibit stable Joule electrothermal performance. The Cu‐PU‐based heating glove could be heated to 40 °C in 30 s by applying 2 V. The simple but effective procedure presented here is suitable to fabricate flexible conducting film and may also promote the development of portable and flexible electronic products.
Single‐Particle Tracking Reveals the Sequential Entry Process of the Bunyavirus Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome Virus
Authors: Liu Jia , Xu Mingyue , Tang Bo , Hu Liangbo , Deng Fei , Wang Hualin , Pang Dai‐Wen , Hu Zhihong , Wang Manli , Zhou Yiwu
Published: December 2018

The Bunyavirales is one of the largest groups of RNA viruses, which encompasses many strains that are highly pathogenic to animals and humans. Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) is an emerging tick‐borne bunyavirus that causes severe disease in humans, with a high fatality rate of up to 30%. To date, the entry process of bunyavirus infection remains obscure. Here, using quantum dot (QD)‐based single‐particle tracking and multicolor imaging, the dynamic molecular process of SFTSV entry and penetration is systematically dissected. The results show that internalization of SFTSV into host cells is initiated by recruiting clathrin onto the cell membrane for the formation of clathrin‐coated pits and further pinching off from the plasma membrane to form discrete vesicles. These vesicular carriers further deliver virions to Rab5+ early endosomes, and then to Rab7+ late endosomes. The intracellular transport of virion‐carrying endocytic vesicles is dependent first on actin filaments at the cell periphery, and then on microtubules toward the cell interior. The final fusion events occur at ≈15–60 min post‐entry, and are triggered by the acidic environment at ≈pH5.6 within the late endosomes. These results reveal the multistep SFTSV entry process and the dynamic virus–host interactions involved.
Modeling Interactions between Liposomes and Hydrophobic Nanosheets
Authors: Li Zhen , Zhang Yonghui , Ma Jiale , Meng Qiangqiang , Fan Jun
Published: December 2018

2D nanomaterials could cause structural disruption and cytotoxic effects to cells, which greatly challenges their promising biomedical applications including biosensing, bioimaging, and drug delivery. Here, the physical and mechanical interaction between lipid liposomes and hydrophobic nanosheets is studied utilizing coarse‐grained (CG) molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The simulations reveal a variety of characteristic interaction morphologies that depend on the size and the orientation of nanosheets. Dynamic and thermodynamic analyses on the morphologic evolution provide insights into molecular motions such as “nanosheet rotation,” “lipid extraction,” “lipid flip‐flop,” and “lipid spreading.” Driven by these molecular motions, hydrophobic nanosheets cause morphologic changes of liposomes. The lipid bilayer structure can be corrugated, and the overall liposome sphere can be split or collapsed by large nanosheets. In addition, nanosheets embedded into lipid bilayers greatly weaken the fluidity of lipids, and this effect can be cumulatively enhanced as nanosheets continuously intrude. These results could facilitate molecular‐level understanding on the cytotoxicity of nanomaterials, and help future nanotoxicology studies associating computational modeling with experiments.
“Crime” on the Field
Authors: Kitchens Carl , Makofske Matthew Philip , Wang Le
Published: December 2018

Does a greater police presence cause crime rates to decrease? To answer this question, we circumvent common simultaneity and reverse causality issues by exploiting an experiment from college football. In 2013, the Big XII added an eighth referee to conference games only. Unique features of this experiment allow us to identify the causal effects of increased “police force” (officiating crew) size on observed “crime” (penalty) rates, and to distinguish between alternative mechanisms behind those effects. Overall, we find that the increased police presence causes an increase in the observed crime rate. This increase is largest in teams' first treated games, suggesting a substantial detection effect. However, the penalty rate decreases sharply in teams' second treated games, suggesting a large general deterrent effect. Under mild assumptions, results suggest that the general deterrent effect is partly due to players learning to avoid detection, but that the learning process involves errors over time.
World War Two and Nazi Forays into the Killing of Civilians
Authors: Russell Nestar
Published: December 2018

Between 1939 and mid-1941, as Himmler and Heydrich debated where to send Jews and other conquered peoples, events of central importance to the Nazi’s subsequent attempt to exterminate European Jewry took place. That is, between these dates largely moderately antisemitic Germans started demonstrating an uncanny ability to kill fairly large numbers of defenseless civilians using what became by the war’s end the three most common killing methods: shooting (the Polish intelligentsia), starvation (of the Polish Jews), and gassing (those with disabilities). With the repeated failure of Himmler and Heydrich’s apparently more “realistic” policy of emigration, Russell argues that in light of the above killings, the SS leadership then envisioned potential in the radical and initially dismissed idea of exterminating the Jews. Furthermore, the up-and-coming invasion of the Soviet Union provided them with an excellent opportunity to test the feasibility of this new and radical solution.
Performance demonstration of the PEnELOPE main amplifier HEPA I using broadband nanosecond pulses
Authors: Albach D. , Loeser M. , Siebold M. , Schramm U.
Published: December 2018

We report on the energetic and beam quality performance of the second to the last main amplifier section HEPA I of the PEnELOPE laser project. A polarization coupled double-12-pass scheme to verify the full amplification capacity of the last two amplifiers HEPA I and II was used. The small signal gain for a narrow-band continuous wave laser was 900 and 527 for a broadband nanosecond pulse, demonstrating 12.6 J of output pulse energy. Those pulses, being spectrally wide enough to support equivalent 150 fs long ultrashort pulses, are shown with an excellent spatial beam quality. A first active correction of the wavefront using a deformable mirror resulted in a Strehl ratio of 76% in the single-12-pass configuration for HEPA I.
‘The Cat’s Paw’: Helen Arthur, the act of resumption andThe Popish pretenders to the forfeited estates in Ireland, 1700–03
Authors: Nolan Frances
Published: December 2018

This article examines the case of Helen Arthur, a Catholic and Jacobite Irish woman who travelled with her children to France following William III’s victory over James II in the War of the Two Kings (1689–91). It considers Helen’s circumstances and her representation inThe Popish pretenders to the forfeited estates in Ireland, a pamphlet published in London in 1702 as a criticism of the act of resumption. The act, introduced by the English parliament in 1700, voided the majority of William III’s grants to favourites and supporters. Its provisions offered many dispossessed, including the dependants of outlawed males, a chance to reclaim compromised or forfeited property by submitting a claim to a board of trustees in Dublin. Helen Arthur missed the initial deadline for submissions, but secured an extension to submit through a clause in a 1701 supply bill, a development that brought her to the attention of the anonymous author ofThe Popish pretenders. Charting Helen’s efforts to reclaim her jointure, her eldest son’s estate and her younger children’s portions, this article looks at the ways in which dispossessed Irish Catholics and/or Jacobites reacted to legislative developments. More specifically, it shines a light on the possibilities for female agency in a period of significant upheaval, demonstrating opportunities for participation and representation in the public sphere, both in London and in Dublin. It also considers the impact of the politicisation of religion upon understandings of women’s roles and experiences during the Williamite confiscation, and suggests that a synonymising of Catholicism with Jacobitism (and Protestantism with the Williamite cause) has significant repercussions for understandings of women’s activities during the period. It also examines contemporary attitudes to women’s activity, interrogating the casting of Helen as a ‘cat’s paw’ in a bigger political game, invariably played by men.
On the dispersion of a drug delivered intrathecally in the spinal canal
Authors: Lawrence J. J. , Coenen W. , Sánchez A. L. , Pawlak G. , Martínez-Bazán C. , Haughton V. , Lasheras J. C.
Published: December 2018

This paper investigates the transport of a solute carried by the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the spinal canal. The analysis is motivated by the need for a better understanding of drug dispersion in connection with intrathecal drug delivery (ITDD), a medical procedure used for treatment of some cancers, infections and pain, involving the delivery of the drug to the central nervous system by direct injection into the CSF via the lumbar route. The description accounts for the CSF motion in the spinal canal, described in our recent publication (Sánchez et al., J. Fluid Mech., vol. 841, 2018, pp. 203–227). The Eulerian velocity field includes an oscillatory component with angular frequency $\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}$, equal to that of the cardiac cycle, and associated tidal volumes that are a factor $\unicode[STIX]{x1D700}\ll 1$ smaller than the total CSF volume in the spinal canal, with the small velocity corrections resulting from convective acceleration providing a steady-streaming component with characteristic residence times of order $\unicode[STIX]{x1D700}^{-2}\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}^{-1}\gg \unicode[STIX]{x1D714}^{-1}$. An asymptotic analysis for $\unicode[STIX]{x1D700}\ll 1$ accounting for the two time scales $\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}^{-1}$ and $\unicode[STIX]{x1D700}^{-2}\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}^{-1}$ is used to investigate the prevailing drug-dispersion mechanisms and their dependence on the solute diffusivity, measured by the Schmidt number $S$. Convective transport driven by the time-averaged Lagrangian velocity, obtained as the sum of the Eulerian steady-streaming velocity and the Stokes-drift velocity associated with the non-uniform pulsating flow, is found to be important for all values of $S$. By way of contrast, shear-enhanced Taylor dispersion, which is important for values of $S$ of order unity, is shown to be negligibly small for the large values $S\sim \unicode[STIX]{x1D700}^{-2}\gg 1$ corresponding to the molecular diffusivities of all ITDD drugs. Results for a model geometry indicate that a simplified equation derived in the intermediate limit $1\ll S\ll \unicode[STIX]{x1D700}^{-2}$ provides sufficient accuracy under most conditions, and therefore could constitute an attractive reduced model for future quantitative analyses of drug dispersion in the spinal canal. The results can be used to quantify dependences of the drug-dispersion rate on the frequency and amplitude of the pulsation of the intracranial pressure, the compliance and specific geometry of the spinal canal and the molecular diffusivity of the drug.
Developing shared leadership in a public organisation: Processes, paradoxes and consequences
Authors: Zeier Katie , Plimmer Geoff , Franken Esme
Published: December 2018

Much organisational decision-making is embedded in hierarchical structures and leadership, even though hierarchies are limited in how they deal with increasingly complex issues. This paper explores links between identity formation, and the subsequent development of shared leadership. It explores how a programme to develop shared leadership changed a public science organisation, from one dependent on hierarchical leadership, to one that also used shared leadership to better address the complex public context. Using Day and Harrison’s levels of leadership identity framework, this study first examines the processes of a development programme at individual, relational, and collective levels. Results reveal cascading growth in leadership identities through processes such as job crafting and contagion. Despite the resulting positive processes, inherent paradoxes of power, goals, and attitude underlying shared leadership development are also identified. Within these paradoxes, tensions between vertical hierarchy versus dispersed networks, task performance versus job crafting, fatigue versus revitalisation, and cynicism versus evangelism were found.
Campanian and Maastrichtian hippuritid rudists (Hippuritida, Bivalvia) of the Chiapas Central Depression (southern Mexico) and implications for American multiple-fold hippuritid taxonomy
Authors: Pons Jose Maria , Vicens Enric , García-Barrera Pedro
Published: December 2018

Hippuritids, particularly those with multiple-folds, are one of the most characteristic components in uppermost Cretaceous rudist-bearing strata of the Caribbean Province. The hippuritid rudist fauna of the Chiapas Central Depression includes the following taxa:Vaccinites vermuntiMac Gillavry, 1937 andBarrettiacf.B. ruseaeChubb, 1967 from the early Campanian Suchiapa Formation;B. moniliferaWoodward, 1862,B. gigasChubb, 1955, andParastroma trechmanniChubb, 1967 from the mid Campanian Suchiapa Formation; andPraebarrettia sparcilirata(Whitfield, 1897) from the early Maastrichtian Ocozocoautla Formation. These six species are described herein in detail. New observations on the outer shell layer structure of the right valve and the pore-canal system of the left valve led to amending the diagnoses of the g|eneraBarrettiaWoodward, 1862,ParastromaDouvillé, 1926, andPraebarrettiaTrechmann, 1924. Also, the revision of Chiapas’ and other American species of multiple-fold hippuritids led to proposed changes in their generic adscription.
Validating Vocational Rehabilitation-Service-Related Stress Scale (VRSS) for Vocational Rehabilitation Service Providers in Japan
Authors: Ishihara Mahoro , Yaeda Jun , Fujikawa Mayu , Sunami Nobuko , Wakabayashi Isao , Ozawa Akihiko
Published: December 2018

The purpose of this study was to validate the Vocational Rehabilitation-Service-Related Stress Scale (VRSS) with a sample of 429 vocational rehabilitation (VR) service personnel in Japan. Exploratory factor analysis was employed to determine the structure of the VRSS, and confirmatory factor analysis showed that the four-factor model had a good model fit. The internal consistency reliability of the VRSS, as measured by Cronbach's alpha, was .90. Results indicated that the VRSS is a valid and reliable measure that can be used to examine occupational stress in VR personnel. Work-related stress and quality assurance issues that pertain to the delivery of VR services are discussed.
Coping Strategies of Disabled People in Residential Environments after Injury Events
Authors: Lundälv Jörgen
Published: December 2018

The study explored the lived experiences of people with injury events in their residential environment. Participants were 65 people with disabilities and chronic diseases in Sweden with residential living injuries (females = 40 (61.5%), men = 25 (38.5%), age range 20–90 year old). They completed qualitative interviews on their experiences of injury events in their residential environment. Thematic analysis of the data yielded evidence to suggest the following issues: (1) individual coping resource preferences; (2) support services; and (3) family engagement needs. Participants coped utilizing positive reframing of their living with injury and the incidents they experienced. Social support functions were important for safety in the housing environment. Rather disconcerting is the fact that participants would not always tell their social network about the risks and injuries they experienced.
A dish served cold: targeting revenge in revenge pornography
Authors: Dymock Alex , van der Westhuizen Charlotte
Published: December 2018

The introduction of s 33 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015, criminalising the disclosure of private sexual images, has been seen as a welcome step forward for curbing this abuse of privacy and the harmful effects it has on victims. However, while s 33 sidesteps any reference to ‘revenge pornography’, as the phenomenon has been termed in popular vernacular, little attention has been paid to the way in which narratives of revenge implicitly underpin and imbue the new offence, particularly its specific intent requirement. We argue this has serious implications for the treatment of s 33 offences in the courts and for sentencing. Drawing on cross-disciplinary conceptualisations of revenge, its recent criminal-legal history, and examples of media and parliamentary rhetoric, we claim that despite innumerable attempts to turn debate on disclosure of private sexual images towards consent, harm and privacy, there lurks within these discourses an assumption that the victim must have done something to deserve the treatment she received. Until the multiple harms of disclosure of private sexual images are recognised and explicit recommendations are made that scrutiny of victims’ behaviour should normally be inadmissible, we argue that the offence offers little in the way of redress.
A NOTE ON THE EQUIVALENCE OF THE PARITY OF CLASS NUMBERS AND THE SIGNATURE RANKS OF UNITS IN CYCLOTOMIC FIELDS
Authors: DUMMIT DAVID S.
Published: December 2018

We collect some statements regarding equivalence of the parities of various class numbers and signature ranks of units in prime power cyclotomic fields. We correct some misstatements in the literature regarding these parities by providing an example of a prime cyclotomic field where the signature rank of the units and the signature rank of the circular units are not equal.
On the boundary regularity of phase-fields for Willmore's energy
Authors: Dondl Patrick W. , Wojtowytsch Stephan
Published: December 2018

We demonstrate that Radon measures which arise as the limit of the Modica-Mortola measures associated with phase-fields with uniformly bounded diffuse area and Willmore energy may be singular at the boundary of a domain and discuss implications for practical applications. We furthermore give partial regularity results for the phase-fieldsuεat the boundary in terms of boundary conditions and counterexamples without boundary conditions.
Regularity of the extremal solutions associated with elliptic systems
Authors: Aghajani A. , Cowan C.
Published: December 2018

We examine the elliptic system given by$$\left\{ {\matrix{ {-\Delta u = \lambda f(v)} \hfill & {{\rm in }\,\,\Omega ,} \hfill \cr {-\Delta v = \gamma f(u)} \hfill & {{\rm in }\,\,\Omega ,} \hfill \cr {u = v = 0} \hfill & {{\rm on }\,\,\partial \Omega ,} \hfill \cr } } \right.$$where λ, γ are positive parameters, Ω is a smooth bounded domain in ℝNandfis aC2positive, nondecreasing and convex function in [0, ∞) such thatf(t)/t→ ∞ ast→ ∞. Assuming$$0 < \tau _-: = \mathop {\lim \inf }\limits_{t\to \infty } \displaystyle{{f(t){f}^{\prime \prime}(t)} \over {{f}^{\prime}{(t)}^2}} \les \tau _ + : = \mathop {\lim \sup }\limits_{t\to \infty } \displaystyle{{f(t){f}^{\prime \prime}(t)} \over {{f}^{\prime}{(t)}^2}} \les 2,$$we show that the extremal solution (u*,v*) associated with the above system is smooth provided thatN< (2α*(2 − τ+) + 2τ+)/(τ+)max{1, τ+}, where α*> 1 denotes the largest root of the second-order polynomial$$[P_{f}(\alpha,\tau_{-},\tau_{+}):=(2-\tau_{-})^{2} \alpha^{2}- 4(2-\tau_{+})\alpha+4(1-\tau_{+}).]$$As a consequence,u*,v* ∈L∞(Ω) forN< 5. Moreover, if τ−= τ+, thenu*,v* ∈L∞(Ω) forN< 10.
Multi-peak positive solutions to a class of Kirchhoff equations
Authors: Luo Peng , Peng Shuangjie , Wang Chunhua , Xiang Chang-Lin
Published: December 2018

In the present paper, we consider the nonlocal Kirchhoff problem

$$-\left(\epsilon^2a+\epsilon b\int_{{\open R}^{3}}\vert \nabla u \vert^{2}\right)\Delta u+V(x)u=u^{p}, \quad u \gt 0 \quad {\rm in} {\open R}^{3},$$
where a, b>0, 1
0 is a parameter. Under some mild assumptions on the function V, we obtain multi-peak solutions for ϵ sufficiently small by Lyapunov–Schmidt reduction method. Even though many results on single peak solutions to singularly perturbed Kirchhoff problems have been derived in the literature by various methods, there exist no results on multi-peak solutions before this paper, due to some difficulties caused by the nonlocal term $\left(\int_{{\open R}^{3}} \vert \nabla u \vert^{2}\right)\Delta u$. A remarkable new feature of this problem is that the corresponding unperturbed problem turns out to be a system of partial differential equations, but not a single Kirchhoff equation, which is quite different from most of the elliptic singular perturbation problems.
Remarks on quasi-Reinhardt domains
Authors: Li Fengbai , Rong Feng
Published: December 2018

We present some fundamental properties of quasi-Reinhardt domains, in connection with Kobayashi hyperbolicity, minimal domains and representative domains. We also study proper holomorphic correspondences between quasi-Reinhardt domains.
Morse index and symmetry for elliptic problems with nonlinear mixed boundary conditions
Authors: Damascelli Lucio , Pacella Filomena
Published: December 2018

We consider an elliptic problem of the type
$$\left\{ {\matrix{ {-\Delta u = f(x,u)\quad } \hfill & {{\rm in}\,\Omega } \hfill \cr {u = 0} \hfill & {{\rm on}\,\Gamma _1} \hfill \cr {\displaystyle{{\partial u} \over {\partial \nu }} = g(x,u)} \hfill & {{\rm on}\,\Gamma _2} \hfill \cr } } \right.$$ where Ω is a bounded Lipschitz domain in ℝN with a cylindrical symmetry, ν stands for the outer normal and $\partial \Omega = \overline {\Gamma _1} \cup \overline {\Gamma _2} $.

Under a Morse index condition, we prove cylindrical symmetry results for solutions of the above problem.

As an intermediate step, we relate the Morse index of a solution of the nonlinear problem to the eigenvalues of the following linear eigenvalue problem
$$\left\{ {\matrix{ {-\Delta w_j + c(x)w_j = \lambda _jw_j} \hfill & {{\rm in }\Omega } \hfill \cr {w_j = 0} \hfill & {{\rm on }\Gamma _1} \hfill \cr {\displaystyle{{\partial w_j} \over {\partial \nu }} + d(x)w_j = \lambda _jw_j} \hfill & {{\rm on }\Gamma _2} \hfill \cr } } \right.$$ For this one, we construct sequences of eigenvalues and provide variational characterization of them, following the usual approach for the Dirichlet case, but working in the product Hilbert space L2 (Ω) × L2(Γ2).
Existence of normalized solutions for nonlinear fractional Schrödinger equations with trapping potentials
Authors: Du Miao , Tian Lixin , Wang Jun , Zhang Fubao
Published: December 2018

In this paper, we study the existence, nonexistence and mass concentration of L2-normalized solutions for nonlinear fractional Schrödinger equations. Comparingwith the Schrödinger equation, we encounter some new challenges due to the nonlocal nature of the fractional Laplacian. We first prove that the optimal embedding constant for the fractional Gagliardo–Nirenberg–Sobolev inequality can be expressed by exact form, which improves the results of [17, 18]. By doing this, we then establish the existence and nonexistence of L2-normalized solutions for this equation. Finally, under a certain type of trapping potentials, by using some delicate energy estimates we present a detailed analysis of the concentration behavior of L2-normalized solutions in the mass critical case.
Mean values of derivatives of L-functions in function fields: III
Authors: Andrade Julio
Published: December 2018

In this series of papers, we explore moments of derivatives of L-functions in function fields using classical analytic techniques such as character sums and approximate functional equation. The present paper is concerned with the study of mean values of derivatives of quadratic Dirichlet L-functions over function fields when the average is taken over monic and irreducible polynomials P in 𝔽q[T]. When the cardinality q of the ground field is fixed and the degree of P gets large, we obtain asymptotic formulas for the first moment of the first and the second derivative of this family of L-functions at the critical point. We also compute the full polynomial expansion in the asymptotic formulas for both mean values.
A quantitative Carleman estimate for second-order elliptic operators
Authors: Nakić Ivica , Rose Christian , Tautenhahn Martin
Published: December 2018

We prove a Carleman estimate for elliptic second-order partial differential expressions with Lipschitz continuous coefficients. The Carleman estimate is valid for any complex-valued function u ∈ W2,2 with support in a punctured ball of arbitrary radius. The novelty of this Carleman estimate is that we establish an explicit dependence on the Lipschitz and ellipticity constants, the dimension of the space and the radius of the ball. In particular, we provide a uniform and quantitative bound on the weight function for a class of elliptic operators given explicitly in terms of ellipticity and Lipschitz constant.
Bifurcation and standing wave solutions for a quasilinear Schrödinger equation
Authors: Dai Guowei
Published: December 2018

We use bifurcation and topological methods to investigate the existence/nonexistence and the multiplicity of positive solutions of the following quasilinear Schrödinger equation$$\left\{ {\matrix{ {-\Delta u-\kappa \Delta \left( {u^2} \right)u = \beta u-\lambda \Phi \left( {u^2} \right)u{\mkern 1mu} {\mkern 1mu} } \hfill & {{\rm in}\;\Omega ,} \hfill \cr {u = 0} \hfill & {{\rm on}\;\partial \Omega } \hfill \cr } } \right.$$involving sublinear/linear/superlinear nonlinearities at zero or infinity with/without signum condition. In particular, we study the changes in the structure of positive solution withκas the varying parameter.
Compulsory Voting: A Defence
Authors: Umbers Lachlan M
Published: December 2018

Turnout is in decline in established democracies around the world. Where, in the mid-1800s, 70–80 percent of eligible voters regularly participated in US Presidential elections, turnout has averaged just 53.7 percent since 1972. Average turnout in general elections in the UK has fallen from 76.6 percent during the period 1945–92, to 64.7 percent since 1997. Average turnout in Canadian federal elections has fallen from 74.5 percent during the period 1940–79, to 62.5 percent since 2000. For most democrats, these numbers are a cause for alarm. Compulsory voting is amongst the most effective means of raising turnout. However, compulsory voting is also controversial. Most of us think that coercion may only be employed against the citizenry if it is backed by a justification of the right kind. Opponents of compulsory voting charge that no such justification is available. This article resists this line of argument in two ways. First, I offer an argument from free-riding which, though gestured towards by others, and widely criticized, has yet to be defended in any depth. Second, I consider a range of objections to compulsory voting as such, arguing that none succeeds.
Are Transfer-Dependent Governments More Creditworthy? Reassessing the Fiscal Federal Foundations of Subnational Default Risk
Authors: Hanniman Kyle
Published: December 2018

Many fiscal federal scholars argue, often implicitly, that transfer dependence generally bolsters subnational creditworthiness by signalling a higher likelihood of national bailouts for distressed governments. This article argues that dependence fails to bestow general benefits on local borrowers because it suggests an inability to generate additional revenues in the event of fiscal distress, and because this inability does not, contrary to the expectations of many, necessarily translate into higher bailout expectations. Ultimately it is the nature, not the level, of transfers that affects local creditworthiness, whether through bailout or non-bailout channels. Stable and predictable payments, including robust equalization systems, support local creditworthiness, while volatile and unpredictable transfers do not. The article supports these arguments with a review of documents issued by the major international credit rating agencies and cross-national statistical analyses of bailout probabilities and standalone credit ratings issued by Moody’s Investors Service. It also discusses the implications of the findings for work on the fiscal discipline of subnational governments.
Long-term history of sediment inputs to the eastern Arabian Sea and its implications for the evolution of the Indian summer monsoon since 3.7 Ma
Authors: Cai Mingjiang , Xu Zhaokai , Clift Peter D. , Khim Boo-Keun , Lim Dhongil , Yu Zhaojie , Kulhanek Denise K. , Li Tiegang
Published: December 2018

We present a new set of clay mineral and grain-size data for the siliciclastic sediment fraction from International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Site U1456 located in the eastern Arabian Sea to reconstruct the variabilities in the continental erosion and weathering intensity in the western Himalaya, elucidate the sediment source-to-sink processes and discuss the potential controls underlying these changes since 3.7 Ma. The clay minerals mainly consist of smectite (0–90%, average 44%) and illite (3–90%, average 44%), with chlorite (1–26%, average 7%) and kaolinite (0–19%, average 5%) as minor components. The compositional variations in the clay minerals at IODP Site U1456 suggest four phases of sediment provenance: the Indus River (phase 1, 3.7–3.2 Ma), the Indus River and Deccan Traps (phase 2, 3.2–2.6 Ma), the Indus River (phase 3, 2.6–1.2 Ma) and the Indus River and Deccan Traps (phase 4, 1.2–0 Ma). These provenance changes since 3.7 Ma can be correlated with variations in the Indian summer monsoon intensity. The siliciclastic sediments in the eastern Arabian Sea were mainly derived from the Indus River when the Indian summer monsoon was generally weak. In contrast, when the Indian summer monsoon intensified, the siliciclastic sediment supply from the Deccan Traps increased. In particular, this study shows that the smectite/(illite+chlorite) ratio is a sensitive tool for reconstructing the history of the variation in the Indian summer monsoon intensity over the continents surrounding the Arabian Sea since 3.7 Ma.
Estimating geographic variations in the determinants of attitude towards the practice of female genital mutilation in Nigeria
Authors: Gayawan Ezra , Lateef Rukayat Salewa
Published: December 2018

Female genital mutilation (FGM) has persisted in Nigeria despite the very harmful effects on its victims. Massive inequality in the demographic and socioeconomic status of the Nigerian populace, coupled with marked differences in cultural values, have led to lopsided patterns of most health indicators based on the geographical location. The risk factors of health indicators are equally expected to vary according to location. This study aimed to explain the spatial variations in the risk factors for female cutting in Nigeria. Data were from the geo-referenced 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey. The objective was to estimate the spatially varying relationships of the factors influencing women’s attitude towards female cutting in Nigeria and to identify how the variables exact influence across the states using geographically weighted logistic regression analysis – a technique that allows for spatially varying relationships among variables to be established. The results showed that women’s higher educational level and higher household wealth lowered the desire for continuation of FGM everywhere in the country, but the effects of most other variables varied in direction, strength and magnitude. The findings suggest the use of local approaches to address the factors that encourage the continuation of female cutting in Nigeria.
Spatiotemporal distribution of anchovy early life stages in the eastern part of the Adriatic Sea in relation to some oceanographic features
Authors: Zorica B. , Čikeš Keč V. , Pešić A. , Gvozdenović S. , Kolitari J. , Mandić M.
Published: December 2018

During the summer of 2013 two scientific surveys (northern, at the beginning of July and southern, at the end of July) were carried out along the eastern Adriatic Sea. In these surveys, ichthyoplankton samples of anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus, Linnaeus 1758) eggs and larvae were collected. In the whole investigated area, egg and larvae abundance varied from 2.61 to 1040.24 eggs m−2 (geometric mean ± CL: 25.43 ± 1.48 eggs m−2) and 2.73 larvae m−2 to 611.14 larvae m−2 (geometric mean ± CL: 17.07 ± 1.41 larvae m−2), respectively. Higher abundance of anchovy early life stages was noted in the northern part of the investigated area. The length of the collected specimens lay within the range of 2.39–3.68 mm and those individuals were less than 12 h old. Analysis of spatial and temporal distribution of collected anchovy early life stages indicated their higher abundance in areas of upwelling (four areas were distinguished on the eastern Adriatic side). Larger and older specimens were collected at the beginning of July in the northern part of Adriatic indicating that the anchovy population in the Adriatic tends to shift among its spawning centres in this area. In general, anchovy eggs were accompanied by its larvae (r = 0.453, P < 0.05), while statistically significant negative correlation was obtained between egg abundance and temperature (r = −0.380, P < 0.05) as well as sea depth (r = −0.321, P < 0.05).
Similarity and the trustworthiness of distributive judgements
Authors: Voorhoeve Alex , Stefánsson Arnaldur , Wallace Brian
Published: December 2018

When people must either save a greater number of people from a smaller harm or a smaller number from a greater harm, do their choices reflect a reasonable moral outlook? We pursue this question with the help of an experiment. In our experiment, two-fifths of subjects employ a similarity heuristic. When alternatives appear dissimilar in terms of the number saved but similar in terms of the magnitude of harm prevented, this heuristic mandates saving the greater number. In our experiment, this leads to choices that are inconsistent with all standard theories of justice. We argue that this demonstrates the untrustworthiness of distributive judgements in cases that elicit similarity-based choice.
THE DEGREE PROFILE AND GINI INDEX OF RANDOM CATERPILLAR TREES
Authors: Zhang Panpan , Dey Dipak K.
Published: December 2018

In this paper, we investigate the degree profile and Gini index of random caterpillar trees (RCTs). We consider RCTs which evolve in two different manners: uniform and nonuniform. The degrees of the vertices on the central path (i.e., the degree profile) of a uniform RCT follows a multinomial distribution. For nonuniform RCTs, we focus on those growing in the fashion of preferential attachment. We develop methods based on stochastic recurrences to compute the exact expectations and the dispersion matrix of the degree variables. A generalized Pólya urn model is exploited to determine the exact joint distribution of these degree variables. We apply the methods from combinatorics to prove that the asymptotic distribution is Dirichlet. In addition, we propose a new type of Gini index to quantitatively distinguish the evolutionary characteristics of the two classes of RCTs. We present the results via several numerical experiments.
Civilizational Exceptions: Ottoman Law and Governance in Late Ottoman Palestine
Authors: Amara Ahmad
Published: December 2018

This article examines the Ottoman extension of rule and jurisdiction to the Beersheba frontier of southern Palestine. As part of itsTanzimatreform policies, the Ottoman administration founded the new town and sub-district of Beersheba in 1900, and sought to implement a legal reform. Deviating from the formal law that requires the founding of a civil-nizamiye court, the Ottoman instituted a form of legal exception and authorized the local administrative council to sit as a judicial forum and for its Bedouin Shaykh members to serve as judges. Studies of Ottoman Beersheba have typically focused on Bedouin autonomy and tribal law. The few studies that discussed the judicial order, have mistakenly assumed the Ottoman institution of a “tribal court,” and its persistence thereafter. Interestingly, what began as a simple grant of legal exception, justified by civilizational discourses of ignorance and savagery, grew into a judicial complexity. Very soon jurisdictional tensions arose, integrating questions across various webs of legal orders, jurisdictions, and political networks that shaped the reform in Beersheba and beyond. In following various legal disputes from Beersheba to Gaza, Jerusalem, and Istanbul, the article challenges some of the prevailing research categories, dichotomies, and approaches in the study of Ottoman legal history and tribal societies, including the concept of ‘legal pluralism.’
Déjà Vu and the Gendered Origins of the Practice of Immigration Law: The Immigrants’ Protective League, 1907–40
Authors: Batlan Felice
Published: December 2018

Donald Trump's administration has provoked crisis after crisis regarding the United States’ immigration policy, laws, and their enforcement. This has affected millions of immigrants in the U.S. and those hoping to immigrate. Stemming from this, immigration lawyers are providing extraordinary amounts of direct pro bono legal services to immigrants in need. Yet the history of the practice of immigration law has been largely understudied. This article closely examines Chicago's Immigrants’ Protective League between 1910 and 1940. The League provided free counsel to tens of thousands of poor immigrants facing a multitude of immigration-related legal issues during a time when Congress passed increasingly strict immigration laws. The League, always headed by women social workers, created a robust model of immigration advocacy at a time when only a handful of women were professionally trained lawyers. The League's archival documents, manifests how Trump's immigration policies have a long and painful history. U.S. immigration law and its enforcement have consistently been cruel, inhumane, arbitrary, and capricious. Told from the ground up and focusing upon the day-to-day problems that immigrants brought to the League, one dramatically sees how immigration laws and practices were like quicksand, thwarting the legitimate expectations of migrants. The League, in response, participated in creating what would become the practice of immigration law, engaging, and quickly responding to changing laws, rules, policies, and the needs of migrants.
Performing the rule of law in international organizations: Ibrahim Shihata and the World Bank’s turn to governance reform
Authors: Van Den Meerssche Dimitri
Published: December 2018

In recent years, the academic field of international institutional law has taken a clear ‘constitutional’ turn. In this normative endeavour, liberal ‘rule of law’ ideals are being reinvigorated, translated and projected onto international organizations. This article trades this well-trodden path for a socio-legal inquiry into how the ‘rule of law’ is produced, practiced and performed in the everyday political and operational life of one specific international organization (the World Bank) during one contentious historical episode. To grasp what it means for ‘law to rule’, I argue, we need to expand our archives to the daily praxis of legality: the actors that embody it; the consciousness that drives it; the politics that rely on it; and the fragile institutional balances that give it meaning. Grounded in this pragmatist perspective, I retrace the intervention of legal expertise during the Bank’s turn to state reform in the wake of the Cold War. Descending from principles to practices, from norms to acts, from abstract heights to situated performances, the article not only strives for an enhanced understanding of the ‘rule of law’ within the World Bank, but also aims at a critical methodological intervention in the field of international institutional law.
A review: Percutaneous pulmonary artery stenosis therapy: state-of-the-art and look to the future
Authors: Patel Anuj B. , Ratnayaka Kanishka , Bergersen Lisa
Published: December 2018

Stenosis, or narrowing, of the branches of the pulmonary artery is a type of CHD that, if left untreated, may lead to significant complications. Ideally, interventions to treat stenosis occur before significant complications or long-term sequelae take place, often within the first 2 years of life. Treatment depends on specifics of the condition, the presence of other malformations, and age of the child. Research and recent innovation to address these shortcomings have provided physicians with safer and more effective methods of treatment. This has further continued to push the ceiling of pulmonary arterial stenosis treatment available for patients. Despite continuous advancement in angioplasty – such as conventional and cutting balloon – and stenting, each treatment method is not without its unique limitations. New technological developments such as bioresorbable stents can accommodate patient growth and pulmonary artery stenosis treatment. As more than a decade has passed since the review by Bergersen and Lock, this article aims to provide a contemporary summary and investigation into the effectiveness of various therapeutic tools currently available, such as bare metal stents and potential innovations including bioresorbable stents.
A New Approach to the Evaluation of Public Procurement Efficiency among European Countries
Authors: Milosavljević Milos , Dobrota Marina , Milanović Nemanja
Published: December 2018

Public procurements have been high on the agenda of policy makers, decision makers, scholars, and other interested parties in Europe in the last few decades, as such procurements make up nearly one-fifth of Europe’s total gross domestic product. Nevertheless, not many attempts have been made to measure the efficiency of public procurement systems and accordingly rank European countries. The most important measurement that highlights this issue is the Single Market Scoreboard for Public Procurements. However, this scoreboard is subject to bias and numerous omissions, which significantly decreases its operational usage and deteriorates the real efficiency of public procurements. This article aims to rank European countries in an unambiguous, objective, and impartial manner by using the Composite I-distance Indicator (CIDI) methodology. Instead of using biased weights for individual indicators, assigned by experts, the CIDI method creates new weights in an objective manner. The study analysed 30 European countries. The results of the study are, to some extent, different from current practice for public procurement efficiency measurement. The novel approach to ranking provides an opportunity to interested parties to improve the performance of their public procurements by reviewing them on a multidimensional basis.
Effects of a lifestyle intervention on markers of cardiometabolic risk and oxidized lipoproteins among obese adolescents with prediabetes
Authors: Rentería-Mexía Ana , Vega-López Sonia , Olson Micah L , Swan Pamela D , Lee Chong D , Williams Allison N , Shaibi Gabriel Q
Published: December 2018

Objective

Obesity and hyperglycaemia contribute to the atherosclerotic process in part through oxidative modifications to lipoprotein particles. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of a lifestyle intervention on markers of oxidized lipoproteins in obese Latino adolescents with prediabetes.

Design

Pre–post design.

Setting

Participants were enrolled into a 12-week lifestyle intervention. Measurements pre- and post-intervention included anthropometrics and body composition, lipid panel, oxidized LDL (oxLDL), oxidized HDL (oxHDL), intake of fresh fruits and vegetables, and cardiorespiratory fitness.

Participants

Thirty-five obese Latino adolescents (seventeen females, eighteen males; mean age 15·5 (sd1·0) years; mean BMI percentile 98·5 (sd1·2)) with prediabetes.

Results

Intervention participation resulted in significant reductions in weight (−1·2 %,P= 0·042), BMI and BMI percentile (−2·0 and −0·4 %, respectively,P< 0·001), body fat (−7·0 %,P= 0·025), TAG (−11·8 %,P= 0·032), total cholesterol (−5·0 %,P= 0·002), VLDL-cholesterol (−12·5 %,P= 0·029), and non-HDL-cholesterol (−6·7 %,P= 0·007). Additionally, fitness (6·4 %,P< 0·001) and intake of fruits and vegetables (42·4 %,P= 0·025) increased significantly. OxLDL decreased significantly after the intervention (51·0 (sd14·0)v. 48·7 (sd12·8) U/l,P= 0·022), while oxHDL trended towards a significant increase (395·2 (sd94·6)v. 416·1 (sd98·4) ng/ml,P= 0·056).

Conclusions

These data support the utility of lifestyle intervention to improve the atherogenic phenotype of Latino adolescents who are at high risk for developing premature CVD and type 2 diabetes.