bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Theoretical and Numerical Investigation on Perforation Resistance of Monolithic and Segmented Concrete Targets with Steel Liners under Normal Penetration
Authors: Cheng Yi , Xiao Zhimin , Zhang Yuan
Published: December 2019

Steel‐concrete composites are important armor protective materials with the increasing power of precision‐guided weapons. In this study, the formula of residual velocity as well as the ratio between residual and initial kinetic energy (Er/E0) for concrete targets with a rear steel liner was derived. By establishing finite element models of steel liner concrete targets through ANSYS/LS‐DYNA, the effect of the steel liner layout on the perforation resistance was analyzed for both monolithic and segmented concrete targets, which were compared in terms of projectile kinematics characteristics, projectile energy consumption, and target damages. Four main conclusions were drawn: (1) a residual velocity prediction model of concrete targets with a rear steel liner was accurately proposed for the first time when velocity reduction coefficient η was 0.15 and the derived Er/E0 could be used to evaluate their corresponding perforation resistance; (2) moving back the steel liners enhanced the perforation resistance of both monolithic and segmented targets, but the performance of the latter was inferior to that of the former, which was reduced by 10%–16% under the same conditions; (3) during middle‐ and low‐speed perforations, the projectile impact force was more influenced by the contact stiffness than the impact velocity; and (4) regarding the segmented targets, the perforation resistance of the 2nd target was better than the 1st target, which consumed about 10%–20% more projectile kinetic energy.
Clinical Characterization of Patients with Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria according to Anti-TPO IgE Levels
Authors: Sánchez Jorge , Sánchez Andres , Cardona Ricardo
Published: December 2019

Background. Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) is a heterogeneous disease with some frequent comorbidities like autoimmune diseases, drug reactions, and inducible urticaria. IgE antibodies against thyroid peroxidase (anti-TPO IgE) could be associated with some of these clinical characteristics. Objective. To explore the clinical characteristics of CSU patients, according to the presence of anti-TPO IgE in serum. Methods. Anti-TPO IgE levels were measured during the clinical control period (Urticaria Activity Score, 0 point) and exacerbation period (≥3 points) in 100 CSU patients. Patients with self-reported exacerbation of skin involvement by foods, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and physical triggers underwent controlled challenge tests. Results. We identified 2 groups of patients: (1) patients with anti-TPO IgE during the clinical control period or during an exacerbation, who had a higher frequency of atopy, asthma, and positive challenge test results with NSAIDs and (2) patients without anti-TPO IgE during any period, who had a higher frequency of positive challenge test results for inducible urticaria. Among the first group (anti-TPO IgE at any point), we identified 3 subgroups: patients with anti-TPO IgE during the clinical control period (n=12); patients with anti-TPO IgE during the clinical control period and significantly increased levels during an urticaria exacerbation (n=18); and patients with anti-TPO IgE only during an exacerbation (n=13). None of the patients with self-reported food reactions had a positive challenge test result. Conclusion. Anti-TPO IgE is a useful biomarker for differentiating between clinical phenotypes of patients with CSU. Elevation of anti-TPO IgE during exacerbation periods supports an association between this autoantibody and the pathogenesis of urticaria.
Biomechanical Evaluation and Strength Test of 3D-Printed Foot Orthoses
Authors: Lin Kuang-Wei , Hu Chia-Jung , Yang Wen-Wen , Chou Li-Wei , Wei Shun-Hwa , Chen Chen-Sheng , Sun Pi-Chang
Published: December 2019

Foot orthoses (FOs) are commonly used as interventions for individuals with flatfoot. Advances in technologies such as three-dimensional (3D) scanning and 3D printing have facilitated the fabrication of custom FOs. However, few studies have been conducted on the mechanical properties and biomechanical effects of 3D-printed FOs. The purposes of this study were to evaluate the mechanical properties of 3D-printed FOs and determine their biomechanical effects in individuals with flexible flatfoot. During mechanical testing, a total of 18 FO samples with three orientations (0°, 45°, and 90°) were fabricated and tested. The maximum compressive load and stiffness were calculated. During a motion capture experiment, 12 individuals with flatfoot were enrolled, and the 3D-printed FOs were used as interventions. Kinematic and kinetic data were collected during walking by using an optical motion capture system. A one-way analysis of variance was performed to compare the mechanical parameters among the three build orientations. A paired t-test was conducted to compare the biomechanical variables under two conditions: walking in standard shoes (Shoe) and walking in shoes embedded with FOs (Shoe+FO). The results indicated that the 45° build orientation produced the strongest FOs. In addition, the maximum ankle evertor and external rotator moments under the Shoe+FO condition were significantly reduced by 35% and 16%, respectively, but the maximum ankle plantar flexor moments increased by 3%, compared with the Shoe condition. No significant difference in ground reaction force was observed between the two conditions. This study demonstrated that 3D-printed FOs could alter the ankle joint moments during gait.
Upregulation of VEGF and PEDF in Placentas of Women with Lower Extremity Venous Insufficiency during Pregnancy and Its Implication in Villous Calcification
Authors: Ortega Miguel A , Saez Miguel Ángel , Asúnsolo Ángel , Romero Beatriz , Bravo Coral , Coca Santiago , Sainz Felipe , Álvarez-Mon Melchor , Buján Julia , García-Honduvilla Natalio
Published: December 2019

Pregnancy is a period in a woman’s life in which changes can occur that affect different physiological processes. Common conditions during this period include vascular changes, such as lower extremity venous insufficiency (VI). This is an observational, analytical, and prospective cohort study in which 114 pregnant women were analyzed, of which 62 were clinically diagnosed with VI. In parallel, 52 control patients without VI (HC) were studied. The aim of this study was to observe changes in angiogenesis and inflammation markers as well as the presence of calcium deposits. The expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), and pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) was analyzed by immunohistochemistry and RT-qPCR. The presence of calcium deposits was revealed using the von Kossa method. In the placentas of mothers with VI, gene expression of VEGF (34.575 [32.380–36.720] VI vs 32.965 [30.580–36.320] HC) and PEDF (25.417 [24.459–27.675] VI vs 24.400 [23.102–30.223] HC) significantly increased, as was protein expression in the placental villi. An increase in calcium deposits was observed in the placentas of women with VI (72.58% VI/53.84% HC). This study revealed the existence of cellular damage in the placental villi of mothers with VI with tissue implications such as increased calcification.
Overexpression of eIF3D in Lung Adenocarcinoma Is a New Independent Prognostic Marker of Poor Survival
Authors: Wang Dan , Jia Yichen , Zheng Wendan , Li Changzheng , Cui Wen
Published: December 2019

The eukaryotic initiation factor 3 (eIF3) is the largest and most complex translation initiation factor in mammalian cells. It consists of 13 subunits and among which several were implicated to have significant prognostic effects on multiple human cancer entities. To examine the expression profiles of eIF3 subunits and determine their prognostic value in patients with lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), the genomic data, survival data, and related clinical information were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project for a secondary analysis. The results showed that among ten aberrantly expressed eIF3 subunits in tumours compared with adjacent normal counterparts (p<0.05), only upregulated eIF3D could predict poor overall survival (OS) outcome independent of multiple clinicopathological parameters (HR=2.043, 95% CI: 1.132-3.689, p=0.018). Chi-square analysis revealed that the highly expressed eIF3D group had larger ratios of patients with advanced pathological stage (68/40 vs. 184/206, p=0.0046), residual tumour (13/4 vs. 163/176, p=0.0257), and targeted molecular therapy (85/65 vs. 138/164, p=0.0357). In silico analysis demonstrated that the altered expression of eIF3D was at least regulated by both copy number alterations (CNAs) and the hypomethylation of cg14297023 site. In conclusion, high eIF3D expression might serve as a valuable independent prognostic indicator of shorter OS in patients with LUAD.
Two-Tiered Ambulance Dispatch and Redeployment considering Patient Severity Classification Errors
Authors: Park Seong Hyeon , Lee Young Hoon
Published: December 2019

A two-tiered ambulance system, consisting of advanced and basic life support for emergency and nonemergency patient care, respectively, can provide a cost-efficient emergency medical service. However, such a system requires accurate classification of patient severity to avoid complications. Thus, this study considers a two-tiered ambulance dispatch and redeployment problem in which the average patient severity classification errors are known. This study builds on previous research into the ambulance dispatch and redeployment problem by additionally considering multiple types of patients and ambulances, and patient classiﬁcation errors. We formulate this dynamic decision-making problem as a semi-Markov decision process and propose a mini-batch monotone-approximate dynamic programming (ADP) algorithm to solve the problem within a reasonable computation time. Computational experiments using realistic system dynamics based on historical data from Seoul reveal that the proposed approach and algorithm reduce the risk level index (RLI) for all patients by an average of 11.2% compared to the greedy policy. In this numerical study, we identify the influence of certain system parameters such as the percentage of advanced-life support units among all ambulances and patient classiﬁcation errors. A key finding is that an increase in undertriage rates has a greater negative effect on patient RLI than an increase in overtriage rates. The proposed algorithm delivers an efficient two-tiered ambulance management strategy. Furthermore, our findings could provide useful guidelines for practitioners, enabling them to classify patient severity in order to minimize undertriage rates.
Three‐Dimensional Analysis of Complex Rock Slope Stability Affected by Fault and Weak Layer Based on FESRM
Authors: Li Yang , Yu Ling , Song Weidong , Yang Tianhong
Published: December 2019

Slope stability analysis is the most important problem in slope engineering design and construction. Open‐pit slope often spans several strata, many of which are relatively weak. There may be faults and weak layers across the whole rock. It is very necessary to study the instability mechanism and stability analysis of multistratigraphic slopes with faults and weak layers. In this paper, taking a complex three‐dimensional slope with fault and weak layer as the research object, the evolution laws of the stress field and damage zone of the slope are analyzed by using the finite element strength reduction method. The results show that the fault and weak layer have different degrees of effect on the slope stability. The fault causes stress concentration and damage to nearby rock mass, and the weak layer causes stress concentration on the slope above it and forms a dangerous slip zone. Then the effect of the fault and weak layer on slope stability is discussed. Because the effect of horizontal structural plane on slope stability is greater than that of the vertical structural plane, the effect of weak layer on slope stability is greater than that of the fault in the slope. The research results can provide a theoretical guidance for the study of slope stability in practical engineering.
Effect of Metformin on a Preeclampsia-Like Mouse Model Induced by High-Fat Diet
Authors: Wang Fuchuan , Cao Guangming , Yi Wei , Li Li , Cao Xiuzhen
Published: December 2019

Background. Metformin has been reported to decrease insulin resistance and is associated with a lower risk of pregnancy-induced hypertension and preeclampsia. It is widely accepted that the placenta plays a crucial role in the development of preeclampsia. Our aim is to explore the effect of metformin on preeclampsia. Study Design. We examined control diet-fed (isocaloric diet) pregnant mice (CTRL group), pregnant mice fed a high-fat diet (HF group), and high-fat-diet-fed pregnant mice treated with metformin (HF-M group). The HF mice were fed a high-fat diet six weeks before pregnancy to establish a preeclampsia-like model; then, the group was randomly divided into a HF group and a HF-M group after pregnancy. Blood pressure, urine protein, pregnancy outcomes, protein expression, and histopathological changes in the placentas of all groups were examined and statistically analysed. Results. We observed that metformin significantly improved high blood pressure, proteinuria, and foetal and placental weights in the HF-M group compared with the HF group. Metformin significantly improved placental labyrinth and foetal vascular development in preeclampsia. In addition, metformin effectively increased matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels in the placenta. Conclusions. Our results suggest that metformin can improve preeclamptic symptoms and pregnancy outcomes.
Analysis on the Low Speed Performance of an Inward-Turning Multiduct Inlet for Turbine-Based Combined Cycle Engines
Authors: Zhu Chengxiang , Zhang Haifeng , Hu Zhancang , You Yancheng
Published: December 2019

The multiduct inlet for turbine-based combined cycle engines receives a lot of attention on its aerodynamic performance. Aside of the most studied mode of transition processes, another significant severe issue regarding the aerodynamic performance of the turbine duct (T-duct) at ground states has rarely been investigated which indeed directly determines the operability and reality of similar engine systems; this issue will be addressed in the present work. Our numerical and experimental studies of an inward-turning tetraduct inlet indicate that the performance of the T-duct is seldom affected by the angle of attack, which however is of crucial importance for takeoff/landing of flight vehicles. The two T-ducts exhibit weak asymmetrical aerodynamic performance during experiment due to nonsynchronization as well as mechanical oscillation of the two turbine engines. With increasing inflow speed, the surface pressure and the total pressure recovery increase accordingly. At Ma∞=0.24, the total pressure recovery achieves 0.96 at the exit of the turbine duct which is acceptable for the engine to generate sufficient thrust for horizontal takeoff. A further quantitative comparison between simulation and experiment reveals a maximum deviation of only 3% in terms of both surface pressure and total pressure recovery.
Effects of Polyphenol Compounds and Nitrogen Oxide Donors on Lipid Oxidation, Membrane-Skeletal Proteins, and Erythrocyte Structure under Hypoxia
Authors: Revin Viсtor V. , Gromova Natalia V. , Revina Elvira S. , Prosnikova Ksenia V. , Revina Nadezhda V. , Bochkareva Svetlana S. , Stepushkina Olga G. , Grunyushkin Igor P. , Tairova Marina R. , Incina Vera I.
Published: December 2019

This study shows that membrane-associated cytoskeletal protein structures and the erythrocyte morphology undergo profound changes during hypoxia. Hypoxia also intensified oxidative processes in the lipid phase of the bilayer of red blood cell membranes. Sodium nitroprusside impaired the morphology of red blood cells and altered quantitative and qualitative composition of membrane-skeletal proteins. The findings suggest that hypoxia causes changes at all levels of red blood cell organization, which can cause the functional disorders of hemoglobin oxygen-transporting properties and, eventually, the complete degradation of red blood cells. The use of flavonoids has a protective effect against hypoxia.
Immunotherapy- (Blinatumomab-) Related Lineage Switch of KMT2A/AFF1 Rearranged B-Lymphoblastic Leukemia into Acute Myeloid Leukemia/Myeloid Sarcoma and Subsequently into B/Myeloid Mixed Phenotype Acute Leukemia
Authors: He Rui R. , Nayer Zacharia , Hogan Matthew , Cuevo Raymund S. , Woodward Kimberly , Heyer David , Curtis Christine A. , Peterson Jess F.
Published: December 2019

The presence of KMT2A/AFF1 rearrangement in B-lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) is an independent poor prognostic factor and has been associated with higher rate of treatment failure and higher risk of linage switch under therapy. Blinatumomab has shown promising therapeutic results in refractory or relapsed B-ALL; however, it has potential risk of inducing lineage switch, especially in KMT2A/AFF1 rearranged B-ALL into acute myeloid leukemia and/or myeloid sarcoma. We report a 40-year-old female with KMT2A/AFF1-rearranged B-ALL that was refractory to conventional chemotherapy. Following administration of blinatumomab, she developed a breast mass proven to be myeloid sarcoma, in addition to bone marrow involvement by AML. Approximately six weeks after cessation of blinatumomab, a repeat bone marrow examination revealed B/myeloid MPAL.
Mechanisms of Crack Initiation and Propagation in Dense Linear Multihole Directional Hydraulic Fracturing
Authors: Liu Jiangwei , Liu Changyou , Yao Qiangling
Published: December 2019

Artificially fracturing coal‐rock mass serves to form break lines therein, which is related to the distribution of cracked boreholes. For this reason, we use physical experiments and numerical simulations to study the crack initiation and propagation characteristics of dense linear multihole drilling of fractured coal‐rock mass. The results indicate that only in the area between the first and last boreholes can hydraulic fracturing be controlled by dense linear multihole expansion along the direction of the borehole line; in addition, no directional fracturing occurs outside the drilling section. Upon increasing parameters such as the included angle θ between the drilling arrangement line and the maximum principal stress σ1 direction, the drilling spacing D, the difference Δσ in principal stress, etc., the effect of directional fracture is gradually weakened, and the hydraulic fractures reveal three typical cracking modes: cracking along the borehole line, bidirectional cracking (along the borehole line and perpendicular to the minimum principal stress σ3), and cracking perpendicular to σ3. Five propagation modes also appear in sequence: propagating along borehole line, step‐like propagation, S‐shaped propagation, bidirectional propagation (along the borehole line and perpendicular to σ3), and propagation perpendicular to σ3. Based on these results, we report the typical characteristics of three‐dimensional crack propagation and discuss the influence of the gradient of pore water pressure. The results show clearly that crack initiation and propagation are affected by both the geostress field and the pore water pressure. The pore water pressure will exhibit a circular‐local contact‐to‐integral process during crack initiation and expansion. When multiple cracks approach, the superposition of pore water pressure at the tip of the two cracks increases the damage to the coal rock, which causes crack reorientation and intersection.
Robust Position Control of a Two‐Sided 1‐DoF Impacting Mechanical Oscillator Subject to an External Persistent Disturbance by Means of a State‐Feedback Controller
Authors: Turki Firas , Gritli Hassène , Belghith Safya
Published: December 2019

This paper proposes a state‐feedback controller using the linear matrix inequality (LMI) approach for the robust position control of a 1‐DoF, periodically forced, impact mechanical oscillator subject to asymmetric two‐sided rigid end‐stops. The periodic forcing input is considered as a persistent external disturbance. The motion of the impacting oscillator is modeled by an impulsive hybrid dynamics. Thus, the control problem of the impact oscillator is recast as a problem of the robust control of such disturbed impulsive hybrid system. To synthesize stability conditions, we introduce the S‐procedure and the Finsler lemmas by only considering the region within which the state evolves. We show that the stability conditions are first expressed in terms of bilinear matrix inequalities (BMIs). Using some technical lemmas, we convert these BMIs into LMIs. Finally, some numerical results and simulations are given. We show the effectiveness of the designed state‐feedback controller in the robust stabilization of the position of the impact mechanical oscillator under the disturbance.
NUP188 Biallelic Loss of Function May Underlie a New Syndrome: Nucleoporin 188 Insufficiency Syndrome?
Authors: Sandestig Anna , Engström Karolina , Pepler Alexander , Danielsson Ingela , Odelberg-Johnsson Per , Biskup Saskia , Holz Anja , Stefanova Margarita
Published: December 2019

There is no clearly established association between the gene NUP188 and human pathology. Only a few reports of patients with different clinical presentation and different heterozygous or compound heterozygous missense or splice region variants have been identified in several sequencing projects; however, a causative association between the clinical features and the identified variants has not been established. For the first time, we report 2 unrelated patients with 2 different homozygous nonsense gene variants of NUP188, p.Tyr96* and p.Gln113*, respectively. Although having different supposedly truncating mutations, the patients presented with strikingly comparable phenotypes including pre- and postnatal microcephaly, trigonocephaly, congenital bilateral cataract, microphthalmia, cleft lip and palate or high-arched palate, camptodactyly, rocker-bottom feet, heart anomalies, specific brain changes (such as loss of periventricular white matter), thin corpus callosum, and delayed myelinization. Both patients showed very similar facial features such as laterally extended arched eyebrows, wide convex nose with a wide prominent nasal bridge, and prominent angulated antihelix. They were both born small for gestational age and died shortly after birth at the age of 67 and 140 days, respectively, as a result of central respiratory failure. Our findings strongly suggest a correlation between the homozygous nonsense gene variants of NUP188 and a severe phenotype of a new developmental syndrome with poor prognosis resulting from nucleoporin 188 homolog protein insufficiency.
Temporal Trends and Site Variation in High‐Risk Coronary Intervention and the Use of Mechanical Circulatory Support: Insights From the Veterans Affairs Clinical Assessment Reporting and Tracking (CART) Program
Authors: Bricker Rory S. , Glorioso Thomas J. , Jawaid Omar , Plomondon Mary E. , Valle Javier A. , Armstrong Ehrin J. , Waldo Stephen W.
Published: December 2019

Background

Patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (
PCI
) are older with greater medical comorbidities and anatomical complexity than ever before, resulting in an increased frequency of nonemergent high‐risk
PCI
(
HR
‐
PCI
). We thus sought to evaluate the temporal trends in performance of
HR
‐
PCI
and utilization of mechanical circulatory support in the largest integrated healthcare system in the United States.

Methods and Results

A cohort of high‐risk adult patients that underwent nonemergent
PCI
in the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System between January 2008 and June 2018 were identified by objective clinical, hemodynamic, and anatomic criteria. Temporal trends in the performance of
HR
‐
PCI
, utilization of mechanical circulatory support, and site‐level variation were assessed. Of 111 548 patients assessed during the study period, 554 met 3 high‐risk criteria whereas 4414 met at least 2 criteria for
HR
‐
PCI
. There was a significant linear increase in the proportion of interventions that met 3 (
P
<0.001) or at least 2 (
P
<0.001) high‐risk criteria over time, with rates approaching 1.9% and 11.2% in the last full calendar year analyzed. A minority of patients who met all high‐risk criteria received
PCI
with mechanical support (15.7%) without a significant increase over time (
P
=0.193). However, there was significant site‐level variation in the probability of performing
HR
‐
PCI
(4.0‐fold higher likelihood) and utilizing mechanical circulatory support (1.9‐fold higher likelihood) between high and low utilization sites.

Conclusions

The proportion of cases categorized as
HR
‐
PCI
has increased over time, with significant site‐level variation in performance. The majority of
HR
‐
PCI
cases did not utilize mechanical support, highlighting a discrepancy between current recommendations and clinical practice in an integrated healthcare system.
Rupture Risk of Small Unruptured Intracranial Aneurysms in Japanese Adults
Authors: Suzuki Takashi , Takao Hiroyuki , Rapaka Saikiran , Fujimura Soichiro , Ioan Nita Cosmin , Uchiyama Yuya , Ohno Hiroshi , Otani Katharina , Dahmani Chihebeddine , Mihalef Viorel , Sharma Puneet , Mohamed Ashraf , Redel Thomas , Ishibashi Toshihiro , Yamamoto Makoto , Murayama Yuichi
Published: December 2019

Background and Purpose—

Therapeutic decision making for small unruptured intracranial aneurysms (<10 mm) is difficult. We aimed to develop a rupture risk model for small intracranial aneurysms in Japanese adults, including clinical, morphological, and hemodynamic parameters.

Methods—

We analyzed 338 small unruptured aneurysms; 35 ruptured during the observation period, and 303 remained stable. Clinical, morphological, and hemodynamic parameters were considered. Computational fluid dynamics was used to calculate hemodynamic parameters based on computed tomography images of all aneurysms in their unruptured state. Differences between the ruptured and unruptured groups were tested by the Mann-Whitney
U
or Fisher exact tests. Multivariate logistic regression was applied to obtain a rupture risk model. Its predictive ability was investigated by receiver operating characteristic analysis.

Results—

The risk model revealed that rupture may be more likely to in younger patients (odds ratio [OR], 0.92 for each age increase of 1 year [95% CI, 0.88−0.96]
P
<0.001) with multiple aneurysms (OR, 2.58 [95% CI, 1.07−6.19]
P
=0.03), located at a bifurcation (OR, 5.45 [95% CI, 1.87−15.85]
P
=0.002), with a bleb (OR, 4.09 [95% CI, 1.42−11.79]
P
=0.009), larger length (OR, 1.91 for each increase of 1 mm [95% CI, 1.42−2.57]
P
<0.001), and lower pressure loss coefficient (OR, 0.33 for each decrease of 1 unit [95% CI, 0.14−0.77]
P
=0.01). The sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve were 0.800, 0.752, and 0.826 (95% CI, 0.739−0.914) respectively.

Conclusions—

Younger age, presence of multiple aneurysms, location at a bifurcation, presence of a bleb, larger length, and lower pressure loss coefficient were identified as risk factors for rupture of small intracranial aneurysms. The risk model should be validated in further studies.
Soil nematode communities as indicators of soil health in different land use types in tropical area
Authors: Gao Dandan , Wang Faming , Li Jian , Yu Shiqin , Li Zhian , Zhao Jie
Published: December 2019

The study of soil nematode communities is a powerful tool that has been widely used as an indicator of soil health. This study explored whether soil nematode composition of different land use types could be used as a baseline to indicate the soil health of both natural and anthropogenic ecosystems. The soil nematode community compositions were documented for five land use types in tropical China: bare land, secondary forest, old forest, eucalyptus plantation and litchi orchards. The first three land use types are natural ecosystems and considered as a vegetation succession, whereas the other two are anthropogenically managed ecosystems. The vegetation succession from bare land to secondary and old forests increased soil nematode abundance, diversity, diversity-weighted abundance and complexity of community structure. During the wet season, the abundances of the total nematodes, bacterivores, fungivores and herbivores were significantly lower in eucalyptus plantation and litchi orchards than in secondary and old forests, but higher than in bare land. During the dry season, the abundances of the total nematodes and each trophic group were greatest in orchards. The pattern of the diversity-weighted abundance of each nematode trophic group was similar to that of nematode trophic group abundance. The results indicate that soil nematode communities of different land use types could be used for comparison of soil health conditions in natural and managed ecosystems. Particularly, the soil health conditions as indicated through nematode communities of the two managed ecosystems were not as good as those of secondary and old forests, whereas litchi orchards might have better soil health conditions than eucalyptus plantations in tropical China.
Public Security Derogations to the Free Movement of EU Citizens and Preventive Criminal Law: A Collision between Ever-Expanding Concepts?
Authors: Frías Alejandro Sánchez
Published: December 2019

The threat of foreign terrorist fighters has led to the development of preventive criminal law on an international and European level. The EU Directive on combating terrorism can have two impacts on the free movement of EU citizens. It directly calls upon Member States to criminalise the act of travelling, as well as other conduct that may be connected to a terrorist offence. In addition, ecj case law accepts EU criminal law as a basis for public security derogations against free movement. Therefore, the commission of any of the acts criminalised in the EU Directive on combating terrorism could be used as a reason to restrict the exercise of free movement by EU citizens. When Member States begin to adopt these measures, litigation on the balance between preventive criminal justice and free movement of EU citizens will increase.
Review EssayExemplarist Moral Theory
Authors: Watson Lani , Wilson Alan T.
Published: December 2019

This review essay provides a critical discussion of Linda Zagzebski’s (2017) Exemplarist Moral Theory (emt). We agree that emt is a book of impressive scope that will be of interest to ethical theorists, as well as epistemologists, philosophers of language, and philosophers of religion. Throughout the critical discussion we argue that exemplarism faces a number of important challenges, firstly, in dealing with the fallibility of admiration, which plays a central role in the theoretical framework, and secondly, in serving as a practical guide for moral development. Despite this, we maintain that emt points the way for significant future theoretical and empirical research into some of the most well-established questions in ethical theory.
Streumer on Non-Cognitivism and Reductivism About Normative Judgement
Authors: Evers Daan
Published: December 2019

Bart Streumer believes that the following principle is true of all normative judgements:

(A) When two people make conflicting normative judgements, at most one of them is correct. Streumer argues that noncognitivists are unable to explain why (A) is true, or our acceptance of it. I argue that his arguments are inconclusive. I also argue that our acceptance of (A) is limited in the case of instrumental and epistemic normative judgements, and that the extent to which we do accept (A) for such judgements can be explained by an assumption of shared standards of correctness. Finally, I argue that reductivists can appeal to the same ideas to defend their view that instrumental and epistemic normative judgements describe non-normative relations.
What’s Wrong with Relaxing?
Authors: Tiefensee Christine
Published: December 2019

In his new book Unbelievable Errors, Bart Streumer argues that there is no way round the result that all metaethical views other than the error theory fail either for the same reasons as metaphysical normative realism or expressivism. In this contribution, I show that this is false: we can avoid this result by ‘relaxing’ about normative truths. Even if Streumer were right about the fate of other metaethical positions, then, relaxed realism remains immune to the problems he raises.
Non-Reductive Realism, Primitivism, and the Reduction Argument: Commentary on Bart Streumer, Unbelievable Errors
Authors: Hattiangadi Anandi
Published: December 2019

In Unbelievable Errors, Bart Streumer defends the error theory by rejecting all competitors to it. My aim here is to defend one brand of realism from Streumer’s objections: primitivim. The primitivist holds that there exist sui generis normative properties that do not supervene on any descriptive properties. It is argued that Streumer’s objections to primitivism can be met.
Metaphorical Images of the Sacred Workshop
Authors: Hoogvliet Margriet
Published: December 2019

The textual witnesses of religious poetry produced by the late medieval confraternity of the Puy Notre-Dame in Amiens, in northern France, give an example of a type of religious text which allows us to reconstruct the interplay between the religious field and the social field of commerce and artisanal production. After discussing the practices of producing and staging religious poetry in confraternities in late medieval and early modern France as “hybrid forums”, the article discusses several examples of texts from unpublished manuscripts. It argues that the vivid imagery of the poems dedicated to the Virgin Mary allowed a mutual exchange of resources. While the members of the ordained religious gathered support and a popularized religious language, the participating laypeople could imbue their everyday work with a form of sacrality.
From Micro- to Macro-processes of Religious Change
Authors: Lutton Rob
Published: December 2019

The article discusses the Europe-wide late medieval phenomenon of the cult of the Holy Name, using it as a case study to discuss the relationship of micro-and macro-historical transformations by scrutinizing the enormous success of a religious innovation which managed to spread to many different local contexts and social groups. After pointing out contradictions in earlier explanations of this success, the article gives a detailed reading of several different realizations of this form of devotion, discussing authors like Richard Rolle, but also religious compilations and documentary evidence. This evidence suggests that the meaning and significance of devotion to the Holy Name remained open, malleable and unstable. It therefore appears necessary to engage with the whole range of its representations, and their transmission at different social levels, in order to understand its larger significance in the religious transformations of the long fifteenth century.
A Two- and a Threefold Cord
Authors: Müller Johannes
Published: December 2019

Religious coexistence and even mixed marital unions were an undeniable reality in many parts of early modern Europe. Despite occasional harsh criticisms by the clergy, church authorities often had no choice than to silently accept religious diversity as an embarrassing fact of life. This article addresses the rare case of the Danzig Lutheran preacher Martin Statius (1589–1655), who tried to articulate well-balanced guidelines for the question of how to deal with religious diversity in public and private spaces. In order to create a theological framework for the discussion of this problem, Statius distinguished between three forms of human love: “natural, civic and spiritual.” Categorizing love and friendship in this manner enabled Statius to bridge the deep gap between theological ideals and the unruly reality of everyday life and offers an illuminating insight into confessional discourses and their relation to the social reality in multiconfessional cities.
The sigmatic forms of the Hittite verb
Authors: Jasanoff Jay H.
Published: December 2019

Central to the problem of the Hittite verbal system is the status of the ḫi-conjugation 3 sg. pret. in -š and its relationship to other sigmatic morphemes—the partly overlapping 2–3 sg. ending -šta, the 2 pl. endings -šten(i) and -šdumat, and the synchronically unanalyzable *-s- of ganeš- ‘find, recognize’ and other s-extended verbal roots. The account of these endings given in Jasanoff 2003 is reviewed and, where necessary, revised.
Proto-Indo-European *a
Authors: Pronk Tijmen
Published: December 2019

There are around sixty Indo-European roots that are (sometimes) reconstructed with a vowel *a in the scholarly literature that otherwise fully embraces the laryngeal theory. This number is extremely low compared to the number of morphemes in which the vowels that are traditionally reconstructed as *e and *o are found. This marginal status of the vowel *a is typologically odd and has led some scholars to deny the existence of a vowel *a in Proto-Indo-European or in a precursor of Proto-Indo-European. This paper discusses the comparative evidence for the reconstruction of Proto-Indo-European *a. It concludes that there is insufficient evidence for the reconstruction of *a for any stage of the proto-language.
The origin of the Tocharian A plural ending -äṃ
Authors: Del Tomba Alessandro
Published: December 2019

The aim of the present article is to trace the origin and the evolution of the Tocharian A ending -äṃ, which is the plural marker of a closed class of nouns, whose Tocharian B counterparts are ranged under other inflectional classes. The results of this investigation are twofold: (1) not only is Tocharian A shown to have generally preserved the Proto-Indo-European situation better than Tocharian B, (2) but it is also argued that some members of this closed class are relevant from an Indo-European comparative perspective, since they have refunctionalised the n-form of the PIE *r/n-stems as a plural marker.
The phonology, phonetics, and diachrony of Sturtevant’s Law
Authors: Yates Anthony D.
Published: December 2019

This paper presents a systematic reassessment of Sturtevant’s Law (Sturtevant 1932), which governs the differing outcomes of Proto-Indo-European voiced and voiceless obstruents in Hittite (Anatolian). I argue that Sturtevant’s Law was a conditioned pre-Hittite sound change whereby (i) contrastively voiceless word-medial obstruents regularly underwent gemination (cf. Melchert 1994), but gemination was blocked for stops in pre-stop position; and (ii) the inherited [±voice] contrast was then lost, replaced by the [±long] opposition observed in Hittite (cf. Blevins 2004). I provide empirical and typological support for this novel restriction, which is shown not only to account straightforwardly for data that is problematic under previous analyses, but also to be phonetically motivated, a natural consequence of the poorly cued durational contrast between voiceless and voiced stops in pre-stop environments. I develop an optimality-theoretic analysis of this gemination pattern in pre-Hittite, and discuss how this grammar gave rise to synchronic Hittite via “transphonologization” (Hyman 1976, 2013). Finally, it is argued that this analysis supports deriving the Hittite stop system from the Proto-Indo-European system as traditionally reconstructed with an opposition between voiceless, voiced, and breathy voiced stops (contra Kloekhorst 2016, Jäntti 2017).
An Intolerance of Idleness
Authors: Webber Oscar
Published: December 2019

Despite the fact that disasters, usually induced by hurricanes, were a near-annual experience in the nineteenth-century British-controlled Caribbean, the immediate response of white elites (plantation owners and colonial officers) to these events has remained largely underexamined. This article fills that lacuna by examining the concerns that, across the long nineteenth century, informed British responses to some of the most devastating nature-induced disasters in this period. Though the damages wrought by these events always necessitated some form of humanitarian relief, across the period 1831–1907 the survival of labor regimes and the plantation economy always remained the paramount concern of British officials. White elites viewed their minority control over colonies in the region as contingent on their ability to make African-Caribbean people labor for them. Consequently, because disasters so often destroyed plantations and other sites of labor, colonial responses to disaster were primarily informed by a desire to coerce the African-Caribbean population back to work. Reflecting a preoccupation with “idleness” that was mirrored in domestic poor relief and disaster relief throughout the British Empire, white elites often attempted to withhold needed foodstuffs and materials for rebuilding from the African-Caribbean population until they re-engaged in labor for the colonial state. This article, through showing that a preoccupation with idleness remained central to colonial disaster response, reveals an underexamined continuity between the eras of slavery and emancipation.
An Archaeological Proposal of the Origin of State in China
Authors: Xu Hong , Zhang Yin
Published: December 2019

The abundance of classical literature and the conventions of historical studies have shaped the archaeological exploration of the origin of the state in China, starting with and centering on the identification of specific dynasties. The linear evolutionary account of the Chinese civilization, based on royal genealogies, has become mainstream. The emergence of the state has been continuously dated earlier. I argue that theoretical flaws, nationalism, and disciplinary limits have obscured the complexities of this research project. Drawing on archaeological findings, I propose a two-stage model regarding the origin of the state in East Asia.
Youth, Technology, and the Hidden Curriculum of the 21st Century
Authors: Darvin Ron
Published: December 2019

Recognizing that youth are socialized into specific digital practices in unequal ways, this paper asserts that the way technology and new literacies are positioned in schools can potentially marginalize youth of lower social class positions. It argues that students who are not equipped with the economic, cultural, and social resources necessary to acquire digital practices valued by the knowledge economy may not be able to participate agentively in networked publics, nor gain the literacies for the new work order. By focusing on technology as a tool rather than as an object of study, schools can fail to equip less-resourced youth with the competences that will help them acquire cultural and social capital. The fetishization of educational technology and the lack of structured digital literacy instruction can constitute a hidden curriculum that provides a semblance of being technologically integrated, but ultimately reproduces social inequalities.
About the application of the Linnaean name Plantago latifolia (Plantaginaceae)

Authors: IAMONICO DUILIO , FORTINI PAOLA , DI PIETRO ROMEO
Published: December 2019

Plantago Linnaeus (1753: 112) (Plantaginaceae) is a genus including 200–250 species distributed throughout the temperate zone and the high-elevation tropical regions (Rahn 1996, Rønsted et al. 2002).
Effects of diverse materials-based methods on DNA extraction for Clostridium difficle from stool samples
Authors: Xiao Ziqi , Yang Gaojian , Yan Deng , Li Song , Chen Zhu , Li Wen , Wu Yanqi , Chen Hui
Published: December 2019

Nosocomial infections, including Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), and their fatality rates have increased in the past few decades. Despite emerging molecular diagnostic technologies with rapid, accurate outcomes, nucleic acid extraction from stool samples remains the first
limiting step before downstream applications. Commercial nucleic acid extraction kits greatly decrease labor and time requirements, and also provide nucleic acid preparations with higher quality and purity for enzyme digestion analysis or genotyping. The magnetic bead based technique is a
novel method compared with the conventional spin-column method, and currently has widespread use in nucleic acid extraction. We evaluated five DNA extraction kits with magnetic beads using materials with various properties (particle size, concentration of magnetic beads, grinding beads) and
reagents (proteinase K, lysozyme, isopropanol, and absolute ethanol) to determine the cost, hands-on time, number of essential operations, and quality and purity of the DNA preparations, compared with those obtained using the QIAamp Fast DNA Stool Mini Kit. The six DNA extraction kits yielded
A260/280 ratios ranging from 0.85 to 1.9 (average 1.57), and concentrations from 3.70 to 108.09 ng/μL (average 34.64 ng/μL). All the DNA samples had acceptable downstream application effects, except for those obtained using the TIANGEN Magnetic Soil and
Stool DNA Kit. However, gel electrophoresis analysis of the DNA samples resulted in a light strip on the gel, indicating that the proteinaceous contaminant may not have been removed completely. A rapid and accurate molecular diagnostic technique could allow for more suitable treatment and
prognosis outcomes for inpatients, depending, in large part, on the quality and purity of DNA preparations, which are frequently neglected. Our study focused on the quality of commercial kits with a primary focus on the treatment of stool samples and molecular diagnostic applications.
The Impact of Betahistine versus Dimenhydrinate in the Resolution of Residual Dizziness in Patients with Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Authors: Jalali Mir Mohammad , Gerami Hooshang , Saberi Alia , Razaghi Siavash
Published: December 2019

Objectives:

The aim of this study was to compare the effects of betahistine with dimenhydrinate on the resolution of residual dizziness (RD) of patients with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) after successful Epley maneuver.

Methods:

In this double-blind, randomized clinical trial, patients with posterior semicircular canal type of BPPV were included. After execution of the Epley maneuver, patients were assigned randomly to one group for 1 week: betahistine, dimenhydrinate or placebo. The primary outcomes were scores of the Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI) and the modified Berg balance scale (mBBS). All patients were asked to describe the characteristics of their subjective residual symptoms. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the predictors of improved RD. All analyses were conducted using SPSS 19.0.

Results:

In total, 117 patients (age range: 20-65 years) participated in this study. After the Epley maneuver, 88 participants had RD. After the intervention, 38 patients exhibited an improved RD. Less than 50% of participants in the three groups showed mild to moderate dizziness handicap. However, there was no significant difference between mBBS scores of groups before or after the intervention. Logistic regression was shown that patients with receiving betahistine were 3.18 times more likely to have no RD than the placebo group. Increasing age was associated with a decreased likelihood of improving RD ( P = .05).

Conclusion:

The analysis of data showed that the use of betahistine had more effect on improving RD symptoms. We recommended future studies using objective indicators of residual dizziness.