bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
High‐precision isotopic analysis of essential mineral elements: capabilities as a diagnostic/prognostic tool
Authors: Vanhaecke Frank , Costas‐Rodríguez Marta
Published: November 2020

All elements with two or more isotopes show natural variation in their isotopic composition as a result of the isotope fractionation that accompanies (bio)chemical reactions and (bio)physical processes. Multicollector inductively coupled plasma‐mass spectrometry (MC‐ICP‐MS) offers the precision required to reveal and quantify the differences in isotope ratios thus caused, although they are often of sub‐permil magnitude only. Using MC‐ICP‐MS, it has been shown that (a) in different body compartments, essential mineral elements may display different isotopic compositions, and (b) disease conditions may alter the isotopic composition of an essential mineral element in a biofluid and/or tissue. As a result, high‐precision isotopic analysis of these elements is a powerful way to unravel the actual role these essential mineral elements play in specific biochemical processes. Moreover, isotope ratio shifts also show promise as a diagnostic or prognostic tool. Despite the intensive sample pretreatment preceding MC‐ICP‐MS isotopic analysis and the high purchase and running costs of the instrumentation, this approach may be valuable, especially for diseases that can otherwise only be established at a later stage and/or via a more invasive approach. This review paper describes the basics of “biomedical isotopic analysis” and uses selected cases from the literature to sketch the state‐of‐art and illustrate in which context isotope ratio markers could be exploited in a clinical context.
Reduction‐responsive polymers for drug delivery in cancer therapy—Is there anything new to discover?
Authors: Monteiro Patrícia F. , Travanut Alessandra , Conte Claudia , Alexander Cameron
Published: November 2020

Among various types of stimuli‐responsive drug delivery systems, reduction‐responsive polymers have attracted great interest. In general, these systems have high stability in systemic circulation, however, they can respond quickly to differences in the concentrations of reducing species in specific physiological sites associated with a pathology. This is a particularly relevant strategy to target diseases in which hypoxic regions are present, as polymers which are sensitive to in‐situ expressed antioxidant species can, through a local response, release a therapeutic at high concentration in the targeted site, and thus, improve the selectivity and efficacy of the treatment. At the same time, such reduction‐responsive materials can also decrease the toxicity and side effects of certain drugs. To date, polymers containing disulfide linkages are the most investigated of the class of reduction‐responsive nanocarriers, however, other groups such as selenide and diselenide have also been used for the same purpose. In this review article, we discussed the rationale behind the development of reduction‐responsive polymers as drug delivery systems and highlight examples of recent progress. We include the most popular design methods to generate reduction‐responsive polymeric carriers and their applications in cancer therapy, and question what areas may still need to be explored in a field with already a very large number of research articles. Finally, we consider the main challenges associated with the clinical translation of these nanocarriers and the future perspectives in this area.

This article is categorized under:

Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Oncologic Disease

Nanotechnology Approaches to Biology > Nanoscale Systems in Biology

Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Emerging Technologies
Climate Change Impact on Soil Moisture Variability: Health Effects of Radon Flux Density Within Ogbomoso, Nigeria
Authors: Oladapo Olukunle Olaonipekun , Amekudzi Leonard Kofitse , Oni Olatunde Micheal , Aremu Abraham Adewale , Osei Marian Amoakowaah
Published: November 2020

Climate affects the quantity of soil moisture within the surface of the earth and this is obtained by affecting the amount of radon flux density escaping from the land surface. This chapter contains the evaluation of climate change conditions as it affects the variability of soil water for the purpose of estimating the health effects of radon flux density within Ogbomoso metropolis. The simulated soil moisture content around Ogbomoso was done for a period of 34 years using the hydrological model, Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). The calibration and validation of the SWAT model was done using the daily observed soil moisture content. The simulated daily soil moisture within Ogbomoso showed good performance when calibrated and validated. A 20 years prediction of the daily soil moisture content was done using the SWAT model. The estimation of the radon flux density for the study area was obtained using the simulated soil temperature and soil moisture from the SWAT model. In this chapter, the UNSCEAR radon flux formula was used for the radon flux estimate. The result showed that the UNSCEAR radon flux formula performed well in estimating the radon flux density in the study area. The mean value of the radon flux density of 15.09 mBqm−2 s−1 falls below the estimated world average of 33 mBqm−2 s−1 by UNSCEAR stipulated for land surface. The results showed that Ogbomoso region is not prone to high risk of radon exposure to the public. The estimation of the radon flux density value suggested that there is no radiological health hazard such as lung cancer or any other respiratory tract diseases to the inhabitant of Ogbomoso, Nigeria.
Digitale Souveränität in der Wirtschaft – Gegenstandsbereiche, Konzepte und Merkmale
Authors: Hartmann Ernst Andreas
Published: November 2020

Das Konzept der digitalen Souveränität wurde auf verschiedene Gegenstände (Staaten, Organisationen, soziale Bewegungen, Individuen) angewandt und unter verschiedenen Aspekten (nationale Souveränität, Datenschutz/Datensicherheit, Wettbewerbsfähigkeit, Bürgerrechte, Arbeitsgestaltung) diskutiert. Diese Gegenstände und Aspekte werden zunächst im Überblick dargestellt. Anschließend steht die digitale Souveränität in der Wirtschaft im Fokus. Für diesen Gegenstandsbereich werden zwei Arten von Akteuren als konstitutiv angenommen: Individuen (Personen) und Organisationen (korporative Akteure, zum Beispiel Unternehmen). Unter Rückgriff auf psychologische (Hacker) und soziologische (Coleman) Handlungstheorien wird das Konstrukt der Handlung als zentrale Beschreibungsdimension der digitalen Souveränität vorgeschlagen. Speziell das Konzept der effizient-divergenten Handlungsräume nach Rainer Oesterreich, das handlungs- mit kontrolltheoretischen Aspekten verbindet, weist Potenziale auf, digitale Souveränität nicht nur theoretisch präzise zu fassen, sondern auch als Grundlage für die praktische Messung – und perspektivisch die Zertifizierung – digitaler Souveränität in Wirtschaft und Arbeitswelt dienen zu können.
Deformed Cauchy random matrix ensembles and large N phase transitions
Authors: Russo Jorge G.
Published: November 2020

Abstract

We study a new hermitian one-matrix model containing a logarithmic Penner’s type term and another term, which can be obtained as a limit from logarithmic terms. For small coupling, the potential has an absolute minimum at the origin, but beyond a certain value of the coupling the potential develops a double well. For a higher critical value of the coupling, the system undergoes a large N third-order phase transition.
TOPOLOGICAL LOOPS HAVING SOLVABLE INDECOMPOSABLE LIE GROUPS AS THEIR MULTIPLICATION GROUPS
Authors: FIGULA Á. , AL-ABAYECHI A.
Published: November 2020

We prove that the solvability of the multiplication group Mult(L) of a connected simply connected topological loop L of dimension three forces that L is classically solvable. Moreover, L is congruence solvable if and only if either L has a non-discrete centre or L is an abelian extension of a normal subgroup ℝ by the 2-dimensional nonabelian Lie group or by an elementary filiform loop. We determine the structure of indecomposable solvable Lie groups which are multiplication groups of three-dimensional topological loops. We find that among the six-dimensional indecomposable solvable Lie groups having a four-dimensional nilradical there are two one-parameter families and a single Lie group which consist of the multiplication groups of the loops L. We prove that the corresponding loops are centrally nilpotent of class 2.
Combination of novel intravesical xenogeneic urothelial cell immunotherapy and chemotherapy enhances anti-tumor efficacy in preclinical murine bladder tumor models
Authors: Huang Chi-Ping , Wu Chun-Chie , Shyr Chih-Rong
Published: November 2020

Background

Immune checkpoint inhibitors induce robust and durable responses in advanced bladder cancer (BC), but only for a subset of patients. Xenovaccination has been proposed as an effective immunotherapeutic approach to induce anti-tumor immunity. Thus, we proposed a novel intravesical xenogeneic urothelial cell immunotherapy strategy to treat advanced BC based on the hypothesis that implanted xenogeneic urothelial cells not only provoke xeno-rejection immune responses but also elicit bystander anti-tumor immunity.

Methods

Mouse advanced bladder cancer models were treated with vehicle control, intravesical xenogeneic urothelial cells, cisplatin + gemcitabine, or the combination and assessed for tumor responses to treatments. Tumors and spleens samples were collected for immunohistological staining, cellular and molecular analysis assessed by antibody staining, ELISA, cytotoxicity, and flow cytometry, respectively.

Results

The combination treatment of xenogeneic urothelial cell immunotherapy with chemotherapy was more efficacious than either single therapy to extend survival time in MBT-2 graft bladder tumor model and to suppress tumor progression in murine carcinogen BBN-induced bladder tumor model. The single-cell immunotherapy and combined therapy increased more tumor-infiltrating immune cells in MBT-2 graft tumors compared to vehicle control and chemotherapy treatment groups. The activated T-cell proliferation, cytokine production, and cytotoxicity capacities were also higher in mice with xenogeneic urothelial cell immunotherapy and combination treatments.

Conclusions

Our results suggest the potential for a novel xenogeneic urothelial cell-based immunotherapy alone and synergy with chemotherapy in the combination therapy. Therefore, our study supports developing xenogeneic urothelial cells as an immunotherapeutic agent in combination with chemotherapy for BC treatment.
Evolving robotic surgery training and improving patient safety, with the integration of novel technologies
Authors: Chen I-Hsuan Alan , Ghazi Ahmed , Sridhar Ashwin , Stoyanov Danail , Slack Mark , Kelly John D. , Collins Justin W.
Published: November 2020

Introduction

Robot-assisted surgery is becoming increasingly adopted by multiple surgical specialties. There is evidence of inherent risks of utilising new technologies that are unfamiliar early in the learning curve. The development of standardised and validated training programmes is crucial to deliver safe introduction. In this review, we aim to evaluate the current evidence and opportunities to integrate novel technologies into modern digitalised robotic training curricula.

Methods

A systematic literature review of the current evidence for novel technologies in surgical training was conducted online and relevant publications and information were identified. Evaluation was made on how these technologies could further enable digitalisation of training.

Results

Overall, the quality of available studies was found to be low with current available evidence consisting largely of expert opinion, consensus statements and small qualitative studies. The review identified that there are several novel technologies already being utilised in robotic surgery training. There is also a trend towards standardised validated robotic training curricula. Currently, the majority of the validated curricula do not incorporate novel technologies and training is delivered with more traditional methods that includes centralisation of training services with wet laboratories that have access to cadavers and dedicated training robots.

Conclusions

Improvements to training standards and understanding performance data have good potential to significantly lower complications in patients. Digitalisation automates data collection and brings data together for analysis. Machine learning has potential to develop automated performance feedback for trainees. Digitalised training aims to build on the current gold standards and to further improve the ‘continuum of training’ by integrating PBP training, 3D-printed models, telementoring, telemetry and machine learning.
Ischemic Lesion Location Based on the ASPECT Score for Risk Assessment of Neurogenic Dysphagia
Authors: Lapa Sriramya , Foerch Christian , Singer Oliver C. , Hattingen Elke , Luger Sebastian
Published: November 2020

Dysphagia is common in patients with middle cerebral artery (MCA) infarctions and associated with malnutrition, pneumonia, and mortality. Besides bedside screening tools, brain imaging findings may help to timely identify patients with swallowing disorders. We investigated whether the Alberta stroke program early CT score (ASPECTS) allows for the correlation of distinct ischemic lesion patterns with dysphagia. We prospectively examined 113 consecutive patients with acute MCA infarctions. Fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) was performed within 24 h after admission for validation of dysphagia. Brain imaging (CT or MRI) was rated for ischemic changes according to the ASPECT score. 62 patients (54.9%) had FEES-proven dysphagia. In left hemispheric strokes, the strongest associations between the ASPECTS sectors and dysphagia were found for the lentiform nucleus (odds ratio 0.113 [CI 0.028–0.433; p = 0.001), the insula (0.275 [0.102–0.742]; p = 0.011), and the frontal operculum (0.280 [CI 0.094–0.834]; p = 0.022). A combination of two or even all three of these sectors together increased relative dysphagia frequency up to 100%. For right hemispheric strokes, only non-significant associations were found which were strongest for the insula region. The distribution of early ischemic changes in the MCA territory according to ASPECTS may be used as risk indicator of neurogenic dysphagia in MCA infarction, particularly when the left hemisphere is affected. However, due to the exploratory nature of this research, external validation studies of these findings are warranted in future.
Survival prediction of glioblastoma patients—are we there yet? A systematic review of prognostic modeling for glioblastoma and its clinical potential
Authors: Tewarie Ishaan Ashwini , Senders Joeky T. , Kremer Stijn , Devi Sharmila , Gormley William B. , Arnaout Omar , Smith Timothy R. , Broekman Marike L. D.
Published: November 2020

Glioblastoma is associated with a poor prognosis. Even though survival statistics are well-described at the population level, it remains challenging to predict the prognosis of an individual patient despite the increasing number of prognostic models. The aim of this study is to systematically review the literature on prognostic modeling in glioblastoma patients. A systematic literature search was performed to identify all relevant studies that developed a prognostic model for predicting overall survival in glioblastoma patients following the PRISMA guidelines. Participants, type of input, algorithm type, validation, and testing procedures were reviewed per prognostic model. Among 595 citations, 27 studies were included for qualitative review. The included studies developed and evaluated a total of 59 models, of which only seven were externally validated in a different patient cohort. The predictive performance among these studies varied widely according to the AUC (0.58–0.98), accuracy (0.69–0.98), and C-index (0.66–0.70). Three studies deployed their model as an online prediction tool, all of which were based on a statistical algorithm. The increasing performance of survival prediction models will aid personalized clinical decision-making in glioblastoma patients. The scientific realm is gravitating towards the use of machine learning models developed on high-dimensional data, often with promising results. However, none of these models has been implemented into clinical care. To facilitate the clinical implementation of high-performing survival prediction models, future efforts should focus on harmonizing data acquisition methods, improving model interpretability, and externally validating these models in multicentered, prospective fashion.
Waiting list mortality and the potential of donation after circulatory death heart transplantations in the Netherlands
Authors: Roest S. , Kaffka genaamd Dengler S. E. , van Suylen V. , van der Kaaij N. P. , Damman K. , van Laake L. W. , Bekkers J. A. , Dalinghaus M. , Erasmus M. E. , Manintveld O. C.
Published: November 2020

Background

With more patients qualifying for heart transplantation (HT) and fewer hearts being transplanted, it is vital to look for other options. To date, only organs from brain-dead donors have been used for HT in the Netherlands. We investigated waiting list mortality in all Dutch HT centres and the potential of donation after circulatory death (DCD) HT in the Netherlands.

Methods

Two different cohorts were evaluated. One cohort was defined as patients who were newly listed or were already on the waiting list for HT between January 2013 and December 2017. Follow-up continued until September 2018 and waiting list mortality was calculated. A second cohort of all DCD donors in the Netherlands (lung, liver, kidney and pancreas) between January 2013 and December 2017 was used to calculate the potential of DCD HT.

Results

Out of 395 patients on the waiting list for HT, 196 (50%) received transplants after a median waiting time of 2.6 years. In total, 15% died while on the waiting list before a suitable donor heart became available. We identified 1006 DCD donors. After applying exclusion criteria and an age limit of 50 years, 122 potential heart donors remained. This number increased to 220 when the age limit was extended to 57 years.

Conclusion

Waiting list mortality in the Netherlands is high. HT using organs from DCD donors has great potential in the Netherlands and could lead to a reduction in waiting list mortality. Cardiac screening will eventually determine the true potential.
Perspectival pluralism for animal welfare
Authors: Veit Walter , Browning Heather
Published: November 2020

Animal welfare has a long history of disregard. While in recent decades the study of animal welfare has become a scientific discipline of its own, the difficulty of measuring animal welfare can still be vastly underestimated. There are three primary theories, or perspectives, on animal welfare - biological functioning, natural living and affective state. These come with their own diverse methods of measurement, each providing a limited perspective on an aspect of welfare. This paper describes a perspectival pluralist account of animal welfare, in which all three theoretical perspectives and their multiple measures are necessary to understand this complex phenomenon and provide a full picture of animal welfare. This in turn will offer us a better understanding of perspectivism and pluralism itself.
A novel approach to solve the water saturation challenges in reservoirs under LoSal water injection
Authors: Oraby Moustafa , Khairy Mohamed , Moussa Marwan
Published: November 2020

Enhancing hydrocarbon recovery is an ongoing practice in the petroleum industry. Multiple approaches are developed and proved their effectiveness in increasing reservoirs recovery. One of the recent approaches is the Low Salinity Water Injection which is known in the industry by “LoSal”. The determination of the optimum low salinity of the injected water and the mechanism behind its ability to enhance the hydrocarbon recovery are still the subjects of interest for many researchers and industry professionals. Despite the value of the LoSal water injection, it brings with it a considerable challenge to the future formation evaluation, namely the determination of the fluids’ saturation. The mixing of the low salinity injected water with the original high-salinity formation water creates variable water salinity across the reservoir. This is known in the industry by the “mixed-salinity” problem. The horizontal and the vertical heterogeneity of the permeability and porosity across the reservoir is the main factor that controls the “mixed-salinity” distribution in the injected volume. The challenge of calculating the fluids’ saturation exists for both the infill drilling wells and the monitoring wells. For the infill drilling wells, the saturation calculations require accurate formation water resistivity values, Rw, which became variable due to the mixed-salinity. For the monitoring wells, the fluids saturation calculations require accurate formation water sigma absorption, Σw, which also became variable for the same reason. The inability to determine the current Rw and Σw on foot-by-foot basis results in incorrect calculations of the water and hydrocarbon saturations. This creates an economic burden on the reservoir management. The existing methods to interpret the fluids saturation in mixed-salinity reservoirs face the challenges of accuracy, effect of borehole environment and high-data acquisitions cost. A forward modeling is developed to illustrate the problem and its impact on the reservoir decisions making process. A solution to the challenges is proposed, investigated, and proved both theoretically and in the laboratory. The proposed solution is based on lowering the LoSal water resistivity, prior to injection, to be equal to the original formation water resistivity without changing its low salinity. This is achieved by mixing the LoSal water with either acid or alkaline based on the reservoir condition. The acid or alkaline will reduce the resistivity of the LoSal water while keeping its low salinity unchanged. The determination of the required volume of the acid or the alkaline is calculated using the conductivity mixing law and the solution is tested on core plugs. The possible effects of the acid on the formation lithology, specially the clay content is discussed and proved to be negligible due to the very low acid volume required. This is also supported by previously published measurements.
On the Role of Dilute Solute Additions on Growth Restriction in Binary Copper Alloys
Authors: Balart M. J. , Gao F. , Patel J. B. , Miani F.
Published: November 2020

The effect of dilute solute additions on growth restriction in binary Cu alloys has been assessed at different degrees of superheat. Columnar grain length values from Northcott’s work (Northcott in J Inst Metals 62:101-136, 1938) for binary Cu alloys were plotted against the corresponding undercooling parameter (P), the reciprocal of the conventional (Qconv.) and true (Qtrue) growth restriction factor (Schmid-Fetzer and Kozlov in Acta Mater 59(15):6133-6144, 2011) values. It was found that there was no correlation between the columnar grain length values and P, 1/Qconv. and 1/Qtrue values for different solutes and cast at the same degree of superheat. Unlike P, Qconv., and Qtrue values, the heuristic growth restriction parameter (β) (Fan et al. in Acta Mater 152, 248-257, 2018) modeling framework in conjunction with the critical solute content (C*) for growth restriction fitted well to binary Cu alloys.
Extracting Natech Reports from Large Databases: Development of a Semi-Intelligent Natech Identification Framework
Authors: Luo Xiaolong , Cruz Ana Maria , Tzioutzios Dimitrios
Published: November 2020

Natural hazard-triggered technological accidents (Natechs) refer to accidents involving releases of hazardous materials (hazmat) triggered by natural hazards. Huge economic losses, as well as human health and environmental problems are caused by Natechs. In this regard, learning from previous Natechs is critical for risk management. However, due to data scarcity and high uncertainty concerning such hazards, it becomes a serious challenge for risk managers to detect Natechs from large databases, such as the National Response Center (NRC) database. As the largest database of hazmat release incidents, the NRC database receives hazmat release reports from citizens in the United States. However, callers often have incomplete details about the incidents they are reporting. This results in many records having incomplete information. Consequently, it is quite difficult to identify and extract Natechs accurately and efficiently. In this study, we introduce machine learning theory into the Natech retrieving research, and a Semi-Intelligent Natech Identification Framework (SINIF) is proposed in order to solve the problem. We tested the suitability of two supervised machine learning algorithms, namely the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) and the Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), and selected the former for the development of the SINIF. According to the results, the SINIF is efficient (a total number of 826,078 records were analyzed) and accurate (the accuracy is over 0.90), while 32,841 Natech reports between 1990 and 2017 were extracted from the NRC database. Furthermore, the majority of those Natech reports (97.85%) were related to meteorological phenomena, with hurricanes (24.41%), heavy rains (19.27%), and storms (18.29%) as the main causes of these reported Natechs. Overall, this study suggests that risk managers can benefit immensely from SINIF in analyzing Natech data from large databases efficiently.
The Value of Doubt: Humanities-Based Literacy in Management Education
Authors: Landfester Ulrike , Metelmann Jörg
Published: November 2020

Our paper addresses the question of what exactly the contribution of the humanities to management education could or should be, suggesting the concept of Literacy as both this contribution’s goal and method. Though there seems to emerge a consensus in the debate about the future of management education that the humanities should be involved with shaping it, some misconceptions about the humanities obscure the understanding of the why and how of it, most notably as to the manner in which they are to provide for ethical values. Our paper in a first step endeavours to clear those misconceptions up drawing on some historical aspects of their development. It then proceeds to introducing the concept of Literacy and, based on it, the teaching framework of Critical Management Literacy (CML) we designed to operationalize the concept towards management students` needs. Our leading hypothesis is that the contribution of the humanities should focus on the cultivation of the capacity for epistemological doubt in order to prepare students for the complexity and indeterminacy of reality, thus at the same time laying the groundwork for ethical reflectivity.
Nicht-Diabetes-assoziierte Hypoglykämien
Authors: Treiber Gerlies
Published: November 2020

Die Symptome einer Hypoglykämie sind häufig und unspezifisch. Echte Hypoglykämien sind selten und kommen meistens im Rahmen einer Insulintherapie vor. Die Diagnose einer Hypoglykämie bei Patienten ohne Diabetes erfordert das Vorliegen der Whipple-Trias mit dokumentierter Blutglukose ≤ 55 mg/dl, hypoglykämischen Symptomen und deren Verschwinden durch Zufuhr von Kohlenhydraten. Eine weitere Abklärung erfolgt mittels standardisiertem 72‑h Fastentest oder bei Patienten mit vorwiegend postprandialen Hypoglykämien einem 5‑h-Mahlzeitentoleranztest. Die parallele Messung von Plasmaglukose, Insulin, C‑Peptid, Proinsulin und Ketonen hilft in der Differenzierung zwischen Insulinom, faktitieller Gabe von Insulin und Sulfonylharnstoffen sowie Nesidioblastose (NIPHS) und Hypoglykämien nach bariatrischen Operationen. Die Messung von Insulin-Autoantikörpern ist hinweisend auf ein autoimmunes Insulinsyndrom und der Nachweis von „big“ IFG‑2 auf eine paraneoplastische Sekretion dieses Proteins bei Tumorerkrankungen. Erst wenn der Nachweis einer autonomen endogenen Hyperinsulinämie vorliegt, erfolgt die Lokalisationsdiagnostik. Dabei sind szintigrafische Untersuchungen mittels radioaktivem 68Gallium und Exendin‑4 und ein selektiver Kalzium-Stimulationstest in der Lokalisation von Insulinomen hilfreich. Therapeutisch ist eine Hypoglykämie akut durch Glukosegabe zu behandeln. Die langfristige Therapie besteht wenn möglich in der Beseitigung der auslösenden Ursache, Ernährungsmaßnahmen sowie medikamentöser Hemmung der Insulinsekretion.
Empirisch-analytische Friedens- und Konfliktforschung in Deutschland: Ein Kommentar zur Evaluation durch den Wissenschaftsrat
Authors: Ruhe Constantin , Leib Julia , Weidmann Nils B. , Bussmann Margit
Published: November 2020

Dieser Beitrag reflektiert und ergänzt die aktuelle Diskussion über die Empfehlungen des Wissenschaftsrats zur Weiterentwicklung der Friedens- und Konfliktforschung. Wir richten dabei den Blick auf die vom Wissenschaftsrat attestierten Schwachstellen im Bereich empirisch-analytischer Methoden und erläutern ihre Auswirkungen auf Interdisziplinarität, Internationalität und Politikberatung der deutschen Friedens- und Konfliktforschung. Wir argumentieren, unter Verweis auf den Bericht des Wissenschaftsrats, dass eine breitere Methodenausbildung und -kenntnis von großer Bedeutung für interdisziplinäre und internationale Zusammenarbeit, aber auch für die Politikberatung ist. Zukünftige Initiativen innerhalb der Friedens- und Konfliktforschung sollten die Methodenvielfalt des Forschungsbereichs angemessen berücksichtigen und einen besonderen Fokus auf die Ausbildung im Bereich empirisch-analytischer Methoden legen, um das Forschungsfeld in diesem Bereich zu stärken. Unser Beitrag entspringt einer Diskussion innerhalb des Arbeitskreises „Empirische Methoden der Friedens- und Konfliktforschung“ der Arbeitsgemeinschaft Friedens- und Konfliktforschung.
Ontological Arguments
Authors: Goldschmidt Tyron
Published: November 2020

Proving the existence of God is a perennial philosophical ambition. An armchair proof would be the jackpot. Ontological arguments promise as much. This Element studies the most famous ontological arguments from Anselm, Descartes, Plantinga, and others besides. While the verdict is that ontological arguments don't work, they get us entangled in fun philosophical puzzles, from philosophy of religion to philosophy of language, from metaphysics to ethics, and beyond.
Thinking with a landscape: the Australian Alps, horses and pedagogical considerations
Authors: Jukes Scott
Published: November 2020

This paper proposes some possibilities forthinking with a landscapeas a pedagogical concept, inspired by posthuman theory. The idea of thinking with a landscape is enacted in the Australian Alps (AA), concentrating on the contentious environmental dilemma involving introduced horses and their management in this bio-geographical location. The topic of horses is of pedagogical relevance for place-responsive outdoor environmental educators as both a location-specific problem and an example of a troubling issue. The paper has two objectives for employing posthuman thinking. Firstly, it experiments with the alternative methodological possibilities that posthuman theory affords for outdoor environmental education, including new ways of conducting educational research. Secondly, it explores how thinking with a landscape as a pedagogical concept may help open ways of considering the dilemma that horses pose. The pedagogical concept is enacted through some empirical events which sketch human–horse encounters from the AA. These sketches depict some of the pedagogical conversations and discursive pathways that encounters can provoke. Such encounters and conversations are ways of constructing knowledge of the landscape, covering multiple species, perspectives and discursive opportunities. For these reasons, this paper may be of relevance for outdoor environmental educators, those interested in the AA or posthuman theorists.
Bone histology, palaeobiology, and early diagenetic history of extinct equids from Turkey
Authors: Nacarino-Meneses Carmen , Chinsamy Anusuya , Mayda Serdar , Kaya Tanju , Erismis Ugur Cengiz
Published: November 2020

Bone histology has proved to be a valuable tool to obtain information about the palaeobiology and early taphonomic history of fossil vertebrates. However, there are still many extinct taxa for which bone histology studies could be applied to deduce information about their life history and early diagenetic changes. Here, we partially fill this gap by studying bone microstructure and bone micropreservation in the third metapodia ofHipparionandEquusrecovered from several Miocene, Pliocene, and Pleistocene localities in Turkey. Our histological analysis reveals that most of the bone cortices under study are composed of a well-vascularized fibrolamellar bone. Furthermore, we record the presence of compact coarse cancellous bone in aHipparionmetatarsal. In terms of histological preservation, our findings provide supporting evidence that differences in moisture, oxygen, and/or temperature during fossilisation at the different localities impacted the quality of bone preservation. Bacterial bioerosion was extensive in the samples, and we also identified a specific tunnelling morphology that we tentatively consider to be damage caused by freshwater algae. The present study provides novel insight into the palaeobiology and early diagenetic history of extinct horses from Turkey and sets the stage for further research in this area.
Akbar or Aurangzeb? Ethics, Empire, and Print Publics in Colonial India
Authors: Denault Leigh
Published: November 2020

In the 1870s, Indian news editors warned their readers of a series of crises threatening India. They saw the famines, wars, and poverty that they were describing as symptoms of the same illness: Colonial governors had failed to implement an ethical system of governance, and had therefore failed to create a healthy body politic, choosing to expend energy in punishing or censoring dissent when they should have been constructing more durable civic institutions. In North India, earlier Mughal traditions of political philosophy and governance offered a template to critique the current state. In drawing on these traditions, editors linked multiple registers of dissent, from simple ‘fables’ about emperors to more sophisticated arguments drawn from newly reinterpretedakhlaqtexts, creating a print record of the multilingual, multivalent literary and oral worlds of Indian political thought. The figures of the Mughal emperors Akbar and Aurangzeb, representing the zenith and nadir of Mughal sovereignty, in turn linked popular and learned discussions on statecraft, good governance, and personal responsibility in an age of crisis. The press itself became a meeting point for multivalent discourses connecting South Asian publics, oral and literate, in their exploration of the nature of just rule in the context of empire, calling, in the process, new ‘publics’ into being.
Practitioners respond to Suzanne Graham's ‘Research into practice: Listening strategies in an instructed classroom setting’
Authors: Simpson Kedi
Published: November 2020

In her article, Graham (2017) concludes ‘that very little of the research regarding the teaching of listening has made it into the classroom in England, not least in a positive way’ (p. 117). She suggests that teachers rarely delve into the process of second language (L2) listening in class; instead, listening comprehension is treated more as a test than a task. She continues that there is an over-application of the widely shared findings that pre-listening tasks aid listening comprehension – particularly tasks which involve predicting the vocabulary which will be heard during the listening task. Given the suggestion that learners find listening tasks difficult has been addressed within schools simply by making such tasks easier, Graham feels a more pedagogically apt approach might be to examine more closely what has made the task difficult and to modify teaching to address this.
Challenges of making healthy lifestyle changes for families in Aotearoa/New Zealand
Authors: Wild Cervantée EK , Rawiri Ngauru T , Willing Esther J , Hofman Paul L , Anderson Yvonne C
Published: November 2020

Objective:

The objective of the current study was to identify challenges of making and sustaining healthy lifestyle changes for families with children/adolescents affected by obesity, who were referred to a multicomponent healthy lifestyle assessment and intervention programme in Aotearoa/New Zealand (NZ).

Design:

Secondary qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews.

Setting:

Taranaki region of Aotearoa/NZ.

Participants:

Thirty-eight interviews with parents/caregivers (n 42) of children/adolescents who had previously been referred to a family-focused multidisciplinary programme for childhood obesity intervention, who identified challenges of making healthy lifestyle changes. Participants had varying levels of engagement, including those who declined contact after their referral.

Results:

Participant-identified challenges included financial cost, impact of the food environment, time pressures, stress, maintaining consistency across households, independence in adolescence, concern for mental health and frustration when not seeing changes in weight status.

Conclusions:

Participants recognised a range of factors that contributed towards their ability to make and sustain change, including factors at the wider socio-environmental level beyond their immediate control. Even with the support of a multidisciplinary healthy lifestyle programme, participants found it difficult to make sustained changes within an obesogenic environment. Healthy lifestyle intervention programmes and families’ abilities to make and sustain changes require alignment of prevention efforts, focusing on policy changes to improve the food environment and eliminate structural inequities.
THE INDUCTIVE BLOCKWISE ALPERIN WEIGHT CONDITION FOR TYPE AND THE PRIME
Authors: FENG ZHICHENG , MALLE GUNTER
Published: November 2020

We establish the inductive blockwise Alperin weight condition for simple groups of Lie type$\mathsf C$and the bad prime$2$. As a main step, we derive a labelling set for the irreducible$2$-Brauer characters of the finite symplectic groups$\operatorname {Sp}_{2n}(q)$(with oddq), together with the action of automorphisms. As a further important ingredient, we prove a Jordan decomposition for weights.
Pandemics and the politics of difference: rewriting the history of internationalism through nineteenth-century cholera
Authors: Huber Valeska
Published: November 2020

This article revisits the origins of internationalism in the field of health and shows how the cholera epidemics of the nineteenth century, much like the current coronavirus crisis, brought global differences such as social inequalities, political hierarchies, and scientific conflicts to the fore. Beyond drawing parallels between the cholera epidemics and the current crisis, the article argues for combining imperial and social histories in order to write richer and more grounded histories of internationalism. It explores this historiographical and methodological challenge by analysing the boardrooms of the international sanitary conferences, Middle Eastern quarantine stations catering for Mecca pilgrims, and ocean steamships aiming to move without delay during a worldwide health crisis.
Ebola and COVID-19 in Sierra Leone: comparative lessons of epidemics for society
Authors: Richards Paul
Published: November 2020

This case study focuses on two epidemic diseases in Sierra Leone. Ebola in 2014–15 drew international response, but was contained within the Upper West African region. COVID-19 reached Sierra Leone in April 2020 as part of a global pandemic. Local social knowledge has been an important factor in shaping responses to both diseases. In the case of Ebola, infection was concentrated in families, and responders needed a good knowledge of family interactional dynamics. COVID-19 is a more public disease. Responders have to assess risk factors in workplaces, markets, and places of worship. Comparing and contrasting the two cases also draws attention to different aspects of the historical context. Ebola response indexes Sierra Leone’s history as a humanitarian project associated with the abolition of the slave trade. The pandemic challenge of COVID-19 draws attention to Sierra Leone’s nodal position within a global diaspora rooted in Atlantic slavery and emancipation. Responders are forced to consider the ways in which the two infections articulate different aspects of calls for global social justice.
COLOR AND CONSTRAINT
Authors: Campbell Mary E.
Published: November 2020

Immigrants to the United States are assigned to ethnic and racial categories that often make little sense in an international context or are actively resisted by new arrivals. This study uses a large, nationally representative sample to test how skin color constrains and patterns that resistance, and how individual characteristics shape identification choices. Using the 2003 New Immigrant Survey, I find that skin tone has significant relationships with ethnic and racial self-identification choices for immigrants, even after controlling for characteristics like country of origin, with higher rates of Latinx identification among light-skinned immigrants than dark-skinned respondents, and especially high rates of refusing the “standard” racial categories for those near the middle of the skin tone scale. The racial categories selected by immigrants reflect not only their region of origin, but also their education level and their age, controlling for a range of demographic predictors. I discuss the implications for the racialization of immigrants to the United States.
Computed tomography venography versus intravascular ultrasound in the diagnosis of iliofemoral vein stenosis
Authors: Toh Ming Ren , Damodharan Karthikeyan , Lim Han Hui Mervin Nathan , Tang Tjun Yip
Published: November 2020

Summary: Background: Iliofemoral vein stenosis can cause debilitating chronic venous disease. Diagnostic tools include both computed tomography venography (CTV) and intravascular ultrasonography (IVUS). We aim to compare the diagnostic performance of CTV and IVUS. Patients and methods: We performed a retrospective study of patients with chronic venous disease presenting with iliac vein compression or post-thrombotic limb symptoms, excluding those with acute deep vein thrombosis, high anaesthesia risk, or who had contrast allergy. All patients received CTV before IVUS, as part of the diagnostic work-up and intervention. The cross-sectional area (CSA) of iliofemoral vein segments obtained from both studies were compared against reference CSAs to derive percentage stenosis. A 50% reduction in CSA was considered significant. Results: We studied 50 patients between May 2018 and April 2019. 58% of patients had severe disease CEAP C5-6. 48% of patients had at least one vein segment with significant stenosis. The left proximal common iliac vein was the most commonly stenosed vein segment (n = 12, 24% on IVUS). CSA measurements from CTV were greater than those of IVUS, with a correlation coefficient of 0.57 (p < 0.005). Conversely, percentage stenosis measured on CTV was lower than on IVUS, with approximately one-third of significant stenosis missed on CTV (58 veins from CTV vs. 78 from IVUS, p < 0.005). With IVUS as the gold standard, CTV has low sensitivity (37.2%, 95% CI 26.5–48.9) and high specificity (92.5%, 95% CI 89.3–94.9) in detecting significant stenosis. Conclusions: CTV has limited diagnostic performance in identifying iliofemoral vein stenosis. Patients with normal CTV findings should proceed with IVUS imaging if the clinical features are supportive of iliofemoral vein stenosis.
Kinematics and Dynamics of the 24 January 2020 Mw 6.7 Elazig, Turkey Earthquake
Authors: Chen Kejie , Zhang Zhenguo , Liang Cunren , Xue Changhu , Liu Peng
Published: November 2020

We determine rupture kinematics of the 2020 Mw 6.7 Elazig, Turkey earthquake from joint inversion of interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) measurements, regional 1 Hz Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), strong motion, and teleseismic waveforms, and we also use dynamic modeling to assess the faulting properties to explain the observed kinematics. Our work shows that this event predominantly ruptured unilaterally toward the SW along the East Anatolian Fault Zone at a speed as slow as 2.0 km/s for ~20 s, and three main asperities are formed with a depth ranging from 20 km to the surface, but the surface rupture seems negligible. Besides, the dynamic model reveals an initial heterogeneous stress distribution with variations up to 30 MPa, which has been probably built up during the interseismic period. While this event does not seem to promote the failure of Pazarcık seismic gap, it remains elusive to evaluate the disturbed seismic potential between Elazig and Bingol regions.
A Geologist’s Guide to Exploring and Understanding Iceland
Authors: Jovanelly Tamie
Published: November 2020

A new book explores the geophysical processes that have shaped Iceland over 30 million years and continue to influence the landscape.
Poly(I:C) preconditioning protects the heart against myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury through TLR3/PI3K/Akt-dependent pathway
Authors: Chen Erya , Chen Chan , Niu Zhendong , Gan Lu , Wang Qiao , Li Ming , Cai XingWei , Gao Rui , Katakam Sruthi , Chen Hai , Zhang Shu , Zhou Ronghua , Cheng Xu , Qiu Yanhua , Yu Hai , Zhu Tao , Liu Jin
Published: November 2020

Emerging evidence suggests that Toll-like receptors (TLRs) ligands pretreatment may play a vital role in the progress of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. As the ligand of TLR3, polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C)), a synthetic double-stranded RNA, whether its preconditioning can exhibit a cardioprotective phenotype remains unknown. Here, we report the protective effect of poly(I:C) pretreatment in acute myocardial I/R injury by activating TLR3/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Poly(I:C) pretreatment leads to a significant reduction of infarct size, improvement of cardiac function, and downregulation of inflammatory cytokines and apoptotic molecules compared with controls. Subsequently, our data demonstrate that phosphorylation of TLR3 tyrosine residue and its interaction with PI3K is enhanced, and protein levels of phospho-PI3K and phospho-Akt are both increased after poly(I:C) pretreatment, while knock out of TLR3 suppresses the cardioprotection of poly(I:C) preconditioning through a decreased activation of PI3K/Akt signaling. Moreover, inhibition of p85 PI3K by the administration of LY294002 in vivo and knockdown of Akt by siRNA in vitro significantly abolish poly(I:C) preconditioning-induced cardioprotective effect. In conclusion, our results reveal that poly(I:C) preconditioning exhibits essential protection in myocardial I/R injury via its modulation of TLR3, and the downstream PI3K/Akt signaling, which may provide a potential pharmacologic target for perioperative cardioprotection.