bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Speech or silence
Authors: Luarn Pin , Hsieh Ai-Yun
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to extend a traditional communication theory, spiral of silence, to explore the effects of user anonymity and member familiarity on opinion expression behaviour in a virtual environment.

Design/methodology/approach

– A laboratory experiment method was used to manipulate user anonymity, member familiarity, and opinion congruity to measure the willingness to express opinions concerning controversial topics.

Findings

– A total of 147 participants were recruited in the experiment. The results revealed that anonymous users in virtual communities and users in groups comprising familiar members are more willing to express inconsistent opinions than non-anonymous users and users in groups containing unfamiliar members, respectively. In addition, anonymous and non-anonymous users as well as users in groups comprising familiar members and those in groups containing unfamiliar members are equally willing to express consistent opinions.

Originality/value

– This is the first study to verify the effect of user anonymity and member familiarity on the willingness to express opinions in online social communities. The findings have crucial implications regarding how governments and businesses can stimulate creativity and feedback through virtual communities.
Conceptual mindsets and heuristics in credibility evaluation of e-Word of Mouth in tourism
Authors: Llamero Lluisa
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to find out how credibility judgements intervene in the consumption of electronic-Word of Mouth (e-WOM) in tourism, as there is discrepancy in the literature about its influence on decision-making processes.

Design/methodology/approach

– A qualitative approach is explored, based on semi-structured interviews and observation through think-aloud protocol. This methodology provides fruitful insights as it focuses on the users’ browsing habits. The author interviewed a sample of professionals of tourism, cybertourists and bloggers.

Findings

– Results reveal that only part of e-WOM is granted credibility. Therefore, its persuasiveness depends on those limited positive judgements. Travellers use a conceptual mindset and a series of cognitive heuristics (homophily, crowd consensus, etc.) to assess credibility. Formal knowledge background and social pressures have proven to be weak.

Research limitations/implications

– This study is limited to a reduced sample of informants but their adjustment to the most typical profiles interviewed compensates this restriction. Another limitation is that data comes from a single cultural context (Spain), but on the other hand provides data that did not exist in the international literature on the topic.

Practical implications

– Outcomes can help tourism managers to monitor key heuristics employed by end-users in webs of e-WOM and detect new trends of travelling habits.

Originality/value

– The paper is original in that it establishes the rationalities behind the daily use of cognitive heuristics explored through different traveller's profiles.
Common metrics for web-based mapping applications in academic libraries
Authors: Kong Ningning , Zhang Tao , Stonebraker Ilana
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to establish common metrics for web-based mapping applications to facilitate user decision making and enhance information providers’ product design.

Design/methodology/approach

– The metrics were developed from a combination of literature review and case studies. From the literature review, the authors identified three major areas of assessment for web-based mapping applications. The authors then studied six online applications to refine the metrics.

Findings

– The results suggest that web-based mapping applications can be evaluated from three major aspects: data content, geographic information systems (GIS) functionality and usability. The authors have developed detailed measures for each factor through the evaluation of the six applications.

Practical implications

– The metrics developed from this study could be used as a standard for online spatial information users to choose appropriate products according to their needs. It can also provide valuable information for data providers to improve their products.

Originality/value

– To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that has systematically examined web-based mapping applications in academic libraries. Results from this study could be a valuable tool for librarians as well as general information users without background of GIS and usability to evaluate online mapping resources.
Measuring the success of scaleable open online courses
Authors: E. Klobas Jane
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to propose measures of online open course success for non-commercial institutional providers of massive open online courses (MOOCs) and other scaleable open online courses (SOOCs).

Design/methodology/approach

– The measures are derived from the characteristics of open online courses, existing knowledge about open online course providers and users and their motivations, and current practice in MOOC evaluation and data analytics.

Findings

– Current practices for evaluation of open online courses are dominated by MOOC analytics which provide insights into user demographics and behaviour with some implications for evaluation of reach and course design but leaving many unknowns. Measures for evaluation of success at the institutional level can be derived from institutional goals for open online courses. Success from the point of view of teachers and technical teams involved in design, development and delivery of open online courses can be derived from team members’ expectations, resources and satisfaction as well as measures of cost and effort compared to budget and benchmarks. Users are classified as registrants (information seekers, window shoppers, samplers), downloaders and participants (starters, partial participants and full participants who are further divided into auditing, active and certificate takers); different measures are appropriate for each group.

Practical implications

– Practitioners and researchers must consider a variety of levels and indicators of success to adequately evaluate open online courses. Tables in the text propose measures, methods, timing and roles.

Originality/value

– This is the first published paper to take a holistic view of open online course evaluation and propose detailed measures.
Synthesis and characterisation of a photoresponsive four-armed graft copolymer prepared from coumarin and methyl methacrylate
Authors: Bezgin F. , Demirelli K.
Published: November 2014

Purpose

This paper aims to a newly designed photoresponsive four-armed graft copolymer was synthesised and characterised. The synthesised polymer contains photochemical group and a greater part of the cross-linkable functional group which is not affected by short wavelength when subject to under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation in film status.

Design/methodology/approach

The four-armed macroinitiator was prepared by reacting diethanol amine with poly [methyl-2-chloro-4-{7-(chloroacetyl) oxy]-2-oxo-2H-chromen-4-yl}-2-methylbutanoate] and acylating the product with chloroacetyl chloride. A grafting reaction with n-butyl methacrylate was carried out in the presence of the four-armed macroinitiator and the catalyst CuBr/2, 2′-bipyridyne at 90°C. All of the synthesised polymers were structurally characterised by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Hydrogen-1 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (1H-NMR) spectra. Gel permeation chromatography was used to obtain the molecular weights of polymer.

Findings

1H-NMR, FT-IR and ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy demonstrated that the four-armed macroinitiator and the graft copolymer was successfully synthesised. The end-functionalised poly(methyl methacrylate) with 7-hydroxyl-4-chloromethyl coumarin was irradiated at the wavelength larger than 300 nm to create the cyclobutane ring in between the 7-hydroxyl-4-chloro methyl coumarin unities. To characterise the polymer and show the transformation of coumarin unities into photodimers, 1H-NMR, FT-IR and UV-Vis spectroscopy were used.

Research limitations/implications

Graft copolymer containing coumarin has involves photocrosslinkable functional group, in which reactive functional group has attracted great interest from both industrial and academic fields. Their synthesis provides the opportunity for a compatible modification of the graft copolymer structure to develop adapted macromolecules for a range of end practices.

Practical implications

A photoresponsive graft copolymer can have a role in an active area of polymer chemistry research due to its uses in the areas of photolithography, liquid crystal, non-linear optical materials, laser dyes, fluorescence materials and future microelectronics.

Originality/value

Graft copolymers containing a photocrosslinkable functional group, and a star polymer may be prepared using the method described in this paper and then used in technological applications. The method discussed here also allows photoinduced reversible self-healing in solid polymers.
Inhibiting potential of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose on acid corrosion of mild steel and aluminium
Authors: Arukalam I.O.
Published: November 2014

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to appraise the inhibiting potential of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) on the corrosion of mild steel and aluminium in sulphuric and hydrochloric acid solutions.

Design/methodology/approach

The effects of two different corrodents on the dissolution of mild steel and aluminium were examined. Corrosion rates were determined using the weight loss technique. Inhibition efficiency was estimated by comparing the corrosion rates in absence and presence of the additive. The kinetics and mechanism of HPMC adsorption were investigated by impedance study while the anodic and cathodic partial reactions were studied by polarization measurements.

Findings

The results reveal that corrosion rate of mild steel and aluminium decreased with addition of HPMC. The corrosion rate and inhibition efficiency were found to depend on the concentration of the inhibitor. The polarization data indicated that the inhibitor was of mixed-type, with predominant effect on the cathodic partial reaction. electrochemical impedance spectroscopy confirms that corrosion inhibition was by adsorption on the metal surface following Freundlich adsorption isotherm via physisorption mechanism.

Originality/value

Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose has been studied for the first time as an inhibitor of mild steel and aluminium corrosion and the results suggest that the inhibitor could find practical applications in corrosion control in HCl and H2SO4 acid media. The findings are particularly useful, considering the fact that HPMC is a good film former and viscosity enhancer which could also be used in paint formulation.
Corrosion inhibition characteristics ofThymus vulgaris,Xylopia aethiopicaandZingiber officinaleextracts on mild steel in H2SO4solutions
Authors: Okafor P.C. , Apebende E.A.
Published: November 2014

Purpose

This paper aims to evaluate the inhibitive action of the corrosion of mild steel in sulphuric acid solutions by ethanol extracts ofThymus vulgaris(TYV),Xylopia aethiopica(XYA) andZingiber officinale(ZGO) as eco-friendly and non-toxic mild-steel corrosion inhibitors in H2SO4solutions.

Design/methodology/approach

Ethanol extracts of TYV leaves, XYA fruits and ZGO roots were used as inhibitors in various corrosion tests. Gravimetric and gasometric techniques were used to characterize the mechanism of inhibition.

Findings

Results indicate that the extracts inhibit the corrosion process efficiently. Inhibition efficiency was found to increase with an increase in extract concentration and decrease with an increase in temperature. Inhibition efficiencies followed the trend TYV > ZGO > XYA. Thermodynamic considerations revealed that the energy of activation increased in the presence of the plant extracts. Adsorption of the plant extracts on mild steel surface occurred spontaneously, andEaand ΔGadsvalues confirm a physical adsorption processes. Phytochemical studies showed the presence of saponoids, flavonoids and polyphenols whose attachment to adsorption sites on the metal surface is responsible for the inhibition process. Experimental data fit the Langmuir adsorption isotherm.

Practical implications

The plant extracts can be used in chemical cleaning and picking processes.

Originality/value

The research provides information on the possible use of the ethanol extracts from TYV leaves, XYA fruits and ZGO roots as sources of cheap, eco-friendly and non-toxic corrosion inhibitors.
Access to translated fiction in Canadian public libraries
Authors: Dali Keren , Alsabbagh Lana
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims to investigate the quality of access to translated fiction published between 2007 and 2011 in six large Canadian public libraries, answering the question about what public libraries can do to help acquaint their readers with international translated fiction.

Design/methodology/approach

– The article uses the method of bibliographic data analysis based on 2,100 catalog records.

Findings

– As the results demonstrate, enhanced bibliographic catalog records deliver a wealth of information about translated fiction titles and facilitate meaningful subject access to their contents. At the same time, promotional activities related to translated fiction have room for improvement.

Practical implications

– Despite the fact that the study focuses on public libraries, its findings will be of interest not only to public but also academic librarians, any librarian tasked with the selection and acquisition of translated fiction, reference and readers’ advisory librarians in any type of library, Library and Information Science students and anyone interested in access to translated fiction.

Originality/value

– While many recent studies have turned their attention to enhanced catalog records and their role in access, discovery and collection promotion, there are no studies dealing with translated fiction specifically. The article also contributes to seeing an in-depth understanding of bibliographic records and cataloging as part and parcel of reference librarians’ knowledge and skill set, which improves retrieval practices and access provision.
Defining workplace innovation
Authors: Totterdill Peter , Exton Rosemary
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims to introduce the ‘Fifth Element’ as ‘joint intelligence’ shared by all stakeholders in the workplace and at the wider economic and social level, and aimed at closing the evidence-practice gap.

Design/methodology/approach

– The mutually reinforcing impact of practices based on employee involvement and participation at all levels of an organisation can create a tangible effect in workplaces, which is hard to quantify but which is often described in terms of “culture” and “employee engagement”.

Findings

– The first four elements comprise Job Design and Work Organisation; Structures and Systems; Learning, Reflection and Innovation; and Workplace Partnership. When these combine successfully, the outcome can be remarkable producing a tangible and sustainable change in the day-to-day culture of an organization, which includes across the board improvements in communications, leadership and employee engagement, higher performance, enhanced customer care and a self-perpetuating regime of innovation.

Originality/value

– The metaphor of the Fifth Element is a useful way of capturing this essence, describing an alchemic transformation that can only take place when the other four elements combine.
Case study
Authors: Totterdill Peter , Exton Rosemary
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– This case study aims to discuss how the Met Office developed a process for creating ideas that help people look at markets differently and bring people with diverse knowledge together to generate better ideas. The Met Office is the UK’s national weather service and an arm of the Department for Business Innovation and Skills. In its 160 years of history, it has been part of a number of Government Departments, including the Board of Trade, the Air Ministry and the Ministry of Defence, where it became an executive agency with a remit to act commercially.

Design/methodology/approach

– Creating and maintaining income streams in a competitive international market requires ongoing innovation and while its long history and sector pre-eminence means the Met Office has always been successful, it is not always easy to innovate in a public sector organisation with an ingrained culture and traditional top-down authority structure.

Findings

– This case study discusses how the Met Office developed a process for creating ideas that help people look at markets differently and bring people with diverse knowledge together to generate better ideas.

Originality/value

– Inspired by external influence, a small core of innovators began a process of “guerrilla” tactics to drive the process forward, firstly by visiting other businesses including Google and Innocent and learning from the experiences they found there. This included Google’s concept of “Playtime” (allowing people some freedom to play with their pet products) and the use of kitchens to encourage employee interaction. The case study concludes with observations for others to consider in the process of introducing employee-led innovation.
Interactive Theatre
Authors: Totterdill Peter , Exton Rosemary
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims to discuss how Interactive Theatre can be implemented and it also gives examples of it in action with feedback from clients. Unlocking employee creativity is one of the key challenges of implementing organisational change to improve performance and enhance working life.

Design/methodology/approach

– Interactive Theatre is a dynamic event that helps to release employee inhibitions that prevent them from expressing their views while engaging them in critical reflection and creative thinking through facilitated dialogue and collaboration.

Findings

– Using theatre to dramatise the issues and situations created by poor work organisation, inadequate skills and ineffective management practice encourages employers and employees alike to take action. Drama reveals all the tensions and problems that can exist in the business, while at the same time being fun and captivating. As a result, people are more likely to have an open mind about the need for change and to become actively involved in its design and implementation.

Originality/value

– This paper discusses how Interactive Theatre can be implemented and gives examples of it in action with feedback from clients.
Assessment of inter-seasonal temperature and precipitation changes under global warming over Setif high plains region, vulnerability and adaptation
Authors: Bouregaa Tarek , Fenni Mohamed
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to assess the inter-seasonal temperature and precipitation changes in Setif high plains region under future greenhouse gas emissions, by using four general circulation models (GCMs) output data between three time slices of twenty-first century. The objective is to show the vulnerability of the region and the strategy of adaptation to these changes.

Design/methodology/approach

– This study investigates likely changes in seasonal temperature and precipitation over Setif high plains region (North East of Algeria) between three time slices: 2025, 2050 and 2075. The projections are based on the SRES A2 and B2 scenarios. MAGICC-SCENGEN 5.3v.2 was used as a tool for downscaling the four selected GCMs output data. The vulnerability of the region, coupled with the possible impacts climate change, stresses the need for adaptive strategies in key sectors in the region for the long term sustainable development.

Findings

– The results for change in seasonal temperature indicate a general warming under the two scenarios till the year 2075.The results of GFDLCM21 and GFDLCM20 show a general reduction of spring and autumn precipitations and an increase in winter and summer. BCCRBCM2 predicts a decrease in winter, spring and summer precipitations and an increase in autumn. Climate change, as well as increases in climate variability, will alter precipitation, temperature and evaporation regimes, and will increase the vulnerability of Setif high plains to changes in hydrological cycles. Climate and weather forecasting coupled with biotechnological advances in improving crop yields and tolerances to aridity, is likely to bring significant payoffs for strategy of adaptation in the field of agricultural water management.

Originality/value

– This work is one of the first to study inter-seasonal temperature and precipitation changes under global warming over the region, and suggest some adaptive strategies to limit the effect of these changes.
Prospects for transition to a knowledge-based economy in the Arab region
Authors: Satti Osman Mohamed Nour Samia
Published: November 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the challenges and opportunities for the transition to a knowledge-based economy in the Arab region.

Design/methodology/approach

– Both descriptive and comparative approaches are used, together with the framework and definition of “knowledge-based economy” often used in the international literature to examine the challenges and opportunities for a transition to a knowledge-based economy in the Arab region.

Findings

– The findings support the hypothesis concerning the challenges and opportunities for transition to a knowledge-based economy in the Arab region. This transition is seriously impeded by several political, social, economic, institutional and organisational obstacles and impediments. Overcoming the major challenges hindering the transition to knowledge-based economies will involve changing the economic structure by shifting from (rent-seeking) natural resources-based (oil) economies to knowledge-based economies in the Arab region.

Originality/value

– This paper is valuable because it fills the gap in the Arab literature by presenting a more comprehensive analysis and investigating the challenges and opportunities for the transition, which previous literature has failed to adequately discuss. Moreover, the paper supports the efforts aimed at enhancing knowledge-based economies in the Arab region. The findings imply that it is essential for the Arab region to overcome challenges by implementing sound strategies for their transition to knowledge economies and improving and enhancing appropriate investments in human capital, effective institutions, relevant technologies and innovative and competitive enterprises to facilitate such a transition.
Seeing is believing: novel imaging techniques help clarify microbial nanowire structure and function
Authors: Lovley Derek R. , Malvankar Nikhil S.
Published: November 2014

Novel imaging approaches have recently helped to clarify the properties of ‘microbial nanowires’. Geobacter sulfurreducens pili are actual wires. They possess metallic‐like conductivity, which can be attributed to overlapping pi‐pi orbitals of key aromatic amino acids. Electrostatic force microscopy recently confirmed charge propagation along the pili, in a manner similar to carbon nanotubes. The pili are essential for long‐range electron transport to insoluble electron acceptors and interspecies electron transfer. Previous claims that Shewanella oneidensis also produce conductive pili have recently been recanted, based on novel live‐imaging studies. The putative pili are, in fact, long extensions of the cytochrome‐rich outer membrane and periplasm that, when dried, collapse to form filaments with dimensions similar to pili. It has yet to be demonstrated whether the cytochrome‐to‐cytochrome electron hopping documented in the dried membrane extensions takes place in intact hydrated membrane extensions or whether the membrane extensions enhance electron transport to insoluble electron acceptors such as Fe(III) oxides or electrodes. These findings demonstrate that G. sulfurreducens conductive pili and the outer membrane extensions of S. oneidensis are fundamentally different in composition, mechanism of electron transport and physiological role. New methods for evaluating filament conductivity will facilitate screening the microbial world for nanowires and elucidating their function.
The potency of indigenous “bibles” and biographies: Mapuche shamanic literacy and historical consciousness
Authors: BACIGALUPO ANA MARIELLA
Published: November 2014

Mapuche oral shamanic biographies and performances—some of which take the form of “bibles” and involve shamanic literacies—play a central role in the production of indigenous history in southern Chile. In this article, I explain how and why a mixed‐race Mapuche shaman charged me with writing about her life and practice in the form of such a “bible.” This book would become a ritual object and a means of storing her shamanic power by textualizing it, thereby allowing her to speak to a future audience. The realities and powers her “bible” stored could be extracted, transformed, circulated, and actualized for a variety of ends, even to bring about shamanic rebirth. Ultimately, I argue, through their use and interpretation of this kind of “bible,” Mapuche shamans expand academic notions of indigenous history and literacy. [shaman, text, Bible, mestizo, history, literacy, Mapuche, Chile]
The long count of historical memory: Ixhil Maya ceremonial speech in Guatemala
Authors: GARCÍA MARÍA LUZ
Published: November 2014

Violence and death in Guatemala's recent war loom large in Ixhil Maya historical memory. Analyses of wartime memories have largely focused on overt political activism or on trauma and brokenness rather than on activities that many Maya consider crucial to community reconstruction. In the Ixhil region, where the deceased are active members of the community, one such activity is the ceremony for the reburial of war dead exhumed from clandestine graves. A close ethnography of local ways of speaking about the violent past during these ceremonies reveals that historical memory circulates and functions within Ixhil communities through new forms of speech articulated in traditional discourse patterns. This analysis has implications not only for understanding historical memory of war in Maya Guatemala but also for developing methodologies for studying memory in other postviolence contexts. [linguistic discourse, verbal art, historical memory, ethnography, Maya, Guatemala]
Bureaucratic gifts: Religious conversion, change, and exchange in Israel
Authors: KRAVEL‐TOVI MICHAL
Published: November 2014

Viewing religious conversion through the lens of exchange rather than change calls attention to the web of interactions, practices, and discourses that constitute conversion as a relational domain. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork that straddles the institutionalized interface of state‐run Jewish conversion in Israel, I show how the conversion process constitutes a reciprocal transaction by which each party to the exchange—the state and its subjects—provides the other with national recognition while also receiving and thus validating its own national identity. I trace the historical and political circumstances that have entangled the Jewish state and a significant cohort of Jewish converts within this reciprocal relationship. In doing so, I identify the biopolitical, moral, and bureaucratic frameworks that bear on this institutional transaction. [conversion, reciprocity, exchange, biopolitics, bureaucracy, ethnography of the state, Jews, Israel]
Specific and unspecific gynecological alarm symptoms – prevalence estimates in different age groups: a population‐based study
Authors: Balasubramaniam Kirubakaran , Ravn Pernille , Larsen Pia V. , Søndergaard Jens , Jarbøl Dorte E.
Published: November 2014

Objective

To determine prevalence estimates of gynecological alarm symptoms in different age groups and to describe common patterns of gynecological symptoms.

Design

Web‐based cross‐sectional survey study.

Setting

Nationwide in Denmark.

Population

A random sample of 51 090 women aged 20 years or above from the general population.

Methods

An internet‐based questionnaire study regarding the prevalence estimates of symptom experiences. A total of 18 symptoms of cervical, endometrial and ovarian cancer were selected through an extensive literature search, which included national and international guidelines.

Main outcome measures

Prevalence estimates of self‐reported experience of gynecological alarm symptoms within the preceding 4 weeks.

Results

A total of 26 466 women (54.5%) participated in the study. Some 80.3% had experienced at least one of the alarm symptoms within the preceding 4 weeks, and the median number of experienced symptoms was 2 (interquartile range 1–4). The most common symptoms were tiredness (53.0%) and abdominal bloating (36.7%); postmenopausal bleeding (2.3%) and involuntary weight loss (2.8%) were least frequent. Most of the symptoms were more prevalent among younger women, whereas only dyspnea and increased urgency of urination were more frequent among older women. Among younger women, multiple abdominal symptoms often occurred simultaneously and frequently in combination with pelvic pain, whereas older women were more likely to report single symptoms.

Conclusions

Gynecological alarm symptoms are frequent in the general population, mostly among younger women. Older women reported fewer symptoms, and these often appeared as single symptoms.
Misallocation and manufacturing TFP in Thailand
Authors: Dheera‐Aumpon Siwapong
Published: November 2014

Using data from Thailand's 2007 Industrial Census, this research studied resource misallocation across manufacturing plants and its impact on manufacturing total factor productivity (TFP). It is found that there is more resource misallocation across plants in Thailand than in China, India, and the US, as well as in some other countries. When resource misallocation in Thailand is hypothetically reduced to the extent observed in the USA, manufacturing TFP increases by about seventy per cent. It is also found that manufacturing plants under government ownership or located in the northern region of Thailand have lower productivity, yet face lower input and output distortions than other plants. Also, medium‐sized plants face higher distortions than smaller and larger plants.
Natural disasters and the economy: some recent experiences from Southeast Asia
Authors: Samphantharak Krislert
Published: November 2014

This paper uses recent examples of natural disasters from Southeast Asia to illustrate some important arguments discussed in the literature on natural disasters and the economy. First, the severity of the consequences of disasters depends not only on the natural hazards, but also on societal factors. Second, the effects of the disasters on physical and human capital could go far beyond the directly observable loss of properties and lives. Third, disasters could have positive long‐term consequences if they lead to a change in the total factor productivity of the economy. Fourth, the effects of disasters could spread beyond the country of origin, naturally and economically. Finally, assistance from the government provides implicit insurance that could crowd out private insurance, but the failures of the government in dealing with recent catastrophic disasters may help reduce the extent of this effect.
Real exchange rate determination and the China puzzle
Authors: Tyers Rod , Zhang Ying
Published: November 2014

Traditionally, real exchange rates are seen to be influenced in the long run by forces that return economies to purchasing power parity and by differences in productivity growth across sectors and across regions, as per the Balassa–Samuelson hypothesis (BSH). However, minor and realistic relaxations of the assumptions underlying the BSH greatly generalise the set of possible influences over real exchange rates. This paper surveys the literature on real exchange rate determination, investigates short‐run behaviour, and addresses puzzles over the trends in China's real exchange rate. While China was widely expected to appreciate against the advanced economies following its first growth surge in the mid‐1990s, it actually depreciated slightly until the early 2000s. Then, after 2005, its rate of appreciation was more rapid than expected. These puzzles are resolved by accounting for the effects of the trade liberalisations associated with World Trade Organization accession, China's excess saving, and the tightening of rural labour markets.
Chylous ascites after laparoscopic donor nephrectomy
Authors: Tiong Ho Yee , Goel Raj K , White Wesley M , Goldfarb David A , Kaouk Jihad H
Published: November 2014

Introduction

The aim of this study was to determine the incidence, presentation, management, and outcomes of chylous ascites following laparoscopic donor nephrectomy.

Methods

An Internet‐based, multi‐institutional survey was performed using http://www.surveymonkey.com. An email invitation to the voluntary survey was sent to 30 transplant centers and posted on CenterSpan, an email forum for transplant surgeons. The number of living donor transplantations and the number of cases of chylous ascites with clinical information, treatment and outcomes were sought from the questionnaire.

Results

A total of 12 centers responded and reported 7683 cases of live donor nephrectomy. The reported incidence of postoperative chylous ascites was 0.013% (n = 12). Six centers reported 10 cases of chylous ascites following laparoscopic donor nephrectomy and 2 cases after open donor nephrectomy. Among the eight patients who developed chylous ascites following laparoscopic donor nephrectomy, presentation was typically 2 weeks after the date of initial surgery. Conservative therapy was successful in 50% of cases. Refractory ascites managed secondarily with surgical intervention had a success rate of 100%.

Conclusion

Chylous ascites is a rare complication following laparoscopic donor nephrectomy. Initial treatment should be conservative, with surgical therapy reserved for refractory cases.
The interaction of child–parent shared reading with an augmented reality (AR) picture book and parents' conceptions of AR learning
Authors: Cheng Kun‐Hung , Tsai Chin‐Chung
Published: November 2014

Following a previous study (Cheng & Tsai, 2014. Computers & Education.), this study aimed to probe the interaction of child–parent shared reading with the augmented reality (AR) picture book in more depth. A series of sequential analyses were thus conducted to infer the behavioral transition diagrams and visualize the continuity and paths of different learning behaviors. This study also explored the parents' conceptions of AR learning so as to understand more precisely how the children and their parents behaved. The results show that the parents in the “parent as dominator” group mostly considered AR learning as obstructing paper book reading and seemed to continually dominate the reading process to prevent the excessive use of mobile devices by their children. Compared with the parents in the other three groups, the parents in the “low communicative child–parent pair” group likely considered AR books as being a substitute for them reading to their children and did not frequently interact with them. The parents in the “communicative child–parent pair” and “children as dominator” groups played a mediating role during the learning process and generally showed positive beliefs about AR learning, such as considering learning by AR as fostering motivation and attaining in‐depth understandings. A framework for implementing child–parent shared AR book reading is proposed for pedagogical consideration.
Searching for Dual Inhibitors of the MDM2‐p53 and MDMX‐p53 Protein–Protein Interaction by a Scaffold‐Hopping Approach
Authors: Zaytsev Andrey , Dodd Barry , Magnani Matteo , Ghiron Chiara , Golding Bernard T. , Griffin Roger J. , Liu Junfeng , Lu Xiaohong , Micco Iolanda , Newell David R. , Padova Alessandro , Robertson Graeme , Lunec John , Hardcastle Ian R.
Published: November 2014

Two libraries of substituted benzimidazoles were designed using a ‘scaffold‐hopping’ approach based on reported MDM2‐p53 inhibitors. Substituents were chosen following library enumeration and docking into an MDM2 X‐ray structure. Benzimidazole libraries were prepared using an efficient solution‐phase approach and screened for inhibition of the MDM2‐p53 and MDMX‐p53 protein–protein interactions. Key examples showed inhibitory activity against both targets.
Current treatment options with immunoglobulin G for the individualization of care in patients with primary immunodeficiency disease
Authors: Jolles S , Orange J S , Gardulf A , Stein M R , Shapiro R , Borte M , Berger M
Published: November 2014

Primary antibody deficiencies require lifelong replacement therapy with immunoglobulin (Ig)G to reduce the incidence and severity of infections. Both subcutaneous and intravenous routes of administering IgG can be effective and well tolerated. Treatment regimens can be individualized to provide optimal medical and quality-of-life outcomes in infants, children, adults and elderly people. Frequency, dose, route of administration, home or infusion-centre administration, and the use of self- or health-professional-administered infusion can be tailored to suit individual patient needs and circumstances. Patient education is needed to understand the disease and the importance of continuous therapy. Both the subcutaneous and intravenous routes have advantages and disadvantages, which should be considered in selecting each patient's treatment regimen. The subcutaneous route is attractive to many patients because of a reduced incidence of systemic adverse events, flexibility in scheduling and its comparative ease of administration, at home or in a clinic. Self-infusion regimens, however, require independence and self-reliance, good compliance on the part of the patient/parent and the confidence of the physician and the nurse. Intravenous administration in a clinic setting may be more appropriate in patients with reduced manual dexterity, reluctance to self-administer or a lack of self-reliance, and intravenous administration at home for those with good venous access who prefer less frequent treatments. Both therapy approaches have been demonstrated to provide protection from infections and improve health-related quality of life. Data supporting current options in IgG replacement are presented, and considerations in choosing between the two routes of therapy are discussed.
Macro TSH in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism
Authors: Hattori Naoki , Ishihara Takashi , Yamagami Keiko , Shimatsu Akira
Published: November 2014

Objective

TSH is a sensitive indicator of thyroid function. In subclinical hypothyroidism, however, serum TSH concentrations are elevated despite normal thyroid hormone levels, and macro TSH is one of the causes. This study aimed to clarify the prevalence and nature of macro TSH in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism.

Design

We conducted a 2‐year cross‐sectional observational study.

Patients

We included 681 patients with subclinical hypothyroidism and 38 patients with overt hypothyroidism (controls).

Measurements

Macro TSH was screened by polyethylene glycol (PEG) method and analysed by gel filtration chromatography and bioassays.

Results

Among 681 serum samples, 117 exhibited PEG‐precipitable TSH ratios greater than 75% (mean + 1·5 SD in controls) and were subjected to gel filtration chromatography. TSH was eluted at a position greater than 100 kDa in 11 patients with subclinical hypothyroidism (1·62%); these patients were diagnosed with macro TSH. The nature of macro TSH included eight anti‐TSH autoantibodies of IgG class, two non‐IgG‐associated and one human anti‐mouse antibody (HAMA). Macro TSH showed low bioactivity.

Conclusions

Macro TSH was heterogeneous, but it is mostly comprised of TSH and anti‐TSH autoantibodies. When PEG‐precipitable TSH exceeds 90% in serum samples with TSH above 10 mU/l, clinicians should strongly suspect the presence of macro TSH and confirm it by gel chromatography. Because macro TSH exhibited low bioactivity, thyroid hormone replacement therapy may not be required in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism due to macro TSH except for those with high serum free TSH levels.
Congenital diseases and semaphorin signaling: Overview to date of the evidence linking them
Authors: Masuda Tomoyuki , Taniguchi Masahiko
Published: November 2014

Semaphorins and their receptors, neuropilins and plexins, were initially characterized as a modulator of axonal guidance during development, but are now recognized as a regulator of a wide range of developmental events including morphogenesis and angiogenesis, and activities of the immune system. Owing to the development of next‐generation sequencing technologies together with other useful DNA assays, it has also become clear that semaphorin signaling plays a crucial role in many congenital diseases such as retinal degeneration and congenital heart defects. This review summarizes the recent knowledge about the relationship between a variety of congenital diseases and semaphorin signaling.
Crestal bone resorption in augmented bone using mineralized freeze‐dried bone allograft or pristine bone during submerged implant healing: a prospective study in humans
Authors: Huang Hsiang‐yun , Ogata Yumi , Hanley James , Finkelman Matthew , Hur Yong
Published: November 2014

Background

There is limited evidence on the crestal bone level changes around implants placed in bone augmented by guided bone regeneration (GBR) during submerged healing. The purpose of this study was to prospectively compare radiographic crestal bone changes around implants placed in augmented bone with changes around implants placed in pristine bone.

Materials and methods

Patients receiving dental implants in the augmented or pristine mandibular posterior edentulous ridge were included in the study. The digital standardized radiographs from the implant placement procedure were compared to the radiographs from the second‐stage procedure to evaluate the peri‐implant marginal bone level changes. The soft tissue thickness (ST), width of keratinized mucosa (wKM), and early cover screw exposure (eIE) were measured at the time of the second‐stage procedure.

Results

A total of 29 implants in 26 patients, 11 in augmented bone (test group) and 18 in pristine bone (control group), were analyzed. The mean peri‐implant bone loss (ΔBL) was 0.74 ± 0.74 mm (mean ± SD) in the test group and 0.25 ± 0.55 mm (mean ± SD) in the control group. The differences between the test and control groups in the mesial, distal, and mean peri‐implant crestal bone level changes were statistically significant (P = 0.009, P = 0.004, and P = 0.001, respectively). The confounding factors (ST, wKM, and eIE) were adjusted.

Conclusions

More peri‐implant crestal bone loss during the submerged healing period was observed in augmented bone than in pristine bone. Augmented bone may not exhibit the same characteristics as pristine bone during the implant submerged healing period.
IT'S A SMALL WORLD AFTER ALL: INTERNET ACCESS AND INSTITUTIONAL QUALITY
Authors: Sheehan Kathleen M. , Young Andrew T.
Published: November 2014

Using a panel of up to 114 countries covering the years 1990 through 2010, we estimate the effect of Internet use on changes in countries' Economic Freedom of the World (EFW) scores. The point estimates suggest that the marginal effect is generally positive. However, starting from above‐average EFW scores (>7.7 out of 10; examples in 2010 include the UK, Switzerland, and Hong Kong) the marginal effect turns negative. Taking this interaction into account, the marginal effect is positive and statistically significant for countries starting at initial EFW scores of around 6 or less. Examples of countries with 2010 EFW scores near this threshold include China, Nigeria, and Pakistan. We discuss mechanisms that potentially generate this conditional relationship between Internet use and institutional change. (JEL O10, O43, P48)
Glomus‐like bodies within a neurofibroma: a novel neoplasm arising in neurofibromatosis type 1 or a coincidence?
Authors: Thareja Sumeet , Honigbaum Alexis , Jukic Drazen
Published: November 2014

Neurofibromatosis type 1 is a relatively common genetic disorder with variable phenotypes. Tumors with features of both glomus tumors and neurofibromas are exceedingly rare in literature. Herein, we report a not yet described neoplasm with features of both a glomangioma/glomus tumor and a neurofibroma arising in a patient with segmental neurofibromatosis. Our case report supports the theory of a common lineage/ancestor cell between neurofibromas and glomus tumors and adds it to the spectrum of neoplasms that may arise in the setting of Von Recklinghausen's disease.
A novel imprinted transgene located near a repetitive element that exhibits allelic imbalance in DNA methylation during early development
Authors: Uchiyama Koji , Watanabe Daisuke , Hayasaka Michiko , Hanaoka Kazunori
Published: November 2014

A mouse line carrying a lacZ transgene driven by the human EEF1A1/EF1alpha promoter was established. Although the promoter is known to show ubiquitous activity, only paternal transgene alleles were expressed, resulting in a transgene imprinting. At mid‐gestation, the promoter sequence was differentially methylated, hypomethylated for paternal and hypermethylated for maternal alleles. In germline, the promoter was a typical differentially methylated region. After fertilization, however, both alleles were hypermethylated. Thus, the differential methylation of the promoter required for transgene imprinting was re‐established during later embryonic development independently of the germline differential methylation. Furthermore, also a retroelement promoter closely‐flanking imprinted transgene and its wild type counterpart displayed similar differential methylation during early development. The retroelement promoter was methylated differentially also in germline, but in an opposite pattern to the embryonic differential methylation. These results suggest that there might be an unknown epigenetic regulation inducing transgene imprinting independently of DNA methylation in the transgene insertion site. Then, besides CpG dinucleotides, non‐CpG cytosines of the retroelement promoter were highly methylated especially in the transgene‐active mid‐gestational embryos, suggesting that an unusual epigenetic regulation might protect the active transgene against de novo methylation occurring generally in mid‐gestational embryo.