bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prospective Associations of Dietary and Nutrient Patterns with Fracture Risk: A 20-Year Follow-Up Study
Authors: Melaku Yohannes , Gill Tiffany , Appleton Sarah , Taylor Anne , Adams Robert , Shi Zumin
Published: October 2017

Studies on long-term exposure to foods/nutrients and its associations with fracture risk are scarce. Using data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), we determined the prospective association of dietary and nutrient patterns with fractures. Data from 15,572 adults aged ≥18 years were analyzed. Fracture occurrence was self-reported and dietary intake data were collected using a 24-h recall method for three consecutive days, for each individual across nine waves (1989–2011). We used cumulative and overall mean, recent and baseline dietary and nutrient exposures. Hazard ratios (HR) were used to determine the associations. Two dietary (traditional and modern) and two nutrient (plant- and animal-sourced) patterns were identified. After adjusting for potential confounders, study participants in the third tertiles (highest intake) of the modern dietary and animal-sourced nutrient patterns’ cumulative scores had a 34% (HR = 1.34; 95% CI: 1.06–1.71) and 37% (HR = 1.37; 95% CI: 1.08–1.72) increase in fracture risks compared to those in the first tertiles, respectively. While the overall mean factor scores of dietary and nutrient patterns had a similar (or stronger) pattern of association as the cumulative scores, no association between recent and baseline scores and fracture was found. Greater adherence to a modern dietary and/or an animal-sourced nutrient pattern is associated with a higher risk of total fractures. This suggests that a modern animal based diet is related to bone fragility. A repeated three-day 24-h recall dietary assessment provides a stronger association with fracture compared to a recent or baseline exposure.
Acorenone B: AChE and BChE Inhibitor as a Major Compound of the Essential Oil Distilled from the Ecuadorian Species Niphogeton dissecta (Benth.) J.F. Macbr
Authors: Calva James , Bec Nicole , Gilardoni Gianluca , Larroque Christian , Cartuche Luis , Bicchi Carlo , Montesinos José
Published: October 2017

This study investigated the chemical composition, physical proprieties, biological activity, and enantiomeric analysis of the essential oil from the aerial parts of Niphogeton dissecta (culantrillo del cerro) from Ecuador, obtained by steam distillation. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of the essential oil was realized by gas chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques (GC-MS and GC-FID). Acorenone B was identified by GC-MS and NMR experiments. The enantiomeric distribution of some constituents has been assessed by enantio-GC through the use of a chiral cyclodextrin-based capillary column. We identified 41 components that accounted for 96.46% of the total analyzed, the major components were acorenone B (41.01%) and (E)-β-ocimene (29.64%). The enantiomeric ratio of (+)/(−)-β-pinene was 86.9:13.1, while the one of (+)/(−)-sabinene was 80.9:19.1. The essential oil showed a weak inhibitory activity, expressed as Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC), against Enterococcus faecalis (MIC 10 mg/mL) and Staphylococcus aureus (MIC 5 mg/mL). Furthermore, it inhibited butyrylcholinesterase with an IC50 value of 11.5 μg/mL. Pure acorenone B showed inhibitory activity against both acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase, with IC50 values of 40.8 μg/mL and 10.9 μg/mL, respectively.
Non-Parametric Integral Estimation Using Data Clustering in Stochastic dynamic Programming: An Introduction Using Lifetime Financial Modelling
Authors: Khemka Gaurav , Butt Adam
Published: October 2017

This paper considers an alternative way of structuring stochastic variables in a dynamic programming framework where the model structure dictates that numerical methods of solution are necessary. Rather than estimating integrals within a Bellman equation using quadrature nodes, we use nodes directly from the underlying data. An example of the application of this approach is presented using individual lifetime financial modelling. The results show that data-driven methods lead to the least losses in result accuracy compared to quadrature and Quasi-Monte Carlo approaches, using historical data as a base. These results hold for both a single stochastic variable and multiple stochastic variables. The results are significant for improving the computational accuracy of lifetime financial models and other models that employ stochastic dynamic programming.
Visual Tilt Estimation for Planar-Motion Methods in Indoor Mobile Robots
Authors: Fleer David
Published: October 2017

Visual methods have many applications in mobile robotics problems, such as localization, navigation, and mapping. Some methods require that the robot moves in a plane without tilting. This planar-motion assumption simplifies the problem, and can lead to improved results. However, tilting the robot violates this assumption, and may cause planar-motion methods to fail. Such a tilt should therefore be corrected. In this work, we estimate a robot’s tilt relative to a ground plane from individual panoramic images. This estimate is based on the vanishing point of vertical elements, which commonly occur in indoor environments. We test the quality of two methods on images from several environments: An image-space method exploits several approximations to detect the vanishing point in a panoramic fisheye image. The vector-consensus method uses a calibrated camera model to solve the tilt-estimation problem in 3D space. In addition, we measure the time required on desktop and embedded systems. We previously studied visual pose-estimation for a domestic robot, including the effect of tilts. We use these earlier results to establish meaningful standards for the estimation error and time. Overall, we find the methods to be accurate and fast enough for real-time use on embedded systems. However, the tilt-estimation error increases markedly in environments containing relatively few vertical edges.
Semi-Automatic System for Land Cover Change Detection Using Bi-Temporal Remote Sensing Images
Authors: Lv ZhiYong , Shi WenZhong , Zhou XiaoCheng , Benediktsson Jón
Published: October 2017

Change detection is an increasingly important research topic in remote sensing application. Previous studies achieved land cover change detection (LCCD) using bi-temporal remote sensing images. However, many widely used methods detected change depending on a series of parameters, and determining parameters is time-consuming. Furthermore, numerous methods are data-dependent. Therefore, their degree of automation should be improved significantly. Three techniques, which consist of a semi-automatic change detection system, are proposed for LCCD to overcome the abovementioned drawbacks. The three techniques are as follows: (1) change magnitude image (CMI) noise reduction is based on Gaussian filter (GF), which is coupled with OTSU for reducing CMI noise automatically using an iterative optimization strategy; (2) a method based on histogram curve fitting is suggested to predict the threshold range for parameter determination; and (3) a modified region growing algorithm is built for iteratively constructing the final change detection map. The detection accuracies of the proposed system are investigated through four experiments with different bi-temporal image scenes. Compared with several widely used change detection methods, the proposed system can be applied to detect land cover change with high accuracy and flexibility. This work is an attempt to provide a change detection system that is compatible with remote sensing images with high and median-low spatial resolution.
A Novel Principal Component Analysis Method for the Reconstruction of Leaf Reflectance Spectra and Retrieval of Leaf Biochemical Contents
Authors: Liu Liangyun , Song Bowen , Zhang Su , Liu Xinjie
Published: October 2017

Vegetation variable retrieval from reflectance data is typically grouped into three categories: the statistical–empirical category, the physical category and the hybrid category (physical models applied to statistical models). Based on the similarities between the spectra of leaves in the optical domain, the leaf reflectance spectra can be linearly modelled using a very limited number of principal components (PCs) if the PCA (principal component analysis) transformation is carried out at the sample dimension. In this paper, we present a novel data-driven approach that uses the PCA transformation to reconstruct leaf reflectance spectra and also to retrieve leaf biochemical contents. First, the PCA transformation was carried out on a training dataset simulated by the PROSPECT-5 model. The results showed that the leaf reflectance spectra can be accurately reconstructed using only a few leading PCs, as the ten leading PCs contained 99.999% of the total information in the 3636 training samples. The spectral error between the simulated or measured reflectance and the reconstructed spectra was also investigated using the simulated and measured datasets (ANGERS and LOPEX’93). The mean root mean squared error (RMSE) values varied from 5.56 × 10−5 to 6.18 × 10−3, which is about 3–10 times more accurate than the PROSPECT simulation method for measured datasets. Secondly, the relationship between PCs and leaf biochemical components was investigated, and we found that the PCs are closely related to the leaf biochemical components and to the reflectance spectra. Only when the weighting coefficient of the most sensitive PC was employed to retrieve the leaf biochemical contents, the coefficients of determination for the PCA data-driven model were 0.69, 0.99, 0.94 and 0.68 for the specific leaf weight (SLW), equivalent water thickness (EWT), chlorophyll content (Cab) and carotenoid content (Car), respectively. Finally, statistical models for the retrieval of leaf biochemical contents were developed based on the weighting coefficients of the sensitive PCs, and the PCA data-driven models were validated and compared to the traditional VI-based and physically-based approaches for the retrieval of leaf properties. The results show that the PCA method shows similar or better performance in the estimation of leaf biochemical contents. Therefore, the PCA method provides a new and accurate data-driven method for reconstructing leaf reflectance spectra and also for retrieving leaf biochemical contents.
A Novel Evidence Theory and Fuzzy Preference Approach-Based Multi-Sensor Data Fusion Technique for Fault Diagnosis
Authors: Xiao Fuyuan
Published: October 2017

The multi-sensor data fusion technique plays a significant role in fault diagnosis and in a variety of such applications, and the Dempster–Shafer evidence theory is employed to improve the system performance; whereas, it may generate a counter-intuitive result when the pieces of evidence highly conflict with each other. To handle this problem, a novel multi-sensor data fusion approach on the basis of the distance of evidence, belief entropy and fuzzy preference relation analysis is proposed. A function of evidence distance is first leveraged to measure the conflict degree among the pieces of evidence; thus, the support degree can be obtained to represent the reliability of the evidence. Next, the uncertainty of each piece of evidence is measured by means of the belief entropy. Based on the quantitative uncertainty measured above, the fuzzy preference relations are applied to represent the relative credibility preference of the evidence. Afterwards, the support degree of each piece of evidence is adjusted by taking advantage of the relative credibility preference of the evidence that can be utilized to generate an appropriate weight with respect to each piece of evidence. Finally, the modified weights of the evidence are adopted to adjust the bodies of the evidence in the advance of utilizing Dempster’s combination rule. A numerical example and a practical application in fault diagnosis are used as illustrations to demonstrate that the proposal is reasonable and efficient in the management of conflict and fault diagnosis.
Not Haitian: Exploring the Roots of Dominican Identity
Authors: Lamb Valerie , Dundes Lauren
Published: October 2017

A literature review supplemented by interview data from a small sample of Haitian and Dominican immigrants living in Miami, Florida elucidates the complexities of Afrolatino-Dominican identity. The data include Dominican recollections of childhood warnings about threats posed by Haitians allegedly willing to cast spells and act as agents of punishment for misbehaving Dominican children. These data are consistent with antihaitianismo and the tendency for Dominicans to deny their African heritage in favor of their European Hispanic roots. The paper also explains how Dominicans’ ethnic flexibility in navigating “racialized” social space in the US is relevant to future census measurement of race and ethnicity.
(Dis)Trust, Control, and Project Success: From a Chinese Project Owner’s Perspective
Authors: Jiang Weiping , Zhao Xianbo , Zuo Jian
Published: October 2017

This research aims to investigate the relationship between interorganizational trust and control and their effects on the project success from the perspective of project owners. Based on relevant literature and the actual situation in the Chinese construction industry, trust was classified as calculative trust and relational trust, and control was classified as outcome control, behavior control, and social control. Results show that project owners’ distrust of contractors is independent of project owners’ trust of contractors. Calculative trust has a positive influence on all kinds of control. Relational trust has negative impacts on outcome control and behavior control and positive impacts on social control. Of the three kinds of control, outcome and behavior control have negative impacts on social control. All constructs have positive impacts on project success. Project managers should be aware that distrust has a positive influence on project success through the mediation effects of control. Similarly, social control is the most influential type of control, influencing the controller to internalize norms to complete project tasks.
Environmental Tax Policy in Romania in the Context of the EU: Double Dividend Theory
Authors: Radulescu Magdalena , Sinisi Crenguta , Popescu Constanta , Iacob Silvia , Popescu Luigi
Published: October 2017

In the last decade, environment protection gained much more significance in designing the economic policies in the European Union (EU) countries. There are many economic and policy differences between the European countries, despite of the harmonization process inside the EU area. The path of implementation of the environmental tax reforms in the EU countries differs greatly from one country to another and the effects of such taxation in the economic and environmental areas are manifold. The authors of this paper have agreed to undertake the task of testing the double dividend hypothesis of the environmental taxation in Romania (an energy-intensive country) versus the EU area as a whole, using Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) techniques and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) estimations. Our findings show that this hypothesis is validated neither in Romania (in the economic growth area) nor in the EU area as a whole (in the unemployment area). Therefore, Romania cannot increase the level of the environmental tax for supporting economic growth, but it can grant environmental subsidies for decreasing the emissions and supporting the economic growth. This could be achieved by expanding the tax labor base and by collecting higher budgetary revenues to sustain such environmental subsidies. As far as the EU area is concerned, it is a necessary measure to continue the descending trend for the labor taxation to achieve the goal of improving the employment rate.
Probabilistic Price Forecasting for Day-Ahead and Intraday Markets: Beyond the Statistical Model
Authors: Andrade José , Filipe Jorge , Reis Marisa , Bessa Ricardo
Published: October 2017

Forecasting the hourly spot price of day-ahead and intraday markets is particularly challenging in electric power systems characterized by high installed capacity of renewable energy technologies. In particular, periods with low and high price levels are difficult to predict due to a limited number of representative cases in the historical dataset, which leads to forecast bias problems and wide forecast intervals. Moreover, these markets also require the inclusion of multiple explanatory variables, which increases the complexity of the model without guaranteeing a forecasting skill improvement. This paper explores information from daily futures contract trading and forecast of the daily average spot price to correct point and probabilistic forecasting bias. It also shows that an adequate choice of explanatory variables and use of simple models like linear quantile regression can lead to highly accurate spot price point and probabilistic forecasts. In terms of point forecast, the mean absolute error was 3.03 €/MWh for day-ahead market and a maximum value of 2.53 €/MWh was obtained for intraday session 6. The probabilistic forecast results show sharp forecast intervals and deviations from perfect calibration below 7% for all market sessions.
Corporate Social Responsibility, Organizational Justice and Positive Employee Attitudes: In the Context of Korean Employment Relations
Authors: Jung Heung-Jun , Ali Mohammad
Published: October 2017

In recent years, there has been a noticeable increase in scholarly interest in corporate social responsibility and its impact on employee attitudes. We intend to add to this literature by introducing unique explanatory and contextual variables. The study explains the impact of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on employee attitudes through justice within the context of cooperative employee relations. We argue that the concept of justice, which is implied in both socially responsible organizational policies and cooperative employee-employer relations, may be an important addition as a mediating variable. In essence, the study explores the mediating effects of the two primary types of justice, i.e., distributive and procedural, on the relationship between perceived corporate social responsibility, and job satisfaction, and affective commitment. Additionally, we introduce ethics-based psychological foundations, i.e., heuristic and deontic fairness theories to explain the studied relationship. The study also examines the moderated mediation effects of the cooperative industrial relations climate on perceived corporate social responsibility and justice perceptions. Our analysis supports the mediating role of both distributive and procedural justice perceptions. However, a moderated mediation role of the industrial relations climate was only found in the relationship between perceived corporate social responsibility, procedural justice, and employee attitudes. Implications of the study are discussed.
Removal of Cr(VI) and Toxic Ions from Aqueous Solutions and Tannery Wastewater Using Polymer-Clay Composites
Authors: Sallam Abd , Al-Zahrani Mateb , Al-Wabel Mohammad , Al-Farraj Abdullah , Usman Adel
Published: October 2017

Polymer-clay composites were prepared by natural zeolite (clinoptilolite) or naturally local clay deposits in an N,N-methylene-bis-acrylamide as cross-linked. The resultant composites were used for the removal of Cr(VI) from an aqueous solution. Additionally, their effects on soluble ions of tannery wastewater were investigated. The produced composites were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results showed that Cr(VI) removal is dependent upon initial concentrations and pH. The adsorption quantity of Cr(VI) onto the polymerized clay deposit followed by polymerized zeolite exhibited higher values than their original samples. The polymer-clay composite of clay deposit showed the highest removal of 76.3–100% overall initial concentrations of 10–50 mg L−1 and at initial pH of 2. Kinetics of Cr(VI) removal by various sorbents was predicted using a pseudo–second order model. Our findings showed that the levels of salinity and various soluble ions (Cr2+, Na+, Cl− and SO42−) in tannery wastewater are very high, and their levels were reduced after treatment, especially by polymerized sorbents. It could be concluded that the polymer-clay composites may be employed as a highly efficient sorbent for the removal of Cr(VI) and toxic ions from the wastewater.
Promoting Scientific Transparency to Facilitate the Safe and Open International Exchange of Biological Materials and Electronic Data
Authors: Yeh Kenneth , Monagin Corina , Fletcher Jacqueline
Published: October 2017

Scientific communication, collaboration and progress are enhanced through the exchange of data, materials and ideas. Recent advances in technology, commercial proprietary discovery and current local and global events (e.g., emerging human, animal and plant disease outbreaks) have increased the demand, and shortened optimal timelines for material and data exchange, both domestically and internationally. Specific circumstances in each case, such as the type of material being transferred (i.e., select agent, disease-causing agent and assessed biosafety risk level) and current events, dictate the level of agreements and requirements. Recent lessons learned from emerging disease issues and emergencies have demonstrated that human engagement and increased science diplomacy are needed to reinforce and sustain biosafety and biosecurity practices and processes, for better scientific transparency. A reasonable and accepted framework of guidance for open sharing of data and materials is needed that can be applied on multiple cooperative levels, including global and national. Although numerous agreement variations already exist for the exchange of materials and data, regulations to guide the development of both the language and implementation of such agreements are limited. Without such regulations, scientific exchange is often restricted, limiting opportunities for international capacity building, collaboration and cooperation. In this article, we present and discuss several international case histories that illustrate the complex nature of scientific exchange. Recommendations are made for a dual bottom-up and top-down approach that includes all stakeholders from beginning negotiation stages to emphasize trust and cooperation. The broader aim of this approach is to increase international scientific transparency and trust in a safe and open manner, supporting increased global one health security.
Neutralization of Human Cytomegalovirus Entry into Fibroblasts and Epithelial Cells
Authors: Wussow Felix , Chiuppesi Flavia , Contreras Heidi , Diamond Don
Published: October 2017

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a leading cause of permanent birth defects, highlighting the need to develop an HCMV vaccine candidate. However, HCMV vaccine development is complicated by the varying capacity of neutralizing antibodies (NAb) to interfere in vitro with the HCMV entry routes mediating infection of fibroblast (FB) and epithelial cells (EC). While HCMV infection of FB and EC requires glycoprotein complexes composed of gB and gH/gL/gO, EC infection depends additionally on the envelope pentamer complex (PC) composed of gH, gL, UL128, UL130 and UL131A. Unlike NAb to gB or gH epitopes that can interfere with both FB and EC infection, NAb targeting predominantly conformational epitopes of the UL128/130/131A subunits are unable to prevent FB entry, though they are highly potent in blocking EC infection. Despite the selective requirement of the PC for EC entry, the PC is exceptionally immunogenic as vaccine antigen to stimulate both EC- and FB-specific NAb responses due to its capacity to elicit NAb that target epitopes of the UL128/130/131A subunits and gH. These findings suggest that the PC could be sufficient in a subunit vaccine formulation to induce robust FB- and EC-specific NAb responses. In this short review, we discuss NAb responses induced through natural infection and vaccination that interfere in vitro with HCMV infection of FB and EC.
Performance of Denitrifying Phosphate Removal via Nitrite from Slaughterhouse Wastewater Treatment at Low Temperature
Authors: Pan Min , Huang Xiaoming , Wu Guangxue , Hu Yuansheng , Yang Yan , Zhan Xinmin
Published: October 2017

This study aims to investigate the effects of the organic loading rate (OLR) and the aeration rate on denitrifying phosphate removal (DPR) from slaughterhouse wastewater treated at a temperature of 11 °C. Three laboratory-scale intermittently aerated sequencing batch reactors (IASBRs) were set up and three OLRs and five aeration rates were employed in the study. The results indicated that efficient removals of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from DPR were achieved. Furthermore, the intermittent aeration pattern benefitted both the phosphorus-accumulating organisms (PAOs) and the denitrifying phosphorus-accumulating organisms (DPAOs) that accumulated at 11 °C. The ratio of P uptake in the aeration periods/P release in the non-aeration periods was in the range of 0.94–1.10 in the three stages. The relationship between the specific poly-β-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) degradation rate (z), the specific P removal rate (x), and the specific total oxidized nitrogen(TON) reduction rate (y) can be fitted approximately as a plane ( z = 1.3626 x + 0.2882 y − 0.6722 , R2 = 0.83).
Study on Storm-Water Management of Grassed Swales and Permeable Pavement Based on SWMM
Authors: Xie Jianguang , Wu Chenghao , Li Hua , Chen Gengtian
Published: October 2017

Grassed swales and permeable pavement that have greater permeable underlying surface relative to hard-pressing surface can cooperate with the city pipe network on participating in urban storm flood regulation. This paper took Nanshan village in Jiangsu Province as an example, the storm-water management model (SWMM) was used to conceptualize the study area reasonably, and the low-impact development (LID) model and the traditional development model were established in the region. Based on the storm-intensity equation, the simulation scene employed the Chicago hydrograph model to synthesize different rainfall scenes with different rainfall repetition periods, and then contrasted the storm-flood-management effect of the two models under the condition of using LID facilities. The results showed that when the rainfall repetition period ranged from 0.33a to 10a (a refers to the rainfall repetition period), the reduction rate of total runoff in the research area that adopted LID ranged from 100% to 27.5%, while the reduction rate of peak flow ranged from 100% to 15.9%, and when the values of unit area were the same, the combined system (permeable pavement + grassed swales) worked more efficiently than the sum of the individuals in the reduction of total runoff and peak flow throughout. This research can provide technical support and theoretical basis for urban LID design.
Convertible Operation Techniques for Pump Stations Sharing Centralized Reservoirs for Improving Resilience in Urban Drainage Systems
Authors: Lee Eui , Kim Joong
Published: October 2017

Pump stations prevent backwater effects from urban streams and safely drain rainwater in urban areas. Urbanization has increased the required capacity of centralized reservoirs and drainage pumps; yet, their respective designs are based on the runoff of the target watershed at the time of design. In Korea, additional pump stations are constructed to supplement the insufficient capacity of centralized reservoirs and drainage pumps. Two pump stations in the same drainage area share centralized reservoirs, and there are gates between them. Operation of the gates and drainage pumps is based on the water level in the connected centralized reservoirs. The convertible operation is based on changes in flow between two pump stations with different effluent streams in shared centralized reservoirs. Efficient distribution of inflow to both pump stations provides additional storage capacity in centralized reservoirs and rapid drainage. For a rainfall event in 2010, flooding volumes for current and convertible operations were 58,750 and 7507 m3, respectively. For an event in 2011, the corresponding figures were 3697 and 471 m3. This shows that resilience increased by 0.10829 and 0.00756, respectively, for the two events. Accordingly, a new technique to operate multiple pump stations for reducing urban inundation is proposed.
On the Calculation of the Fe K-alpha Line Emissivity of Black Hole Accretion Disks
Authors: Krawczynski H. , Beheshtipour B.
Published: October 2017

Observations of the fluorescent Fe Kα emission line from the inner accretion flows of stellar mass black holes in X-ray binaries and supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei have become an important tool to study the magnitude and inclination of the black hole spin, and the structure of the accretion flow close to the event horizon of the black hole. Modeling spectral, timing, and soon also X-ray polarimetric observations of the Fe Kα emission requires the calculation of the specific intensity in the rest frame of the emitting plasma. We revisit the derivation of the equation used for calculating the illumination of the accretion disk by the corona. We present an alternative derivation leading to a simpler equation, and discuss the relation to previously published results.
A streamlined collecting and preparation protocol for DNA barcoding of Lepidoptera as part of large-scale rapid biodiversity assessment projects, exemplified by the Indonesian Biodiversity Discovery and Information System (IndoBioSys)
Authors: Schmidt Olga , Hausmann Axel , Cancian de Araujo Bruno , Sutrisno Hari , Peggie Djunijanti , Schmidt Stefan
Published: October 2017

Here we present a general collecting and preparation protocol for DNA barcoding of Lepidoptera as part of large-scale rapid biodiversity assessment projects, and a comparison with alternative preserving and vouchering methods. About 98% of the sequenced specimens processed using the present collecting and preparation protocol yielded sequences with more than 500 base pairs. The study is based on the first outcomes of the Indonesian Biodiversity Discovery and Information System (IndoBioSys). IndoBioSys is a German-Indonesian research project that is conducted by the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin and the Zoologische Staatssammlung München, in close cooperation with the Research Center for Biology – Indonesian Institute of Sciences (RCB-LIPI, Bogor).
À la recherche du climat idéal
Authors: Tabeaud Martine
Published: October 2017

Résumé La quête d’un paradis climatique et donc d’un climat idéal est une permanence des sociétés humaines. Le développement des sciences et des techniques a déplacé et transformé les rêves des hommes. L’aspiration à une vie meilleure sous des cieux cléments se mêle au refus de l’imprévu, à la propension au catastrophisme et au besoin de cohérence face à un réel complexe.
Faut-il croire aux dieux de la pluie ?
Authors: Granger Christophe
Published: October 2017

Résumé Durant des siècles en Occident, et plus spécialement ici en France, les hommes et les femmes ont eu coutume de prier, de processionner ou d’en appeler à Dieu pour faire venir la pluie ou le beau temps. Puis, à la fin du xix e  siècle, ces pratiques, si elles n’ont pas disparu, ont cessé d’apparaître légitimes. Pour expliquer cette religiosité météorologique, on a pour habitude de considérer qu’elle est l’expression d’une croyance ou d’une superstition que l’essor d’un rapport rationalisé aux choses du ciel serait venu dissiper. Cet article voudrait montrer que ces pratiques rituelles d’intercession ou de conjuration, parce qu’elles étaient des gestes socialement institués, ne réclamaient justement pas de ceux qui s’y livraient qu’ils y croient, et que leur disparition tient par conséquent à une métamorphose historique qui a transformé le rapport institué au temps qu’il fait en une affaire de sensibilité personnelle.
La météorologie populaire, Metz et le Pays messin ( xiv e - xvi e siècle)
Authors: Litzenburger Laurent
Published: October 2017

Résumé Les sources narratives qui se multiplient dans les deux derniers siècles du Moyen Âge et au début des Temps modernes permettent de saisir, à travers l’exemple de la cité de Metz et de son plat pays, ce qui échappait jusqu’alors à l’analyse : la météorologie populaire, c’est‑à-dire les connaissances (non livresques) et les croyances de la majeure partie de la société sur les phénomènes atmosphériques.
Souffler le froid et le chaud
Authors: Lysaniuk Benjamin
Published: October 2017

Résumé Si de nombreux travaux insistent sur la saisonnalité de maladies infectieuses liée à des paramètres climatiques, il est important de garder à l’esprit que l’exposition à la chaleur ou au froid a des impacts directs sur la santé des populations se traduisant par des excès de mortalité. Cet article propose de revenir sur les conditions synoptiques génératrices de paroxysmes thermiques en Europe de l’Ouest, de mettre en lumière les principaux événements recensés au cours des cinquante dernières années, de s’interroger sur les réponses physiologiques à une exposition au chaud ou au froid, et sur l’importance de la vulnérabilité sociale face à ce risque.
Supporter, Activist, Rebel, Terrorist
Authors: Gurpinar Bulut
Published: October 2017

Children have always been a part of the war for millennia but child soldiering is often portrayed as something rather new, as a side product of the Post-Cold War in most of the fragile states in the world. Underdevelopment is a feature of the fragile state and especially political violence is a common figure in such states. This paper argues that, children's role changes in fragile states, and further focuses on children in Syrian war and their changing role in the society. While the conflict was turning into a war the role of the children both in the society and in the conflict of which increasing tension was turning it into a war. And when the country, one of the fragile states in the world, collapsed, the government lost control and the children took the sides as terrorists. Given the brief information about the changing roles of Syrian children in this dynamically violent environment, this article will examine the transformation of the role of the children in the fragile state Syria.
An Overview of Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Authors: Casarin Annalisa , Tangkiatkumjai Mayuree , Walker Dawn-Marie
Published: October 2017

A treatment that is not recognised as conventional medicine is frequently referred to as part of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) methods. This Chapter will provide an overview of the several CAM definitions currently proposed and the types of CAM methods. The prevalence of CAM use and the characteristics and attitudes of CAM users will be also explored with a focus on patients with kidney diseases. The reasons for CAM use and the literature on the placebo effects as a debated hypothesis of CAM mechanism of action is presented.
CAM Recommended by Standard Guidelines for Chronic Illnesses
Authors: Casarin Annalisa
Published: October 2017

This chapter will focus on guidelines for clinical practice that mention a range of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) techniques. After exploring the definition and grading of clinical practice guidelines as a decision-making tool, the CAM methods included in the review will be described. A definition of chronic diseases will be provided and an overview of the current clinical practice guidelines on a number of prevalent conditions will be presented. Guidelines released by several international regulatory organisations will be compared in order to detect which CAM techniques have been or not been recommended for chronic illnesses in different countries. The challenges in implementing and appraising guidelines will be finally discussed.
Consumers Consciousness Towards Environmental Aesthetics in Using Nutricosmetics Products
Authors: Shahrin Ruzanna , Jamil Rossilah Binti
Published: October 2017

The present paper attempts to shed some light on consumers' consciousness on environmental aesthetics in using nutricosmetics products. More particularly, this paper seeks to answer the following questions: (1) How does green marketing contribute to consumer consciousness towards environmental aesthetics? (2) How do nutricosmetic products present its aesthetic values towards its consumers? (3) How do consumers perceive environmental aesthetics in purchasing nutricosmetic products? (4) How are environmental aesthetics interconnected with the environment? In answering these research questions, relevant literature is reviewed, analysed, compared and synthesized as a way to gather the required information. The present paper contributes to the understanding of environmental aesthetics in the context of nutricosmetics industry.
Metaheuristic Approaches for Extrusion Manufacturing Process
Authors: Ong Pauline , Chin Desmond Daniel Vui Sheng , Ho Choon Sin , Ng Chuan Huat
Published: October 2017

Optimization, basically, is a method used to find solutions for a particular problem without neglecting the existing boundaries or limitations. Flower Pollination Algorithm (FPA) is one of the recently developed nature inspired algorithms, based on the intriguing process of flower pollination in the world of nature. The main aim of this study is to utilize FPA in optimizing cold forward extrusion process in order to obtain optimal parameters to produce workpiece with the minimum force load. It is very important to find the most optimal parameters for an extrusion process in order to prevent waste from happening due to trial and error method in determining the optimal parameters and thus, FPA is used to replace the traditional trial and error method to optimize the cold forward extrusion process. The optimization performance of the FPA is then compared with the particle swarm optimization (PSO), in which the FPA shows comparable performance in this regard.
An Integrated Methodology for Order Release and Scheduling in Hybrid Manufacturing Systems
Authors: Yılmaz Ömer Faruk , Durmuşoğlu Mehmet Bülent
Published: October 2017

There are three main problems that could impact the performance of a Hybrid Manufacturing System (HMS): (1) order release (OR), (2) batch scheduling and (3) worker assignment. This paper deals with these three main problems hierarchically for an HMS. Three different mathematical models are developed to describe the problems more clearly. A novel methodology is proposed to adopt a holistic approach to these problems and find an effective solution. Implementation of the proposed methodology permits integrating batch scheduling and worker timetabling. Feasible solutions in the best-known Pareto front are evaluated as alternative solutions. The goal is to select a preferred solution that satisfies worker constraints, creates effective worker teams in cells, minimizes the number of utility workers, and the average flow time. The study also presents several improvements, which are made following the application of the proposed methodology to a real company that produces expansion joints.
Evolutionary Algorithms for Multi-Objective Scheduling in a Hybrid Manufacturing System
Authors: Yılmaz Ömer Faruk , Durmuşoğlu Mehmet Bülent
Published: October 2017

Problems encountered in real manufacturing environments are complex to solve optimally, and they are expected to fulfill multiple objectives. Such problems are called multi-objective optimization problems(MOPs) involving conflicting objectives. The use of multi-objective evolutionary algorithms (MOEAs) to find solutions for these problems has increased over the last decade. It has been shown that MOEAs are well-suited to search solutions for MOPs having multiple objectives. In this chapter, in addition to comprehensive information, two different MOEAs are implemented to solve a MOP for comparison purposes. One of these algorithms is the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II), the effectiveness of which has already been demonstrated in the literature for solving complex MOPs. The other algorithm is fast Pareto genetic algorithm (FastPGA), which has population regulation operator to adapt the population size. These two algorithms are used to solve a scheduling problem in a Hybrid Manufacturing System (HMS). Computational results indicate that FastPGA outperforms NSGA-II.
Cognition and the First Year Experience
Authors: Korstange Ryan , Krahenbuhl Kevin S.
Published: October 2017

This chapter extrapolates information processing theory and advances in research in memory formation and effective learning practices on to the first-year student. The authors will lay a context for what FYE is, and why it matters, survey advances in memory research, and explore the study practices that students actually use. Finally, the authors posit a structure for organizing FYE courses around the best practices in cognitive and educational psychology so as to change student study behavior and help them increase their academic performance.
Communication as a Retention Factor in Online Course Delivery
Authors: Estes Judi Simmons
Published: October 2017

Online courses have become an integrated aspect of course delivery for institutions of higher education. However, the attrition that occurs in online courses is substantially higher than in face-to-face courses. This chapter considers the influence of student communication factors in both course and degree program retention. An argument is presented related to the role of being intentional in planning and implementing communication strategies within courses and degree programs as a conduit for positively influencing completion. A second argument is that while all college/university personnel have a role in student attention, the role of faculty is significant and requires on-going professional development.
Mutual Understanding in the Age of Vulnerable Truth
Authors: Maulana Ikbal
Published: October 2017

Peaceful relations among people require mutual understanding among them, which in turn necessitates information exchange. Current information and communication technologies (ICT) allow people to exchange information, offer information about themselves, and search information about others with ease, therefore, technically, misunderstanding among people can be easily overcome. However, having access to abundance of information does not necessarily make people knowledgeable and wise. It is because information is not always intended to inform or enlighten others, but also mislead and deceive them. Despite the many problems arising from the utilization of ICT, this chapter suggests that technological solutions should be developed to identify fake information and minimize its impacts, namely, by making users more transparent, exposing them to different world views, and assisting them in identifying false information. It also argues that education is essential to promote global mutual understanding.
Mediating Death
Authors: Korstanje Maximiliano Emanuel
Published: October 2017

Originally, digital technologies were contemplated by public opinion as instruments which serve to make from this life a safer place. While over recent decades, the digital revolution was oriented to discuss to what extent humans being are credible and agents who can reach objectivity, no less true was that some mass-media paved the pathways for the rise of a new atmosphere of terror, which triggered after 9/11. Doubtless, terrorism, ISIS and 9/11 were the main allegories for the society of consumers. This opens the doors for a paradoxical situation, simply because viewers are enmeshed in a strange fascination for news disseminating crimes, terrorist attacks, calamities and disasters. In earlier research, we have dubbed to this new stage of capitalism, as Thana-Capitalism. In this respect, once conceived as a sign of weakness, consuming others' death implies an aura of superiority for those who have been not touched by death. In the rise of Thana Capitalism, fear and death seem to be two touchstones that mediate between citizens and their institutions.
Social Media and Democracy
Authors: Abdosamadi Ali
Published: October 2017

Information Technology is an unseparated part of human life. In other words, now, human kind could not continue his life without any technology access. Digital media is well known as a great technology nowadays. Among all facilities which are provided by digital technology, internet could be recognized as the best way through which human ideas could be shared reciprocally. Social networks as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Telegram, LinkedIn and several other networks are providing best ways through which ideas could be transmitted. Across this transmission, a phenomenon is growing up and this one could be named as “social media democracy”. Social media could be a great exercise to reach a democratic society and tolerate other ideas. By laminating sections of this article, a short history of internet and more particularly social networks will be dedicated, also the role of this networks on democracy and toleration of other ideas will be presented.
Assistive Technology for the General Education Classroom
Authors: Vigilante Jr. Richard J. , Hoile MaryPaul B.
Published: October 2017

It is the responsibility of schools and educators to utilize appropriate assistive technology to meet the educational needs of students with disabilities within the least restrictive environment. The use of assistive technology enables educators to adapt content and activities within the curriculum to meet the specific needs of students, and it promotes learning, self-confidence, independence, and a higher quality of life for students with special needs. This chapter explores how educators can utilize assistive technology in the general education classroom setting to support students with disabilities, specifically those with sensory, motor, and cognitive limitations. Diverse types of assistive technology devices that students with disabilities can use to overcome barriers to written language, reading, listening, memory, and mathematics are discussed.
Designing for Immediacy and Culture
Authors: Hampton Michele M.
Published: October 2017

Immediacy represents the psychological distance experienced by individuals who are remotely located. Interaction between students, instructors, and content are tied to increased immediacy. Verbal and nonverbal communication behaviors underpin immediacy and creating a sense of community among online course participants. Culture is a critical component that determines how students communicate verbally and nonverbally. Recognizing student differences and similarities can be a powerful community builder. Designing online courses that promote cultural openness and understanding is an essential piece of the learning landscape. Rather than viewing culture as something to avoid, culture should be viewed as an immediacy, community, and learning enabler.
Learning to Become an Online Learner in a Chinese University
Authors: Stein David S. , Glazer Hilda R. , Glassman Michael , Li Xing
Published: October 2017

The authors describe how transformational pedagogy can be applied to teaching in a cross-cultural classroom to promote deep learning. Technology tools, instructional teams, time for instruction, and language are shown to be key elements in considering the depth of change possible when introducing ideas to disrupt the idea of the classroom as well as the location of the classroom. Recommendations for teaching in a cross-cultural environment include developing trust in the translator, becoming familiar with the tools used in the host country, considering how examples and terms may be misunderstood, and becoming comfortable with emergent instructional designs such as transformative pedagogy.