bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
School Success as a Process of Structuration
Authors: Tubin Dorit
Published: January 2015

Purpose: The purpose of the present study is to explore the process, routines, and structuration at successful schools leading their students to high achievements. Method: The approach of building a theory from case study research together with process perspective and an organizational routines model were applied to analyzing seven successful Israeli high schools that bring their students to high academic outcomes. Findings: Five processes were found to operate cyclically during the school year: building a vision-oriented senior leadership team, enhancing students’ choice, developing a student-oriented class schedule, organizing an exam system, and mapping each student. Each process comprises several routines that present structuration by the alignment of their ostensive, performative, and artifact aspects. Research Limitations/Implications: The fact that the selected schools demonstrated extreme cases of high achievement limit the generalizability of the findings, but nonetheless it offers a significant contribution to the development of a substantive theory of school success as structuration. Practical Implications: The theoretical model can serve as diagnostic tool for a school wishing to improve academically, as an intervention tool indicating the area needing reinforcement, as an evaluation tool for assessing new resources and their adaptation to the school’s goals, and to infuse a principal training program. Originality/Value: This study bears a substantive theory regarding high achievement as a structuration process supported by processes and routines, and fosters new insights and propositions for further research.
Long-Lost Brothers
Authors: Malone Eddie
Published: January 2015

This article builds on scholarship that already links Native Son’s protagonist Bigger Thomas to real-life gangsta rappers such as Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. James Baxter Peterson calls Biggie Smalls a “Bigger figure.” In other words, the persona/character created by the popular, deceased rapper was a kind of literary descendant of Bigger Thomas in the sense that he’s an echo of the “bad nigger” character type presented so memorably in Native Son. In his own work, Nick De Genova invokes both gangsta rap and Wright to complicate the definition of nihilism, which he describes as a state of mind resulting from two competing forces: the drive to self-preservation and the drive to self-destruction. His definition of nihilism suggests an intellectual and emotional life for the gangsta and gangsta rapper, arguably a dangerous claim in a contemporary American mainstream culture that has largely sought to deny his humanity. In this article, a close reading of Native Son and Biggie Small’s seminal rap album Ready to Die shows the striking similarities between Bigger Thomas and Biggie Smalls. In their respective texts, both characters experience existential struggles as they negotiate a society that induces a fractured psychology, causing them to fluctuate between the death impulse and the self-preservation impulse. Seen from this perspective, Bigger Thomas and Biggie Smalls exemplify a kind of nihilism that embodies existential struggle instead of mere hopelessness and meaninglessness. This perspective also aims to revitalize discussion of the artistic and intellectual merit of gangsta rap as well as inspire a reconsideration of the humanity of those “gangstas” whom many in society view in only two dimensions.
Pericardial, pleural and peritoneal involvement in a patient with primary gastric mantle cell lymphoma
Authors: Keklik Muzaffer , Yildirim Afra , Keklik Ertugrul , Ertan Sirac , Deniz Kemal , Ozturk Fahir , Ileri Ibrahim , Cerci Ilkcan , Camlica Demet , Cetin Mustafa , Eser Bulent
Published: January 2015

Primary gastric mantle cell lymphoma is a rare form of gastointestinal tumour. Although peritoneal carcinomatosis accompanied by malignant ascites is relatively common, mantle cell lymphoma presenting with ascites is rare. Also, effusions involving pericardial and pleural cavities are uncommon during the course of lymphomas. We report the first case in which pericardial, pleural and peritoneal effusion of a primary gastric mantle cell lymphoma.
Barriers experienced by service providers and caregivers in clubfoot management in Kenya
Authors: Kingau Naomi Wanjiru , Rhoda Anthea , Mlenzana Nondwe
Published: February 2015

Aim

Disability in childhood remains a challenge globally. Linked to this disability is an apparent increase in the prevalence of infants born with congenital clubfoot. Clubfoot can, however, be effectively managed but this management faces various challenges. This study aims at exploring the barriers experienced in Kenya.

Methods

In-depth interviews were conducted with 20 participants. Informed consent was sought. Field notes were taken and the interviews tape-recorded. The interviews took 45 minutes to 1 hour. They were transcribed verbatim and analysed by thematic content.

Results

Missed diagnosis, poor referral system, shortage of staff, long travelling distance, poverty, stigmatisation and lack of support among other were highlighted as the major challenges in clubfoot management.

Conclusion

The challenges facing children with disability start at birth but are little different from those faced throughout their life. Action to remove these challenges is warranted
Achievement Scripts
Authors: Gordon Maya K.
Published: January 2015

There is an achievement gap in the United States, with African American students underperforming relative to their White and Asian American peers. At the same time, media portrayals of African Americans are often based on stereotypes that suggest intellectual inferiority. Despite the prevalence of racial stereotypes in the media, few studies have examined connections between media use and academic achievement among African American youth. Using data from a survey of 247 African American adolescents (72% female; mean age = 15 years), this project explored the potential consequences of media stereotypes on the academic performance, self-perceptions, and career interests of African American youth. Overall, the results suggest that media use contributes to lower academic performance, lower self-perceptions, and less interest in college-oriented careers. Parental involvement was a significant moderator of the relationship between television use and students’ career interests, with significant relationships only existing for those students whose parents were less involved in their media use. Findings are discussed in terms of their implications for how parents and media socialize African American youth about their potential for academic success.
Racial Discrimination, John Henryism, and Depression Among African Americans
Authors: Hudson Darrell L. , Neighbors Harold W. , Geronimus Arline T. , Jackson James S.
Published: January 2015

Evidence from previous studies indicates that racial discrimination is significantly associated with depression and that African Americans with higher levels of socioeconomic status (SES) report greater exposure to racial discrimination compared to those with lower SES levels. Coping strategies could alter the relationship between racial discrimination and depression among African Americans. This study first examined whether greater levels of SES were associated with increased reports of racial discrimination and ratings of John Henryism, a measure of high-effort coping, among African Americans. Second, we examined whether high-effort coping moderated the relationship between racial discrimination and depression. Data were drawn from the National Survey of American Life Reinterview ( n = 2,137). Analyses indicated that greater levels of education were positively associated with racial discrimination ( p < .001) and increased levels of racial discrimination were positively related to depression ( p < .001), controlling for all sociodemographic factors. Greater levels of John Henryism were associated with increased odds of depression but there was no evidence to suggest that the relationship between discrimination and depression was altered by the effects of John Henryism.
Ethnic and Racial Self-Identifications of Second-Generation Canadians of African and Caribbean Heritage
Authors: Litchmore Rashelle V. H. , Safdar Saba , O’Doherty Kieran
Published: January 2015

This study investigated how second-generation Canadian youth of African and Caribbean heritage constructed racial, ethnic, and national identities and categories. Twenty-two participants aged 13 to 18 years of East and West African, and Caribbean background, were recruited from communities in the Greater Toronto Area to participate in four discussion groups. Discourse analysis was used to demonstrate the fluidity and negotiability of racial and ethnic identities and categories. Participants constructed the category of “Black” using historical, social, and descriptive references and in support of their identifications or lack thereof with this category. Categories associated with “ethnicity” and nationality were also constructed to support participants’ identifications, with some contradictory representations. Disagreements over category constructions were also present. The study highlights the performative, as opposed to cognitive, features of identities. It also brings attention to how flexible the characterizations of racial and ethnic labels can be and argues for researcher consideration of this flexibility in relation to their participants and to the social contexts of their research. Implications for research in Canadian contexts are also discussed.
The Rise of Italy’s Neo-Ghettos
Authors: Clough Marinaro Isabella
Published: January 2015

Italy’s urban camps for segregating the Roma minority have received much critical attention recently, yet few attempts have been made to explore how they have evolved historically and function as systems of social control from a theoretical point of view. This article seeks to fill that gap, drawing on Wacquant’s framework for identifying constituent elements of ghettos past and present. It explores whether a genealogy can be traced between the early modern Jewish ghetto and today’s camps, focusing on the Italian capital, Rome. It suggests that many of the original ghetto’s functions operate in contemporary camps; however, it also argues that a crucial feature of the ghetto—its ability to strengthen solidarity within the segregated community—is being strategically undermined. The camps can thus be defined as neo-ghettos, rooted in the past but refined in the present and functional to their specific contemporary social and political context.
The Evolution of an Urban Vision
Authors: Tan Zheng , Xue Charlie Q. L.
Published: February 2015

This study explores the spatial, social, and administrative conditions that shape Hong Kong’s grade-separated pedestrian networks. The integrated elevated pedestrian network was initially developed to facilitate internal circulation within the commercial centers when the city was undergoing rapid growth in the 1960s and 1970s. The vision was incrementally incorporated into statutory and administrative instruments as the city embraced a consumer-oriented economy. This study tracks the evolving concept of grade-separated pedestrian networks in Hong Kong, revisiting the critical actions and written notes in Hong Kong’s urban history from 1965 to 1997. The private sector was essential in building the multilevel pedestrian space and in making it a commercially viable urban model. An alternative perspective is proposed from which to consider Hong Kong’s public–private conflicts.
The Streetcar in the Urban Imaginary of Latin America
Authors: Rosenthal Anton
Published: January 2015

The electric streetcar was a significant marker of modernity in Latin America, but its symbolic power rested as much in its ability to establish a presence in urban popular culture as it did in its contribution to technological change. By using the concept of the “urban imaginary” we can reveal the multifaceted and shifting role of the streetcar as a symbol of progress and a site of danger, destruction, and death in the public mind. In newspapers, comics, songs, poems, stories, and movies, the masses imagined the streetcar as central to the daily life of the city and used it to make meaning out of the chaos of the rapidly evolving modern city. Themes explored include the ordering of bodies, labor conflict, violence, the spectacle city, and the afterlife of the streetcar.
The Guttenberg Plagiarism Scandal
Authors: Eckert Stine
Published: January 2015

Not long after a German newspaper revealed that Germany’s popular Defense Secretary Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg had plagiarized his dissertation, he resigned from office, leaving international news media wondering about this political scandal. German news media had covered Guttenberg intensely, and often favorably, before the plagiarism scandal. Germany’s three leading news magazines Spiegel, Focus, and Stern paid more attention to Guttenberg than any other politician, featuring him in 10 cover stories during his time in the national political spotlight from 2009 to 2011. Using the theory that news carries myth, this textual analysis concludes that Stern and Focus cast Guttenberg in the narrative of the hero myth while Spiegel offered a more critical counternarrative. This study contributes to a growing literature of the use of myth through news and provides evidence for the meaning of journalism as ritualistic communication. On a practical level, it warns journalists not to oversimplify complex political issues.
Governing Inflation: Price and Atmospheres of Emergency
Authors: McCormack Derek
Published: January 2015

Relative price stability is central to the security of valued forms of life in contemporary liberal democracies, and disruptions to price stability can be and have been understood and experienced as emergencies. However, while the relation between price and emergency can be understood in juridico–political terms, this article argues for the importance of attending to the affective dimensions of this relation. This argument is developed through a discussion of the affective life of price in relation to the disruptive event of inflation, an event characterized by an atmosphere of emergency that takes place as a disturbance of the rhythms and relations of which everyday life consists. Haunted by the spectre of this emergency, governing price in liberal democracies needs to be understood not only through regulatory measures designed to act directly upon price, but also in terms of efforts to act upon the affective spacetimes from which price-emergencies can emerge.
Admission of the very elderly to the intensive care unit: Family members’ perspectives on clinical decision-making from a multicenter cohort study
Authors: Heyland Daren K , Dodek Peter , Mehta Sangeeta , Cook Deborah , Garland Allan , Stelfox Henry T , Bagshaw Sean M , Kutsogiannis Demetrios J , Burns Karen , Muscedere John , Turgeon Alexis F , Fowler Rob , Jiang Xuran , Day Andrew G
Published: February 2015

Background:

Little is known about the perspectives and experiences of family members of very elderly patients who are admitted to the intensive care unit.

Aim:

To describe family members’ perspectives about care provided to very elderly critically ill patients.

Design:

Multicenter, prospective, cohort study.

Participants and setting:

In total, 535 family members of patients aged 80 years or older admitted to 22 intensive care units for more than 24 h.

Results:

Family members reported that the “patient be comfortable and suffer as little as possible” was their most important value and “the belief that life should be preserved at all costs” was their least important value considered in making treatment decisions. Most family members (57.9%) preferred that life support be used for their family member, whereas 24.1% preferred comfort measures only, and 14.4% were unsure of their treatment preferences. Only 57.3% reported that a doctor had talked to them about treatment options for the patient. Overall, 29.7% of patients received life-sustaining treatments for more than 7 days and 50.3% of these died in hospital. Families were most satisfied with the skill and competency of nurses and least satisfied with being included and supported in the decision-making process and with their sense of control over the patient’s care.

Conclusion:

There is incongruity between family values and preferences for end-of-life care and actual care received for very elderly patients who are admitted to the intensive care unit. Deficiencies in communication and decision-making may be associated with prolonged use of life-sustaining treatments in very elderly critically ill patients, many of whom ultimately die.
Supporting family caregivers to identify their own needs in end-of-life care: Qualitative findings from a stepped wedge cluster trial
Authors: Aoun Samar , Deas Kathleen , Toye Chris , Ewing Gail , Grande Gunn , Stajduhar Kelli
Published: February 2015

Introduction:

The Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool encompasses the physical, psychological, social, practical, financial, and spiritual support needs that government policies in many countries emphasize should be assessed and addressed for family caregivers during end-of-life care.

Aim:

To describe the experience of family caregivers of terminally ill people of the Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool intervention in home-based palliative care.

Methods:

This study was conducted during 2012–2014 in Silver Chain Hospice Care Service in Western Australia. This article reports on one part of a three-part evaluation of a stepped wedge cluster trial. All 233 family caregivers receiving the Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool intervention provided feedback on their experiences via brief end-of-trial semi-structured telephone interviews. Data were subjected to a thematic analysis.

Results:

The overwhelming majority reported finding the Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool assessment process straightforward and easy. Four key themes were identified: (1) the practicality and usefulness of the systematic assessment; (2) emotional responses to caregiver reflection; (3) validation, reassurance, and empowerment; and (4) accessing support and how this was experienced.

Conclusion:

Family caregivers appreciated the value of the Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool intervention in engaging them in conversations about their needs, priorities, and solutions. The Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool presented a simple, yet potentially effective intervention to help palliative care providers systematically assess and address family caregivers’ needs. The Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool provided a formal structure to facilitate discussions with family caregivers to enable needs to be addressed. Such discussions can also inform an evidence base for the ongoing development of services for family caregivers, ensuring that new or improved services are designed to meet the explicit needs of family caregivers.
Orchitis and Epididymitis in Koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) Infected With Chlamydia pecorum
Authors: Johnston S. D. , Deif H. H. , McKinnon A. , Theilemann P. , Griffith J. E. , Higgins D. P.
Published: January 2015

Although Chlamydia causes disease of the urethra and prostate of male koalas, its impact on the testis and epididymis has not been examined. This study describes chronic-active and granulomatous orchitis and epididymitis with interstitial fibrosis associated with infection by Chlamydia pecorum in 2 of 18 adult male koalas being euthanized at a koala hospital, 8 of which also had chlamydial prostatitis. By immunohistochemistry and transmission electron microscopy, chlamydial inclusions were demonstrated within Sertoli cells directly associated with mild inflammation surrounding intact seminiferous and epididymal tubules, marked pyogranulomatous inflammation around disrupted tubules, replacement of tubules by interstitial fibrosis, and aspermia. The presence of C. pecorum but not Chlamydia pneumoniae was detected by quantitative polymerase chain reaction of formalin-fixed tissues of the left and right testes and right epididymis in 1 animal. This is the first report of orchitis and epididymitis in a koala infected with C. pecorum.
Acute Injuries in Recreational and Competitive Surfers
Authors: Furness James , Hing Wayne , Walsh Joe , Abbott Allan , Sheppard Jeremy M. , Climstein Mike
Published: February 2015

Background:

There are an estimated 37 million surfers worldwide, with 2.5 million recreational surfers in Australia. The recreational activity and sport of surfing has grown dramatically since the 1960s, but scientific research has been poorly mirrored in comparison with most other mainstream sports.

Purpose:

To identify the incidence, severity, location, type, and mechanism of acute injuries in recreational and competitive surfers over a 12-month period.

Study Design:

Descriptive epidemiology study.

Methods:

An online survey using an open-source survey application was utilized. The survey consisted of 2 primary sections: Section 1 included demographic information and participation levels (age, height, weight, hours surfed, competitive level); section 2 incorporated injury type, mechanism, severity, and injury management.

Results:

A total of 1348 participants (91.3% males; 43.1% competitive surfers) were included in data analysis. A total of 512 acute injuries were classified as major, providing an incidence proportion of 0.38 (CI, 0.35-0.41) acute injuries per year. The incidence rate was calculated to be 1.79 (CI, 1.67-1.92) major injuries per 1000 hours of surfing. The shoulder, ankle, and head/face regions had the highest frequencies of acute injury, representing 16.4%, 14.6%, and 13.3%, respectively. Injuries were predominantly of muscular, joint, and skin origin, representing 30.3%, 27.7%, and 18.9%, respectively. Skin injuries were primarily a result of direct trauma, while joint and muscular injuries were mainly a result of maneuvers performed and repetitive actions. Key risk factors that increased the incidence of sustaining an acute injury included competitive status, hours surfed (>6.5 hours/week), and the ability to perform aerial maneuvers. The incidence proportion for surfers completing aerial maneuvers was calculated to be 0.48 (CI, 0.39-0.58) major injuries per year, this being the highest incidence proportion irrespective of competitive status.

Conclusion:

This is the largest surfing-specific survey that included both recreational and competitive surfers conducted in Australia to date. The shoulder, ankle, head, and face were identified as the key regions where acute injuries occur in surfers. This research may aid in reducing the occurrence of injury through musculoskeletal screening in these key injury-prone regions and through the use of sport-specific strength training and conditioning.
Urban biowaste for solid fuel production: Waste suitability assessment and experimental carbonization in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Authors: Lohri Christian Riuji , Faraji Adam , Ephata Elia , Rajabu Hassan Mtoro , Zurbrügg Christian
Published: February 2015

The poor state of solid waste management in Dar es Salaam (DSM), Tanzania, the large fraction of organic waste generated and a high charcoal consumption by city residents has triggered this research on carbonization of municipal biowaste. Char produced by the thermochemical conversion method of slow pyrolysis can be briquetted and used as cooking fuel alternative to wood-based charcoal. To explore the potential of biowaste carbonization in DSM, the most suitable organic wastes were selected and pyrolyzed in a simple, externally heated carbonization system developed as part of this study. A Multi-Criteria Analysis framework allowed to assess prevailing biowaste types regarding availability and accessibility, and respective suitability in terms of physical–chemical properties. The assessment, using data from a survey and lab analysis, revealed the following biowaste types with highest overall potential for char production in DSM: packaging grass/leaves (PG) used for transportation of fruit and vegetables to the markets, wood waste (WW) from wood workshops, and cardboard (CB) waste. Best practice carbonization of these biowastes in the pyrolyzer showed satisfactory char yields (PG: 38.7%; WW: 36.2%; CB: 35.7% on dry basis). Proximate composition (including volatile, fixed carbon and ash content) and heating value (PG: 20.1 MJ kg−1; WW: 29.4 MJ kg−1; CB: 26.7 MJ kg−1) of the produced char also compare well with literature data. The energy and emission-related aspects of the system still require further research and optimizations to allow financially viable and safe operation.
Destruction of the flame retardant hexabromocyclododecane in a full-scale municipal solid waste incinerator
Authors: Mark Frank E , Vehlow Juergen , Dresch Hans , Dima Bogdan , Grüttner Werner , Horn Joachim
Published: February 2015

Hexabromocyclododecane containing polystyrene foam obtained from the building and construction market has been co-incinerated in a full-scale waste incineration plant. The co-feeding of 1 and 2 wt% of polystyrene foam had no influence on the operation of the plant. The bromine content increased the raw gas hydrogen bromide concentration slightly. The air emission, including that of dioxins and bromine, was not altered and so was the quality of the solid residues. The hexabromocyclododecane concentrations in the solid residues were almost identical, regardless of whether or not and how much polystyrene foam was added. The obtained destruction efficiency was >99.999% independent of the amount of added polystyrene foam. This finding indicates a virtually total destruction of hexabromocyclododecane.
Beyond “Place”
Authors: Rios Michael , Watkins Joshua
Published: February 2015

For many migrants and refugees, place provides a common sense of territorial identity despite these groups having roots elsewhere. Using the case of the Hmong diaspora, the following calls for a reconsideration of how place is theorized in planning and introduces the term “translocal placemaking” to better reflect new social formations and the overdetermination of locality. This relational conception of place captures the complexity of spatial and temporal relations as locales are not isolated from one another and draws attention to the various entanglements that historically shape spatial practices including the memories and ties to extralocal places.
Expression of Clock Genes period and timeless in the Central Nervous System of the Mediterranean Flour Moth, Ephestia kuehniella
Authors: Kobelková Alena , Závodská Radka , Sauman Ivo , Bazalová Olga , Dolezel David
Published: January 2015

Homologous circadian genes are found in all insect clocks, but their contribution to species-specific circadian timing systems differs. The aim of this study was to extend research within Lepidoptera to gain a better understanding of the molecular mechanism underlying circadian clock plasticity and evolution. The Mediterranean flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella (Pyralidae), represents a phylogenetically ancestral lepidopteran species. We have identified circadian rhythms in egg hatching, adult emergence, and adult locomotor activity. Cloning full-length complementary DNAs and further characterization confirmed one copy of period and timeless genes in both sexes. Both per and tim transcripts oscillate in their abundance in E. kuehniella heads under light-dark conditions. PER-like immunoreactivity (PER-lir) was observed in nuclei and cytoplasm of most neurons in the central brain, the ventral part of subesophageal complex, the neurohemal organs, the optic lobes, and eyes. PER-lir in photoreceptor nuclei oscillated during the day with maximal intensity in the light phase of the photoperiodic regime and lack of a signal in the middle of the dark phase. Expression patterns of per and tim messenger RNAs (mRNAs) were revealed in the identical location as the PER-lir was detected. In the photoreceptors, a daily rhythm in the intensity of expression of both per mRNA and tim mRNA was found. These findings suggest E. kuehniella as a potential lepidopteran model for circadian studies.
Use of Clinical and Electrical Myotonia to Differentiate Childhood Myopathies
Authors: Ghosh Partha S. , Sorenson Eric J.
Published: January 2015

We retrospectively reviewed 2030 childhood electromyograms performed over an 11-year period (2004-2014). Twenty children (1%) with myotonic discharges were identified and placed into 2 groups. Group A (electrical and clinical myotonia) comprised 9 children (8 with myotonia congenita and 1 with paramyotonia congenita); all of them had diffuse myotonic discharges without clinical weakness or elevated creatine kinase. Group B (electrical myotonia without clinical myotonia) comprised 11 children (4 with inflammatory myopathy; 3, congenital myopathy, 3, muscular dystrophy; and 1, congenital muscular dystrophy). Clinical weakness was demonstrated in all of them and elevated creatine kinase in 6; all had a myopathic electromyogram and scattered myotonic discharges. We conclude that myotonic discharges are a rare but characteristic spontaneous discharge identified during electrodiagnostic studies in children. The presence of electrical and clinical myotonia provides helpful clues to differentiate between various muscle disorders in children.
Vitamin D Deficiency in Children With Newly Diagnosed Idiopathic Epilepsy
Authors: Sonmez Fatma Mujgan , Donmez Ahsen , Namuslu Mehmet , Canbal Metin , Orun Emel
Published: January 2015

Several studies have shown a link between vitamin D deficiency and epilepsy. This study includes 60 newly diagnosed idiopathic epilepsy patients and 101 healthy controls (between the ages of 5 and 16). Each group was also divided into two subgroups according to seasonal changes in terms of months of longer versus shorter daylight. We retrospectively evaluated the levels of calcium, phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase, parathyroid hormone, and 25-OH vitamin-D3 in the study participants. Levels below 20 ng/ml were defined as vitamin D deficiency and levels of 20-30 ng/ml as insufficiency. There were no significant differences in age, gender distribution and levels of calcium, phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase and parathyroid hormone between the groups. The level of 25-OH vitamin-D3 in the patient group was significantly lower when compared to the control group ( p < 0.05) (14.07 ± 8.12 and 23.38 ± 12.80 ng/ml, respectively). This difference also held true when evaluation was made according to seasonal evaluation (12.38 ± 6.53 and 17.64 ± 1.14 in shorter daylight and 18.71 ± 9.87 and 30.82 ± 1.04 in longer daylight).
The Complex Surgical Abdomen
Authors: Cohen Wess A. , Horovitz Joel H. , Kupfer Yizhak , Savel Richard H.
Published: January 2015

Intensivists are often called upon to help care for patients who develop severe sepsis syndrome and septic shock where the primary source is an enterocutaneous fistula (ECF). The purpose of this article is to describe to the nonsurgeon intensivist how these complex surgical situations arise in the first place and provide the reader with a detailed understanding of the potentially devastating complications of ECF. In addition, we will describe a structured algorithm regarding the management of this often highly challenging surgical situation.
“For a While They Live a Few Feet Off the Ground”
Authors: Cobb Maggie C.
Published: January 2015

In this article, I use ethnographic data and twenty-five interviews collected over a period of four years at the Walnut Valley Festival, an annual folk musicians’ festival, to explore how attendees construct and maintain a meaningful sense of “place.” I argue that place is created through the repetition of traditional rituals that both physically and symbolically transform space into what participants call “home.” Of these, the most important are musical rituals in the form of “jams.” As a cultural performance, and through repeated participation over the years, musical ritual synthesizes the past and present, a merging that generates shared, heightened emotions among participants that leads to states of liminality and communitas. It is through attendees’ continued participation in musical, cultural performance, and the shared meaning, emotion, and memory that it provides that place is created and maintained at the festival.
The Death of California Redevelopment Areas
Authors: Swenson Charles W.
Published: January 2015

In 2012, California ended Redevelopment Areas (RDAs), which was the state’s primary program for tax increment financing. The state justified its actions based on budgetary issues and lack of evidence as to the program’s effectiveness. Examining exact U.S. Census Bureau tract-level data and in comparison with cohort tracts from 1980 through 2000, this study finds that California RDAs established in the 1990s resulted in minimal positive economic impacts to RDA areas, suggesting that the state may have been correct. Beyond the California issue, this study contributes to the literature by possibly being the first study to examine the general economic impacts of tax increment financing areas.
Property evaluation of nanostructured fly ash-reinforced acrylonitrile butadiene styrene nanocomposites
Authors: Bonda Sateesh , Mohanty Smita , Nayak Sanjay Kumar
Published: February 2015

Fly ash, a waste generated from thermal power plant, can be used as reinforcing agent for polymer composite applications due to its fine particle size and abundant availability. This article highlights the experimental findings of modification of fly ash to convert its size from micro to nano and its nanocomposites preparation through melt blending technique based on acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) as matrix material. The nanostructured fly ash (NFA) developed through mechanical milling is characterized to understand its viability toward the filler material in polymer composites. The study showed that the NFA produced after 40 h of milling has a broken rougher surface with improved amorphous nature. Further, a detailed study on the properties of ABS nanocomposites reinforced with NFA has been conducted. ABS/NFA composites at 7 wt% loading have showed better thermomechanical properties. These results are further supported with the fractured surface analysis of nanocomposite using various morphological techniques. The outcome of this study suggests the potential use of nano fly ash to develop sustainable polymer nanocomposites for high-end industrial applications.
The global expansion of Chinese oil companies: Political demands, profitability and risks
Authors: Vermeer Eduard B.
Published: February 2015

PetroChina, Sinopec, and China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) have been prominent instruments used by the Chinese government in its policies to ensure greater security of oil and gas supply in the face of growing domestic shortages. Chinese overseas acquisitions and activities have diversified, with a greater emphasis on offshore, gas and the Americas. Both parent and listed daughter companies are run by CCP-appointed managers who have to balance political and commercial goals. Their lacklustre financial performance can be attributed to domestic and institutional constraints, such as state-set social goals, low pricing, and government controls over their monopolies. Not only have state companies sustained losses from refining activities, but financing their rapid expansion has also increased their debts and dependency on the government. Cases of corruption have further weakened their political influence. Long-term supply contracts have made a greater contribution to the security of energy supply as compared with equity oil and gas. Nationalistic preferences for investment over trade increase company risks but are somewhat mitigated by an integral economic package approach and political backing in weak countries. Recent policies to reduce monopoly power are unlikely to produce viable commercial alternatives, but may increase the focus on listed daughter companies, overseas assets and international trading. Because of these developments and the recent fall in oil prices, a better evaluation of political and economic risks is required.
Synthesis, characterization, and enhanced properties of novel graphite-like carbon nitride/polyimide composite films
Authors: Sheng Weichen , Chen Qiao , Yang Peijuan , Chen Caifeng
Published: February 2015

In this article, polyimide (PI) composite films reinforced by graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) have been synthesized using the in situ polymerization process via thermal imidization. Poly (amic acid) (PAA) solutions were prepared from pyromellitic dianhydride (PMDA) and 4,4′-(4,4′-isopropylidenediphenyl-1,1′-diyldioxy) dianiline (BAPP) in N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) solvent. The different amounts of g-C3N4 obtained from the direct pyrolysis of dicyandiamide (DCDA) at 600°C were incorporated into PAA matrix, which formed g-C3N4/PI composite films by thermal imidization. The morphological structures of the synthesized g-C3N4 and g-C3N4/PI composite films were characterized using fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. With 2 wt% g-C3N4 incorporated, the tensile strength and elongation at break of g-C3N4/PI composites were increased by about 23% and 21%, respectively, due to the strong interaction between the g-C3N4 particles and PI. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that the incorporation of g-C3N4 improved the thermal stability of the PI at low g-C3N4 content. Besides, the dielectric and optical properties of these composites were also studied in this article.
Spiral bevel gear true tooth surface precise modeling and experiments studies based on machining adjustment parameters
Authors: Shuai Mo , Yidu Zhang
Published: January 2015

The true tooth surface of a spiral bevel gear is not the standard spherical involute surface, since the microscopic tooth surface varies according to machining adjustment parameters, with different tooth contact forces, stress distributions, and other intrinsic properties. Therefore, it is necessary to propose the method whose advancement and feasibility can be verified by gear cutting and contact pattern experiments, to obtain a precisely digitized true tooth surface of spiral bevel gear based on machining adjustment parameters, which will lay a solid foundation for subsequent true tooth contact analysis, transmission error analysis, gear cutting, etc.
Effects of changes in land management practices on pollen productivity of open vegetation during the last century derived from varved lake sediments
Authors: Theuerkauf Martin , Dräger Nadine , Kienel Ulrike , Kuparinen Anna , Brauer Achim
Published: January 2015

Pollen productivity is a key parameter to quantify past plant abundances and vegetation openness. In this study we explore how changes in land management influence pollen productivity. We study pollen deposition in largely annually laminated sediments from Lake Tiefer See in the Northeastern German lowlands deposited between AD 1880 and 2010. During this period, land use intensity has increased predominantly through the widespread introduction of artificial fertilizers, herbicides and heavy machinery mainly since the 1950s. Although land use statistics show that overall vegetation openness remained largely constant, non-arboreal pollen deposition (from herbs and grasses) sharply declined over the study period. This decline can be partly explained by a shift towards crops that emit little pollen such as wheat and oilseed rape. Furthermore, intensified grassland management, including drainage, also contributed to lower pollen deposition because of the decline of Plantago lanceolata and Rumex from grassland communities. However, the most important effect is a decline in pollen productivity of grasses of about 60%, which most likely is a response to earlier and more frequent mowing, although changes in grass species composition may also have played a role. Our results show that the type and intensity of land use have a strong effect on pollen productivity of grasses (and smaller effects on further crops). Since grass pollen deposition is a main proxy for vegetation openness and grasses are the common reference taxon in most PPE studies, variations in the pollen productivity of grasses introduce so far neglected errors in the reconstruction of the past vegetation cover. Our study provides a first estimate about the magnitude of this effect.
Music reception and emotional regulation in adolescence and adulthood
Authors: Leipold Bernhard , Loepthien Tim
Published: February 2015

Two forms of music reception (attentive–analytical and emotional listening) can be differentiated to understand and explain how individuals adapt to stress through regulating their emotions (accommodative coping and rumination). We asked whether (1) more reflective and complex music reception (i.e., attentive–analytical listening) would be related to accommodative coping and (2) emotional listening would be related to rumination. In addition, we investigated age differences in adolescence and adulthood. In Study 1 (cross-sectional, 521 participants, aged 18–86 years), attentive–analytical listening to music showed positive relations to accommodative coping, whereas emotional listening showed a positive relation to rumination. No age differences were found in music reception in adulthood. Study 2 (cross-sectional, 152 adolescents ranging in age from 12–17 years) investigated the relation between music reception, accommodative coping, and rumination and replicated the results of Study 1. The transition from adolescence to adulthood (12 to 23 years) was critical for the development of music reception. A comparison of adolescents and young adults revealed that attentive–analytical listening was negatively associated with age up to approximately 17 years, after which the correlation between age and attentive–analytical listening became positive. Adolescents demonstrated age increments in emotional listening. We argue that music reception is not only a possible avenue for investigating emotional regulation over the life course, but also provides a basis for possible interventions aimed at modifying emotional regulation processes in adulthood.
Evaluation of Biomarkers of Oxidative Stress and Apoptosis in Patients With Severe Methotrexate Neurotoxicity
Authors: Taylor Olga A. , Hockenberry Marilyn J. , McCarthy Kathy , Gundy Patricia , Montgomery David , Ross Adam , Scheurer Michael E. , Moore Ida M.
Published: January 2015

Central nervous system (CNS) treatment is an essential part of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) therapy, and the most common CNS treatment is intrathecal (IT) and high-dose intravenous (IV) methotrexate (MTX). Treatment with MTX may cause neurotoxicity, which is often accompanied by neurologic changes, delays in treatment, and prolonged hospital stays. This article reports clinical presentations of 3 patients with severe MTX toxicity as well as levels of oxidative stress and apoptosis biomarkers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Oxidative stress was measured by oxidized phosphatidylcholine (PC), oxidized phosphatidylinositol (PI), and F2 isoprostanes; apoptosis was measured by caspase 3/7 activity. Most consistent biomarker changes in all 3 cases were increases in caspase 3/7 and F2 isoprostanes prior to acute toxicity while increases in oxidized phospholipids occurred slightly later. Progressive increases in F2 isoprostanes and caspase 3/7 activity prior to and/or during acute toxicity suggests MTX induces oxidative stress and an associated increase in apoptosis. These findings support the role of oxidative stress in MTX-related neurotoxicity.
The Information Needs of South African Parents of Children With Cancer
Authors: Maree Johanna E. , Parker Sarah , Kaplan Lara , Oosthuizen Juanita
Published: February 2015

Information is an important need in order for parents to be empowered to face their child’s cancer condition. To explore the information needs of parents of children with cancer treated at an academic hospital in the Gauteng Province of South Africa, a descriptive phenomenological design was selected. The study setting was an academic hospital in Johannesburg and purposive sampling included 13 parents who spoke English and were willing to participate in the study. Qualitative interviews were conducted and thematic analyses were used to analyze the data. Four themes emerged from the data: the shock of the diagnosis, information needs about the disease and investigations, living with the treatment, and communication of the information. There was no consensus on which information was needed at specific points in time and parents had different opinions on how information should be made available to them. Continuous assessment allowing individualized information, according to the preference of the parents in the language of choice, could possibly meet their information needs.
Spirituality in Adolescents and Young Adults With Cancer
Authors: McNeil Sharon B.
Published: January 2015

Purpose: Spirituality and religion have been found to have a positive impact on adults with cancer, but these concepts have not been well examined in adolescents and young adults (AYA) with cancer. AYA often question and struggle with their religious and spiritual beliefs, so it is not clear if spirituality and religion have the same positive impact on this age group. The purpose of this review of literature was to examine the research that has been conducted in spirituality in AYA with cancer. Methods: The review covered the years from 1980 to present. The terms cancer, adolescents, and young adults as well as the phrases spirit* and relig* were used to capture the different variations of words. Nine articles were found that explored spirituality and religiosity in AYA with cancer. Results: This review highlighted the need for clarifying the terms used in describing the concept. This lack of continuity in terms makes it difficult to compare the studies. The methods used to measure spirituality are varied. Implications for Practice: Pediatric oncology nurses need to be sensitive to the spiritual needs of their patients. This can be accomplished by keeping an open line of communication and ensuring uninterrupted time to pray or read scriptures. Because of the variety of ways to express spirituality, the important first step is to ask what spirituality means to them.
Situated Motives of Lay Participants in Community Collaboratives for Children’s Mental Health
Authors: Potter Deborah Anne
Published: February 2015

Publicly funded programs in many industrialized countries increasingly require the participation of citizens. In this article, I explore the “situated motives” of family members who participated alongside professionals in implementing children’s mental health programs in two communities in the United States. I conducted in-depth interviews with family members and observed monthly meetings of Community Collaboratives to assess how family members understood their participation. The inductive data analysis demonstrates that family members participated (a) as a therapeutic outlet, (b) to pay it forward, (c) to gain new skills, (d) to have a voice, and/or (e) to empower the community. I then use Giddens’ concepts of “life politics” and “emancipatory politics” to explore how these accounts variously reflected lay members’ orientations as consumers, empowered individuals, and/or citizen advocates. In the absence of articulated and specific objectives for family participation, these “situated motives” were salient and had implications for how policy was implemented.