bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Use of an Emergency Medical Pictorial Communication Book During Simulated Disaster Conditions
Authors: Behar Solomon , Benson II Richard , Kurzweil Ami , Azen Colleen , Nager Alan L.
Published: August 2013

During disasters, the needs of victims outstrip available resources. Rapid assessment of patients must be performed; however, language barriers can be an impediment to efficient patient assessment, especially if interpreter resources are limited. Dependency on interpretive services requiring technology such a telephones, cell phones, and video conferencing may be inefficient, as they may be unavailable during disaster conditions. A low-tech, portable tool that aids in communication with non-English speakers would be beneficial. The medical emergency communication (MEC) book, developed at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, has the potential to be a useful tool in this capacity.

The goal of this pilot study was to compare the accuracy of a newly developed disaster-focused medical history obtained from Spanish-speaking patients or caregivers using the MEC book, compared to a control group with whom no book was used. Our hypothesis was that use of the MEC book improves accuracy of medical history taking between English-only speaking health care workers and Spanish-speaking patients better than a monolingual clinician trying to take a medical history without it. We anticipated a higher overall score in the group of subjects whose histories were taken using the MEC book than in the control group. Patient satisfaction with the MEC book also was measured. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2013;0:1-6)
On the flips for a synchronized system
Authors: CHOI HYEKYOUNG , KIM YOUNG-ONE
Published: August 2013

It is shown that if an infinite synchronized system has a flip, then it has infinitely many non-conjugate flips, and that the result cannot be extended to the class of coded systems.
Induced diffusion of tracers in a bacterial suspension: theory and experiments
Authors: Miño G. L. , Dunstan J. , Rousselet A. , Clément E. , Soto R.
Published: August 2013

The induced diffusion of tracers in a bacterial suspension is studied theoretically and experimentally at low bacterial concentrations. Considering the swimmer–tracer hydrodynamic interactions at low Reynolds number and using a kinetic theory approach, it is shown that the induced diffusion coefficient is proportional to the swimmer concentration, their mean velocity and a coefficient$\beta $, as observed experimentally. This paper shows that$\beta $increases as a result of the interaction with solid surfaces. The coefficient$\beta $scales as the tracer–swimmer cross-section times the mean square displacement produced by single scattering events, which depends on the swimmer propulsion forces. Considering simple swimmer models (acting on the fluid as two monopoles or as a force dipole), it is shown that$\beta $increases for decreasing swimming efficiencies. Close to solid surfaces, the swimming efficiency degrades and, consequently, the induced diffusion increases. Experiments on wild-typeEscherichia coliin a Hele-Shaw cell, under buoyant conditions, are performed to measure the induced diffusion on tracers near surfaces. The modification of the suspension pH varies the swimmers’ velocity over a wide range, allowing the$\beta $coefficient to be extracted with precision. It is found that solid surfaces modify the induced diffusion: decreasing the confinement height of the cell,$\beta $increases by a factor of 4. The theoretical model reproduces this increase, although there are quantitative differences, probably attributed to the simplicity of the swimmer models and to the estimates for the parameters that modelE. coli.
Meridional trapping and zonal propagation of inertial waves in a rotating fluid shell
Authors: Rabitti Anna , Maas Leo R. M.
Published: August 2013

Inertial waves propagate in homogeneous rotating fluids, and constitute a challenging and simplified case study for the broader class of inertio-gravity waves, present in all geophysical and astrophysical media, and responsible for energetically costly processes such as diapycnal and angular momentum mixing. However, a complete analytical description and understanding of internal waves in arbitrarily shaped enclosed domains, such as the ocean or a planet liquid core, is still missing. In this work, the inviscid, linear inertial wave field is investigated by means of three-dimensional ray tracing in spherical shell domains, having in mind possible oceanographic applications. Rays are here classically interpreted as representative of energy paths, but in contrast to previous studies, they are now launched with a non-zero initial zonal component allowing for a more realistic, localized forcing and the development of azimuthal inhomogeneities. We find that meridional planes generally act in the shell geometry as attractors for ray trajectories. In addition, the existence of trajectories that are not subject to meridional trapping is here observed for the first time. Their dynamics was not captured by the previous purely meridional studies and unveils a new class of possible solutions for inertial motion in the spherical shell. Both observed behaviours shed some new light on possible mechanisms of energy localization, a key process that still deserves further investigation in our ocean, as well as in other stratified, rotating media.
On the nonlinear destabilization of stably stratified shear flow
Authors: Mkhinini Nadia , Dubos Thomas , Drobinski Philippe
Published: August 2013

A weakly nonlinear analysis of the bifurcation of the stratified Ekman boundary-layer flow near a critical bulk Richardson number is conducted and compared to a similar analysis of a continuously stratified parallel shear flow subject to Kelvin–Helmholtz instability. Previous work based on asymptotic expansions and predicting supercritical bifurcation at Prandtl number $Pr\lt 1$ and subcritical bifurcation at $Pr\gt 1$ for the parallel base flow is confirmed numerically and through fully nonlinear temporal simulations. When applied to the non-parallel Ekman flow, weakly nonlinear analysis and fully nonlinear calculations confirm that the nature of the bifurcation is dominantly controlled by $Pr$, although a sharp threshold at $Pr= 1$ is not found. In both flows the underlying physical mechanism is that the mean flow adjusts so as to induce a viscous (respectively diffusive) flux of momentum (respectively buoyancy) that balances the vertical flux induced by the developing instability, leading to a weakening of the mean shear and mean stratification. The competition between the former nonlinear feedback, which tends to be stabilizing, and the latter, which is destabilizing and strongly amplified as $Pr$ increases, determines the supercritical or subcritical character of the bifurcation. That essentially the same competition is at play in both the parallel shear flow and the Ekman flow suggests that the underlying mechanism is valid for complex, non-parallel stratified shear flows.
SOME REMARKS ON THE PIGOLA–RIGOLI–SETTI VERSION OF THE OMORI–YAU MAXIMUM PRINCIPLE
Authors: BARRETO ALEXANDRE PAIVA , FONTENELE FRANCISCO
Published: August 2013

We prove that the hypotheses in the Pigola–Rigoli–Setti version of the Omori–Yau maximum principle are logically equivalent to the assumption that the manifold carries a${C}^{2} $proper function whose gradient and Hessian (Laplacian) are bounded. In particular, this result extends the scope of the original Omori–Yau principle, formulated in terms of lower bounds for curvature.
Validation of a food quantification picture book targeting children of 0–10 years of age for pan-European and national dietary surveys
Authors: Trolle Ellen , Vandevijvere Stefanie , Ruprich Jiří , Ege Majken , Dofková Marcela , de Boer Evelien , Ocké Marga
Published: August 2013

The aim of the present study was to validate thirty-eight picture series of six pictures each developed within the PANCAKE (Pilot study for the Assessment of Nutrient intake and food Consumption Among Kids in Europe) project for portion size estimation of foods consumed by infants, toddlers and children for future pan-European and national dietary surveys. Identical validation sessions were conducted in three European countries. In each country, forty-five foods were evaluated; thirty-eight foods were the same as the depicted foods, and seven foods were different, but meant to be quantified by the use of one of the thirty-eight picture series. Each single picture within a picture series was evaluated six times by means of predefined portions. Therefore, thirty-six pre-weighed portions of each food were evaluated by convenience samples of parents having children aged from 3 months to 10 years. The percentages of participants choosing the correct picture, the picture adjacent to the correct picture or a distant picture were calculated, and the performance of individual pictures within the series was assessed. For twenty foods, the picture series performed acceptably (mean difference between the estimated portion number and the served portion number less than 0·4 (sd< 1·1)). In addition, twelve foods were rated acceptable after adjustment for density differences. Some other series became acceptable after analyses at the country level. In conclusion, all picture series were acceptable for inclusion in the PANCAKE picture book. However, the picture series of baby food, salads and cakes either can only be used for foods that are very similar to those depicted or need to be substituted by another quantification tool.
n-6:n-3 PUFA ratio is involved in regulating lipid metabolism and inflammation in pigs
Authors: Duan Yehui , Li Fengna , Li Lili , Fan Juexin , Sun Xiaoming , Yin Yulong
Published: August 2013

The objective of the present study was to investigate the optimal dietaryn-6:n-3 PUFA ratios that regulate lipid metabolism and inflammation in pigs. A total of ninety-six cross-bred (Large White × Landrace) growing-finishing pigs (73·8 (sem1·6) kg) were chosen and fed one of the four isoenergetic diets withn-6:n-3 PUFA ratios of 1:1, 2·5:1, 5:1 and 10:1. The growth performance of pigs fed the diet with ann-6:n-3 PUFA ratio of 5:1 was the best, but the group fed the diet with ann-6:n-3 PUFA ratio of 1:1 had the highest muscle mass and the lowest adipose tissue mass (P< 0·05). The concentrations of IL-6 and IL-1β of pigs fed the diet with ann-6:n-3 PUFA ratio of 1:1 were decreased compared with those of the other groups (P< 0·05). The concentration of adiponectin of pigs fed the diet with ann-6:n-3 PUFA ratio of 1:1 was also markedly decreased, but the concentration of leptin was increased compared with that of the groups fed the diets withn-6:n-3 PUFA ratios of 5:1 and 10:1 (P< 0·05). Additionally, the optimal dietary ratios ofn-6:n-3 PUFA of 1:1 and 5:1 markedly suppressed the expression levels of lipid metabolism-related genes and proteins such as phosphoinositide-3-kinase-α, fatty acid transport protein-1 and PPARγ. They also significantly suppressed the expression levels of the inflammatory cytokines IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6. The results indicated that the optimaln-6:n-3 PUFA ratios of 1:1 and 5:1 exerted beneficial effects on lipid metabolism and inflammatory system, leading to the availability of more energy and nutrients for high performance and homeostatic pathways.
Phenotypic variation of the housefly,Musca domestica: amounts and patterns of wing shape asymmetry in wild populations and laboratory colonies
Authors: Ludoški J. , Djurakic M. , Pastor B. , Martínez-Sánchez A. I. , Rojo S. , Milankov V.
Published: August 2013

Musca domesticaL. (Diptera: Muscidae) is a vector of a range variety of pathogens infecting humans and animals. During a year, housefly experiences serial population bottlenecks resulted in reduction of genetic diversity. Population structure has also been subjected to different selection regimes created by insect control programs and pest management. Both environmental and genetic disturbances can affect developmental stability, which is often reflected in morphological traits as asymmetry. Since developmental stability is of great adaptive importance, the aim of this study was to examine fluctuating asymmetry (FA), as a measure of developmental instability, in both wild populations and laboratory colonies ofM. domestica. The amount and pattern of wing shape FA was compared among samples within each of two groups (laboratory and wild) and between groups. Firstly, the amount of FA does not differ significantly among samples within the group and neither does it differ between groups. Regarding the mean shape of FA, contrary to non-significant difference within the wild population group and among some colonies, the significant difference between groups was found. These results suggest that the laboratory colonies and wild samples differ in buffering mechanisms to perturbations during development. Hence, inbreeding and stochastic processes, mechanisms dominating in the laboratory-bred samples contributed to significant changes in FA of wing shape. Secondly, general patterns of left–right displacements of landmarks across both studied sample groups are consistent. Observed consistent direction of FA implies high degrees of wing integration. Thus, our findings shed light on developmental buffering processes important for population persistence in the environmental change and genetic stress influence onM. domestica.
Limiting cases of Boardman's five halves theorem
Authors: Crabb Michael C. , Pergher Pedro L. Q.
Published: August 2013

The famous five halves theorem of Boardman states that, if T: Mm → Mm is a smooth involution defined on a non-bounding closed smooth m-dimensional manifold Mm (m > 1) and if

is the fixed-point set of T, where Fj denotes the union of those components of F having dimension j, then 2m ≤ 5n. If the dimension m is written as m = 5k − c, where k ≥ 1 and 0 ≤ c < 5, the theorem states that the dimension n of the fixed submanifold is at least β(m), where β(m) = 2k if c = 0, 1, 2 and β(m) = 2k − 1 if c = 3, 4. In this paper, we give, for each m > 1, the equivariant cobordism classification of involutions (Mm, T), for which the fixed submanifold F attains the minimal dimension β(m).
Two Concepts of Un-Americanism
Authors: GOODALL ALEX
Published: August 2013

Using the Congressional record, press articles and the extensive literature on the theme of Americanism published in the early decades of the twentieth century, this article seeks to offer a new approach to the history of the idea of “un-Americanism” in the early years of the twentieth century, particularly in the period between the First World War and the Great Depression. It argues that a key distinction may be drawn between a procedural or “negative” concept of un-Americanism, in which the enemy is defined as the person who refuses to accept the liberal political order and therefore exempts themselves from the privileges of citizenship, and a “positive” definition of un-Americanism based on identity and status politics, in which the un-American is seen as the person who fails to meet the criteria for membership in the mythic community from which the modern nation is assumed to have been founded – usually defined in racial, ethnic and gendered terms; through religious affiliation; or by assertions of culture and character. The history of un-Americanism should therefore be understood principally in terms of the contestations that developed between these two concepts rather than as the evolution of a singular concept and shared understanding of its meaning.
Does Risk-Neutral Skewness Predict the Cross-Section of Equity Option Portfolio Returns?
Authors: Bali Turan G. , Murray Scott
Published: August 2013

We investigate the pricing of risk-neutral skewness in the stock options market by creating skewness assets comprised of two option positions (one long and one short) and a position in the underlying stock. The assets are created such that exposure to changes in the underlying stock price (delta), and exposure to changes in implied volatility (vega) are removed, isolating the effect of skewness. We find a strong negative relation between risk-neutral skewness and the skewness asset returns, consistent with a positive skewness preference. The returns are not explained by well-known market, size, book-to-market, momentum, short-term reversal, volatility, or option market factors.
Sheffield suction holder clips for endolaryngeal laser surgery
Authors: Manickavasagam J , Jebreel A
Published: August 2013

Background:

There has been a major evolution in laryngeal surgery, largely due to an improved understanding of disease pathogenesis and advances in technology, especially the introduction of lasers.

Method and results:

Continuous laser plume evacuation during endolaryngeal surgery improves visualisation of the surgical field. Hence, microlaryngoscopes are fitted with smoke evacuation channels on their sides. We have devised a new, simple and efficient suction holder clip for endolaryngeal surgery that has distinct advantages over other suction holders.
Dietary patterns and cardiovascular disease
Authors: Williams C. M. , Lovegrove J. A. , Griffin B. A.
Published: August 2013

Despite strong prospective epidemiology and mechanistic evidence for the benefits of certain micronutrients in preventing CVD, neutral and negative outcomes from secondary intervention trials have undermined the efficacy of supplemental nutrition in preventing CVD. In contrast, evidence for the positive impact of specific diets in CVD prevention, such as the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, has focused attention on the potential benefits of whole diets and specific dietary patterns. These patterns have been scored on the basis of current guidelines for the prevention of CVD, to provide a quantitative evaluation of the relationship between diet and disease. Using this approach, large prospective studies have reported reductions in CVD risk ranging from 10 to 60% in groups whose diets can be variously classified as ‘Healthy’, ‘Prudent’, Mediterranean’ or ‘DASH compliant’. Evaluation of the relationship between dietary score and risk biomarkers has also been informative with respect to underlying mechanisms. However, although this analysis may appear to validate whole-diet approaches to disease prevention, it must be remembered that the classification of dietary scores is based on current understanding of diet–disease relationships, which may be incomplete or erroneous. Of particular concern is the limited number of high-quality intervention studies of whole diets, which include disease endpoints as the primary outcome. The aims of this review are to highlight the limitations of dietary guidelines based on nutrient-specific data, and the persuasive evidence for the benefits of whole dietary patterns on CVD risk. It also makes a plea for more randomised controlled trials, which are designed to support food and whole dietary-based approaches for preventing CVD.
Unusual cryptosporidiosis cases in Swedish patients: extended molecular characterization ofCryptosporidium viatorumandCryptosporidiumchipmunk genotype I
Authors: LEBBAD MARIANNE , BESER JESSICA , INSULANDER MONA , KARLSSON LILLEMOR , MATTSSON JENS G. , SVENUNGSSON BO , AXÉN CHARLOTTE
Published: August 2013

Most human cases of cryptosporidiosis are caused byCryptosporidium parvumorCryptosporidium hominis, but the use of molecular diagnostic methods has revealed that several other less common species or genotypes can also be involved. Here, we describe two unusual causes of cryptosporidiosis, one being the recently described speciesCryptosporidium viatorumand the otherCryptosporidiumchipmunk genotype I. Two Swedish patients who were infected withC. viatorumhad travelled to Kenya and Guatemala, respectively, and two others had been infected withCryptosporidiumchipmunk genotype I in Sweden. None of these four patients were immunocompromised, and all four showed classical symptoms of cryptosporidiosis. We performed extensive molecular characterization, including analysis of four loci. The twoC. viatorumisolates were found to differ slightly at the 70-kDa heat shock protein locus, which may indicate a local geographical variation in this species that has previously been described exclusively on the Indian subcontinent.
Modelling the cost-effectiveness of preventing major depression in general practice patients
Authors: Hunter R. M. , Nazareth I. , Morris S. , King M.
Published: August 2013

Background

The prevention of depression is a key public health policy priority. PredictD is the first risk algorithm for the prediction of the onset of major depression. Our aim in this study was to model the cost-effectiveness of PredictD in depression prevention in general practice (GP).

Method

A decision analytical model was developed to determine the cost-effectiveness of two approaches, each of which was compared to treatment as usual (TAU) over 12 months: (1) the PredictD risk algorithm plus a low-intensity depression prevention programme; and (2) a universal prevention programme in which there was no initial identification of those at risk. The model simulates the incidence of depression and disease progression over 12 months and calculates the net monetary benefit (NMB) from the National Health Service (NHS) perspective.

Results

Providing patients with PredictD and a depression prevention programme prevented 15 (17%) cases of depression in a cohort of 1000 patients over 12 months and had the highest probability of being the optimal choice at a willingness to pay (WTP) of £20 000 for a quality-adjusted life year (QALY). Universal prevention was strongly dominated by PredictD plus a depression prevention programme in that universal prevention resulted in less QALYs than PredictD plus prevention for a greater cost.

Conclusions

Using PredictD to identify primary-care patients at high risk of depression and providing them with a low-intensity prevention programme is potentially cost-effective at a WTP of £20 000 per QALY.
English in its socio-historical context
Authors: Hernández-Campoy J. M.
Published: August 2013

Since Romaine's (1982) pioneering work, historical sociolinguistics has been studying the relationships between language and society in its socio-historical context by focusing on the study of language variation and change with the use of variationist methods. Work on this interdisciplinary sub-field subsisting on sociology, history and linguistics is expanding, as shown, for example, by Milroy (1992), Nevalainen & Raumolin-Brunberg (1996; 2003), Ammon, Mattheier & Nelde (1999), Jahr (1999), Kastovsky & Mettinger (2000), Bergs (2005), Conde-Silvestre (2007), Trudgill (2010), or Hernández-Campoy & Conde-Silvestre (2012). These works have been elucidating the theoretical limits of the discipline and applying the tenets and findings of contemporary sociolinguistic research to the interpretation of linguistic material from the past. Yet in the course of this development historical sociolinguistics has sometimes been criticised for lack of representativeness and its empirical validity has occasionally been questioned. Fortunately, in parallel to the development of electronic corpora, the assistance of corpus linguistics and social history has conferred ‘empirical’ ease and ‘historical’ confidence on the discipline.
The trouble with World Englishes
Authors: Leimgruber Jakob R. E.
Published: August 2013

Ever since the 1980s, when research interest in the field of ‘World Englishes’ began to gather speed, the view of the English language around the world has been largely dominated by the construct of so-called ‘varieties’ of English. These varieties are usually given a geographical label (‘Singapore English’, ‘Welsh English’, ‘South African English’, ‘Fiji English’, etc), and are described in terms of their pronunciation, their grammar, and their vocabulary. The resulting anthologies (see e.g. Wells, 1982; Trudgill & Hannah, 1982; Kortmann et al., 2004) have contributed a lot to our understanding of how English varies globally, as well as to raising the profile of non-inner circle (Kachru, 1985) varieties, which had previously not benefited from as much attention.
English L2 personas and the imagined global community of English users
Authors: Seilhamer Mark F.
Published: August 2013

I have Danish parents, grown up in France, lived in the UK for 10 years and now living in Holland for the past 9 years. I am a different person in each language, adapting myself to the culture of the people who speak it. I have always wondered how the language could affect the message so much. It also affects my tone of voice and my emotions. [Christina, on July 27th, 2011]

I find myself being more self-depreciating and less likely to accept praise when speaking in Japanese than when speaking English. Furthermore, a colleague once told me that even if he can't hear, he can tell which language I am using from 10-15 metres away, by looking at my posture, gestures and general body language. [Tim, on July 27th, 2011]

My friends once told me that when I switch to Russian even my facial features change, becoming colder and harsher – set jaw, narrow eyes, speaking in a low voice, but with an intensity that makes everyone else listen. [Julia, on July 30th, 2011]

The above quotations represent just a small portion of blogosphere postings from bilingual and multilingual individuals commenting on how they perceive and appear to have very distinct and separate personalities when speaking the different languages in their linguistic repertoires. Many such postings, like the first one above by Christina, explicitly attribute this phenomenon to attempts on the part of speakers to assimilate to the cultural norms of the countries where the languages are traditionally spoken. Scholarly treatments of the same phenomenon (e.g., Bryant, 1984; Hu & Reiterer, 2009; Zukowski/Faust, 1997) generally do likewise, often citing Schumann's (1978, 1986) Acculturation Model, which equates L2 proficiency with the extent to which a learner is able to adopt the culture of a target language group, and Guiora's (1967, 1979) concept of Language Ego, in which the permeability of one's L1 identity determines receptiveness to taking on new linguistic identities. According to these theories, a learner of Korean, for example, would be likely to develop a distinctly Korean L2 persona (as well as linguistic proficiency) if he or she has both a high level of affinity for Korean culture and a very permeable L1 language ego. Such arguments still, no doubt, apply to languages such as Korean or Japanese that are intrinsically associated with specific countries and cultures. Given the status of English as an international lingua franca in today's world, however, it can no longer be assumed that learners of English have any motive or desire to acculturate into traditionally English-speaking cultures, such as those of the US, England, or Australia. If learners/users of English associate the language not with such traditionally English-speaking cultures, but instead with an imagined global community of English users, do they still develop English L2 personas that are distinct from their L1 personas and feel ‘like a different person’ when speaking English?
Who wants Swiss English?
Authors: Pablé Adrian
Published: August 2013

Recently, new varieties of English, in particular insular ones, have been discovered and described by sociolinguists: Bermuda English, Falkland Islands English, St Helena English, Tristan da Cunha English, to name but a few. Concomitantly, applied linguists have started to take an interest in ‘lingua franca English’ as used in countries where English has no official status. Euro-English and, more recently, Swiss English are examples of such English as a Lingua Franca (hereafter, ELF) varieties. Any scientific exploration into unknown territory presupposes that there is something to be found – ideally something that already has a name. Quests for new varieties of English are motivated by the same fundamental desire, namely, to find ‘X-an English’ (Groves, 2011: 35).
Homeowners' Activism in Beijing: Leaders with Mixed Motivations
Authors: Cai Yongshun , Sheng Zhiming
Published: August 2013

It is commonly accepted that leaders play a crucial role in collective action. Existing literature has suggested a number of factors that contribute to the emergence of leaders including, among others, personality, sense of moral responsibility, community pressure, self-interest and institutional exclusion. However, current research tends to suggest that activists are driven by a particular reason to become leaders and that their motivation is static. Based on intensive fieldwork in residential communities in Beijing, this article illustrates that leaders' motivations can be mixed or multiple and that leaders may re-prioritize or adjust their objectives over the course of collective action. The re-prioritizing tends to alter the leaders' behaviour and affect group solidarity and interactions with other group members.
Magnetic Sensors for Navigation Applications: An Overview
Authors: Li Wei , Wang Jinling
Published: August 2013

This paper reviews currently existing electronic magnetic sensor technologies for navigation applications. Magnetic compasses have been used in navigation for centuries. The Earth's geomagnetic field is considered to provide accurate, reliable and economically available information for orientation. Meanwhile, modern magnetometers and compass calibration technologies have allowed the electronic compass to become a crucial navigation tool, even in times of modern satellite navigation using Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). Magnetic sensor technologies, error modelling and compensating approaches have been reviewed in this paper. Current trends and the outlook for future development of the electronic compass are analysed.
Species diversity and changes of communities of heterotrophic flagellates (protista) in response to glacial melt in King George Island, the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica
Authors: Tikhonenkov Denis
Published: August 2013

Glacial melt has a great influence on biological communities of the Antarctic Peninsula. Annual changes in heterotrophic flagellates from March 2008–March 2009 and effects of glacial melting on heterotrophic flagellates from December 2008–March 2009 were studied within the coastal zone of King George Island. The maximum abundance and biomass occurred in November and December (950.6–1236.2 individuals ml-1; 0.02–0.035 μg C ml-1), and the minimum in May and June (419.8–456.8 individuals ml-1; 0.018–0.019 μg C ml-1). Forty-five species were identified. The diversity of choanoflagellates, euglenids, bicosoecids, kinetoplastids and incertae sedis flagellates was greatest. Glacial melt between December and April resulted in the freshening of the surface water at the Collins Bay, giving rise to a vertical gradient of salinity (from 26‰ at the surface to 34‰ at the near-bottom layer). The trophic, size and species structure of the heterotrophic flagellates was simplified due to freshening of the surface waters. Eurybiontic and cosmopolitan species were significantly enriched in the freshened surface layer, with prevalence of small-sized mobile bacterio-detritovorous forms. The simplification of structure of the assemblage of heterotrophic flagellates can affect the stability of biological communities.
Religion and EU Institutions
Authors: Annicchino Pasquale
Published: August 2013

The implementation of Article 17(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) has always been one of the central topics of discussion for legal scholars analysing the relationships between religious groups and European institutions. According to Article 17, the European Union shall maintain an open, transparent and regular dialogue with churches, religious associations or communities, philosophical organisations and non-confessional organisations. In the case in hand, the complainant, the European Humanist Federation (EHF) decided to lodge a complaint before the European Ombudsman when the European Commission rejected the proposal for a dialogue seminar.
Niqabs in Canadian Courts:R v NS
Authors: Ogilvie M H
Published: August 2013

InR v NSthe Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) was asked to consider a straightforward question: must a Muslim woman remove a niqab (face covering leaving only the eyes showing) when giving evidence in a sexual assault case in which she is the complainant. Two justices said ‘yes’; one said ‘almost always, no’; and the majority said ‘maybe yes, maybe no – it depends’. The matter was then returned to the preliminary inquiry judge to make the actual decision, which could still be subject again to appeal to the SCC. The court divided on the three available answers to the question: yes, no and maybe. The division, however, leaned in favour of requiring removal of the niqab because the reasons for judgment favouring ‘maybe’ were concurred in in the result by those favouring removal. In the end, the court did not give a clear answer to the question, but rather provided a four-part test for trial judges who must continue to make the decision, subject to appeal. The practical utility of this response may be doubted.
Parliamentary Report
Authors: Cranmer Frank
Published: August 2013

In addition to a series of minor, technical changes to the Clergy Discipline Measure 2003 the Clergy Discipline (Amendment) Measure 2013 amends the 2003 Measure in three main respects.
Glossary of New Concepts in Disaster Medicine: A Supplement to Gunn's Multilingual Dictionary of Disaster Medicine
Authors: Debacker Michel , Domres Bernd , de Boer Jan
Published: August 2013

The development of Disaster Medicine as a science is dependent on clear definitions of its language. This article proposes a set of definitions to supplement those currently accepted.
Early Adolescent Cortical Thinning Is Related to Better Neuropsychological Performance
Authors: Squeglia Lindsay M. , Jacobus Joanna , Sorg Scott F. , Jernigan Terry L. , Tapert Susan F.
Published: August 2013

Adolescence is characterized by significant neuromaturation, including extensive cortical thinning, particularly in frontal regions. The goal of this study was to examine the behavioral correlates of neurostructural development in early adolescence. Participants were 185 healthy 12- to 14-year-olds (44% female) recruited from local schools. Participants completed a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery and magnetic resonance imaging session. Cortical surface reconstruction and thickness estimates were performed via FreeSurfer. Age and cortical thickness were negatively correlated in 10 brain regions, 7 of which were in frontal areas (β = −.15 to −.25, ps ≤ .05). Hierarchical linear regressions examined the influence of cortical thickness on working memory, attention, verbal learning and memory, visuospatial functioning, spatial planning and problem solving, and inhibition, controlling for age and intracranial volume. Thinner parietal cortices predicted better performances on tests of verbal learning and memory, visuospatial functioning, and spatial planning and problem solving (β = −.14 to −.24, ps ≤ .05). Age, spanning from 12 to 14 years, accounted for up to 6% of cortical thickness, suggesting substantial thinning during early adolescence, with males showing more accelerated thinning than females between ages 12 and 14. For both males and females, thinner parietal association cortices corresponded with better neurocognitive functioning above and beyond age alone. (JINS, 2013, 19, 1–9)
An overview of augmented and virtual reality applications in radiotherapy and future developments enabled by modern tablet devices
Authors: Cosentino F. , John N. W. , Vaarkamp J.
Published: August 2013

Purpose

We review augmented (AR) and virtual reality (VR) applications in radiotherapy as found in the scientific literature and highlight future developments enabled by the use of small mass-produced devices and portability of techniques developed in other fields to radiotherapy.

Analysis

The application of AR and VR within radiotherapy is still in its infancy, with the notable exception of training and teaching applications. The relatively high cost of equipment needed to generate a realistic 3D effect seems one factor that has slowed down its use, but also the sheer amount of image data is relatively recent, were radiotherapy professionals are only beginning to explore how to use this to its full potential. This increased availability of 3D data in radiotherapy will drive the application of AR and VR in radiotherapy to efficiently recognise and extract key features in the data to act on in clinical decision making.

Conclusion

The development of small mass-produced tablet devices coming on the market will allow the user to interact with computer-generated information more easily, facilitating the application of AR and VR. The increased connectivity enabling virtual presence of remote multidisciplinary team meetings heralds significant changes to how radiotherapy professionals will work, to the benefit of our patients.
Responses of the coastal bacterial community to viral infection of the algae Phaeocystis globosa
Authors: Sheik Abdul R , Brussaard Corina P D , Lavik Gaute , Lam Phyllis , Musat Niculina , Krupke Andreas , Littmann Sten , Strous Marc , Kuypers Marcel M M
Published: August 2013

The release of organic material upon algal cell lyses has a key role in structuring bacterial communities and affects the cycling of biolimiting elements in the marine environment. Here we show that already before cell lysis the leakage or excretion of organic matter by infected yet intact algal cells shaped North Sea bacterial community composition and enhanced bacterial substrate assimilation. Infected algal cultures of Phaeocystis globosa grown in coastal North Sea water contained gamma- and alphaproteobacterial phylotypes that were distinct from those in the non-infected control cultures 5 h after infection. The gammaproteobacterial population at this time mainly consisted of Alteromonas sp. cells that were attached to the infected but still intact host cells. Nano-scale secondary-ion mass spectrometry (nanoSIMS) showed ∼20% transfer of organic matter derived from the infected 13C- and 15N-labelled P. globosa cells to Alteromonas sp. cells. Subsequent, viral lysis of P. globosa resulted in the formation of aggregates that were densely colonised by bacteria. Aggregate dissolution was observed after 2 days, which we attribute to bacteriophage-induced lysis of the attached bacteria. Isotope mass spectrometry analysis showed that 40% of the particulate 13C-organic carbon from the infected P. globosa culture was remineralized to dissolved inorganic carbon after 7 days. These findings reveal a novel role of viruses in the leakage or excretion of algal biomass upon infection, which provides an additional ecological niche for specific bacterial populations and potentially redirects carbon availability.
Histone deacetylase SIRT1 modulates and deacetylates DNA base excision repair enzyme thymine DNA glycosylase
Authors: Madabushi Amrita , Hwang Bor-Jang , Jin Jin , Lu A-Lien
Published: August 2013

TDG (thymine DNA glycosylase) is an essential multifunctional enzyme involved in DNA base excision repair, DNA demethylation and transcription regulation. TDG is the predominant enzyme that removes thymine from T/G mispair, which arises due to deamination of 5-methyl-cytosine at the CpG dinucleotide, thereby preventing C to T mutations. SIRT1 is a member of class III NAD+-dependent histone/protein deacetylases. In the present study, we demonstrate that SIRT1 interacts with residues 67–110 of hTDG (human TDG). In addition, SIRT1 enhances TDG glycosylase activity and deacetylates acetylated TDG. TDG acetylation weakens its interaction with SIRT1. Although acetylated TDG has reduced glycosylase activity towards T/G, 5-formylcytosine/G and 5-carboxylcytosine/G, it has a stronger activity towards a 5-fluorouracil/G substrate as compared with unmodified TDG. SIRT1 weakly stimulates acetylated hTDG activity towards T/G, 5-formylcytosine/G and 5-carboxylcytosine/G as compared with control hTDG. Sirt1-knockout mouse embryonic fibroblast cells have higher levels of TDG expression and acetylation. The physical and functional interactions between SIRT1 and TDG may mediate DNA repair, gene expression and FU (5-fluorouracil)-mediated cytotoxicity.
NLRP3 inflammasome activation in coronary artery disease: results from prospective and randomized study of treatment with atorvastatin or rosuvastatin
Authors: Satoh Mamoru , Tabuchi Tsuyoshi , Itoh Tomonori , Nakamura Motoyuki
Published: August 2013

The NLRP-3 (nucleotide-binding domain, leucine-rich-containing family, pyrin domain-containing-3) inflammasome has recently emerged as a pivotal regulator of chronic inflammation. The aim of the present study was to determine whether NLRP3 inflammasome is expressed in patients with CAD (coronary artery disease) and whether statins (atorvastatin or rosuvastatin) might affect NLRP3 levels. In an in vitro study, human THP-1 cells treated with statins were analysed for NLRP3 inflammasome levels. The present study included 60 patients with CAD and 30 subjects without CAD (non-CAD). Patients with CAD randomly received either 8 months of treatment with atorvastatin or rosuvastatin. PBMCs (peripheral blood mononuclear cells) were obtained from peripheral blood at baseline and after 8 months of statin therapy. Levels of NLRP3 inflammasome, IL (interleukin)-1β and IL-18 were measured by real-time RT–PCR (reverse transcription–PCR) and FACS. Levels of NLRP3 inflammasome were higher in the CAD group than in the non-CAD group. There was a positive correlation between NLRP3 inflammasome and cytokines (IL-1β and IL-18) levels. A randomized clinical study has shown that atorvastatin markedly diminished NLRP3 inflammasome levels, whereas rosuvastatin had no impact on these levels. Levels of NLRP3 inflammasome decreased in THP-1 cells treated with statins compared with those treated with vehicle, and the fold changes in NLRP3 inflammasome were higher in THP-1 cells treated with atorvastatin compared with those treated with rosuvastatin. The present study suggests that atorvastatin down-regulates NLRP3 inflammasome expression in CAD, possibly contributing to the inhibitory effects of atorvastatin on chronic inflammation and atherogenic progression in this disorder.
Virtual Hall method for sensorless control of IPMSMs using high‐frequency signal injection
Authors: Qiu Xin , Huang Wenxin , Bu Feifei , Hu Yuwen
Published: August 2013

A virtual Hall method for sensorless control of interior permanent magnet synchronous motors (IPMSMs) using high‐frequency signal injection is presented. Based on the idea of virtual Hall, the position signal is easily estimated by comparing the magnitudes of three‐phase inductances. The experimental results prove that the proposed method has good heavy‐load operation capability with a brief control structure.
Rigid image registration via column sparse optimisation for seal registration
Authors: Guo Quan , Zhang Lei , Wang Sheng , Yi Zhang
Published: August 2013

Image registration is an essential and important process in seal identification. Rigid image registration in seal identification is known to be more suitable than elastic registration. The registration process is quite sensitive to outliers in matched feature point pairs. A novel method to take the matching outliers as data corrupted by ‘sample‐specific’ error which can be modelled by a column sparse matrix is proposed. An optimisation problem is developed to describe this model. By solving the optimisation problem, corruption can be eliminated and the transformation model can be recovered simultaneously. An efficient algorithm called column sparse registration is given via the augmented Lagrange multiplier method. Experiments on real‐world seal registration data demonstrate that the proposed method is robust to outliers among matched pairs and outperforms the state‐of‐the‐art methods.
Low‐power high‐speed full adder for portable electronic applications
Authors: Tung C.‐K. , Shieh S.‐H. , Cheng C.‐H.
Published: August 2013

A low‐power, high‐speed full adder (FA), abbreviated as LPHS‐FA, is presented as an elegant way to reduce circuit complexity and improve the performance thereof. Employing as few as 15 MOSFETs in total, an LPHS‐FA requires 60–73% fewer transistors than other existing FAs with drivability. For validation purpose, HSPICE simulations are conducted on all the proposed and referenced FAs based on the TSMC 0.18‐μm CMOS process technology. The LPHS‐FA is found to provide a 20.4–21.2% power saving, a 12.3–67.0% delay time reduction and a 35–102% reduction in power delay product compared with the referenced FAs. In short, an LPHS‐FA is presented in a concise form as a high‐performance FA in practical applications.
Upgrading of double series‐resonant half‐bridge inverter to improve efficiency
Authors: Millán I. , Palacios D. , Burdío J. , Acero J.
Published: August 2013

Domestic induction cookers can have several heating areas, hence multiple‐output topologies are commonly used. One of these multiple‐output topologies is the double series‐resonant half‐bridge inverter. An upgrading of this topology is proposed. This upgrading consists of adding a relay to allow connecting the capacitor tanks in parallel. The aim of this upgrading is to increase the efficiency through the reduction of the device currents. The proposed upgrading topology has been tested by means of a prototype.
Adaptive spectrum sensing for cognitive radio based on multi‐objective genetic optimisation
Authors: Balieiro A. , Yoshioka P. , Dias K. , Cordeiro C. , Cavalcanti D.
Published: August 2013

An adaptive sensing period optimisation scheme for cognitive radio networks based on a multi‐objective genetic algorithm formulation is proposed. The proposed scheme aims at maximising the spectrum opportunities as well as minimising the incurred sensing overhead. The simulation results show that the proposed scheme outperforms the non‐optimised proposals by up to 90%. It can also obtain similar or superior performance to the compared schemes described in the literature, while keeping the sensing overhead within a target value.
Hybrid differential transmission line bend to suppress common‐mode noise
Authors: Guan S.W. , Kuo C.W. , Wang H.Y. , Hsu C.S. , Wu S.M. , Wang C.C.
Published: August 2013

A new type of differential transmission line with a bend is proposed to reduce differential‐to‐common‐mode conversion noise for high‐speed digital circuits. The hybrid structure consists of alternating edge‐coupled and broadside‐coupled transmission line sections which has the effect of reducing the mode conversion noise by at least 20 dB up to 10 GHz, whereas the differential insertion loss remains low. In addition, in the time domain, the common‐mode noise is lower than the conventional edge‐coupled differential transmission line bend. The performance of the proposed structure with a bend is demonstrated both numerically and experimentally. The measurement results agree very well with the simulation results from the three‐dimensional full‐wave solver.
Adaptation mode controller using multiple signal classification for GSC‐based beamforming
Authors: Hong J. , Park S. , Jeong S. , Hahn M.
Published: August 2013

A new adaptation mode control method using the multiple signal classification (MUSIC) algorithm is proposed. The MUSIC algorithm is used to calculate the spatial spectral response to the direction of the target source with noisy inputs. Then, the statistical distribution of the MUSIC output is analysed and used to model the target signal presence probability. Using the probability, the filter adaptation mode of a multiple input canceller in a generalised sidelobe canceller is controlled. For performance evaluation, hidden Markov model‐based speech recognition rates are measured. The results show that the proposed algorithm notably outperforms other conventional adaptation mode controllers.