bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
(In)secure environments and the domination of nature: introduction to themed section
Authors: Philo Chris
Published: November 2015

This editorial introduces a four‐paper thematic section on ‘Insecure environments’, growing out of a conference session held in 2012. Through an excursion into Adorno and Horkheimer's Dialectic of Enlightenment (1979), themes are identified to do with the dialectic of security and insecurity, as played out in humanity's modern dealings with nature. The four papers are then formally outlined and situated in relation to these themes of (in)secure environments, the domination of nature and its many repercussions.
Trade and habitat change virtually eliminate theGreyParrotPsittacus erithacusfromGhana
Authors: Annorbah Nathaniel N. D. , Collar Nigel J. , Marsden Stuart J.
Published: November 2015

The heavily traded Grey ParrotPsittacus erithacusis believed to have undergone rapid population decline, yet there are almost no quantitative data on abundance changes over time from anywhere within its huge range. We reviewed the species’ historical abundance across Ghana, undertook targeted searches during 3‐ to 5‐day visits to 42 100‐km2cells across the country's forest zone, repeated counts at 22 parrot roosts first performed two decades ago and gauged around 900 people's perceptions of the decline and its causes. In over 150 days of fieldwork, just 32 groups (maximum group size = 12) were recorded in 10 cells. Encounter rates averaged 0.15 individuals per hour of targeted search, around 15 times lower than those recorded in the early 1990s. No active roosts were found, and only 18 individuals were recorded in three roost areas that each harboured 700–1200 birds two decades ago. Interviewees stressed the importance of very tall trees of commercially important species such asTerminalia superbaandCeiba pentandrafor nesting and roosting, and believed that the felling of large trees on farmland (42% of responses) and trapping for trade (37%) were the two main causes of decline. Ghana has lost 90–99% of its Grey Parrots since 1992, a time when the population had presumably already been seriously reduced by two decades of extremely heavy trade. There is no evidence that, away from one or two localities, declines are less severe anywhere else within the West African range ofP. erithacus, or across the entire range of the recently split Timneh ParrotPsittacus timneh.
Classification success of six machine learning algorithms in radar ornithology
Authors: D. Rosa Isabel M. , Marques Ana Teresa , Palminha Gustavo , Costa Hugo , Mascarenhas Miguel , Fonseca Carlos , Bernardino Joana
Published: November 2015

Radar systems have been increasingly used to monitor birds. To take full advantage of the large datasets provided by radars, researchers have implemented machine learning (ML) techniques that automatically read and attempt to classify targets. Here we used data collected from two locations in Portugal with two marine radar antennas (VSR and HSR) to apply and compare the performance of six ML algorithms that are widely used in the literature: random forests (RF), support vector machine (SVM), artificial neural networks (NN), linear discriminant analysis (LDA), quadratic discriminant analysis (QDA) and decision trees (DT), all trained with several dataset configurations. We found that all algorithms performed well (area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUC) and accuracy > 0.80, P < 0.001) when discriminating birds from non‐biological targets such as vehicles, rain or wind turbines, but greater variance in the performance among algorithms was apparent when separating different bird functional groups or bird species (e.g. herons vs. gulls). In our case study, only RF was able to hold an accuracy > 0.80 for all classification tasks, although SVM and DT also performed well. Further, all algorithms correctly classified 86% and 66% (VSR and HSR) of the target points, and only 2% and 4% of these points were misclassified by all algorithms. Our results suggest that ML algorithms are suitable for classifying radar targets as birds, and thereby separating them from other non‐biological targets. The ability of these algorithms to correctly identify among bird species functional groups was found to be much weaker, but if properly trained and supported by a good ground truthing dataset, targeted to the relevant species groups, some of these algorithms are still able to achieve high accuracies in classification tasks. Such results indicate that ML algorithms are suitable for use in near real‐time monitoring of bird movements, and may help to mitigate collision of birds with, for example, wind turbines or airplanes.
Common Guillemot Uria aalge parents adjust provisioning rates to compensate for low food quality
Authors: Kadin Martina , Olsson Olof , Hentati‐Sundberg Jonas , Ehrning Ebba Willerström , Blenckner Thorsten
Published: November 2015

The quantity and quality of food available within the foraging area set important constraints for chick‐rearing birds, but responses to low quality are not well understood. This study explored the potential for parent birds to adjust quantity (feeding rate) and quality (energy content) in chick provisioning, by studying Common Guillemots Uria aalge on Stora Karlsö, Baltic Sea, predominantly utilizing Sprat Sprattus sprattus, during conditions of high food quantity but reduced food quality. Quality is central to reproductive success in this single‐prey loader. From the chick's perspective, provisioning rates should be increased to compensate for low food quality and to fulfil its growing needs with increasing age. However, the high energy cost of flying in Guillemots makes it important for parent birds to minimize commutes to feeding areas. Provisioning parameters were recorded during three dawn‐to‐dusk watches each breeding season from 2005 to 2013, when clupeids, presumably Sprat, constituted 98% of chick diet. Generalized additive mixed models showed that both feeding rate and size of clupeids (a proxy for energy content) varied between years and changed non‐linearly with chick age, but that there was no change within breeding seasons. Chick age and year explained 36% of the variation in feeding rate but only 2% of the variation in the size of clupeids in chick diets. We conclude that parent birds tried to adjust both feeding rate and prey size, but were less successful with the latter. A strong negative correlation was found between annual feeding rates and size of clupeids, evaluated as the differences relative to the baseline year, and adjusted for the effects of chick age. Although the differences between years were small, the relationship indicates a compensation mechanism that does not seem to impact adult survival, and by which increased feeding rates can partly counteract reduced chick energy intake when food quality is low.
Unsettled teamwork: communication and learning in the operating theatres of an urban hospital
Authors: Bezemer Jeff , Korkiakangas Terhi , Weldon Sharon‐Marie , Kress Gunther , Kneebone Roger
Published: November 2015

Aim

To explore the unsettling effects of increased mobility of nurses, surgeons and other healthcare professionals on communication and learning in the operating theatre.

Background

Increasingly, healthcare professionals step in and out of newly formed transient teams and work with colleagues they have not met before, unsettling previously relatively stable team work based on shared, local knowledge accumulated over significant periods of close collaboration.

Design

An ethnographic case study was conducted of the operating theatre department of a major teaching hospital in London.

Method

Video recordings were made of 20 operations, involving different teams. The recordings were systematically reviewed and coded. Instances where difficulties arose in the communication between scrub nurse and surgeons were identified and subjected to detailed, interactional analysis.

Findings

Instrument requests frequently prompted clarification from the scrub nurse (e.g. ‘Sorry, what did you want?’). Such requests were either followed by a relatively elaborate clarification, designed to maximize learning opportunities, or a by a relatively minimal clarification, designed to achieve the immediate task at hand.

Conclusions

Significant variation exists in the degree of support given to scrub nurses requesting clarification. Some surgeons experience such requests as disruptions, while others treat them as opportunities to build shared knowledge.
Economic Freedom and Income Inequality: Evidence from a Panel of Global Economies— A Linear and a Non‐Linear Long‐Run Analysis
Authors: Apergis Nicholas , Cooray Arusha
Published: November 2015

This study employs panel data from 138 countries (with unbalanced time frameworks) to investigate the relationship between economic freedom and income inequality. Both linear and non‐linear cointegration methodologies are used to identify a long‐run equilibrium relationship between: (i) the overall Economic Freedom of the World index and income inequality, and (ii) the major areas of the index and income inequality. The linear long‐run parameter estimates document that the association turns out to be negative, while the non‐linear long‐run parameter estimates illustrate that above a threshold point the association between economic freedom and income inequality is negative, while below this threshold point, the association turns out to be positive. The empirical findings survive a number of robustness tests, such as alternative measures of income inequality.
Early changes in extracellular matrix in Alzheimer's disease
Authors: Lepelletier F.‐X. , Mann D. M. A. , Robinson A. C. , Pinteaux E. , Boutin H.
Published: November 2015

Aims

Although changes in extracellular matrix (ECM) scaffold have been reported previously in Alzheimer's disease (AD) compared to normal ageing, it is not known how alterations in the numerous components of the perivascular ECM might occur at different stages of AD. This study therefore investigates potential changes in basement membrane‐associated ECM molecules in relation to increasing Braak stages.

Methods

Thirty patients were divided into three groups (control subject, subclinical AD and AD patients). ECM levels of collagen IV, perlecan and fibronectin as well as human platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule (hPECAM) were quantified by immunohistochemistry. Von Willebrand factor staining was measured to assess vessel density. Expression levels were correlated with the presence of amyloid plaques.

Results

Collagen IV, perlecan and fibronectin expression was increased in subclinical AD and AD patients when compared to controls, in frontal and temporal cortex, whilst no further increase was detected between subclinical AD and AD. These changes were not associated with an increase in vessel density, which was instead decreased in the temporal cortex of AD patients. In contrast, hPECAM levels remained unchanged. Finally, we found similar pattern in levels of amyloid deposition between the different Braak stages and showed that changes in ECM components correlated with amyloid deposition.

Conclusion

Present data support the hypothesis that significant ECM changes occur during the early stages of AD. ECM changes affecting brain microvascular functions could therefore drive disease progression and provide potential new early investigational biomarkers in AD.
Locally Efficient Semiparametric Estimators for Proportional Hazards Models with Measurement Error
Authors: Xu Yuhang , Li Yehua , Song Xiao
Published: November 2015

We propose a new class of semiparametric estimators for proportional hazards models in the presence of measurement error in the covariates, where the baseline hazard function, the hazard function for the censoring time, and the distribution of the true covariates are considered as unknown infinite dimensional parameters. We estimate the model components by solving estimating equations based on the semiparametric efficient scores under a sequence of restricted models where the logarithm of the hazard functions are approximated by reduced rank regression splines. The proposed estimators are locally efficient in the sense that the estimators are semiparametrically efficient if the distribution of the error‐prone covariates is specified correctly and are still consistent and asymptotically normal if the distribution is misspecified. Our simulation studies show that the proposed estimators have smaller biases and variances than competing methods. We further illustrate the new method with a real application in an HIV clinical trial.
Patterning of defect arrays with e-beam lithography used to develop a high throughput e-beam defect inspection tool
Authors: Cummings Kevin D. , Bunday Ben , Malloy Matt , Hartley John , Banu Laila , Mellish M. , Chao Weilun , Bleier A. R. , Banerjee A.
Published: November 2015

SUNY Poly SEMATECH has established an infrastructure development program to ensure that needed beam based metrology tools and techniques are available for leading edge semiconductor processes and devices. The design, development, and fabrication of high quality dense array samples with ≤16 nm defects at known locations is a key requirement to assessing new inspection technologies. Due to the technical difficulties of creating high quality programmed defect samples at the required sizes, the authors have undertaken multiple paths of electron beam lithographic development, supporting organizations and processing techniques to optimize and deliver the needed samples. In doing so, this program has created a snapshot of electron beam lithographic capability. This paper discusses our experience with electron beam lithography used to create the arrays samples.
Single-cell transcriptomics reveals receptor transformations during olfactory neurogenesis
Authors: Hanchate Naresh K. , Kondoh Kunio , Lu Zhonghua , Kuang Donghui , Ye Xiaolan , Qiu Xiaojie , Pachter Lior , Trapnell Cole , Buck Linda B.
Published: November 2015

Maturation of olfactory neurons

The sense of smell depends on neurons in the olfactory epithelium to perceive chemical scents. Each neuron specializes with one receptor. Hanchateet al.now show that the one-for-one relationship is not as simple as thought. As new neurons develop to replenish the olfactory epithelium, they initially express several different alleles of olfactory receptors. Then, as each neuron matures, they specialize to express a single receptor.

Science, this issue p. 1251
Genome Sequence of Complex HIV-1 Unique Recombinant Forms Sharing a Common Recombination Breakpoint Identified in Malaysia
Authors: Cheong Hui Ting , Ng Kim Tien , Ong Lai Yee , Takebe Yutaka , Chan Kok Gan , Koh Clayton , Al-Darraji Haider Abdulrazzaq Abed , Kamarulzaman Adeeba , Tee Kok Keng
Published: November 2015

Three strains of HIV-1 unique recombinant forms (URFs) descended from subtypes B, B′, and CRF01_AE were identified among people who inject drugs in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. These three URFs shared a common recombination breakpoint in the reverse transcriptase region, indicating frequent linkage within the drug-injecting networks in Malaysia.
Draft Genome Sequence of
Cercospora arachidicola,
Causal Agent of Early Leaf Spot in Peanuts
Authors: Orner Valerie A. , Cantonwine Emily G. , Wang Xinye Monica , Abouelleil Amr , Bochicchio James , Nusbaum Chad , Culbreath Albert K. , Abdo Zaid , Arias Renee S.
Published: November 2015

Cercospora arachidicola
, causal agent of early leaf spot, is an economically important peanut pathogen. Lack of genetic information about this fungus prevents understanding the role that potentially diverse genotypes may have in peanut breeding programs. Here, we report for the first time a draft genome sequence of
C. arachidicola
.
Draft Genome Sequence of Caedibacter varicaedens, a Kappa Killer Endosymbiont Bacterium of the Ciliate
Paramecium biaurelia
Authors: Suzuki Haruo , Dapper Amy L. , Jackson Craig E. , Lee Heewook , Pejaver Vikas , Doak Thomas G. , Lynch Michael , Preer John R.
Published: November 2015

Caedibacter varicaedens
is a kappa killer endosymbiont bacterium of the ciliate
Paramecium biaurelia
. Here, we present the draft genome sequence of
C. varicaedens
.
Computational dynamic models and experiments in the fluid–structure interaction of pipe systems
Authors: Simão M. , Mora-Rodriguez J. , Ramos H.M.
Published: November 2015

Fluid–structure interaction is analyzed using 1D and 3D computational models and results from an experimental facility, where transient events are induced. The water-hammer phenomenon is modelled by a 1D model based on the method of characteristics and the COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b, which uses finite element method to study the fluid structural interaction involved in a long pressurized pipe system with curves, expansion joints, anchor and support blocks and different rheological behaviour of the pipe material. Comparisons are made between the experimental data and the two numerical models, where the type of response of each model was enhanced, as well as the ability of each model to simulate real conditions.
Separating the Classes of Recursively Enumerable Languages Based on Machine Size
Authors: van Leeuwen Jan , Wiedermann Jiří
Published: November 2015

In the late nineteen sixties it was observed that the r.e. languages form an infinite proper hierarchy [Formula: see text] based on the size of the Turing machines that accept them. We examine the fundamental position of the finite languages and their complements in the hierarchy. We show that for every finite language L one has that L, [Formula: see text] for some [Formula: see text] where m is the length of the longest word in L, c is the cardinality of L, and [Formula: see text]. If [Formula: see text], then [Formula: see text] for some [Formula: see text]. We also prove that for every n, there is a finite language Ln with [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text] but Ln, [Formula: see text] for some [Formula: see text]. Several further results are shown that how the hierarchy can be separated by increasing chains of finite languages. The proofs make use of several auxiliary results for Turing machines with advice.
On the Complexity of the Dual Bases of the Gaussian Normal Bases
Authors: Mishra Alok , Sharma Rajendra Kumar , Shukla Wagish
Published: November 2015

In this paper, we study the complexity of the dual bases of the Gaussian normal bases of type (n, t), for all n and t = 3, 4, 5, 6, of 𝔽qn over 𝔽q and provide conditions under which the complexity of the Gaussian normal basis of type (n, t) is equal to the complexity of the dual basis over any finite field.
A Schreier Domain Type Condition II
Authors: Ahmad Zaheer , Dumitrescu Tiberiu , Epure Mihai
Published: November 2015

Let D be an integral domain and ∗ a star operation on D. We study the domains characterized by the following property: whenever I ⊇ AB with I, A, B nonzero ideals, there exist nonzero ideals H and J such that I∗ = (HJ)∗, H∗ ⊇ A and J∗ ⊇ B. We call them ∗-sharp domains. We show that D is t-sharp if and only if D[X] is t-sharp if and only if D[X]Nv is d-sharp, where Nv is the multiplicative set of D[X] consisting of all nonzero polynomials a0 + a1X + ⋯ + anXn such that (a0,a1,…,an)v = D.
On Injective and Gorenstein Injective Dimensions of Local Cohomology Modules
Authors: Zargar Majid Rahro , Zakeri Hossein
Published: November 2015

Let (R, 𝔪) be a commutative Noetherian local ring and M an R-module which is relative Cohen-Macaulay with respect to a proper ideal 𝔞 of R, and set n := ht M𝔞. We prove that injdim M < ∞ if and only if [Formula: see text] and that [Formula: see text]. We also prove that if R has a dualizing complex and Gid RM < ∞, then [Formula: see text]. Moreover if R and M are Cohen-Macaulay, then Gid RM < ∞ whenever [Formula: see text]. Next, for a finitely generated R-module M of dimension d, it is proved that if [Formula: see text] is Cohen-Macaulay and [Formula: see text], then [Formula: see text]. The above results have consequences which improve some known results and provide characterizations of Gorenstein rings.
The Meyer–Neldel Rule in Conduction Mechanism of the Electrospun ZnO Nanofibers
Authors: Stafiniak Andrzej , Tłaczała Marek
Published: November 2015

An analytical model describing the conductivity of ZnO nanofibers depending on the grains size is proposed. The research is based on the thermal dc electrical measurements of a single electrospun ZnO nanofiber calcined at different temperatures. In the our previous research, we showed that electrical conduction of ZnO nanofibers is mainly thermally activated. The activation energy of conductivity was strongly dependent on the grain size, which in turn depended on the calcination temperature. This could be due to migration of a point defect in the grain of ZnO and could change the carrier concentration. Our recent studies have shown that ZnO nanofibers behavior is consistent with the Meyer–Neldel rule. This indicates an exponential energy distribution of deep level traps in the material. Based on the theoretical assumptions and experimental data, the improved model of conductivity in a single ZnO nanofiber calcined at different temperatures was proposed.
Evolution of the Global Climate Governance System and Its Implications
Authors: Yu Hongyuan
Published: November 2015

Climate change has emerged as one of the top security challenges in the early 21st century. It is now widely acknowledged that international cooperation and collective action will be the key to addressing challenges caused by climate change. This article will give an explanation on the evolution of the global climate change governance system by linking history, governance, and diplomacy. The challenge of climate change involves not only international competition for new energy but also related adjustments in the global governance pattern. Specifically, the carbon emission reduction to be discussed at the 2015 UN Paris Climate Conference will still be problematic, and negotiations with regard to financing mechanisms between developed and developing countries will remain in doubt. Furthermore, the attitudes of the two sides toward common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR) and the intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) are disparate. In addition, negotiations among China, the UN, the U.S., and the EU are decisive in tackling this tricky matter. Finally, this article outlines some potential diplomatic options for China's future developmental trend.
Prospects and Paths of CICA's Transformation
Authors: Chen Dongxiao
Published: November 2015

The Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) is at a critical juncture of development and transformation. In the past two decades, CICA has developed itself into the most representative and inclusive pan-Asian forum on regional security and cooperation, making steady progress on confidence building and regional cooperation, as well as promoting ideas of comprehensive, common, cooperative, and sustainable security. CICA has played a unique role in gradually raising Asia's self-awareness on a regional security agenda and regional architecture building. Nevertheless, CICA's overall influence on Asia's security agenda is still limited, its potential is far from being fully realized, let alone its long-term goal of upgrading into an organization of security and cooperation in asia (OSCA). In the context of changing dynamics in the regional security landscape, there are both great opportunities and huge challenges for CICA's further development and transformation. China, as the chairing country of CICA in the next few years, should show its stewardship to strategically prioritize CICA's road map for its transformation, by enhancing CICA's capacity and institutional building, improving the efficacy of CBMs for regional security, and helping build CICA's capability of delivering more regional security public goods. For the purpose of realizing these agendas of CICA, China should not only work more closely with the core members of CICA, but also engage well with extra-regional powers, particularly the United States, in the area of regional security architecture building.
Expectations and Realities: Managing the Risks of the "Belt and Road" Initiative
Authors: Miao Ji
Published: November 2015

This article aims to explore China's motivations for its "Belt and Road Initiative" which has emerged as China's major policy framework for domestic development and foreign diplomacy. This author argues that China has four basic expectations from the initiative: addressing the perception of the "China threat"; achieving long-term economic benefits; assuaging the grave concern over the threat of American maritime primacy on China's trade and energy lifelines; and rebuilding a world order in favor of China's interests and "predominance." After evaluating the four assumed benefits against the realities, the study argues that both the Chinese leadership and academia have overestimated the potential gains while underestimating the political, economic and security risks of the initiative. Therefore, it is proposed that China should carefully manage its own national image, run projects based on economic rationale, be prudent in its military and strategic involvement, and refrain from eager challenges of the U.S.-led world order.
Middle Pleistocene glaciations in the Apennines, Italy: new chronological data and preservation of the glacial record
Authors: Giraudi Carlo , Giaccio Biagio
Published: November 2015

A review of the existing data for the Middle Pleistocene glacial remnants in the Apennines and new stratigraphic and tephrochronological data has enabled us to recognize at least five glacial stages during Marine Isotope Stages 14, 12, 10, 8 and 6. In particular, the identification of deposits attributable to Marine Isotope Stage 12 has filled a gap that was hitherto difficult to justify because, in the Mediterranean area, this glacial period is characterized by significant climatic changes that are connected with major environmental changes and glacial stages in the neighbouring Balkans and in Greece. The association between the Middle Pleistocene moraines and closed karst-tectonic basins, which are related to faults active in post-glacial times, suggests that tectonics has played a leading role in accommodating sediment deposition and thus in preserving the sedimentary record of these glaciations. Tectonic activity has, in some places, significantly influenced the altitude of the glacial cirques and the terminal moraines so that assessment of the equilibrium-line altitude based on these data is unreliable.
Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor is present in pancreatic acinar cells and regulates amylase secretion through cAMP
Authors: Hou Yanan , Ernst Stephen A. , Heidenreich Kaeli , Williams John A.
Published: November 2015

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a glucoincretin hormone that can act through its receptor (GLP-1R) on pancreatic β-cells and increase insulin secretion and production. GLP-1R agonists are used clinically to treat type 2 diabetes. GLP-1 may also regulate the exocrine pancreas at multiple levels, including inhibition through the central nervous system, stimulation indirectly through insulin, and stimulation directly on acinar cells. However, it has been unclear whether GLP-1R is present in pancreatic acini and what physiological functions these receptors regulate. In the current study we utilized GLP-1R knockout (KO) mice to study the role of GLP-1R in acinar cells. RNA expression of GLP-1R was detected in acutely isolated pancreatic acini. Acinar cell morphology and expression of digestive enzymes were not affected by loss of GLP-1R. GLP-1 induced amylase secretion in wild-type (WT) acini. In GLP-1R KO mice, this effect was abolished, whereas vasoactive intestinal peptide-induced amylase release in KO acini showed a pattern similar to that in WT acini. GLP-1 stimulated cAMP production and increased protein kinase A-mediated protein phosphorylation in WT acini, and these effects were absent in KO acini. These data show that GLP-1R is present in pancreatic acinar cells and that GLP-1 can regulate secretion through its receptor and cAMP signaling pathway.
¿Amenaza o Realidad? La Judicialización del Conflicto Laboral en Chile.
Authors: Gutierrez Crocco Francisca
Published: November 2015

El presente artículo muestra cómo el conflicto laboral en Chile se encuentra altamente judicializado. Se explica este proceso como el resultado de un doble proceso. Por un lado, las políticas laborales de las últimas tres décadas. Por el otro, la voluntad de trabajadores y sindicatos de luchar por sus derechos eludiendo las restricciones que impone la legislación a la huelga. Asimismo, el artículo discute los efectos que este proceso ha tenido para los trabajadores. Por último, se señalan algunas recomendaciones generales para una eventual Reforma Laboral.
Resident Memory T Cells as Surrogate Markers of the Efficacy of Cancer Vaccines
Authors: Nizard Mevyn , Roussel Hélène , Tartour Eric
Published: November 2015

Cancer vaccine boost via the cervicovaginal rather than the intramuscular route of immunization appears to be crucial to induce genital CD8+ T cells and tumor regression. This clinical activity is correlated with the ability of the mucosal boost to elicit resident memory T cells in the genital tract. Clin Cancer Res; 22(3); 530–2. ©2015 AACR.

See related article by Sun et al., p. 657
Impact of Collateral Status Evaluated by Dynamic Computed Tomographic Angiography on Clinical Outcome in Patients With Ischemic Stroke
Authors: van den Wijngaard Ido R. , Boiten Jelis , Holswilder Ghislaine , Algra Ale , Dippel Diederik W.J. , Velthuis Birgitta K. , Wermer Marieke J.H. , van Walderveen Marianne A.A.
Published: November 2015

Background and Purpose—

Status of collateral circulation is a strong predictor of outcome after acute ischemic stroke. Our aim was to compare the predictive value of strategies for collateral blood flow assessment with dynamic computed tomographic angiography (CTA) and conventional single-phase CT angiography.

Methods—

Patients with a proximal middle cerebral artery occlusion underwent noncontrast CT, single-phase CTA and whole brain CT perfusion/dynamic CTA within 9 hours after stroke onset. We defined poor outcome as a score on the modified Rankin Scale score of ≥3. The association between collateral score and clinical outcome at 3 months was analyzed with Poisson regression. The prognostic value of collateral scoring with dynamic CTA and single-phase CTA in addition to age, stroke severity, and noncontrast CT was assessed with logistic regression and summarized with the area under the curve.

Results—

Seventy patients were included, with a mean age of 68 years. We observed an increased risk of poor outcome in patients with poor collaterals on single-phase CTA (risk ratio, 1.8; 95% confidence interval, 1.0–3.1) and on dynamic CTA (risk ratio, 2.0; 95% confidence interval, 1.5–2.7). The prediction of poor clinical outcome by means of collateral adjustment was better with dynamic CTA (area under the curve, 0.84; likelihood ratio test
P
<0.01) than by single-phase CTA (area under the curve, 0.80; likelihood ratio test
P
=0.33).

Conclusions—

Collateral assessment with dynamic CTA better predicts clinical outcome at 3 months than single-phase conventional CTA.

Clinical Trial Registration—

URL:
http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg
. Unique identifier: NTR1804. URL:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier: NCT00880113.
Phone and Video-Based Modalities of Central Blinded Adjudication of Modified Rankin Scores in an Endovascular Stroke Trial
Authors: López-Cancio Elena , Salvat Mercè , Cerdà Neus , Jiménez Marta , Codas Javier , Llull Laura , Boned Sandra , Cano Luis M. , Lara Blanca , Molina Carlos , Cobo Erik , Dávalos Antoni , Jovin Tudor G. , Serena Joaquín
Published: November 2015

Background and Purpose—

The standard outcome measure in stroke research is modified Rankin scale (mRS) evaluated by local blinded investigators. We aimed to assess feasibility and reliability of 2 central adjudication methods of mRS in the setting of a randomized endovascular stroke trial.

Methods—

This is a secondary analysis derived from the Randomized Trial of Revascularization With Solitaire FR Device Versus Best Medical Therapy in the Treatment of Acute Stroke Due to Anterior Circulation Large Vessel Occlusion Presenting Within Eight Hours of Symptom Onset (REVASCAT) trial cohort. Primary outcome was distribution of mRS at 90 days. Local evaluation was done by certified investigators masked to treatment assignment using structured face-to-face interviews. In addition, central assessment was performed by 2 independent raters via structured phone interview (n=120) and via video recordings of the face-to-face interviews with local investigators (n=106). Interrater agreement was evaluated using kappa and discordance statistics. Sensitivity analyses for the primary end point using different adjudication approaches were performed. Correlation between mRS obtained with each modality and 24-hour follow-up infarct volumes was studied.

Results—

Using local evaluation as the reference, higher agreement rates were noted with central video than with central phone evaluations (
k
w
0.92 [0.88–0.96] versus 0.77 [0.72–0.83]). Discrepancies in mRS scoring between local and central raters (phone- and video-based) were similar in both treatment allocation arms. Sensitivity analyses showed benefit of endovascular treatment irrespective of adjudication method, but higher odds ratios were observed with local evaluations. Final infarct volume was similarly correlated with mRS across all 3 evaluation modalities.

Conclusions—

Central adjudication of mRS is feasible, reducing interrater variability and avoiding potential problems related to lack of blinding. Our findings may have implications in the planning of future randomized acute stroke trials, especially in those including nonpharmacological interventions.

Clinical Trial Registration—

URL:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier: NCT01692379.
Liturgical Progression and the Experience of Transformation in Prayers from Qumran
Authors: Falk Daniel K.
Published: November 2015

A distinctive feature of the prayer collections found at Qumran is that they have different prayers for each day of the week, month, Sabbath, festival, purification ritual, and so on. In the cases of the Words of the Luminaries and the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice, these different prayers construct a liturgical progression over the course of the cycle. I argue that this is to engender a progressive religious experience among the worshipers: over the course of the week towards confident approach to God in preparation for Sabbath, and over the course of Sabbaths in the quarter towards ritual transformation. Moreover, I propose that the Daily Prayers and Festival Prayers may also form an intentional liturgical progression over the cycle. If so, I would also suggest that in the liturgical cycle as a whole, there is in the daily ritual scripted experience of the larger cycles.
Ritual, Order and the Construction of an Audience in 1 Enoch 1–36
Authors: Werline Rodney A.
Published: November 2015

Drawing on performance theory and ritual theory, this essay argues that the authors of 1 En. 1–36 artfully draw the audience into their imagined world. In chs. 1–5, the text employs a variety of ritualized speech forms from the audience’s habitus in order to tap into and form the members’ dispositions. Once the narrative of the Fall of the Watchers commences, the audience can find its place within the narrative through the ritual actions reported in the text. Thereby, the experience of encountering the text also gives shape to the audience’s lived experiences.
Interpreting genetic distances for species recognition: the case of Macrobrachium amazonicum Heller, 1862 and the recently described M. pantanalense Dos Santos, Hayd & Anger, 2013 (Decapoda, Palaemonidae) from Brazilian fresh waters
Authors: Weiss Ronja , Anger Klaus , Hayd Liliam , Schubart Christoph D.
Published: November 2015

The river prawnMacrobrachium amazonicumHeller, 1862 occurs in limnic and brackish habitats in northeastern South America, with a broad distribution range and a wide phenotypic variability. Recently, representatives of populations from the Pantanal were reassigned to the newly described speciesM. pantanalenseDos Santos, Hayd & Anger, 2013, according to distinct morphology, life-history, and geographic distribution. Genetic distinctness is in a range that may be recognized as either inter- or intraspecific, which raises the question to what extent genetic distance data alone should be used to determine whether two closely related populations belong to the same or different species. Here, we discuss the case ofM. amazonicumand compare it with other cases of conflicting conclusions from studies on decapod crustaceans, mainly using morphological or genetic criteria. Based on these comparisons, we caution against a too simiplistic view of genetic distance as an exclusive criterion for the definition of “species” vs. “conspecific populations”.
Allometric relationships and sexual dimorphism in three ubiquitous hermit crab species (Anomura, Diogenidae) from a tropical mangrove estuary
Authors: Teoh H. W. , Chong V. C.
Published: November 2015

Shield length-weight relationship (LWR) and relative growth were studied in three tropical hermit crab species, Diogenes moosai Rahayu & Forest, 1995, Diogenes lopochir Morgan, 1989, and Clibanarius infraspinatus (Hilgendorf, 1869). Overall, the length exponent (b) for LWR ranged between 2.67 to 3.28 with males of both Diogenes species showing positive allometry () and females showing negative allometry (), whereas that of both sexes of C. infraspinatus showed negative allometry. Males had larger b values than females in all species, indicating that males are heavier than females of equal shield length. In all species, relative growth of cheliped and chela exhibited positive allometry () with distinct sexual dimorphism whereby males bear longer chelipeds and chelae compared to females of equal shield lengths. Intra- and interspecific variations in growth of body and cheliped among the three sympatric hermit crab species allow for the resource partitioning of their vital shell resources.
Approaches to Visual Culture and Religion
Authors: Uehlinger Christoph
Published: November 2015

Written from the point of view of a historian of religion\s, the article asks why the so-called “visual turn” has not left a major effect on the study of religion\s as an academic discipline and how things could be improved to that effect. It offers a synthetic account of earlier and contemporary involvements of scholars of religion and scholarly networks with images and visual culture, pointing to a general lack of sustained training and little exposure to relevant methodology and theory developed in relevant neighbouring disciplines. The author argues that the study of religion\s would benefit from increased attention to images and visual culture, emphasizing the potential of earlier (iconology in the Warburg-Panofsky tradition and the Groningen trajectory) as well as more recent approaches developed in Europe and theu.s., which theorize the visual in terms of visual culture, visual media, visual and scopic regimes, religious aesthetics and material religion.
Richard Rorty’s ‘Post-Kantian’ Philosophy of History
Authors: Goldman Loren
Published: November 2015

This article contends that despite Richard Rorty’s famous rejection of metaphysics, his work nonetheless offers a philosophy of history, and that his account mirrors that of Kant’s, a figure Rorty considered one of his primary conceptual adversaries. Although Rorty often presents his approach to history as a foil to Kant’s, his account has striking parallels to the latter’s regulative meliorism. In similar fashion, far from being a blind optimist, Kant provides a critical, progressive vision of history as necessary for the purposes of social action. Properly understood, Kant buttresses rather than undermines Rorty’s aims, and had Rorty engaged his work on history more seriously, he might have avoided some of the more problematic elements of his own prophetic patriotism. Despite Rorty’s dismissal of his work as the apotheosis of the absolute, this article argues that Kant’s regulative philosophy of history is more pragmatically oriented towards concrete social change than Rorty’s.
History as Philosophy? Genealogies and Critique
Authors: Gališanka Andrius
Published: November 2015

Are genealogies of our beliefs relevant to the truth of these beliefs? Drawing on Bernard Williams’s Truth and Truthfulness, I argue that genealogies, or historical narratives showing how a set of beliefs came about, can be either critical or vindicatory of these beliefs. They can be critical by denaturalizing beliefs, showing their continued inability to solve explanatory problems, revealing the origins of these beliefs in assumptions that we no longer accept, and exposing unwelcome practical applications of these beliefs. Genealogies can be vindicatory by showing that the framework of beliefs has the ability to innovate itself and has led to acceptable practical applications of the beliefs in question. However, if contingency creates the space for genealogies in philosophical arguments, it also limits their effectiveness. In most cases, genealogies do not offer conclusive arguments for or against the beliefs they narrate. They either point out a contradiction that needs to be resolved, or show that the framework of beliefs has been successful so far, with no guarantees for such success in the future.
Three new species of the genus Conophyma Zubovsky, 1898 (Orthoptera, Acridoidea, Catantopidae, Conophyminae) from Xinjiang, China
Authors: ZHANG YU-LONG , XU QIANG , ZHANG DAO-CHUAN
Published: November 2015

Three new species of the genus Conophyma Zobovsky, 1898 from Xinjiang, West China are described in this paper. The Conophyma xiai sp. nov. is similar to C. olive Huang, 2006, but differs from latter by: vertical diameter of eyes 1.7 times subocular furrow, minimum width of interspace of mesosternum 1.6 times length, hind tibia yellow and furculae smaller. The new species Conophyma nigrifemora sp. nov. is similar to C. xiai sp. nov., but differs from latter by: vertex of head longer, apex narrower; posterior margin of pronotum straight; minimum width 1.6 times its length in interspace of mesosternum; posterior margin of epiproct with curve projection in the middle; epiphallus almost straight on the lower margin, The new species Conophyma hejinensis sp. nov. is similar to C. rufitibia Li & Ti, 1995, but differs from latter by: anterior and posterior margin of pronotum excised in the middle, minimum width of interspace of mesosternum 1.2 times length, hind tibia yellow and posterior margin of epiproct straight, with acute projection in the middle. Type specimens are deposited in the Natural Museum of Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei, China
Observations of Small-Scale Secondary Instabilities during the Shoaling of Internal Bores on a Deep-Ocean Slope
Authors: Cyr Frédéric , van Haren Hans
Published: November 2015

The Rockall Bank area, located in the northeast Atlantic Ocean, is a region dominated by topographically trapped diurnal tides. These tides generate up- and downslope displacements that can be locally described as swashing motions on the bank. Using high spatial and time resolution of moored temperature sensors, the transition toward the upslope flow (cooling phase) is described as a rapid upslope-propagating bore, likely generated by breaking trapped internal waves. Buoyant anomalies are found during the bore propagation, likely resulting from small-scale instabilities. The imbalance between the rate of disappearance of available potential energy and the dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy suggests that these instabilities are growing (i.e., young) and have high mixing potential.
Professional values of Turkish nurses: A descriptive study
Authors: Cetinkaya-Uslusoy Esin , Paslı-Gürdogan Eylem , Aydınlı Ayse
Published: November 2015

Background:

Professional values improve the quality of nurses’ professional lives, reduce emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, increase personal success, and help to make collaborations with the members of the healthcare team more frequent.

Objective:

The purpose of this study was to describe the professional values of Turkish nurses and to explore the relationships between nurses’ characteristics.

Methods:

This was a descriptive study of a convenience sample consisting of 269 clinical nurses. A questionnaire was used to identify socio-demographic characteristics, and the Nurses’ Professional Values Scale was applied.

Ethical considerations:

Permission to conduct the study was received from the hospital and the Institutional Review Boards of the Süleyman Demirel University ethic committee.

Results:

The mean scale score of the participant nurses was 165.41 ± 20.79. The results of this study revealed that human dignity was the most important professional value for nurses, and the importance attached to these values showed statistically significant differences by age, length of service, educational level, marital status, position at work, and receiving relevant in-service training.

Conclusion:

Nurses’ Professional Values Scale scores showed that nurses give above average and attached importance to professional values.
Sequential multimodality bronchoscopic investigation of peripheral pulmonary lesions
Authors: Steinfort Daniel P. , Bonney Asha , See Katharine , Irving Louis B.
Published: November 2015

Multiple guidance modalities may be combined during bronchoscopic investigation of peripheral pulmonary lesions (PPLs). The relative contribution of each modality to diagnostic performance remains uncertain.

Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) with virtual bronchoscopy (VB) was routinely performed, with electromagnetic navigation (EMN) utilised only where EBUS was unable to locate PPLs or where the probe was adjacent to the lesion and on-site cytologic examination was nondiagnostic.

236 consecutive patients with 245 PPLs had lesion size 22.8±12.4 mm (mean±sd). PPLs were localised using EBUS+VB alone in 188 (77%) and was diagnostic in 134 of these (71.3%). EBUS localisation was predicted by PPL size (23.7±10.5versus19.7±9.8 mm, p=0.003), but not by bronchus sign, PPL–hilum distance or PPL–pleura distance. EMN in 57 patients achieved EBUS localisation in a further 17 patients (30.9%), improving overall visualisation yield to 85%. Nine of these 57 procedures achieved a definitive diagnosis (16%), improving overall diagnostic yield to 58.4%. Probe position and lesion type influenced overall diagnostic yield. Sensitivity for diagnosis of lung cancer was 70% (131/188; 95% CI 63–76%).

Localisation rate and diagnostic sensitivity of radial probe EBUS+VB alone for diagnosis of PPLs is high. EBUS localisation rates and procedural yield are improved only modestly (by 8% and 4%, respectively) with addition of EMN. Sampling following EMN should include all available methods to maximise diagnostic yield.