bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Genetic Predisposition to Ischemic Stroke
Authors: Hachiya Tsuyoshi , Kamatani Yoichiro , Takahashi Atsushi , Hata Jun , Furukawa Ryohei , Shiwa Yuh , Yamaji Taiki , Hara Megumi , Tanno Kozo , Ohmomo Hideki , Ono Kanako , Takashima Naoyuki , Matsuda Koichi , Wakai Kenji , Sawada Norie , Iwasaki Motoki , Yamagishi Kazumasa , Ago Tetsuro , Ninomiya Toshiharu , Fukushima Akimune , Hozawa Atsushi , Minegishi Naoko , Satoh Mamoru , Endo Ryujin , Sasaki Makoto , Sakata Kiyomi , Kobayashi Seiichiro , Ogasawara Kuniaki , Nakamura Motoyuki , Hitomi Jiro , Kita Yoshikuni , Tanaka Keitaro , Iso Hiroyasu , Kitazono Takanari , Kubo Michiaki , Tanaka Hideo , Tsugane Shoichiro , Kiyohara Yutaka , Yamamoto Masayuki , Sobue Kenji , Shimizu Atsushi
Published: December 2016

Background and Purpose—

The prediction of genetic predispositions to ischemic stroke (IS) may allow the identification of individuals at elevated risk and thereby prevent IS in clinical practice. Previously developed weighted multilocus genetic risk scores showed limited predictive ability for IS. Here, we investigated the predictive ability of a newer method, polygenic risk score (polyGRS), based on the idea that a few strong signals, as well as several weaker signals, can be collectively informative to determine IS risk.

Methods—

We genotyped 13 214 Japanese individuals with IS and 26 470 controls (derivation samples) and generated both multilocus genetic risk scores and polyGRS, using the same derivation data set. The predictive abilities of each scoring system were then assessed using 2 independent sets of Japanese samples (KyushuU and JPJM data sets).

Results—

In both validation data sets, polyGRS was shown to be significantly associated with IS, but weighted multilocus genetic risk scores was not. Comparing the highest with the lowest polyGRS quintile, the odds ratios for IS were 1.75 (95% confidence interval, 1.33–2.31) and 1.99 (95% confidence interval, 1.19–3.33) in the KyushuU and JPJM samples, respectively. Using the KyushuU samples, the addition of polyGRS to a nongenetic risk model resulted in a significant improvement of the predictive ability (net reclassification improvement=0.151;
P
<0.001).

Conclusions—

The polyGRS was shown to be superior to weighted multilocus genetic risk scores as an IS prediction model. Thus, together with the nongenetic risk factors, polyGRS will provide valuable information for individual risk assessment and management of modifiable risk factors.
“The Case of Two Boys,” Gender, and Justice in Late Soviet Russia
Authors: Dowling Rhiannon
Published: December 2016

This article examines a criminal case from 1966–1969 concerning a crime that took place in 1965 in the town of Izmalkovo outside of Moscow. Two young men were charged and eventually acquitted for the rape and murder of their female classmate. Their trial drew the attention of jurists and journalists from the capital, as well as scrutiny from the highest judicial and party organs in addition to the ire of local villagers. Two accounts remain of the trial: one written in 1969 by a Moscow journalist, Olga Chaikovskaia, well-known for her writings on crime and law throughout the late Soviet period, and the other penned over a decade later by Dina Kaminskaia, one of the defense lawyers in the trial and later notorious for her advocacy on behalf of prominent dissidents. Both of these women, in describing their defense of the young men, employed gendered conceptions of justice and legality in order to criticize or condemn the Soviet justice system and its agents. And yet Kaminskaia’s and Chaikovskaia’s narratives reveal that, in spite of deep divisions between people from different classes, localities, and with disparate education levels, both urban intelligentsia elite women and the simple village women who heartily opposed them could still have a remarkable degree of faith in the criminal justice system well into the era of “stagnation.” What interested the women from the capital in this case was their perception that the highest organs of Soviet power were involved in these boys’ prosecution, and that their convictions were a foregone conclusion. What kept them coming back to Izmalkovo after repeated set-backs, was the hope that, with the right arguments and evidence, and in spite of the political bias working against them, that justice could nonetheless be achieved for the boys. On this count, they were correct.
International Criminology and the Russian Fight against Transnational Obscenity, 1885–1925
Authors: Hetherington Philippa
Published: December 2016

This article examines Russian criminologists’ engagements with emergent norms of international criminal law at the fin-de-siècle. In particular, it discusses attempts to end the ‘international traffic in pornography’ from the 1880s onwards, framing these attempts as key elements in the development of Russian ideas about sexual crime more broadly. For pre- and post-revolutionary Russian criminologists involved with the Hague-based International Union for Penal Law, the crime of trafficking in pornography was conceptualized as both a crime against the censor and also an offense that did specific harm to certain social groups, namely women and children. In this way, anxieties about gender and sex lay at the heart of the calls to ban the cross-border trade in obscenity, suggesting a particular biopolitical understanding of international security haunting early twentieth century international criminal law.
Abduction of Women in Early Modern Russia: Modernizing the Empire
Authors: Muravyeva Marianna
Published: December 2016

The abduction of women is closely connected with traditional or primitive societies. Anthropologists tie it with alternative marriage arrangements, characteristic of those systems where marriages are arranged by parents; historians tend to view the abduction of women as part of early history of developed nations, mostly the Middle Ages. In Russia, recent historiographical discussion of abductions always starts with descriptions of customary practices in Siberia to highlight the steppe and frontier experiences in the framework of colonization and underline ‘savage’ or ‘backwardness’ of Siberian populations. However, scholars almost never talk about the abduction of women within the European part. In this article, female abductions are analyzed within the framework of citizenship and modernization of the Russian Empire in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. It focuses on the notion of consent and how it contributed to the founding of a new social unit, that is the family, in which women and men acquired their rights and duties in relation to outside society and wider polity. The lack of consent jeopardized the legitimacy of such a union and compromized the citizenship status of its members. On its way to build the country as a modern empire, Russian authorities localized the abduction of women as a ‘customary’ practice of ‘backwards’ people to preserve the modern European core of the Empire.
Geopolitics and the Roots of Putin’s Foreign Policy
Authors: Rutland Peter
Published: December 2016

The four books reviewed here explore the intellectual roots of Vladimir Putin’s intervention in Ukraine. Agnia Grigas sees it as the result of a logic of imperial expansion inherent to the Russian state, while Charles Clover argues it was shaped by the revival of ideas of Russia as a Eurasian civilization. Mark Bassin provides a deep analysis of the evolution of the thought of Lev Gumilev, the most influential Eurasianist thinker. Gerard Toal brings the perspective of a critical geographer, and views Russian behavior through the prism of its rhetorical stand-off with the United States.
Does Scepticism Presuppose Voluntarism?
Authors: Hill Jonathan
Published: December 2016

Philosophical scepticism is sometimes thought to presuppose doxastic voluntarism, the claim that we are able to believe or disbelieve propositions at will. This is problematic given that doxastic voluntarism itself is a controversial position. I examine two arguments for the view that scepticism presupposes voluntarism. I show that they rely on different versions of a depiction of scepticism as a conversion narrative. I argue that one version of this narrative does presuppose voluntarism, but the other does not. Moreover, alternative versions of the narrative are available. I conclude that scepticism does not presuppose voluntarism.
Regional Governors Navigating through Putin’s Third Term
Authors: Sharafutdinova Gulnaz
Published: December 2016

This study focuses on the regional effects of new domestic and foreign policies initiated by Russia’s president and the challenging policy dilemmas faced by regional governors since 2012. It analyzes gubernatorial elections held during 2012–2015 to show the increased control over the electoral process and the regional cadre exercised by the Kremlin. It explores the implications of new identity politics and foreign policies advanced from Moscow on regional elites’ place in Russia’s system of power, their governance strategies and political economies. It reviews regional adjustment strategies undertaken in response to Russia’s rising economic problems.
Hematopoietic cell transplantation for a child with OSTM1 osteopetrosis
Authors: Overholt Kathleen M. , Rose Melissa J. , Joshi Sarita , Herman Gail E. , Bajwa Rajinder , Abu-Arja Rolla , Rangarajan Hemalatha G. , Horwitz Edwin M.
Published: December 2016

Key Points

HCT prior to onset of neurologic symptoms in children with OSTM1 osteopetrosis does not halt neurologic progression.
LL-37 boosts immunosuppressive function of placenta-derived mesenchymal stromal cells
Authors: Oliveira-Bravo Martha , Sangiorgi Bruno Braga , Schiavinato Josiane Lilian dos Santos , Carvalho Juliana Lott , Covas Dimas Tadeu , Panepucci Rodrigo Alexandre , Neves Francisco de Assis Rocha , Franco Octávio Luiz , Pereira Rinaldo Wellerson , Saldanha-Araujo Felipe
Published: December 2016

Background

Although promising for graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) treatment, MSC therapy still faces important challenges. For instance, increasing MSC migratory capacity as well as potentializing immune response suppression are of interest. For GvHD management, preventing opportunistic infections is also a valuable strategy, since immunocompromised patients are easy targets for infections. LL-37 is a host defense peptide (HDP) that has been deeply investigated due to its immunomodulatory function. In this scenario, the combination of MSC and LL-37 may result in a robust combination to be clinically used.

Methods

In the present study, the effects of LL-37 upon the proliferation and migratory capacity of human placenta-derived MSCs (pMSCs) were assessed by MTT and wound scratch assays. The influence of LL-37 over the immunosuppressive function of pMSCs was then investigated using CFSE cell division kit. Flow cytometry and real-time PCR were used to investigate the molecular mechanisms involved in the effects observed.

Results

LL-37 had no detrimental effects over MSC proliferation and viability, as assessed by MTT assay. Moreover, the peptide promoted increased migratory behavior of pMSCs and enhanced their immunomodulatory function over activated human PBMCs. Strikingly, our data shows that LL-37 treatment leads to increased TLR3 levels, as shown by flow cytometry, and to an increased expression of factors classically related to immunosuppression, namely IDO, IL-10, TGF-β, IL-6, and IL-1β.

Conclusions

Taken together, our observations may serve as groundwork for the development of new therapeutic strategies based on the combined use of LL-37 and MSCs, which may provide patients not only with an enhanced immunosuppression regime, but also with an agent to prevent opportunistic infections.
Grafted c-kit+/SSEA1− eye-wall progenitor cells delay retinal degeneration in mice by regulating neural plasticity and forming new graft-to-host synapses
Authors: Chen Xi , Chen Zehua , Li Zhengya , Zhao Chen , Zeng Yuxiao , Zou Ting , Fu Caiyun , Liu Xiaoli , Xu Haiwei , Yin Zheng Qin
Published: December 2016

Background

Despite diverse pathogenesis, the common pathological change observed in age-related macular degeneration and in most hereditary retinal degeneration (RD) diseases is photoreceptor loss. Photoreceptor replacement by cell transplantation may be a feasible treatment for RD. The major obstacles to clinical translation of stem cell-based cell therapy in RD remain the difficulty of obtaining sufficient quantities of appropriate and safe donor cells and the poor integration of grafted stem cell-derived photoreceptors into the remaining retinal circuitry.

Methods

Eye-wall c-kit+/stage-specific embryonic antigen 1 (SSEA1)− cells were isolated via fluorescence-activated cell sorting, and their self-renewal and differentiation potential were detected by immunochemistry and flow cytometry in vitro. After labeling with quantum nanocrystal dots and transplantation into the subretinal space of rd1 RD mice, differentiation and synapse formation by daughter cells of the eye-wall c-kit+/SSEA1− cells were evaluated by immunochemistry and western blotting. Morphological changes of the inner retina of rd1 mice after cell transplantation were demonstrated by immunochemistry. Retinal function of rd1 mice that received cell grafts was tested via flash electroretinograms and the light/dark transition test.

Results

Eye-wall c-kit+/SSEA1− cells were self-renewing and clonogenic, and they retained their proliferative potential through more than 20 passages. Additionally, eye-wall c-kit+/SSEA1− cells were capable of differentiating into multiple retinal cell types including photoreceptors, bipolar cells, horizontal cells, amacrine cells, Müller cells, and retinal pigment epithelium cells and of transdifferentiating into smooth muscle cells and endothelial cells in vitro. The levels of synaptophysin and postsynaptic density-95 in the retinas of eye-wall c-kit+/SSEA1− cell-transplanted rd1 mice were significantly increased at 4 weeks post transplantation. The c-kit+/SSEA1− cells were capable of differentiating into functional photoreceptors that formed new synaptic connections with recipient retinas in rd1 mice. Transplantation also partially corrected the abnormalities of inner retina of rd1 mice. At 4 and 8 weeks post transplantation, the rd1 mice that received c-kit+/SSEA1− cells showed significant increases in a-wave and b-wave amplitude and the percentage of time spent in the dark area.

Conclusions

Grafted c-kit+/SSEA1− cells restored the retinal function of rd1 mice via regulating neural plasticity and forming new graft-to-host synapses.
The regulation of acute immune responses to the bacterial lung pathogenLegionella pneumophila
Authors: Brown Andrew Stephen , Yang Chao , Hartland Elizabeth Louise , van Driel Ian Richard
Published: December 2016

Legionella pneumophila causes Legionnaires’ disease, a severe and potentially fatal bacterial pneumonia in immunocompromised individuals. Despite the understanding that a robust inflammatory response is important for control of L. pneumophila infection, our understanding of the network of molecular and cellular events within the lung that function to clear the bacterium is not clearly understood. This review compiles our understanding of the various molecular and cellular pathways stimulated upon infection with L. pneumophila and considers recently published advances that focus on the immune response to L. pneumophila in the lungs of mice. This includes a cooperative network of tissue-resident and inflammatory phagocytes, including alveolar macrophages (AM)s, neutrophils, and inflammatory monocytes/monocyte-derived cells (MC) that contribute to the acute inflammatory response and restrict the bacteria via distinct intracellular pathways. The understanding of this difference in cellular activity in response to infection provides insight into the innate immune responses within the tissues in general and may prompt novel means of clinical management of bacterial infections in an era of increasing emergence of antibiotic resistance.
A high-resolution weighted AB semblance for dealing with amplitude-variation-with-offset phenomenon
Authors: Ebrahimi Saleh , Kahoo Amin Roshandel , Chen Yangkang , Porsani Milton
Published: December 2016

Velocity analysis is an essential step in seismic reflection data processing. The conventional and fastest method to estimate how velocity changes with increasing depth is to calculate semblance coefficients. Traditional semblance has two problems: low time and velocity resolution and an inability to handle amplitude variation-with-offset (AVO) phenomenon. Although a method known as the AB semblance can arrive at peak velocities in the areas with an AVO anomaly, it has a lower velocity resolution than conventional semblance. We have developed a weighted AB semblance method that can handle both problems simultaneously. We have developed two new weighting functions to weight the AB semblance to enhance the resolution of velocity spectra in the time and velocity directions. In this way, we increase the time and velocity resolution while eliminating the AVO problem. The first weighting function is defined based on the ratio between the first and the second singular values of the time window to improve the resolution of velocity spectra in velocity direction. The second weighting function is based on the position of the seismic wavelet in the time window, thus enhancing the resolution of velocity spectra in time direction. We use synthetic and field data examples to show the superior performance of our approach over the traditional one.
Improved eigenvalue-based coherence algorithm with dip scanning
Authors: Yan Binpeng , Yuan Sanyi , Wang Shangxu , OuYang Yonglin , Wang Tieyi , Shi Peidong
Published: December 2016

Detection and identification of subsurface anomalous structures are key objectives in seismic exploration. The coherence technique has been successfully used to identify geologic abnormalities and discontinuities, such as faults and unconformities. Based on the classic third eigenvalue-based coherence ([Formula: see text]) algorithm, we make several improvements and develop a new method to construct covariance matrix using the original and Hilbert transformed seismic traces. This new covariance matrix more readily converges to the main effective signal energy on the largest eigenvalue by decreasing all other eigenvalues. Compared with the conventional coherence algorithms, our algorithm has higher resolution and better noise immunity ability. Next, we incorporate this new eigenvalue-based algorithm with time-lag dip scanning to relieve the dip effect and highlight the discontinuities. Application on 2D synthetic data demonstrates that our coherence algorithm favorably alleviates the low-valued artifacts caused by linear and curved dipping strata and clearly reveals the discontinuities. The coherence results of 3D real field data also commendably suppress noise, eliminate the influence of large dipping strata, and highlight small hidden faults. With the advantages of higher resolution and robustness to random noise, our strategy successfully achieves the goal of detecting the distribution of discontinuities.
Do participatory scenario exercises promote systems thinking and build consensus?
Authors: Schmitt Olabisi Laura , Adebiyi Jelili , Traoré Pierre Sibiry , Kakwera Mayamiko Nathaniel
Published: December 2016

Participatory scenario processes are associated with positive social learning outcomes, including consensus-building and shifts toward more systemic thinking. However, these claims have not been assessed quantitatively in diverse cultural and socio-ecological settings. We convened three stakeholder workshops around the future of agricultural development and rural livelihoods in Burkina Faso, Nigeria, and Malawi, using a participatory scenario generation process to examine proposed research and action priorities under conditions of uncertainty. We administered pre- and post-workshop surveys, and used a paired t-test to assess how stakeholders’ rankings of research priorities changed after participating in the scenario visioning exercise. Workshop participants also listed their own priorities for research and implementation on both the pre- and post-survey forms. We found indications that the workshops promoted consensus-building around the research priorities, including a reduction in standard deviation of priority rankings post-workshop compared to pre-workshop; and a higher incidence of identical volunteered responses. We did not find evidence to support shifts in thinking to more systemic views of agricultural development. However, participants viewed themselves as having learned throughout the process. We conclude that scenario visioning does have the potential to foster consensus-building (one element of social learning) among diverse stakeholder groups. We urge researchers to continue to monitor and measure systems thinking outcomes from scenario visioning so that these processes may be designed to be more effective.
Contributions of fallow lands in the Brazilian Amazon to CO2 balance, deforestation and the agrarian economy: Inequalities among competing land use trajectories
Authors: Costa Francisco de Assis
Published: December 2016

Development of regulations limiting greenhouse gas emissions is creating demands and new markets for land-based carbon sinks. Expectations of development of clean technologies and new sources of clean energy are affecting the supply side, creating opportunities for remuneration for sustainable development of natural resources. This paper[1] presents a model developed to gain a realistic understanding of the heterogeneous roles of capoeira (fallow agricultural land) in land use dynamics and CO2 balance in the Brazilian Amazon. The model estimates the areas and CO2 balance of different types of capoeira in association with different farming activities and also monitors carbon intensity over time in the context of technological trajectories (distinct farming systems). Modeling with agricultural census data compared six different, competing technological trajectories of capoeira for changes in major land use variables and impacts on CO2 balance from 1990 to 2011. Results revealed that: a) technological trajectories contribute differently to net emissions of CO2, with livestock for meat enterprises being the highest net emitters and peasant agroforestry and plantation enterprises the lower emitters; b) carbon intensity tends to diminish over time because of increased weight of trajectories with lower carbon intensity, in combination with reduced carbon intensity of trajectories with higher carbon intensity; and c) for most trajectories, reuse of “old land” becomes increasingly more important for explaining the essence of agricultural dynamics, including CO2 balance, than is deforestation for opening up new agricultural land. These results draw attention to the role of capoeiras in modernization and intensification of the agricultural sector through renovation of deforested land. The model allows evaluation of deforestation and CO2 emissions as functions of the evolution of markets for agricultural products and of deforestation dynamics decoupled from those market fluctuations. The model points to the land market as a possible hypothetical determinant of deforestation; and has possible applications to development policies targeting the Brazilian Amazon.
Possible malfunction in widely used methane sampler deserves attention but poses limited implications for supply chain emission estimates
Authors: Alvarez Ramón A. , Lyon David R. , Marchese Anthony J. , Robinson Allen L. , Hamburg Steven P.
Published: December 2016

Estimates of methane emissions from natural gas production sites in the United States based on recent studies have been questioned due to possible malfunction of the Bacharach Hi Flow® Sampler (BHFS), the primary measurement instrument used for two out of five source types examined in those studies (equipment leaks and chemical injection pumps). Without assessing whether the BHFS malfunction occurred in those studies, we constrain the possible underestimation of emissions associated with the BHFS-based results by excluding potentially affected measurements. Assuming leak emission rates are similar for sites with low and high methane content, U.S. methane emissions from equipment leaks and chemical injection pumps in recent studies could be underestimated by up to 40–80% due to a malfunctioning BHFS. We discuss uncertainties associated with this estimate. While a 40–80% underestimation is important when characterizing individual source categories, the potential implications are attenuated when aggregating emissions across the five sources examined in the recent studies (<12–24%), across all sources in the natural gas production segment (<7–14%), or across the entire supply chain (<2–5%). Therefore, potential errors caused by BHFS malfunction in recent studies would not substantially alter estimates of methane emissions from the U.S. natural gas supply chain. The possible malfunction of such a widely-used instrument deserves further attention to ensure that its use in quantifying emissions from individual supply chain components is not compromised.
Ethical, professional and political dimensions of cardiac nursing research
Authors: Mercer Dave , Flynn Maria
Published: December 2016

Ethical and institutional approvals are essential requirements if a research proposal is to become a research project. This article critically approaches the history of ethical codes, and principles, in the context of politics and practice. It notes how international regulatory mechanisms that govern the research process in medicine and nursing represented a response to state-sanctioned human rights abuses of the last century. It is argued that ethical thinking, and awareness, is central to all stages of the research process. Attention is given to pragmatic ways that cardiac nurses can protect the rights and freedoms of individuals who make an informed decision to participate in a research study, service evaluation, or clinical audit—and how this can be documented, and conveyed, to an ethical or institutional review body. Lastly, we return to the socio-cultural and economic context that frames all health and social research, calling for equivalent standards of integrity, vigilance, and respect in nursing inquiry, as would be expected in nursing care.
ECG of the month
Authors: Regan Martin
Published: December 2016

Martin Regan presents an ECG for you to analyse
Flying high for heart failure: considerations for air travel
Authors: Mather Jenifer
Published: December 2016

As the general population appears to be living longer and developing multiple health conditions, the popularity of travelling by air to different destinations is also increasing. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to understand patients' cardiovascular condition in relation to the abnormal environment experienced by the body during air travel. Understanding the physiological adaptations that occur during flight should make it easier to properly prepare patients with heart failure prior to flight, reducing any in-flight exacerbations and creating an overall positive flying experience.
What factors are driving increasing demand for community nursing?
Authors: Chalk Daniel , Legg Alison
Published: December 2016

Demand for district nursing services is increasing significantly. With increasing economic pressures, services are struggling to meet increases in demand, and are looking to become more proactive in planning for future demand. Traditional quantitative forecasting methods have limited use, because of the complexity of inter-linking factors that potentially drive demand for community services.

Qualitative system dynamics approaches can be useful to model the complex interplay of causal factors leading to an effect, such as increased demand for services, and identify particular areas of concern for future focus. We ran a facilitated qualitative system dynamics workshop with representatives working across community nursing services in Cornwall. The generated models identified 7 key areas of concern that could be significantly contributing to demand for district nursing services. We outline the identified problem areas in this paper, and discuss potential recommendations to reduce their effects based on causal links identified in the models.
Professionalism in practice: the Coroner's Court
Authors: Griffith Richard
Published: December 2016

A coroner recently declared a district nursing service as unfit for purpose following the death of a patient and held the care given by district nurses was unprofessional and contributed to the patient's decline and death. In this article Richard Griffith considers the coroners concerns in relation to the professional standards imposed on district nurses.
A new species of Larinus Dejean (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) from China
Authors: Gültekin Levent , Lyal Christopher H. C.
Published: December 2016

Based on specimens in the Natural History Museum (London), a new species of the genus Larinus Dejan, 1821 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Lixinae), Larinus barclayi sp. nov., is described from China. The new species is assigned to the subgenus Phyllonomeus Gistel, 1856, compared with closely related species, and colour digital photographs of morphological characters are presented.
LEAN HEALTHCARE APPLICATION IN A SURGICAL PROCEDURES APPOINTMENT SCHEDULING CENTER IN A MATERNITY
Authors: Paim Rafael , Costa Amanda , Carvalho Jonathan De , Lima Inácio Araripe Costa
Published: December 2016

The study aimed to apply Lean Healthcare concepts and tools in surgical scheduling process. The intention was to structure and implement an appointment-scheduling central that was able to manage more effectively the demand for elective obstetrical surgeries in a neonatal maternity. The study used action research as a scientific method in order to solve a problem encountered in scheduling procedures involving employees in a cooperative and participatory improvement initiative. The method used was based on literature review, benchmarking visits and studies to identify good practices, and on current working condition analysis and comparison of indicators before and after the intervention.  The Lean and TOC theoretical frameworks was used to improve the process, creating value for the patients and professionals, conducting root-cause analysis, identifying wastes and constrains, and proposing and implementing solutions. Using action research in the study and applying the concepts and tools was possible to reach different results as the 70% reduction in cancellations, the increase in the number of procedures scheduled in the units, and increased 97% level of appointment scheduling service among other results.
PLANNING PROCESS OF PILOT BATCH PRODUCTION OF AN INNOVATIVE DRUG FOR CLINICAL TRIAL IN A PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY
Authors: Harada Lila M. , Da Silva Adriano Manicoba
Published: December 2016

Purpose – Clinical trials are the most critical step in the process of drug development and evaluation to bring a new drug to market. The purpose of this article was to show an approach of the planning and production of a new innovative drug for a clinical study, based on the presentation of decision-making process in a national pharmaceutical industry.Design / methodology / approach - Through a case-study methodology, it was described the pilot batch production planning of a new drug for clinical trial, focusing on how the company evaluates the adequacy of the available systems at the manufacturing plant and how they use them in drug production planning process.Findings – A previous planning for clinical trial supplies production is determinant to decide the order, amount and timing of the products to be produced when the manufacturing plant is shared with the production of commercial products. Also, even in a small pilot batch production, there is a substantial waste of supplies during the process.Research Limitations / Implications – This study showed the production planning process of one investigational product with the recruitment of few patients for the clinical trial. However, the number of patients enrolled can reach thousands in many clinical trials, and it does need a more complex production planning to avoid wastes and try to reduce the process costs.Practical Implications - This article provides a picture of the production planning of clinical trial supplies chain under uncertainty and the decisions that affect the large-scale production of commercial drugs and the pilot batch production of experimental drugs.Originality / value - Although the results of clinical trials is the most significant source of uncertainty in the development process of any new drug, a good clinical supply planning and processes management can avoid or attenuate the imminent risk of process failure.
Turkey Training Community Alliance (TTCA) evaluation of the sport by objective function
Türkiye İdman Cemiyetleri İttifaki (TİCİ) amaçlarına göre sporun fonksiyonlarının değerlendirilmesi
Authors: Özmaden Murat , Soyer Fikret , Özmaden Harun
Published: December 2016

TICI, which is the first multi-club organization of the history of Turkish sport management, intended to determine to what extent the physical and mental development, creating a strong society, preperation to army and country defence functions which is expected to be realized in a modern society that new association management aims and formulated by TICI with reference to the goals in its organization legislation. It is considered that this study will be important for being a model for next studies on sport management structures and the historical descriptions of physical education and sport and regarding the realisation of the sense of sport upon what social demands in the TICI period which is the sequence of our recent history. ÖzetBu çalışmada, Türk spor yönetim tarihinin ilk çok-kulüplü örgütü olarak TİCİ’nin kuruluş nizamnamesinde yer alan amaçlarından hareketle, Beden Eğitimi ve Spor’un yeni kurulan cemiyet yönetiminin hedeflediği modern toplumda yerine getirmesi beklenen ve tarafımızca formüle edilmiş, fiziksel ve ruhsal gelişim, güçlü toplum yaratma, askere hazırlık ve yurt müdafaası fonksiyonlarının hangi düzeyde gerçekleştirildiğinin belirlenmesi amaçlanmıştır. Çalışmanın, yakın tarihimizin kesiti olan TİCİ döneminde, spor anlayışının hangi toplumsal taleplere dönük olduğunun anlaşılması ve sonraki dönemlere ait spor yönetim yapılarının ve beden eğitimi ve spor çalışmalarının tarihi tasvirlerine yönelik araştırmalar için model oluşturması bakımından önemli olacağı düşünülmektedir.
Variations in developmental patterns across pragmatic features
Authors: Li Qiong
Published: December 2016

Drawing on the findings of longitudinal studies in uninstructed contexts over the last two decades, this synthesis explores variations in developmental patterns across second language (L2) pragmatic features. Two synthesis questions were addressed: (a) What are the variations in developmental patterns across pragmatic features?, and (b) What are the potential explanations for the variations? In response to the first question, previous studies showed that L2 pragmatic development is a non-linear, dynamic process, with developmental paces varying across pragmatic features (Ortactepe, 2013; Taguchi, 2010, 2011, 2012; Warga & Scholmberger, 2007). These studies revealed that some aspects of pragmatic features (e.g., semantic strategies of speech acts) develop faster than others (e.g., lexical features such as mitigators). In response to the second question, three potential explanations were identified to account for the developmental variations: (a) language-related, (b) situation-dependent, and (c) learner-related explanations, with three subcategories for the language-related explanation: (a) the functions of pragmatic features, (b) the frequency of availability of target features, and (c) the similarity and difference between languages with respect to the target feature.
Unconscious motivation. Part II: Implicit attitudes and L2 achievement
Authors: Al-Hoorie Ali H.
Published: December 2016

This paper investigates the attitudinal/motivational predictors of second language (L2) academic achievement. Young adult learners of English as a foreign language (N = 311) completed several self-report measures and the Single-Target Implicit Association Test. Examination of the motivational profiles of high and low achievers revealed that attachment to the L1 community and the ought-to L2 self were negatively associated with achievement, while explicit attitudes toward the L2 course and implicit attitudes toward L2 speakers were positively associated with it. The relationship between implicit attitudes and achievement could not be explained either by social desirability or by other cognitive confounds, and remained significant after controlling for explicit self-report measures. Explicit–implicit congruence also revealed a similar pattern, in that congruent learners were more open to the L2 community and obtained higher achievement. The results also showed that neither the ideal L2 self nor intended effort had any association with actual L2 achievement, and that intended effort was particularly prone to social desirability biases. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Ocena Przydatności Testerów Szorstkości w Procesie Eksploatacji Nawierzchni Lotniskowych
Authors: Wesołowski Mariusz , Barszcz Piotr , Blacha Krzysztof
Published: December 2016

Streszczenie

Poprawność oceny szorstkości nawierzchni lotniskowych jest ważnym elementem bezpieczeństwa wykonywania operacji lotniczych. Zagraniczne oraz krajowe dokumenty normatywne określają wymagane wartości współczynników tarcia dla: projektowanych (nowych) nawierzchni lotniskowych, użytkowanych i/lub będących przedmiotem planowania prac remontowych oraz minimalne (graniczne) dla eksploatowanych nawierzchni lotniskowych. Ponadto, dokumenty te definiują ogólne wymagania dotyczące urządzeń pomiarowych stosowanych do określania szorstkości nawierzchni lotniskowych. Akceptowalny poziom powtarzalności pomiaru współczynnika tarcia nie jest warunkiem wystarczającym do zaakceptowania urządzenia do wykonywania pomiarów szorstkości nawierzchni elementów funkcjonalnych lotnisk. Dlatego warunkiem dopuszczenia urządzenia do wykonywania pomiarów współczynnika tarcia powinno być przeprowadzenie badań w celu określenia jego przydatności do tego typu pomiarów. Badania te powinny obejmować m.in. ocenę urządzenia w odniesieniu do urządzeń dopuszczonych do wykonywania pomiarów, z wykorzystaniem aparatu statystycznego. Na końcową ocenę przydatności urządzenia składa się ponadto całokształt problemów technicznych związanych z procesem eksploatacji poprzez przygotowanie urządzenia do pomiarów, jego kalibrację (sprawdzenie) przed pomiarami, a skończywszy na samych pomiarach.
Evaluation of the Usefulness of Friction Tester Vehicles to Operate on Runway Pavement Surfaces
Authors: Wesołowski Mariusz , Barszcz Piotr , Blacha Krzysztof
Published: December 2016

The assessment correctness of runway pavement surfaces is a crucial element ensuring safety during flight operations. Foreign and national normative documents specify the required values of coefficients of friction both for designed (new) and utilized runway pavement surfaces and/or those subject to planned renovation works. What is more, the above mentioned documents determine the minimum (limit) values for operated runway pavement surfaces. Furthermore, they also describe the general requirements as regards measuring devices applied to specify the roughness of runway pavement surfaces. The accepted repeatability (Equipment Variation) of coefficient of friction measurement is not sufficient to approve the device for roughness measurements of aerodrome functional elements. Due to this fact the device is authorized to take measurements of coefficient of friction under the condition that it is preceded by certain studies carried out in order to establish its usefulness. These research consist inter alia of the device evaluation in view of devices authorized to perform measurements, using statistical apparatus. Final evaluation of instrument usefulness includes additionally the whole gamut of technical problems associated with the operation process, its preparation, calibration (checking) before taking measurements and the measurements themselves.
Wybrane Problemy Badań Podwozia Statku Powietrznego
Authors: Rośkowicz Marek , Leszczyński Piotr
Published: December 2016

Streszczenie

W artykule zaprezentowano wyniki badań eksperymentalnych wykonywanych w zakresie statycznej próby wytrzymałościowej podwozia głównego samolotu lekkiego i wyznaczenia charakterystyki pneumatyka koła podwozia głównego. Badania były wykonywane zgodnie z metodykami wykonywania testów na potrzeby rozwiązań wprowadzanych do konstrukcji lotniczych. Stwierdzono, że statyczne próby wytrzymałościowe podwozia nie powinny być realizowane z wykorzystaniem amortyzatorów, ponieważ element ten, wykazujący silne właściwości lepkosprężyste, obciążony statycznie ulega przemieszczeniom niespotykanym w normalnej eksploatacji statku powietrznego. Ponadnormatywne przemieszczenia amortyzatora powodują, że rozkład obciążeń w pozostałych elementach podwozia jest niezgodny z założeniami konstrukcyjnymi, co w konsekwencji prowadzi do przerwania próby przy istotnie niższych obciążeniach od zakładanych. Stwierdzono również, że do wyznaczania charakterystyk pneumatyka nie ma potrzeby wykonywania testów na całej goleni podwozia, ponieważ wyniki otrzymywane w próbie ściskania samego koła z pneumatykiem są identyczne jak w próbach prowadzonych zgodnie z metodyką. Proces przygotowania do testów z użyciem samego koła oraz ich realizacja jest mniej czasochłonna i mniej kosztowna oraz dodatkowo nie powoduje konieczności budowania złożonych stanowisk badawczych.
Dependability of the Exemplary Technical System for Assumed Functions of Defect Density
Authors: Stępień Sławomir , Grzesik Justyna
Published: December 2016

The analysis of structural dependability of technical system, especially determining the change in dependability over time, requires knowledge on density function or the understanding of cumulative distribution function of components belonging to the structure. Based on previously registered data concerning component defect, it is relatively easy to establish the average uptime of component as well as the standard deviation for this time. However, defining distribution shape gives rise to some difficulties. Usually, we do not have the sufficient number of data at our disposal to verify the hypothesis regarding the distribution shape. Due to this fact, it is a common practice, depending on the case under consideration, to apply the function of defect density. However, the question arises: Does the incorrect determination of types of distributions of components leads to the big error of estimation results of dependability and system durability? This article will not respond to this question in whole, but one will conduct a comparison of calculation results for a few cases. The calculations were conducted for the exemplary technical system.
Effect of climatic changes on the development of the thermal-ice regime based on the example of Lake Charzykowskie (Poland)
Authors: Pius Bożena , Marszelewski Włodzimierz
Published: December 2016

The paper discusses the course of air temperature in the years 1961-2014 in Chojnice (Central European Lowland), and its effect on water temperature and occurrence of ice cover on Lake Charzykowskie. An increase in mean annual air temperature was determined by 0.31°C per 10 years, and its even faster increase in the winter season (December-March), by 0.37°C per 10 years on average. An increase in mean annual water temperature in the lake by 0.24°C per 10 years also occurred. An increase in air and water temperature in winter months caused a reduction of the period of occurrence of ice cover. In the years 1961-2014, the persistence of ice cover was subject to a decrease by 3.7 days per 10 years on average, and the mean thickness of the ice cover decreased from 30 to 19 cm.
Long-term water temperature fluctuations in coastal rivers (southern Baltic) in Poland
Authors: Ptak Mariusz , Choiński Adam , Kirviel Jan
Published: December 2016

The paper presents water temperature fluctuations in coastal rivers (Rega, Parsęta, Słupia, Łupawa, Łeba) located in the southern Baltic Sea area in Poland. Based on the available detailed data on daily values of the analysed characteristic in the years 1971-2015, tendencies of changes in the period were determined. It includes an analysis of temperature fluctuations in reference to mean annual and mean monthly values. In all of the five cases, the mean annual temperature showed an increasing tendency. The value of water warming in particular rivers was approximate, and ranged from 0.26 °C∙dec-1to 0.31°C∙dec-1. At the monthly scale, the highest increase was recorded in April, and amounted to 0.46°C∙dec-1on average. Water temperature fluctuations were particularly determined by climatic changes, and strongly correlated with air temperature. Local factors characteristic for coastal rivers, i.e. presence of infrastructure of small water power plants and predominance of groundwater alimentation, had a secondary effect on changes in the thermal regime of the analysed rivers.
Sediment origin and pedogenesis in the former mill pond basin of Turznice (north-central Poland) based on magnetic susceptibility measurements
Authors: Mendyk Łukasz , Hulisz Piotr , Kusza Grzegorz , Świtoniak Marcin , Gersztyn Leszek , Kalisz Barbara
Published: December 2016

This paper aims to assess the usefulness of magnetic susceptibility measurements in pedological studies of mill pond sediments. The study area includes the former Turznice mill pond basin located in the south-eastern part of the Grudziądz Basin. Four soil profiles were selected within the transect located along the longitudinal axis of the basin. The following soil properties were determined in the collected samples: bulk density, particle size distribution, pH, content of carbonates, approximate content of organic matter (LOI), total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (Nt), and the pseudo-total contents of metals (Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, Pb, Ni, Cd). The obtained results were correlated with the specific (mass) magnetic susceptibility (χ). This study revealed that the variability of the soil cover in the basin was driven by different sedimentation conditions. The different composition of natural terrace deposits versus mill pond sediments has been well reflected in the magnetic properties. However, the possibility cannot be excluded that a pedogenic (gleyic) process is the key factor causing the vertical variability of magnetic properties in studied soils.
About a Fuzzy Distance between Two Fuzzy Partitions and Application in Attribute Reduction Problem
Authors: Nghia Cao Chinh , Janos Demetrovics , Giang Nguyen Long , Thi Vu Duc
Published: December 2016

According to traditional rough set theory approach, attribute reduction methods are performed on the decision tables with the discretized value domain, which are decision tables obtained by discretized data methods. In recent years, researches have proposed methods based on fuzzy rough set approach to solve the problem of attribute reduction in decision tables with numerical value domain. In this paper, we proposeafuzzy distance between two partitions and an attribute reduction method in numerical decision tables based on proposed fuzzy distance. Experiments on data sets show that the classification accuracy of proposed method is more efficient than the ones based fuzzy entropy.