bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
On the Automation of Intelligence, Sensing, and Reconnaissance Systems in Low UDR Operations
Authors: Schaffner Michael A.
Published: September 2016

Currently deployed Intelligence, Sensing, and Reconnaissance (ISR) systems fall along the spectrum of autonomy in operations, ranging from those systems that collect and analyze data autonomously to those systems that require humans for effective collection operations. This paper outlines two traits of ISR systems that require relatively less human involvement in operations, introducing the measurement of an operation's Understanding‐to‐Data Ratio (UDR) to help determine the appropriateness of automating a system in a given operating context. Human and automated capabilities in existing systems are contrasted, with the strengths of each identified. Finally, a spectrum of system capability and human involvement is proposed for considering tradeoffs involved with new acquisitions in the ISR domain, with an emphasis on the interface between human operators and automation in partially autonomous systems.
Systems Engineer: the ultimate phronetic leader?
Authors: Arrichiello Vincenzo
Published: September 2016

Leadership is charged with the expectation of providing guidance to decision making under conditions of uncertainty, incomplete information and high complexity; to that end, wisdom is needed. The pertinence of wisdom to leadership has been outlined by ancient philosophers (Aristotle “phronesis”, Thomas Aquina “prudentia”), and continues to be the subject of study today. This has resulted in the identification of the traits that, mainly, characterize wise leaders. The purpose of benefiting humankind is a deep rooted trait of engineering. This trait, conjoined with the fast growing interdependence between technological and societal issues, increasingly forces Engineering to deal with problems that exceed its traditional (technical) boundaries. As a consequence, engineers have to perform, ever more frequently, a decision making of the unstructured kind, that requires wise judgment. When comparing the traits of wise leaders with those deemed as characteristic of Engineering Leaders, and with those traditionally considered typical of effective Systems Engineers, a large overlapping becomes apparent. Thus Systems Engineering appears to be in a vantage position to respond to the demand of phronetic leadership. The Systems Approach, and its inherent Systems Thinking, can be reasonably seen as a solid foundations for an Engineering Leadership able to help mankind in meeting its present and future needs.
Benchmarking the Content of Master's Degrees in Systems Engineering in 2013
Authors: Kasser Joseph , Arnold Eileen
Published: September 2016

This paper fills a gap in the literature by describing a benchmarking study of the knowledge taught in a sample of systems engineering degrees performed in October 2013. By describing the methodology, the development of the benchmarking criteria, and presenting the observations from the benchmarking study, the paper provides an example of the activities performed in the early stages of the Scientific Method. Since the study was performed to benchmark the Master of Defence Technology and Systems (MDTS) degree offered by the Temasek Defence Systems Institute (TDSI) in the National University of Singapore (NUS), the paper:

Highlights benchmarks of the MDTS degree against the sampled Masters’ degrees.

Covers the first stage of the Scientific Method, in which observations are made, sorted and analysed before a hypothesis is developed.

Proposes criteria to be used for benchmarking degrees from other institutions.
Development of a Systems Engineering Career Competency Model for the U.S. Department of Defense
Authors: White Corina , Whitcomb Clifford A. , Khan Rabia , Grambow Dana , Delgado Jessica , Vélez José G.
Published: September 2016

The U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, Test and Evaluation is sponsoring a strategic initiative led by a team from the Naval Postgraduate School Systems Engineering Department to implement an overall approach to study and develop a systems engineering career competency model. The Naval Postgraduate School is working in collaboration with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Navy, Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, and the Missile Defense Agency to develop and verify the competencies used by defense systems engineers. Verification of the competency model is critical to allow it to be used as a basis for “high stakes” human resource functions for all of the U.S. Department of Defense. This paper presents the development of the systems engineering career competency model, and the subsequent efforts to have the systems engineering competencies verified.
Connecting Systems Engineering and Human Factors through MBSE
Authors: Robert Nilsson , Lars‐Ola Bligård
Published: September 2016

This paper explores the relationship between the domains of Systems Engineering and Human Factors. As complexity of product design increases a clear perspective of how these domains can be combined is necessary if systems under development are to be proficient. The relationship between the two domains is elaborated through the PU2B‐model, Product Utility Usability Business Model, which is a high level meta model developed to support decision making in systems design. With the PU2B‐model as base the paper presents how Systems Engineering and Human Factors relate to each other and can be combined to get the most out of both.
A Study of the Relationship between System Testability and Modularity
Authors: Efatmaneshnik Mahmoud , Ryan Michael
Published: September 2016

Modularity is one approach to design that, amongst other design attributes, facilitates testability. However, the relationship between the type of modularization and system testability is under‐researched. In this paper we present a probabilistic model of testability that enables us to study the relationship between modularity and testability. In particular, we focus on the costs and benefits associated with the particular modularizations selected for the sole purpose of system testability. We show that adopting and appropriate testing architecture through careful modularization can greatly enhance efficiency and effectiveness of system testing.
From Common Strategies and Approaches to Virtual Integration
Authors: Frank Moti , Broodney Henry , Orion Uzi , Kordova Sigal K.
Published: September 2016

This paper deals with the integration process in multidisciplinary technical systems projects. The paper reviews the objectives of the integration process, planning and managing principles, as well as the pitfalls and difficulties associated with this process. Various integration approaches are described and analyzed. A method for comparing integration approaches in systems projects is suggested. The paper then introduces the Model‐Based methods for virtual integration and examines how initial steps in that direction impact the conventional integration practices.
Defensibility: Legal Liabilities of Acts and Omissions in the Practice of Systems Engineering
Authors: Walden David D. , Scott Zane
Published: September 2016

Systems Engineers assigned to projects spend a majority of their time on technical and technical management processes. In order to produce balanced system solutions, systems engineers rely on specialty engineering activities (informally known as the “ilities” because many of them end in “ilty”) to trade performance requirements with non‐functional requirements (also known as quality attributes). The INCOSE Systems Engineering Handbook Fourth Edition (INCOSE, 2015) lists 14 “ilities” including affordability, reliability, and usability.

This paper introduces defensibility, an additional “ility” that attempts to balance the legal aspects of the system and its development effort. Professional legal liabilities stem from two primary sources: acts and omissions. Breaches of acts arise when an activity has been done, but it was done poorly or an improper action was taken based on the situation. Breaches of omissions arise when an activity was not done that should have reasonably been done under the circumstances. This paper explores both of these liabilities in the context of systems engineering and provides practical advice on how individuals and companies can better protect themselves. This paper is an attempt to show practitioners how defensibility may play a role in their designs and how they may be drawn into the adjudicatory process around disputes over their work or the work of others.
Effective and Efficient Preparation for the Unforeseeable
Authors: Hinsley S.W. , Henshaw M.J , Siemieniuch C.E.
Published: September 2016

This paper hypothesizes that a System‐of‐Systems (SoS) that is not fit‐for‐purpose is so because it cannot implement the correct, timely and complete transfers of Material, Energy and/or Information (MEI) between its constituents and with its external environment that are necessary to achieve a particular result. This research addresses the problem of maintaining a SoS fit‐for‐purpose after unpredictable changes in operation, composition or external factors by creating a method, implemented as an engineering process and supported by an analysis technique to enhance the affordance {“Features that provide the potential for interaction by “Affording the ability to do something” [1]} of SoS constituents for MEI transfer and reveal potential undesirable transfers.
Investigating structural gender inequality in the Norwegian pension system: An example of using MBSE in the evaluation of social systems
Authors: Palmer Erika
Published: September 2016

There is an increasing interest in expanding the capacity of model‐based systems engineering (MBSE) to include the evaluation and design of social systems. System dynamics modeling can easily be utilized for such a purpose. This study investigates gender equality in the Norwegian pension system using system dynamics modeling and serves as an example of how MBSE can be used to evaluate social systems. Many women often do not work or work part time in their childbearing/rearing years, which affects their pension amount. In countries that implement policies to equalize the pension level between the genders, national policies center on enabling women to increase their lifetime working hours (e.g. national childcare policies for daycare). One country that is rather advanced in this policy area is Norway. Using system dynamics modeling, this paper explores how women are disadvantaged structurally in the Norwegian pension system in the context of social investment strategy and the dual earner/ caregiver relationship.
The enabling role of Configuration Management for the Systems Engineering of tomorrow's complex Systems and Systems of Systems
Authors: D'Souza Adriana , Kossmann Mario , Watts Stephen
Published: September 2016

Times to market for complex Systems and Systems of Systems(SoS) in the aerospace and defence industries shall be reduced, whereas both customer expectations and technology evolutions are increasing at an exponential rate. As the total life cycle of complex Systems and SoS frequently spans across several decades, the customer expectations and market conditions are highly likely to evolve, thus their development needs to be kept in line with evolving business cases. Systems Engineering(SE) and Configuration Management(CM) need to work even more closely together in order to address this. CM as a discipline is essential for this as the key discipline for establishing traceability and controlling baseline evolutions and iterations between all the relevant pieces of information resulting from the related system lifecycle processes. This paper provides an outlook on how CM may enable SE of tomorrow's complex Systems and SoS, including some key recommendations and related challenges.
MB‐PLE to Plan and Track Submarine Configurations
Authors: Hause Matthew , Hallett Jon
Published: September 2016

The life of a class of submarines can be measured in decades. As such the operational demands and expectations change both strategically and tactically over its lifetime. Coupling this adaptability with the length of time submarines take to design, build, and maintain, no two “as built” submarines in a class will ever be the same even when constructed/maintained to the same “build to” design. Traditionally this has been accepted as the case and in most cases the full information set has been managed via the configuration management team at a class or batch level but not at an individual submarine level. The configuration of an individual submarine has been managed in terms of agreed changes against the class or batch baseline. Advances in technology (hardware performance, software tools and standards) now give us the opportunity to not only manage the full information set related to individual submarine system configuration baselines as they change over time but also undertake rigorous model based trade‐off studies to plan the manner in which a class, a batch, an individual submarine (variant), or any combination thereof can be modified over time. This paper will explore the use of Model‐Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) coupled with recent developments of Product Line Engineering (PLE) / Orthogonal Variability Modelling (OVM) to provide a means to plan, track, manage and evaluate an individual submarine's configuration over time in the context of the class, whilst simultaneously highlighting the wider application in the submarine enterprise and beyond.
Value based System Architecting: Illustrated by Designing a Task Automation System
Authors: Kumar Anand , Lokku Doji Samson , Zope Nikhil , Natarajan Swaminathan
Published: September 2016

Architecture is both a design activity (process) as well as the schema of fundamental things about a system (work product). As a design activity, architecture is the act of creating a representation of an unknown and original object whose properties (like technical aspects, formal and spatial structures) must be well enough understood in advance. As a work product, architecture is the structure of the components of a system, their interrelationships, externally visible properties of those components and principles and guidelines governing their design and evolution over time. In this paper, a systems architecting approach that is based on value viewpoint is discussed. This approach is illustrated for a task automation system.
Got Phenomena? Science‐Based Disciplines for Emerging Systems Challenges
Authors: Schindel Bill
Published: September 2016

Engineering disciplines (ME, EE, CE, ChE) sometimes argue their fields have “real physical phenomena”, “hard science” based laws, and first principles, claiming Systems Engineering lacks equivalent phenomenological foundation. We argue the opposite, and how replanting systems engineering in MBSE/PBSE supports emergence of new hard sciences and phenomena‐based domain disciplines.

Supporting this perspective is the System Phenomenon, wellspring of engineering opportunities and challenges. Governed by Hamilton's Principle, it is a traditional path for derivation of equations of motion or physical laws of so‐called “fundamental” physical phenomena of mechanics, electromagnetics, chemistry, and thermodynamics.

We argue that laws and phenomena of traditional disciplines are less fundamental than the System Phenomenon from which they spring. This is a practical reminder of emerging higher disciplines, with phenomena, first principles, and physical laws. Contemporary examples include ground vehicles, aircraft, marine vessels, and biochemical networks; ahead are health care, distribution networks, market systems, ecologies, and the IoT.
Effective System Architecture Description using a Presentational Data Schema
Authors: Hicks Paul , Rabbets Tim
Published: September 2016

This paper considers what system architecture is and what is involved in architecting. Two different approaches are summarised, and their key strengths and drawbacks identified.

The first of these is the approach advocated principally by Dori, which is to address the issues of devising and communicating architectures primarily by the use of a comprehensive notation to which elaboration detail can be progressively added. The second approach is that taken by UML practitioners, which is to develop a number of distinct aspects of an architecture, underpinned by a formal meta model.

The authors propose an approach which combines elements of both of these approaches, but which emphasises the need for, and benefits of, a more intuitive (yet still rigorous) approach. It offers comprehensive and integrated coverage of architecture aspects together with ease of communication and encouragement for disciplined architecture description. Architecting is a creative activity, and the essence is to capture and communicate the resulting products in a manner that is easy to understand and appreciate.
A Graph Theoretic Framework for Integrated and Co‐optimized Power System Planning
Authors: Khiyami Abdulaziz , Ishimatsu Takuto , Alfaris Anas , de Weck Olivier L.
Published: September 2016

Increased interest in renewable generation has made siting constraints more prominent in power system planning. In addition the power system is increasingly being considered as one of many coupled critical infrastructure systems in nexus’ such as the food‐energy‐water nexus and the gas‐electricity nexus. This paper describes a power system planning approach within a graph theoretic framework that allows for the handling of the geographical aspects of electricity production and distribution as well as the interaction of electricity network with other critical infrastructures.
Evaluation of illustrative ConOps and Decision Matrix as tools in concept selection
Authors: Solli Herman , Muller Gerrit
Published: September 2016

Low oil prices and cost reduction initiatives are currently affecting the oil and gas domain. At the same time, the industry struggles with budget and schedule overruns. The high focus on generic requirements tends to overshadow the operational needs for the system. Previous research points out insufficient acquisition of operational needs as a main contributor to costly late design changes. This paper explores the use of an illustrative Concept of Operation and Pugh matrix as tools when evaluating concepts in the subsea domain. We apply the tools to a conceptual study of an interdisciplinary system expansion to encourage an unbiased holistic mindset of the decision makers. We also aim to answer if the project engineers can use these tools to expose showstoppers and opportunities at an early stage of the system development process. The result of our research indicates that an illustrative ConOps supported by a high‐level Pugh matrix can serve as a trigger for discovering opportunities and constraints not initially considered. An Illustrative Concept of Operation and Pugh Matrix show potential when used as tools in communicating qualities of conceptual solutions between project members and stakeholders.
Towards Industrial Integration of MBSE into PLM for Mission‐Critical Systems
Authors: Pavalkis Saulius
Published: September 2016

Model‐Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) is a natural choice for engineering complex systems of systems that involve hardware and software components, deal with a huge number of heterogeneous requirements, and require solid verification and validation at multiple levels. However, industrial MBSE adoption requires solving multiple problems. Most of them originate when MBSE is incorporated into the production environment. For enterprise‐level industrial solutions, this means integration into the Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) tool chain. This integration covers requirements, product line, variability, design, simulation, BOM, configuration, version, and CAD drawings management. The problem is that there is no clear path for integration. Due to the various types of data that can be interchanged between PLM and MBSE, the existing integration solutions are patchy and driven by clients use cases only. There is not enough information about recommended MBSE – PLM integration practices, use cases, and methods. This is a huge problem in the context of large‐scale partnerships working on mission‐critical systems, where engineering data has to be processed and managed in the most consistent way so as to be used by all the partners and through the different PLM activities. In this paper we will overview real‐world PLM and MBSE integration cases from our company experience. We will map a path toward the right solution, and will dive deep into the practical side of Product Line Engineering (PLE) and MBSE integration.
Integration of Specialty Engineering Activities
Authors: Endler David
Published: September 2016

Specialty engineering activities are key to realization of successful systems. At the same time, the specialty engineering assessment are complicated and in most cases complex. In real life projects, very often the integration of specialty engineering activities is difficult. In some cases there is a lack of understanding the importance of those activities and sometimes there are organizational barriers. To overcome those barriers an approach is proposed that is based on widely accepted standards. The difficulty is that existing systems engineering standards poorly describe specialty engineering activities and how they are integrated with traditional engineering activities. This paper provides an approach to successfully accomplish this integration. It is extremely important that specialty engineers are involved in every life cycle phase. At the same time, a common understanding of the integrated approach needs to be achieved.
TET3 Mediates Alterations in the Epigenetic Marker 5hmC and Akt pathway in Steroid-Associated Osteonecrosis
Authors: Zhao Jie , Ma Xin-long , Ma Jian-xiong , Sun Lei , Lu Bin , Wang Ying , Xing Guo-sheng , Wang Yan , Dong Ben-chao , Xu Li-yan , Kuang Ming-Jie , Fu Lin , Bai Hao-hao , Ma Yue , Jin Wei-lin
Published: September 2016

Steroid-associated osteonecrosis (SAON) is one of the common complications of clinical glucocorticoid (GC) administration, with osteocyte apoptosis appearing as the primary histopathological lesion. However, the precise mechanism underlying SAON remains unknown. Epigenetic modification may be a major cause of SAON. Recently, cumulative research revealed that Ten-Eleven Translocation (TET) proteins can catalyze the conversion of 5-methylcytosine (5mC) to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) and then alter the epigenetic state of DNA. Here, we report that TET3-5hmC was upregulated in the femoral head tissues of SAON patients and MLO-Y4 cells with dexamethasone (Dex) treatment. Knockdown of TET3 in MLO-Y4 cells decreased 5hmC enrichment and rescued Dex-induced apoptosis. Meanwhile, the local intramedullary injection of TET3 siRNA in Sprague-Dawley rats abrogated GC-induced osteocyte apoptosis, histopathological changes, abnormal MRI signals, and bone microstructure declines in the femoral head in vivo. Moreover, a hydroxymethylated DNA immunoprecipitation (hMeDIP)-chip analysis of Dex-treated osteocytes revealed 456 different 5hmC-enriched genes. The Akt pathway was found to mediate the functional effect of Dex-induced dynamic 5hmC change; this was further verified in clinical samples. The loss of TET3 in MLO-Y4 cells abrogated Dex-induced Akt signaling pathway inhibition. Therefore, our data for the first time identify the effect of TET3-5hmC on the Akt pathway and the necessity of this signaling cascade in SAON, identifying a new potential therapeutic target. © 2016 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
Horizontal vectorization of electron repulsion integrals
Authors: Pritchard Benjamin P. , Chow Edmond
Published: September 2016

We present an efficient implementation of the Obara–Saika algorithm for the computation of electron repulsion integrals that utilizes vector intrinsics to calculate several primitive integrals concurrently in a SIMD vector. Initial benchmarks display a 2–4 times speedup with AVX instructions over comparable scalar code, depending on the basis set. Speedup over scalar code is found to be sensitive to the level of contraction of the basis set, and is best for
quartets when lD = 0 or
, which makes such a vectorization scheme particularly suitable for density fitting. The basic Obara–Saika algorithm, how it is vectorized, and the performance bottlenecks are analyzed and discussed. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
LC‐PDA‐ESI‐MSn analysis of phenolic and iridoid compounds from Globularia spp.
Authors: Friščić Maja , Bucar Franz , Hazler Pilepić Kroata
Published: September 2016

Plants produce a great number of metabolites with potentially useful biological activities. Species from the genus Globularia (Plantaginaceae) are known as sources of different phenolic and iridoid compounds. Globularia alypum L. is a medicinal plant used as a healing agent in many Mediterranean countries. Similarities in phytochemical composition are often observed for related species. For Globularia spp., such findings were mostly based on identification of several isolated compounds from distinct species. To our knowledge, this is the first study that enables simultaneous comparison of phytochemical profiles from several members of the genus Globularia.

Liquid chromatography‐photodiode array detection‐electrospray ionization‐tandem mass spectrometry was used for the analysis of methanolic extracts of aerial parts obtained from four Globularia species (G. alypum, G. punctata, G. cordifolia and G. meridionalis). In total, 85 compounds were identified or tentatively identified based on comparison of their retention time, UV and MSn (up to MS4) spectra to those of standard compounds and/or to literature data. Among these, high relative amounts of bioactive molecules such as globularin, globularifolin, asperuloside and verbascoside (acteoside) were found. Apart from providing new insights into the phytochemistry and chemotaxonomy of selected Globularia species, results of this study complement existing MS/MS spectral data and could enable easier mass spectrometric profiling of certain bioactive compounds such as iridoids and phenylethanoids in related plant species, genera and families. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Thin‐film encapsulated white organic light top‐emitting diodes using a WO3/Ag/WO3 cathode to enhance light out‐coupling
Authors: Bouzid Karim , Maindron Tony , Kanaan Hani
Published: September 2016

An alternative design of a semitransparent cathode for top‐emission white‐fluorescent organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) has been investigated. The scope of this study was to improve the luminance of OLEDs used for displays while keeping the current density versus voltage characteristic unchanged for addressing purposes. The use of an optical simulation tool allowed the optimization of the tri‐layer cathode WO3/Ag/WO3 to increase the light out‐coupling coefficient of the device leading to an increased white emission compared with a reference device with a Ca/Ag cathode. An increase of ~40% in luminance has been calculated by simulation and experimentally confirmed. The p‐i‐n OLED structure underneath the tri‐layer cathode allowed an efficient injection of electrons independently from the work function of WO3. The WO3/Ag/WO3 cathode has been also confirmed to be compatible with the atomic layer deposition technique for thin film encapsulation. Finally, lifetime measurements up to 600 h have been carried out to quantify the enhancements induced by the new cathode compared with the control device. It has been found that lifetimes of both cathode architectures are similar on this time scale, while the WO3/Ag/WO3 cathode shows a lower voltage drift versus aging.
Exposure to Childhood Abuse and Later Substance Use: Indirect Effects of Emotion Dysregulation and Exposure to Trauma
Authors: Mandavia Amar , Robinson Gabriella G. N. , Bradley Bekh , Ressler Kerry J. , Powers Abigail
Published: September 2016

Little is known about how emotion dysregulation (ED) and trauma exposure differentially affect the relationship between abuse in childhood and adult substance use. We examined associations between child abuse, trauma exposure, ED, and current substance use in an already existing dataset. Participants (N = 2,014 adults, 90% African American) had been recruited from an urban hospital for a parent study. Analyses showed that drug and alcohol use was significantly positively correlated with child abuse (emotional, physical, and sexual), later trauma exposure, and ED (all ps < .001). Linear regression showed that exposure to abuse when older than a child was significantly associated with drug and alcohol use independent of child abuse and demographic variables (R2Δ = .08, p < .001; R2Δ = .04, p < .001). ED was significantly associated with drug and alcohol use independently of child abuse, nonabuse trauma, and demographic variables (R2Δ = .02, p < .001; R2Δ = .04, p < .001). Multiple mediation analyses showed that ED and later trauma exposure accounted for variance in the association between emotional abuse and substance use (p < .001). A better understanding of vulnerabilities to additional traumatization and emotion‐regulation deficits in individuals who have been exposed to child abuse and in addition have comorbid substance use problems may inform treatments that lead to improved outcomes.
Lysosomal trafficking defects link Parkinson's disease with Gaucher's disease
Authors: Wong Yvette C. , Krainc Dimitri
Published: September 2016

Lysosomal dysfunction has been implicated in multiple diseases, including lysosomal storage disorders such as Gaucher's disease, in which loss‐of‐function mutations in the GBA1 gene encoding the lysosomal hydrolase β‐glucocerebrosidase result in lipid substrate accumulation. In Parkinson's disease, α‐synuclein accumulates in Lewy bodies and neurites contributing to neuronal death. Previous clinical and genetic evidence has demonstrated an important link between Parkinson's and Gaucher's disease, as GBA1 mutations and variants increase the risk of Parkinson's and Parkinson's patients exhibit decreased β‐glucocerebrosidase activity. Using human midbrain neuron cultures, we have found that loss of β‐glucocerebrosidase activity promotes α‐synuclein accumulation and toxicity, whereas α‐synuclein accumulation further contributes to decreased lysosomal β‐glucocerebrosidase activity by disrupting β‐glucocerebrosidase trafficking to lysosomes. Moreover, α‐synuclein accumulation disrupts trafficking of additional lysosomal hydrolases, further contributing to lysosomal dysfunction and neuronal dyshomeostasis. Importantly, promoting β‐glucocerebrosidase activity reduces α‐synuclein accumulation and rescues lysosomal and neuronal dysfunction, suggesting that β‐glucocerebrosidase may be an important therapeutic target for advancing drug discovery in synucleinopathies including Parkinson's disease. © 2016 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.
Screening of reproduction‐related single‐nucleotide variations from MeDIP‐seq data in sheep
Authors: Cao Jiaxue , Wei Caihong , Zhang Shuzhen , Capellini Terence D. , Zhang Li , Zhao Fuping , Li Li , Zhong Tao , Wang Linjie , Du Lixin , Zhang Hongping
Published: September 2016

Extensive variation in reproduction has arisen in Chinese Mongolian sheep during recent domestication. Hu and Small‐tailed Han sheep, for example, have become non‐seasonal breeders and exhibit higher fecundity than Tan and Ujumqin breeds. We therefore scanned reproduction‐related single‐nucleotide variations from methylated DNA‐immunoprecipitation sequencing data generated from each of those four breeds to uncover potential mechanisms underlying this breed variation. We generated a high‐quality map of single nucleotide variations (SNVs) in DNA methylation enriched regions, and found that the majority of variants are located within non‐coding regions. We identified 359 SNVs within the Sheep Quantitative Trait Locus (QTL) database. Nineteen of these SNVs associated with the Aseasonal Reproduction QTL, and 10 out of the 19 reside close to genes with known reproduction functions. We also identified the well‐known FecB mutation in high‐fecundity sheep (Hu and Small‐tailed Han sheep). When we applied these FecB finding to our breeding system, we improved lambing rate by 175%. In summary, this study provided strong candidate SNVs associated with sheep fecundity that can serve as targets for functional testing and to enhance selective breeding strategies. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 83: 958–967, 2016 © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
An illustrated comparison of processing methods for MR phase imaging and QSM: combining array coil signals and phase unwrapping
Authors: Robinson Simon Daniel , Bredies Kristian , Khabipova Diana , Dymerska Barbara , Marques José P. , Schweser Ferdinand
Published: September 2016

Phase imaging benefits from strong susceptibility effects at very high field and the high signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) afforded by multi‐channel coils. Combining the information from coils is not trivial, however, as the phase that originates in local field effects (the source of interesting contrast) is modified by the inhomogeneous sensitivity of each coil. This has historically been addressed by referencing individual coil sensitivities to that of a volume coil, but alternative approaches are required for ultra‐high field systems in which no such coil is available. An additional challenge in phase imaging is that the phase that develops up to the echo time is “wrapped” into a range of 2π radians. Phase wraps need to be removed in order to reveal the underlying phase distribution of interest.

Beginning with a coil combination using a homogeneous reference volume coil – the Roemer approach – which can be applied at 3 T and lower field strengths, we review alternative methods for combining single‐echo and multi‐echo phase images where no such reference coil is available. These are applied to high‐resolution data acquired at 7 T and their effectiveness assessed via an index of agreement between phase values over channels and the contrast‐to‐noise ratio in combined images. The virtual receiver coil and COMPOSER approaches were both found to be computationally efficient and effective.

The main features of spatial and temporal phase unwrapping methods are reviewed, placing particular emphasis on recent developments in temporal phase unwrapping and Laplacian approaches. The features and performance of these are illustrated in application to simulated and high‐resolution in vivo data. Temporal unwrapping was the fastest of the methods tested and the Laplacian the most robust in images with low SNR. © 2016 The Authors. NMR in Biomedicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Where you lead we will follow: a longitudinal study of strategic political communication in election campaigning
Authors: Falasca Kajsa , Grandien Christina
Published: September 2016

The ways in which election campaigns are planned, organized, and conducted have changed considerably during recent decades, and political parties constantly employ new ideas and practices in order to communicate as strategically and effectively as possible. The concept of strategic political communication refers to an organization's purposeful management of information and communication to achieve certain political goals. In this article, we focus on the role of the individual political party in developing election campaigning. The empirical material covers the 2002, 2006, and 2010 Swedish national election campaigns and illustrates how political parties lead and follow each other in the development of strategic political communication. By exploring party agency, this article contributes to the understanding of how ideas and practices of strategic political communication emerge and develop over time in election campaigning.
A low migration phosphine to overcome the oxygen inhibition in new high performance photoinitiating systems for photocurable dental type resins
Authors: Bouzrati‐Zerelli Mariem , Maier Maximilian , Fik Christoph P , Dietlin Céline , Morlet‐Savary Fabrice , Fouassier Jean Pierre , Klee Joachim E , Lalevée Jacques
Published: September 2016

The objective of this work was to propose a novel low migration additive (i.e. a phosphine) to overcome the oxygen inhibition in a camphorquinone (CQ) base photoinitiating system for the polymerization of methacrylates (e.g. a bisphenol A‐glycidyl methacrylate (Bis‐GMA)/triethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (TEGDMA) blend (70%/30% w/w)) upon exposure to a commercial blue light emitting diode centred at 477 nm. CQ/amine/phosphine derivative or CQ/amine/iodonium salt/phosphine derivative combinations were studied. Real‐time Fourier transform IR and photo‐DSC experiments were used to monitor the polymerization profiles. Remarkably, it was found that the addition of the new phosphine derivative to CQ/amine or CQ/amine/iodonium salt noticeably improved the rate of polymerization and the final conversion in air. A low migration was found for this additive as shown by HPLC experiments in agreement with a copolymerizable behaviour. No additional yellowing of the film was observed. Electron spin resonance spectrometry was used to detect the produced radicals. The overall chemical mechanisms are investigated and discussed. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry
Formulation of charge transport in molecular junctions with time‐dependent molecule‐leads coupling operators
Authors: Peskin Uri
Published: September 2016

The problem of time‐dependent molecule‐leads coupling in single‐molecule junctions is acute for the structure, stability and functionality of these systems during non‐equilibrium transport. Time‐dependence of molecule‐lead coupling operators may rise when they are perturbed directly, or formally (indirectly), when time‐dependent perturbation to the molecule or to the leads are mapped onto the coupling operators by unitary transformations. In this work a reduced density matrix formulation is outlined for the study of transport in the presence of time‐dependent couplings. The formulation assumes weak molecule‐lead coupling, but accounts for many body interactions within the molecule, and for strong time‐dependent field. For band limited or periodic fields the formulation leads to kinetic equations which map the time‐dependent transport problem onto a static transport problem with multiple leads, thus providing convenient working equations as well as a useful tool for interpreting experiments on field driven single molecule junctions. Applications to concrete models are demonstrated.
Efficient hole‐transporting layer MoO3:CuI deposited by co‐evaporation in organic photovoltaic cells
Authors: Barkat L. , Hssein M. , El Jouad Z. , Cattin L. , Louarn G. , Stephant N. , Khelil A. , Ghamnia M. , Addou M. , Morsli M. , Bernède J. C.
Published: September 2016

In order to improve hole collection at the interface anode/electron donor in organic photovoltaic cells, it is necessary to insert a hole‐transporting layer. CuI was shown to be a very efficient hole‐transporting layer. However, its tendency to be quite rough tends to induce leakage currents and it is necessary to use a very slow deposition rate for CuI to avoid such negative effect. Herein, we show that the co‐deposition of MoO3 and CuI avoids this difficulty and allows deposition of a homogeneous efficient hole‐collecting layer at an acceptable deposition rate. Via an XPS study, we show that blending MoO3:CuI improves the hole collection efficiency through an increase of the gap state density. This increase is due to the formation of Mo5+ following interaction between MoO3 and CuI. Not only does the co‐evaporation process allow for decreasing significantly the deposition time of the hole‐transporting layer, but also it increases the efficiency of the device based on the planar heterojunction, CuPc/C60.
Application of NiOx thin films as p‐type emitter layer in heterojunction solar cells
Authors: Menchini Francesca , Grilli Maria Luisa , Dikonimos Theodoros , Mittiga Alberto , Serenelli Luca , Salza Enrico , Chierchia Rosa , Tucci Mario
Published: September 2016

Non‐stoichiometric nickel oxide (NiOx) is attracting growing attention due to its characteristics of p‐type transparent conductive layer and to the possibility to tailor its optical and electrical properties. NiOx could also be employed as the electron blocking layer in silicon‐based heterojunction solar cells. However, at present not much work has been done in this direction. In this paper we investigate the optoelectronic characteristics of NiOx thin films and demonstrate the usability of NiOx as emitter layer in silicon based heterostructure solar cells due to its hole collection selectivity. Test heterojunctions show a rectifying behaviour, even if their characteristics are still limited by the density of defects at the c‐Si/NiOx interface, as deduced by comparing the experimental results with numerical simulations. This suggests that the quality of the interface between NiOx and c‐Si needs to be improved, either by optimizing the deposition process of NiOx or by depositing a buffer layer able to carefully passivate the silicon surface and helpfully allow the growth of oxide layer. (© 2016 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Block antiferromagnetism and possible ferroelectricity in KFe2Se2
Authors: Zhang Yang , Zhang Huimin , Weng Yakui , Lin Lingfang , Yao Xiaoyan , Dong Shuai
Published: September 2016

Superconductors and multiferroics are two of the hottest branches in condensed matter physics. The connections between those two fields are fundamentally meaningful to unify the physical rules of correlated electrons. Recently, BaFe2Se3, was predicted to be multiferroic [Phys. Rev. Lett. 113, 187204 (2014)] due to its unique one‐dimensional block‐type antiferromagnetism. Here, another iron‐selenide KFe2Se2, a parent state of iron‐based superconductor, is predicted to be multiferroic. Its two‐dimensional block‐type antiferromagnetism can generate a moderate electric dipole for each Fe–Se layer via the Fe–Se–Fe exchange striction. Different stacking configurations of these magnetic blocks give closely proximate energies and thus the ground state of KFe2Se2 may be switchable between antiferroelectric and ferroelectric phases.

Crystal structure of KFe2Se2. (a) Purple: K; green: Se; brown: Fe. Two Fe sheets in a minimum unit cell are indicated as A and B. (b) One Fe–Se layer with magnetism. Brown: spin up; blue: spin down. (c) A side view of Fe–Se bonds. The ionic displacements driven by exchange striction are indicated by arrows.

magnified image

Crystal structure of KFe2Se2. (a) Purple: K; green: Se; brown: Fe. Two Fe sheets in a minimum unit cell are indicated as A and B. (b) One Fe–Se layer with magnetism. Brown: spin up; blue: spin down. (c) A side view of Fe–Se bonds. The ionic displacements driven by exchange striction are indicated by arrows.
Efficacy of Trans‐cinnamaldehyde and Eugenol in Reducing Acinetobacter baumannii Adhesion to and Invasion of Human Keratinocytes and Controlling Wound Infection In Vitro
Authors: Karumathil Deepti P. , Surendran‐Nair Meera , Venkitanarayanan Kumar
Published: September 2016

The study investigated the efficacy of two natural, plant‐derived antimicrobials (PDAs), namely trans‐cinnamaldehyde (TC), and eugenol (EG) for decreasing Acinetobacter baumannii adhesion to and invasion of human keratinocytes (HEK001). Moreover, the efficacy of two PDAs for inhibiting A. baumannii biofilm formation was determined using an in vitro collagen matrix wound model. Additionally, the effect of TC and EG on A. baumannii biofilm architecture was visualized using confocal scanning microscopy. Further the effect of both PDAs on genes critical for biofilm synthesis was determined using real‐time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Both TC and EG significantly reduced A. baumannii adhesion and invasion to HEK001 by ~2 to 3 log10 CFU/mL (p < 0.05) compared with the controls (p < 0.05). Further, after 24 and 48 h, TC and EG inhibited biofilm formation by ~1.5 to 2 and ~2 to 3.5 log10 CFU/mL, compared with controls (p < 0.05). Confocal microscopy revealed that TC and EG disrupted the biofilm architecture. RT‐qPCR results indicated that two phytochemicals significantly down‐regulated the transcription of genes associated with A. baumannii biofilm production. The results suggest that both TC and EG could potentially be used to treat A. baumannii wound infections; however, their efficacy in in vivo models needs to be validated. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Modeling Failure Process and Quantifying the Effects of Multiple Types of Preventive Maintenance for a Repairable System
Authors: Said Uthman , Taghipour Sharareh
Published: September 2016

In this paper, we consider a repairable system whose failures follow a non‐homogenous Poisson process with the power law intensity function. The system is subject to corrective and multiple types of preventive maintenance. A corrective maintenance has a minimal effect on the system; however, a preventive maintenance may reduce the system's age. We assume the effects of different preventive maintenance on the system are not identical and derive the likelihood function to estimate the parameters of the failure process as well as the effects of preventive maintenance. Moreover, we derive the conditional reliability and the expected number of failures between two consecutive preventive maintenance types. The proposed methods are applied to a real case study of four trucks used in a mining site in Canada. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Innovate or… Become Obsolete?
Authors: Macer Tim
Published: September 2016

Findings of the annual technology survey
Semiotics for Brands‐the Next Generation?
Authors: Evans Malcolm
Published: September 2016

The Established Cultural Paradigm
Catching the Wave
Authors: Phillips Steve
Published: September 2016

There are no two ways about it; companies must innovate if they expect to survive and grow. An acceleration of technological advancement means the new measure of success depends on who gets there first.
Growth Rate Flat in 2015 for the World's Largest Market Research Companies‐Or Is It?
Authors: Bowers Diane
Published: September 2016

The 2015 growth rate was flat for the 25 research companies included in this year's report. The total 2015 revenue was US$22.5 billion versus US$22.7 billion in 2014, −0.9% (or −0.2% when adjusted for inflation).
Big Data: Start With Baby Steps
Authors: Gray Kevin
Published: September 2016

Marketing scientist Kevin Gray asks Wharton Professor Peter Fader some questions many marketers are asking themselves.