bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prediction of Left Ventricular Reverse Remodelling: A Mini Review on Clinical Aspects
Authors: Chudý Martin , Goncalvesová Eva
Published: September 2022

Improvement of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in patients after the first manifestation of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) has currently been observed more frequently than it was years ago. This appears to be due to the early initiation of comprehensive HF therapy. According to these observations, a new HF syndrome category, heart failure with improved ejection fraction (HFimpEF), was introduced. In this short review, we present definitions of reverse remodelling, myocardial remission, and myocardial recovery. We provide an overview of clinical research aimed at evaluating reverse remodelling in different populations of patients with HFrEF. Clinical and imaging characteristics and biomarkers identified as predictors of reverse remodelling and improvement of the LVEF are discussed. We also briefly address the current views on the management of patients with HFimpEF. In-depth study and knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying the reverse remodelling process may lead to the identification of new individualized therapeutic approaches for HFrEF.
Sex Differences and Utility of Treadmill Testing in Long‐QT Syndrome
Authors: Yee Lauren A. , Han Hui‐Chen , Davies Brianna , Pearman Charles M. , Laksman Zachary W. M. , Roberts Jason D. , Steinberg Christian , Tadros Rafik , Cadrin‐Tourigny Julia , Simpson Christopher S. , Gardner Martin , MacIntyre Ciorsti , Arbour Laura , Leather Richard , Fournier Anne , Green Martin S. , Kimber Shane , Angaran Paul , Sanatani Shubhayan , Joza Jacqueline , Khan Habib , Healey Jeffrey S. , Atallah Joseph , Seifer Colette , Krahn Andrew D.
Published: September 2022

Background

Diagnosis of congenital long‐QT syndrome (LQTS) is complicated by phenotypic ambiguity, with a frequent normal‐to‐borderline resting QT interval. A 3‐step algorithm based on exercise response of the corrected QT interval (QTc) was previously developed to diagnose patients with LQTS and predict subtype. This study evaluated the 3‐step algorithm in a population that is more representative of the general population with LQTS with milder phenotypes and establishes sex‐specific cutoffs beyond the resting QTc.

Methods and Results

We identified 208 LQTS likely pathogenic or pathogenic
KCNQ1
or
KCNH2
variant carriers in the Canadian NLQTS (National Long‐QT Syndrome) Registry and 215 unaffected controls from the HiRO (Hearts in Rhythm Organization) Registry. Exercise treadmill tests were analyzed across the 5 stages of the Bruce protocol. The predictive value of exercise ECG characteristics was analyzed using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis to identify optimal cutoff values. A total of 78% of male carriers and 74% of female carriers had a resting QTc value in the normal‐to‐borderline range. The 4‐minute recovery QTc demonstrated the best predictive value for carrier status in both sexes, with better LQTS ascertainment in female patients (area under the curve, 0.90 versus 0.82), with greater sensitivity and specificity. The optimal cutoff value for the 4‐minute recovery period was 440 milliseconds for male patients and 450 milliseconds for female patients. The 1‐minute recovery QTc had the best predictive value in female patients for differentiating LQTS1 versus LQTS2 (area under the curve, 0.82), and the peak exercise QTc had a marginally better predictive value in male patients for subtype with (area under the curve, 0.71). The optimal cutoff value for the 1‐minute recovery period was 435 milliseconds for male patients and 455 milliseconds for femal patients.

Conclusions

The 3‐step QT exercise algorithm is a valid tool for the diagnosis of LQTS in a general population with more frequent ambiguity in phenotype. The algorithm is a simple and reliable method for the identification and prediction of the 2 major genotypes of LQTS.
Rates of Elective Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in England and Wales: Impact of COURAGE and ORBITA Trials
Authors: Rashid Muhammad , Stevens Chris , Wijeysundera Harindra C. , Curzen Nick , Khoo Chee Wah , Mohamed Mohamed Osama , Aktaa Suleman , Wu Jianhua , Ludman Peter F. , Mamas Mamas A.
Published: September 2022

Background

There are limited data about how COURAGE (Clinical Outcomes Utilizing Revascularization and Aggressive Drug Evaluation) and ORBITA (Objective Randomized Blinded Investigation With Optimal Medical Therapy of Angioplasty in Stable Angina) trials have impacted percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) practices at regional or national level. We evaluated temporal trends in elective PCI rates for stable angina and, specifically, examined the impact of the COURAGE and ORBITA trials on PCI practices in England and Wales.

Methods and Results

We used national PCI data comprising >1.2 million patients undergoing PCI between January 2006 and December 2019. Patient demographics, procedural details, and clinical outcomes were analyzed, and temporal trends in PCI rates for stable angina were compared before and after the publication of the COURAGE and ORBITA trials. Of 1 245 802 PCI procedures, 430 248 (34.5%) were performed for stable angina. Over the study period, the number of elective PCI procedures per year (30 823 in 2006 to 34 103 in 2019) and per 100 000 population estimates (50.7 in 2006 to 58.4 in 2019) remained stable. The proportion of patients undergoing elective PCI without angina symptoms almost doubled from 5.1% to 9.7%. The incidence rate of elective PCI volume after the COURAGE trial, published in 2007, was not different from before the trial was published (incidence rate ratio, 1.06 [95% CI, 0.69–1.62]). It also remained stable after the publication of the ORBITA trial in 2017 (incidence rate ratio, 0.96 [95% CI, 0.74–1.23]).

Conclusions

In this nationwide analysis, rates of elective PCI for stable angina remained stable over 14 years. Publication of the COURAGE and ORBITA trials had no impact on elective PCI activity.
Race, Interleukin‐6,
TMPRSS6
Genotype, and Cardiovascular Disease in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease
Authors: Barrows Ian R. , Devalaraja Matt , Kakkar Rahul , Chen Jing , Gupta Jayanta , Rosas Sylvia E. , Saraf Santosh , He Jiang , Go Alan , Raj Dominic S. , Amdur Richard L. , Unruh Mark L. , Shah Vallabh O. , Rao Panduranga S. , Rahman Mahboob , Nelson Robert G. , Lash James P. , Feldman Harold I. , Cohen Debbie , Appel Lawrence J.
Published: September 2022

Background

Differences in death rate and cardiovascular disease (CVD) between Black and White patients with chronic kidney disease is attributed to sociocultural factors, comorbidities, genetics, and inflammation.

Methods and Results

We examined the interaction of race, plasma IL‐6 (interleukin‐6), and
TMPRSS6
genotype as determinants of CVD and mortality in 3031 Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort study participants. The primary outcomes were all‐cause mortality and a composite of incident myocardial infarction, peripheral artery disease, stroke, and heart failure. During the median follow‐up of 10 years, Black patients with chronic kidney disease experienced a significantly higher mortality (34% versus 26%) and CVD composite (41% versus 28%) compared with White patients. After adjustment,
TMPRSS6
genotype did not associate with the outcomes. The adjusted hazard ratio for mortality (4.11 [2.48–6.80],
P
<0.001) and CVD composite (2.52 [1.96–3.24],
P
<0.001) were higher for the highest versus lowest IL‐6 quintile. The adjusted hazards for death per 1‐quintile increase in IL‐6 in White and Black individuals were 1.53 (1.42–1.64) versus 1.29 (1.20–1.38) (
P
<0.001), respectively. For CVD composite they were 1.61 (1.50–1.74) versus 1.30 (1.22–1.39) (
P
<0.001), respectively. In Cox proportional hazard models that included IL‐6, there was no longer a racial disparity for death (1.01 [0.87–1.16],
P
=0.92), but significant unexplained mediation remained for CVD (1.24 [1.07–1.43];
P
=0.004). Path models that included IL‐6, diabetes, and urine albumin to creatinine ratio were able to identify variables responsible for racial disparity in mortality and CVD.

Conclusions

Racial differences in mortality and CVD among patients with chronic kidney disease could be explained by good‐fitting path models that include selected mediator variables including diabetes and plasma IL‐6.
Outcomes Following Acute Coronary Syndrome in Patients With and Without Rheumatic Immune‐Mediated Inflammatory Diseases
Authors: Wassif Heba , Saad Marwan , Desai Rajul , Hajj‐Ali Rula A. , Menon Venu , Chaudhury Pulkit , Nakhla Michael , Puri Rishi , Prasada Sameer , Reed Grant W. , Ziada Khaled , Kapadia Samir , Desai Milind , Mentias Amgad
Published: September 2022

Background

Rheumatic immune mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) are associated with high risk of acute coronary syndrome. The long‐term prognosis of acute coronary syndrome in patients with rheumatic IMIDs is not well studied.

Methods and Results

We identified Medicare beneficiaries admitted with a primary diagnosis of myocardial infarction (MI) from 2014 to 2019. Outcomes of patients with MI and concomitant rheumatic IMIDs including systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic sclerosis, dermatomyositis, or psoriasis were compared with propensity matched control patients without rheumatic IMIDs. One‐to‐three propensity‐score matching was done for exact age, sex, race, ST‐segment–elevation MI, and non–ST‐segment–elevation MI variables and greedy approach on other comorbidities. The study primary outcome was all‐cause mortality. The study cohort included 1 654 862 patients with 3.6% prevalence of rheumatic IMIDs, the most common of which was rheumatoid arthritis, followed by systemic lupus erythematosus. Patients with rheumatic IMIDs were younger, more likely to be women, and more likely to present with non–ST‐segment–elevation MI. Patients with rheumatic IMIDs were less likely to undergo coronary angiography, percutaneous coronary intervention or coronary artery bypass grafting. After propensity‐score matching, at median follow up of 24 months (interquartile range 9–45), the risk of mortality (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 1.15 [95% CI, 1.14–1.17]), heart failure (HR, 1.12 [95% CI 1.09–1.14]), recurrent MI (HR, 1.08 [95% CI 1.06–1.11]), and coronary reintervention (HR, 1.06 [95% CI, 1.01–1.13]) (
P
<0.05 for all) was higher in patients with versus without rheumatic IMIDs.

Conclusions

Patients with MI and rheumatic IMIDs have higher risk of mortality, heart failure, recurrent MI, and need for coronary reintervention during follow‐up compared with patients without rheumatic IMIDs.
Trends in the Study of Cultural-historical Phenomena on the Internet (based on a study of Russians’ attitudes towards money)
Authors: Zhuravlev Anatoly L. , Zinchenko Yury P. , Kitova Dzhuletta A.
Published: September 2022

Background. The development of information technologies has led to the intensification of sociocultural interaction, allowed the creation of new systems for storing and processing information, and provided space for users to share their opinions, ideas, and standpoints. Thus, the Internet has become a major social-humanitarian scientific space. In this modern scientific space, one can single out a wide range of studies in psychology that show which topics are most popular and most widely discussed, or which moral grounds the participants of radical political movements share. Such studies show, for example, that U.S. working people experience psycho-physiological strain, and that infectious diseases spread more easily under modern conditions. Objective. This study focused on the attitude that users of the Twitter social network hold towards money. Design. It was carried out by analyzing the texts of messages posted by Russian and Japanese users (background research) which contained the word “money.” The research methods included program tools for word frequency analysis, semantic grouping of content, and analyzing the emotional nature of informal short messages. To interpret the results, the authors used expert analysis, theoretical justification, and content analysis. Results. We found that Russians’ attitudes toward money can be divided into eight main categories: people, time, country, expenses, economy, philosophical speculations, power, and income. The main economic concerns were centered on the expenses and income coming from salaried jobs. Russians’ major expenses were mainly associated with everyday financial problems. A comparison of Russian and Japanese messages revealed a number of clear-cut psychological differences.
Social Infrastructures, Military Entrepreneurship, and the Making of the Sultan’s Court in Fifteenth-Century Cairo
Authors: Van Steenbergen Jo , Termonia Maya
Published: September 2022

This paper engages with the organization of the leadership of the Syro-Egyptian sultanate in the long ninth/fifteenth century, focusing particularly on the case of the court position of ‘the Chief Head of the [sultan’s] Guards’ (raʾs nawbat al-nuwab). It explores narrative source reports to identify the sultanate’s sixty ‘Chief Heads’ and to reconsider what they did in this capacity. Through the analytical categories of the court, social infrastructures and military entrepreneurialism, this paper furthers understandings of how these military leaders were all constitutive participants in the era’s complex processes of resource accumulation, violence-wielding, courtly reconfiguration, and state formation.
European-native vocalizing: sex and age-class acoustic variation in the Central European red deer (Cervus elaphus)
Authors: Volodin Ilya A. , Karaseva Kseniya D. , Volodina Elena V. , Tari Tamás , Náhlik András
Published: September 2022

Within-population acoustic variation of European red deer Cervus elaphus follows two empirically established common rules: Rule 1: suggesting similar-pitched stag and hind calls because of potential prevalence of natural over sexual selection on call pitch; and Rule 2: predicting lower-pitched calls in adults, because larger vocal folds normally produce lower-pitched calls in mammals. We found that both rules were supported for native Pannonian red deer from Central Europe. All fundamental frequency () parameter values of hind contact calls (for the exclusion of the beginning ) were indistinguishable from those of stag rutting roars. These results agree with published data on vocalization of male and female American and Asian wapiti Cervus canadensis. Calls of adults of either sex were lower in frequency than calf calls. These results disagree with data collected from adult and young American wapiti producing same-frequency calls, probably because of a distinctive mechanism of sound production (whistling).
Explaining Epistemic Intuitions: From Intuitionist Particularism to Intuitionist Explanationism
Authors: McCain Kevin
Published: September 2022

In Radical Skepticism & Epistemic Intuition Michael Bergmann attempts to overcome the threat of radical skepticism as it arises in several different forms. The key to Bergmann’s response to skepticism is his method of intuitionist particularism wherein we give our intuitions about particular beliefs being justified more weight than we do intuitions about the premises of arguments for skepticism. There are two general problems for Bergmann’s response to skepticism. First, he fails to accurately portray the key principle of the skeptical argument. As a result, much of the apparent motivation for looking to intuitionist particularism as opposed to other responses to skepticism is merely apparent. Second, intuitionist particularism faces significant problems when it comes to the Problem of the Criterion and the resolution of conflicting intuitions. However, a related intuitionist method, one incorporating explanationism, may be able to deliver what intuitionist particularism promises while avoiding its problems.
Umorismo come strumento di critica all’Occidentalizzazione nel romanzo vietnamita Số Đỏ (Vũ Trọng Phụng, Hanoi, 1936)
Authors: Le Thuy Hien
Published: September 2022

Based on the study of humour and its classical categories (superiority, relief, incongruity), as well as its denunciation function, this paper is going to explore different humour techniques in Số Đỏ (Vũ Trọng Phụng 1936), a masterpiece of contemporary Vietnamese literature. Written during the most intense period of socioeconomic and political changes in colonial Indochina, this novel immediately stood out for its bitter humour, which laid bare the effects of modernization in northern Vietnam during late French colonization. Focusing on ridiculous members of the emergent Francophile bourgeoisie, the mocking of their uncritical imitation of the behaviors and customs of the Western culture, and the ironic description of absurd and incongruous situations, Vũ Trọng Phụng successfully revealed the socioeconomic crisis, the pressure of cultural changes, and the clash—both material and ideological—between East and West, tradition and modernity, which took place in Hanoi in the 1930s. Because of its controversial content, Số Đỏ, together with other works of Vũ Trọng Phụng, was the subject of intense literary and political debates in the ‘30s, during the French protectorate, and in the ‘60s was banned from communist-ruled Vietnam, until its rehabilitation in the late ‘80s. This case represents a rare example of criticism of Westernization seen through the sceptical eyes and humorous tone of a colonized author, and confirms once more the important political and social role of humour, its ability to represent reality, the dual existence of comic and tragic.
Technical Education in Nara Japan: Text and Context of the Yōshi kangoshō (ca. 720)
Authors: Manieri Antonio
Published: September 2022

The Yōshi kangoshō (Notes on Chinese Words by Master Yako, ca. 720) is a bilingual Sinitic-Japanese dictionary, now lost and surviving only in indirect transmission thanks to quotations in the Wamyōruijushō (Categorized Notes on Japanese Nouns, ca. 934) by Minamoto no Shitagō (911–983).

The lexical domains covered by the Yōshi kangoshō deal with technical knowledge, such as terminology for anatomy and medicine, archery, constructions, shipping and shipbuilding, the textile sector (clothes, belts, shoes, sewing, weaving, sericulture, dyeing, etc.), hippology and stock-breeding, agriculture, cooking, carpentry, sea and earth products, kinship.

In this paper, I propose a reconstruction of the Yōshi kangoshō, furnishing the complete list of its quotations. I would therefore like to propose that the Yōshi kangoshō should be reconsidered as an educational tool for learning terminologies, and that it was particularly useful for the technical education of clerks.
Kangdiz in Pahlavi Literature
Authors: Agostini Domenico
Published: September 2022

Though Kandiz seems to be depicted in the early Avestan sources, only in Zoroastrian Pahlavi literature does this fortress-city receive a rich and detailed description. Kangdiz becomes a significant and essential place, strongly connected to the legend of Zoroaster and the eschatological events of the final times. In its geographical, architectural, and religious transformation Kangdiz is often enriched with features belonging to other special Iranian places, such as the shelter of Jam. The fame and the narrative model of this city survives the first centuries of the Islamic conquest. This article presents the architecture and the geography of Kangdiz as found in Pahlavi sources and to define its eschatological role in the context of the Zoroastrian myth and religion.
“Climbing the Same Mountain”
Authors: Vine Bernadette , Holmes Janet , Marra Meredith
Published: September 2022

The enactment of biculturalism in Aotearoa New Zealand has varied greatly over the time since colonial settlement, and it is still a debated and evolving concept. In this article we examine practices adopted by one Māori Chief Executive Officer in two different workplaces at two different points in time to illustrate this process in action. Our analysis examines the way he opens meetings of his senior management teams, demonstrating the way he adopts flexible and context-sensitive approaches, taking account of exactly where each organisation and each individual, whatever their ethnicity and varied cultural experience, is located along the pathway to biculturalism. His introduction of Māori tikanga (ways of doing things) and practices into both workplaces sends the message that Māori culture and language are valued, while the differences between the two organisations, including a greater focus on bilingualism as part of biculturalism more recently, reflects shifting attitudes in wider society.
The Curse of Work in Qoheleth: An Exposé of Genesis 3:17–19 in Ecclesiastes
Authors: Anderson William H. U.
Published: September 2022

The frustrations of work are a major leitmotif in Qoheleth. This paper takes an intertextual approach and applies theological criticism to Qoheleth in an attempt to see if the author was dependent upon Gn. 3:17–19 for the background to his leitmotif of work. An apology for the traditional interpretation of the universal Fall and original sin in Genesis 3 is provided on the basis of literary critical analysis. Test cases from four categories were used in an attempt to prove Qoheleth’s dependence on Gn. 3:17–19: work in general (1:311), intellectual pursuits (1:12–18), business and achievements (2:4–23) and in politics (8:1–10:20).
Tangent-Linear and Adjoint Models for the Transfer of Polarized Radiation
Authors: Ding Jiachen , Yang Ping
Published: September 2022

This study reports the development of tangent-linear and adjoint models for a vector radiative transfer model called TAMU-VRTM. This vector radiative transfer model is further validated in the case of the atmosphere–ocean coupled system, although previous validation was conducted for single and multiple layers. The TAMU-VRTM and tangent-linear and adjoint models can be applied to remote sensing and data assimilation based on spaceborne and airborne polarimetric observations. The tangent-linear and adjoint models accurately and efficiently compute the derivatives of output Stokes parameters with respect to input variables of the TAMU-VRTM. An inversion algorithm can straightforwardly compute the Jacobian matrix from the derivatives of Stokes parameters using the chain rule. We validate the tangent-linear and adjoint models by comparing them with the finite-difference method, and show that the finite-difference results converge to the tangent-linear and adjoint results. Furthermore, the adjoint model can efficiently compute the derivatives of observables with respect to the scattering phase matrix elements. This capability can be used to evaluate the scattering phase matrix assumed in an inversion algorithm and has potential for applications to inferring scattering phase matrix elements of cloud, aerosol, and hydrosol particles.
Why Do People under Community Supervision Work and Earn So Little? And What Can Policy Do to Increase Their Employment and Earnings?
Authors: Holzer Harry J.
Published: September 2022

In this article, I review what we know about the impacts of felony convictions and incarceration on later employment and earnings, particularly for those under community supervision. I then discuss what employers and public policymakers can do to improve these outcomes. First, I review the basic empirical facts on the employment and earnings of returning citizens, various hypotheses that could explain these facts, and the available evidence that support those hypotheses. Second, I review why people under community supervision may have either similar or different employment outcomes from those of returning citizens more broadly. Third, I consider the perspectives of employers and why it might be in their interests to reduce hiring penalties associated with earlier incarceration (especially in tight labor markets). Fourth, I consider what we know about policies to reduce these penalties and improve outcomes. In sum, I argue that both moral and economic arguments exist for a general reduction of hiring penalties that would improve employment outcomes.
From Supervision to Opportunity: Reimagining Probation and Parole
Authors: Harding David J. , Western Bruce , Sandelson Jasmin A.
Published: September 2022

Across a variety of measures of safety and rehabilitation, our current systems of parole and probation are failing. Research shows that community supervision fails to reduce crime; traps its subjects in cycles of criminal justice involvement; is excessively punitive; and creates widespread harm to individuals, families, and communities—all while failing to significantly contribute to the social and economic integration of those under its control. We argue for a wholesale reform of community supervision, including the abandonment of current monitoring and control functions, and the repurposing of resources into systems of support for the hundreds of thousands of people leaving prison and jail every year. We also provide an overview to the articles assembled for this volume, which chart the challenges facing those on community supervision and offer a roadmap of potential policy solutions for improving the life chances of formerly incarcerated and justice-involved people.
Explainability does not improve biochemistry staff trust in artificial intelligence-based decision support
Authors: Lancaster Farrell Christopher-John
Published: September 2022

Background

Explainability, the aspect of artificial intelligence-based decision support (ADS) systems that allows users to understand why predictions are made, offers many potential benefits. One common claim is that explainability increases user trust, yet this has not been established in healthcare contexts. For advanced algorithms such as artificial neural networks, the generation of explanations is not trivial, but requires the use of a second algorithm. The assumption of improved user trust should therefore be investigated to determine if it justifies the additional complexity.

Methods

Biochemistry staff completed a wrong blood in tube (WBIT) error identification task with the help of an ADS system. One-half of the volunteers were provided with both ADS predictions and explanations for those predictions, while the other half received predictions alone. The two groups were compared in terms of their rate of agreement with ADS predictions, as an index of user trust, and WBIT error detection performance. Since the AI model used to generate predictions was known to out-perform laboratory staff, increased trust was expected to improve user performance.

Results

Volunteers reviewed 1590 sets of results. The volunteers provided with explanations demonstrated no difference in their rate of agreement with the ADS system compared to volunteers receiving predictions alone (83.3% versus 81.8%, p = 0.46). The two volunteer groups were also equivalent in accuracy, sensitivity and specificity for WBIT error identification ( p-values >0.78).

Conclusions

For a WBIT error identification task, there was no evidence to justify the additional complexity of explainability on the grounds of increased user trust.
Halloysite infused jute fiber/poly (3-hydroxy-butyrate-co-3-valerate) bionanocomposites: Thermal, mechanical and fire retardant properties
Authors: Hasan Kamrul SM , Zainuddin Shaik , Turner Azizi J , Hosur Mahesh V , Jeelani Shaik
Published: September 2022

Biocomposites have become more mainstream over the past decades for preserving the environment and producing sustainable materials as a potential substitute to synthetic polymer based composites derived from scarce petroleum materials. However, it is essential to investigate their mechanical, thermal and fire retardancy performance to answer the question of their suitability in automobile, biomedical, construction, film packaging, and commercial industries. In this work, we have studied one such promising biocomposites, jute fiber/poly (3-hydroxy-butyrate-co-3-valerate) (PHBV) and investigated their aforementioned properties. At first, 3–15 wt% halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) were dispersed in PHBV/chloroform mixture using an ultrasound process. PHBV/HNTs thin films were then prepared using the solvent casting method. Finally, jute fiber/PHBV-HNTs bionanocomposites were prepared using the compression mold method. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) tests were performed to study the thermal and fire retardancy properties. Uniaxial tensile and flexure tests were also performed to investigate the mechanical properties. In addition, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was carried out to analyze the fracture surfaces of flexure tested samples. Results of jute/PHBV composites showed a significant increase in thermal and mechanical properties at 5 wt% HNTs loading in comparison to neat composites (without HNTs). In contrast, the composites with 15 wt% loading showed superior fire retardancy. SEM images of flexure tested samples showed enhanced interfacial bonding and less fiber pullout when compared to neat counterparts.
Bereaved Caregivers’ Experiences of End of Life Care For People With Advanced Heart Failure: A Narrative Synthesis
Authors: Diggle Melanie F. J. , Schutz Sue , Butcher Dan
Published: September 2022

Background

Heart Failure is a life-limiting condition with a poor and uniquely unpredictable prognosis. The aim of this review is to present and synthesise the current evidence around bereaved caregivers’ experiences of end of life care for people with Heart Failure.

Methods

A systematic review of the literature was conducted using four electronic databases (CINHAL, Medline, BND, PsycINFO). Data was analysed and presented using a narrative synthesis approach.

Results

Eight articles were included within this review. Themes included: Limited and inadequate communication around the condition (including prognosis, preparations for death and the aim of palliative care), the burden of caregiving, and the limited provision of services and formal support.

Conclusion

Bereaved caregivers experience unique and significant challenges when caring for someone dying from Heart Failure. However, further research is required to greater understand the experiences of bereaved caregivers of people with Heart Failure.
Diversity in Advance Care Planning and End-Of-Life Conversations: Discourses of Healthcare Professionals and Researchers
Authors: Kröger Charlotte , Uysal-Bozkir Özgül , Peters Mike J. L. , Van der Plas Annicka G. M. , Widdershoven Guy A. M. , Muntinga Maaike E.
Published: September 2022

To meet the end-of-life needs of all patients, ongoing conversations about values and preferences regarding end-of-life care are essential. Aspects of social identity are associated with disparities in end-of-life care outcomes. Therefore, accounting for patient diversity in advance care planning and end-of-life conversations is important for equitable end-of-life practices. We conducted 16 semi-structured interviews to explore how Dutch healthcare professionals and researchers conceptualized diversity in advance care planning and end-of-life conversations and how they envision diversity-responsive end-of-life care and research. Using thematic discourse analysis, we identified five ‘diversity discourses’: the categorical discourse; the diversity as a determinant discourse; the diversity in norms and values discourse; the everyone is unique discourse, and the anti-essentialist discourse. These discourses may have distinct implications for diversity-responsive end-of-life conversations, care and research. Awareness and reflection on these discourses may contribute to more inclusive end-of-life practices.
Effect of methomyl on water quality, growth performance and antioxidant system in liver of GIFT (Oreochromis niloticus) in the presence of peppermint (Mentha haplocalyx Briq.) as a floating bed
Authors: Jing Xiaojun , Liu Tingyan , Fateh Benkhelifa , Chen Jiazhang , Zheng Yao , Xu Gangchun
Published: September 2022

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of methomyl (MET) on water quality, growth and antioxidant system of genetically improved farmed tilapia (GIFT, Oreochromis niloticus) in the presence of peppermint as a floating bed. The concentration of NH3-N, NO2−-N, NO3−-N and TP in T3 (with 200 g wet peppermint) was significantly lower ( P < 0.05) than that in T2 (100 g), T1 (50 g) and control, and the nutrient removal rates were 61.90%, 31.59%, 59.86% and 45.92% in 20 days, respectively. Juveniles GIFT (5.1 ± 0.2 g) were exposed to sub-lethal concentrations of 0.2, 2.0, 20 and 200 µg/L of MET for 45 days. After 6 weeks of a feeding trial, percentage weight gain (PWG), specific growth rate (SGR) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were significantly decreased in 0.2, 2.0, 20 µg/L MET groups respectively and increased in the 200 µg/L MET group. Compared with the control, no significant changes in superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) were detected in the 0.2 µg/L group. The significant increase in activities of SOD, CAT and GPx was accompanied by a diminution in reduced glutathione (GSH) levels resulting with tilapia exposed to 2.0, 20, or 200 µg/L for 45 days. The highest rates observed in SOD, CAT, GPx were 157.63%, 164.05% and 167.46% of the control respectively, and the lowest inhibition rate in GSH was 66.42% of the control. Peppermint as a floating bed can alleviate the adverse effects of MET, such as growth retardation and oxidative stress.
Do ethnic integration policies also improve socio-economic integration? A study of residential segregation in Singapore
Authors: Tan Shin Bin
Published: September 2022

Concerns over the negative impact of residential segregation have motivated desegregation policies around the world. Singapore’s Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) is a desegregation policy perceived to be effective in reducing ethnic segregation. However, there is little clarity about how the Ethnic Integration Policy might affect socio-economic segregation, another important dimension of segregation. This study explores Singapore’s socio-economic and ethnic residential segregation patterns from 1990 until 2020, focussing on three scales of analysis: national, city district-level (subzone) and building-level. Ethnic and socio-economic segregation, which were generally low, fluctuated in opposite directions over the years. While public housing flats were exposed to less ethnic and socio-economic segregation than private housing, findings suggest a negative relationship between ethnic and socio-economic segregation for majority public housing subzones. This inverse relationship between socio-economic and ethnic segregation might be due to the Ethnic Integration Policy's distortionary effect on flat resale prices. These findings highlight the need for greater attentiveness to residential integration policies’ impact on both socio-economic and ethnic integration, and not to assume that policies aimed at improving one would be sufficient to address the other.
Cartographic Literacy can Support Social Change Approaches in Technical Communication Courses
Authors: Santee Joy
Published: September 2022

Instruction in cartographic or map literacy in technical communication courses can support pedagogies promoting social change. Students must develop an ability to read, understand, interpret, use, and critique maps in technical communication contexts. This article argues that attention to cartographic literacy can build on existing visual literacies to promote critical understanding of how to use and create maps that engage with issues related to social change. A description of a sample assignment is included to introduce cartographic literacy in undergraduate technical communication courses. Student map examples support the conclusion that students benefit from instruction in cartographic literacy and that cartographic literacy can be an important component of technical communication pedagogies that work toward social justice.
The Background on Executive Background: An Integrative Review
Authors: Campbell Joanna T. , Bilgili Hansin , Crossland Craig , Ajay Bina
Published: September 2022

This study reviews several decades of research on the topic of executive background, defined here as the total of an executive's “experience, knowledge, and education.” We consider work from both management and nonmanagement sources and from both macro and micro sources within management. Our review of 216 published empirical articles is structured around a series of widely studied executive background characteristics and categories, including tenure, functional background, knowledge and education, outsider/insider status, other professional experiences, and experiences outside the workplace. This narrative review is underpinned and informed by an inductively derived framework comprised of five key dimensions that represent distinct ways in which specific experiences can be conceptualized: visibility, timing, frequency, discreteness, and agency. We conclude our narrative review with a quantitative, bibliometric analysis illustrating some of the key patterns within the most recent work in this domain. Finally, we use the insights arising from our review to provide a set of theoretical and methodological recommendations for future work in this area.
Relocation Later in Life and Contact Frequency With Friends: Do Contact Modes Matter?
Authors: Cho Joonyoung , Smith Jacqui
Published: September 2022

We examined changes in the frequencies of in-person, telephone, and written or email contact with friends in older adults who move short or longer distances. 3820 adults aged 50 years or older were included from a nationally representative sample from the Health and Retirement Study. Using ordinal logistic regression, we found differential effects of geographical distances on the in-person, telephone, and write or email contact with friends. Specifically, in-person contact frequency was most sensitive to distance. Telephone contact frequency was only impacted by long-distance moves; however, email contact frequency was not influenced by distance. Findings suggest that the impact of relocation on contact frequency exists even though communication technology gives older adults flexibility in maintaining frequent contact with their friends. We discuss our findings through the lens of socioemotional selective theory and social convoy model. Future studies could examine factors linked to changes in the amount and modes of contact.
The racialisation of British citizenship
Authors: Webber Frances
Published: September 2022

The history of British citizenship is a history of state racism – from the differential treatment of ‘non-patrial’ citizens who acquired citizenship through a colony rather than through British ancestry, which led to the ‘East African Asians’ scandal of 1968, and the quiet withdrawal of British citizenship from former colonial citizens when their countries became independent, which led to the Windrush scandal, through the dilution of the right of citizenship by birth in the UK ( ius soli) in 1981, to current laws which apply the logic of deportation and exclusion to black and brown citizens. British citizens are divided into those claiming only British citizenship, who can never lose it whatever they do, and those who, although they may have been born here, have another citizenship and can lose British citizenship on the say-so of a minister. The latter group, with a second-class, disposable, contingent citizenship, are mostly from ethnic minorities – and the changes to citizenship law which have created these classes of citizenship were brought in to target British Muslims of South Asian and Middle Eastern heritage. While the government claims that only those whose actions pose grave threats to national security, or who have committed abhorrent crimes, will lose their citizenship, the division of citizens into those with secure and insecure status affects vastly more people.
Stated Preference Analysis With Latent Variables for Higher Speed Rail
Authors: Ku Donggyun , Choi Minje , Oh Haram , Na Sungyoung , Lee Seungjae
Published: September 2022

Recently, the necessity to redefine the mode selection model (modal split model) has emerged owing to the diversification of transportation systems. In addition to socio-economic factors, preference factors and user characteristics significantly affect the selection of transportation mode. Therefore, user preferences are reflected in the modal split model. The latent class model is highly descriptive, and its suitability can be improved. With the advent of high-speed rail (Great Train eXpress [GTX]), Seoul has established a competitive and complementary relationship for the demand of passengers between general and great express rail. Therefore, a modal split model reflecting the characteristics of the GTX, which is redefined by applying a latent variable to the stated preference analysis, is necessary. Latent class analysis uses the Bayesian information criterion and log-likelihood to distinguish the travel property (Cluster1), station property (Cluster2), and transfer property (Cluster 3). After comparing the time values for each cluster, the GTX preference is analyzed based on the inner and outer circle situations. A model that accurately reflects the characteristics and preferences of passengers is proposed in this paper. In the future, strategies can be established for the inner and outer circle situations, and higher operational efficiency can be achieved by combining the GTX and subway.
Heavy Duty Truck and Pedestrian Crashes at Signalized Intersections: Comparison of High-Vision and Low-Vision Cab Drivers’ Performance on a Driving Simulator
Authors: Young Jared , Brodeur Alyssa , Byrne Angie , Calabrese Clark , Cesic Leila , Isaacs Matt , Englin Eric , Xi Brian , Sheehan Theresa , Yamani Yusuke , Epstein Alexander K , Fisher Donald L.
Published: September 2022

Low-vision trucks are ubiquitous. Vision-related problems, especially blind zones, are the second leading cause of truck–pedestrian strikes in the UK and are implicated in 25% of fatal truck–vulnerable road user crashes in the U.S.A. High-vision truck cabs could potentially reduce the number of truck–pedestrian strikes. In this research, undertaken on a driving simulator, we evaluated scenarios in which drivers of low-vision cabs could see pedestrians entering and exiting from the crosswalk out, respectively, of the driver and passenger side windows, but not when the pedestrian was in the front blind zone of the low-vision vehicle. In theory, drivers of the low-vision cabs could determine that a pedestrian who had crossed from one side did not exit on the other side. Conversely, drivers of high-vision cabs could see, but only barely, the heads of pedestrians traversing in front as well as entering and exiting the crosswalk. In none of the 45 scenarios did the drivers of the high-vision cabs strike the pedestrian in front of their vehicle. However, in 39 of the 45 scenarios the drivers of the low-vision cabs struck the pedestrian. This indicates that direct vision to the sides is not enough by itself to allow drivers of low-vision cabs to predict the presence of pedestrians directly in front of them, whereas direct vision both to the front and the sides allows drivers of high-vision cabs to refrain from striking pedestrians directly in front, a situation that is common in the signalized intersection crosswalk scenarios tested in this study.
Hybrid control of electrohydrodynamic 3D printer cone jet
Authors: Mohammadi Kaivan , Abdullahi Mohammad A , Salarieh Hassan , Movahhedy Mohammad R , Mohammadi Sasan
Published: September 2022

In this article, the control of an electrohydrodynamic 3D printer is studied. The proposed controller has a hybrid piecewise linear feedback form which is designed based on a hybrid model of the printer. The hybrid model is obtained via a gray box identification process whose structure is proposed utilizing the results of the finite element simulation of the printer within the COMSOL Multiphysics software. The asymptotic stability of the hybrid control combined with a hybrid observer is proven using the Lyapunov theory. In addition, the obtained control is applied to the finite element model of the printer to check its performance which shows the success of the controlled system in tracking the reference height for the printer jet cone.
Saxophone penis – An intriguing manifestation of gastrointestinal metastasis
Authors: Joseph Sharon , Bhat Ramesh M , Fernandes Michelle Serene , Dandekeri Sukumar
Published: September 2022

Genital elephantiasis is associated with sexually transmitted infections such as lymphogranuloma venereum. Here we present an unusual and rare non-venereal cause of Saxophone penis.
Moving on From the Delphi Study: The Development of a Physical Activity Training Programme Prototype Through Co-produced Qualitative Research
Authors: Monforte Javier , Davis Chris , Saleem Shaesta , Smith Brett
Published: September 2022

This research developed from a co-produced project called Moving Social Work. The purpose of this ongoing project is to train social workers in how to promote physical activity for and to disabled people. The first stage of the project consisted of building evidence to design a training programme prototype. As part of this stage, a Delphi study was conducted to ask leading experts about what should be included in the prototype. Questionnaires were sent to participants until consensus was reached. In reflecting on the results, people involved in the study commented that there was more about the experts’ opinions than percentages of agreement. Our co-production partners resolved that the Delphi was insufficient and called for detailed conversations with the experts. In response to this call, follow-up interviews with 10 experts who participated in the final questionnaire round of the Delphi were carried out. The interviews were co-produced, dyadic and data prompted. Dialogical inquiry was used to frame and co-analyse data. The results illuminate the capacity of qualitative research to justify, rectify, complicate, clarify, concretize, expand and question consensus-based evidence. The implications of the results for Moving Social Work are discussed. Beyond the empirical border of the project, wider contributions to literature are presented. As part of these, two key statements are highlighted and warranted: dialogical inquiry supports the practice of co-produced research, and Delphi studies should be followed by a Big Q qualitative study.