bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Nonlinear dynamics and control of crank–slider mechanism with link flexibility and joint clearance
Authors: Yaqubi Sadeq , Dardel Morteza , Daniali Hamidreza Mohammadi
Published: June 2015

Dynamical behaviors and control of planar crank–slider mechanism considering the effects of joint clearance and link flexibility are studied. A control scheme for maintaining continuous contact is proposed. It was observed that using one actuator for control scheme might cause the actuator to reach its saturation limit, a problem that was bypassed by installing an additional actuator on connecting rod. In one actuator case, only continuous contact can be obtained, while with the aid of two actuators, point contact can be achieved. Great improvements in the performance of mechanism and reduction of vibrations are observed in the case of using an additional actuator.
Differential Effects of Oxytocin on Agency and Communion for Anxiously and Avoidantly Attached Individuals
Authors: Bartz Jennifer A. , Lydon John E. , Kolevzon Alexander , Zaki Jamil , Hollander Eric , Ludwig Natasha , Bolger Niall
Published: June 2015

Oxytocin promotes prosocial behavior, especially in those individuals who are low in affiliation (e.g., avoidantly attached individuals), but can exacerbate interpersonal insecurities in those preoccupied with closeness (e.g., anxiously attached individuals). One explanation for these opposing observations is that oxytocin induces a communal, other-orientation. Becoming more other oriented should help those people who focus on the self to the exclusion of others, but could be detrimental to those who are other focused but have little sense of an agentic self. Using a within-subjects design, we administered intranasal oxytocin and placebo to 40 males and measured their agency (self-orientation) and communion (other-orientation). Oxytocin produced a slight increase in communion for the average participant; however, as predicted, avoidantly attached individuals were especially likely to perceive themselves as more communal (“kind,” “warm,” “gentle,” etc.) after receiving oxytocin than after receiving the placebo. There was no main effect of oxytocin on agency for the average participant; however, anxiously attached individuals showed a selective decrease in agency (“independent,” “self-confident,” etc.) following administration of oxytocin. These data help explain the complex social effects of oxytocin.
Holocene records of environmental change in High Plains playa wetlands, Kansas, US
Authors: Bowen Mark W , Johnson William C
Published: June 2015

Holocene environmental change is poorly characterized throughout much of the High Plains. Playa wetlands are sites with appreciable potential for reconstructing environmental change because of their environmental sensitivity. Radiocarbon, litho- and magneto-stratigraphic, and stable carbon isotope (δ13C) data for four playas on the Kansas High Plains indicate significant change occurred throughout the Holocene, which had profound impacts on playa ecosystem functions (e.g. groundwater recharge, surface water storage, and habitat). Minimum δ13C values and buried soils observed during the Pleistocene–Holocene transition suggest sufficient moisture to support vegetative cover and promote pedogenesis. Low magnetic susceptibility, rapid increase in δ13C, and weak pedogenic alteration in overlying deposits suggest early Holocene aridity with increased landscape instability and sediment deposition. Early to middle Holocene stratigraphy transitioned from loess with little pedogenic modification into overlying buried soils; δ13C values indicate playa vegetation was composed of as much as 90% C4 plants. Maximum magnetic susceptibility and buried soils in late Holocene deposits indicate sufficient moisture to support vegetative cover and promote pedogenesis. The Pleistocene–Holocene transition was a cool, moist period in which sediment accumulation rates in playas were low and ecosystem functions were optimal. Throughout much of the early to early–middle Holocene, playas were subaerially exposed, sediment accumulation outpaced soil formation, and ecosystem functions were inhibited by lack of moisture. From the middle to late Holocene, the climate returned to more mesic conditions, sediment accumulation and soil formation were in near equilibrium, and the ability of playas to perform ecosystem functions increased.
Serum neuron specific enolase – a novel indicator for neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus?
Authors: Hawro T , Bogucki A , Krupińska-Kun M , Maurer M , Woźniacka A
Published: June 2015

Objective

Neuropsychiatric (NP) lupus, a common manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is still insufficiently understood, in part, because of the lack of specific biomarkers. Neuron specific enolase (NSE), an important neuronal glycolytic enzyme, shows increased serum levels following acute brain injury, and decreased serum levels in several chronic disorders of the nervous system, including multi infarct dementia, multiple sclerosis and depression. The aim of the study was to evaluate serum NSE levels in SLE patients with and without nervous system involvement, and in healthy controls, and to assess the correlation of NSE serum levels of patients with neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE) with clinical parameters.

Methods

The study comprised 47 SLE patients and 28 controls. SLE activity was assessed using the Systemic Lupus Activity Measure (SLAM). A neurologist and a psychiatrist examined all patients. NP involvement was diagnosed according to strict NPSLE criteria proposed by Ainiala and coworkers, as modification to American College of Rheumatology (ACR) nomenclature and case definitions. NSE serum levels were determined by use of an immunoassay.

Results

Mean NSE serum concentrations in patients with NPSLE were significantly lower than in non-NPSLE patients (6.3 ± 2.6 µg/L vs. 9.7 ± 3.3 µg/L, p < 0.01) and in controls (8.8 ± 3.3 µg/L, p < 0.05). There were significant negative correlations between NSE serum levels and SLE activity ( r = −0.42, p < 0.05) and the number of NPSLE manifestations diagnosed (−0.37; p = 0.001).

Conclusion

Decreased serum concentrations of NSE may reflect chronic neuronal damage with declined metabolism of the nervous tissue in patients with NPSLE.
Cognitive dysfunction and functional magnetic resonance imaging in systemic lupus erythematosus
Authors: Barraclough M , Elliott R , McKie S , Parker B , Bruce IN
Published: June 2015

Cognitive dysfunction is a common aspect of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and is increasingly reported as a problem by patients. In many cases the exact cause is unclear. Limited correlations between specific autoantibodies or structural brain abnormalities and cognitive dysfunction in SLE have been reported. It may be that the most appropriate biomarkers have yet to be found. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a technique used in many other conditions and provides sensitive measures of brain functionality during cognitive tasks. It is now beginning to be employed in SLE studies. These studies have shown that patients with SLE often perform similarly to healthy controls in terms of behavioural measures on cognitive tasks. However, SLE patients appear to employ compensatory brain mechanisms, such as increased response in fronto-parietal regions, to maintain adequate cognitive performance. As there have been only a few studies using fMRI in SLE to investigate cognitive dysfunction, many questions remain unanswered. Further research could, however, help to identify biomarkers for cognitive dysfunction in SLE.
Unmet Health Care Service Needs of Children With Disabilities in Penang, Malaysia
Authors: Tan Seok Hong
Published: June 2015

Information on unmet health care needs reveal problems that are related to unavailability and inaccessibility of services. The study objectives were to determine the prevalence, and the reasons for unmet service needs among children with disabilities in the state of Penang, Malaysia. Caregivers of children with disabilities aged 0 to 12 years registered with the Penang Social Welfare Department in 2012 answered a self-administered mailed questionnaire. A total of 305 questionnaires were available for analysis (response rate 37.9%). Services that were very much needed and yet highly unmet were dental services (49.6% needed, 59.9% unmet), dietary advice (30.9% needed, 63.3% unmet), speech therapy (56.9% needed, 56.8% unmet), psychology services (25.5% needed, 63.3% unmet), and communication aids (33.0% needed, 79.2% unmet). Access problems were mainly due to logistic issues and caregivers not knowing where to obtain services. Findings from this study can be used to inform strategies for service delivery and advocacy for children with disabilities in Penang, Malaysia.
Perspectives of Health Care Providers on US South Asians’ Attitudes Toward Pain Management at End of Life
Authors: Khosla Nidhi , Washington Karla T. , Regunath Hariharan
Published: June 2015

A lack of research on pain management among seriously ill South Asians reveals a critical gap in the knowledge base regarding culturally responsive end-of-life care. This qualitative descriptive study investigated the perspectives of health care providers that have cared for seriously ill older South Asians, on the attitudes of US South Asians toward the management of pain experienced at end of life and the factors that influenced these attitudes. Thematic analysis of interviews and focus group discussions with 57 health care providers indicated that providers perceive South Asian patients and families to be generally reluctant to use medications to treat pain experienced at end of life. Detailed description of patient-related and culturally based reasons for this reluctance is provided along with implications for hospice and palliative care.
Experiences of a PAR Intervention in Care for Older People
Authors: Juthberg Christina , Ericson-Lidman Eva
Published: June 2015

Participatory action research (PAR) is an approach for dealing with problematic areas in practice. Follow-up studies in which participants describe their participation in PAR in detail are rare. This follow-up study aimed to describe care providers’ (CPs) experiences of having participated in a PAR intervention designed to assist them to constructively deal with troubled conscience. Twenty-nine CPs who participated in a PAR intervention were interviewed 2 to 4 months post-intervention. Content analysis was used to analyze the data. The analysis revealed three main categories: the importance of having a communal and collaborative meeting place, perceived changes in daily life, and “It has been good, but it has not solved all of our problems.” Using PAR to deal with troubled conscience might be an important organizational investment for the future that can help prevent ill health among CPs and maintain or improve the quality of care.
Modeling and design of direct nonlinear velocity feedback for modal self-excitation in a class of multi degrees-of-freedom mechanical systems
Authors: Malas Anindya , Chatterjee S
Published: June 2015

The paper presents a new nonlinear control design methodology for inducing modal, self-excited oscillation in a class of multi degrees-of-freedom mechanical systems. The system is assumed to be fully actuated and the controller operates in a centralized fashion based on the direct nonlinear velocity feedback. The linear part of the controller is designed to assign negative modal damping in the mode to be excited and positive modal damping in other modes. The nonlinear modal interaction is investigated using averaging analysis and different excitation regimes are delineated in the control parameter space. The nonlinear part of the controller is optimized to minimize the control cost. Numerical simulations of the control system are performed to substantiate the analytical results and validate the accuracy of the design. The control method is also shown to have some degree of robustness against parametric variations over the nominal values.
An efficient method to solve a fractional differential equation by using linear programming and its application to an optimal control problem
Authors: Rakhshan Seyed Ali , Kamyad Ali Vahidian , Effati Sohrab
Published: June 2015

This paper presents a new idea to solve fractional differential equations and fractional optimal control problems. The fractional derivative is defined in the Grunwald–Letnikov sense. The method is based on the linear programming problem. In this paper, by using first the concept of fractional derivatives, we will suggest a method where an equation with a fractional derivative is changed to a linear programming problem, and by solving it the fractional derivative will be obtained. Actually this suggested method is based on the minimization of total error. Some numerical examples are provided to confirm the accuracy of the proposed method.
Development of curved beam periodic structure in broadband resonance suppression for cylindrical shell structure
Authors: Huang Xiuchang , Su Jinpeng , Ren Longlong , Hua Hongxing
Published: June 2015

A dynamic model is developed to incorporate a curved beam periodic structure in the transfer path of an internal isolation system to reduce the resultant vibro-acoustic of the receiving cylindrical shell structure in a passive broadband way. The vibration transmission from the multi-connected internal isolation system with/without the curved beam periodic structure is built by the matrix method. The analytical representation of the curved beam is employed to establish the transfer matrix dynamic model of the proposed multi-layer curved beam periodic structure. Both numerical simulations and experimental investigations are carried out. The numerical simulations demonstrate that the resonances of the internal isolation system will magnify the vibro-acoustic responses notably and the designed curved beam periodic structure is an effective band-stop mechanical filter to minimize the vibration transmission and acoustic radiation responses at resonances in the band gap. The experimental results confirm that the normal acceleration responses on both the bases and the surface of the cylindrical shell are reduced in the band gap of the curved beam periodic structure. An average reduction amount of 9∼12 dB on the bases and 2∼3 dB on the shell is obtained. The vibration transmission in the curved beam periodic structure is tested and found to be influenced by the boundary conditions at the input and output ends, which is different from that under the free boundary conditions.
Familial Power and Women’s Contradictory Responses to Attitudinal Questions About Intimate Partner Violence in Rural Bangladesh
Authors: Sato Kimi N. , Yount Kathryn M. , Schuler Sidney Ruth
Published: June 2015

Research is lacking on how power processes can influence women’s reporting of their attitudes about intimate partner violence (IPV) against women. Structural elements of textual data were investigated as potential evidence of latent power. Overall, the majority of the women switched their response at least once throughout the interview, and the context of these contradictory responses provide evidence that women’s reporting of attitudes about IPV against women may be understood as arising in part from latent power processes. New methodological tools are needed to better understand women’s personal attitudes about IPV against women.
Challenges From and Beyond Symptomatology: Stereotype Threat in Young Adults With ADHD
Authors: Foy Steven L.
Published: June 2015

Objective: Stereotype threat—faced when one confronts a personally relevant stereotype in a domain-relevant context—can significantly jeopardize individual performance in test-taking situations. Research has overlooked the potential for mental health labels to serve as bases for stereotype threat in such situations. This study examines whether ADHD, a disorder frequently serving as a basis for standardized testing accommodation, may trigger stereotype threat in testing situations. Method: Drawing from a sample of 114 participants (53 reporting a history of ADHD and 61 not reporting a history of ADHD), this study considers whether stereotype threat invoked on the basis of ADHD hinders performance on Graduate Record Examination (GRE) questions beyond the impact of symptomatology. Results: Participants reporting ADHD achieved significantly lower scores on verbal and quantitative GRE questions than participants without ADHD. Participants between the ages of 18 and 24 reporting ADHD who were explicitly exposed to stereotype threat achieved significantly lower scores on quantitative GRE questions than their ADHD-reporting peers who were not explicitly exposed to stereotype threat. Conclusion: Domain-relevant mental health labels may trigger stereotype threat in test-taking situations.
Comparing Police and Public Perceptions of a Routine Traffic Encounter
Authors: Bates Lyndel J. , Antrobus Emma , Bennett Sarah , Martin Peter
Published: June 2015

Police perceptions of procedural justice are less well understood than citizen perceptions. Our paper compares the views of police officers and citizens of a routine Australian policing encounter, the Random Breath Test. We examine perceptions of two versions of their encounter: a business as usual and a more explicitly procedurally just interaction. Our results indicate that the procedurally just version affected the views of police officers, but not drivers, regarding the reasons for conducting Random Breath Tests. It also appears that police officers believe that the encounter has a greater impact on drivers’ views than the drivers report themselves. This study has important implications for policing as it demonstrates that incorporating procedural justice within police-citizen interactions affects police officers as well as the citizens. It also highlights the importance of using external (e.g., larger community) measures, in addition to internal measures (e.g., within police organization), when assessing the effectiveness of police organizations to ensure a more complete picture.
Corporeal Poetics of Sacred Space
Authors: Binte Abdullah Sani Hanisah
Published: June 2015

This article presents an ethnography of makeshift worship space for the minority Muslim community of a university campus and neighborhood in a Midwestern city in the United States. It uncovers how Muslim congregational worship is conducted in this provisional site, which bears competing symbols of Christian worship, to explore how the body plays an active role in perceiving space through rearrangement, reorientation, and auditory inscription. It explores how space is zoned to correspond with boundaries of (im)purity toward the symbolic maintenance of the sacred. In addition, it discusses the play of distance in space along the center to the periphery as spatial markers that correspond with positions of authority and membership. Finally, this article discloses how a lack of ownership of space conditions the disposition of a minority religious community within the larger secular and national landscape.
Torture as normal work: The Bush Administration, the Central Intelligence Agency and ‘Enhanced Interrogation Techniques’
Authors: Chwastiak Michele
Published: June 2015

During the War on Terror, the Bush Administration authorized the US Central Intelligence Agency to employ ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ to extract intelligence from alleged terrorists. Many organizations contended that ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ were torture. Given that torture is morally reprehensible, the policy was constantly contested. This article argues that the Bush Administration attempted to legitimate the use of ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ by making torture normal work. The Bush Administration did so by designating torture as legal, thus using a formal system of power that is publicly respected to validate and normalize their actions. Furthermore, by embedding torture in mundane organizational practices and rationalities, ‘enhanced interrogation’ was made to appear to be as ordinary as any other federal program. Hence, the article demonstrates how the legal system, as well as commonplace aspects of organizations can be employed by political elites to attempt to manage controversy around extreme policies by making them appear normal. However, a discourse of normality did not necessarily remove the taint from torture or create the results the political elites desired.
Win-win imageries in a soap bubble world: Personhood and norms in extreme work
Authors: Ekman Susanne
Published: June 2015

This article explores the imagery and notions of personhood underlying the willingness to undertake extreme work among creative knowledge workers. The core argument is that extreme work is informed by pervasive win-win fantasies which can be recognized in a number of current organizational trends, ranging from New Public Management, over corporate culture, to project work. Each of these trends claims to transcend paradoxes by making contradictory extremes enhance each other rather than hamper each other. This is partly made possible by an increasing immateriality of both money and labor, I argue. Drawing on empirical data from creative knowledge industries, this article illustrates how ‘win-win’ workers subscribe to a set of norms promising that extreme work is a ticket to Never-Never Land. These norms are progression, passion, indispensability, and individual agency. The empirical analysis shows that win-win fantasies imprison us in ‘irreflexive modernity’, unable to escape the dream. In the end, the article discusses avenues for finding our way back into reflexive modernity through moderation, prioritization, and paying critical attention to the deferral between gain and cost practiced in win-win games.
Extreme work, gendered work? How extreme jobs and the discourse of ‘personal choice’ perpetuate gender inequality
Authors: Gascoigne Charlotte , Parry Emma , Buchanan David
Published: June 2015

This review sets extreme jobs in the context of the institutional, occupational, organizational and individual drivers of long hours and work intensification and identifies the consequences for gender equality, human sustainability and long-term productivity. We suggest that extreme jobs derive not from the ‘nature’ of managerial and professional work but from working practices and occupational discourses which have developed to suit the gendered norms of ‘ideal workers’. These practices and discourses encourage long hours rather than working-hours choices. Extreme jobs extend the gendered division of labour and increase the separation of work and non-work spheres; they are a structure of gender inequality. This review suggests that future research should seek to identify alternative but business-neutral working practices which contest the extreme ‘nature’ of managerial and professional work, measure the social value of non-work activities and deepen our understanding of the personal and social significance of non-work identities other than motherhood, and disentangle situational motivation, work passion and workaholism as motives for devoting long hours to work so that impacts on well-being and productivity can be more clearly understood.
The punctuation of mundane jobs with extreme work: Christmas at the supermarket deli counter
Authors: Bozkurt Ödül
Published: June 2015

This article argues that the characterization of ‘extreme jobs’ as being defined by the constancy of ‘extreme work’ obscures the significance of temporary episodes of ‘extreme work’ for a wider range of jobs and notes that even ‘mundane jobs’ are punctuated by extreme work in a variety of cases. Drawing on a study at a supermarket deli counter during the Christmas trading season, it is proposed that work in this context becomes extreme, in relative terms, in three ways. First, the expansion of the scope of work entails an increase in working hours, an increase in demands for multi-tasking and product knowledge, and an expansion of discretion. Second, an increased mobilization of soft skills is necessitated by intensified work both front stage and backstage. Finally, the Christmas period also entails an extension of ‘inclusive’ management practices over a group of workers who are not typically the focus of such efforts. Four key insights are offered in conclusion: First, ‘extreme jobs’ and ‘extreme work’ are conceptually distinct, and the latter is a relative and relational term that varies with the normalized nature of different jobs; second, the temporality of ‘extreme work’ is variable, as it occurs in different rhythms on different jobs; third, the subjective experience of punctuations of mundane jobs with extreme work can be highly positive; and finally, Christmas deserves further attention in discussions of recurrent and temporary intensification of work, particularly in understanding retail employment.
Towards a renewal of the niche party concept
Authors: Bischof Daniel
Published: June 2015

Scholars’ attention to the concept of niche parties has greatly increased. While researchers agree that niche parties matter in a variety of ways, the definitions and measurements of such parties are manifold and an accordance remains yet to be found. I argue the given conceptualizations of niche parties (a) suffer from gaps between their measurements and theoretical concepts or (b) conceptual clarity. The theoretical concept I propose understands niche parties as (a) predominantly competing on niche market segments neglected by their competitors and (b) not discussing a broad range of these segments. By measuring exactly these two components in an additive index drawn from the MARPOR data, the validation shows that parties emphasizing niche segments differentiate themselves from their competitors also by using a condensed message on these segments. In particular, this component of party competition, the specialization of party offers, has not been studied in the literature on niche parties and should receive more attention.
On fairness
Authors: Kennedy Helen , Elgesem Dag , Miguel Cristina
Published: June 2015

What do social media users think about social media data mining? To date, this question has been researched through quantitative studies that produce diverse findings and qualitative studies adopting either a privacy or a surveillance perspective. In this article, we argue that qualitative research which moves beyond these dominant paradigms can contribute to answering this question, and we demonstrate this by reporting on focus group research in three European countries (the United Kingdom, Norway and Spain). Our method created a space in which to make sense of the diverse findings of quantitative studies, which relate to individual differences (such as extent of social media use or awareness of social media data mining) and differences in social media data mining practices themselves (such as the type of data gathered, the purpose for which data are mined and whether transparent information about data mining is available). Moving beyond privacy and surveillance made it possible to identify a concern for fairness as a common trope among users, which informed their varying viewpoints on distinct data mining practices. We argue that this concern for fairness can be understood as contextual integrity in practice (Nissenbaum, 2009) and as part of broader concerns about well-being and social justice.
Epigenetics and Obesity
Authors: Warin Megan , Moore Vivienne , Davies Michael , Ulijaszek Stanley
Published: June 2015

Bourdieu suggested that the habitus contains the ‘genetic information’ which both allows and disposes successive generations to reproduce the world they inherit from their parents’ generation. While his writings on habitus are concerned with embodied dispositions, biological processes are not a feature of the practical reason of habitus. Recent critiques of the separate worlds of biology and culture, and the rise in epigenetics, provide new opportunities for expanding theoretical concepts like habitus. Using obesity science as a case study we attempt to conceptualise the enfolding of biological and social processes (via a Deleuzian metaphor) to develop a concept of biohabitus – reconfiguring how social and biological environments interact across the life course, and may be transmitted and transformed intergenerationally. In conclusion we suggest that the enfolding and reproduction of social life that Bourdieu articulated as habitus is a useful theoretical frame that can be enhanced to critically develop epigenetic understandings of obesity, and vice versa.
Clarifying the associations between anxiety, depression and fatigue following stroke
Authors: Galligan Niall G , Hevey David , Coen Robert F , Harbison Joseph A
Published: June 2015

Both psychological distress and fatigue are common post stroke. Although there is recognition that the phenomena are related, the nature of the relationship is unclear.Cross-sectional study of 98 independently functioning participants within 2 years of stroke. Significant relationships were observed between fatigue and general anxiety, health-related anxiety and stroke-specific anxiety ( r range from .31 to .37). In the final regression model, depression, pain and stroke-specific anxiety were significant, accounting for 32 per cent of the variance in fatigue scores ( p < .001). The findings provide insight into the importance of anxiety-related factors post stroke, their relevance to our understanding of post-stroke fatigue and their implications for post-stroke intervention.
Eating disorders in persons with type 1 diabetes: A focus group investigation of early eating disorder risk
Authors: Powers Margaret A , Richter Sara A , Ackard Diann M , Cronemeyer Catherine
Published: June 2015

Through focus groups, we examined the development and maintenance of an eating disorder in 16 females with type 1 diabetes and an eating disorder. The quotes and qualitative data summaries provide rich insights into understanding why those with type 1 diabetes are at increased risk for eating disorders. Content analyses revealed five themes pertinent to the dual diagnosis (feeling different, difficulty with control/coping, body image, feelings, and quality of life) of which four themes were relevant to eating disorder development. Findings support early identification of those at risk and inform interventions to mitigate development of an eating disorder.
Estimation of the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder in South Korea, revisited
Authors: Pantelis Peter C , Kennedy Daniel P
Published: June 2015

Two-phase designs in epidemiological studies of autism prevalence introduce methodological complications that can severely limit the precision of resulting estimates. If the assumptions used to derive the prevalence estimate are invalid or if the uncertainty surrounding these assumptions is not properly accounted for in the statistical inference procedure, then the point estimate may be inaccurate and the confidence interval may not be a true reflection of the precision of the estimate. We examine these potential pitfalls in the context of a recent high-profile finding by Kim et al. (2011, Prevalence of autism spectrum disorders in a total population sample. American Journal of Psychiatry 168: 904–912), who estimated that autism spectrum disorder affects 2.64% of children in a South Korean community. We reconstructed the study’s methodology and used Monte Carlo simulations to analyze whether their point estimate and 95% confidence interval (1.91%, 3.37%) were reasonable, given what was known about their screening instrument and sample. We find the original point estimate to be highly assumption-dependent, and after accounting for sources of uncertainty unaccounted for in the original article, we demonstrate that a more reasonable confidence interval would be approximately twice as large as originally reported. We argue that future studies should give serious consideration to the additional sources of uncertainty introduced by a two-phase design, which may easily outstrip any expected gains in efficiency.
Aging witnesses
Authors: Love Helene
Published: June 2015

With the population aging, judges will increasingly be faced with elder witnesses in their courtrooms. Despite the importance of elder witness testimony to the investigation and prosecution of crimes, an age-based lens has yet to be cast on this issue in legal scholarship to date. However, in the field of psychology there are a number of studies that detail how old age impacts a witness’s ability to perceive, remember and communicate an event in court. This paper bridges this gap between legal and psychological scholarship by reviewing the psychological studies on elder witnesses and describing, in practical terms, the implications of these studies on the legal treatment of elder witness evidence. Going forward, it is only with increased awareness of these differences between older and younger witnesses that the justice system can begin to understand how it needs to change in order to respond to the unique needs of this growing segment of the population.
An improved two-dimensional multiple signal classification approach for impact localization on a composite structure
Authors: Zhong Yongteng , Yuan Shenfang , Qiu Lei
Published: June 2015

Efficient impact monitoring techniques are important to be researched to ensure the safety of in-service composite structures. Multiple signal classification–based method is a new promising method. This method uses small aperture sensor array arrangement instead of sparse sensor arrangement. It has the advantage of easy sensor array arrangement. By processing the whole sensor array outputs using the multiple signal classification algorithm, transfer function and material property of the structure are not needed. Although some researches have shown the potential of this new method, most of the current researches have been performed based on the far-field assumption on aluminum structures. In engineering applications, composite structures are the main structures which need impact monitoring. Deep research needs to be addressed. Aiming at these problems, an improved two-dimensional near-field multiple signal classification processing algorithm is presented for impact localization on composite structure in this article. The proposed method can simultaneously estimate the impact occurring direction and distance. A uniform carbon fiber composite plate and a real aircraft oil tank made of carbon composite structure with varied thickness are adopted to evaluate the presented method. To deal with the anisotropy performance of the complex composite, the two-dimensional multiple signal classification processing algorithm is also improved by taking into account the existing anisotropy performance.
Trauma Center Based Youth Violence Prevention Programs
Authors: Mikhail Judy Nanette , Nemeth Lynne Sheri
Published: June 2015

Objective:

Youth violence recidivism remains a significant public health crisis in the United States. Violence prevention is a requirement of all trauma centers, yet little is known about the effectiveness of these programs. Therefore, this systematic review summarizes the effectiveness of trauma center–based youth violence prevention programs.

Methods:

A systematic review of articles from MEDLINE, CINAHL, and PsychINFO databases was performed to identify eligible control trials or observational studies. Included studies were from 1970 to 2013, describing and evaluating an intervention, were trauma center based, and targeted youth injured by violence (tertiary prevention). The social ecological model provided the guiding framework, and findings are summarized qualitatively.

Results:

Ten studies met eligibility requirements. Case management and brief intervention were the primary strategies, and 90% of the studies showed some improvement in one or more outcome measures. These results held across both social ecological level and setting: both emergency department and inpatient unit settings.

Conclusions:

Brief intervention and case management are frequent and potentially effective trauma center–based violence prevention interventions. Case management initiated as an inpatient and continued beyond discharge was the most frequently used intervention and was associated with reduced rearrest or reinjury rates. Further research is needed, specifically longitudinal studies using experimental designs with high program fidelity incorporating uniform direct outcome measures. However, this review provides initial evidence that trauma centers can intervene with the highest of risk patients and break the youth violence recidivism cycle.
Aggressive venous thromboembolism prophylaxis reduces VTE events in vascular surgery patients
Authors: Durinka Joel B , Hecht Todd EH , Layne Andrew J , Jackson Benjamin M , Woo Edward Y , Fairman Ronald M , Rohrbach Jeffery I , Wang Grace J
Published: June 2015

Objective

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a potentially preventable complication following surgery. There is variation with regard to the most effective mode of prophylaxis. We sought to determine if an aggressive approach to VTE prophylaxis would reduce VTE rates on the inpatient vascular surgical service.

Methods

Vascular inpatients from a single institution from July 2010 to March 2013 were included in the analysis. A protocol for VTE prophylaxis was implemented on the inpatient vascular surgical service in November 2011. This included subcutaneous (SQ) heparin initiation within 24 h of admission unless deemed inappropriate by the attending, as well as intermittent compression devices (ICD) and compression stockings (CS). The rate of VTE was compared prior to and following the intervention. Patients were compared using AHRQ comorbidity categories, APR-DRG severity of illness, insurance status, and principle procedure. T-tests were used to compare continuous variables and chi-square analysis used to compare categorical variables.

Results

There were 1483 vascular patients in the pre-intervention group and 1652 patients in the post-intervention group. The rate of pharmacologic prophylaxis was 52.57% pre-intervention compared to 69.33% post-intervention ( p < 0.001). The rate of pharmacologic or mechanical prophylaxis was 91.76% pre-intervention compared to 93.10% post-intervention ( p = 0.54). The overall rate of VTE prior to the intervention was 1.49% compared to after intervention which was 0.38% ( p = 0.033). The DVT rate prior to intervention was 1.09% vs 0.189% after intervention ( p = 0.0214). The rate of pulmonary embolism trended towards a significant reduction with the intervention (0.681% vs 0.189%, p = 0.095). There were no statistically significant differences in patient groups based on gender, comorbidity category, severity of illness, or insurance type.

Conclusions

The overall rate of VTE was reduced by 75% after the initiation of a standard protocol for pharmacologic VTE prophylaxis. These findings justify an aggressive approach to VTE prophylaxis in vascular surgery patients.
A computational fluid–structure interaction model of the blood flow in the healthy and varicose saphenous vein
Authors: Razaghi Reza , Karimi Alireza , Rahmani Shahrokh , Navidbakhsh Mahdi
Published: June 2015

Objective

Varicose vein has become enlarged and twisted and, consequently, has lost its mechanical strength. As a result of the varicose saphenous vein (SV) mechanical alterations, the hemodynamic parameters of the blood flow, such as blood velocity as well as vein wall stress and strain, would change accordingly. However, little is known about stress and strain and there consequences under experimental conditions on blood flow and velocity within normal and varicose veins. In this study, a three-dimensional (3D) computational fluid–structure interaction (FSI) model of a human healthy and varicose SVs was established to determine the hemodynamic characterization of the blood flow as a function of vein wall mechanical properties, i.e. elastic and hyperelastic.

Methods

The mechanical properties of the human healthy and varicose SVs were experimentally measured and implemented into the computational model. The fully coupled fluid and structure models were solved using the explicit dynamics finite element code LS-DYNA.

Results

The results revealed that, regardless of healthy and varicose, the elastic walls reach to the ultimate strength of the vein wall, whereas the hyperelastic wall can tolerate more stress. The highest von Mises stress compared to the healthy ones was seen in the elastic and hyperelastic varicose SVs with 1.412 and 1.535 MPa, respectively. In addition, analysis of the resultant displacement in the vein wall indicated that the varicose SVs experienced a higher displacement compared to the healthy ones irrespective of elastic and hyperelastic material models. The highest blood velocity was also observed for the healthy hyperelastic SV wall.

Conclusion

The findings of this study may have implications not only for determining the role of the vein wall mechanical properties in the hemodynamic alterations of the blood, but also for employing as a null information in balloon-angioplasty and bypass surgeries.
Towards a more thoughtful use of mould prediction models: A critical view on experimental mould growth research
Authors: Vereecken Evy , Vanoirbeek Kristof , Roels Staf
Published: June 2015

To assess the mould risk on materials, different mould prediction models are available. However, each of these models struggles with shortcomings, which might result in widely varying conclusions. A view on the challenges might come in use when developing novel or upgraded models in view of a more reliable risk assessment. Additionally, this knowledge will stimulate a more thoughtful use of the current models. This article shows a preliminary evaluation of some mould prediction models, and this based on experimental literature data on wood. Although experiments are the input for the model development, discrepancies are observed. Therefore, the difficulties and challenges in experimental mould research are discussed.
The Cultural Pragmatics of Political Apology
Authors: Saito Hiro
Published: June 2015

In recent decades, research on ‘political apology’, wherein the state apologizes to victims of its past wrongs, has multiplied, as redress movements based on human rights have proliferated around the world. Since most of this research has been conducted by political philosophers, however, analyses of political apologies tend to adopt formal and normative perspectives. To propose an alternative, empirically-grounded approach, in this paper, I develop the ‘cultural pragmatics’ of political apology. To this end, I first conceptualize political apology as a social performance aimed to ‘re-fuse’ an impaired relationship between the perpetrator state and the victim individual. This conceptual move enables systematic analysis of political apology in terms of six elements constitutive of social performance: collective representations, actors, audience, means of symbolic production, mise-en-scène, and power. To elaborate this model of the cultural pragmatics of political apology, I then examine the protracted dispute over wartime atrocities that Japan committed against South Korea.
The real enmity of Carl Schmitt’s concept of the political
Authors: Rae Gavin
Published: June 2015

Carl Schmitt’s use of the friend–enemy distinction to define the political is intimately connected to the question of how to define who is a friend and who is an enemy. This article shows that Schmitt bases it on the perceived threat posed by another. Because the political is social, this means that the political decision is intimately connected to war, which leads Schmitt to offer a tripartite analysis of war grounded in different forms of enmity called classical, real or absolute. While a number of commentators have suggested that Schmitt’s insistence that the political is the most intense antagonism should lead him to connect the political with absolute enmity, I show that the Schmittian political is and must be located against a real enemy. This not only clarifies an issue in Schmittian scholarship but also provides insights into how warring states should treat their enemy.
Four Functional Roles for Case Studies in Emerging Adulthood Research
Authors: Robinson Oliver C. , McAdams Dan P.
Published: June 2015

Case studies have four functional roles which, if more widely embraced, can help to advance theory and methodology in the study of emerging adults. These functions are case-based theory development, individual-level prediction testing, theory exemplification, and idiographic psychobiography. We describe these functions and provide real and hypothetical examples of each one. We also discuss specifiability - the capacity of a theory to make predictions about, explain, and interpret individuals - as a criterion of validity for theories that is closely tied to the rationale for case studies. Finally, protocols for case study sampling are described, including intensity sampling, deviant case sampling, and significant case sampling.
Human bone marrow- and adipose-mesenchymal stem cells secrete exosomes enriched in distinctive miRNA and tRNA species
Authors: Baglio Serena Rubina , Rooijers Koos , Koppers-Lalic Danijela , Verweij Frederik J. , Pérez Lanzón M , Zini Nicoletta , Naaijkens Benno , Perut Francesca , Niessen Hans W. M. , Baldini Nicola , Pegtel D. Michiel
Published: June 2015

Introduction

Administration of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) represents a promising treatment option for patients suffering from immunological and degenerative disorders. Accumulating evidence indicates that the healing effects of MSCs are mainly related to unique paracrine properties, opening opportunities for secretome-based therapies. Apart from soluble factors, MSCs release functional small RNAs via extracellular vesicles (EVs) that seem to convey essential features of MSCs. Here we set out to characterize the full small RNAome of MSC-produced exosomes.

Methods

We set up a protocol for isolating exosomes released by early passage adipose- (ASC) and bone marrow-MSCs (BMSC) and characterized them via electron microscopy, protein analysis and small RNA-sequencing. We developed a bioinformatics pipeline to define the exosome-enclosed RNA species and performed the first complete small RNA characterization of BMSCs and ASCs and their corresponding exosomes in biological replicates.

Results

Our analysis revealed that primary ASCs and BMSCs have highly similar small RNA expression profiles dominated by miRNAs and snoRNAs (together 64-71 %), of which 150–200 miRNAs are present at physiological levels. In contrast, the miRNA pool in MSC exosomes is only 2-5 % of the total small RNAome and is dominated by a minor subset of miRNAs. Nevertheless, the miRNAs in exosomes do not merely reflect the cellular content and a defined set of miRNAs are overrepresented in exosomes compared to the cell of origin. Moreover, multiple highly expressed miRNAs are precluded from exosomal sorting, consistent with the notion that these miRNAs are involved in functional repression of RNA targets. While ASC and BMSC exosomes are similar in RNA class distribution and composition, we observed striking differences in the sorting of evolutionary conserved tRNA species that seems associated with the differentiation status of MSCs, as defined by Sox2, POU5F1A/B and Nanog expression.

Conclusions

We demonstrate that primary MSCs release small RNAs via exosomes, which are increasingly implicated in intercellular communications. tRNAs species, and in particular tRNA halves, are preferentially released and their specific sorting into exosomes is related to MSC tissue origin and stemness. These findings may help to understand how MSCs impact neighboring or distant cells with possible consequences for their therapeutic usage.