bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessing entrainment of bed material in a debris‐flow event: a theoretical approach incorporating Monte Carlo method
Authors: Han Zheng , Chen Guangqi , Li Yange , He Yi
Published: June 2015

Entrainment of underlying bed sediment by a debris flow can significantly increase the debris‐flow magnitude. To study this phenomenon, a theoretical approach to assessing bed‐sediment entrainment is presented. The approach is based on a static approximation that bed‐sediment entrainment occurs when the shearing stress of the flow is sufficiently high to overcome the basal resistance of the bed sediment. In order to delineate erodible zones in a channel, we analyze the critical condition of this static equilibrium model, and subsequently propose a new concept of a critical line to detect the entrainment reaches in a channel. Considering the spatial and temporal uncertainties of the input parameter, the approach is further incorporated within a Monte Carlo method, and the distribution of entrainment zones and post‐entrainment volumes can be analyzed. This approach is illustrated by back‐analysis of the 2010 Yohutagawa debris‐flow event, Japan. Results from 10 000 trials of Monte Carlo simulation are compared with the in situ surveys. It is shown that the present approach can be satisfactorily used to delineate erodible zones and estimate possible entrainment volume of the event. Discussion regarding the sensitivities and limitations of the approach concludes the paper. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Energy Expenditure in Lean and Obese Prepubertal Children
Authors: DeLany James P. , Harsha David W. , Kime James C. , Kumler Julie , Melancon Louis , Bray George A.
Published: June 2015

The relationship between energy expenditure and obesity was examined in prepubertal children. Consenting fifth graders underwent Tanner Staging, weight, height and skinfold measurements. Subjects were selected for further study to obtain equal numbers of girls and boys with a wide range of body composition. Weight, total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) by doubly labeled water (DLW), resting metabolic rate (RMR), and body composition were measured. Children were grouped into level of obesity based on tertiles of subscapular plus triceps skinfolds. The skinfold tertiles did quite well in grouping subjects by degree of obesity, as differences in percent fat in each tertile were significantly different. There were no differences in fat‐free mass between the groups, while the highest tertile group weighed 14 kg more than the lowest. For DLW, energy expenditure was calculated using day 8 and day 9 urine samples as the final time point to examine precision. Mean energy expenditure using either day was nearly identical (2220 ± 400 vs. 2300 ± 370 kcal/d), with a CV of the difference of 5.5%. No differences in RMR, energy expended in activity, or TDEE between the three groups were observed. A reduction in RMR or TDEE could not explain differences in obesity in these prepubertal children. However, the fact that the heaviest children expended the same amount of energy in activity and had the same TDEE as the leanest, while weighing 14 kg more, indicates that the obese children had a reduced activity level.
Design, Synthesis of Novel Thiourea and Pyrimidine Derivatives as Potential Antitumor Agents
Authors: Abu‐Hashem Ameen A. , Badria Farid A.
Published: June 2015

1,3‐Bis‐(arylidene)thiourea derivatives (11a‐c) were prepared by reacting thiourea (9) with bezaldehyde, p‐chlorobenzaldehyde or p‐anisaldehyde (10a‐c) respectively. Further reaction of (11b) with acetyl acetone, ethyl acetoacetate, malononitrile and acetic anhydride gave tetrahydropyrimidine‐2‐thiones (12‐14) and 1,3‐diacetyl thiourea (15). Compound (11b) reacted with chloroacetyl chloride to give the corresponding pyrimidin‐4‐one derivative (16). Reaction of (12‐14) with acetic acid in aqueous sodium nitrite yielded the corresponding oxime derivatives (17‐19). The triazole (20) was achieved via refluxing of (19) in dimethylformamide. Reaction of (16) with mercaptoacetyl chloride gave the sulfanyl‐acetic acid (21) which afforded the dihydrazinyl (22) up on treatment with hydrazine hydrate. Newly synthesized compounds ware characterized by elemental analyses and spectral data (IR, 1H‐NMR, 13C‐NMR and mass spectra). The investigated compounds were screened for their cytotoxicity, i.e. compounds 19, 20 and 22 exhibited highly potential antitumor activity.
Analytical Solutions of the Schrödinger Equation with Power Potentials
Authors: Karwowski Jacek , Witek Henryk A.
Published: June 2015

Conditions for the existence of polynomial solutions of the Schrödinger equation with potentials which are linear combinations of powers of r ranging from −2 to 2m, where m is a non‐negative integer, are derived and explicit expressions for the coefficients are given. Potentials withm= 0, 1, 2 are discussed in detail.
Significant extra‐tropical anomalies in the lead up to the Black Saturday fires
Authors: Fiddes Sonya L. , Pezza Alexandre B. , Renwick James
Published: June 2015

Black Saturday (BS), 7 February 2009, is recognized as Australia's most severe bushfire event on record. The meteorology that day, although extreme, was typical of southeast Australian bushfire events, characterized by gusty northerly winds before a cool change brought strong southerly winds and a dramatic temperature drop. This study investigates a range of extra‐tropical atmospheric (pressure, temperatures) and oceanic temperature anomalies that occurred on or leading up to BS. Results show several parameters were within the top 5% or were record breaking for the satellite era. Of particular note are the anomalies that occurred over the Antarctic region, having the strongest signal and appearing in unison with the pre‐BS heatwave. We suggest that a combination of a warm polar ocean and an enhanced mid‐latitude thermal contrast in the Indian Ocean aided in triggering sub‐polar blocking and an intense cyclone, which brought the catastrophic cold front on BS.
Application of a likelihood ratio approach in solving a comparison problem of Raman spectra recorded for blue automotive paints
Authors: Michalska Aleksandra , Martyna Agnieszka , Zięba‐Palus Janina , Zadora Grzegorz
Published: June 2015

Evidential values of Raman spectra recorded for solid and metallic blue car paints were evaluated using visual comparison as well as a statistical approach, i.e. likelihood ratio (LR) test supported by Empirical Cross Entropy (ECE) results. Raman spectra were obtained using a Renishaw inVia spectrometer equipped with a confocal Leica microscope and a near infrared semiconductor laser (785 nm) as an excitation source.

When a visual comparison was performed for solid paints, in 17.7% of comparisons (53 pairs out of 300) the samples were indistinguishable, whereas for metallic paints this value was 8.5% of such comparisons (37 pairs out of 435). Comparing the spectra using an LR approach was based on variables being the areas under the most significant Raman spectra bands of pigments present in the analysed samples. Proposed LR models delivered low false positive and false negative rates (for many models lower than 10%), and the ECE plots confirmed that their performance was much better than visual comparison. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Shell Cross‐Linked Polymeric Micelles as Camptothecin Nanocarriers for Anti‐HCV Therapy
Authors: Jiménez‐Pardo Isabel , González‐Pastor Rebeca , Lancelot Alexandre , Claveria‐Gimeno Rafael , Velázquez‐Campoy Adrián , Abian Olga , Ros M. Blanca , Sierra Teresa
Published: June 2015

A suitable carrier for camptothecin to act as therapy against the hepatitis C virus is presented. The carrier relies on an amphiphilic hybrid dendritic–linear–dendritic block copolymer, derived from pluronic F127 and bis‐MPA dendrons, that forms micelles in aqueous solution. The dendrons admit the incorporation of multiple photoreactive groups that allow the clean and effective preparation of covalently cross‐linked polymeric micelles (CLPM), susceptible of loading hydrophilic and lipophilic molecules. Cell‐uptake experiments using a newly designed fluorophore, derived from rhodamine B, demonstrate that the carrier favors the accumulation of its cargo within the cell. Furthermore, loaded with camptothecin, it is efficient in fighting against the hepatitis C virus while shows lower cytotoxicity than the free drug.
Successive Synthesis of Multiarmed and Multicomponent Star‐Branched Polymers by New Iterative Methodology Based on Linking Reaction between Block Copolymer In‐Chain Anion and α‐Phenylacrylate‐Functionalized Polymer
Authors: Ito Shotaro , Goseki Raita , Manners Ian , Ishizone Takashi , Hirao Akira
Published: June 2015

A series of multiarmed and multicomponent miktoarm (μ‐) star polymers have been successfully synthesized by developing a new iterative methodology based on a specially designed linking reaction of the block copolymer in‐chain anions, whose anions are positioned between the blocks, with α‐phenylacrylate (PA)‐functionalized polymers. The iterative methodology involves the following two reaction steps: a) introduction of two different polymer segments by the linking reaction of a block copolymer in‐chain anion with a PA‐functionalized polymer and b) regeneration of the PA reaction site. By repeating this reaction sequence, two different polymer segments are advantageously and successively introduced into the μ‐star polymer. In practice, repetition of the reaction sequence affords well‐defined 3‐arm ABC, 5‐arm ABCDE, 7‐arm ABCDEFG, and even 9‐arm ABCDEFGHI μ‐star polymers, composed of polystyrene, polystyrenes substituted with functional groups, polyisoprene, and poly(alkyl methacrylate) arms, respectively.

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Proximal conduction block in the pharyngeal–cervical–brachial variant of guillain–barrÉ syndrome
Authors: Taieb Guillaume , Grapperon Aude‐Marie , Duclos Yann , Franques Jérôme , Labauge Pierre , Renard Dimitri , Yuki Nobuhiro , Attarian Shahram
Published: June 2015

Introduction: Conduction block (CB) has been included in the Rajabally criteria for axonal Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS). Because the nerve roots may be affected early in GBS, detection of proximal CB by the triple stimulation technique (TST) can be useful. Methods: We describe TST findings in 2 patients who presented with the pharyngeal–cervical–brachial (PCB) variant of axonal GBS. Results: In the first patient, although conventional nerve conduction studies (NCS) did not fit electrodiagnostic criteria for axonal GBS, the TST detected proximal CB in the median and ulnar nerves. In the second patient, NCS fulfilled criteria for axonal GBS, and the TST detected proximal CB in the median nerve. After plasmapheresis, NCS and TST findings were normalized, suggesting reversible conduction failure rather than demyelinating CB. Conclusion: The TST may be useful for diagnosis of PCB when NCS remain inconclusive. The technique provides additional clues for classifying PCB into the acute nodo‐paranodopathies. Muscle Nerve 52: 1102–1106, 2015
Lobbying in the sunshine—hiding behind transparency?
Authors: Veksler Albert
Published: June 2015

Lobbying in Israel was unregulated for 60 years. Scholars have decried the fact that high value is attached to the written decree, but implementation does not necessarily follow: quite a few laws have remained at symbolic level in Israel. There were two unsuccessful bills submitted to legislate lobbying regulation: first by Knesset Member (MK) Merom in 1993 and the second one by MK Naot in 2001. The bill submitted by MKs Yechimovich and Sa'ar in 2007 resulted in passing the Israeli lobbying regulations in 2008, but the Lobbyist Law displayed unexpected characteristics, and there was a 500% growth in lobbyist numbers. In 2012, a scandal shook the Israeli lobbying world as a crew from the Israeli Channel 2's investigative show Uvda (‘Fact’) infiltrated the training program of the Gilad Government Relations & Lobbying firm. Following the Channel 2 exposé, the Speaker of the Knesset MK Rivlin instructed Knesset employees to immediately forbid the entrance of all lobbyists to areas heavily used by MKs. These steps, taken almost 4 years after that the Knesset had passed a weak Lobbyist Law, scoring 28 points according to the Center of Public Integrity score, did not create more transparency but only set certain restrictions on the lobbyists' movements in the Knesset building. In 2013, MK Koll submitted a bill to further regulate the lobbying followed by another bill by MKs Yechimovich and Tsur in 2014. However, these bills were thrashed as the Knesset was dispersed in December 2014. This paper would analyze the bills from 1993, 2001, 2007, 2013, and 2014 by measuring their strength according to the Center of Public Integrity Index in order to explore the path that resulted in passing the Lobbyist Law in 2008 and in the following developments. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Abnormal body mass index at diagnosis in patients with Ewing sarcoma is associated with inferior tumor necrosis
Authors: Goldstein Gal , Shemesh Erez , Frenkel Tal , Jacobson Jeffrey M. , Toren Amos
Published: June 2015

Background

Abnormal body mass index (BMI) in cancer patients at diagnosis has been associated with lower survival rates. The degree of tumor necrosis after induction chemotherapy in Ewing sarcoma (EWS) is highly associated with treatment failure. We analyzed the effect of BMI on tumor necrosis in children and young adults undergoing induction treatment for EWS.

Procedure

Retrospective review of BMI and tumor necrosis in children and young adults with EWS. Patients were grouped into normal and abnormal BMI groups. Multivariate logistic regression and multivariate Cox regression were used to evaluate the impact of BMI on tumor necrosis, recurrence of disease, and survival.

Results

Fifty patients who underwent resection of the tumor were eligible. Of them, 32 (64%) and 18 (36%) had normal and abnormal BMI, respectively. Poor histologic response (PR), defined as tumor necrosis of less than 90%, was achieved in 35 (70%) patients. When comparing abnormal to normal BMI, there were more cases of PR [9 (50%) vs. 6 (19%) (P = 0.025)], more relapses [8 (44%) vs. 8 (25%) (P = 0.164)], and more deaths [10 (57%) vs. 7 (22%) (P = 0.040)], respectively. Abnormal BMI was independently associated with PR (OR 4.33, 95% CI 1.12–19.14 P = 0.034) and worse overall survival (HR 2.76, 95% CI 1.19–9.99 P = 0.022), while it had no impact on event free survival.

Conclusions

The association between abnormal BMI and lower survival in EWS is presumed to be due to PR to chemotherapy. These findings stress the significance of BMI on treatment response in malignant diseases. Pediatr Blood Cancer © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Modeling the flammability characteristics of polymers using quantitative structure–property relationships (QSPR)
Authors: Parandekar Priya V. , Browning Andrea R. , Prakash Om
Published: June 2015

Computational methods to predict material properties from their molecular structure, down‐selection, and designing new materials, were used for material research and development. The Quantitative Structure–Property Relationships (QSPR) method for quick screening of materials based on correlations derived from existing data for a family of materials could be especially useful if the correlations include molecular–structure parameters. In this article several QSPR models, in the form of mathematical equations were developed from a dataset of a wide variety of polymers to predict their flammability characteristics—heat release capacity, total heat release, and % char, using genetic function algorithms. The models were used to predict the flammability characteristics of a small “test set” of polymers for model validation; and additional predictions were made on an external dataset of about 20 polymers. The QSPR predictions on the external dataset were compared with the molar group contribution method of Lyon et al. (Lyon, Takemori, Safronava, Stoliarov, and Walters, Polymer, 50, 2608 (2009)). An attempt was made to correlate the molecular descriptors, which could be calculated from the molecular structure, to the flammability behavior. Good correlation was obtained between the polymer repeat unit structure and the flammability parameters. Based on the molecular descriptors in the QSPR equations, a molecular level understanding of the flammability characteristics was obtained. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 55:1553–1559, 2015. © 2015 Society of Plastics Engineers
Comprehensive profiling of lysine acetylation suggests the widespread function is regulated by protein acetylation in the silkworm, Bombyx mori
Authors: Nie Zuoming , Zhu Honglin , Zhou Yong , Wu Chengcheng , Liu Yue , Sheng Qing , Lv Zhengbing , Zhang Wenping , Yu Wei , Jiang Caiying , Xie longfei , Zhang Yaozhou , Yao Juming
Published: June 2015

Lysine acetylation in proteins is a dynamic and reversible PTM and plays an important role in diverse cellular processes. In this study, using lysine‐acetylation (Kac) peptide enrichment coupled with nano HPLC/MS/MS, we initially identified the acetylome in the silkworms. Overall, a total of 342 acetylated proteins with 667 Kac sites were identified in silkworm. Sequence motifs analysis around Kac sites revealed an enrichment of Y, F, and H in the +1 position, and F was also enriched in the +2 and –2 positions, indicating the presences of preferred amino acids around Kac sites in the silkworm. Functional analysis showed the acetylated proteins were primarily involved in some specific biological processes. Furthermore, lots of nutrient‐storage proteins, such as apolipophorin, vitellogenin, storage proteins, and 30 K proteins, were highly acetylated, indicating lysine acetylation may represent a common regulatory mechanism of nutrient utilization in the silkworm. Interestingly, Ser2 proteins, the coating proteins of larval silk, were found to contain many Kac sites, suggesting lysine acetylation may be involved in the regulation of larval silk synthesis. This study is the first to identify the acetylome in a lepidoptera insect, and expands greatly the catalog of lysine acetylation substrates and sites in insects.
Enhancing bottom‐up and top‐down proteomic measurements with ion mobility separations
Authors: Baker Erin Shammel , Burnum‐Johnson Kristin E. , Ibrahim Yehia M. , Orton Daniel J. , Monroe Matthew E. , Kelly Ryan T. , Moore Ronald J. , Zhang Xing , Théberge Roger , Costello Catherine E. , Smith Richard D.
Published: June 2015

Proteomic measurements with greater throughput, sensitivity, and structural information are essential for improving both in‐depth characterization of complex mixtures and targeted studies. While LC separation coupled with MS (LC–MS) measurements have provided information on thousands of proteins in different sample types, the introduction of a separation stage that provides further component resolution and rapid structural information has many benefits in proteomic analyses. Technical advances in ion transmission and data acquisition have made ion mobility separations an opportune technology to be easily and effectively incorporated into LC–MS proteomic measurements for enhancing their information content. Herein, we report on applications illustrating increased sensitivity, throughput, and structural information by utilizing IMS–MS and LC–IMS–MS measurements for both bottom‐up and top‐down proteomics measurements.
Controlling effective interactions and spatial dispersion of nanoparticles in multiblock copolymer melts
Authors: Banerjee Debapriya , Schweizer Kenneth S.
Published: June 2015

The microscopic Polymer Reference Interaction Site Model theory is employed to study, for the first time, the effective interactions, spatial organization, and miscibility of dilute spherical nanoparticles in non‐microphase separating, chemically heterogeneous, compositionally symmetric AB multiblock copolymer melts of varying monomer sequence or architecture. The dependence of nanoparticle wettability on copolymer sequence and chemistry results in interparticle potentials‐of‐mean force that are qualitatively different from homopolymers. An important prediction is the ability to improve nanoparticle dispersion via judicious choice of block length and monomer adsorption‐strengths which control both local surface segregation and chain connectivity induced packing constraints and frustration. The degree of dispersion also depends strongly on nanoparticle diameter relative to the block contour length. Small particles in copolymers with longer block lengths experience a more homopolymer‐like environment which renders them relatively insensitive to copolymer chemical heterogeneity and hinders dispersion. Larger particles (sufficiently larger than the monomer diameter) in copolymers of relatively short block lengths provide better dispersion than either a homopolymer or random copolymer. The theory also predicts a novel widening of the miscibility window for large particles upon increasing the overall molecular weight of copolymers composed of relatively long blocks. The influence of a positive chi‐parameter in the pure copolymer melt is briefly studied. Quantitative application to fullerenes in specific copolymers of experimental interest is performed, and miscibility predictions are made. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2015, 53, 1098–1111
Phonon signature of the high‐pressure rocksalt phase of InN
Authors: Kunc K. , Polian A. , Demangeot F. , Briot O.
Published: June 2015

Phonon dispersion and phonon density of states of the high‐pressure rocksalt phase of InN are calculated ab initio, at different pressures, using the density functional perturbation theory. Born effective charge , LDA values of dielectric constant and of the electronic gap are obtained as well. Building on the theoretical knowledge of phonon frequencies and their evolution with pressure, we attempt to interpret the set of six bands found previously in Raman spectra of epitaxial layers and of InN‐nanowires.
EBIC and LBIC investigations of dislocation trails in Si
Authors: Feklisova O. V. , Orlov V. I. , Yakimov E. B.
Published: June 2015

The recombination properties of dislocation trails formed behind moving dislocations in plastically deformed Si have been investigated by the electron beam induced current and laser beam induced current methods. It is found that for dislocations moving with a velocity lower than 10–5cm/s the contrast of dislocation trails does not noticeably depend on the velocity value. It is shown that the dislocation type is not unique parameter determining the recombination activity of defects in the dislocation trails. A dislocation bending in near surface layers is found also to affect the defect formation in the dislocation trails. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Control of extended defects in cast and seed cast Si ingots for photovoltaic application
Authors: Sekiguchi Takashi , Jiptner Karolin , Prakash Ronit R. , Chen Jun , Miyamura Yoshiji , Harada Hirofumi , Nakano Satoshi , Gao Bin , Kakimoto Koichi
Published: June 2015

We discuss the defect evolution in conventional cast and seed cast Si ingot growths for photovoltaic application. Three different cast Si ingots were grown in one directional solidification furnace. The two extremes are the seed cast ingots (mono‐Si), where growth starts from monocrystalline silicon seeds, and the multicrystalline silicon grown from small randomly oriented grains. The conventional multicrystalline (mc‐) cast Si ingots are grown without any seeds and have grain structures in between the two extremes. It was found that in mc‐Si the evolution of grain boundaries take place in several steps. On the other hand, the major defects in mono‐Si are dislocations and are generated by stress due to thermal gradient in the ingot. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Optical properties and core state of AlN‐BN ternary compound by ab initio calculations
Authors: Yamashita Masashi , Hamada Noriaki , Funashima Hiroki , Yoshiya Masato
Published: June 2015

By ab initio calculation using the ABCAP code, energy shifts of core levels and optical properties of B‐incorporated AlN (AlBN) were examined through comparison with experimental spectra measured from the thin film. Good agreements of complex refractive indices, n and k, with experiment were obtained for pure AlN and pure BN. However, when B content is increased in AlBN, substantial disagreement is found between experiment and calculation that assumed either wurtzite or graphite‐like structure for clarity. These results suggest that AlBN with ca. 30% is neither complete solid solution nor grain‐level mixture of graphite like BN and AlN. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Structural studies of Al thin layer on misoriented GaAs(100) substrate by transmission electron microscopy
Authors: Lovygin M. V. , Borgardt N. I. , Kazakov I. P. , Seibt M.
Published: June 2015

A thin Al layer has been grown on a misoriented GaAs(100) substrate by molecular beam epitaxy and its structure has been studied by means of transmission electron microscopy. The metal layer is formed as grains of three orientations Al(100), Al(110) and Al(110)R. Digital analysis of dark‐field micrographs made it possible to obtain their grain sizes and relative coverage areas. By comparison with an Al layer grown on an exactly oriented GaAs(100) substrate it has been found that on the vicinal surface the relative coverage area and grain size of the Al(110)R orientation increase and the Al(100) relative coverage area decreases. This is attributed to surface atomic steps, which have been visualized in high‐resolution micrographs. The edge misfit dislocation system at the Al/GaAs interface has been revealed, which is insensitive to the substrate misorientation. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Achieving fairness by sequential equilibrium in rational two‐party computation under incomplete information
Authors: Wang Yilei , Wong Duncan S. , Susilo Willy , Chen Xiaofeng , Xu Qiuliang
Published: June 2015

Fairness in secure two‐party computation ensures that either both of the communicating parties learn the output of some pre‐defined function or none of them does. Rational two‐party computation is an extension of two‐party computation that incorporates game theory into conventional two‐party (cryptographic) computation protocols for achieving fairness. From the standpoint of game theory, the strategies are designed for achieving equilibrium resulting in attaining fairness in rational two‐party computation protocols. Groce and Katz (Eurocrypt 2012) achieved fairness by computational Nash equilibrium under complete information. In this paper, protocols are considered in more practical scenarios of incomplete information, where fairness is achieved by sequential equilibrium. Our protocol has constant number of rounds as Groce and Katz do while achieving a stronger sequential equilibrium which also implies the computational Nash equilibrium. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Agent‐based models in sociology
Authors: Bianchi Federico , Squazzoni Flaminio
Published: June 2015

This article looks at 20 years of applications of agent‐based models (ABMs) in sociology and, in particular, their explanatory achievements and methodological insights. These applications have helped sociologists to examine agent interaction in social outcomes and have helped shift analyses away from structural and aggregate factors, to the role of agency. They have improved the realism of the micro‐behavioral foundations of sociological models, by complementing analytic modeling and game theory–inspired analyses. Secondly, they have helped us to dissect the role of social structures in constraining individual behavior more precisely than in variable‐based sociology. Finally, simulation outcomes have given us a more dynamic view of the interplay between individual behavior and social structures, thus promoting a more evolutionary and process‐based approach to social facts. Attention here has been paid to social norms, social influence, and culture dynamics, across different disciplines such as behavioral sciences, complexity science, sociology, and economics. We argue that these applications can help sociology to achieve more rigorous research standards, by promoting a modeling environment and providing tighter cross‐disciplinary integration. Recently, certain methodological improvements toward model standardization, replication, and validation have been achieved. As a result, the impact of these models in sociology is expected to grow even more in the future. WIREs Comput Stat 2015, 7:284–306. doi: 10.1002/wics.1356

This article is categorized under:

Statistical Models > Agent-Based Models

Algorithms and Computational Methods > Computational Complexity

Data: Types and Structure > Social Networks
The Deserving Poor, the Family, and the U.S. Welfare System
Authors: Moffitt Robert A.
Published: June 2015

Contrary to the popular view that the U.S. welfare system has been in a contractionary phase after the expansions of the welfare state in the 1960s, welfare spending resumed steady growth after a pause in the 1970s. However, although aggregate spending is higher than ever, there have been redistributions away from non-elderly and nondisabled families to families with older adults and to families with recipients of disability programs; from non-elderly, nondisabled single-parent families to married-parent families; and from the poorest families to those with higher incomes. These redistributions likely reflect long-standing, and perhaps increasing, conceptualizations by U.S. society of which poor are deserving and which are not.
Evidence for age‐associated cognitive decline from Internet game scores
Authors: Geyer Jason , Insel Philip , Farzin Faraz , Sternberg Daniel , Hardy Joseph L. , Scanlon Michael , Mungas Dan , Kramer Joel , Mackin R. Scott , Weiner Michael W.
Published: June 2015

Introduction

Lumosity's Memory Match (LMM) is an online game requiring visual working memory. Change in LMM scores may be associated with individual differences in age‐related changes in working memory.

Methods

Effects of age and time on LMM learning and forgetting rates were estimated using data from 1890 game sessions for users aged 40 to 79 years.

Results

There were significant effects of age on baseline LMM scores (β = −.31, standard error or SE = .02,P < .0001) and lower learning rates (β = −.0066, SE = .0008,P < .0001). A sample size of 202 subjects/arm was estimated for a 1‐year study for subjects in the lower quartile of game performance.

Discussion

Online memory games have the potential to identify age‐related decline in cognition and to identify subjects at risk for cognitive decline with smaller sample sizes and lower cost than traditional recruitment methods.
Left Behind: Subjecthood, Nationality, and the Status of Jews after the Loss of English Surinam
Authors: Selwood Jacob
Published: June 2015

Following the loss of Surinam to the Netherlands in 1667, the English Crown attempted to evacuate those of its subjects living in the colony under Dutch rule. In doing so, its representatives laid claim to members of the Jewish population, who Surinam's English governors had previously declared to be “considered as English-born.” In the resulting dispute between the English and Dutch over who could be removed, Crown officials embraced articulations of subjecthood forged in the colony that differed from metropolitan norms. In asserting that Surinam's Jews remained subjects of the king, and by implying that they would continue to do so once evacuated, the English delegation departed from the Crown's frequent rejection of the wider efficacy of colonial naturalization. Surinam's Dutch governor, meanwhile, dismissed the assertion that members of the “Hebrew nation” could be subjects of an English king, arguing that subjecthood and nationality were identical and that only those of the English nation could be removed. The dispute between the English and the Dutch over the status of Surinam's Jews reminds us that English subjecthood was shaped by colonial settings and by the contested status of groups who found themselves transferred between imperial powers.
Republicans, Martyrology, and the Death Penalty in Britain and Ireland, 1939–1990
Authors: Doyle David Matthew
Published: June 2015

This article examines the relationship between politically motivated murder, martyrdom, and the death penalty in Britain and Ireland in the period from 1939 to 1990. First, it investigates the nexus between historical experience and memory, political martyrdom, and capital punishment as it applied to Irish Republicans in Britain during the Second World War. Secondly, it examines the use of extraordinary legal powers to impose the death penalty in the Irish state during the “Emergency,” and charts the processes through which the threat of capital punishment continued to be perceived as an essential instrument of security in both Irish jurisdictions in the postwar period. Thirdly, it evaluates the effectiveness of the death penalty in deterring politically motivated murder and explores the anomalous, paradoxical decision to abolish capital punishment at the height of subversive killing in Northern Ireland. The essay concludes that the national security issue and the potential martyrdom of Irish Republicans were pivotal factors in dissuading successive British governments from reintroducing the death penalty for politically motivated offenses in Britain and Northern Ireland.
Modelling of confined vortex rings
Authors: Danaila Ionut , Kaplanski Felix , Sazhin Sergei
Published: June 2015

This paper is focused on the investigation of vortex rings evolving in a tube. A new theoretical model for a confined axisymmetric vortex ring is developed. The predictions of this model are shown to be in agreement with available experimental data and numerical simulations. The model combines the viscous vortex ring model, developed by Kaplanski & Rudi (Phys. Fluids, vol. 17, 2005, 087101), with Brasseur’s (PhD thesis, Stanford University) approach to deriving a wall-induced streamfunction correction. Using the power-law assumption for the time variation of the viscous length of the vortex ring, the time variations of the main integral characteristics, circulation, kinetic energy and translational velocity are obtained. Direct numerical simulation (DNS) is used to test the range of applicability of the model and to investigate new physical features of confined vortex rings recently reported in the experimental study by Stewart et al. (Exp. Fluids, vol. 53, 2012, pp. 163–171). The model is shown to lead to a very good approximation of the spatial distribution of the Stokes streamfunction, obtained by DNS. The vortex signature and the time evolution of the energy of the vortex are also accurately predicted by the model. A procedure for fitting the model with realistic vortex rings, obtained by DNS, is suggested. This opens the way to using the model for practical engineering applications.
Balancing Formality and Informality in Business Exchanges as a Duality: A Comparative Case Study of Returnee and Local Entrepreneurs in China
Authors: Lin Daomi , Lu Jiangyong , Li Peter Ping , Liu Xiaohui
Published: June 2015

The management paradigms in the West mainly rely on legal contracts and explicit rules (formality), while the management traditions in the East emphasize social relationships and implicit norms (informality). In an era of ‘West-meets-East’, balancing formality and informality is becoming critical for firms, especially those facing institutional differences in transnational contexts and institutional transitions. In this research, we conducted a comparative multicase study on returnee entrepreneurs and local entrepreneurs in China. We found that at the early stage of venturing, returnee entrepreneurs emphasized formality more than informality, while local entrepreneurs stressed informality more than formality. However, the formality-informality balance among both returnee and local entrepreneurs converged over time in line with the institutional transition in China. Returnee entrepreneurs increased the emphasis on informality (but kept the dominant position of formality), whereas local entrepreneurs gradually shifted from informality to formality. The spatial pattern of asymmetrical balancing and the temporal pattern of transitional balancing are both rooted in the Chinese philosophy of Yin-Yang balancing.
Use of real patients in teaching ENT diseases to undergraduate students and its effects on patient satisfaction: cross-sectional survey
Authors: Löfgren E , Alikoski S , Hannula S , Sorri M , Alho O-P
Published: June 2015

Objectives:

To describe a method of using real patients in teaching ENT to undergraduates and to examine whether being a case patient affected patient satisfaction.

Methods:

In a cross-sectional study, 68 teaching-involved patients (case patients) with a suspected common ENT illness and 68 matched (in terms of age, sex and region of complaint) control patients evaluated the health service and their encounter with the physician. The students saw the case patients first independently and then saw the patient with the teacher physician. The controls were treated in a normal way.

Results:

Fifty-eight case patients (84 per cent) and 65 control patients (95 per cent) answered the questionnaire. The median duration of the visit was significantly longer for the case patients than the controls (115 vs 60 minutes). Almost all patients in both groups graded the overall quality of the health service, and the variables describing various aspects of the setting and the encounter with the physician, as either good or excellent.

Conclusion:

Patients who took part in the undergraduate teaching of ENT diseases were equally content with their primary visit as the control patients, even though their visit took a markedly longer time.
(Ton)silly seasons? Do atmospheric conditions actually affect post-tonsillectomy secondary haemorrhage rates?
Authors: Cadd B , Rogers M , Patel H , Crossland G
Published: June 2015

Background:

Tonsillectomy is a common procedure, with potentially life-threatening complications. Previous investigations into post-tonsillectomy secondary haemorrhage rates suggest an influence of climactic and atmospheric conditions on haemorrhage rate, particularly temperature and water vapour pressure. With a single emergency department and a large variance in atmospheric conditions, Darwin, Australia, is ideal for investigating the effects of local climate on rates of post-operative haemorrhage.

Methods:

A five-year retrospective review was conducted of all tonsillectomy procedures performed between 2008 and 2013. Effects of atmospheric variables were examined using Pearson's correlation coefficient and analysis of variance.

Results:

A total of 941 patients underwent tonsillectomy in the study period. The bleeding rate was 7.7 per cent. No variation was found between wet and dry season tonsillectomies (p= 0.4). Temperature (p= 0.74), water vapour pressure (p= 0.94) and humidity (p= 0.66) had no effect on bleeding.

Conclusion:

The findings revealed no correlation between humidity, season, water vapour pressure and haemorrhage rates. Further research should use multi-site data to investigate the effect of air conditioning, humidification and climactic conditions between different regions in Australia.
HOW TO INTRODUCE MORE (OR BETTER) ETHICAL ARGUMENTS IN HTA?
Authors: Schokkaert Erik
Published: June 2015

All evaluation exercises involve ethical values, as they require some conception of the “good life.” Evaluation of health technologies is no exception. Because there is no consensus about what is a good life, we have to devise decision-making procedures in which citizens with different opinions are heard and treated fairly (1). The purpose of health technology assessment (HTA) is to offer useful input into this process so as to increase the quality of the deliberations and of the resulting decisions. How to bring ethical values into this process?
Unconscionability and Fairness: Comments on Wertheimer
Authors: Gregory Dees J.
Published: June 2015

Alan Wertheimer's paper on “Unconscionability and Contracts” presents an enlightening discussion of a complex and contentious legal concept. His primary objective is not to contribute to legal scholarship, but to use the law to shed light on the ethics of exchange relationships. Specifically, he wants to “use the doctrine of unconscionability in contracts as a lens through which to get a clearer understanding of exploitation—its essential characteristics and moral force” (p. 480). It is apparent that he sees exploitation (and unconscionability) as closely linked to a more general notion of fairness.
Does the Relative Strength of Grouping Principles Modulate the Interactions between them?
Authors: Montoro Pedro R. , Luna Dolores
Published: June 2015

This study examines the influence of the relative strength of grouping principles on interactions between the intrinsic principle of proximity and the extrinsic principle of common region in the process of perceptual organization. Cooperation and competition between intrinsic and extrinsic principles were examined by presenting the principle either alone or conjoined with another principle. The relative grouping strength of the principles operating alone was varied in two different groups of participants so that it was similar for one group and very different for the other group. Results showed that, when principles acting alone had different strengths, the grouping effect of the strongest principle was similar to that of the cooperation condition, and the effect of the weakest principle was similar to that of competing conjoined principles. In contrast, when the strength of principles acting alone was similar, the effect of conjoined cooperating principles was greater than that of either principle acting alone. Moreover, the effect of conjoined competing principles was smaller than that of either principle operating alone. Results show that cooperation and competition between intrinsic and extrinsic principles are modulated by the relative grouping strength of principles acting alone. Furthermore, performance in these conditions could be predicted on the basis of performance in single-principle conditions.
Exome Sequencing and Epigenetic Analysis of Twins Who Are Discordant for Congenital Cataract
Authors: Wei Tanwei , Sun Hui , Hu Bo , Yang Jie , Qiao Chen , Yan Ming
Published: June 2015

Purpose:To further understand genetic factors that contribute to congenital cataracts, we sought to identify early post-twinning mutational and epigenetic events that may account for the discordant phenotypes of a twin pair.Methods:A patient with a congenital cataract and her twin sister were assessed for genetic factors that might contribute to their discordant phenotypes by mutation screening of 11 candidate genes (CRYGC, CRYGD, CRYAA, CRYAB, CRYBA1, CRYBB1, CRYBB2, MIP, HSF4, GJA3, and GJA8), exome analysis followed by Sanger sequencing of 10 additional candidate genes (PLEKHO2, FRYL, RBP3, P2RX2, GSR, TRAM1, VEGFA, NARS2, CADPS, and TEKT4), and promoter methylation analysis of five representative genes (TRAM1, CRYAA, HSF4, VEGFA, GJA3, DCT) plus one additional candidate gene (FTL).Results:Mutation screening revealed no gene mutation differences between the patient and her twin sister for the 11 candidate genes. Exome sequencing analysis revealed variations between the twins in 442 genes, 10 of which are expressed in the eye. However, these differential variants could not be confirmed by Sanger sequencing. Furthermore, epigenetic discordance was not detected in the twin pair.Conclusions:The genomic DNA mutational and epigenetic events assessed in this study could not explain the discordance in the development of phenotypic differences between the twin pair, suggesting the possible involvement of somatic mutations or environmental factors. Identification of possible causes requires further research.
AGU's 2015 Mass Media Fellow to Report for National Geographic
Authors: Adams Mary Catherine
Published: June 2015

Arctic pollution researcher brings passion for art and storytelling and expertise in environmental chemistry to 10-week science journalism immersion at renowned media outlet.
Microbial response to simulated global change is phylogenetically conserved and linked with functional potential
Authors: Amend Anthony S , Martiny Adam C , Allison Steven D , Berlemont Renaud , Goulden Michael L , Lu Ying , Treseder Kathleen K , Weihe Claudia , Martiny Jennifer B H
Published: June 2015

The high diversity of microbial communities hampers predictions about their responses to global change. Here we investigate the potential for using a phylogenetic, trait-based framework to capture the response of bacteria and fungi to global change manipulations. Replicated grassland plots were subjected to 3+ years of drought and nitrogen fertilization. The responses of leaf litter bacteria and fungi to these simulated changes were significantly phylogenetically conserved. Proportional changes in abundance were highly correlated among related organisms, such that relatives with approximately 5% ribosomal DNA genetic distance showed similar responses to the treatments. A microbe’s change in relative abundance was significantly correlated between the treatments, suggesting a compromise between numerical abundance in undisturbed environments and resistance to change in general, independent of disturbance type. Lineages in which at least 90% of the microbes shared the same response were circumscribed at a modest phylogenetic depth (τD 0.014–0.021), but significantly larger than randomized simulations predict. In several clades, phylogenetic depth of trait consensus was higher. Fungal response to drought was more conserved than was response to nitrogen fertilization, whereas bacteria responded equally to both treatments. Finally, we show that a bacterium’s response to the manipulations is correlated with its potential functional traits (measured here as the number of glycoside hydrolase genes encoding the capacity to degrade different types of carbohydrates). Together, these results suggest that a phylogenetic, trait-based framework may be useful for predicting shifts in microbial composition and functioning in the face of global change.
High-efficient thermoelectric materials: The case of orthorhombic IV-VI compounds
Authors: Ding Guangqian , Gao Guoying , Yao Kailun
Published: June 2015

Improving the thermoelectric efficiency is one of the greatest challenges in materials science. The recent discovery of excellent thermoelectric performance in simple orthorhombic SnSe crystal offers new promise in this prospect [Zhao et al. Nature 508, 373 (2014)]. By calculating the thermoelectric properties of orthorhombic IV-VI compounds GeS,GeSe,SnS and SnSe based on the first-principles combined with the Boltzmann transport theory, we show that the Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity of orthorhombic SnSe are in agreement with the recent experiment. Importantly, GeS, GeSe and SnS exhibit comparative thermoelectric performance compared to SnSe. Especially, the Seebeck coefficients of GeS, GeSe and SnS are even larger than that of SnSe under the studied carrier concentration and temperature region. We also use the Cahill's model to estimate the lattice thermal conductivities at the room temperature. The large Seebeck coefficients, high power factors and low thermal conductivities make these four orthorhombic IV-VI compounds promising candidates for high-efficient thermoelectric materials.