bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Lobster in a bottle: a novel technique for observing the predation of juvenile spiny lobster (Jasus edwardsii)
Authors: Hesse Jan , Stanley Jenni A. , Jeffs Andrew G.
Published: October 2015

Determining the impact of predators on juvenile spiny lobsters living on reefs is important for understanding recruitment processes that ultimately help determine the size of economically important lobster populations. The present study describes a novel approach for observing attempted predation on live juvenile spiny lobster (Jasus edwardsii) in situ, by presenting the lobster in a transparent container that was lit with infrared light to enable continuous monitoring, even at night, by video recording. This technique can be used to provide valuable information on overall relative predation pressure from comparative locations and habitats, as well as identify potential predators, their mode of predation, and the timing of their of predation activity. For example, predation attempts on juvenile J. edwardsii by the spotted wrasse (Notolabrus celidotus) were recorded only from 0500 to 1400 hours (daytime) and from 1900 to 2100 hours (dusk), whereas the activity by the northern conger eel (Conger wilsoni) was observed only for the period between 2100 and 0200 hours (nocturnal). This method of assessing predation of juvenile lobsters provides considerable advantages over previously used tethering methods, by allowing continuous observations over a long time period (≥24h), including night time, while also eliminating experimental mortality of juvenile lobsters.
Mixed stock analysis of a resident green turtle, Chelonia mydas, population in New Caledonia links rookeries in the South Pacific
Authors: Read Tyffen C. , FitzSimmons Nancy N. , Wantiez Laurent , Jensen Michael P. , Keller Florent , Chateau Olivier , Farman Richard , Werry Jonathan , MacKay Kenneth T. , Petro George , Limpus Colin J.
Published: October 2015

Context Migratory species are known to pose a challenge for conservation because it is essential to understand their complex life history in order to implement efficient conservation actions. Aims In New Caledonia, large seagrass habitats in the Grand Lagon Sud (GLS) are home to resident green turtles (Chelonia mydas) of unknown origins. To assess the stock composition in the GLS, 164 foraging turtles were sampled for genetic analysis of ~770 base pairs of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region. Methods Foraging turtles ranging in size from 48.0 to 108.4 cm curved carapace length were captured at five different sites within the GLS between September 2012 and December 2013. To provide baseline data for mixed stock analysis, published data from rookeries were used in addition to 105 samples collected at rookeries in the d’Entrecasteaux Islands and Chesterfield Islands in New Caledonia and at Malekula Island in Vanuatu. Exact tests of population differentiation and pairwise FST estimates were used to test for differences in mtDNA haplotype frequencies. Key results These analyses indicated that rookeries in the d’Entrecasteaux Islands and Vanuatu form unique management units and that the Chesterfield Islands rookeries are linked to the Coral Sea management unit. Mixed stock analysis indicated the highest proportion (mean = 0.63) of foraging turtles originate from the d’Entrecasteaux stock. Conclusions The larger contribution is estimated to be from a large rookery from New Caledonia, but smaller contributions are suggested from other rookeries in the South Pacific. Implications Marine conservation policies in New Caledonia need to consider the links between the foraging and nesting populations of C. mydas in New Caledonia and other rookeries and foraging grounds in the Coral Sea.
First record of hatchling overwintering inside the natal nest of a chelid turtle
Authors: Ferronato Bruno O. , Roe John H. , Georges Arthur
Published: October 2015

Hatchling overwintering inside the natal nest is a strategy used by several Northern Hemisphere species of freshwater turtles. We recorded hatchling overwintering in the nest by Chelodina longicollis (Chelidae) in south-eastern Australia, during three reproductive seasons. Hatchlings spent, on average, 320 days inside the nest from the date eggs were laid until emergence. Some nests were carefully opened adjacent to the nest plug, one during winter and one in spring, to confirm that eggs had hatched and were not in diapause, although we could not precisely confirm hatching dates. Despite our small sample size, we observed a dichotomous overwintering strategy, with hatchlings from one nest emerging in autumn and spending their first winter in the aquatic environment, and hatchlings from three nests overwintering in the nest and emerging in spring. These findings expand the phylogenetic range of turtles exhibiting hatchling overwintering behaviour. Future research should evaluate whether this strategy is widespread among other long-necked turtles in temperate regions and examine physiological mechanisms involved in coping with winter temperatures.
“This is the cheese bought by Grandpa”
Authors: Bova Antonio
Published: October 2015

This paper aims to examine how parents use the argument from authority and its effectiveness to persuade their children to accept rules and prescriptions during mealtimes. Using the model of a critical discussion integrated with the Argumentum Model of Topics as analytical approach, a corpus of 31 arguments from authority advanced by parents were analyzed. The results of this study show that parents always refer to an adult as source of authority. This is mostly themselves (self-oriented argument), and, less frequently, a third party (other-oriented argument) such as a grandparent or a child’s teacher. In light of these results, it is reasonable to assume that for the parents the reference to themselves is a more effective argument than the reference to a third party. However, in the corpus the children are more prone to accept their parents’ argumentation when the authority is another adult and not one of their parents.
The argumentative relevance of pictorial and multimodal metaphor in advertising
Authors: Pollaroli Chiara , Rocci Andrea
Published: October 2015

In this article we present an exploratory investigation of pictorial and multimodal metaphors appearing in print product advertisements; the aim is to ascertain their relevance for the arguments that the ads put forth. Departing from the working hypotheses that advertising is an argumentative activity type employing pictorial and multimodal metaphors, and that these are often examples of visual argumentation, we analyze a small corpus of print product ads by employing the theoretical frameworks offered by Blending Theory and the Argumentum Model of Topics. This allows us to reconstruct the enthymematic structure of advertising arguments highlighting the correspondence between rhetorical tropes and argumentative loci.
Characteristics and functions of sixteen-year-old students’ collaborative deliberation when working with socioscientific inquiry assignments
Authors: Byhring Anne Kristine
Published: October 2015

In these student dialogues, deliberative aspects of argumentation in SSI inquiry are documented as different from strictly scientific argumentation. I suggest that deliberative argumentation is a complex alternation between reasoning patterns that relate to different activity layers. This understanding of deliberative argumentation emerged when analyzing students’ dialogues, developing the categories theme (theoria), inquiry (praxis) and inscribing (poeisis). Analyses are presented to account for this emerging understanding. The analyses utilize social functional linguistics (SFL), pragmatic conversation analysis, and rhetorical approaches to argumentation. What characterizes the students’ oral deliberation is an alternation between certain foci. Roberts’s (2011) use the terms theoria, praxis, and techne to characterize similar reasoning patterns in his Vision 1 and 2 of scientific literacy. I suggest that in civic deliberation all patterns of reasoning are necessary to handle SSI, whereas in strictly scientific argumentation, theoria is dominant. Such distinctions should also be considered when analyzing and developing instructional strategies.
Pine wood nematode, pine wilt disease, vector beetle and pine tree: how a multiplayer system could reply to climate change.
Authors: Roques A. , Zhao LiLin Zhao LiLin , Sun JiangHua Sun JiangHua , Robinet C.
Published: October 2015

The pine wood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, constitutes a major threat to pine forests across the world. Under climatic conditions favourable to the expression of the pine wilt disease caused by the nematode, susceptible pine trees may die within a few months following nematode inoculation. Although considered a secondary pest in its native North America, this organism has caused huge damage in areas it has invaded in south-eastern Asia and south-western Europe. The nematode is carried by local long-horned beetles in the genus Monochamus, which vector it to pine trees first during maturation feeding and then when ovipositing. As climate is an important driver of insect vectors, nematodes and disease expression, we explore in this chapter how a changing climate could affect this multiplayer system in the future. Warming up is effectively susceptible to enlarging vector distribution, to accelerating its development and possibly to enhancing its flight performances. Therefore, it could change the time window of nematode transmission and increase the spread rate of the nematode. Other factors such as humidity, wind throws and forest fires could also affect vector population dynamics. Simultaneously, climate warming is likely to increase the development rate and reproduction of the nematode, and thus the nematode population growth. Finally, the expression of pine wilt disease is also modulated by warm temperatures and water deficit, causing drought stress to pine trees. With temperature increase, areas at risk of the disease would probably extend. Actually, pine wilt disease has recently been observed to expand its range in areas of eastern Asia that were previously considered as unsuitable. Modelling the disease spread helps to assess more precisely the potential effects of climate change and to evaluate the potential economic impacts.
Improving cattle welfare: an evidence-based approach.
Authors: Lee T. L. , Thomson D. U.
Published: October 2015

Animal welfare is a growing scientific field that is constantly changing and improving. The importance of this field is becoming more evident in all production agriculture settings, including cattle and dairy production units. In 2007, Fraser defined animal welfare as a 'mandatory science', one in which science has been used to guide actions, decisions and policy. While values-based ideas are an integral part of the idea of animal welfare, science-based ideas and the scientific method must be used to assess and improve animal welfare in our production units. Animal welfare practices must advance from the laboratory to the field. In this light, animal welfare outcome measures must be defined to allow people to measure and assess animal welfare in beef and dairy production units daily. This review focuses on defining the outcome-based measures that can be used in the cattle industry to increase our understanding of animal health and well-being. This paper will give farmers, ranchers and veterinarians a framework to determine if changes in management or other husbandry practices improve or compromise cattle health or welfare.
Yangians, quantum loop algebras, and abelian difference equations
Authors: Gautam Sachin , Toledano Laredo Valerio
Published: October 2015

Let

g

\mathfrak {g}

be a complex, semisimple Lie algebra, and

Y
ℏ

(

g

)

Y_\hbar (\mathfrak {g})

and

U
q

(
L

g

)

U_q(L\mathfrak {g})

the Yangian and quantum loop algebra of

g

\mathfrak {g}

. Assuming that

ℏ
\hbar

is not a rational number and that

q
=

e

π
i
ℏ

q= e^{\pi i\hbar }

, we construct an equivalence between the finite-dimensional representations of

U
q

(
L

g

)

U_q(L\mathfrak {g})

and an explicit subcategory of those of

Y
ℏ

(

g

)

Y_\hbar (\mathfrak {g})

defined by choosing a branch of the logarithm. This equivalence is governed by the monodromy of the abelian, additive difference equations defined by the commuting fields of

Y
ℏ

(

g

)

Y_\hbar (\mathfrak {g})

. Our results are compatible with

q
q

-characters, and apply more generally to a symmetrizable Kac-Moody algebra

g

\mathfrak {g}

, in particular to affine Yangians and quantum toroïdal algebras. In this generality, they yield an equivalence between the representations of

Y
ℏ

(

g

)

Y_\hbar (\mathfrak {g})

and

U
q

(
L

g

)

U_q(L\mathfrak {g})

whose restriction to

g

\mathfrak {g}

and

U
q

g

U_q\mathfrak {g}

, respectively, are integrable and in category

O

\mathcal {O}

.
Effects of Nitrogen Rate and Harvest Moisture Content on Physicochemical Properties and Milling Yields of Rice
Authors: Grigg Brandon C. , Siebenmorgen Terry J. , Norman Richard J.
Published: October 2015

Field studies were conducted from 2011 to 2013 near Stuttgart, Arkansas. The impacts of nitrogen rate (0, 45, 90, 135, and 180 kg of N/ha) and harvest moisture content (HMC) (23, 19, and 15%, wet basis) on physicochemical properties and milling yields were determined. Trends were similar for the cultivars evaluated: Cheniere, CL XL745, and Wells. Milled rice yields were only minimally impacted by either N rate or HMC level. Increasing N rate reduced kernel length and thickness of brown rice, chalkiness of brown rice and head rice, and viscosities of head rice flour, and it increased brown rice and head rice crude protein content and head rice yield (HRY). In terms of milling yields and head rice functionality, these data suggest that N rates as low as 90 kg of N/ha could be utilized, should production recommendations be changed. Significant interactions between N rate and HMC level were infrequent and were associated with the 0 kg of N/ha rate, unrealistic for rice production. Decreasing HMC from 23 to 19% reduced kernel length and thickness and increased crude protein content and chalkiness; further decreasing HMC to 15% also increased kernel fissuring and decreased HRY.
Volatile Compounds in Crumb of Whole‐Meal Wheat Bread Fermented with Different Yeast Levels and Fermentation Temperatures
Authors: Nor Qhairul Izzreen M. N. , Petersen Mikael A. , Hansen Åse S.
Published: October 2015

The influence of fermentation temperatures (8, 16, and 32°C) and yeast levels (2, 4, and 6%) on the formation of volatile compounds in the crumb of whole‐meal wheat bread was investigated. Volatile compounds were extracted by dynamic headspace extraction and analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Results were evaluated with multivariate data analysis and ANOVA. Bread fermented at a high temperature (32°C) had higher peak areas of the Maillard reaction products 2‐furancarboxaldehyde, 2‐acetylfuran, 2‐methylpyrazine, and phenylacetaldehyde compared with bread fermented at lower fermentation temperatures. Bread fermented at low temperatures (8 and 16°C) was characterized by having higher peak areas of the fermentation products 3‐methylbutanal, 2‐methylbutanal, ethyl acetate, ethyl hexanoate, ethyl propanoate, and 3‐methylbutanol. Fermentation of bread with 6% yeast resulted in a higher peak area of the important fermentation product 2‐phenylethanol. It also reduced the peak areas of important lipid oxidation products. The peak area of 2,3‐butanedione was also relatively higher in bread fermented with 6% yeast compared with lower yeast levels; however, an interaction was seen between the high yeast level and all three fermentation temperatures. In contrast, fermentation with a low yeast level (2%) resulted in bread with relatively higher peak areas of 2‐ and 3‐methylbutanal, as well as (E)‐2‐nonenal and (E,E)‐2,4‐decadienal, which are important lipid oxidation compounds in bread.
A modified innovation model for e-trading systems in South Korean businesses
Authors: Oh Ka Young , Warren Lorraine
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore the adoption, use, and performance of e-trade systems in South Korean businesses.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors developed a modified Technology Acceptance Model extended through resourced-based view theory, to address the performance aspect, hitherto neglected in previous studies. Using the new model, 114 businesses were surveyed, measuring relationships between perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, e-system usage, and business performance. Latent mean analysis was performed to examine the moderating effects of high and low e-trading system usage.

Findings

– Through latent mean analysis, the authors determined that the influence of variables varies depending on the level of e-trading system usage. In both the high and low usage groups, perceived convenience influenced reuse of e-trading systems and reuse also had effects on business performance.

Research limitations/implications

– The authors only examined Korean enterprises, so it would be useful to also examine the foreign counterparts in international e-trade transactions. Follow-up studies could examine how the dynamics of the sector change over time. Qualitative case study approaches could better understand the perspectives of firms in relation to management strategy formulation and decision making.

Practical implications

– The results provide important insight for managers and policymakers concerned with developing electronic trading system strategies, and e-trading system contexts.

Originality/value

– Although many studies have explored relationships among perceived advantages, such as usefulness and convenience and use and performance, none have investigated the relationship between usage and business performance targeting e-trading systems.
Unleashing a decisive approach to manage quality costs through behavioural investigation
Authors: Chopra Arvind , Singh Bikram  Jit
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– Nowadays companies in the world are selling products by keeping quality as a central value for the customer. Quality-related costs arise from a series of activities performed in order to maintain the quality of product or service. Like other activities of business, quality costs can be programmed, budgeted, measured and analysed to attain the objective of better quality at lower cost. The purpose of this paper is to formulate a decisive methodology to optimize total quality cost (TQC), comprehensively.

Design/methodology/approach

– The TQC borne by any small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) is the authentic base, which decides budget and other financial policies for running its ongoing quality programmes. To minimize TQC, one has to make sufficient cut backs in the total failure cost (TFC). Through regression analysis, TFC has been statistically modelled with primary quality costs (like preventive costs (PC) and appraisal costs (AC)). Subsequent graphical analysis has been delineated to elaborate relevant behaviour of different quality costs. At last, potency of suggested methodology has been strategically verified by executing a successful case study in an Indian Auto SME. The requisite optimization has been achieved by using Minitab Statistical Software and its practical validation is checked by conducting a two-sample t-test, exclusively.

Findings

– It has been found that TFC has a direct positive correlation with TQC and it increases with time. Further, TFC is inversely proportional with PC and AC. PC and AC act as independent costs, while TFC is a dependent or secondary quality cost. If the authors strategically allocate PC and AC in advance by using statistical advanced tools, then internal failure costs and external failure costs will diminish amply.

Research limitations/implications

– It inspires practitioner to harvest profits by inculcating quality cost optimization through lodged statistical behavioural investigation. Proposed approach is verified after performing an empirical study only on an automobile manufacturing SME. Further research is indeed required to testify the given methodology for more complex process configurations.

Practical implications

– Data related to quality costs is well available with practitioners but generally lying ignored. The case findings will motivate quality practitioners to use the proposed step by step approach for sustainable reduction in overall quality cost.

Originality/value

– SMEs find it difficult to lower their TQC due to severe scarcity of resources and funds. Moreover literature provides mainly the theoretical or qualitative cases which remain ineffective to propel SMEs towards the real world savings. But this manuscript will act as a unique road-map to de-code the behaviour of different quality costs quantitatively without ignoring the existing constraints of SMEs, especially in the developing nations.
Enterprise resource planning: identifying relationships among critical success factors
Authors: Bansal Veena , Agarwal Ankit
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to establish that there are causal relationships among critical success factors (CSFs) associated with an enterprise resource planning (ERP) project. The authors prove that: H1 – Vendor (VN) is positively related to Enterprise System Selection Process (ES). H1a – Enterprise System Selection process (ES) mediates the relationship between vendor (VN) and Success (SS). H2 – Project Management (PM) is positively related to Implementation Strategy (IS). H2a – Implementation Strategy (IS) mediates the relationship between Project Management (PM) and Success (SS). H3 – Support of Top Management (TM) is positively related to Project Team Competence (PT). H3a – Project Team Competence (PT) mediates the relationship between Support of Top Management (TM) and Success (SS).

Design/methodology/approach

– To test the proposed hypotheses, the authors conducted a survey using a questionnaire. The research questionnaire was floated to 450 respondents; the authors received 168 responses. The authors had to discard 62 responses as their organization had greater than 250 employee and did not qualify to be an Indian SME. The authors were left with 106 responses. The respondents were managers (5.6 percent), consultants (39.6 percent), engineers (50 percent) and the remaining (4.8 percent) did not specify their job. The authors then do regression analysis and path analysis including all other required analysis.

Findings

– The authors found that all hypotheses are supported. The management may use these findings to understand relationships among CSFs and use this knowledge to mitigate and manage CSFs.

Originality/value

– There are no systematic studies to study relationships among CSFs. The work establishes relationships among CSFs through data collected from organizations that have implemented ERP.
Against all odds: determinants of doctoral candidates’ intention to enter academia in Germany
Authors: Hauss Kalle , Kaulisch Marc , Tesch Jakob
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to focus on doctoral students in Germany and the drivers behind their intention to enter an academic career. The aspirations of young researchers after graduating from doctoral training have become an important issue to policymakers in light of the changing nature of doctoral training.

Design/methodology/approach

– Borrowing from Ajzen’s Theory of Planned Behavior, we investigate how attitudes towards a career in academia, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control determine graduates’ intentions to pursue an academic career. We extend the model of Ajzen by measurements of research and training conditions in order to estimate the impact of organizational settings. We analyze a sample of 5,770 doctoral candidates from eight universities and three funding organizations.

Findings

– We find that apart from attitudes towards careers, academic career intentions are related to research and training conditions at the organizational level. Further, we find that large differences within the field of study and affiliation to a university or funding organization provide substantial explanations.

Originality/value

– This paper explores doctoral candidates’ academic career intentions which are an important precondition for the propagation of academic staff. For developers and practitioners in the field of doctoral training, our results yield a good understanding of the relationship between organizational settings at the level of doctoral training and career intentions.
The investigation of consumer motivations to patronize boutique hotels using push-pull theory: a case study in Xiamen, China
Authors: Wang Tao , Luo Yi , Tang Liang Rebecca
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate consumer motivations to boutique hotels in Xiamen, China with the push-pull theory.

Design/methodology/approach

– The survey for this study was conducted in boutique hotels in Xiamen, China.

Findings

– The results indicated identified “uniqueness-seeking,” “interpersonal experience,” and “social networking” as the primary push motivations and “decoration
&
theme” and “site value” as the primary pull motivations.

Originality/value

– The study is anticipated to provide the industry practitioners in boutique hotels marketing strategies such as positioning, packaging, and advertising.
Commodity exports to China and economic growth
Authors: Taivan Ariuna , Nene Gibson , Boubacar Inoussa
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this study is to empirically examine the effect of commodity exports from Africa to China on the growth rate of per capita gross domestic product (GDP) after controlling for variables that have been found to be important determinants of economic growth. This study uses a panel of 23 African countries for the period of 2001-2011.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors make use of a Barro-type empirical economic growth model which uses per capita GDP as the dependent variable. With regard to independent variables, the authors examine the China effect after controlling for variables that have been found to affect economic growth. To account for the China effect, we use the following three measures of trade with China: commodity export to China, commodity export to China relative to total export and commodity export to China relative to the world. The authors use panel data from 2001 to 2011.

Findings

– Results indicate that the magnitudes of the effect, while statistically significant, are not large enough to induce positive growth rates. The results also indicate that the magnitudes of the effects depend on the colonial origin of the African countries.

Research limitations/implications

– The data are limited to the 2001-2011 time frame because of data availability issues. This time frame does capture the era when China increased its trade with Africa. The choices of variables were also affected by data availability. However, the authors managed to find data on the main drivers of economic growth. Further research is needed to gain a more comprehensive analysis of the effects of commodity trade with China on Africa’s economy, given the partial character of the data set used in this study. Similarly, there is also a need for more detailed information on China’s trade activities.

Practical implications

– While the results of this study show an improvement in the per capita growth rate, the changes are not large enough to put African countries on a path to a sustained prosperity. African governments which trade with China should consider investing more in manufacturing, so that they create more jobs locally and benefit more from their exports.

Social implications

– The China–Africa relationship shows a small positive impact on societal well-being.

Originality/value

– To the best of the authors’ knowledge, none of the existing studies on China–Africa relations attempted to understand the impact of China’s economic activity on the standards of living of African residents, where standard of living is measured by economic growth. The current study aims to bridge this gap. This study complements existing studies and uses a data set and methodology that has not been used before on this issue.
Lean talent acquisition: one team’s journey of improvement
Authors: Van Duren Eric , D'Amico Jim , Knoth Kurt
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– This paper aims to describe how lean performance improvement principles helped transform an integrated healthcare system’s talent acquisition team to best in class.

Design/methodology/approach

– Spectrum Health’s talent acquisition team is needed to change its functional processes to better achieve its recruitment goals. In 2013, the system’s talent acquisition and process improvement teams partnered to conduct a value stream analysis, followed by five rapid improvement events and project work. Structural and institutional changes were defined and implemented. Significant cultural change toward a philosophy of continuous improvement was accomplished through the use of managing for daily improvement huddles and other efforts. The focus throughout was on lean thinking, change management and achieving meaningful results.

Findings

– After the lean process implementation, time to fill for open positions was reduced by 10 per cent. The offer acceptance rate increased from 96 to 99.6 per cent, with fewer than 25 turndowns annually. Customer and candidate satisfaction has been maintained at above 90 per cent and operating in a culture of continuous improvement has spawned several additional benefits.

Originality/value

– Lean principles applied within human resources functions can drive significant business results.
Keys to optimising workforce resources across the enterprise
Authors: Sambartolo Marcello
Published: October 2015

Purpose

– Optimising workforce resources has become increasingly complex, particularly for large enterprises and those operating in multiple locations or countries. To be successful, human resource (HR) and the organisation’s line managers need to be strategic and nimble – able to quickly and decisively respond to any number of complex factors at a moment’s notice. These factors include internal considerations, such as employee qualifications and availability, as well as external dynamics, such as supply chain changes and expanding labour compliance regulations. Failure to respond quickly can prevent organisations from being able to reach optimal productivity and performance goals.

Design/methodology/approach

– Organisations seeking to achieve complete visibility should look first to the three pillars of an effective workforce management strategy – demand, utilisation and measurement – to better understand how they can be optimised to increase agility, improve customer service and reduce labour costs.

Findings

– Organisations that incorporate all three of these pillars – demand, utilisation and measurement – into their ongoing workforce management strategy will see the greatest impact in terms of increasing productivity and efficiency, as well as identifying new best practices that can be applied across the enterprise. Investing in solutions and practices that support workforce optimisation can also deliver greater agility, improved customer service and lower total costs.

Originality/value

– The ability to manage change effectively, whether it stems from external or internal factors, is critical to creating a sustainable, resilient organisation. Particularly because your workforce is likely the greatest asset and contributor to your overall success, equipping HR and managers with the right tools and data to increase effectiveness is essential to helping your organisation meet customer expectations, respond to change quickly and effectively and drive measurable gains in business performance.
The improvement of exercise performance by physical training is related to increased hypothalamic neuronal activation
Authors: Santiago Henrique P , Leite Laura HR , Lima Paulo Marcelo A , Rodovalho Gisele V , Szawka Raphael E , Coimbra Cândido C
Published: October 2015

The effects of physical training on hypothalamic activation after exercise and their relationship with heat dissipation were investigated. Following 8 weeks of physical training, trained (TR, n = 9) and untrained (UN, n = 8) Wistar rats were submitted to a regimen of incremental running until fatigue while body and tail temperatures were recorded. After exercise, hypothalamic c‐Fos immunohistochemistry analysis was performed. The workload, body‐heating rate, heat storage and body temperature threshold for cutaneous vasodilation were calculated. Physical training increased the number of c‐Fos immunoreactive neurons in the paraventricular, medial preoptic and median preoptic nucleus by 112%, 90% and 65% (P < 0.01) after exercise, respectively. In these hypothalamic regions, increased neuronal activation was directly associated with the increased workload performed by TR animals (P < 0.01). Moreover, a reduction of 0.6°C in the body temperature threshold for cutaneous vasodilation was shown by TR animals (P < 0.01). This reduction was possibly responsible for the lower body‐heating rate (0.019 ± 0.002°C/min, TR vs 0.030 ± 0.005°C/min, UN, P < 0.05) and the decreased ratio between heat storage and the workload performed by TR animals (18.18 ± 1.65 cal/kg, TR vs 31.38 ± 5.35 cal/kg, UN, P < 0.05). The data indicate that physical training enhances hypothalamic neuronal activation during exercise. This enhancement is the central adaptation relating to better physical performance, characterized by a lower ratio of heat stored to workload performed, due to improved heat dissipation.
Government survival in semi‐presidential regimes
Authors: FERNANDES JORGE M. , MAGALHÃES PEDRO C.
Published: October 2015

As semi‐presidentialism has become increasingly common in European democracies, so have the debates about the consequences of several of its political and institutional features. In particular, in those regimes, cohabitation between presidents and cabinets of different parties and cabinet dismissal powers on the part of presidents are thought to be a source of inter‐branch conflict and government instability. However, so far, most empirical work on government survival has failed to confirm any of these expectations. This article addresses this disjuncture between theory and empirical results by making a twofold contribution. First, it takes into account the internal diversity within semi‐presidentialism, modeling the implications for government survival of different configurations between presidential powers’ of cabinet dismissal, parliament dissolution and cohabitation in European semi‐presidential systems. Second, it reconsiders traditional government survival using the competing risks framework by adding a distinction between two different types of non‐electoral replacement: those where replacements imply a change in the party of the prime minister and those where they do not. Once such an approach is adopted, that presidential powers of parliamentary dissolution and cabinet dismissal indeed emerge as highly relevant for explaining government survival in these regimes.
Factors associated with suicide completion: A comparison between suicide attempters and completers
Authors: Joo Soo‐Hyun , Wang Sheng‐Min , Kim Tae‐Won , Seo Ho‐Jun , Jeong Jong‐Hyun , Han Jin‐Hee , Hong Seung‐Chul
Published: October 2015

Introduction

The objective of this study was to compare the sociodemographic and clinical variables of suicide attempters and completers and to identify risk and protective factors for suicide completion.

Methods

Subjects (n = 320) visiting to the emergency room were classified into two groups: suicide attempters (n = 222) and suicide completers (n = 98). Univariate analyses and logistic regression models were used to explore the differences between suicide attempters and completers and to identify risk factors for suicide completion.

Results

The results showed that compared with suicide attempters, suicide completers were older, male, having alcohol use disorders, having comorbid health problems, having severe suicide ideation, and using severe suicide methods such as hanging and jumping from a height. Using multiple logistic regression model, risk factors predicting suicide completion were comorbid medical illness, and intense suicide ideation. Factor that served as protective factors against suicide completion was female.

Discussion

This study demonstrated that suicide completers have more severe clinical profile than suicide attempters. Decreasing intensity of suicide ideation and treating comorbid medical illness of suicide attempters might be important in preventing them from suicide completion. It is important that the implementation of suicide preventive programs focused on alcoholism is useful in decreasing suicide rates further. Moreover, suicide completers used highly lethal methods, our results indicate that our country should make greater efforts to decrease hanging and jumping from a height.
Automatic T2* determination for quantification of iron load in heart and liver: a comparison between automatic inline Maximum Likelihood Estimate and the truncation and offset methods
Authors: Hedström Erik , Voigt Tobias , Greil Gerald , Schaeffter Tobias , Nagel Eike
Published: October 2015

Purpose

To validate ironload T2* by automatic inline Maximum Likelihood Estimate (MLE) with k‐space Rician noise correction, against the manual and automated truncation, as well as offset methods, in phantoms and in heart and liver in patients.

Methods

Twenty‐five patients and an iron‐oxide phantom were scanned at 1.5T using 2 multi‐echo gradient‐echo sequences. All parameters were identical (voxel 2–3 × 2–3 × 10 mm3, 10 echoes, TR = 26 ms, FA = 20°, BW = 833 Hz, SENSE = 2) except for TE (cardiac: TE1 = 2·5 ms, ΔTE = 2·5 ms; liver: TE1 = 1·2 ms, ΔTE = 1·5 ms). Phantoms were scanned at 1 and 32 signal averages (NSA), with NSA32 representing low‐noise reference.

Results

Phantoms: MLE showed low variability between NSA1 and NSA32 (0·02 ± 0·29 ms, CI ±0·21 ms). Between methods, no difference was shown (MLE versus all: <0·31 ms, CI < ±0·35 ms). Patients: No differences were found between methods in heart (MLE versus all: <−0·22 ms, CI < ±0·75 ms) or liver (MLE versus all: <0·12 ms, CI < ±0·26 ms).

Conclusions

The automatic inline MLE method is comparable to the general reference standards for determining cardiac and liver T2* for ironload in man. An automatic inline method may simplify ironload assessment, particularly in centres seeing fewer cases.
Sam68 regulates cell proliferation and cell adhesion‐mediated drug resistance (CAM‐DR) via the AKT pathway in non‐Hodgkin's lymphoma
Authors: Wu Yaxun , Xu Xiaohong , Miao Xiaobing , Zhu Xinghua , Yin Haibing , He Yunhua , Li Chunsun , Liu Yushan , Chen Yali , Lu Xiaoyun , Wang Yuchan , He Song
Published: October 2015

Objectives

Sam68 (Src‐associated in mitosis 68 kDa), a substrate for tyrosine kinase c‐Src during mitosis, is up‐regulated in a variety of human cancers and acts oncogenically promoting tumour progression. This study has explored biological function and clinical significance of Sam68 in non‐Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL).

Materials and methods

To examine Sam68 expression in NHL, clinically, eight diffuse large B‐cell lymphomas and four reactive lymphoid hyperplasia fresh‐frozen tissues were obtained for western blot and quantitative real‐time PCR analyses. Using immunohistochemical staining, paraffin wax embedded sections from 164 cases of NHL patients were used to evaluate prognostic value of Sam68. Cell Counting Kit‐8 (CCK‐8) and soft agar colony assays were conducted to investigate the role of Sam68 in cell viability and cell proliferation respectively. Furthermore, effects of Sam68 on cell adhesion‐mediated drug resistance (CAM‐DR) was determined by CCK‐8 assay and flow cytometric analysis.

Results

Expression status of Sam68 inversely correlated with clinical outcomes of patients with NHL, and it was also an independent prognostic factor for the outcomes. In addition, Sam68 was associated with proliferation of NHL cells. Knock‐down of its gene inhibited cell proliferation and colony formation by delaying cell cycle progression. Furthermore, OCI‐Ly8 and Jeko‐1 cells adhering to FN and HS‐5 expressed higher Sam68 protein, compared to their suspension counterparts. Sam68 promoted cell adhesion‐mediated drug resistance (CAM‐DR) via the AKT pathway.

Conclusions

Increased Sam68 expression in NHL resulted in poor prognosis, and it promoted CAM‐DR in NHL via AKT.
Transient generalized glucocorticoid hypersensitivity
Authors: Nicolaides Nicolas C. , Lamprokostopoulou Agaristi , Polyzos Alexandros , Kino Tomoshige , Katsantoni Eleni , Triantafyllou Panagiota , Christophoridis Athanasios , Katzos George , Dracopoulou Maria , Sertedaki Amalia , Chrousos George P. , Charmandari Evangelia
Published: October 2015

Background

Transient generalized glucocorticoid hypersensitivity is a rare disorder characterized by increased tissue sensitivity to glucocorticoids and compensatory hypo‐activation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis. The condition itself and the underlying molecular mechanisms have not been elucidated.

Objective

To present the clinical manifestations, endocrinologic evaluation and transcriptomic profile in a patient with transient generalized glucocorticoid hypersensitivity.

Design and Results

A 9‐year‐old girl presented with an 8‐month history of clinical manifestations suggestive of Cushing syndrome. Endocrinologic evaluation revealed undetectable 08:00 h ACTH (<1 pg/mL) and cortisol (0·025 μg/dL) concentrations, which remained decreased throughout the 24‐h period and did not respond to stimulation with ovine CRH. The disease gradually resolved spontaneously over the ensuing 3 months. Sequencing of the human glucocorticoid receptor gene revealed no mutations or polymorphisms. Western blot analysis in peripheral blood mononuclear cells revealed equal protein expression of hGRα of the patient in the disease and postresolution phases compared with a control subject. Transcriptomic analysis in peripheral blood mononuclear cells in the disease and postresolution phases identified 903 differentially expressed genes. Of these, 106 genes were up‐regulated and 797 were down‐regulated in the disease compared with the resolution phase. Bioinformatics analysis on the differentially expressed gene networks revealed Nuclear Factor‐κB as the predominant transcription factor influencing the expression of the majority of differentially expressed genes.

Conclusions

Our findings indicate that a transient postreceptor defect, or a virus‐ or bacterium‐encoded molecule, may have enhanced glucocorticoid signal transduction, leading to transient generalized glucocorticoid hypersensitivity and hypo‐activation of the HPA axis.
Assessing upstream invasion risk in alien freshwater fishes based on intrinsic variations in swimming speed performance
Authors: Starrs Tyrie , Starrs Danswell , Lintermans Mark , Fulton Christopher J.
Published: October 2015

Managing the spread and impact of invasive species requires an understanding of what limits their dispersal into new areas. Here, we investigated an intrinsic component of invasive species dispersal, via assessments of the swimming speed performance of four species of alien freshwater fish at risk of invading the upper reaches of a montane river system in south‐east Australia. Using water flow measurements taken from a range of potential barriers to their upstream dispersal (fishways, culverts, natural riffle habitats), we assessed the likelihood of alien species passage based on intrinsic differences in swimming speed performance. With the four alien fish species displaying a wide range of sprint swimming speed (Usprint) capabilities, our logistic regression analysis identified pipe culverts as being a challenge to dispersal by all but the largest individuals of one species (Rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss). Notably, fishway installations facilitating passage of the sympatric threatened species, Macquarie perch (Macquaria australasica), could allow upstream dispersal of a key threatening species (European perch, Perca fluviatilis). Our study highlights the utility of locomotor capabilities for assessing the likelihood of upstream dispersal by species following human‐assisted introductions to the lower parts of a catchment.
Monitoring of physical health in services for young people at ultra‐high risk of psychosis
Authors: Carney Rebekah , Bradshaw Tim , Yung Alison R.
Published: October 2015

Aim

People with schizophrenia have poor physical health and high rates of premature mortality. Risk factors for later cardiovascular disease are present from an early stage, and recording of these factors is recommended in first‐episode services. However, it is unclear whether cardiometabolic risk factors are monitored prior to first‐episode psychosis.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was conducted on case notes of individuals accepted into a specialized early detection service for young people at ultra‐high risk for psychosis. Notes were assessed to determine whether the following physical health measures were recorded: height, weight, body mass index, blood pressure, blood glucose and lipids, physical activity levels, smoking status, substance use and alcohol intake.

Results

Forty individuals were deemed at ultra‐high risk for psychosis and accepted into the service. The two measures reported most frequently were whether a person used substances (82.5%) or alcohol (72.5%), but more specific details were not commonly reported. A minority of case files contained information on height (2.5%), weight (7.5%), body mass index (5%), blood glucose (2.5%), smoking status (15%) and physical activity (7.5%). Six case files had no measure of physical health.

Conclusions

Physical health and unhealthy lifestyle factors were not assessed routinely in the specialized service. Clear monitoring guidelines should be developed to establish routine assessment of common metabolic risk factors present in this population.
Fixation of a complete scapular neck fracture in a foal using two 3.5 mm locking compression plates
Authors: Kamm J. L. , Quinn G. , van Zwanenberg D.
Published: October 2015

This report describes the successful surgical repair of a transverse, displaced scapula fracture in a foal. A 3.5 mm locking compression plate (LCP) was used on either side of the spine of the scapula. The suprascapular nerve was apparent upon dissection as it passed directly over the fracture line and care was taken to leave it intact, although the fracture line itself caused some irritation. The foal recovered without long‐term nerve damage and is sound at 1.5 years post surgery.
Fission yeast meets a legend in Kobe: report of the Eighth International Fission Yeast Meeting
Authors: Asakawa Haruhiko , Yamamoto Takaharu G. , Hiraoka Yasushi
Published: October 2015

The Eighth International Fission Yeast Meeting, which was held at Ikuta Shrine Hall in Kobe, Japan, from 21 to 26 June 2015, was attended by 327 fission yeast researchers from 25 countries (190 overseas and 137 domestic participants). At this meeting, 124 talks were held and 145 posters were presented. In addition, newly developed database tools were introduced to the community during a workshop. Researchers shared cutting‐edge knowledge across broad fields of study, ranging from molecules to evolution, derived from the superior model organism commonly used within the fission yeast community. Intensive discussions and constructive suggestions generated in this meeting will surely advance the understanding of complex biological systems in fission yeast, extending to general eukaryotes.