bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Influence of Coping Strategies on College Students’ Grade Point Averages
Authors: Zepp Phillip , Potter Derek , Haselwood Camila , Britt‐Lutter Sonya
Published: September 2018

Financial stress has been identified as a pervasive problem among college students, and this stress could influence the students’ grade point averages (GPAs). The goal of this study was to identify how two methods of coping relate to GPAs when controlling for financial stress. The methods of coping were problem‐focused or emotion‐focused strategies. The theoretical framework for the study was the cognitive appraisal theory. Using data on students from a large, Midwestern public university, the results of regression showed that problem‐focused coping strategies were a positive influence on respondent GPA, while emotion‐focused coping strategies were not significantly related to GPA. Suggestions to relieve students’ financial stress include finding work on campus, obtaining counseling on personal finance, or using problem‐focused coping strategies.
FEAT enhances INSL3 expression in testicular Leydig cells
Authors: Li Yan , Kobayashi Kyosuke , Murayama Kosho , Kawahara Kohichi , Shima Yuichi , Suzuki Akira , Tani Kenzaburo , Takahashi Atsushi
Published: September 2018

FEAT, the protein encoded by methyltransferase‐like 13 (METTL13), is aberrantly upregulated in most human cancers and potently drives tumorigenesis in vivo; however, its role in normal tissues remains elusive. Immunoblotting has displayed weak FEAT expression in normal human tissues, including the testis. Here, we found that FEAT is expressed in fetal and adult Leydig cells in the testis. FEAT knockdown using siRNA increased primary cilia formation in MA‐10 Leydig tumor cells, accompanied by enhanced 5′ adenosine monophosphate‐activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation. Immunofluorescence analyses of FEAT‐silenced MA‐10 cells showed diminished insulin‐like factor 3 (INSL3) expression. A male Mettl13+/− mouse developed bilateral intraabdominal cryptorchidism, suggesting defective INSL3 production by fetal Leydig cells. Leydig cells from the mouse showed markedly decreased INSL3 protein by immunohistochemistry. Together, these results suggest that FEAT facilitates the INSL3 production in testicular Leydig cells that is essential for transabdominal testis migration.
Empowerment and pathologization: A case study in Norwegian mental health and substance abuse services
Authors: Larsen Tone , Sagvaag Hildegunn
Published: September 2018

Context

Service user involvement in service development and research is an international goal. However, research illuminating the patient stakeholder role is limited.

Objective

The aim was to explore what may hinder patients’ voices being heard when collaborating with staff and leaders to improve services.

Design

This action research project targeted Norwegian public mental health and substance abuse services, utilizing co‐operative inquiry principles. Data were collected and member‐checked collaboratively by the researcher and coresearchers.

Results

Results centre on patient involvement in services, service development and research. The patient voice was regarded as important but not necessarily decisive, as patients’ change needs could be perceived as pathology‐based. Patients provided feedback about fellow patients and medication—opioid maintenance treatment, in particular. Barriers to patient involvement included patients not being permitted to influence other patients’ individual treatment and a leader's difficulty accepting patients’ medication advice. Additionally, an apparent hierarchy among the professionals may have disempowered some staff members.

Discussion

Results point to an organizational diagnostic culture, where stigmatizing and risk pathologization may limit patient input. Empowerment appeared to be perceived as something allowed by the staff and leaders, at their discretion. Although all parties may have agreed that patient involvement was valuable, acting as a united group about opioid maintenance treatment appeared difficult.

Conclusion

Barriers to patient involvement may hinder the availability and efficacy of patients’ perspectives in service development. Awareness about reciprocal empowerment might contribute to service users’ voices being heard, enabling a united voice from service users and providers regarding service development.
2. BOOTSTRAPPING, SELF‐BINDING, AND OTHER METAPHORS OF ANTIFOUNDATIONALISM
Authors: BRECKMAN WARREN
Published: September 2018

In Images of History, Richard Eldridge deploys the metaphor of “bootstrapping” to describe the possibility of a mutually constitutive interaction of historical understanding and reflection on political ideals outside of and beyond the notion of a completed theory or teleological development. Although “bootstrapping” does considerable work in the book, it remains relatively unthematized in itself. This article explores the concept of bootstrapping in both Eldridge's book and in a number of disciplines. In doing so, it aims to make three critical observations. First, while Eldridge rightly seeks to energize our sense of historical openness, the argument is usefully enriched by the adjacent field of political theory, where “boot‐strapping” is often paired with “self‐binding” to describe how self‐creating processes might be arrested and stabilized. Second, Eldridge's use focuses on individual dispositions, but the concept of “bootstrapping” points to the need to pursue understanding of collective processes of self‐institution. Third, when extended to the natural world, “bootstrapping” calls for scrutiny of the relationship between human self‐creation and nature as a site of emergence and self‐organizing phenomena.
FROM BREXIT TO HEGEL
Authors: Chytry Josef
Published: September 2018

British idealism has led an ambiguous existence in any overview of British historical and political thought in the twentieth century. Seen partly as an alien Continental intrusion into presumably typical British priorities of empiricism, positivism, and utilitarianism, it was badly damaged by its putative associations with the military enemy of two world wars. Admir Skodo's meticulous study of British “idealist revisionists” during the postwar period 1945–1980 repairs this damage by showing the extended influence of that idealism as funneled through the “new idealism” of the interwar period represented mainly by the philosophers R. G. Collingwood and Michael Oakeshott. Skodo demonstrates how these idealist revisionists deeply influenced postwar British historiography by underscoring qualities of humanism, pluralism, and variety not characteristically associated with idealism, reinterpreted a range of important topics in British history from the Tudors through the English civil wars to the Victorian period, and came up with political theorizing that celebrated the postwar welfare state while indicating its vulnerabilities to an increasingly technologized society. Just as Skodo's protagonists negotiated the 1970s transition in Britain's turn to Europe, so his account proves stimulating for contemporary concerns regarding a post‐Brexit Britain. The final part of the essay therefore looks at some suggested models, such as the “Anglosphere” or a “Singapore in the Atlantic” for Britain, before concluding with reflections on the importance according to a Hegelian reading of the modern “rational state” of the continued influence of Oxbridge intellectuals on the evolution of British directions and goals since the Victorian age.
INDIA, THE GREAT DIVERGENCE, AND THE WRECKAGE OF MODERNITY
Authors: Grimmer‐Solem Erik
Published: September 2018

Research over the last two decades on the economic divergence of Europe and China before the nineteenth century has stimulated much recent scholarship investigating similar diverging paths between Europe and India. Following the lead of Kenneth Pomeranz, this work focuses on the demographic, ecological, and geographical factors in this divergence and argues for the direct comparability of the most economically advanced parts of Europe with such places as Gujarat and Mysore in Mughal India, which showed considerable proto‐industrial development before their relative economic decline and deindustrialization in the nineteenth century. The book under review approaches this topic by deploying a modified Marxian‐Weberian framework and draws on extensive research in Indian and British archives to argue that both Gujarat and Mysore might have embarked on paths of sustained economic growth through natural commercial expansion and deliberate mercantilist statecraft hindered by the East India Company. Despite resurging interest in Marx, much recent work in global economic history highlights the limitations of modernization theories drawn from a long tradition of Western social science indebted to the theories of Marx and Weber.
Fabrication of Ti3SiC2‐Ti4SiC3‐SiC ceramic composites through carbosilicothermic reduction of TiO2
Authors: Istomin Pavel , Istomina Elena , Nadutkin Aleksandr , Grass Vladislav , Kaplan Mikhail
Published: September 2018

Dense Ti3SiC2‐SiC, Ti4SiC3‐SiC, and Ti3SiC2‐Ti4SiC3‐SiC ceramic composites were fabricated through carbosilicothermic reduction of TiO2 under vacuum, followed by hot pressing of the as‐synthesized products under 25 MPa at 1600°C. In the reduction step, SiC either alone or in combination with elemental Si was used as a reductant. A one‐third excess of SiC was added in the reaction mixtures in order to ensure the presence of approximately 30 vol.% SiC in the products of synthesis. During the hot pressing step, the samples that contained Ti3SiC2 showed better densification compared to those containing Ti4SiC3. The obtained composites exhibited the strength properties typical of coarse‐grained MAX‐phase ceramics. The flexural strength values of 424 and 321 MPa were achieved in Ti3SiC2‐SiC, and Ti3SiC2‐Ti4SiC3‐SiC composites, respectively. The fracture toughness values were 5.7 MPa·m1/2.
Shape But Not Color Facilitates Two‐Year‐Olds’ Search Performance in a Spatial Rotation Task
Authors: Ebersbach Mirjam , Nawroth Christian
Published: September 2018

Children younger than 3 years of age often fail to track hidden objects that are rotated together with identical hiding containers, which might be due to relatively complex paradigms. We examined whether 2‐year‐olds (N = 28) are already able to track spatial rotations (i.e., by 90° and 180°) if the task is facilitated by increasing the visual discriminability of the hiding containers by means of different shapes and different colors. Children performed above chance level in all conditions except for the condition in which containers had the same color and shape and were rotated by 180°. Moreover, children found the hidden object more often when the containers had different—as compared to identical—shapes, whereas performance was similar when the containers had the same or different colors. Furthermore, their performance was better after 90° rotations than after 180° rotations and children in all conditions showed an inhibition bias. Our findings suggest that 2‐year‐olds are already able to track spatial rotations if the task is kept simple and focuses solely on the ability of interest. In addition, young children use shape—rather than color—as a salient dimension in spatial rotation tasks.
The economics of stock touting during Internet‐based pump and dump campaigns
Authors: Siering Michael
Published: September 2018

Information systems have facilitated the increase in relevance of financial markets. Nevertheless, the rise of the Internet has eased information‐based financial market manipulations. In this study, we examine the phenomenon of stock touting during pump and dump campaigns, in which deceivers advertise stocks to profit from an increased price level. We observe that the positive prospects promised are not confirmed by corporate disclosures and financial news. Furthermore, manipulators select targeted financial instruments based on specific stock and company characteristics. Manipulators avoid signals of anomaly and prefer unknown stocks. We find that stock touting has a positive market impact but that it is followed by a large decline in stock price in the subsequent days, causing investors to lose substantial amounts of their investments. We consider the impact of information generation, information content, and information presentation on the corresponding market reaction. Interestingly, information generation influences the demand for the stock, but information content and information presentation drive the willingness to pay. Our results are highly relevant for Internet users, software vendors, and market surveillance authorities, as a deep understanding of such information‐based manipulations is necessary to develop appropriate countermeasures.
Isobavachalcone sensitizes cells to E2‐induced paclitaxel resistance by down‐regulating CD44 expression in ER+ breast cancer cells
Authors: Shi Junfeng , Chen Yi , Chen Wenxing , Tang Cuiju , Zhang Honghong , Chen Yuetong , Yang Xiuwei , Xu Zhi , Wei Jingsun , Chen Jinfei
Published: September 2018

Oestrogen receptor (ER) is expressed in approximately 60%‐70% of human breast cancer. Clinical trials and retrospective analyses have shown that ER‐positive (ER+) tumours are more tolerant to chemotherapeutic drug resistance than ER‐negative (ER−) tumours. In addition, isobavachalcone (IBC) is known as a kind of phytoestrogen with antitumour effect. However, the underlying mechanism of IBC in ER+ breast cancer needs to be elucidated further. Our in vitro experiments showed that IBC could attenuate 17β‐estradiol (E2)‐induced paclitaxel resistance and that E2 could stimulate CD44 expression in ER+ breast cancer cells but not in ER− cells. Meanwhile, E2 could promote ERα expression to render ER+ breast cancer cells resistant to paclitaxel. Furthermore, we established paclitaxel‐resistant breast cancer cell lines and determined the function of ERα in the enhancement of paclitaxel resistance via the regulation of CD44 transcription. IBC down‐regulated ERα and CD44 expression and thus inhibited tumour growth in paclitaxel‐resistant xenograft models. Overall, our data demonstrated for the first time that IBC could decrease CD44 expression level via the ERα pathway and make ER+ breast cancer cells sensitive to paclitaxel treatment.
Annual Research Review: Developmental computational psychiatry
Authors: Hauser Tobias U. , Will Geert‐Jan , Dubois Magda , Dolan Raymond J.
Published: September 2018

Most psychiatric disorders emerge during childhood and adolescence. This is also a period that coincides with the brain undergoing substantial growth and reorganisation. However, it remains unclear how a heightened vulnerability to psychiatric disorder relates to this brain maturation. Here, we propose ‘developmental computational psychiatry’ as a framework for linking brain maturation to cognitive development. We argue that through modelling some of the brain's fundamental cognitive computations, and relating them to brain development, we can bridge the gap between brain and cognitive development. This in turn can lead to a richer understanding of the ontogeny of psychiatric disorders. We illustrate this perspective with examples from reinforcement learning and dopamine function. Specifically, we show how computational modelling deepens an understanding of how cognitive processes, such as reward learning, effort learning, and social learning might go awry in psychiatric disorders. Finally, we sketch the promises and limitations of a developmental computational psychiatry.
Insertion Torque of Variable‐Thread Tapered Implants in the Posterior Maxilla: A Clinical Study
Authors: Abi‐Aad Habib L. , Daher Fadi I. , Baba Nadim Z. , Cordioli Giampiero , Majzoub Zeina A.K.
Published: September 2018

Purpose

Primary stability is a key factor for successful implant osseointegration, especially in poor bone quality and early/immediate loading. In the immediate loading protocol, insertion torque values (ITVs) have been suggested to be the most valid prognostic factor for osseointegration of maxillary implants. The objectives of this study were to: (1) evaluate ITVs achieved by a variable‐thread tapered implant in the posterior maxilla; and (2) assess the impact of bone quality, implant dimensions, bicortical anchorage, and implant location on ITVs.

Materials and Methods

Twenty‐six adult, systemically healthy patients received 173 variable‐thread tapered implants in maxillary premolar and molar healed edentulous sites with a minimum subsinus height of 8 mm. Implant sites were prepared using the bone‐quality adjusted drilling sequence according to manufacturer's recommendations. Bone quality was recorded subjectively during drilling based on Misch criteria (D1‐D4), and ITVs were measured with a manual torque wrench. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed at the 0.05 significance level.

Results

First and second molar sites accounted for 46.8% of all implants. D4 bone was encountered in 61.3% of the sites. Most of the implants were 4.3 mm in diameter (59.5%), and lengths of 11.5 and 13 mm were most commonly used (75.2%). Approximately half of the implants were associated with apical cortical anchorage (51.4%). The overall mean ITV was 44.5 ± 23.0 Ncm, with 65.5 ± 15.6 Ncm, 55.5 ± 19.6 Ncm, and 36.6 ± 21.7 Ncm for D2, D3, and D4 bone, respectively. Bone quality and implant location significantly affected ITVs, while implant dimensions and apical cortical anchorage did not.

Conclusions

ITVs of variable‐thread implants were significantly influenced by variations in bone quality and implant position in the posterior maxilla. Despite the influence of bone quality on primary stability, the mean ITVs attained with variable‐thread tapered implants in poor bone quality were within the recommended range for immediate loading.
Effect of cell size on growth rates of two Skeletonema species and their competitve interactions
Authors: Ando Yutaro , Katano Toshiya
Published: September 2018

We investigated shifts in growth rates and cell size reduction–restoration processes in two species of diatoms, Skeletonema japonicum and Skeletonema dohrnii. Growth rates greatly fluctuated from 1.0 to 2.1 per day, even under the same conditions. Rates increased from 1.1 to 2.1 per day with decreasing valve diameter; however, rates quickly decreased to 1.0 per day when cell size reached the threshold for initiating auxosporulation. We also conducted co‐culture experiments using different size combinations of the two species. The experiment was started using the same cell densities (75 cells · mL−1) of both species, and when batch cultures reached late exponential phase, the cultures were reinoculated twice into new medium. When large (valve diameter of 17 μm) S. japonicum cells and small (6 μm) S. dohrnii cells were co‐cultured, the S. dohrnii contributed 99% of the total cell density on day 16 (S. dohrnii: 263,900 cells · mL−1; S. japonicum: 2,000 cells · mL−1). In contrast, when small (9 μm) S. japonicum cells and large (15 μm) S. dohrnii cells were co‐cultured, small S. japonicum cells accounted for 97% of the total cell density after only 13 d (S. dohrnii: 1,900 cells · mL−1; S. japonicum: 62,500 cells · mL−1). This study demonstrated that diatom growth rates covary with cell size, and this phenomenon potentially determines the outcome of competition between species.
A note on the “unique” business cycle in the Keynesian theory
Authors: Murakami Hiroki
Published: September 2018

In this paper, we explore the existence and “uniqueness” of a limit cycle in the Keynesian theory. In a model with the simplest (linear) Keynesian consumption function and the logistic investment function based upon the profit principle, we establish the existence of a periodic orbit (irrespective of the speed of quantity adjustment) and, with the help of the theory on generalized Liénard systems, verify the uniqueness of it for the case in which the speed of quantity adjustment is large enough.
Allocation of nitrogen and phosphorus within and between needles, stems and roots of Picea seedlings
Authors: Wang Zhi‐Qiang , Huang Heng , Li Xiao‐Wei , Mao Kang‐Shan , Ran Jin‐Zhi , Deng Jian‐Ming
Published: September 2018

The allocation of nutrients links ecosystem supply services to the functional traits and development of plants. This is particularly true for nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), which are important limiting resources in natural systems and are related to many aspects of plant biology. We investigated the scaling relationships associated with the N and P contents within specific organ types (needles, stems and roots) and among the different organs of Picea seedlings from nine taxa grown under greenhouse conditions. Our results showed that N and P contents were highly correlated within and between plant organs. A common isometric scaling relationship (scaling exponent ≈ 1) between N and P was observed in needles, stems, and roots. Howver, the N and P contents had different scaling exponents in different plant organs. The scaling relationships of the N content across different organ types tended to be allometric (scaling exponent < 1) between stems and non‐stem organs, and isometric between needles and roots. For P contents, similar scaling relationships were found among the three organs. These results improve our understanding of nutrient allocation strategies within and between major plant organs.
Quantitative genetic changes in reproductive performance of giant freshwater prawn after 10 years of selection for increased growth rate
Authors: Vu Nguyen Thanh , Nguyen Nguyen Hong
Published: September 2018

Contents

Effect of long‐term selection for improved growth on reproductive performance of giant freshwater prawn (GFP) Macrobrachium rosenbergii has not been reported in the literature. The present study aimed to measure correlated responses in reproductive traits and to estimate genetic parameters for these characters in a GFP population selected for high growth over ten generations from 2007 to 2016. A total of 959 breeding females (offspring of 515 sires and 810 dams) had measurements for seven reproductive traits (weight before spawn WBS; weight after spawn WAS; Fecundity FEC or number of larvae per female at hatching; first age to reach post‐larvae PLAGE; zoea (e) weight ZOEAWT; larval survival during hatchery phase SURV1 and survival from PL to tagging SURV2. The restricted maximum likelihood (REML) and mixed model analysis were used to estimate genetic parameters and evaluate selection responses for the seven traits studied. Our REML analysis showed that heritability for these traits ranged from 0.04 to 0.42 (SE: 0.19–0.28). Female body weight either before or after spawning had strong positive phenotypic correlations with fecundity (0.52–0.98). By contrast, the phenotypic correlations of WBS/WAS with larval and fry survivals were not significant (−0.08–0.05). Genetic correlations among fecundity‐related traits studied were not different from zero due to their high standard errors. Correlated responses in reproductive traits were measured by comparing least squares means of the selection line and control group. Females of the selected line for high growth had significantly greater weight before or after spawning than that of the control group. There were, however, no statistical differences between the two lines in the other traits. It is concluded that selection for high growth did not have detrimental impact on reproductive performance of breeding females in the present population of GFP.
Fairness and the Puzzle of Disability
Authors: Bognar Greg
Published: September 2018

Consider two cases. In Case 1, you must decide whether you save the life of a disabled person or you save the life of a person with no disability. In Case 2, you must decide whether you save the life of a disabled person who would remain disabled, or you save the life of another disabled person who, in contrast, would also be cured as a result of your intervention. It seems that most people agree that you should give equal chances in Case 1: saving the life of the person with no disability would be unfair discrimination against the person with disability. Yet, in Case 2, it appears that many people believe that you are at least permitted to save straightaway the person who would have no disability after your intervention. There would be no unfair discrimination against the other person. I argue that these judgements present a puzzle for theories of resource allocation in normative ethics. The puzzle is straightforward for consequentialists: the two cases have the same outcomes, but the judgements are different. But the puzzle also presents a problem for nonconsequentialist views. After introducing the cases, I show this by reviewing a number of proposals for solving the puzzle. I argue that none of these proposals are successful. I then make my own proposal and conclude by spelling out its implications.
Radiographic distribution of ureteral stones in 78 cats
Authors: Nesser Valerie E. , Reetz Jennifer A. , Clarke Dana L. , Aronson Lillian R.
Published: September 2018

Objective

To document the distribution of ureteral stones in cats.

Study design

Retrospective case series.

Animals

Seventy‐eight cats.

Methods

Abdominal radiographs with ureteral stones were reviewed. The location of stones was categorized as proximal ureter (PU), midureter (MU), or ureterovesicular junction (UVJ). The number, size, and location of stones were recorded by using the kidneys and vertebral bodies as landmarks. Stone location in cats with 1 versus multiple stones was assessed. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the incidence of ureteral stone location.

Results

Among cats with a single stone (44%, 34/78), 44% (15/34) had a stone in the PU, 41% (14/34) had a stone in the MU, and 15% (5/34) had a stone at the UVJ. When multiple stones were present, 61% (27/44) of cats had at least 1 stone located in the PU, 70% (31/44) had at least 1 stone located in the MU, and 34% (15/44) had at least 1 stone located at the UVJ. The L4 vertebral body most commonly marked stone location in cats with 1 stone and the most distal stone in cats with multiple stones. Stones located at the UVJ site were more common in male (37%) than in female (12%) cats (P = 0.004). Larger stone size was associated with a more proximal location (P = 0.04).

Conclusion

Ureteral stones were more commonly located in the PU and the MU than in the UVJ. UVJ stones were more common in male than in female cats, and larger stones had a more proximal location.

Clinical significance

This study enhances our understanding of feline ureteral stone location and identifies a correlation between stone location and stone size.
La estela del ojo. Lectura de El espectro de René Magritte
Authors: Del Río Rodrigo
Published: September 2018

El artículo presenta una lectura de El espectro de René Magritte del escritor chileno Enrique Gómez Correa, creado a partir de una colaboración con el pintor belga. Quisiera defender la idea de que los proyectos de recepción vanguardista en Chile no apelan exclusivamente a la forma de una continua subversión de las tradiciones estéticas anteriores, sino que se constituyen como marcos pedagógicos de experimentación estética, tal como lo muestra la confluencia estética que este texto pone en escena a través de una construcción particular de la imagen surrealista por similitud en lugar de distancia.
Homenaje a Nicanor Parra (1968) de Jaime Barrios: cine, experimentación y política en el underground latino
Authors: Ramos Julio
Published: September 2018

Este trabajo es una aproximación al filme Homenaje a Nicanor Parra (1968) de Jaime Barrios y su relevancia en las discusiones actuales sobre cine, experimentación y política a fines de la década del sesenta. El trabajo destaca la relación entre el cine expandido de Barrios y la antipoesía de Nicanor Parra en el contexto más amplio de los movimientos contraculturales y de las discusiones que generó la proyección de la película en la Cineteca de la Universidad de Chile en 1968.
Intolerancia en tiempos de crisis: hacia una literatura transgresora en El sitio de los sitios de Juan Goytisolo
Authors: Useche Óscar Iván
Published: September 2018

Este artículo propone entender la novela de Goytisolo como una respuesta cultural a la crisis de los modelos de racionalidad occidental. Se estudian las dinámicas de descomposición social de la globalización y la aparición dentro de este contexto de figuras marginales que buscan recuperar su capacidad transgresora mediante la reconquista del cuerpo y la apropiación del espacio urbano. Al trasladar al plano textual el memoricidio y la limpieza étnica como expresiones negativas de la modernidad, Goytisolo problematiza el papel del lector, del autor y de la novela como elementos esenciales en la representación literaria de la realidad.
Reinas venezolanas del siglo XX. Populismo, abstracción y Estado
Authors: Lecuna Vicente
Published: September 2018

Desde la mitad del siglo XX hasta finales de los años noventa la vanguardia cohabitó con el Estado venezolano en una relación compleja que fundó el sistema político nacional sobre la base de la literatura populista y el arte abstracto. En este artículo reviso algunas de la políticas verbales y visuales que acompañaron el tránsito de las dictaduras a la democracia en Venezuela. Para ello discuto algunos hitos de la vanguardia literaria, artística y política, así como dos “elecciones de reinas” que funcionaron como pivotes de la lucha democrática.
Una forma de vida laboral en Santiago de Chile: Relatos de Mujeres Otavaleñas
Authors: Pérez Azúa Lorena Paola
Published: September 2018

Chile constituye un polo de atracción para inmigrantes trabajadores/as, provenientes principalmente de América Latina y el Caribe en un contexto de crisis mundializada. Bajo este escenario, el presente artículo busca comprender los significados que otorgan las mujeres otavaleñas, indígenas ecuatorianas, al proceso migratorio y vida laboral en Santiago de Chile. Se realizaron acompañamientos, observación y entrevistas cualitativas de trayectorias sociales vinculadas a la práctica laboral. Los hallazgos sugieren que si bien la movilidad es motivada por mejorar su situación económica, los trayectos sociales que viven en Chile las confrontan a una existencia precaria y conflictiva, que abordan mediante estrategias individuales y sociales. Esto es, a partir de la incorporación de su cultura y los recursos valóricos con los que cuentan.
Percepciones de cambio en profesionales de una cárcel juvenil en Chile
Authors: Mettifogo Guerrero Decio , Reyes Rosales Marjorie , Vildósola Soto Valentina
Published: September 2018

El presente estudio, de carácter exploratorio-descriptivo, tuvo como objetivo conocer las percepciones de cambio de profesionales que intervienen con adolescentes condenados a penas privativas de libertad. La muestra estuvo compuesta por ocho profesionales, quienes a través de una entrevista semiestructurada dieron cuenta de sus apreciaciones respecto a cuatro ejes de análisis. Los principales resultados indican que el cambio es percibido por los profesionales como un proceso excepcional donde confluyen diversos factores, incluidos la intervención penal y la privación de libertad. A modo de conclusión, se puede mencionar la necesidad de especialización en los profesionales para trabajar con población de alta complejidad y el desarrollo de estrategias para que adopten un rol activo en los procesos de cambio de los jóvenes.
Effects of geometry dependent diffraction on the performance of object-mounted Linear Differential Microphone Arrays
Authors: Farahikia Mahdi , Su Quang T.
Published: September 2018

Effects of geometry-dependent diffraction on the performance of object-mounted Linear Differential Microphone Arrays (LDMAs) for far-field sound waves are investigated through the Finite Element Method. This is done by studying the acoustic pressure gradients corresponding to different orders of LDMAs and placement (azimuthal and radial) on an object (such as human head or voice activated devices). An optimized frequency-dependent adaptive-dimension finite element technique, innovated by the authors, is used to simulate acoustic scattering for two simple head-model geometries (sphere and ellipsoid). These simulations are conducted for frequencies ranging from 20 to 20 000 Hz. Verification of results is done by comparisons to analytical solutions (for the sphere) and literature data. Results show that object-mounted second order radial LDMAs are greatly affected by object geometry. Maps of directivity patterns show that object-mounted first order azimuthal LDMAs completely attenuate sound from sources located at the sides of the listener. A modified LDMA signal processing method is proposed to lessen the effects of scattering for object-mounted first order azimuthal LDMAs by incorporating frequency-dependent weighting functions. The findings of this article provide an understanding of using object-mounted LDMAs for designing directional sound-sensing devices.
Germinant Synergy Facilitates Clostridium difficile Spore Germination under Physiological Conditions
Authors: Kochan Travis J. , Shoshiev Michelle S. , Hastie Jessica L. , Somers Madeline J. , Plotnick Yael M. , Gutierrez-Munoz Daniela F. , Foss Elissa D. , Schubert Alyxandria M. , Smith Ashley D. , Zimmerman Sally K. , Carlson Paul E. , Hanna Philip C.
Published: September 2018

Clostridium difficile
is an anaerobic spore-forming human pathogen that is the leading cause of nosocomial infectious diarrhea worldwide. Germination of infectious spores is the first step in the development of a
C. difficile
infection (CDI) after ingestion and passage through the stomach. This study investigates the specific conditions that facilitate
C. difficile
spore germination, including the following: location within the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, pH, temperature, and germinant concentration. The germinants that have been identified in culture include combinations of bile salts and amino acids or bile salts and calcium, but
in vitro
, these function at concentrations that far exceed normal physiological ranges normally found in the mammalian GI tract. In this work, we describe and quantify a previously unreported synergy observed when bile salts, calcium, and amino acids are added together. These germinant cocktails improve germination efficiency by decreasing the required concentrations of germinants to physiologically relevant levels. Combinations of multiple germinant types are also able to overcome the effects of inhibitory bile salts. In addition, we propose that the acidic conditions within the GI tract regulate
C. difficile
spore germination and could provide a biological explanation for why patients taking proton pump inhibitors are associated with increased risk of developing a CDI.
MCR-1 Confers Cross-Resistance to Bacitracin, a Widely Used In-Feed Antibiotic
Authors: Xu Fuzhou , Zeng Ximin , Hinenoya Atsushi , Lin Jun
Published: September 2018

Polymyxins (e.g., colistin) are the drugs of last resort to treat multidrug-resistant infections in humans. To control mobile colistin resistance, there is a worldwide trend to limit colistin use in animal production. However, simply limiting colistin use in animal production may still not effectively mitigate colistin resistance due to an overlooked non-colistin usage factor(s). Using controlled systems, in this study, we observed that MCR-1 confers cross-resistance to bacitracin, a popular in-feed antibiotic used in food animals. Thus, imprudent and extensive usage of bacitracin in food animals may serve as a non-colistin usage risk factor for the transmissible colistin resistance. Further comprehensive
in vitro
and
in vivo
studies are highly warranted to generate science-based information for risk assessment and risk management of colistin resistance, consequently facilitating the development of proactive and effective strategies to mitigate colistin resistance in animal production system and protect public health.
Fifteen-minute consultation: A practical approach to developmental regression in children
Authors: Smith Thomas , Ram Dipak
Published: September 2018

Developmental regression is an important red flag in any child’s developmental performance and should be recognised promptly. It is the loss of previously acquired skills and can affect any sphere of childhood development. Presentation and underlying causes are heterogeneous in nature, in turn presenting many clinical challenges. While broad, the causes of regression can be categorised based on clinical findings, so that investigation and management options can be tailored appropriately. It is extremely important to try and make a definitive diagnosis if possible. This allows appropriate initiation of treatment for potentially reversible causes and for specific therapies, which may alter disease progression and improve quality of life in some cases. This article outlines a systematic approach to the evaluation of a child with suspected regression, covering the nature of presentation, key differential diagnoses, first-line investigations and management.
Does supportive legislation guarantee access to pregnancy termination and postabortion care services? Findings from a facility census in Central Province, Zambia
Authors: Cresswell Jenny A , Owolabi Onikepe O , Chelwa Nachela , Dennis Mardieh L , Gabrysch Sabine , Vwalika Bellington , Mbizvo Mike , Filippi Veronique , Campbell Oona M R
Published: September 2018

Introduction

Zambia is one of the few countries in Africa to permit termination of pregnancy (TOP) on a wide range of grounds. However, substantial barriers remain to TOP and postabortion care (PAC).

Methods

We conducted a census of 153 facilities between March and May 2016. We defined facilities according to whether they met basic and/or comprehensive signal functions criteria for TOP and PAC. We linked our facility data to census data to estimate geographic accessibility under different policy scenarios.

Results

Overall, 16% of facilities reported they had performed a TOP and 39% performed a PAC in the last year. Facilities were twice as likely to use medical methods for TOP compared with surgical methods, and four times more likely for PAC. Considerably more facilities had performed TOP or PAC than met the basic or comprehensive signal functions criteria, indicating services were being performed in facilities below essential quality standards. Under current Zambian law for non-emergency scenarios, 21% of women in Central Province lived within 15 km of a facility with basic capability to provide TOP; if midlevel providers were trained to provide TOP, this would increase to 36%.

Conclusion

A supportive legislative framework is essential, but not in itself sufficient, for adequate access to services. Training midlevel providers, in line with WHO guidance, and ensuring equipment is available in primary care can increase accessibility of TOP and PAC. While both medical and surgical methods need to be available, medical abortion is a safe and effective method that can be provided in low-resource settings.
A formative evaluation of online information to support abortion access in England, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland
Authors: Duffy Deirdre Niamh , Pierson Claire , Best Paul
Published: September 2018

Objectives

To evaluate web-based information on accessing abortion services retrieved through internet searches in different jurisdictions from the perspective of service users. To provide a formative evaluative mechanism for enabling user-focused design of abortion access information web pages.

Design

Web searches were conducted in three countries—England, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland—using two search engines in the summer of 2016. Four search terms were used and the first two pages of results were analysed. The perspective of someone seeking abortion services was used. Sources were evaluated using a five-item tool combining user-based indicators identified in other instruments and a question on jurisdictional accuracy.

Results

A total of 619 web pages were retrieved through initial searches, 83 of which related to accessing services; 22 pages were retrieved from the Republic of Ireland, 31 from Northern Ireland, and 30 from England. Fewer than a third (n=31) were judged as good or excellent by the tool. The jurisdictional relevancy of information retrieved varied; almost half of all results in each country provided information that was either inaccurate within or irrelevant to the jurisdiction where the search took place.

Conclusions

If online information is to support abortion access, the circumstances and perspective of the user requires more attention. Designers of abortion information pages online need to ensure that information about access is relevant to the jurisdiction in which users are based.
Apolipoprotein E mimetic peptide CN-105 improves outcome in a murine model of SAH
Authors: Liu Ji , Zhou Guanen , Kolls Bradley J , Tan Yanli , Fang Chuan , Wang Haichen , Laskowitz Daniel T
Published: September 2018

Objective

Subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) accounts for 3% of all strokes, and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. There is growing evidence implicating apolipoprotein E (apoE) in mediating adaptive anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective responses following ischaemic and traumatic brain injury. In the current study, we test the efficacy of a small apoE mimetic peptide, CN-105 in a murine model of SAH.

Methods

Mice subjected to SAH received repeated intravenous injections of CN-105 every 12 hours for 3 days, with the first dose given 2 hours after injury. Daily functional outcomes were assessed by rotarod and neurological severity score. Haemorrhage grade and cerebral vascular diameters were measured at 5 days post-SAH. Cerebral microgliosis, neuronal degeneration and survival were analysed at 5 and 35 days post-SAH, respectively.

Results

CN-105 reduces histological evidence of inflammation, reduces vasospasm and neuronal injury and is associated with improved long-term behavioural outcomes in a murine model of SAH.

Conclusions

Given its favourable pharmacokinetic profile, central nervous system penetration and demonstration of clinical safety, CN-105 represents an attractive therapeutic candidate for treatment of brain injury associated with SAH.
On Solving Mean Payoff Games Using Pivoting Algorithms
Authors: Neogy S. K. , Mondal Prasenjit , Gupta Abhijit , Ghorui Debasish
Published: September 2018

Two classical pivoting algorithms, due to Lemke and Cottle–Dantzig, are studied on linear complementarity problems (LCPs) and their generalizations that arise from infinite duration two-person mean payoff games (MPGs) under zero-mean partition problem. Lemke’s algorithm was studied in solving MPGs via reduction to discounted payoff games or to simple stochastic games. We provide an alternative and efficient approach for studying the LCPs arising from the MPGs without any reduction. A binary MPG can easily be formulated as an LCP which has always terminated in a complementary solution in numerical experiments, but has not yet been proven either the processability of MPG’s by Lemke’s algorithm or a counter example that it will not terminate with a solution. Till now, the processability of MPG’s by Lemke’s algorithm remains open. A general MPG (with arbitrary outgoing arcs) naturally reduces to a generalized linear complementarity problem (GLCP) involving a rectangular matrix where the vertices are represented by the columns and the outgoing arcs from each vertex are represented by rows in a particular block. The noteworthy result in this paper is that the GLCP obtained from an MPG is processable by Cottle–Dantzig principal pivoting algorithm which terminates with a solution. Several properties of the matrix which arise in this context are also discussed.
Fabrication of Water-Soluble CuInS2 Quantum Dots by Hot-Injection Method and Phase Transfer Strategy
Authors: Deng Chong , Fu Bowen , Wang Yanlai , Yang Lin
Published: September 2018

Here we report an optimized hot-injection method and a phase transfer strategy for the synthesis of water-soluble CuInS2 QDs with desired properties. The structure and morphology studies demonstrate that the resulting QDs are CuInS2 tetragonal phase with well-defined facets. It is also found that the crystal size gradually increases with the increase of reaction temperature, while the surface of QDs with pre- and post-phase transfer is functionalized with hydrophobic and hydrophilic ligands, respectively. Spectroscopy measurements reveal the size-dependent optical properties of CuInS2 QDs, demonstrating the quantum confinement effect in this system.
Sino-Western Cultural Collisions on “Belt and Road” Initiative: A Comparison of Confucian Culture and Christian Culture
Authors: He Wenfa
Published: September 2018

“Belt and Road” Initiative is a major strategy for China’s further reform and opening up, and it welcomes participation of all the countries around the world. This paper mainly discusses the possible collisions between China’s Confucian culture and the Western Christian culture. The paper thinks that there exist the following seven culture collisions: Theism versus Atheism; Limited Government versus Authoritarian Government; Centralism versus Federalism; Freedom Autonomy versus Authority Order; Multiple Speeches versus Social Order; Majority Rule versus Minority Resistance; Morality versus Rule of Law. The paper concludes that whether East or West, benevolence and love are the basic elements recognized and shared by both parties, and that rightly may be the possibilities for mutual beneficial and win–win cooperation.
Modeling Large-Scale Slim Fly Networks Using Parallel Discrete-Event Simulation
Authors: Wolfe Noah , Mubarak Misbah , Carothers Christopher D. , Ross Robert B. , Carns Philip H.
Published: September 2018

As supercomputers approach exascale performance, the increased number of processors translates to an increased demand on the underlying network interconnect. The slim fly network topology, a new low-diameter, low-latency, and low-cost interconnection network, is gaining interest as one possible solution for next-generation supercomputing interconnect systems. In this article, we present a high-fidelity slim fly packet-level model leveraging the Rensselaer Optimistic Simulation System (ROSS) and Co-Design of Exascale Storage (CODES) frameworks. We validate the model with published work before scaling the network size up to an unprecedented 1 million compute nodes and confirming that the slim fly observes peak network throughput at extreme scale. In addition to synthetic workloads, we evaluate large-scale slim fly models with real communication workloads from applications in the Design Forward program with over 110,000 MPI processes. We show strong scaling of the slim fly model on an Intel cluster achieving a peak network packet transfer rate of 2.3 million packets per second and processing over 7 billion discrete events using 128 MPI tasks. Enabled by the strong performance capabilities of the model, we perform a detailed application trace and routing protocol performance study. Through analysis of metrics such as packet latency, hop count, and congestion, we find that the slim fly network is able to leverage simple minimal routing and achieve the same performance as more complex adaptive routing for tested DOE benchmark applications.