bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Resilient remediation: Addressing extreme weather and climate change, creating community value
Authors: Maco Barbara , Bardos Paul , Coulon Frederic , Erickson‐Mulanax Emerald , Hansen Lara J. , Harclerode Melissa , Hou Deyi , Mielbrecht Eric , Wainwright Haruko M. , Yasutaka Tetsuo , Wick William D.
Published: December 2018

Recent devastating hurricanes demonstrated that extreme weather and climate change can jeopardize contaminated land remediation and harm public health and the environment. Since early 2016, the Sustainable Remediation Forum (SURF) has led research and organized knowledge exchanges to examine (1) the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events on hazardous waste sites, and (2) how we can mitigate these impacts and create value for communities. The SURF team found that climate change and extreme weather events can undermine the effectiveness of the approved site remediation, and can also affect contaminant toxicity, exposure, organism sensitivity, fate and transport, long‐term operations, management, and stewardship of remediation sites. Further, failure to consider social vulnerability to climate change could compromise remediation and adaptation strategies. SURF's recommendations for resilient remediation build on resources and drivers from state, national, and international sources, and marry the practices of sustainable remediation and climate change adaptation. They outline both general principles and site‐specific protocols and provide global examples of mitigation and adaptation strategies. Opportunities for synergy include vulnerability assessments that benefit and build on established hazardous waste management law, policy, and practices. SURF's recommendations can guide owners and project managers in developing a site resiliency strategy. Resilient remediation can help expedite cleanup and redevelopment, decrease public health risks, and create jobs, parks, wetlands, and resilient energy sources. Resilient remediation and redevelopment can also positively contribute to achieving international goals for sustainable land management, climate action, clean energy, and sustainable cities.
DNA methyltransferases in virus‐associated cancers
Authors: Charostad Javad , Astani Akram , Goudarzi Hossein , Faghihloo Ebrahim
Published: December 2018

Human tumor viruses are either casually linked or contribute in the development of human cancers. Viruses can stimulate oncogenesis through affecting diverse biological pathways in human cells. Growing data have demonstrated frequent involvement of one of the most characteristic parts of cellular epigenetic machinery, DNA methylation, in the oncogenesis. DNA methylation of cellular genes is catalyzed by DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) as a key effector enzyme in this process. Dysregulation of DNMTs can cause aberrant gene methylation in promoter of cancer‐related genes including tumor suppressor genes, resulting in gene silencing. In this regard, the role of tumor viruses is remarkable. Here, in this review, we used published information to elucidate whether tumor viruses are able to manipulate DNMT regulation, and if so, what are its consequences in the process of oncogenesis. This essay also aims to shed light on which cellular pathways have been engaged by viruses to induce DNMTs.
Superfine SnO2 Uniformly Anchored on Reduced Graphene Oxide Sheets by a One‐Step Solvothermal Method for High‐Performance Lithium‐Ion Batteries
Authors: Zhang Bin , Zhou Xiaozhong , Peng Hui , Zhu Chunyan , Lei Ziqiang
Published: December 2018

In this work, the tin dioxide/reduced graphene oxide (SnO2/rGO) hybrid with 3D porous architecture has been prepared by a straightforward and environmentally friendly one‐step solvothermal method, in which superfine SnO2 nanoparticles are well‐proportioned immobilized on rGO. When applied as anode material for lithium‐ion batteries (LIBS), the prepared SnO2/rGO hybrid demonstrates superior electrochemical properties. It can be achieved high initial cycle reversible capacity of 1058 mA h g−1 and retained a stable discharge capacity of 1104 mA h g−1 after 200 cycles at 0.1 A g−1. Remarkably, a high capacity of 750 mA h g−1 can be kept after 500 cycles at 0.5 A g−1. These consequences manifest that the obtained SnO2/rGO hybrid is a promising anode material for LIBS.
Effect of Acid‐Basic Sites Ratio on the Catalytic Activity to Obtain 5‐HMF from Glucose Using Al2O3‐TiO2‐W Catalysts
Authors: Córdova‐Pérez Gerardo E. , Torres‐Torres Gilberto , Ortíz‐Chi Filiberto , Godavarthi Srinivas , Silahua‐Pavón Adib A. , Izquierdo‐Colorado Armando , Da Costa Patrick , Hernández‐Como Norberto , Aleman Miguel , Espinosa‐González Claudia G.
Published: December 2018

A series of Al2O3‐TiO2‐W materials with variation in W composition was prepared using an innocuous and easy sol‐gel method, under both acid and basic pH conditions. The morphology and composition of W in the materials were studied by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDS), respectively, Density of basic and acid sites by CO2 and NH3 temperature programmed desorption (TPD) technique, and physicochemical properties by N2 physisorption studies, X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and UV‐Vis spectroscopy. The catalytic properties of Al2O3‐TiO2‐W were examined for the conversion of glucose to produce 5‐hydroxymethylfurfural (5‐HMF) and the best yield of 5‐HMFobtained with the catalyst of 5 w% W load. This high yield level was achieved when the catalyst with 2.35 acid‐basic sites molar ratio was probed.
Utility of the Ditopic Nature of Magnetically Recyclable NiFe2O4 Nano‐Catalyst for the Green Synthesis of Two Different Spiro[indoline‐pyrrolizine] Scaffolds
Authors: Basu Soumyadip , Kayal Utpal , Maity Suvendu , Ghosh Prasanta , Bhaumik Asim , Mukhopadhyay Chhanda
Published: December 2018

Environmentally benign and highly stable magnetic nano powder of NiFe2O4 was synthesized and characterized by XRD, HRTEM, EDX and Nitrogen BET adsorption isotherm analysis. Also, XPS analysis confirmed the electronic environment as well as the oxidation state of the elements. The NiFe2O4 catalyst was exploited in one‐pot three‐component synthesis of spiro[indoline‐3,3′‐pyrrolizine] and spiro[indoline‐3,5′‐pyrrolo[1,2‐c]thiazole] scaffolds, because of its ditopic nature which can provide both acidic (Fe3+) and basic (O2−) properties, require for the reactions. The desirability of this methodology resides in its simplicity, environmental friendliness, cost effectiveness and easier scaling up for bulk synthesis. Water was utilised as a medium for synthesis of the catalyst as well as the medium of the reaction leading to the product. The synthesized NiFe2O4 nanocatalyst can be recycled upto six times without any significant loss of activity.
Synthesis and Characterization of 1‐(Carboxymethyl)Pyridinium Bromide [CMPy]Br Molten Salt: Application as a Novel Nanocatalyst for the Synthesis of Bis‐Naphthodipyrans
Authors: Rajabi‐salek Mostafa , Zolfigol Mohammad Ali , Zarei Mahmoud , Noroozizadeh Ehsan , Mohammadpoor‐Baltork Iraj , Rudbari Hadi Amiri
Published: December 2018

Herein, a convenient method for the synthesis of bis‐naphthodipyrans from the condensation of naphthalene‐2,3‐diol, malononitrile and various aromatic aldehydes using acetic acid functionalized pyridinium salt 1‐(carboxymethyl)pyridinium bromide [CMPy]Br as a novel, efficient, reusable and nanocatalyst is described. The synthesized catalyst was fully characterized by using various techniques such as single crystal X‐ray diffraction (SCXRD), 1H NMR, 13C NMR, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR), mass spectra, scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X‐ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and Differential thermal analysis (TG/DTG). The major advantages of the convenient method are high yields, short reaction time, and reusability of the catalyst.
Squaramide‐Based 5’‐Phosphate Replacements Bind to the DNA Repair Exonuclease SNM1A
Authors: Dürr Eva‐Maria , Doherty William , Lee Sook Y. , El‐Sagheer Afaf H. , Shivalingam Arun , McHugh Peter J. , Brown Tom , McGouran Joanna F.
Published: December 2018

Phosphate groups are often crucial to biological activity and interactions of oligonucleotides, but confer poor membrane permeability. In addition, the group's lability to enzymatic hydrolysis is an obstacle to its use in therapeutics and in biological tools. We present the synthesis of N‐oxyamide and squaramide modifications at the 5’‐end of oligonucleotides as phosphate replacements and their biological evaluation using the 5’‐exonuclease SNM1A. The squaryl diamide modification showed minimal recognition as a 5’‐phosphate mimic; however, modest inhibition of SNM1A, postulated to occur through metal coordination at the active site, was observed. Their facile incorporation after solid‐phase synthesis and recognition by the exonuclease makes squaryl diamides attractive neutral 5’‐phosphate replacements for oligonucleotides. This work is the first example of squaryl diamide modifications at the 5’‐terminal position of oligonucleotides and of the potential use of modified oligonucleotides to bind to the metal center of SNM1A.
Rapid Self‐healing Film From Novel Photo Polymerization Additive.
Authors: Oh Jeong Seop , Choi Kyoung Hwan , Suh Dong Hack
Published: December 2018

Self‐healing materials have ability to repair damage by themselves. Their properties have been developed to increase the reliability of materials. Generally, self‐healing polymers have been developed by thermal polymerization. Especially, hydrogel materials showed relatively rapid recovery and goodhealing efficiency. However, it is very difficult to restore their properties without the self‐healing mediator such as water. Herein, we report the novel type of self‐healing polymer using photo‐polymerization. This is achieved through an unprecedented concept of an additive of photopolymerization, named as ‘healer’ which can act as a physical crosslinker between main chains and a self‐healing mediator in hydrogel materials. This transparent, easily fabricated self‐healing polymer healed scratch in 40 seconds as well as restored the mechanical properties to 82%.
Misaligned values in software engineering organizations
Authors: Lenberg Per , Feldt Robert , Wallgren Tengberg Lars Göran
Published: December 2018

The values of software organizations are crucial for achieving high performance; in particular, agile development approaches emphasize their importance. Researchers have thus far often assumed that a specific set of values, compatible with the development methodologies, must be adopted homogeneously throughout the company. It is not clear, however, to what extent such assumptions are accurate. Preliminary findings have highlighted the misalignment of values between groups as a source of problems when engineers discuss their challenges. Therefore, in this study, we examine how discrepancies in values between groups affect software companies' performance. To meet our objectives, we chose a mixed method research design. First, we collected qualitative data by interviewing fourteen (N  =  14) employees working in four different organizations and processed it using thematic analysis. We then surveyed seven organizations (N  =  184). Our analysis indicated that value misalignment between groups is related to organizational performance. The aligned companies were more effective, more satisfied, had higher trust, and fewer conflicts. Our efforts provide encouraging findings in a critical software engineering research area. They can help to explain why some companies are more efficient than others and, thus, point the way to interventions to address organizational challenges.
Analysis and suppression of DC oscillation caused by DC capacitors in VSC‐based offshore island power supply system
Authors: Zhu Shu , Liu Kaipei , Qin Liang , Wang Qing , Li Yuye , Pu Qingxin , Wang Siru
Published: December 2018

Voltage source converter‐high‐voltage direct current (VSC‐HVDC) is an effective way to ensure the reliable supply of offshore island power. However, it is easily liable to direct current (DC) oscillation or even instability due to the interaction between the rectifier and inverter stations. In order to solve this problem, this paper analyzes the stability of the VSC‐HVDC system caused by DC capacitors based on VSC impedance modeling and impedance stability criterion. Besides, an adaptive virtual impedance control strategy to suppress the DC oscillation is proposed. The impedance models of the VSC in the rectifier and inverter stations are constructed and verified. Then, the influence of the DC capacitors on the system stability is analyzed based on impedance stability criteria. The analysis shows that the decrease of DC capacitors will cause DC oscillation, and the DC virtual impedance is used to damping the oscillation. Finally, this paper presents a simple but effective adaptive fuzzy segmented virtual impedance control strategy to suppress the oscillation. Electromagnetic transient simulation and hardware‐in‐the‐loop (HIL) test results show that the proposed adaptive virtual impedance is more effective and has better robustness than the conventional virtual impedance. © 2018 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Text mining of tourism preference in a multilingual site
Authors: Zeng Chao , Nakatoh Tetsuya , Hirokawa Sachio , Eguchi Masanari
Published: December 2018

There is a huge demand on multilingual tourism information of Japan because of the increasing number of tourists from foreign countries. Most of them may expect typical and stereotyped culture, nature, and modern society of Japan. However, people from different backgrounds, cultures, and languages might expect different aspects of Japan, as well. In this paper, we analyze these kinds of differences as the cultural tourism preference for Japan. We propose a machine‐learning‐based method to figure out the cultural tourism preference of people of different countries based on comparing the access logs to a multilingual tourism information site in different languages. We focus our discussion on the pages accessed in Thai and Vietnamese languages. Our research result shows that for Thai tourists the characteristic features are the famous places in an area and local specialties, but Vietnamese tourists pay much more attention to facilities and location of hotels. This difference was not observable by naive extraction of keywords and their visualization. This result has been used as a guide to the further creation of content in the tourism information site. © 2018 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Loss and damage: A review of the literature and directions for future research
Authors: McNamara Karen E. , Jackson Guy
Published: December 2018

Climate change researchers argue that a residual domain exists beyond the limits of adaptation to prevent deleterious climate change impacts: this has been labeled as “loss and damage.” Over the last 8 years, there has been significant growth in loss and damage scholarship thus making it imperative to take stock of what we know already and directions for future research. We undertook a quantitative review of academic publications (n = 122) in the loss and damage field to date and documented study characteristics, thematic areas, trends, gaps, and opportunities. The first publication appeared in 2010 before a significant increase in published research after 2013. Although increasingly diverse over time, loss and damage studies have primarily focused on technical, political, and normative questions. Our analysis suggests the following: that researchers predominately conceptualize loss and damage as “limits to adaptation”; that the literature is more practical (i.e., descriptive, does not challenge underlying presuppositions) than critical (i.e., challenges underlying presuppositions) in orientation; that loss and damage is conceived as both an occurring and future condition; and that economic dimensions of loss and damage are prioritized in studies. Recommended future research directions include empirical and theoretical explorations of the potential for transformational change; understanding what people value and how they can engage with loss and grief; ensuring the perspectives of the most vulnerable groups are included in decision‐making; and greater policy‐relevant research and critical analyses of loss and damage conceptualizations and the Warsaw International Mechanism.

This article is categorized under:

Climate, Nature, and Ethics > Comparative Environmental Values
Cheese yeasts
Authors: Fröhlich‐Wyder Marie‐Therese , Arias‐Roth Emmanuelle , Jakob Ernst
Published: December 2018

Numerous traditionally aged cheeses are surface ripened and develop a biofilm, known as the cheese rind, on their surfaces. The rind of such cheeses comprises a complex community of bacterial and fungal species that are jointly responsible for the typical characteristics of the various cheese varieties. Surface ripening starts directly after brining with the rapid colonization of the cheese surface by yeasts. The initially dominant yeasts are acid and salt‐tolerant and are capable of metabolizing the lactate produced by the starter lactic acid bacteria and of producing NH3 from amino acids. Both processes cause the pH of the cheese surface to rise dramatically. This so‐called deacidification process enables the establishment of a salt‐tolerant, Gram‐positive bacterial community that is less acid‐tolerant. Over the past decade, knowledge of yeast diversity in cheeses has increased considerably. The yeast species with the highest prevalence on surface‐ripened cheeses are Debaryomyces hansenii and Geotrichum candidum, but up to 30 species can be found. In the cheese core, only lactose‐fermenting yeasts, such as Kluyveromyces marxianus, are expected to grow. Yeasts are recognized as having an indispensable impact on the development of cheese flavour and texture because of their deacidifying, proteolytic, and/or lipolytic activity. Yeasts are used not only in the production of surface‐ripened cheeses but also as adjunct cultures in the vat milk in order to modify ripening behaviour and flavour of the cheese. However, yeasts may also be responsible for spoilage of cheese, causing early blowing, off‐flavour, brown discolouration, and other visible alterations of cheese.
Multi-objective Bayesian optimization of super hydrophobic coatings on asphalt concrete surfaces
Authors: Nahvi Ali , Sadoughi Mohammad Kazem , Arabzadeh Ali , Sassani Alireza , Hu Chao , Ceylan Halil , Kim Sunghwan
Published: December 2018

Conventional snow removal strategies add direct and indirect expenses to the economy through profit lost due to passenger delays costs, pavement durability issues, contaminating the water runoff, and so on. The use of superhydrophobic (super-water-repellent) coating methods is an alternative to conventional snow and ice removal practices for alleviating snow removal operations issues. As an integrated experimental and analytical study, this work focused on optimizing superhydrophobicity and skid resistance of hydrophobic coatings on asphalt concrete surfaces. A layer-by-layer (LBL) method was utilized for spray depositing polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) on an asphalt concrete at different spray times and variable dosages of PTFE. Water contact angle and coefficient of friction at the microtexture level were measured to evaluate superhydrophobicity and skid resistance of the coated asphalt concrete. The optimum dosage and spay time that maximized hydrophobicity and skid resistance of flexible pavement while minimizing cost were estimated using a multi-objective Bayesian optimization (BO) method that replaced the more costly experimental procedure of pavement testing with a cheap-to-evaluate surrogate model constructed based on kriging. In this method, the surrogate model is iteratively updated with new experimental data measured at proper input settings. The result of proposed optimization method showed that the super water repellency and coefficient of friction were not uniformly increased for all the specimens by increasing spray time and dosage. In addition, use of the proposed multi-objective BO method resulted in hydrophobicity and skid resistance being maximally augmented by approximately 23% PTFE dosage at a spray time of 5.5 s.

Highlights Effects of spray time and dosage on the hydrophobicity and friction of asphalt were investigated. A layer-by-layer method was utilized for spray depositing polytetrafluoroethylene on an asphalt concrete. The optimum dosage and spay time were estimated by using a multi-objective Bayesian optimization method. An acquisition function that can tackle problems involving multiple objective functions was proposed. The optimum hydrophobicity and skid resistance were achieved with 23% PTFE dosage and at a spray time of 5.5 s.
WHAT IS JUSTIFIED CREDENCE?
Authors: Pettigrew Richard
Published: December 2018

In this paper, we seek a reliabilist account of justified credence. Reliabilism about justified beliefs comes in two varieties: process reliabilism (Goldman 1979, 2008) and indicator reliabilism (Alston 1988, 2005). Existing accounts of reliabilism about justified credence come in the same two varieties: Jeff Dunn (2015) proposes a version of process reliabilism, while Weng Hong Tang (2016) offers a version of indicator reliabilism. As we will see, both face the same objection. If they are right about what justification is, it is mysterious why we care about justification, for neither of the accounts explains how justification is connected to anything of epistemic value. We will call this the Connection Problem. I begin by describing Dunn's process reliabilism and Tang's indicator reliabilism. I argue that, understood correctly, they are, in fact, extensionally equivalent. That is, Dunn and Tang reach the top of the same mountain, albeit by different routes. However, I argue that both face the Connection Problem. In response, I offer my own version of reliabilism, which is both process and indicator, and I argue that it solves that problem. Furthermore, I show that it is also extensionally equivalent to Dunn's reliabilism and Tang's. Thus, I reach the top of the same mountain as well.
Cogrowth for group actions with strongly contracting elements
Authors: ARZHANTSEVA GOULNARA N. , CASHEN CHRISTOPHER H.
Published: December 2018

Let $G$ be a group acting properly by isometries and with a strongly contracting element on a geodesic metric space. Let $N$ be an infinite normal subgroup of $G$ and let $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FF}_{N}$ and $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FF}_{G}$ be the growth rates of $N$ and $G$ with respect to the pseudo-metric induced by the action. We prove that if $G$ has purely exponential growth with respect to the pseudo-metric, then $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FF}_{N}/\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FF}_{G}>1/2$. Our result applies to suitable actions of hyperbolic groups, right-angled Artin groups and other CAT(0) groups, mapping class groups, snowflake groups, small cancellation groups, etc. This extends Grigorchuk’s original result on free groups with respect to a word metric and a recent result of Matsuzaki, Yabuki and Jaerisch on groups acting on hyperbolic spaces to a much wider class of groups acting on spaces that are not necessarily hyperbolic.
Manhattan curves for hyperbolic surfaces with cusps
Authors: KAO LIEN-YUNG
Published: December 2018

In this paper, we study an interesting curve, the so-called Manhattan curve, associated with a pair of boundary-preserving Fuchsian representations of a (non-compact) surface; in particular, representations corresponding to Riemann surfaces with cusps. Using thermodynamic formalism (for countable state Markov shifts), we prove the analyticity of the Manhattan curve. Moreover, we derive several dynamical and geometric rigidity results, which generalize results of Burger [Intersection, the Manhattan curve, and Patterson–Sullivan theory in rank 2. Int. Math. Res. Not.1993(7) (1993), 217–225] and Sharp [The Manhattan curve and the correlation of length spectra on hyperbolic surfaces. Math. Z.228(4) (1998), 745–750] for convex cocompact Fuchsian representations.
Comparison of hospital surgical site infection rates and rankings using claims versus National Healthcare Safety Network surveillance data
Authors: Rhee Chanu , Wang Rui , Jentzsch Maximilian S. , Broadwell Carly , Hsu Heather , Jin Robert , Horan Kelly , Lee Grace M.
Published: December 2018

National policies target healthcare-associated infections using medical claims and National Healthcare Safety Network surveillance data. We found low concordance between the 2 data sources in rates and rankings for surgical site infection following colon surgery in 155 hospitals, underscoring the limitations in evaluating hospital quality by claims data.
Launching Revolution: Social Media and the Egyptian Uprising’s First Movers
Authors: Clarke Killian , Kocak Korhan
Published: December 2018

Drawing on evidence from the 2011 Egyptian uprising, this article demonstrates how the use of two social media platforms – Facebook and Twitter – contributed to a discrete mobilizational outcome: the staging of a successful first protest in a revolutionary cascade, referred to here as ‘first-mover mobilization’. Specifically, it argues that these two platforms facilitated the staging of a large, nationwide and seemingly leaderless protest on 25 January 2011, which signaled to hesitant but sympathetic Egyptians that a revolution might be in the making. It draws on qualitative and quantitative evidence, including interviews, social media data and surveys, to analyze three mechanisms that linked these platforms to the success of the January 25 protest: (1) protester recruitment, (2) protest planning and coordination, and (3) live updating about protest logistics. The article not only contributes to debates about the role of the Internet in the Arab Spring and other recent waves of mobilization, but also demonstrates how scholarship on the Internet in politics might move toward making more discrete, empirically grounded causal claims.
The Passion of William F. Buckley: Academic Freedom, Conspiratorial Conservatism, and the Rise of the Postwar Right
Authors: NEMETH JULIAN
Published: December 2018

In the early years of the Cold War, as universities expelled scholars with ties to the Communist Party, it became an article of faith among conservatives that the only targets of an ideological purge were people like themselves. William F. Buckley's God and Man at Yale, the most important exponent of this view, argued that “academic freedom” was a “superstition” designed to promote liberal indoctrination. Buckley's work tweaked, and mainstreamed, claims that a subversive conspiracy had overtaken the nation's schools and colleges. The correspondence the book generated demonstrates how attacks on academic freedom, and claims of victimhood, mobilized the postwar right.
INSTITUTIONAL DESIGN, SOCIAL NORMS, AND THE FEASIBILITY ISSUE
Authors: Aligica Paul Dragos
Published: December 2018

The “new institutionalist revolution” in social sciences has led to a repositioning of social norms to the forefront of the pre-analytic vision in institutional theory and to the consolidation of the contextual analysis approach. That has significant epistemological, methodological, and political philosophy implications. This essay follows the logic of these developments showing: (a) why they inherently lead to the feasibility problem, the key of applied theory, toward which both contemporary philosophy and institutional analysis converge from different venues; (b) how feasibility is a nexus of empirical, counterfactual, normative, and contextual elements, that is, something more complex than a mere matching between empirical reality and institutional design; (c) what are the governance implications of all of the above, with an emphasis on an alternative approach (distinctive enough to circumvent both the conservative averseness to intervene and progressive drastic interventionism) and in which the public choice process is seen mainly as endogenized, socialized, and institutionalized, as opposed to formalized, intellectualized, and externalized.
EVALUATING BAD NORMS
Authors: Thrasher John
Published: December 2018

Some norms are bad. Norms of revenge, female genital mutilation, honor killings, and other norms strike us as destructive, cruel, and wasteful. The puzzle is why so many people see these norms as authoritative and why these norms often resist change. To answer these questions, we need to look at what “bad” norms are and how we can evaluate them. Here I develop an integrative analysis of norms that aims to avoid parochialism in norm evaluation. After examining and rejecting several evaluative standards, I propose what I call a comparative-functional analysis of norms that is both operationalizable/testable and nonparochial, and that can sort better and worse norms. One conclusion of this approach is that norms are not so much “bad” and “good” as “better” and “worse.” This approach should be of interest to theorists and practitioners alike.
Q-Table compression for reinforcement learning
Authors: Amado Leonardo , Meneguzzi Felipe
Published: December 2018

Reinforcement learning (RL) algorithms are often used to compute agents capable of acting in environments without prior knowledge of the environment dynamics. However, these algorithms struggle to converge in environments with large branching factors and their large resulting state-spaces. In this work, we develop an approach to compress the number of entries in a Q-value table using a deep auto-encoder. We develop a set of techniques to mitigate the large branching factor problem. We present the application of such techniques in the scenario of a real-time strategy (RTS) game, where both state space and branching factor are a problem. We empirically evaluate an implementation of the technique to control agents in an RTS game scenario where classical RL fails and provide a number of possible avenues of further work on this problem.
Transthoracic access for pulmonary artery stenting
Authors: Krasemann Thomas , van Beynum Ingrid , van de Woestijne Pieter , Bogers Ad
Published: December 2018

Pulmonary artery stenting may not be possible transcutaneously because of anatomic features. Although intraoperative stenting has been well described, we present a case in which stenting of the left pulmonary artery was performed transthoracically in a separate procedure. Unusual anatomic conditions may require a multi-disciplinary hybrid approach to achieve the desired results.
Executive Functioning in the Dystrophinopathies and the Relation to Underlying Mutation Position
Authors: Fee Robert J. , Montes Jacqueline , Hinton Veronica J.
Published: December 2018

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate executive skills in children with dystrophinopathy and to examine the association between executive functions and dystrophin gene mutation position. Methods: Fifty boys with dystrophinopathy (mean age, 11 years 0 months; ages range, 5 to 17 years) completed measures of intellectual functioning (IF), working memory and executive functioning [including Digit Span (working memory) and measures from the NIH Toolbox (selective attention/inhibitory control, set shifting, working memory, and processing speed)]. Parents completed the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF). Mutation positions were categorized into three groups (upstream exon 30, 31–62, and downstream exon 63). Paired-samples t tests compared performance on executive measures to IF, and a one-way (three-group) multivariate analysis of covariance compared cognitive performance with mutation location controlling for motor functioning. Results: Mean performance on all executive measures was significantly lower than IF. Parents were also more likely to rate their child with dystrophinopathy as having clinically significant executive difficulties on the Shift, Emotional Control, and Behavior Regulation indices of the BRIEF. Mutation analyses resulted in small groups limiting power to detect subtle differences. Those with a downstream mutation position had significantly poorer performance on IF and Total Digit Span, but not on other measures of executive function including behavior. Conclusions: Individuals with dystrophinopathy have executive skill deficits, but they are not generally associated with more distal mutations. (JINS, 2019, 25, 146–155)
Trends of mortality attributable to child and maternal undernutrition, overweight/obesity and dietary risk factors of non-communicable diseases in sub-Saharan Africa, 1990–2015: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015
Authors: Melaku Yohannes Adama , Gill Tiffany K , Taylor Anne W , Appleton Sarah L , Gonzalez-Chica David , Adams Robert , Achoki Tom , Shi Zumin , Renzaho Andre
Published: December 2018

Objective

To assess trends of mortality attributable to child and maternal undernutrition (CMU), overweight/obesity and dietary risks of non-communicable diseases (NCD) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) using data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study 2015.

Design

For each risk factor, a systematic review of data was used to compute the exposure level and the effect size. A Bayesian hierarchical meta-regression analysis was used to estimate the exposure level of the risk factors by age, sex, geography and year. The burden of all-cause mortality attributable to CMU, fourteen dietary risk factors (eight diets, five nutrients and fibre intake) and overweight/obesity was estimated.

Setting

Sub-Saharan Africa.

Participants

All age groups and both sexes.

Results

In 2015, CMU, overweight/obesity and dietary risks of NCD accounted for 826204 (95 % uncertainty interval (UI) 737346, 923789), 266768 (95 % UI 189051, 353096) and 558578 (95 % UI 453433, 680197) deaths, respectively, representing 10·3 % (95 % UI 9·1, 11·6 %), 3·3 % (95 % UI 2·4, 4·4 %) and 7·0 % (95 % UI 5·8, 8·3 %) of all-cause mortality. While the age-standardized proportion of all-cause mortality accounted for by CMU decreased by 55·2 % between 1990 and 2015 in SSA, it increased by 63·3 and 17·2 % for overweight/obesity and dietary risks of NCD, respectively.

Conclusions

The increasing burden of diet- and obesity-related diseases and the reduction of mortality attributable to CMU indicate that SSA is undergoing a rapid nutritional transition. To tackle the impact in SSA, interventions and international development agendas should also target dietary risks associated with NCD and overweight/obesity.
Prevalence and correlates of food insecurity among Lebanese households with children aged 4–18 years: findings from a national cross-sectional study
Authors: Jomaa Lamis , Naja Farah , Kharroubi Samer , Hwalla Nahla
Published: December 2018

Objective

Food insecurity (FI) is a major public health problem in Lebanon, a small middle-income country with the highest refugee per capita concentration worldwide and prolonged political and economic challenges. The present study aimed to measure the prevalence and sociodemographic correlates of household FI and to explore the association of household FI with anthropometric measures of children and their mothers.

Design

Cross-sectional survey (2014–2015).

Setting

Lebanon.

Participants

Nationally representative sample of Lebanese households with 4–18-year-old-children and their mothers (n1204).

Results

FI prevalence (95 % CI), measured using the Arabic-translated, validated Household Food Insecurity Access Scale, was found to be 49·3 (44·0, 54·6) % in the study sample. Mild, moderate and severe FI were found in 7·0 (5·5, 9·2) %, 23·3 (20·1, 26·8) % and 18·9 (14·9, 23·5) % of households, respectively. Multiple regression analysis showed that low maternal and paternal education, unemployment and crowding were significant correlates of household FI (P<0·05). No significant associations were observed between FI and anthropometric measures of children and their mothers, after adjusting for other socio-economic correlates. Food-insecure households reported various mechanisms to cope with food shortage, such as reducing the number of meals/d (49·6 %), borrowing food (54·4 %), spending savings (34·5 %) and withdrawing children from schools (8·0 %).

Conclusions

FI exists among a remarkable proportion of Lebanese households with children. Correlates of household FI should be considered when designing social welfare policies and public health programmes to promote more sustainable, resilient and healthier livelihoods among vulnerable individuals.
Polite Patriotism: The Edwardian Gentleman in English Music, 1904 to 1914
Authors: Hopwood Paul
Published: December 2018

In Edwardian England many of the most widely acknowledged qualities of the national character coalesced around the figure of the English gentleman. One of his defining features was his emotional restraint, his ‘stiff upper-lip’. But these were also years during which patriotic and even nationalist sentiment rose to a high tide, and there was considerable tension between the whole-hearted expression of nationalism and the restrain demanded by gentlemanly manners. This article explores this tension as it was staged and negotiated in the folk-song rhapsodies and nature portraits by Vaughan Williams, Holst, Delius and others during the years from 1904 to 1914. As a methodological basis the article adopts the notion of musical subjectivity – that is, the idea that music can offer a virtual persona with which the listener is invited to identify, and as whom he or she may participate in the musical activity. In this context it is possible to identify aspects of musical rhetoric, namely, the manners which regulate the interaction between the virtual subjectivity and the listener. Ultimately the article suggests that it is the embodiment of gentlemanly manners, every bit as much as the use of folk-song or the representation of English landscape, that accounts for the particularly English quality commonly identified in this music.
Changes in newspaper coverage of mental illness from 2008 to 2016 in England
Authors: Anderson C. , Robinson E. J. , Krooupa A.-M. , Henderson C.
Published: December 2018

Aims

Since 2008 England's anti-stigma programme Time to Change has lobbied media outlets about stigmatising coverage and worked with them to promote accurate and non-stigmatising coverage. While this may have an impact on coverage and hence attitudes, it is also possible that coverage can change in response to improving attitudes, through the creation of a market demand for less stigmatising coverage. This study evaluates English newspaper coverage of mental health topics between 2008 and 2016.

Method

Articles covering mental health in 27 newspapers were retrieved using keyword searches on two randomly chosen days each month in 2008–2016, excluding 2012 and 2015 due to restricted resources. Content analysis used a structured coding framework. Univariate logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds of each hypothesised element occurring in 2016 compared with 2008 and Wald tests to assess the overall statistical significance of the year variable as the predictor.

Results

The sample retrieved almost doubled between 2008 (n = 882) and 2016 (n = 1738). We found a significant increase in the proportion of anti-stigmatising articles (odds ratio (OR) 2.26 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.86–2.74)) and a significant decrease in stigmatising articles (OR 0.62 (95% CI 0.51–0.75)). Reports on all diagnoses except for schizophrenia were more often anti-stigmatising than stigmatising.

Conclusions

This is the first clear evidence of improvement in coverage since the start of Time to Change. However, coverage of schizophrenia may be less affected by this positive shift than that of other diagnoses. The increase in the level of coverage identified in 2016 requires further investigation, as it may also influence public conceptualisation of what constitutes mental illness, attitudes to mental illness in general and/or specific diagnoses. While most anti-stigma programmes are not diagnosis specific, we suggest their evaluation would benefit from a diagnosis specific approach to allow fuller interpretation of their effects. This could include media analysis driven by hypotheses based on diagnoses to ascertain whether variations by diagnosis over time occur both in the nature and in the proportion of coverage.
Celebration of A. F. “Fred” Spilhaus Jr.
Authors: Geissman John
Published: December 2018

Honoring the life and legacy of the longtime AGU executive director.
234Th‐Derived Particle Fluxes and Seasonal Variability: When Is the SS Assumption Reliable? Insights From a Novel Approach for Carbon Flux Simulation
Authors: Ceballos‐Romero E. , De Soto F. , Le Moigne F. A. C. , García‐Tenorio R. , Villa‐Alfageme M.
Published: December 2018

234Th measurements are widely used to estimate the downward carbon flux of particles via the oceanic Biological Pump. Carbon export is evaluated from 234Th‐238U disequilibrium assuming either steady state (SS) conditions, or including a non‐SS (NSS) correction. We use a novel stochastic simulation to quantify the temporal variation of vertical carbon and 234Th (dissolved and particulate) concentration profiles with high temporal resolution. We calculate seasonal export as if in situ measured with sediment trap and SS‐ and NSS‐234Th approaches and quantify the periods of validity for SS/NSS conditions defined in previous works. The SS approach is valid throughout the entire season in oligotrophic regions. In temperate regions, the SS introduces a bias in the export if sampling takes place outside specific temporal windows. Windows of validity range from days in short blooms of ~15‐day duration to weeks in blooms longer than ~30 days.
Wide-gamut lasing from a single organic chromophore
Authors: Lane S. , Vagin S. , Wang H. , Heinz W. R. , Morrish W. , Zhao Y. , Rieger B. , Meldrum A.
Published: December 2018

The development of wideband lasing media has deep implications for imaging, sensing, and display technologies. We show that a single chromophore can be engineered to feature wide-gamut fluorescence and lasing throughout the entire visible spectrum and beyond. This exceptional color tuning demonstrates a chemically controlled paradigm for light emission applications with precise color management. Achieving such extensive color control requires a molecular blueprint that yields a high quantum efficiency and a high solubility in a wide variety of liquids and solids while featuring a heterocyclic structure with good steric access to the lone pair electrons. With these requirements in mind, we designed a lasing chromophore that encloses a lasing color space twice as large as the sRGB benchmark. This record degree of color tuning can in principle be adapted to the solid state by incorporating the chromophore into polymer films. By appropriately engineering the base molecular structure, the widest range of lasing wavelengths observed for a conventional gain medium can be achieved, in turn establishing a possible route toward high-efficiency light emitters and lasers with near-perfect chromaticity.
Two-dimensional transition metal carbides as supports for tuning the chemistry of catalytic nanoparticles
Authors: Li Zhe , Yu Liang , Milligan Cory , Ma Tao , Zhou Lin , Cui Yanran , Qi Zhiyuan , Libretto Nicole , Xu Biao , Luo Junwei , Shi Enzheng , Wu Zhenwei , Xin Hongliang , Delgass W. Nicholas , Miller Jeffrey T. , Wu Yue
Published: December 2018

Supported nanoparticles are broadly employed in industrial catalytic processes, where the active sites can be tuned by metal-support interactions (MSIs). Although it is well accepted that supports can modify the chemistry of metal nanoparticles, systematic utilization of MSIs for achieving desired catalytic performance is still challenging. The developments of supports with appropriate chemical properties and identification of the resulting active sites are the main barriers. Here, we develop two-dimensional transition metal carbides (MXenes) supported platinum as efficient catalysts for light alkane dehydrogenations. Ordered Pt3Ti and surface Pt3Nb intermetallic compound nanoparticles are formed via reactive metal-support interactions on Pt/Ti3C2Txand Pt/Nb2CTxcatalysts, respectively. MXene supports modulate the nature of the active sites, making them highly selective toward C–H activation. Such exploitation of the MSIs makes MXenes promising platforms with versatile chemical reactivity and tunability for facile design of supported intermetallic nanoparticles over a wide range of compositions and structures.
Active learning for accelerated design of layered materials
Authors: Bassman Oftelie Lindsay , Rajak Pankaj , Kalia Rajiv K. , Nakano Aiichiro , Sha Fei , Sun Jifeng , Singh David J. , Aykol Muratahan , Huck Patrick , Persson Kristin , Vashishta Priya
Published: December 2018

Hetero-structures made from vertically stacked monolayers of transition metal dichalcogenides hold great potential for optoelectronic and thermoelectric devices. Discovery of the optimal layered material for specific applications necessitates the estimation of key material properties, such as electronic band structure and thermal transport coefficients. However, screening of material properties via brute force ab initio calculations of the entire material structure space exceeds the limits of current computing resources. Moreover, the functional dependence of material properties on the structures is often complicated, making simplistic statistical procedures for prediction difficult to employ without large amounts of data collection. Here, we present a Gaussian process regression model, which predicts material properties of an input hetero-structure, as well as an active learning model based on Bayesian optimization, which can efficiently discover the optimal hetero-structure using a minimal number of ab initio calculations. The electronic band gap, conduction/valence band dispersions, and thermoelectric performance are used as representative material properties for prediction and optimization. The Materials Project platform is used for electronic structure computation, while the BoltzTraP code is used to compute thermoelectric properties. Bayesian optimization is shown to significantly reduce the computational cost of discovering the optimal structure when compared with finding an optimal structure by building a regression model to predict material properties. The models can be used for predictions with respect to any material property and our software, including data preparation code based on the Python Materials Genomics (PyMatGen) library as well as python-based machine learning code, is available open source.
Departure from the Wiedemann–Franz law in WP2 driven by mismatch in T-square resistivity prefactors
Authors: Jaoui Alexandre , Fauqué Benoît , Rischau Carl Willem , Subedi Alaska , Fu Chenguang , Gooth Johannes , Kumar Nitesh , Süß Vicky , Maslov Dmitrii L. , Felser Claudia , Behnia Kamran
Published: December 2018

The Wiedemann–Franz law establishes a link between heat and charge transport due to electrons in solids. The extent of its validity in the presence of inelastic scattering is a question raised in different contexts. Here we report on a study of the electrical, σ, and thermal, κ, conductivities in WP2 single crystals. The Wiedemann-Franz law holds at 2 K, but a downward deviation rapidly emerges upon warming. At 13 K, there is an exceptionally large mismatch between the Lorenz number and the Sommerfeld value. We show that this is driven by a fivefold discrepancy between the T-square prefactors of electrical and thermal resistivities, both caused by electron–electron scattering. This implies the existence of abundant small-scattering-angle collisions between electrons, due to strong screening. By quantifying the relative frequency of collisions conserving momentum flux, but degrading heat flux, we identify a narrow temperature window where the hierarchy of scattering times may correspond to the hydrodynamic regime.