bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Vibration analysis of embedded biaxially loaded magneto-electrically actuated inhomogeneous nanoscale plates
Authors: Ebrahimi Farzad , Barati Mohammad Reza
Published: May 2017

In this research, a free vibration study of a biaxially compressed magneto-electro-elastic functionally graded (MEE-FG) nanoplate resting on an elastic substrate is carried out according to a trigonometric plate formulation. Spatially graded MEE properties of the nanoplate are described according to a power-law distribution. Eringen’s nonlocal elasticity model is utilized to incorporate the small-scale influences. The distributions of magneto-electrical potentials in the thickness direction are considered as a combination of cosine and linear variations. The governing equations of the present plate model are obtained employing Hamilton’s principle. Some admissible functions are introduced to satisfy different boundary conditions and solving these equations. It is indicated that vibration frequencies of the MEE-FG nanoplate are dramatically affected by biaxial compression, magnetic potential, electric voltage, elastic substrate, small-scale parameter, and material gradation.
Vibration characteristics analysis of disordered two-span beams with numerical and experimental methods
Authors: Zhou Shenglin , Li Fengming , Zhang Chuanzeng
Published: May 2017

Numerical and experimental investigations on the vibration behaviors of the disordered two-span beams have been conducted. The dynamics model of the two-span beam is established and solved by means of the modal superposition method. According to the boundary conditions, the frequency equation of the two-span beam is obtained, and the natural frequencies, vibration modes, frequency response curves, and time-history responses of the structure are also obtained consequently. Considering the structural size disorder due to the two different sub-span lengths of the two-span beam, a disorder ratio is introduced in terms of the two sub-span lengths and its influences on the vibration characteristics of the structure are analyzed. By comparing the results from numerical calculation with those from the finite element method (FEM) and experiments, good agreement is observed, which verifies the validity of the present investigations.
Inattention and Hyperactivity-Impulsivity: Their Detrimental Effect on Romantic Relationship Maintenance
Authors: VanderDrift Laura E. , Antshel Kevin M. , Olszewski Amy K.
Published: May 2017

Objective: The aim of this study is to understand how ADHD symptoms correlate with romantic relationship maintenance and test theoretical pathways by which symptoms of ADHD lead to relationship difficulties. Method: This study involved two phases of data collection, which were identical except for the population. Phase 1 ( n = 172) was a nonclinical sample of romantically involved young adults. Phase 2 ( n = 39) was a clinical sample of romantically involved young adults with ADHD. Participants in both phases reported on their levels of inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity, their relationship maintenance activities, and their relationship quality. Results: ADHD symptoms were associated with greater relationship difficulties. In both samples, inattentive symptoms were associated with greater interest in relational alternatives and less constructive responses to partner’s bad behaviors, whereas hyperactive-impulsive symptoms were associated with negative responses to bad behavior. Conclusion: The results of this study have implications for developing cognitive-behavioral therapy interventions targeting relationship difficulties in young adults with ADHD.
Update on Finger-Application-Type Noninvasive Continuous Hemodynamic Monitors (CNAP and ccNexfin): Physical Principles, Validation, and Clinical Use
Authors: Raggi Eugene P. , Sakai Tetsuro
Published: May 2017

The CNAP HD Monitor (CNSystems, Graz, Austria) and the ccNexfin (The ClearSight System: Edwards Lifesciences Corporation, Irvine, CA) are continuous, noninvasive blood pressure monitors using a finger-application device. These devices show a promising ability to allow for rapid detection of hemodynamic derangement when compared with oscillometry. The accuracy and precision of these devices as blood pressure monitors has been evaluated when compared with intra-arterial catheters. Additionally, they can be used to measure beat-to-beat cardiac output (CO). As CO monitors, they are capable of trending changes in CO when compared with a transpulmonary thermodilution monitor. Difficulty with use in critically ill and awake patients has been encountered because of altered microvascular physiology and patient movement. The principles of operation and clinical validation of these devices are presented. The clinicians who are interested in using these devices in their clinical setting should be aware of the relatively large bias and CIs in the hemodynamic measurements.
Application-based fault tolerance techniques for sparse matrix solvers
Authors: McIntosh–Smith Simon , Hunt Rob , Price James , Vesztrocy Alex Warwick
Published: May 2017

High-performance computing systems continue to increase in size in the quest for ever higher performance. The resulting increased electronic component count, coupled with the decrease in feature sizes of the silicon manufacturing processes used to build these components, may result in future exascale systems being more susceptible to soft errors caused by cosmic radiation than in current high-performance computing systems. Through the use of techniques such as hardware-based error-correcting codes and checkpoint-restart, many of these faults can be mitigated at the cost of increased hardware overhead, run-time, and energy consumption that can be as much as 10–20%. Some predictions expect these overheads to continue to grow over time. For extreme scale systems, these overheads will represent megawatts of power consumption and millions of dollars of additional hardware costs, which could potentially be avoided with more sophisticated fault-tolerance techniques. In this paper we present new software-based fault tolerance techniques that can be applied to one of the most important classes of software in high-performance computing: iterative sparse matrix solvers. Our new techniques enables us to exploit knowledge of the structure of sparse matrices in such a way as to improve the performance, energy efficiency, and fault tolerance of the overall solution.
Driver Configurations for Successful Service Infusion
Authors: Forkmann Sebastian , Henneberg Stephan C. , Witell Lars , Kindström Daniel
Published: May 2017

Manufacturers across many industries use service infusion to address the changing customer demands and improve their competitive position. However, understanding the drivers of successful service infusion is a complex process. Using business model and configuration theories, this study conceptualizes and analyzes the interplay of different driver domains for suppliers, customers, and their business relationships. In particular, we analyze how service offering, service pricing, service capabilities, and the service infusion process interact in affecting service infusion success and failure. 137 interviews relating to 25 business relationships are analyzed via configuration analysis, particularly fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). Results show that different equifinal configurations exist (i.e., different ways to succeed with service infusion). We also find that “more is not always better.” For example, service infusion success can be achieved without fully developed service capabilities. In addition, successful configurations are often very similar to those leading to failure. A dyadic analysis demonstrates that customer service capabilities are overall more important than those of suppliers. From these findings, we derive priorities for future research. In particular, our study points toward the need to better understand the interplay between service infusion drivers. Second, we advocate the augmentation of research perspectives in service infusion by taking into account the supplier, customer, and dyadic perspectives. Lastly, the importance of understanding drivers of service infusion failure is highlighted. For managers, our study shows the importance of relational audits as a starting point to deciding on how to infuse services in a business relationship.
Evaluation of 2016 MAGNIMS MRI criteria for dissemination in space in patients with a clinically isolated syndrome
Authors: Hyun Jae-Won , Huh So-Young , Kim Woojun , Park Min Su , Ahn Suk-Won , Cho Joong-Yang , Kim Byung-Jo , Lee Sang-Hyun , Kim Su-Hyun , Kim Ho Jin
Published: May 2017

Objectives:

We compared validity of 2010 McDonald and newly proposed 2016 Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Multiple Sclerosis (MAGNIMS) criteria for dissemination in space (DIS) in predicting the conversion to clinically definite multiple sclerosis (CDMS) in patients with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS).

Methods:

Between 2006 and 2016, we enrolled 170 patients who had a first clinical event suggestive of multiple sclerosis (MS) from seven referral hospitals in Korea. Patients were classified into two groups based on the main outcome at the last follow-up: CDMS converters, who experienced a second attack, and non-converters.

Results:

Of 170 patients with mean follow-up duration of 54 months, 51% converted to CDMS. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and positive and negative predictive values of 2010 McDonald criteria were 70.9%, 63.1%, 67.1%, 66.3%, and 67.9%, and those for 2016 MAGNIMS criteria were 88.4%, 46.4%, 67.7%, 62.8%, and 79.6%, respectively. When we excluded 80 patients who underwent disease-modifying therapy before the second clinical event, the specificity increased to 92.3% and 84.6%, but the sensitivity decreased to 58.8% and 82.4% for 2010 McDonald and 2016 MAGNIMS criteria, respectively.

Conclusion:

2016 MAGNIMS magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) criteria for DIS showed higher sensitivity but lower specificity than 2010 McDonald criteria in predicting conversion to CDMS in CIS patients.
Privatization and coercion: The question of legitimacy
Authors: Fitzgibbon Wendy , Lea John
Published: May 2017

This article explores issues surrounding the legitimacy of private sector provision in criminal justice. It examines changes in ideas about legitimate coercion which have made private sector involvement possible. It then elaborates two models of the processes whereby private sector entities attempt to obtain and maintain the legitimacy of their activities in the eyes of the public.
An analysis of operating parameters in the cooling tower-based thermally activated building system
Authors: Leo Samuel D. G. , Shiva Nagendra S. M. , Maiya M. P.
Published: May 2017

Thermally activated building system is not only energy efficient but also provides better thermal comfort compared to the conventional cooling systems. In this paper, COMSOL Multiphysics, a computational fluid dynamics tool, is used to simulate the performance of a cooling tower coupled with thermally activated building system for the hot and dry summer climatic conditions of New Delhi. The effects of three operating parameters, namely, temperature and inlet velocity of water and the number of cooling surfaces (area), on the performance of the system have been investigated. The results indicate that increasing the water inlet temperature from wet bulb temperature (WBT) to WBT + 6℃ would increase the operative temperature of the indoor space, a thermal comfort index, by 2℃. The increase in water inlet velocity from 0.2 to 1 m/s would decrease the diurnal average of operative temperature by 1.4℃. If only the roof was cooled, the diurnal average of operative temperature was 36.7℃. The diurnal average of operative temperature was reduced by 5.7℃ if all the building fabrics were cooled. In this case, with pipes connected in series from the floor first to walls and then to roof resulted in 2.9℃ lower operative temperature compared to that in the reverse sequence. Hence, the sequence in which the fabrics are cooled would have an appreciable influence on the performance of thermally activated building system.
If alcohol policy measures would be given up altogether. Or how much alcohol Finns would be consuming as Central Europeans
Authors: Österberg Esa , Rosenberg Thomas
Published: May 2017

A study estimating the changes in alcohol consumption and problems in Sweden was published in November 1993. Its purpose was to estimate changes in alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems if the State alcohol retailing monopoly (Systembolaget) is modified (permits beer and wine sales in private grocery stores) or if the monopoly is eliminated entirely. Also, the effect of possible price changes on alcohol consumption was estimated. Two scenarios were considered: Swedish alcohol prices resembling approximately current alcohol prices in Denmark and, secondly, current alcohol prices approximating current alcohol prices in Germany.

This article reviews the Swedish study and a similar study conducted in Norway. Similar estimates are calculated for Finland and the results are compared with other future predictions. According to different calculations the possible price changes will have a greater effect on consumption than increases in alcohol availability. If alcohol prices are decreased to the German level and if alcohol availability were in Finland like it is in Germany today, alcohol consumption would increase about 4 litres per capita. This would mean a mean per capita alcohol consumption of 11.5 litres a year.
Three types of drink-oriented restaurants: customers, milieu and drinking
Authors: Abrahamson Maria
Published: May 2017

From the middle of the 1980s, the Swedish restaurants have increasingly changed from food service to drink service. This study presents three types of restaurants in Stockholm's city center. The restaurants could be characterized as ‘the fashionable bar’, ‘the folksy bar’ and the ‘ethnic bar’. The study is based on participatory observations at the restaurants. The description takes as its starting point Goffman's (1956) concepts regarding ‘performance’, ‘setting’ and ‘personal front’ and how the customers consciously or unconsciously choose different milieus as a way to control the environment's impression of them.

The fashionable bar seemed to be an arena for demonstrating professional and social success. The folksy bar could be used as a form of play, in which colleagues from a company for a moment could set aside differences in status. The ethnic bar's closed room encouraged ‘timeout’: the bar served as a second home but it was also used as a sex market for contact between African men and Nordic women.
Holdninger Til Virkemidler i Narkotikapolitikken i Norge
Authors: Ødegård Einar
Published: May 2017

In a public survey conducted in the Spring of 1993, a randomly selected sample were asked about their attitudes toward counter measures in drug policy. According to the survey there is general support for both preventive, therapeutic and repressive actions. Also more controversial measures such as electronic room bugging, which the Norwegian Parliament rejected, has public support. However, the respondents seem to give priority to preventive actions, such as working with young people, in preference to society's main answer so far: sharper punishment.

In public discussion about the level of punishment, it seems to be accepted as a premise that the penal practice has its correlate in public opinion, which supports sharper punishment. In response to a general question about the penalties for drug offences, a clear majority of the respondents said they are “too lenient”. When specifying the crimes, however, the respondents were not more repressive than the courts.

This paradox indicates that the correspondence between public attitudes and legal sanctions, thought to be of almost causal nature, has to be reconsidered.
Muligheter og Begrensninger i Den Europeiserte Narkotikapolitikken
Authors: Fjær Svanaug
Published: May 2017

The Treaty of the European Union (EU) strengthened the role of EU as an arena for and an actor in development of European drug policy. The article describes the judicial, political and organisational conditions for a Europeification of the drug policies of the Member States. The three pillars of the Treaty separate the policy areas into sectors with different governing principles and different potentials for harmonisation. Furthermore the article is focusing on the increasing local differences in national drug policies. As long as the European Union's competencies in law enforcement and public health policies are weak, these differences most likely will increase rather than move toward harmonisation. In the sector dealing with drug issues, national governments lose influence due to the increase of power at local level and European level. In spite of the limitations of the formal competencies in most sectors, an important institutionalisation of the field has taken place through establishment of EUROPOL, the European Drug Monitoring Centre, growth of the Commission's own expertise and the adoption of some Directives on drug-related issues.
Öppna Landskap: Om Missbruk Och Finsk Frihetslängtan
Authors: Holmberg Nils
Published: May 2017

This article deals with cognitive antecedents to relapse common among Finnish substance abusers, male or female. It is argued that certain Finnish cultural, cognitive schemas can explain the difficulties some clients have with the assertive social behaviour necessary for maintaining behavioural change. Among male clients the cause of relapse is often lack of external control and the accompanying feeling of abandonment and loneliness, whereas among female clients it is more often caused by negative emotions (“downers”).

Some of the schemas behind relapse have to do with the Finnish longing for independence, with the desire to live without external ties and obligations. It is suggested that a common theme in all these schemas has to do with “territorial” questions and with the difficulty of defining personal autonomy.

As many Finnish clients are sensitive to being tread on, it is suggested that much more time should be spent on analysing the client's motivation for change, instead of trying to rush the client into the action or the maintenance stage of change.
Two Alcohol Policy Editorials Interpreted by Opinion Makers
Authors: Törrönen Jukka
Published: May 2017

The article analyzes opinion makers' wiews on alcohol policy by way of textual reception analysis. The material is based on two editorials and their interpretations. One of the editorials is an argument defending a (neo)liberal alcohol policy. It describes the reality as one in which citizens feel hostility towards the State because it is preventing the emergence of a civil society and the development of independent, cultivated ways of drinking through its two-faced paternalistic approach. The second editorial is in favour of a regulated welfare state alcohol policy. Here the reality is seen as one in which the State spreads the common good and maintains social order and solidarity between citizens through means provided by scientific know-how.

Fifty-five influential people (local authorities, trade unionists, journalists etc.) from Lahti, a medium-size city in southern Finland, contributed their interpretations of the two texts. The analysis of their textual reception reveals that the liberal rhetoric convinces them much more successfully than the pro-welfare state argument. More than two-thirds of them interpreted the (neo)liberal argument as more credible and truthful. The author suggests that the result reflects the opinion makers' wishes for a civil society, in which the freedom of choice of the consumer prevails.
Substance Abuse and Cultural Beliefs
Authors: Holmberg Nils
Published: May 2017

Cognitive therapy works on the assumption that a person's beliefs, thoughts and ideas have a considerable effect on his feelings and behaviour. These schemata, or basic beliefs, are the result of a person's past experience. This article examines how beliefs concerned with social interaction can operate in the background of behaviour.

In the course of the major social upheavals of the late 1960's, many Finns moved to urban areas in southern Finland, carrying with them thinking patterns and rules that did not function very well in their new circumstances. Over the years, many clients have told stories of how this has put their ‘home truths’ to the test. Many schemata for social identity may act as obstacles for therapeutic cooperation and long-term rehabilitation. Rigid attitudes may, for instance, prevent substance abusers from learning new survival skills. Although cultural beliefs cannot easily be altered, familiarity with them, however, helps in drawing up assignments for cognitive therapy.

Using cultural beliefs and the conflicts produced by them, we can expand the angle of approach beyond ‘pure’ individual psychology, for instance, by linking the damaging cultural beliefs to different ‘narcissistic pathologies’.
Coercive Treatment and Democracy – Incompatible Phenomena?
Authors: Reitan Therese C.
Published: May 2017

The question of coercive treatment of substance abusers is regularly debated both publically and professionally. Apart from being a persistently recurring topic, the debate was particularly fervent in Norway in connection with the introduction of a new social services act in 1993, and in the aftermath when feed-back concerning the implementation of the law was provided. The article focuses on the principles surrounding use of coercive measures in relation to democratic ideals and realities. It is suggested that coercion as such is not alien to democracy, but in order to understand why coercive treatment of substance abusers is such a difficult and controversial topic, it is necessary to look closer at how various public measures are defined by negotiations between society and the individual. A main point is that coercive treatment is usually defined as benefitial for the individual (“this is for your own good”) by society, but the individual sees this as a burden or punishment. In this perspective, “regular” imprisonment is less troublesome because in this case both society and the individual agree that the encroachment can be understood as primarily a burden. Finally, it is discussed why young drug addicts and pregnant substance abusers are particularly identified as relevant target groups for eventual coercive measures. It is possible to see this as an attempt to categorize youths and pregnant substance abusers as “children” – viewing the formally delimited childhood as perhaps the only legitimate exception to the general principle of individual autonomy.
The Alcohol Culture on Åland – Tourism and Tax-Free Liquor
Authors: Karlsson Thomas
Published: May 2017

The drinking habits on Åland, a region of Finland with far-reaching autonomy, are widely influenced by the lively tourism on the island and by the large amount of tax-free alcohol that every year is bought and consumed by the inhabitants. The annual alcohol consumption in 1995 was estimated between 7 and 8 litres absolute alcohol per capita, which is considerably higher than the consumption level according to the official sales statistics on Åland. It is also higher than the consumption level in the whole country, which according to the sales statistics in 1994 was 6.6 litres per capita. Even the share of abstainers, especially among women, is substantially lower than in the rest of the country. The overall drinking frequency is essentially the same as in the rest of Finland. A distinguishing factor is still the high drinking frequency among women in the age 50–69. The dominant beverage is beer. Fifty-five percent of the alcohol consumed in 1995 (measured in absolute alcohol) consisted of beer, which is an increase by 10 percent since 1980. Consumption of wine has also become more popular, while a significant decline in the consumption of spirits can be noted. It was also shown that a substantial amount of the alcohol consumed by the Ålanders was purchased on the ferries that ply the waters between Sweden and Finland.

The low share of abstainers and the relatively high consumption among women are features that characterize the drinking habits on Åland. The wide spread use of alcohol also points to a more open and liberal attitude towards alcohol than in the rest of the country.
Travellers' Imports of Alcoholic Beverages into Finland before and after EU
Authors: Pehkonen Juhani , Österberg Esa
Published: May 2017

The article examines the development in travellers' imports of alcoholic beverages into Finland from 1994 to 1995, the year that Finland became a member of EU. The membership, beginning January 1st 1995, included provisions for increased allowances in travellers' tax-free import of alcoholic beverages and lifted time-limits restricting imports. These provisions have clearly increased the imported volumes, most sharply for beer, from 3.5 million litres in 1994 to around 30 million litres in 1995. The import of spirits increased from 3 million litres in 1994 to 7 million litres in 1995. It is estimated that the import of wines increased from 3.5 million litres in 1994 to 9 million litres in 1995. In 1994 travellers' imports added 6 percent and in 1995 17 percent to the recorded consumption of alcohol.

There were no significant changes in the frequency of air travel or of trips between Finland and Sweden. In contrast, tourism to Russia and Estonia increased dramatically. The relaxed import restrictions were an important factor in this development. Most of the increase in beer imports and the bulk of the increase in wine and spirits imports derive from tourism to these two countries.

The article also discusses different ways of estimating travellers' alcohol imports, and proposes how this issue should be studied in the future.
Kinematics and force analysis of a novel offshore crane combined compensation system
Authors: Wang Shenghai , Sun Yuqing , Chen Haiquan , Han Guangdong
Published: May 2017

Offshore cranes are widely used in offshore industry. However, because of the wave motion of the ship and the flexibility of the rope, the sway of payload is unavoidable and may put relevant operations in danger. Thus, compensation system is an essential part of offshore crane to ensure human safety and increase operation efficiency. In this article, a novel offshore crane combined compensation approach named four-post combined compensation is proposed based on the three-post direct ship motion compensation, aiming to overcome its shortcomings. The structure and principle of four-post combined compensation is introduced. The mathematical models of four-post combined compensation and three-post direct ship motion compensation are established uniformly and based on which we carry out numerical simulations and comparative analysis of three-post and four-post schemes. Numerical simulation results are included to demonstrate that comparing to three-post scheme, four-post scheme has the following advantages: first, the maximum actuator force requirement can be reduced significantly; second, the work load is distributed more evenly among cylinders; third, the main support shaft can prevent the platform from tipping over; the actuators always push the platform and do not have to be bi-directional, which might result in lower cost and risk.
Introduction: Western colonial expectations and counter-narratives of women and education
Authors: Greenhalgh-Spencer Heather
Published: May 2017

While there is always a risk when feminists within academia aim to foreground the experiences of women outside of the Western context, this aim is still needed given that so much scholarship and hegemonic discourse frames the Western experience as standard. This special issue presents scholarship embedded in local contexts; scholarship that relies on both large-scale studies and close qualitative work. The scholarship spotlights the voices and experiences of women outside of the Western context within educational spaces; and actively parses out and contravenes the centering of Western experience and expectations around education and schooling. This special issue is needed, especially as universities and international governmental organizations and non-governmental organizations adopt Western expectations around education; multiple nation states and regions are contracting with Western corporations and universities to provide education and schooling in developing areas. This special issue provides a balancing caution toward attention to local experience—particularly local women’s experiences—as education becomes a globally traded commodity.
Sense International Romania: 15 Years Working on Behalf of Children With Deafblindness
Authors: Buică Cristian B.
Published: May 2017

Sense International Romania (SIR) was established in 2001 as a local branch of Sense International UK. Until 1999, little has been done for children with dual sensory loss or multiple sensory impairments. Ms. Cristiana Salomie, the director of SIR, and Dr. Cristian B. Buică describe how things have been changing since then, highlighting SIR’s present and future projects for the deafblind community in Romania.
The Use of Direct Spelling Instruction for Children With Language Impairment
Authors: Good Joy E. , Lance Dee M. , Rainey Jacquie
Published: May 2017

Children with language impairment frequently struggle with written language skills such as spelling. With their expertise in language, speech-language pathologists are in the position to promote the development of such skills. One way to do this is through the use of direct spelling instruction which has been shown to facilitate growth in a number of literacy skills such as phonemic awareness, reading, and spelling. This article outlines a 10-week direct spelling intervention program that is aimed at improving the literacy skills of children with language impairment. This treatment protocol may be adapted as necessary to meet the needs of individual students.
The Candy-Plug Technique: Technical Aspects and Early Results of a New Endovascular Method for False Lumen Occlusion in Chronic Aortic Dissection
Authors: Rohlffs Fiona , Tsilimparis Nikolaos , Fiorucci Beatrice , Heidemann Franziska , Debus Eike Sebastian , Kölbel Tilo
Published: May 2017

Purpose: To describe the technical aspects and early results of the Candy-Plug technique for endovascular false lumen occlusion in chronic aortic dissection. Methods: A retrospective single-center study analyzing 18 consecutive patients (mean age 63 years, range 44–76; 16 men) with thoracic false lumen aneurysm in chronic aortic dissection. All patients underwent thoracic endovascular aortic repair with false lumen occlusion using the Candy-Plug technique. Primary endpoints consisted of technical success (successful deployment) and clinical success (no false lumen backflow). Secondary endpoints included 30-day mortality and morbidity as well as aortic remodeling during follow-up. Results: Technical success was 100%. Additional intraprocedural false lumen embolization at the Candy-Plug level was needed in 1 patient due to persisting false lumen backflow on the final angiogram (clinical success 94%). There were no intraprocedural complications. In the perioperative period, there were 3 minor complications: transient mild spinal cord ischemia, cervical hematoma after carotid-subclavian bypass, and a common femoral artery pseudoaneurysm. No deaths or reinterventions occurred. Complete distal false lumen occlusion was present on postoperative computed tomography in 15 patients, while 3 had minor contrast enhancement in the distal false lumen. Over a mean 9-month follow-up (range 0–26), 1 patient died due to rupture. Follow-up >6 months was available in 10 patients (mean 14.7 months, range 7–26): 7 patients showed aortic remodeling, while aneurysm size was stable in 3 patients. Conclusion: The Candy-Plug technique is a feasible endovascular method to achieve false lumen occlusion and aortic remodeling in chronic aortic dissection. It is associated with low morbidity and mortality due to its minimal invasiveness.
Entanglements of Discipline, Behavioral Intervention, Race, and Disability
Authors: Bornstein Joshua
Published: May 2017

In 2011, an urban school district that had been cited for excessive and disproportionate suspension by race and disability sought to establish guidelines for Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) as a remedy. District leaders held a PBIS planning meeting that included a broad collection of stakeholders. As they discussed data-driven protocols, a significant challenge to institutionalized racism embedded in behavioral expectations, analysis, and responses emerged. However, that challenge was met with repeated assertions that the apparently neutral parameters of PBIS would suffice. Thus, PBIS protocols were used to suppress questions of the cultural competence of teachers, administrators, and clinicians.
Interconnecting the Internal Electricity Market: A Goal without a Plan?
Authors: Bjørnebye Henrik
Published: May 2017

This article discusses how the Community may promote interconnector investments necessary for the establishment of a rational European electricity network. Community control with such investments may be exercised by applying a number of different instruments under EC Law, such as Community and Member State aid provisions, tariff regulation and the assessment of third party access exemptions. However, even though these mechanisms provide the Community with substantial influence over national investment decisions, the author argues that Community control options are too fragmented to guarantee the investments necessary to establish a well-functioning internal electricity market.
Electricity Interconnectors: A Serious Challenge for EC Competition Law
Authors: Talus Kim , Wälde Thomas
Published: May 2017

Interconnectors pose a challenge to EC competition law. Finding investment for capital-intensive infrastructure investment such as interconnectors means that the requirements of financiers and project sponsors for long-term predictability of cash flow is assured. That usually involves long-term contractual commitment with at least temporary preferences for the sponsors to make it economically viable.

This long-term tie-up of interconnector access by long-term contracts or significant project sponsor preferences does not seem to be aligned with the overall EC competition policy to create more competitive markets This essential dilemma of much of heavy, and in particularly cross-border, energy infrastructure investment is well exemplified by the situation of electricity interconnectors. These interconnectors thus illustrate the challenges increasingly and acutely posed by the tension between long-term infrastructure investment in the interest of energy security, and the “normal” application of competition law.

The issue became highly topical when the Commission declared the access to interconnectors as one of its immediate priorities. This article will examine the application of EC competition law in interconnectors contributes towards a better appreciation of the dilemma between energy security investments on one hand and the objective of competitive, integrated EU energy markets on the other hand. It is also an essay about the difference between competition theory and the realities of the energy markets.
Changes in the Securities Trading Landscape in Europe and the U.S.
Authors: Engelen Peter-Jan
Published: May 2017

This article describes the fundamental changes in the securities trading landscape in Europe and the U.S. Three trends during the last decade change the business model of securities trading profoundly, being demutualisation, consolidation and technological evolution. The emergence of Alternative Trading Systems put considerable pressure on traditional stock exchanges and raises questions about the appropriate level of regulation and the level-playing field among all actors in the securities trading business.
Does Size Matter? Liquidity Provision by the Nasdaq Anonymous Trading Facility
Authors: Mizrach Bruce
Published: May 2017

I examine the effects of Nasdaq's introduction of an anonymous trading facility called SIZE. I compare SIZE to competing ECNs in terms of liquidity and market impact. Despite rapid growth, SIZE has not yet attained a significant market share and rarely influences short-run price evolution. I conclude with discussion of the Nasdaq-ECN mergers and speculate about a role for SIZE in trading listed securities.
REG NMS and Competition in the Alternative Trading Systems in the US
Authors: Gentzoglanis Anastassios
Published: May 2017

Recent technological and regulatory changes have brought about dramatic changes in the structure, conduct and performance of the securities industry in the USA and elsewhere. Trading venues such as ECNs, CNs and other ATSs compete head to head with the traditional exchanges. The SEC has recently adopted the so-called Reg NMS regulation whose major thrust is the order-protection rule. The latter makes regulation symmetric and provides a fairer level of competition. In anticipation of this regulation, the US industry has entered into a profound restructuring. The emerging industry structure, although oligopolistic, is more competitive. Reg NMS is thus a Pareto improving policy.
A five-year review of operative experience and indicative numbers in urological training in the UK and Ireland
Authors: Lee Elaine , Dyer James E , O’Flynn Kieran J , Terry Timothy , Robinson Richard
Published: May 2017

Objective:

The Joint Committee of Surgical Training guidelines for the award of a Certificate of Completion of Training in urology were updated in 2015. In 2015, we published operative logbook data from Certificate of Completion of Training in urology applications in 2010–2012 in line with the original 2011 guidelines. This study reviewed a contemporary cohort against the 2015 guidelines and this previous cohort to evaluate whether the number of trainees achieving these requirements had changed.

Materials and methods:

All Certificate of Completion of Training in Urology application logbooks from March 2014–October 2015 (77 in total, 2015 cohort) were reviewed and compared to 154 logbooks in 2010–2012 (2012 cohort).

Results:

There was a significant increase ( p<0.05) in the percentage of trainees achieving indicative exposure in 10 domains in the 2015 cohort according to the updated guidelines. Percentage increases included male lower urinary tract symptoms procedures from 68.2% to 88.3%, transurethral resection of bladder tumour from 64.3% to 89.6%, paediatric urology from 1.9% to 23.4%, female incontinence from 9.7% to 33.8% and andrology from 9.1% to 42.9%. There were significant reductions ( p<0.01) in mean operative numbers for transurethral resection of bladder tumour and male lower urinary tract symptoms procedures from 184 to 162 and 187 to 161, respectively. One trainee in the 2015 cohort achieved requirements in all 17 domains and 55% failed to meet the requirement in ⩾5 domains.

Conclusions:

While an increasing number of trainees currently meet Joint Committee of Surgical Training expectations, some domains remain at low levels. Despite this, no trainee to date has not been awarded a Certificate of Completion of Training as a direct consequence of this, but this could become a possibility in the near future, and it is the responsibility of Local Education Training Boards and trainees to ensure that indicative numbers are both achievable and achieved.
Ex-vivo renal surgery and auto-transplantation for benign and malignant renal pathologies: our early evolving experience of three cases
Authors: Aslam Muhammad Z , Brown Tim , Thwaini Ali A
Published: May 2017

Objectives:

We describe our experience of ex-vivo renal surgery and autotransplantation for complex renal pathologies. These cases were carried out in the urology and transplant departments between July 2015 and January 2016.

Materials and methods:

Case 1 was a 63-year-old man presenting with spontaneous bleed from a renal mass in a solitary functional right kidney. Case 2 was a 50-year-old man with bilateral renal tumours involving renal veins. Case 3 was a 50-year-old man with two previous failed right-sided pyeloplasties.

Results:

No intraoperative complications were encountered. Case 1 underwent laparoscopic nephrectomy, ex-vivo partial nephrectomy followed by autotransplantation. There was no disease recurrence after 6 months’ follow-up, with stable renal functions. Case 2 had bilateral open radical nephrectomies performed. On the right autotransplantation was performed after ex-vivo partial nephrectomy. On the left, a further procedure was abandoned after radical nephrectomy due to extensive disease involvement. Postoperatively, the patient became anuric with poor Doppler signals. Exploration suggested complete renal vein obstruction with infarction of the autotransplanted right kidney requiring nephrectomy. Disease recurrence at the native renal bed was found at 6 months’ follow-up. Case 3 had laparoscopic nephrectomy, ex-vivo pyeloplasty and autotransplantation was performed. At 12 months’ follow-up, the patient was asymptomatic with stable renal functions.

Conclusions:

Ex-vivo renal surgery is a viable option for complex renal conditions. However, appropriate patient selection is essential to achieve good outcomes.
Total Blood Loss After Transfemoral Amputations Is Twice the Intraoperative Loss: An Observational Cohort Study of 81 Nontraumatic Amputations
Authors: Wied Christian , Tengberg Peter T. , Kristensen Morten T. , Holm Gitte , Kallemose Thomas , Troelsen Anders , Foss Nicolai B.
Published: May 2017

Introduction:

Underestimation of the actual blood loss in patients undergoing nontraumatic transfemoral amputation (TFA) can impact negatively on outcome in these often frail patients, with very limited physiological reserves. The primary aim of this study is to estimate the total blood loss (TBL) after TFA, and second, to evaluate the impact of blood loss on 30-day mortality and medical complications.

Methods:

A single-center retrospective cohort study conducted from 2013 to 2015. The TBL was calculated on the fourth postoperative day. It was based on the hemoglobin levels, transfusions, and the estimated blood volume.

Results:

Eighty-one patients undergoing TFA were included for final analysis. The median TBL was 964 mL (interquartile range [IQR]: 443-1558). The intraoperative blood loss (OBL) was 400 mL (IQR: 200-500). The median difference between TBL and OBL was 688 mL (IQR: 124-1075). The patient received red blood cell (RBC) transfusion of a median amount of 2 units. Higher number of transfusions (>2) did not impact the outcome. From multivariable analysis, it was evident that the TBL increased significantly in patients with renal disease prior to surgery, ( P = .034). The TBL itself was not independently associated with increased 30-day mortality or medical complications.

Conclusion:

The TBL after TFAs is significantly greater than the volume estimated intraoperatively and increases significantly in the presence of renal disease prior to surgery. An increased TBL and requirement for RBC transfusion is not directly associated with 30-day mortality or medical complications. A high vigilance for anemia seems advisable when planning for TFA surgery. Research on optimum blood conservation and transfusion strategies during TFA is warranted.
Traditional Use of Shore Platforms: A Study of the Artisanal Management of Salinas on the Maltese Islands (Central Mediterranean)
Authors: Gauci Ritienne , Schembri John A. , Inkpen Rob
Published: May 2017

Shore platforms and salinas in the Mediterranean region have a long-standing relationship, rooted in the traditional practice of salt making. On small islands with limited natural resources, the production of salt from seawater, through insolation and intense human endeavour, offered numerous economic benefits. Salt has been a foremost natural resource for millennia with a range of uses from preserving edible foods to cooking, cleaning, laundry, and hygiene, and for medicinal uses in dilute solutions. Within the Maltese Islands, this traditional activity was developed primarily on the soft limestone shore platforms situated along low-lying rocky coasts. Although coastal production has declined in number over the years, a few salinas have persisted in their artisanal practice and are becoming a cultural geo-heritage attraction. The aim of this article is to explore the multiple geographies of this industry on two shore platforms by examining the complicated relationships that have emerged and molded between the physical landscape and human culture. Mapping out these relations through the traditional but complex management systems at two salinas, that is, the salinas at Delimara Point (Malta) and those at Xwejni Bay (Gozo), highlights the delicate nature of these relations as well as the need to support them in order to continually reproduce the cultural micro-landscape. The resultant micro-landscape is becoming an increasingly important living expression of the cultural geo-heritage of the Maltese Islands, which requires careful understanding and management of these relations if it is to be maintained as a vibrant geo-tourist attraction.
The Public Health Learning Network: Strengthening the Public Health Workforce of Today to Meet the Challenges of Tomorrow
Authors: McKeever Jennifer , Evans Dorothy
Published: May 2017

In 2013, the Health Resources & Services Administration redesigned the long-standing Public Health Training Center program to meet the training needs of the modern public health workforce and to implement parts of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which sets the training, recruitment, and retention of public health workers as a priority. Understanding that today’s most significant public health threats are socially constructed, resulting in chronic disease and significant years of life lost, the Health Resources & Services Administration laid the groundwork for the creation of a nationally unified network of training centers—the Public Health Learning Network (PHLN). The PHLN is the nation’s most comprehensive system of public health educators, health experts, thought leaders, and practitioners working together to advance public health training and practice. The system comprises 10 regional public health training centers, 40 local performance sites, and a National Coordinating Center for Public Health Training. The PHLN strengthens the workforce in state, local, and tribal health departments, as well as community health centers and primary care settings, to improve the capacity of a broad range of public health personnel to meet the complex public health challenges of today and tomorrow.