bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Recording Fewer Than 20 Potential Pairs With SFEMG May Suffice for the Diagnosis of Myasthenia Gravis
Authors: Abraham Alon , Breiner Ari , Barnett Carolina , Katzberg Hans D. , Bril Vera
Published: June 2017

Purpose:

Our aim in the current study was to determine the minimum number of SFEMG potential pairs required to confirm neuromuscular junction impairment and relate this number to disease severity.

Methods:

Ninety-four patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) attending the neuromuscular clinic from February 2013 to November 2015 were included. The SFEMG sensitivity was determined for each number of recorded pairs up to 20. In addition, we compared clinical and electrophysiologic characteristics between patients with abnormality within the first 3, 4 to 7, and ≥8 recorded pairs to determine whether this number is associated with disease severity.

Results:

Ninety-eight percent of patients had abnormal SFEMG, within 17 pairs in ocular MG, and within 15 pairs in generalized MG. All patients with generalized MG had at least one abnormal pair in the first five recorded pairs. Patients with three abnormal pairs apparent earlier during the test had more frequent bulbar, respiratory, and limb muscle weakness, and had higher mean jitter values and decrement values.

Conclusions:

In most cases, an abnormal SFEMG examination can be demonstrated in the first 15 recorded potential pairs in patients with generalized MG, and in the first 17 pairs in patients with ocular MG, thus shortening the test time and decreasing patient discomfort while preserving test sensitivity.
Scaffolding imagination: A role for medial frontal cortex in the expression of off-task thought
Authors: Sormaz Mladen , Wang Hao-ting , Karapanagiotidis Theodoros , Murphy Charlotte , Hymers Mark , Margulies Daniel , Jefferies Elizabeth , Smallwood Jonathan
Published: June 2017

We often think about people, places and events that are outside of our immediate environment. Although prior studies have explored how we can reduce the occurrence of these experiences, the neurocognitive process through which they are produced are less understood. The current study builds on developmental and evolutionary evidence that language helps organise and express our thoughts. Behaviorally, we found the occurrence of task unrelated thought (TUT) in easy situations was associated with thinking in words. Using experience sampling data, in combination with online measures of neural function, we established that activity in a region of anterior cingulate cortex / medial-prefrontal cortex (mPFC) tracked with changes in the expression of TUT. This region is at the intersection of two mPFC clusters identified through their association with variation in aspects of spontaneous thought: thinking in words (dorsal) and mental time travel (ventral). Finally, using meta-analytic decoding we confirmed the dorsal/ventral distinction within mPFC corresponding to a functional difference between domains linked to language and meaning and those linked to memory and scene construction. This evidence suggests a role for mPFC in the expression of TUT that may emerge from interactions with distributed neural signals reflecting processes such as language and memory.
Bacteria facilitate viral co-infection of mammalian cells and promote genetic recombination
Authors: Erickson A.K. , Jesudhasan P.R. , Mayer M.J. , Narbad A. , Winter S.E. , Pfeiffer J.K.
Published: June 2017

Intestinal bacteria promote infection of several mammalian enteric viruses, but the mechanisms and consequences are unclear. We screened a panel of 41 bacterial strains as a platform to determine how different bacteria impact enteric viruses. We found that most bacterial strains bound poliovirus, a model enteric virus. Given that each bacterium bound multiple virions, we hypothesized that bacteria may deliver multiple viral genomes to a mammalian cell even when very few virions are present, such as during the first replication cycle after inter-host transmission. We found that exposure to certain bacterial strains increased viral co-infection even when the ratio of virus to host cells was low. Bacteria-mediated viral co-infection correlated with bacterial adherence to cells. Importantly, bacterial strains that induced viral co-infection facilitated viral fitness restoration through genetic recombination. Thus, bacteria-virus interactions may increase viral fitness through viral recombination at initial sites of infection, potentially limiting abortive infections.
Fitness effects ofcis-regulatory variants in theSaccharomyces cerevisiae TDH3promoter
Authors: Duveau Fabien , Toubiana William , Wittkopp Patricia J.
Published: June 2017

Variation in gene expression is widespread within and between species, but fitness consequences of this variation are generally unknown. Here we use mutations in theSaccharomyces cerevisiae TDH3promoter to assess how changes inTDH3expression affect cell growth. From these data, we predict the fitness consequences ofde novomutations and natural polymorphisms in theTDH3promoter. Nearly all mutations and polymorphisms in theTDH3promoter were found to have no significant effect on fitness in the environment assayed, suggesting that the wild type allele of this promoter is robust to the effects of most newcis-regulatory mutations.
The impact of Zika on local businesses
Authors: Page Timothy F. , Williams Mark L. , Cassella Graziana , Adler Jessica L. , Amick, III Benjamin C.
Published: June 2017

Purpose

In June 2016, the first cases of Zika were reported in the USA in the Wynwood neighborhood of Miami, Florida. The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a survey of Wynwood businesses about their perceptions of their financial well-being and the government and media’s responses to the Zika outbreak.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey instrument was developed, and 44 owners/managers of Wynwood businesses were interviewed by telephone or in-person during the period when the outbreak was being managed.

Findings

Businesses reported downturns in revenues, profits, and customer traffic following the Zika outbreak. Believing that the downturn would be temporary, few businesses laid off workers or reduced prices. All businesses reported dissatisfaction with the government’s response to the outbreak.

Originality/value

This is the first study to document the impact of Zika on businesses located in outbreak areas. The findings highlight the business impact of Zika outbreaks and suggest a need for improved communication and response from state and local governments to business concerns when future outbreaks occur.
El Niño-induced droughts in the Colombian Andes: towards a critique of contingency thinking
Authors: Staupe-Delgado Reidar , Kruke Bjørn Ivar
Published: June 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how the contingency approach to disaster preparedness inhibits proactive management of slow-onset disasters, such as El Niño, with the purpose of advancing disaster risk theory.

Design/methodology/approach

This study draws on fieldwork data from Nariño, Colombia, combined with secondary data and a review of the literature on El Niño and disaster preparedness.

Findings

Disaster managers in Nariño do have contingency plans for El Niño events at their disposal. Yet, these plans do not come into play before impacts reach a certain severity. This “contingency approach” to disaster preparedness appears to stem from the assumption that disaster must come before response, effectively inhibiting proactive responses to El Niño impacts.

Research limitations/implications

Attributing observed cases of droughts and oral accounts of impacts to the El Niño phenomenon is methodologically challenging. To overcome this, the aim of this study is not the documentation of subjective attributions. Instead, the focus is on bringing to the fore key dilemmas that preparedness professionals may face when they prepare for disasters with a slow onset.

Practical implications

Developing prevention and preparedness conceptualisations that focus on preemptive measures should ensure a more proactive response to slow-onset disasters.

Originality/value

Whether slow-onset disasters lend themselves to the same types of risk reduction strategies applied to rapid-onset disasters is a theoretical and practical issue that has not been explored sufficiently in the disaster risk literature.
Investigating the individual trust and school performance in semi-virtual collaboration groups
Authors: Cheng Xusen , Fu Shixuan , Han Yajing , Zarifis Alex
Published: June 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between individual trust of students in computer supported semi-virtual collaboration groups and student’s performance in school.

Design/methodology/approach

Longitudinal questionnaires and interviews are conducted during the case study. By analyzing the data from the questionnaires and the grade earned by the students, the sample students are ranked with respect to the trust level and individual performance. Furthermore, the Wilcoxon signed-rank test is used to compare individual trust level and performance in the computer supported semi-virtual collaborative environment.

Findings

The distribution of an individual’s trust level is roughly consistent with the distribution of the individual’s performance in the collaboration. Besides, the relationship between a student’s trust level and the student’s performance is positively correlated.

Research limitations/implications

This study integrates the issues of trust, school performance, and collaboration in an educational context. Furthermore, the conclusions drawn from this paper extend the literature of multiple disciplines including education, management, and psychology.

Practical implications

The conclusions could apply in the fields of education and management since the analysis revealed the relationship between an individual’s trust level and their performance.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the field of trust and collaboration research with a link to trust development and performance. The study also provides an insight into how to successfully improve the performance of student semi-virtual collaboration groups.
Don’t throw rocks from the side-lines
Authors: Daniel Elizabeth , Hartnett Elizabeth , Meadows Maureen
Published: June 2017

Purpose

Social media such as blogs are being widely used in organizations in order to undertake internal communication and share knowledge, rendering them important boundary objects. A root metaphor of the boundary object domain is the notion of relatively static and inert objects spanning similarly static boundaries. A strong sociomaterial perspective allows the immisciblity of object and boundary to be challenged, since a key tenet of this perspective is the ongoing and mutually constituted performance of the material and social. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The aim of the research is to draw upon sociomateriality to explore the operation of social media platforms as intra-organizational boundary objects. Given the novel perspective of this study and its social constructivist ontology, the authors adopt an exploratory, interpretivist research design. This is operationalized as a case study of the use of an organizational blog by a major UK Government department over an extended period. A novel aspect of the study is the use of data released under a Freedom of Information request.

Findings

The authors present three exemplar instances of how the blog and organizational boundaries were performed in the situated practice of the case study organization. The authors draw on the literature on boundary objects, blogs and sociomateriality in order to provide a theoretical explication of the mutually constituted performance of the blog and organizational boundaries. The authors also invoke the notion of “extended chains of intra-action” to theorize changes in the wider organization.

Originality/value

Adoption of a sociomaterial lens provides a highly novel perspective of boundary objects and organizational boundaries. The study highlights the indeterminate and dynamic nature of boundary objects and boundaries, with both being in an intra-active state of becoming challenging conventional conceptions. The study demonstrates that specific material-discursive practices arising from the situated practice of the blog at the respective boundaries were performative, reconfiguring the blog and boundaries and being generative of further changes in the organization.
The role of context-specific factors in IFDI’s influence on OFDI of developing country
Authors: Zhang Mengting , Zhong Changbiao , Yu Feng
Published: June 2017

Purpose

Although prior research has highlighted the importance of foreign direct investment (FDI) on a country’s internationalization, it has largely focused on developed countries. As a result, the FDI performance of a developing country, which differs fundamentally from that of developed countries in their environment, remains unclear. Under the newly development environment, the traditional FDI theories have been challenged by the increasing investments from emerging and transition economies. The theory system needs a fresh situation’s supplement urgently.

Design/methodology/approach

On the basis of a literature review, this paper constructed an empirical model to further study the moderating effects of context-specific factors on the influence of inbound foreign direct investment (IFDI) on outbound foreign direct investment (OFDI). China was chosen as the representation of a developing country, and its data of mutual investments with 125 countries from 2003 to 2014 were used to carry out hypothesis testing.

Findings

The analysis and results of this paper suggested: first, for China, the overall influence of IFDI on OFDI is positive. That is to say, IFDI’s positive spillover effect is greater than the negative competition effect. Second, innovational distance’s effect on FDI is complicated. It can either be positive or negative, which calls for further investigation. Third, economic distance negatively affects OFDI and negatively moderates IFDI’s effect on OFDI, especially the export. To some extent, the moderating effect that resulted from the competition effect will reduce overseas investment by extruding some of the local enterprises. Fourth, cultural distance’s effect is closely related to the spillover effect that will positively moderate IFDI’s influence on OFDI.

Originality/value

This paper enriched the international investment theoretical system by adding a mechanism of multiway international investment of a developing country. The research also has a guiding significance for developing countries’ governments in coordinating mutual international investments. Also, these results have important implications for how policymakers promote OFDI and put forward new theoretical avenues for conceptualizing the internationalization process.
Dynamics of exchange rate determination and currency order flow in the Thailand foreign exchange market
Authors: Anifowose Abolaji Daniel , Ismail Izlin , Abd Sukor Mohd Edil
Published: June 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the essential role that currency order flow plays in the foreign exchange markets of emerging economies in the determination of their currencies in the short and the long-run against major currencies of the world, which cannot be over emphasized, most especially against the US dollar. Insomuch that, if some of these emerging economies can be successfully transmitted into full development, it would be a good model for other emerging economies and the world at large.

Design/methodology/approach

A hybrid model (portfolio shift model) proposed by Evans and Lyons (2002a, 2002b) is extended to analyze a data set of every quarter of an hour currency order flow and currency exchange rate fluctuations of Thai Baht (THB) against the US$ for the period of six years (January 2010 to December 2015). To reflect the pressure of currency excess demand, the authors construct a measure of currency order flow in the Thailand currency exchange market. Vector autoregression model is applied to estimate the effectual role of currency order flow in the determination of exchange rate for the THB against the US$.

Findings

Currency order flow indeed accounted for a sizeable and significant portion of the fluctuations in the THB and the US$ exchange rate.

Originality/value

Insomuch that, the results show that currency order flow has significant explanatory power in the emerging markets economy to capture the THB exchange rate variability, and it then brings to the attention of the Thailand Monetary Authority the importance that should be attached to the market microstructure.
Comparison of fall‐related traumatic brain injury in residential aged care and community‐dwelling older people: A population‐based study
Authors: Harvey Lara A , Mitchell Rebecca , Brodaty Henry , Draper Brian , Close Jacqueline CT
Published: June 2017

Objective

To compare trends, causes, and outcomes of fall‐related traumatic brain injury (TBI) between community‐dwelling (CD) individuals and residential aged care facility (RACF) residents.

Methods

Hospitalisation and RACF administrative data for 6635 individuals aged ≥65 years admitted to all NSW hospitals for fall‐related TBI from 2008–2009 to 2012–2013 were linked.

Results

Of the 6944 hospitalisations, 20.8% were for RACF residents. Age‐standardised hospitalisation rates were almost fourfold higher for RACF residents than CD individuals (standardised rate ratio 3.7; 95% CI 3.4–4.1); but increased at a similar annual rate of 9.2% (95% CI 0.3–19.0) and 7.2% (95% CI 5.6–8.9), respectively. Compared to CD individuals: a higher proportion of falls in RACF residents were furniture‐related (21.4% vs 9.9%); resulted in haemorrhage (82.5% vs 73.7%); and death (23.1% vs 14.9%). Overall, 7.7% of hospitalisations for CD individuals resulted in new permanent RACF placement.

Conclusion

Residential aged care facility residents have higher hospitalisation rates and poorer health outcomes than their CD counterparts.
Front‐Door Difference‐in‐Differences Estimators
Authors: Glynn Adam N. , Kashin Konstantin
Published: June 2017

We develop front‐door difference‐in‐differences estimators as an extension of front‐door estimators. Under one‐sided noncompliance, an exclusion restriction, and assumptions analogous to parallel trends assumptions, this extension allows identification when the front‐door criterion does not hold. Even if the assumptions are relaxed, we show that the front‐door and front‐door difference‐in‐differences estimators may be combined to form bounds. Finally, we show that under one‐sided noncompliance, these techniques do not require the use of control units. We illustrate these points with an application to a job training study and with an application to Florida's early in‐person voting program. For the job training study, we show that these techniques can recover an experimental benchmark. For the Florida program, we find some evidence that early in‐person voting had small positive effects on turnout in 2008. This provides a counterpoint to recent claims that early voting had a negative effect on turnout in 2008.
Calcitriol exerts an anti‐tumor effect in osteosarcoma by inducing the endoplasmic reticulum stress response
Authors: Shimizu Takatsune , Kamel Walied A. , Yamaguchi‐Iwai Sayaka , Fukuchi Yumi , Muto Akihiro , Saya Hideyuki
Published: June 2017

Osteosarcoma is the most common type of primary bone tumor, and novel therapeutic approaches for this disease are urgently required. To identify effective agents, we screened a panel of Food and Drug Administration (FDA)‐approved drugs in AXT cells, our newly established mouse osteosarcoma line, and identified calcitriol as a candidate compound with therapeutic efficacy for this disease. Calcitriol inhibited cell proliferation in AXT cells by blocking cell cycle progression. From a mechanistic standpoint, calcitriol induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, which was potentially responsible for downregulation of cyclin D1, activation of p38 MAPK, and intracellular production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Knockdown of Atf4 or Ddit3 restored cell viability after calcitriol treatment, indicating that the ER stress response was indeed responsible for the anti‐proliferative effect in AXT cells. Notably, the ER stress response was induced to a lesser extent in human osteosarcoma than in AXT cells, consistent with the weaker suppressive effect on cell growth in the human cells. Thus, the magnitude of ER stress induced by calcitriol might be an index of its anti‐osteosarcoma effect. Although mice treated with calcitriol exhibited weight loss and elevated serum calcium levels, a single dose was sufficient to decrease osteosarcoma tumor size in vivo. Our findings suggest that calcitriol holds therapeutic potential for treatment of osteosarcoma, assuming that techniques to diminish its toxicity could be established. In addition, our results show that calcitriol could still be safely administered to osteosarcoma patients for its original purposes, including treatment of osteoporosis.
Participatory educational design: How to improve mutual learning and the quality and usability of the design?
Authors: Janssen Fred J. J. M. , Könings Karen D. , van Merriënboer Jeroen J. G.
Published: June 2017

Many educational change proposals, designed to improve student learning, fail to be implemented in classrooms, which is a threat to the impact of educational policy on educational practice. This has led to a call for participatory educational design in which different stakeholders are involved in the generation and consideration of alternative learning environments, including physical spaces that better support learning. The development of tools to effectively engage non‐professional designers in design activities is still in its early stages. In this article, we present two tools that can improve mutual learning of those involved in the design process and the quality and usability of both learning environments and supportive physical spaces: the laddering tool and the building block tool. Both are based on a new conception of teaching as bounded rational design in which a teaching practice is seen as a design to attain multiple goals simultaneously in a complex classroom context with limited available resources. By presenting a case from biology teaching, we illustrate how educational design processes between teachers unfold when they use these two tools. We argue and demonstrate that these tools are important for facilitating effective use of diverse contributions from different stakeholders, and also when involving students and architects in a participatory design process.
KAFKA'S ‘DIE VERWANDLUNG’ AND THE CONDITION OF SUBJECTIVITY
Authors: Minden Michael
Published: June 2017

Kafka's ‘Die Verwandlung’ is interpreted here as a (strictly impossible) unmediated representation of subjectivity. Franz Grillparzer's Novelle ‘Der arme Spielmannʼ provides the background to the argument that in Kafka's tale a spectator becomes the central element of a drama. The development of this drama is then compared with an Oedipus Complex experienced in reverse. By these means Kafka negates an historical condition of subjectivity, while pointing forward towards a future one.

Kafkas ʻDie Verwandlungʼ wird hier als eine (strenggenommen unmögliche) unmittelbare Darstellung der Subjektivität interpretiert. Franz Grillparzers Novelle ʻDer arme Spielmannʼ dient als Folie für das Argument, dass in Kafkas Geschichte ein Zuschauer zum Mittelpunkt eines Dramas wird. Es wird weiter argumentiert, dass die Handlung dieses Dramas einem Ödipuskomplex gleicht, dessen Entwicklung in umgekehrter Richtung durchlebt wird. Mit diesen Mitteln negiert Kafkas Erzählung eine historische Modalität oder Bedingung der Subjektivität, um auf eine zukünftige hinzudeuten.
LAW AND FICTION IN THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC: IN MEMORIAM JOHN WHITE*
Authors: Thornhill Chris
Published: June 2017

abstract

This article argues that much intellectual life of the Weimar Republic is marked by a reaction against the experience of functional differentiation of society, and a countervailing attempt to preserve the purity of functional spheres of society. Exemplified in the work of Karl Kraus and Carl Schmitt, this is especially evident in analyses of language and law, where this endeavour is construed as a rejection of the fictionalisation of linguistic communication and legal analysis. On this basis, this article addresses the legal theory of the Weimar era as paradigmatic for the inability of legal inquiry to construct a free‐standing ground for law's authority.

Dieser Artikel vertritt die These, dass das geistige Leben in der Weimarer Republik durch die Ablehnung der Erfahrung der funktionalen Differenzierung der Gesellschaft geprägt war. Dieses Phänomen wird am Beispiel der sprachtheoretischen Schriften von Karl Kraus und der rechtstheoretischen Schriften von Carl Schmitt untersucht, wo die Bemühung, die Reinheit der verschiedenen Funktionsbereiche der Gesellschaft aufrechtzuerhalten, die Gestalt einer Kritik an der Fiktionalisierung der sprachlichen Kommunikation und der Rechtswissenschaft annimmt. In diesem Rahmen wird die Rechtstheorie der Weimarer Zeit als exemplarisch für die Unfähigkeit der Rechtswissenschaft gedeutet, einen autonomen Grund für die Autorität des Rechts herzustellen.
THE MAKING OF A MODERNIST NOVEL: AN EDITOR'S VIEW OF MUTMASSUNGEN ÜBER JAKOB
Authors: Gillett Robert
Published: June 2017

This article uses experiences and insights gleaned from editing the first volume of the ‘historisch‐kritische Gesamtausgabe’ of the works of Uwe Johnson to demonstrate the ways in which Johnson's first published novel, Mutmassungen über Jakob, written while he was still in the GDR, applies techniques associated with the modernist novel to render the complexities of the Cold War and the fates of those caught up in it. It touches on some of the ways in which ideology has interfered with an understanding of the novel, and it uses the genesis of the text as revealed in the manuscript tradition to show just how carefully Johnson weighed up issues of intelligibility, comprehensibility, and communication. In doing so it draws heavily on John White's work, most notably on his first book on Mythology in the Modern Novel.

In diesem Artikel werden Erfahrungen und Einsichten, die der Arbeit an der historisch‐kritischen Gesamtausgabe der Werke Uwe Johnsons zu verdanken sind, dazu benutzt, um zu zeigen, wie Johnson in seinem noch in der DDR geschriebenen ersten gedruckten Roman die Techniken des modernistischen Romans einsetzt, um die Komplexität des Kalten Krieges und der damit verbundenen Schicksale adäquat wiederzugeben. Es wird kurz erwähnt, wie die Ideologie das Verständnis des Romans bis heute erschwert. Darüber hinaus wird an Hand der Genese des Romans, wie sie in den noch vorhandenen Manuskripten nachverfolgen lässt, gezeigt, welche Sorgfalt Johnson hier auf Fragen der Verständlichkeit, der Missverständlichkeit und der Kommunikation angewendet hat. Dabei werden Werke von John White häufig zu Rate gezogen, insbesondere sein Erstling Mythology in the Modern Novel.
Effects of weight‐based ultrafiltration rate limits on intradialytic hypotension in hemodialysis
Authors: Pirkle James L. , Comeau Mary E. , Langefeld Carl D. , Russell Gregory B. , Balderston Somer S. , Freedman Barry I. , Burkart John M.
Published: June 2017

Introduction: High ultrafiltration (UF) rates can result in intradialytic hypotension and are associated with increased mortality. The effects of a weight‐based UF rate limit on intradialytic hypotension and the potential for unwanted fluid weight gain and hospitalizations for volume overload are unknown.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study examined 123 in‐center hemodialysis patients at one facility who transitioned to 13 mL/kg/h maximum UF rates. Patients were studied for an 8 week UF rate limit exposure period and compared to the 8‐week period immediately prior, during which the cohort served as its own historical control. The primary outcomes were frequency of intradialytic hypotension events and percentage of treatments with a hypotension event.

Findings: The delivered UF rate was lower during the exposure compared to the baseline period (mean UF rate 7.90 ± 4.45 mL/kg/h vs. 8.92 ± 5.64 mL/kg/h; P = 0.0005). The risk of intradialytic hypotension was decreased during the exposure compared to baseline period (event rate per treatment 0.0569 vs. 0.0719, OR 0.78 [95% CI 0.62–1.00]; P = 0.0474), as was the risk of having a treatment with a hypotension event (percentage of treatments with event 5.2% vs. 6.8%, OR 0.75 [95% CI 0.58–0.96]; P = 0.0217). Subgroup analyses demonstrated that these findings were attributable to patients with high baseline UF rates. Statistically significant differences in all‐cause or volume overload‐related hospitalization were not observed during the exposure period.

Discussion: A weight‐based UF rate limit of 13 mL/kg/h was associated with a decrease in the rate of intradialytic hypotension events among in‐center hemodialysis patients.
Sintering behavior of garnet‐type Li6.4La3Zr1.4Ta0.6O12 in Li2CO3 atmosphere and its electrochemical property
Authors: Huang Zeya , Liu Kai , Chen Linhui , Lu Yirui , Li Yutao , Wang Chang‐An
Published: June 2017

The garnet‐type solid Li‐ion conductor, Li6.4La3Zr1.4Ta0.6O12, is viewed as a promising solid‐state electrolyte for the next‐generation high‐performance Li‐ion battery because of its high ionic conductivity and stability. The previous researches, in order to avoid Li volatilization loss during solid‐state reaction of sintering, mother powder with the same composition as green bodies was usually used to cover the samples, it would waste the expensive raw materials and increase the fabrication cost. In this study, a new method was proposed to prepare the Li6.4La3Zr1.4Ta0.6O12 ceramic solid‐state electrolyte where the Li loss is compensated by the outside Li2CO3. Samples prepared by this method have pure garnet phase and compact micromorphology with few pores. These samples have a high Li‐ion conductivity of 2.9×10−4 S/cm and a low activation energy of 0.37 eV at room temperature. The electronic conductivity is 1.08×10−8 S/cm, which can be neglected for solid‐state electrolyte.
Preparation of mullite whiskers from kaolin via the addition of tribasic calcium phosphate
Authors: Zhang Chenyang , Xu Wei , Zhang Zhijie , Zhang Jie , Zhong Mingfeng , Wang Da , Wang Liming
Published: June 2017

Mullite whiskers are potential candidates for improving the mechanical and thermal properties of ceramic, glass, and composite material. In this work, well‐developed whisker‐shaped mullite has been produced by adding tribasic calcium phosphate (Ca3(PO4)2) into kaolin before calcining in air. In the raw kaolin, rod‐like mullite crystal of ~0.5‐1.0 μm length and ~0.05‐0.2 μm diameter formed at 1350°C, and mullite whiskers were not be observed; however, by doping 6 wt% Ca3(PO4)2 into kaolin, mullite whiskers of ~5.5 μm length and ~0.05‐0.10 μm diameter grew at 1250°C. The formation of high aspect ratio of mullite whiskers can probably be explained by the synergistic effect of P2O5 and CaO, resulting in the formation of liquid phase with a relatively higher content of Si and a lower viscosity at low temperature of 1250°C, which facilitates the growth of mullite displaying acicular morphology. The results are of interest in producing high aspect ratio of mullite whiskers from kaolin at reduced calcination temperatures.
Mobile phone text messaging to improve knowledge and practice of diabetic foot care in a developing country: Feasibility and outcomes
Authors: Hassan Zeinab M.
Published: June 2017

Purpose

To test the feasibility and effectiveness of using mobile phone text messaging to reinforce learning and the practice of diabetic foot care in a developing country.

Methods

Ongoing learning reinforcement (2‐3 times weekly) by text messaging followed an informal class on diabetic foot care in a community clinic setting. Subjects with cell phone access and no history of diabetic foot wounds or current wounds were recruited for participation (N = 225). Foot examinations and pretesting by survey occurred just before patients departed the clinic; the posttest survey and a final foot examination occurred 12 weeks later. The survey included basic demographic items along with items to measure knowledge and current foot care practices. One sample t tests (raw scores) and Wilcoxon signed‐rank tests compared knowledge and practice before and after intervention.

Results

Initially, a majority of the sample (76%) reported poor levels of foot care. After 12 weeks <1% reported poor foot care practices. Statistical testing showed significant gains in knowledge (by score and level) and nearly unanimous compliance with daily foot examination.

Conclusion

Mobile phone text messaging is an economical, feasible, and effective method for educators to improve diabetic self‐care, even in a developing country.
OPTIMAL HARVESTING MODELS IN FOREST MANAGEMENT – A SURVEY
Authors: Reed William J.
Published: June 2017

A survey of optimal timber harvesting models is presented. Even‐aged and uneven‐aged, single‐stand models, and forest‐level scheduling models are considered.
STANDARDIZATION OF CATCH‐PER‐UNIT‐EFFORT FOR SHORT‐TERM TRENDS IN CATCHABILITY
Authors: Quinn Terrance J.
Published: June 2017

Examination of daily catch–per–unit–effort (CPUE) information on Pacific halibut revealed sharp declines that could not be explained by natural and fishing mortality. Catchability may have decreased during a fishing period because of local depletions of fish, changes in fish behavior, and other causes. Mathematical models of CPUE with a short–term catchability function of time or effort were based on a generalization of the DeLury method. A method of standardization was developed to account for the length of a fishing period and to correct for catchability. The effort model was best for Pacific halibut data and the application showed that standardization of CPUE is necessary to have a valid index of abundance when short–term changes in catchability occur.
OPTIMUM GROWTH AND REPRODUCTION SCHEDULES FOR FOREST TREES
Authors: Namkoong G. , Rodriguez J.
Published: June 2017

A control theory optimization of iteroparous life histories indicates that if growth and reproduction are nonlinear functions of energy allocations, graded allocations of energy to potential reproduction can be optimal.
STABLE PERIODIC BEHAVIOR IN A PIONEER‐CLIMAX MODEL
Authors: Selgrade James F. , Namkoong Gene
Published: June 2017

Two dimensional pioneer‐climax models of differential and difference equations are presented and analyzed. An effort is made to separate a species response to density from the competitive effects. Stable periodic behavior is established for both models via Hopf bifurcation. For the differential equation model, a general formula is presented for determining the stability of the bifurcating period orbit.
ENERGY AUDIT PROGRAMS VERSUS MARKET INCENTIVES AS INDUCEMENTS TO UNDERTAKE ENERGY CONSERVATION RETROFITS
Authors: Cameron Trudy Ann , Wright Matthew B.
Published: June 2017

Sometimes policymakers seek to influence economic activity merely by providinginformation, rather than by manipulating relative prices through taxation or subsidization. Household energy audits are an example. Furthermore, these programs are sometimes intended to increase the probability of a particulardiscreteoutcome, such as whether or not the household is motivated to install energy‐conservation retrofits. We use autility‐theoreticmodel for households' discrete decisions to install attic insulation with and without participation in an energy audit program. We find that (i) self‐selection bias in naive models seems to give the audit program roughly twice the credit it deserves, and (ii) policy measures designed to influence retrofit costs or energy prices may have more discernibledirecteffects on attic insulation retrofit activity than do audit programs.
OPTIMAL STRATEGY FOR ERADICATION OF MULTIPLE POPULATIONS USING THE STERILE INSECT TECHNIQUE
Authors: Erickson Cindy L. , Plant Richard E.
Published: June 2017

Sterile insect technique (SIT) provides an attractive alternative to chemical pesticides for insect pest eradication. Because mass rearing facilities are expensive both to construct and to maintain, project managers have a limited number of sterile insects to use in any single eradication campaign. The problem of availability of sufficient numbers of sterile insects can be magnified when two or more independent pest infestations occur at the same time. In this paper we present the results of a modeling study in which dynamic programming is used to compute the optimal allocation strategy for release of sterile insects to control two independent infestations of Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wied.) (medfly). We assume that a fixed number of sterile flies are available per week. Both deterministic and stochastic analyses are presented.
STOPPING RULES AND THE CONTROL OF STOCK POLLUTANTS
Authors: Conrad Jon M.
Published: June 2017

A stock pollutant is defined as a residual waste that might accumulate over time. This paper examines some of the important distinctions between degradable and nondegradable stock pollutants and between nondegradable stock pollutants with known versus uncertain environmental cost. The latter case is examined using the more recent literature on stochastic control with Brownian motion. The presence of irreversibility and uncertainty is known to lead to more conservative investment rules and places a value on the preservation of options. In the case of a nondegradable stock pollutant with Brownian environmental cost, options are preserved by stopping accumulation at a lower level than in the corresponding certainty‐equivalent problem. The model presented in this paper permits the derivation of closed‐form stopping rules. For a simple numerical problem, the optimal nondegradable stock with Brownian environmental cost was 20 to 45 percent lower than the optimal level with known environmental cost. The empirical study of an actual nondegradable stock pollutant will require time series data on private and social cost in order to estimate drift and variance parameters which will influence the actual extent to which the optimal stock is less than the certainty‐equivalent stock.
THE ROLE OF STOCHASTIC MONOTONICITY IN THE DECISION TO CONSERVE OR HARVEST OLD‐GROWTH FOREST
Authors: Reed William J. , Ye Jane J.
Published: June 2017

The problem of when, if ever, a stand of old‐growth forest should be harvested is formulated as an optimal stopping problem, and a decision rule to maximize the expected present value of amenity services plus timber benefits is found analytically. This solution can be thought of as providing the “correct” way in which cost‐benefit analysis should be carried out. Future values of amenity services provided by the standing forest and or timber are considered to be uncertain and are modeled by Geometric Poisson Jump (GPJ) processes. This specification avoids the ambiguity which arises with Geometric Brownian Motion (GBM) models, as to which form of stochastic integral (Itô or Stratonovich) should be employed, but more importantly allows for monotonic (yet stochastic) processes. It is shown that monotonicity (or lack of it) in the value of amenity services relative to timber values plays an important part in the solution. If amenity values never go down (or never go up) relative to timber values, then the certain‐equivalence cost‐benefit procedure provides the optimal solution, and there is no option value. It is only to the extent that the relative valuations can change direction that the certainty‐equivalence procedure becomes sub‐optimal and option value arises.
BOOK REVIEW
Authors: Getz Wayne M.
Published: June 2017

Scaling Fisheries: The Science of Measuring the Effects of Fishing, 1855–1955, (Cambridge studies in applied ecology and resource management), Tim D. Smith, Cambridge University Press, 1994, 392 pp.
WHEN TO CUT A STAND OF TREES?
Authors: Yin Runsheng , Newman David
Published: June 2017

This paper revisits the debate over the economic optimality of different timber harvest rules. The traditional Faustmann and Maximum Sustained Yield rotation determinations are confined to a deterministic world. Once stochasticity is introduced into the model formulation and the additional rental and management costs due to postponement of harvest are taken into account, we find that the optimal stopping time becomes random and varies in response to changes in the underlying price and growth processes. As a result, this stochastic optimal stopping time is bounded by the Faustmann cutting age from below if variabilities of the stochastic processes diminish to zero, but not necessarily by the MSY rotation from above.
CHARACTERIZATION AND DFN MODELLING OF THE FRACTURE NETWORK IN A MESOZOIC KARST RESERVOIR: GOMBA OILFIELD, PALEOGENE BASIN, CENTRAL HUNGARY
Authors: Bauer M. , Tóth T. M.
Published: June 2017

Reservoir rocks at Gomba oilfield, located in the Hungarian Paleogene Basin, include fractured and karstified Triassic carbonates with significant fluid storage potential. However little information is available about the fracture network in these carbonates which has led to production problems at Gomba. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between the spatial distribution of high porosity zones in the carbonates and the microfracture system. For this evaluation, individual fractures were studied and used in a discrete fracture network (DFN) modelling exercise at two wells, Gomba‐1 and Gomba‐3. The investigation took place at two different scales. Fracture length and aperture distributions were derived at the micro‐scale (mm to cm), whereas fracture density and fracture orientation data were investigated at the reservoir scale. The results of both investigations were taken into consideration in the modelling. The results of the fracture network models were compared to reservoir lithologies which ranged from fractured carbonates to collapse breccias.

Based on the results, it appears that the porosity associated with a significant proportion of the fractures was increased as a result of dissolution. Fracture distribution was not uniform along the studied well paths, and fracture orientation was chaotic at particular depth intervals. On the basis of the DFN models, three different fractured zones are predicted to occur in the reservoir, but only two of the zones have significant fracture porosity.

Comparing these results with petrographic observations, an epigene karst phase is proposed which is older than (or the same age as) the time of hydrocarbon migration; karst‐related voids were therefore important pathways for fluid migration. The void system and karst caverns partly collapsed during subsequent burial, resulting in karst‐related traps. By analogy with modern cave systems, the karst cavern zones at Gomba probably extend horizontally rather than vertically, and are oriented NE‐SW parallel to major structural lineaments.
Using species distribution modelling to predict future distributions of phytoplankton: Case study using species important for the biological pump
Authors: Jensen Lasse Ørsted , Mousing Erik Askov , Richardson Katherine
Published: June 2017

Some phytoplankton species have been predicted to contribute more to the biological pump than others. In this study, we examine the potential of species distribution modelling (SDM) for describing current and predicting future global distributions of two phytoplankton species: the diatom Chaetoceros diadema and the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi. Species distribution models (SDMs) were constructed using species data from the Ocean Biogeographic Information System and environmental layers from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5. The resulting distributions were evaluated by comparing predicted distributions with those found via a literature survey. The developed SDMs were then applied to predict future changes in the distributions of these species using environmental conditions based on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's Representative Concentration Pathways scenario 8.5 climate scenario, predicted for the year 2100. The model predicts that the total ocean area covered by C. diadema and E. huxleyi will decline under the examined climate scenario by 8% and 16%, respectively. Furthermore, the future ranges above depths >1,000 m are predicted to decline by 28% for C. diadema. As the biological pump is most active in deep ocean waters, this projected decrease in range in the deeper regions of the ocean may have implications for carbon sequestration, particularly for the diatom species. We conclude that SDM appears to be a robust tool for examining phytoplankton distributions. If the predicted changes in ranges of these two species under future ocean conditions are realised, this may result in a reduced contribution of these two phytoplankton species to carbon sequestration via the biological pump.
The Long‐Term Effects of Legalizing Divorce on Children
Authors: González Libertad , Viitanen Tarja
Published: June 2017

We estimate the effect of divorce legalization on the long‐term well‐being of children, by exploiting the different timing of divorce legalization across Europe. We compare the adult outcomes of cohorts raised when divorce was banned with those of cohorts raised after divorce was legalized in the same country. We also have ‘control’ countries where all cohorts were exposed (or not exposed) to legal divorce as children. We find that women who grew up under legal divorce have lower earnings and income and worse health as adults compared with women who grew up under illegal divorce. These negative effects are not found for men.
Estrogen receptor alpha mediates mandibular condylar cartilage growth in male mice
Authors: Robinson J. L. , Gupta V. , Soria P. , Clanaman E. , Gurbarg S. , Xu M. , Chen J. , Wadhwa S.
Published: June 2017

Structured Abstract

Objectives

In the appendicular skeleton, estrogen via ERα signalling has been shown to mediate endochondral growth plate fusion in both males and females. However, the role of ERα in mediating growth of the mandibular condylar cartilage is unknown. Thus, this study focuses on the characterization of the mandibular condylar cartilage phenotype in young and adult male ERαKO mice.

Setting

Columbia University Medical Center.

Material and Methods

WT and ERαKO C57BL/6 male mice were sacrificed at 49 days or 9 months for phenotypic analysis. Changes to MCC thickness, cell number and cell density were measured using histomorphometric methods. Cartilage‐specific gene expression and OARSI scores were investigated for 49‐day and 9‐month‐old male ERαKO and WT mice.

Results

In young mice, a significant increase in the number of mandibular condylar cartilage cells and a significant decrease in the expression of Col10, Runx2 and DMP1 were observed in the male ERαKO mice compared to WT. In 9‐month‐old mice, we found a similar increase in the number of cells but no change in osteoarthritic histological scoring in ERαKO mice compared to WT mice.

Conclusion

In summary, estrogen plays a role in mediating mandibular condylar maturation in young male mice. However, according to this study, it does not play a role in mediating long‐term growth or age‐related mandibular condylar cartilage degeneration in males.