bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Invasion success and impacts depend on different characteristics in non‐native plants
Authors: Ni Ming , Deane David C. , Li Shaopeng , Wu Yingtong , Sui Xinghua , Xu Han , Chu Chengjin , He Fangliang , Fang Suqin
Published: April 2021

Aim

Biological invasions threaten biodiversity globally. Large‐scale studies of non‐native plant species invasiveness typically focus on identifying ecological differences between naturalized and invasive species that account for their spread from sites of initial establishment (i.e., invasion success). However, invasive species differ widely in the magnitude of their impacts, suggesting the characteristics that favour invasion success might not necessarily predict the consequences of that invasion. Here we test whether those factors that increase the probability of plant species invasion also explain the severity of impacts.

Location

China.

Methods

We compiled a database of the invasiveness, biogeographic origins, life history traits, and introduction history for 538 non‐native plants in China and modelled differences in (a) naturalized and invasive species; (b) the spatial extent of invasion; and, (c) the severity of invasion impacts among successful invaders.

Results

Invasion success and the spatial extent of invasion shared similar influencing factors. However, these clearly differed from the predictors of severe invasion impacts. Unintentionally introduced non‐native plants with shorter life cycles and longer residence times were more likely to become invasive and to invade a larger area, while taller plants introduced from the Americas tended to have more severe impacts on the native ecosystems of China.

Main Conclusions

These results illustrate the different roles of introduction history, biogeographical origin and biological traits in determining the invasion success and spatial extent of invasion versus the severity of invasive species impacts. We suggest that factors associated with evolutionary adaptation and population expansion might determine invasion success and extent, while traits related to the relative competitive ability of invasive species determine the severity of impacts. Identifying specific characteristics of species that distinguish among successful invaders most likely to result in more severe impacts could help with planning more effective interventions.
Introduced alien, range extension or just visiting? Combining citizen science observations and expert knowledge to classify range dynamics of marine fishes
Authors: Middleton Irene , Aguirre J. David , Trnski Thomas , Francis Malcolm , Duffy Clinton , Liggins Libby
Published: April 2021

Aim

Despite the unprecedented rate of species redistribution during the Anthropocene, there are few monitoring programmes at the appropriate spatial and temporal scale to detect distributional change of marine species and to infer climate‐ versus human‐mediated drivers of change. Here, we present an approach that combines citizen science with expert knowledge to classify out‐of‐range occurrences for marine fishes as potential range extensions or human‐mediated dispersal events.

Innovation

Our stepwise approach includes decision trees, scoring and matrices to classify citizen science observations of species occurrences and to provide a measure of confidence and validation using expert knowledge. Our method draws on peer‐reviewed literature, knowledge of the species (e.g. contributing to its detectability, and potential to raft with, or foul, man‐made structures or debris) and information obtained from citizen science observations (e.g. life stage, number of individuals). Using a case study of suspected out‐of‐range marine fishes in Aotearoa New Zealand, we demonstrate our approach to defining species’ ranges, assigning confidence to these definitions and considering the species detectability to overcome the data deficiencies that currently hinder monitoring the range dynamics of these species. Our classification of citizen science observations revealed that six of ten species had out‐of‐range occurrences; one of these was classified as an extralimital vagrant, four species had potentially extended their ranges and one species occurrence was likely due to human‐mediated dispersal.

Conclusion

The case study of marine fishes in New Zealand validates our approach combining citizen science observations with expert knowledge to infer species range dynamics in real time. Our stepwise approach helps to identify data deficiencies important in informing scientific inferences and management actions and can be refined to suit other data sources, taxonomic groups, geographic settings or extended with new steps and existing tools.
When bigger isn’t better—Implications of large high‐severity wildfire patches for avian diversity and community composition
Authors: Steel Zachary L. , Fogg Alissa M. , Burnett Ryan , Roberts L. Jay , Safford Hugh D.
Published: April 2021

Aim

Wildfires increasingly create large high‐severity patches with interior areas far from less disturbed habitats. We evaluated how these trends impact bird communities by investigating the effect of internal distance from lower‐severity areas, high‐severity patch size, and years since fire on avian alpha and beta diversity.

Location

Sierra Nevada, California, USA.

Methods

Bird occurrence data were collected during 2009–2017 within high‐severity patches of 27 wildfires representing 1–30 years since disturbance. A two‐step multispecies occupancy method was used to account for imperfect detection of 94 species and estimate effects of patch characteristics on community richness and dissimilarity.

Results

Community richness decreased with distance from patch edge and with patch size. Richness increased with years since fire, but this pattern was dependent on distance from edge with higher peak richness (23 species) near edges than interiors (18 species). Community dissimilarity was not associated with distance, indicating that large high‐severity patch interiors contain subsets of, rather than complements to, edge communities. Dissimilarity peaked later with increasing patch size. Guild richness of tree and primary cavity nesters was negatively associated with distance and patch size. Richness of ground and shrub nesters was insensitive to distance, while shrub nester richness increased somewhat with patch size. Due to declines among other species, ground and shrub nesters made up a greater percentage of the avian community within the interiors of large high‐severity patches.

Main conclusions

As fire activity increases due to accumulating forest fuels and accelerating climate change, high‐severity patches and their resulting early‐seral habitats are becoming more extensive with less edge and more interior area. Such changes are likely to decrease avian diversity locally and shift community composition away from forest‐associated species. Management actions that promote the full range of fire effects but limit high‐severity patch size may best conserve bird diversity within fire‐adapted ecosystems.
The duration of intrauterine development influences discrimination of speech prosody in infants
Authors: Alexopoulos Johanna , Giordano Vito , Janda Charlotte , Benavides‐Varela Silvia , Seidl Rainer , Doering Stephan , Berger Angelika , Bartha‐Doering Lisa
Published: April 2021

Auditory speech discrimination is essential for normal language development. Children born preterm are at greater risk of language developmental delays. Using functional near‐infrared spectroscopy at term‐equivalent age, the present study investigated early discrimination of speech prosody in 62 neonates born between week 23 and 41 of gestational age (GA). We found a significant positive correlation between GA at birth and neural discrimination of forward versus backward speech at term‐equivalent age. Cluster analysis identified a critical threshold at around week 32 of GA, pointing out the existence of subgroups. Infants born before week 32 of GA exhibited a significantly different pattern of hemodynamic response to speech stimuli compared to infants born at or after week 32 of GA. Thus, children born before the GA of 32 weeks are especially vulnerable to early speech discrimination deficits. To support their early language development, we therefore suggest a close follow‐up and additional speech and language therapy especially in the group of children born before week 32 of GA.
Hermann Cohen on the role of history in critical philosophy
Authors: Edgar Scott
Published: April 2021

Consider two features of Hermann Cohen's critical philosophy. First, using what Cohen calls the transcendental method, critical philosophy aims to identify formal conditions of experience that are universally, and so timelessly, valid. Second, detailed, context‐sensitive surveys of the history of science and philosophy are ubiquitous in his accounts of those formal conditions. This paper argues for two claims about how those two features of Cohen's philosophy fit together. First, Cohen holds the striking view that, while philosophy aims to discover and investigate principles that are timelessly valid, it must nevertheless use historical investigation to do so. Second, Cohen has the resources to explain why, on his view, history must play this role in philosophy. This paper uses a genealogical strategy to locate that explanation in Cohen's writings: it traces views of history held by various of Cohen's teachers and shows that Cohen combines and develops those ideas to produce just the explanation needed. Ultimately, the underlying reasoning of Cohen's explanation is this. The history of science has a teleological structure, and as it unfolds, knowledge becomes increasingly universal. But then, elements of scientific theories that remain stable across a succession of increasingly universal theories will be plausible candidates for or approximations of the strictly universal formal conditions of experience. The critical philosopher is thus required to attend to the history of science to identify plausible candidates for those formal conditions.
State Assessment Score Reporting Practices for English Learner Parents
Authors: Rios Joseph A. , Ihlenfeldt Samuel D.
Published: April 2021

This study sought to investigate how states communicate results for academic achievement and English language proficiency (ELP) assessments to parents who are English learners (EL). This objective was addressed by evaluating: (a) whether score reports and interpretive guides for state academic achievement and ELP assessments in each state were translated for EL parents; and (b) if so, whether recommended score reporting guidelines were followed in practice. Results demonstrated that for state achievement tests, 29 states had translated score reports and 28 had translated interpretive guides. Nearly every state translated these materials for their ELP assessments in a wide variety of languages. Across ELP and state achievement assessments, most states were found to limit statistical jargon, utilize figures/graphics to communicate test results, and include follow‐up information for parents, which represent improvements observed in prior reviews. However, states rarely provided personalization, statements on intended score use, a student's score history, or a direct link to their interpretive guide in their score reports. Recommendations on making score reports and interpretive guides more accessible and interpretable for EL parents are discussed.
Neurovascular multiparametric MRI defines epileptogenic and seizure propagation regions in experimental mesiotemporal lobe epilepsy
Authors: Boux Fabien , Forbes Florence , Collomb Nora , Zub Emma , Mazière Lucile , de Bock Fréderic , Blaquiere Marine , Stupar Vasile , Depaulis Antoine , Marchi Nicola , Barbier Emmanuel L.
Published: April 2021

Objective

Improving the identification of the epileptogenic zone and associated seizure‐spreading regions represents a significant challenge. Innovative brain‐imaging modalities tracking neurovascular dynamics during seizures may provide new disease biomarkers.

Methods

With use of a multi‐parametric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) analysis at 9.4 Tesla, we examined, elaborated, and combined multiple cellular and cerebrovascular MRI read‐outs as imaging biomarkers of the epileptogenic and seizure‐propagating regions. Analyses were performed in an experimental model of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) generated by unilateral intra‐hippocampal injection of kainic acid (KA).

Results

In the ipsilateral epileptogenic hippocampi, tissue T1 and blood‐brain barrier (BBB) permeability to gadolinium were increased 48‐72 hours post‐KA, as compared to sham and contralateral hippocampi. BBB permeability endured during spontaneous focal seizures (4‐6 weeks), along with a significant increase of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and blood volume fraction (BVf). Simultaneously, ADC and BVf were augmented in the contralateral hippocampus, a region characterized by electroencephalographic seizure spreading, discrete histological neurovascular cell modifications, and no tissue sclerosis. We next asked whether combining all the acquired MRI parameters could deliver criteria to classify the epileptogenic from the seizure‐spreading and sham hippocampi in these experimental conditions and over time. To differentiate sham from epileptogenic areas, the automatic multi‐parametric classification provided a maximum accuracy of 97.5% (32 regions) 48‐72 hours post‐KA and of 100% (60 regions) at spontaneous seizures stage. To differentiate sham, epileptogenic, and seizure‐spreading areas, the accuracies of the automatic classification were 93.1% (42 regions) 48‐72 hours post‐KA and 95% (80 regions) at spontaneous seizure stage.

Significance

Combining multi‐parametric MRI acquisition and machine‐learning analyses delivers specific imaging identifiers to segregate the epileptogenic from the contralateral seizure‐spreading hippocampi in experimental MTLE. The potential clinical value of our findings is critically discussed.
Educational attainment protects against epilepsy independent of cognitive function: A Mendelian randomization study
Authors: Wang Mengmeng , Zhang Zhizhong , Liu Dandan , Xie Wei , Ma Yazhou , Yao Jianrong , Zhu Linfeng , Liu Meng , Sheng Shiying , Lian Xuegan
Published: April 2021

Objective

Observational studies have suggested that increased levels of education and cognition are associated with a reduced risk of epilepsy. However, such associations are easily influenced by confounding or reverse causality. Hence, we conducted a two‐sample univariable and multivariable Mendelian randomization (MR) to estimate the total and independent causal effects of educational attainment and cognition on epilepsy risk.

Methods

We performed MR estimates on International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) Consortium genome‐wide association study (GWAS) data (15 212 epilepsy cases and 29 677 controls). We then validated the results in FinnGen (3424 epilepsy cases and 110 963 controls) and applied meta‐analysis to all the results.

Results

In the meta‐analysis of the ILAE and FinnGen results, genetically determined increased educational attainment was associated with a reduced risk of epilepsy (odds ratio [OR] 0.84, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.80‐0.88; P < .001). Similarly, genetically determined increased cognitive function was associated with a reduced risk of epilepsy (OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.88‐1.00, P = .043). When educational attainment and cognitive function were included in the same multivariable MR, only educational attainment was still associated with a reduced risk of epilepsy (OR 0.88, 95% CI 0.81‐0.95, P = .002).

Significance

This MR study provides evidence to support that increased educational attainment can reduce the risk of developing epilepsy independent of cognitive function.
Co‐occurrence of papillomas related to Equus caballus papillomavirus type 2 and cutaneous habronemiasis
Authors: Vichi G. , Porcellato I. , Mechelli L. , Fantauzzo G. , Razzuoli E. , Modesto P. , Mecocci S. , Brachelente C.
Published: April 2021

The present report describes a case of cutaneous papillomatosis related to equine papillomavirus type 2 (EcPV2) with concomitant cutaneous habronemiasis. A 2‐year‐old female Pura Raza Española horse was referred for a dermatological evaluation because of the onset of cutaneous multifocal, nodular lesions on the face characterised by a warty and partially ulcerated overlying epidermis. Multiple biopsies were taken from these lesions, and cutaneous viral papillomas with a concomitant severe focal eosinophilic dermatitis with intralesional Habronematidae nematode larvae were diagnosed. Immunohistochemistry revealed papillomaviral capsid protein L1 in the epidermal proliferative lesion, confirming the presence of a productive infection. Rt‐qPCR confirmed the presence of EcPV type 2. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report of EcPV2‐related papillomas with concurrent habronemiasis.
EGL‐4/PKG regulates the role of an interneuron in a chemotaxis circuit of C. elegans through mediating integration of sensory signals
Authors: Hino Takahiro , Hirai Shota , Ishihara Takeshi , Fujiwara Manabi
Published: April 2021

Interneurons, innervated by multiple sensory neurons, need to integrate information from these sensory neurons and respond to sensory stimuli adequately. Mechanisms how sensory information is integrated to form responses of interneurons are not fully understood. In Caenorhabditis elegans, loss‐of‐function mutations of egl‐4, which encodes a cGMP‐dependent protein kinase (PKG), cause a defect in chemotaxis to odorants. Our genetic and imaging analyses revealed that the response property of AIY interneuron to an odorant is reversed in the egl‐4 mutant, while the responses of two upstream olfactory neurons, AWA and AWC, are largely unchanged. Cell‐ ablation experiments show that AIY in the egl‐4 mutant functions to suppress chemotaxis. Furthermore, the reversal of AIY response occurs only in the presence of sensory signals from both AWA and AWC. These results suggest that sensory signals are inadequately integrated in the egl‐4 mutant. We also show that egl‐4 expression in AWA and another sensory neuron prevents the reversed AIY response and restores chemotaxis in the egl‐4 mutants. We propose that EGL‐4/PKG, by suppressing aberrant integration of signals from olfactory neurons, converts the response property of an interneuron to olfactory stimuli and maintains the role of the interneuron in the circuit to execute chemotactic behavior.
Unpaid care, welfare conditionality and expropriation
Authors: Klein Elise
Published: April 2021

Welfare conditionality where social security payments are conditional on recipients undertaking tasks such as training, submitting job applications and taking part in “work‐like” activities, is an enduring punitive feature of contemporary welfare provision in global North economics. In Australia, welfare conditionality or mutual obligation as it is commonly referred to, is continually targeted at specific groups such as single women and First Nations women. Drawing on fifteen in‐depth interviews with women put on a mutual obligation program in Australia called ParentsNext, I examine the relationship between mutual obligation and the expropriation of women's unpaid care work. I argue that welfare conditionality targeted at First Nations women and non‐First Nations women, reinforces and intensifies the expropriation of women's unpaid care work, as well as settler colonial expropriation. The expropriation of women's unpaid care work intensifies under ParentsNext in four notable ways–through punitive mutual obligation requirements, stigma, the privatization of community services and assisting ongoing settler colonial expropriation.
Carotid atherosclerosis in virologically suppressed HIV patients: comparison with a healthy sample and prediction by cardiovascular risk equations
Authors: Saumoy M , Di Yacovo S , Pérez S , Sánchez‐Quesada JL , Valdivielso JM , Subirana I , Imaz A , Tiraboschi JM , García B , Ordoñez‐LLanos J , Benítez S , Podzamczer D , Grau M
Published: April 2021

Objectives

To compare the prevalence of carotid atherosclerosis in virologically suppressed HIV patients with that of a community sample, and to evaluate the capacity of various cardiovascular risk (CVR) equations for predicting carotid atherosclerosis.

Methods

This was a cross‐sectional study with two randomly selected groups: HIV patients from an HIV unit and a control group drawn from the community. Participants were matched by age (30–80 years) and sex without history of cardiovascular disease. Carotid plaque, common carotid intima–media thickness (cc‐IMT) and subclinical atherosclerosis (carotid plaque and/or cc‐IMT > 75th percentile) were assessed by carotid ultrasound. The Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation (SCORE), Framingham, REGICOR, reduced Data Collection on Adverse Effects of Anti‐HIV Drugs (D:A:D), and COMVIH equations were applied, and their abilities to predict carotid plaque were compared using the area under the curve (AUC).

Results

Each group included 379 subjects (77.8% men, age 49.7 years). Duration of antiretroviral therapy was 15.5 years. There were no differences between the groups for carotid plaque (HIV, 33.2%; control, 31.3%), mean cc‐IMT (HIV, 0.63 mm; control, 0.61 mm) or subclinical atherosclerosis (HIV, 42.9%; control, 47.9%). Thymidine analogues were independently associated with subclinical atherosclerosis in HIV‐infected patients. CVR equations revealed AUCs between 0.715 and 0.807 for prediction of carotid plaque; prediction was better in the control group and did not improve when HIV‐adapted scales were used.

Conclusions

The features of carotid atherosclerosis did not differ between the HIV‐infected and the control group, although CVR equations were more predictive for carotid plaque in controls than in HIV‐infected patients. HIV‐specific equations did not improve prediction.
Rejuvenated extension of the Philippine Sea plate and its effect on subduction dynamics in the Nankai Trough
Authors: Kimura Gaku , Nakamura Yasuyuki , Shiraishi Kazuya , Fujie Gou , Kodaira Shuichi , Yamaguchi Asuka , Fukuchi Rina , Hashimoto Yoshitaka
Published: April 2021

The Nankai Trough, Japan, is a subduction zone characterized by the recurrence of disastrous earthquakes and tsunamis. Slow earthquakes and associated tremor also occur intermittently and locally in the Nankai Trough and the causal relationship between slow earthquakes and large earthquakes is important to understanding subduction zone dynamics. The Nankai Trough off Muroto, Shikoku Island, near the southeast margin of the rupture segment of the 1946 Nankai earthquake, is one of three regions where slow earthquakes and tremor cluster in the Nankai Trough. On the Philippine Sea plate, the rifting of the central domain of the Shikoku Basin was aborted at ~15 Ma and underthrust the Nankai forearc off Muroto. Here, the Tosa‐Bae seamount and other high‐relief features, which are northern extension of the Kinan Seamount chain, have collided with and indented the forearc wedge. In this study, we analyzed seismic reflection profiles around the deformation front of accretionary wedge and stratigraphically correlated them to drilling sites off Muroto. Our results show that the previously aborted horst‐and‐graben structures, which were formed around the spreading center of the Shikoku Basin at ~15 Ma, were rejuvenated locally at ~6 Ma and more regionally at ~3.3 Ma and have remained active since. The reactivated normal faulting has enhanced seafloor roughness and appears to affect the locations of slow earthquakes and tremors. Rejuvenated normal faulting is not limited to areas near the Nankai Trough, and extends more than 200 km into the Shikoku Basin to the south. This extension might be due to extensional forces applied to the Philippine Sea plate, which appear to be driven by slab‐pull in the Ryukyu and Philippine trenches along the western margin of the Philippine Sea plate.
Impacts of combined assurance on integrated, sustainability and financial reporting qualities: Evidence from listed companies in South Africa
Authors: Donkor Augustine , Djajadikerta Hadrian Geri , Mat Roni Saiyidi
Published: April 2021

This study assesses the impacts of combined assurance (CA) quality on external reporting qualities (i.e., integrated, sustainability and financial reports). Data from listed firms on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in South Africa are used in this study. JSE is the largest stock exchange in Africa and, currently, the only capital market that mandates integrated reporting (IR) practice. This study uses content analysis to produce IR and CA quality data from IR reports and collects financial and sustainability quality data from the Bloomberg database. Ordinary least square (OLS) regression is used to test the models, together with a set of robustness tests. The findings show strong associations between CA quality and both IR and sustainability reporting qualities, indicating that CA effectively enhances the credibility of sustainability‐exhaustive reporting practices. However, for financial reporting quality, CA impacts differently the two financial measures used in this study (i.e., real and accrual earnings management).
Impact of social influences and adoptive community on behaviours: An exploratory study of young French vegetarians
Authors: Séré de Lanauze Gilles , Sirieix Lucie
Published: April 2021

The influence of consumption practice‐based communities on consumption patterns is a growing trend in marketing research. Vegetarianism, a diet that usually represents a break away from eating patterns strongly anchored in society, generates psychological and relational tensions for those who adopt it. As such, vegetarians develop specific links with the adoptive vegetarian community, which may strongly influence the adoption and maintenance of this practice. The purpose of this research is to better understand how vegetarians' relationships with their social environment and community impact their consumption behaviours. An exploratory study was carried out based on 23 individual interviews with young adult vegetarians in France. The results shed light on the self‐categorization process and show how relationships with the community influence the adoption and maintenance of vegetarian behaviour. In addition, depending on the perceived opposition between society and the vegetarian community and the degree of identification with this community, different patterns of relationships with and expectations of the community are identified and presented in the CBO model (Community Belonging and perceived Opposition between community and society). Understanding the social influences involved in practice‐based adoptive communities will help marketers take decisions relating to support, supply and communication with regard to these practices. Beyond describing the practices and motivations underpinning vegetarianism and veganism, previously documented in the literature, this research provides new insights into the impact of communities and social influences on the adoption and defence of a specific diet.
Astringency sub‐qualities of red wines and the influence of wine–saliva aggregates
Authors: Brossard Natalia , Gonzalez‐Muñoz Beatriz , Pavez Carolina , Ricci Arianna , Wang Xinmiao , Osorio Fernando , Bordeu Edmundo , Paola Parpinello Giuseppina , Chen Jianshe
Published: April 2021

Astringency is a sensory attribute, related to the quality and mouthfeel of red wines. However, the origin of astringency sub‐qualities, such as the typical drying astringency found in immature grapes, is still unknown. Astringency of red wines with similar tannin content but different astringency sub‐qualities, from different harvest dates, is studied. Astringency was characterised in terms of friction coefficient, polyphenol content, sensory analysis and tannin/salivary–proteins aggregates characterisation. A different evolution during ripening was found for both Cabernet Sauvignon and Carménère, and tannin–protein aggregates showed differences in size, shape and surface. The velvety sub‐quality appears to be related to aggregates with low precipitation, and with specific surface characteristics as roundness and Feret diameter. Results from this work propose an effect of aggregates on sensory perception and opens the possibility to explore their effect on oral lubrication.
Narrative therapy to relieve stigma in oral cancer patients: A randomized controlled trial
Authors: Sun Liying , Liu Xueli , Weng Xiaoling , Deng Haiyan , Li Qian , Liu Jingpeng , Luan Xiaorong
Published: April 2021

Aims and objectives

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of narrative therapy in relieving stigma in oral cancer patients who underwent major surgical treatment.

Background

Health‐related stigma compromises mental health and life quality in people with physical or mental abnormalities. Narrative therapy has been implemented to overcome stigma among populations in a diversity of disease states. However, the effectiveness of narrative therapy in relieving stigma among patients with oral cancer is not known.

Design

This study was a randomized controlled trial, in which 100 oral cancer patients were selected and randomly assigned to the ‘narrative therapy’ group, who received narrative therapy treatment in addition to standard care, and the ‘control’ group, who was provided standard care only.

Methods

This research combined measurement of several questionnaires to evaluate stigma. Analysis of variance and paired t tests were employed for data analysis.

Results

Findings in this study demonstrated that narrative therapy treatment effectively relieved oral cancer patients' sense of shame, reducing overall stigma and significantly improving self‐esteem and social relationships.

Conclusions

Narrative therapy was demonstrated to be a promising therapeutic intervention for stigma relief in oral cancer patients.
Wisdom and Theological Interpretation: A Biblical Studies Response to Myk Habets on Theological Theological Interpretation of Scripture
Authors: Meadowcroft Tim
Published: April 2021

This article responds to Myk Habets’s article ‘Theological Theological Interpretation of Scripture’. It begins with comment on those matters in which we are in agreement. The article, after reflecting on some dualities of practice that arise when theologians and biblical scholars attempt to work together, then examines two particular dualities in Habets’s argument: hermeneutics and theology, and general and special hermeneutics. With respect to special and general hermeneutics, the article draws on the biblical wisdom tradition, and suggests an understanding of theological interpretation that is dialogic and organic in nature.
Theological Theological Interpretation of Scripture
Authors: Habets Myk
Published: April 2021

Theological Interpretation of Scripture is a discipline that is growing in popularity and usefulness. This popularity has spawned many proposals for what Theological Interpretation of Scripture is and how it should be conducted. Within these proposals two general approaches to Theological Interpretation of Scripture can be identified: the biblical and the theological. While complementary, these approaches to Theological Interpretation of Scripture differ. Observing these differences allows for mutual appreciation between the two approaches. It also provides an opportunity to clarify further what theologians are doing when they undertake a theological Theological Interpretation of Scripture. After specifying what a theological Theological Interpretation of Scripture is by employing a six‐point rubric which incorporates general and special hermeneutics, the differences between approaches to Theological Interpretation of Scripture by biblical scholars and theologians will be illustrated.
Measuring the overall efficiency of SRI and conventional mutual funds by a diversification‐consistent DEA model
Authors: Bilbao‐Terol Amelia , Arenas‐Parra Mar , Bilbao‐Terol Celia
Published: April 2021

This paper presents an application of data envelopment analysis (DEA) based approaches to assess the relative financial and nonfinancial efficiency of mutual funds (MFs). Our approach measures corporate sustainability (CS) of the MFs from the rating process carried out by social agencies on the constituent firms. We have modified the raw scores of the firms invested in by the MFs in order to overcome the compensatory effect when the MFs invested in both “good” and “bad” firms. For this purpose, we have used prospect theory in such a manner that the original scores awarded to the firms are modified by applying a value function. Three extensions of Branda's model are formulated. The first model measures financial efficiency, the second model measures CS efficiency and is an output‐oriented DEA model, and, the third is a DEA model for measuring overall efficiency of the MFs. In the last step of the proposed methodology, the set of overall‐efficient MFs is ranked applying technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution to the two DEA scores corresponding to the two partial DEA models. The risk and return measures have been chosen so that the proposed models are consistent with the second‐order stochastic dominance relation. Therefore, under a finite number of equiprobable scenarios for the rates of return, a set of conditional value at risk for several confidence levels are used as inputs of the models that consider the financial performance. The proposed approach is illustrated with real data on a set of 144 French MFs, 31 marketed as socially responsible investment MFs.
New low‐εr, temperature stable Mg3B2O6‐Ba3(VO4)2 microwave composite ceramic for 5G application
Authors: Zhou Tao , Liu Yahan , Song Kaixin , Xue Lingyun , Xu Ping , Khesro Amir , Wang Dawei , Liu Bing , Mao Minmin , Shi Feng , Sun Shikuan
Published: April 2021

Novel low‐εr, thermal and phase stable of (1‐x)Mg3B2O6‐xBa3(VO4)2 (x mol% =51, 53, 55, 57, 59) microwave composite ceramics were firstly fabricated and reported using the conventional solid‐state reaction method. X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X‐ray, and Raman spectroscopy confirmed the coexistence of both phases without other phases. Near‐zero temperature coefficient of resonant frequency (τf ~ +1.2 ppm/°C) is obtained for the 0.43Mg3B2O6‐0.57Ba3(VO4)2 composite ceramic, with permittivity (εr) of 8.8 and high‐quality factor (Q×f) of 45 420 GHz, which is a promising candidate for 5G applications.
Assessment of compliance with oral nutritional supplementation and exploration of barriers and facilitators for patients after gastrectomy: A mixed‐methods study
Authors: Wan Guang‐ying , Yuan Hua , Xue Hui , Li Hui‐qin , Hu Hai‐yan , Zhang Xiu‐ying
Published: April 2021

Aims

To evaluate the compliance of patients after gastrectomy in taking oral nutritional supplementation and to explore the promoting and hindering factors.

Design

A mixed‐methods design with an explanatory sequential approach was employed.

Methods

We conducted a 12‐week longitudinal study to evaluate the oral nutritional supplementation compliance of 122 patients after gastric cancer surgery and the factors that affected their compliance. After the quantitative phase, we selected the interview subjects and developed the interview outline based on the analysis of the quantitative results. In‐depth interviews (n = 15) were conducted to explain and supplement the quantitative phase results. Data were collected from October 2019 to May 2020.

Results

The average overall compliance rate of oral nutritional supplementation in patients with gastric cancer over 12 weeks was 30.59%. Adverse reactions to oral nutritional supplementation, the identity of the main caregivers and the patient's financial ability were independent factors that affected patient compliance. In subsequent interviews, we extracted four themes: social support plays an important role in patients taking oral nutritional supplementation, adverse reactions discourage patients from continuing to take oral nutritional supplementation, patients' attitudes affect their motivation to take oral nutritional supplementation, and the different needs of patients for oral nutritional supplementation affect patient compliance.

Conclusion

Patients' compliance with oral nutritional supplementation after gastric cancer surgery is very low. Health education should pay more attention to the management of adverse reactions and the role of patients' peers and family members. Oral nutritional supplementation products should be diversified to provide patients with more choices.

Impact

This study clarifies the factors that hinder and promote oral nutritional supplementation compliance and provides an important reference for the establishment and revision of health education strategies for patients after gastric cancer surgery.
Abiotic stress and biotic factors mediate range dynamics on opposing edges
Authors: Sirén Alexej P. K. , Sutherland Christopher S. , Bernier Christopher A. , Royar Kimberly J. , Kilborn Jillian R. , Callahan Catherine B. , Cliché Rachel M. , Prout Leighlan S. , Morelli Toni Lyn
Published: April 2021

Aim

In the face of global change, understanding causes of range limits are one of the most pressing needs in biogeography and ecology. A prevailing hypothesis is that abiotic stress forms cold (upper latitude/altitude) limits, whereas biotic interactions create warm (lower) limits. A new framework – Interactive Range‐Limit Theory (iRLT) – asserts that positive biotic factors such as food availability can ameliorate abiotic stress along cold edges, whereas abiotic stress can have a positive effect and mediate biotic interactions (e.g., competition) along warm limits.

Location

Northeastern United States

Taxon

Carnivora

Methods

We evaluated two hypotheses of iRLT using occupancy and structural equation modeling (SEM) frameworks based on data collected over a 6‐year period (2014–2019) of six carnivore species across a broad latitudinal (42.8–45.3°N) and altitudinal (3–1451 m) gradient.

Results

We found that snow directly limits populations, but prey or habitat availability can influence range dynamics along cold edges. For example, bobcats (Lynx rufus) and coyotes (Canis latrans) were limited by deep snow and long winters, but the availability of prey had a strong positive effect. Conversely, snow had a strong positive effect on the warm limits of Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis), countering the negative effect of competition with the phylogenetically similar bobcat and with coyotes, highlighting how climate mediates competition between species.

Main conclusions

We used an integrated dataset that included competitors and prey species collected at the same spatial and temporal scale. As such, this design, along with a causal modeling framework (SEM), allowed us to evaluate community‐wide hypotheses at macroecological scales and identify coarse‐scale drivers of species' range limits. Our study supports iRLT and underscores the need to consider direct and indirect mechanisms for studying range dynamics and species' responses to global change.
Mostly in its Backyard: Security Provisions in EU Economic Agreements
Authors: Ariel Jonathan , Haftel Yoram Z.
Published: April 2021

Economic agreements concluded between the EU and third parties increasingly take on security matters, such as counter‐terrorism, nuclear proliferation and international criminal law. Highlighting the remarkable variation in the presence and content of these security non‐trade issues (SNTIs), we argue that it is best explained by the EU's intensity of foreign policy interests vis‐à‐vis its partners. Specifically, different stakeholders have divergent views on this matter: some advocate strong linkage between trade and security, while others prefer to tackle these issues separately. We expect the former perspective to determine the content of economic agreements when the partner is in the EU's backyard. The latter perspective will dominate in negotiations with more distant partners. We test these expectations with a new data set of SNTIs in EU agreements. Employing quantitative methods and controlling for several alternative explanations, we find ample support for the theoretical framework.
Commentary: Reducing youth firearm violence and the associated health disparities requires enhanced surveillance and modern behavioral intervention strategies – a commentary on Bottiani et al. (2021)
Authors: Goldstick Jason E. , Kaufman Elinore J. , Delgado M. Kit , Jay Jonathan , Carter Patrick M.
Published: April 2021

Youth firearm injury is a worsening public health crisis, and the risks are not distributed evenly. Bottiani et al. skillfully explicated those health disparities, described sociological factors underlying them, and explored avenues for prevention. We supplement their analysis by detailing problems and solutions related to a critical barrier to firearm violence prevention – the nonexistence both of reliable ‘gold standard’ nonfatal firearm injury surveillance data, and systems for near real‐time surveillance of firearm injuries at granular spatial scales that would enable to optimization of rapid response protocols and neighborhood‐based prevention programs. We conclude with a discussion of modern, scalable, behavioral intervention approaches that could be leveraged to fill the largely absent evidence base resulting from the documented underfunding of youth firearm violence prevention research.
Medical Malpractice and Physician Discipline: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Authors: Hyman David A. , Rahmati Mohammad , Black Bernard
Published: April 2021

We study the overlap between the medical malpractice (med mal) and medical disciplinary systems using the records of almost 90,000 Illinois physicians who held an active license at any point from 1990–2016. We quantify the specialty‐specific risk of having a paid med mal claim or a disciplinary action; how many physicians have both; and the extent to which physicians with two or more paid claims or two or more disciplinary actions account for a disproportionate share of the activity of both systems. We also examine which factors are associated with paid claims and disciplinary actions, and whether physicians with multiple paid claims or disciplinary actions are concentrated at particular hospitals. Physicians with two or more paid claims account for only 2.37 percent of all licensed physicians, but they account for 53 percent of paid claims and payouts. Physicians with two or more disciplinary actions account for only 0.47 percent of physicians but 28 percent of all disciplinary actions. The risk of paid claims and disciplinary actions varies greatly by specialty. Physicians who attended non‐U.S. medical schools are more likely to have paid claims but (except for high‐disciplinary‐risk specialties) are not more likely to be subject to disciplinary action. Physicians with prior paid claims are more likely to be the target of disciplinary action—but not vice versa. A small number of Illinois hospitals are staffed by physicians with unusually high numbers of paid med mal claims, disciplinary actions, or both.
Effect of root surface conditioning on gingival recession coverage with a connective tissue graft. A retrospective comparative study of three different agents
Authors: Sebaoun Alon , Meir Haya , Slutzkey Gil S. , Nemcovsky Carlos E. , Beitlitum Ilan
Published: April 2021

Objective

Different root modifiers have been proposed in the literature with an attempt to improve the healing process and the success rate of root coverage procedures. The aim of the present retrospective study was to evaluate the effect of three different types of root surface conditioning, namely, tetracycline (TTC), ethylene‐di‐amino‐tetra‐acetic acid (EDTA) and saline, on the outcome of root coverage procedures applying the same surgical technique.

Materials and methods

Twenty‐nine patients with 60 Classes I, II, or III recession defects were treated using connective tissue with a partial‐thickness double‐pedicle graft. In 21 recession defects root surface was treated with TTC and, in other 21, with EDTA, while in the remaining, saline solution was applied. Statistical analysis consisted of descriptive statistics and Kruskal‐Wallis, Mann–Whitney, and chi‐square tests.

Results

Differences between pre‐ and postoperative values were statistically significant only within but not between groups. Mean root coverage was 73.25%, 69.19%, and 82.17% in the TTC, the EDTA, and the saline groups, respectively. The study revealed no statistically significant differences for all evaluated parameters between groups.

Conclusion

Within the limits of this study, root conditioning, prior to root coverage procedures, does not significantly affect their outcome.

Clinical significance

Clinical outcome of root coverage procedures is not related to the type of root surface conditioning.
Comparative outcomes for older adults undergoing surgery for bladder and bowel dysfunction
Authors: Suskind Anne M. , Zhao Shoujun , Nik‐Ahd Farnoosh , Boscardin W. John , Covinsky Kenneth , Finlayson Emily
Published: April 2021

Background/Objectives

To compare surgical outcomes between vulnerable nursing home (NH) residents and matched community‐dwelling older adults undergoing surgery for bladder and bowel dysfunction.

Design

Retrospective cohort study.

Participants

A total of 55,389 NH residents and propensity matched (based on procedure, age, sex, race, comorbidity, and year) community‐dwelling older adults undergoing surgery for bladder and bowel dysfunction [female pelvic surgery, transurethral resection of the prostate, suprapubic tube placement, hemorrhoid surgery, rectal prolapse surgery]. Individuals were identified using Medicare claims and the Minimum Data Set (MDS) for NH residents between 2014 and 2016.

Measurements

Thirty‐day complications, 1‐year mortality, and weighted changes in healthcare resource utilization (hospital admissions, emergency room visits, office visits) in the year before and after surgery.

Results

NH residents demonstrated statistically significant increased risk of 30‐day complications [60.1% v. 47.2%; RR 1.3 (95% CI 1.3–1.3)] and 1‐year mortality [28.9% vs. 21.3%; RR 1.4 (95% CI 1.3–1.4)], compared to community‐dwelling older adults. NH residents also demonstrated decreased healthcare resource utilization, compared to community‐dwelling older adults, changing from 3.9 to 1.9 (vs.1.1 to 1.0) hospital admissions, 11 to 10.1 (vs. 9 to 9.7) office visits, and 3.4 to 2.2 (vs. 1.9 to 1.9) emergency room visits from the year before to after surgery.

Conclusion

Despite matching on several important clinical characteristics, NH residents demonstrated increased rates of 30‐day complications and 1‐year mortality after surgery for bowel and bladder dysfunction, while demonstrating decreased healthcare resource utilization. These mixed findings suggest that outcomes may be more varied among vulnerable older adults and warrant further investigation.