bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Activating Transcription Factor 3 Expression as a Marker of Response to the Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor Pracinostat
Authors: Sooraj Dhanya , Xu Dakang , Cain Jason E. , Gold Daniel P. , Williams Bryan R.G.
Published: April 2016

Improved treatment strategies are required for bladder cancer due to frequent recurrence of low-grade tumors and poor survival rate from high-grade tumors with current therapies. Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi), approved as single agents for specific lymphomas, have shown promising preclinical results in solid tumors but could benefit from identification of biomarkers for response. Loss of activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3) expression is a feature of bladder tumor progression and correlates with poor survival. We investigated the utility of measuring ATF3 expression as a marker of response to the HDACi pracinostat in bladder cancer models. Pracinostat treatment of bladder cancer cell lines reactivated the expression of ATF3, correlating with significant alteration in proliferative, migratory, and anchorage-dependent growth capacities. Pracinostat also induced growth arrest at the G0–G1 cell-cycle phase, coincident with the activation of tumor suppressor genes. In mouse xenograft bladder cancer models, pracinostat treatment significantly reduced tumor volumes compared with controls, accompanied by reexpression of ATF3 in nonproliferating cells from early to late stage of therapy and in parallel induced antiangiogenesis and apoptosis. Importantly, cells in which ATF3 expression was depleted were less sensitive to pracinostat treatment in vitro, exhibiting significantly higher proliferative and migratory properties. In vivo, control xenograft tumors were significantly more responsive to treatment than ATF3 knockdown xenografts. Thus, reactivation of ATF3 is an important factor in determining sensitivity to pracinostat treatment, both in vitro and in vivo, and could serve as a potential biomarker of response and provide a rationale for therapeutic utility in HDACi-mediated treatments for bladder cancer. Mol Cancer Ther; 15(7); 1726–39. ©2016 AACR.
O Instituto Pombas Urbanas e o Centro Cultural Arte em Construção na Cidade Tiradentes
Authors: Serezuella Karine Cristina
Published: April 2016

Observa o projeto cultural Centro Cultural “Arte em Construção” a fim de levantar como age, em situação de subalternidade, a comunidade Cidades Tiradentes com a entrada de capital simbólico. A pesquisa se desenvolve por meio do método dialético. Para a coleta dos dados, utilizam-se entrevistas semiestruturadas e observação participante. Aponta como levantamentos: a) fortalecimento dos laços internos; b) apropriação do espaço Centro Cultural pela comunidade; c) novas perspectivas e oportunidades aos jovens e crianças participantes do projeto. Nota-se por fim, uma resignificação do projeto por parte da Cidade Tiradentes.
A Humanização da Casa e do Indivíduo: Projeto "Paredes-Pinturas"
Authors: Freitas Valéria Da Silva
Published: April 2016

Inserido no contexto do cotidiano, a proposta deste estudo é compreender as novas percepções e os novos sentidos construídos pelos moradores ao verem suas casas pintadas, após a intervenção do Projeto PAREDES-PINTURAS. De caráter exploratório e qualitativo, este estudo tem como unidade de análise o vídeo “PAREDES-PINTURAS em Santo André”. Quanto ao método de análise se dará pela análise do conteúdo tendo como foco as falas dos moradores. Após análise, o estudo mostrou que o projeto PAREDES-PINTURAS propondo-se como um espaço de expressão artístico-cultural, provocou não somente a mudança estética das casas e do bairro, mas promoveu a transformação interna do indivíduo - ser humano e cidadão.
Development of 23 microsatellite loci for Boulenger’s agama (Agama boulengeri) with partial cross-amplification in other Agama species
Authors: Gonçalves Duarte Vasconcelos , Pereira Paulo , Godinho Raquel , Lopes Susana , Velo-Antón Guillermo , Brito José Carlos
Published: April 2016

Patterns of biodiversity and evolutionary processes controlling them are still poorly studied in desert biomes. Fine-scale markers could help answer some of the pressing research questions for desert biomes and Sahara in particular. Such markers are available for some large mammals and crocodiles, but not for small vertebrates. Here we present a battery of microsatellite loci developed for Agama boulengeri, a promising model to study evolutionary and demographic processes in the Sahara-Sahel. Loci were selected by sequencing enriched DNA libraries with 454 pyrosequencing. A total of 23 polymorphic loci were successfully amplified in four multiplex reactions. Cross-amplification of the microsatellite loci in A. agama and A. boueti was partially successful. These markers are a promising tool for assessing genetic diversity, gene-flow dynamics and demographic patterns in this group. Given the genus Agama is distributed throughout Africa, results presented here might also facilitate studies in other regions.
Archaeological evidence for the introduction of Emys orbicularis (Testudines: Emydidae) in the Balearic Islands, Western Mediterranean
Authors: Valenzuela Alejandro , Cau Miguel Ángel , Alcover Josep Antoni
Published: April 2016

Among the different anthropogenic processes that affected the current distribution of the European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis), the timing of the human-mediated translocations is rarely known. Here we present data derived from an archaeological specimen ofE. orbicularisobtained at the Roman site of Pollentia (Mallorca, Balearic Islands) using direct radiocarbon dating. These remains correspond to the early Roman period and represent the first reliable evidence for the ancient introduction of this turtle species in a Western Mediterranean Island.
eu Policy and Law Regarding Railways and the Environment
Authors: Krämer Ludwig
Published: April 2016

For decades, railway issues were considered, in Europe, as being almost entirely in the responsibility of the Member States. This history is even reflected in the present eu approach on railway issues which has, as one of its political priorities, the objective to ensure the interoperability of national legal and technical standards all over the eu. The development of trans-European transport networks, the upcoming of high-speed transboundary trains and the internationalisation of railway freight transport which are of relative recent date, all contribute to the greater awareness of railway impacts on the environment. Policies can no longer promote railways with the argument that rail is the most environment-friendly means of transport, but are more and more obliged to take into consideration, during the planning and operation of railways, local, provincial and regional environmental concerns.

The contribution passes in review the most relevant environmental concerns with regard to railways. After a short description of the regulatory frame, the different environmental aspects of railways – land use, nature conservation, noise, water, air pollution, and waste management – are discussed. Some concluding remarks follow.
In Search of “Religion Proper”
Authors: Hansen Ian Grant , Ryder Andrew
Published: April 2016

In two cross-cultural studies, we examined the relationship between intrinsic religiosity (IR; inwardly held religious devotion), coalitional rigidity (CR; a rigid adherence to the superiority of the norms and beliefs of one’s own group), and intergroup hostility (IH; morally impugning or wishing persecution on members of other groups). For Study 1, we analyzed a number of single-item interview questions in a data set collected from 10,068 people in 10 nations. For Study 2, we conducted our own surveys in two multicultural samples: Vancouver, Canada, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In all 18 religious subsamples from both studies, there were null or negative independent relationships between IR and some form of IH, and null or positive independent relationships between CR and such hostility. The results suggest that this pattern of prediction, which has previously been found in North American Christian samples, generalizes cross-culturally.
Disputatious Rhetoric and Political Change: The Case of the Greek Anti-Mining Movement
Authors: Hatzisavvidou Sophia
Published: April 2016

Rhetorical scholarship has significantly contributed to our understanding of the role of confrontation in engendering social and political change, but it traditionally over-emphasises its moral aspect, which results in the simplification of public issues and the radicalisation of identities. This article introduces a distinct form of political rhetoric and analyses the rhetorical conventions that constitute it. Drawing material from the anti-mining movement formed in the region of Halkidiki, Greece, the article proposes that disputatious rhetoric, through employing the techniques of parrēsia, melodrama and antithesis, proves pertinent to the articulation of dissent, the formation of collective subjects, and the projection of a counter-hegemonic discourse which challenges dominant neoliberal practices and discourses. Disputatious rhetoric, the article concludes, encodes the possibility of social and political change, not least because it impacts on the meaning attributed to actions and prevents the solidification of a single narrative or discourse as commonsensical.
Touring the immoral. Affective geographies of visitors to the Amsterdam Red-Light district
Authors: Chapuis Amandine
Published: April 2016

The Amsterdam Red-Light district is a globalised mass-entertainment place for sex consumption. But the visitors touring the Red-Light district are far more diverse than sex tourists: men, women, gay, straight, stag or cultural tourists tour this place to feel the thrill of desire and disgust. The paper documents this process of commodification by these visitors, engaging with their lived experiences through ethnographic research and in-depth interviews. The paper shows the diversity of the consumption practices and representations of the spectacle of commodified sex, explaining how the emotions experienced by those touring the sex district draw on intersectional belongings (gender, sexuality, class, ethnicity). Intertwining affective and moral geographies, it concludes by arguing that the symbolic consumption of the Red-Light district cannot necessarily be predicted by virtue of standard categories of belonging, with identity formation and the consumption of sex being shaped by a complex dynamic of looks and gazes.
The Golden Age of Technical Communication
Authors: Kimball Miles A.
Published: April 2016

This article uses a historical perspective to describe the development of the profession of technical communication through three ages: Brass, Beige, and Glass. I compare this development to the growth of the academic discipline and both to the explosion of noninstitutional technical communication—the growing body of tactical technical communication that happens outside of organizations and institutions. This leads me to describe today as the Golden Age of technical communication. I conclude that we should broaden the scope of technical communication and spread it as a set of skills valuable for everyone to learn.
The Graphical Structure of Respondent-driven Sampling
Authors: Crawford Forrest W.
Published: April 2016

Respondent-driven sampling (RDS) is a chain-referral method for sampling members of hidden or hard-to-reach populations, such as sex workers, homeless people, or drug users, via their social networks. Most methodological work on RDS has focused on inference of population means under the assumption that subjects’ network degree determines their probability of being sampled. Criticism of existing estimators is usually focused on missing data: the underlying network is only partially observed, so it is difficult to determine correct sampling probabilities. In this article, the author shows that data collected in ordinary RDS studies contain information about the structure of the respondents’ social network. The author constructs a continuous-time model of RDS recruitment that incorporates the time series of recruitment events, the pattern of coupon use, and the network degrees of sampled subjects. Together, the observed data and the recruitment model place a well-defined probability distribution on the recruitment-induced subgraph of respondents. The author shows that this distribution can be interpreted as an exponential random graph model and develops a computationally efficient method for estimating the hidden graph. The author validates the method using simulated data and applies the technique to an RDS study of injection drug users in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Current predictive control of three-phase voltage source PWM rectifiers under unbalanced grid voltage conditions
Authors: Wang Meng , Shi Yanyan , Qi Zhen , Shen Minghui
Published: April 2016

To improve the performance of three-phase voltage source pulse-width modulated (PWM) rectifiers (VSR) under unbalanced grid voltage conditions, a fixed-frequency current predictive control (CPC) strategy is presented. Instantaneous power of the three-phase VSR is analysed in a two-phase stationary frame. The calculation method for the reference current is improved to achieve the power stability at the AC side of the rectifier. Based on the current predictive model, the optimal duration of the voltage vectors is computed under the restricted condition of minimizing current error at α- and β-axes in fixed intervals. The control system is free of synchronous rotation coordinate transformation, and avoids positive and negative sequence decomposition, which simplifies the calculation. The simulation and experimental results show that the proposed control strategy is able to eliminate the AC current distortion effectively and depress DC link voltage fluctuation under unbalanced grid voltage. Furthermore, the control strategy has faster dynamic response ability, enhancing the control performance of the three-phase VSR system.
Rheolytic thrombectomy in patient with acute pulmonary embolism, heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and recent stoke. When percutaneous treatment is the only therapeutic alternative
Authors: Zuin Marco , Rigatelli Gianluca , Roncon Loris
Published: April 2016

To report the combined use of rheolytic thrombectomy (RT) and inferior vena cava (IVC) filter placement in the setting of acute pulmonary embolism (PE), heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) type II (HIT-II) and recent ischemic stroke. A 66-year-old man with an HIT-II and recent ischemic stroke was referred to our institution from a secondary regional center for acute PE and left deep vein thrombosis (DVT), confirmed at chest computed tomography (CT) and lower limb ultrasound, respectively. RT was attempted because intravenous heparin anticoagulation was contraindicated by the patient’s medical history while recent ischemic stroke contraindicated thrombolysis. An Angiojet® catheter was used to perform RT. An IVC filter was placed after the procedure. The patient was discharged after 13 days and did very well, both at the 6- and 12-month follow-ups, with no recurrence of the venous thromboembolism. This case demonstrates the usefulness of RT in treating acute PE in clinically difficult scenarios, especially when thrombolytic therapy is contraindicated.
Examining the Role of Supportive Family Connection in Violence Exposure Among Male Youth in Urban Environments
Authors: Culyba Alison J. , Ginsburg Kenneth R. , Fein Joel A. , Branas Charles C. , Richmond Therese S. , Miller Elizabeth , Wiebe Douglas J.
Published: April 2016

Family connection has demonstrated protective effects on violence perpetration, victimization, and witnessing in the general U.S. adolescent population. However, several studies examining the impact of family connection on violence exposure in adolescents living in low-resource urban environments have failed to demonstrate similar protective effects. We interviewed male youth in low-resource neighborhoods in Philadelphia recruited through household random sampling. Adjusted logistic regression was used to test whether a supportive relationship with an adult family member was inversely associated with violence involvement and violence witnessing. In 283 youth participants aged 10 to 24 years, 33% reported high violence involvement, 30% reported high violence witnessing, and 17% reported both. Youth who identified at least one supportive adult family member were significantly less likely to report violence involvement (odds ratio [OR] = 0.35; 95% confidence interval [CI] = [0.18, 0.69]) and violence witnessing (OR = 0.46; 95% CI = [0.24, 0.88]). Youth with two supportive parents, and those with supportive mothers only, also demonstrated significant inverse associations with violence involvement. Supportive parental relationships were inversely but not significantly related to witnessing violence. The findings suggest that supportive parental relationships may not prevent youth in low-resource neighborhoods from witnessing violence but may help prevent direct violence involvement. Next studies should be designed such that the mechanisms that confer protection can be identified, and should identify opportunities to bolster family connection that may reduce adolescent violence involvement among youth in low-resource urban environments.
Comparison of Amphotericin B Bladder Irrigations Versus Fluconazole for the Treatment of Candiduria in Intensive Care Unit Patients
Authors: Sullivan Kelly A. , Caylor Meghan M. , Lin Feng-Chang , Campbell-Bright Stacy
Published: April 2016

Background:

Funguria occurs often in hospitalized patients and is most commonly caused by Candida species. Fluconazole is the agent of choice for most Candida urinary tract infections. Amphotericin B bladder irrigations (ABBI) are an alternative treatment option.

Objective:

The purpose of this study is to assess the efficacy of ABBI compared to fluconazole for the treatment of candiduria in the intensive care unit (ICU) setting.

Methods:

We conducted a retrospective chart review of patients admitted to ICUs at our institution with a positive urine culture for Candida species between 2005 and 2012. All patients receiving ABBI were included; patients receiving fluconazole for treatment of candiduria were matched by year. The primary endpoint was achievement of cure.

Results:

There was no difference in cure between the ABBI and fluconazole groups (59.6% vs. 52.8%, p = 0.55). Clearance was higher in patients receiving ABBI (92.3% vs. 67.9%, p < 0.001). Logistic regression found that renal dysfunction predicted greater cure with ABBI therapy compared to fluconazole (OR 7.63, 95% CI 1.81-32.1).

Conclusion:

ABBI was equally efficacious in achieving overall cure, and resulted in greater clearance of candiduria compared to fluconazole. ABBI may be considered an alternative to fluconazole for the treatment of candiduria and may be preferred over fluconazole in patients with renal dysfunction.
Response to ‘Word choice as political speech’: Hydraulic fracturing is a partisan issue
Authors: Hopke Jill E. , Simis Molly
Published: April 2016

In 2015, Hopke & Simis published an analysis of social media discourse around hydraulic fracturing. Grubert (2016) offered a commentary on the research, highlighting the politicization of terminology used in the discourse on this topic. The present article is a response to Grubert (2016)’s commentary, in which we elaborate on the distinctions between terminology used in social media discourse around hydraulic fracturing (namely, ‘frack,’ ‘fracking,’ ‘frac,’ and ‘fracing’). Additionally preliminary analysis supports the claim that industry-preferred terminology is severely limited in its reach. When industry actors opt-out of the discourse, the conversation followed by the majority of lay audiences is dominated by activists. exacerbating the political schism on the issue.
Constructing (un-)certainty: An exploration of journalistic decision-making in the reporting of neuroscience
Authors: Lehmkuhl Markus , Peters Hans Peter
Published: April 2016

Based on 21 individual case studies, this article inventories the ways journalism deals with scientific uncertainty. The study identifies the decisions that impact a journalist’s perception of a truth claim as unambiguous or ambiguous and the strategies to deal with uncertainty that arise from this perception. Key for understanding journalistic action is the outcome of three evaluations: What is the story about? How shall the story be told? What type of story is it? We reconstructed the strategies to overcome journalistic decision-making uncertainty in those cases in which they perceived scientific contingency as a problem. Journalism deals with uncertainty by way of omission, by contrasting the conflicting messages or by acknowledging the problem via the structure or language. One finding deserves particular mention: The lack of focus on scientific uncertainty is not only a problem of how journalists perceive and communicate but also a problem of how science communicates.
Double-entry bookkeeping and the manuscripts dictated in the Lisbon School of Commerce
Authors: Rodrigues Lúcia Lima , Carqueja Hernâni O. , Ferreira Leonor Fernandes
Published: April 2016

The Lisbon School of Commerce, established in 1759, was important in the diffusion of knowledge about accounting in Portugal and the Portuguese Empire. Although scholarly literature has canvassed the reasons for the school’s creation, and has profiled its first two teachers, little is known about the manuscripts that were dictated in classes, or the early textbooks used. This paper fills this void by exploring three manuscripts used in the Lisbon School of Commerce that are indexed at the National Library of Portugal and the University of Coimbra Library. Two important insights emerge. We show how Souza and Sales used the technical and the rhetorical dimension of accounting to diffuse new accounting practices; and we reveal why manuscripts were dictated and why they were used in the classroom. In doing so, we explore how double entry bookkeeping (DEB) was taught and we highlight how Souza and Sales helped to diffuse DEB knowledge in Portugal.
Accounting careers traversing the separate spheres of business and government in Victorian Britain
Authors: Black John , Edwards John Richard
Published: April 2016

This article studies the careers of Henry William Sharp Whiffin and James Charles Hurst who served as agents of accounting change in Victorian Britain. Whiffin and Hurst were civil servants who worked together, at the War Office, to improve the accounting and accountability of the military establishments that manufactured weaponry used by the army and the navy to expand Britain’s power and influence worldwide. It also explores their other workplace activities to add to our knowledge of how accountants traversed the separate spheres of business and government in the pursuit of successful careers as accountants.
A Personal Touch: The Most Important Strategy for Recruiting Latino Research Participants
Authors: García Alexandra A. , Zuñiga Julie A. , Lagon Czarina
Published: April 2016

People from non-White racial groups and other underserved populations, including Latinos, are frequently reluctant to participate in research. Yet their participation into research is foundational to producing information that researchers and health care providers need to address health disparities. The purpose of this article is to describe challenges we have encountered along with culturally relevant strategies we used in five research studies to recruit Mexican American participants from community settings, some of whom were also of low socioeconomic status. We found that the most effective recruitment strategies reflect the common cultural values of personalismo, simpátia, confianza, respeto, and familismo.
Performance of a short piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite actuator in vibration control of functionally graded circular cylindrical shell
Authors: Panda Satyajit
Published: April 2016

For improved flexibility and conformability of piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite actuator, it is reconstructed in a recent study by the use of short piezoelectric fibers (short piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite) instead of continuous fibers (continuous piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite). This modification facilitates its application in short piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite layer form instead of continuous piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite patch form particularly in case of host structures with highly curved boundary surfaces. But the corresponding change in actuation capability is a major issue for potential application of short piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite that is studied in this work through the control of vibration of a functionally graded circular cylindrical shell under thermal environment. First, an arrangement of continuous piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite actuator patches over the host shell surface is presented with an objective of controlling all modes of vibration. Next, the use of short piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite actuator layer for similar control activity is demonstrated through an arrangement of electrode patches over its surfaces. Subsequently, an electric potential function is assumed for the consideration of electrode patches and a geometrically nonlinear coupled thermo-electro-mechanical incremental finite element model of the harmonically excited overall functionally graded shell is developed. The numerical results reveal actuation capability of short piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite actuator layer with reference to that of the existing continuous piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite/monolithic piezoelectric actuator patches. The effects of temperature, size of electrode patches, properties of piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite, and functionally graded properties on the control activity of short piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite/continuous piezoelectric fiber–reinforced composite actuator are also presented.
The A/Un/grammatical Child/hood/s and Writing
Authors: Reinertsen Anne B.
Published: April 2016

This is about creating new ontologisations of sustainable child/hood/s and/as exceeding forms of contracts between generations through experimenting with bodily affects and sensing movements. Experimenting as writing that is and doing with texts to foster patterns of becomings, thus affirming the positive structure of difference: Writing as opening the self up to possible encounters with affective outsides, collapsing divides in me and simultaneously possibilizing child/hood/s as (a) matrix of becoming. This is about turning early childhood and care institutions and schools into postdiagnosis localities or places of transition, their main task becoming that of not passing on traditions but to prepare for future contingent events. Teaching children to act in disagreement that is and drivers of processes and change through creating better—as in minor—languages for being and doing differently together.
A tool to support the integration of noise control criteria in building design
Authors: Şentop Ayça , Bayazıt Nurgün Tamer
Published: April 2016

This study describes an acoustic tool for architects and architecture students. The tool is intended to assist them in the determination of airborne sound insulation requirements and in the evaluation of building elements and their acoustic performance. The Building Elements Selection Tool has two parts: a catalogue and a calculator. The catalogue serves as a practical database of the sound insulation properties of various building elements, whereas the calculator is used for acoustic calculations. In this study, the usability of the tool has been tested by means of a validation task, in which a simple design problem was given to a group of architects, and the outcomes were then discussed.
Cosmetic surgery attitudes among midlife women: Appearance esteem, weight esteem, and fear of negative appearance evaluation
Authors: Dunaev Jamie L , Schulz Jessica L , Markey Charlotte N
Published: April 2016

Previous research has examined factors thought to influence individuals’ interest in cosmetic surgery, yet few studies have examined these issues among midlife women. This study examines predictors of cosmetic surgery attitudes among midlife women ( N = 114; age = 45–65 years; Mage = 53.7) and considers a previously unexplored variable: fear of negative appearance evaluation. Results indicated that lower weight and appearance esteem were associated with more positive cosmetic surgery attitudes and greater fear of negative appearance evaluation. Furthermore, fear of negative appearance evaluation mediated the relationship between appearance and weight esteem and cosmetic surgery attitudes. We conclude that fear of negative appearance evaluation is an important factor to consider in examining cosmetic surgery attitudes.
Against evidence-based oppression: Marginalized youth and the politics of risk-based assessment and intervention
Authors: Goddard Tim , Myers Randolph R
Published: April 2016

Actuarial risk/needs assessments exert a formidable influence over the policy and practice of youth offender intervention. Risk-prediction instruments and the programming they inspire are thought not only to link scholarship to practice, but are deemed evidence-based. However, risk-based assessments and programs display a number of troubling characteristics: they reduce the lived experience of racialized inequality into an elevated risk score; they prioritize a very limited set of hyper-individualistic interventions, at the expense of others; and they privilege narrow individual-level outcomes as proof of overall success. As currently practiced, actuarial youth justice replicates earlier interventions that ask young people to navigate structural causes of crime at the individual level, while laundering various racialized inequalities at the root of violence and criminalization. This iteration of actuarial youth justice is not inevitable, and we discuss alternatives to actuarial youth justice as currently practiced.
Organisational routines – the interplay of legal standards and professional discretion
Authors: Ottesen Eli , Møller Jorunn
Published: April 2016

Discretion is described as a hallmark of professional work. Professional discretion rests on trust in the ability of certain occupational groups to make sound decisions ‘on behalf’ of societal authorities. It has been suggested that in Europe, managerialist-influenced policies with increased focus on control and accountability have placed pressure on professional discretion. Although earlier studies have demonstrated tensions between external and internal accountability, they have not highlighted how legal forms of authority are key aspects in the regulation of education, or how professionals handle legal standards in their practices. The purpose of this study is to understand the interplay between legal standards and professional discretion. An organisational-routines perspective is used to examine this interplay. Empirically, the students’ legal rights to a good psychosocial environment are used as a case. Based on interviews with principals, deputies and teachers in Norwegian schools, the paper examines how legal norms are translated into social practices, and how practitioners construct and legitimise their work. The study shows how preventive and remedial measures are prevalent in Norwegian schools. When laws and regulations require specific procedures, they are transformed into routines based on the schools’ iterative practices. The study adds an empirical analysis to current understandings of juridification in education.
A Poststructuralist View on Student’s Project Groups: Possibilities and Limitations
Authors: Christensen Gerd
Published: April 2016

The aim of this paper is to demonstrate how poststructuralism and social constructionism can contribute to the empirical research on groups in problem-based learning (PBL). The paper outlines the analytical complexity and shows, through empirical examples, the potentials and limitations of this perspective as an alternative to traditional group psychology. While the potentials of poststructuralism and social constructionism as an analytical complex seem to be the endeavor for relentless critique, the limitations are the ‘empty subject’ and the avoidance of any kind of normativity that leave no guidance for practice. Though both limitations raise serious problems for the practitioner, I intend to argue that the potentials of the analytical perspective are far more important than the challenges when it comes to social psychological research in groups in PBL.
Probabilistic fatigue damage prognosis using surrogate models trained via three-dimensional finite element analysis
Authors: Leser Patrick E , Hochhalter Jacob D , Warner James E , Newman John A , Leser William P , Wawrzynek Paul A , Yuan Fuh-Gwo
Published: April 2016

Utilizing inverse uncertainty quantification techniques, structural health monitoring (SHM) can be integrated with damage progression models to form a probabilistic prediction of a structure’s remaining useful life (RUL). However, damage evolution in realistic structures is physically complex. Accurately representing this behavior requires high-fidelity models which are typically computationally prohibitive. In this paper, high-fidelity fatigue crack growth simulation times are reduced by three orders of magnitude using a model based on a set of surrogate models trained via three-dimensional finite element analysis. The developed crack growth modeling approach is experimentally validated using SHM-based damage diagnosis data. A probabilistic prediction of RUL is formed for a metallic, single-edge notch tension specimen with a fatigue crack growing under mixed-mode conditions.
Shared Leadership and Team Performance
Authors: Barnett Robert C. , Weidenfeller Nancy K.
Published: April 2016

The Problem

Shared leadership in teams has been the topic of substantial research in the last several years fueled, at least in part, by Pearce and Conger’s helpful volume. The published literature is fragmented, complex, and difficult to navigate, making it challenging to quickly or easily gain a clear understanding of the progress that has been made and the findings that are relevant to shared leadership in teams.

The Solution

This article describes and discusses recently published empirical evidence in an effort to summarize what is known about shared leadership in teams. Questions of shared leadership’s effectiveness, what is shared, with whom, and how leadership is shared are addressed. The article concludes with a summary of what we now know about shared leadership and recommendations for Human Resource Development (HRD) professionals who are involved with or responsible for developing shared leadership in teams.

The Stakeholders

This article is relevant to the interests of team leaders and members, organization managers, HRD professionals, and others who may be involved in promoting shared leadership and team effectiveness in their organizations.
Relationship Between Breast Density and Selective Estrogen-Receptor Modulators, Aromatase Inhibitors, Physical Activity, and Diet
Authors: Ekpo Ernest U. , Brennan Patrick C. , Mello-Thoms Claudia , McEntee Mark F.
Published: April 2016

Background. Lower breast density (BD) is associated with lower risk of breast cancer and may serve as a biomarker for the efficacy of chemopreventive strategies. This review explores parameters that are thought to be associated with lower BD. We conducted a systematic review of articles published to date using the PRISMA strategy. Articles that assessed change in BD with estrogen-receptor modulators (tamoxifene [TAM], raloxifene [RLX], and tibolone) and aromatase inhibitors (AIs), as well as cross-sectional and longitudinal studies (LSs) that assessed association between BD and physical activity (PA) or diet were reviewed. Results. Ten studies assessed change in BD with TAM; all reported TAM-mediated BD decreases. Change in BD with RLX was assessed by 11 studies; 3 reported a reduction in BD. Effect of tibolone was assessed by 5 RCTs; only 1 reported change in BD. AI-mediated BD reduction was reported by 3 out of 10 studies. The association between PA and BD was assessed by 21 studies; 4 reported an inverse association. The relationship between diet and BD was assessed in 34 studies. All studies on calcium and vitamin D as well as vegetable intake reported an inverse association with BD in premenopausal women. Two RCTs demonstrated BD reduction with a low-fat, high-carbohydrate intervention. Conclusion. TAM induces BD reduction; however, the effect of RLX, tibolone, and AIs on BD is unclear. Although data on association between diet and BD in adulthood are contradictory, intake of vegetables, vitamin D, and calcium appear to be associated with lower BD in premenopausal women.
Higher moments and probability distribution of maintenance cost in the delay time model
Authors: Pandey Mahesh D , Cheng Tianjin , Van der Weide JAM
Published: April 2016

The delay time model is a practical way to model random occurrences of failures and the effect of inspection and maintenance actions on the reliability of a repairable system. The delay time model involves two random variables describing the time of initiation of defects and time to failure after the defect initiation. This article presents a clear and structured approach to the evaluation of maintenance cost using the theory of stochastic renewal processes. This article derives the mean, variance, skewness and kurtosis of the maintenance cost in a finite time horizon. Furthermore, the probability distribution of cost is accurately estimated using the Hermite polynomial model. Using the cost distribution, the value at risk is estimated and proposed as a measure to optimize the maintenance program.
LPS stimulates IgM production in vivo without help from non-B cells
Authors: Lu Mingfang , Munford Robert
Published: April 2016

Gram-negative bacterial LPS induce murine B-cell activation and innate (polyclonal) Ab production. Mouse B cells express the LPS signaling receptor (TLR4), yet how LPS activates B-cell responses in vivo is not known. Can LPS directly stimulate B cells to induce innate Ab production? Is activation of non-B cells also required? To address these questions, we transfused LPS-responsive ( Tlr4+/+) or non-responsive ( Tlr4−/−) B cells into LPS-responsive or non-responsive mice. Increased expression of the early activation markers CD69 and CD86 could be induced on transfused Tlr4−/− B cells by injecting LPS subcutaneously into Tlr4+/+ mice, demonstrating indirect activation of B cells by TLR4-responsive non-B cells in vivo, but the Tlr4−/− B cells did not increase serum IgM levels. In contrast, when Tlr4−/− recipients were transfused with Tlr4+/+ B cells, LPS induced large amounts of serum IgM and LPS could also enhance specific Ab production to a protein that was co-injected with it (adjuvant response). Thus, LPS-exposed non-B cells mediated increased surface expression of early B-cell activation markers, but this response did not predict innate Ab responses or LPS adjuvanticity in vivo. Direct stimulation of B cells by LPS via TLR4 was necessary and sufficient to induce B cells to produce Ab in vivo.
Compliance With Injury Prevention Measures in Youth Pitchers
Authors: Pamias-Velázquez Kristian J. , Figueroa-Negrón Mariam M. , Tirado-Crespo Janiliz , Mulero-Portela Ana L.
Published: April 2016

Background:

Because of the problem of elbow and shoulder injuries in baseball pitchers between 9 and 14 years of age, the USA Baseball Medical & Safety Advisory Committee and the Department of Recreation and Sports in Puerto Rico developed injury prevention guidelines for pitchers. The purpose of this study was to determine the compliance of pitching coaches of 9- to 14-year-old Little League teams in Puerto Rico with the Administrative Order 2006-01 and the USA Baseball guidelines.

Hypotheses:

(1) The coaches will have a satisfactory level of compliance with the Administrative Order as well as with the USA Baseball guidelines and (2) both the level of education of the coach as well as the years of experience will correlate with the level of compliance.

Study Design:

Descriptive cross-sectional study.

Level of Evidence:

Level 5.

Methods:

A self-administered questionnaire was developed based on the Administrative Order and on the USA Baseball guidelines. A descriptive univariate analysis was conducted to determine the mean coach compliance with both guidelines. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to describe the correlation between the level of education and the years of experience of the coaches with the level of compliance.

Results:

Thirty-five coaches (response rate, 78%) participated in the study. On average, the coaches complied with 70% of the Administrative Order and with 73% of the USA Baseball guidelines. No significant correlations were found.

Conclusion:

The coaches who participated in the study did not reflect a satisfactory level of compliance with the USA Baseball guidelines or with the Administrative Order.

Clinical Relevance:

These findings emphasize the need for reinforcing compliance with the injury prevention guidelines and the need to provide resources and training to coaches to effectively prevent elbow and shoulder injuries in pitchers.
The impact of industry characteristics on firms’ export intensity
Authors: Reis Joana , Forte Rosa
Published: April 2016

Several authors have studied the factors that influence a firm’s export performance, but few have addressed the relationship between industry characteristics and export intensity. The objective of the present study was to analyze the impact of industry characteristics on a firm’s export intensity, the latter a measure commonly used to assess export performance, seeking to add empirical evidence to this relatively neglected research area. Based on a sample of 19,504 Portuguese manufacturing firms, 7,930 of which were exporting, during the period 2010–2013, and using panel data estimation, the empirical results show that some industry characteristics (labor productivity, export orientation, concentration), as well as characteristics of the firm (labor productivity, size and age of the firm) are important determinants of a firm’s export intensity. It is concluded in particular that a firm’s export intensity is positively affected by the export orientation of the industry, as well as by the firm’s labor productivity, confirming the belief that firms and governments need to direct their policies towards increased productivity in order to improve competitiveness in foreign markets. It is argued that, in order to enhance the positive effects of these policies, the policies should be directed towards industries with the highest export focus.
PfSMAD4 plays a role in biomineralization and can transduce bone morphogenetic protein-2 signals in the pearl oyster Pinctada fucata
Authors: Zhao Mi , Shi Yu , He Maoxian , Huang Xiande , Wang Qi
Published: April 2016

Background

Mollusca is the second largest phylum in nature. The shell of molluscs is a remarkable example of a natural composite biomaterial. Biomineralization and how it affects mollusks is a popular research topic. The BMP-2 signaling pathway plays a canonical role in biomineralization. SMAD4 is an intracellular transmitter in the BMP signaling pathway in mammals, and some genomic data show SMAD4’s involvment in BMP signaling in invertbrates, but whether SMAD4 plays a conservative role in pearl oyster, Pinctada fucata, still need to be tested.

Results

In this study, we identified a SMAD4 gene (hereafter designated PfSMAD4) in pearl oyster Pinctada fucata. Bioinformatics analysis of PfSMAD4 showed high identity with its orthologs. PfSMAD4 was located in the cytoplasm in immunofluorescence assays and analyses of PfSMAD4 mRNA in tissues and developmental stages showed high expression in ovaries and D-shaped larvae. An RNA interference experiment, performed by PfSMAD4 double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) injection, demonstrated inhibition not only of nacre growth but also organic sheet formation with a decrease in PfSMAD4 expression. A knockdown experiment using PfBMP2 dsRNA showed decreased PfBMP2 and PfSMAD4 mRNA and irregular crystallization of the nacreous layer using scanning electron microscopy. In co-transfection experiments, PfBMP2-transactivated reporter constructs contained PfSMAD4 promoter sequences.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that PfSMAD4 plays a role in biomineralization and can transduce BMP signals in P. fucata. Our data provides important clues about the molecular mechanisms that regulate biomineralization in pearl oyster.
Resistance to Modernity and the Logic of Self-Negation as Politics: Takeuchi Yoshimi and Wang Hui on Lu Xun
Authors: Murthy Viren
Published: April 2016

Lu Xun is perhaps the most studied figure in modern Chinese literature and there has been a great deal of debate about interpreting his work. However, scholars have paid insufficient attention to the way in which readings of Lu Xun serve as a lens from which to examine political interventions in response to global transformations and more specifically to the global logic of capitalism. The path-breaking works of Takeuchi Yoshimi and Wang Hui are especially thought provoking in this respect since they each wrote about Lu Xun to intervene in the politics of their times. More specifically Takeuchi and Wang each drew on Lu Xun to develop a new vision of politics at times when narratives and processes associated with the nation-state and capitalism eclipsed critical political practice. Intellectuals in both interwar Japan and post-Mao China stressed an evolutionary vision of modernity with which they criticized their present and immediate past: imperial fascism and feudalism in Japan, and the Cultural Revolution in 1980s and 1990s China. In both the works of Takeuchi and Wang, Lu Xun evinces a resistance to evolutionary or progressive narratives of history. In this essay, I read Takeuchi and Wang's respective interpretations of Lu Xun as responding to the cultural logic of global capitalism.

Takeuchi and Wang each appeal to feeling or irrationality to develop a vision of Lu Xun as resisting modernity. For Takeuchi, Lu Xun symbolized not only the Chinese revolution itself, but also a more fundamental defiance of European history and epistemology. Since this history as rationalizing modernity was expanding and encompassed the very formation of the self, Takeuchi argued that resistance implied self-realization through self-negation and that Lu Xun embodied this paradoxical practice.

In the mid-1990s, when the neoliberal phase of capitalism was transforming social relations in China, Wang invoked Takeuchi's interpretation of Lu Xun and more explicitly confronted the dynamic of capitalism. In Wang's view, the nature of intellectual production in capitalist society tends to fore-close the possibility of politics. However, he claims that Lu Xun's writings and practices represent a time when Chinese intellectuals were more closely connected to social movements and thus present the possibility of radical transformation.
Letter: Mass Spectrometric Evidence for Iron Binding to the Neuroprotective Peptide NAP and its Cys5 Mutant
Authors: Ciobanu Catalina-Ionica , Stefanescu Raluca , Niculaua Marius , Teslaru Teodora , Gradinaru Robert , Drochioiu Gabi
Published: April 2016

The NAP peptide (H2N-1NAPVSIPQ8-CONH2) is a truncated version of the activity-dependent neuroprotective protein. Its neuroprotective activities consist of the inhibition of Aβ(25–35) and Aβ(1–40) fibrillogenesis as well as protection against Aβ-induced neurotoxicity and prevention of microtubule disruption associated with Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, we synthesized NAP and its mutant peptide with the sequence H2N-1NAPVCIPQ8-COOH (NAPCOH) by replacing serine S5 with cysteine C5. Both native and mutant peptides were further used to study their interaction with iron ions. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and also atomic force microscopy were used to probe Fe3+ binding to both peptides. Contrary to the expected results, the investigated peptides underwent different oxidation processes, with resultant reduced Fe2+ ions. These ions, and not the original Fe3+ ions, were found to bind to each of the non-oxidized peptides.