bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mutual exclusivity develops as a consequence of abstract rather than particular vocabulary knowledge
Authors: Kalashnikova Marina , Mattock Karen , Monaghan Padraic
Published: May 2016

Mutual exclusivity (ME) refers to the assumption that there are one-to-one relations between linguistic forms and their meanings. It is used as a word-learning strategy whereby children tend to map novel labels to unfamiliar rather than familiar referents. Previous research has indicated a relation between ME and vocabulary development, which could either be due to children’s developing knowledge of the labels for familiar objects, or to enhanced general word-learning skills. In this study, ME was related to receptive vocabulary for 17- to 19-month-old children in a novel paradigm where children’s familiarity with the objects and labels was controlled. It was found that infants with larger receptive vocabularies employed ME to a greater extent than infants with a smaller vocabulary size. The results indicate that ME use is more reliable in infants with larger receptive vocabulary size, and, critically, that ME gradually consolidates as an abstract word-learning strategy as infants’ linguistic experience increases.
Investigating Factors Affecting Knowledge Sharing Intention of Salespeople
Authors: Palo Sasmita , Charles Linu
Published: May 2016

This article examines the role of various economic, socio-psychological and sociological factors that influence a salesperson’s intention to share knowledge with other salespersons. The research framework is based on the original theory of reasoned action developed by Fishbein and Ajzen in 1975. Data were gathered through questionnaires involving 164 respondents across sectors. Measure validation and model testing were conducted using Partial Least Square (PLS) Graph Version 3.0. Results indicate that subjective norm (SN) followed by attitude towards knowledge sharing (KS) has the strongest influence on intention of salespeople to share knowledge. Among factors that affect attitude towards KS, perceived reputation enhancement has the strongest impact followed by other salient variables, such as perceived loss of knowledge power, organizational commitment and anticipated reciprocal benefits. This testifies that before engaging in KS, employees carefully weigh in the benefits and costs involved in the process. Negative and insignificant relationship is found between perceived organizational incentives and attitude towards KS. SN in context of KS is strongly influenced by factors, such as sense of self-worth followed by organizational climate.
Provocation: Technology, resistance and surveillance in public space
Authors: Grommé Francisca
Published: May 2016

The introduction of technologies that monitor and track individuals to attribute suspicion and guilt has become commonplace in practices of order maintenance in public space. A case study of the introduction of a marker spray in Dutch urban public transport is used to conceptualise the role of technology in everyday resistances against surveillance. The introduction of this technology made available alternative subject positions. The notion of provocation is proposed for the opening up of social spaces by a technology. Through provocation, issues that do not find their expression in commonly accepted protocols and means of evidence are given a voice as a result of defiant, emotional and provisional technology usage. Attending to visible and defiant usages also opens up an agenda for examining the varying intensities at which technology operates.
On the nature of urban dependencies: How Manhattan and Barcelona reinforced a natural organisation despite planning intentionality
Authors: Al_Sayed Kinda , Penn Alan
Published: May 2016

Cities appear to display similar features and mechanisms across different geographies. This phenomenon seems to hold despite planning intentionality. In questioning the nature of this behaviour, an attempt is made in this paper to examine how cities retrieve their relational dependencies between street structures and other form-function attributes after the imposition of large-scale planning interventions. For the purpose of this investigation, indices of accessibility and form-function data are binned in a grid layer to enable mapping dependencies between these variables in Manhattan and Barcelona. Ordinal Regression models are fitted to empirical data in order to identify the effect of planning on urban dependencies. To reveal how these dependencies build up in time, we model and visualise a dependency network that captures the spatiotemporal relationships between accessibility and form-function variables in Manhattan (1880–2010). The hypothesis is that where planning interventions are more dominant, the natural organisation that couples urban dependencies will be destabilized. The results confirm the hypothesis true for some form-function variables and within certain grid resolutions. The dependency network representing urban transformations in Manhattan explained some aspects of temporality in the relationships between the network structure of streets, street width, building height, land values and retail land uses. The models presented in this paper are thought to highlight regularities in the growth and change of Manhattan and Barcelona. An explanatory theory on how cities display this convergent behaviour is thought to be vital for urban design and planning policies.
Evidence that adenosine contributes to Leao’s spreading depression in vivo
Authors: Lindquist Britta E , Shuttleworth C William
Published: May 2016

Leao’s spreading depression of cortical activity is a propagating silencing of neuronal activity resulting from spreading depolarization (SD). We evaluated the contributions of action potential (AP) failure and adenosine A1 receptor (A1R) activation to the depression of evoked and spontaneous electrocorticographic (ECoG) activity after SD in vivo, in anesthetized mice. We compared depression with SD-induced effects on AP-dependent transmission, and synaptic potentials in the transcallosal and thalamocortical pathways. After SD, APs recovered rapidly, within 1–2 min, as demonstrated by evoked activity in distant projection targets. Evoked corticocortical postsynaptic potentials recovered next, within ∼5 min. Spontaneous ECoG and evoked thalamocortical postsynaptic potentials recovered together, after ∼10–15 min. The duration of ECoG depression was shortened 20% by systemic (10 mg/kg) or focal (30 µM) administration of A1R competitive antagonist 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX). ECoG depression was also shortened by focal application of exogenous adenosine deaminase (ADA; 100 U/mL), and conversely, was prolonged 50% by the non-competitive ADA inhibitor deoxycoformycin (DCF; 100 µM). We concluded that while initial depolarization block is brief, adenosine A1R activation, in part, contributes to the persistent secondary phase of Leao’s cortical spreading depression.
Side Effect Perceptions and Their Impact on Treatment Decisions in Women
Authors: Waters Erika A. , Pachur Thorsten , Colditz Graham A.
Published: May 2016

Background. Side effects prompt some patients to forego otherwise-beneficial therapies. This study explored which characteristics make side effects particularly aversive. Methods. We used a psychometric approach, originating from research on risk perception, to identify the factors (or components) underlying side effect perceptions. Women ( N = 149) aged 40 to 74 years were recruited from a patient registry to complete an online experiment. Participants were presented with hypothetical scenarios in which an effective and necessary medication conferred a small risk of a single side effect (e.g., nausea, dizziness). They rated a broad range of side effects on several characteristics (e.g., embarrassing, treatable). In addition, we collected 4 measures of aversiveness for each side effect: choosing to take the medication, willingness to pay to avoid the side effect (WTP), negative affective attitude associated with the side effect, and how each side effect ranks among others in terms of undesirability. A principal components analysis (PCA) was used to identify the components underlying side effect perceptions. Then, for each aversiveness measure separately, regression analyses were used to determine which components predicted differences in aversiveness among the side effects. Results. The PCA revealed 4 components underlying side effect perceptions: affective challenge (e.g., frightening), social challenge (e.g., disfiguring), physical challenge (e.g., painful), and familiarity (e.g., common). Side effects perceived as affectively and physically challenging elicited the highest levels of aversiveness across all 4 measures. Conclusions. Understanding what side effect characteristics are most aversive may inform interventions to improve medical decisions and facilitate the translation of novel biomedical therapies into clinical practice.
Agency and Communion, Ineffectiveness and Alienation
Authors: McCabe Allyssa , Dinh Khanh T.
Published: May 2016

McAdams’ life-story method has been used extensively with Caucasian and African American individuals, but not immigrants. We investigated the life stories of 40 Latino and Southeast Asian 15- to 18-year-olds, either first- or second-generation immigrants (50% female), half high-achieving, half low-achieving. Immigrant youth talked about agency and communion but also their opposites-ineffectiveness and alienation. As predicted, agency correlated with academic standing and significantly increased with age. Themes of ineffectiveness were significantly more common than agency, while themes of communion significantly exceeded alienation. Communion was significantly more common than agency, but the two also were significantly positively correlated in this sample from collectivist cultures, as were ineffectiveness and alienation. Immigrant youth negotiated their emerging autonomy through consideration of their accomplishments, failures, connections with, and alienation from family and friends.
Hepatic arterial damage after transarterial chemoembolization for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma: comparison of drug-eluting bead and conventional chemoembolization in a retrospective controlled study
Authors: Lee Seungsoo , Kim Kyoung Min , Lee Shin Jae , Lee Kwang-Hun , Lee Do Yun , Kim Man Deuk , Kim Do Young , Kim Seung Up , Won Jong Yun
Published: May 2016

Background

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) frequently causes feeding artery stenosis or occlusion that may interfere with repeated treatment.

Purpose

To investigate the incidence and predictors of hepatic arterial damage (HAD) after drug-eluting bead-TACE (DEB-TACE) in comparison with conventional TACE (Conv-TACE).

Material and Methods

We retrospectively analyzed 54 patients who underwent DEB-TACE for HCC as an initial treatment with follow-up angiography and 54 patients who underwent Conv-TACE using doxorubicin-lipiodol mixture and gelfoam particles for comparison. HAD was evaluated after a single session of TACE and graded as follows: grade I, no significant wall irregularity; grade II, overt stenosis; grade III, occlusion.

Results

The incidence of HAD was significantly higher in the DEB-TACE group than the Conv-TACE group when analyzed per branch (odds ratio [OR], 6.36; P < 0.001) and per patient (OR, 3.15; P = 0.005). For each HAD grade, the mean doxorubicin dose was greater in the DEB-TACE group than in the Conv-TACE group ( P < 0.001, P = 0.053, and P = 0.01 for grades I, II, and III, respectively). In multivariate analysis, risk factors of HAD included mean doxorubicin dose and selective embolization in the Conv-TACE group ( P = 0.03 and P < 0.001, respectively) and mean doxorubicin dose in the DEB-TACE group ( P = 0.004).

Conclusion

The incidence and grade of HAD were higher after DEB-TACE compared to Conv-TACE with doxorubicin dose as a possible risk factor. HAD was independent of overall survival in both groups.
Role of Serum cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP) in the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA): A case–control study
Authors: Liu Fengxia , Wang Xijuan , Zhang Xude , Ren Cuiai , Xin Jie
Published: May 2016

Objective

To analyse the role of serum cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP) levels in the differential diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods

This case–control study analysed the clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients with RA and healthy control subjects. The diagnostic ability of COMP for RA was evaluated by comparing it with anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody levels. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values were calculated.

Results

The study enrolled 82 patients with RA and 34 healthy control subjects. The serum COMP level was significantly higher in patients with RA compared with control subjects (mean ± SD 29.51 ± 9.21 ng/ml versus 17.85 ± 5.55 ng/ml, respectively). The serum COMP level was significantly higher in patients with active RA compared with patients with RA in remission (mean ± SD 33.08 ± 8.80 ng/ml versus 24.94 ± 7.65 ng/ml, respectively). The cut-off value for COMP to discriminate patients with RA from healthy individuals was 21.51 ng/ml (sensitivity 0.817, specificity 0.882, positive predictive value 0.944, negative predictive value 0.667, and accuracy 0.836).

Conclusion

The serum COMP level has the potential to be used as a biological marker for differentiating between patients with RA and healthy individuals.
Rethinking green entrepreneurship – Fluid narratives of the green economy
Authors: O'Neill Kirstie , Gibbs David
Published: May 2016

Green entrepreneurs have been seen as key drivers for a transition to a green economy. However, there has been limited in-depth qualitative empirical research with green entrepreneurs to date, focusing instead on typologies categorising certain ‘types’ of green entrepreneur. Moreover, the literature rarely situates such individual activities within broader concepts such as the green economy. In contrast, we suggest that current discourses of the green economy are important in contextualising the ways that green entrepreneurs make sense of themselves and their businesses. Green entrepreneurs are thus negotiating varying tensions between their business activities, environmental philosophies and wider contexts at the intersection between the green economy and the mainstream economy. Drawing on evidence from 55 interviews, we explore the narratives employed by green entrepreneurs to situate themselves within/outwith the wider green economy – the recursive framing of mainstream and niche ‘green’ activities provides a sense of the tensions and politics at play in the development of the green economy. We thus offer a new and more dynamic view of the evolving nature of ‘being’ and ‘becoming’ a green entrepreneur, rather than relying on the fixed categories espoused in previous typologies. We conclude that it is important that policy makers recognise the complex and contentious nature of green entrepreneurship, and that it is essential to view the green economy as a diverse constellation of myriad actors rather than corporate reinventions of business as usual.
Paranasal sinus opacification in headache sufferers: A population-based imaging study (the HUNT study-MRI)
Authors: Hansen Aleksander Grande , Stovner Lars Jacob , Hagen Knut , Helvik Anne-Sofie , Thorstensen Wenche Moe , Nordgård Ståle , Bugten Vegard , Eggesbø Heidi Beate
Published: May 2016

Background

The association between headache and paranasal sinus disease is still unclear. Because of symptom overlap, the two conditions are not easily studied on the basis of symptoms alone. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether paranasal sinus opacification on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was associated with migraine, tension-type headache (TTH) or unclassified headache.

Methods

This was a cross-sectional study of 844 randomly selected participants (442 women, age range 50–65 years, mean age 57.7 years). Based on 14 headache questions, participants were allocated to four mutually exclusive groups: migraine, TTH, unclassified headache or headache free. On MRI, opacifications as mucosal thickening, polyps/retention cysts and fluid in the five paired sinuses were measured and recorded if ≥1 mm. For each participant, opacification thickness was summed for each sinus and, in addition, a total sum of all sinuses was calculated. Opacification in each sinus was compared between headache-free participants and the headache groups using non-parametric tests, and the total sum was compared by logistical regression.

Results

No significant association was found between paranasal sinus opacification and headache in general, nor when headache was differentiated into migraine, TTH and unclassified headache. This was also true in separate analyses of mucosal thickening and fluid and of opacification from each paranasal sinus.

Conclusion

Migraine, TTH and unclassified headache were found not to be associated with an increased degree of paranasal sinus opacification at MRI.
Rethinking Strength
Authors: Nelson Tamara , Cardemil Esteban V. , Adeoye Camille T.
Published: May 2016

In this qualitative study, we examined perceptions of the strong Black woman (SBW) or superwoman role in a sample of 30 Black women. We found that participants conceptualized the SBW/superwoman role through five characteristics: independent, taking care of family and others, hardworking and high achieving, overcoming adversity, and emotionally contained. Most participants were ambivalent about their relationship with this role, given historical accounts and familial examples of Black women. Many participants appropriated the SBW/superwoman role by redefining it in ways that were more empowering and freeing. Several participants were critical of and rejected the SBW/superwoman role, focusing on its problematic and rigid view of strength. All of these perspectives underscore the importance of increasing awareness of restrictive gendered and racialized role expectations as well as the desire to maintain connections to the cultural legacy of Black women. Several important contextual factors (e.g., social status, family relationships) emerged that are relevant to the identified themes. Results from this study highlight how the discourse of strength and familiarity with the SBW/superwoman role are pervasive among Black women. Our findings underscore the need for practitioners to understand the complexity in how Black women make meaning of this role relative to help seeking for physical and mental health. Online slides for instructors who want to use this article for teaching are available on PWQ 's website at http://pwq.sagepub.com/supplemental
Psychometric Evaluation of the Spiritual Coping Strategies Scale Arabic Version for Saudi Nursing Students
Authors: Cruz Jonas Preposi , Alquwez Nahed , Alqubeilat Hikmet , Colet Paolo C.
Published: May 2016

Aim: To evaluate the psychometric properties of the Spiritual Coping Strategies scale Arabic version (SCS-A) in a sample of nursing students in Saudi Arabia. Method: This study had a cross-sectional design with a convenience sample of 100 nursing students in Saudi Arabia. Using the SCS-A and the Muslim Religiosity Scale for data collection, data were analyzed to establish the reliability and validity of the SCS-A. Findings: Good internal consistency reliability (Cronbach’s α > .70) and stability reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient > .80) were observed. Two dominant factors were extracted from the scale items, the nonreligious coping strategies and religious coping strategies, which accounted for 35.5% and 32.7% of the variance, respectively. The religious coping subscale exhibited a strong positive correlation with the religious practices subscale of the Muslim Religious Involvement Scale ( r = .45, p < .001) and total religiosity score ( r = .48, p < .001) as well as a weak positive correlation with the intrinsic religious beliefs subscale ( r = .25, p < .05). No significant relationship was found between nonreligious coping subscale and the Muslim Religious Involvement Scale. Conclusion: The SCS-A exhibited an acceptable validity and reliability, supporting its sound psychometric properties with respect to the responses from Saudi nursing students.
Nonlinear zero-bias current control for active magnetic bearing in power magnetically levitated spindle based on adaptive backstepping sliding mode approach
Authors: Rong Hai , Zhou Kai
Published: May 2016

The zero-bias current controlled way is proposed to cut down the power consumption of the active magnetic bearing in a power magnetically levitated spindle system. The zero-bias current controlled way is easier to realize than the zero-bias flux controlled way, since current can be detected directly, while flux is hard to be measured in practice. Besides, the active magnetic bearing suffers from lumped uncertainty including parameter uncertainty and external load, and the displacement of rotor caused by lumped uncertainty is undesirable. In practice, the upper bound of the lumped uncertainty especially the external load is hard to obtain, making it hard to choose parameters for a traditional sliding mode control. The adaptive backstepping sliding mode control method combining both the advantages of sliding mode procedure and backstepping procedure is proposed to solve this problem. Furthermore, the upper bound of lumped uncertainty is estimated in real time by an adaptive law. In this paper, first a new zero-bias current active magnetic bearing system model with lumped uncertainty is built; then two controllers based on the sliding mode control and adaptive backstepping sliding mode control methods are designed, respectively, and the stability analyses are given for the two controllers via Lyapunov function; finally, the effectiveness of the proposed adaptive backstepping sliding mode control approach for a zero-bias current active magnetic bearing system is verified by the simulation and experiment results.
Similar but different: Interviewing monozygotic twins discordant for musical practice
Authors: Eriksson Helene , Harmat László , Theorell Töres , Ullén Fredrik
Published: May 2016

Musical engagement is influenced by both environmental and genetic factors. Here, we explored non-genetic influences on musical engagement by performing semi-structured interviews of 10 Swedish monozygotic twin pairs that were highly discordant for piano practicing. The interviews were organized into five sections – (i) perceived reasons for the discordance; (ii) childhood differences in specific music related variables; (iii) strong memories of music; (iv) the perceived meaning of music in life and for health; and (v) language interests – and analyzed using response categorization. The playing twins from an early age found music more interesting and enjoyable than their co-twins and also gave richer and more elaborate descriptions of the meaning of music in life, in several cases emphasizing that music was important for their personal identity. In line with this, an analysis of previously collected web questionnaire data showed that the playing twins had a significantly higher openness to experience and proneness to experience flow during musical activities. In contrast, the twins reported essentially no within-pair differences in the musical engagement of their peers, parental support, music teacher, ensemble playing, public performances, and their interest and aptitude for languages. The interviews gave no indication that the differences in musical engagement were caused by systematic environmental influences that were consistent across twin pairs. Rather, the respondents presented a wide range of different explanations for their discordance in musical activity, suggesting that the remaining influences on musical engagement, when genetics and family environment are controlled for, may be highly individual and idiosyncratic.
Kir7.1 immunoreactivity in canine choroid plexus tumors
Authors: Choi Eun Ju , Sloma Erica A. , Miller Andrew D.
Published: May 2016

Choroid plexus neoplasms are uncommon brain tumors in dogs. Choroid plexus carcinomas often spread diffusely throughout the ventricular system and subarachnoid space and, in aggressive forms, can mimic histologic patterns of other carcinomas, including being embedded in a desmoplastic reaction. Although choroid plexus tumors (CPTs) heterogeneously express pan-cytokeratin, little is known about other markers to identify choroid plexus and their associated tumors. Kir7.1, an inward-rectifier potassium channel, is reported to have high diagnostic utility in human neuropathology to distinguish CPTs from other primary brain tumors and cerebral metastases. To determine Kir7.1 expression in the dog brain, we analyzed the immunoreactivity of Kir7.1 in normal brain, gliomas, ependymomas, CPTs, meningiomas, and carcinomas. In normal brain tissue, the immunostaining was restricted to the choroid plexus where there was robust membrane immunoreactivity along the apical border of the cells with less intense cytoplasmic staining. Similar strong immunoreactivity was detected in 12 of 12 CPTs, whereas 5 of 5 gliomas, 4 of 5 ependymomas, 5 of 5 meningiomas, and 5 of 6 carcinomas had no immunoreactivity. One ependymoma and 1 nasal carcinoma with squamous metaplasia were up to 75% immunopositive, with moderate cytoplasmic and membranous immunoreactivity, but lacking the robust apical immunoreactivity pattern. Analysis for immunoreactivity in a tissue microarray failed to yield any other locations in which immunoreactivity was detected. These results, including the distinctive pattern of immunostaining in CPTs, suggest that Kir7.1 is an excellent marker for CPTs in the dog.
Understanding Experiences of Diabetes Medications Among African Americans Living With Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Bockwoldt Denise , Staffileno Beth A. , Coke Lola , Hamilton Rebekah , Fogg Lou , Calvin Donna , Quinn Lauretta
Published: May 2016

African American (AA) adults are disproportionally affected by type 2 diabetes and are diagnosed at an earlier age, but are less adherent to diabetes medications compared with the general population. This qualitative study sought to describe the experiences of taking diabetes medications among midlife AA men and women with type 2 diabetes and to identify factors that influence these experiences. Fifteen AAs completed semistructured interviews. Using the Roy adaptation model, thematic analysis coded for both adaptive and ineffective experiences. Adaptive experiences included self-confidence in one’s ability to control diabetes, a belief in the value of diabetes medication, assuming responsibility for one’s health, developing a routine for taking medication, and positive relationships with the care team. Ineffective experiences for medication taking included: feeling powerless over diabetes, self-blame, and fear. One’s self-concept as a person with diabetes, as well as assuming the role of “medication taker,” were prominent themes.
Case Study Observational Research: A Framework for Conducting Case Study Research Where Observation Data Are the Focus
Authors: Morgan Sonya J. , Pullon Susan R. H. , Macdonald Lindsay M. , McKinlay Eileen M. , Gray Ben V.
Published: May 2016

Case study research is a comprehensive method that incorporates multiple sources of data to provide detailed accounts of complex research phenomena in real-life contexts. However, current models of case study research do not particularly distinguish the unique contribution observation data can make. Observation methods have the potential to reach beyond other methods that rely largely or solely on self-report. This article describes the distinctive characteristics of case study observational research, a modified form of Yin’s 2014 model of case study research the authors used in a study exploring interprofessional collaboration in primary care. In this approach, observation data are positioned as the central component of the research design. Case study observational research offers a promising approach for researchers in a wide range of health care settings seeking more complete understandings of complex topics, where contextual influences are of primary concern. Future research is needed to refine and evaluate the approach.
Physical Conditions and Special Needs as Risk Factors of Peer Victimization Among School Children in Taiwan
Authors: Wei Hsi-Sheng , Hwa Hsiao-Lin , Shen April Chiung-Tao , Feng Jui-Ying , Hsieh Yi-Ping , Huang Soar Ching-Yu
Published: May 2016

Students with physical symptoms and diseases may be at an increased risk of peer victimization. This study examined the associations of several medical conditions (obesity, asthma, allergy, epilepsy, and diabetes) with experience of physical, verbal, and relational victimization among children. A sample of 6,233 fourth-grade students from 314 elementary schools in Taiwan was recruited for the analysis. The mean age of the sample was 10.5, with an even distribution of gender (50.3% male and 49.7% female). Children with asthma, allergy, and epilepsy reported higher frequencies of peer victimization. Those who took daily medications or received treatment were also at a higher risk of being victimized. Diabetes and obesity were not found to be associated with peer victimization. The findings highlighted that children with physical conditions suffer maltreatment from peers. Sensitivity training should be provided to school health professionals, so they can evaluate the risk of victimization among students with special needs during assessment.
Receding horizon lateral vehicle control for pure pursuit path tracking
Authors: Elbanhawi M , Simic M , Jazar R
Published: May 2016

The assimilation of path planning and motion control is a crucial capability for autonomous vehicles. Pure pursuit controllers are a prevalent class of path tracking algorithms for front wheel steering cars. Nonetheless, their performance is rather limited to relatively low speeds. In this paper, we propose a model predictive active yaw control implementation of pure pursuit path tracking that accommodates the vehicle’s steady state lateral dynamics to improve tracking performance at high speeds. A comparative numerical analysis was under taken between the proposed strategy and the traditional pure pursuit controller scheme. Tests were conducted for three different paths at iteratively increasing speeds from 1 m/s up to 20 m/s. The traditional pure pursuit controller was incapable of maintaining the vehicle stable at speeds upwards of 5m/s. The results show that implementing receding horizon strategy for pure pursuit tracking improves their performance. The contribution is apparent by preserving a relatively constant controller effort and consequently maintaining vehicle stability for speeds up to 100Km/h in different scenarios. A Matlab implementation of the proposed controller and datasets of the experimental paths are provided to supplement this work.
Understanding Decision-Making in Specialized Domestic Violence Courts
Authors: Pinchevsky Gillian M.
Published: May 2016

This study fills a gap in the literature by exploring the utility of contemporary courtroom theoretical frameworks—uncertainty avoidance, causal attribution, and focal concerns—for explaining decision-making in specialized domestic violence courts. Using data from two specialized domestic violence courts, this study explores the predictors of prosecutorial and judicial decision-making and the extent to which these factors are congruent with theoretical frameworks often used in studies of court processing. Findings suggest that these theoretical frameworks only partially help explain decision-making in the courts under study. A discussion of the findings and implications for future research is provided.
Patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm have a high prevalence of popliteal artery aneurysms
Authors: Tuveson Viktoria , Löfdahl Hedvig E , Hultgren Rebecka
Published: May 2016

Patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) are more prone to develop popliteal artery aneurysms (PAA), but the prevalence is not well known. Our aim was to investigate the prevalence of PAA in patients with AAA, and to determine whether a certain risk factor profile is more commonly found in patients with concurrent aneurysms. All AAA patients (ICD code I71.3, I71.4) attending the outpatient clinic at the Karolinska University Hospital between 2011 and 2013 were included in the study cohort ( n=465); 48% (225) had been subjected to an ultrasound or computed tomography scan of their popliteal arteries. In these patients, three definitions of PAA were considered (⩾ 10.5, ⩾ 12, ⩾ 15 mm), although the overall analysis is based on PAA ⩾ 12 mm. The mean age was 70.7 years (SD 7.5), 89% were men, and the mean AAA diameter was 47 mm (SD 14). The prevalence of PAA was 19% ( n=43) by definition ⩾ 12 mm, and 11% ( n=25) with 15 mm. Claudication was more frequently found in AAA patients with PAA than patients without PAA. Sensitivity between clinical examination and radiology was 26%, and the specificity for clinical examination was 90%. In conclusion, owing to the high prevalence of PAA in AAA patients, described by us and others, the low cost and risks associated with ultrasound and the poor sensitivity at clinical examination, all women and men with AAA should undergo one radiological examination of their popliteal arteries.
A qualitative investigation of eating difficulties in adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis
Authors: Harris Sarah , Gilbert Matthew , Beasant Lucy , Linney Catherine , Broughton Jessica , Crawley Esther
Published: May 2016

Background:

An estimated 10% of children and adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) experience eating difficulties; however, little is known about why these difficulties develop, what the impact is or how to manage them.

Methods:

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with adolescents (aged 12–17 years) attending a specialist service who have a primary diagnosis of CFS/ME and experience nausea, abdominal pain and/or eating difficulties. A total of 11 adolescents were interviewed (eight female, mean age: 15 years). Transcripts were analysed thematically using techniques of constant comparison which commenced soon after data collection and informed further interview protocols.

Results:

Adolescents perceived their eating difficulties were caused by abdominal symptoms, being too fatigued to eat and changes to their senses of taste and smell. Some of the adolescents recognised how their eating difficulties were exacerbated and maintained by psychological factors of low mood and anxiety. The adolescents eating difficulties had a negative impact on their weight, fatigue, socialising and family life. They perceived helpful interventions to include modifying their diets, families adjusting and also medical interventions (e.g. medication). Adolescents identified that early education and support about diet and eating habits would have been helpful.

Conclusions:

If adolescents diagnosed with CFS/ME develop eating difficulties, this has a significant impact on their quality of life, illness and on their families. Not eating increases fatigue, low mood and anxiety which further exacerbates the eating difficulties. Clinicians should screen for eating difficulties in those with symptoms of nausea and abdominal pain, warn adolescents and their families of the risk of developing eating difficulties and provide interventions and support as early as possible.
The Anthropocene and anthropology
Authors: Hann Chris
Published: May 2016

Noting a lack of consensus in the recent literature on the Anthropocene, this article considers how social anthropologists might contribute to its theorizing and dating. Empirically it draws on the author’s long-term fieldwork in Hungary. It is argued that ethnographic methods are essential for grasping subjectivities, including temporal orientations and perceptions of epochal transformation. When it comes to historical periodization, however, ethnography is obviously insufficient and proposals privileging the last half-century, or just the last quarter of a century, seem inadequate. Influential theories, which define ‘modernity’ in terms of developments emanating from the countries of the North Atlantic in the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries (Gellner, Polanyi, Wolf), remain partial and Eurocentric. To comprehend the social preconditions of the Anthropocene in a holistic fashion (the crucial contribution of comparative anthropology), it is necessary to follow Jack Goody and trace how the urban revolutions of the Bronze Age united Eurasia through the diffusion of new forms of economy, polity and cosmology.
Debt, poverty, and financial exclusion
Authors: Krumer-Nevo Michal , Gorodzeisky Anastasia , Saar-Heiman Yuval
Published: May 2016

Over-indebtedness of impoverished households and its relevance to the social work profession have not received sufficient attention in the professional discourse. It is the intention of this article to put over-indebtedness on the professional agenda, to review the literature about it, and to present initial data from a study on over-indebtedness in Israel carried out with special attention to debtors’ coping with their debts. The research was conducted as a door-to-door survey in a neighborhood with low socio-economic characteristics and included questions about the nature of the debts, the strategies people use to cope with debts and the obstacles they face while doing so.

Findings

The research findings indicate a severe debt problem among the participants. Out of 142 interviewees, 61% had debt that was overdue and 27% of them did not have an active bank account – a significant parameter of financial exclusion. Moreover, the proliferation of debts per household, and the high level of debt-to-income ratio also indicate high risk for financial exclusion. Notwithstanding, the findings indicate that most debtors made active efforts in order to close their debts, using two distinct strategies, namely: trying to reach a payment arrangement with the creditor or paying off the debt by increasing their financial resources. Most debtors used the first strategy, although it was found as the less successful one.

Applications

The article discusses these findings in the framework of the concept of financial exclusion and proposes policy and direct interventions as well as further research on the topic.
Feasibility of fluorescence energy transfer system for imaging the renoprotective effects of aliskiren in diabetic mice
Authors: Kidokoro Kengo , Satoh Minoru , Itano Seiji , Kuwabara Atsunori , Sasaki Tamaki , Kashihara Naoki
Published: May 2016

Introduction:

We investigated the feasibility of using a fluorescence resonance energy transfer system to image enzymatic activity in order to evaluate the effects of aliskiren (a direct renin inhibitor) on diabetic nephropathy.

Materials and methods:

First, we induced diabetes in C57BL/6J mice using streptozotocin, then treated them with either aliskiren (25 mg/kg/day) or the angiotensin type 1 receptor blocker valsartan (15 mg/kg/day) for four weeks. Finally, we utilized renin fluorescence resonance energy transfer substrate to assess renin activity.

Results:

Renin activity was much higher in the kidneys of diabetic mice compared to those of the non-diabetic control mice. While aliskiren inhibited this activity, valsartan did not. We noted that production of reactive oxygen species intensified and the bioavailability of nitric oxide diminished in the glomeruli of diabetic mice. Aliskiren and valsartan significantly ameliorated these effects. They suppressed glomerular production of reactive oxygen species and urinary albumin excretion. In fact, urinary albumin excretion in diabetic mice treated with aliskiren or valsartan was lower than that in untreated diabetic mice. Furthermore, aliskiren and valsartan significantly reduced glomerular permeability by maintaining the glomerular endothelial surface layer.

Conclusion:

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer could provide a new tool for evaluating tissue and plasma enzymatic activity.
Conditional coercion versus rights diagnostics
Authors: Wisor Scott
Published: May 2016

Scholars in philosophy, political science, and the policy community have recently advocated for a ‘sticks and carrots’, or conditional-coercion, approach to human rights violations. On this model, rights violators (usually states) are conceived of as rational agents who should be rewarded for good behavior and punished for bad behavior by other states seeking to improve human rights abroad. External states concerned about human rights abroad should impose punishments against foreign rights violators, and these punitive measures should not be lifted until rights violations in target countries cease. Against these scholars, I argue that the conditional-coercion model is mistaken. In this article, I explicate the ‘sticks and carrots’ approach to human rights, criticize it on both theoretical and empirical grounds, and suggest an alternative approach that I term rights diagnostics. The model I propose is sensitive to the internal political struggles in rights violating states and the incentive structures faced by rights violators. This model takes account of relevant empirical evidence on the role of external coercion and inducements in producing institutional change. I conclude by sketching an institutional design that would potentially implement ‘rights diagnostics’ policy.1
Followership styles and job satisfaction in secondary school teachers in serbia
Authors: Hinić Darko , Grubor Jelena , Brulić Lida
Published: May 2016

The aim of the study was to determine the frequency of followership styles, and their connection with job satisfaction and satisfaction with extrinsic/intrinsic aspects of work in teachers. The sample included 206 secondary school teachers of three grammar and three vocational schools in three towns in Serbia. The results indicate that the most prominent followership styles were star followers (58.7%) and pragmatists (39.8%). Star followers attached greater significance to intrinsic aspects of work and reported a higher job satisfaction rate, while pragmatists placed more importance on extrinsic ones. Independent thinking correlated with intrinsic aspects of work and job satisfaction, and active participation with job satisfaction and both work aspects. The results also show that a higher degree of engagement (particularly when combined with economic satisfaction) predicted a higher level of job satisfaction. If dominant followership and motivational structures of teachers were learnt, the management of educational institutions would be improved because teachers who participate in making work decisions have a greater sense of empowerment and commitment to organizational goals. Although affected by types of personality, dominant followership structures of the teacher may be influenced during the course of professional training, thereby directing them towards the development of functional followership types.
Female genital mutilation
Authors: Bede Farah
Published: May 2016

This article is about how primary care health professionals can approach the problem of female genital mutilation (FGM) when it is encountered in everyday general practice. An introduction to FGM is given, in order to provide an overview that creates understanding and raises awareness. It is written through my perspective, as someone from an FGM-practicing community from the horn of Africa. I had the good fortune to be born into a family that did not practice FGM, but many millions were not so lucky and are living with its aftermath. It is often said that ‘prevention is better than cure’ and that cannot be more pertinent than in the case of FGM. As primary care health professionals, we find ourselves well-positioned to not only prevent future cases of FGM, but also provide support and assistance to those living with the trail of destruction it leaves behind.
Adversity and Pitfalls of Twice-Exceptional Urban Learners
Authors: Mayes Renae D. , Moore James L.
Published: May 2016

Current research provides unique insights into the experiences and context of twice-exceptional students in K-12 schools. However, within this literature, a critical gap exists concerning the voices of twice-exceptional African American students and their families. The current qualitative study examined the perceptions, attitudes, and experiences of eight African American artistically gifted students with disabilities and three parents in a large, urban school district in the Midwest. Three major themes emerged from qualitative interviews: (a) the significance of labels, (b) social and personal experiences of exceptionality, and (c) challenges and strategies in the school environment. To this end, findings indicate that students experience their special education identity much differently from their gifted identity.
Development of a Tool to Predict Outcome of Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation
Authors: Dugard M. Naomi , Kuiper Jan Herman , Parker Jane , Roberts Sally , Robinson Eric , Harrison Paul , Richardson James B.
Published: May 2016

Objective

The study had 2 objectives: first, to evaluate the success of autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI) in terms of incidence of surgical re-intervention, including arthroplasty, and investigate predictors of successful treatment outcome. The second objective was to derive a tool predicting a patient’s arthroplasty risk following ACI.

Design

In this Level II, prognostic study, 170 ACI-treated patients (110 males [aged 36.8 ± 9.4 years]; 60 females [aged 38.1 ± 10.2 years]) completed a questionnaire about further surgery on their knee treated with ACI 10.9 ± 3.5 years previously. Factors commonly assessed preoperatively (age, gender, defect location and number, previous surgery at this site, and the preoperative Lysholm score) were used as independent factors in regression analyses.

Results

At final follow-up (maximum of 19 years post-ACI), 40 patients (23.5%) had undergone surgical re-intervention following ACI. Twenty-six patients (15.3%) underwent arthroplasty, more commonly females (25%) than males (10%; P = 0.001). Cox regression analyses identified 4 factors associated with re-intervention: age at ACI, multiple operations before ACI, patellar defects, and lower pretreatment Lysholm scores (Nagelkerke’s R2 = 0.20). Six predictive items associated with risk of arthroplasty following ACI (Nagelkerke’s R2 = 0.34) were used to develop the Oswestry Risk of Knee Arthroplasty index with internal cross-validation.

Conclusion

In a single-center study, we have identified 6 factors (age, gender, location and number of defects, number of previous operations, and Lysholm score before ACI) that appear to influence the likelihood of ACI patients progressing to arthroplasty. We have used this information to propose a formula or “tool” that could aid treatment decisions and improve patient selection for ACI.
Civic education stuck in a quagmire: A critical review of civic education in Hong Kong?
Authors: Yuen Timothy Wai Wa
Published: May 2016

Civic education is considered as a way to nurture good citizens who work to develop the polity. However, in real politics, education often mirrors instead of shaping the political development. Reviewing civic education of Hong Kong from a historical development perspective, this article explains that civic education has for long been used a tool of governance by the political regimes. This was true not only during the days of colonial rule but is also that after the reversion of sovereignty in 1997. Manipulating civic education as a tool of governance can have far-reaching consequence. In the case of Hong Kong’s civic education, the problems due to neglect, deliberate suppression, and twisting around in different historical phases created the problem for the future. Hong Kong’s civic education is now stuck in a quagmire, and preparing young people to face the sociopolitical challenges becomes increasingly difficult. Finally, this article makes suggestions for reforming civic education in Hong Kong. To conduct this study, a mixed methodology was adopted which comprised both literature review and qualitative interviews with civic education teachers and teachers of the subject Liberal Studies. Selective discourses of the teachers are reported to inform the understanding of the discussion.