bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The al-Lawati as a Historical Category
Authors: Sachedina Amal
Published: January 2022

This chapter explores the sur al-Lawati, the fortified enclave of the al-Lawati, a non-Arab, non-Ibadi mercantile community historically oriented toward the British Raj, staunchly allied to the pre-1970 Muscat sultanate, and grounded in a Shiʿi geography. This community has been incorporated into Oman's national historical narration and iconic imagery. Their differences to the Arab and Ibadi population are managed through the state's governing logics of a common history and tribalization, even while these institutional mechanisms apportion the space in which one emerges as an Omani citizen. This dense assemblage of key elements both limits and opens possibilities for political engagement and participation in state planning and policy making. These terms of reference formulate the space in which the “differences” that sum up the al-Lawati are managed within the community and with outsiders, defining the terms of their political and religious belonging and the referential basis by which they participate in public life (outside the sur) versus private life (inside the sur).
The Creation of the Internet and the Web, and a Dark Portent
Authors: Stewart Andrew J.
Published: January 2022

This chapter examines the creation of the Internet. Paul Baran, a researcher working at the RAND Corporation, drew inspiration from the ability of the human brain to recover from physical damage. He applied the same idea to the problem of how to make a communications network continue to function if a part of it had been destroyed by a nuclear missile. Baran's proposal was approved by the Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA). The ARPANET had been the product of central planning by ARPA, but the unstructured way that computers were being attached to local networks represented organic growth. This was the fuzzy line that represented the transition between the ARPANET and the Internet as the network is known today. Every computer that was connected to the Internet was now connected to every other computer that was also connected to the Internet. That connectivity opened up a world of possibilities for collaboration and for productivity but also created security risks.
Software Security and the “Hamster Wheel of Pain”
Authors: Stewart Andrew J.
Published: January 2022

This chapter assesses how the feedback loop that emerged during the dot-com boom had created an ever-increasing number of new vulnerabilities that organizations needed to respond to by applying security patches. At the heart of the perimeter model of security was the firewall, but an organization's firewall had to permit web traffic to reach the organization's web server. If the web server had a vulnerability, which it almost certainly would experience over time, a hacker could compromise its security and likely then compromise the security of the operating system on which the web server was running. A desire for the focus of security efforts to be placed on operating system security was a curious return to the thinking of the 1970s and 1980s. Microsoft is best known for its computer software, and so its security efforts have historically been focused on software security. Ultimately, Microsoft was successful in reducing the number of security vulnerabilities in its software, in contributing to the creation of software security as a discipline, and in raising the profile of software security generally.
Usable Security, Economics, and Psychology
Authors: Stewart Andrew J.
Published: January 2022

This chapter addresses how the human user of a computer is in a prime position to act in ways that could compromise the security of the entire system. It looks at the harmful technocratic paternalism at the heart of the field of information security. The RAND Corporation and the early researchers had expected that a computer operating system could impose its will on the users of the computer, in effect forcing them to be secure. That philosophy was adopted by those who worked in the field of information security in the subsequent decades and manifested as a revealed preference for technological solutions. However, with the rise of email and the web, the user and their decisions became crucial to the security of the overall system. The possibility that security could be accomplished through technology alone was revealed to be a machine fantasy. The security of a computer is beholden to the whims of the user, and those whims are driven by the chaotic influence of economic motivations and psychological factors.
Epilogue
Authors: Stewart Andrew J.
Published: January 2022

This epilogue argues that the information security challenges of today will remain intractable until the past is better understood. Indeed, the three stigmata — data breaches, nation-state hacking, and epistemic closure — became manifest precisely because the past is so easy to overlook. Given these challenges, there is the question of what should be done. There must be a special effort to better understand how complexity affects information security and how that complexity can be managed. Modern programming languages that do not fall prey to certain kinds of security vulnerabilities are an example of a means by which accidental complexity can be reduced. A second example is the removal of unnecessary security decisions from both end users and technology practitioners.
Back at a Paper Changed by Watergate
Authors: Doder Dusko , Branson Louise
Published: January 2022

This chapter describes how the Washington Post granted the author a year's sabbatical from the summer of 1976 to write a book about Yugoslavia. He also had a fellowship from the Wilson Center. The author's goal with his book, The Yugoslavs, was to make sense of the country where he was born. He chose to write in a hopeful spirit, to attribute Yugoslavia's ills to the Communist dictatorship that had ruined his family's life. The author then returned to the Post in the summer of 1977, going back to his job at the foreign desk, writing stories and analysis from Washington, particularly on the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. During this time, the Post had embraced post-Watergate success and celebrity. The Yugoslavs, published in 1978, garnered positive reviews, including a front-page review in the New York Review of Books.
Post Moscow Correspondent at Last
Authors: Doder Dusko , Branson Louise
Published: January 2022

This chapter highlights the author's return to Moscow as the Washington Post's correspondent. The mood in Moscow had changed; the seventy-four-year-old Leonid Brezhnev, in power for seventeen years, was surrounded by an aging leadership that valued stability and its privileged way of life. Though the Kremlin was still spouting the same rhetoric about Communism marching toward a bright future, there was an air of disillusion and resignation all over Moscow. As the severe Moscow winter of 1981–82 took hold, the weather matched a deepening chill in US–Soviet relations. The Kremlin lambasted Ronald Reagan for “a campaign of hatred” against the Soviet Union and for wanting to “hurl the world back to the dark ages of the Cold War.” The chapter then considers how the author's relationship with the US embassy in Moscow deteriorated as his analysis began often to diverge from that of the embassy and the CIA.
The Price for Breaking a Rule of Journalism
Authors: Doder Dusko , Branson Louise
Published: January 2022

This chapter examines the author's experience covering Yuri Andropov's successor, Konstantin Chernenko. Chernenko had won out because the armed forces had backed him, a signal that the old guard was not yet ready to hand power to a new generation or continue Andropov's assault on their privileged way of life. The country was now on autopilot as Chernenko and his men did all they could to return Soviet society to the Brezhnev era. The chapter then looks at the author's interview with Chernenko. Chernenko told the author that he wanted to resume arms talks with the United States but that Ronald Reagan only talked about it without doing anything meaningful, and that although the Reagan administration said it was focused on defensive weapons, the US budget showed a massive buildup of offensive nuclear systems, and he cited several new US strategic weapons systems. He said he wondered why two great countries were not able to do something to secure peace, that it was what kept him up at night. During this time, the author's marriage had collapsed.
Assassination by Time Magazine
Authors: Doder Dusko , Branson Louise
Published: January 2022

This chapter highlights the author's legal battle against Time magazine. Throughout 1993, he was frustrated by delay after delay as it became clear that Time's strategy was to defer proceedings indefinitely, to wear him down and drain not only his resources but his spirit. Another obstacle he encountered was the Washington Post itself. Bob Kaiser, the managing editor, had told the author that the Post would not help him financially if he proceeded to sue Time. When he decided to sue in London, Kaiser said the paper opposed it as a matter of principle because the paper did not agree with British libel laws. Because of this, Washington Post staff were barred from getting involved, which meant that no one could testify on the author's behalf. Nevertheless, the author began to collect witness depositions. Later, the court required discovery, an exchange of information and documents that had been subpoenaed. This revealed that the only outside witnesses to support Time were two former employees of the CIA: Robert Gates and Colin R. Thompson. Finally, Time proposed a settlement that included an apology; the author reluctantly accepted even though he wanted to expose Time's brand of journalism.
Prologue
Authors: Lewis Tom
Published: January 2022

This chapter begins with the introduction of three men of genius, vision, determination, and fascinating complexity: Lee de Forest, Edwin Howard Armstrong, and David Sarnoff. It explores how information about the world in 1899 came from the World Almanac and Encyclopedia for 1899 and 1900 and the June 1899 issues of the New York Times. The chapter argues that radio was in fact the first modern mass medium. It then analyzes how America's position in the world has changed from a parochial, isolated nation into a significant world power. The chapter highlights the work of de Forest, Armstrong, and Sarnoff from a time when the country possessed unbounded confidence in the power of science and technology, through two devastating world wars, a staggering economic collapse, the New Deal, and the Korean War.
Releasing the Art: The Creation of RCA
Authors: Lewis Tom
Published: January 2022

This chapter details the creation of Radio Corporation of America (RCA), led by Owen D. Young. It tracks the formation of the new American communication corporation that could protect and advance American interests in the world. The chapter then elaborates on the discussions and meetings between Young, vice-president of General Electric Company, and Edward J. Nally, vice-president of American Marconi. It looks at the General Electric Company's decision to take over Marconi's American interests — including its patent licenses — add them to the patents controlled by the navy, and place these holdings in a new American company. The chapter assesses the industry's dramatic changes: thousands of radio amateurs had been drafted into the war effort; they had emerged radio professionals, committed to staying with the art, and requiring tubes and equipment from RCA. It then explores the relationship between RCA's radio transmitters and American Telephone and Telegraph Company's telephone lines, and the idea of broadcasting.
The Godlike Presence
Authors: Lewis Tom
Published: January 2022

This chapter highlights the impressive statistics of the Radio Corporation of America Building at 30 Rockefeller Center. It argues that the Rockefeller Center physically embodied everything that was important about American business. The chapter then shifts to discuss the charges being faced by the RCA with violation of the federal antitrust laws. The suit originated in the depressed economic conditions of 1930 and the increasing influence and authority RCA exercised over radio development and broadcasting. It then explores the nature of broadcasting and how broadcasters were emphasizing a lighter fare of comedy, variety, and popular music. The chapter looks at how the minority induced sympathetic congressmen to propose legislation that would force the Federal Radio Commission to license stations with more power and more favorable places on the broadcasting spectrum. It also examines de Forest's efforts to change broadcasting.
The Third Function of Law
Authors: Hoff Karla , Walsh James
Published: January 2022

This chapter examines how “law and economics” is affected by the broadening of the scope of economics. The “command function” of law was partly dismantled and enriched by the new work on the “expressive function,” which recognized that the law works not just by command, reward, and punishment but also by triggering social norms and affecting some of our preferences. The chapter then introduces a third novelty, what can be referred to as the “schematizing function” of the law. Lodged in their brains, human beings have cultural categories and concepts that influence what they focus on and what they ignore. At one level, all this happens instinctively and so may seem like innate qualities, but they are influenced and shaped by many social factors by the laws of the nation and also the deliberations surrounding the adoption of laws. The chapter shows how entrenched cultural categories can be used to both reinforce and to block a law.
Overreliance on Law
Authors: Swamy Anand V.
Published: January 2022

This chapter evaluates rural credit in India, assessing why the law has fared so poorly in regulating the rural credit market and enhancing farmer welfare. It begins by detailing the regulation of rural credit and the rise of the microfinance industry since the celebrated economic reforms of 1991 in India. The chapter notes that the levels of farmer stress is at an all-time high in India, with many farmers driven to levels of debt that they clearly cannot pay back in their lifetimes, and that there has been a large increase in the incidence of farmer suicides. It then brings evidence and analysis to show that the numerous credit laws and regulations have failed to do much to alleviate the problems because of the failure to recognize that credit markets are interlinked with other features of the rural economy. Ultimately, the chapter makes a pointed recommendation — the need to strengthen agricultural insurance and the state's willingness to absorb some of the shocks stemming from productivity fluctuations.
Exchange Configurations and the Legal Framework
Authors: Cornelisse Peter A. , Thorbecke Erik
Published: January 2022

This chapter explores the idea of “exchange configuration,” which allows a detailed analysis of various forms of exchange in different settings and at different levels of aggregation or disaggregation in developing and developed countries alike. This approach aims to identify the very building blocks of transactions and to explain how transactions obtain their form and content. It should be emphasized that one of these building blocks and key determinants affecting the form and content of transactions is the prevailing legal framework, which can vary enormously across different settings. The chapter begins by discussing some alternative approaches to the exchange process. Briefly summarizing important prior developments, such as New Institutional Economics and Transactions Cost Economics, it examines the role of law and regulation for tackling not just market failures (such as the inadequate provision of public goods and our inadequate handling of the environment) but also equity and income distribution.
Is more always better? Dose effect in a multidomain intervention in older adults at risk of dementia
Authors: Belleville Sylvie , Cloutier Simon , Mellah Samira , Willis Sherry , Vellas Bruno , Andrieu Sandrine , Coley Nicola , Ngandu Tiia ,   MAPT/DSA group
Published: January 2022

Background

Little is known regarding the dose‐response function in multidomain interventions for dementia prevention.

Method

The Multidomain Alzheimer Preventive Trial is a 3‐year randomized controlled trial comprising cognitive training, physical activity, nutrition, and omega‐3 polyunsaturated fatty acids for at‐risk older adults. The dose delivered (number of sessions attended) was modeled against global cognition, memory, and fluency in 749 participants. Interaction effects were assessed for age, sex, education, dementia score (CAIDE), frailty score, and apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 status.

Results

The dose‐response models were non‐linear functions indicating benefits up to about 12 to 14 training hours or 15 to 20 multidomain sessions followed by a plateau. Participants who benefited from a higher dose included women, younger participants, frail individuals, and those with lower education or lower risk of dementia.

Discussion

The non‐linear function indicates that a higher dose is not necessarily better in multidomain interventions. The optimal dose was about half of the potentially available sessions.
Nontarget screening of production waste samples from Leuckart amphetamine synthesis using liquid chromatography ‐ high‐resolution mass spectrometry as a complementary method to GC‐MS impurity profiling
Authors: Greif Maximilian , Köke Niklas , Pütz Michael , Rößler Thorsten , Knepper Thomas P. , Frömel Tobias
Published: January 2022

The established approaches of suspect and nontarget screening (NTS) using liquid chromatography–high‐resolution mass spectrometry (LC‐HRMS) are usually applied in the field of environmental and bioanalytical analysis. Herein, these approaches were employed on a forensic‐toxicological application by analyzing different production waste samples from controlled amphetamine synthesis via Leuckart route to evaluate the suitability of this methodology for identification of route‐specific organic substances in such waste samples. For analysis, two complementary LC techniques were used to cover a broad polarity spectrum. After data processing and peak picking using the enviMass software and further manual data restriction, 17 features were tentatively identified as suspects, three of which were subsequently identified with reference substances. All suspects had been previously identified in studies, in which gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC‐MS) was successfully applied for synthesis marker assessment in waste and amphetamine samples. Remaining features with high signal intensity and assigned sum formula were selected for the attempt of structure elucidation. Seven potential synthesis markers were tentatively identified, which were not yet reported, except the sum formula of one compound, and which were partly also detected in real case waste samples afterward. The innovative application of the NTS approach using LC‐HRMS for the analysis of aqueous amphetamine synthesis waste samples showed its suitability as extension to GC‐MS analysis as it was possible to successfully identify seven new potential marker compounds, which are specific either for the conversion of the pre‐precursors α‐phenylacetoacetonitrile and α‐phenylacetoacetamide to benzyl methyl ketone or for the subsequent Leuckart synthesis route after their conversion.
Generation of biofuel from anaerobic digestion of Scenedesmus obliquus grown in energetic‐laden industrial wastewater: Understanding microalgae strains, co‐digestants, and digestate toxicity
Authors: Mai Andrew , Terracciano Amalia , Abraham Juliana , RoyChowdhury Abhishek , Koutsospyros Agamemnon , Su Tsan‐Liang , Braida Washington , Christodoulatos Christos , Smolinski Benjamin
Published: January 2022

Microalgae as a substrate for anaerobic digestion (AD) offer promising outcomes over other conventional feedstocks. In this work, the generation of biofuel in the form of biogas via AD using wastewater‐grown microalgae was investigated. In particular, batch screening of different microalga strains and co‐substrates, culminated into the evaluation of biomethane potential (BMP) from AD of Scenedesmus obliquus grown in energetic‐laden wastewater through benchtop‐scale semi‐continuous reactor. Effectiveness of AD was evaluated for biogas yield, volatile solids (VS) removal, and kinetics for various microalga strains as potential substrate candidates. High carbon content co‐digestants were also investigated including return activated sludge and waste office pulped paper. At semi‐continuous scale, the specific BMPs associated with of 15, 20, and 30 days hydraulic residence times (HRT) were determined as 67.0, 86.6, and 86.3 ml CH4/g VS (added) with average methane content of 70%. In addition, toxicological assessments showed that AD effluent was benign towards renew growth of biomass, thus showing the potential for nutrients recover.
Sex‐specific transcriptome of spinal microglia in neuropathic pain due to peripheral nerve injury
Authors: Fiore Nathan T. , Yin Zhuoran , Guneykaya Dilansu , Gauthier Christian D. , Hayes Jessica P. , D'Hary Aaron , Butovsky Oleg , Moalem‐Taylor Gila
Published: January 2022

Neuropathic pain is a prevalent and debilitating chronic disease that is characterized by activation in glial cells in various pain‐related regions within the central nervous system. Recent studies have suggested a sexually dimorphic role of microglia in the maintenance of neuropathic pain in rodents. Here, we utilized RNA sequencing analysis and in vitro primary cultures of microglia to identify whether there is a common neuropathic microglial signature and characterize the sex differences in microglia in pain‐related regions in nerve injury and chemotherapy‐induced peripheral neuropathy mouse models. While mechanical allodynia and behavioral changes were observed in all models, transcriptomic analysis of microglia revealed no common transcriptional changes in spinal and supraspinal regions and in the different neuropathic models. However, there was a substantial change in microglial gene expression within the ipsilateral lumbar spinal cord 7 days after chronic constriction injury (CCI) of the sciatic nerve. Both sexes upregulated genes associated with inflammation, phagosome, and lysosome activation, though males revealed a prominent global transcriptional shift not observed in female mice. Transcriptomic comparison between male spinal microglia after CCI and data from other nerve injury models and neurodegenerative microglia demonstrated a unique CCI‐induced signature reflecting acute activation of microglia. Further, in vitro studies revealed that only male microglia from nerve‐injured mice developed a reactive phenotype with increased phagocytotic activity. This study demonstrates a lack of a common neuropathic microglial signature and indicates distinct sex differences in spinal microglia, suggesting they contribute to the sex‐specific pain processing following nerve injury.
Heart rate variability and heart rate monitoring of nurses using PPG and ECG signals during working condition: A pilot study
Authors: Li Xinxia , Hu Chenghong , Meng Airong , Guo Yanmei , Chen Yang , Dang Rongqing
Published: January 2022

The use of wearable photoplethysmography (PPG) technology for estimating heart rate (HR) and HR variability (HRV) in the health care system is gaining attention in recent years. However, the performance of these devices remains questionable in their ability to collect data in real working conditions for long‐term monitoring. The present study aimed to examine the data collected from nurses during working hours by PPG and electrocardiography (ECG) devices. Twenty‐two nurses underwent a 60‐minute work protocol during the normal working conditions while wearing a PPG device and an ECG device. HR, low‐frequency component (LF) and high‐frequency component (HF), LF/HF ratio, and percent LF distribution in total spectral power, and steps were examined. Pearson's correlation analysis and Bland‐Altman method was performed to examine the relationships between the two devices based on HR and HRV indices. The results found strong positive correlations between HR estimates of both devices, and moderate correlations between LF/HF ratio and percent LF indices estimates, respectively. Moreover, the Bland‐Altman analysis showed a small mean bias in general between the captured data of both devices. This pilot study suggested that the PPG device appears to demonstrate good overall reliability in measuring HR, LF/HF ratio, and percent LF. A further large‐scale study is required to investigate the feasibility and practicality for HR and HRV analysis in nurses during real working conditions using PPG devices.
Kidney decontamination during perfusion for transplantation procedure: In vitro and ex vivo viability analysis
Authors: Goenaga‐Mafud Loraine Carolina , Gamez Yordania Matos , Campos Carolina P. , Vollet‐Filho Jose Dirceu , Inada Natalia Mayumi , Kurachi Cristina , Bagnato Vanderlei Salvador
Published: January 2022

Organ transplantations have an increasing medical relevance. It is becoming a regular procedure with an increase in individuals waiting for organs. The increase in the number of discarded organs is mostly due to the donor bacterial and/or viral infection. In this article, we are demonstrating the feasibility of reduction of the bacterial load in kidney model by using ultraviolet‐C as a germicidal agent in circulating liquids. Using Staphylococcus aureus as a bacteria model, we were able to demonstrate that in less than 30 min of liquid circulation and associated to irradiation, the bacterial load of the perfusate Custodiol HTK, histidine‐tryptophan‐ketoglutarate (solution with 5 log CFU mL−1), was fully eliminated. A modeling approach was created to verify the possibility of bacterial load decrease, when an organ (here, a renal experimental model) is present in the circuit, releasing a varied rate of microorganisms over time, while the solution is irradiated. Finally, we use an ex vivo model with swine kidney, circulating in the preservation solution with a Lifeport Kidney Transporter machine, to demonstrate that we can contaminate the organ and then promote the elimination of the microbiological load. The results show the feasibility of the technique.
Comparison of Vancomycin Clearance Between Augmented Renal Clearance and Normal Renal Function in Critically Ill Infants: A Population Pharmacokinetics Study
Authors: Huang Guang‐Ming , Qiu Yue , Liu Tao‐Tao , Lu Jie‐Jiu
Published: January 2022

Augmented renal clearance presents as super‐renal function with enhanced renal perfusion and glomerular hyperfiltration in many critically ill infants. This study was to compare vancomycin clearance (CL) between critically ill infants with augmented renal clearance and with normal renal function and to optimize the vancomycin dosage. Data were retrospectively obtained from infants treated in intensive care units. Population pharmacokinetics analysis was conducted using nonlinear mixed‐effects model software. A total of 66 critically ill infants were included: 47 infants with augmented renal clearance and 19 infants with normal renal function. The median doses of vancomycin for infants with augmented renal clearance and with normal renal function were 48 and 47 mg/kg/day (P > .05), respectively. The median CL in infants with augmented renal clearance was increased 1.96‐fold compared with infants who had normal renal function (0.98 versus 0.5 L/h, P < .001). Simulations indicated that the recommended dosage of 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100 mg/kg/day would be appropriate in critically ill infants with an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of 130–149, 150–169, 170–189, 190–209, and >210 mL/min/1.73 m2, respectively. Doses of 70 and 75 mg/kg/day were recommended for infants with augmented renal clearance and gestational ages of 27–32.9 and 33–39 weeks, respectively. Doses of 70, 75, 80, and 90 mg/kg/day were recommended for infants with augmented renal clearance and weights of 2.0–2.9, 3.0–3.9, 4.0–4.9, and 5.0–6.0 kg, respectively. In conclusion, the typical vancomycin dosage is insufficient for critically ill infants with augmented renal clearance. Premature infants and infants of low weight with augmented renal clearance need individualized dosing regimens to obtain an adequate area under the serum concentration time curve over 24 h/minimum inhibitory concentration ratio.
Community Engineering Corps Focuses on Underserved Communities
Authors: Barr Stephen
Published: January 2022

Community Engineering Corps (CECorps) is a collaborative program with the American Society of Civil Engineers, AWWA, and Engineers Without Borders USA to bring more than 200,000 technical professionals and students together to serve communities across the United States that don't have the resources to access engineering services. With a strong commitment to community‐driven projects, these volunteers work alongside community members to design solutions to identified problems.
Size effects of discoidal PLGA nanoconstructs in Pickering emulsion stabilization
Authors: Cook Alexander B. , Schlich Michele , Manghnani Purnima N. , Moore Thomas L. , Decuzzi Paolo , Palange Anna Lisa
Published: January 2022

Solid particle stabilized emulsions, using unique shape defined particles, are receiving increasing research interest due to ease of formulation and interesting physiochemical characteristics. There is, however, a need to systematically investigate the effect of anisotropic discoidal microparticles, realized with top‐down fabrication approaches, in emulsion stabilization. Here, the effect of poly(d,l‐lactide‐co‐glycolide) (PLGA) discoidal polymeric nanoconstruct (DPN) size on the formation and stability of oil‐in‐water emulsions is studied. Particles with a diameter of 1, 2, and 5 μm are fabricated with a lithographic templating technique, and used to stabilize medium chain triglyceride (MCT) oil emulsions. Three phase contact angles decreased from 85° ± 7° to 68° ± 12° moving from 1 to 5 μm DPN stabilized emulsions, showing a particle “hydrophilicity” increase with size. Microscopy imaging showed that the mean droplet diameter and dispersity increased with particle size, and that DPNs were present at the oil–water interface. DPN based emulsions were stable for about 24 h or less in the case of 1 and 2 μm DPNs. Emulsion stability was shorter than 12 h in case of 5 μm DPNs. Finally, calculations of DPN detachment free energies ΔGdw and excess surface coverages Cexcess demonstrated that, despite the significantly high adhesion energy of the discoidal DPN, emulsion stability was mostly affected by gravitational forces for DPN sizes above 2 μm. The use of PLGA and MCT oil in this study is relevant for future use of Pickering emulsions in pharmaceutical and drug delivery applications.
Role of advanced practice pharmacists in general practice
Authors: Martin Sandra , Shaw Nicola , Burnage Katie , Petty Duncan
Published: January 2022

Advanced practice pharmacists working in general practice represent the next step in the evolution of primary care clinical pharmacy. This article outlines the role of the advanced practice pharmacist and the various routes pharmacists can take to become one. It also provides examples of some of the roles they can take on in general practice.
Non‐medical use of prescription‐only and OTC medicines: part 1
Authors: Parsons Graham
Published: January 2022

In the first of a two‐part series on the non‐medical use of prescription‐only and over‐the‐counter (OTC) medicines, Graham Parsons discusses the prevalence of the problem, the medicines most likely to be misused and the patient groups at highest risk.
Molnupiravir: an antiviral for the prevention of severe COVID‐19
Authors: Chaplin Steve
Published: January 2022

Molnupiravir (Lagevrio) is an oral antiviral agent for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID‐19 in patients who are at higher risk of developing severe illness. This article outlines its indications, efficacy and adverse effects.
NICE guidance on the management of atrial fibrillation
Authors: Chaplin Steve
Published: January 2022

NICE has recently published an updated guideline on the diagnosis and management of atrial fibrillation in adults (NG196), including the use of anticoagulation to prevent stroke. This article summarises the main recommendations in the guidance.
Electronic Structure of InAs and InSb Surfaces: Density Functional Theory and Angle‐Resolved Photoemission Spectroscopy
Authors: Yang Shuyang , Schröter Niels B. M. , Strocov Vladimir N. , Schuwalow Sergej , Rajpalk Mohana , Ohtani Keita , Krogstrup Peter , Winkler Georg W. , Gukelberger Jan , Gresch Dominik , Aeppli Gabriel , Lutchyn Roman M. , Marom Noa
Published: January 2022

The electronic structure of surfaces plays a key role in the properties of quantum devices. However, surfaces are also the most challenging to simulate and engineer. Here, the electronic structure of InAs(001), InAs(111), and InSb(110) surfaces is studied using a combination of density functional theory (DFT) and angle‐resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). Large‐scale first principles simulations are enabled by using DFT calculations with a machine‐learned Hubbard U correction [npj Comput. Mater. 6, 180 (2020)]. To facilitate direct comparison with ARPES results, a “bulk unfolding” scheme is implemented by projecting the calculated band structure of a supercell surface slab model onto the bulk primitive cell. For all three surfaces, a good agreement is found between DFT calculations and ARPES. For InAs(001), the simulations clarify the effect of the surface reconstruction. Different reconstructions are found to produce distinctive surface states, which may be detected by ARPES with low photon energies. For InAs(111) and InSb(110), the simulations help elucidate the effect of oxidation. Owing to larger charge transfer from As to O than from Sb to O, oxidation of InAs(111) leads to significant band bending and produces an electron pocket, whereas oxidation of InSb(110) does not. The combined theoretical and experimental results may inform the design of quantum devices based on InAs and InSb semiconductors, for example, topological qubits utilizing the Majorana zero modes.
A Case Study of Bluetooth Technology as a Supplemental Tool in Contact Tracing
Authors: Admiraal Ryan , Millen Jules , Patel Ankit , Chambers Tim
Published: January 2022

We present results from a 7-day trial of a Bluetooth-enabled card by the New Zealand Ministry of Health to investigate its usefulness in contact tracing. A comparison of the card with traditional contact tracing, which relies on self-reports of contacts to case investigators, demonstrated significantly higher levels of internal consistency in detected contact events by Bluetooth-enabled cards with 88% of contact events being detected by both cards involved in an interaction as compared to 64% for self-reports of contacts to case investigators. We found no clear evidence of memory recall worsening in reporting contact events that were further removed in time from the date of a case investigation. Roughly 66% of contact events between trial participants that were indicated by cards went unreported to case investigators, simultaneously highlighting the shortcomings of traditional contact tracing and the value of Bluetooth technology in detecting contact events that may otherwise go unreported. At the same time, cards detected only 65% of self-reported contact events, in part due to increasing non-compliance as the study progressed. This would suggest that Bluetooth technology can only be considered as a supplemental tool in contact tracing and not a viable replacement to traditional contact tracing unless measures are introduced to ensure greater compliance.
Topology and Local Optima in Computer Vision
Authors: Carlsson Erik , Carlsson John
Published: January 2022

We present an application of persistent homology to the image correspondence problem, also known as image registration, which is used to produce 3D reconstructions of scenery from two or more cameras. We present a novel filtered complex in the sense of persistent homology, and show that nontrivial homology groups in its persistence diagrams correspond to recognizable anomalies in images pairs, such as repeated patterns, which contribute to non-convexity of the relevant cost function. We present examples with actual image pairs, and prove a basic result that the corresponding homology classes are invariant under certain continuous deformations.
The role of inclusion in climate vulnerability assessment and equitable adaptation goals in small American municipalities
Authors: Lioubimtseva Elena
Published: January 2022

Equity and inclusion considerations are important prerequisites of effective climate adaptation planning, especially at a local scale. This study examines how climate adaptation plans of small American cities and counties consider equity in their climate vulnerability assessments and adaptation planning goals and how consideration of equity in existing adaptation plans relates to the inclusion of diverse categories of stakeholders. Data analysis is based on the content of 23 local climate adaptation plans of small urban and rural municipalities across the United States with populations of less than 300 thousand people. Correlations between conceptualization of vulnerability dimensions, inclusion of 9 categories of stakeholders, and consideration of equity in 12 different domains of climate adaptation planning are examined. The study concludes that municipalities that engage more diverse groups of stakeholders and examine the sensitivity and adaptive capacity of their populations appear to be more attentive to social equity and more likely to offer specific climate adaptation measures focusing on vulnerable groups.
Hesitancy Regarding Medical Advice on COVID-19: An Emergency Department Perspective
Authors: Yilmaz Sarper , Çolak Figen Ünal , Hökenek Nihat Müjdat , Ak Rohat
Published: January 2022

Objective:

The rejection of or non-compliance with treatment arises for different reasons by patients who receive treatment recommendations for various diseases. These states are described by various concepts, such as discharge against medical advice (DAMA) and medication nonadherence (MNA). The basis of the study is to determine how these states have arisen during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

Method:

The data of this study were collected through standardized interviews with 103 volunteer participants who were diagnosed with COVID-19 at different times and who did not use their prescribed medicine during the pandemic in Turkey. The data obtained in the research were analyzed through the MAXQDA qualitative analysis program.

Results:

As a result of the analysis of the data, 4 main themes and sub-codes have been reached: (1) prescribed medicine, (2) an information source for the COVID-19 period/treatment, (3) the reason for medication nonadherence, and (4) treatment of choice. When the approach toward treatment of patients who were diagnosed with COVID-19 and had started treatment by a physician was evaluated, it was revealed that the nonadherence state emerged as a cycle. In the initial period, nonadherence due to the medication itself was observed. The second period is when the patients recognize their disease and collect information from their environment. Although this period begins before the disease, the search for informative sources intensifies, especially once the diagnosis has been received. In the third period, with their diagnosis and the information they had obtained, patients consider the reasons to use the medication and then decide whether or not to use it. In the fourth period, the patients who will not use antivirals consider other medications, such as anti-flu, anticoagulant, supplements, and nutrition.

Conclusion:

Since a specific treatment protocol has not yet been revealed for COVID-19, a new conceptual framework is required. In the current condition, the state of “hesitation for medical advice” arises for non-hospitalized patients.
Voiceless nasals in the Ikema dialect of Miyako Ryukyuan
Authors: Ford Catherine , Tucker Benjamin V. , Ono Tsuyoshi
Published: January 2022

Voiceless nasal consonants are typologically rare in the world’s languages. The present study investigates the acoustic realization of reported voiceless nasals in the Miyako Ryukyuan dialect Ikema. Voiceless nasals in Ikema occur word-initially and word-medially as part of a geminate or consonant cluster, and are phonemically distinct from modal voiced nasals. Initial observation of collected recordings revealed many instances of the voiceless phoneme with voicing throughout, leading to a re-evaluation of previous claims about its phonetic implementation. We hypothesized that word-medial and phrase-medial voiceless nasals surface as breathy voiced nasals. We analyzed the acoustic characteristics of nasal components of target words, focusing on duration, phonation state, and cepstral peak prominence (CPP), to determine whether reported voiceless nasal phonetic components with voicing are acoustically distinct from modal voiced nasal consonants. We find that voiceless nasals are produced with a voiceless component followed by a modal voiced component. Voiceless components and breathy components are found to be significantly shorter than modal components. We also find a significant difference between modal nasal, breathy nasal and voiceless nasal components’ CPP values. The results confirm the observation that Ikema voiceless nasals are phonemically distinct from modal nasal consonants, and likely allophonically vary with breathy voiced nasals word-medially and phrase-medially. These findings align with the hypothesis that voiceless nasals require some voicing to be audible for perception, and are consistent with cross-linguistic findings, contributing to the typological understanding of the acoustics of voiceless nasals.
Economy, territory, and identity: A Rokkanian analysis of Indigenous self-determination in Canada and Norway
Authors: Selle Per , Wilson Gary N.
Published: January 2022

Indigenous peoples throughout the circumpolar north have made significant progress in terms of securing self-determination through greater political autonomy. Although such change is important, it must be accompanied by greater economic control aimed at reducing state dependencies. Using an analytical framework developed by Norwegian political scientist, Stein Rokkan, this article explores the interplay between economy, territory, and identity among the Inuit in Canada and the Sámi in Norway. It reveals that the economic destinies of both groups have been profoundly influenced by both domestic and international factors that determine the focus and type of economic development they undertake. While the Inuit have pursued a balance of modern and traditional forms of economic development that is grounded in a regionally based model of self-rule, the Sámi have opted for an economic development model that emphasises traditional economic activities and is supported by Norway’s international commitments to the rights of Indigenous peoples.
From “What” to “How”: Experiential Learning in a Graduate Medicine for Ethicists Course
Authors: Keune Jason D. , Salter Erica
Published: January 2022

Teaching healthcare ethics at the doctoral level presents a particular challenge. Ethics is often taught to medical students, but rarely is medicine taught to graduate students in health care ethics. In this paper, Medicine for Ethicists [MfE] — a course taught both didactically and experientially — is described. Eight former MfE students were independently interviewed in a semi-structured, open-ended format regarding their experience in the experiential component of the course. Themes included concrete elements about the course, elements related to the broader PhD student learning experience, and themes related to the students’ past and future career experiences. Findings are related to the educational philosophy of John Dewey and David Kolb’s experiential learning theory. Broader implications of this work are explored.
A “Terrific Symbol”: Physical Personalization of Pandemic Relief Enhances Presidential Support
Authors: Hale Henry E.
Published: January 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced governments worldwide—many that previously prioritized austerity—to approve large relief packages. Political economy tells us that politicians will try to profit from this electorally, but much remains unknown about precisely how pandemic relief might influence voting intentions. Then-President Donald Trump foregrounded this question early in the pandemic by becoming the first US president to physically place his name on Internal Revenue Service relief checks mailed to citizens. By leveraging a nationally representative survey whose timing achieved quasi-experimental variation in the receipt of payments both with and without Trump’s name physically on them, this study asks: Can a president successfully win support through physical personalization of the payments? Yes, the study finds. Receiving a physically personalized check in the mail is associated with a much greater self-reported likelihood of voting for the president, with gains mainly from partisan outgroups. No clear effect is found for unpersonalized electronic transfers. These findings withstand multiple robustness checks.
A Healthier Anthropology with a Richer View of the Soul: Responding to the Theological Anthropology of N.T. Wright and M.B. Thompson
Authors: Churchouse M.J.
Published: January 2022

Two influential Anglican scholars, N.T. Wright and M.B. Thompson, have concurrently sought to challenge the Church and the Academy to reconsider their long-held belief in the immaterial soul, and to encourage them to think more biblically about their theological anthropology. Identifying the reasons for, and recognizing the implications of, the challenge, this article responds by addressing the contentions of both scholars and the alternative anthropology they propose, and advances in rejoinder a healthier, dualistic, anthropology. Specifically, the article presents a richer view of the soul, one that is conceptually stronger, and more biblically rooted, than the views Wright and Thompson espouse (as indeed also the views they renounce).
Association of dietary acid load with metabolic syndrome in overweight and obese women
Authors: Tangestani Hadith , Emamat Hadi , Tavakoli Atefeh , Ghalandari Hamid , Keshavarz Seyed Ali , Yekaninejad Mir Saeed , Mirzaei Khadijeh
Published: January 2022

Abstract: Background: There is increasing evidence supporting the association between dietary acid load and metabolic syndrome (MetS) components. However, to the best of our knowledge, there are rare and inconsistent studies to examine the association of dietary acid load and MetS score. The aim of this research was to assess dietary acid loads as measured by potential renal acid load (PRAL) in relation to MetS. Methods: The current study involved 246 overweight or obese women. Dietary assessment was performed using a validated 147-item food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Remer’s equation was used to calculate PRAL score. MetS was defined as the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP)/Adult Treatment Panel ΙΙΙ (ATP). Multivariable logistic regression models were used to find the association between PRAL score and MetS. Results: The mean age and BMI of participants were 36.49±8.38 years old and 31.04±4.31 kg/m2, respectively. Overall, 32 percent of participants had MetS. According to the final model, although not statistically significant, there was a trend which suggested that being in the highest quartile of adherence to dietary acid load, evaluated by PRAL score, compared to the lowest quartile was associated with higher odds of MetS [(OR: 2.80; 95% CI: 0.95–8.26), (P=0.06)]. Conclusions: Our study shows a borderline non-significant association between PRAL and odds of MetS in overweight or obese women. However, definitive clarification of this relationship requires future intervention studies.