bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Affirmative Precarity: Ai Weiwei and Margarita Cabrera
Authors: Davidson Jane Chin
Published: April 2013

Ai Weiwei’s Sunflower Seeds (2010) and Margarita Cabrera’s Florezca (2011) are two performative works that exemplify a change in priorities in terms of the ways in which art conveys beauty and truth within the conditions of precarious life. In these works, the subject of the artisan/labourer is staged to complicate the mainstream views of China and Mexico as the derogated zones of labour, whereby the outsource worker and the undocumented worker are perpetually blamed for the loss of jobs in the United States. Ai’s production of millions of ceramic sunflower seeds exported from the ‘porcelain capital’ of Jingdezhen, and Cabrera’s thousands of copper butterflies, created by volunteers enlisted to work in her makeshift maquiladora, depict an ‘affective labour’ that has real consequences. The perspective from the new dialectics of precarity – intervening in art, labour and life – can be viewed in association to Lauren Berlant’s return to ‘affirmative culture’, adapted from Herbert Marcuse’s cultural ideal for happiness, goodness, and solidarity that coexisted with its negation by the material processes of life. Berlant’s emphasis on the ‘sociality of emotion’ as a form of ‘optimism of critical thought’ aligns with the idea that, amidst the oppression of global empire, precarity offers the potential for new socialities and subjectivities.
Media After Software
Authors: Manovich Lev
Published: April 2013

While earlier reproduction technologies such as woodblock printing, moveable type printing, lithography, and photography represented media in ways accessible to bare senses, the media technologies of the late 19th century abandoned these formats in favor of an electrical signal. Simultaneously, they also introduced a fundamentally new dimension of media – interface (i.e. the ways to represent and control the signal). And this in its turn changed how media functions – its ‘properties’ were no longer solely contained in the data but were now also dependent on the interfaces provided by technology manufacturers. The shift to digital data and media software a hundred years later extends this principle further. With all types of data now encoded as sets of numbers, they can only be efficiently accessed by users via software applications. As a result, the ‘properties’ of digital media (how it can be edited, shared, and analyzed) are now defined by the particular software as opposed to solely being contained in the actual content (i.e. digital files).
Preserving participant anonymity during remote preenrollment consent form checking
Authors: Journot Valérie , Pérusat-Villetorte Sophie , Bouyssou Caroline , Couffin-Cadiergues Sandrine , Tall Aminata , Fagard Catherine , Chêne Geneviève ,   the OPTIMON Collaborative Group
Published: April 2013

Background

In biomedical research, the consent form must comply with regulatory requirements. Checking for compliance typically has been performed on-site and most frequently after a participant’s final enrollment. We use a procedure for remote preenrollment checking of consent forms that protects participant identities. This procedure requires a copy of the consent form that partially masks the fields for participant’s name and signature; this copy is faxed to the clinical trials unit for checking.

Purpose

To describe our efforts to identify an appropriate printed masking pattern. We tried several patterns that permit ascertainment of the presence of signatures and names and evaluated each one with respect to degree of masking participant identities.

Methods

We assessed the efficiency of a satisfactory pattern through an experiment. We created forms with variants of the masking pattern on the copy to be faxed. We completed the forms with fictitious identities before copies were faxed and checked by clinical research associates. We measured the rate of empty and filled fields detected and the rate of letters and names correctly read. The target was defined as 100% for the rate of empty and filled fields detected and 0% for the rate of letters and names correctly read.

Results

The best masking pattern allowed the detection of 100% empty and filled fields and the reading of 0% names and 19% letters. Consequently, the consent form with the selected masking pattern has been used routinely in our clinical trials unit.

Limitations

We tested only five fictitious identities, five individuals who completed forms, and three who checked forms. Also, we initially considered only four patterns and variations in them.

Conclusions

We defined a masking pattern that satisfactorily fulfilled our needs for confidentiality. This and other procedures for remote preenrollment checking of consent form can be a key component of a risk-based monitoring strategy.
A Bayesian network to evaluate underground rails maintenance strategies in an automation context
Authors: Bouillaut Laurent , Francois Olivier , Dubois Stéphane
Published: April 2013

Reliability analysis has become an integral part of system design and operation. This is especially true for systems performing critical tasks, such as mass transportation systems. This explains the numerous advances in the field of reliability modeling. More recently, some studies involving the use of Bayesian networks have been proven relevant to represent complex systems and perform reliability studies. In previous works, a generic methodology was introduced for developing a decision support tool to evaluate complex systems maintenance strategies. This article deals with development of such a decision tool dedicated to the maintenance of Paris metro rails. Indeed, owing to fulfillment of high-performance levels of safety and availability (the latter being especially critical at peak hours), operators need to estimate, hour by hour their ability to prevent or to detect broken rails. To address this problem, a decision support tool was developed, the aim of this article is to evaluate, compare and optimize various operating and maintenance strategies.
Prospective histopathologic evaluation of lifestyle modification in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: a randomized trial
Authors: Eckard Carly , Cole Renee , Lockwood Joshua , Torres Dawn M. , Williams Christopher D. , Shaw Janet C. , Harrison Stephen A.
Published: April 2013

Background and aims:

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is now recognized as part of the metabolic syndrome, and is specifically related to obesity and insulin resistance. Lifestyle modification is advocated for the treatment of NAFLD, but few studies have evaluated its impact on liver histology. The purpose of this study was to investigate which, if any, specific diet and exercise recommendations are associated with histopathologic changes.

Methods:

A total of 56 participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 lifestyle modification subgroups for 6 months: standard care, low-fat diet and moderate exercise, moderate-fat/low-processed-carbohydrate diet and moderate exercise, or moderate exercise only. All subjects had biopsy-proven NAFLD, to include nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and received a repeat 6-month biopsy to detect histopathologic changes. Other measures included blood assay of liver enzymes (aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase), fasting glucose, serum insulin, lipid panel, body weight, dietary intake, fat mass, and fitness level.

Results:

Among the 41 participants who completed the study (88% with NASH), a significant change was found in pre- to post-NAFLD activity score in the group as a whole ( p < 0.001) with no difference detected between subgroups ( p = 0.31). Our results confirm that lifestyle modification is effective in improving NAFLD and NASH.

Conclusions:

Regardless of intervention group, lifestyle modification improved liver histology, as verified by repeat biopsy, after a 6-month intervention. This study reinforces the importance of lifestyle modification as the primary treatment strategy for patients with NAFLD.
Oral health promotion in Gauteng: a qualitative study
Authors: Molete Mpho Primrose , Daly Blanaid , Hlungwani Tintswalo Mercy
Published: April 2013

Introduction and background:

One of the aims of the South African Oral Health Promotion Framework is to integrate oral health promotion activities into general health promotion using the Common Risk Factor Approach (CRFA). Though policies have directed that oral health should be integrated into general health promotion in South Africa, little is known about the implementation of the CRFA in daily oral health promotion practice.

Aim:

This study aimed to assess how health promoters in Gauteng integrate oral health into their general health promotion activities.

Objectives:

The objectives were (i) to describe how health promoters undertake health promotion in Gauteng; (ii) to describe how health promoters incorporate oral health promotion into health promotion activities; and (iii) to describe the opportunities and challenges for health promoters in applying the CRFA.

Method:

This was a qualitative study and data were collected using semi-structured interviews. A purposive sample of 10 formally trained health promoters agreed to be interviewed. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data.

Results:

Participants’ work was centred mostly on healthy lifestyle campaigns and there was little integration of oral health into health promotion activities. While most health promoters had an understanding of the CRFA, this understanding was not common amongst other levels of management. Oral health literacy was low and health promoters perceived few opportunities for using a CRFA when weighed against other priorities such as poverty and HIV/AIDS.

Conclusion:

Currently there is little evidence of integration of oral health into general health promotion activities.
Application of modeling to speed flexible package development
Authors: Morris Barry A
Published: April 2013

Models developed by DuPont or reported in the literature are described, which help the package engineer to design new package structures by optimizing package performance, minimizing cost, and ensuring the film or laminate can be fabricated on converting equipment. A case study is presented to illustrate how the use of these tools can speed up new package development.
Diagnosis by real-time polymerase chain reaction of pathogens and antimicrobial resistance genes in bone marrow transplant patients with bloodstream infections
Authors: Menezes Liana Carballo , Rocchetti Talita Trevizani , de Castro Bauab Karen , Cappellano Paola , Quiles Milene Gonçalves , Carlesse Fabianne , de Oliveira Jose Salvador Rodrigues , Pignatari Antonio Carlos Campos
Published: April 2013

Background

Early identification of pathogens and antimicrobial resistance in bloodstream infections (BSIs) decreases morbidity and mortality, particularly in immunocompromised patients. The aim of the present study was to compare real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with commercial kits for detection of 17 pathogens from blood culture (BC) and 10 antimicrobial resistance genes.

Methods

A total of 160 BCs were taken from bone marrow transplant patients and screened with Gram-specific probes by multiplex real-time PCR and 17 genus-specific sequences using TaqMan probes and blaSHV, blaTEM, blaCTX, blaKPC, blaIMP, blaSPM, blaVIM, vanA, vanB, and mecA genes by SYBR Green.

Results

Twenty-three of 33 samples identified by phenotypic testing were concordantly positive by BC and real-time PCR. Pathogen identification was discordant in 13 cases. In 12 of 15 coagulase-negative staphylococci, the mecA gene was detected and four Enterococcus spp. were positive for vanA. Two blaCTX and three blaSHV genes were found by quantitative PCR. The blaKPC and metallo-β-lactamase genes were not detected. Five fungal species were identified only by real-time PCR.

Conclusions

Real-time PCR could be a valuable complementary tool in the management of BSI in bone marrow transplants patients, allowing identification of pathogens and antimicrobial resistance genes.
Oral immunization with Lactococcus lactis secreting attenuated recombinant staphylococcal enterotoxin B induces a protective immune response in a murine model
Authors: Asensi Giselli Fernandes , de Sales Nathalia Ferrari Fonseca , Dutra Fabiano Ferreira , Feijó Daniel Ferreira , Bozza Marcelo Torres , Ulrich Robert G , Miyoshi Anderson , de Morais Katia , Azevedo Vasco Ariston de Carvalho , Silva Joab Trajano , Le Loir Yves , Paschoalin Vânia Margaret Flosi
Published: April 2013

Background

Staphylococcus aureus is unrestrictedly found in humans and in animal species that maintain thermal homeostasis. Inadequate cleaning of processing equipment or inappropriate handling can contaminate processed food and cause severe food poisoning. Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB), a potent superantigenic exotoxin, is produced by 50% of clinical isolates of S. aureus and is associated with massive food poisoning and with the induction of toxic shock syndrome.

Results

A gene sequence encoding a recombinant SEB (rSEB), devoid of superantigenic activity, was successfully cloned and expressed in a cytoplasmic or a secreted form in the food-grade lactic acid bacterium Lactococcus lactis. The recombinant protein detected in the cytoplasm or in the culture medium exhibited the expected molecular mass and was recognized by a SEB-polyclonal antibody. Oral immunization with the recombinant L. lactis strains induced a protective immune response in a murine model of S. aureus infection. Immunized mice survived intraperitoneal challenge with an S. aureus SEB-producer strain. Counts of S. aureus in the spleen of rSEB-immunized mice were significantly reduced. The rSEB-immunized mice showed significant titers of anti-SEB IgA and IgG in stools and serum, respectively. Both recombinant L. lactis strains were able to elicit cellular or systemic immune responses in mice, with no significant difference if rSEB was produced in its cytoplasmic or secreted form. However, recombinant L. lactis expressing the cytoplasmic rSEB increased the survival rate of the challenged mice by 43%.

Conclusions

These findings show the vaccine efficacy of L. lactis carrying an attenuated SEB, in a murine model, following lethal S. aureus challenge.
Rupture of the profunda femoris artery in a patient with alcoholic liver disease: a case report
Authors: Orchard Philippa , Tan Benjamin HL , Abayasekara Kumar
Published: April 2013

Introduction

Profunda femoris artery aneurysms are rare and often present with rupture. However, to the best of our knowledge, rupture of a non-aneurismal profunda femoris artery has never been reported before.

Case presentation

We report the case of a 31-year-old Caucasian man with alcoholic liver disease who presented with rupture of the profunda femoris artery following blunt trauma which was treated by endovascular embolization.

Conclusion

Coagulopathy secondary to alcoholic liver disease is a major contributory factor and a high index of suspicion of vascular injury must be attached to such patients following blunt trauma. Although there have no previous documented cases, treatment by endovascular embolization appears to be effective and safe.
Serum agonistic autoantibodies against type-1 angiotensin II receptor titer in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer: a potential role in tumor cell migration and angiogenesis
Authors: Song Li , Zhang Su-Li , Bai Ke-Hua , Yang Jie , Xiong Hai-Yan , Li Xiao , Liu Teng , Liu Hui-Rong
Published: April 2013

Background

Although agonistic autoantibodies against type-1 angiotensin-II receptor (AT1-AA) are frequently detected in women with preeclampsia, the clinical significance of AT1-AA in association with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) has not been identified.

Methods

In an attempt to clarify this issue, we measured serum AT1-AA titer from EOC patients (n = 89) and healthy normal subjects (n = 55), correlated AT1-AA titer with EOC stage and grade, and demonstrated the effects of purified AT1-AA on migration of ovarian cancer cells and angiogenesis of chick embryo chorioallantoic membrane.

Results

We found that the AT1-AA titer was significantly higher in EOC patients compared with healthy control subjects (1.77 ± 0.28 vs. 0.35 ± 0.05, P < 0.01). The positive rate was averaged by 72.1±2.5% in EOC patients and 15.5 ±1.5% in control (P < 0.01). Increased AT1-AA titer in EOC patients was associated with advanced stages and grades of EOC, and positively correlated with level of vascular endothelial growth factor (r = 0.855, P < 0.01). Furthermore, AT1-AA directly stimulated migration of ovarian cancer cells and enhanced microvascular density of chick embryo chorioallantoic membrane. These AT1-AA-mediated effects were significantly blocked either by an autoantibody-neutralizing peptide or an angiotensin II type I receptor antagonist, losartan.

Conclusion

Taken together, we found that a higher serum AT1-AA titer may be associated with advanced progression of EOC in patients and play an important role in development of EOC by promoting cancer cell migration and angiogenesis. These findings implicate that AT1-AA might be selected as a detectable biomarker and potential therapeutic target in diagnosis and treatment of EOC patients.
The distribution of mercury and other trace elements in the bones of two human individuals from medieval Denmark – the chemical life history hypothesis
Authors: Rasmussen Kaare Lund , Skytte Lilian , Pilekær Christian , Lauritsen Anne , Boldsen Jesper Lier , Leth Peter Mygind , Thomsen Per Orla
Published: April 2013

Excavating human skeletons is the closest archaeologists can get to the people who lived in the past. Once excavated the bones are often analysed chemically in order to yield as much information as possible. Most archaeometric analyses performed on samples of human skeletal remains have been performed on a single sample from a tooth or a long bone. In this paper we investigate how a suite of elements (Mg, Al, Ca, Mn, Fe, Zn, As, Sr, Ba, Hg and Pb) are distributed in two medieval skeletons excavated at the laymen cemetery at the Franciscan Friary in Svendborg, Denmark.

The analyses have been performed using CV-AAS for Hg and ICP-MS for the rest of the elements. We find that in general Hg concentrations are highest in the trabecular tissues and in the abdomen region. Our data also show that the elements Al, Fe and Mn concentrate in the trabecular tissue and on the surfaces of the bones. The two individuals can be clearly distinguished by Principal Component Analysis of all the measured trace elements.

Our data support a previously published hypothesis that the elemental ratios Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca and Mg/Ca are indicative of provenance. Aluminium, Fe and Mn can be attributed to various forms of diagenesis, while Hg is not present in sufficiently large amounts in the surrounding soil to allow diagenesis to explain the high Hg values in the trabecular tissue. Instead we propose that Hg must originate from decomposed soft tissue.
An Investigation into the Iranian EFL Language Learners' Attitudes on TOEFL iBT
Authors: Soureshjani Kamal Heidari , Riahipour Parisa , Safikhani Arezoo
Published: April 2013

The present study, which was probably the first of its kind in Iran, aimed at investigating the attitudes of Iranian iBT candidates towards the iBT test. It especially addressed the role of gender in the attitude of the participants of the study on iBT test. Accordingly, an attitude questionnaire was developed based on the theoretical framework of the study and then administered among Iranian iBT candidates who had taken the test in Shiraz, Iran. The collected data was then analyzed through chi-square and T-test to see if there was any meaningful relationship between candidates' sex and their attitudes towards the iBT test. The study revealed that first, most of the participants in the study had a positive attitude toward iBT and second, it was found out that the candidates' gender had no significant role in their attitudes towards iBT test. Implications can be drawn for all the stakeholders including candidates intending to sit for the test, institutes running iBT preparation program and teachers wishing to teach such programs.
The Effect of Dynamic Assessment on EFL Reading Comprehension in Different Proficiency Levels
Authors: Ajideh Parviz , Nourdad Nava
Published: April 2013

The present study aimed at investigating the effect of dynamic assessment on EFL learners' reading comprehension in different proficiency levels. 197 Iranian university students participated in six groups of this study. The design of the research was quasi-experimental. The results of MANOVA test revealed that while dynamic assessment had improving immediate and delayed effect on reading comprehension of learners in all proficiency levels the proficiency groups did not differ significantly in their taking advantage of this kind of assessment.
Job Selection and Wages over the Business Cycle
Authors: Hagedorn Marcus , Manovskii Iourii
Published: April 2013

We consider a model with on-the-job search where current wages depend only on current aggregate labor market conditions and idiosyncratic match-specific productivities. We show theoretically that the model replicates the findings in Bils (1985) and Beaudry and DiNardo (1991) on the history dependence in wages. We develop a method to measure match qualities in the data and show empirically that various variables summarizing past aggregate labor market conditions have explanatory power for current wages only because they are correlated with match qualities. They lose any predictive power once match qualities are accounted for. (JEL E3, E24, J3)
MR cisternography/myelography of post-traumatic spinal CSF fistulae and meningeal lesions in small animals
Authors: Muñoz Alberto , Mateo Isidro , Lorenzo Valentina , Martinez Jeronimo , Crespo Jose
Published: April 2013

Background

The diagnosis of post-traumatic spinal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) fistulae due to dural tears or lesions remains a challenge. Thus far, CT myelography is the standard test used to diagnose these complications.

Purpose

To evaluate the diagnostic ability of gadolinium-enhanced MR cisternography/myelography (intrathecal gadopentate dimeglumine or Gd-DTPA) in small animals that had experienced accidental spinal trauma.

Material and Methods

Four dogs and one cat suffered traumatic accidents resulting in neurological deficits underwent spinal MRI with intrathecal Gd-DTPA after routine plain films and MR images.

Results

T2-weighted SE images showed high water content in the epidural space or in the surroundings of the vertebrae in four animals. MR myelography revealed CSF leakage in all of them. In two animals CSF leaks were observed exuding from the spinal canal and tracking towards adjacent loose fat and interfascial planes. In two other animals Gd-DTPA extravasation was diffusely collected in paraspinal tissues around the vertebral arch. In the fifth animal a focal pseudomeningocele was observed adjacent to the traumatized region.

Conclusion

Intrathecal administration of Gd-DTPA is an effective method to reveal and confirm post-traumatic spinal CSF fistulae or other dural lesions in animals with potential application in humans.
Review of Presentation, Diagnosis and Management of Pituitary Tumours in Pregnancy
Authors: Lambert Kimberley , Williamson Catherine
Published: April 2013

Although pituitary tumours are relatively uncommon, their association with menstrual irregularity and infertility brings them into the domain of obstetrics and gynaecology. This review addresses the range of pituitary tumours with particular regard to diagnosis, growth and behaviour and management during pregnancy.
A “Meta-Analysis” of Multibrand, Multioutlet Channel Systems
Authors: Lee Eunkyu , Staelin Richard , Yoo Weon Sang , Du Rex
Published: April 2013

In today's multibrand, multichannel marketplace, optimal channel design involves issues such as distribution intensity, channel exclusivity, vertical and horizontal coordination, and online–offline mixed structures. We investigate how a firm's choice in these design issues affects its profitability under varying levels of brand and outlet differentiation. Our spatial model explicitly captures heterogeneous consumer preference for brand position, store location, and outlet type, under various consumer behavior assumptions. We apply this same underlying model to 10 different channel structures, deriving associated demand functions and equilibrium solutions. We perform a meta-analysis over the entire set of results to estimate a general model that summarizes the linkages among the factors shaping optimal channel structure decisions in a multibrand, multioutlet market. This general model efficiently describes the complex interactions of channel characteristics with industry structure and consumer characteristics, providing new findings as well as greater clarity to some results in the literature. A predictive analysis applied to additional channel structures exhibits strong generalizability in qualitative findings.

This paper was accepted by by Pradeep Chintagunta, marketing.
License to Cheat: Voluntary Regulation and Ethical Behavior
Authors: Gino Francesca , Krupka Erin L. , Weber Roberto A.
Published: April 2013

Although monitoring and regulation can be used to combat socially costly unethical conduct, their intended targets can often avoid regulation or hide their behavior. This surrenders at least part of the effectiveness of regulatory policies to firms' and individuals' decisions to voluntarily submit to regulation. We study individuals' decisions to avoid monitoring or regulation and thus enhance their ability to engage in unethical conduct. We conduct a laboratory experiment in which participants engage in a competitive task and can decide between having the opportunity to misreport their performance or having their performance verified by an external monitor. To study the effect of social factors on the willingness to be subject to monitoring, we vary whether participants make this decision simultaneously with others or sequentially, as well as whether the decision is private or public. Our results show that the opportunity to avoid being submitted to regulation produces more unethical conduct than situations in which regulation is either exogenously imposed or entirely absent.

This paper was accepted by Uri Gneezy, behavioral economics.
Geographic Constraints on Knowledge Spillovers: Political Borders vs. Spatial Proximity
Authors: Singh Jasjit , Marx Matt
Published: April 2013

Geographic localization of knowledge spillovers is a central tenet in multiple streams of research. However, prior work has typically examined this phenomenon considering only one geographic unit—country, state, or metropolitan area—at a time and has rarely accounted for spatial distance. We disentangle these multiple effects by using a regression framework employing choice-based sampling to estimate the likelihood of citation between random patents. We find both country and state borders to have independent effects on knowledge diffusion beyond what just geographic proximity in the form of metropolitan collocation or shorter within-region distances can explain. An identification methodology comparing inventor-added and examiner-added citation patterns points to an even stronger role of political borders. The puzzling state border effect remains robust on average across analyses, though it is found to have waned with time. The country effect has, in contrast, not only remained robust but even strengthened over time.

This paper was accepted by Kamalini Ramdas, entrepreneurship and innovation.
Terje Vigen, naturbilder and the natural history of film in Sweden
Authors: Oscarson Christopher
Published: April 2013

Victor Sjöström’s Terje Vigen/A Man There Was (1917) has often been credited with introducing a new era of film production in Sweden and initiating a ‘golden age’. Reading the film only as a break with the past, however, obscures other important continuities
that stretch back to the earliest days of film-making. In particular, I argue, the film drew heavily on the actuality film tradition of naturbilder/nature pictures that invited audiences to sense a shared space with the cinematic image, understood to be an extension of the spectators’
world. Additionally, both Terje Vigen and the mythology surrounding the film’s origins highlight the characters’ and actors’ supposed embeddedness in place and work to construct an image of landscape that presents itself as given and organic. By drawing upon an imaginary
in which the subject is inextricably connected with and constructed by place, Terje Vigen invites a reconsideration of the boundaries of subjectivity and the means by which identity was formed.
The Test for Creative Thinking: An authentic tool for art education to assess creativity through visual expression
Authors: Kárpáti Andrea , Gyebnár Viktória
Published: April 2013

This article introduces a creativity test, an authentic and flexible assessment instrument that invites participants to create a meaningful image out of a set of visual signs. The elements offered for completion, repetition, modification, inclusion and composition are not culturally
biased and invite the use of a variety of drawing styles. This test has been successfully used by art educators to identify talented students for enrolment in special courses and also by teachers who want to know more about the creative potentials of students who are verbally less fluent and
therefore are not successful at school. In this article, we discuss the general findings of the Test for Creative Thinking/Drawing Production (TCT/DP) that was administered between 2000 and 2010 to 1050 children and young people aged 7-18 years during the course of the national standardization
of this instrument. We compare two generally known and often discussed models of visual skills development created by Victor Lowenfeld, Howard Gardner, Ellen Winner and Jessica Davis in relation to the test results obtained from a comparison of Hungarian and German children. We focus on important
issues of art education: cognitive growth manifest in visual language use, the issue of the 'drawing gap' in adolescence and the use or uselessness of developmental stages in relation to artistic performance.
Reflections on drawings in art pedagogy and art therapy
Authors: Kiss Virág
Published: April 2013

Drawing is a highly subjective means of self-expression in which personal content is revealed. In art education and art therapy, reflection on drawings influences the motivations of students and clients. I have collected evaluative and non-evaluative forms of reflection from the fields
of both art pedagogy and art therapy. Most kinds of formative and summative evaluations are reflections, but there are non-evaluative means of assessment, and therefore, I prefer the term 'reflection' over 'evaluation'. As an art teacher working on the border of two fields, I have found it
best to respond to students' drawings mainly in non-evaluative ways, or by giving positive feedback, in order to get them involved in art activities. As a researcher with insight into both the educational and therapeutic realms, I have collected a variety of reflections and systematized them.
My intention is to share my collection and to offer methodological alternatives for reflecting on the drawings of students/clients.
Navigationsverfahren für mobile Roboter — Ein Blick in Vergangenheit, Gegenwart und Zukunft
Authors: Müller André , Wünsche Hans-Joachim
Published: April 2013

Auch wenn Roboter, ungeachtet ihrer Mobilität, im alltäglichen Leben noch eine untergeordnete Rolle spielen, so werden zahlreiche Aufgaben, die hohe Präzision und Schnelligkeit erfordern, schon längst von ihnen übernommen. Jedoch werden immer neue Anwendungsgebiete von ihnen erschlossen, ob in Form von autonomen Robotern zur Erkundung sehr tiefer Meeresregionen, Fahrerassistenzsystemen für Fahrzeuge oder unbemannten Drohnen. Mit jeder neuen Anwendung werden neue Anforderungen, nicht nur an Hardware wie Sensorik und Aktorik, sondern ebenso an Wahrnehmungs- und Navigationsalgorithmen, gestellt. Aber besonders dann, wenn schwierige Umgebungsbedingungen die Wahrnehmung bekannter Strukturen erschweren, müssen robuste Navigationsmethoden aus unsicheren Sensormessungen und einer Vielzahl von möglichen Roboterbewegungen die passendste Aktion auswählen, um den Roboter sicher und zielgerichtet zu bewegen. Dieser Artikel soll die verschiedenartigen Navigationsparadigmen und deren Realisierungen auf echten mobilen Robotern aufzeigen, sowie die Gründe hinter der gewählten Realisierung herausarbeiten. Den Schluss soll ein Ausblick auf mögliche zukünftige Entwicklungen im Bereich der Navigation mobiler Roboter bilden.
Kognitive Robotik — Herausforderungen an unser Verständnis natürlicher Umgebungen
Authors: Toussaint Marc , Lang Tobias , Jetchev Nikolay
Published: April 2013

Wir diskutieren einen Ansatz, der kognitive Robotik als die Erweiterung der Methoden der Robotik — insb. Lernen, Planen und Regelung — auf „äußere Freiheitsgrade“ versteht. Damit verschiebt sich der Fokus: Weg von Gelenkwinkeln, Vektorräumen und Gauß'schen Verteilungen, hin zu den Objekten und der Struktur der Umwelt. Letztere können wir nur schwer formalisieren und in geeignete Repräsentationen und Priors übersetzen, mit denen effizientes Lernen und Planen möglich wird. Es wird deutlich, welche theoretischen Probleme sich hinter dem Ziel automomer Systeme verbergen, die durch intelligente Exploration und Verallgemeinerung ihre Umwelt zu verstehen lernen und die gelernten Modelle zur Handlungsplanung nutzen. Die momentan diskutierte Integration von Logik, Geometrie und Wahrscheinlichkeiten — und damit die Überbrückung der klassischen Disziplinbarrieren zwischen Robotik, Künstlicher Intelligenz und statistischer Lerntheorie — ist eine der zwangsläufigen Herausforderungen der kognitiven Robotik. In diesem Kontext skizzieren wir eigene Beiträge zum relationalen Reinforcement-Lernen, zur Exploration und dem Symbol-Lernen.
An Internet Inspired Approach to Power Grid Stability / Internet-Konzepte für Stromnetzstabilität
Authors: Hermanns Holger , Hartmanns Arnd
Published: April 2013

The German power grid is facing the disruptive challenge to integrate massively decentral infeed of renewable electric power. It is commonly agreed that information technology can help in managing this problem, mainly by tailoring communication protocols and interfaces, as well as data warehousing and information retrieval approaches to this problem domain. This paper advocates a radically different approach. We draw strong analogies between the operation of the Internet and the operation of a future power grid, and from that derive principles that inspire the design of a new generation of distributed and decentralised power grid control appliances. We report on some prototypical controller designs for photovoltaic generators, and contrast their reliable operation with critical shortcomings of controllers installed on hundreds of thousands of German rooftops to date.
Why Smart Grids?
Authors: Kiessling Andreas , Niemann Michael U. , Schmitt Frieder
Published: April 2013

The transformation to the guide system of renewable energy requires the flexibilization of the energy system where smart grids are the basis for new grid and market functions with close inclusion of customers’ properties. The E-Energy project moma developed a new procedure for a cellular grid operation with automated processes. In this article, the moma system is put in relation to the architecture of the EU-smart grid mandate 490 as well as to moma flexibilization functions.
ICT-Challenges in Load Balancing across Multi-Domain Hybrid Energy Infrastructures / IKT-Herausforderungen bei der Lastverschiebung in domänenübergreifenden Hybridnetzen
Authors: Lehnhoff Sebastian , Rohjans Sebastian , Appelrath H.-Jürgen
Published: April 2013

Addressing the “storage gap” in future energy systems with a high penetration of renewable and volatile resources is a major challenge. Hybrid Energy Grids represent a possible solution to this problem by interconnecting energy systems and infrastructures and thus allowing energy to be transformed between various alternative forms of energy. This provides the means for higher flexibility along the energy system. The paper discusses the concept of Hybrid Energy Grids from an ICT perspective and presents a regulation framework to assess use cases in multi-domain Hybrid Energy Infrastructures.
Kernel-Based Machine Learning with Multiple Sources of Information / Kernbasiertes Maschinelles Lernen mit mehreren Informationsquellen
Authors: Kloft Marius
Published: April 2013

We present a new methodology for fusing information from multiple data sources - or kernels - in machine learning. Previous approaches promoted sparse combinations of kernels, which, however, may discard important information. We present a flexible approach based on ℓp-norm regularization, allowing for non-sparse solutions. In a theoretical analysis we show lower and upper generalization bounds of order up to O(M/n), overcoming the best previously known upper bounds for the problem, which achieved O(√M/n). The computational experiments indicate that the novel algorithms are up to two orders of magnitude faster than previous approaches. Applications to computational biology and computer vision show accuracies that go beyond the stateof-the-art.
Crystal structure of (2E,6E)-2-benzylidene-6-(3,4-dimethoxybenzylidene) cyclohexanone, C22H22O3
Authors: Hu Wan-Le , Zhu Li-Li , Huang Chong-Jie , Xu Yong-Qiang , Cai Mao , Liu Chang-Bao
Published: April 2013

C22H22O3, triclinic, P1̅ (no. 2), a = 8.641(1) Å, b = 9.808(1) Å, c = 12.420(1) Å, α = 89.263(2)°, β = 70.596(2)°, γ = 64.224(2)°, V = 883.2 Å3, Z = 2, Rgt(F) = 0.0646, wRref(F2) = 0.1796, T = 293 K.
All-on-4 Concept: A 3-Dimensional Finite Element Analysis
Authors: Sannino Gianpaolo
Published: April 2013

The aim of this work was to study the biomechanical behavior of an All-on-4 implant-supported prosthesis through a finite element analysis comparing 3 different tilt degrees of the distal implants. Three-dimensional finite element models of an edentulous maxilla restored with a prosthesis supported by 4 implants were reconstructed to carry out the analysis. Three distinct configurations, corresponding to 3 tilt degrees of the distal implants (15°, 30°, and 45°) were subjected to 4 loading simulations. The von Mises stresses generated around the implants were localized and quantified for comparison. Negligible differences in von Mises stress values were found in the comparison of the 15° and 30° models. From a stress-level viewpoint, the 45° model was revealed to be the most critical for peri-implant bone. In all the loading simulations, the maximum stress values were always found at the neck of the distal implants. The stress in the distal implants increased in the apical direction as the tilt degree increased. The stress location and distribution patterns were very similar among the evaluated models. The increase in the tilt degree of the distal implants was proportional to the increase in stress concentration. The 45° model induced higher stress values at the bone-implant interface, especially in the distal aspect, than the other 2 models analyzed.
Cyclic triaxial tests to aid offshore pile analysis and design
Authors: Sim Way Way , Aghakouchak Amin , Jardine Richard James
Published: April 2013

Renewable offshore energy structures experience unusually high levels of cyclic loading under storm and operating conditions. Laboratory and full-scale tests provide one route to develop rational foundation design approaches for such structures. Analytical approaches may also be developed from soil element testing and modelling. This paper outlines preliminary results from such a study. Computer-controlled stress path triaxial equipment, employing high-resolution local strain instrumentation, is adopted for experiments on Dunkerque and Fontainebleau sands designed to support parallel full-scale field and laboratory-model testing programmes involving axial pile loading. The triaxial experiments comprise suites of constant-volume uniform cyclic tests on K0 over-consolidated specimens employing different amplitudes, performed in conjunction with static and multi-stage experiments that examine the effects of non-uniform cyclic loading. Preliminary results reveal the relationships between cyclic deviator stress, mean effective stress changes and number of cycles, as well as patterns of permanent and cyclic strain development.
Morphological traits and density of foundation species modulate a facilitation cascade in Australian mangroves
Authors: Bishop Melanie J. , Fraser Jill , Gribben Paul E.
Published: April 2013

Facilitation cascades are critical to the maintenance of biodiversity in a variety of habitats. Through a series of two experiments, we examined how the morphological traits and density of interacting foundation species influence the establishment and persistence of a facilitation cascade in temperate Australian mangrove forests. In this system, mangrove pneumatophores trap the free‐living alga, Hormosira banksii, which, in turn, supports dense and diverse assemblages of epifaunal mollusks. The first experiment, which manipulated pneumatophore height and density, revealed that these two traits each had additive negative effects on the establishment, but additive positive effects on the persistence of the cascade. High densities of tall pneumatophores initially served as a physical barrier to algal colonization of pneumatophore plots, but over the longer term enhanced the retention of algae. The increased algal biomass, in turn, facilitating epifaunal colonization. The second experiment demonstrated that the retention of algae by pneumatophores was influenced more by algal thallus length than vesicle diameter, and this effect occurred independent of pneumatophore height. Our study has extended facilitation theory by showing that the morphological traits and density of basal and intermediary facilitators influence both the establishment and persistence of facilitation cascades. Hence, attempts to use foundation species as a tool for restoration will require an understanding not only of the interactions among these, but also of the key traits that modify interrelationships.
Unilaterally impacted maxillary central incisor and canine with ipsilateral transposed canine-lateral incisor
Authors: Fu Po-Sung , Wang Jen-Chyan , Wu Yi-Min , Huang Ta-Ko , Chen Wen-Cheng , Tseng Yu-Chuan , Tseng Chin-Huang , Hung Chun-Cheng
Published: April 2013

Concurrent impaction and transposition of maxillary anterior teeth is uncommon and poses a challenge for dentists. Early diagnosis and management of eruption disturbances benefits esthetic and functional outcomes. This article describes the treatment of a teenager who had impactions of the left maxillary central incisor and canine as well as ipsilateral canine-lateral incisor transposition. Treatment alternatives and effective orthodontic techniques are delineated. To optimize the treatment results, the impacted maxillary canine was surgically exposed and orthodontically distalized with an innovative cantilever. Subsequently, the deeply impacted maxillary central incisor was uncovered and orthodontically mesialized into the arch. Finally, the displaced maxillary lateral incisor was brought into its normal position. The combined surgical-orthodontic approach resolved a difficult clinical issue and avoided additional restorations. An esthetic, functional outcome was achieved and satisfied the patient.
Social functioning and support of addicts on methadone
Authors: Dragic Natasa , Dickov Aleksandra , Nikolic Erzebet , Vuckovic Nikola
Published: April 2013

The study aimed to determine characteristics of addicts on methadone maintenance therapy (MMT), which are related to the level of social functioning, with emphasis on the role of social support. In a prospective study, opiate addicts (n=150) who were on MMT completed the Pompidou questionnaire, the Social Adaptation Self-evaluation Scale (SASS) and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). Statistical data processing was based on testing the difference between features that best distinguish subgroups of addicts who were dissatisfied, moderately satisfied and satisfied with their social functioning. Opiate addicts up to 30 years of age had a statistically higher score on SASS scale than addicts over 30; addicts who are dissatisfied are mainly unemployed and have average or above-average family/community financial status; opiate addicts who were moderately satisfied with their social functioning were three years or longer on MMT; paradoxically, the highest mean value of score on MSPSS scale dominated among addicts who are dissatisfied with their social functioning. These results indicate that age, employment, financial status, duration of MMT are the characteristics of addicts which are related to the level of social functioning. Social support is most perceived by addicts who are dissatisfied with their social functioning.
Physical Therapist–Established Intensive Care Unit Early Mobilization Program: Quality Improvement Project for Critical Care at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center
Authors: Engel Heidi J. , Tatebe Shintaro , Alonzo Philip B. , Mustille Rebecca L. , Rivera Monica J.
Published: April 2013

Background

Long-term weakness and disability are common after an intensive care unit (ICU) stay. Usual care in the ICU prevents most patients from receiving preventative early mobilization.

Objective

The study objective was to describe a quality improvement project established by a physical therapist at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center from 2009 to 2011. The goal of the program was to reduce patients' ICU length of stay by increasing the number of patients in the ICU receiving physical therapy and decreasing the time from ICU admission to physical therapy initiation.

Design

This study was a 9-month retrospective analysis of a quality improvement project.

Methods

An interprofessional ICU Early Mobilization Group established and promoted guidelines for mobilizing patients in the ICU. A physical therapist was dedicated to a 16-bed medical-surgical ICU to provide physical therapy to selected patients within 48 hours of ICU admission. Patients receiving early physical therapy intervention in the ICU in 2010 were compared with patients receiving physical therapy under usual care practice in the same ICU in 2009.

Results

From 2009 to 2010, the number of patients receiving physical therapy in the ICU increased from 179 to 294. The median times (interquartile ranges) from ICU admission to physical therapy evaluation were 3 days (9 days) in 2009 and 1 day (2 days) in 2010. The ICU length of stay decreased by 2 days, on average, and the percentage of ambulatory patients discharged to home increased from 55% to 77%.

Limitations

This study relied upon the retrospective analysis of data from 6 collectors, and the intervention lacked physical therapy coverage for 7 days per week.

Conclusions

The improvements in outcomes demonstrated the value and feasibility of a physical therapist–led early mobilization program.