bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Political Determinants of Ambassadorial Appointments
Authors: Hollibaugh Gary E.
Published: July 2015

Media accounts of presidential appointments have often characterized the ambassadorial appointments process as overtaken by patronage concerns, with the most attractive posts set aside for those responsible for the president's election, few of whom have diplomatic experience. Here, using original data on all ambassadors, envoys, and other chiefs of mission appointed during the 68th through 112th Congresses, I leverage the credentialing process of the Foreign Service to conduct an empirical test of the determinants of professional versus nonprofessional appointments. I find that Foreign Service appointments are more likely when there exists significant ideological distance between the appointing president and the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, when the difficulty of the posting is high, and when the attractiveness of the posting is low.
Public Service Motivation Research: Achievements, Challenges, and Future Directions
Authors: Perry James L. , Vandenabeele Wouter
Published: July 2015

This article takes stock of public service motivation research to identify achievements, challenges, and an agenda for research to build on progress made since 1990. After enumerating achievements and challenges, the authors take stock of progress on extant proposals to strengthen research. In addition, several new proposals are offered, among them conducting more research on the disaggregated construct, developing grounded theory of public service motivation to understand contextual variations across cultures and political institutions, and improving current measures to better capture loyalty to governance regime as an institutional dimension of the public service motivation construct.
Asteroid Risk Assessment: A Probabilistic Approach
Authors: Reinhardt Jason C. , Chen Xi , Liu Wenhao , Manchev Petar , Paté‐Cornell M. Elisabeth
Published: July 2015

Following the 2013 Chelyabinsk event, the risks posed by asteroids attracted renewed interest, from both the scientific and policy‐making communities. It reminded the world that impacts from near‐Earth objects (NEOs), while rare, have the potential to cause great damage to cities and populations. Point estimates of the risk (such as mean numbers of casualties) have been proposed, but because of the low‐probability, high‐consequence nature of asteroid impacts, these averages provide limited actionable information. While more work is needed to further refine its input distributions (e.g., NEO diameters), the probabilistic model presented in this article allows a more complete evaluation of the risk of NEO impacts because the results are distributions that cover the range of potential casualties. This model is based on a modularized simulation that uses probabilistic inputs to estimate probabilistic risk metrics, including those of rare asteroid impacts. Illustrative results of this analysis are presented for a period of 100 years. As part of this demonstration, we assess the effectiveness of civil defense measures in mitigating the risk of human casualties. We find that they are likely to be beneficial but not a panacea. We also compute the probability—but not the consequences—of an impact with global effects (“cataclysm”). We conclude that there is a continued need for NEO observation, and for analyses of the feasibility and risk‐reduction effectiveness of space missions designed to deflect or destroy asteroids that threaten the Earth.
Trimmed Mean Isotonic Regression
Authors: Dhar Subhra sankar
Published: July 2015

The trimmed mean is well‐known in literature for being more robust and for having better efficiency than the sample mean when data is generated from heavy‐tailed distributions. In this article, the trimmed mean in the isotonic regression setup is proposed, and the asymptotic as well as the robustness properties of the estimator are studied. The usefulness of the proposed estimator is illustrated using different real and simulated data. Further, the performance of the estimator is compared with that of the mean and the median isotonic regression estimators.
Retrospective evaluation of blood culture isolates and sepsis survival rate in foals in the Czech Republic: 50 cases (2011–2013)
Authors: Hytychová Taťana , Bezděková Barbora
Published: July 2015

Objective

To identify the specific pathogens causing sepsis in hospitalized foals in the Czech Republic and identify important factors associated with their survival.

Design

A retrospective study from 2011 to 2013.

Setting

University veterinary teaching hospital.

Animals

Fifty compromised foals.

Interventions

None.

Measurement and Main Results

Blood was aseptically collected for bacterial culture from compromised foals. The foals were classified as septic according to a positive blood culture result or sepsis score ≥11. Blood cultures were positive in 44% of the foals. In these positive cultures, 27.3% had only Gram‐positive (G+) bacteria and 54.5% had only Gram‐negative (G−) bacteria. A mixed bacterial population was presented in 18.2% of the positive cultures. Thirty‐six foals were classified as septic on the basis of positive blood culture or a sepsis score ≥11. In the group of foals that did not survive, there were significantly more foals with low levels of immunoglobulin G (IgG) than foals with normal levels of IgG (P< 0.0001). We also found a significant difference in the proportion of foals with low levels of IgG and positive blood cultures when compared to negative blood cultures. Twenty‐six of the 50 foals were discharged from the hospital. Survival was significantly lower in foals with a diagnosis of sepsis than in foals without sepsis. There was no statistically significant difference between foals that died as a result of infection caused by G− or G+ pathogens. There was no difference in the proportion of survivors that did or did not receive antimicrobials prior to admission.

Conclusions

In our study, we confirmed the increasing trend for G+ bacteria in blood cultures but G− still predominate. The percentage of nonsurviving septic foals was high.
Effectiveness of a Brief, Basic Evidence‐Based Practice Course for Clinical Nurses
Authors: Ramos‐Morcillo Antonio J. , Fernández‐Salazar Serafín , Ruzafa‐Martínez María , Del‐Pino‐Casado Rafael
Published: July 2015

Background

Barriers to the implementation of evidence‐based practice (EBP) by nursing professionals include a lack of knowledge, inadequate skills in searching for and appraising evidence, and consulting research articles. However, few studies have addressed the effectiveness of educational interventions to improve their competence.

Aims

To evaluate the effectiveness of a brief basic online and face‐to‐face educational intervention to promote EBP attitudes, knowledge and skills, and practice in clinical care nurses.

Methods

This study was quasi‐experimental, pretest‐posttest design with a comparison group. The sample included registered nurses enrolled in the free continuing education courses offered in 2013 by the Nursing Council of Jaén (Spain). The study included 109 participants (54 in the intervention group and 55 in the comparison group). The intervention was a brief, basic EBP course with online and face‐to‐face learning. The comparison group received an educational intervention with different content. The evidence‐based practice questionnaire (EBPQ) was used to evaluate EBP attitude, knowledge and skills, and practice before the intervention, and at 21 and 60 days following the intervention. Two‐way mixed analysis of variance was conducted.

Results

There was a significant difference between intervention and comparison groups in the knowledge and skills dimension. The difference between groups was not significant in the EBP practice dimension. Both groups had high scores in the attitude dimension that did not change after the intervention.

Linking Evidence to Action

A brief basic educational intervention on EBP with online and face‐to‐face learning can produce improvements in the knowledge and skills of clinical nurses.
Geometry of shrinking Ricci solitons
Authors: Munteanu Ovidiu , Wang Jiaping
Published: July 2015

The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the curvature behavior of four-dimensional shrinking gradient Ricci solitons. For such a soliton $M$ with bounded scalar curvature $S$, it is shown that the curvature operator $\text{Rm}$ of $M$ satisfies the estimate $|\text{Rm}|\leqslant cS$ for some constant $c$. Moreover, the curvature operator $\text{Rm}$ is asymptotically nonnegative at infinity and admits a lower bound $\text{Rm}\geqslant -c(\ln (r+1))^{-1/4}$, where $r$ is the distance function to a fixed point in $M$. As an application, we prove that if the scalar curvature converges to zero at infinity, then the soliton must be asymptotically conical. As a separate issue, a diameter upper bound for compact shrinking gradient Ricci solitons of arbitrary dimension is derived in terms of the injectivity radius.
Modeling of Crack Growth With Dwell Time for Aero-Engine Spectra Loadings in a Ni-Based Superalloy
Authors: Storgärds Erik , Simonsson Kjell , Sjöström Sören , Gustafsson David , Månsson Tomas
Published: July 2015

Testing and simulation of aero-engine spectra with dwell times are reported in this paper. The modeling concept used is built on linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) and provides a history-dependent evolution description of dwell damage and its interaction with cyclic load. The simulations have been carried out for three spectra: (1) cyclic loads, (2) combined sustained load and cyclic loads, and (3) slow load ramps and cyclic loads, all for surface cracks at 550 °C for Inconel 718. All simulations show reasonable good agreement with experimental results. Prediction of multiple tests of several batches is also provided to show statistical scatter.
Computational Fluid Dynamics Computations Using a Preconditioned Krylov Solver on Graphical Processing Units
Authors: Amritkar Amit , Tafti Danesh
Published: July 2015

Graphical processing unit (GPU) computation in recent years has seen extensive growth due to advancement in both hardware and software stack. This has led to increase in the use of GPUs as accelerators across a broad spectrum of applications. This work deals with the use of general purpose GPUs for performing computational fluid dynamics (CFD) computations. The paper discusses strategies and findings on porting a large multifunctional CFD code to the GPU architecture. Within this framework, the most compute intensive segment of the software, the BiCGStab linear solver using additive Schwarz block preconditioners with point Jacobi iterative smoothing is optimized for the GPU platform using various techniques in CUDA Fortran. Representative turbulent channel and pipe flow are investigated for validation and benchmarking purposes. Both single and double precision calculations are highlighted. For a modest single block grid of 64 × 64 × 64, the turbulent channel flow computations showed a speedup of about eightfold in double precision and more than 13-fold for single precision on the NVIDIA Tesla GPU over a serial run on an Intel central processing unit (CPU). For the pipe flow consisting of 1.78 × 106 grid cells distributed over 36 mesh blocks, the gains were more modest at 4.5 and 6.5 for double and single precision, respectively.
Effect of a Triangular Rib on a Flat Plate Boundary Layer
Authors: Fouladi F. , Henshaw P. , Ting D. S.-K.
Published: July 2015

The flow structure downstream of a triangular rib over a thin plate placed in a wind tunnel was experimentally investigated using a boundary layer hotwire anemometer. Flow and boundary layer characteristics, such as thickness, shape, and turbulence parameters, were studied at different freestream velocities and streamwise locations corresponding to ReX of 1.7 × 104–2.8 × 105 for plates without and with a leading edge rib. It was found that the boundary layer of the flow over a ribbed wall was 3–3.5 times thicker and had higher turbulence intensity and smaller turbulence length scales compared to its smooth wall counterpart.
Frequency considerations for deep ablation with high‐intensity focused ultrasound: A simulation study
Authors: Ellens Nicholas , Hynynen Kullervo
Published: July 2015

Purpose:

The objective of this study was to explore frequency considerations for large‐volume, deep thermal ablations with focused ultrasound. Though focal patterns, focal steering rate, and the size of focal clusters have all been explored in this context, frequency studies have generally explored shallower depths and hyperthermia applications. This study examines both treatment efficiency and near‐field heating rate as functions of frequency and depth.

Methods:

Flat, 150 mm transducer arrays were simulated to operate at frequencies of 250, 500, 750, 1000, 1250, and 1500 kHz. Each array had interelement spacing yielding arrays of 2000–70 000 piston‐shaped elements arranged in concentric rings. Depths of 50, 100, and 150 mm were explored, with attenuation (α) values of 2.5–10 (Np/m)/MHz. Ultrasound propagation was simulated with the Rayleigh–Sommerfeld integral over a volume of homogeneous simulated tissue. Absorbed power density was determined from the acoustic pressure which, in turn, was modeled with the Pennes bioheat transfer equation. Using this knowledge of temperature over time, thermal dose function of Sapareto and Dewey was used to model the resulting bioeffect of each simulated sonication. Initially, single foci at each depth, frequency, and α were examined with either fixed peak temperatures or fixed powers. Based on the size of the resulting, single foci lesions, larger compound sonications were designed with foci packed together in multiple layers and rings. For each depth, focal patterns were chosen to produce a similar total ablated volume for each frequency. These compound sonications were performed with a fixed peak temperature at each focus. The resulting energy efficiency (volume ablated per acoustic energy applied), near‐field heating rate (temperature increase in the anterior third of the simulation space per unit volume ablated), and near‐ and far‐field margins were assessed.

Results:

Lesions of comparable volume were created with different frequencies at different depths. The results reflect the interconnected nature of frequency as it effects focal size (decreasing with frequency), peak pressure (generally increasing with frequency), and attenuation (also increasing with frequency). The ablation efficiency was the highest for α = 5 (Np/m)/MHz at a frequency of 750 kHz at each depth. For α = 10 (Np/m)/MHz, efficiency was the highest at 750 kHz for a depth of 50 mm, and 500 kHz at depths of 100 and 150 mm. At all sonication depths, near‐field heating was minimized with lower frequencies of 250 and 500 kHz.

Conclusions:

Large‐volume ablations are most efficient at frequencies of 500–750 kHz at depths of 100–150 mm. When one considers that near‐field heat accumulation tends to be the rate limiting factor in large‐volume ablations like uterine fibroid surgery, the results show that frequencies as low as 500 kHz are favored for their ability to reduce heating in the near‐field.
Multiple types of calcium channels arising from alternative translation initiation of the
Orai1
message
Authors: Desai Pooja N. , Zhang Xuexin , Wu Shilan , Janoshazi Agnes , Bolimuntha Sunitha , Putney James W. , Trebak Mohamed
Published: July 2015

Distinct
Orai1
transcripts encode proteins that form Ca
2+
channels with distinct properties.
Ultrasound imaging made easy
Authors: Heldt Thomas
Published: July 2015

Automated image processing for venous pressure estimation moves ultrasound imaging closer to a home health monitoring modality.
An Antifungal Benzimidazole Derivative Inhibits Ergosterol Biosynthesis and Reveals Novel Sterols
Authors: Keller Petra , Müller Christoph , Engelhardt Isabel , Hiller Ekkehard , Lemuth Karin , Eickhoff Holger , Wiesmüller Karl-Heinz , Burger-Kentischer Anke , Bracher Franz , Rupp Steffen
Published: July 2015

Fungal infections are a leading cause of morbidity and death for hospitalized patients, mainly because they remain difficult to diagnose and to treat. Diseases range from widespread superficial infections such as vulvovaginal infections to life-threatening systemic candidiasis. For systemic mycoses, only a restricted arsenal of antifungal agents is available. Commonly used classes of antifungal compounds include azoles, polyenes, and echinocandins. Due to emerging resistance to standard therapies, significant side effects, and high costs for several antifungals, there is a need for new antifungals in the clinic. In order to expand the arsenal of compounds with antifungal activity, we previously screened a compound library using a cell-based screening assay. A set of novel benzimidazole derivatives, including (S)-2-(1-aminoisobutyl)-1-(3-chlorobenzyl)benzimidazole (EMC120B12), showed high antifungal activity against several species of pathogenic yeasts, includingCandida glabrataandCandida krusei(species that are highly resistant to antifungals). In this study, comparative analysis of EMC120B12 versus fluconazole and nocodazole, using transcriptional profiling and sterol analysis, strongly suggested that EMC120B12 targets Erg11p in the ergosterol biosynthesis pathway and not microtubules, like other benzimidazoles. In addition to the marker sterol 14-methylergosta-8,24(28)-dien-3β,6α-diol, indicating Erg11p inhibition, related sterols that were hitherto unknown accumulated in the cells during EMC120B12 treatment. The novel sterols have a 3β,6α-diol structure. In addition to the identification of novel sterols, this is the first time that a benzimidazole structure has been shown to result in a block of the ergosterol pathway.
Addressing Therapeutic Options for Ebola Virus Infection in Current and Future Outbreaks
Authors: Haque Azizul , Hober Didier , Blondiaux Joel
Published: July 2015

Ebola virus can cause severe hemorrhagic disease with high fatality rates. Currently, no specific therapeutic agent or vaccine has been approved for treatment and prevention of Ebola virus infection of humans. Although the number of Ebola cases has fallen in the last few weeks, multiple outbreaks of Ebola virus infection and the likelihood of future exposure highlight the need for development and rapid evaluation of pre- and postexposure treatments. Here, we briefly review the existing and future options for anti-Ebola therapy, based on the data coming from rare clinical reports, studies on animals, and results from
in vitro
models. We also project the mechanistic hypotheses of several potential drugs against Ebola virus, including small-molecule-based drugs, which are under development and being tested in animal models or
in vitro
using various cell types. Our paper discusses strategies toward identifying and testing anti-Ebola virus properties of known and medically approved drugs, especially those that can limit the pathological inflammatory response in Ebola patients and thereby provide protection from mortality. We underline the importance of developing combinational therapy for better treatment outcomes for Ebola patients.
Pharmacokinetics of Antituberculosis Drugs in HIV-Positive and HIV-Negative Adults in Malawi
Authors: van Oosterhout J. J. , Dzinjalamala F. K. , Dimba A. , Waterhouse D. , Davies G. , Zijlstra E. E. , Molyneux M. E. , Molyneux E. M. , Ward S.
Published: July 2015

Limited data address the impact of HIV coinfection on the pharmacokinetics (PK) of antituberculosis drugs in sub-Saharan Africa. A total of 47 Malawian adults underwent rich pharmacokinetic sampling at 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, and 24 h postdose. Of the subjects, 51% were male, their mean age was 34 years, and 65% were HIV-positive with a mean CD4 count of 268 cells/μl. Antituberculosis drugs were administered as fixed-dose combinations (150 mg rifampin, 75 mg isoniazid, 400 mg pyrazinamide, and 275 mg ethambutol) according to recommended weight bands. Plasma drug concentrations were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (rifampin and pyrazinamide) or liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (isoniazid and ethambutol). Data were analyzed by noncompartmental methods and analysis of variance of log-transformed summary parameters. The pharmacokinetic parameters were as follows (median [interquartile range]): for rifampin, maximum concentration of drug in plasma (
C
max
) of 4.129 μg/ml (2.474 to 5.596 μg/ml), area under the curve from 0 to 24 h (AUC
0–∞
) of 21.32 μg/ml · h (13.57 to 28.60 μg/ml · h), and half-life of 2.45 h (1.86 to 3.08 h); for isoniazid,
C
max
of 3.97 μg/ml (2.979 to 4.544 μg/ml), AUC
0–24
of 22.5 (14.75 to 34.59 μg/ml · h), and half-life of 3.93 h (3.18 to 4.73 h); for pyrazinamide,
C
max
of 34.21 μg/ml (30.00 to 41.60 μg/ml), AUC
0–24
of 386.6 μg/ml · h (320.0 to 463.7 μg/ml · h), and half-life of 6.821 h (5.71 to 8.042 h); and for ethambutol,
C
max
of 2.278 μg/ml (1.694 to 3.098 μg/ml), AUC
0–24
of 20.41 μg/ml · h (16.18 to 26.27 μg/ml · h), and half-life of 7.507 (6.517 to 8.696 h). The isoniazid PK data analysis suggested that around two-thirds of the participants were slow acetylators. Dose, weight, and weight-adjusted dose were not significant predictors of PK exposure, probably due to weight-banded dosing. In this first pharmacokinetic study of antituberculosis drugs in Malawian adults, measures of pharmacokinetic exposure were comparable with those of other studies for all first-line drugs except for rifampin, for which the
C
max
and AUC
0–24
values were notably lower. Contrary to some earlier observations, HIV status did not significantly affect the AUC of any of the drugs. Increasing the dose of rifampin might be beneficial in African adults, irrespective of HIV status. Current co-trimoxazole prophylaxis was associated with an increase in the half-life of isoniazid of 41% (
P
= 0.022). Possible competitive interactions between isoniazid and sulfamethoxazole mediated by the
N
-acetyltransferase pathway should therefore be explored further.
Antimicrobial Peptide Novicidin Synergizes with Rifampin, Ceftriaxone, and Ceftazidime against Antibiotic-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae
In Vitro
Authors: Soren Odel , Brinch Karoline Sidelmann , Patel Dipesh , Liu Yingjun , Liu Alexander , Coates Anthony , Hu Yanmin
Published: July 2015

The spread of antibiotic resistance among Gram-negative bacteria is a serious clinical threat, and infections with these organisms are a leading cause of mortality worldwide. Traditional novel drug development inevitably leads to the emergence of new resistant strains, rendering the new drugs ineffective. Therefore, reviving the therapeutic potentials of existing antibiotics represents an attractive novel strategy. Novicidin, a novel cationic antimicrobial peptide, is effective against Gram-negative bacteria. Here, we investigated novicidin as a possible antibiotic enhancer. The actions of novicidin in combination with rifampin, ceftriaxone, or ceftazidime were investigated against 94 antibiotic-resistant clinical Gram-negative isolates and 7 strains expressing New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1. Using the checkerboard method, novicidin combined with rifampin showed synergy with >70% of the strains, reducing the MICs significantly. The combination of novicidin with ceftriaxone or ceftazidime was synergistic against 89.7% of the ceftriaxone-resistant strains and 94.1% of the ceftazidime-resistant strains. Synergistic interactions were confirmed using time-kill studies with multiple strains. Furthermore, novicidin increased the postantibiotic effect when combined with rifampin or ceftriaxone. Membrane depolarization assays revealed that novicidin alters the cytoplasmic membrane potential of Gram-negative bacteria.
In vitro
toxicology tests showed novicidin to have low hemolytic activity and no detrimental effect on cell cultures. We demonstrated that novicidin strongly rejuvenates the therapeutic potencies of ceftriaxone or ceftazidime against resistant Gram-negative bacteria
in vitro
. In addition, novicidin boosted the activity of rifampin. This strategy can have major clinical implications in our fight against antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections.
Identification of Conserved and Species-Specific Functions of the Listeria monocytogenes PrsA2 Secretion Chaperone
Authors: Cahoon Laty A. , Freitag Nancy E.
Published: July 2015

The Gram-positive bacteriumListeria monocytogenesis a facultative intracellular pathogen that relies on the regulated secretion and activity of a variety of proteins that sustain life within diverse environments. PrsA2 has recently been identified as a secreted peptidyl-prolylcis/transisomerase and chaperone that is dispensable for bacterial growth in broth culture but essential forL. monocytogenesvirulence. Following host infection, PrsA2 contributes to the proper folding and activity of secreted proteins that are required for bacterial replication within the host cytosol and for bacterial spread to adjacent cells. PrsA2 is one member of a family of Gram-positive secretion chaperones that appear to play important roles in bacterial physiology; however, it is not known how these proteins recognize their substrate proteins or the degree to which their function is conserved across diverse Gram-positive species. We therefore examined PrsA proteins encoded by a variety of Gram-positive bacteria for functional complementation ofL. monocytogenesmutants lackingprsA2. PrsA homologues encoded byBacillus subtilis,Streptococcus pyogenes,Streptococcus pneumoniae,Streptococcus mutans,Staphylococcus aureus, andLactococcus lactiswere examined for functional complementation of a variety ofL. monocytogenesPrsA2-associated phenotypes central toL. monocytogenespathogenesis and bacterial cell physiology. Our results indicate that while selected aspects of PrsA2 function are broadly conserved among diverse Gram-positive bacteria, PrsA2 exhibits unique specificity forL. monocytogenestarget proteins required for pathogenesis. TheL. monocytogenesPrsA2 chaperone thus appears evolutionarily optimized for virulence factor secretion within the host cell cytosol while still maintaining aspects of activity relevant to more general features of Gram-positive protein translocation.
Cyclic Dinucleotide-Controlled Regulatory Pathways in Streptomyces Species
Authors: Tschowri Natalia
Published: July 2015

The cyclic dinucleotides cyclic 3′,5′-diguanylate (c-di-GMP) and cyclic 3′,5′-diadenylate (c-di-AMP) have emerged as key components of bacterial signal transduction networks. These closely related second messengers follow the classical general principles of nucleotide signaling by integrating diverse signals into regulatory pathways that control cellular responses to changing environments. They impact distinct cellular processes, with c-di-GMP having an established role in promoting bacterial adhesion and inhibiting motility and c-di-AMP being involved in cell wall metabolism, potassium homeostasis, and DNA repair. The involvement of c-dinucleotides in the physiology of the filamentous, nonmotile streptomycetes remained obscure until recent discoveries showed that c-di-GMP controls the activity of the developmental master regulator BldD and that c-di-AMP determines the level of the resuscitation-promoting factor A(RpfA) cell wall-remodelling enzyme. Here, I summarize our current knowledge of c-dinucleotide signaling inStreptomycesspecies and highlight the important roles of c-di-GMP and c-di-AMP in the biology of these antibiotic-producing, multicellular bacteria.
Renal colic due to fatty tissue obstruction of the ureter following selective arterial embolisation of a 10 cm angiomyolipoma
Authors: Rouffilange Jean , Forgues Aurélien , Grenier Nicolas , Robert Grégoire
Published: July 2015

A 47-year-old man was admitted for preventive embolisation of a 10 cm angiomyolipoma (AML) of the right kidney. Three weeks after embolisation, he was readmitted at the emergency unit for a right renal colic. The CT scan confirmed the obstruction of the right ureter due to the presence of fatty tissue into the lumen. Understanding fatty tissue migration into the collecting system is not simple. We hypothesised that the use of alcohol during the embolisation procedure could have led to focal necrosis of the collecting system, thus enabling migration of fatty tissue into the renal calyces.
Running shoes and running injuries: mythbusting and a proposal for two new paradigms: ‘preferred movement path’ and ‘comfort filter’
Authors: Nigg BM , Baltich J , Hoerzer S , Enders H
Published: July 2015

In the past 100 years, running shoes experienced dramatic changes. The question then arises whether or not running shoes (or sport shoes in general) influence the frequency of running injuries at all. This paper addresses five aspects related to running injuries and shoe selection, including (1) the changes in running injuries over the past 40 years, (2) the relationship between sport shoes, sport inserts and running injuries, (3) previously researched mechanisms of injury related to footwear and two new paradigms for injury prevention including (4) the ‘preferred movement path’ and (5) the ‘comfort filter’. Specifically, the data regarding the relationship between impact characteristics and ankle pronation to the risk of developing a running-related injury is reviewed. Based on the lack of conclusive evidence for these two variables, which were once thought to be the prime predictors of running injuries, two new paradigms are suggested to elucidate the association between footwear and injury. These two paradigms, ‘the preferred movement path’ and ‘the comfort filter’, suggest that a runner intuitively selects a comfortable product using their own comfort filter that allows them to remain in the preferred movement path. This may automatically reduce the injury risk and may explain why there does not seem to be a secular trend in running injury rates.
Mental health wellness application: a new toolkit for psychological wellness
Authors: Zhang Melvyn W , Ho Roger C
Published: July 2015

Over the past decade, there have been major advances in Web 2.0 and Smartphone technologies. A recent systematic review carried out in 2013 has highlighted the lack of evidence base for existing mental health applications. Zhanget alhave underscored how psychiatrists could be app-developers to negate the drawbacks of the current lack of evidence base for mental health applications. The new Mental Health Wellness application has been developed by Clinicians with experiences in mood disorder, and the aim of the app is to empower individuals to better manage their mental health conditions. The paper will illustrate the key features of the smartphone application and describes how a patient could make use of the application as a bridging tool between consults.
“Mr Smith's been our problem child today…”: anticipatory management communication (AMC) in VA end-of-shift medicine and nursing handoffs
Authors: Bergman Alicia A , Flanagan Mindy E , Ebright Patricia R , O'Brien Colleen M , Frankel Richard M
Published: July 2015

Background

Tools and procedures designed to improve end-of-shift handoffs through standardisation of processes and reliance on technology may miss contextually sensitive information about anticipated events that emerges during face-to-face handoff interactions. Such information, what we refer to as anticipatory management communication (AMC), is necessary to ensure timely and safe patient care, but has been little studied and understood.

Objective

To investigate AMC and the role it plays in nursing and medicine handoffs.

Research design

Qualitative thematic analysis based on audio recordings of nurse-to-nurse, medical resident-to-resident and surgical intern-to-intern handoffs.

Subjects

27 nurse handoff dyads and 18 medical resident and surgical intern handoff dyads at one VA Medical Center.

Results

Heads-up information was the most frequent type of AMC across all handoff dyads (N=257; 108 resident and 149 nursing). Indirect instructions AMC was used in a little over half the resident handoff dyads, but occurred in all nursing dyads (292 instances). Direct instructions AMC occurred in roughly equal proportion across all dyads but at a modest frequency (N=45; 28 resident and 17 nursing). Direct (if/then) contingency AMC occurred in resident handoffs more frequently than in nursing handoffs (N=32; 30 resident and 2 nursing).

Conclusions

The different frequencies for types of AMC likely reflect differences in how residents and nurses work and disparate professional cultures. But, verbal communication in both groups included important information unlikely to be captured in written handoff tools or the electronic medical record, underscoring the importance of direct communication to ensure safe handoffs.
Campylobacter species in animal, food, and environmental sources, and relevant testing programs in Canada
Authors: Huang Hongsheng , Brooks Brian W. , Lowman Ruff , Carrillo Catherine D.
Published: July 2015

Campylobacter species, particularly thermophilic campylobacters, have emerged as a leading cause of human foodborne gastroenteritis worldwide, with Campylobacter jejuni, Campylobacter coli, and Campylobacter lari responsible for the majority of human infections. Although most cases of campylobacteriosis are self-limiting, campylobacteriosis represents a significant public health burden. Human illness caused by infection with campylobacters has been reported across Canada since the early 1970s. Many studies have shown that dietary sources, including food, particularly raw poultry and other meat products, raw milk, and contaminated water, have contributed to outbreaks of campylobacteriosis in Canada. Campylobacter spp. have also been detected in a wide range of animal and environmental sources, including water, in Canada. The purpose of this article is to review (i) the prevalence of Campylobacter spp. in animals, food, and the environment, and (ii) the relevant testing programs in Canada with a focus on the potential links between campylobacters and human health in Canada.
Cardioprotective effect of pioglitazone in diabetic and non-diabetic rats subjected to acute myocardial infarction involves suppression of AGE-RAGE axis and inhibition of apoptosis
Authors: Khodeer Dina M. , Zaitone Sawsan A. , Farag Noha E. , Moustafa Yasser M.
Published: July 2015

Insulin resistance increases risk of cardiovascular diseases. This work investigated the protective effect of pioglitazone on myocardial infarction (MI) in non-diabetic and diabetic rats, focusing on its role on advanced glycated endproducts (AGEs) and cardiac apoptotic machinery. Male rats were divided into 2 experiments: experiment I and II (non-diabetic and diabetic rats) were assigned as saline, MI (isoproterenol, 85 mg/kg, daily), and MI+pioglitazone (5, 10, and 20 mg/kg). Injection of isoproterenol in diabetic rats produced greater ECG disturbances compared to non-diabetic rats. Treatment with pioglitazone (5 mg/kg) reduced the infarct size and improved some ECG findings. Pioglitazone (10 mg/kg) enhanced ECG findings, improved the histopathological picture and downregulated apoptosis in cardiac tissues. Whereas the higher dose of pioglitazone (20 mg/kg) did not improve most of the measured parameters but rather worsened some of them, such as proapoptotic markers. Importantly, a positive correlation was found between serum AGEs and cardiac AGE receptors (RAGEs) versus caspase 3 expression in the two experiments. Therefore, the current effect of pioglitazone was, at least in part, mediated through downregulation of AGE-RAGE axis and inhibition of apoptosis. Consequently, these data suggest that pioglitazone, at optimized doses, may have utility in protection from acute MI.
Electron–phonon interaction in quasi-1D ternary mixed crystals of polar semiconductors
Authors: Fan Yunpeng , Hou Junhua
Published: July 2015

The electron–optical-phonon interaction between an electron and two branches of LO-phonon modes in a quasi-one-dimensional ternary mixed crystal (TMC) of polar semiconductors is studied. The new electron–phonon interaction Hamiltonian including the unit-cell volume variation in TMCs is obtained by using the modified random element isodisplacement model and Born–Huang method. The energies of polaron are numerically calculated for several systems of III–V compounds. A group of III-nitride mixed crystals is also taken into numerical calculation in our theory. It is verified theoretically that the obvious nonlinearity of the polaronic energy and effective mass with the composition is essential and the unit-cell volume effects cannot be neglected except the very weak e–p coupling.
EXPERIMENTAL OBSERVATION OF HIGH STRAIN RATE RESPONSES OF PORCINE BRAIN, LIVER, AND TENDON
Authors: CLEMMER JOHN , PRABHU RAJ , CHEN JOSEPH , COLEBECK ERIN , PRIDDY LAUREN B. , MCCOLLUM MICHAEL , BRAZILE BRYN , WHITTINGTON WILBUR , WARDLAW JENNIFER L. , RHEE HONGJOO , HORSTEMEYER M. F. , WILLIAMS LAKIESHA N. , LIAO JUN
Published: July 2015

High strain rate compression of soft tissues has recently gained attention due to its application in computational simulation of traumatic injuries. To understand high rate tissue behavior, a comparative study is needed to examine the biomechanical responses of multiple soft tissues. We hypothesized that the underlying mechanisms of soft tissue high rate compression is dependent upon water, microstructural organization, and extracellular matrix (ECM). Porcine brain, liver, and tendon, which have similar material density (brain: 1.05[Formula: see text]g/cm3, liver: 1.06[Formula: see text]g/cm3, and tendon: 1.12[Formula: see text]g/cm3) and water content (brain: [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]78%, liver: [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]71–75%, and tendon: [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]70%) but different cellularity and ECM properties, were subjected to polymeric split Hopkinson pressure bar (PSHPB) testing. Hydrated brain tissue, due to its high microstructural cavities (cavity area [Formula: see text]) and low ECM content, had a high initial stress spike of [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]MPa. Hydrated liver, with moderate microstructural cavities (cavity area [Formula: see text]) and moderate ECM content, had a moderate stress spike of [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]MPa. Hydrated tendon had low microstructural cavities (cavity area [Formula: see text]) and high ECM content and had a minimal initial stress spike of [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]MPa. Electron microscopy of the tissues’ microstructural cavities revealed a first-order estimation of water content that was not bound to ECM (e.g., intracellular water). Linear regression analysis showed that the initial spike was highly correlated ([Formula: see text]) with intracellular water. To understand the role of water in each tissue’s response to high deformation, each soft tissue was completely dehydrated and subjected to the same PSHPB compression test. After removal of all the water, neither the brain, liver, nor tendon revealed an initial stress spike, implicating the essential nature of water in the initial responses of high-rate compression. These results suggest that cellular water and ECM content play a critical role in the biomechanical responses to high strain rate compression.
Dwork’s congruences for the constant terms of powers of a Laurent polynomial
Authors: Mellit Anton , Vlasenko Masha
Published: July 2015

In this paper, we prove that the constant terms of powers of a Laurent polynomial satisfy certain congruences modulo prime powers. As a corollary, the generating series of these numbers considered as a function of a [Formula: see text]-adic variable admits an analytic continuation in a non-trivial way, as it was shown previously by Dwork for a class of hypergeometric series.
Improving the influence under IC-N model in social networks
Authors: Ma Huan , Zhu Yuqing , Li Deying , Kim Donghyun , Liang Jun
Published: July 2015

The influence maximization problem in social networks is to find a set of seed nodes such that the total influence effect is maximized under certain cascade models. In this paper, we propose a novel task of improving influence, which is to find strategies to allocate the investment budget under IC-N model. We prove that our influence improving problem is 𝒩𝒫-hard, and propose new algorithms under IC-N model. To the best of our knowledge, our work is the first one that studies influence improving problem under bounded budget when negative opinions emerge. Finally, we implement extensive experiments over a large data collection obtained from real-world social networks, and evaluate the performance of our approach.
Skin microstructure deformation with displacement map convolution
Authors: Nagano Koki , Fyffe Graham , Alexander Oleg , Barbič Jernej , Li Hao , Ghosh Abhijeet , Debevec Paul
Published: July 2015

We present a technique for synthesizing the effects of skin microstructure deformation by anisotropically convolving a high-resolution displacement map to match normal distribution changes in measured skin samples. We use a 10-micron resolution scanning technique to measure several
in vivo
skin samples as they are stretched and compressed in different directions, quantifying how stretching smooths the skin and compression makes it rougher. We tabulate the resulting surface normal distributions, and show that convolving a neutral skin microstructure displacement map with blurring and sharpening filters can mimic normal distribution changes and microstructure deformations. We implement the spatially-varying displacement map filtering on the GPU to interactively render the effects of dynamic microgeometry on animated faces obtained from high-resolution facial scans.
Vector graphics animation with time-varying topology
Authors: Dalstein Boris , Ronfard Rémi , van de Panne Michiel
Published: July 2015

We introduce the Vector Animation Complex (VAC), a novel data structure for vector graphics animation, designed to support the modeling of time-continuous topological events. This allows features of a connected drawing to merge, split, appear, or disappear at desired times via keyframes that introduce the desired topological change. Because the resulting space-time complex directly captures the time-varying topological structure, features are readily edited in both space and time in a way that reflects the intent of the drawing. A formal description of the data structure is provided, along with topological and geometric invariants. We illustrate our modeling paradigm with experimental results on various examples.
OmniAD
Authors: Martin Tobias , Umetani Nobuyuki , Bickel Bernd
Published: July 2015

This paper introduces "OmniAD," a novel data-driven pipeline to model and acquire the aerodynamics of three-dimensional rigid objects. Traditionally, aerodynamics are examined through elaborate wind tunnel experiments or expensive fluid dynamics computations, and are only measured for a small number of discrete wind directions. OmniAD allows the evaluation of aerodynamic forces, such as drag and lift, for any incoming wind direction using a novel representation based on spherical harmonics. Our data-driven technique acquires the aerodynamic properties of an object simply by capturing its falling motion using a single camera. Once model parameters are estimated, OmniAD enables realistic real-time simulation of rigid bodies, such as the tumbling and gliding of leaves, without simulating the surrounding air. In addition, we propose an intuitive user interface based on OmniAD to interactively design three-dimensional kites that actually fly. Various non-traditional kites were designed to demonstrate the physical validity of our model.
High-quality streamable free-viewpoint video
Authors: Collet Alvaro , Chuang Ming , Sweeney Pat , Gillett Don , Evseev Dennis , Calabrese David , Hoppe Hugues , Kirk Adam , Sullivan Steve
Published: July 2015

We present the first end-to-end solution to create high-quality free-viewpoint video encoded as a compact data stream. Our system records performances using a dense set of RGB and IR video cameras, generates dynamic textured surfaces, and compresses these to a streamable 3D video format. Four technical advances contribute to high fidelity and robustness: multimodal multi-view stereo fusing RGB, IR, and silhouette information; adaptive meshing guided by automatic detection of perceptually salient areas; mesh tracking to create temporally coherent subsequences; and encoding of tracked textured meshes as an MPEG video stream. Quantitative experiments demonstrate geometric accuracy, texture fidelity, and encoding efficiency. We release several datasets with calibrated inputs and processed results to foster future research.
Doppler time-of-flight imaging
Authors: Heide Felix , Heidrich Wolfgang , Hullin Matthias , Wetzstein Gordon
Published: July 2015

Over the last few years, depth cameras have become increasingly popular for a range of applications, including human-computer interaction and gaming, augmented reality, machine vision, and medical imaging. Many of the commercially-available devices use the time-of-flight principle, where active illumination is temporally coded and analyzed in the camera to estimate a per-pixel depth map of the scene. In this paper, we propose a fundamentally new imaging modality for all time-of-flight (ToF) cameras: per-pixel radial velocity measurement. The proposed technique exploits the Doppler effect of objects in motion, which shifts the temporal illumination frequency before it reaches the camera. Using carefully coded illumination and modulation frequencies of the ToF camera, object velocities directly map to measured pixel intensities. We show that a slight modification of our imaging system allows for color, depth, and velocity information to be captured simultaneously. Combining the optical flow computed on the RGB frames with the measured metric radial velocity allows us to further estimate the full 3D metric velocity field of the scene. The proposed technique has applications in many computer graphics and vision problems, for example motion tracking, segmentation, recognition, and motion deblurring.
Computational bodybuilding
Authors: Saito Shunsuke , Zhou Zi-Ye , Kavan Ladislav
Published: July 2015

We propose a method to create a wide range of human body shapes from a single input 3D anatomy template. Our approach is inspired by biological processes responsible for human body growth. In particular, we simulate growth of skeletal muscles and subcutaneous fat using physics-based models which combine growth and elasticity. Together with a tool to edit proportions of the bones, our method allows us to achieve a desired shape of the human body by directly controlling hypertrophy (or atrophy) of every muscle and enlargement of fat tissues. We achieve near-interactive run times by utilizing a special quasi-statics solver (Projective Dynamics) and by crafting a volumetric discretization which results in accurate deformations without an excessive number of degrees of freedom. Our system is intuitive to use and the resulting human body models are ready for simulation using existing physics-based animation methods, because we deform not only the surface, but also the entire volumetric model.