bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Factors associated with the uptake of the UK routine childhood immunization schedule in a bi-ethnic population
Authors: Santorelli Gillian , West Jane , Mason Dan , Cartwright Chris , Inamdar Leena , Tomes Caroline , Wright John
Published: April 2020

Background

Various factors associated with vaccination uptake in children have been identified, but no study has examined their overall immunization status and individual vaccine coverage at 1, 2 and 5 years in the UK.

Methods

Data from 6977 participants in the Born in Bradford cohort were linked to primary care records. Overall immunization status and individual vaccine uptake of the UK routine childhood vaccination schedule was estimated in White British and Pakistani children born between 2007 and 2011, and factors associated with partial uptake in each ethnic group were identified using Poisson regression.

Results

Vaccine uptake was greater in Pakistani compared with White British children at all ages and for each year examined in this study. Children of foreign-born White British women were more likely to be partially immunized and those of foreign-born Pakistani women were more likely to be fully immunized. Socio-economic factors were strongly associated with uptake, especially among White British women.

Conclusions

Vaccination uptake is influenced by social and economic environment, ethnicity and maternal country of birth. This suggests that current health education and service delivery may not be effective for some families, including those from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds, who may require targeted interventions to improve immunization uptake.
Topological Boundaries of Unitary Representations
Authors: Bearden Alex , Kalantar Mehrdad
Published: April 2020

We introduce and study a generalization of the notion of the Furstenberg boundary of a discrete group $\Gamma $ to the setting of a general unitary representation $\pi : \Gamma \to B(\mathcal H_\pi )$. This space, which we call the “Furstenberg–Hamana boundary” (or "FH-boundary") of the pair $(\Gamma , \pi )$, is a $\Gamma $-invariant subspace of $B(\mathcal H_\pi )$ that carries a canonical $C^{\ast }$-algebra structure. In many natural cases, including when $\pi $ is a quasi-regular representation, the Furstenberg–Hamana boundary of $\pi $ is commutative but can be noncommutative in general. We study various properties of this boundary and discuss possible applications, for example in uniqueness of certain types of traces.
Rapid design and implementation of an integrated patient self-triage and self-scheduling tool for COVID-19
Authors: Judson Timothy J , Odisho Anobel Y , Neinstein Aaron B , Chao Jessica , Williams Aimee , Miller Christopher , Moriarty Tim , Gleason Nathaniel , Intinarelli Gina , Gonzales Ralph
Published: April 2020

Objective

To rapidly deploy a digital patient-facing self-triage and self-scheduling tool in a large academic health system to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

Materials and Methods

We created a patient portal-based COVID-19 self-triage and self-scheduling tool and made it available to all primary care patients at the University of California, San Francisco Health, a large academic health system. Asymptomatic patients were asked about exposure history and were then provided relevant information. Symptomatic patients were triaged into 1 of 4 categories—emergent, urgent, nonurgent, or self-care—and then connected with the appropriate level of care via direct scheduling or telephone hotline.

Results

This self-triage and self-scheduling tool was designed and implemented in under 2 weeks. During the first 16 days of use, it was completed 1129 times by 950 unique patients. Of completed sessions, 315 (28%) were by asymptomatic patients, and 814 (72%) were by symptomatic patients. Symptomatic patient triage dispositions were as follows: 193 emergent (24%), 193 urgent (24%), 99 nonurgent (12%), 329 self-care (40%). Sensitivity for detecting emergency-level care was 87.5% (95% CI 61.7–98.5%).

Discussion

This self-triage and self-scheduling tool has been widely used by patients and is being rapidly expanded to other populations and health systems. The tool has recommended emergency-level care with high sensitivity, and decreased triage time for patients with less severe illness. The data suggests it also prevents unnecessary triage messages, phone calls, and in-person visits.

Conclusion

Patient self-triage tools integrated into electronic health record systems have the potential to greatly improve triage efficiency and prevent unnecessary visits during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The formation of single neutron stars from double white-dwarf mergers via accretion-induced collapse
Authors: Liu D , Wang B
Published: April 2020

The merging of double white dwarfs (WDs) may produce the events of accretion-induced collapse (AIC) and form single neutron stars (NSs). Meanwhile, it is also notable that the recently proposed WD+He subgiant scenario has a significant contribution to the production of massive double WDs, in which the primary WD grows in mass by accreting He-rich material from a He subgiant companion. In this work, we aim to study the binary population synthesis (BPS) properties of AIC events from the double WD mergers by considering the classical scenarios and also the contribution of the WD+He subgiant scenario to the formation of double WDs. First, we provided a dense and large model grid of WD+He star systems for producing AIC events through the double WD merger scenario. Secondly, we performed several sets of BPS calculations to obtain the rates and single NS number in our Galaxy. We found that the rates of AIC events from the double WD mergers in the Galaxy are in the range of $1.4{-}8.9\times 10^{\rm -3}\, \rm yr^{\rm -1}$ for all ONe/CO WD+ONe/CO WD mergers, and in the range of $0.3{-}3.8\times 10^{\rm -3}\, \rm yr^{\rm -1}$ when double CO WD mergers are not considered. We also found that the number of single NSs from AIC events in our Galaxy may range from 0.328 × 107 to 1.072 × 108. The chirp mass of double WDs for producing AIC events distribute in the range of $0.55{-}1.25\, \rm M_{\odot }$. We estimated that more than half of double WDs for producing AIC events are capable to be observed by the future space-based gravitational wave detectors.
Why do extremely massive disc galaxies exist today?
Authors: Jackson R A , Martin G , Kaviraj S , Laigle C , Devriendt J E G , Dubois Y , Pichon C
Published: April 2020

Galaxy merger histories correlate strongly with stellar mass, largely regardless of morphology. Thus, at fixed stellar mass, spheroids and discs share similar assembly histories, both in terms of the frequency of mergers and the distribution of their mass ratios. Since mergers drive disc-to-spheroid morphological transformation, and the most massive galaxies typically have the richest merger histories, it is surprising that discs exist at all at the highest stellar masses (e.g. beyond the knee of the mass function). Using Horizon-AGN, a cosmological hydroynamical simulation, we show that extremely massive (M* > 1011.4 M⊙) discs are created via two channels. In the primary channel (accounting for 70${\rm {per\ cent}}$ of these systems and 8${\rm {per\ cent}}$ of massive galaxies), the most recent, significant (mass ratio > 1:10) merger between a massive spheroid and a gas-rich satellite ‘spins up’ the spheroid by creating a new rotational stellar component, leaving a massive disc as the remnant. In the secondary channel (accounting for 30 ${\rm {per\ cent}}$ of these systems and 3 ${\rm {per\ cent}}$ of massive galaxies), a system maintains a disc throughout its lifetime, due to an anomalously quiet merger history. Not unexpectedly, the fraction of massive discs increases towards higher redshift, due to the Universe being more gas-rich. The morphological mix of galaxies at the highest stellar masses is, therefore, a strong function of the gas fraction of the Universe. Finally, these massive discs have similar black hole masses and accretion rates to massive spheroids, providing a natural explanation for why some powerful AGN are surprisingly found in disc galaxies.
Inhibitory KIR ligands are associated with higherP. falciparumparasite prevalence
Authors: Digitale Jean C. , Callaway Perri C. , Martin Maureen , Nelson George , Viard Mathias , Rek John , Arinaitwe Emmanuel , Dorsey Grant , Kamya Moses , Carrington Mary , Rodriguez-Barraquer Isabel , Feeney Margaret E.
Published: April 2020

Killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR) and their HLA ligands influence the outcome of many infectious diseases. We analyzed the relationship of compound KIR-HLA genotypes with risk ofPlasmodium falciparuminfection in a longitudinal cohort of 890 Ugandan individuals. We found that presence of HLA-C2 and HLA-Bw4, ligands for inhibitory KIR2DL1 and KIR3DL1, respectively, increased the likelihood ofP. falciparumparasitemia in an additive manner. Individuals homozygous for HLA-C2, which mediates strong inhibition via KIR2DL1, had the highest odds of parasitemia, HLA-C1/C2 heterozygotes had intermediate odds, and individuals homozygous for HLA-C1, which mediates weaker inhibition through KIR2DL2/3, had the lowest odds of parasitemia. Additionally, higher surface expression of HLA-C, the ligand for inhibitory KIR2DL1/2/3, was associated with a higher likelihood of parasitemia. Together these data indicate that stronger KIR-mediated inhibition confers a higher risk ofP. falciparumparasitemia and suggest that KIR-expressing effector cells play a role in mediating anti-parasite immunity.
Study of Epidemiological Characteristics and In-silico Analysis of the Effect of Interventions in the SARS-CoV-2 Epidemic in India
Authors: Mazumder Archisman , Bharadiya Vishwesh , Berry Parul , Arora Mehak , Agarwal Mudit , Gupta Mohak , Parameswaran Giridara Gopal , Behera Priyamadhaba
Published: April 2020

After SARS-CoV-2 set foot in India, the Government took a number of steps to limit the spread of the disease in the country. This study involves assessing how the disease affected the population in the initial days of the epidemic. Data was collected from government-controlled and crowdsourced websites and analyzed. Studying age and sex parameters of 413 Indian COVID-19 patients, the median age of the affected individuals was found to be 36 years (IQR, 25-54) with 20-39 years males being the most affected group. The number of affected males (66.34%) was more than that of the females (33.66%). Using Susceptible-Infected-Removed (SIR) model, the range of contact rate (β) of India was calculated and the role of public health interventions was assessed. If current contact rate continues, India may have 5583 to 13785 active cases at the end of 21 days lockdown.

Article Summary Line

The study gives the epidemiological characteristics of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in India, where unlike other countries, the 20-39 years males are most affected, and the SIR model predicts the probable number of cases of COVID-19 by the end of the 21 days lockdown in the country, which will help to develop appropriate public health interventions to control the COVID-19 epidemic.
Visuo-motor rotation influences representational acuity but not space representation
Authors: Michel C , Amoura S , White O
Published: April 2020

Prism adaptation is a well-known experimental procedure to study sensorimotor plasticity. It has been shown that following prism exposure, after-effects are not only restricted to the sensorimotor level but extend as well to spatial cognition. In the present study, we used a visuo-motor rotation task which approaches the perturbations induced by prism exposure. We induced either leftward or rightward 15-degree rotations and we presented the perturbation either abruptly (from one trial to the next) or gradually (over a 34-trial transition). First, we found that none of the conditions produced cognitive after-effects in perceptive line bisection task. This result has a strong methodological impact for prospective investigations focusing on sensorimotor plasticity while sparing space cognition; it is particularly relevant when investigating sensorimotor plasticity in patients with specific representational feature to preserve from aggravation. Second, another interesting result was the increase of the sensitivity with which we discriminate the center of the line, that we propose to call representational acuity. It improved following the perturbation more particularly after gradual exposure and persisted for some time after the sensorimotor adaptation. These innovative results are discussed in terms of sensorimotor processes underpinning the transfer of visuomotor plasticity to spatial cognition.
Bureaucracy and the balanced scorecard in health care settings
Authors: Oliveira Helena Costa , Rodrigues Lúcia Lima , Craig Russell
Published: April 2020

Purpose

We explore the relationship between the balanced scorecard (BSC) and neo-bureaucracy by investigating whether the operationalization of the BSC incorporates “neo-bureaucratic” ideas and whether the BSC implemented in a Portuguese Local Health Unit (LHU) demonstrates a neo-bureaucratic approach.

Design/methodology/approach

We conduct semi-structured interviews with LHU staff and analyse documents to assess whether features of bureaucratic organization were evident in the use of a BSC by the LHU.

Findings

We found nine bureaucratic features evident in the LHU's BSC. These were systematization, rationality, authority, jurisdiction, professional qualification, knowledge, discipline, transparency and accountability. The BSC used at the LHU demonstrated a neo-bureaucratic approach.

Originality/value

Our study helps to demystify bureaucracy and overcome prevailing prejudices regarding some of its principles. Health care managers should recognize and endorse neo-bureaucratic principles in developing a BSC. They should recognize the BSC as involving a neo-bureaucratic approach. The BSC is a valuable management tool that hospital managers should find useful in fostering flexibility, collaboration, innovation and adaptation – all of which should help lead to improved healthcare outcomes.
Strategic design: origins and contributions to intellectual capital in organizations
Authors: Gallego Carmenza , Mejía G. Mauricio , Calderón Gregorio
Published: April 2020

Purpose

This article proposes a conceptual basis upon which to address strategic design as business intellectual capital.

Design/methodology/approach

A literature review was carried out on the subjects of strategic design and intellectual capital.

Findings

A conceptual basis is derived from the theoretical proposal that strategic design is an intangible, critical factor, which favors organizational competitiveness, when it impacts the betterment of organizational and intellectual capital processes.

Practical implications

On the level of business practice, this article submits a broadened view of design, which may be applied to organizational strategic processes and which transcends its emphasis in the production of goods or services.

Originality/value

In previous literature, strategic design has not been addressed as intellectual capital, which supports the resolution of strategic problems.
A record-keeping approach to managing IoT-data for government agencies
Authors: Sødring Thomas , Reinholdtsen Petter , Massey David
Published: April 2020

Purpose

Particular attention to the issue of information management will be required to meet the expected growth in IoT-devices and the data they generate. As government agencies start collecting and using such information, they must also deal with the issue of privacy, to comply with laws and regulations. The approach discussed here shows that record-keeping principles may form part of a solution to the issue of managing IoT-data for government agencies.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses the generally accepted record-keeping principles as a basis for a high-level discussion on how IoT-data can be managed. This is followed by a presentation and discussion on how the Norwegian record-keeping standard, Noark, can be extended to highlight practical issues.

Findings

Record keeping has principles that are relevant to the management of IoT-data. Further an implementation of the chosen use-cases is possible based on an existing record keeping standard. Record keeping is one of many information science approaches that can manage IoT-data.

Research limitations/implications

The main limitations are that the discussion cannot cover all types of IoT-devices, nor can all issues be captured with a limited choice of examples. The results should be seen within the context of the types of devices discussed and limited to the chosen use-cases. However, the level of abstraction used means the results may be applicable to similar scenarios.

Originality/value

The approach shows that record-keeping principles may be used as an approach to manage IoT-data. This discussion is useful when compared with other information science approaches, e.g. big-data or semantic Web approaches. The practicalities of a record-keeping approach are also discussed and relevant strengths and weaknesses are showed.
COVID‐19 and the use of immunomodulatory and biologic agents for severe cutaneous disease: An Australian/New Zealand consensus statement
Authors: Wang Charlie , Rademaker Marius , Baker Christopher , Foley Peter
Published: April 2020

Patients on immunomodulators, including biologic agents and new small molecular inhibitors, for cutaneous disease, represent a potentially vulnerable population during the COVID‐19 pandemic. There is currently insufficient evidence to determine whether patients on systemic immunomodulators are at increased risk of developing COVID‐19 disease or more likely to have severe disease. As such, clinicians need to assess the benefit‐to‐risk ratio on a case‐by‐case basis. In patients with suspected or confirmed COVID‐19 disease, all immunomodulators used for skin diseases should be immediately withheld, with the possible exception of systemic corticosteroid therapy, which needs to be weaned. In patients who develop symptoms or signs of an upper respiratory tract infection, but COVID‐19 is not yet confirmed, consider dose reduction or temporarily cessation for 1–2 weeks. In otherwise well patients, immunomodulators and biologics should be continued. In all patients, and their immediate close contacts, the importance of preventative measures to minimise human‐to‐human transmission cannot be overemphasised.
Cytopathology and diagnostics of Warthin's tumour
Authors: Sučić Mirna , Ljubić Nives , Perković Leila , Ivanović Dunja , Pažanin Leo , Sučić Radovanović Tena , Župnić‐Krmek Dubravka , Knežević Fabijan
Published: April 2020

Warthin's tumour (WT) is a benign epithelial salivary tumour, one type of salivary adenoma. Histologically, WT is structured of two components, epithelial tissue that often lines cystic formations and lymphoid tissue in the tumour stroma. FNA is a reliable diagnostic approach in the diagnosis of salivary gland lesions allowing a highly accurate categorization of benign tumour‐like lesions, benign tumours and malignant tumours. In the proposed Milan reporting system of salivary gland lesions, WT is categorized in the IVA group of benign neoplasms. Accurate cytological diagnosis is straightforward when three characteristic components are present: oncocytes, either isolated or associated in clusters, lymphocytes and lymphoid cells and often an inflammatory/necrotic‐like substance. Also, specific features of scintigraphy and radiological imaging contribute to the diagnosis of WT. WT is categorized according to Seifert G. et al in 4 types, depending on the proportions of the epithelial component and lymphoid stroma. Differential cytopathological and pathohistological diagnosis include other salivary gland lesions with lymphoid, oncocytic epithelial and cystic components. In some cases, such as the metaplastic WT variant, there are additional cytopathological and histological diagnostic difficulties. Moreover, bilateral, multicentric or multiple and infrequently seen extra‐salivary localizations of WT are associated with further cytopathological diagnostic difficulties. Also, a rare possibility of malignant transformation of the epithelial or lymphoid component of WT as well as possible association with other primary tumours remains a challenge in accurate cytopathological and histological diagnosis of WT.
Key features of magnesium that underpin its role as the major ion for electrophilic biocatalysis
Authors: Gottesman Max E. , Chudaev Maxim , Mustaev Arkady
Published: April 2020

To investigate divalent metal ion (Me2+) requirements in electrophilic biocatalysis, we compared Mg2+, Mn2+, Co2+, Zn2+, Cu2+, Ni2+, Cd2+, Ca2+, and Fe2+ activities with 13 enzymes executing nucleotidyl and/or phosphoryl transfer. We find that each Me2+ ion was highly catalytically active with one or more of the related enzymes. This result suggests that features of Me2+ coordination at the active center, and/or the enzyme‐mediated presentation of the reactants to the chelated Me2+, rather than the nature of the Me2+, determine the ability of the Me2+ to support catalysis. At physiological pH, all the tested Me2+ ions, with the exception of Mg2+, produced insoluble complexes with inorganic phosphate (Pi) and bicarbonate (
). These data suggest that early in the development of life, bioavailability and biocompatibility with these abundant cellular metabolites may have been decisive factors in the choice of Mg2+ as the major ion for biocatalysis. Taking into account the concentrations of inorganic ions in the ancient environment in which the first cells emerged, as inferred from the ‘chemistry conservation principle’, the choice of Mg2+ was predetermined prior to the origin of life.
STOCK MARKET OPENNESS AND MARKET QUALITY: EVIDENCE FROM THE SHANGHAI–HONG KONG STOCK CONNECT PROGRAM
Authors: Xu Ke , Zheng Xinwei , Pan Deng , Xing Li , Zhang Xuekui
Published: April 2020

We study the impact of capital market openness on high‐frequency market quality in China. The Shanghai–Hong Kong Stock Connect program (SHHKConnect) opens China's stock market to foreign investors and offers a natural experiment to investigate this question. Using a difference‐in‐differences approach, we find that market liberalization leads to lower quoted spread, lower effective spread, lower market depth, and higher short‐term volatility. Our findings imply that opening the markets to more sophisticated foreign investors is associated with higher competition and more cross‐market arbitrage activities, narrowing the spread and reducing liquidity providers’ profits, but increasing the price impact and short‐term volatility of connected stocks.
Prevalence and predictors of mood disturbances in idiopathic REM sleep behaviour disorder
Authors: Chiu Nicholas K. H. , Ehgoetz Martens Kaylena A. , Mok Vincent C.T. , Lewis Simon J.G. , Matar Elie
Published: April 2020

Depression and anxiety are commonly associated with synucleinopathies. Mood disturbances have also been reported in patients with idiopathic REM sleep behaviour disorder (iRBD) and are difficult to treat due to exacerbation of sleep symptoms with standard antidepressants. Despite this, detailed prevalence studies of mood symptomatology and contributors to mood disturbances in iRBD are limited. Mood, sleep, autonomic, cognitive and motor symptoms were assessed in 49 well‐characterized patients with iRBD using a variety of clinical scales. Spearman correlations, factor analysis and multiple linear regression were used to uncover associations between mood and non‐motor and motor symptoms. The prevalence of significant depression was 17.0% and that of anxiety was 14.6% in the iRBD cohort. Age and disease duration were not correlated with these affective symptoms in iRBD patients. We found depression was significantly predicted by the presence and severity of motor, sleep and cognitive symptoms. Anxiety was predicted by the severity of nocturnal and daytime sleep‐related symptoms, cognitive symptoms and autonomic symptoms, with a differential effect depending on the questionnaire used. Depression and anxiety are common in iRBD patients and can be significantly explained by specific sets of non‐motor and motor symptoms. These associations provide insight into the underlying pathophysiology and emphasize the importance of a holistic approach to mood disturbance in this population, which may circumvent the reliance on pharmacotherapy that can exacerbate dream enactment behaviour.
Morphological diversity of the spermatozoon and male reproductive tract in Australian Hopping mice, genus Notomys – is it determined by sexual selection?
Authors: Breed W. G. , Ding X. , Tuke J. , Leigh C.M.
Published: April 2020

Hopping mice (Genus Notomys) are a monophyletic group of Australian Old Endemic murid rodents in the Tribe Hydromyini four of which, Notomys alexis, N. mitchellii, N. fuscus and N cervinus, occur in arid or semiarid environments. Here, we compare the size and morphology of their testes, spermatozoa, accessory sex glands and external genitalia across the species, and from these data, we draw conclusions as to their likely breeding systems. We show that both wild caught and laboratory bred adult N. alexis, N. fuscus and N. mitchellii individuals have extremely small testes, but their spermatozoa vary in morphology across the species. The ventral prostate is the only large accessory sex gland present, and their glans penis has very large spines. By contrast N. cervinus individuals have significantly larger testes with their spermatozoa being less variable but generally more complex in morphology, their seminal vesicles and coagulating glands are much larger, whereas the glans penis has only small spines. Since these reproductive traits in N. cervinus are more similar to those of most other hydromyine rodents in the genus Pseudomys, they are likely to reflect the retention of the ancestral condition within the Notomys lineage whereas the divergent reproductive traits of the other species of tiny testes, variable sperm, small seminal vesicles and coagulating glands and large penile spines are probably more recently derived traits. It is suggested that N. cervinus with its relatively larger testes mass and greater abundance of sperm of more consistent morphology has retained a mating system that may potentially involve some intermale sperm competition whereas, by contrast, the reproductive anatomy of the other three Notomys species suggests that these species exhibit monogamy.
The control of preexisting faults on the distribution, morphology, and volume of monogenetic volcanism in the Michoacán-Guanajuato Volcanic Field
Authors: Gómez-Vasconcelos Martha Gabriela , Macías José Luis , Avellán Denis Ramón , Sosa-Ceballos Giovanni , Garduño-Monroy Víctor Hugo , Cisneros-Máximo Guillermo , Layer Paul W. , Benowitz Jeff , López-Loera Héctor , López Fabiola Mendiola , Perton Mathieu
Published: April 2020

Interactions between volcanic and tectonic processes affect the distribution, morphology, and volume of eruptive products in space and time. The Queréndaro area in the eastern Michoacán-Guanajuato Volcanic Field affords an exceptional opportunity to understand these relationships. Here, a Pleistocene lava plateau and 20 monogenetic volcanoes are vented from an active ENE-striking segment of the Morelia-Acambay fault system. Thirteen scoria cones are aligned along this structure, vented from an extensional gap in between two rotated hanging wall blocks of a listric fault. A new geological map, volcanic stratigraphy, and 40Ar/39Ar dating indicate that this lava plateau and volcanic cluster were emplaced from 0.81 to 0.25 Ma by 11 intermittent eruptive epochs separated by ca. 0.05 Ma, emplacing a total magma volume of 5 km3. Petrography and chemistry of rocks suggest that all volcanic structures were fed by three different magma batches but vented from independent feeder dikes. Our results indicate that preexisting faults exert a strong influence on volcanic spatial and temporal distribution, volcanic morphology, magma volume, and eruptive dynamics in this area. ENE-breached and ENE-elongated scoria cones indicate parallel subsurface fissure and feeder dikes. Additionally, points of maximum fault dilation at depth related to a transtensive state of stress coincide with less fragmented deposits and larger magma volumes. Furthermore, this study raises important questions on the geodynamics of volcano-tectonic interactions possible in similar monogenetic volcanic alignments worldwide.
How does mode of travel affect risks posed to other road users? An analysis of English road fatality data, incorporating gender and road type
Authors: Aldred Rachel , Johnson Rob , Jackson Christopher , Woodcock James
Published: April 2020

Background

Most analysis of road injuries examines the risk experienced by people using different modes of transport, for instance, pedestrian fatalities per-head or per-km. A small but growing field analyses the impact that the use of different transport modes has on other road users, for instance, injuries to others per-km driven.

Methods

This paper moves the analysis of risk posed to others forward by comparing six different vehicular modes, separating road types (major vs minor roads in urban vs rural settings). The comparison of risk posed by men and women for all these modes is also novel.

Results

Per-vehicle kilometre, buses and lorries pose much the highest risk to others, while cycles pose the lowest. Motorcycles pose a substantially higher per-km risk to others than cars. The fatality risk posed by cars or vans to ORUs per km is higher in rural areas. Risk posed is generally higher on major roads, although not in the case of lorries, suggesting a link to higher speeds. Men pose higher per-km risk to others than women for all modes except buses, as well as being over-represented among users of the most dangerous vehicles.

Conclusions

Future research should examine more settings, adjust for spatial and temporal confounders, or examine how infrastructure or route characteristics affect risk posed to others. Although for most victims the other vehicle involved is a car, results suggest policy-makers should also seek to reduce disproportionate risks posed by the more dangerous vehicles, for instance, by discouraging motorcycling. Finally, given higher risk posed to others by men across five of six modes analysed, policy-makers should consider how to reduce persistent large gender imbalances in jobs involving driving.
Defending the distinction between pregnancy and parenthood
Authors: Singh Prabhpal
Published: April 2020

In this paper, I respond to the criticisms towards my account of the difference in moral status between fetuses and newborns. I show my critics have not adequately argued for their view that pregnant women participate in a parent–child relationship. While an important counterexample is raised against my account, this counterexample had already been dealt with in my original paper. Because the criticisms against my account lack argumentative support, they do not pose a problem for my account. I conclude the raised criticisms do not amount to a stron philosophical case against my account.
Sparse additive machine with ramp loss
Authors: Chen Hong , Guo Changying , Xiong Huijuan , Wang Yingjie
Published: April 2020

Sparse additive machines (SAMs) have attracted increasing attention in high dimensional classification due to their representation flexibility and interpretability. However, most of existing methods are formulated under Tikhonov regularization scheme with the hinge loss, which are susceptible to outliers. To circumvent this problem, we propose a sparse additive machine with ramp loss (called ramp-SAM) to tackle classification and variable selection simultaneously. Misclassification error bound is established for ramp-SAM with the help of detailed error decomposition and constructive hypothesis error analysis. To solve the nonsmooth and nonconvex ramp-SAM, a proximal block coordinate descent method is presented with convergence guarantees. The empirical effectiveness of our model is confirmed on simulated and benchmark datasets.
Query-based object-oriented programming: a declarative web of objects
Authors: Seginer Yoav , Vosse Theo , Harari Gil , Kolodny Uri
Published: April 2020

We present a declarative, object-oriented language in which queries play a central role. Queries are used not only to access data, but also to refer to the application’s object members and as a means of program control. The language is fully declarative, with queries and other pure functions defining the relations between the attributes of different objects. A rule-base-like write operation allows state to be updated. Control is achieved by queries selecting the class variants (mixin classes) which are active in each object. The dynamic activation and deactivation of declarative mixin classes allows decomposition of functionality into small reusable classes.

The programming style in the language is functional and reactive, with function applications defining object members. Queries are one type of function, which also serves as the glue which puts these functions together, providing them with their input. Since queries describe declaratively
what
they return, they leave it to the system to implement the
how
of getting it. Combining this with an organization around objects makes the language highly suitable for complex interactive applications driven by large amounts of data from multiple sources.

Our implementation of the language includes a strong display component. It can be seen as a conceptual extension of HTML and CSS in a way which replaces the need for the JavaScript imperative component in web applications. The work described here is not restricted, however, to front-end development and can be applied elsewhere as well.
Implementing a semi-causal domain-specific language for context detection over binary sensors
Authors: Volanschi Nic , Serpette Bernard , Consel Charles
Published: April 2020

In spite of the fact that many sensors in use today are binary (i.e. produce only values of 0 and 1), and that useful context-aware applications are built exclusively on top of them, there is currently no development approach specifically targeted to binary sensors. Dealing with notions of state and state combinators, central to binary sensors, is tedious and error-prone in current approaches. For instance, developing such applications in a general programming language requires writing code to process events, maintain state and perform state transitions on events, manage timers and/or event histories.

In another paper, we introduced a domain specific language (DSL) called Allen, specifically targeted to binary sensors. Allen natively expresses states and state combinations, and detects contexts on line, on incoming streams of binary events. Expressing state combinations in Allen is natural and intuitive due to a key ingredient: semi-causal operators. That paper focused on the concept of the language and its main operators, but did not address its implementation challenges. Indeed, online evaluation of expressions containing semi-causal operators is difficult, because semi-causal sub-expressions may block waiting for future events, thus generating unknown values, besides 0 and 1. These unknown values may or may not propagate to the containing expressions, depending on the current value of the other arguments.

This paper presents a compiler and runtime for the Allen language, and shows how they implement its state combining operators, based on reducing complex expressions to a core subset of operators, which are implemented natively. We define several assisted living applications both in Allen and in a general scripting language. We show that the former are much more concise in Allen, achieve more effective code reuse, and ease the checking of some domain properties.
The Effect of a Thixotropic Nasal Gel on Nasal Symptoms and Inflammatory Biomarkers in Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis
Authors: Struß Nadja , Badorrek Philipp , Mattern Claudia , Mattern Udo , Hohlfeld Jens M.
Published: April 2020

Background: Drug-free viscous nasal applications have been shown to reduce nasal symptoms in individuals with seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR). Nascum®-Plus (NP), a commercially available thixotropic gel, has been designed to reduce dryness and soreness of the nasal mucosa and prevent the absorption of small particles. Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of single-dose NP in treating nasal symptoms and secretion during challenge in an allergen challenge chamber (ACC). Furthermore, the effect of this treatment on biomarkers and immune cells of the allergic cascade were measured. Methods: This open-label, cross-over, sequence-randomized, monocentric trial randomized 18 adults with SAR and a positive skin prick test reaction to Dactylis glomerata pollen to receive NP or no treatment during two 4-h ACC sessions 3 weeks apart. On Day 1, 9 subjects were challenged for 4 h with treatment, the other 9 without treatment, and vice versa on Day 22. Nasal lavage fluid and nasal filter eluate samples were obtained pre, 2, and 18 h post challenge in the ACC. Results: NP significantly reduced nasal symptoms, assessed by total nasal symptom score (p < 0.001), and minimized nasal secretion (p = 0.047), while no significant effect on biomarkers and immune cells in the nasal fluid was observed. The treatment was safe and well-tolerated. Conclusions: The physical barrier built by NP nasal gel can be safely applied in patients with allergic rhinitis. It reduces allergic nasal symptoms and secretion, but application of a single dose does not affect local inflammatory biomarkers.
ЗАХВОРЮВАНІСТЬ НА ГОСТРИЙ ІНФАРКТ МІОКАРДА СЕРЕД ДОРОСЛОГО НАСЕЛЕННЯ ХАРКІВСЬКОЇ ОБЛАСТІ
Authors: Ohniev V. A. , Podpriadova A. A.
Published: April 2020

Мета: вивчити та провести аналіз захворюваності на гострий інфаркт міокарда серед дорослого населення Харківської області.

Матеріали і методи. Матеріалами дослідження слугували дані інформаційно-аналітичного центру медичної статистики щодо рівня захворюваності на гострий інфаркт міокарда серед населення Харківської області протягом 2014–2018 рр. У роботі використано бібліосемантичний та статистичний методи.

Результати. За 5-річний період з 2014 до 2018 р. у Харківській області встановлено незначне зниження захворюваності на гострий інфаркт міокарда з 112,10 на 100 000 населення у 2014 р. до 100,77 на 100 000 населення у 2018 рр. При аналізі захворюваності по районах області встановлено, що найвищі показники захворюваності спостерігали у Барвінківському (149,59 на 100 000 населення), Зачепилівському (147,88 на 100 000 населення) та Красноградському (145,71 на 100 000 населення) районах. У результаті дослідження захворюваності на гострий інфаркт міокарда залежно від статі за період 2014–2018 рр. серед дорослого населення Харківської області встановлено, що показник захворюваності у чоловіків значно вищий, ніж у жінок.

Висновки. Незважаючи на незначне зниження захворюваності на гострий інфаркт міокарда, цей показник залишається на досить високому рівні. Враховуючи це, виникає необхідність в оптимізації первинної профілактики та наданні медичної допомоги хворим на інфаркт міокарда.
МУЛЬТИДИСЦИПЛІНАРНИЙ ПІДХІД ДО ОПТИМІЗАЦІЇ РОБОТИ ПРИВАТНОЇ БАГАТОПРОФІЛЬНОЇ КЛІНІКИ
Authors: Mikhalchuk V. M. , Gbur Z. V. , Shchyrina K. V. , Chernenko O. O.
Published: April 2020

Мета: розкрити суть та особливості застосування мультидисциплінарного підходу в управлінні діяльністю багатопрофільної клініки.

Матеріали і методи. У роботі використано метод економічного аналізу, системний підхід, системний аналіз. Шляхом системного аналізу та мета-аналізу джерел літератури, власного спостереження, вивчення та аналізу міжнародних рекомендацій керівників приватних медичних закладів розвинених країн світу запропоновано власне бачення мультидисциплінарного підходу в управлінні діяльністю багатопрофільної приватної клініки.

Результати. При побудові сукупної системи керування закладами охорони здоров’я необхідно враховувати особливості кожної з галузей. Адже існує це на основі того, що усі послуги, надані медичними установами чи працівниками, мають індивідуальні характеристики, які потребують розгляду в економічному управлінні діяльністю установ, що спеціалізуються на їх виробництві та реалізації.

Зазначено, що установа охорони здоров’я є юридичною особою будь-якої форми власності та організаційно-правовою формою або її відокремленим підрозділом, який займається наданням медичної допомоги для населення, але діє в межах як ліцензій, так і професійних діяльнісних навичок медичних співробітників. У статті зазначено, що міждисциплінарність має три цінності: широту, інтеграцію та трансформацію. Поняття широти включає кількісні та якісні показники. Адже, з одного боку, це набір взаємодоповнюючих дисциплін, а з іншого боку, це методологічні та теоретичні аспекти, наукові групи, набір якісних стандартів, диференціація розподілу праці між працівниками, адекватність результатів. Для того, щоб досягти успіху варто діяти в умовах співпраці та обміну. Інтелектуальна міждисциплінарна взаємодія сприяє формуванню самовизначених монолітних структур.

Висновки. За результатами досліджень встановлено, що мультидисциплінарний підхід до управління багатопрофільною приватною клінікою має три аспекти: аспект загального управління закладом, що передбачає надання широкого профілю медичних послуг, інноваційних підходів та підбору багатопрофільної команди фахівців; аспект мультидисциплінарного підходу в командному управлінні (орієнтована допомога, міжгалузева команда, команда менеджера з мультидисциплінарного догляду, команда з багатопрофільної консультації та догляду); аспект мультидисциплінарного підходу в послугах багатопрофільної клініки.
Más allá de los peregrinos y el oro: el desarrollo social precolombino en Costa Rica, Panamá y el norte de Colombia
Authors: Murillo Herrera Mauricio
Published: April 2020

Se expone de manera integral los principales avances en la comprensión del desarrollo de las sociedades precolombinas que habitaron en el territorio que hoy se conoce como Costa Rica, Panamá y el norte de Colombia y se realiza una valoración crítica de los resultados; esto con el fin de aumentar nuestra comprensión acerca de los procesos de cambio social precolombino en la región, principalmente aquellas que se han realizado en las últimas dos décadas. El análisis se realiza tanto para desarrollos sociales tempranos como para las sociedades tardías, y éstas últimas se estudian a partir de las temáticas propuestas por los investigadores como los principales impulsores de cambio social. El artículo muestra la extraordinaria diversidad en adaptaciones y procesos de desarrollo social ocurridos en la región durante la época precolombina, lo cual va en contra de una idea de homogeneidad social y cultural. Por otra parte, se destaca que efectivamente ha habido avances en el estudio de las sociedades antiguas en la región, pero estos no han sido aún mayores debido a que 1) se ha confundido elaboración conceptual con aumento en la comprensión de los desarrollos sociales y porque 2) no se ha logrado superar la brecha epistemológica y metodológica que existe entre describir el material y el contexto arqueológico y estudiar procesos sociales en el pasado. Finalmente, se muestra que si se quiere entender todo el rango de desarrollos sociales precolombinos que ha sido descrito en esos tres países, es necesario considerar dentro de los modelos otros factores de cambio distintos a los que han sido históricamente propuestos para la región: intercambio e interacción interregional.

 

Palabras clave: Arqueología; cambio social; Colombia; Panamá; Costa Rica
Impact of spring freshet flooding and summer rainfall flooding on the water quality of an alpine barrier lake
Authors: Li Chun-hua , Ye Chun , Li Ji-xuan , Wei Wei-wei , Zheng Ye , Kong Ming , Wang Hao
Published: April 2020

Background

Barrier lakes, formed by river interception, are particularly influenced by the upstream river. As such, spring freshet flooding and summer rainfall flooding due to wet precipitation (e.g. snow and rainfall) may sharply increase the concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorous, and carbon compounds in barrier lakes. Too much nutrients will lead to lake eutrophication. In this study, we used Lake Jingpo, the world’s second largest alpine barrier lake, to examine the impact of spring freshet flooding and summer rainfall flooding on its water quality by building a hydrodynamic water quality model with MIKE 21.

Results

The MIKE 21 HD hydrodynamic model and MIKE 21 AD convection and diffusion module were calibrated using meteorological data, hydrological data, and water quality data collected in 2018. All errors were in the acceptable range. According to model simulation results, the flow velocity in Lake Jingpo is generally weak (mostly lower than 0.015 m/s), but it increases to 0.045 m/s and above during spring freshet flooding (April–May) and summer rainfall flooding (August–September), which is much higher than in other months. The flow volume of its largest inflowing river reaches 4.81 × 108 m3, 29.77 × 108 m3, and 58.4 × 108 m3 during spring freshet flooding, summer rainfall flooding, and 30-year frequency rainfall flooding period, respectively. The longest diffusion distances from the lake mouth to the downstream way are 16.3 km, 33.1 km, and 43.6 km during the spring freshet flooding, summer rainfall flooding, and 30-year frequency rainfall flooding period, respectively. A larger amount of precipitation leads to longer diffusion distances and increased concentrations of total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorous (TP), chemical oxygen demand (CODMn), and ammonia–nitrogen (NH4-N) in the lake.

Conclusions

The sudden increase in water volume during spring flooding and summer rainfall flooding led to the rapid spread of nutrients and pollutants carried by the water into the barrier lake, resulting in a deterioration of lake water quality. In addition to pollution source control measures, ecological restoration, and the construction of a buffer system in the catchment are very important measures to effectively improve the buffer capacity of barrier lakes in light of spring freshet flooding and summer rainfall flooding.