bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Optimal Regression Method for Near-Infrared Spectroscopic Evaluation of Articular Cartilage
Authors: Prakash Mithilesh , Sarin Jaakko K. , Rieppo Lassi , Afara Isaac O. , Töyräs Juha
Published: July 2017

Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy has been successful in nondestructive assessment of biological tissue properties, such as stiffness of articular cartilage, and is proposed to be used in clinical arthroscopies. Near-infrared spectroscopic data include absorbance values from a broad wavelength region resulting in a large number of contributing factors. This broad spectrum includes information from potentially noisy variables, which may contribute to errors during regression analysis. We hypothesized that partial least squares regression (PLSR) is an optimal multivariate regression technique and requires application of variable selection methods to further improve the performance of NIR spectroscopy-based prediction of cartilage tissue properties, including instantaneous, equilibrium, and dynamic moduli and cartilage thickness. To test this hypothesis, we conducted for the first time a comparative analysis of multivariate regression techniques, which included principal component regression (PCR), PLSR, ridge regression, least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (Lasso), and least squares version of support vector machines (LS-SVM) on NIR spectral data of equine articular cartilage. Additionally, we evaluated the effect of variable selection methods, including Monte Carlo uninformative variable elimination (MC-UVE), competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS), variable combination population analysis (VCPA), backward interval PLS (BiPLS), genetic algorithm (GA), and jackknife, on the performance of the optimal regression technique. The PLSR technique was found as an optimal regression tool (R2Tissue thickness = 75.6%, R2Dynamic modulus = 64.9%) for cartilage NIR data; variable selection methods simplified the prediction models enabling the use of lesser number of regression components. However, the improvements in model performance with variable selection methods were found to be statistically insignificant. Thus, the PLSR technique is recommended as the regression tool for multivariate analysis for prediction of articular cartilage properties from its NIR spectra.
When Late-Life Repartnering and Parental Death Intertwine: Adult Children’s Perspectives
Authors: Simhi-Meidani Shiran , Koren Chaya
Published: July 2017

Late-life repartnering is a phenomenon developing as life-expectancy increases, creating complex stepfamilies constructed in old age. Adult children and parents’ well-being could be influenced by adult children’s experiences of one parent’s late-life repartnering after the death of the other parent. Our aim is to explore how these two life events intertwine in the lives of adult children heuristically using existential phenomenology. Semistructured qualitative interviews with 27 adult children were chosen from a larger study on the meaning of late-life repartnering from an intergenerational family perspective. Criterion sampling included adult children of a widowed parent who repartnered at or above the official retirement age in Israel. Two themes emerged—(1) loyalty conflict: (a) visible and/or hidden, (b) hypothetical thoughts and feelings about the deceased parent in the context of the parent’s new partner and (2) comparison between the deceased parent and parent’s new partner. Findings are discussed using the existential figure−ground concept illustrating the two life events intertwining.
Bataille and the Homology of Heterology
Authors: Lawtoo Nidesh
Published: July 2017

‘Definition of Heterology’ illuminates sacred, heterogeneous experiences Bataille never stopped interrogating, in their throbbing movement of emergence. Furthering orthodox disciplines in the sciences of man, Bataille accounts for the ambivalent feelings of ‘attraction and repulsion’ at the heart of inner experiences that constitute the heart of his thought. In this paper, I further a mimetic line of inquiry in Bataille studies and argue that the laws of attraction and repulsion that animate heterology find their polarized foundations in the laws of the socius, which are also the laws of imitation understood in its heterogeneous – anthropological, ontological and psychological – manifestations. Paradoxically, heterology, while being the ‘science’ (logos) of the ‘totally other’ (hetero), may point toward an abyssal experience of a communicative homology that has the power to transform impure matters into pure spirits, angelic souls into material bodies.
Bataille’s Prehistoric Turn: The Case for Heterology
Authors: Richman Michèle
Published: July 2017

The contribution of this study to existing scholarship is threefold. First, it extends heterology’s timeline beyond the late 1930s to encompass the final phase of Bataille’s career (1955–62) devoted to prehistory. It argues that heterology’s keyword – the wholly other – furnished an entry point into the prehistoric past marginalized by traditional historiography. Second, it demonstrates that the exemplar of prehistory’s otherness is silence. Along with Maurice Blanchot, Bataille forged a modernist aesthetics that promotes silence as an interruption of speech. It therefore concludes that interruption – frequently dismissed as a sign of Bataille’s deficiencies or in contradiction with his goal of continuity – recaptures the continuum lost when archaic humans invented work, language, and a deferral to the future. With sections on religious experience, markings, eroticism, and the rupture between animals and humans, this study offers an introduction to prehistory in Bataille for specialists and general readers willing to plunge into what scholars now describe as deep history.
pH imaging reveals worsened tissue acidification in diffusion kurtosis lesion than the kurtosis/diffusion lesion mismatch in an animal model of acute stroke
Authors: Wang Enfeng , Wu Yin , Cheung Jerry S , Zhou Iris Yuwen , Igarashi Takahiro , Zhang XiaoAn , Sun Phillip Zhe
Published: July 2017

Diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) has been commonly used in acute stroke examination, yet a portion of DWI lesion may be salvageable. Recently, it has been shown that diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) defines the most severely damaged DWI lesion that does not renormalize following early reperfusion. We postulated that the diffusion and kurtosis lesion mismatch experience heterogeneous hemodynamic and/or metabolic injury. We investigated tissue perfusion, pH, diffusion, kurtosis and relaxation from regions of the contralateral normal area, diffusion lesion, kurtosis lesion and their mismatch in an animal model of acute stroke. Our study revealed significant kurtosis and diffusion lesion volume mismatch (19.7 ± 10.7%, P < 0.01). Although there was no significant difference in perfusion and diffusion between the kurtosis lesion and kurtosis/diffusion lesion mismatch, we showed lower pH in the kurtosis lesion (pH = 6.64 ± 0.12) from that of the kurtosis/diffusion lesion mismatch (6.84 ± 0.11, P < 0.05). Moreover, pH in the kurtosis lesion and kurtosis/diffusion mismatch agreed well with literature values for regions of ischemic core and penumbra, respectively. Our work documented initial evidence that DKI may reveal the heterogeneous metabolic derangement within the commonly used DWI lesion.
Is age a key factor contributing to the disparity between success of neuroprotective strategies in young animals and limited success in elderly stroke patients? Focus on protein homeostasis
Authors: Yang Wei , Paschen Wulf
Published: July 2017

Neuroprotection strategies to improve stroke outcome have been successful in the laboratory but not in clinical stroke trials, and thus have come under scrutiny by the medical community. Experimental stroke investigators are therefore under increased pressure to resolve this problem. Acute ischemic stroke represents a severe form of metabolic stress that activates many pathological processes and thereby impairs cellular functions. Traditionally, neuroprotection strategies were designed to improve stroke outcome by interfering with pathological processes triggered by ischemia. However, stroke outcome is also dependent on the brain’s capacity to restore cellular functions impaired by ischemia, and this capacity declines with age. It is, therefore, conceivable that this age-dependent decline in the brain’s self-healing capacity contributes to the disparity between the success of neuroprotective strategies in young animals, and limited success in elderly stroke patients. Here, prosurvival pathways that restore protein homeostasis impaired by ischemic stress should be considered, because their capacity decreases with increasing age, and maintenance of proteome fidelity is pivotal for cell survival. Boosting such prosurvival pathways pharmacologically to restore protein homeostasis and, thereby, cellular functions impaired by ischemic stress is expected to counterbalance the compromised self-healing capacity of aged brains and thereby help to improve stroke outcome.
Adolescent Exposure to Violence and Adult Anxiety, Depression, and PTSD
Authors: Covey Herbert C. , Grubb Leah McCoy , Franzese Robert J. , Menard Scott
Published: July 2017

The present study investigates how adolescent exposure to violence (AEV), in the form of parental physical abuse, witnessing parental violence, and exposure to violence in the neighborhood, is related to adult anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder, controlling for more general adolescent violent victimization and for self-reports and parent reports of mental health problems in adolescence, on a national household-based probability sample of individuals who were adolescents in the mid-1970s and who were followed through early adulthood in the early 2000s. The results suggest that AEV is associated with mental health problems in adolescence but not, controlling for other variables, in adulthood, but there is continuity in mental health problems associated with AEV from adolescence to adulthood.
Interactive Virtual and Physical Manipulatives for Improving Students’ Spatial Skills
Authors: Ha Oai , Fang Ning
Published: July 2017

An innovative educational technology called interactive virtual and physical manipulatives (VPM) is developed to improve students’ spatial skills. With VPM technology, not only can students touch and play with real-world physical manipulatives in their hands but also they can see how the corresponding virtual manipulatives (i.e., computer graphics) simultaneously change in real time. The assessment results show that VPM technology resulted in a 21.3% normalized learning gain in the posttest as compared with the pretest. Gender difference in spatial scores was reduced from 22.9% in the pretest to only 5.5% in the posttest. The t-test results revealed a statistically significant effect ( p = .032) of VPM technology on student learning, with Hedges’ g effect size of 0.54. The majority of the students surveyed (71.9%) preferred using both VPM, rather than virtual or physical manipulatives alone, because the two types of manipulatives provide two simultaneous channels for learning.
Hazardous Drinking and Exposure to Interpersonal and Community Violence on Both Sides of the U.S.-Mexico Border
Authors: Lown E. Anne , Cherpitel Cheryl J. , Zemore Sarah E. , Borges Guilherme , Greenfield Thomas K.
Published: July 2017

Different patterns of heavy drinking occur by country and proximity to the U.S.-Mexico border. Few studies describe the impact of violence on drinking between countries and along the border. Survey data is from U.S.-Mexican-origin adults living in Texas and Mexican border and nonborder cities, N = 4,796. Participants were asked about alcohol consumption, interpersonal physical violence (IPV), and exposure to community violence. Monthly hazardous drinking (5+/4+ for men/women) was the primary outcome. Multivariate logistic regression model comparisons identified best predictors. In the United States, hazardous drinking was associated with past-year IPV (adjusted odds ratio [ORadj] = 2.5; confidence interval [CI] = [1.8, 3.5]) and community violence (ORadj = 1.4; CI = [1.1, 1.8]). In Mexico, IPV (ORadj = 3.9; CI = [2.0, 7.4]) and border proximity (ORadj = 0.5; CI = [0.4, 0.8]) were associated with hazardous drinking but not community violence. Hazardous drinking is associated with IPV in both countries, but violence did not explain border hazardous drinking differences where they existed in Mexico.
Technical Violations, Treatment and Punishment Responses, and Recidivism of Women on Probation and Parole
Authors: Morash Merry , Kashy Deborah A. , Smith Sandi W. , Cobbina Jennifer E.
Published: July 2017

There is much debate about the effects of punitive or treatment responses to the many women who are on probation and parole. This article examines whether types of technical violations (drug or nondrug related) and responses to them (treatment or punishment oriented) as well as supervision intensity predict recidivism. Study participants are 385 women on probation or parole for a felony offense, and official records of violations and recidivism are the data source. Negative binomial regression analysis revealed that for high-risk women, treatment responses to nondrug violations are related to reductions in recidivism, whereas punitive responses to nondrug offenses are related to increased recidivism. For low-risk women, treatment responses to non-drug-related violations are related to increased recidivism and punitive responses to violations unrelated to drug use are related to decreased recidivism. Study findings suggest differential reactions to common supervision practices depending on a woman’s initial risk to recidivate.
Strain distribution in the porcine lumbar laminae under asymmetric loading
Authors: Bright Colin , Tiernan Stephen , McEvoy Fiona , Kiely Patrick
Published: July 2017

If the articular facets of the vertebra grow in an asymmetric manner, the developed geometry causes an asymmetry of loading. When the loading environment is altered by way of increased activity, the likelihood of acquiring a stress fracture may be increased. The combination of geometric asymmetry and increased activity is hypothesised to be the precursor to the stress fracture under investigation in this study, spondylolysis. This vertebral defect is an acquired fracture with 7% prevalence in the paediatric population. This value increases to 21% among athletes who participate in hyperextension sports. Tests were carried out on porcine lumbar vertebrae, on which the effect of facet angle asymmetry was simulated by offsetting the load laterally by 7 mm from the mid-point. The aim of the study is to investigate whether an increase in the coronal orientation of one facet leads to an increase in strain in the corresponding vertebral lamina. Strain in the laminae was recorded using six 3-element stacked rosette strain gauges placed bilaterally. Results show that a significant linear predictive relationship exists between load offset and average strain level in the vertebral laminae with p values of 0.006 and 0.045 for principal strains ε1 and ε2 on the right-hand side, and p-values of 0.009 and 0.001 for principal strains ε1 and ε2 on the left-hand side ( R2 all >0.9). This study concludes that facet angle asymmetry does lead to a difference in strain in the vertebral laminae. Change in principal strain as a result of facet asymmetry has a linear relationship and an asymmetry threshold exists beyond which compressive strain on the more coronally oriented facet can be increased by up to 15%.
Back radiation versus CO2 as the cause of climate change
Authors: Lightfoot H Douglas , Mamer Orval A
Published: July 2017

Robust scientific evidence shows the sun angle controls water vapour content of the atmosphere, the main component of back radiation, as it cycles annually. Water vapour content measured as the ratio of the number of water molecules to CO2 molecules varies from 1:1 near the Poles to 97:1 in the Tropics. The effect of back radiation on Earth’s atmosphere is up to 200 times larger than that of CO2 and works in the opposite direction. Thus, if CO2 has any effect on atmospheric temperature and climate change we show it is negligible. Consequently, current government policies to control atmospheric temperature by limiting consumption of fossil fuels will have negligible effect. Measured data reported in IPCC report Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis ( AR5) indicate increased water vapour content of the atmosphere is the cause of the 0.5℃ temperature increase from the mid-1970s to 2011.
Adaptive robust control for triple evasion-tracing-arrival performance of uncertain mechanical systems
Authors: Wang Xiuye , Sun Qinqin , Chen Ye-Hwa
Published: July 2017

This article proposes a (cooperative) triple evasion-tracing-arrival problem for mechanical systems. The system contains uncertainty which is (possibly fast) time-varying but bounded; however, the bound is unknown. The main objective is to obtain controllers for the controlled system to assure three categories of system performance: evasion (with respect to a region), tracing (with respect to another region) and arrival (with respect to other another region). This problem is transferred as constraint-following control, based on which, the constraint derived from the original problem is creatively divided into two categories: evasion-tracing constraint and arrival constraint. Then, an adaptive robust control is designed, with which the evasion-tracing constraint is completely followed and the arrival constraint is closely followed by the system, regardless of the uncertainty. As a result, the triple evasion-tracing-arrival problem is solved.
Gender-Aware and Place-Based Transitional Justice in Guatemala
Authors: Destrooper Tine , Parmentier Stephan
Published: July 2017

Place-based approaches to transitional justice, which foreground victim participation, have become increasingly popular in the last decade. The assumption is that these approaches enhance legitimacy, increase the local relevance of interventions, and empower victims. However, the causal mechanisms by which this alleged empowerment takes place, are not usually studied in great detail. This article examines whether altering the opportunity structures of (germinal) civil society organizations is one of the ways by which this empowering effect might take hold. The authors argue that in Guatemala, the transitional justice process, and in particular the truth commission, did indeed significantly alter the opportunity structures of grassroots indigenous women’s groups, most notably by providing these groups with support to develop their own agenda and with access to ‘elite allies’. Yet the fieldwork performed hitherto would also advise against treating localized and participatory approaches to transitional justice as a panacea, for even if a genuine bottom-up approach is promising, the ongoing institutionalization of the field of transitional justice makes adequate implementation of such an approach difficult; and especially in cases where victims face intersectional discrimination positive effects may be slow to materialize.
Family Support and Performance of Women-owned Enterprises: The Mediating Effect of Family-to-Work Enrichment
Authors: Neneh Brownhilder Ngek
Published: July 2017

The objective of this article was to examine the mediating role of family-to-work enrichment (FWE) on the relationship between family support and the performance of women-owned businesses. Empirical data from 251 women entrepreneurs in South Africa were used to assess the postulated relationship. The findings showed that all three examined types of family support (i.e., emotional, instrumental and financial family support) were positively associated with firm performance. Additionally, affective FWE mediated the relationship between emotional support and performance, while instrumental FWE mediated the association between instrumental family support and performance. The study culminates with a discussion of the implications of the study, by emphasising the need for the current system to take into account the distinctive needs and challenges of women entrepreneurs and provide the necessary support and environment to foster their growth and prosperity.
The Impact of Cultural Values on the Development of the Cultural Industry: Case of the Kente Textile Industry in Adanwomase of the Kwabre East District, Ghana
Authors: Asibey Michael Osei , Agyeman Kwasi Osei , Yeboah Vivian
Published: July 2017

The importance of cultural enterprises to the creation of jobs, generating incomes, alleviating poverty and distributing development has long been recognized. Based on empirical research, this article adopts the convergent parallel mixed design to assess extent of influence of cultural values on the type of cultural industry established in Ghana, taking a case of the kente textile industry in Adanwomase. Adanwomase is argued to be a prominent traditional community in the printing of kente cloths in Ghana. Primary data were obtained from 210 weavers and relevant bodies, such as the Business Advisory Council and traditional leaders through direct interviews, observation and focus group discussions. Findings show that the craft industry in Adanwomase is informal and small-scale in nature. Six key cultural values were identified to statistically have significant influence on the establishment of the textile craft industry. Strongest among them were the festival celebrations and customary law/traditional customs. There was strong correlation between the identified cultural values and the establishment of the textile industry in Adanwomase. Urgent policy and creation of the enabling environment to promote entrepreneurship and create employment through support for research and development (R&D) of cultural industries are needed.
Conceptual Framework on Workplace Deviance Behaviour: A Review
Authors: Narayanan Kanimozhi , Murphy Susan E.
Published: July 2017

This article aims to highlight the importance of organizational climate with both destructive and constructive deviance behaviour in different cultural setting with workplace as a common ground. First, we discuss the need for research in workplace deviance especially destructive and constructive deviance behaviour with the review of previous studies from deviance literature. Next, we present the importance of climate and culture with both destructive and constructive deviance by proposing relationship among them with the help of a framework. The presented theoretical framework can be useful for conducting future empirical research. Finally, we present the conclusion and future research in conducting cross-national research with respect to deviance.
Spousal Attitude Towards Exerting Conflict Resolution Strategies in Decision Making
Authors: Singh Shivendra , Dhyani Atul
Published: July 2017

Family is one entity that has complex variables underplaying the consumption decisions, and marketers must understand how couples behave in concert to resolve conflict across major decisions. In this study, the family aspects are investigated to shed more light on spouse attitude towards family decision-making for selection of car and school/college for their ward and assess the impact of attitudinal factor on decision satisfaction. The drop-off/pick-up method was used to collect the data from Northern India. The result reveals that spousal attitude is formed by marital power, assertiveness, subtle manipulation, love, bargaining and being submissive. Results of multiple regression analysis show that subtle manipulation is most and marital power has a negative impact on spouses’ decision satisfaction. Thus, when targeting a family for a significant trades assay, the salesperson should focus on both husband and wife and stimulate a conversation between them to appeal to their conjoint kinship.
Theoretical Framework of Glass Ceiling
Authors: Wesarat Phathara-on , Mathew Jaya
Published: July 2017

Working women worldwide have faced career difficulties. Examples of this include women academic leaders in India where negative cultural beliefs about women moving to the top-management positions (also referred to as glass ceiling) still exist. Although they are highly educated and competent workers, they have unequal opportunities to be organizational leaders or top executives. Academic women with greater knowledge and abilities can actually perform as academic leaders, and they can support educational development of the country. Government and educational institutions should realize the potential of academic women and provide them with equal opportunities for career advancement in organizations. In order to get a better understanding of glass ceiling of India’s women academic leaders, the concepts and theories related to glass ceiling, particularly in the Asian context, are discussed in this article. It provides a theoretical framework of glass ceiling which is based on two theories of justice, namely Rawlsian theory and utilitarian theory. Educational institutions that more effectively apply the theoretical framework of justice to their management practices are hypothesized to have lesser glass ceiling problems than others.
Virus-directed enzyme prodrug therapy and the assessment of the cytotoxic impact of some benzimidazole derivatives
Authors: Szewczuk Michał , Boguszewska Karolina , Żebrowska Marta , Balcerczak Ewa , Stasiak Marta , Świątkowska Maria , Błaszczak-Świątkiewicz Katarzyna
Published: July 2017

Virus-directed enzyme prodrug therapy is one of the major strategy of increasing cytotoxicity of bioreductive agents. This research intended to examine new selected benzimidazole derivatives as a substrate for nitroreductase, the enzyme involved in nitroreduction which is responsible to the production of cytotoxic metabolites. In this way, the selectivity and strength of cytotoxicity can be raised. The effect of benzimidazoles on virus transfected cells and non-virus transfected cells A549 cell line was established by Annexin V + propidium iodide test, western blot, and polymerase chain reaction analysis of specific pro- and anti-apoptotic proteins in the corresponding gene expression and additionally nitroreductase gene expression. Our results proved the pro-apoptotic properties of all tested compounds in normoxia and hypoxia, especially according to virused A549 cells where the time of exposition was reduced from 48 to 4 h. In this shorten period of time, the strongest activity was shown by N-oxide compounds with nitro-groups. The apoptosis was confirmed by generation of BAX gene and protein and reduction of BCL2 gene and protein.
Adaptive magnetoelastic metamaterials: A new class of magnetorheological elastomers
Authors: Harne Ryan L , Deng Zhangxian , Dapino Marcelo J
Published: July 2017

This article reports means to significantly enhance the adaptation of static and dynamic properties using magnetorheological elastomers and demonstrates the enhancements experimentally. The tunability of traditional magnetorheological elastomers is limited by magnetic field strength and intrinsic magnetic–elastic coupling. This contrasts with recent efforts that have revealed large static and dynamic properties change in elastomeric metamaterials via exploiting internal void architectures and collapse mechanisms, although design guidelines have not been developed to adapt properties in real-time. Considering these benchmark efforts, this research integrates concepts from topologically controlled metamaterials and active magnetorheological elastomers to create and study magnetoelastic metamaterials that mutually leverage applied magnetic fields and reconfiguration of internal architectures to achieve real-time tuning of magnetoelastic metamaterial properties across orders of magnitude. Following detailed descriptions of the manufacturing procedures of magnetoelastic metamaterials, this article describes experiments that characterize the static and dynamic properties adaptation. It is found that by the new integration of internal collapse mechanisms and applied magnetic fields, magnetoelastic metamaterials can be reversibly switched from near-zero to approximately 10 kN/m in one-dimensional static stiffness and tailored to double or halve resonant frequencies for dynamic properties modulation. These ideas may fuel new research where geometry, magnetic microstructure, and structural design intersect, to advance state-of-the-art utilization of magnetorheological elastomers.
Total fatigue life prediction for welded joints based on initial and equivalent crack size determination
Authors: Zhang Xiaoqiang , Gao Huiying , Huang Hong-Zhong
Published: July 2017

When the linear elastic fracture mechanics-based approaches are used to predict the fatigue life of welded joints, initial crack size is a key point, which eventually affects the accuracy of total fatigue life prediction. Meanwhile, the life prediction process under random loading is complicated. In this paper, a novel method is proposed to determine the initial crack size, which is based on the results of back-extrapolation approach. The proposed method expresses the stress intensity factor, and the boundary between crack initiation and propagation period is taken into consideration. Based on the proposed method, deterministic total fatigue life can be obtained with fewer tests and less cost. In addition, the concept of equivalent crack size and its calculation model are proposed to reduce the complexity of the calculation process of fatigue life prediction under random loading, and model uncertainty is included into the prediction model of probabilistic fatigue life based on equivalent crack size. It is feasible, which has been verified, to take the influence of stress level into account when determining the initial crack size. Meanwhile, the proposal of equivalent crack size simplifies the calculation process of probabilistic fatigue life, and the consideration of model uncertainty is more conducive to assess the safety and reliability of the materials or structures.
Improving School Nurse Pain Assessment Practices for Students With Intellectual Disability
Authors: Quinn Brenna L. , Smolinski Megan
Published: July 2017

School nurses are afforded minimal resources related to assessing pain in students with intellectual disability (ID) and have called for continuing education. The purpose of this study was to measure the effectiveness of an education program regarding best practices for assessing pain in students with ID. Educational sessions were presented to 248 school nurses. Pre-, post-, and follow-up surveys measured (1) difficulty school nurses face when assessing pain, (2) knowledge and use of pain assessment methods, and (3) intent to change and actual changes to professional practices. Participants experienced less difficulty assessing pain following the educational program. Almost all participants intended to change pain assessment practices, but large caseloads limited new practice adoption. Policy makers must consider population size and acuity when determining school nurse staffing. Trainings and other resources should be made available to school nurses in order to make pain assessments for students with ID more thorough and efficient.
Displacement transmissibility evaluation of vibration isolation system employing nonlinear-damping and nonlinear-stiffness elements
Authors: Mofidian S M Mahdi , Bardaweel Hamzeh
Published: July 2017

Undesired oscillations commonly encountered in engineering practice can be harmful to structures and machinery. Vibration isolation systems are used to attenuate undesired oscillations. Recently, there has been growing interest in nonlinear approaches towards vibration isolation systems design. This work is focused on investigating the effect of nonlinear cubic viscous damping in a vibration isolation system consisting of a magnetic spring with a positive nonlinear stiffness, and a mechanical oblique spring with geometric nonlinear negative stiffness. Dynamic model of the vibration isolation system is obtained and the harmonic balance method (HBM) is used to solve the governing dynamic equation. Additionally, fourth order Runge–Kutta numerical simulation is used to obtain displacement transmissibility of the system under investigation. Results obtained from numerical simulation are in good agreement with those obtained using HBM. Results show that introducing nonlinear damping improves the performance of the vibration isolation system. Nonlinear damping purposefully introduced into the described vibration isolation system appears to eliminate undesired frequency jump phenomena traditionally encountered in quasi-zero-stiffness vibration isolation systems. Compared to its rival linear vibration isolation system, the described nonlinear system transmits less vibrations around resonant peak. At lower frequencies, both nonlinear and linear isolation systems show comparable transmissibility characteristics.
Enhancing the tribological and mechanical properties of M50 steel using solid lubricants – A detailed review
Authors: Essa FA , Zhang Qiaoxin , Huang Xingjiu , Ibrahim Ahmed Mohamed Mahmoud , Kamal Ahmed Ali Mohamed , Sharshir SW
Published: July 2017

Recent strides in contact mechanics of M50 steel offer unique opportunities for better and more control of its tribological behavior and mechanical properties under different contact and surrounding conditions. Most researchers have focused on the solid lubricants on M50 steel as the key strategy for improving the tribological properties. In this paper, we have selected a wide range of previous late studies to discuss the different mechanisms leading to an improvement in the tribological properties of M50 steel via solid lubricants. A discussion of M50 steel industrial applications is also reviewed. The main objective is to develop an exhaustive understanding of the tribological behavior of M50 steel with solid lubricant additives under different conditions and also provide some prospects to be considered for future work.
Competences for democratic culture: An empirical study of an intercultural citizenship project in language pedagogy
Authors: Yulita Leticia
Published: July 2017

This article reports on a pedagogical intervention in foreign language teaching in higher education. It analizes the competences developed by Argentinian and UK-based students as they used Skype to design a leaflet that addressed a real world issue: the Argentinian military dictatorship and its manipulation of the 1978 Football World Cup. The data consists of students’ discussions of this highly disturbing human rights issue. A first level of analysis focused on identifying evidence of competences using the Council of Europe’s conceptual model of ‘competences for democratic culture’ (2016). In a second level of analysis, the data was categorized within the framework of Article 2.2 of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training (2011). This research study provides an empirical test of these two frameworks in the field of language education, an aspect that has not been investigated before. It also contributes to our understanding of the potential of intercultural citizenship projects in achieving the goals of human rights education in foreign language teaching. Results indicate the development of substantial competences for democratic culture defined in the Council of Europe’s model.
The bird dancer and the warrior king: Divergent lived experiences of Tourette syndrome in Bali
Authors: Lemelson Robert , Tucker Annie
Published: July 2017

In the past two decades, ethnographic, epidemiological and interdisciplinary research has robustly established that culture is significant in determining the long-term outcomes of people with neurodevelopmental, neuropsychiatric and mood disorders. Yet these cultural factors are certainly not uniform across discrete individual experiences. Thus, in addition to illustrating meaningful differences for people with neuropsychiatric disorder between different cultures, ethnography should also help detail the variations within a culture. Different subjective experiences or outcomes are not solely due to biographical idiosyncrasies—rather, influential factors arising from the same culture can have different impacts on different people. When taking a holistic and intersectional perspective on lived experience, it is crucial to understand the interaction of these factors for people with neuropsychiatric disorders. This paper teases apart such interactions, utilizing comparative case studies of the disparate subjective experiences and illness trajectories of two Balinese people with Tourette syndrome who exhibit similar symptoms. Based on longitudinal person-centered ethnography integrating clinical, psychological, and visual anthropology, this intersectional approach goes beyond symptom interpretation and treatment modalities to identify gendered embodiment and marital practices as influenced by caste to be significant determinants in subjective experience and long-term outcome.
Identification of aerodynamic admittance functions of a flat closed-box deck in different grid-generated turbulent wind fields
Authors: Yan Lei , Zhu Le-Dong , Flay Richard George James
Published: July 2017

Wind tunnel tests of synchronous measurements of the buffeting lifts and moments on six separated strips of a motionless 1:45 scale sectional model of a flat closed-box bridge deck were carried out in three turbulent flow conditions. The longitudinal and vertical components of turbulent wind speed were also measured synchronously with the buffeting forces at the positions just over the windward edges of the six strips. Three typical methods, including the auto-spectral method based on the measured auto-spectrum of buffeting force (auto-spectrum method), the cross-spectral method based on the measured cross-spectra between buffeting force and fluctuating turbulence components (cross-spectrum method), and the colligated least square method based on a colligated residue of the above-mentioned auto- and cross-spectra (colligated least square method), were then used, respectively, to identify the aerodynamic admittance functions of the flat closed-box deck. The aerodynamic admittance function components of a buffeting force with respect to the longitudinal and vertical components of fluctuating wind speed were effectively separated using the colligated least square method while only a weighted average value, often called the equivalent aerodynamic admittance function, was obtained using the auto-spectrum method. Meanwhile, the reproduced auto-spectra of the buffeting forces had very high accuracies when the aerodynamic admittance functions identified with the colligated least square method were employed, but deviated significantly from the measured ones when the aerodynamic admittance functions identified with the cross-spectrum method were used. Furthermore, the influence of the span-wise position of the wind probe on the values of aerodynamic admittance function module was confirmed to be very small. Finally, the aerodynamic admittance function components with respect to the longitudinal and vertical fluctuating wind speeds were found to be significantly affected by both the intensities and integral scales of the oncoming turbulence wind.
Macro-scale designs through topological deformations in the built environment
Authors: Agirbas Asli , Ardaman Emel
Published: July 2017

Design studies are being done on contemporary master-plans which may be applied in many locations worldwide. Advances in information technology are becoming the base model of design studies, and these may be more effective than the efforts of humans in the field of architecture and urban design. However, urban morphology variables and constants must be considered while designing contemporary master-plans in the existing built environment. The aims of this study were to extend the use of computer software for different applications and to make a topological work in the regional context. Accordingly, a case study was made using the nCloth simulation tools to create non-Euclidean forms while protecting the road system, which is one of the constant parameters of urban morphology in the built environment.
Encoding bamboo’s nature for freeform structure design
Authors: Wang Tsung-Hsien , Espinosa Trujillo Olivia , Chang Wen-Shao , Deng Bailin
Published: July 2017

Bamboo is a construction material that is renewable, environmentally friendly and widely available. It has long been used in various projects, ranging from temporary, easily assembled and rectilinear structures to complex freeform pavilions. Design with bamboo has never been easy to architects and engineers due to its irregular shape and round section. This prompts the need to develop a new design process that can accommodate those properties that hinder bamboo to be used by designers. In this article, we take a close look at freeform structure design and specifically demonstrate how systematically and algorithmically parametric modelling can be used to tackle bamboo material irregularities and bamboo jointing challenges. A two-stage optimization process is proposed to support a fabricable freeform structure design through encoding material properties and freeform shape optimization. The approach approximates the given freeform shape using a finite set of unique bamboo elements while maintaining the aesthetic design intention. By limiting the number of bamboo elements, it will provide insight to both designers and engineers on the efficiency and cost benefits of producing required structure elements for the final assembly.
The TMA-93: A New Memory Test for Alzheimer’s Disease in Illiterate and Less Educated People
Authors: Maillet Didier , Narme Pauline , Amieva Hélène , Matharan Fanny , Bailon Olivier , Le Clésiau Hervé , Belin Catherine
Published: July 2017

The present study aimed at validating the Memory Associative Test of the district of Seine-Saint-Denis (TMA)-93, a new test of episodic memory. The TMA-93 was proposed to mostly less educated and multicultural elderly population composed of 376 healthy controls (HC) and 94 patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The construct validity was checked by studying correlations with a widely used memory test (the Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test [FCSRT]) in the subsample of literate patients. Results showed that (i) all the TMA-93 scores of the patients with AD were lower than those of the HC, (ii) the TMA-93 total score identified patients with AD with a high sensitivity (88%) and very high specificity (97%), and (iii) the TMA-93 total score was strongly correlated with both free recall and total recall scores of the FCSRT. Taken together, results showed that the TMA-93 is a reliable tool to assess episodic memory in a multicultural, less educated, or illiterate population, with good construct validity for AD diagnostic accuracy.
Human skin gene expression: Natural (trans) resveratrol versus five resveratrol analogs for dermal applications
Authors: Lephart Edwin D , Andrus Merritt B
Published: July 2017

Resveratrol (RV) is a polyphenolic compound naturally produced by plants. Polyphenolic compounds incorporated into medicinal products are beneficial but, RV is rapidly metabolized with an associated decline in biological activity. This study tested RV as the standard and compared five structurally modified RV analogs: butyrate, isobutyrate, palmitoate, acetate, and diacetate (to improve functionality) at 1% concentration(s) for 24 h in epiderm full thickness cultures by gene array/qPCR mRNA analysis. When silent mating type information regulation 2 homolog 1, extracellular elements (collagen1A1, 3A1, 4A1; elastin, tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase 1, fibrillin 1 laminin beta1 and matrix metalloproteinase 9), anti-aging and aging genes, inflammatory biomarkers (interleukin-1A [IL1A], IL1R2, IL-6 and IL-8), nerve growth factor, and the antioxidants (proliferating cell nuclear antigen, catalase, superoxide dismutase and metallothionein 1H/2H) were evaluated, ranking each from highest-to-lowest for gene expression: butyrate > isobutyrate > diacetate > acetate > palmitoate. This study showed that the butyrate and isobutyrate analogs are more biologically active compared to resveratrol and have potential use in topical applications to improve dermal and other health applications.

Impact statement

Resveratrol has been reported to have a wide variety of health benefits but its rapid metabolism especially after oral ingestion results in very low bioavailability. Notably, the first human skin gene expression study of resveratrol was not published until 2014. The purpose of this study was to determine if increased stability and biological activity could be obtained by modifying the chemical structure of natural (trans) resveratrol and quantifying human gene expression by qPCR of skin biomarkers that enhance dermal health. Five resveratrol analogs were synthesized that increased their lipophilic index to enhance tissue penetration and augment biological activities on the measured parameters that expand the current knowledge of structure/function relationships. The butyrate and isobutyrate modifications displayed gene expression values significantly above resveratrol and suggest that oral application of these and potentially other resveratrol analogs may yield similar results to improve stability and biological activity to benefit/address various disorders/diseases.
Decision-Making in Audiology: Balancing Evidence-Based Practice and Patient-Centered Care
Authors: Boisvert Isabelle , Clemesha Jennifer , Lundmark Erik , Crome Erica , Barr Caitlin , McMahon Catherine M.
Published: July 2017

Health-care service delivery models have evolved from a practitioner-centered approach toward a patient-centered ideal. Concurrently, increasing emphasis has been placed on the use of empirical evidence in decision-making to increase clinical accountability. The way in which clinicians use empirical evidence and client preferences to inform decision-making provides an insight into health-care delivery models utilized in clinical practice. The present study aimed to investigate the sources of information audiologists use when discussing rehabilitation choices with clients, and discuss the findings within the context of evidence-based practice and patient-centered care. To assess the changes that may have occurred over time, this study uses a questionnaire based on one of the few studies of decision-making behavior in audiologists, published in 1989. The present questionnaire was completed by 96 audiologists who attended the World Congress of Audiology in 2014. The responses were analyzed using qualitative and quantitative approaches. Results suggest that audiologists rank clinical test results and client preferences as the most important factors for decision-making. Discussion with colleagues or experts was also frequently reported as an important source influencing decision-making. Approximately 20% of audiologists mentioned utilizing research evidence to inform decision-making when no clear solution was available. Information shared at conferences was ranked low in terms of importance and reliability. This study highlights an increase in awareness of concepts associated with evidence-based practice and patient-centered care within audiology settings, consistent with current research-to-practice dissemination pathways. It also highlights that these pathways may not be sufficient for an effective clinical implementation of these practices.