bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An Assessment of Childbearing Preferences in Northern Malawi
Authors: Machiyama Kazuyo , Baschieri Angela , Dube Albert , Crampin Amelia C. , Glynn Judith R. , French Neil , Cleland John
Published: June 2015

Fertility preferences are an essential component of family planning program evaluation; however, doubts about their validity in sub‐Saharan Africa exist and little methodological assessment has been carried out. This study investigates prospective fertility intentions in terms of their temporal stability, intensity, degree of spousal agreement, and association with future childbearing in northern Malawi. A total of 5,222 married women participated in the three‐round study. The odds of having a child or becoming pregnant within 36 months were 4.2 times higher when both wife and husband wanted a child within three years and 2 times higher when both wanted to wait at least three years, compared with the odds when both wanted to cease childbearing. The influence of husbands' and wives' preferences on subsequent fertility was equal. Compared with the intention to stop, the intention to postpone childbearing was less stable, recorded less spousal agreement, and was much less strongly predictive of fertility.
Fertility Limitation and Child Schooling in Ouagadougou: Selective Fertility or Resource Dilution?
Authors: Bougma Moussa , LeGrand Thomas K. , Kobiané Jean‐François
Published: June 2015

Using original data collected in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, this study investigates evidence for the competing theories that fertility reductions increase children's education through either the quantity–quality tradeoff (intentionally choosing smaller families to make greater investments in education and other indicators of child quality) or resource dilution (having more children reduces resources available per child, regardless of intentionality of family size). The results provide evidence for both hypotheses: children having four or fewer siblings were significantly more likely to be enrolled in school if their mothers had intentionally stopped childbearing relative to those whose mothers wanted more children but whose childbearing was limited by subfecundity. The difference between intentional and unintentional family limitation was not significant for parities greater than five. In addition, the relationship between number of siblings and their schooling is negative, regardless of the intentionality of family‐size limitation, but the strength of this negative relationship is approximately twice as high among children whose mothers intentionally limited fertility (reflecting both selection and dilution effects) than among children whose mothers were subfecund (reflecting the pure dilution effect).
TAROS Computer Simulation Software for DC and AC Traction Power Systems: Methods and Applications
Authors: Yu Jian G.
Published: June 2015

This paper describes the computer simulation methods for dc traction power systems and ac power traction power systems that have been used to develop the computer simulator TAROS® at Gannett Fleming. The simulator has been designed and developed to support both load flow analysis and fault analysis.

The paper also presents some examples of practical applications of the simulator in engineering and design under various operational conditions that may be encountered in transit and rail systems, such as normal, abnormal and fault conditions. Examples include: electric load cycles in various system components for their rating and size selection or verification; distribution of traction return currents in return conductors and ground for electromagnetic interference assessment; touch and step voltage analysis for the design of the traction return system grounding and bonding to meet safety requirements; and fault calculations for relay protection coordination.
Application of Fault Tree Analysis for Signaling Systems
Authors: Georgiadis Sofia K.
Published: June 2015

Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) is one of the key safety evaluation techniques used by New York City Transit (NYCT). First developed over 50 years ago, this technique continues to provide valuable insight for failure analysis of systems. Its use is widespread in safety-critical systems analysis across industry boundaries, including defense, nuclear, aerospace, chemical [1], and transportation industries. FTAs provide a systematic, top-down methodology to safety analysis. As such, it complements other safety analysis techniques, such as Failure Modes Effect Analysis (FMEA), which is a bottom-up failure analysis [2]. Formal Methods analyses, including Theorem Proving and Model Checking, are powerful development and analysis methodologies, both used by NYCT, that provide assurance of product’s correctness and safety. With these other safety analysis techniques, the FTA continues to play a key role in the NYCT Safety Program. This paper will examine how NYCT uses FTAs for the safety analysis of microprocessor-based signaling systems.

FTAs are used by NYCT throughout the system lifecycle. Initially, during the system development phase, NYCT requires system suppliers to develop Fault Tree Analyses of their systems, as a requirement for NYCT safety certification and deployment. For the system maintenance phase, NYCT uses the outputs of suppliers’ analyses to develop and enforce maintenance and operational procedures. In this manner, NYCT’s use of FTA provides full lifecycle value by providing design, maintenance, and operational insight into the causes of hazardous events. Through the examination of example fault trees and an overview of the FTA process, this paper will present the NYCT’s implementation of this powerful analysis tool, and will describe the benefits gained from using this methodology.
Thermal Analysis of an Energy Storage System for a Battery Electric Switcher Locomotive
Authors: Kreibick James A. , Bosch Marc Serra , Cleary Timothy P. , Ballew Brent
Published: June 2015

Often, available power from an in-vehicle energy storage system is governed by thermal limitations. Modeling of battery pack thermal response is crucial to managing its cooling system energy consumption and estimating available charge/discharge power for future locomotive tractive and regenerative effort. Active cooling through forced air flow was simulated using computer-aided design of the battery pack and its enclosure. Module scaled (series string of 54 12V batteries) testing and modeling of both air flow and temperature distribution was performed and validated for sealed lead acid carbon batteries. A controller area network and data logger collected temperature data from 218 sensors placed throughout a battery pack module during electrical loading for both switcher and over-the-road cycles while under various environmental thermal loadings. A blower on-off control algorithm was optimized to minimize energy consumption and implemented based on temperature array statistics.
Energy Analysis in Deploying Wireless Sensor Networks for On-Board Real-Time Railcar Status Monitoring
Authors: Rakshit Sushanta Mohan , Hempel Michael , Shrestha Pradhumna , Rezaei Fahimeh , Sharif Hamid , Punwani John , Stewart Monique
Published: June 2015

Wireless Sensor Networks have been a focus of research in the North American freight railroad industry to enable on-board real-time sensing of critical railcar parameters. Important railcar aspects like wheel bearing temperature, air pressure, brake failure, and the integrity of transported goods can then be monitored closely and reliably. This enables immediate preventive actions in case of impending failures and also enables trend analysis that can be used to fine-tune maintenance efforts on railcars. These measures increase the safety, efficiency, and dependability of freight railroad operations.

In our previous work [1–3] we have presented our Hybrid Technology Networking (HTN) protocol. This protocol provides optimal network performance for railcar monitoring applications. We have also presented HTNMote, a hardware prototyping platform that implements HTN. A deployment of HTNMotes was conducted and evaluated at the TTCI facility in Pueblo, Colorado in the US. The results from our field tests confirm that this approach is an order of magnitude better in performance compared to solutions based on ZigBee alone.

In such an application, energy considerations represent a key challenge. These sensors have no readily available continuous energy source, but are expected to operate for years in harsh conditions. Energy harvesting — from vibrations, temperature differences, or solar radiation — may provide a potential solution to the energy scarcity. This also mandates that the HTNMote hardware and HTN protocol both be as energy efficient as possible.

In this paper we present detailed measurements of the energy consumed by the HTNMote in various operational situations that are encountered during their operation onboard freight railcars. We introduce an energy consumption model based on our analysis of the measurements. This model demonstrates the energy-efficiency of the HTNMote implementation.
Optimizing the Power Flows in a Railway Power Supply System Fed by Rotary Converters
Authors: Abrahamsson Lars , Östlund Stefan
Published: June 2015

This study focuses on optimizing the operation of rotary railway-feeding converters. Since a large share of rotary converters can be expected to be in operation for decades to come in the railway power supply systems (RPSSs), it is important to make their operation as efficient as possible. The existing rotary converters may have unused capabilities particularly in load sharing, but also to some extent in reactive power compensation.

Load-sharing improvement can be done in two steps; (1) coarsely by unit commitment within a converter station, (2) fine-tuned by controlling the terminal voltage of the converter station on the railway-side. The proposed optimization models minimize RPSS losses, including losses in the converters. The models are implemented and solved in the GAMS environment.

The case studies are applied on Sweden-inspired RPSS designs and configurations, and the train load situations are varied. Ideas and experiences regarding improved computational efficiency for solving the problems are discussed.
Cell Planning for High-Speed Train Operations in USA
Authors: Bandara K. R. Damindra S. , Abadie Andre , Wijesekara Duminda
Published: June 2015

American railroads are planning to introduce the Positive Train Control System (PTC), a wireless communication system to control passenger and cargo train movements. By design PTC has two networks, the main control network that disseminates trackage rights and a wayside interface unit (WIU) network that beacons track status. One of the main constraints for adopting this system for high-speed trains is the limited bandwidth availability in USA, as higher speeds require more control packets to be communicated using the same radio channel. In this paper we propose an architecture that manages available bandwidth between control and WIU networks by considering the maximum number of trains that has to be simultaneously accommodated by a control point and allocate control channels for the uplink and downlink communication between trains and control points accordingly. The rest of the channels are assigned to wayside devices to minimize interference. Control point locations are decided so that there is proper communication between any train and a control point until the train is handed over to the next control point. The proposed architecture addresses the congestion management, power control and interference avoidance aspects of communication planning for high-speed rail operations. We demonstrate the applicability of our frequency management architecture for a hypothetical train intersection.
Development of a Prototype Retrofit Bumper for Improved Light Rail Vehicle Safety
Authors: MacNeill Robert A. , Kirkpatrick Steven W. , Bocchieri Robert T. , Gough Glenn
Published: June 2015

The design development and analysis of a novel Light Rail Vehicle (LRV) end-mounted bumper concept is described. The purpose of the bumper is to improve crash compatibility of LRVs with shared right of way road vehicle traffic. Under a grant from the Transportation Research Board (TRB) Transit IDEA program, the present project builds on previous Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) sponsored work by adapting a generic conceptual retrofit bumper design onto the CAF LRV currently in service with Sacramento Regional Transit (RT). The bumper system is designed to reduce the severity of collisions and to reduce injuries for passengers in the struck vehicles. The reusable bumper is also designed to survive common collision scenarios, thereby minimizing service interruptions and downtime. The adapted design takes into account the geometry, necessary clearances, and other requirements of the RT CAF LRV while also incorporating the lessons learned from the original bumper concept optimization. Detailed nonlinear finite element crash analysis was used to evaluate the adapted design for a suite of common collision scenarios. The efficacy of the bumper system was evaluated through struck vehicle occupant injury assessments. The analysis has shown significantly improved crash performance for the adapted bumper system compared to the current LRV configuration without a bumper. Ongoing effort and future plans in pursuit of fielding the system are discussed.
Low-intensity eccentric contractions of the knee extensors and flexors protect against muscle damage
Authors: Lin Min-Ju , Chen Trevor Chung-Ching , Chen Hsin-Lian , Wu Bo-Han , Nosaka Kazunori
Published: June 2015

This study investigated the magnitude and duration of the protective effect of low-intensity eccentric contractions (LowEC) against damage induced by maximal eccentric contractions (MaxEC) of the knee flexors (KF) and extensors (KE). Young men were assigned to 8 experimental groups and 2 control groups (n = 13/group); the experimental groups performed LowEC of KF or KE 2 days (2d), 1 week (1wk), 2 weeks (2wk), or 3 weeks (3wk) before MaxEC, while the control groups performed MaxEC of KF or KE without LowEC. The 2d, 1wk, 2wk, and 3wk groups performed 30 LowEC of KF or 60 LowEC of KE with a load of 10% of maximal voluntary isometric contraction strength on a resistance-training machine, and all groups performed 30 MaxEC of KF or 60 MaxEC of KE on an isokinetic dynamometer. Several muscle damage markers were measured from before to 2 days after exercise (LowEC) or from before to 5 days after exercise (MaxEC). No significant changes in any variables were evident after LowEC. The changes in all variables after MaxEC were smaller (P < 0.05) for the 2d and 1wk groups (e.g., peak creatine kinase activity: 1002 ± 501 IU/L; peak muscle soreness: 13 ± 5 mm) than for the control group (peak creatine kinase activity: 3005 ± 983 IU/L; peak muscle soreness 28 ± 6 mm) for both KE and KF. There were no significant differences between the 2d and 1wk groups or among the 2wk, 3wk, and control groups. These results show that LowEC provided 30%–66% protection against damage induced by MaxEC of KF and KE, and the protective effect lasted 1 week.
A NEW METHOD FOR CALCULATING THE FRACTAL DIMENSION OF SURFACE TOPOGRAPHY
Authors: ZUO XUE , ZHU HUA , ZHOU YUANKAI , LI YAN
Published: June 2015

A new method termed as three-dimensional root-mean-square (3D-RMS) method, is proposed to calculate the fractal dimension (FD) of machined surfaces. The measure of this method is the root-mean-square value of surface data, and the scale is the side length of square in the projection plane. In order to evaluate the calculation accuracy of the proposed method, the isotropic surfaces with deterministic FD are generated based on the fractional Brownian function and Weierstrass–Mandelbrot (WM) fractal function, and two kinds of anisotropic surfaces are generated by stretching or rotating a WM fractal curve. Their FDs are estimated by the proposed method, as well as differential boxing-counting (DBC) method, triangular prism surface area (TPSA) method and variation method (VM). The results show that the 3D-RMS method performs better than the other methods with a lower relative error for both isotropic and anisotropic surfaces, especially for the surfaces with dimensions higher than 2.5, since the relative error between the estimated value and its theoretical value decreases with theoretical FD. Finally, the electrodeposited surface, end-turning surface and grinding surface are chosen as examples to illustrate the application of 3D-RMS method on the real machined surfaces. This method gives a new way to accurately calculate the FD from the surface topographic data.
Creativity Just in Time? The Role of Delivery Precision in Product Development
Authors: Stetler Katarina Lund
Published: June 2015

This paper presents the results from a quantitative survey study in the research and development (R&D) department of company in the automotive industry. The focus of the study has been on exploring the relationship between delivery precision and creativity. Given today's increasingly competitive market, companies must be able to both cut lead times and maintain high creativity and innovativeness in the organization. This study is an attempt to increase our understanding of how one means of cutting lead time, the imposition of high demands on delivery precision, is related to the creation of novel ideas in the industrialization phase of product development. The results point to an interesting relationship in which the imposition of high demands on delivery precision actually increases the perception of the creation of novel ideas. The results have implications for project planning and the role of time dedicated to exploratory tasks in product development.
PADPIN: protein-protein interaction networks of angiogenesis, arteriogenesis, and inflammation in peripheral arterial disease
Authors: Chu Liang-Hui , Vijay Chaitanya G. , Annex Brian H. , Bader Joel S. , Popel Aleksander S.
Published: June 2015

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) results from an obstruction of blood flow in the arteries other than the heart, most commonly the arteries that supply the legs. The complexity of the known signaling pathways involved in PAD, including various growth factor pathways and their cross talks, suggests that analyses of high-throughput experimental data could lead to a new level of understanding of the disease as well as novel and heretofore unanticipated potential targets. Such bioinformatic analyses have not been systematically performed for PAD. We constructed global protein-protein interaction networks of angiogenesis (Angiome), immune response (Immunome), and arteriogenesis (Arteriome) using our previously developed algorithm GeneHits. The term “PADPIN” refers to the angiome, immunome, and arteriome in PAD. Here we analyze four microarray gene expression datasets from ischemic and nonischemic gastrocnemius muscles at day 3 posthindlimb ischemia (HLI) in two genetically different C57BL/6 and BALB/c mouse strains that display differential susceptibility to HLI to identify potential targets and signaling pathways in angiogenesis, immune, and arteriogenesis networks. We hypothesize that identification of the differentially expressed genes in ischemic and nonischemic muscles between the strains that recovers better (C57BL/6) vs. the strain that recovers more poorly (BALB/c) will help for the prediction of target genes in PAD. Our bioinformatics analysis identified several genes that are differentially expressed between the two mouse strains with known functions in PAD including TLR4, THBS1, and PRKAA2 and several genes with unknown functions in PAD including EphA4, TSPAN7, SLC22A4, and EIF2a.
Dynamics of a Discrete Host-Parasitoid System with Stocking
Authors: Jang Sophia R.-J.
Published: June 2015

Motivated by the biological control of pests, we present discrete-time models of host-parasitoid interactions to study the effects of external stocking upon the systems. It is assumed that density dependence of the hosts occurs first followed by parasitism. We prove that the constant stocking can eliminate the pest population if the stocking is sufficiently large. Furthermore, stocking can simplify the dynamics of the interaction by stabilizing the coexisting steady state.
СТАН АНТИОКСИДАНТНОГО ЗАХИСТУ ТВАРИН З ПОЛІТРАВМОЮ ПІСЛЯ ПРОВЕДЕННЯ КОМПЛЕКСНОЇ КОРЕКЦІЇ
Authors: Кулянда О. О.
Published: June 2015

У статті показано зміни показників антиоксидантного захисту за умов політравми при внутріш­ньочеревному введенні препарату ліпофлавону та комплексу ліпофлавону, пентоксифіліну і селективного інгібітора iNOS - Н-(3-(амінометил)бензил)ацетамідину (1400W). Встановлено, що проведення комплексної корекції призводить до більш вираженої зміни активності антиоксидантних ферментів, ніж використання монопрепарату. Найсуттєвіший ефект запропонованої комбінації спостерігають на 7-му добу експерименту.
Патогенетичні аспекти рубцевих гриж у хворих на морбідне ожиріння
Authors: Тодуров І. М. , Білянський Л. С. , Косюхно С. В. , Перехрестенко О. В. , Калашніков О. О.
Published: June 2015

У роботі проведено вивчення окремих ланок патогенезу рубцевих гриж передньої черевної стінки у хворих на морбідне ожиріння після баріатричних оперативних втручань. Проаналізовано вплив фактора внутрішньочеревного тиску на розвиток гриж черевної стінки, обгрунтовано доцільність диференційованого профілактичного протезування післяопераційного доступу в означеної категорії хворих.
Особливості клініки та діагностики обтураційної непрохідності тонкої кишки.
Authors: Іоффе О. Ю. , Буренко Г. В. , Стець М. М. , Перепадя В. М. , Повч О. А.
Published: June 2015

Особливості клініки та діагностики обтураціиної непрохідності тонкої кишки
Нестандартні ситуації в хірургічній практиці, пов’язані з ускладненнями травматичних ушкоджень діафрагми.
Authors: Шапринський В. О. , Кривецький В. Ф. , Камінський О. А. , Шапринський Є. В. , Поліщук В. І. , Домбровський В. Ю. , Божок С. М. , Процик О. І. , Усатюк Ю. О. , Гончаренко В. Т.
Published: June 2015

Нестандартні ситуації в хірургічній практиці, пов’язані з ускладненнями травматичних ушкоджень діафрагми
ІМУНІЗАЦІЯ ЛІМФОЦИТАМИ ЧОЛОВІКА ЯК МЕТОД ПРОФІЛАКТИКИ ПЕРЕДЧАСНОГО РОЗРИВУ ПЛОДОВИХ ОБОЛОНОК ПРИ НЕДОНОШЕНІЙ ВАГІТНОСТІ
Authors: Бегаль Л. В. , Юзько Т. А.
Published: June 2015

Проведено аналіз перебігу вагітності,пологів та стану новонароджених від жінок з групи ризику виникнення передчасного розриву плодових оболонок, яким під час вагітності проводили імунізацію лімфоцитами чоловіка. Встановлено позитивний вплив даного методу на перебіг вагітності, пологів та післяпологового періоду. Відмічено зниження частоти ПРПО при строкових пологах, а найбільш суттєво-при передчасних. Впровадження методу дало можливість знизити частоту передчасних пологів у загальній популяції. Доведено відсутність негативного впливу запропонованого методу на плід та нованародженого.
ВПЛИВ ЦИТОКІНОВОГО ПРОФІЛЮ НА ФОРМУВАННЯ ПОЛІНУТРІЄНТНИХ ПОРУШЕНЬ ПРИ ХРОНІЧНОМУ ПАНКРЕАТИТІ
Authors: Бабінець Лілія Степанівна
Published: June 2015

В статті наведено результати кореляційно-регресійного аналізу між показниками ліпідного та білкового статусу, анемічного синдрому, остеодефіциту та імунодефіциту в хворих на хронічний панкреатит і параметрами цитокінового профілю - IL-1, TNF-б, IL-10 i TGF-b. Це дозволило доказати предикторну роль цитокінового профілю на формування і прогресування полінутрієнтно недостатності при хронічному панкреатиті.
ВИВЧЕННЯ АНТИЕКСУДАТИВНО ТА МЕМБРАН0СТАБІЛІЗУЮЧ0 АКТИВНОСТІ ЕКСТРАКТУ КОРИ БЕРЕЗИ БОРОДАВЧАСТО
Authors: Мала О. С.
Published: June 2015

РЕЗЮМЕ. Проведено дослідження антиексудативно та мембраностабілізуючо активності густого екстракту кори
берези бородавчасто в порівнянні з класичним препаратом «Кверцетин». Визначено, що густий екстракт кори
берези бородавчасто виявляє виражену антиексудативну та помірну мембраностабілізуючу дію.
КЛЮЧОВІ СЛОВА: густий екстракт, кора, береза бородавчаста, антиексудативна, мембраностабілізуюча дія.
МОРФОМЕГРИЧНИЙ АНАЛІЗ КЛІТИННО ЛАНКИ МІСЦЕВОГО ІМУНІТЕТУ ПРИ ГІПЕРПЛАСТИЧНИХ ПРОЦЕСАХ ЕНДОМЕТРІЯ У ЖІНОК ПРЕ- ТА МЕНОПАУЗАЛЬНОГО ВІКУ
Authors: Сельський П. Р. , Слива А. Ф. , Ваврух П. О.
Published: June 2015

РЕЗЮМЕ. Проведено гістологічне та морфометричне дослідження 44 пацієнток з гіперпластичними процесами
ендометрія. У більшості хворих спостерігали порушення місцевого клітинного імунітету. Виявлена залежність імунних
порушень від ступеня розвитку гіперпластичних процесів. На основі проведених досліджень можна зробити висновок
про суттєвий вплив імунних чинників на прогрес даного захворювання.
КЛЮЧОВІ СЛОВА: гіперпластичні процеси ендометрія, клітинний імунітет, клітинний інфільтрат.
ВИВЧЕННЯ ТОКСИЧНОГО ВПЛИВУ КАДМІЮ ХЛОРИДУ НА ОРГАНІЗМ ПІДДОСЛІДНИХ ТВАРИН В УМОВАХ ГОСТРОГО ДОСЛІДУ
Authors: Флекей Н. В.
Published: June 2015

РЕЗЮМЕ. Вивчено токсичність впливу кадмію хлориду на організм піддослідних тварин в умовах гострого досліду.
Досліджено морфологічні зміни в печінці та нирках у білих щурів при вживанні питно води з різними концентраціями
кадмію хлориду.
КЛЮЧОВІ СЛОВА: нирки, печінка, кадмію хлорид, питна вода.
СУЧАСНІ АСПЕКТИ ЗАСТОСУВАННЯ ДІУРЕТИКІВ В ПРАКТИЦІ КАРДІОЛОГА
Authors: Давидович О. В. , Давидович Н. Я. , Лихацька В. О. , Волощук Т. Р.
Published: June 2015

РЕЗЮМЕ. У випадках високого функціонального класу серцево недостатності необхідно призначати кілька діуретиків,
а ефективність торасеміду у хворих зі зниженою ФВ лівого шлуночка були більша, ніж при застосуванні інших
діуретиків.
КЛЮЧОВІ СЛОВА: діуретики, ХСН, артеріальна гіпертензія.
The United Kingdom and Diplomatic Assurances: A Minimalist Approach towards the Anti-torture Norm
Authors: Grozdanova Rumyana
Published: June 2015

In recent years, domestic counter-terrorism measures have reshaped the relationship between individual terrorist suspects and the state. Regional and international human rights frameworks regulating government behaviour during or after an emergency appear not to be a priority when set against national security concerns. The increasing reliance on diplomatic assurances and memoranda of understanding as means to fulfil the obligations stemming from the anti-torture norm is an illustration of this state approach. These agreements are not enforceable in law, however, they do form part of long established diplomatic practice. What distinguishes the pre- and post- 9/11 terrain is not the use of these agreements per se. Rather, it is the growing use of these agreements as part of extradition or deportation proceedings or as part of irregular transfers such as extraordinary renditions in order to reduce state obligations under the human rights framework. The heavy reliance on these agreements by the United Kingdom, particularly after 9/11, aptly illustrates the changing approach towards national security.
Jewish Divorce Formulae in Syriac Incantation Bowls
Authors: Moriggi Marco
Published: June 2015

In a series of Syriac incantation bowls published between 1913 and the present day, a peculiar text is documented. It mentions Rab Joshua bar Peraḥya sitting in a court of law and performing an exorcism against demons, devils, liliths and other evil beings haunting the house of the client. This spell is well attested in Jewish Babylonian Aramaic bowls, and it is now clear that a Jewish Babylonian Aramaic model is the basis for what is found in the Syriac bowls. The new edition of the Syriac bowls featuring this formula recently published by the present author, allows for a reconsideration of the theme of the Jewish divorce formula in Syriac incantation bowls, from both the linguistic and cultural points of view.
Progressive Movement Disorder in Brothers Carrying a GNAO1 Mutation Responsive to Deep Brain Stimulation
Authors: Kulkarni Neil , Tang Sha , Bhardwaj Ratan , Bernes Saunder , Grebe Theresa A.
Published: June 2015

GNAO1, located on chromosome 16q12.2, encodes for 1 of the heterotrimeric guanine binding proteins subunits (G proteins), specifically Gαo, which has been implicated as having an important role in brain function. GNAO1 mutations have been shown to impart oncogene properties as well as cause epileptic encephalopathy. The authors report 2 cases of brothers with a severe movement disorder and hypotonia without epilepsy who have been confirmed by whole exome sequencing to have a novel mutation in GNAO1. Their movement disorder improved significantly with deep brain stimulation.
Imaging of near-surface heterogeneities by scattered elastic waves
Authors: Almuhaidib Abdulaziz M. , Toksöz M. Nafi
Published: June 2015

We have developed an elastic reverse time migration (RTM) approach for imaging near-surface heterogeneities, such as karst features, using scattered waves (e.g., body to P-, S-, and surface waves). Knowledge of location and strength of the scatterers helps in seismic imaging, survey planning, and geotechnical site characterization. To model seismic wave propagation for RTM, we use an elastic staggered-grid finite-difference scheme. The scattered body-to-surface waves provide optimal illumination and wavenumber coverage of the near surface as they travel horizontally along the free surface. We tested the elastic RTM approach on synthetic data simulated using a finite-difference solver and found it to be robust.
Prenatal Testosterone Treatment Leads to Changes in the Morphology of KNDy Neurons, Their Inputs, and Projections to GnRH Cells in Female Sheep
Authors: Cernea Maria , Padmanabhan Vasantha , Goodman Robert L. , Coolen Lique M. , Lehman Michael N.
Published: June 2015

Prenatal testosterone (T)-treated ewes display a constellation of reproductive defects that closely mirror those seen in PCOS women, including altered hormonal feedback control of GnRH. Kisspeptin/neurokinin B/dynorphin (KNDy) neurons of the arcuate nucleus (ARC) play a key role in steroid feedback control of GnRH secretion, and prenatal T treatment in sheep causes an imbalance of KNDy peptide expression within the ARC. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that prenatal T exposure, in addition to altering KNDy peptides, leads to changes in the morphology and synaptic inputs of this population, kisspeptin cells of the preoptic area (POA), and GnRH cells. Prenatal T treatment significantly increased the size of KNDy cell somas, whereas POA kisspeptin, GnRH, agouti-related peptide, and proopiomelanocortin neurons were each unchanged in size. Prenatal T treatment also significantly reduced the total number of synaptic inputs onto KNDy neurons and POA kisspeptin neurons; for KNDy neurons, the decrease was partly due to a decrease in KNDy-KNDy synapses, whereas KNDy inputs to POA kisspeptin cells were unaltered. Finally, prenatal T reduced the total number of inputs to GnRH cells in both the POA and medial basal hypothalamus, and this change was in part due to a decreased number of inputs from KNDy neurons. The hypertrophy of KNDy cells in prenatal T sheep resembles that seen in ARC kisspeptin cells of postmenopausal women, and together with changes in their synaptic inputs and projections to GnRH neurons, may contribute to defects in steroidal control of GnRH observed in this animal model.
Modulation of work and power by the human lower-limb joints with increasing steady-state locomotion speed
Authors: Schache Anthony G. , Brown Nicholas A. T. , Pandy Marcus G.
Published: June 2015

We investigated how the human lower-limb joints modulate work and power during walking and running on level ground. Experimental data were recorded from seven participants for a broad range of steady-state locomotion speeds (walking at 1.59±0.09 m/s to sprinting at 8.95±0.70 m/s). We calculated hip, knee and ankle work and average power (i.e., over time), along with the relative contribution from each joint towards the total (sum of hip, knee and ankle) amount of work and average power produced by the lower-limb. Irrespective of locomotion speed, ankle positive work was greatest during stance, whereas hip positive work was greatest during swing. Ankle positive work increased with faster locomotion until a running speed of 5.01±0.11 m/s, where it plateaued at ∼1.3 J/kg. In contrast, hip positive work during stance and swing, as well as knee negative work during swing, all increased when running speed progressed beyond 5.01±0.11 m/s. When switching from walking to running at the same speed (∼2.0 m/s), the ankle's contribution to the average power generated (and positive work done) by the lower limb during stance significantly increased from 52.7±10.4% to 65.3±7.5% (p=0.001), whereas the hip's contribution significantly decreased from 23.0±9.7% to 5.5±4.6% (p=0.004). With faster running, the hip's contribution to the average power generated (and positive work done) by the lower limb significantly increased during stance (p<0.001) and swing (p=0.003). Our results suggest that changing locomotion mode and faster steady-state running speeds are not simply achieved via proportional increases in work and average power at the lower-limb joints.
Metaphors of language: the Vepsian ecology challenges an international paradigm
Authors: Siragusa Laura
Published: June 2015

At present Veps, a Finno-Ugric minority in north-western Russia, live in three different administrative regions, i.e., the Republic of Karelia, and the Leningrad and Vologda Oblasts. Due to several socio-economic and political factors Veps have experienced a drastic change in their communicative practices and ways of speaking in the last century. Indeed, Vepsian heritage language is now classified as severely endangered by UNESCO. Since perestroika a group of Vepsian activists working in Petrozavodsk (Republic of Karelia) has been promoting Vepsian language and culture. This paper aims to challenge an international rhetoric around language endangerment and language death through an analysis of Vepsian language ecology and revitalisation. Vepsian ontologies and communicative practices do not always match detached metaphors of language, which view them as separate entities and often in competition with each other. The efforts to promote the language and how these are discussed among the policy-makers and Vepsian activists also do not concur with such a drastic terminology as death and endangerment. Therefore, this paper aims to bring to the surface local ontologies and worldviews in order to query the paradigms around language shift and language death that dominate worldwide academic and political discourse.
Analysis of parameters dynamics of human neuromuscular system under cold influence in different seasons within theory of chaos and self-organization
Authors: Болотов  , Bolotov S. , Пахомов  , Pakhomov A. , Козлова  , Kozlova V. , Глазова  , Glazova O.
Published: June 2015

The paper presents results of neuromuscular system indices in male and female subjects aged between 20 and 28 who have been living in the North over 15 years and have different experience of applying cold procedures. Mean age of subjects is 22.8 years. Hand tremor parameters were recorded before and after local chilling procedure, on this basis body reaction in all experimental groups was compared. The control group is composed of participants who do not receive the experimental treatment. Group 1 composes of subjects who take chilling procedures less than 1 year. Group 2 composes of subjects who take chilling procedures more than 2 years. The effect of local chilling of changing neuromuscular system indices (tremorograms) is compared in 3 experimental groups in different seasons. During the experiment the statistical processing of obtained data is carried out, quasi-attractors squares are calculated for all experimental groups, phase portraits of tremor dynamics are created. Thus, order parameters in description of neuromuscular system under local chilling are identified.
Legal and shadow economies interaction model: analysis of phase trajectory projection
Authors: Grygorkiv Vasyl , Vinnychuk Igor
Published: June 2015

The article is devoted to the development of theoretical, methodological and methodical approaches to modeling of interaction processes of legal and shadow components of the economy. In this paper, the mathematical model of legal and shadow economies interaction, taking into account the economic structure of society, is built.
Distribución espacial de la vegetación en la Serra de Santa Pola
Authors: Marco Molina Juan Antonio
Published: June 2015

Esta aproximación al paisaje vegetal actual de la Serra de Santa Pola intenta relacionar las comunidades vegetales con la intensidad y grado de transformación que ha podido experimentar este elemento del entorno.
Transformaciones agrarias recientes en la laguna de San Benito: la última fase de la ocupación de un espacio natural
Authors: Ponce Herrero Gabino
Published: June 2015

La laguna de San Benito se encuentra ubicada en los términos municipales de Ayora (Valencia) y Almansa (Albacete), ocupando el fondo del gran valle corredor que, con dirección meridiana, pone en contacto ambas poblaciones.
Carreteras y caminos alicantinos en el primer tercio del siglo XX
Authors: Vera Ferre Jesús Rafael de
Published: June 2015

Una vez finalizados en la centuria anterior los ejes básicos de la malla de carreteras de la provincia de Alicante, especialmente los que unen a la ciudad capital con Alcoy, La Marina, la meseta y Orihuela, la política que se va a seguir en este campo durante el primer tercio del siglo XX en el Sur del País Valenciano va a venir marcada, como fiel reflejo de lo que ocurre a escala estatal, por dos líneas básicas de actuación: mejorar cualitativamente las rutas más importantes y adensar la red de caminos vecinales, creando un complejo sistema capilar de vías que conectan el ferrocarril y los puertos con zonas geográficas cada vez más alejadas, lo que facilita las transformaciones de los paisajes agrarios y un cambio positivo en el proceso industrializador, a la vez que ayuda a la cristalización del capitalismo y a la creación de un auténtico mercado interior, mientras que la red de ciudades se consolida, hecho que se hace especialmente patente en las principales encrucijadas.
Protección y conservación de la flora en la Comunidad Valenciana
Authors: Padilla Blanco Ascensión
Published: June 2015

La localización geográfica de la Comunidad Valenciana (C.V.) le confiere unas características climáticas particulares que añadidas a su variada litología, disposición y estructura del relieve, red hidrográfica y zonas húmedas, determinan una variada flora. La importancia de su diversidad no sólo radica en el elevado número de táxones, sino también en el de endemismos, localizados en su mayoría en roquedos, acantilados, matorrales xéricos y terrenos baldíos; sectores que, por tener una valoración perceptiva muy baja, pueden ser fácilmente objeto de alteraciones por parte del hombre. Desde finales del siglo veinte, con motivo de la entrada en la U.E., el aparato legislativo español tiene un amplio desarrollo en protección del medioambiente, donde se incluye desde la escala de los espacios protegidos hasta el de la especie. El desarrollo económico, sobre todo desde los años setenta, ha ido parejo a una intensa ocupación del suelo en la C.V., especialmente por la actividad turística centrada en el sector litoral, lo que ha desembocado en la reducción de poblaciones florísticas y en un aumento del riesgo de desaparición de algunos táxones que son raros o endémicos del ámbito valenciano. Por este motivo, se realiza una revisión de la legislación cuyo fin es proteger estos espacios, para observar las carencias existentes y hacer una llamada de atención en su puesta en práctica.
Principais Patologias Orofaciais Recorrentes em Serviços de Urgências Odontológicas: Uma Revisão da Literatura
Authors: Macêdo Bezerra Patrícia Amanda Da Silva Andrade , Oliveira Maria Eridan Moreira de , Gomes Tiago Norões , Barbosa Jailma Dos Santos , Medeiros Evandir Florêncio
Published: June 2015

A maior procura nos atendimentos de urgência odontológica geralmente esta ligadas às doenças relacionadas à endodontia, tais como: doenças da polpa e periapice, dentre elas: Pulpite reversível, Pulpite irreversível e Necrose pulpar, Pericementites (ou periodontites) e Abcessos dento alveolares agudos e crônicos, há também demanda relacionadas às urgências em periodontia, que envolvem os abcessos gengivais e periodontais e situações de hemorragias que também são motivo de busca frequente no serviço de urgência. O presente trabalho é uma revisão de literatura que tem como objetivo analisar e apresentar para a comunidade acadêmica e profissional uma análise voltada á prevalência das patologias bucais mais recorrentes em urgências odontológicas, para isso, busca-se demostrar os principais aspectos relacionados a esses procedimentos como: o curso clínico das patologias bucais em urgência, sinais e sintomas, o preparo por parte dos cirurgiões dentistas ao nível de urgência, a etiologia das doenças e prevenção.
Compactness properties for geometric fourth order elliptic equations with application to the Q-curvature flow
Authors: Fardoun Ali , Regbaoui Rachid
Published: June 2015

We prove the compactness of solutions of general fourth order elliptic equations which are

L
1

L^{1}

-perturbations of the Q-curvature equation on compact Riemannian 4-manifolds. Consequently, we prove the global existence and convergence of the Q-curvature flow on a generic class of Riemannian 4-manifolds. As a by-product, we give a positive answer to an open question by A. Malchiodi
[J. reine angew. Math. 594 (2006), 137–174] on the existence of bounded Palais–Smale sequences for the Q-curvature problem when the Paneitz operator is positive with trivial kernel.
The Role of Information and Female Vegetable Farmers in Calabar Municipal Council Area, Nigeria
Authors: Inyang Obia Gopeh
Published: June 2015

This study was aimed at showing the impact of information on female vegetable farmers (discussed as a form of entrepreneurship) in one local government area in Nigeria. A questionnaire was used in collecting data for the study. A total of 210 questionnaires were administered. Of these, 193 useable copies were retrieved (91.9%) and used for analysis. Simple percentage and pie charts were used to analyse the data. The results showed that vegetable farmers mostly used information from agricultural extension officers to request for loans. This information was very minimal as the study did not show its impact to have had any increase in productivity. Information for choice of planting materials, fertilizer application as well as storage and marketing of products were gotten from fellow growers. The study agreed with previous studies that information is really powerful and enhances decision-making regardless of the group of people involved. Although this group seems to have been neglected, they still pulled their weight, striving in their little efforts to move on. The study recommends that government and other stakeholders should encourage this group with adequate information for better economic sustainability and development to benefit from the under-utilized services available to them. The study also recommends that government should use extension officers to organize these female vegetable farmers into cooperative groups to enable them have easy access to loan facilities as an encouragement to boost their acts of entrepreneurship.
The Effect of Information Quality and Satisfaction on a Parent’s Behavioral Intention to Use a Learning Community Management System
Authors: Demissie Dawit , Rorissa Abebe
Published: June 2015

Web-based Information and Communication Technology (ICT) applications offer benefits in managing interactions between stakeholders. As a result, schools are increasingly adopting them. Consequently, a holistic picture of the factors that contribute to ICT adoption and use in such settings is needed. Since
Fall Detector Using Discrete Wavelet Decomposition And SVM Classifier
Authors: Wójtowicz Bartłomiej , Dobrowolski Andrzej , Tomczykiewicz Kazimierz
Published: June 2015

This paper presents the design process and the results of a novel fall detector designed and constructed at the Faculty of Electronics, Military University of Technology. High sensitivity and low false alarm rates were achieved by using four independent sensors of varying physical quantities and sophisticated methods of signal processing and data mining. The manuscript discusses the study background, hardware development, alternative algorithms used for the sensor data processing and fusion for identification of the most efficient solution and the final results from testing the Android application on smartphone. The test was performed in four 6-h sessions (two sessions with female participants at the age of 28 years, one session with male participants aged 28 years and one involving a man at the age of 49 years) and showed correct detection of all 40 simulated falls with only three false alarms. Our results confirmed the sensitivity of the proposed algorithm to be 100% with a nominal false alarm rate (one false alarm per 8 h).
Zur Bestimmung von Spurengehalten an 232Th in Gesteinen und Mineralien durch Neutronenaktivierung
Authors: Stärk H. , Turkowsky C.
Published: June 2015

Es wird eine Methode beschrieben, die es erlaubt, Spurengehalte an 232Th in geologischem Material bis zu 0,1 ppm pro 100 mg Substanz mit einer Genauigkeit von ± 3% zu bestimmen. Zur Analyse wird das Radionuklid 233Th (22,4 min) verwendet. Die Proben werden hinter Cadmium bestrahlt. Nach Aufschluß des Gesteins wird das 233Th nach mehreren Ionenaustauscherschritten mit hoher Reinheit radiochemisch abgetrennt und 50 bis 60 Minuten nach Bestrahlungsende über eine Beta-Messung ausgewertet.
Distribution of Radioactive Selenium between the Modifications of Selenium in Neutron-Irradiated Red Crystalline Selenium
Authors: Cífka J.
Published: June 2015

Red crystalline selenium was irradiated with neutrons and the distribution of radioactive selenium between the red and grey allotropic modifications was investigated. Approximately 2 per cent of activity was stabilized in the grey modification with an enrichment of about ten, which decreased during thermal annealing.
Unusually Prolonged Presentation of Designer Drug Encephalopathy Responsive to Steroids
Authors: Albadareen Rawan , Thornton Stephen , Heshmati Arezou , Gerona Roy , Lowry Jennifer
Published: June 2015

The availability and use of novel psychoactive substances has risen dramatically over the last decade. The unpredictability of their toxicity constitutes a real challenge. We report a case of an adolescent who developed prolonged encephalopathy after ingesting “Hot Molly,” which was found to contain the novel psychoactive substance, methylenedioxybenzylpiperazine when analyzed by high resolution mass spectrometry assay. This is the first case of human toxicity from methylenedioxybenzylpiperazine ingestion in the medical literature confirmed by body fluid analysis presenting with significant and prolonged encephalopathy. The prolonged course may be due to CYP2D6 inhibition from a combination of the methylenedioxyphenyl moiety and the patient’s ultrarapid metabolizer pharmacokinetics. The response to high dose corticosteroids suggests a possible inflammatory effect that warrants further investigation.
SAXS and in-situ SAXS to follow the structural evolution in hybrid materials
Authors: Pabisch Silvia , Rennhofer Harald , Hüsing Nicola , Peterlik Herwig
Published: June 2015

The paper focuses on the evolution of oriented nanostructures: An orientation in real space leads to scattering intensities with a preferred orientation with respect to the azimuthal angle in reciprocal space. Thus, the macroscopic orientation of nanostructures can be obtained from SAXS patterns. The additional advantage of in-situ SAXS is that one can directly follow the development of orientated nanostructures during thermal treatment, under extreme conditions or during processing. This is shown in the following for an orientational change of pores in two very different systems, the first being the formation of pores within carbon fibers during loading at high temperatures up to 2000 °C and the second is the development of macroscopically aligned pores in mesostructured silica in the sol-gel process during shear.