bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Surface Roughness, Microhardness, and Microleakage of a Silorane-Based Composite Resin after Immediate or Delayed Finishing/Polishing
Authors: Lins Fernanda Carvalho Rezende , Ferreira Raquel Conceição , Silveira Rodrigo Richard , Pereira Carolina Nemésio Barros , Moreira Allyson Nogueira , Magalhães Claudia Silami
Published: February 2016

Objective. This study evaluated the effect of immediate or delayed finishing/polishing using different systems on the surface roughness, hardness, and microleakage of a silorane-based composite.Material and Methods. Specimens were made with silorane-based composite (Filtek P90, 3M ESPE) and assigned to the treatments: control (light-cured); aluminum oxide discs (Sof-Lex, 3M ESPE); diamond-impregnated silicone tips (Astropol, Ivoclar Vivadent); aluminum oxide-impregnated silicone tips (Enhance, Dentsply). Half of the specimens were finished/polished immediately and the rest after 7 days. Surface roughness (Ra,μm;n=20) and Vickers microhardness (50 g; 45 s;n=10) were measured. Cavities were prepared in bovine incisors and filled with Filtek P90. The fillings received immediate or delayed finishing/polishing (n=10) and were subjected to dye penetration test (0.5% basic fuchsin, 24 h). Data were analyzed by ANOVA and Scheffe, Kruskal-Wallis, and Mann-Whitney tests (p<0.05).Results. The finishing/polishing system significantly influenced roughness and microhardness (p<0.0001). For enamel, microleakage was not affected by the finishing/polishing system (p=0.309). For dentin, Sof-Lex discs and Astropol points promoted greater microleakage than Enhance points (p=0.033).Conclusion. Considering roughness, microhardness, and microleakage together, immediate finishing/polishing of a silorane-based composite using aluminum oxide discs may be recommended.
Retained Products of Conception: An Atypical Presentation Diagnosed Immediately with Bedside Emergency Ultrasound
Authors: Adkins Kristin , Minardi Joseph , Setzer Erin , Williams Debra
Published: February 2016

Background. Retained products of conception is an important diagnosis to consider in patients presenting with postpartum complaints. Bedside ultrasound is a rapid, accurate, noninvasive modality to evaluate these patients.Objective. To report an atypical case of retained products of conception diagnosed with bedside ultrasound in the emergency department.Case Report. A 27-year-old female who was 1-month postpartum presented with vaginal bleeding, pelvic pain, and no fever. At the time of initial H&P, bedside ultrasound revealed echogenic material within the endometrial cavity with blood flow seen by color Doppler consistent with retained products of conception. The bedside ultrasound rapidly narrowed the differential and allowed a definitive diagnosis immediately. Ob/Gyn was consulted and dilation and curettage was performed in the operating room.Conclusions. Retained products of conception is an important diagnosis for the emergency physician to consider in at-risk patients. The sonographic findings are easily obtained and interpreted by emergency physicians. Earlier diagnosis of this disease process should lead to more focused patient evaluations and management.
Uncoupling Protein 2 Increases Susceptibility to Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Lung Injury in Mice
Authors: Wang Qin , Wang Jianchun , Hu Mingdong , Yang Yu , Guo Liang , Xu Jing , Lei Chuanjiang , Jiao Yan , Xu JianCheng
Published: February 2016

Uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) is upregulated in patients with systemic inflammation and infection, but its functional role is unclear. We up- or downregulated UCP2 expression using UCP2 recombinant adenovirus or the UCP2 inhibitor, genipin, in lungs of mice, and investigated the mechanisms of UCP2 in ALI. UCP2 overexpression in mouse lungs increased LPS-induced pathological changes, lung permeability, lung inflammation, and lowered survival rates. Furthermore, ATP levels and mitochondrial membrane potential were decreased, while reactive oxygen species production was increased. Additionally, mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) activity was elevated, which increased the sensitivity to LPS-induced apoptosis and inflammation. LPS-induced apoptosis and release of inflammatory factors were alleviated by pretreatment of the Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) inhibitor SP600125 or the p38 MAPK inhibitor SB203580, but not by the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) inhibitor PD98059 in UCP2-overexpressing mice. On the other hand, LPS-induced alveolar epithelial cell death and inflammation were attenuated by genipin. In conclusion, UCP2 increased susceptibility to LPS-induced cell death and pulmonary inflammation, most likely via ATP depletion and activation of MAPK signaling following ALI in mice.
Phase Ib Study of Enzalutamide in Combination with Docetaxel in Men with Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer
Authors: Morris Michael J. , Rathkopf Dana E. , Novotny William , Gibbons Jacqueline A. , Peterson Amy C. , Khondker Zakaria , Ouatas Taoufik , Scher Howard I. , Fleming Mark T.
Published: February 2016

Purpose: Preclinical evidence suggests that both docetaxel and enzalutamide target androgen receptor translocation and signaling. This phase Ib study assessed the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of docetaxel when administered with enzalutamide as first-line systemic chemotherapy in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC).

Experimental Methods: Docetaxel-naïve patients received 21-day cycles of docetaxel (75 mg/m2). Enzalutamide (160 mg/day) was administered daily starting on day 2 of cycle 1. Patients were allowed to stop and restart docetaxel at any time following cycle 2. Treatment continued indefinitely until unacceptable toxicity or discontinuation due to investigator or patient preference.

Results: A total of 22 patients received docetaxel, of whom 21 also received enzalutamide. Docetaxel was administered for a median of 5.0 cycles and enzalutamide for a median of 12.0 months. With concomitant treatment, geometric mean docetaxel exposure decreased by 11.8%, whereas peak concentrations decreased by 3.7% relative to docetaxel alone. The most common toxicities observed during the period of concomitant therapy were neutropenia (86.4%) and fatigue (77.3%). Common toxicities observed with post-docetaxel enzalutamide were constipation (23.8%), decreased appetite (19.0%), fatigue (19.0%), and musculoskeletal pain (19.0%). Treatment with enzalutamide and docetaxel resulted in prostate-specific antigen decreases in almost all patients based on exploratory analysis of available baseline and on-study prostate-specific antigen data.

Conclusions: The combination of docetaxel and enzalutamide is feasible, although higher rates of neutropenia and neutropenic fever than anticipated were observed. Reductions in docetaxel exposure with enzalutamide coadministration were not considered clinically meaningful. This combination warrants further study in a larger mCRPC population. Clin Cancer Res; 22(15); 3774–81. ©2016 AACR.
Integration of Intention and Outcome for Moral Judgment in Frontotemporal Dementia: Brain Structural Signatures
Authors: Baez Sandra , Kanske Philipp , Matallana Diana , Montañes Patricia , Reyes Pablo , Slachevsky Andrea , Matus Cristian , Vigliecca Nora Silvana , Torralva Teresa , Manes Facundo , Ibanez Agustin
Published: February 2016

Background: Moral judgment has been proposed to rely on a distributed brain network. This function is impaired in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), a condition involving damage to some regions of this network. However, no studies have investigated moral judgment in bvFTD via structural neuroimaging. Methods: We compared the performance of 21 bvFTD patients and 19 controls on a moral judgment task involving scenarios that discriminate between the contributions of intentions and outcomes. Voxel-based morphometry was used to assess (a) the atrophy pattern in bvFTD patients, (b) associations between gray matter (GM) volume and moral judgments, and (c) structural differences between bvFTD subgroups (patients with relatively preserved moral judgment and patients with severer moral judgment impairments). Results: Patients judged attempted harm as more permissible and accidental harm as less permissible than controls. The groups' performance on accidental harm was associated with GM volume in the precuneus. In controls, it was al- so associated with the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC). Also, both groups' performance on attempted harm was associated with GM volume in the temporoparietal junction. Patients exhibiting worse performance displayed smaller GM volumes in the precuneus and temporal pole. Conclusions: Results suggest that moral judgment abnormalities in bvFTD are associated with impaired integration of intentions and outcomes, which depends on an extended brain network. In bvFTD, moral judgment seems to critically depend on areas beyond the VMPFC.
Activity of Synthetic Antimicrobial Peptide GH12 against Oral Streptococci
Authors: Tu Huanxin , Fan Yingying , Lv Xueping , Han Sili , Zhou Xuedong , Zhang Linglin
Published: February 2016

Controlling the growth of cariogenic microorganisms such as oral streptococci is an adjunct therapy for caries-active individuals to prevent and treat caries. Here we investigated the antimicrobial activity of the synthetic amphipathic α- helical antimicrobial peptide GH12 (GLLWHLLHHLLH-NH2) against oral streptococci in vitro. Circular dichroism studies showed that GH12 takes on an α-helical conformation in the presence of membrane-mimicking solvents, and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography studies showed that GH12 remains stable in saliva. The peptide showed bactericidal activity against oral streptococci, with minimum inhibitory concentrations ranging from 6.7 to 32.0 μg/ml. GH12 concentrations 4-fold higher than the minimum bactericidal concentration completely killed oral streptococci within 20 min. Treating oral streptococci with GH12 caused noticeable changes in bacterial viability and morphology based on confocal laser scanning microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Effects of GH12 on biofilm formation and on viability of mature biofilm were quantified by crystal violet staining and the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. GH12 effectively inhibited biofilm formation and metabolic activity in biofilms of oral streptococci, especially S. mutans, S. sobrinus and S. salivarius. These results suggest that GH12 shows rapid and strong antimicrobial activity against oral streptococci in vitro, opening the door to preclinical and clinical studies to explore its potential for caries prevention and treatment.
Non-Physician Endoscopy: How Far Can We Go?
Authors: Pfeifer Ute Gabriele , Schilling Dieter
Published: February 2016

Background: The delegation of medical tasks to trained nurses is still little discussed in Germany. Methods: To get a picture of the current extent of non-physician endoscopy worldwide, we performed a systematic literature research. The following databases were used: CINAHL®, Cochrane Library, the German National Library of Medicine (ZB MED), OPAC, DIMDI, PubMed and MEDLINE. The research words were: nurse and practitioners or nurse clinician and diagnosis and organization and administration. Actual journals and references were used to find relevant studies (hand research). Results: Non-physician endoscopy has been well established in some European countries, in the USA and in several other countries in the western world. Conclusion: The implementation of such programs should be based on solid scientific consideration and evaluated within the framework of the ‘delegation rights'.
Physiological Role of Gut Microbiota for Maintaining Human Health
Authors: Andoh Akira
Published: February 2016

Background: The human body is colonized by an extremely complex and abundant aggregation of microbes, collectively referred to as the gut microbiota. Recent studies have focused on the link between these microbes and our health. Summary: Diet contributes to shaping the gut microbial structure and influences metabolic functions of the host. Alteration of the microbial structure and function (dysbiosis) is associated with the pathogenesis of various disorders. Fermentation is the process by which anaerobic bacteria (Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes) break down indigestible carbohydrates to short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs; acetate, propionate and butyrate), collaborating with species specialized in oligosaccharide fermentation (e.g. Bifidobacteria). Butyrate and propionate can regulate intestinal physiology and immune function, while acetate acts as a substrate for lipogenesis and gluconeogenesis. The gut microbiota regulates immune homeostasis via the induction of regulatory T cells and Th17 cells. In addition, butyrate has strong anti-inflammatory effects possibly through the inhibition of histone deacetylase activity. Metabolic products generated by the gut microbiota, such as SCFAs, GABA, tryptophan, serotonin and catecholamine, transmit a signal to resident cells in the gut. Key Message: Advances made in the DNA sequencing technology and bioinformatics have revolutionized our understanding of the microbes in the gut.
Twenty-Seven Years Experience With Transvenous Pacemaker Implantation in Children Weighing <10 kg
Authors: Konta Laura , Chubb Mark Henry , Bostock Julian , Rogers Jan , Rosenthal Eric
Published: February 2016

Background—

Epicardial pacemaker implantation is the favored approach in children weighing <10 kg in many units. The high incidence of premature failure and fractures with earlier epicardial leads led our unit to undertake transvenous pacemaker implantation in neonates and infants from 1987. To date there have been no long-term follow-up reports of what is for many a controversial strategy.

Methods and Results—

Between 1987 and 2003, 37 neonates and infants—median age 6.7 months (1 day to 3 years) and median weight 4.6 kg (2.7–10 kg)—had a permanent transvenous pacing system implanted. Pacing leads were placed into the right ventricular apex/outflow tract through a subclavian vein puncture with a redundant loop in the atrium. Three patients were lost to follow-up, 4 patients died from complications of cardiac surgery, and 2 patients had their system removed. At long-term follow-up in 28 patients at a median of 17.2 (range, 11.2–27.4) years, 10 patients have a single chamber ventricular pacemaker, 14 a dual chamber pacemaker, 3 a biventricular pacemaker, and 1 has a single chamber implantable cardioverter defibrillator. Subclavian vein patency was assessed in 26 patients. The overall subclavian vein occlusion rate was 10 of 13 (77%) <5 kg and 2 of 13 (15%) >5 kg during long-term follow-up. After a median of 14.3 (range, 13.4–17.6) years of pacing, 7 patients continue with their original lead.

Conclusions—

Transvenous pacing in infants <10 kg results in encouraging short- and long-term clinical outcomes. Subclavian vein occlusion remains an important complication, occurring predominantly in those weighing <5 kg.
Six Versus 12 Months of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy After Implantation of Biodegradable Polymer Sirolimus-Eluting Stent
Authors: Han Yaling , Xu Bo , Xu Kai , Guan Changdong , Jing Quanmin , Zheng Qiangsun , Li Xueqi , Zhao Xianxian , Wang Haichang , Zhao Xuezhong , Li Xiaoyan , Yu Pengfei , Zang Hongyun , Wang Zhifang , Cao Xuebin , Zhang Jun , Pang Wenyue , Li Jing , Yang Yuejin , Dangas George D.
Published: February 2016

Background—

There are no reports on a large-scale randomized trial exploring optimal dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) duration after biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stent implantation. We sought to report the outcomes of a randomized substudy of the prospective Evaluate Safety and Effectiveness of the Tivoli DES and the Firebird DES for Treatment of Coronary Revascularization (I-LOVE-IT 2) trial.

Methods and Results—

In the prospective noninferiority randomized I-LOVE-IT 2 trial, 1829 patients allocated to the biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stent group were also randomized to receive either 6-month (n=909) or 12-month DAPT (n=920). The primary end points of this noninferiority substudy were 12-month target lesion failure (composite of cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction or clinically indicated target lesion revascularization), and the major secondary end points were 12-month net adverse clinical and cerebral events (composite of all-cause death, all myocardial infarction, stroke, or major bleeding [Bleeding Academic Research Consortium type ≥3]). The 12-month target lesion failure in 6-month DAPT group was comparable with the 12-month DAPT group (6.8% versus 5.9%; difference and 95% confidence interval, 0.87% [−1.37% to 3.11%],
P
for noninferiority=0.0065). Further follow-up at 18 months showed that incidence of target lesion failure and net adverse clinical and cerebral events were similar between the 2 groups (7.5% versus 6.3%, log-rank
P
=0.32; 7.8% versus 7.3%, log-rank
P
=0.60; respectively), as well as their individual end point components.

Conclusions—

This study indicated noninferiority in safety and efficacy of 6-month versus 12-month DAPT after implantation of a novel biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stent.

Clinical Trial Registration—

URL:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier: NCT01681381.
School Choice, Student Mobility, and School Quality: Evidence from post-Katrina New Orleans
Authors: Welsh Richard O. , Duque Matthew , McEachin Andrew
Published: February 2016

In recent decades, school choice policies predicated on student mobility have gained prominence as urban districts address chronically low-performing schools. However, scholars have highlighted equity concerns related to choice policies. The case of post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans provides an opportunity to examine student mobility patterns in a choice-based district. This paper analyzes student mobility between and within the various sectors and school types using a multinomial framework. We find rates of student mobility in post-Katrina New Orleans to be similar to other traditional urban school districts. Overall, our results indicate that high-achieving students switch to high-quality schools whereas low-achieving students transfer to low-quality schools. It is clear some students are taking advantage of the ability to choose a high-quality educational option, although many students are still not. Policy implications, especially for education policy makers implementing or considering school choice policies, and areas for future research are discussed.
Intraseasonal Variation of the Strength of the East Asian Trough and Its Climatic Impacts in Boreal Winter
Authors: Song Lei , Wang Lin , Chen Wen , Zhang Yang
Published: February 2016

The East Asian trough (EAT) is a distinct component of the boreal winter circulation whose strength corresponds to the amplitude of the Northern Hemispheric stationary waves. In this study, the mechanism and climatic impacts of the intraseasonal variations of the EAT’s strength are investigated through composite analysis and dynamical diagnostics. The significant roles played by the low-frequency Rossby wave (RW) and synoptic transient eddy (TE) are revealed. Before the peaks of strong EAT events, an upper-tropospheric RW train propagates across northern Eurasia and interacts with preexisting surface cold anomalies over central Siberia. This pattern intensifies the Siberian high and causes RW convergence toward the EAT, leading to 30% of the EAT’s amplification directly via the RW-induced feedback forcing. Meanwhile, RW weakens the background baroclinicity and reduces TE activities near the entrance region of the North Pacific storm track. The TE-induced feedback forcing leads to another 30% of the EAT’s amplification. The evolution and dynamical processes of the weak EAT events generally resemble those of the strong events with opposite signs. These results are consistent with the knowledge on the mechanism of the strong and weak EAT events regarding the role of RWs with additional quantitative description and provide new insights regarding the role of TEs. Variations of the EAT’s strength exert significant climatic impacts on East Asia and its downstream region. Near-surface air temperature is below (above) normal over East Asia during the growth and peak stages of the strong (weak) EAT events and above (below) normal over North America afterward.
Effects of Roughness Length Parameterizations on Regional-Scale Land Surface Modeling of Alpine Grasslands in the Yangtze River Basin
Authors: Huang Ying , Salama M. Suhyb , Su Zhongbo , van der Velde Rogier , Zheng Donghai , Krol Maarten S. , Hoekstra Arjen Y. , Zhou Yunxuan
Published: February 2016

Current land surface models (LSMs) tend to largely underestimate the daytime land surface temperature for high-altitude regions. This is partly because of underestimation of heat transfer resistance, which may be resolved through adequate parameterization of roughness lengths for momentum and heat transfer. In this paper, the regional-scale effects of the roughness length parameterizations for alpine grasslands are addressed and the performance of the Noah LSM using the updated roughness lengths compared to the original ones is assessed. The simulations were verified with various satellite products and validated with ground-based observations. More specifically, four experimental setups were designed using two roughness length schemes with two different parameterizations of (original and updated). These experiments were conducted in the source region of the Yangtze River during the period 2005–10 using the Noah LSM. The results show that the updated parameterizations of roughness lengths reduce the mean biases of the simulated daytime in spring, autumn, and winter by up to 2.7 K, whereas larger warm biases are produced in summer. Moreover, model efficiency coefficients (Nash–Sutcliffe) of the monthly runoff results are improved by up to 26.3% when using the updated roughness parameterizations. In addition, the spatial effects of the roughness length parameterizations on the simulations are discussed. This study stresses the importance of proper parameterizations of and for LSMs and highlights the need for regional adaptation of the and values.
Vertical Restraints
Authors: Bergh Roger Van den
Published: February 2016

This article advances several reasons why EU competition policy on vertical restraints has been a failure. First, the distinction between price and nonprice restraints is inconsistent, since the economic effects of both practices are similar. Second, EU competition law creates a number of inefficiencies that cause a negative impact on social welfare; an example is the ban on absolute territorial protection that does not allow a full protection from free-riding. Third, it is doubtful that the inefficiencies of EU competition law can be justified by the market integration goal, since the rules may turn out to be ineffective in reaching this objective. Fourth, EU competition law on vertical restraints has created negative side effects: it has put an end to experimentation and innovation of competition rules at the member-state level and induced private interests groups to spend a lot of effort in lobbying national regulators. The example of resale price maintenance for books serves as an illustration of the latter problem. Several of the above pitfalls have been indicated by Richard Markovits in his treatise on U.S. antitrust law and EU competition law. These criticisms are supported in this paper and further expanded by a discussion of additional errors that have made the EU competition rules on vertical restraints a policy failure.
Markovits on Defining Monopolization
Authors: Hylton Keith N.
Published: February 2016

In this comment I focus on Richard Markovits’s definition of monopolization in his new book, Economics and the Interpretation and Application of U.S. and E.U. Antitrust Law (Springer 2014), and also his assertion that monopolization is distributively unjust. I agree wholeheartedly with his approach to defining monopolization, though I might alter a few details. However, I think the distributive justice effects of monopolization are ambiguous.
Nomadic capital and speculative tribes: A culture of contracts in the Northeastern Frontier of British India
Authors: Kar Bodhisattva
Published: February 2016

The least-garrisoned, least-mapped and formally least-administered ‘tribal frontier’ in the northeast was also the most capitalised one in the British Indian empire. In trying to make sense of this seeming paradox, this article examines the complex, and largely neglected, culture of contracts involving several communities, joint-stock companies and the frontier administration. Through a connected history of the contractual and the customary in the region, it points at the critical and inconstant conjunctions between the styles of political control, the logics of capital accumulation and the discursive infrastructure of identity and difference.
Life Satisfaction Among Ethnic Minorities in Europe
Authors: Kööts-Ausmees Liisi , Realo Anu
Published: February 2016

Although life satisfaction (LS) of ethnic minorities can be significantly undermined by several psychological and material hardships, relatively few studies have examined this issue across Europe. The aim of the present study is to examine the impact of belonging to an ethnic minority group on LS, using data from the sixth wave of the European Social Survey (ESS6), carried out in 2012 in 29 countries ( N = 54,540). About 6.7% of all the participants in the ESS6 considered themselves belonging to an ethnic minority group. Our findings show that LS is lower for the ethnic minorities than for the majority not only in the pooled ESS6 sample but also in 19 European countries, most notably in Slovakia and in the Czech Republic. Multilevel analysis indicated that the negative impact of ethnic minority status on LS tended to be enhanced in ex-Communist countries as well as in countries with higher ethnic diversity. The findings of this study show clearly that policy makers of several European countries should focus on increasing social justice and solidarity, and providing ethnic minorities real opportunities to feel more integrated into society.
Working Through Existential Anxiety Toward Authenticity: A Spiritual Journey of Meaning Making
Authors: Temple Matthew , Gall Terry Lynn
Published: February 2016

All human beings experience life’s givens or the ultimate concerns of death, isolation, freedom, and meaninglessness. Whether there is awareness or not, these givens influence how individuals interact and relate to self, others, and the world. Failure to understand these existential concerns can lead an individual to behave inauthentically in relation to her core values. This article will illuminate the role of existential psychotherapy in revealing the effect of life’s givens on an individual’s lived experience. First, this article will ground existential therapy within its philosophical roots. Second, it will highlight the use of the phenomenological method in existential psychotherapy as a means of building a strong therapeutic alliance between therapist and client. Attention to the client’s lived experience in a value-free way will provide space for the client to work through his or her existential anxiety toward authenticity. The client, in feeling deeply understood will be able to respond more authentically to the therapeutic relationship and by extension to others in his or her world. A framework for understanding how life’s givens can manifest across the physical, personal, social, and spiritual life dimensions are presented. This framework is used to conceptualize a case study of a client struggling with existential issues.
Social representations of intimate partner violence in the South African media
Authors: Isaacs Dane Henry
Published: February 2016

South Africa has one of the highest rates of intimate partner violence in the world. The South African mass media have been recognised as playing an important role in influencing individual cognitions of social issues, including intimate partner violence. However, few studies have investigated how such violence is represented within the South African media. This article explores how the print media constructs men’s perpetrated violence against female partners, attending in particular to how and to what effect extreme acts of violence are represented in data from three newspapers that attract the highest readership in the Western Cape. Guided by social representations theory, an inductive thematic analysis was conducted to identify social representations of intimate partner violence as evident in 17 articles reporting on men’s perpetration of violence against intimate female partners. The analysis suggests that this form of violence is predominantly represented in terms of extreme acts of physical violence. This representation functions to reduce violence against women to a simplistic binary of male perpetration and female victimhood, undermining the complexities of this social phenomenon in South Africa. The article highlights the importance of representing intimate partner violence in a more comprehensive manner.
Prediction of coalbed methane content based on uncertainty clustering method
Authors: He Hujun , Zhao Yaning , Zhang Zhengmin , Gao Yaning , Yang Longwei
Published: February 2016

An analysis of factors that influence coalbed methane content showed that seven factors had a major influence: coal thickness, methane concentration, vitrinite reflectance, permeability, cracks, and sealing conditions hydrodynamic conditions were selected as criterion indexes. The prediction model of coalbed methane content was built based on the uncertainty measure theory. Data from six regions in the central and southern Qinshui Basin were used as the training sample. The sample mean was set as the cluster centers, and the index weight was determined by information entropy theory. Calculation of the multi-index comprehensive measure of the sample showed that the sample was classified according to the minimum uncertainty measure distance principle, which was used to predict coalbed methane content. The research results show that: the obtained level by the prediction method is consistent with the practical level, the predictive value is basically consistent with the actual value, coalbed methane content prediction method based on uncertainty measure theory is reliable and practical, as well as showing a new way for the prediction and evaluation of coalbed methane content in the future.
Is self-regulation “All in the family”? Testing environmental effects using within-family quasi-experiments
Authors: Deater-Deckard Kirby
Published: February 2016

Most of the individual difference variance in the population is found within families, yet studying the processes causing this variation is difficult due to confounds between genetic and nongenetic influences. Quasi-experiments can be used to test hypotheses regarding environment exposure (e.g., timing, duration) while controlling for genetic confounds. To illustrate, two studies of cognitive self-regulation in childhood (i.e., working memory, effortful control, attention span/persistence) are presented. Study 1 utilized an identical twin differences design ( N = 85-98 pairs) to control for genetic differences while using relative twin birth weight difference to predict relative twin difference in working memory and effortful control. Larger relative twin difference in working memory and effortful control was predicted by the combination of shorter gestation and larger relative birth weight difference. Study 2 utilized an adoptive sibling relative difference design ( N = 123 same-sex pairs) to control for genetic similarity while using relative sibling difference in age at time of adoption to predict relative sibling difference in attention span/persistence. Larger relative sibling difference in attention span/persistence was predicted by the combination of larger relative difference in time in the adoptive home and age at adoption. Within-family quasi-experimental designs allow stronger inferences about hypothesized environmental influences than between-family designs permit.
Identifying the “truly disadvantaged”
Authors: Barnes J. C. , Beaver Kevin M. , Connolly Eric J. , Schwartz Joseph A.
Published: February 2016

There has been significant interest in examining the developmental factors that predispose individuals to chronic criminal offending. This body of research has identified some social-environmental risk factors as potentially important. At the same time, the research producing these results has generally failed to employ genetically sensitive research designs, thereby potentially generating biased parameter estimates. The current study addresses this gap in the literature by using both a standard social science methodology (SSSM) and two separate genetically informative research designs to examine whether parent, teacher, and peer risk factors are associated with four maladaptive outcomes: arrests, low IQ, reduced self-control, and a combined measure of the “truly disadvantaged.” Analysis of twin pairs drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health revealed that the SSSMs produced upwardly biased estimates of the impact of social-environmental influences on each of the four outcomes. Once genetic factors were controlled, the effect of social-environmental risk was reduced (but remained significant in certain cases). We conclude by discussing these findings in the context of criminal justice policy and their implications for future criminological research.
Corruption and the Nigerian Development Quagmire
Authors: Akanle Olayinka , Adesina J.O.
Published: February 2016

One of the most difficult and dangerous issues in Nigeria is corruption. Corruption is so common in Nigeria that there can hardly be any new perspective and approach to it. In fact, corruption is so pervasive in the country that it would be nearly correct to opine that it is a way of life. To this extent, everyone in Nigeria, whether educated or otherwise, knows something about corruption, can cite cases and can attempt some level of analysis. Generally, abundant literature exists on the subject of corruption across the world, especially on the developing countries and on Nigeria particularly. This abundant literature and common perspectives while presenting analytical opportunities, however, also present a challenge. As numerous as the literature, common knowledge and perspectives are, corruption remains high, prevalent, popular, problematic, growing, and still insufficiently understood in corruption infested nations, such as, Nigeria. This thus necessitates fresh and current interrogations of the problematic. It is against this background that this article examined the existing perspectives and offered current interrogations of the contours of corruption in Nigeria. This is to further expand the bourgeoning body of knowledge on the subject matter and offer original and current yet uncovered trajectories of corruption in Nigeria.
Anti-corruption Strategies in Afghanistan: An Alternative Approach
Authors: Singh Danny
Published: February 2016

Afghanistan is one of the most corrupt countries in the world. This article provides a critical examination of Afghan anticorruption strategies based on formal anticorruption strategy, bureaucratic reform, and counter-narcotics. This article includes reference to some of the opinions of 70 semi-structured interviews conducted by the author in Kabul during May–June 2010 with anticorruption experts, rights-based organizations, civil society groups, ministries, and international and national organizations. The findings are that political interference from Afghan elites preserves corruption and deep roots of patron–client corruption—patronage networks and illicit drug trafficking interests with criminal groups for profitable gain—are difficult to combat with the existing anticorruption strategy. Hence, new approaches need to be attempted, such as, incorporating religion and ethics and empowering local leaders to combat corruption within a sixfold approach which involves (i) raising awareness, (ii) prevention, (iii) prosecution and sanctions, (iv) detection, (v) a collaborative counter-narcotics strategy, and (vi) linking religion.
Entrepreneurial and Intrapreneurial Attitudes: Conceptualization, Measure Development, Measure Test and Model Fit
Authors: Jain Ravindra , Ali Saiyed Wajid , Kamble Sachin
Published: February 2016

The extant literature recognized the significance of attitudes in understanding an entrepreneur/intrapreneur. The present study contributes to the value addition in the extant literature in the form of developing and validating standard measures and models of entrepreneurial attitudes (EA)/intrapreneurial attitudes (IA). Our models suggest that the six attitudes, namely, achievement orientation, risk-taking propensity, internal locus of control, innovativeness, pro-activeness and market orientation (MO), have a positive impact on venture performance of both entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs. Our well-tested models and the measures of EA/IA attitudes provide a concrete foundation for future research studies of EA/IA across the historical, temporal, institutional, spatial, social and cultural contexts.
Formation of an Efficient Team by Improvising Employee Selection Process Using AHP-LP for a Software Company in India
Authors: Lele Abhijeet
Published: February 2016

In information technology (IT) service industry, essential task of a human resource (HR) manager is to form an efficient team involving different job roles from a pool of candidates who can satisfy business requirements. For this purpose, the HR department performs candidate recruitment and selection process. This article attempts to develop a mathematical and reliable approach using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP)-linear programming (LP) for building an efficient software project team by breaking the interview process of candidate selection into two parts. In the first phase, interviewers are responsible only for evaluating candidates based on different parameters. In the second phase, HR manager collates all data from the selection process and then applies proposed mathematical model to make final decision on candidate selection or rejection. The proposed application of AHP into team formation will improve the decision-making process involved in hiring when multiple interviewers assess candidates through interview. Finally, decisions are taken for finalizing team by incorporating all financial and strategic constraints using LP.
Employer Brand and Job Application Decisions: Insights from the Best Employers
Authors: Saini Gordhan K. , Gopal Anand , Kumari Nisha
Published: February 2016

Communication of employer brand to external stakeholders has, in the recent past, seen new developments in the form of best employer surveys (BESs) and a potent form of employer branding lies in the BESs. In this article, we examine the impact of firm-related and job-related attributes on a candidate’s job application decisions by selecting firms from the BES lists. The study is based on the secondary and primary data of 139 companies which have appeared in four major BES lists from 2001 to 2012 (the longest time period for which data is available in an emerging economy—India) and primary data collected from 2,854 respondents. We find that both firm-level and job-related variables significantly influence a candidate’s job application decisions, such as, intention to apply and consideration of the best companies to work for. Firms, with an objective to attract huge candidates, should carefully examine the factors that positively affect the job choice decisions and make concerted effort to improve on those parameters. The study fills several research gaps present in the literature due to inadequate empirical studies, insufficient sample size and consideration of a limited variables in the past studies.
Appalling Insinuation of Software Jobs on Family Environment: A Study with Special Reference to IT Professionals in Kerala
Authors: Cheeran Mariya T. , Saji K.S.
Published: February 2016

Information technology (IT) industry is considered as the highest-paying industry. The present study is intended to find out the merits and demerits of IT career in the family environment. It is done as part of a larger study, descriptive cum explorative in nature, to understand the general characteristic of the work environment of IT organization in Kerala, the sociocultural and familial background of professionals and their family issues related with work. India is expected to become a global leader in manpower especially in the technology segment and IT is considered as the highest-paying industry across the world. In the developed countries, such as, Australia, America and so on, the government has already identified that the number of students opting for disciplines like information and communication technology (ICT) has come down significantly. This, given the high stakes in IT sector, is due to the poor work–life balance in this sector. This sector, in practice, has come to spell an ‘all work and no life’ affair. Thus, this study is of cardinal importance in balancing the conflict of interests involved and giving this sector a more humane colour.
Predictors of place of death in South West Scotland 2000–2010: Retrospective cohort study
Authors: Black Heather , Waugh Craig , Munoz-Arroyo Rosalia , Carnon Andrew , Allan Ananda , Clark David , Graham Fiona , Isles Christopher
Published: February 2016

Background:

Surveys suggest most people would prefer to die in their own home.

Aim:

To examine predictors of place of death over an 11-year period between 2000 and 2010 in Dumfries and Galloway, south west Scotland.

Design:

Retrospective cohort study.

Setting/Participants:

19,697 Dumfries and Galloway residents who died in the region or elsewhere in Scotland. We explored the relation between age, gender, cause of death (cancer, respiratory, ischaemic heart disease, stroke and dementia) and place of death (acute hospital, cottage hospital, residential care and home) using regression models to show differences and trends. The main acute hospital in the region had a specialist palliative care unit.

Results:

Fewer people died in their own homes (23.2% vs 29.6%) in 2010 than in 2000. Between 2007 and 2010, men were more likely to die at home than women ( p < 0.001), while both sexes were less likely to die at home as they became older ( p < 0.001) and in successive calendar years ( p < 0.003). Older people with dementia as the cause of death were particularly unlikely to die in an acute hospital and very likely to die in a residential home ( p < 0.001). Between 2007 and 2010, an increasing proportion of acute hospital deaths occurred in the specialist palliative care unit (6% vs 11% of all deaths in the study).

Conclusion:

The proportion of people dying at home fell during our survey. Place of death was strongly associated with age, calendar year and cause of death. A mismatch remains between stated preference for place of death and where death occurs.
Effect of electrical forepaw stimulation on capillary transit-time heterogeneity (CTH)
Authors: Gutiérrez-Jiménez Eugenio , Cai Changsi , Mikkelsen Irene Klærke , Rasmussen Peter Mondrup , Angleys Hugo , Merrild Mads , Mouridsen Kim , Jespersen Sune Nørhøj , Lee Jonghwan , Iversen Nina Kerting , Sakadzic Sava , Østergaard Leif
Published: February 2016

Functional hyperemia reduces oxygen extraction efficacy unless counteracted by a reduction of capillary transit-time heterogeneity of blood. We adapted a bolus tracking approach to capillary transit-time heterogeneity estimation for two-photon microscopy and then quantified changes in plasma mean transit time and capillary transit-time heterogeneity during forepaw stimulation in anesthetized mice (C57BL/6NTac). In addition, we analyzed transit time coefficient of variance = capillary transit-time heterogeneity/mean transit time, which we expect to remain constant in passive, compliant microvascular networks. Electrical forepaw stimulation reduced, both mean transit time (11.3% ± 1.3%) and capillary transit-time heterogeneity (24.1% ± 3.3%), consistent with earlier literature and model predictions. We observed a coefficient of variance reduction (14.3% ± 3.5%) during functional activation, especially for the arteriolar-to-venular passage. Such coefficient of variance reduction during functional activation suggests homogenization of capillary flows beyond that expected as a passive response to increased blood flow by other stimuli. This finding is consistent with an active neurocapillary coupling mechanism, for example via pericyte dilation. Mean transit time and capillary transit-time heterogeneity reductions were consistent with the relative change inferred from capillary hemodynamics (cell velocity and flux). Our findings support the important role of capillary transit-time heterogeneity in flow-metabolism coupling during functional activation.
Culture, Health, and Science
Authors: Morgan Lynn M. , Knight Sabina , Gubrium Aline C.
Published: February 2016

Since the 2003 call by the Institute of Medicine to educate undergraduates in public health, various models have emerged for incorporating public health into the liberal arts and sciences. One model is a professionalized public health major that uses core public health competencies to prepare a workforce of health professionals. A second model offers a broad-based public health major rooted in liberal arts principles, resisting the utilitarian trend toward human capital formation. A third model resists even the label of “public health,” preferring instead to introduce undergraduates to many ways of analyzing human health and healing. The multidisciplinary Culture, Health, and Science Program, based on six key commitments for preparing liberal arts students to analyze health and respond to global health challenges, is offered as an alternative to the public health major.
Serum cross-linked N-telopeptide of type I collagen for the diagnosis of bone metastases from solid tumours in the Chinese population: Meta-analysis
Authors: Zhang Yudong , Yi Minhan , Cao Jie , Hou Can , Zhou Yanyan , Zhong Yanjun
Published: February 2016

Objective

A meta-analysis to determine the diagnostic value of serum cross-linked N-telopeptide of type I collagen (NTx) for bone metastasis from solid tumours in the Chinese population.

Methods

Eligible case–control studies published up until 22 September 2014 were identified by searching the electronic literature databases PubMed®, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure and Wanfang using the keyword ‘NTx’ in combination with ‘cancer’. A meta-analysis of the diagnostic value of serum NTx for bone metastasis from solid tumours was undertaken.

Results

The meta-analysis included 14 studies (1279 patients: 668 with bone metastasis; 611 controls without bone metastasis). There was a significant relationship between serum NTx concentration and bone metastasis from solid tumours in the Chinese population (odds ratio 1.39, 95% confidence intervals 1.26, 1.51). Significant heterogeneity was found in this study, but no publication bias was observed.

Conclusion

Serum NTx concentration may play an important role in the diagnosis of bone metastasis from solid tumours in the Chinese population.