bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Asset Complementarity, Resource Shocks, and the Political Economy of Property Rights
Authors: Silve Arthur
Published: March 2017

Collaboration between two groups that may invest their resources in a common productive activity has the potential to lead to conflict over the output of that activity. This article examines the stakes of such conflict as well as the willingness for parties to subject themselves to a third-party arbiter. The model highlights three determinants of conflict and of investment in credibility-enhancing institutions: the value of the output, the relative endowments of the parties, and the mutual benefits of collaboration. In particular, the analysis shows that complementarity between the groups’ resources lowers the stakes of political conflict and increases the incentives to commit. The model thus suggests a new mechanism through which we can understand the frequency of conflict and the poor institutions associated in countries with mineral resources. The model’s predictions also help us to understand how Mauritius avoided the resource curse and was able to develop sustainable economic growth.
A Practitioner’s Guide to End-of-Life Intimacy: Suggestions for Conceptualization and Intervention in Palliative Care
Authors: Morrissey Stahl Kate A. , Bower Kyle L. , Seponski Desiree M. , Lewis Denise C. , Farnham Andrea L. , Cava-Tadik Yasemin
Published: March 2017

Sexuality and intimacy, including contact, tenderness, and love, are important at every life stage. Intimate expression is especially vital at the end of life, when relationships with loved ones are time limited. Unfortunately, care providers often ignore the potential need for sexual expression, especially at the end of life. In this article, we consider current research on sexuality and end-of-life care and situate these two fields in an ecological framework. We explore how end-of-life sexuality and intimacy can be supported by practitioners in multiple nested contexts and provide suggestions for theoretically-driven interventions. We also provide reflexive considerations for practitioners.
Race, Incarceration, and Motherhood
Authors: Easterling Beth A. , Feldmeyer Ben
Published: March 2017

Extant research on maternal incarceration has focused either on mothers as a whole (not disaggregated by race) or on the experiences of urban Black mothers, with relatively little focused attention on the experiences of their White counterparts. This study expands research on incarceration and its effects using qualitative interviews to explore how prison shapes identity construction among an understudied population—rural White mothers. Mothers in our sample expressed histories of family problems and drug use. Uniquely, we explore findings from a framework of “spoiled identity” for both the mothers themselves and their children as a result of their incarceration.
Control Variables in Leadership Research: A Qualitative and Quantitative Review
Authors: Bernerth Jeremy B. , Cole Michael S. , Taylor Erik C. , Walker H. Jack
Published: March 2017

Statistical control of extraneous (i.e., third) variables is a common analytic tool among leadership researchers. While such a strategy is typically assumed to prove beneficial, it can actually introduce various complications that are underestimated or even ignored. This study investigates and summarizes the current state of control variable usage in leadership research by qualitatively and quantitatively examining the use of statistical control variables in 10 highly regarded management and applied psychology journals. Despite available “best practices,” our results indicate that control variable usage in existing leadership studies is rarely grounded in theory but instead frequently relies on outdated misconceptions. Moreover, a meta-analysis of the relationships between popular control variables and leadership constructs finds nearly universal weak effect sizes, suggesting that many studies may not only be losing valuable degrees of freedom but also making inferences based on biased parameter estimates. To address these issues, we put forth a number of recommendations to assist leadership scholars with determining whether potential third variables should be controlled for in their leadership research.
Discourses of entrepreneurial leadership: Exposing myths and exploring new approaches
Authors: Dean Hannah , Ford Jackie
Published: March 2017

This article explores gender and entrepreneurial leadership, notably the meanings female entrepreneurs ascribe to notions of entrepreneurial leadership. Drawing from interviews with female business owners, the article questions the dominant hegemonic masculine entrepreneurial leadership model as well as that reportedly associated with women. Research findings illuminate the fluidity and variability of the entrepreneurial leadership construct. Our feminist poststructural lens and critical leadership stance adds new insight into the multiple subjectivities of entrepreneurs and surfaces contradiction and tension that shape the very sense of their entrepreneurial selves. By questioning accepted knowledge, this research offers new perspectives on the multiple realities of entrepreneurial leadership, which should be heeded by policy makers, academics and practitioners alike.
Long-term Correction in Sleep Disturbance Is Sustained After Arthroscopic Rotator Cuff Repair
Authors: Horneff John G. , Tjoumakaris Fotios , Wowkanech Charles , Pepe Matthew , Tucker Bradford , Austin Luke
Published: March 2017

Background:

Sleep disturbance is a major complaint of patients with rotator cuff disease that often leads them to seek treatment. The authors previously reported a prospective analysis of patients who underwent rotator cuff repair and found that sleep disturbance significantly improved at 3 months after surgery. That improvement in sleep was maintained at 6 months.

Hypothesis:

In the current study, the authors sought to gain medium-term data on this same population at greater than 2 years. The hypotheses were that improvement in sleep disturbance after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair is maintained at 2-year follow-up and that the continued use of narcotic pain medication has a negative effect on sleep quality at 2-year follow-up.

Study Design:

Case series; Level of evidence, 4.

Methods:

The original cohort of patients was contacted at a minimum of 24 months after their surgery. Thirty-seven of the 56 patients (66%) involved in the original study were available. Patient outcomes were scored using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Simple Shoulder Test (SST), visual analog scale (VAS) for pain, and Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE). The newly obtained scores were compared with prior scores, which ranged from preoperatively to 6 months postoperatively.

Results:

The statistically significant improvement of the PSQI score demonstrated in our prior analysis at 6 months postoperatively was maintained, with a mean PSQI score of 5.5 for the 37 patients followed beyond 24 months. Of those patients, 41% still had a PSQI score >5, indicative of sleep disturbance. However, even those patients in our study with a PSQI score >5, indicative of sleep disturbance, had an improved mean score of 9.3 at greater than 24 months compared with those patients with a PSQI score >5 at 6 months, who had a mean PSQI score of 11.5 ( P = .13). Both the SST and VAS scores displayed continued improvement at greater than 24 months, with both displaying moderate strength correlation to the PSQI score (VAS: Spearman rho = 0.479, P < .001; SST: Spearman rho = −0.505, P < .001). Regression models again demonstrated the continued use of narcotic pain medication correlating with poor sleep as the difference in the mean PSQI score between users and nonusers increased as postoperative time increased. At greater than 24 months after surgery, patients using narcotics had a mean PSQI score that was 7.4 points higher than narcotic nonusers (standard error [SE] = 1.93; P = .00017).

Conclusion:

At greater than 24 months, 41% of patients still demonstrated sleep disturbance, with both SST and VAS scores showing improvement. The prolonged use of narcotic medication negatively affects sleep, with a greater effect seen over time.
Three-dimensional orthogonal nonwoven single polymer composite
Authors: Wu Ning , Zheng Shanshan , Yang Jie , Gao Yang , Wang Jing , Chen Li
Published: March 2017

This paper describes the production and bending properties of three-dimensional orthogonal single polymer composites made from axial–braider commingling yarns where the braider yarns are completely melted to produce the matrix phase. The research was demonstrated using poly(lactic acid) yarn as an example. The optimum linear density ratio of braider and axial yarn was prescreened. The effects of consolidation temperature, pressure, and preform thickness on the bending properties were investigated by Environment Scanning Electron Microscope (ESEM) observations and mechanical bending tests. The results showed that the best bending properties of single poly(lactic acid) composite were detected in the braider–axial yarns ratio of 5/6. At this ratio, the increase of the consolidation temperature was to improve the bending properties (from 145 to 160℃), while it markedly decreased at 165℃. As the processing pressure increased, a remarkable improvement in the interfacial bonding between fibers and matrix occurred at a pressure of around 8 MPa. The increase of preform thickness gave rise to higher fiber volume fraction in the single poly(lactic acid) composite, with the result that the peak values of maximum stress and modulus were obtained at the preform thickness of 9 mm.
Pilot-scale steam aging of steel slags
Authors: Kumar Praveen , Satish Kumar D , Marutiram K , Prasad SMR
Published: March 2017

Solid waste management has gained importance in the steel industry in view of rising environmental concerns and scarcity of raw materials. In spite of significant developments in reducing waste generation and development of recycling technologies, steel slag is still a concern for the industry as most of it is dumped. Steel slag is similar to stone aggregates in strength, but its volumetric instability in contact with water hinders its application as aggregates in construction. A part of steel slag is normally exposed to rain and sun for natural aging and stabilization for months before use. The natural aging process is slow and time-consuming, and thus restricts its usage. The steelmaking slag can be put to effective use as coarse aggregates if quickly aged and stabilized by pre-reacting the free expansive phases. In the present work, a new process has been developed to accelerate the steel slag aging process using steam in a 30 T pilot scale facility. The setup has controlled steam injection, distribution, and process control system for steam, temperature, flow, and pressure. Steam percolates through the minute pores in the slag lumps and hydrates the expansive free lime and MgO phases, making it stable. The aged slag expansion properties were tested using an in-house developed expansion testing apparatus. The process is capable of reducing the expansion of steel slag from 3.5% to <1.5% (standard requirement) in 7 days. The aged steel slag is currently being used in roads at JSW Steel, Vijayanagar Works.
Chatter reduction in slender boring bar via a tunable holder with variable mass and stiffness
Authors: Hayati Sajad , Hajaliakbari Mohammad , Rajabi Yalda , Rasaee Sajad
Published: March 2017

In this study, a new strategy is presented to increase the machining stability due to chatter suppression for boring and turning machining processes. The proposed approach is based on varying the position of stability lobes via changing mechanical properties of the tool body such as the mass and stiffness. Because of the shape of stability lobe diagrams, having a tool with a tunable stability lobe diagram can be useful to alter an unstable condition to a stable condition. For this purpose, a structure for the tool body is designed that is consisted of a hollow body with a core as a tunable screw inside it. As the core gets in or out, it changes the mass and stiffness of the tool body that leads to change the position of stability lobe diagram. In order to study the effect of designed structure on stability, the structure is simulated using a validated finite element time domain model. The time domain simulation shows a considerable improvement in stability of process. The strategy is experimentally applied to the process via modulation of the tool structure in the machining process to validate the simulation results. The experimental results have a high coincidence with theory and show a good improvement in stability.
Moving element analysis of discretely supported high-speed rail systems
Authors: Dai Jian , Ang Kok Keng , Tran Minh Thi , Luong Van Hai , Jiang Dongqi
Published: March 2017

In this paper, a computational scheme in conjunction with the moving element method has been proposed to investigate the dynamic response of a high-speed rail system in which the discrete sleepers on the subgrade support the railway track. The track foundation is modeled as a beam supported by uniformly spaced discrete spring-damper units. The high-speed train is modeled as a moving sprung-mass system that travels over the track. The effect of the stiffness of the discrete supports, train speed, and railhead roughness on the dynamic behavior of the train–track system has been investigated. As a comparison, the response of a continuously supported high-speed rail system that uses a foundation stiffness equivalent to that of a discretely supported track has been obtained. The difference in results between the “equivalent” continuously supported and the discretely supported high-speed rails has been compared and discussed. In general, the study found that a high-speed train that travels over a discretely supported track produces more severe vibrations than that travels over a continuously supported track of equivalent foundation stiffness.
Generic substitution of antiretrovirals: patients’ and health care providers’ opinions
Authors: Kieran Jennifer A , O’Reilly Eimear , O’Dea Siobhan , Bergin Colm , O’Leary Aisling
Published: March 2017

There is interest in introducing generic antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) into high-income countries in order to maximise efficiency in health care budgets. Studies examining patients’ and providers’ knowledge and attitudes to generic substitution in HIV are few. This was a cross-sectional, observational study with a convenience sample of adult HIV-infected patients and health care providers (HCPs). Data on demographics, knowledge of generic medicine and facilitators of generic substitution were collected. Descriptive and univariate analysis was performed using SPSS V.23™. Questionnaires were completed by 66 patients. Seventy-one per cent would have no concerns with the introduction of generic ARVs. An increase in frequency of administration (61%) or pill burden (53%) would make patients less likely to accept generic ARVs. There were 30 respondents to the HCP survey. Concerns included the supply chain of generics, loss of fixed dose combinations, adherence and use of older medications. An increase in dosing frequency (76%) or an increase in pill burden (50%) would make HCPs less likely to prescribe a generic ARV. The main perceived advantage was financial. Generic substitution of ARVs would be acceptable to the majority of patients and HCPs. Reinvesting savings back into HIV services would facilitate the success of such a programme.
Unlimited fuel wood during the middle Mesolithic (9650–8300 cal. yr BP) in northern Sweden: Fuel typology and pine-dominated vegetation inferred from charcoal identification and tree-ring morphology
Authors: Carcaillet Christopher
Published: March 2017

A fuel wood analysis based on the ‘Principle of Least Effort’ helps to decipher the ecological limitations imposed on prehistoric hunter-gatherers. This study is based on botanical identification of wood charcoal from ‘Swedish middle Mesolithic’ archaeological sites dating from between ca. 9650 and 8300 cal. yr BP in northern Sweden, a period when the land was freshly released from ice cover. Charcoal fragments were analysed based on their anatomical and morphological features and anomalies. Tree-ring thickness gives an indication of the growing conditions experienced by woody plants, the tree-ring curvature provides an indication of the diameter of the pieces of wood used for fuel and the percentage of fragments with spiral thickening indicates the importance of compression or tension wood, which is related to branches or trunks stressed by snow burden or wind. Among the main woody species, the assemblages are dominated by Pinus sylvestris with some Salicaceae trees ( Populus, Salix). Large wood pieces including branches were used as fuel. Several taxa were rarely recorded ( Betula, Sorbus, Ericaceae) or not observed ( Juniperus, Hippophae, Alnus) although their presences were expected based on other local palaeobotanical records. Because (1) charcoal of Pinus sylvestris abounds despite not being a good fuel wood and (2) certain consumable or combustible taxa are scarce ( Betula) or are only present at certain sites (Salicaceae), it appears that Mesolithic hunters were not selective when choosing wood for fuel, although wood was not a limiting factor for the first settlers in northern Sweden. Pine tree-ring width range is within the modern range for the same species, indicating growing conditions similar to those experienced today. The results suggest the occurrence of woodland, probably in the lowlands. During the early-Holocene, trees rapidly covered the land after the ice-sheet melted, facilitating the life of Mesolithic hunters following reindeer herds.
The development pathways of two peatlands in South Africa over the last 6200 years: Implications for peat formation and palaeoclimatic research
Authors: Gabriel Marvin , Gałka Mariusz , Pretorius Mathilde Luise , Zeitz Jutta
Published: March 2017

For the first time, plant macrofossil analysis supported by detailed stratigraphic studies was used to reconstruct peatland development in South Africa. Two peat cores (4.69 and 1.5 m) from two coastal peatlands in KwaZulu-Natal were analysed for carpological macrofossils, wood and macrocharcoal. The first one, Matitimani, is an unchannelled valley bottom peatland (site VB), and the second one, KwaMazambane, an interdune depression peatland (site ID) further up in the same catchment. Radiocarbon dating reveals the peatland initiation at site VB at about 6260 cal. yr BP. Rising sea level and humid climatic conditions during that time coincide with the formation of organic gyttja (dominantly aquatic seeds like Nymphaea sp.). In ca. 4950 cal. yr BP, a change to drier condition took place, revealed by the formation of radicell peat from Cyperaceae, and an increase of fire frequency (macrocharcoal). After ca. 1200 cal. yr BP, peat swamp forest emerged, with Ficus trichopoda, Syzygium cordatum and Voacanga thouarsii forming wood peat. Site ID dates back to ca. 920 cal. yr BP. Its initiation is assumingly related to reduced drainage capacities of the catchment subsequently to the peat formation in Matitimani valley. A steady change from gyttja forming communities ( Nymphaea sp.– Eleocharis dulcis) to radicell peat-forming Cyperaceae communities took place. The long-term apparent rate of carbon accumulation (LORCA) is higher for site ID (89 gC m−2 yr−1) than for site VB (55 gC m−2 yr−1). Except for the peat swamp forest period, fire occurred frequently at both sites, however less in environments with frequent inundations.
Climate controls on tree growth in the Western Mediterranean
Authors: Touchan Ramzi , Anchukaitis Kevin J , Meko David M , Kerchouche Dalila , Slimani Said , Ilmen Rachid , Hasnaoui Fouad , Guibal Frederic , Julio Camarero Jesus , Sánchez-Salguero Raúl , Piermattei Alma , Sesbou Abdessadek , Cook Benjamin I , Sabir Mohamed , Touchane Hayat
Published: March 2017

The first large-scale network of tree-ring chronologies from the western Mediterranean (WM; 32°N–43°N, 10°W–17°E) is described and analyzed to identify the seasonal climatic signal in indices of annual ring width. Correlation and rotated empirical orthogonal function analyses are applied to 85 tree-ring series and corresponding gridded climate data to assess the climate signal embedded in the network. Chronologies range in length from 80 to 1129 years. Monthly correlations and partial correlations show overall positive associations for Pinus halepensis (PIHA) and Cedrus atlantica (CDAT) with winter (December–February) and spring (March–May) precipitation across this network. In both seasons, the precipitation correlation with PIHA is stronger, while CDAT chronologies tend to be longer. A combination of positive correlations between growth and winter–summer precipitation and negative partial correlations with growing season temperatures suggests that chronologies in at least part of the network reflect soil moisture and the integrated effects of precipitation and evapotranspiration signal. The range of climate response observed across this network reflects a combination of both species and geographic influences. Western Moroccan chronologies have the strongest association with the North Atlantic Oscillation.
Firoz Uncle
Authors: Murali Sreejith
Published: March 2017

This article focuses on the educational efforts of Syed Firoz Ashraf in the East Jogeshwari area of Mumbai and places his work in the context of the increasing communalisation of social life and education in a poor working class suburb in Mumbai city. Muslim community has been ghettoised in the metropolis to specific areas especially since the riots of 1992-93, increasing their vulnerability. For more than twenty years ‘Uncle’, as he is affectionately called, has been running after-school classes for children from the working class neighbourhoods of Jogeshwari and Juhu Lane. He has worked within the system to enhance opportunities for higher education for children, and to end the humiliation and indignity associated with educational failure. As Uncle says, there is hope as more and more children break out of the confines of their locality and step out into the world through higher education.
Unraveling mechanics of armchair and zigzag graphene nanoribbons
Authors: Zhang Weixiang , Ragab Tarek , Basaran Cemal
Published: March 2017

The unraveling process of armchair and zigzag graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) was studied with molecular dynamics simulations using the Adaptive Intermolecular Reactive Empirical Bond Order Potential for carbon–carbon bond. Simulations were performed at 300°K, with GNR length and width varying from 2.5 nm to 15 nm in 2.5 nm increments. In these simulations, the unraveling of the GNRs was started from two positions; the corner or the middle of the top side. Force–displacement relationship was analyzed for the terminal atom of the unraveling chains. For armchair GNRs (AGNRs) that were unraveled from the corner, the force required for the onset of the unraveling is in the range of 4.279–5.045 eV/Å, and the observed failure force in the carbon chain is in the range of 5.553–5.963 eV/Å. Unraveling will not happen when AGNRs are unraveled from the middle, and zigzag GNRs (ZGNRs) are unraveled either from corner or middle. For the latter cases, the bond between the terminal atom and GNR sheet breaks under the stretching force, and only one carbon atom can be pulled out from the GNR sheet. The size effect of width and length on the unraveling process was also studied. Simulations show that size has a trivial effect on unraveling. Comparison between unraveling of AGNRs and ZGNRs indicates that AGNRs are perfect structure to produce Monatomic Carbon Chains, while ZGNRs are more stable and are good candidate for graphene nanodevices that are free from unraveling disintegration.
Broken Beyond Repair: Rehabilitative Penology and American Political Development
Authors: Grasso Anthony
Published: March 2017

Research on American criminal justice often concludes that the U.S. penal system was largely guided by the “rehabilitative ideal,” the philosophy that punishment should reform inmates and equip them to lead law-abiding lives, through the twentieth century preceding the rise of mass incarceration. This article complicates this narrative by evaluating the intellectual origins of the rehabilitative ideal and demonstrating that it was built on theoretical premises justifying punitive politics from its inception. The ideal has always relied on distinguishing curable offenders from incorrigible ones who cannot be reformed and warrant harsher punishment. This has guided American state development in punitive directions throughout the twentieth century. Progressive era indeterminate sentencing reforms were geared toward both containing and reforming offenders, the eugenics movement of the early twentieth century relied on the idea of criminal incorrigibility to advocate for compulsory sterilization statutes, and anxieties about incorrigibility justified punitive features of the draconian federal sentencing reforms of the 1970s and 1980s. This history indicates that a full revival of the rehabilitative ideal is unlikely to check contemporary punitive political impulses, especially given that two political and ideational currents currently driving American penal policy—neoliberalism and bio-criminology—comport with the punitive facets of rehabilitative penology.
Factor Structure of the Brief Comprehensive Effects of Alcohol Scale in Adolescents
Authors: Ham Lindsay S. , Zamboanga Byron L. , Meca Alan , Blumenthal Heidemarie , Hardy Sam A. , Hurd Lauren E.
Published: March 2017

Alcohol use among adolescents is a public health concern; therefore, it is important that studies that examine factors associated with adolescent drinking behaviors utilize measures that are well-validated for use with this population. The current study examined the factor structure and convergent validity of the Brief Comprehensive Effects of Alcohol scale, a measure of alcohol outcome expectancies and evaluations of expected outcomes, among adolescents ( N = 1,074; 50% girls; Mage = 15.96 years, SD = 1.13, range = 13-18; 74% White) drawn from three independent studies ( nsite 1 = 594; nsite 2 = 97; and nsite 3 = 383). Results yielded support for a four-factor structure for alcohol expectancies and two-factor structure for valuations. Moreover, the factor structure was partially or fully invariant across gender, age, and site. Thus, findings are similar, yet unique, to those identified in college samples. The convergent validity of the modified measure was supported, suggesting that the Brief Comprehensive Effects of Alcohol scale may be useful for assessing adolescents’ beliefs about alcohol.
Medicare Part D Beneficiaries’ Plan Switching Decisions and Information Processing
Authors: Han Jayoung , Urmie Julie
Published: March 2017

Medicare Part D beneficiaries tend not to switch plans despite the government’s efforts to engage beneficiaries in the plan switching process. Understanding current and alternative plan features is a necessary step to make informed plan switching decisions. This study explored beneficiaries’ plan switching using a mixed-methods approach, with a focus on the concept of information processing. We found large variation in beneficiary comprehension of plan information among both switchers and nonswitchers. Knowledge about alternative plans was especially poor, with only about half of switchers and 2 in 10 nonswitchers being well informed about plans other than their current plan. We also found that helpers had a prominent role in plan decision making—nearly twice as many switchers as nonswitchers worked with helpers for their plan selection. Our study suggests that easier access to helpers as well as helpers’ extensive involvement in the decision-making process promote informed plan switching decisions.
Masculinities in Transition? Exclusion, Ethnosocial Power, and Contradictions in Excombatant Community-based Peacebuilding in Northern Ireland
Authors: Holland Curtis , Rabrenovic Gordana
Published: March 2017

This study critically examines how masculinities and intersecting ethnonational and social class identities underscore the social and political agencies of excombatants in Northern Ireland and in the specific context of community-based peacebuilding. The authors draw on interviews with female and male leaders in grassroots and governmental organizations, which illustrate how state-led practices of exclusion reshape such intersectional identities and increase the instrumentality of hypermasculinist, pseudo-paramilitary practices in maintaining excombatants’ status and control on neighborhood levels. The research documents how structural dynamics of excombatants’ social class locations and political disaffection help shape their social agencies of “resistance,” underscored by desires for autonomy and recognition, and channeled by ethnogendered scripts rooted in both violent cultures of paramilitarism and nonviolent peacebuilding masculinities. The implications on women of male excombatants’ takeover of leadership roles in the community sector are also discussed.
‘This Is the View When I Walk into My House’
Authors: Kennelly Jacqueline
Published: March 2017

This article argues for the utility of phenomenology in accounting for the manner in which spatial methods yield insights into the everyday lived experiences of young people that are not as easily accessible through more traditional qualitative methods such as interviewing. Spatial methods, defined as methods that focus on the everyday spatial experiences of young people and methods that ask youth to position themselves in space, have been used by the author in a variety of research projects, and also incorporate certain visual methods. Phenomenological concepts such as the spatial perspective, the web of relations and opaque subjectivity are helpful in understanding not only that these methods work well but why they are so effective. The article also addresses Pierre Bourdieu’s critique of phenomenology, responding to his concern that phenomenology might be susceptible to ignoring or overlooking the social and political contexts that shape experiences.
Use of Aminocaproic Acid in Combination With Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in a Case of Leptospirosis Pulmonary Hemorrhage Syndrome
Authors: Pardinas Miguel , Mendirichaga Rodrigo , Budhrani Gaurav , Garg Rajan , Rosario Luis , Rico Rene , Panos Anthony , Baier Horst , Krick Stefanie
Published: March 2017

A 32-year-old man presented with a 10-day history of fever, chills, nausea, vomiting, myalgia, nonproductive cough, and worsening dyspnea after freshwater swimming in the Caribbean 1 week prior to presentation. Shortly after arrival at the hospital, the patient developed severe respiratory distress with massive hemoptysis. Based on serologic workup, he was diagnosed with leptospirosis pulmonary hemorrhage syndrome leading to diffuse alveolar hemorrhage, severe hypoxemic respiratory failure, and multiorgan failure. He received appropriate antibiotic coverage along with hemodynamic support with norepinephrine and vasopressin, mechanical ventilation, and renal replacement therapy in an intensive care unit. Introduction of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation was initiated to provide lung-protective ventilation supporting the recovery of his pulmonary function. Aminocaproic acid was used to stop and prevent further alveolar hemorrhage. He fully recovered thereafter; however, it is uncertain whether it was the use of aminocaproic acid that led to the resolution of his disease.
Efficiency and temperature of spur gears using spray lubrication compared to dip lubrication
Authors: Andersson Martin , Sosa Mario , Olofsson Ulf
Published: March 2017

Increased machine efficiency is a requirement in today’s world and geared transmissions are no exception. A back-to-back gear test rig was used to compare dip lubrication with spray lubrication regarding gearbox efficiency, mesh efficiency, gear temperature and surface roughness. Gears lubricated at the inlet of the mesh show a lower measured temperature when compared to spray lubrication at the outlet of the mesh. Spray lubrication, when compared to dip lubrication, yields the same efficiency for both rotating directions at the tested speeds of 0.5 to 20 m/s. Spray lubrication shows a significantly higher total gearbox efficiency at higher speeds, higher measured tooth temperature and no measurable change in surface roughness.
Outdoor group activity, depression, and subjective well-being among retirees of China: The mediating role of meaning in life
Authors: Zhang Zhen
Published: March 2017

This study examined the effect of outdoor group activity on mental health and the potential mediating effect of meaning in life. Participants were 559 retired people. A self-developed questionnaire measured outdoor group activity; the Meaning in Life Scale, the Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale, and the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression assessed meaning in life, subjective well-being, and depression, respectively. Results indicated outdoor group activity significantly predicted subjective well-being and depression; meaning in life fully mediated the relationship between outdoor group activity and subjective well-being and partially mediated the relationship between outdoor group activity and depression. The implications and limitations were also discussed.
Preventing cardiovascular disease: Participant perspectives of the FAITH! Program
Authors: Brewer LaPrincess C , Morrison Eleshia J , Balls-Berry Joyce E , Dean Patrick , Lackore Kandace , Jenkins Sarah , Cohen Consuelo , Johnson Jacqueline , Ellis Frances , Mangum DC , Hayes Sharonne N , Patten Christi
Published: March 2017

Striking cardiovascular health disparities exist among African-Americans in Minnesota compared to Whites; however, community-based interventions to address cardiovascular disease risk are lacking. This study explored participant perceptions of a culturally tailored, cardiovascular disease prevention program developed using a community-based participatory research process. Research participation perceptions, program benefits, and program satisfaction/acceptability were analyzed using a mixed-methods approach. Overall, acceptability was high. Findings highlight the favorable inclusion of African-Americans (research perception), knowledge gained about healthy lifestyle practices (benefits), and quality of the curriculum/speakers (satisfaction). Community-based participatory research may be useful in fostering the acceptability of behavior change interventions among marginalized African-American communities.
Assisted reproductive technology has no association with autism spectrum disorders: The Taiwan Birth Cohort Study
Authors: Lung For-Wey , Chiang Tung-Liang , Lin Shio-Jean , Lee Meng-Chih , Shu Bih-Ching
Published: March 2017

The use of assisted reproduction technology has increased over the last two decades. Autism spectrum disorders and assisted reproduction technology share many risk factors. However, previous studies on the association between autism spectrum disorders and assisted reproduction technology have shown inconsistent results. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between assisted reproduction technology and autism spectrum disorder diagnosis in a national birth cohort database. Furthermore, the results from the assisted reproduction technology and autism spectrum disorder propensity score matching exact matched datasets were compared. For this study, the 6- and 66-month Taiwan Birth Cohort Study datasets were used (N = 20,095). In all, 744 families were propensity score matching exact matched and selected as the assisted reproduction technology sample (ratio of assisted reproduction technology to controls: 1:2) and 415 families as the autism spectrum disorder sample (ratio of autism spectrum disorder to controls: 1:4). Using a national birth cohort dataset, controlling for the confounding factors of assisted reproduction technology conception and autism spectrum disorder diagnosis, both assisted reproduction technology and autism spectrum disorder propensity score matching matched datasets showed the same results of no association between assisted reproduction technology and autism spectrum disorder. Further study on the detailed information regarding the processes and methods of assisted reproduction technology may provide us with more information on the association between assisted reproduction technology and autism spectrum disorder.
‘Why worry about something you can’t control?’ Negotiated risk, longevity and health behaviours
Authors: Llewellyn Rebecca , Cunningham Wayne , Jaye Chrystal , Young Jessica , Egan Richard , Radue Peter
Published: March 2017

While we know about lay attitudes towards death and dying, we understand little about the ways people estimate their overall personal risk of life-limiting disease and/or death. This study contributes to the limited literature on lay longevity reckonings, with a particular focus on how these reckonings may influence health behaviours. Semi-structured interviews were held with 21 young older adults (54–65 years), addressing the core questions of ‘What do you think you will die from, and how long do you expect to live?’ Participants indicated their longevity estimation was guided by three key frameworks: family history, environment and lifestyle factors and lived experience. The reckoning process was also moderated by assumptions about loci of control and self-efficacy and the information available to participants. A tripartite model of death risk assessment is proposed, extending the idea of ‘negotiated risk’ beyond the scope of family history where it has received most attention. We argue that by drawing on the three risk-assessment frameworks, determining patients’ predisposition for external/internal attributions of control and perceptions of self-efficacy, clinicians will be better equipped to understand – and thus guide – patients’ reckonings of longevity and health behaviours that are influenced by it.
Enhancing national resilience: The citizenAID initiative
Authors: Hodgetts TJ , Porter KM , Mahoney PF , Thurgood A , McKinnie C
Published: March 2017

Events in Europe in the last year have shown there is a realistic threat to public safety in the UK from shooting, stabbing and bombing incidents. In an interview with BBC on 31 July 2016, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner stated that an attack within UK was a case of ‘when not if’. citizenAID empowers the public to take action to save lives and thereby enhance national resilience.
Pausing at the intersections of tourism moralities and mobilities: Some neighborhood history and a traffic report
Authors: Grimwood Bryan SR , Caton Kellee
Published: March 2017

Recent turns to morality and mobility have enriched the knowledge produced and used within the field of tourism studies. In this Special Issue, contributing authors intentionally merge, or grapple with in parallel, the terrains of tourism moralities and tourism mobilities. Our collective task has been to examine and critique these intersections for conceptual, theoretical, methodological, and empirical insights that shift understanding toward what morality does or can do in relation to tourism mobilities (and vice versa). This introduction sets the stage for the five papers that follow. We summarize the moral and mobility turns, draw attention to epistemological contours and convergences within these analytical fields, and synthesize key insights from each paper to show the promise that tourism moralities and mobilities has for our field of study and practice.
Integer-valued AR processes with Hermite innovations and time-varying parameters: An application to bovine fallen stock surveillance at a local scale
Authors: Fernández-Fontelo Amanda , Fontdecaba Sara , Alba Anna , Puig Pedro
Published: March 2017

In this article we present a new INteger-valued AutoRegressive (INAR) model with the aim of extracting baseline patterns of cattle fallen stock registered over an 5-year period at a local scale. We introduce HINAR as a generalization of the classical Poisson-based INAR models whose innovations follow a Hermite distribution. In order to assess trends and seasonality in these time series, we fit different models with time-dependent parameters by specifying proper functions. Using real world examples, we illustrate how to estimate parameters by maximum likelihood and validate the fitted models. We also show a detailed method to forecast. Our proposed model supposes a good solution for studying discrete time series when the counts have many zeros, low counts and moderate overdispersion. This model has been applied to the analysis of fallen cattle registered at a local scale as part of the development of a veterinary syndromic surveillance system.
Convergence between Australian common law and English common law
Authors: Yip Man , Goh Yihan
Published: March 2017

This note discusses the High Court of Australia decision of Paciocco v Australia and New Zealand Bank Group Limited on the rule against penalty clauses and situates its importance in light of the UK Supreme Court decision of Cavendish Square Holding BV v Talal El Makdessi and Beavis v ParkingEye Ltd. It compares the analytical frameworks laid down in the two cases and points out some unresolved issues in this area of law even following these cases.
A rationally designed peptide IA-2-P2 against type 1 diabetes in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice
Authors: Shen Lili , Lu Shiping , Huang Dongcheng , Li Guoliang , Liu Kunfeng , Cao Rongyue , Zong Li , Jin Liang , Wu Jie
Published: March 2017

Recent studies have investigated the potential of type 1 diabetes mellitus–related autoantigens, such as heat shock protein 60, to induce immunological tolerance or to suppress the immune response. A functional 24-residue peptide derived from heat shock protein 60 (P277) has shown anti-type 1 diabetes mellitus potential in experimental animals and in clinical studies, but it also carries a potential atherogenic effect. In this study, we have modified P277 to retain an anti-type 1 diabetes mellitus effect and minimize the atherogenic potential by replacing the P277 B epitope with another diabetes-associated autoantigen, insulinoma antigen-2 (IA-2), to create the fusion peptide IA-2-P2. In streptozotocin-induced diabetic C57BL/6J mice, the IA-2-P2 peptide displayed similar anti-diabetic effects to the control P277 peptide. Also, the IA-2-P2 peptide did not show atherogenic activity in a rabbit model. Our findings indicate the potential of IA-2-P2 as a promising vaccine against type 1 diabetes mellitus.
Strengthening Social Ties to Increase Confidence and Self-Esteem Among Sexual and Gender Minority Youth
Authors: Romijnders Kim A. , Wilkerson J. Michael , Crutzen Rik , Kok Gerjo , Bauldry Jessica , Lawler Sylvia M. ,   the Montrose Center
Published: March 2017

Sexual and gender minority (SGM) youth too often live in nonsupportive environments. This study reports the influence of social support from primary and secondary social ties on confidence and self-esteem among participants in Hatch Youth, a drop-in group-level intervention for SGM youth. Each 3-hour Hatch Youth meeting consists of a social, educational, and youth-led support hour. Over 14 weeks, these meetings were randomly observed and individual interviews with participating youth ( n = 12) and staff and volunteers ( n = 12) were conducted; data underwent a content analysis. Participants perceived an increase in confidence and self-esteem through enhanced bonding with family and friends, a sense of belonging, and community empowerment because of their involvement with Hatch Youth, suggesting drop-in centers can strengthen secondary social ties and improve confidence and self-esteem.
The soy-derived peptide Vglycin inhibits the growth of colon cancer cells in vitro and in vivo
Authors: Gao Chang , Sun Rui , Xie Ya-Rong , Jiang An-Li , Lin Mei , Li Min , Chen Zheng-Wang , Zhang Ping , Jin Honglin , Feng Jue-Ping
Published: March 2017

Vglycin, a novel natural polypeptide isolated from pea seeds, possesses antidiabetic properties. Our previous studies have shown that Vglycin can induce the differentiation of human colon adenocarcinoma cells. We aimed to determine the anticancer activity of Vglycin against colon cancer cells and to elucidate related apoptosis-inducing mechanisms. Treatment with purified Vglycin significantly reduced growth, viability, and colony formation of CT-26, SW480, and NCL-H716 colon cancer cells in a dose-dependent manner while down-regulating the expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen. Mouse xenograft studies showed a 38% inhibition of colon cancer growth in mice treated with Vglycin (20 mg/kg/day) at day 21. Furthermore, the potential mechanisms involved in Vglycin-induced cell apoptosis were examined using cell cycle studies, ultrastructural examination, as well as apoptosis-associated pathway analysis. The results showed that Vglycin significantly promoted apoptosis and G1/S phase cell cycle arrest. As revealed by Western blot, the expression of CDK2 and Cyclin D1 was down-regulated in all three Vglycin-treated colon cancer cells, indicating that the CDK2/Cyclin D1 cell cycle pathway involved in the initiation and progression of colon cancer. Moreover, the inhibition of Vglycin-induced cell proliferation in colon cancer cells was accompanied by alteration of the expression levels of the apoptosis-related proteins Bax, Bcl-2 and Mcl-1, and an increase of caspase-3 activity. Together, our results suggest that Vglycin may be another plant-derived peptide that suppresses colon cancer, supporting the continued investigation of Vglycin as therapeutic agent for colon cancer.

Impact statement

The antidiabetic properties and the capability of inducing differentiation of human colon adenocarcinoma cells of Vglycin have been reported in our previous studies. However, the anticancer potential of Vglycin on colon cancer cells and its possible related mechanisms were still unknown. In this study, we found that Vglycin could reduce growth, viability, and colony formation or colony size of CT-26, SW480, and NCL-H716 colon cancer cells. Moreover, Vglycin decreased tumor volume by 38% in xenograft mice transplanted with CT-26 cells. The mechanisms of these phenomena may be due to the down-regulated CDK2 and Cyclin D1, G1/S phase cell cycle arrest, and the dysregulated expression of Bax, Bcl-2, and Mcl-1. The findings highlight the anticancer potential of Vglycin against colon cancer cells, and suggest Vglycin may be another colon cancer potential suppressive component of plant-derived peptides.
High-affinity caspase-4 binding to LPS presented as high molecular mass aggregates or in outer membrane vesicles
Authors: Wacker Mark A , Teghanemt Athmane , Weiss Jerrold P , Barker Jason H
Published: March 2017

Caspases of the non-canonical inflammasome (caspases -4, -5, and -11) directly bind endotoxin (LOS/LPS) and can be activated in the absence of any co-factors. Models of LPS-induced caspase activation have postulated that 1:1 binding of endotoxin monomers to caspase trigger caspase oligomerization and activation, analogous to that established for endotoxin-induced activation of MD-2/TLR4. However, using metabolically radiolabeled LOS and LPS, we now show high affinity and selective binding of caspase-4 to high molecular mass aggregates of purified endotoxin and to endotoxin-rich outer membrane vesicles without formation of 1:1 endotoxin:caspase complexes. Thus, our findings demonstrate markedly different endotoxin recognition properties of caspase-4 from that of MD-2/TLR4 and strongly suggest that activation of caspase-4 (and presumably caspase-5 and caspase-11) are mediated by interactions with activating endotoxin-rich membrane interfaces rather than by endotoxin monomers.