bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Rehabilitation Improves Behavioral Recovery and Lessens Cell Death Without Affecting Iron, Ferritin, Transferrin, or Inflammation After Intracerebral Hemorrhage in Rats
Authors: Caliaperumal Jayalakshmi , Colbourne Frederick
Published: December 2013

Background. Rehabilitation aids recovery from stroke in animal models, including in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Sometimes, rehabilitation lessens brain damage. Objective. We tested whether rehabilitation improves recovery and reduces perihematoma neuronal death. We also evaluated whether rehabilitation influences iron toxicity and inflammation, mediators of secondary degeneration after ICH. Methods. Rats were trained to retrieve food pellets in a staircase apparatus and later subjected to striatal ICH (via collagenase infusion). After 1 week, they were given either enriched rehabilitation (ER), including reach training with group housing and environmental enrichment, or control treatment (group housing). Rats in the first experiment were treated for 2 weeks, functionally assessed, and killed humanely at 1 month to determine brain levels of nonheme iron. A second experiment used a similar approach, except that animals were euthanized at 14 days to evaluate perihematoma neuronal death (FluoroJade), iron distribution (Perls), and astrocyte (GFAP) and microglia (Iba-1) activity. A third experiment measured levels of iron-binding proteins (ferritin and transferrin) at 14 days. Results. Striatal ICH caused functional impairments, which were significantly improved with ER. The ICH caused delayed perihematoma neuronal death, which ER significantly reduced. Hemispheric iron levels, the amount of iron-binding proteins, and perihematoma astrocytes and microglia numbers were significantly elevated after ICH (vs normal side) but were not affected by ER. Conclusions. Rehabilitation is an effective behavioral and neuroprotective strategy for ICH. Neither effect appears to stem from influencing iron toxicity or inflammation. Thus, additional work must identify underlying mechanisms to help further therapeutic gains.
Concussions From Youth Football
Authors: Jacobson Nathan A. , Buzas David , Morawa Lawrence G.
Published: December 2013

Background:

Youth football programs across the United States represent an at-risk population of approximately 3.5 million athletes for sports-related concussions. The frequency of concussions in this population is not known.

Study Design:

Descriptive epidemiology study.

Methods:

Over an 11-year span from January 2002 to December 2012, the authors reviewed the concussions sustained by athletes aged 5 to 13 years while playing football, as evaluated in emergency departments (EDs) in the United States and captured by the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) database of the US Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Results:

There were 2028 (national estimate, 49,185) young football players evaluated in NEISS EDs with concussion from 2002 to 2012. There were 1987 (97.9%) males and 41 (2.1%) females, with a mean age of 11.2 years. The total number of concussions reported increased with age and by year. The majority of concussions were treated in the outpatient setting, with 1878 (91.7%) being treated and released. The total number of head-to-head injury mechanisms mirrored the total number of concussions by year, which increased throughout the 11-year span. The total number of players experiencing a loss of consciousness increased throughout the study period but did not match the total number of concussions over the 11-year time period. Fractures occurred in 11 (0.5%) patients, with 2 being severe (1 skull fracture and 1 thoracic compression fracture).

Conclusion:

Within the 5- to 13-year age range, there were a significant number of young athletes who presented to EDs with concussion as a result of playing organized football. Older children may be at greater risk for sustaining concussions, fractures, and catastrophic injuries while playing football when compared with younger children.

Clinical Relevance:

Younger children are more susceptible to long-term sequelae from head injuries, and thus, improved monitoring systems for these athletes are needed to assist in monitoring patterns of injury, identifying risk factors, and driving the development of evidence-based prevention programs.
Increasing Recognition of Fetal Heart Anatomy Using Online Tutorials and Mastery Learning Compared With Classroom Instructional Methods
Authors: Scott Ted Edward , Thomas Laura , Edwards Keith , Jones Judy , Swan Hans , Wessels Andrew
Published: December 2013

Assessment of the fetal heart is a challenging part of any routine obstetrical sonogram. The practice of teaching and learning this skill demands expertise in the visualization and interpretation of normal sonographic appearances of the fetal heart. Recognition of the pathological features associated with commonly seen congenital heart diseases is also very important. In the study reported here, students in an obstetrical sonography course were randomly assigned to two groups. The students in the control group (classroom instruction) on average assessed correctly all five anatomic cardiac features but determined the normal or abnormal status of only 19% of cases, 4.7of 25 ± 4.4 SD. The experimental group (online tutorials) correctly identified 39% of cases, 9.9 of 25 ± 2.7 SD, P < .01. The average score in the experimental group was greater than 84% of the students in the control group, a one sigma effect. These data support the conclusion that students learning to assess the fetal heart for the presence of congenital heart disease using a series of online tutorials and practice exercises compared with students receiving conventional classroom instruction demonstrated an improved ability to correctly identify normal and abnormal fetal heart structures.
Diffuse Renal Cortical Echogenic Foci in a Patient With AIDS
Authors: Kirkpatrick Daniel L. , Northrup Mindy , Connors James
Published: December 2013

Pneumocystis jirovecii is ubiquitous in the environment and is best known as the cause of Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) in immune-suppressed hosts. Extrapulmonary P. jirovecii is a rare complication of this opportunistic infection primarily seen in patients with immune-deficient states. Nephritis due to P. jirovecii was first described by Bargman in 1991 in a patient with atypical nephrocalcinosis found on conventional radiography. This case report presents a patient with Pneumocystis nephritis and describes the sonographic appearance as well as the advantages of sonography in the early detection of this uncommon condition.
A mesh generation and machine learning framework for Drosophilagene expression pattern image analysis
Authors: Zhang Wenlu , Feng Daming , Li Rongjian , Chernikov Andrey , Chrisochoides Nikos , Osgood Christopher , Konikoff Charlotte , Newfeld Stuart , Kumar Sudhir , Ji Shuiwang
Published: December 2013

Background

Multicellular organisms consist of cells of many different types that are established during development. Each type of cell is characterized by the unique combination of expressed gene products as a result of spatiotemporal gene regulation. Currently, a fundamental challenge in regulatory biology is to elucidate the gene expression controls that generate the complex body plans during development. Recent advances in high-throughput biotechnologies have generated spatiotemporal expression patterns for thousands of genes in the model organism fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. Existing qualitative methods enhanced by a quantitative analysis based on computational tools we present in this paper would provide promising ways for addressing key scientific questions.

Results

We develop a set of computational methods and open source tools for identifying co-expressed embryonic domains and the associated genes simultaneously. To map the expression patterns of many genes into the same coordinate space and account for the embryonic shape variations, we develop a mesh generation method to deform a meshed generic ellipse to each individual embryo. We then develop a co-clustering formulation to cluster the genes and the mesh elements, thereby identifying co-expressed embryonic domains and the associated genes simultaneously. Experimental results indicate that the gene and mesh co-clusters can be correlated to key developmental events during the stages of embryogenesis we study. The open source software tool has been made available at http://compbio.cs.odu.edu/fly/.

Conclusions

Our mesh generation and machine learning methods and tools improve upon the flexibility, ease-of-use and accuracy of existing methods.
BAIAP2 exhibits association to childhood ADHD especially predominantly inattentive subtype in Chinese Han subjects
Authors: Liu Lu , Sun Li , Li Ze-Hua , Li Hai-Mei , Wei Li-Ping , Wang Yu-Feng , Qian Qiu-Jin
Published: December 2013

Background

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common chronic neurodevelopmental disorder with a high heritability. Much evidence of hemisphere asymmetry has been found for ADHD probands from behavioral level, electrophysiological level and brain morphology. One previous research has reported possible association between BAIAP2, which is asymmetrically expressed in the two cerebral hemispheres, with ADHD in European population. The present study aimed to investigate the association between BAIAP2 and ADHD in Chinese Han subjects.

Methods

A total of 1,397 ADHD trios comprised of one ADHD proband and their parents were included for family-based association tests. Independent 569 ADHD cases and 957 normal controls were included for case-control studies. Diagnosis was performed according to the DSM-IV criteria. Nine single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of BAIAP2 were chosen and performed genotyping for both family-based and case-control association studies.

Results

Transmission disequilibrium tests (TDTs) for family-based association studies showed significant association between the CA haplotype comprised by rs3934492 and rs9901648 with predominantly inattentive type (ADHD-I). For case-control study, chi-square tests provided evidence for the contribution of SNP rs4969239, rs3934492 and rs4969385 to ADHD and its two clinical subtypes, ADHD-I and ADHD-C. However, only the associations for ADHD and ADHD-I retained significant after corrections for multiplicity or logistic regression analyses adjusting the potential confounding effect of gender and age.

Conclusions

These above results indicated the possible involvement of BAIAP2 in the etiology of ADHD, especially ADHD-I.
An organic acid-tolerant HAA1-overexpression mutant of an industrial bioethanol strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and its application to the production of bioethanol from sugarcane molasses
Authors: Inaba Takuya , Watanabe Daisuke , Yoshiyama Yoko , Tanaka Koichi , Ogawa Jun , Takagi Hiroshi , Shimoi Hitoshi , Shima Jun
Published: December 2013

Bacterial contamination is known as a major cause of the reduction in ethanol yield during bioethanol production by Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Acetate is an effective agent for the prevention of bacterial contamination, but it negatively affects the fermentation ability of S. cerevisiae. We have proposed that the combined use of organic acids including acetate and lactate and yeast strains tolerant to organic acids may be effective for the elimination of principally lactic acid bacterial (LAB) contamination. In a previous study employing laboratory S. cerevisiae strains, we showed that overexpression of the HAA1 gene, which encodes a transcriptional activator, could be a useful molecular breeding method for acetate-tolerant yeast strains. In the present study, we constructed a HAA1-overexpressing diploid strain (MAT
a/α, named ER HAA1-OP) derived from the industrial bioethanol strain Ethanol Red (ER). ER HAA1-OP showed tolerance not only to acetate but also to lactate, and this tolerance was dependent on the increased expression of HAA1 gene. The ethanol production ability of ER HAA1-OP was almost equivalent to that of the parent strain during the bioethanol production process from sugarcane molasses in the absence of acetate. The addition of acetate at 0.5% (w/v, pH 4.5) inhibited the fermentation ability of the parent strain, but such an inhibition was not observed in the ethanol production process using ER HAA1-OP.
HMGB1 is an early and critical mediator in an animal model of uveitis induced by IRBP-specific T cells
Authors: Jiang Guomin , Sun Deming , Yang Huan , Lu Qingxian , Kaplan Henry J , Shao Hui
Published: December 2013

It is largely unknown how invading autoreactive T cells initiate the pathogenic process inside the diseased organ in organ-specific autoimmune disease. In this study, we used a chronic uveitis disease model in mice—EAU—induced by adoptive transfer of uveitogenic IRBP-specific T cells and showed that HMGB1, an important endogenous molecule that serves as a danger signal, was released rapidly from retinal cells into the ECM and intraocular fluid in response to IRBP-specific T cell transfer. HMGB1 release required direct cell–cell contact between retinal cells and IRBP-specific T cells and was an active secretion from intact retinal cells. Administration of HMGB1 antagonists inhibited severity of EAU significantly via mechanisms that include inhibition of IRBP-specific T cell proliferation and their IFN-γ and IL-17 production. The inflammatory effects of HMGB1 may signal the TLR/MyD88 pathway, as MyD88−/− mice had a high level of HMGB1 in the eye but did not develop EAU after IRBP-specific T cell transfer. Our study demonstrates that HMGB1 is an early and critical mediator of ocular inflammation initiated by autoreactive T cell invasion.
Incorporation of Velocity Pulses in Design Ground Motions for Response History Analysis Using a Probabilistic Framework
Authors: Almufti Ibrahim , Motamed Ramin , Grant Damian N. , Willford Michael
Published: December 2013

Ground motions that contain velocity pulses may cause greater structural damage than ground motions that do not contain pulses. The effects of pulse-like motions are best approximated in the time domain using nonlinear response history analysis. Current approaches for incorporating pulse effects are not reproducible since they largely rely on engineering judgment and often result in unrealistic representation of the hazard. This study extends a method by Shahi and Baker (2011) that incorporates the effects of pulse-like motions in probabilistic seismic hazard analyses (PSHA). It uses disaggregation information from the PSHA to construct suites of target spectra that are used for matching an appropriate proportion of pulse-like motions with characteristics (pulse amplitude and pulse period) representative of a desired hazard intensity level. The methodology has been successfully employed for several high-profile projects in California that were subjected to a rigorous peer review process, including the Transbay Tower in San Francisco.
The pH Dependent Cu(II) and Zn(II) Binding Behavior of an Analog Methanobactin Peptide
Authors: Sesham Ramakrishna , Choi DongWon , Balaji Anupama , Cheruku Sahithi , Ravichetti Chiranjeevi , Alshahrani Aisha A. , Nasani Maheshbabu , Angel Laurence A.
Published: December 2013

The pH dependent reactivity of an analog methanobactin peptide (amb) with the sequence acetyl–His1-Cys2–Gly3–Pro4–His5–Cys6 (Mw = 694.79 Da) was investigated for its binding ability for a series of biologically active metal ions using ion mobility-mass spectrometry. Cu(II), Zn(II) and, to a lesser extent, Ni(II) were observed to form complexes with amb from 1: 1 molar equivalent amb:metal(II) solutions at pH > 6, indicating the deprotonation of the imidazole N of His (p Ka = 6.0) must occur to allow the initial anchoring of the metal(II) ion. The amb–metal(II) complexes were observed as both positive and negative ions, although the Zn(II) complexes preferred forming an overall negative ion complex which is consistent with the two thiolate groups of Cys2 and Cys6 being involved in Zn(II) coordination. The Cu(II) addition, however, always resulted in a Cys–Cys disulfide bridge in both Cu-free amb and Cu-bound amb, which excluded thiolate coordination to Cu(II). Collision cross-section measurements showed the Zn(II) and Cu(II) negative ion complexes were smaller than the positive ion complexes, suggesting Zn(II) binds most compactly via the imidazole N of His and the thiolate groups of Cys, whereas Cu(II) binds most compactly via the imidazole N of His and two deprotonated N of two amide groups on the peptide backbone. The lowest energy structures from the B3LYP/LanL2DZ level of theory showed the functional groups of His5, Cys2 and Cys6 coordinated to Zn(II), whereas the His1 and the amide nitrogens of Cys2 and Gly3 coordinated to Cu(II), producing an overall negative charged complex. The positive ion complexes of Zn(II) and Cu(II) were both shown to coordinate via the two imidazole nitrogens of His1 and His5 and either the oxygen of the backbone carbonyl of Cys6 or the oxygen of the C-terminal, respectively.
A proposed routing scheme for power reduction in wireless networks
Authors: Elewely Dalia , Areed Marwa , Ali Hesham
Published: December 2013

Ad-hoc networks consist of a set of mobile nodes with a restricted power supply resources that can communicate with each other without any established infrastructure or centralized administration. The loss of some nodes may cause significant topological changes, undermine the network operation, and affect the lifetime of the network. This paper discusses the energy consumption problem and summaries the existing power saving techniques in ad-hoc wireless networks. The main objective of this paper is to introduce a new power aware multi-path node disjoint routing scheme based on the Dynamic Source Routing protocol (DSR), which can prolong MANETs lifetime, reduce routing delay and increase the reliability of the packets reaching its destination. Therefore, a comprehensive study of DSR protocol has been drawn using NS-2 simulator, to evaluate the performance of DSR as a routing strategy and investigate its efficiency in saving wireless networks resources, as a prelude to avoid its performance shortcomings in our proposed routing scheme. Keywords: Power aware protocol, node disjoint, network simulation 2, multipath routing, Dsr protocol, ad-hoc network.
Study of mosquito attractants for photo catalytic mosquito trap
Authors: Tristantini Dewi , - Slamet , Stephanie Angela Jessica
Published: December 2013

Photo catalytic mosquito trap is made of TiO2-Activated Carbon (AC) with a certain composition of AC. Research concerns on the heat spectrum which is produced by combination process of existing CO2 and humid air. The purpose of performance testing is to observe capability of this device in trapping mosquitoes related to the air temperature profile for heat spectrum is play important role for attracting mosquitoes. Result shows photo catalytic mosquito trap is more effective than devices which only consist of UV light or stream of CO2 and the humid air. A number of mosquitoes trapped by the photo catalyst coated panel configuration and UV lamps were lit proved far more effective because the heat production from recombination process. A little difference in temperature can be detected by mosquito. Keywords: Photo Catalytic, Mosquito, Recombination.
Killing Hope with Good Intentions: The Effects of Consolation Prizes on Preference for Lottery Promotions
Authors: Yan Dengfeng , Muthukrishnan A.V.
Published: December 2013

The present research examines how the inclusion of consolation or token prizes influences consumers’ valuation of a promotional lottery. Results from four experiments show that consolation prizes lower consumers’ expectations of winning the big prize, their valuations of the lottery, and their intentions to participate in the lottery. Because of the high likelihood of attaining the consolation prizes, consumers shift their focus from the value of a big prize to the probability of attaining it. This shift increases the weight given to the probability dimension and results in lowered valuations of the lottery. The first two experiments demonstrate the effect in hypothetical and real choices. In Experiment 3, the authors propose and show a boundary condition for the effect. In Experiment 4, they conduct an exploratory test of the process. They conclude with a discussion of the theoretical and managerial implications.
Intermittent breeding in the absence of a large cost of reproduction: evidence for a non‐migratory, iteroparous salmonid
Authors: Morbey Yolanda E. , Shuter Brian J.
Published: December 2013

In long‐lived organisms, intermittent breeding likely evolves as a resource allocation strategy for coping with environmental uncertainty or individual heterogeneity in condition. In fishes, the phenomenon of intermittent breeding is referred to as skipped spawning, and appears to be more common at high latitudes or in migratory species with high accessory costs of reproduction. We used long‐term monitoring data on lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) to test whether key predictions about the frequency of skipped spawning hold in a mid‐latitude population of a species lacking any obvious costs of reproduction beyond the production and fertilization of gametes. We first developed a threshold‐based method to classify skipped spawners based on gonad size, fish size, and fish age. Consistent with life history theory, age‐specific frequencies of skipped spawning were higher in females than males. The frequency of skipped spawning varied among years and was higher in 1994–2011 than in 1938–1959, perhaps because of food web changes over the past century. In temperate lakes, food web structure may be sufficiently variable to favor intermittent breeding in long‐lived iteroparous fishes, despite low accessory costs of reproduction.
Multiwell Thermal Interaction: Field-Data Validation of Transient Model for Closely Spaced Wells
Authors: McSpadden Albert R. , Gunn Alex , Dunagan Craig
Published: December 2013

Wellbore-temperature logs and associated field-history data from a high-pressure/high-temperature (HP/HT) condensate North Sea platform are presented that validate the accuracy of a transient model of the multiwell thermal interaction (MWTI). The model is an updated version of previous work by McSpadden and Coker (2010) that simulates transient thermal interaction or "cross heating" between closely spaced wells of a template. As discussed in the preceding work, the MWTI alters final wellbore temperatures as well as formation temperatures in the interwell zone and also farther out from the well template. The multiwell thermal model is shown to converge closely in very characteristic fashion to two different logged and measured temperature profiles at a vertical depth range of more than 3,000 ft.

The empirical data, including field history, represent a unique opportunity to study and understand this important topic. Before this current work, the authors’ experience found the industry discussion of the MWTI or "cross heating" to be largely anecdotal. Model validation against field data is necessary to achieve a full understanding of the physical system and to provide confidence in the predictive capability.

The modeling of wellbore and formation temperatures for closely spaced wells has not been widely examined in the industry literature, as observed by Bellarby (2009). The current work presents an improved methodology on the basis of standard-industry techniques. The method uses standard industry thermal/hydraulic modeling software for a single well and a fully transient finite-difference model for the formation in a loosely coupled, iterative analysis. The iteration scheme is achieved by the coupling of the standard analytical solution for the isolated single-well temperature scenario with the solution in the formation for the cross-heating scenario.

The effect of the MWTI is important for closely spaced wells such as offshore platforms or subsea and Arctic developments. The multiwell disturbance on formation and wellbore temperatures may affect well design, facilities planning, and operations. For example, given nominal flowing wellhead temperatures (FWHTs) approaching 350°F for HP/HT platform developments, even small temperature increases may have a critical impact on the design and layout of surface receiving systems. Annular-pressure buildup (APB), wellhead movement, tubular-stress design, cement-slurry design, subsidence/compaction effects, and facilities health and safety issues can all be affected. If the MWTI is not taken into account, then load events such as APB, wellhead movement, and thermally induced stresses may be underestimated. Concurrent and batch-drilling operations, including cementation, will also be affected.
George H. Odell's Contributions to Lithic Quarry and Raw Material Procurement Research
Authors: Dowd Anne S.
Published: December 2013

Quarry locales are often separate from where people lived. In such cases, toolstone procurement may require organized task groups to obtain the raw material and bring it to reduction areas or ultimately to use and then discard zones, rather than ad hoc opportunism. Patterning and cases that diverge from the expected are examined to better understand the relationship between places where populations use their tools and the locations where raw materials are found. In turn, by looking closely at these relationships, archaeologists may come to new conclusions about the technological systems within which tool making plays a key role. The articles that follow are dedicated to George Hamley Odell (1942-2011), who was to have been a discussant at a Society for American Archaeology (SAA) symposium on these topics presented April 19, 2012 in Memphis, Tennessee.
Relationships between Procurement Strategies and Geologic Provenience at the Dover Quarry Site Complex, Tennessee
Authors: Parish Ryan M.
Published: December 2013

The spatial distribution of prehistoric mining activities at the Dover Quarry site complex in Tennessee gives us insight not only into the behavioral systems of the people who utilized the resource but also on the geologic provenience of the chert deposits. Survey data is presented that emphasizes the relationship between quarrying activities and the variable geographic occurrence of Dover chert. Geologic research gives information regarding the stratigraphic position of Dover chert within the study area. Geologic information combined with a detailed survey of the quarry sites reveals the dynamic relationship that prehistoric miners had with the resource and its uneven distribution on the landscape.
Selection, Planning, and Convenience in Lithic Procurement
Authors: Elston Robert G.
Published: December 2013

Thanks to Anne Dowd for organizing this symposium, and all who contributed papers for participating. I am sorry that George Odell was not present to share his vast experience in this field; we all will very much miss his work and insights documented in Anne Dowd's comprehensive review of his teaching, research, and publications. His ideas about lithics are summarized in the two companion articles published in the Journal of Archaeological Research (Odell, 2000, 2001), and in his book, Lithic Analysis (Odell, 2004). Odell argued that to understand even the simplest cases of toolstone procurement and distribution requires the consideration of many variables including where toolstone occurs and how it was procured. In this article I take the opportunity to address some of these issues in terms of selection, planning, and convenience.
Prime, irreducible elements and coatoms in posets
Authors: Zhou Weifeng , Li Qingguo , Guo Lankun
Published: December 2013

In this paper, some properties of prime elements, pseudoprime elements, irreducible elements and coatoms in posets are investigated. We show that the four kinds of elements are equivalent to each other in finite Boolean posets. Furthermore, we demonstrate that every element of a finite Boolean poset can be represented by one kind of them. The example presented in this paper indicates that this result may not hold in every finite poset, but all the irreducible elements are proved to be contained in each order generating set. Finally, the multiplicative auxiliary relation on posets and the notion of arithmetic poset are introduced, and some properties about them are generalized to posets.
Rational permutation groups containing a full cycle
Authors: Erkoç Temha , Yilmaztürk Utku
Published: December 2013

A finite group whose irreducible complex characters are rational valued is called a rational group. Thus, G is a rational group if and only if N
G(〈x〉)/C
G(〈x〉) ≌ Aut(〈x〉) for every x ∈ G. For example, all symmetric groups and their Sylow 2-subgroups are rational groups. Structure of rational groups have been studied extensively, but the general classification of rational groups has not been able to be done up to now. In this paper, we show that a full symmetric group of prime degree does not have any rational transitive proper subgroup and that a rational doubly transitive permutation group containing a full cycle is the full symmetric group. We also obtain several results related to the study of rational groups.
q-subharmonicity and q-convex domains in ℂn
Authors: Khue Nguyen , Hai Le , Hong Nguyen
Published: December 2013

In this paper we study q-subharmonic and q-plurisubharmonic functions in ℂn. Next as an application, we give the notion of q-convex domains in ℂn which is an extension of weakly q-convex domains introduced and investigated in [10]. In the end of the paper we show that the q-convexity is the local property and give some examples about q-convex domains.
Existence and multiplicity of periodic solutions for some second order differential systems with p(t)-Laplacian
Authors: Zhang Liang , Tang X.
Published: December 2013

In this paper, we deal with the existence and multiplicity of periodic solutions for the p(t)-Laplacian Hamiltonian system. Some new existence theorems are obtained by using the least action principle and minmax methods in critical point theory, and our results generalize and improve some existence theorems.
Henstock-Kurzweil-Pettis integral and weak topologies in nonlinear integral equations on time scales
Authors: Satco Bianca-Renata , Turcu Corneliu-Octavian
Published: December 2013

The goal of the present work is to give an existence result for a nonlinear integral equation on time scales by considering the Banach space endowed with its weak topology. More precisely, we obtain the existence of weakly continuous solutions for an integral equation that has on the right hand side the sum of two operators, one of them continuous while the other one satisfies a partial continuity condition and some integrability (in a nonabsolute sense) assumptions.
Gruppen secret sharing or how to share several secrets if you must?
Authors: Csirmaz László
Published: December 2013

Each member of an n-person team has a secret, say a password. The k out of n gruppen secret sharing requires that any group of k members should be able to recover the secrets of the other n − k members, while any group of k − 1 or less members should have no information on the secret of other team member even if other secrets leak out. We prove that when all secrets are chosen independently and have size s, then each team member must have a share of size at least (n − k)s, and we present a scheme which achieves this bound when s is large enough. This result shows a significant saving over n independent applications of Shamir’s k out of n − 1 threshold schemes which assigns shares of size (n − 1)s to each team member independently of k.

We also show how to set up such a scheme without any trusted dealer, and how the secrets can be recovered, possibly multiple times, without leaking information. We also discuss how our scheme fits to the much-investigated multiple secret sharing methods.
On ΛIs-sets and the related notions in ideal topological spaces
Authors: Sanabria José , Rosas Ennis , Carpintero Carlos
Published: December 2013

In this paper, we define and study the notions of ΛIs-sets, ΛIs-closed sets and I-generalized semi-closed (briefly I-gs-closed) sets by using semi-I-open sets in an ideal topological space. Moreover, we present and characterize two new low separation axioms using the above notions.
Analysis of Solid and Aqueous Phase Products from Hydrothermal Carbonization of Whole and Lipid-Extracted Algae
Authors: Broch Amber , Jena Umakanta , Hoekman S. , Langford Joel
Published: December 2013

Microalgae have tremendous potential as a feedstock for production of liquid biofuels, particularly biodiesel fuel via transesterification of algal lipids. However, biodiesel production results in significant amounts of algal residues, or “lipid extracted algae” (LEA). Suitable utilization of the LEA residue will improve the economics of algal biodiesel. In the present study, we evaluate the hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) of whole and lipid extracted algal (Spirulina maxima) feedstocks in order to produce a solid biofuel (hydrochar) and value-added co-products in the aqueous phase. HTC experiments were performed using a 2-L Parr reactor (batch type) at 175–215 °C with a 30-min holding time. Solid, aqueous and gaseous products were analyzed using various laboratory methods to evaluate the mass and carbon balances, and investigate the existence of high value chemicals in the aqueous phase. The HTC method is effective in creating an energy dense, solid hydrochar from both whole algae and LEA at lower temperatures as compared to lignocellulosic feedstocks, and is effective at reducing the ash content in the resulting hydrochar. However, under the treatment temperatures investigated, less than 1% of the starting dry algae mass was recovered as an identified high-value chemical in the aqueous phase.
Mixed Impact of Firearms Restrictions on Fatal Firearm Injuries in Males: A National Observational Study
Authors: Gjertsen Finn , Leenaars Antoon , Vollrath Margarete
Published: December 2013

Introduction: Public health organizations have recommended restricted access and safe storage practices as means to reduce firearm injuries and deaths. We aimed to assess the effect of four firearm restrictions on firearm deaths in Norway 1969–2009. Methods: All deaths due to firearm discharge were included (5,660 deaths, both sexes). The statistical analysis to assess impact of firearm legislations was restricted to males because of the sex disproportionality (94% were males). Results: A total of 89% of firearm deaths (both sexes) were classified as suicide, 8% as homicide, and 3% as unintentional (accident). During the past four decades, male accidental firearm death rates were reduced significantly by 90%. Male firearms suicide rates increased from 1969 to 1991 by 166%, and decreased by 62% from 1991 to 2009. Despite the great reduction in male accidental firearm deaths, we were unable to demonstrate effects of the laws. In contrast, we found that a 1990 regulation, requiring a police permit before acquiring a shotgun, had a beneficial impact on suicide in the total sample and in those aged 15–34 years. Male firearm homicides decreased post-2003 regulation regarding storing home guard weapons in private homes. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that two laws could have contributed to reduce male firearm mortality. It is, however, a challenge to measure the role of four firearm restrictions. The null findings are inconclusive, as they may reflect no true impact or study limitations.
Friedel–Crafts Crosslinked Highly Sulfonated Polyether Ether Ketone (SPEEK) Membranes for a Vanadium/Air Redox Flow Battery
Authors: Merle Géraldine , Ioana Filipoi , Demco Dan , Saakes Michel , Hosseiny Seyed
Published: December 2013

Highly conductive and low vanadium permeable crosslinked sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (cSPEEK) membranes were prepared by electrophilic aromatic substitution for a Vanadium/Air Redox Flow Battery (Vanadium/Air-RFB) application. Membranes were synthesized from ethanol solution and crosslinked under different temperatures with 1,4-benzenedimethanol and ZnCl2 via the Friedel–Crafts crosslinking route. The crosslinking mechanism under different temperatures indicated two crosslinking pathways: (a) crosslinking on the sulfonic acid groups; and (b) crosslinking on the backbone. It was observed that membranes crosslinked at a temperature of 150 °C lead to low proton conductive membranes, whereas an increase in crosslinking temperature and time would lead to high proton conductive membranes. High temperature crosslinking also resulted in an increase in anisotropy and water diffusion. Furthermore, the membranes were investigated for a Vanadium/Air Redox Flow Battery application. Membranes crosslinked at 200 °C for 30 min with a molar ratio between 2:1 (mol repeat unit:mol benzenedimethanol) showed a proton conductivity of 27.9 mS/cm and a 100 times lower VO2+ crossover compared to Nafion.
A Novel Assessment of Flexibility by Microcirculatory Signals
Authors: Bau Jian-Guo , Chia Taipau , Chung Yu-Fang , Chen Kun-Hao , Wu Shyi-Kuen
Published: December 2013

Flexibility testing is one of the most important fitness assessments. It is generally evaluated by measuring the range of motion (RoM) of body segments around a joint center. This study presents a novel assessment of flexibility in the microcirculatory aspect. Eighteen college students were recruited for the flexibility assessment. The flexibility of the leg was defined according to the angle of active ankle dorsiflexion measured by goniometry. Six legs were excluded, and the remaining thirty legs were categorized into two groups, group H (n = 15 with higher flexibility) and group L (n = 15 with lower flexibility), according to their RoM. The microcirculatory signals of the gastrocnemius muscle on the belly were monitored by using Laser-Doppler Flowmetry (LDF) with a noninvasive skin probe. Three indices of nonpulsatile component (DC), pulsatile component (AC) and perfusion pulsatility (PP) were defined from the LDF signals after signal processing. The results revealed that both the DC and AC values of the group H that demonstrated higher stability underwent muscle stretching. In contrast, these indices of group L had interferences and became unstable during muscle stretching. The PP value of group H was a little higher than that of group L. These primary findings help us to understand the microcirculatory physiology of flexibility, and warrant further investigations for use of non-invasive LDF techniques in the assessment of flexibility.
Effects of the Amino Acid Constituents of Microcystin Variants on Cytotoxicity to Primary Cultured Rat Hepatocytes
Authors: Shimizu Kumiko , Sano Tomoharu , Kubota Reiji , Kobayashi Norihiro , Tahara Maiko , Obama Tomoko , Sugimoto Naoki , Nishimura Tetsuji , Ikarashi Yoshiaki
Published: December 2013

Microcystins, which are cyclic heptapeptides produced by some cyanobacterial species from algal blooms, strongly inhibit serine/threonine protein phosphatase and are known as hepatotoxins. Microcystins have many structural variations, yet insufficient information is available on the differences in the cytotoxic potentials among the structural variants. In this study, the cytotoxicities of 16 microcystin variants at concentrations of 0.03–10 μg/mL to primary cultured rat hepatocytes were determined by measuring cellular ATP content, and subsequently determined by their 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50). Differences in the amino acid constituents were associated with differences in cytotoxic potential. [d-Asp3, Z-Dhb7] microcystin-LR exhibited the strongest cytotoxicity at IC50 of 0.053 μg/mL among the microcystin variants tested. Furthermore, [d-Asp3, Z-Dhb7] microcystin-HtyR was also highly cytotoxic. These results suggest that both d-Asp and Z-Dhb residues are important in determining the cytotoxic potential of microcystin variants.
Phylogenetics and diversification of morning glories (tribe Ipomoeeae, Convolvulaceae) based on whole plastome sequences
Authors: Eserman Lauren A. , Tiley George P. , Jarret Robert L. , Leebens‐Mack Jim H. , Miller Richard E.
Published: December 2013

• Premise of the study: Morning glories are an emerging model system, and resolving phylogenetic relationships is critical for understanding their evolution. Phylogenetic studies demonstrated that the largest morning glory genus, Ipomoea, is not monophyletic, and nine other genera are derived from within Ipomoea. Therefore, systematic research is focused on the monophyletic tribe Ipomoeeae (ca. 650–900 species). We used whole plastomes to infer relationships across Ipomoeeae.

• Methods: Whole plastomes were sequenced for 29 morning glory species, representing major lineages. Phylogenies were estimated using alignments of 82 plastid genes and whole plastomes. Divergence times were estimated using three fossil calibration points. Finally, evolution of root architecture, flower color, and ergot alkaloid presence was examined.

• Key results: Phylogenies estimated from both data sets had nearly identical topologies. Phylogenetic results are generally consistent with prior phylogenetic hypotheses. Higher‐level relationships with weak support in previous studies were recovered here with strong support. Molecular dating analysis suggests a late Eocene divergence time for the Ipomoeeae. The two clades within the tribe, Argyreiinae and Astripomoeinae, diversified at similar times. Reconstructed most recent common ancestor of the Ipomoeeae had blue flowers, an association with ergot‐producing fungi, and either tuberous or fibrous roots.

• Conclusions: Phylogenetic results provide confidence in relationships among Ipomoeeae lineages. Divergence time estimation results provide a temporal context for diversification of morning glories. Ancestral character reconstructions support previous findings that morning glory morphology is evolutionarily labile. Taken together, our study provides strong resolution of the morning glory phylogeny, which is broadly applicable to the evolution and ecology of these fascinating species.
Listening With their Eyes: Problems for Radical Intertextuality
Authors: Gracyk Theodore
Published: December 2013

Tout produit culturel implique des prédécesseurs et des influences, et la musique populaire ne déroge pas à cette règle. Dans le cas du rock, le sens d’un disque ou d’une chanson ne dépend donc pas moins de l’intertextualité que dans celui de tout autre cas de communication signifiante. Cet article soutient qu’il faut refuser la position radicale selon laquelle tout lien intertextuel est d’égale importance. Si cela était vrai, alors l’expérience consistant à écouter de la musique n’aurait plus qu’une importance limitée pour en déterminer la signification. L’auteur défend une version moins radicale de l’intertextualité : prenant le rock comme exemple de musique populaire, il montre que cette version moins radicale rend mieux compte de la raison pour laquelle les amateurs de rock écoutent cette musique.
« Écouter avec les yeux » : sur quelques problèmes de l’intertextualité radicale
Authors: Gracyk Theodore
Published: December 2013

Tout produit culturel implique des prédécesseurs et des influences, et la musique populaire ne déroge pas à cette règle. Dans le cas du rock, le sens d’un disque ou d’une chanson ne dépend donc pas moins de l’intertextualité que dans celui de tout autre cas de communication signifiante. Cet article soutient qu’il faut refuser la position radicale selon laquelle tout lien intertextuel est d’égale importance. Si cela était vrai, alors l’expérience consistant à écouter de la musique n’aurait plus qu’une importance limitée pour en déterminer la signification. L’auteur défend une version moins radicale de l’intertextualité : prenant le rock comme exemple de musique populaire, il montre que cette version moins radicale rend mieux compte de la raison pour laquelle les amateurs de rock écoutent cette musique.
Grounding the Troops: Music, Place, and Memory in the Iraq War
Authors: Gilman Lisa
Published: December 2013

This article examines how American troops use music to navigate complex associations of place during deployment. Since 2005, I have been conducting interviews with veterans of the United States military who served in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, exploring their memories of musical engagement, specifically listening to music, during their deployments. Though I did not originally think to ask questions related to place, as I poured through interview transcripts, I gradually realized just how frequently people described their musical listening in relationship to place, sometimes associating a particular type of musical engagement with a specific physical setting, linking songs to memories of locales, or alternately describing using music to psychologically remove themselves from an environment. Technological transformations coupled with the particularities of war make musical listening especially salient in the day-to-day existence of contemporary American troops during wartime. Examining relationships between musical listening and place with a focus on the memories of veterans who were deployed to the Iraq war yields insight both into the critical role that music has for many contemporary troops involved in the physically and psychologically demanding context of war and to scholarly understandings of how music can operate in complicated processes of location and dislocation.
Train Listening: Music in the Spaces of the 21st Century
Authors: Darlington Bruce
Published: December 2013

Listening to music on the train is a microcosm of listening to music in the technologically enabled developed world of the 21st century. This article engages discussions of listening in modern environments and the methods employed to do so in order to move towards a consideration of new modes of listening and existing alongside music. The failure of traditional functional categories in order to understand the role music is playing in modern society is put forward as is a move towards a radical shift away from the accepted subject-object paradigm of listening. Power structures present in the modern global age are used to emphasize the larger scope of the train carriage as a representative structure for an examination of listening as well as technological societal developments. Modern multitasking trends as well as the impact they have on the mind when considered in the light of certain cognitive hierarchical theories are examined and then placed alongside elements of the Nominalist school of ontological thought in order to establish certain pre-existing theoretical trends which are being re-applied here.
Auditeurs en exil : le cas des Chiliens à Montréal et leur rapport à deux chansons emblématiques
Authors: Gonzalez Laura Francisca Jordán
Published: December 2013

Cet article examine l’expérience des auditeurs chiliens exilés à Montréal, se concentrant spécifiquement sur leurs écoutes pendant la dictature militaire (1973-1989). Issus d’une méthodologie mixte qui combine l’histoire orale et l’analyse musicale, les résultats de cette recherche musicologique révèlent la place primordiale que l’audition musicale eut chez les exilés dans la reconstruction d’un lien avec leur pays d’origine, ainsi que dans le développement du mouvement de solidarité avec le peuple chilien. L’article explique, d’abord, le déploiement des goûts musicaux et identifie les répertoires canoniques qui demeurent au centre des écoutes. Ensuite, il aborde le rôle de l’usage des enregistrements en vinyle et cassette, et de la radio dans la diffusion des musiques. Enfin, les deux dernières sections explorent les significations associées aux pièces musicales ‘Gracias a la Vida’ et ‘Vuelvo’, mettant en relief la complexité de la réception en ce qui concerne la construction des identités culturelles, le récit des histoires personnelles et communautaires.