bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A study on Democratization of Newspaper Medium and its Political Bias
Authors: Chaudhuri Maumita
Published: September 2015

There are claims of media bias in both news and entertainment media. There are a variety of watchdog groups that attempt to find the facts behind both biased reporting and unfounded claims of bias, and research about media bias is a subject of systematic scholarship in a variety of disciplines. Before the rise of professional journalism in the early 1900s, and the conception of media ethics, newspapers reflected the opinions of the publisher. The advent of the Progressive Era, from the 1890s to the 1920s, was a period of relative reform with a particular journalistic style, while early in the period, some American newspapers engaged in yellow journalism to increase sales. William Randolph Hearst, publisher of several majormarket newspapers, for example, deliberately falsified stories of incidents, which may have contributed to the Spanish-American War. There are a number of criteria for determining the prominence of a news story in media outlets and the attention it is given by the audience. One example is that negative news is given higher value and more prominence than positive news. In modern all-news media, there is the necessity of generating enough news to fill the media 24/7, even when no news-worthy events occur. Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky in their book Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media (1988) proposed a propaganda model to explain the systematic biases of U.S. media as a consequence of the pressure to create a stable and profitable business. In this view, the regime creates five filters that bias news in favor of U.S. corporate interests. According to Noam Chomsky, American commercial media encourage controversy within a narrow range of opinion, in order to give the impression of open debate, but do not report on news that falls outside that range. Now, it has been a question even to Indian Newspaper Medium that how far it has been democratic in its presentation of news. All the newspapers whether having regional, state, national or even international news, they are politically biased. How much we are getting news in the daily newspapers other than politics? Why some of the newspapers have become the spokesperson of individual political parties? Why can’t the newspapers be independent? Then where lies the term and the myth ‘objectivity’ in different newspapers? Why we are getting the same news with different angles, presentation and representation in different newspapers? These are some of the objectives of this paper and the paper will try to analyze, discuss, criticize and assess the biasness of print media towards political issues having case studies and examples of some national dailies.
An ecological engineer maintains consistent spatial patterning, with implications for community‐wide effects
Authors: Dibner R. R. , Doak D. F. , Lombardi E. M.
Published: September 2015

In many ecosystems, foundational species create spatial patterns that structure a broader community. It is unclear, however, how robust these patterns are across large areas and strong environmental gradients, and how the landscape‐level consequences of these patterns may vary. We investigated the robustness of non‐random patterning in the dispersion of the western harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex occidentalis), a widely recognized ecosystem engineer of western North America. We used remote imagery to characterize the spatial structure and densities of western harvester ant mounds at sites spanning their range within the sagebrush steppe and short‐grass prairie areas of Wyoming (581 × 450 km area). We found that ant mound densities varied substantially across the study region, but that mounds were strongly and consistently overdispersed (regularly patterned) across both climatic gradients and mound densities. Precipitation was the only abiotic factor that significantly affected either density or pattern, with stronger patterning among mounds at drier sites. This robustness in ecological patterning is likely to have strong effects on community function; mound dispersion increased the fraction of the landscape within typical ant foraging distances up to 30% over what density alone would predict. We estimated how patterning can modify one key ant effect at a landscape level by combining mound dispersion data with information from a seed removal experiment. Randomization tests based on these results showed that in a representative area, overdispersion could increase the mean landscape‐wide seed removal rate by 16%, and decrease its spatial variance by 50%. Western harvester ants are known to affect multiple aspects of community function and structure at a relatively fine scale, and our results show that their spatial dispersion may therefore influence many features of interspecific interactions and community dynamics.
Scaling and Root Planing per Quadrant Versus One‐Stage Full‐Mouth Disinfection: Assessment of the Impact of Chronic Periodontitis Treatment on Quality of Life — A Clinical Randomized, Controlled Trial
Authors: Santuchi Camila Carvalho , Cortelli José Roberto , Cortelli Sheila Cavalca , Cota Luís Otávio Miranda , Fonseca Douglas Campidelli , Alencar Camila Oliveira , Costa Fernando Oliveira
Published: September 2015

Background: There are few randomized, controlled clinical trials about the effect of non‐surgical periodontal treatment on oral health–related quality of life (OHRQL). This study aims to compare the effects of two different forms of non‐surgical periodontal therapy, scaling and root planing (SRP) per quadrant and one‐stage full‐mouth disinfection (FMD), on periodontal clinical parameters and OHRQL of patients with chronic periodontitis.

Methods: In this randomized, controlled clinical trial, the questionnaires Oral Impacts on Daily Performance (OIDP) and Oral Health and Quality of Life (OHQoL) were given to 90 patients divided into two groups: SRP (n = 45) and FMD (n = 45). Periodontal clinical parameters recorded included probing depth, clinical attachment level, plaque index, and gingival index. For statistical analysis, χ2 test, Fisher exact test, Mann‐Whitney U test, and Wilcoxon test were used. Intention‐to‐treat analyses were performed at T0 (baseline) for periodontal clinical parameters, T1 (30 days after treatment) for questionnaires, and T2 (180 days after treatment) for both.

Results: No significant differences were identified between the SRP and FMD groups in regard to OHQoL and OIDP scores when comparing the data of T1 and T2.

Conclusion: Patients treated by both SRP and FMD showed improvement in all periodontal clinical parameters and OHRQL, with no significant differences between treatment groups.
Comprehensive Investigation of Pressure Transient Analysis Methods of Wells Producing under Multiphase Flow Conditions
Authors: Mahran Shahenda , El-Banbi Ahmed H.
Published: September 2015

The development of pressure transient analysis was originally based on single phase flow for slightly compressible fluids. It was later extended to include dry gas flow and multiphase conditions.

In this work, we explore the accuracy of the three most commonly used multiphase pressure transient analysis methods [single phase analysis using composite model, Perrine Martin (P-M), and multiphase pseudo-pressure method] under various conditions. Our approach included using appropriate numerical simulation techniques to generate drawdown and buildup data for gas-oil system at variety of conditions of GOR, CGR. Then, each test was evaluated with the 3 well test analysis methods, and error between calculated and actual results was computed for each method. In each case, we compared the well test derived properties (e.g. permeability, skin, completion information) with actual properties (given from numerical reservoir simulation). We tested various oil and gas properties spanning different fluid types of gas condensates and volatile oils. The testing also included different common well testing models such as radial, limited entry, hydraulically fractured, and horizontal wells. We then embarked on detailed analysis of these errors to derive conclusions regarding which methods give more accurate results under which conditions.

As an example, application of the three analysis approaches to horizontal well models in gas condensate reservoirs using different actual fluid samples with varying composition, at different levels of drawdown; it was found that (1) single-phase with composite reservoir method underestimated the permeability by 8% for very lean gas-condensate and by 18% for rich gas condensate fluid sample, (2) Perrine Martin method was able to predict the permeability with error <17% at low gas production rate, and (3) multiphase pseudo-pressure functions (steady state and three-zone) produced best results with permeability error less than 4% for lean gas-condensate samples, and by 16% for very rich gas condensates. Many other useful conclusions for different systems were also derived. These conclusions show the expected level of error for properties predicted from well test analysis under different conditions of multiphase and for different well test models. Using these conclusions, a list of guidelines was recommended for well test analysis in multiphase tests.
Understanding Effective High Schools
Authors: Rutledge Stacey A. , Cohen-Vogel Lora , Osborne-Lampkin La’Tara , Roberts Ronnie L.
Published: September 2015

This article presents findings from a year-long multilevel comparative case study exploring the characteristics of effective urban high schools. We developed a comprehensive framework from the school effectiveness research that guided our data collection and analysis at the four high schools. Using value-added methodology, we identified two higher and two lower performing high schools in Broward County, Florida. We found that the two higher performing high schools in the study had strong and deliberate structures, programs, and practices that attended to both students’ academic and social learning needs, something we call Personalization for Academic and Social Emotional Learning. Because of the study’s inductive focus on effectiveness, we follow our findings with a discussion of theories and prior research that substantiate the importance of schools’ attention to the connection between students’ academic and social emotional learning needs in high schools.
The Use of Gastrocnemius Muscle Flap in Reconstruction of Pretibial Defects
Authors: Karn Binod
Published: September 2015

Background: In Western part of Nepal the post traumatic lower leg and bone injuries with infected, open wound is common occurrence.Aim: It was to find out whether Gastrocnemius muscle flap is a viable option for pretibial defects. However variations in vascular anatomy of pedicle, use of reverse flow soleus muscle flap based on posterior tibial artery, leads to high failure rate and sacrificing major leg vessels.Method: Use of soleus muscle flap supported by perforating arteries, branches of posterior tibial vessels is option to cover small defects. The flap with careful newer modification to preserve vascularity, is used in 32 cases of pretibial defects.Observation: All 32 flaps survived with two cases in post operative phase, needing a flap elevation debridement of underlying bone and other skin grafting.Result: None of the case showed any vascular insufficiency, graft muscle loss or any functional loss. Use of muscle flap a viable option in pretibial defects.Journal of Nepalgunj Medical College Vol.12(1) 2014: 2-5
A Comparative Study of Oxytocin & Misoprostol in Active Management of Third Stage of Labour
Authors: Ansari N , Das CR
Published: September 2015

Introduction: The third stage of labour is the period which follows the completed delivery of the foetus and consists of delivery of the placenta and its attached membranes.Aims and objectives: Comparison of oxytocin & misoprostol in active management of third stage of labour.Material and Methods: This is a comparative cross-sectional study was conducted in Nepalgunj Medical College Teaching Hospital, Kohalpur from March 2013 to March 2014. Group A - Oxytocin 10 IU IV bolus in 100 patients and Group B - Misoprostol 600 micro gram rectally. The collected were subjected to statistical analysis using SPSS 15.Results: After active management with bolus oxytocin, the blood loss was grossly reduced being 40-100ml in 84% cases and only 7% had blood loss more than 100ml. blood loss between 200-300ml were only 6% and only 3% had PPH, after misoprostol 80% of cases had blood loss within 40 – 100 ml., 6% cases had blood loss within 100 – 200 ml. and larger amount of blood loss i.e. between 200 – 300 ml. was observed in 7% cases, in 3% cases blood loss was between 300 – 400 ml. and 4% of women in this group had PPH.Conclusion: There was no statistically significant difference in the efficacy of oxytocin and misoprostol in reducing amount of blood loss and duration of labour rd in 3 stage of labour.Journal of Nepalgunj Medical College Vol.12(1) 2014: 22-24
Single-Layer Versus Double Layer Intestinal Anastomosis of Small Bowel at Nepalgunj Teaching Hospital
Authors: Pathak A , Rahaman MD Aklakhur , Mishra SM
Published: September 2015

Background: Resection and anastomosis of small bowel is one of the common surgical procedure encountered in routine and emergency cases. There are various techniques of anastomosing the resected intestine.Objectives: To know the efficacy of single layer anastomosis over double layer anastomosis in terms of anastomotic leakage, wound infection, mortality and time consumed.Methods: A comparative cross sectional analytical study was carried out at department of General Surgery at Nepalgunj Medical College Teaching Hospital, Kohalpur, Banke, Nepal from January 2013 to December 2013. Altogether 62 patients who underwent resection and anastomosis of small bowel were considered for this study. Patients who were included in this study were equally divided into two groups. Group A (n=32) underwent single layer anastomosis and group B (n=30) were subjected to double layer anastomosis. In both the groups anastomotic leakage, wound infection, mortality and time consumed were recorded and compared.Results: Altogether 62 patients were included in the study. The study showed anastomotic leakage 3 (9.37%) in Group A and 2 (6.67%) in Group B. Wound infection was 6 (18.75%) in Group A and 4(13.33%) in Group B and mortality was observed in only 1(3.12%) patient in Group A due to uncontrolled sepsis. There was no statistical difference between the two groups in anastomotic leakage, wound infection and mortality as shown by respective p (0.696, 0.562, 0.329) values. However the time required for single layer bowel anastomosis was less in comparison to double layer bowel anastomosis.Conclusion: Based on our data, the technique of single layer of bowel anastomosis does not increase the rate of anastomotic leakage, wound infection and mortality however time required for anastomosis is less as compared to double layer anastomosis. Therefore this study concludes that there is no added benefit of double layer of anastomosis over single layer bowel anastomosis.Journal of Nepalgunj Medical College Vol.12(1) 2014: 35-38
Characteristic of low vision patients attending an eye hospital in eastern region of Nepal
Authors: Labh R K , Adhikari P R , Karki P , Singh S K , Sitoula R P
Published: September 2015

Introduction: Low vision is an important public health problem.Objective: To study the profile of low vision patients in a hospital of Nepal.Materials and methods: Information related to the patients’ profile, visual status, ocular disease and, low vision devices prescribed were obtained retrospectively from the records of 1,860 visually- impaired patients, regardless of the cause, presenting to the low vision department of the Biratnagar Eye Hospital, Biratnagar, Nepal, over a period of four years. These patients, after a comprehensive ocular examination, underwent low vision examination by an ophthalmologist and a low vision specialist. Results: Of 1,860 patients, males comprised 1298 (70 %), while 562 (30 %) patients were female. Six hundred and one (32.3%) patients were of less than 20 years while 398(21.4%) were more than 60 years of age. Agriculture (500, 27 %), household work (341, 18 %) and students (308, 17 %) were the common occupations. Retinal diseases were the commonest cause of low vision. They were: macular disorders 408 (22 %), retinitis pigmentosa 226 (12.1 %) and other retinal causes 361 (19.4 %) (diabetic retinopathy, choroidal coloboma, post laser for retinal vasculitis and central retinal/branch retinal vein occlusion, healed macular chorioretinal scar secondary to retinochroiditis and choroiditis). Refractive error 215 (11.5 %), amblyopia 49 (2.6 %), optic atrophy 144 (7.8 %) and microphthalmos 105 (5.6 %) were the other causes. Uncorrected distance visual acuity was between 6/24 and 6/60 in 509 (27.4 %) and between 5/60 and PL in 1,327 (71.3 %) patients. Similarly, near visual acuity with vision better than 2.50 M (N 20) and worse than 2.50M (N20) was present in 643(34.5%) and 1,217(65.5%) patients. About 67% and 54.5% of the patients had some improvement in their distance and near visual acuity with glasses and low vision aids. Distance spectacles 909 (49 %), near spectacles 106 (5.7 %), hand held magni¿ers 78 (4 %) and telescopes 18 (1 %) were the optical devices prescribed.Conclusion: The prevalence of low vision is common among the people of the younger and older age groups. Retinal diseases are common among the causes for low vision. Adequate prescription and availability of low vision devices can improve the visual acuity.
Outcomes of external dacryocystorhinostomy and endoscopic endonasal dacryocystorhinostomy in the management of nasolacrimal duct obstruction
Authors: Duwal S , Saiju R
Published: September 2015

Introduction: Dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR) is the treatment of choice for nasolacrimal duct obstruction. Although external DCR is regarded as the gold standard, endoscopic DCR is evolving as an equally-effective alternative. Objectives To compare the success rate of treating nasolacrimal duct obstruction by endoscopic endonasal method compared to the conventional DCR surgery.Materials and methods This prospective, comparative, non-randomised study was conducted in 2009 - 2010. Thirty consecutive patients undergoing endoscopic endonasal DCR (Group 1) and 30 consecutive patients undergoing external DCR (Group 2) between July 2009 and September 2010 at the oculoplasty unit of the Tilganga institute of ophthalmology were included in this study. A patent lacrimal passage on syringing and symptomatic improvement at six months after surgery was de¿ned as a successful outcome. The intraoperative and postoperative complications were also compared. Results Our study included 31 eyes of 30 patients in Group 1 and 34 eyes of 30 patients in Group 2. The success rate for endoscopic endonasal dacryocystorhinostomy was 90.3 % (95 % con¿dence interval 80 - 100) and external dacryocystorhinostomy was 94.1 % (95 % con¿dence interval 80 - 100). The difference of surgical success among the two methods was not statistically significant (p = 0.7). The rate of intra-operative and post-operative complications was similar in the two methods (p = 0.5). Conclusion: The short term outcomes and complication rates of endoscopic endonasal dacryocystorhinostomy and external dacryocystorhinostomy were similar.
Corneal status following modified Blumenthal technique of manual small incision cataract surgery (MSICS) compared to phacoemulsification in treatment of grade III or more nuclear sclerosis-cohort study
Authors: Jain K , Malik K PS , Gupta S
Published: September 2015

Objective: To evaluate the endothelial cell loss and central corneal thickness in modified Blumenthal technique of MSICS and Phacoemulsification. Method: A prospective study in which 50 cases of nuclear sclerosis grade III (LOCS III) or more were randomized in two groups of 25 each. Group A underwent modified Blumenthal MSICS. Lens expression was facilitated by viscoelastic injection through ACM and scleral pressure by iris repositor. Group B underwent 2.8 mm phacoemulsi¿cation. Specular microscopy and pachymetry were done at 1st POD, 1st, 3rd and 6th week.Results: No significant difference in endothelial cell loss and central corneal thickness between group A and group B (p > 0.05) was found.Conclusion: This technique of MSICS is not inferior, an innovative, safe and highly effective in hard cataracts.
Amniotic membrane transplantation with and without limbal stem cell transplantation in chemical eye injury
Authors: Kafle P A , Singh S K , Sarkar I , Surin L
Published: September 2015

Introduction: Chemical burns of the eyes are one of the important causes of visual disability. Chemical burns particularly alkali burn may lead to gross limbal stem cell deficiency. Amniotic membrane transplantation with limbal graft is a good method for ocular surface reconstruction. Case: A 39 years male presented to Biratnagar Eye Hospital after 5 months of chemical injury with redness, pain, photophobia and gradual loss of vision. His visual acuity was counting fingers close to face in both eyes. Amniotic membrane transplantation alone was done in right eye while in left eye limbal stem cell allograft was combined with amniotic membrane transplantation. There was not much visual improvement in right eye while left eye improved significantly to 6/60.Conclusion: Limbal stem cell graft with amniotic membrane transplantation can be an effective method of restoring vision and reducing symptoms rather than amniotic membrane transplantation alone in cases with total limbal stem cell deficiency following chemical burn.
Use of Scheimpflug imaging in the management of intra-lenticular foreign body
Authors: Singh R , Ram J , Gupta R
Published: September 2015

Introduction: Asymptomatic traumatic intra-lenticular foreign body is very uncommon and few case reports have been published.Objective: To report a case of post-traumatic intra-lenticular foreign body and use of Scheimpflug imaging in its management. Case: A 41-year-old male with history of injury to right eye during hammering a chisel 1 year back presented with decreased vision since 6 months. An intra-lenticular foreign body was found on slit lamp bio-microscopy and was confrmed by Scheimpflug imaging. Posterior capsule was intact on Scheimpflug imaging. Thus, Scheimpflug imaging helps in exact localization of the foreign body in the intralenticular space or behind the iris. We ruled out other foreign bodies by x-ray and ultrasonography of the orbit. The foreign body with post-traumatic cataract was removed using phacoemulsification and three piece foldable intraocular lens was implanted in the bag. Conclusion: An intra- lenticular foreign body may remain asymptomatic for months. Scheimpflug imaging can be useful in its localization. It can be removed during phacoemulsification.
An Automated System for Garment Texture Design Class Identification
Authors: Dey Emon , Tawhid Md. , Shoyaib Mohammad
Published: September 2015

Automatic identification of garment design class might play an important role in the garments and fashion industry. To achieve this, essential initial works are found in the literature. For example, construction of a garment database, automatic segmentation of garments from real life images, categorizing them into the type of garments such as shirts, jackets, tops, skirts, etc. It is now essential to find a system such that it will be possible to identify the particular design (printed, striped or single color) of garment product for an automated system to recommend the garment trends. In this paper, we have focused on this specific issue and thus propose two new descriptors namely Completed CENTRIST (cCENTRIST) and Ternary CENTRIST (tCENTRIST). To test these descriptors, we used two different publically available databases. The experimental results of these databases demonstrate that both cCENTRIST and tCENTRIST achieve nearly about 3% more accuracy than the existing state-of-the art methods.
HBV Core Protein Enhances Cytokine Production
Authors: Kanda Tatsuo , Wu Shuang , Sasaki Reina , Nakamura Masato , Haga Yuki , Jiang Xia , Nakamoto Shingo , Yokosuka Osamu
Published: September 2015

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, a cause of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), remains a serious global health concern. HCC development and human hepatocarcinogenesis are associated with hepatic inflammation caused by host interferons and cytokines. This article focused on the association between the HBV core protein, which is one of the HBV-encoding proteins, and cytokine production. The HBV core protein induced the production of interferons and cytokines in human hepatoma cells and in a mouse model. These factors may be responsible for persistent HBV infection and hepatocarcinogenesis. Inhibitors of programmed death (PD)-1 and HBV core and therapeutic vaccines including HBV core might be useful for the treatment of patients with chronic HBV infection. Inhibitors of HBV core, which is important for hepatic inflammation, could be helpful in preventing the progression of liver diseases in HBV-infected patients.
Implant Supported Fixed Dental Prostheses Using a New Monotype Zirconia Implant—A Case Report
Authors: Roehling Stefan , Ghazal Georges , Borer Thomas , Thieringer Florian , Gahlert Michael
Published: September 2015

Currently, titanium or specific titanium alloys are the most often used materials for the fabrication of dental implants. Many studies have confirmed the osseointegrative capacity and clinical long-term performance of moderately rough titanium implants. However, disadvantages have also been reported with regard to peri-implant infections and the titanium metal properties. Tooth colored ceramic implants have attracted the interest of clinicians since the end of the 1960s. Initially, alumina was used for the fabrication of ceramic implants; however, due to the poor biomechanical properties, alumina implants are not commercially available any more. Since end of the 1990s, zirconia has been established in dentistry due to its superior biomechanical properties compared to other oxide ceramics such as alumina. Currently, zirconia is the material of choice for the fabrication of ceramic implants. Zirconia implants show superior biocompatibility compared to titanium and other metals. Additionally, it has been reported that zirconia implants with a micro-rough surface topography show at least a comparable osseointegrative capacity and similar clinical survival rates to moderately rough titanium implants. The present case reports a fixed implant-supported reconstruction of a large edentulous space with compromised local bone conditions using new monotype zirconia dental implants with a micro-rough surface topography.
Theoretical Modelling Methods for Thermal Management of Batteries
Authors: Shabani Bahman , Biju Manu
Published: September 2015

The main challenge associated with renewable energy generation is the intermittency of the renewable source of power. Because of this, back-up generation sources fuelled by fossil fuels are required. In stationary applications whether it is a back-up diesel generator or connection to the grid, these systems are yet to be truly emissions-free. One solution to the problem is the utilisation of electrochemical energy storage systems (ESS) to store the excess renewable energy and then reusing this energy when the renewable energy source is insufficient to meet the demand. The performance of an ESS amongst other things is affected by the design, materials used and the operating temperature of the system. The operating temperature is critical since operating an ESS at low ambient temperatures affects its capacity and charge acceptance while operating the ESS at high ambient temperatures affects its lifetime and suggests safety risks. Safety risks are magnified in renewable energy storage applications given the scale of the ESS required to meet the energy demand. This necessity has propelled significant effort to model the thermal behaviour of ESS. Understanding and modelling the thermal behaviour of these systems is a crucial consideration before designing an efficient thermal management system that would operate safely and extend the lifetime of the ESS. This is vital in order to eliminate intermittency and add value to renewable sources of power. This paper concentrates on reviewing theoretical approaches used to simulate the operating temperatures of ESS and the subsequent endeavours of modelling thermal management systems for these systems. The intent of this review is to present some of the different methods of modelling the thermal behaviour of ESS highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each approach.
Effects of Buffer Gas Composition on Autoignition of Dimethyl Ether
Authors: Shi Zhicheng , Zhang Hongguang , Liu Hao , Lu Haitao , Li Jiazheng , Gao Xiang
Published: September 2015

Experimental and numerical studies are conducted on the thermal, chemical and dilution effects of buffer gas composition on autoignition of dimethyl ether (DME). The buffer gases considered are nitrogen (N2), a mixture of N2 and argon (Ar) at a mole ratio of 50%/50% and a mixture of Ar and carbon dioxide (CO2) at a mole ratio of 61.2%/38.8%. Experiments are performed using a rapid compression machine (RCM) at compressed pressure of 10 bar, equivalence ratio (φ) of 1, and compressed temperature from 670 K to 795 K. The N2 dilution ratio considered ranges from 36.31% to 55.04%. The experimental results show that buffer gas composition has little impact on the first-stage ignition delay. However, significant differences in the total ignition delay as a function of buffer gas composition are observed in the negative temperature coefficient (NTC) region. Compared to N2, N2/Ar (50%/50%) mixture decreases the total ignition delay by 31%. The chemical effects of buffer gas composition on the first-stage and total ignition delays are negligible. With increasing N2 dilution ratio, the first-stage ignition delay slightly increases, while a significant increase in the total ignition delay is observed. Moreover, the NTC behavior of total ignition delay is noted to become more pronounced at high N2 dilution ratio. The heat release during the first-stage ignition decreases as N2 dilution ratio increases. Results of numerical simulations with the Zhao DME mechanism over a wider range of temperature show good agreement with that of experiments. Further numerical simulations are conducted using pure N2, Ar and CO2 as buffer gases. Results indicate that the thermal effects are the dominant factor in low temperature and NTC regions. The chemical effects become pronounced in the NTC region, and the chemical effect of CO2 exceeds the thermal effect at the compressed temperature higher than 880 K.
Data-Driven Baseline Estimation of Residential Buildings for Demand Response
Authors: Park Saehong , Ryu Seunghyoung , Choi Yohwan , Kim Jihyo , Kim Hongseok
Published: September 2015

The advent of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) generates a large volume of data related with energy service. This paper exploits data mining approach for customer baseline load (CBL) estimation in demand response (DR) management. CBL plays a significant role in measurement and verification process, which quantifies the amount of demand reduction and authenticates the performance. The proposed data-driven baseline modeling is based on the unsupervised learning technique. Specifically we leverage both the self organizing map (SOM) and K-means clustering for accurate estimation. This two-level approach efficiently reduces the large data set into representative weight vectors in SOM, and then these weight vectors are clustered by K-means clustering to find the load pattern that would be similar to the potential load pattern of the DR event day. To verify the proposed method, we conduct nationwide scale experiments where three major cities’ residential consumption is monitored by smart meters. Our evaluation compares the proposed solution with the various types of day matching techniques, showing that our approach outperforms the existing methods by up to a 68.5% lower error rate.
Complexity of Forest Management: Exploring Perceptions of Dutch Forest Managers
Authors: De Bruin Jilske , Hoogstra-Klein Marjanke , Mohren Godefridus , Arts Bas
Published: September 2015

Challenges of contemporary forest management are frequently referred to as complex. This article empirically studies complexity in forest management decision-making. In contrast to what is often assumed in the literature, this article starts by assuming that complexity does not just consist of an external descriptive element, but also depends on how decision-makers perceive the system at hand. This “perceived complexity” determines decision-making. We used a straightforward interpretation of perceived complexity using two criteria: the number of factors considered and the uncertainty perceived about these factors. The results show that Dutch forest managers generally consider forest management decision-making to be complicated (many factors to consider) rather than complex (many uncertain factors to consider). Differences in sources of complexity confirm the individual character of perceived complexity. The factors perceived to be most relevant for decision-making (the forest itself, the organization’s objective, the cost of management, public opinion, national policies and laws, and new scientific insights and ideas) are generally seen as rather certain, although “complexity reduction” may play a role that can adversely affect the quality of decision-making. Additional use of more open-ended, forward-looking methods, such as qualitative foresight tools, might enable addressing uncertainty and complexity, and thereby enhance decision-making in forest management to prepare for increasing complexity in the future.
Heterogeneous DNA Methylation Patterns in the GSTP1 Promoter Lead to Discordant Results between Assay Technologies and Impede Its Implementation as Epigenetic Biomarkers in Breast Cancer
Authors: Alnaes Grethe , Ronneberg Jo , Kristensen Vessela , Tost Jörg
Published: September 2015

Altered DNA methylation patterns are found in many diseases, particularly in cancer, where the analysis of DNA methylation holds the promise to provide diagnostic, prognostic and predictive information of great clinical value. Methylation of the promoter-associated CpG island of GSTP1 occurs in many hormone-sensitive cancers, has been shown to be a biomarker for the early detection of cancerous lesions and has been associated with important clinical parameters, such as survival and response to treatment. In the current manuscript, we assessed the performance of several widely-used sodium bisulfite conversion-dependent methods (methylation-specific PCR, MethyLight, pyrosequencing and MALDI mass-spectrometry) for the analysis of DNA methylation patterns in the GSTP1 promoter. We observed large discordances between the results obtained by the different technologies. Cloning and sequencing of the investigated region resolved single-molecule DNA methylation patterns and identified heterogeneous DNA methylation patterns as the underlying cause of the differences. Heterogeneous DNA methylation patterns in the GSTP1 promoter constitute a major obstacle to the implementation of DNA methylation-based analysis of GSTP1 and might explain some of the contradictory findings in the analysis of the significance of GSTP1 promoter methylation in breast cancer.
Assessment of Residential History Generation Using a Public-Record Database
Authors: Wheeler David , Wang Aobo
Published: September 2015

In studies of disease with potential environmental risk factors, residential location is often used as a surrogate for unknown environmental exposures or as a basis for assigning environmental exposures. These studies most typically use the residential location at the time of diagnosis due to ease of collection. However, previous residential locations may be more useful for risk analysis because of population mobility and disease latency. When residential histories have not been collected in a study, it may be possible to generate them through public-record databases. In this study, we evaluated the ability of a public-records database from LexisNexis to provide residential histories for subjects in a geographically diverse cohort study. We calculated 11 performance metrics comparing study-collected addresses and two address retrieval services from LexisNexis. We found 77% and 90% match rates for city and state and 72% and 87% detailed address match rates with the basic and enhanced services, respectively. The enhanced LexisNexis service covered 86% of the time at residential addresses recorded in the study. The mean match rate for detailed address matches varied spatially over states. The results suggest that public record databases can be useful for reconstructing residential histories for subjects in epidemiologic studies.
An Integrated Assessment Approach to Address Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in Ghana
Authors: Basu Niladri , Renne Elisha , Long Rachel
Published: September 2015

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is growing in many regions of the world including Ghana. The problems in these communities are complex and multi-faceted. To help increase understanding of such problems, and to enable consensus-building and effective translation of scientific findings to stakeholders, help inform policies, and ultimately improve decision making, we utilized an Integrated Assessment approach to study artisanal and small-scale gold mining activities in Ghana. Though Integrated Assessments have been used in the fields of environmental science and sustainable development, their use in addressing specific matter in public health, and in particular, environmental and occupational health is quite limited despite their many benefits. The aim of the current paper was to describe specific activities undertaken and how they were organized, and the outputs and outcomes of our activity. In brief, three disciplinary workgroups (Natural Sciences, Human Health, Social Sciences and Economics) were formed, with 26 researchers from a range of Ghanaian institutions plus international experts. The workgroups conducted activities in order to address the following question: What are the causes, consequences and correctives of small-scale gold mining in Ghana? More specifically: What alternatives are available in resource-limited settings in Ghana that allow for gold-mining to occur in a manner that maintains ecological health and human health without hindering near- and long-term economic prosperity? Several response options were identified and evaluated, and are currently being disseminated to various stakeholders within Ghana and internationally.
Tube-Super Dielectric Materials: Electrostatic Capacitors with Energy Density Greater than 200 J·cm−3
Authors: Cortes Francisco , Phillips Jonathan
Published: September 2015

The construction and performance of a second generation of super dielectric material based electrostatic capacitors (EC), with energy density greater than 200 J·cm−3, which rival the best reported energy density of electric double layer capacitors (EDLC), also known as supercapacitors, are reported. The first generation super dielectric materials (SDM) are multi-material mixtures with dielectric constants greater than 1.0 × 105, composed of a porous, electrically insulating powder filled with a polarizable, ion-containing liquid. Second-generation SDMs (TSDM), introduced here, are anodic titania nanotube arrays filled with concentrated aqueous salt solutions. Capacitors using TiO2 based TSDM were found to have dielectric constants at ~0 Hz greater than 107 in all cases, a maximum operating voltage of greater than 2 volts and remarkable energy density that surpasses the highest previously reported for EC capacitors by approximately one order of magnitude. A simple model based on the classic ponderable media model was shown to be largely consistent with data from nine EC type capacitors employing TSDM.
Methanol Adsorption and Reaction on Samaria Thin Films on Pt(111)
Authors: Jhang Jin-Hao , Schaefer Andreas , Zielasek Volkmar , Weaver Jason , Bäumer Marcus
Published: September 2015

We investigated the adsorption and reaction of methanol on continuous and discontinuous films of samarium oxide (SmOx) grown on Pt(111) in ultrahigh vacuum. The methanol decomposition was studied by temperature programmed desorption (TPD) and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS), while structural changes of the oxide surface were monitored by low-energy electron diffraction (LEED). Methanol dehydrogenates to adsorbed methoxy species on both the continuous and discontinuous SmOx films, eventually leading to the desorption of CO and H2 which desorbs at temperatures in the range 400–600 K. Small quantities of CO2 are also detected mainly on as-prepared Sm2O3 thin films, but the production of CO2 is limited during repeated TPD runs. The discontinuous film exhibits the highest reactivity compared to the continuous film and the Pt(111) substrate. The reactivity of methanol on reduced and reoxidized films was also investigated, revealing how SmOx structures influence the chemical behavior. Over repeated TPD experiments, a SmOx structural/chemical equilibrium condition is found which can be approached either from oxidized or reduced films. We also observed hydrogen absence in TPD which indicates that hydrogen is stored either in SmOx films or as OH groups on the SmOx surfaces.
Fabrication of Nanochannels
Authors: Zhang Yuqi , Kong Xiang-Yu , Gao Loujun , Tian Ye , Wen Liping , Jiang Lei
Published: September 2015

Nature has inspired the fabrication of intelligent devices to meet the needs of the advanced community and better understand the imitation of biology. As a biomimetic nanodevice, nanochannels/nanopores aroused increasing interest because of their potential applications in nanofluidic fields. In this review, we have summarized some recent results mainly focused on the design and fabrication of one-dimensional nanochannels, which can be made of many materials, including polymers, inorganics, biotic materials, and composite materials. These nanochannels have some properties similar to biological channels, such as selectivity, voltage-dependent current fluctuations, ionic rectification current and ionic gating, etc. Therefore, they show great potential for the fields of biosensing, filtration, and energy conversions. These advances can not only help people to understand the living processes in nature, but also inspire scientists to develop novel nanodevices with better performance for mankind.
Temporal Shape Changes and Future Trends in European Automotive Design
Authors: Costa Corrado , Aguzzi Jacopo
Published: September 2015

Evolution produces genuine novelty in morphology through the selection of competing designs as phenotypes. When applied to human creativity, the evolutionary paradigm can provide insight into the ways that our technology and its design are modified through time. The shape of European utilitarian cars in the past 60 years was analyzed in order to determine whether changes occur in a gradual fashion or through saltation, clarifying which are the more conserved and more variable parts of the designs. We also attempted to predict the future appearances of the cars within the next decade, discussing all results within the framework of relevant evolutionary-like equivalences. Here, we analyzed the modification in the shape of European utilitarian cars in the past 60 years by three-dimensional geometric morphometrics to test whether these changes occurred in a gradual or more saltatory fashion. The geometric morphometric shape analysis showed that even though car brands have always been preserving distinct shapes, all followed a gradual pattern of evolution which is now converging toward a more similar fusiform and compact asset. This process was described using Darwinian evolution as a metaphor to quantify and interpret changes over time and the societal pressures promoting them.
Evaluation of Potential Effects of NaCl and Sorbic Acid on Staphylococcal Enterotoxin A Formation
Authors: Zeaki Nikoleta , Rådström Peter , Schelin Jenny
Published: September 2015

The prophage-encoded staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA) is recognized as the main cause of staphylococcal food poisoning (SFP), a common foodborne intoxication disease, caused by Staphylococcus aureus. Studies on the production of SEA suggest that activation of the SOS response and subsequent prophage induction affect the regulation of the sea gene and the SEA produced, increasing the risk for SFP. The present study aims to evaluate the effect of NaCl and sorbic acid, in concentrations relevant to food production, on SOS response activation, prophage induction and SEA production. The impact of stress was initially evaluated on steady state cells for a homogenous cell response. NaCl 2% was found to activate the SOS response, i.e., recA expression, and trigger prophage induction, in a similar way as the phage-inducer mitomycin C. In contrast, sorbic acid decreased the pH of the culture to a level where prophage induction was probably suppressed, even when combined with NaCl stress. The impact of previous physiological state of the bacteria was also addressed on cells pre-exposed to NaCl, and was found to potentially affect cell response upon exposure to further stress. The results obtained highlight the possible SFP-related risks arising from the use of preservatives during food processing.
Diterpenoids from the Endophytic Fungus Botryosphaeria sp. P483 of the Chinese Herbal Medicine Huperzia serrata
Authors: Chen Yan-Mei , Yang Yin-He , Li Xiao-Nian , Zou Cheng , Zhao Pei-Ji
Published: September 2015

Two new tetranorlabdane diterpenoids, named botryosphaerins G (1) and H (2), were isolated from the solid fermentation products of Botryosphaeria sp. P483 along with seven known tetranorlabdane diterpenes (3–9). Their structures were elucidated by extensive analysis, including 1D and 2D nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, and high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HR-ESI-MS). Their absolute configuration was confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses using the anomalous scattering of Cu Kα radiation. All of the isolated compounds were tested for activity against phytopathogenic fungi and nematodes. Compounds 2 and 3 showed antifungal activity and compound 2 showed weak nematicidal activity.
A Novel Reduplicate Strategy for Tracing Hemostatic Compounds from Heating Products of the Flavonoid Extract in Platycladi cacumen by Spectrum-Effect Relationships and Column Chromatography
Authors: Chen Yeqing , Yu Hongli , Wu Hao , Pan Yaozong , Wang Kuilong , Liu Liping , Jin Yangping , Zhang Chengchao
Published: September 2015

Platycladi cacumen and its processed product have been utilized as a Chinese medicine to treat hemorrhages. In this study, the base peak chromatogram fingerprints of heating products of total flavonoids in Platycladi cacumen were established by high performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectroscopy/mass spectroscopy (HPLC-MS/MS), and the hemostatic activities were studied by hemostatic screening tests in vivo. The spectrum-effect relationships between fingerprints and hemostatic activities were analyzed by using canonical correlation analysis to trace the peaks responsible for the significant hemostatic effects. Peak 10 and peak 12 were correlated most closely, thus probably being the main hemostatic compounds. To confirm the reliability of this strategy, the targeted unknown peak was obtained by bioactivity-guided isolation, characterized by MS, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, and 2D-NMR spectroscopies, and referred to as cecarbon as a new compound. In addition, the isolated compound exhibited hemostatic effect in a dose-dependent manner with different potencies in vitro and existed in Platycladi cacumen Carbonisatus. A novel dereplication strategy was employed to trace and identify the active compounds of other herbs that have bioactivity enhancement after processing using spectrum–effect relationships and column chromatography.