bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The post-industrial society: from utopia to ideology
Authors: Vogt Kristoffer Chelsom
Published: June 2015

Theories of post-industrial society have since their earliest formulations had a questionable relation to actual processes of social change. This article explores why they nonetheless continue to hold influence. Drawing on Mannheim, it argues that theories of post-industrial society were originally formulated as utopia – hopeful speculations about the future. When their core concepts are used to describe present conditions, however, they take on the role of ideology, in Mannheim’s sense of this term. The ideology of post-industrial society represents a specific world view in relation to work, knowledge and education. It elevates and celebrates ‘knowledge work’ and renders invisible existing forms of industry and workers’ knowledge necessary for practical work. When the present is viewed through the lens of these theories, practical work is cast as the work of yesterday and the people who do it as yesterday’s people.
Family policies and fathers’ working hours: cross-national differences in the paternal labour supply
Authors: Bünning Mareike , Pollmann-Schult Matthias
Published: June 2015

Despite extensive research on the effect of family policies on the labour supply of mothers, little is known about how these policies affect fathers’ labour market outcomes. Using European panel data (EU-SILC) from 2003 to 2009 and multi-level models, this study analyses the effect of family policies on fathers’ working hours. The results indicate that fathers work less than childless men if they live in countries that offer well paid, non-transferable parental leave for fathers, short parental leave for mothers and generous family allowances. The effects, however, are strongly contingent on fathers’ educational levels. Whereas short maternal leaves are associated with shorter working hours among highly educated fathers, generous family allowances and father friendly parental leave schemes reduce the working hours of less educated fathers.
Synthesis and properties of cross-linkable poly(arylene ether nitrile)s containing side propenyl groups
Authors: Shen Shizhao , Pu Zejun , Zheng Penglun , Liu Xiaobo , Jia Kun
Published: June 2015

Cross-linkable poly(arylene ether nitrile)s containing side propenyl groups (DPEN) were synthesized through nucleophilic aromatic substitution polymerization from biphenol, 2,2′-diallylbisphenol A (DBA), and 2,6-dichlorobenzonitrile. The structures of resultant copolymers were characterized by Fourier transform infrared and proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopies. The properties of copolymers were investigated by thermal (differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis) analysis, inherent viscosity measurements, and mechanical tests. The results showed that allyl groups rearranged into propenyl groups during the polymerization. The copolymers with increasing content of DBA had high glass transition temperatures ranging from 207°C to 169°C and good thermal and thermo-oxidative stability with the 5 wt% loss temperatures in the range of 511–423°C under nitrogen and 471–402°C in air atmospheres, respectively. They also exhibited good mechanical property with tensile strength of 105–79 MPa. Meanwhile, the cross-linking reaction was studied through heat treatment. The result showed that the properties of DPEN containing side propenyl groups changed obviously after heat treatment, due to the fact that the double bond of PEN can be readily cross-linked to form net-shape polymers at high temperature.
Sulfonated copoly(arylene ether nitriles) as proton exchange membrane with excellent mechanical and thermal properties
Authors: Zheng Penglun , Feng Mengna , Jia Kun , Liu Xiaobo
Published: June 2015

A series of sulfonated biphenol poly(arylene ether nitriles) (BP-SPEN) copolymers were synthesized by the nucleophilic aromatic substitution polymerization of 2,6-difluorobenzonitrile with different ratios of hydroquinonesulfonic acid potassium salt and biphenol in the presence of potassium carbonate. The composition and structures of the BP-SPEN copolymers were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Thermal properties, mechanical properties, proton conductivity, and water uptake of copolymer membranes were also investigated. The results showed that they present high glass transition temperature ranging from 131°C to 180°C and good thermal stability with the 5% weight loss temperatures in the range of 284–287°C under nitrogen atmosphere. They also exhibited good mechanical property with the tensile strength in the range of 68–109 MPa in the dry state and 31–72 MPa in the wet state. Furthermore, these copolymer membranes exhibited good water uptake ranging from 8.8% to 39.9%. Thus, the membranes had good proton conductivities in the range of 1.09 × 10−5–1.54 × 10−3 S cm−1 at room temperature and 100% relative humidity. The influence of temperature on water uptakes, tensile strength, and proton conductivity was also investigated.
Design methodology for translational parallel manipulators exhibiting actuation redundancy
Authors: Corves Burkhard , Brinker Jan , Lorenz Michael , Wahle Martin
Published: June 2015

In general, spatial manipulation of objects can be accomplished by parallel manipulators, whose number of actuators is equal to the demanded number of degrees of freedom. In order to improve, for example, positioning accuracy, stiffness characteristics, and transmission behavior, redundant drives can be added to the manipulator. Accordingly, this paper presents a methodology for the design of a translational parallel manipulator with redundant actuation. Based on the results of systematic structural syntheses and developed selection criteria, two valid configurations (i.e. 3-PŘŘŘ and 3-PUU) are analyzed. Since feasibility and performance of these configurations are dependent on the base geometry, five types of base geometries are introduced. First, the geometric parameters of each of the resulting 10 combinations of nonredundant configurations and base geometries are optimized by minimizing the maximal actuation force within a prescribed workspace. Second, the best combinations are used to generate redundant configurations with six legs. These redundant configurations are then analyzed with respect to the potential of improvement concerning homogenization of end-effector forces using force polytopes. It is shown that redundant actuation significantly improves the distribution of end-effector forces. This improvement has a positive influence on positioning accuracy and acceleration capabilities. In addition to these aspects, for further analysis it is planned to investigate the influence of homogenized end-effector forces on the dimensioning of actuators and finally on the energy efficiency of the entire configuration.
Intimate partner violence, partner notification, and expedited partner therapy: a qualitative study
Authors: Rosenfeld Elian A , Marx John , Terry Martha A , Stall Ronald , Pallatino Chelsea , Borrero Sonya , Miller Elizabeth
Published: June 2015

Summary

Over one-third of women experience intimate partner violence (IPV) in their lifetime. IPV increases the risk of infection and re-infection with sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The extent to which health care providers consider IPV when recommending partner notification and expedited partner therapy is unknown. The objective of this qualitative study was to understand health care providers’ views on IPV and STIs when recommending partner treatment to patients with chlamydia. Using a purposive sampling strategy to include health care providers who treat young women at risk for chlamydia, 23 semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted. While some health care providers expressed concern for their patients’ safety and believed assessing for IPV was needed before provision of expedited partner therapy, nearly a third had not considered the links between IPV and STIs. Strategies used by health care providers to assess for IPV did not include inquiry about specific behaviours related to IPV, STI risk, and sexual coercion. Many health care providers understand the risk for IPV in the setting of STI treatment, yet a significant portion of those interviewed failed to recognise the link between IPV and STIs. Provider education is necessary to increase knowledge and implement more effective inquiry and counselling about IPV to more safely recommend expedited partner therapy.
Not all that glitters is gold: Long-term care reforms in the last two decades in Europe
Authors: Ranci Costanzo , Pavolini Emmanuele
Published: June 2015

This article explores changes that took place in long-term care (LTC) policies during the last two decades in six European welfare states. In this regard, it addresses three issues: (1) why reforms took place, (2) the main actors and coalitions driving this process and the institutional mechanisms at work and (3) the main outcomes of reform processes. In order to analyse the development of LTC policies, the article applies theoretical concepts of historical institutionalism. Our interpretation is that institutional change in LTC policy has taken place through a protracted institutional dynamic in which continuity and discontinuity are inextricably linked and where tensions and contradictions have played a crucial role. With regard to outcomes, the article analyses coverage and citizens’ social rights, working conditions in the care sector and trajectories of de-/re-familization of care. The final impact is that the level of universalism has generally increased in Europe, but that in part it has adopted a new form of ‘restricted universalism’, characterized by universal entitlements to LTC benefits constrained by limitations in provision due to financial constraints and budget ceilings.
Political actors, public opinion and the extension of welfare coverage
Authors: Kevins Anthony
Published: June 2015

In a post-industrial world in which employment is increasingly ‘non-standard’, the tying of benefit access to standard employment history in insurance-style programmes has created considerable insider–outsider welfare state divisions. This article investigates the factors shaping attempts to address this issue through the extension of benefit coverage. Comparing the introduction of minimum income schemes in France and Italy, it explores the explanatory power of various partisanship- and institution-based accounts. The article argues that Italian inaction was the result not of partisanship-based factors, but rather of contrasting levels of public pressure. The divergent public opinion was, in turn, shaped by institutional characteristics typically associated with Southern European welfare states. Survey and multi-level model analyses provide support for the claim that the centrality of the family and limited administrative capacity have had an impact on concern for the unemployed.
Over-indebtedness in Europe: The relevance of country-level variables for the over-indebtedness of private households
Authors: Angel Stefan , Heitzmann Karin
Published: June 2015

So far, research on the causes of over-indebtedness in Europe has predominantly focused on the characteristics of individuals or households. This article investigates to what extent country-level factors are associated with a European household’s risk of being over-indebted. We examine variables that reflect policies aimed at combating over-indebtedness (the average level of economic literacy prevalent within a country and its classification into a specific debt-discharge regime) and variables that reflect other welfare-state policies (a country’s affiliation to a specific employment regime and a summary measure referring to the net replacement rate in the case of long-term unemployment). The results, which are based on multilevel logistic regression analyses of European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) data for 27 European countries, suggest that all four country-level factors matter. This particularly applies to the variables reflecting other welfare-state policies, thus underlining the relevance of the design of social policy in fighting over-indebtedness.
The role of education for poverty risks revisited: Couples, employment and profits from work–family policies
Authors: Troger Tobias , Verwiebe Roland
Published: June 2015

This article explores the specific effects of work-related family policies on poverty risks among various educational groups. Based on European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) data (2005–2010) and policy indicators drawn from the Multilinks project, we estimated a series of multilevel models for approximately 123,000 households with children below the age of 6 years in 25 European countries. The results emphasize clear education-specific differences and thus are essential for the ongoing social-policy discourse. Interestingly, with respect to infant childcare, the strongest poverty-reducing effect was identified among women with mid-level education and their families, followed by low-educated women. In contrast, full-time care for children aged 3–5 years reduced the poverty risk only among women with mid- and high-level education and their families, whereas a medium length of well-paid parental leave was observed to be of particular importance to low-qualified mothers.
Affective conjunctions: Social norms, semiotic circuits, and fantasy
Authors: Gurevich Maria , Vasilovsky Alexander T. , Brown-Bowers Amy , Cosma Stephanie
Published: June 2015

Postfeminist and neoliberal discourses that characterize sexual meanings, messages, and mandates in a contemporary Western context invoke choice, liberation, and mastery to propel a perpetually performing female sexuality. Agency and autonomy have been co-opted as robust scaffolding for regulatory regimes, such that practices of mandatory self-objectification and self-surveillance are rebranded as playful practices arising from a range of preferences. We plot several intersecting theoretical coordinates, along which sexuality is usefully traced: affect scholarship, Lacanian and post-Lacanian feminist psychoanalysis, and feminist poststructuralism. This is followed by two elaborated examples from an ongoing research project on sexual agency and desire among young women. Our analysis traverses these varied but interconnected theoretical frames, arguing for their joint usefulness in thinking about how sexual messages and ideologies permeate and persist across social and psychic spaces, with both resistance and recapitulation at work. We join a body of feminist scholarship directed at expanding epistemic and empirical conversations beyond sexual empowerment/oppression oppositions by addressing the ways social meanings, symbolic representations, affects, and fantasy about sexuality cohere in subjectivities.
Montelukast attenuates lipopolysaccharide-induced cardiac injury in rats
Authors: Khodir AE , Ghoneim HA , Rahim MA , Suddek GM
Published: June 2015

This study investigates the possible protective effects of montelukast (MNT) against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced cardiac injury, in comparison to dexamethasone (DEX), a standard anti-inflammatory. Male Sprague Dawley rats (160–180 g) were assigned to five groups ( n = 8/group): (1) control; (2) LPS (10 mg/kg, intraperitoneal (i.p.)); (3) LPS + MNT (10 mg/kg, per os (p.o.)); (4) LPS + MNT (20 mg/kg, p.o.); and (5) LPS + DEX (1 mg/kg, i.p.). Twenty-four hours after LPS injection, heart/body weight (BW) ratio and percent survival of rats were determined. Serum total protein, creatine kinase muscle/brain (CK-MB), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activities were measured. Heart samples were taken for histological assessment and for determination of malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione (GSH) contents. Cardiac tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) expression was evaluated immunohistochemically. LPS significantly increased heart/BW ratio, serum CK-MB, ALP, and LDH activities and decreased percent survival and serum total protein levels. MDA content increased in heart tissues with a concomitant reduction in GSH content. Immunohistochemical staining of heart specimens from LPS-treated rats revealed high expression of TNF-α. MNT significantly reduced percent mortality and suppressed the release of inflammatory and oxidative stress markers when compared with LPS group. Additionally, MNT effectively preserved tissue morphology as evidenced by histological evaluation. MNT (20 mg/kg) was more effective in alleviating LPS-induced heart injury when compared with both MNT (10 mg/kg) and DEX (1 mg/kg), as evidenced by decrease in positive staining by TNF-α immunohistochemically, decrease MDA, and increase GSH content in heart tissue. This study demonstrates that MNT might have cardioprotective effects against the inflammatory process during endotoxemia. This effect can be attributed to its antioxidant and/or anti-inflammatory properties.
Role and Capabilities of Intermediaries in University–Industry Linkages: A Case of Hard Disk Drive Industry in Thailand
Authors: Sutthijakra S. , Intarakumnerd P.
Published: June 2015

The intermediaries are important organisations in mitigating systemic failures. Few of such failures are those of university–industry linkages (UILs). Although there are several previous studies, they did not pay adequate attention on how these intermediaries accumulate their capabilities that are necessary to perform their roles over time. This study will try to partially fill in such gap by investigating capabilities-building processes of intermediaries. The intermediaries in Hard Disk Drive (HDD) industry in Thailand was selected as a case study. Qualitative data was collected from 20 semi-structured and in-depth interviews of intermediaries’ management, university researchers and industrial companies in the intermediaries’ networks. The findings show that the intermediaries play consulting, brokering, mediating and resources providing roles. They assist to increase levels of interactions between university and industry, transform informal to formal relationships and nurture potential human resources for the industry. However, performing such activities depends on the intermediaries’ capabilities. Four key capabilities encompass network capabilities, coordination capabilities, knowledge-building capabilities and management capabilities. Underneath them, strategic capabilities, depending on leadership, engender the intermediaries’ visions and strategies. Human resources development is stimulated through individual and collective learning. These four capabilities are embedded into the existing organisational systems by using mentoring and on-the-job training for newcomers, building up the database system and arranging meetings for knowledge sharing on a regular basis. However, discontinuity of government supports leads to a decrease in network members, transformation of formal relationships back to informal ones and the close down of intermediary.
Regional Innovation Systems Based on Stochastic Frontier Analysis: A Study on Thirty-One Provinces in China
Authors: Yi Su , Fengyan Chen
Published: June 2015

This article summarises the literature on regional innovation system (RIS) The study uses thirty-one Chinese provinces and cities as the unit of analysis. Subsequently, an empirical study is conducted using stochastic frontier analysis on unbalanced panel data covering 31 provinces. The empirical result shows that innovation performance of RISs differs greatly in the various provinces and cities analyzed. The average score of the national regional innovation performance is 0.4514, indicating that non-efficiency is very common in Chinese provinces and cities. There are various factors that should be considered to promote innovation performance of the RIS. These are openness of RISs, maturity of the technology market, collaboration of RISs and intellectual property protection. Interestingly the unique circumstances of the Chinese market show that enterprise technology input and government investments have a negative impact on the regional innovation performance.
Education, Technology and Geopolitics: The Arab World as an Instance
Authors: Essa Al Lily Abdulrahman , Foland Jed Rivera
Published: June 2015

This article spans the domains of education, technology and geo-politics. It uses as an instance the Arab scholarship of education and technology, viewing its scholarly community through the geographical lens of regionalism. It enquires into the power relations among scholars in the Arab region and between scholars in the Arab region and their fellows from outside the region. It addresses the research question: to what extent have region-informed factors affected the scholarly community of education and technology in the Arab region? This question was answered by both qualitative and numerical enquiry, analysing documents, interviews and a survey of native Arabic-speaking scholars. Having analysed the data using the grounded theory approach, two categories of power relations among scholars were identified: power relations within a particular region and power relations across regions. Considering these two categories, a theoretical proposition could be posited that there could be power relationships among scholars that exist on a regional basis. The recommendation is therefore that research should further shed light upon the regionalistic (and thus geographically informed political) dynamics of scholarly communities.
Harnessing the Benefit of Social Networking Sites for Intentional Social Action: Determinants and Challenges
Authors: Verma Sanjeev
Published: June 2015

Social networking sites have transformed interaction and collaboration pattern. Communication and engagement on social networking sites is a social phenomenon that depends on mutual interest and enthusiasm of users. Recognizing the importance of social fabrics of social networking sites, this study aims to identify possibilities of using social networking sites for intentional social action. Using unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, empirical study is conducted on youth to identify determinants and challenges of using social networking sites for intentional social actions. Factor-level study using structural equation modelling showed that effort expectancy, social influence and facilitating condition have significant impact on intentional social action. Implications and scope for future studies are provided for further extension of this study.
Bank Selection Process and Market Segmentation: Evidence from Indian Exporting SMEs
Authors: Kaur Manpreet
Published: June 2015

Liberalization, privatization and globalization caused by economic reforms have induced severe competition in Indian banking sector. To survive in this contemporary, highly competitive business environment, banks should be able to attract new customers by identifying what is valuable to them and how they make bank selection decision. Small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) exporters have been found to be a very important segment of banks’ market because of profit and revenue opportunities presented by them. For appropriate positioning in exporting SMEs’ market, banks are not only required to be aware of their bank selection criteria rather they should also be aware of their different segments. In the present study, an effort has been made to identify the bank selection criteria of exporting SMEs as well as to segment them on the basis of the same. Findings revealed timeliness in services and accommodation of credit needs as critical factors considered by exporting SMEs while selecting a bank. Further, two types of SMEs customers have been identified, namely, transaction-oriented and relationship-oriented SMEs. Transaction-oriented SMEs who are newly established and more price-sensitive should be targeted with transaction-oriented strategy which aims at offering better-quality services at lower costs than competing banks. Conversely, relationship-oriented SMEs who are established focus more on bank features as well as on need accommodation; a relationship-oriented strategy can be followed to acquire such customers.
Creating Your Own Qualitative Research Approach: Selecting, Integrating and Operationalizing Philosophy, Methodology and Methods
Authors: Singh Kapil Dev
Published: June 2015

Qualitative research for theory building is gaining increasing prominence in management research. With the growing complexity of organizations and their experience of continuous flux, suitable approaches to create action-oriented knowledge are emerging. The underexplored aspects of interpretive ontology and epistemology are being adopted more and more by contemporary scholars. The nascent state of the field is a challenge, on one hand, but an opportunity to become innovative, on the other. The article narrates one such attempt of devising a qualitative research approach by synthesizing from multiple perspectives and addressing the issues of philosophy, methodology and methods. The three issues are taken for granted in quantitative positivist research as the methodologies and methods are built on a positivist philosophy. However, it becomes a challenge in a qualitative research as methodologies and methods have been built for the philosophy of both positivist and interpretive thinking, an issue often not so explicit. Moreover, the existing resources on qualitative research have a partial appeal as they lean in favour of either one of the three issues—philosophy, methodology or methods. One needs to be creative in developing a holistic approach by selecting, integrating and operationalizing all the three issues.
Bringing in the Future in Kenya: Beyond the 2010 Constitution
Authors: Hope Kempe Ronald
Published: June 2015

Kenya’s future is inexorably tied to the implementation of the 2010 constitution. Some of the reformed and newly created institutions as mandated by this constitution offer the best opportunity to the country in the quest for building a capable state with good governance and sustained economic progress. This work argues that the fate of the country will be determined by how well and consistently the 2010 constitution is implemented through the functioning of a small group of key institutions covering electoral activities, the justice sector, devolution, legislative oversight and corruption control. In fact, sustained socio-economic progress and political development in Kenya hinges critically on the country’s approach to implementation of the 2010 constitution that has been so enthusiastically endorsed by Kenyans. The successful implementation of the 2010 constitution will also enhance the chances of achieving the aspirations outlined in the Kenya Vision 2030 of substantial improvements in the economic, social and political fronts.
South Africa’s Post-apartheid Nuclear Diplomacy: Practice and Principles
Authors: van Wyk Jo-Ansie
Published: June 2015

Almost three decades after South Africa dismantled its nuclear weapons programme and weapons, the question remains why the country has not reversed this decision. This contribution, using three illustrative case studies—the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), South Africa’s inspection team in Iraq (prior to the United States (US)-led invasion in March 2003 and the nuclear fuel reserve of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)—argues that South Africa has conducted its nuclear diplomacy using niche diplomacy as a diplomatic practice. These practices have revealed certain normative principles of South Africa’s post-apartheid nuclear diplomacy, which explain why the country has not reversed its decision. The contribution analyses South Africa’s nuclear diplomacy in the early twenty-first century by focusing on selected post-2000 nuclear-related events and developments.
A Conceptual Analysis of Strategies to Combat Organised Crime in South Africa
Authors: Govender Doraval
Published: June 2015

The general perception in South Africa is that organised crime is a rapidly increasing threat to the security of the country. Organised criminal groups usually start their criminal careers within police station precincts and move transnationally across police station borders, provincial boundaries, national and international borders. Since the 1980s, many effective strategies have been developed to combat organised crime internationally. Despite these strategies, local police stations in South Africa still use basic policing knowledge and skills to police organised crime at police station level. In the majority of cases, very little or nothing is done to confirm whether an arrested car thief, burglar or drug dealer belongs to an organised criminal group. The objective of this article is to identify the different strategies used internationally to combat organised crime, so that they may be used for designing and developing policy recommendations and operational responses to effectively combat organised crime. Given the scarce skills and knowledge of the local police to combat organised crime, this article recognises a need to empower local police officials to combat organised crime at the police station level.
Book Review: B. Matondo, Kjell havnevik and Ataklite Beyene (Eds), Biofuels, Land Grabbing and Food Security in Africa
Authors: Kishor Nanda
Published: June 2015

B. Matondo, Kjell havnevik and Ataklite Beyene (Eds), Biofuels, Land Grabbing and Food Security in Africa, Zed Books, London, 2011, pp. 248, $39.95
Influence of viscoelastic interfaces on power transmission through an elastic plate by finite piezoelectric transducers
Authors: Tang Liling , Jin Feng
Published: June 2015

A finite elastic plate, partially covered by piezoelectric patches on two sides to periodically charge or recharge electronic devices operating in a sealed armor, is considered to study the effects of a viscoelastic interface on the resonant frequency, transformation ratio, efficiency, displacement and stress distributions of the structure. Based on the shear-slip model, we apply the Fourier series method to analyze the symmetric thickness-twist modes of the system containing an imperfect viscoelastic interface. An examination of the numerical results confirms the good convergence and high precision of the Fourier series method. If an appropriate thickness ratio is chosen, the energy-trapping phenomenon is well presented. The numerical results also reveal that the transformation ratio, efficiency and displacement of the system decrease for weaker interfaces, whereas the resonant frequency is not sensitive to interface damping parameters. This result could provide a theoretical guide to design high-performance piezoelectric plate transformers.
Children’s Perceptions of Their Reading Ability and Epistemic Roles in Monologically and Dialogically Organized Bilingual Classrooms
Authors: Aukerman Maren , Chambers Schuldt Lorien
Published: June 2015

This study examines how bilingual second-grade students perceived of their reading competence and of the work of reading in two contrasting settings where texts were regularly discussed: a monologically organized classroom (MOC) and a dialogically organized classroom (DOC; as determined by prior analysis of classroom discourse). Interview data revealed that, while every student in the DOC came to describe herself or himself as a good reader by the end of the year, many low-achieving readers in the MOC no longer saw themselves as good readers. Findings further indicated that students in the two classrooms conceived of epistemic reading roles in contrasting ways. In the MOC, students viewed reading as about getting the text’s intended meaning and expressed concern about potentially giving wrong answers. They emphasized the teacher as a provider of information, placed importance on external achievement markers, and saw good reading as a matter of being smart. In the DOC, students saw themselves as agentive makers of meaning who generated ideas and questions. They spoke of a social responsibility to help others (including both peers and teacher) better understand the text. They saw discussion with peers as a way of helping further their own textual understandings, and the teacher as someone who sought to understand and learn from student textual perspectives. In light of existing self-efficacy literature, these findings suggest that student beliefs about epistemic roles, mediated by the predominant nature of classroom discourse, could play an important role in shaping students’ perceived reading competence.
A review of in situ methodologies for studying elastohydrodynamic lubrication
Authors: Albahrani SMB , Philippon D , Vergne P , Bluet JM
Published: June 2015

Research in elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) was, at its very beginning, essentially numerical, and even analytical. This area has, however, significantly evolved due to the necessity of validating the first models experimentally. Moreover, it soon became clear that the elastohydrodynamic (EHD) problem would be a topic of much more complex nature than the basic one involving perfectly smooth surfaces, Newtonian fluid, isothermal flow, etc. The experimental approach was the natural choice to make progress in offering the possibility of comparisons, first at the global level of the contact and, over time, at higher and higher spatial resolutions. The in situ analysis of elastohydrodynamic contacts was launched and everyone knows how much its contribution to the field has been and remains important. The present paper takes the task of reviewing the different in situ experimental techniques that have proven to be able to map the key-parameters in living EHD contacts. They are presented both in chronological order and according to the physical mechanism behind them, namely electrical, optical and acoustic methods. A last section presents some opportunities and recommendations for future works, with the aim to improve further our understanding of EHL.
Caregivers’ voices: The experiences of caregivers of children who sustained serious accidental and non-accidental head injury in early childhood
Authors: Wharewera-Mika Julie , Cooper Erana , Kool Bridget , Pereira Susana , Kelly Patrick
Published: June 2015

Head injury is a leading cause of mortality and acquired neurological impairment in children. Head-injured children may have neurobehavioural deficits that persist for years following injury. Head injury can result in significant and persistent caregiver burden, including mental health issues, family stress and disorganisation, and unmet social and healthcare service needs. Few studies have examined the healthcare and social service needs of children and their families following head injury sustained at an early age. This qualitative study aims to describe the experiences of caregivers of children who sustained a serious head injury (particularly non-accidental head injury) before the age of 2 years. Caregivers were interviewed up to 15 years following the initial injury. Semi-structured interviews with 21 caregivers of 15 children (aged 3–15 years at the time of interview) were completed. Thematic analysis of interview data generated three key themes: impact, support and information. The study’s findings reveal the broad impact of serious childhood head injury on caregivers, specifically the significant distress and burden brought about through lack of information, challenges in accessing support and inconsistent care. Recommendations for developing a quality ‘model of care’ and improving ease of access to supports for caregivers are provided.
Geographies of brain culture: optimism and optimisation in workplace training programmes
Authors: Pykett Jessica , Enright Bryony
Published: June 2015

This article outlines the strategic alignment of novel modes of emotional and psychological governance characteristic of ‘brain culture’ with intensified forms of workplace performance management within specifically neoliberal organisational cultures. We introduce the recent emergence of positive psychology-based workplace training programmes in the UK human resources field as a new empirical site for the study of cultural geographies of education. We demonstrate how such programmes promote a culture of optimism and optimal functioning, focussing on the cultivation of positive emotions among individual workers and in workplace cultures. This emphasis on well-being sits somewhat uncomfortably in the context of the global financial crisis, the United Kingdom’s recent recession and the diminishing role of the UK state in the provision of welfare, but is wholly concurrent with the neoliberal promotion of ‘lifelong learning’ and the spread of individualised practices of performance management in the UK workplaces. The article reports on in-depth interviews with trainers and practitioners who variously use positive psychology, mindfulness training and strengths-based competencies in workplaces in the United Kingdom and outlines their connection to the development of positive psychology as a new academic discipline in the United States. In outlining the importance of context for understanding changing workplace cultures and worker subjectivities, a cultural geography analysis of rapid advancements in psychological knowledge provides a useful new perspective on the links between neoliberalism, the behaviour change and happiness ‘industries’ and brain culture.
Integrated Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Comorbid Cannabis Use and Anxiety Disorders
Authors: Buckner Julia D. , Ecker Anthony H. , Beighley Jennifer S. , Zvolensky Michael J. , Schmidt Norman B. , Shah Sonia M. , Carroll Kathleen M.
Published: June 2015

Cannabis use disorders (CUDs) co-occur with anxiety disorders at high rates, presumably because some individuals with anxiety disorders may rely on cannabis to manage anxiety. Motivation enhancement therapy (MET) combined with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is an efficacious intervention for CUD, yet outcomes are worse for patients with elevated anxiety. The integration of MET-CBT with False Safety Behavior Elimination Treatment (FSET) may be useful with anxious CUD patients, as the use of cannabis to manage anxiety can be targeted as a false safety behavior. Here, we describe the integrated treatment and the successful use of it among two patients—one with CUD and comorbid social anxiety disorder (SAD) and one with CUD and comorbid SAD and generalized anxiety disorder. Data support the feasibility of this integrated treatment as a viable approach to the treatment of CUD and comorbid anxiety disorders. Future controlled trials are now warranted to further evaluate the intervention.
Expansion and long-term culture of human spermatogonial stem cells via the activation of SMAD3 and AKT pathways
Authors: Guo Ying , Liu Linhong , Sun Min , Hai Yanan , Li Zheng , He Zuping
Published: June 2015

Spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) can differentiate into spermatids, reflecting that they could be used in reproductive medicine for treating male infertility. SSCs are able to become embryonic stem-like cells with the potentials of differentiating into numerous cell types of the three germ layers and they can transdifferentiate to mature and functional cells of other lineages, highlighting significant applications of human SSCs for treating human diseases. However, human SSCs are very rare and a long-term culture system of human SSCs has not yet established. This aim of study was to isolate, identify and culture human SSCs for a long period. We isolated GPR125-positive spermatogonia with high purity and viability from adult human testicular tissues utilizing the two-step enzymatic digestion and magnetic-activated cell sorting with antibody against GPR125. These freshly isolated cells expressed a number of markers for SSCs, including GPR125, PLZF, GFRA1, RET, THY1, UCHL1 and MAGEA4, but not the hallmarks for spermatocytes and spermatozoa, e.g. SYCP1, SYCP3, PRM1, and TNP1. The isolated human SSCs could be cultured for two months with a significant increase of cell number with the defined medium containing growth factors and hydrogel. Notably, the expression of numerous SSC markers was maintained during the cultivation of human SSCs. Furthermore, SMAD3 and AKT phosphorylation was enhanced during the culture of human SSCs. Collectively, these results suggest that human SSCs can be cultivated for a long period and expanded whilst retaining an undifferentiated status via the activation of SMAD3 and AKT pathways. This study could provide sufficient cells of SSCs for their basic research and clinic applications in reproductive and regenerative medicine.
Quantification of Lower Extremity Kinesthesia Deficits Using a Robotic Exoskeleton in People With a Spinal Cord Injury
Authors: Chisholm Amanda E. , Domingo Antoinette , Jeyasurya Jeswin , Lam Tania
Published: June 2015

Background. Our ability to sense movement is essential for motor control; however, the impact of kinesthesia deficits on functional recovery is not well monitored in the spinal cord injury (SCI) population. One problem is the lack of accurate and reliable tools to measure kinesthesia. Objective. The purpose of this study was to establish the validity and reliability of a quantitative robotic assessment tool to measure lower limb kinesthesia in people with SCI. Methods. Seventeen individuals with an incomplete SCI and 17 age-matched controls completed 2 robotic-based assessments of lower limb kinesthesia sense, separated by at least 1 week. The Lokomat, a lower limb robotic exoskeleton, was used to quantify the movement detection score bilaterally for the hip and knee joints. Four passive movement speeds (0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 deg/s) were applied in both flexion and extension directions. Participants responded via pressing a joystick button when movement was felt. Results. The movement detection score was significantly greater in people with SCI compared with the control group, particularly at the slowest movement speed. The difference between groups was more pronounced among those classified as ASIA (American Spinal Injury Association) Impairment Scale B. Our measure showed high test-retest reliability and good internal consistency for the hip and knee joints. Conclusions. Our findings demonstrated that lower limb kinesthesia deficits are common in the SCI population and highlighted the importance of valid and reliable tools to monitor sensory function. Future studies need to examine changes in sensory function in response to therapy.
Cortical Silent Period Reveals Differences Between Adductor Spasmodic Dysphonia and Muscle Tension Dysphonia
Authors: Samargia Sharyl , Schmidt Rebekah , Kimberley Teresa Jacobson
Published: June 2015

Background. The pathophysiology of adductor spasmodic dysphonia (AdSD), like other focal dystonias, is largely unknown. Objective. The purposes of this study were to determine ( a) cortical excitability differences between AdSD, muscle tension dysphonia (MTD), and healthy controls; ( b) distribution of potential differences in cranial or skeletal muscle; and ( c) if cortical excitability measures assist in the differential diagnosis of AdSD and MTD. Methods. Ten participants with adductor spasmodic dysphonia, 8 with muscle tension dysphonia, and 10 healthy controls received single and paired pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to the primary motor cortex contralateral to tested muscles, first dorsal interosseus (FDI), and masseter. We tested the hypothesis that cortical excitability measures in AdSD would be significantly different from those in MTD and healthy controls. In addition, we hypothesized that there would be a correlation between cortical excitability measures and clinical voice severity in AdSD. Results. Cortical silent period duration in masseter and FDI was significantly shorter in AdSD than MTD and healthy controls. Other measures failed to demonstrate differences. Conclusion. There are differences in cortical excitability between AdSD, MTD, and healthy controls. These differences in the cortical measure of both the FDI and masseter muscles in AdSD suggest widespread dysfunction of the GABAB mechanism may be a pathophysiologic feature of AdSD, similar to other forms of focal dystonia. Further exploration of the use of TMS to assist in the differential diagnosis of AdSD and MTD is warranted.
Validation of the Guy’s scoring system in patient selection for femoro-distal bypass grafting to a single calf or pedal artery
Authors: Kordzadeh Ali , Askari Alan , Panayiotopoulos Yiannis P
Published: June 2015

Objectives

First external validation of a preoperative scoring system (Guy’s) in patient selection for femoro-distal bypass grafting to single calf or pedal artery in critical limb ischemia (Fontaine III & IV/Rutherford grade IV, V & VI).

Material and methods

A prospective study of 76 ( n = 76) consecutive femoro-crural/pedal bypass grafts on 72 individuals ( n = 72) from 2008 to 2011 with 36 months mean follow-up was performed. All cases were scored against a previously designed and published scoring system (ranging from 0 to 10) based on: inflow, outflow, graft material, flow type, patent pedal vessels and diabetes mellitus.

Results

Preoperative score of 0–4 ( n = 37) demonstrated the primary patency of 27% at 10.3 months. This value for intermediate group 5–7 ( n = 34) was 70.6% at 18.9 months. The high-score group 8–10 ( n = 4) showed the longest primary patency (80%) at 27.3 months. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis exhibited a consistent and significant difference in primary assisted, secondary patency and overall limb/foot salvage amongst all individual scoring groups ( p < 0.001).

Conclusion

This study validates and complements the Guy’s scoring system and provides a platform for the identification of critical limb ischemia patients in whom the result of femoro-crural/distal bypass grafting is so poor that primary amputation may be both clinically and economically more justified.
Questioning the mythology of the strong leader
Authors: Brown Archie
Published: June 2015

The cult of the strong leader is dangerous not only in dictatorships but also in democracies. Political commentators too readily equate ‘strong’ with successful leadership. Yet, the idea that one person is entitled to take all the big decisions is antithetical to good governance and at odds with democratic values. In the British case, contemporary obsession with the one person at the top of the political hierarchy has led to anachronistic attribution of past policies to prime ministers when in reality they were very much the product of collective government deliberation. Thus, it is totally misleading to credit Clement Attlee with the creation of the National Health Service and the post-war British welfare state. Attlee's considerable achievement was to hold a strong and disparate team together. He did this without dominating his party or determining all major policy, and without aspiring to do so. Recent commentary, which uses the prime minister's name as a synonym for the government, exaggerates the actual determination of policy by that one person – and overstates also the significance of party leaders for electoral outcomes. There is one area of policy where heads of government have, indeed, acquired greater power and authority ever since the late 1930s – namely, foreign policy. Even in this sphere, however, the consequences can be disastrous when prime ministers are allowed to pull rank, to sustain an unrealistic belief in the exceptional quality of their own judgements, and to assert a corresponding right to discount intra-governmental, party and specialist opinion.