bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The GLACE-Hydrology Experiment: Effects of Land–Atmosphere Coupling on Soil Moisture Variability and Predictability
Authors: Kumar Sanjiv , Newman Matthew , Lawrence David M. , Lo Min-Hui , Akula Sathish , Lan Chia-Wei , Livneh Ben , Lombardozzi Danica
Published: May 2020

The impact of land–atmosphere anomaly coupling on land variability is investigated using a new two-stage climate model experimental design called the “GLACE-Hydrology” experiment. First, as in the GLACE-CMIP5 experiment, twin sets of coupled land–atmosphere climate model (CAM5-CLM4.5) ensembles are performed, with each simulation using the same prescribed observed sea surface temperatures and radiative forcing for the years 1971–2014. In one set, land–atmosphere anomaly coupling is removed by prescribing soil moisture to follow the control model’s seasonally evolving soil moisture climatology (“land–atmosphere uncoupled”), enabling a contrast with the original control set (“land–atmosphere coupled”). Then, the atmospheric outputs from both sets of simulations are used to force land-only ensemble simulations, allowing investigation of the resulting soil moisture variability and memory under both the coupled and uncoupled scenarios. This study finds that in midlatitudes during boreal summer, land–atmosphere anomaly coupling significantly strengthens the relationship between soil moisture and evapotranspiration anomalies, both in amplitude and phase. This allows for decreased moisture exchange between the land surface and atmosphere, increasing soil moisture memory and often its variability as well. Additionally, land–atmosphere anomaly coupling impacts runoff variability, especially in wet and transition regions, and precipitation variability, although the latter has surprisingly localized impacts on soil moisture variability. As a result of these changes, there is an increase in the signal-to-noise ratio, and thereby the potential seasonal predictability, of SST-forced hydroclimate anomalies in many areas of the globe, especially in the midlatitudes. This predictability increase is greater for soil moisture than precipitation and has important implications for the prediction of drought.
A Bayesian Approach to Regional Decadal Predictability: Sparse Parameter Estimation in High-Dimensional Linear Inverse Models of High-Latitude Sea Surface Temperature Variability
Authors: Foster Dallas , Comeau Darin , Urban Nathan M.
Published: May 2020

Stochastic reduced models are an important tool in climate systems whose many spatial and temporal scales cannot be fully discretized or underlying physics may not be fully accounted for. One form of reduced model, the linear inverse model (LIM), has been widely used for regional climate predictability studies—typically focusing more on tropical or midlatitude studies. However, most LIM fitting techniques rely on point estimation techniques deriving from fluctuation–dissipation theory. In this methodological study we explore the use of Bayesian inference techniques for LIM parameter estimation of sea surface temperature (SST), to quantify the skillful decadal predictability of Bayesian LIM models at high latitudes. We show that Bayesian methods, when compared to traditional point estimation methods for LIM-type models, provide better calibrated probabilistic skill, while simultaneously providing better point estimates due to the regularization effect of the prior distribution in high-dimensional problems. We compare the effect of several priors, as well as maximum likelihood estimates, on 1) estimating parameter values on a perfect model experiment and 2) producing calibrated 1-yr SST anomaly forecast distributions using a preindustrial control run of the Community Earth System Model (CESM). Finally, we employ a host of probabilistic skill metrics to determine the extent to which an LIM can forecast SST anomalies at high latitudes. We find that the choice of prior distribution has an appreciable impact on estimation outcomes, and priors that emphasize physically relevant properties enhance the model’s ability to capture variability of SST anomalies.
Deep Learning on Three-Dimensional Multiscale Data for Next-Hour Tornado Prediction
Authors: Lagerquist Ryan , McGovern Amy , Homeyer Cameron R. , Gagne II David John , Smith Travis
Published: May 2020

This paper describes the development of convolutional neural networks (CNN), a type of deep-learning method, to predict next-hour tornado occurrence. Predictors are a storm-centered radar image and a proximity sounding from the Rapid Refresh model. Radar images come from the Multiyear Reanalysis of Remotely Sensed Storms (MYRORSS) and Gridded NEXRAD WSR-88D Radar dataset (GridRad), both of which are multiradar composites. We train separate CNNs on MYRORSS and GridRad data, present an experiment to optimize the CNN settings, and evaluate the chosen CNNs on independent testing data. Both models achieve an area under the receiver-operating-characteristic curve (AUC) well above 0.9, which is considered to be excellent performance. The GridRad model achieves a critical success index (CSI) of 0.31, and the MYRORSS model achieves a CSI of 0.17. The difference is due primarily to event frequency (percentage of storms that are tornadic in the next hour), which is 3.52% for GridRad but only 0.24% for MYRORSS. The best CNN predictions (true positives and negatives) occur for strongly rotating tornadic supercells and weak nontornadic cells in mesoscale convective systems, respectively. The worst predictions (false positives and negatives) occur for strongly rotating nontornadic supercells and tornadic cells in quasi-linear convective systems, respectively. The performance of our CNNs is comparable to an operational machine-learning system for severe weather prediction, which suggests that they would be useful for real-time forecasting.
Supporting Autonomous Learning Skills in Developmental Mathematics Courses With Asynchronous Online Resources
Authors: Elliot Lisa , Gehret Austin , Valadez Miriam Santana , Carpenter Rebecca , Bryant Linda
Published: May 2020

Researchers have characterized the challenges many deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) students face in postsecondary science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs to three domains: preparation, socialization, and access. Additionally, some research has found that learners who are DHH have poor autonomous learning skills. The Deaf STEM Community Alliance, a project supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF HRD-1127955), created a model virtual (online) academic community called the DHH Virtual Academic Community to directly address preparation, socialization, and access challenges with the logic that online resources provide innovative and flexible means to adapt to complex student needs and schedules. This article describes a mixed-method study regarding one instructor’s effort to supplement developmental math education with online videos for students who are DHH, addressing issues relating to the challenges of preparation and access. Data analysis used both quantitative and qualitative methods to interpret student responses ( n = 89) about viewing behaviors and perceived benefits of the videos. Analysis of viewing behaviors also incorporated aggregated user analytics generated by YouTube. An unexpected finding of the study relates to the opportunity to develop autonomous learning skills by using the videos. While previous research with this student population has frequently found that students are teacher dependent, this study suggested that providing review videos allowed students to practice and master content on their own, strengthening their autonomous study skills.
Is It or Isn't It: The Importance of Visual Classification in Microplastic Characterization
Authors: Lusher Amy L. , Bråte Inger Lise N. , Munno Keenan , Hurley Rachel R. , Welden Natalie A.
Published: May 2020

Microplastics are a diverse category of pollutants, comprising a range of constituent polymers modified by varying quantities of additives and sorbed pollutants, and exhibiting a range of morphologies, sizes, and visual properties. This diversity, as well as their microscopic size range, presents numerous barriers to identification and enumeration. These issues are addressed with the application of physical and chemical analytical procedures; however, these present new problems associated with researcher training, facility availability and cost, especially for large-scale monitoring programs. Perhaps more importantly, the classifications and nomenclature used by individual researchers to describe microplastics remains inconsistent. In addition to reducing comparability between studies, this limits the conclusions that may be drawn regarding plastic sources and potential environmental impacts. Additionally, where particle morphology data is presented, it is often separate from information on polymer distribution. In establishing a more rigorous and standardized visual identification procedure, it is possible to improve the targeting of complex analytical techniques and improve the standards by which we monitor and record microplastic contamination. Here we present a simple and effective protocol to enable consistent visual processing of samples with an aim to contribute to a higher degree of standardization within the microplastic scientific community. This protocol will not eliminate the need for non-subjective methods to verify plastic objects, but it will standardize the criteria by which suspected plastic items are identified and reduce the costs associated with further analysis.
Is Physiobehavioral Monitoring Nonintrusive? An Examination of Transcranial Doppler Sonography in a Vigilance Task
Authors: Greenlee Eric T. , Lui Tiffany G. , Maw Emily L.
Published: May 2020

Objective

The current study was designed to determine whether continuous, physiobehavioral monitoring via transcranial Doppler sonography (TCD) has negative effects on human performance or user state in a vigilance task.

Background

Physiobehavioral measures have been identified as a promising method of user state assessment, in part because they are thought to be relatively nonintrusive. The notion that physiobehavioral measures are nonintrusive should not be taken for granted and needs to be tested empirically. It is possible that, even though physiobehavioral measures do not require input from a user, they may still hinder performance by causing discomfort, distraction, or interfering with physical activities required for task performance.

Method

The current study employed TCD, a common method of monitoring user vigilance. Participants completed a 40-min vigilance task. During the task, 50% wore TCD apparatus, while 50% did not. Intrusiveness was measured in terms of vigilance performance as well as workload, stress, and simulator sickness.

Results

Analyses revealed results that mirrored prototypical vigilance findings: performance declined over time, workload was high, distress and reported simulator sickness symptomology increased during the task, while engagement decreased. The presence or absence of TCD monitoring had no direct or interactive effects on performance or user state.

Conclusion

TCD monitoring of user vigilance appears to be nonintrusive.

Application

Findings support the recommendation that TCD should be used in research and operational settings where user vigilance is of paramount importance. More broadly, when developing and fielding physiobehavioral state measurement systems, intrusiveness should be considered and evaluated.
The Mathematics (and Metaphysics) of Identical Twins
Authors: Playford Richard
Published: May 2020

The metaphysics of early embryos is a hotly debated topic in contemporary bioethics and metaphysics. Many contemporary Aristotelians believe that a human being is present from the moment of conception. At the same time, certain findings in modern embryology about the formation of identical twins challenge this belief. It becomes much harder when these theories are taken into account to understand the continued identity over time of the embryo(s) given the twinning process. In this article, I will consider the philosophical implications of two models of monozygotic twinning within an Aristotelian metaphysical schema one of which is the standard, or traditional, model. The other of which is a new model recently put forward by Herranz. For the sake of completeness, I will also consider the philosophical implications of chimeras for the Aristotelian position. I will explain how Aristotelians can understand the process of twinning while holding on to their belief that a human being is present from the moment of conception.

I will argue that a human being is present from the moment of conception. I will argue for this on Aristotelian grounds, and I will then defend this claim from criticisms based on a number of findings in modern embryology.
Led by the Holy Spirit
Authors: Rupprecht Macy
Published: May 2020

The vocational call to being a physician has been one of the greatest honors and blessings of my life. As a Catholic physician, being a direct extension of the healing hands of our Lord is something this is not easily translated into words. I reflect on two cases that remind me of this great calling.
Why Do We Drop Out? Typology of Dropping Out of High School
Authors: Ogresta Jelena , Rezo Ines , Kožljan Petra , Paré Marie-Hélène , Ajduković Marina
Published: May 2020

We assessed how high school dropouts in Croatia interpret their school experiences and life circumstances, using semi-structured interviews of 20 young people, M ( SD) = 18.4 (1.23) years, 63.6% male, based on questions following a chronological life course from elementary to high school. Using qualitative content analysis and cluster analysis, we yielded a typology of high school dropouts. Four high school dropout types were identified based on the factors leading to dropout: (a) the poor academic achievers, (b) the quiet dropouts, (c) the maladjusted dropouts, and (d) the stressed dropouts. Our findings confirm the previously reported role of poor academic achievement and externalizing problems in high school dropout and additionally highlight the importance of internalizing problems and highly stressful life events for dropout risk.
Reserve Military Service: A Social Constructionist Perspective
Authors: Griffith James , Ben-Ari Eyal
Published: May 2020

This study examines reserve military service from a perspective of social construction—the ways in which the reservist’s conscious experiences are constructed to give meaning to military service. Content descriptions of conscious experiences of reserve military service are identified in past studies. Constructions fell into four broad categories: (1) complementary to life—reserve military service providing wanted satisfaction not otherwise achieved, material gain, or ideological commitment; (2) equitable arrangement—understood compensation for self-sacrifice; (3) discordant identity—requirements of military life blatantly or surreptitiously conflicting with established identity and civilian life; and (4) self-definition—reserve military service understood as an aspect of self-identity. Directions for integrating these constructions as a basis for future research are identified and discussed.
Management Patterns in Pediatric Complicated Sinusitis
Authors: McDermott Sean M. , Onwuka Amanda , Elmaraghy Charles , Walz Patrick C.
Published: May 2020

Objectives

Sinusitis is a common pediatric illness that can be complicated by periorbital or intracranial extension. Patients can be managed with antimicrobials alone or in conjunction with surgical intervention. This article examines management patterns and outcomes in pediatric patients presenting with complicated sinusitis.

Study Design

Case series with chart review.

Setting

Tertiary care pediatric hospital.

Subjects and Methods

An evaluation of 168 pediatric patients with complicated sinusitis with periorbital complications presenting at a single institution from 2008 to 2018 was performed. Demographics, disease characteristics, in‐hospital management, and outcomes were recorded and analyzed.

Results

The most common complication was orbital cellulitis, seen in 49% of children. Surgical intervention occurred in 49% of patients, with 36% receiving medical therapy followed by surgery (MTS). Chandler I patients underwent surgical intervention 30% of the time, Chandler II patients 29%, and Chandler III patients 83%. Nineteen percent of initially nonoperative patients started on ampicillin‐sulbactam required MTS vs 57% of those started on other antibiotic regimens (P =. 01). Twelve percent of initially nonoperative Chandler I to II patients started on ampicillin‐sulbactam needed MTS vs 40% started on other antibiotic regimens. Hospital charges for operative patients were $45,056 vs $14,311 for nonoperative patients (P <. 01). Hospital charges for patients with surgery followed by medical therapy (SMT) were $45,563 vs $44,393 for MTS (P =. 92).

Conclusion

Nonoperative early stage patients started on ampicillin‐sulbactam had a lower risk of MTS. MTS did not cost significantly more than SMT, and there were no significant outcome differences seen.
Subglottic Stenosis: Development of a Clinically Relevant Endoscopic Animal Model
Authors: Mady Leila J. , Criado Matthew , Park James , Baddour Khalil , Aral Ali Mubin , Roy Abhijit , Rigatti Lora Heather , Kumta Prashant N. , Chi David H.
Published: May 2020

Objective

Develop a clinically relevant and reproducible endoscopic animal model for subglottic stenosis amenable to testing of minimally invasive therapeutic modalities.

Study Design

Cohort study.

Setting

Division of Laboratory Animals Research, University of Pittsburgh.

Subjects and Methods

Subglottic stenosis was induced endoscopically via microsuspension laryngoscopy in 26 New Zealand white rabbits. A trimmed polypropylene brush connected to a novel electronic stenosis induction apparatus was used to create circumferential trauma to the subglottis. By using open source image analysis software, the cross‐sectional areas of the stenotic and native airways were compared to calculate the percentage of stenosis and the Myer‐Cotton classification grade.

Results

Of the 26 rabbits, 24 (92%) exhibited stenosis after the first attempt. The mean percentage of airway stenosis was 57% (range, 34%‐85%; SD, 15%). Five rabbits (19.2%) died on the day of stenosis induction from procedural complications. Of the 21 rabbits, 2 demonstrated no stenosis 7 days after initial injury and so underwent reinduction of airway injury, upon which they developed stenosis. Overall, 14 of the 21 rabbits (67%) exhibited moderate to severe stenosis (grade 2 or 3).

Conclusion

The stenosis induction apparatus reliably induced stenosis with a low mortality rate as compared with that of other methods in the literature. The device could be improved to generate a predetermined potentially reproducible grade of stenosis as desired by the operator. This method sets the stage for a clinically relevant and reproducible subglottic stenosis disease model that is amenable to testing of minimally invasive treatment modalities.
Otolaryngology Community Operating With Collaboration and Productive Resolve During the COVID‐19 Pandemic
Authors: Denneny James C.
Published: May 2020

In the wake of the tremendous fallout from the COVID‐19 pandemic that was mostly negative, I find great optimism and encouragement from the ability of society at all levels to focus on a common problem with a collaborative and productive resolve to address this millennial event. The rapid response was made possible by marshaling the resources available from many sources, not the least of which was the medical association community. It has been particularly gratifying to work hand‐in‐hand with our specialty societies within and outside the otolaryngology family to produce educational and scientific information that is consistent and that has and will continue to affect policy favorably. The groups that enable these inspirational collaborative accomplishments through their dedication, innovation, and imagination are the practicing physicians who have given freely and generously of their time and talents to help the whole health care community provide the most up‐to‐date care possible.
Outpatient Otolaryngology in the Era of COVID‐19: A Data‐Driven Analysis of Practice Patterns
Authors: Kasle David A. , Torabi Sina J. , Savoca Emily L. , Judson Benjamin L. , Manes R. Peter
Published: May 2020

Introduction

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) has induced a prioritization of acute care and telehealth, affecting the quantity of patients seen and the modality of their care.

Study Design

Retrospective review.

Setting

Single‐institution study conducted within the Division of Otolaryngology at the Yale School of Medicine.

Subjects and Methods

Data on all outpatient appointments within the Division of Otolaryngology were obtained from administrative records of billing and scheduling from March 16 to April 10, 2020. For comparison, a corresponding period from 2019 was also utilized.

Results

Of 5913 scheduled visits, 3665 (62.0%) were seen between March 18 and April 12, 2019, in comparison with 649 of 5044 (12.9%) during the corresponding COVID‐19–affected period. The majority of completed visits performed in weeks 1 and 2 were in person, while the majority in weeks 3 and 4 were via telehealth. Among subspecialties, a larger proportion of completed visits in 2020 were performed by pediatric and head and neck oncology otolaryngologists as compared with general/specialty otolaryngologists (P <. 001). Older adults (≥65 years) were less likely to have telehealth visits than younger adults (18‐64 years; 45.6% vs 59.6%, P =. 003).

Conclusions

A major decrease in the completion rates of scheduled visits was seen in the COVID‐19–affected period, though this was not proportional among subspecialties. An associated increase in telehealth visits was observed. After COVID‐19–related hospital policy changes, approximately 2 weeks passed before telehealth visits surpassed in‐person visits, though this was not true among older adults.
Management of injuries near the innominate artery bifurcation using an accurate kissing Viabahn stent technique
Authors: Hu Shuang-Long , Wang Chun-Xin , Lu Hui-Jun , Yuan Ye
Published: May 2020

Objective

To evaluate the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of an accurate kissing Viabahn stent technique to manage injuries near the innominate artery bifurcation.

Methods

This retrospective study included patients with injuries near the innominate artery bifurcation who were treated with an accurate kissing Viabahn stent technique. Perioperative and follow-up data were extracted and analysed.

Results

A total of 10 patients were included (mean age, 52.8 years; six male and four female patients) with injuries at the following sites: the distal end of the innominate artery ( n = 2), the innominate artery bifurcation ( n = 5), the root of the right common carotid artery ( n = 2) and the origin of the right subclavian artery ( n = 1). All were successfully treated with the accurate kissing Viabahn stent technique. During follow-up (mean duration, 16.8 months), there were no complications, such as right upper limb ischaemia, neurological dysfunction, stent occlusion or migration.

Conclusions

The accurate kissing Viabahn stent technique to manage injuries near the bifurcation of the innominate artery was safe and effective, with good perioperative and long-term follow-up results.
A suitable biomarker of effect, club cell protein 16, from crystalline silica exposure among Thai stone-carving workers
Authors: Thongtip Sakesun , Siviroj Penprapa , Prapamontol Tippawan , Deesomchok Athavudh , Wisetborisut Anawat , Nangola Sawitree , Khacha-ananda Supakit
Published: May 2020

Exposure to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) reportedly induces chronic lung injury. We investigated the association between RCS exposure and two biomarkers of the effect, plasma club cell protein 16 (CC16) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) levels, in stone-carving workers. Fifty-seven exposed workers (EWs) and 20 unexposed workers (UWs) were enrolled onto the study. Cumulative exposure to RCS was individually estimated using a filter-based gravimetric method. The plasma CC16 and HO-1 levels were determined using commercial kits. The 8-h time-weighted average for RCS concentration in the EW was significantly greater than this concentration in the UW ( p < 0.001). The health risk characterization for RCS exposure expressed as a hazard quotient (HQ) indicated that crystalline silica might be a risk factor where there is chronic exposure (HQ = 4.48). The EW group presented a significant decrease in CC16 and an increase in HO-1 levels in comparison to the UW group ( p < 0.001). In addition, we found a significant association between RCS concentration and plasma CC16 only. Therefore, our findings representing a significant decrease in CC16 in the plasma of stone-carving workers and this biological marker were significantly associated with RCS concentration. Our data indicated that CC16 might be a suitable biomarker to use to predict the health risk to stone-carving workers of exposure to RCS.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of I-NEED Program: Improving Nurses’ Detection and Management of Elder Abuse and Neglect—A 6-Month Prospective Study
Authors: Mohd Mydin Fadzilah Hanum , Wan Yuen Choo , Othman Sajaratulnisah , Mohd Hairi Noran Naqiah , Mohd Hairi Farizah , Ali Zainudin , Abdul Aziz Suriyati
Published: May 2020

Elder abuse and neglect (EAN) goes largely unrecognized and underreported globally by health care professionals. Despite acknowledging their role to intervene elder abuse, health care professionals lacked knowledge and skills in this issue. This is a single-blinded, three-armed, cluster randomized controlled trials aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the face-to-face Improving Nurses’ dEtection and managEment of elDer abuse and neglect (I-NEED) intensive training program and I-NEED educational video in improving primary care nurses’ knowledge, attitude, and confidence to intervene EAN; 390 primary care nurses were randomized equally into two intervention groups—ITP group (intensive training program) and ITP+ group (intensive training program and educational video)—and a control group. The knowledge, attitudes, and confidence to intervene EAN were measured using questionnaires at four intervals during 6-month follow-up. A total of 269 primary care nurses participated in this study. There was a significant increase in knowledge, attitude, and confidence to intervene EAN immediately post intervention observed in both intervention groups compared to the control group ( p < .001). At the end of sixth month, there was an increase of knowledge favoring ITP group than the ITP+ group ( p < .001). There is, however, no significant difference in attitude score between ITP and ITP+ group. There is a significant difference of confidence to intervene among the participants between both intervention groups with ITP+ participants reporting higher scores post intervention ( p < .05). An intensive training module improved the knowledge, attitude, and confidence to intervene EAN. Other co-existing barriers for abuse victims getting help, resources, policy, and law of EAN need further highlights.
Releases From a Local Jail: The Impact of Visitation on Recidivism
Authors: Casey William M. , Copp Jennifer E. , Bales William D.
Published: May 2020

There is a large body of research that examines the impact of visitation on the likelihood of recidivism among released state prisoners. That research reveals that receiving any visits, and a greater number of visits, reduces the likelihood of recidivism. However, whether the recidivism-reducing effect of visitation operates within the jail setting remains unclear. Using data from a Florida jail, the current investigation examines the association between visitation and recidivism among a cohort of releases ( N = 6,565). Analyses also consider the extent to which the frequency of visits impacts the likelihood of recidivism. Findings from a series of logistic regression models reveal that inmates who received visits were no less likely to recidivate than their counterparts. Yet, among inmates who were visited, those receiving more frequent visits were less likely to recidivate. This departs from existing visitation research and underscores the importance of directing research attention to local jails.
What is the ‘cybernetic’ in the ‘history of cybernetics’? A French case, 1968 to the present
Authors: Krell Jacob
Published: May 2020

This article examines the history of cybernetics in France, and the history of French cybernetics in the context of the emergent field of the history of cybernetics. Drawing upon an unfamiliar group of intellectuals and sources, I discuss the way in which French cybernetics was not primarily the hyper-philosophical strain we have come to associate with names such as Derrida and Lévi-Strauss, but an approach to thinking through political and social problems that some on the left would even deign to call pragmatic. In particular, I follow a group of intellectuals known as the Groupe des dix, who, in the aftermath of the tumult of May ‘68, formed an interdisciplinary think tank to try to work out how to bridge the gap between science and society. In order to facilitate conversations between politicians, philosophers, biologists, and sociologists (to name just a few of the represented disciplines), the Groupe reached for a language that was supposed to be truly omnidisciplinary: that of cybernetics. And they did so in a country where cybernetics was not properly represented as a laboratory science. On this last point, this paper makes an addition to the history of cybernetics by offering a portrait not of cybernetics in action, but of cybernetics in vulgarization. Not that the Groupe would not make their own stamp on politics: Several of them still hold significant power in adjudicating the role of science and technology in the public sphere in the French state.
Cybernetics and the human sciences
Authors: Geroulanos Stefanos , Weatherby Leif
Published: May 2020

Cybernetics saturates the humanities. Norbert Wiener’s movement gave vocabulary and hardware to developments all across the early digital era, and still does so today to those who seek to interpret it. Even while the Macy Conferences were still taking place in the early 1950s, talk of feedback and information and pattern had spread to popular culture – and to Europe. The new science created a shared language and culture for surpassing political and intellectual ideas that could be relegated to a pre-computing tradition, and it refracted or channelled currents developing in fields from manufacturing to human physiology. It produced conceptions of the political world, as well as new forms of historical consciousness. It offered frameworks for structuralist thought, but also for policies regarding manufacturing and technology, international relations, and governmental decision-making. But the rising sense of the breadth, importance, and even shock of cybernetics long remained understudied, even as its intellectual assemblages continued to, well, relay. In devices and the so-called ‘digital humanities’, a refracted legacy of cybernetics is also visible. From mainframes to category-frameworks, cybernetics is everywhere in our material and intellectual worlds, even as the name and its meaning have faded. To the extent that cybernetics permeates the human sciences and our culture at large, it remains opaque – an only partially visible legacy often deemed too complex to form a simple object of historical narrative. This special issue on cybernetics in the human sciences outlines the history and stakes of cybernetics, as well as the possibilities of returning to it today.
Neural Representations of Procedural Knowledge
Authors: Mason Robert A. , Just Marcel Adam
Published: May 2020

Although declarative concepts (e.g., apple) have been shown to be identifiable from their functional MRI (fMRI) signatures, the correspondence has yet to be established for executing a complex procedure such as tying a knot. In this study, 7 participants were trained to tie seven knots. Their neural representations of these seven procedures were assessed with fMRI as they imagined tying each knot. A subset of the trained participants physically tied each knot in a later fMRI session. Findings demonstrated that procedural knowledge of tying a particular knot can be reliably identified from its fMRI signature, and such procedural signatures were found here in frontal, parietal, motor, and cerebellar regions. In addition, a classifier trained on mental tying signatures was able to reliably identify when participants were planning to tie knots before they physically tied them, which suggests that the mental-tying and physical-tying procedural signatures are similar. These findings indicate that fMRI activation patterns can illuminate the representation and organization of procedural knowledge.
P38-β/SAPK-inhibiting and apoptosis-inducing activities of (E)-4-chloro-2-((3-ethoxy-2-hydroxybenzylidene) amino)phenol
Authors: Karaosmanoğlu O
Published: May 2020

The present study has three purposes; first evaluating cytotoxicity of (E)-4-chloro-2-((3-ethoxy-2-hydroxybenzylidene)amino)phenol (ACES), second deciphering ACES-mediated cellular death mechanism, and third estimating ACES-mediated alterations in the expressions of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway-related genes. Neutral red uptake assay, cell cycle analysis, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), reactive oxygen species (ROS) measurements, caspase 3/7 and 9 activations, and quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) were implemented. IC50 values of ACES-treated five cells were around 4–6 µg/mL. However, Caco-2 and Huh-7 cells were found to be twofold resistant and fivefold sensitive with IC50 values of 11 µg/mL and 0.93 µg/mL, respectively. In this study, it was initially reported that ACES exhibits selective cytotoxicity to Huh-7 cells. In addition, ACES induced apoptosis by nuclear fragmentation, MMP disruption, and intracellular ROS elevation in MCF-7 cells. qRT-PCR experiment indicated the expressions of 30 genes including ATF2, CREB1, MYC, NFATC4 (NFAT3), CCNA1, CCNB1, CCND2, CDK2, CDKN1A (p21CIP1), CDKN1C (p57KIP2), CDKN2A (p16INK4a), CDKN2B (p15INK4b), DLK1, NRAS, CDC42, PAK1, MAP4K1 (HPK1), MAP3K3 (MEKK3), MAP2K3 (MEK3), MAP2K6 (MEK6), MOS, MAPK1 (ERK2), MAPK8 (JNK1), MAPK10 (JNK3), MAPK11 (p38-β), LAMTOR3 (MP1), MAPK8IP2 (JIP-1), PRDX6 (AOP2), COL1A1, and HSPA5 (Grp78) were downregulated at least 1.5-fold. Moreover, ACES effectively inhibited expressions of genes that code for elements of p38-β/stress-activated protein kinase (SAPK) pathway. ACES has the potential to be used for the reversal of trastuzumab resistance in breast cancer patients by inhibiting p38/SAPK pathway in MCF-7 cells. Therefore, with the selective cytotoxic, apoptosis-inducing, and p38-β/SAPK-inhibiting activities, ACES can be utilized for developing a novel anticancer drug.
A pseudolikelihood approach for assessing genetic association in case–control studies with unmeasured population structure
Authors: Chen Yong , Liang Kung-Yee , Tong Pan , Beaty Terri H , Barnes Kathleen C , Linda Kao WH
Published: May 2020

The case–control study design is one of the main tools for detecting associations between genetic markers and diseases. It is well known that population substructure can lead to spurious association between disease status and a genetic marker if the prevalence of disease and the marker allele frequency vary across subpopulations. In this paper, we propose a novel statistical method to estimate the association in case–control studies with unmeasured population substructure. The proposed method takes two steps. First, the information on genomic markers and disease status is used to infer the population substructure; second, the association between the disease and the test marker adjusting for the population substructure is modeled and estimated parametrically through polytomous logistic regression. The performance of the proposed method, relative to the existing methods, on bias, coverage probability and computational time, is assessed through simulations. The method is applied to an end-stage renal disease study in African Americans population.
Interval colorectal cancers after negative faecal immunochemical test in a 13-year screening programme
Authors: Zorzi Manuel , Hassan Cesare , Senore Carlo , Capodaglio Giulia , Turrin Anna , Narne Elena , Mussato Alessio , Rizzato Silvia , Chinellato Enrico , Zamberlan Sara , Repici Alessandro , Rugge Massimo
Published: May 2020

Objective

To assess faecal immunochemical test sensitivity for cancer in a very large population-based cohort followed up for six rounds with biennial faecal immunochemical test repetition.

Methods

This study is based on interval colorectal cancers diagnosed in a cohort of subjects aged 50–69 undergoing repeated faecal immunochemical test screening (six rounds) from 2002 to 2015. Test sensitivity was calculated using both the Proportional Interval Cancer Rate and the Interval Cancer Proportion method.

Results

Among 441,647 faecal immunochemical tests (123,347 individuals), 150 interval colorectal cancers were detected after a negative faecal immunochemical test. Interval colorectal cancer incidence rate was 1.87 per 10,000 person-years (95%CI: 1.60–2.20), and it was higher during the second interval year (rate ratio: 1.78; 95%CI: 1.28–2.47), for proximal locations (rate ratio: 3.00; 95%CI: 1.92–4.68), and among 60–71 year old subjects (rate ratio: 2.37; 95%CI: 1.61–3.50). The Proportional Interval Cancer Rate was 13.1%, with an overall faecal immunochemical test sensitivity of 86.9% (95%CI: 84.7–89.0). Sensitivity was lowest at the first round (81.5%; 95%CI: 75.6–86.2), and increased to 91.9% (95%CI: 83.9–96.5) for subsequent rounds. Applying the Interval Cancer Proportion method, sensitivity was 83.9% (95%CI: 81.3–86.2), and it was highest at the first round (89.0%; 95%CI: 85.7–91.6), ranging between 73% and 83.1% at subsequent rounds.

Conclusions

A faecal immunochemical test sensitivity for cancer higher than 80% resulted in a low incidence of interval colorectal cancers, representing an accurate estimate of one of the major limits of screening programmes. Due to intrinsic biases, the Proportional Interval Cancer Rate and the Interval Cancer Proportion methods generated different trends in faecal immunochemical test sensitivity by screening round.
Digital strip searches in Australia: A threat to the privilege against self-incrimination
Authors: Adam Lisanne , Barns Greg
Published: May 2020

Law enforcement has experienced difficulties retrieving information stored on the mobile devices of suspects. Over the last years, a number of Australian jurisdictions enacted legislation that allows police officers to compel an individual to unlock their device (such as providing a PIN or fingerprint to unlock the device). Non-compliance with these legislative provisions is punishable by imprisonment. The refusal by suspects to comply with an order to unlock their devices has been addressed in a number of Australian courts. In this article, the authors will discuss this legislative activity and the courts’ responses in light of the privilege against self-incrimination.
Assessing Performance in Simulated Cleft Palate Repair Using a Novel Video Recording Setup
Authors: Podolsky Dale J. , Fisher David M. , Riff Karen W. Wong , Zuker Ronald M. , Drake James M. , Forrest Christopher R.
Published: May 2020

Objective:

To test the feasibility of implementing a high-fidelity cleft palate simulator during a workshop in Santiago, Chile, using a novel video endoscope to assess technical performance.

Design:

Sixteen cleft surgeons from South America participated in a 2-day cleft training workshop. All 16 participants performed a simulated repair, and 13 of them performed a second simulated repair. The repairs were recorded using a low-cost video camera and a newly designed camera mouth retractor attachment. Twenty-nine videos were assessed by 3 cleft surgeons using a previously developed cleft palate objective structured assessment of technical skill (CLOSATS with embedded overall score assessment) and global rating scale. The reliability of the ratings and technical performance in relation to minimum acceptable scores and previous experience was assessed.

Results:

The video setup provided acceptable recording quality for the purpose of assessment. Average intraclass correlation coefficient for the CLOSATS, global, and overall performance score was 0.69, 0.75, and 0.82, respectively. None of the novice surgeons passed the CLOSATS and global score for both sessions. One participant in the intermediate group, and 2 participants in the advanced group passed the CLOSATS and global score for both sessions. There were highly experienced participants who failed to pass the CLOSATS and global score for both sessions.

Conclusions:

The cleft palate simulator can be practically implemented with video-recording capability to assess performance in cleft palate repair. This technology may be of assistance in assessing surgical competence in cleft palate repair.
Constitutive model of rock triaxial damage based on the rock strength statistics
Authors: Chen Kai
Published: May 2020

Firstly, an X-ray diffraction test is carried out to investigate brittle rock specimens’ composition, and a triaxial compression test is conducted to study the deformation behaviors and mechanical properties. Then, assuming that the rock material is able to be divided into the elastic part satisfying the Hooke’s law and the damage part where rock strength follows lognormal distribution, this paper determines a damage variable and establishes a damage constitutive model which effectively reflects the residual strength in the process of rock failure. Meanwhile, testing data are used to validate the reliability of the proposed model in this paper and the dependence of statistic parameters on the confining pressure. Finally, impacts caused by statistic parameters variation on compression strength are analyzed comprehensively, and we also conduct a comparison between this proposed model and other models from other literatures, thereby showing the reliability and rationality of this proposed model. In addition, the research outcomes presented in this paper also can effectively offer significant reference for the development of rock mechanics and rock engineering.
Online jointly estimation of hysteretic structures using the combination of central difference Kalman filter and Robbins–Monro technique
Authors: Amini Tehrani Hamed , Bakhshi Ali , Yang Tony T. Y.
Published: May 2020

Rapid assessment of structural safety and performance right after the occurrence of significant earthquake shaking is crucial for building owners and decision-makers to make informed risk management decisions. Hence, it is vital to develop online and pseudo-online health monitoring methods to quantify the health of the building right after significant earthquake shaking. Many Bayesian inference–based methods have been developed in the past which allow the users to estimate the unknown states and parameters. However, one of the most challenging part of the Bayesian inference–based methods is the determination of the parameter noise covariance matrix. It is especially difficult when the number of unknown states and parameters is large. In this study, an effective online joint estimation method for nonlinear hysteretic structures, with consideration of degradation and pinching phenomena, is proposed. Simultaneous estimation of states and parameters is conducted using the combination of a central difference Kalman filter as an effective estimator and the Robbins–Monro stochastic approximation technique as the parameters noise covariance matrix regulator. The proposed algorithm is implemented on three shear buildings with 36, 54, and 90 unknown states and parameters. To verify the performance of the system identification method, robust simulations with synthetic measurement noises and modeling errors were generated using the Monte Carlo random simulation method. The result shows the proposed method can be used to estimate the unknown parameters and states of highly nonlinear systems efficiently and effectively.
Active vibration suppression for large space structure assembly: A distributed adaptive model predictive control approach
Authors: Wang Enmei , Wu Shunan , Xun Guangbin , Liu Yufei , Wu Zhigang
Published: May 2020

Subject to the limited envelope size and carrying capacity of a rocket, it could be one of the most promising solutions to construct a large space structure through multilaunching and on-orbit assembly. Taking the antenna of the solar power satellite as the research objective, a novel vibration suppression strategy is developed in this article to guarantee high structural stability of the large space structure during on-orbit assembly. The concept of distributed control unit, together with the varying location relationship matrices, reflects the structural characteristics of the large space structure during on-orbit assembly. The explicit expression form of the control unit’s dynamic model is first derived based on the Newmark-β method. Then, the distributed adaptive model predictive controller is proposed to suppress the vibration of the large space structure aroused by weak impact among assembling modules. Through recalculating the control matrices efficiently at each assembly, the proposed controller achieves adaptive updating along with the varying large space structure. The feasibility of the proposed distributed adaptive model predictive controller is investigated in the numerical simulations, and the centralized fast model predictive controller is adopted for better comparison. The results demonstrate that the distributed adaptive model predictive controller can effectively suppress vibration of the large space structure during on-orbit assembly, with good adaptability, robustness, and computation efficiency.
Daily life in National Disability Insurance Scheme times: Parenting a child with Down syndrome and the disability politics in everyday places
Authors: Johnson Belinda Jane
Published: May 2020

Social inclusion for people with disability is bound up with experiences of place in everyday life. In Australia, the inclusion agenda has been recently propelled by the National Disability Insurance Scheme which promotes – and funds – the full inclusion of people with disability so that their lives are conducted in everyday settings. This article addresses what lies between the aspirational policy principles of full inclusion and the experience of family life with a young child who has Down syndrome. Through auto-ethnographic inquiry, a series of vignettes describe my own encounters in everyday places such as shops, childcare centres and public swimming pools. I focus on ‘sense of place’ which is generated through everyday practices and can shape individual identity and belonging. Using ideas from feminist poststructuralism and critical disability studies, I argue that ableist discourses on disability are produced by people in everyday places through their attitudes, actions and expectations, disrupting regular family life and imposing oppressive modes of subjectivity upon children with intellectual disability and their parent-carers. In response, parents of children with intellectual disability are challenged to undertake the political labour of everyday disability advocacy. It is important for social work to recognise that this labour can become a significant part of the contemporary parent-carer role.