bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prescriber Continuity and Medication Adherence for Complex Patients
Authors: Hansen Richard A. , Voils Corrine I. , Farley Joel F. , Powers Benjamin J. , Sanders Linda L. , Sleath Betsy , Maciejewski Matthew L.
Published: December 2014

Background: Medication adherence is a critical aspect of managing cardiometabolic conditions, including diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and heart failure. Patients who have multiple cardiometabolic conditions and multiple prescribers may be at increased risk for nonadherence. Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between number of prescribers, number of conditions, and refill adherence to oral medications to treat cardiometabolic conditions. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, 7933 veterans were identified with 1 to 4 cardiometabolic conditions. Refill adherence to oral medications for diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia was measured using an administrative claims–based continuous multiple-interval gap (CMG) that estimates the percentage of days a patient did not possess medication. We dichotomized refill adherence for each condition as a CMG ≤20% for each year of analysis. Condition-specific logistic regression models estimated the relationship between refill adherence and number of cardiometabolic conditions and number of prescribers, controlling for demographic characteristics, other comorbidities, and a count of cardiometabolic drug classes used. Results: Compared with patients with 1 prescriber, antihypertensive refill adherence was lower in patients seeing ≥4 prescribers (odds ratio [OR] = 0.69; 95% CI = 0.59-0.80), but the number of cardiometabolic conditions was not a significant predictor. Antidyslipidemia refill adherence was lower in patients seeing 3 prescribers (OR = 0.80; 95% CI = 0.70-0.92) or ≥4 prescribers (OR = 0.77; 95% CI = 0.64-0.91). Conversely, antidyslipidemia refill adherence improved with the number of cardiometabolic conditions, but differences were only statistically significant for ≥3 conditions (OR = 1.31; 95% CI = 1.09-1.57). In multivariate regression models, the number of conditions and number of prescribers were not significant predictors of refill adherence in the group of patients with diabetes. Conclusions: Effective management of care and medication regimens for complex patients remains an unresolved challenge, but these results suggest that medication refill adherence might be improved by minimizing the number of prescribers involved in a patient’s care, at least for hypertension and dyslipidemia.
New and Ongoing Users
Authors: Kim HyunSoo , Kim Seok-Joo , Williams Thomas G. , Garrity John F.
Published: December 2014

There is growing recognition that to maximize service impacts, first-time users of community mental health services require treatment approaches different from those for experienced users. This study examines differences between new and ongoing service users in their sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, how episodes of the treatment status (new vs. ongoing) interact with problem severity and the level of functioning at the baseline and three-month follow-up; and the role of the service quantity, satisfaction, and hopefulness in predicting service outcomes for children. The results of mixed factorial ANOVAs reveal significant interactions between new/ongoing treatment conditions and problem severity as well as functioning across time periods. New users showed higher problem severity at the baseline than at T2 in comparison with ongoing users. In addition, new users showed lower functioning scores at the baseline than at T2 in comparison with ongoing users. Hopefulness predicted problem severity for new and ongoing users, and service satisfaction predicted problem severity only for ongoing users. In terms of functional outcomes, gender, diagnosis, the number of providers, and hopefulness were predictors for new users, and hopefulness was a predictor for ongoing users. The results suggest a need for using different treatment approaches for new versus ongoing users.
Temporary Workers’ Satisfaction
Authors: Borgogni Laura , Consiglio Chiara , Di Tecco Cristina
Published: December 2014

Workers exposed to job insecurity and job changes are ever increasing, however, studies among temporary workers are underrepresented in the literature. This study adopts a positive approach to the topic investigating the individual factors leading temporary workers to take advantage from their flexible jobs. This study, carried on among 471 temporary workers, hypothesized that self-efficacy and internal locus of control are associated with work satisfaction and with the perception of situational opportunities. Moreover, self-efficacy is posited to indirectly relate to work satisfaction through the perception of situational opportunities and career enhancement strategies. Findings attested a direct association between internal locus of control and satisfaction and an indirect association between self-efficacy and work satisfaction.
Hallux Metatarsophalangeal (MTP) Joint Arthroscopy for Hallux Rigidus
Authors: Hunt Kenneth J.
Published: December 2014

Arthroscopy of the hallux metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint is an evolving technique for hallux rigidus and other disorders of the hallux MTP joint. Purported advantages of this minimally invasive procedure include rapid rehabilitation and the ability to identify and address other intra-articular and sesamoid pathologies without additional dissection. Larger, prospective, and comparative outcomes studies are needed to optimize the treatment algorithm.

Level of Evidence: Level V, expert opinion.
Medicare and Private Spending Trends From 2008 to 2012 Diverge in Texas
Authors: Franzini Luisa , Taychakhoonavudh Suthira , Parikh Rohan , White Chapin
Published: December 2014

The recent relatively slow growth in health care spending masks significant differences among payers, clinical settings, and geographic areas. To better understand the spending slowdown, we focus on 2008-2012 trends in Texas among Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries and enrollees in Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX). Spending per person for Medicare grew only 1.5% per year on average, compared with 5.2% for BCBSTX. In Medicare, utilization rates were relatively flat, while prices grew more slowly than input prices. In BCBSTX, spending growth was driven by increases in negotiated prices, in particular hospital prices. We find that geographic variation declined sharply in Medicare, due to drops in spending on post–acute care in two notoriously high-spending regions but rose slightly in BCBSTX. The aggregate spending trends mask two divergent stories: spending growth in Medicare is very slow, but price increases continue to drive unsustainable spending growth among the privately insured.
Uniform strain fields inside multiple inclusions in an elastic infinite plane under anti-plane shear
Authors: Dai Ming , Ru CQ , Gao Cun-Fa
Published: December 2014

This paper constructs multiple elastic inclusions with prescribed uniform internal strain fields embedded in an infinite matrix under given uniform remote anti-plane shear. The method used is based on the sufficient and necessary conditions imposed on the boundary values of a holomorphic function, which guarantee the existence of the holomorphic function in a multiply connected region. The unknown shape of each of the multiple inclusions is characterized by a polynomial conformal mapping with a finite number of unknown coefficients. With the aid of Cauchy’s integral formula and Faber series, these unknown coefficients are determined by a system of nonlinear equations. Detailed numerical examples are shown for multiple inclusions with various prescribed uniform internal strain fields, for symmetrical inclusions and for inclusions whose shapes are independent of the remote loading, respectively. It is found that the admissible range of uniform internal strain fields for multiple inclusions is moderately larger than the admissible range of the uniform internal strain field for a single elliptical inclusion under the same remote loading. In particular, specific conditions on the prescribed uniform internal strain fields and elastic constants of the multiple inclusions are derived for the existence of symmetric inclusions and rotationally symmetrical inclusions. Moreover, for any two inclusions among multiple inclusions of shapes independent of the remote loading, it is shown that the ratio between the uniform internal strain fields inside the two inclusions equals a specific ratio determined by the shear moduli of the two inclusions and the matrix.
Streets for Cyborgs
Authors: Shaw Debra Benita
Published: December 2014

This article separates the city and the street in order to examine them as concepts which order our experience of both cyberspatial worlds and the “posturban” city. The extraordinary persistence of the flâneur and his successor, the cyberflâneur, despite both having been pronounced “dead” can be attributed to the need to reconcile these concepts in the continued reproduction of urban subjectivities under the terms of global capitalism. However, there is a tension between the understanding of embodiment which the practice of flânerie mandates and new ontological concepts emerging from the way that the biological sciences now write the body. I will argue that new practices of spatial production which subvert the conceptual cartography of contemporary urban space can emerge from an understanding of the street as responsive to a posthuman performance of embodiment.
Predicting the sun-protective decisions of young female Australian beachgoers
Authors: Robinson Natalie G , White Katherine M , Hamilton Kyra , Starfelt Louise C
Published: December 2014

We tested the theory of planned behaviour with additional norms to predict the sun-protective decisions of young female beachgoers in Australia. Participants ( N = 336) completed standard theory of planned behaviour measures and additional normative factors (group, image and personal norms). Attitude, subjective norm, and both personal and group norms predicted intention. Intention and group norm predicted follow-up behaviour. These findings provide further evidence that it is the more proximal sources of norms reflecting one’s personal and referent group influences, rather than perceptions of broader societal norms about the attractiveness of tanned images, that are important in determining young women’s sun-protective decisions.
The changing relationship between left–right ideology and euroscepticism, 1973–2010
Authors: van Elsas Erika , van der Brug Wouter
Published: December 2014

How is euroscepticism related to left–right ideology in Western European public opinion? We argue that inconsistent findings on this relationship result from the changing nature of European integration over time. Initially, EU market integration mainly sparked left-wing opposition; after Maastricht the intensification of political integration additionally produced nationalist euroscepticism among the political right. Hence, we hypothesize that the relationship between citizens’ left–right ideology and euroscepticism evolved from linear to U-shaped. We test this hypothesis by means of multilevel logistic regression on 74 waves of the Eurobarometer (1973–2010) in 12 EU member states. The results demonstrate an increase of right-wing euroscepticism across countries, whereas the developments on the left are mixed. In the concluding section, we discuss the theoretical and political implications of these findings.
The political economy of orphanage tourism in Cambodia
Authors: Guiney Tess , Mostafanezhad Mary
Published: December 2014

A recent Aljazeera report on ‘Cambodia’s Orphan Business’ explains ‘how “voluntourism” could be fuelling the exploitation of Cambodian children’. Anti-orphanage tourism movements have emerged to resist the growth of Cambodia’s contested orphanage tourism industry, which is blamed for widespread corruption and the exploitation of children for profit. Taking a Polanyian political economy approach, this article illustrates how the emergence of and response to the orphanage tourism industry represent, in Karl Polanyi’s words, a ‘double movement’ between the neoliberalization of orphanages and the corollary protective countermovement by anti-orphanage tourism campaigns that challenge the industry’s morality and legitimacy. It argues that while resistance to the commodification of orphanages under the newly neoliberalized Cambodian economy reflects Polanyi’s double movement thesis, the limits of this resistance are also indicative of how countermovements are challenged by the broader political economy in which they operate.
Autism Spectrum Disorder Early Screening Practices
Authors: Self Trisha L. , Parham Douglas F. , Rajagopalan Jagadeesh
Published: December 2014

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released a policy statement in 2007 urging physicians to screen for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) at 18 and 24 months. This study sought to identify the screening practices of pediatricians and family physicians (FPs) in following the AAP guidelines for ASD. A survey was mailed to 1,500 pediatricians and FPs in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Iowa. A total of 481 participants (32%) returned surveys. Results revealed 66 (17%) of the respondents routinely screened for ASD according to AAP guidelines and 162 (41%) respondents screened for ASD but did not follow the guidelines. Pediatricians were more likely to screen for ASD than were FPs. Respondents’ pre-professional education in ASD was significantly associated with their tendency to routinely screen and be confident identifying warning signs of ASD. When physicians administer ASD-specific screenings and identify early signs, they can put children and families on the right path for receiving desperately needed services.
Polarization without Parties: Term Limits and Legislative Partisanship in Nebraska's Unicameral Legislature
Authors: Masket Seth , Shor Boris
Published: December 2014

Despite a long history of nonpartisanship, the Nebraska state legislature has polarized rapidly within the past decade. Using interviews and campaign finance records, we examine politics in the modern Unicam to investigate nonpartisan polarization. We find that newly instituted term limits created opportunities for the state's political parties to recruit and finance candidates in an increasingly partisan fashion. Social network analysis suggests that there is a growing level of structure to campaign donations, with political elites increasingly less likely to contribute across party lines. The results offer a compelling example of parties overcoming institutions designed to eliminate them.
Effects of Withania somnifera and Tinospora cordifolia Extracts on the Side Population Phenotype of Human Epithelial Cancer Cells
Authors: Maliyakkal Naseer , Appadath Beeran Asmy , Balaji Sai A. , Udupa Nayanabhirama , Ranganath Pai Sreedhara , Rangarajan Annapoorni
Published: December 2014

Recent reports suggest the existence of a subpopulation of stem-like cancer cells, termed as cancer stem cells (CSCs), which bear functional and phenotypic resemblance with the adult, tissue-resident stem cells. Side population (SP) assay based on differential efflux of Hoechst 33342 has been effectively used for the isolation of CSCs. The drug resistance properties of SP cells are typically due to the increased expression of ABC transporters leading to drug efflux. Conventionally used chemotherapeutic drugs may often leads to an enrichment of SP, revealing their inability to target the drug-resistant SP and CSCs. Thus, identification of agents that can reduce the SP phenotype is currently in vogue in cancer therapeutics. Withania somnifera (WS) and Tinospora cordifolia (TC) have been used in Ayurveda for treating various diseases, including cancer. In the current study, we have investigated the effects of ethanolic (ET) extracts of WS and TC on the cancer SP phenotype. Interestingly, we found significant decrease in SP on treatment with TC-ET, but not with WS-ET. The SP-inhibitory TC-ET was further fractionated into petroleum ether (TC-PET), dichloromethane (TC-DCM), and n-butyl alcohol (TC-nBT) fractions using bioactivity-guided fractionation. Our data revealed that TC-PET and TC-DCM, but not TC-nBT, significantly inhibited SP in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, flow cytometry–based functional assays revealed that TC-PET and TC-DCM significantly inhibited ABC-B1 and ABC-G2 transporters and sensitized cancer cells toward chemotherapeutic drug-mediated cytotoxicity. Thus, the TC-PET and TC-DCM may harbor phytochemicals with the potential to reverse the drug-resistant phenotype, thus improving the efficacy of cancer chemotherapy.
A Brief History of the Current Reemergence of Contemplative Education
Authors: Morgan Patricia Fay
Published: December 2014

This article explores the history of the current reemergence of a contemplative orientation in education. While referencing an ancient history, it primarily examines the history of contemporary contemplative education through three significant stages, focusing on the third. The first was arguably initiated by the introduction of Buddhism to the United States through Chinese immigration that started in 1840, and the second began in the late 1960s and early 1970s with the establishment of three significant tertiary institutions that engage contemplative practice and theory. The third, which began in 1995 with the founding of the Centre for Contemplative Mind in Society, is introduced through five developmental influences. Linked with this is the concurrent development and growing intersection of contemplative and transformative education. This contemporary and ancient history traces the continuing presence of the contemplative in education to counter suggestions that contemplative education may be a fleeting trend. Rather, it indicates that contemplative practice, which grounds this approach in education, is an essential aspect of who we are and how we learn.
Method to Reduce Muscle Fatigue During Transcutaneous Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation in Major Knee and Ankle Muscle Groups
Authors: Sayenko Dimitry G. , Nguyen Robert , Hirabayashi Tomoyo , Popovic Milos R. , Masani Kei
Published: December 2014

Background. A critical limitation with transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation as a rehabilitative approach is the rapid onset of muscle fatigue during repeated contractions. We have developed a method called spatially distributed sequential stimulation (SDSS) to reduce muscle fatigue by distributing the center of electrical field over a wide area within a single stimulation site, using an array of surface electrodes. Objective. To extend the previous findings and to prove feasibility of the method by exploring the fatigue-reducing ability of SDSS for lower limb muscle groups in the able-bodied population, as well as in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). Methods. SDSS was delivered through 4 active electrodes applied to the knee extensors and flexors, plantarflexors, and dorsiflexors, sending a stimulation pulse to each electrode one after another with 90° phase shift between successive electrodes. Isometric ankle torque was measured during fatiguing stimulations using SDSS and conventional single active electrode stimulation lasting 2 minutes. Results. We demonstrated greater fatigue-reducing ability of SDSS compared with the conventional protocol, as revealed by larger values of fatigue index and/or torque peak mean in all muscles except knee flexors of able-bodied individuals, and in all muscles tested in individuals with SCI. Conclusions. Our study has revealed improvements in fatigue tolerance during transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation using SDSS, a stimulation strategy that alternates activation of subcompartments of muscles. The SDSS protocol can provide greater stimulation times with less decrement in mechanical output compared with the conventional protocol.
The United States Armed Forces and Their “Bowl” Games From 1942 to 1967
Authors: Seifried Chad , Katz Matt
Published: December 2014

The collective information produced by this academic pursuit supports the goal of identifying the determinants of innovation and the process of intrafirm diffusion regarding organizational innovation. The U.S. military created 111 American football “bowl” games across six continents in 18 countries and 46 host cities from 1942 to 1967. Using the historical method through an ex post facto historical institutionalism interpretive lens, this study found the U.S. Armed Forces, through the dynamic capabilities of its top officers and officials, organized “bowl” games as product innovation and used football as process innovation to manage the massive mobilization and training of men for the various war efforts of that period. Within, we discovered (a) the resolution of crisis, (b) the emergence and recruitment of leaders, (c) the creation/use of novelty, and (d) the capacity to adapt revealed the military “bowl” game phenomenon and American football existed as critical ingredients for organizational innovation and that product innovation can emerge from process innovation and vice versa to support organizational innovation. Furthermore, novelty, although identified as a product innovation, must be supported, promoted, and adapted to create and sustain the goals associated with organizational process innovation. Next, intrafirm diffusion was shown to involve and compel job specialization, imitation/emulation, forged alliances, the creation of special service positions, and the development of newsletters and other internal/external media. Finally, this work supports and recognizes the utility of the “historic turn” with respect to the ability of how history can inform and improve today’s efforts toward innovation.
Integrating Libertarian Paternalism Into Paternalistic Leadership
Authors: Humphreys John H. , Randolph-Seng Brandon , Pane Haden Stephanie S. , Novicevic Milorad M.
Published: December 2014

Extant theory suggests that paternalistic leadership is not a unified construct and that benevolent paternalistic and exploitative paternalistic leader styles are independent. However, this representation ignores the emerging concept of libertarian paternalism. In order to explore this prospective style of leader paternalism, we performed a historiographically informed examination of prominent paternal capitalists from the era of industrial paternalism in the United States. We discovered that the paternalistic leadership of H. J. Heinz lacked the degree of coercion and intrusion found in other paternalistic leaders of the period, even when compared with those motivated by benevolence. As this resonated well with current notions of libertarian paternalism, we analyzed the paternalistic leadership style of Heinz alongside contemporaneous archetypical exploitative (George Pullman) and benevolent (Henry Ford) paternalistic leaders. We interpret the historical evidence to integrate the emergent idea of libertarian paternalistic choice architecture into a more comprehensive typology of paternalistic leadership.
The politics of mourning: The virtual memorialisation of British fatalities in Iraq and Afghanistan
Authors: Danilova Nataliya
Published: December 2014

This article analyses the virtual memorialisation of British fatalities in Iraq and Afghanistan. It will study online obituaries published on two websites – BBC news and The Lasting Tribute. These sources are compared as examples of media-driven and community-driven memorialisation. This comparison enables us to study links between the mainstream media and the functioning of digital network communities, between public and private discourses of war memorialisation. The purpose of analysis is twofold: first, the article examines how virtual memorials represent fatalities, and, second, it discusses the political implications of virtual memorialisation. The article posits that although virtual memorials introduce professionalised and personalised accounts of the deaths of service personnel, they also enable a nationalistic discourse of war commemoration, and shape the politics of mourning in modern Britain.
Fragility fracture: recent developments in risk assessment
Authors: Aspray Terry J.
Published: December 2014

More than half of older women who sustain a fragility fracture do not have osteoporosis by World Health Organization (WHO) bone mineral density (BMD) criteria; and, while BMD has been used to assess fracture risk for over 30 years, a range of other skeletal and nonskeletal clinical risk factors (CRFs) for fracture have been recognized. More than 30 assessment tools using CRFs have been developed, some predicting fracture risk and others low BMD alone. Recent systematic reviews have reported that many tools have not been validated against fracture incidence, and that the complexity of tools and the number of CRFs included do not ensure best performance with poor assessment of (internal or comparative) validity. Internationally, FRAX® is the most commonly recommended tool, in addition to QFracture in the UK, The Canadian Association of Radiologists and Osteoporosis Canada (CAROC) tool in Canada and Garvan in Australia. All tools estimate standard 10-year risk of major osteoporotic and 10-year risk of hip fracture: FRAX® is able to estimate fracture risk either with or without BMD, but CAROC and Garvan both require BMD and QFracture does not. The best evidence for the utility of these tools is in case finding but there may be future prospects for the use of 10-year fracture risk as a common currency with reference to the benefits of treatment, whether pharmacological or lifestyle. The use of this metric is important in supporting health economic analyses. However, further calibration studies will be needed to prove that the tools are robust and that their estimates can be used in supporting treatment decisions, independent of BMD.
Evaluation of Hematocrit Interference With MyStar Extra and Seven Competitive Devices
Authors: Demircik Filiz , Ramljak Sanja , Hermanns Iris , Pfützner Anke , Pfützner Andreas
Published: December 2014

Background:

In previous studies, meters employing dynamic electrochemistry (DE), have been shown to correct for hematocrit (HCT) interference. This laboratory investigation assessed the HCT stability of MyStar Extra (Sanofi) in comparison to 7 competitive devices (Accu-Chek Aviva Nano & Accu-Chek Performa, Roche Diagnostics; Contour XT and Contour Link, Bayer; FreeStyle Freedom Lite, Abbott; MyLife Pura, Ypsomed; OneTouch Verio Pro, LifeScan).

Method:

Venous heparinized blood was freshly drawn, immediately aliquoted, and manipulated to contain 3 different blood glucose concentrations (50-80 mg/dL, 150-180 mg/dL, and 350-400 mg/dL) and 5 different HCT levels (20-25%, 30-35%, 40-45%, 50-55%, and 60-65%). After careful oxygenation to normal blood oxygen pressure, each of the 15 different samples was measured 8 times with 2 devices and 2 strip lots of each meter (32 measurements/meter/sample). YSI Stat 2300 served as laboratory reference method. Next to determination of the mean absolute relative deviation (MARD), stability to HCT influence was assumed, when less than 10% difference occurred between the highest and lowest mean glucose deviations in relation to HCT over all tested glucose ranges (HIF: hematocrit interference factor).

Results:

Four of the devices showed stable performance: Contour XT (MARD: 1.3%/HIF: 6.1%), MyStar Extra (4.7%/7.1%), OneTouch Verio Pro (4.5%/7.3%), and Contour Link (6.3%/9.3%). The 4 other meters were influenced by HCT (Accu-Chek Performa: 4.7%/20.9%, Accu-Chek Aviva Nano: 4.5%/22.4%, FreeStyle Freedom Lite: 4.8%/24.5%; MyLife Pura: 6.4%/28.7%).

Conclusions:

In this study, all meters showed a good accuracy, but only 50% of them, including MyStar Extra, were shown to reliably correct for potential hematocrit influence on the meter results.
Septic Ankle With Purulence Tracking Up the Flexor Hallucis Longus Tendon Sheath Leading to Deep Venous Thrombosis/Pulmonary Embolism and Compartment Syndrome
Authors: Waryasz Gregory R. , McClure Philip , Vopat Bryan G.
Published: December 2014

The differential diagnosis for lower extremity swelling and ankle pain is broad and can have overlapping and related diagnoses. If there is concern for more than one diagnosis, the practitioner should perform a thorough physical examination, order the appropriate studies, and perform the correct procedures to completely diagnose and treat the patient. This article presents the case of a 19-year-old male who presented with 5 days of left ankle pain, fevers, and swelling without any known trauma to the area. Physical examination was concerning for a septic ankle joint, cellulitis, deep venous thrombosis, and compartment syndrome. Duplex venous ultrasound confirmed a deep venous thrombosis in the popliteal vein. Joint aspiration of the ankle had gross purulence with the presence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The patient was taken emergently to the operating room where he was found to have gross purulence in the deep posterior compartment, medial and lateral soft tissues of the ankle, and gross purulence in the ankle joint. The deep posterior compartment also had significant muscle necrosis and evidence of compartment syndrome. This case presents the possibility of a septic ankle leading to compartment syndrome and deep venous thrombosis/pulmonary embolism due to the intra-articular nature of the flexor hallucis longus tendon sheath.

Level of Evidence: Case report, Level IV
The Systematic-Risk Determinants of the European Accommodation and Food Services Industry in the Period 2003-2011
Authors: Boz Gokhan , Menéndez-Plans Carlota , Orgaz-Guerrero N.
Published: December 2014

An analysis of factors that affect the discount rates and stock risk of European tourism firms during the period of 2003–2011 finds that macroeconomic variables have the greatest effect. Using the capital asset pricing model (CAPM), the study tests seven macroeconomic variables and seven accounting variables to better understand what most affects a stock price beta. The size of European tourism firms (measured by assets) is the only accounting factor that influences stock risk, while three macroeconomic factors, namely, European gross domestic product growth, exchange rate variation (between the euro and the U.S. dollar), and the profitability of the Dow Jones industrial average, have high explanatory power to predict variation of European companies’ stock risk.
It’s More Than Just Talk
Authors: Grant Anett D. , Taylor Amanda
Published: December 2014

This article investigates whether CEOs actually demonstrate the communication strengths and weaknesses they think they have. Videotaped interviews with CEOs in the initial stage of executive coaching were analyzed to identify categories of communication strength and weakness: delivery, content, audience, and character. Next, the interviews and transcriptions were coded to track use of rhetorical formats, delivery stress, disfluencies, and timing. Speakers who identified themselves as having both delivery and content strengths or weaknesses differed significantly from the other CEOs. This has important implications for the study of impromptu communication, executive coaching, and business communication.
Laser plasmochemical synthesis of hard protective SiCN films
Authors: Demin V. N. , Smirnova T. P. , Borisov V. O. , Grachev G. N. , Smirnov A. L. , Khomyakov M. N.
Published: December 2014

A new method of laser plasma deposition had been applied to synthesise the silicon carbonitride (SiCN) coatings on stainless steel substrates and cutting devices using hexamethyldisilazane Si2NH(CH3)6 as a precursor. The precursor vapours were activated by powerful optical pulsating discharge in a high velocity gas stream (Ar). Characterisation of the films has been carried out by complex methods. The deposited coatings are amorphous, uniform in thickness and decorate surfaces of different engineering materials quite well. The nanohardness of SiCN coatings was estimated as 15–24 GPa.
Effect of O2 increase on properties of vanadium oxide coatings
Authors: Zairi A. , Ben Cheikh Larbi A. , Iost A. , Staia M. H.
Published: December 2014

The present research was carried out with the aim of studying the influence of oxygen concentration during processing on the properties of the VOx coatings deposited by cathodic magnetron sputtering on a stainless steel AISI 316L substrate. Mechanical and tribological properties were measured by nanoindentation and sliding wear tests respectively. Adhesion was evaluated by means of the scratch test. In order to determine the texture of the coatings, complementary characterization methods including X-ray diffraction in grazing incidence and Bragg Brentano configurations, as well as Ω scans, were performed. It was found that the texture of the crystalline coatings is strongly influenced by the amount of partial pressure of oxygen in the reactor atmosphere. The V2O5 phase, with an orthorhombic symmetry, was produced in the coating, which had a pronounced texturing for the (001) plane, exhibiting the best values of hardness and Young modulus. It was shown that, as the oxygen concentration drops to <1 sccm, the mechanical and tribological characteristics, as well as the coating adhesion, tend to decrease considerably.
President's Page
Authors: Cambois Guillaume
Published: December 2014

We are entering 2015, a year of great uncertainty for our industry. With the price of oil at a level considered too low by most operators, exploration and production expenses are slashed, and the service industry is suffering. Talks of restructuring and consolidation abound for oil and service companies alike. By all accounts, we are now firmly in a down cycle, and it is anybody's guess how long it will last.
Attribute mapping of variable-thickness incised valley-fill systems
Authors: Li Fangyu , Qi Jie , Marfurt Kurt
Published: December 2014

Whether we realize it or not, seismic amplitude is the composite expression of multiple frequency components. Spectral components tuned to a given thickness often exhibit a high signal-to-noise ratio and thus provide the highest lateral resolution, giving clear images of channels and other stratigraphic features that otherwise might be buried in broadband data. For the same reason, coherence and other edge-sensitive attributes provide correspondingly sharper images when computed from spectral-magnitude or voice components. Multiple stages of incisement are preserved in a survey acquired over the Red Fork Formation of the Anadarko Basin, Oklahoma. Color-blended images of 20-, 35-, and 50-Hz spectral components and corresponding coherence images are used to map the valley fill at different stages.
Instantaneous frequency spectra
Authors: Stark Tracy J.
Published: December 2014

The goal of performing spectral decomposition is to determine the frequency spectra of the seismic signal as a function of traveltime. In conventional short-window Fourier methods and in continuous-wavelet transforms, there is a trade-off between temporal resolution and frequency resolution. By using a new method, spectral decomposition can be obtained at the time resolution of the input trace, which is independent of frequency. Furthermore, this decomposition has a constant frequency resolution on the order of a few hertz. However, there still might be some trade-offs. To perform this decomposition, a sliding calculation window is required, the length of which has some effect on the results. Long windows produce higher-frequency resolution, as is typical in performing Fourier transforms. However, higher resolution does not necessarily mean more accurate results. Different window lengths can produce different-looking (sometimes significantly different) spectral tuning curves because of the interrelationship of the reflections contained in the window. Guidelines for the sensitivity to the calculation window length have not yet been determined. This new spectral-decomposition approach is illustrated using four simple synthetic models and a line from a widely used data set.
Seismic inversion for organic richness and fracture gradient in unconventional reservoirs: Eagle Ford Shale, Texas
Authors: Hu Robert , Vernik Lev , Nayvelt Lev , Dicman Alfred
Published: December 2014

A method using Eagle Ford organic shale from Texas predicts key unconventional reservoir properties, total organic carbon (TOC), and fracture pressure gradient (FG). Applying petrophysical and rock-physics models from previous work to the available well-log data generates the required logs for calibration, i.e., shear sonic, TOC, organic porosity, and saturation. Prestack seismic data can be evaluated using synthetic forward modeling and can be conditioned further to improve AVO response. Simultaneous prestack inversion to derive acoustic-impedance (AI) and shear-impedance (SI) volumes can be run, and TOC can be derived from those volumes by linear interpolation. Fracture gradient (which also can be thought of as “frackability”) is related directly to Poisson's ratio and effective stress and can be estimated from elastic properties. The fracture gradient is related nonlinearly and inversely to TOC, i.e., assuming laterally and vertically homogeneous pore-pressure distribution inside the spatially limited block of the Eagle Ford Shale, higher TOC results in lower FG and hence better frackability.
Jacobs: GWB and the SEG Wiki: Partnering to tell the whole story
Authors: Farley Isaac
Published: December 2014

Following the vision of the Technology Leaders Interview Series (thank you, Tad Smith and Ken Tubman), SEG Publications is launching a parallel series in The Leading Edge to highlighting the efforts in the SEG Wiki. In coming months, we will publish interviews with Matt Hall, Karl Schleicher, Don Herron, and John W. Stockwell Jr., 2014 SEG Wiki Champion, all of which were filmed in October at SEG's 2014 Annual Meeting.

Watch the Wiki Interview Series debut here

[Figure: see text]
Carbonate reservoirs dominated by secondary storage space: Key issues and technical strategy
Authors: Liu Lifeng , Sun Sam Zandong , Xie Huiwen , Zhang Yan
Published: December 2014

Carbonate reservoirs of the Tarim Basin in China are buried deeply, with strong later diagenesis, and seldom are controlled by geologic facies. The effective storage spaces are mainly dissolution caves and fractures with few primary pores. Fluid distribution in the reservoir is extremely complicated. All these characteristics make it a world-class challenge for oil and gas exploration and production. Conventional poststack methods ignore the complexity of the reservoir medium with low accuracy of prediction results, by which the location of the dissolution cave is determined roughly. Only faults and fracture zones can be described to a certain degree instead of quantifying the fracture detection. Aiming at the key problems of the complex carbonate reservoirs in the Tarim Basin, a series of techniques has been developed to improve the successful rate of reservoir prediction, including the following aspects: the wide-azimuth and high-density data-acquisition technique to improve the quality of the original seismic data; a series of migration techniques including prestack reverse time migration; and amplitude-preserved Q migration to improve the quality of seismic gathers and the imaging precision with the matching precision of AVO gathers. The target reservoir data dominant frequency increased by more than 15% and by nearly 20 Hz. In addition, the effective DEM-Gassmann rock-physics model is proposed for velocity prediction, by which relative error of estimated shear-wave velocity reaches to less than 5%. Furthermore, an advanced inversion algorithm is introduced to improve the accuracy of extracted elastic information. By using new prestack inversion and frequency-dependent AVO inversion, the tie rate of the dissolution-cave reservoir and fluid prediction increased by more than 15%. Furthermore, the fracture-prediction tie rate can be enhanced by 20% through limited-azimuth anisotropic inversion, on the basis of which the quantitative identification of fracture fluid for actual seismic data can be realized.
Exploiting deep-gas resources through advanced geophysical technology
Authors: Badri Mohammed , Bakhorji Aiman
Published: December 2014

An outstanding SEG workshop on deep-gas resources was held in Muscat, Oman, on 3–5 November 2014. Seventy-five professionals attended from 14 countries, predominantly from the Middle East but also from around the world. The objective of the workshop was to bring geoscientists together to meet and exchange their experiences and views on geophysical-technology applications in exploiting deep-gas resources.
The passing of a giant — Remembering Robert (Bob) E. Sheriff
Authors: Blythe Natalie
Published: December 2014

SEG and geophysics lost one of its strongest researchers, teachers, authors, and program supporters when Bob Sheriff died 19 November 2014 at his home in Missouri City, Texas.
Somatostatin Is Essential for the Sexual Dimorphism of GH Secretion, Corticosteroid-Binding Globulin Production, and Corticosterone Levels in Mice
Authors: Adams Jessica M. , Otero-Corchon Veronica , Hammond Geoffrey L. , Veldhuis Johannes D. , Qi Nathan , Low Malcolm J.
Published: December 2014

Distinct male and female patterns of pituitary GH secretion produce sexually differentiated hepatic gene expression profiles, thereby influencing steroid and xenobiotic metabolism. We used a fully automated system to obtain serial nocturnal blood samples every 15 minutes from cannulated wild-type (WT) and somatostatin knockout (Sst-KO) mice to determine the role of SST, the principal inhibitor of GH release, in the generation of sexually dimorphic GH pulsatility. WT males had lower mean and median GH values, less random GH secretory bursts, and longer trough periods between GH pulses than WT females. Each of these parameters was feminized in male Sst-KO mice, whereas female Sst-KO mice had higher GH levels than all other groups, but GH pulsatility was unaffected. We next performed hepatic mRNA profiling with high-density microarrays. Male Sst-KO mice exhibited a globally feminized pattern of GH-dependent mRNA levels, but female Sst-KO mice were largely unaffected. Among the differentially expressed female-predominant genes was Serpina6, which encodes corticosteroid-binding globulin (CBG). Increased CBG was associated with elevated diurnal peak plasma corticosterone in unstressed WT females and both sexes of Sst-KO mice compared with WT males. Sst-KO mice also had exaggerated ACTH and corticosterone responses to acute restraint stress. However, consistent with their lack of phenotypic signs of excess glucocorticoids, cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of free corticosterone in Sst-KO mice were not elevated. In summary, SST is necessary for the prolonged interpulse troughs that define masculinized pituitary GH secretion. SST also contributes to sexual dimorphism of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis via GH-dependent regulation of hepatic CBG production.
Metrical Positions and their Linguistic Realisations in Old Germanic Metres: A Typological Overview
Authors: Suzuki Seiichi
Published: December 2014

This paper provides a typological account of Old Germanic metre by investigating its parametric variations that largely determine the metrical identities of the Old English Beowulf, the Old Saxon Heliand, and Old Norse eddic poetry (composed in fornyrðislag, málaháttr, or ljóðaháttr). The primary parameters to be explored here are the principle of four metrical positions per verse and the differing ways in which these constituent positions are aligned to linguistic material. On the one hand, the four-position principle works with a maximal strictness in Beowulf, and to a slightly lesser extent in fornyrðislag, whereas it allows for a wider range of deviations in verse size in the Heliand and ljóðaháttr. In málaháttr, however, the principle in itself gives way to the five-position counterpart. On the other hand, the variation in the metrical– linguistic alignment in the three close cognate metres may be generalised by positing the common scale, Heliand > Beowulf > fornyrðislag, for the decreasing likelihood of resolution, the increasing likelihood of suspending resolution, and the decreasing size of the drop.
An Intermittent Arch Model for Predicting Dynamic Pressures during Discharge in Grain Storage Bins
Authors: Zhang Qiang , Cheng Xuduo
Published: December 2014

Abstract. Arching is a common phenomenon in bulk solids storage structures during discharge. It is hypothesized that dynamic pressures during discharge result from the formation of intermittent arches in grain bins. For free-flowing materials such as agricultural grains, these arches are not strong enough to stop the material flow, but they may slow down the moving material in some locations in the bin. When the moving material is slowed down, an inertia force caused by deceleration will be induced. The arch will also carry some of the material weight above it. Since the arch is supported by the bin wall, both the inertia force and the additional material weight carried by the arch will be transferred through the arch to the bin wall, causing the pressure to increase on the bin wall. Based on this force transfer mechanism, a predictive model was developed for predicting dynamic pressures on the walls of grain bins during discharge. A mass-spring system was proposed to represent the grain bulk in calculating the inertia force caused by deceleration. The predicted dynamic pressure is in good agreement with the experimental data reported in the literature for wheat, and the predicted overpressure factor is in close agreement with that recommended in ASABE Standards for bin design.
Parent and Teacher Perspectives About Problem Behavior in Children With Williams Syndrome
Authors: Klein-Tasman Bonita P. , Lira Ernesto N. , Li-Barber Kirsten T. , Gallo Frank J. , Brei Natalie G.
Published: December 2014

Problem behavior of 52 children with Williams syndrome ages 6 to 17 years old was examined based on both parent and teacher report. Generally good inter-rater agreement was found. Common areas of problem behavior based both on parent and teacher report included attention problems, anxiety difficulties, repetitive behaviors (e.g., obsessions, compulsions, picking nose or skin), and social problems, reflecting a robust behavioral phenotype in Williams syndrome present across contexts. Some rater differences were observed; most notably, parents reported more attention and mood difficulties than did teachers, while teachers reported more oppositionality and aggression than did parents. Relations to intellectual functioning, age, and gender were examined. The implications of the findings for understanding the behavioral phenotype associated with Williams syndrome are discussed.
Primary forest fuel supply chain: assessing barriers and drivers for the modal shift from truck to train
Authors: Wolfsmayr Ulrich , Rauch Peter
Published: December 2014

Multimodal primary forest fuel (PFF) transport using the railroad for main haulage has been quite uncommon to present, although it could provide considerable advantages in terms of economical, ecological and social parameters. Accordingly, the objective of this paper is to assess barriers and drivers for the modal shift from truck to train. As methodological tool, we are using the concept of Quality Function Deployment (QFD) with the House of Quality (HoQ) â an approach that has not been used in forest management so far. As the most important barriers for the modal shift from truck to train in PFF transport in Austria, the following were identified: (i) bioenergy plant managers have a negative opinion and negative experience regarding the railroad in terms of high prices, a lot of bureaucracy, etc.; (ii) absence of rail sidings or relatively short rail sidings not suitable for block trains; and (iii) unwillingness to invest in new supply or unloading systems. On the contrary, the most important drivers for a modal shift are: (i) multimodal PFF supply chains using trains can provide high volumes; (ii) increasing catchment areas for larger CHP plants result in increasing transport distances; and (iii) rail transport has less negative environmental and social impact than road transport.