bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Social-Emotional Learning and Academic Achievement
Authors: McCormick Meghan P. , Cappella Elise , O’Connor Erin E. , McClowry Sandee G.
Published: September 2015

Social-emotional learning (SEL) programs have demonstrated positive effects on children’s social-emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes, as well as classroom climate. Some programs also theorize that program impacts on children’s outcomes will be partially explained by improvements in classroom social processes, namely classroom emotional support and organization. Yet there is little empirical evidence for this hypothesis. Using data from the evaluation of the SEL program INSIGHTS, this article tests whether assignment to INSIGHTS improved low-income kindergarten and first grade students’ math and reading achievement by first enhancing classroom emotional support and organization. Multilevel regression analyses, instrumental variables estimation, and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) were used to conduct quantitative analyses. Across methods, the impact of INSIGHTS on math and reading achievement in first grade was partially explained by gains in both classroom emotional support and organization. The IPTW method revealed that the program impact on reading achievement in first grade was partially explained through an improvement in classroom organization. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
Modulating platelet reactivity through control of RGS18 availability
Authors: Ma Peisong , Ou Kristy , Sinnamon Andrew J. , Jiang Hong , Siderovski David P. , Brass Lawrence F.
Published: September 2015

Key Points

RGS18 acts as a brake on persistent or inappropriate platelet activation after it is released from binding sites in resting platelets. Control of free RGS18 levels provides a mechanism for coordinating signaling networks in platelets.
Primary tumour standardised uptake value is prognostic in nonsmall cell lung cancer: a multivariate pooled analysis of individual data
Authors: Paesmans Marianne , Garcia Camilo , Wong Ching-Yee Oliver , Patz Edward F. , Komaki Ritsuko , Eschmann Susanne , Govindan Ramaswamy , Vansteenkiste Johan , Meert Anne-Pascale , de Jong Wouter K. , Altorki Nasser Khaled , Higashi Kotaro , Van Baardwijk Angela , Borst Gerben R. , Ameye Lieveke , Lafitte Jean-Jacques , Berghmans Thierry , Flamen Patrick , Rami-Porta Ramon , Sculier Jean-Paul
Published: September 2015

18F-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography (PET) complements conventional imaging for diagnosing and staging lung cancer. Two literature-based meta-analyses suggest that maximum standardised uptake value (SUVmax) on PET has univariate prognostic value in nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We analysed individual data pooled from 12 studies to assess the independent prognostic value of binary SUVmaxfor overall survival.

After searching the published literature and identifying unpublished data, study coordinators were contacted and requested to provide data on individual patients. Cox regression models stratified for study were used.

Data were collected for 1526 patients (median age 64 years, 60% male, 34% squamous cell carcinoma, 47% adenocarcinoma, 58% stage I–II). The combined univariate hazard ratio for SUVmaxwas 1.43 (95% CI 1.22–1.66) and nearly identical if the SUV threshold was calculated stratifying for histology. Multivariate analysis of patients with stage I–III disease identified age, stage, tumour size and receipt of surgery as independent prognostic factors; adding SUV (HR 1.58, 95% CI 1.27–1.96) improved the model significantly. The only detected interaction was between SUV and stage IV disease.

SUV seems to have independent prognostic value in stage I–III NSCLC, for squamous cell carcinoma and for adenocarcinoma.
Impact of lung disease on respiratory impedance in young children with cystic fibrosis
Authors: Ramsey Kathryn A. , Ranganathan Sarath C. , Gangell Catherine L. , Turkovic Lidija , Park Judy , Skoric Billy , Stick Stephen M. , Sly Peter D. , Hall Graham L.
Published: September 2015

This study aimed to evaluate the ability of the forced oscillation technique (FOT) to detect underlying lung disease in preschool children with cystic fibrosis (CF) diagnosed following newborn screening.

184 children (aged 3–6 years) with CF underwent lung function testing on 422 occasions using the FOT to assess respiratory resistance and reactance at the time of their annual bronchoalveolar lavage collection and chest computed tomography scan. We examined associations between FOT outcomes and the presence and progression of respiratory inflammation, infection and structural lung disease.

Children with CF who had pronounced respiratory disease, including free neutrophil elastase activity, infection with pro-inflammatory pathogens and structural lung abnormalities had similar FOT outcomes to those children without detectable lung disease. In addition, the progression of lung disease over 1 year was not associated with worsening FOT outcomes.

We conclude that the forced oscillation technique is relatively insensitive to detect underlying lung disease in preschool children with CF. However, FOT may still be of value in improving our understanding of the physiological changes associated with early CF lung disease.
Current use of wild plants with edible underground storage organs in a rural population of Patagonia: between tradition and change
Authors: Ochoa Juan José , Ladio Ana Haydee
Published: September 2015

Background

Edible plants with underground storage organs (USOs) are neglected resources. We studied the local ecological knowledge edible plants with (USOs) in rural populations of North-Patagonia in order to establish how people are utilizing these plants. Some aspect of corpus-praxis-cosmos complex associated to the local ecological knowledge was documented and discussed. In addition, variation in this ecological knowledge due to age, gender, family structure, ethnic self-determination was also evaluated.

Methods

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 51 inhabitants in order to study the relationship between the current use of plants with USOs and the age, sex, family group composition and ethnic self-identification of interviewees. In addition, the Cultural Importance Index for each species was calculated.

Results

The current richness of known species in these populations is a total of 9 plants. Plants with USOs tend to be used more frequently as the age of the interviewee increases. Women and men showed no differences in the average richness of species cited. The interviewees who share their homes with other generations use these plants more frequently than those who live alone. Our results indicate that the interviewees who identified themselves as belonging to the Mapuche people use these plants more frequently.

Conclusion

For the Mapuche people, wild plants have constituted material and symbolic resources of great importance in their historical subsistence. In addition, they are currently being redefined as elements which present a connection with ancestral practices, produce a strong relationship with the ‘land’, and become markers which identify the ‘natural’ (historical) ways of their people; these are key elements in the current political processes of identity revaluation. This research is valuable to stimulate cultural revival and health promotion programs in the communities with their own local, cultural food.
Nielsen type numbers and homotopy minimal periods for maps on solvmanifolds with $\operatorname{Sol}_{1}^{4}$-geometry
Authors: Jo Jang Hyun , Lee Jong Bum
Published: September 2015

For all maps f on the special solvmanifolds with $\operatorname{Sol}_{1}^{4}$

Sol
1
4

-geometry, we give explicit formulas for a complete computation of the Nielsen type numbers $\operatorname{NP}_{n}(f)$

NP
n

(
f
)
and $\mathrm{N}\Phi _{n}(f)$
N

Φ
n

(
f
)
. We also give a complete description of the sets of homotopy minimal periods of all such maps.
Better migrants, better PISA results: Findings from a natural experiment
Authors: Cattaneo Maria A , Wolter Stefan C
Published: September 2015

Switzerland changed its migration policy in the 1990s from a “non-qualified only” policy to one of almost free movement of labor. To analyze the impact of this policy change on the schooling outcomes of children of first-generation migrants, the paper compares the PISA results of first-generation pupils in 2000 with the scores of children tested in 2009, whose parents immigrated after the policy changed. We find that around 75% of the 40-point increase in the PISA score of first-generation immigrant students was due to changes in the individual background characteristics of their parents and to improved school composition.
Introduction: A Caveat on Caveats
Authors: Perl Jeffrey M. , Gade Christian B. N. , Willerslev Rane , Meinert Lotte , Haviland Beverly , Scheper-Hughes Nancy , Grausam Daniel , McKay Daniel , Urita Michiko
Published: September 2015

In this introduction to part 4 of the Common Knowledge symposium “Peace by Other Means,” the journal's editor assesses the argument made by Peace, the spokesperson of Erasmus in his Querela Pacis (1521), that the desire to impute and avenge wrongs against oneself is insatiable and at the root of both individual and social enmities. He notes that, in a symposium about how to resolve and prevent enmity, most contributions have to date expressed caveats about how justice and truth must take precedence over peace, how recovery from ill treatment may be impossible, how quietism is not a moral option, and how realism demands a national policy and a personal strategy of, at best, contingent forgiveness. He concedes that the attitudes of those opposed to quietism are healthy but suggests that there may be goods worthier than health of human devotion. This essay concludes that the main differences between what it terms “judgmental” and “irenic” regimes are disagreements over anthropology and metaphysics. The presumptions that truths are objectively knowable and that human beings are moral and rational agents characterize judgmental regimes; irenic regimes are characterized by disillusionment with those assumptions.
WHAT IT BETOKENED
Authors: Haviland Beverly
Published: September 2015

This contribution to the Common Knowledge symposium on enmity argues that there is more to the problem of enmity than understanding, preventing, and resolving it: one must also recover from it and from its effects. Drawing on a psychoanalytic theory of shame that discriminates between narcissistic injuries that are enduring and those that can be overcome, this essay proposes a reading of Hester Prynne's transformation in The Scarlet Letter as a series of recognitions informed by her emotional relations to her estranged husband, her lover, their daughter, and her fellow women. Nathaniel Hawthorne's heroine is condemned by her community for her adultery and suffers in silence for seven years before her shame erupts as anger at the men she had idealized and now recognizes as having betrayed her long before she deceived one of them. Only when she understands that the marriage arranged by her father to a man of his own age took advantage of her youth and legal powerlessness does she begin to redistribute blame for this sexual abuse. Refusing to serve the interests of her hated husband, she is able to forgive herself and eventually becomes a source of healing for other injured women.
THE POETICS OF APOLOGY
Authors: McKay Daniel
Published: September 2015

This article surveys the Far East prisoner of war novel from its inception in English public school narratives and racially inflected character profiles to the more critically engaged publications of the last two decades. During the latter period, linear reconstructions of imprisonment, analogous institutional paradigms, and authors' own memories of captivity have gradually declined in influence. Although not wholly absent, their place has been taken by an emphasis on intergenerational trauma, international relations (especially those involving the 1995 commemoration of the end of the war), and real or imagined meetings between surviving prisoners and their former torturers or interrogators. Through a close reading of journalist Jim Lehrer's novel The Special Prisoner (2000), this essay examines the ways in which international relations inflect an imagined encounter between a surviving prisoner and his former torturer. The novelist's sensitivity to contending notions of collective guilt and collective victimhood serve to illustrate the complications that arise at the individual level when forgiveness is freely offered by a trauma survivor and roundly rejected by the agent of that trauma.
THE LAST INN
Authors: Kertész Imre
Published: September 2015

This text, excerpted from a “diary novel” by Imre Kertész, appeared in both Hungarian and German in 2014. Now suffering with an advanced stage of Parkinson's disease, the author considers it the last work that he will be able to complete.
The MEF2–HDAC axis controls proliferation of mammary epithelial cells and acini formation in vitro
Authors: Clocchiatti Andrea , Di Giorgio Eros , Viviani Giulia , Streuli Charles , Sgorbissa Andrea , Picco Raffaella , Cutano Valentina , Brancolini Claudio
Published: September 2015

The myocyte enhancer factor 2 and histone deacetylase (MEF2–HDAC) axis is a master regulator of different developmental programs and adaptive responses in adults. In this paper, we have investigated the contribution of the axis to the regulation of epithelial morphogenesis, using 3D organotypic cultures of MCF10A cells as a model. We have demonstrated that MEF2 transcriptional activity is upregulated during acini formation, which coincides with exit from the proliferative phase. Upregulation of the transcription of MEF2 proteins is coupled to downregulation of HDAC7, which occurs independently from changes in mRNA levels, and proteasome- or autophagy-mediated degradation. During acini formation, the MEF2–HDAC axis contributes to the promotion of cell cycle exit, through the engagement of the CDK inhibitor CDKN1A. Only in proliferating cells can HDAC7 bind to the first intron of the CDKN1A gene, a region characterized by epigenetic markers of active promoters and enhancers. In cells transformed by the oncogene HER2 (ERBB2), acini morphogenesis is altered, MEF2 transcription is repressed and HDAC7 is continuously expressed. Importantly, reactivation of MEF2 transcriptional activity in these cells, through the use of a HER2 inhibitor or by enhancing MEF2 function, corrected the proliferative defect and re-established normal acini morphogenesis.
Understanding Customer Value in Technology-Enabled Services: A Numerical Taxonomy Based on Usage and Utility
Authors: Lee Min Kyung , Verma Rohit , Roth Aleda
Published: September 2015

Use of technologies in service encounters can enhance service delivery and increase customer satisfaction in services. Our research develops a numerical taxonomy that provides a deeper understanding of usage and value of customer-facing technology-based innovations in the U.S. restaurant industry. In this study, utility is a proxy for intrinsic customer value. Usage was estimated by past visits to restaurants and utility was calculated by using a specific type of discrete choice experiment known as Best-Worst (or max-diff) experiment. We offer insights for service strategy technology choices and customer value in service delivery systems research and practice. Furthermore, we advance service science by discussing the inherent management pitfalls of failing to distinguish between technology usage and utility in services.
A review of the characteristics of homeless drinkers
Authors: Place Charlie
Published: September 2015

Homeless drinkers are one of the most vulnerable groups in society. This group is often encountered in many healthcare environments, often by mental health nurses. A review of assessments carried out with homeless drinkers accessing a primary care alcohol service was carried out. The review shows that homeless drinkers have a range of complex problems, including: severe dependence on alcohol; drug use; early life trauma; suicidality; aggression; and cognitive impairment. This group have difficulty engaging with conventional services, yet have very high level of needs—these needs may be better met by intensive case management using assertive community treatment and easier access to detoxification.
Childhood flu immunisation: More than just a spray
Authors: Nicholson Wendy
Published: September 2015

As the childhood flu immunisation programme is about to be rolled out further, Wendy Nicholson shares some advice and resources to help support its delivery.
School nurse team leaders' experience and management of workplace conflict
Authors: Klinkhamer Frits
Published: September 2015

This study aimed to explore school nurse team leads' (SNTLs) lived experience of workplace conflict, given the negative impact conflict can have, and describes measures and strategies SNTLs used to manage conflict in the workplace. The study was carried out in a London community NHS trust. A qualitative approach using phenomenological enquiry was chosen and data were collected via one-to-one semi-structured interviews. Colaizzi's seven-stage process of analysis framework was used to analyse the data (Colaizzi, 1978: cited by Omery, 1983 ). Although SNTLs' experiences were unique to each individual, commonalities were identified and were themed. Recommendations for future practice were then identified and include staff training using recognised conflict resolution styles. Clearer organisational responsibility and support to help address the substantive, procedural psychological aspects of conflict is also needed to effectively support SNTLs to manage complex and longstanding workplace conflict.
Improving children and young people's resilience to depression
Authors: Thornton Stephanie
Published: September 2015

Depression can have a serious impact on children and young people's lives and affect their futures. Stephanie Thornton looks at the importance of improving their resilience and the potential role of positive attention bias.
State of the Nation outdoor play survey
Authors: Solly Kathryn , Hollyhock Juno , Derbyshire Denise
Published: September 2015

MA Education Ltd, St Jude's Church, Dulwich Road, London, SE24 0PB. neil.henty@markallengroup.com
Play to your strengths
Authors: Baston-Pitt Linda
Published: September 2015

We all like to think we have a great deal to offer our colleagues, our workplace and the children we care for, but we are not always very good at articulating just what our strong points are or how we use them.
What we can learn from… Land transport!
Authors: Chapman Ailsa
Published: September 2015

This month, we start a series of three articles that will use practical activities to explore the world of transport, starting with vehicles that travel on the ground, such as cars, trains, trams and buses.
On top of prepositions
Authors: Taylor Kath
Published: September 2015

The proper use of positional language is a vital skill for young children to master as they move through the foundation stage, thankfully, our early years environments offer us many and various ways to help.
Coping strategies when self-managing care on home haemodialysis
Authors: Blandford Ann , Farrington Ken , Mayer Astrid , Walker Diane , Rajkomar Atish
Published: September 2015

Home haemodialysis can have significant advantages for patients compared with in-centre dialysis, positively impacting on quality of life. In this article, Ann Blandford et al report the findings of a study that looked at the experiences of patients who self-manage their dialysis, focusing particularly on the spectrum of coping strategies implemented.
Development of an access training programme for non-renal nurses
Authors: McPeake Mari , Redmond Avril
Published: September 2015

Any stay in hospital can be a daunting experience and feelings can be exacerbated when invasive interventions are required. To enhance the renal inpatient experience, a bespoke learning programme was developed to support non-renal nurses in developing the skills to access haemodialysis catheters.
Space, Mobility, and Agency in Palestinian American Poetry
Authors: Hind El Hajj  , Sirène Harb
Published: September 2015

This article proposes a framework for exploring the role of mobility in the rearticulation of agency relating to white and minority identities in poems by Lisa Suhair Majaj, Naomi Shihab Nye, and Suheir Hammad. In this context, we show how the political poetry of Majaj, Hammad, and Nye employs mobility to destabilize racialized structures and definitions underlying ethnic and white identities and challenge the invisibility of related power hierarchies and hegemonic discursive formations. Through translational representations of mobility, we argue, the poets and poetic subjects unmask racialized locations and map transformative itineraries shaped by choice and affiliation; the resulting identities are constantly negotiated and reshaped in relation to struggle, justice, and global concerns. The examination of mobility in this context also reveals the conditions of existence and circulation of white privilege to unmask its influence on ascriptions of human value and worth.
The Oriental Rebel in Western History
Authors: Govand Khalid Azeez
Published: September 2015

Edward Said's Orientalism through deconstructing colonial discourses of power-knowledge postulates that colonization for the colonized has a particular ontological finality, reification. I contend here that the process of subjection has a far more profound effect than merely reifying the colonized, to borrow from Anouar Abdel-Malek, as customary, passive, non-participating, and non-autonomous. Rather, Western imperial narratives and what Said calls its “evaluative judgments” and “program of actions” also come to interpellate the reified subject's cosmovision, agency, and its forms of resistance. Focusing on the Middle East, this study is a genealogy that exposes how techniques and technologies of imperial power have symbolically and materially produced the Oriental rebel in Western history. Through re-reading institutionalized knowledges and resurrecting a counter-history, this article reveals a hidden and buried discursive formation, one which I call counter-revolutionary discourse. I argue that this system of thought is built through dispersed and heterogeneous but power-laden statements from Aymeric and Comte de Volney to Napoleon Bonaparte, Ernest Renan, Gustave Le Bon, and Thomas Friedman.
Reviews
Authors: Kissick Michael , Verhoeven Arno
Published: September 2015

Home of the Ubiquitous Su per Hero – City Strips

Ubiquity – what is skill and where can I find some? Review of Aximity WA X9
Fostering participation through ubiquitous media in pervasive performance
Authors: Pérez Elena
Published: September 2015

This article reflects on Chain Reaction (2009 and 2011), a mixed performance combining ubiquitous media with performance conventions and experimental game design. It explores the ways in which ubiquitous media were used to foster participants’ creative expression and how these strategies impacted performance conventions of spectatorship and participation. By combining performance, game and ubiquitous media in public space, it is claimed that Chain Reaction enables spectators to cross conventional thresholds and experience different participatory roles during one and the same event, going from spectator, to (performative) player, to theatre actor and to documentalist. In this way, ubiquitous media are vital to developing a performance genre that seeks to empower the cultural participant.
Le Passage – an archaeology of spatial transitions
Authors: Beyer Isabella
Published: September 2015

The author reflects on the usage and development of the zoom ‘passage’ and its various forms from the early cinema of the 1920s to the expanding concept of a scaling zoom towards a Cosmic View (Boerke, 1957) and the usage of cosmic zooms in todays fulldome theatres/ planetariums. Today various zoom effects are being used at daily routine. The navigation inside geographical visualization tools is naturally embedded in our daily media experience while using mobile devices, car navigational tools and other applications. All the more a critical perspective on the impact is needed. This article compares the different techniques used in Google Maps and in Fulldome theatres and argues that the usage of digital geographical tools and their inherent zoom structures change our mind concept of local environments, earth and spatial knowledge.
iCelebrate Teaching and Learning: Sharing the iPad Experience
Authors: Cavanaugh Cathy , Hargis Jace , Munns Stephen , Kamali Tayeb
Published: September 2015

In April 2012, the federal higher education system of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) embarked on the path to national adoption of the Apple iPad as the educational computing platform. The core objective of the adoption was improved learning and degree completion among students in academic programs in support of national development goals. From the National Higher Education development document, the goals are to- "Achieve individualized student learning consistent with “Post PC Era” trends;- Introduce of challenge-based learning or other progressive classroom pedagogy;- Increased student participation and motivation;- Enhance opportunities for cross-institutional collaboration between faculty members;- Increase faculty collaboration through cross-institutional repositories of learning objects; and- Facilitate the migration to e-books." The UAE has three institutions encompassing 20 campuses serving 50,000 students in its federal higher education: UAE University provides a research-intensive experience; Zayed University, a liberal arts, comprehensive environment; and HCT, professional programs. The HCT iPad program was envisioned by HCT’s Chancellor, His Excellency Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister for Higher Education and Scientific Research, and was led by the Vice Chancellor Dr Tayeb Kamali. This program builds on his history of entrepreneurship and e-learning initiatives, such as integrated wireless campus infrastructures, online learning and knowledge-management programmes, Dr Kamali has successfully built a cutting-edge institution that provides UAE youth with technological skills and the ability to innovate, while driving job creation in the region.
The effect of summer on value-added assessments of teacher and school performance
Authors: Palardy Gregory J , Peng Luyao
Published: September 2015

This study examines the effects of including the summer period on value-added assessments (VAA) of teacher and school performance at the early grades. The results indicate that 40-62% of the variance in VAA estimates originates from the summer period, depending on the outcome. Furthermore, when summer is omitted from the VAA model, 51-61% of the teachers and 58-61% of the schools change performance quintiles, with many changing 2-3 quintiles. Extensive statistical controls for student background and classroom and school context reduce these differences, but 36-47% of the teachers and 42-49% of the schools are still in different quintiles. Besides misclassifying teachers and schools, including summer creates biases in VAA estimates against schools with concentrated poverty. These results suggest that removing summer effects from VAA estimates will likely require biannual achievement assessments (i.e., fall and spring).
Effects of maternal abdominal decompression on umbilical artery and fetal middle cerebral artery blood flow
Authors: Mugerli Sara , Njenjić Gordana , Fabjan Vodušek Vesna , Lučovnik Miha
Published: September 2015

Introduction: Maternal abdominal decompression during pregnancy could be used in an attempt to improve utero-placental blood flow. We utilized Doppler ultrasonography to investigate the effects of this procedure on blood flow in the umbilical artery and fetal middle cerebral artery.

Methods: Women (n = 23) with singleton pregnancies attending antenatal abdominal decompression were enrolled in the study. Doppler velocity waveforms were obtained from umbilical artery and fetal middle cerebral artery before and after a 30-minute decompression session. Resistance indices were compared using the Student's t - test (p < 0.05 significant).

Results: 23 healthy pregnant women were included at an average gestational age of 36+1 weeks. The mean resistance index before decompression in the umbilical artery was 0.58 (s = 0.10) and after decompression 0.54 (s = 0.07, p = 0.06). In the middle cerebral artery the values were 0.72 (s = 0.11) and 0.77 (s = 0.08), respectively (p = 0.01).

Discussion and conclusion: Significantly increased resistance index in the middle cerebral artery implies a higher fetal brain oxygenation after decompression. This is further corroborated by the trend towards a decrease in umbilical artery resistance index. The effects of decompression could be beneficial in pregnancies complicated by IUGR or hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.
Seroprevalence and correlates of Toxoplasma gondii infection in dairy cattle in northwest China
Authors: Tan Qi-Dong , Yang Xiao-Yu , Yin Ming-Yang , Hu Ling-Ying , Qin Si-Yuan , Wang Jin-Lei , Zhou Dong-Hui , Zhu Xing-Quan
Published: September 2015

Prevalence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii and risk factors with infection were assessed in dairy cattle from Gansu Province and Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (NXHAR), northwest China. In total, 1657 serum samples were collected and assayed by the modified agglutination test. The overall seroprevalence was 4.83% at a 1:100 cut-off, with titers of 1:100 in 72, 1:200 in 4, 1:400 in 4. Among the risk factors examined, no statistically significant difference was observed between T. gondii seroprevalence and regions or age of dairy cattle in the logistic regression analysis (P>0.05) and left out of the final model. However, numbers of pregnancies of dairy cattle was considered as main risk factor associated with T. gondii infection. Dairy cattle in nulliparity group (8.89%) had 6 times (OR=6.31, 95% CI, 2.69-14.83, P<0.001) higher risk of being seropositive compared to dairy cattle in 3 or above 3 pregnancies group (1.52%), followed by 1 pregnancy group (4.27%) had nearly 3 times (OR=2.89, 95% CI, 1.11-7.52, P = 0.03) higher risk of being seropositive compared to dairy cattle in 3 or above 3 pregnancies group, although no statistical difference was found between 2 pregnancies group and 3 or above 3 pregnancies group (P = 0.70). The results of this survey indicated the presence of T. gondii infection in dairy cattle in Gansu Province and NXHAR, which enriches the epidemiological data of T. gondii infection in dairy cattle in China, and is helpful to strengthen prevention and control of T. gondii infection in dairy cattle in these two regions.
A new species of Cosmocerca (Nematoda: Cosmocercidae) and other helminths in Cyrtodactylus gubaot (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from the Philippines
Authors: Bursey Charles R. , Goldberg Stephen R. , Siler Cameron D. , Brown Rafe M.
Published: September 2015

Cosmocerca leytensis sp. nov. (Ascaridida, Cosmocercidae) from the large intestine of Cyrtodactylus gubaot (Squamata: Gekkonidae) collected on Leyte Island, Philippines is described and illustrated. Cosmocerca leytensis sp. nov. is the 30
Risk factors of occurrence of Toxoplasma gondii among horses in the state of Alagoas, Brazil
Authors: Fonseca de Araújo Valença Sandra R. , Barreto Valença Rômulo M. , Pinheiro Júnior José Wilton , Feitosa de Albuquerque Pedro P. , Souza Neto Orestes L. , Mota Rinaldo Aparecido
Published: September 2015

The aim of the present study was to investigate the occurrence of Toxoplasma gondii among horses and its associated risk factors in Alagoas, Brazil. In total, 440 samples from 36 properties in 23 districts of the state of Alagoas were studied, covering the Leste, Agreste and Sertão mesoregions. Risk factors were evaluated through the application of an investigative questionnaire that focused on the productive, reproductive and sanitary management of herds. T. gondii infection were assayed using the immunofluorescence assay (IFA) with a cutoff point of 64; 14.4% (95% CI: 11.0%-17.8%) of - horses were seropositive. A significant association was determined between anti-T. gondii antibody presence and the consumption and storage of hay (OR = 2.08 / 95% CI: 1.20-3.62). This is the first report of T. gondii infection among horses in the state of Alagoas, Brazil.
Recent study on canine vector-borne zoonoses in southern Slovakia – serologic survey
Authors: Čabanová Viktória , Pantchev Nikola , Hurníková Zuzana , Miterpáková Martina
Published: September 2015

Over the last decade a significant spread of Canine Vector Borne Diseases has been recorded in Central Europe. The aim of the study described here, was to collect current data on the occurrence and distribution of three major canine vector-borne pathogens in the veterinary clinical practice by a newly-developed commercial ELISA test for the detection of Dirofilaria immitis antigen as well as specific circulating antibodies to Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato. Circulating D. immitis antigen was detected in five of 180 investigated sera samples. Two of D. immitis seropositive dogs revealed also microfilariae of D. repens in the blood and three of them were negative for the presence of microfilariae in the Knott´s test. From the practical point of view, the finding of D. immitis occult infections might influence existing knowledge about distribution of this species among dogs in Central European countries. In 11.7% of the tested dogs the presence of specific antibodies against A. phagocytophilum was confirmed. Antibodies against B. burgdorferi s.l. were detected in 2.8% of tested sera samples. Coinfection with A. phagocytophilum and B. burgdorferi s.l. was observed in two dogs from Košice district in south-eastern Slovakia. Our data point toward the presence of Canine Vector Borne Diseases in the studied area. Therefore, veterinarians should include these diseases in their differential diagnosis and higher awareness should be focused also on prophylactic measures to prevent the pathogens transmission by arthropod vectors.
A New Species of Ligophorus (Monogenea: Dactylogyridae) from the gills of the Flathead Mullet Mugil cephalus (Teleostei: Mugilidae) from Mexico
Authors: Rodríguez-González Abril , Míguez-Lozano Raúl , Llopis-Belenguer Cristina , Balbuena Juan Antonio
Published: September 2015

A new monogenean species, Ligophorus yucatanensis n. sp. from the gills of the flathead mullet Mugil cephalus from the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, is described. The new species can be differentiated from all other species of Ligophorus by the morphology of the accessory piece of the copulatory organ. Its main lobe is cylindrical, tunnelled expanded distally, slightly bowed with a characteristic membranous opening at level of medial bifurcation of the accessory piece, forming a thick-walled bulbshaped expansion that ends in a round labium. The secondary lobe is spatulate, straight, and shorter than the main lobe. In addition, the new species can be distinguished from other species by the morphology of the haptoral ventral bar, and the distal end of the vaginal duct. Furthermore the ventral anchors are shorter than those of all other species of Ligophorus reported in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea. In addition, the zoogeographical records of Ligophorus spp. on the M. cephalus species complex are briefly reviewed and updated.
Biocatalytic deracemization: An efficient one-pot synthesis of (R)-α-methyl-4-pyridinemethanol using whole cells of Candida parapsilosis
Authors: Ghosh Saptarshi , Banoth Linga , Banerjee Uttam Chand
Published: September 2015

A single-step synthesis of (R)-α-methyl- 4-pyridinemethanol from (RS)-α-methyl-4- pyridinemethanol by stereoinversion using whole cells of Candida parapsilosis is reported. Among the various strains of Candida species examined, C. parapsilosis demonstrated to have the best oxidoreductase system for stereoinversion of (RS)-α-methyl-4-pyridinemethanol. The effect of various physicochemical parameters on the stereoinversion process, were studied. Under optimized conditions approximately 97% enantiomeric excess of (R)-α-methyl-4-pyridinemethanol (eeR) was obtained with 99% yield was obtained. The optimized parameters were determined to be a substrate concentration of 5 mM, pH 8.0, 30°C incubation temperature, and a reaction time of 48 h. The reactions were also carried out in different organic solvents, and maximum stereoinversion was obtained in 1,4-dioxane with 78.4% eeR and 74.7% yield, which are lower than those in phosphate buffer. This whole cell catalysis for the preparation of (R)-α-methyl-4- pyridinemethanol is an example of a green, enantiopure synthesis of secondary alcohols.
A Comparison Of GDP Growth Of European Countries During 2008-2012 From The Regional And Other Perspectives
Authors: Mazurek Jiří
Published: September 2015

The aim of the article is to compare the total real GDP growth of European countries from the 3rd quarter of 2008 with the 3rd quarter of 2012, the period characterized by a predominant economic stagnation or economic recession in the majority of examined European countries. The countries are divided into groups based on the following grounds: whether they are geographically close to the economic center (Germany) or peripheral, whether they are in the eurozone or not, whether they are (new) EU members or ‘old’ ones, etc. The main findings from the comparisons are as follows: 1. European countries close to the economic center (Germany and its neighbours) experienced, on average, positive economic growth during examined period, while countries from European periphery on average experienced negative economic growth during the same period. This difference was found statistically significant at the α = 0.01 level. 2. Differences between eurozone and non-eurozone, old and new EU members, and between more and less populated countries were found statistically insignificant. 3. European regions with the most negative real total GDP growth included the Baltics, the Balkans, Southern Europe (Italy, Portugal) and Iceland. The most successful countries with the most positive real total GDP growth were central European countries (Poland, Slovakia, Germany, Switzerland, Austria) and those in northern Europe (Sweden and Norway).
Nickel(II) complex with 1,4,7-tris(2-aminoethyl)-1,4,7-triazacyclononane‡
Authors: Mikuriya Masahiro , Hamagawa Mayu , Tomioka Natsuki , Fujimori Rika , Yoshioka Daisuke , Hori Shoichi , Kuriyama Taro , Sakiyama Hiroshi , Handa Makoto , Mitsuhashi Ryoji
Published: September 2015

A nickel(II) complex, [Ni(taetacn)](ClO
Nanoscale lanthanum oxide catalysts for self-condensation of acetone: preparation via self-assembly on anodic aluminum oxide, structure, and properties
Authors: Wang Lin , Chen Zhe , Wang Xiao-Yue , Du Chang-Hai
Published: September 2015

A novel structured La
Parameterization of a Conventional and Regenerated UHB Turbofan
Authors: Oliveira Fábio , Brójo Francisco
Published: September 2015

The attempt to improve aircraft engines efficiency resulted in the evolution from turbojets to the first generation low bypass ratio turbofans. Today, high bypass ratio turbofans are the most traditional type of engine in commercial aviation. Following many years of technological developments and improvements, this type of engine has proved to be the most reliable facing the commercial aviation requirements. In search of more efficiency, the engine manufacturers tend to increase the bypass ratio leading to ultra-high bypass ratio (UHB) engines. Increased bypass ratio has clear benefits in terms of propulsion system like reducing the specific fuel consumption. This study is aimed at a parametric analysis of a UHB turbofan engine focused on short haul flights. Two cycle configurations (conventional and regenerated) were studied, and estimated values of their specific fuel consumption (TSFC) and specific thrust (Fs) were determined. Results demonstrate that the regenerated cycle may contribute towards a more economic and friendly aero engines in a higher range of bypass ratio.
Design of a Ka Band GTEM Cell
Authors: Yu M. X.
Published: September 2015

A Ka band GHz Transverse Electromagnetic (GTEM) cell with a large uniform volume is proposed in this paper. We calculated the characteristic impedance of the GTEM cell transition, and designed a wideband, low insertion loss，simple structure of the GTEM cell transition. The characteristic impedance of the main part of the GTEM cell is calculated with a new simple and effective method, and the larger uniform fields are be got by suppressed higher TE modes with narrow slot on the septum. The feasibility of the method was assessed with simulation software CST. It provides a method to solve the contradiction between the upper limit frequency and the volume of the GTEM Cell.
Expansion of Services Output Share: Traditional Factors or Policy Changes?
Authors: Roy Amrita
Published: September 2015

This paper seeks to find whether the shift in the production structure away from agriculture to services is only the result of the change in income status or the changing economic relations among countries has any important role to play here. It tries to find out the factors responsible for the huge expansion of the services output in recent times (1971–2009) considering three different samples (a) a group of developed and developing countries, (b) a group of developing countries, in particular and also (c) the case of India. The paper finds that along with the variables representing changing income status and technological development, policy changes related to globalization and liberalisation are also important but these policy variables can not explain the shift in the output share of the service sector in the 1990s.
The Determinants of Long-run Real Exchange Rate in South Africa: A Fundamental Equilibrium Approach
Authors: Njindan Iyke Bernard , Odhiambo Nicholas M.
Published: September 2015

In this paper, we identify the fundamental determinants of the long-run exchange rate in South Africa. We then estimate the equilibrium real exchange rate for this country using a dataset covering the period 1975–2012. In order to account for possible short-run fluctuations in the real exchange rate, we conducted a cointegration test using the ARDL bounds testing procedure. First, we found terms of trade, trade openness, government consumption, net foreign assets and real commodity prices to be the long-run determinants of the real exchange rate in South Africa. Second, we found that nearly 68.06% of the real exchange-rate disequilibrium is corrected annually. Overall, the estimated equilibrium rate indicates that the Rand has been depreciating in real terms over the years. Tightening trade openness is not an option, given international agreements; on the other hand, terms of trade and real commodity prices are determined by the world market. The obvious policy alternative is for South Africa to increase government spending and moderately decrease her net foreign asset position.
Digitally Controlled 4-Phase Bi-Directional Interleaved Dc-Dc Converter with Coupled Inductors / Digitāli Vadāms 4 Fāžu Divvirziena Līdzstrāvas Pārveidotājs Ar Saistītajām Droselēm
Authors: Kroics K. , Sirmelis U. , Grigans L.
Published: September 2015

The main advantages of multiphase interleaved DC-DC converters over single-phase converters are reduced current stress and reduced output current ripple. Nevertheless, inductor current ripple cannot be reduced only by an interleaving method. The integrated magnetic structure can be used to solve this problem. In this paper, the application of 2-phase coupled inductor designed in a convenient way by using commercially manufactured coil formers and ferrite cores is analysed to develop a 4-phase interleaved DC-DC converter. The steady state phase and output current ripple in a boost mode of the interleaved bidirectional DC-DC converter with integrated magnetics are analysed. The prototype of the converter has been built. The experimental results of the current ripple are presented in the paper.
UV-Vis studies of 800 keV Ar ion irradiated NiO thin films
Authors: Mallick P. , Mishra D.K. , Kumar P. , Kanjilal D.
Published: September 2015

We report the evolution of optical absorption properties of 800 keV Ar ion irradiated NiO thin films through UV-Vis characterization. Our results indicate the existence of both Mott-Hubbard (d → d transition) and charge-transfer (p → d transition) characteristic of NiO. The optical band gap of NiO increases from 3.58 to 3.75 eV when irradiated at the fluence of 5 × 1014 ions cm-2 but it does not show any remarkable variation upon 800 keV Ar ion irradiation at higher fluences. The refractive index and electron polarizability at different ion fluences have been determined from the optical band gap. Both refractive index and electron polarizability follow an opposite trend to that of the energy gap as a function of ion fluence.
The actual measurements at the tide gauges do not support strongly accelerating twentieth-century sea-level rise reconstructions
Authors: Parker A.
Published: September 2015

Contrary to what is claimed by reconstructions of the Global Mean Sea Level (GMSL) indicating accelerating sea level rates of rise over the twentieth-century, the actual measurements at the tide gauges show the sea levels have not risen nor accelerated that much. The most recent estimation by Hay et al [
Experiences on the influence of different behaviors on antioxidants and reactive oxygen species in the human skin
Authors: Lademann Jürgen , Meinke Martina C. , Lohan Silke B. , Schanzer Sabine , Darvin Maxim E.
Published: September 2015

Skin aging is determined by genetic aspects and by the action of free radicals. At small concentrations, these reactive molecules contribute essentially to signaling processes in the human organism. If their concentration exceeds a critical threshold, the free radicals can destroy cells and cell compartments. The human organism has developed a protective antioxidant system against the detrimental action of free radicals. Most of these antioxidants cannot be produced in the human body but have to be ingested with food rich in antioxidants, for instance with fruit and vegetables. Resonance Raman and reflectance spectroscopy was used to detect carotenoids, which represent marker substances for the whole antioxidative potential in human skin. It could be demonstrated that the antioxidant status of the skin reflects the nutritional and stress behavior of human subjects. Increasing the concentration of cutaneous antioxidants by topical or systemic application could be an appropriate way to reduce the destructive action of the free radicals. Consequently, high antioxidant concentrations in human skin might be an efficient mechanism to prevent skin aging.
Effect of manufacturing parameters and thermal treatment on the properties of tubular braids and tubular knits
Authors: Lou Ching-Wen , Lu Po-Ching , Hu Jin-Jia , Lin Jia-Horng
Published: September 2015

Textile techniques can be applied to create two-dimensional or three-dimensional tubular fabrics. Three-dimensional tubular knits can be used in many fields, such as for medical textiles, conductive textile, composites, and tissue engineering. This study aimed to examine the effects of different yarn types on various fabrics and of different temperatures on the variations in the properties of textiles. Four types of wrapped yarn (P150, P75, S140, and S70) were made into tubular braids and knits, after which the products were thermally treated at various temperatures (120°C, 140°C, and 160°C). A shrinkage measurement, a porosity test, a braid angle test, and a tensile test were performed to evaluate the tubular braids and knits. The test results indicated that the thermal treatment temperature did not affect the porosity of the tubular braids and tubular knits. The porosity of the tubular braids was between 40.32% and 48.27%, while that of the tubular knits was between 10.15% and 35.57%. In addition, the tensile strength of both fabric types increased by 40–50%, while their displacement increased by 200–250%. In the future, the efficacy of tubular braids and tubular knits for use as vascular grafts will be examined.