bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Conformal reversal imprint lithography for polymer nanostructuring over large curved geometries
Authors: Dickson Mary Nora , Tsao Justin , Liang Elena I. , Navarro Noel I. , Patel Yash R. , Yee Albert F.
Published: February 2017

Nanoimprinting of polymer surfaces is a way to functionalize surfaces by changing surface topography alone. The authors have demonstrated a method for the transfer of nanostructured coatings onto a curved polymer substrate by adapting reversal imprint lithography, an alternative to hot embossing nanoimprint lithography, which is best suited for flat planar surfaces and thermoplastics. The curved surface was made antireflective and hydrophobic without any chemical changes—solely by the addition of a nanostructured surface coating. In the future, this technique could be applied to a variety of materials and to surfaces with even more complex curvatures.
Draft Genome Sequence of Staphylococcus hominis BHG17 Isolated from Wild Bar-Headed Goose (
Anser indicus
) Feces
Authors: Wang Wen , Zheng Si-Si , Sharshov Kirill , Sun Hao , Wu Xian-Qiang , Yang Fang , Wang Xue-Lian , Li Lai-Xing
Published: February 2017

Staphylococcus hominis
belongs to a group of coagulase-negative staphylococci and is an opportunistic pathogen, usually found on the skin and mucous membranes. Studies involving
S. hominis
isolated from wild birds are scarce. Here, we report a 2.365-Mb draft genome sequence of
S. hominis
BHG17, isolated from the feces of a bar-headed goose.
Development of a trigger tool to identify adverse events and harm in Emergency Medical Services
Authors: Howard Ian Lucas , Bowen James Marcus , Al Shaikh Loua Asad Hanna , Mate Kedar Shrikrishna , Owen Robert Campbell , Williams David Michael
Published: February 2017

Background

Adverse event(AE)detection in healthcare has traditionally relied upon several methods including: patient care documentation review, mortality and morbidity review, voluntary reporting, direct observation and complaint systems. A novel sampling strategy, known as the trigger tool (TT) methodology, has been shown to provide a more robust and valid method of detection. The aim of this research was to develop and assess a TT specific to ground-based Emergency Medical Services, to identify cases with the potential risk for adverse events and harm.

Methods

The study was conducted between March and December 2015. A literature review identified 57 potential triggers, which were grouped together by experts using an affinity process. Triggers for other areas of potential AE/harm were additionally considered for inclusion. An interim TT consisting of nine triggers underwent five iterative rounds of derivation tests of 20 random patient care records (n=100) in two emergency medical services. A final eight-item trigger list underwent a large sample (n=9836) assessment of test characteristics.

Results

The final eight-item TT consisted of triggers divided amongst four categories:Clinical,Medication,ProceduralandReturn-Call. The TT demonstrated an AE identification rate of 41.5% (sensitivity 79.8% (95% CI, 69.9% to 87.6%); specificity 58.5% (95% CI, 52% to 64.8%)). When identifying potential risk for harm, the TT demonstrated a harm identification rate of 19.3% (sensitivity 97.1% (95% CI, 84.7% to 99.9%); specificity 53.5% (95% CI, 47.7% to 59.3%)).

Discussion

The Emergency Medical Services Trigger Tool (EMSTT) may be used as a sampling strategy similar to the Global Trigger Tool, to identify and measure AE and harm over time, and monitor the success of improvement initiatives within the Emergency Medical Services setting.
Evaluation of a fast and fully automated platform to diagnoseEGFRandKRASmutations in formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded non-small cell lung cancer samples in less than one day
Authors: Lambros Laetitia , Caumont Charline , Guibourg Briac , Barel Fanny , Quintin-Roué Isabelle , Marcorelles Pascale , Merlio Jean-Philippe , Uguen Arnaud
Published: February 2017

Aims

Searching forEGFRandKRASmutations within non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) samples remains time-consuming and can delay treatment choices in patients with acute deterioration. We evaluated the performances of the fully automated Idylla platform to quickly detect these mutations in NSCLC samples.

Methods

We used the IdyllaEGFRMutation Assay and the IdyllaKRASMutation Test to analyse 18 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded NSCLC tumour samples with knownEGFRandKRASmutation status according to next-generation sequencing (NGS) and droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) forEGFRT790Mmutations.

Results

Idylla assays identifiedKRASandEGFRactivating mutations in 4 and 10 NSCLC samples, respectively.EGFRT790Mresistance mutations were identified in only 1 sample using Idylla but in 4 and 14 samples using NGS and ddPCR, respectively. No false-positive result was noted with Idylla assays. Mutation written report was obtained after 130 min (KRASassays) to 140 min (EGFRassays).

Conclusions

The Idylla platform is an interesting ancillary first-line fast and fully automated tool to detectEGFRandKRASmutations in NSCLC samples allowing rapid treatment choices in patients with acute deterioration.
Multi-party quantum summation without a trusted third party based on single particles
Authors: Zhang Cai , Situ Haozhen , Huang Qiong , Yang Pingle
Published: February 2017

We propose multi-party quantum summation protocols based on single particles, in which participants are allowed to compute the summation of their inputs without the help of a trusted third party and preserve the privacy of their inputs. Only one participant who generates the source particles needs to perform unitary operations and only single particles are needed in the beginning of the protocols.
Heterogeneous Model Integration for Multi-Source Urban Infrastructure Data
Authors: Zhang Desheng , Zhao Juanjuan , Zhang Fan , He Tian , Lee Haengju , Son Sang H.
Published: February 2017

Data-driven modeling usually suffers from data sparsity, especially for large-scale modeling for urban phenomena based on single-source urban-infrastructure data under fine-grained spatial-temporal contexts. To address this challenge, we motivate, design, and implement UrbanCPS, a cyber-physical system with heterogeneous model integration, based on extremely-large multi-source infrastructures in the Chinese city Shenzhen, involving 42,000 vehicles, 10 million residents, and 16 million smartcards. Based on temporal, spatial, and contextual contexts, we formulate an optimization problem about how to optimally integrate models based on highly diverse datasets under three practical issues, that is, heterogeneity of models, input data sparsity, or unknown ground truth. We further propose a real-world application called Speedometer, inferring real-time traffic speeds in urban areas. The evaluation results show that, compared to a state-of-the-art system, Speedometer increases the inference accuracy by 29% on average.
Security, Privacy, and Safety Aspects of Civilian Drones
Authors: Altawy Riham , Youssef Amr M.
Published: February 2017

The market for civilian unmanned aerial vehicles, also known as drones, is expanding rapidly as new applications are emerging to incorporate the use of civilian drones in our daily lives. On one hand, the convenience of offering certain services via drones is attractive. On the other hand, the mere operation of these airborne machines, which rely heavily on their cyber capabilities, poses great threats to people and property. Also, while the Federal Aviation Administration NextGen project aims to integrate civilian drones into the national airspace, the regulation is still a work-in-progress and does not cope with their threats. This article surveys the main security, privacy, and safety aspects associated with the use of civilian drones in the national airspace. In particular, we identify both the physical and cyber threats of such systems and discuss the security properties required by their critical operation environment. We also identify the research challenges and possible future directions in the fields of civilian drone security, safety, and privacy. Based on our investigation, we forecast that security will be a central enabling technology for the next generation of civilian unmanned aerial vehicles.
Resveratrol improves exercise performance and skeletal muscle oxidative capacity in heart failure
Authors: Sung Miranda M. , Byrne Nikole J. , Robertson Ian M. , Kim Ty T. , Samokhvalov Victor , Levasseur Jody , Soltys Carrie-Lynn , Fung David , Tyreman Neil , Denou Emmanuel , Jones Kelvin E. , Seubert John M. , Schertzer Jonathan D. , Dyck Jason R. B.
Published: February 2017

We investigated whether treatment of mice with established pressure overload-induced heart failure (HF) with the naturally occurring polyphenol resveratrol could improve functional symptoms of clinical HF such as fatigue and exercise intolerance. C57Bl/6N mice were subjected to either sham or transverse aortic constriction surgery to induce HF. Three weeks postsurgery, a cohort of mice with established HF (%ejection fraction <45) was administered resveratrol (~450 mg·kg−1·day−1) or vehicle for 2 wk. Although the percent ejection fraction was similar between both groups of HF mice, those mice treated with resveratrol had increased total physical activity levels and exercise capacity. Resveratrol treatment was associated with altered gut microbiota composition, increased skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity, a switch toward greater whole body glucose utilization, and increased basal metabolic rates. Although muscle mass and strength were not different between groups, mice with HF had significant declines in basal and ADP-stimulated O2 consumption in isolated skeletal muscle fibers compared with sham mice, which was completely normalized by resveratrol treatment. Overall, resveratrol treatment of mice with established HF enhances exercise performance, which is associated with alterations in whole body and skeletal muscle energy metabolism. Thus, our preclinical data suggest that resveratrol supplementation may effectively improve fatigue and exercise intolerance in HF patients.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY Resveratrol treatment of mice with heart failure leads to enhanced exercise performance that is associated with altered gut microbiota composition, increased whole body glucose utilization, and enhanced skeletal muscle metabolism and function. Together, these preclinical data suggest that resveratrol supplementation may effectively improve fatigue and exercise intolerance in heart failure via these mechanisms.

Listen to this article's corresponding podcast at https://ajpheart.podbean.com/e/resveratrol-and-exercise-capacity-in-heart-failure/ .
Marianne Lacomblez e a construção de uma Psicologia da Atividade de Trabalho
Authors: Lacomblez Marianne Hélène , Araújo Anísio José Da Silva , Zambroni-de-Souza Paulo César , Máximo Thaís Augusta Oliveira da Cunha
Published: February 2017

No ano acadêmico de 2014, Marianne Lacomblez foi professora visitante da Universidade Federal Fluminense (Pósgraduação em Psicologia). Durante esse período, passou um mês no Programa de Pós-graduação em Psicologia Social da Universidade Federal da Paraíba, tendo proferido palestras, participado de orientações de Pós-graduação, reunido-se com grupos de pesquisa e discutido artigos. Na ocasião, concedeu esta entrevista aos Cadernos de Psicologia Social do Trabalho
O uso da música como recurso terapêutico em saúde mental.
Authors: Batista Nayara Da Silva , Ribeiro Mara Cristina
Published: February 2017

A partir do acompanhamento de um grupo de música em um Centro de Atenção Psicossocial para Álcool e Drogas foi desenvolvido um estudo com os usuários participantes com objetivo de compreender o papel da música em suas vidas e no tratamento e, com base nos resultados, refletir sobre o uso da música como recurso terapêutico. Trata-se de investigação qualitativa de caráter analítico/descritivo. Utilizou-se de estudo bibliográfico, observação e entrevistas submetidas à análise de conteúdo. Nos resultados, dois principais temas emergiram: Os Impactos da Música e A Potencialidade Terapêutica da Música. Os impactos podem ser positivos, quando associados ao bem-estar, recordações e melhora das relações sociais, ou negativos, de acordo com as preferências musicais ou mensagens contidas que podem ser associadas à interferências no tratamento. Com relação à potencialidade terapêutica, verificou-se que a música colabora na constituição de vínculos e no desenvolvimento de mudanças pessoais e coletivas. Conclui-se que a música promove a expressão de emoções e percepção da realidade e a sua utilização no contexto terapêutico favorece o equilíbrio interno e facilita espaços de trocas.
Programa de reabilitação funcional para sujeitos com sequelas de hanseníase.
Authors: Dias Thiago Da Silva , Rodrigues Junior Jorge Lopes
Published: February 2017

Este estudo objetiva analisar um programa de reabilitação funcional para sujeitos com sequelas de hanseníase. O estudo tem abordagem qualitativa e abrange a base teórica subjacente à aplicação do programa de reabilitação funcional a um caso típico de paciente com sequelas de hanseníase. O programa engloba técnicas de facilitação neuromuscular proprioceptiva (FNP), cinesioatividade e tecnologia assistiva (TA). Dentre os benefícios do programa, destaca-se que a FNP e a cinesioatividade podem viabilizar fortalecimento muscular, ganho de amplitude de movimento (ADM), resistência muscular e prevenção de deformidades, bem como os dispositivos de TA podem auxiliar no ganho de ADM, prevenção de deformidades e no desempenho das atividades cotidianas. Portanto, o programa terapêutico proposto neste estudo ressalta os benefícios da utilização integrada dos métodos e técnicas para a minimização de déficits funcionais (ADM, força e destreza manual) e ocupacionais em sujeitos com sequelas de hanseníase.
Contratação integrada: o Brasil na contramão da história?
Authors: Miranda Henrique Savonitti
Published: February 2017

Este artigo analisa a execução de obras e serviços de engenharia por meio do regime de contratação integrada, introduzido no ordenamento jurídico brasileiro com o denominado “Regime Diferenciado de Contratações Públicas – RDC”, por meio da Lei n° 12.462, de 4 de agosto de 2011. O estudo investiga as principais características do instituto e aponta os graves problemas que podem advir de sua utilização, principalmente no que diz respeito às restrições a celebração de aditivos contratuais e ao uso indevido da matriz de alocação de riscos. Além disso, realiza um estudo à luz da legislação europeia (principalmente italiana, francesa e portuguesa) e estadunidense apontando as principais diferenças existentes entre a contratação integrada nestes países e no direito brasileiro.
Vibrational theories of light in 18th century Great Britain
Authors: Moura Breno Arsioli
Published: February 2017

Neste artigo, apresento um estudo sobre as teorias vibracionais da luz desenvolvidas no século xviii. É bem sabido que esse século foi dominado pelas ideias newtonianas, o que teve impacto não somente no desenvolvimento da própria filosofia natural, mas espalhou-se para outros campos do conhecimento. Na óptica, em particular, houve um predomínio da concepção corpuscular, embasada pela Óptica de Newton, publicada em 1704. Entretanto, havia dissidentes. No decorrer do século xviii, alguns filósofos naturais criticaram a concepção corpuscular e buscaram desenvolver modelos alternativos, fundamentados em teorias vibracionais da luz. Eu me proponho elucidar os pontos principais dessas teorias, bem como discutir por que elas não repercutiram de maneira significativa
Sex Differences in the Association Between Insulin Resistance and Incident Coronary Heart Disease and Stroke Among Blacks Without Diabetes Mellitus: The Jackson Heart Study
Authors: Effoe Valery S. , Wagenknecht Lynne E. , Echouffo Tcheugui Justin B. , Chen Haiying , Joseph Joshua J. , Kalyani Rita R. , Bell Ronny A. , Wu Wen‐Chih H. , Casanova Ramon , Bertoni Alain G.
Published: February 2017

Background

Studies exploring the association between insulin resistance (
IR
) and cardiovascular disease in blacks have not been conclusive, especially for coronary heart disease (
CHD
). The McAuley index and homeostasis model assessment of
IR
(
HOMA
‐
IR
) perform differently in predicting cardiovascular disease. We investigated this association in the Jackson Heart Study, a large longitudinal cohort of blacks.

Methods and Results

IR
was estimated for 3565 participants without diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease at baseline using the McAuley index and
HOMA
‐
IR
, and their associations with incident
CHD
and stroke (composite outcome) were compared. A lower McAuley index and higher
HOMA
‐
IR
are indicative of
IR
. Cox regression analysis was used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios for incident
CHD
and/or stroke. There were 158 events (89
CHD
‐only, 58 stroke‐only, and 11
CHD
/stroke) over a median follow‐up of 8.4 years. After adjustment for demographic factors, the risk of the composite outcome decreased with each
SD
increase in the McAuley index (hazard ratio 0.80; 95%
CI
: 0.67–0.96), with no attenuation after further accounting for
CHD
and stroke risk factors. When considered individually, McAuley index and
HOMA
‐
IR
were associated with
CHD
(hazard ratio 0.71, 95%
CI
: 0.55–0.92 and hazard ratio 1.33, 95%
CI
: 1.03–1.72, respectively), but not stroke risk. The log
HOMA
‐
IR
and
CHD
association was present in men, but not in women (
P
interaction
=0.01).

Conclusions

Both HOMA‐IR and the McAuley index demonstrate strong associations with
CHD
but not stroke risk in blacks. The log
HOMA
‐
IR
and
CHD
association was present in men, but not in women.
Social inclusion education policy in South Australia: What can we learn?
Authors: Bills Andrew , Howard Nigel
Published: February 2017

In this article, we interrogate the policy assumptions underlying a significant South Australian public education re-engagement initiative called Flexible Learning Options, formulated within South Australia’s social inclusion policy agenda, beginning in 2006. To this end, we applied Baachi’s ‘What’s the Problem Represented to be?’ policy analysis framework to a historical range of departmental Flexible Learning Options policy documents and evaluations to uncover how Flexible Learning Options (1) understands the problem of early school leaving, (2) defines the notion of being an ‘at risk’ young person and (3) interprets and enacts the intervention process for young people identified as ‘at risk’ of early school leaving. Our policy analysis indicates re-engagement in learning – as measured by improved retention – to be the key Flexible Learning Options policy driver, with schools ‘silently’ positioned as a significant part of the retention in learning problem. The Flexible Learning Options engagement in learning intervention directed at ‘high-risk’ students’ works to remove them from schools into places where personalised support and an alternative curriculum are made available. ‘Lower risk’ students are given a combination of in-school and off-school learning options. Our What’s the Problem Represented to be? analysis also reveals that (1) the notion of ‘risk’ is embodied within the young person and is presented as the predominant cause of early school leaving; (2) how the educational marketplace could work to promote Flexible Learning Options enrolment growth has not been considered; (3) schools are sidelined as first choice engagement options for ‘high-risk’ young people, (4) secondary school redesign and family intervention as alternative reengagement strategies have largely been ignored and (5) through withdrawal from conventional schooling, the access of many Flexible Learning Options to students to an expansive curriculum delivered by teachers within well-resourced school learning architectures has been constrained.
“How is these kids meant to make it out the ghetto now?” Community cohesion and communities of laughter in British multicultural comedy
Authors: Ilott Sarah
Published: February 2017

This article uses readings of Mark Mylod’s Ali G Indahouse, Joe Cornish’s Attack the Block, and Chris Morris’s Four Lions to argue against a political trend for laying the blame for the purported failure of British multiculturalism at the hands of individual communities. Through my readings of these comic films, I suggest that popular constructions of “community” based on assumptions about cultural and religious homogeneity are rightly challenged, and new communities are created through shared laughter. Comedy’s structural engagement with taboo means that stereotypes which have gained currency through media and political discourse that seeks to demonize particular groups of young men (Muslims and gang members, for example) are foregrounded. By being brought to the forefront and exposed, these stereotypes can be engaged with and challenged through ridicule and demonstrations of incongruity. Furthermore, I suggest that power relations are made explicit through joking structures that work to include or exclude, meaning that the comedies can draw and redraw communities of laughter in a manner that effectively challenges notions of communities as discrete, homogeneous, and closely connected to cultural heritage. The article works against constructions of British Muslims as the problem community par excellence by using multicultural discourse to contextualize the representation of British Muslims and demonstrate how the discourse has repressed the role of political, social, and economic structures in a focus on “self-segregating” communities.
Study of resin flow in carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites by means of pressure sensors
Authors: Kahali Moghaddam Maryam , Salas Mariugenia , Ersöz Ibrahim , Michels Ingrid , Lang Walter
Published: February 2017

This paper presents an evaluation of resin flow in carbon fiber reinforced polymer by means of small embedded pressure sensors. High-quality carbon fiber reinforced polymer parts require entire impregnation of fibers with resin before resin curing starts. Small piezo-resistive pressure sensors are used to measure the vacuum hold and to track resin flow and pressure elevation inside the composite part. The sensors are placed at different locations in the fiber stacks. Real-time pressure changes are obtained inside the laminate during infusion. To reduce the size of the embedded sensing element, the sensor dies are flip-chipped on a thin printed circuit board. The two component thermoset resin (RIM 035 c) and uni-directional carbon fiber with the alignment of 30° are used in a complex-shaped mold. The result shows that the flip-chipped piezo-resistive pressure sensors can be used in conductive fibers to monitor resin arrival and pressure development in vacuum assisted resin transfer molding infusion processes. The sensors are supplied by a constant current source to compensate the sensitivity reduction if the temperature changes in the curing process.
The International Monetary Fund and the Chilean Chicago Boys, 1973–7: Cold Ties between Warm Ideological Partners
Authors: Kedar Claudia
Published: February 2017

This article unveils the hitherto overlooked tensions between Chile and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) during the formative years of the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet (from September 1973 to late 1977). This article shows that ideological affinity between the IMF and Pinochet’s economic team of ‘Chicago Boys’ did not necessarily guarantee fruitful cooperation between the parties. The analysis of this intricate relationship sheds new light on the processes of economic neoliberalization that were conducted in Latin America, with different levels of IMF involvement, between the 1970s and the 1990s. By challenging axiomatic and simplistic approaches of IMF–Latin American relations, this article provides a unique prism to reconsider not only the IMF’s motivations and constraints, but also the proactive modus operandi of its borrowing member-states.
Gender-Fair Language in Job Advertisements
Authors: Hodel Lea , Formanowicz Magdalena , Sczesny Sabine , Valdrová Jana , von Stockhausen Lisa
Published: February 2017

The present study investigates whether and how the use of gender-fair language is related to linguistic, cultural, and socioeconomic differences between countries with grammatical gender languages. To answer this question, we analyzed job titles in online job advertisements from four European countries differing in achieved gender equality and egalitarian versus hierarchical cultural values (Switzerland, Austria, Poland, and Czech Republic). Results show that gender-fair job titles were more frequent in more egalitarian countries with higher levels of socioeconomic gender equality (Switzerland, Austria) than in countries with a higher acceptance of hierarchies and inequalities (Poland, Czech Republic). In the latter countries, gender-specific (masculine or feminine) job titles predominated. Moreover, gender-fair job titles were more prevalent in a female-dominated branch (health care) and a gender-balanced economic branch (food services) than in a male-dominated branch (constructional steel and metal work). Thus, our findings suggest that the language use in job advertisements indeed corresponds with linguistic, cultural, and socioeconomic aspects and may contribute to the transmission of gender (in)equalities and gender stereotypes.
Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome as a complication of Henoch–Schönlein purpura in a seven-year-old girl
Authors: dos Santos Daiane , Langer Felipe Welter , dos Santos Tatiane , Rafael Tronco Alves Giordano , Feiten Marisa , Teixeira de Paula Neto Walter
Published: February 2017

Introduction

Henoch–Schönlein purpura is a multisystem small vessel vasculitis. Neurologic manifestations are uncommon. Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome is a rare complication of Henoch–Schönlein purpura with typical clinical and neuroimaging findings that occurs most commonly in the setting of severe hypertension and renal injury.

Case presentation

A seven-year-old girl was admitted to our institution presenting with clinical and laboratory findings suggestive of Henoch–Schönlein purpura. Glucocorticoid therapy was initiated, but five days following her admission, she developed altered consciousness, seizures, arterial hypertension, and cortical blindness. Brain MRI scan revealed areas of vasogenic oedema in parieto-occipital lobes, consistent with posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome. She was immediately initiated on antihypertensives and antiepileptics, which successfully improved her neurologic symptoms. Further laboratory work-up disclosed a rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis secondary to Henoch–Schönlein purpura that was the likely cause of her sudden blood pressure elevation. Immunosuppressive therapy was undertaken, and at one-year follow-up, the patient exhibited complete renal and neurologic recovery.

Conclusion

Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome is a severe complication of Henoch–Schönlein purpura. If promptly diagnosed and treated, children with Henoch–Schönlein purpura presenting with posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome usually have a good prognosis. Clinicians should be familiar with the characteristic presentation of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome and be aware that hypertension and renal injury may predispose Henoch–Schönlein purpura patients to developing this complication.
Bagging in Tourism Demand Modeling and Forecasting
Authors: Athanasopoulos George , Song Haiyan , Sun Jonathan A.
Published: February 2017

This study introduces bootstrap aggregation (bagging) in modeling and forecasting tourism demand. The aim is to improve the forecast accuracy of predictive regressions while considering fully automated variable selection processes which are particularly useful in industry applications. The procedures considered for variable selection is the general-to-specific (GETS) approach based on statistical inference and stepwise search procedures based on a measure of predictive accuracy (MPA). The evidence based on tourist arrivals from six source markets to Australia overwhelmingly suggests that bagging is effective for improving the forecasting accuracy of the models considered.
The making of tribes
Authors: Wouters Jelle J.P.
Published: February 2017

Highlighting ‘pre’, ‘trans’ and ‘new’ tribal formations amongst upland Nagas in India’s Northeast, this article formulates both a historical critique against dominant categorisations of the region’s social landscape and posits alternative ways of ‘seeing’ local patterns of kinship, identity and belonging. Drawing on ethno-historical perspectives from the Chang and Chakhesang Nagas, I illustrate the problematic cultural transitivity of the idea and idiom of ‘tribe’ which conceals the social formations that existed—and occasionally persist—before, beneath, betwixt and between categories of ‘tribe’. This realisation brings us to a dilemma which, I think, ought to be at the heart of the anthropology of Nagas and of India’s Northeast more widely—namely, how to account for the ethnographic observation that social organisation—both past and present—is based on interpersonal, village and clan networks which cut across tribal and ethnic groups with clearly permeable boundaries and yet most people maintain a view of the whole society as made up of partitioned, culturally coherent and historically immutable entities.
The genealogy of a dalit faith
Authors: Ram Ronki
Published: February 2017

This article aims to explore the rise of the Ravidassia Dharm and the emerging contours of caste conflicts between some sections of dalits and the followers of the Sikh religion in contemporary Punjab. It is based on the premise that the Ravidassia Dharm is a dalit response to social exclusion emanating from oppressive social structures coupled with the persistence of acute landlessness among dalits. It is further argued that the Ravidassia Dharm became objectified through the cultural appropriation of an all-pervasive iconography and religious symbols of the Sikh religion. It has grown out of the complex power politics of claims and counterclaims around sacred texts, Rehat Maryada, emblems, rituals and narratives that remain central to the critical processes of conflict formation between some sections of the Ravidassia community and followers of the Sikh faith. A critical examination of factors and forces that led to the formation of the Ravidassia Dharm and its eventual confrontation with the followers of the Sikh religion is long due.
The Men Who Lived Underground: The Chicago Police Torture Cases and the Problem of Measuring Police Violence, 1970-2016
Authors: Baer Andrew S.
Published: February 2017

Historical data on the use of force by police officers in the United States are unreliable or nonexistent. Available data, moreover, focus primarily on the behavior of patrolmen on the streets while neglecting violence by detectives during criminal investigations. Through an examination of a police torture scandal in Chicago from the early 1970s through the late 1990s, this article explains why violence during custodial interrogation often goes undocumented. In Chicago, the primary method of discovering, correcting, or preventing custodial abuse—pretrial motions to suppress statements—proved inadequate. By including the work of detectives, this article argues that a true measurement of police violence, impossible in practice, would likely be much higher than official data suggest.
Designing Contentious Politics in Post-1989 China
Authors: Lorentzen Peter
Published: February 2017

This article proposes a new approach to studying China’s contentious politics in the post-1989 era. This approach treats China’s central government as an institutional designer whose policies on social conflicts shape popular contention. This approach offers four insights. First, protests can provide useful information to the state about citizen grievances, but only if they are costly enough to ensure that only serious claimants engage in them. Second, protesters routinely forego strategies that would give them a stronger bargaining position because the state benefits from maintaining a consistent policy of rewarding only protests that pursue weaker strategies. Third, the contradictory “safety valve” and “single spark” metaphors for protest can be reconciled by distinguishing between the vertical flow of information from citizens to state and the horizontal flow of information from citizen to citizen. Finally, the article suggests why protests have been tolerated when apparently safer information-gathering institutions exist.
A vowel-based method for vocal tract control in clarinet pedagogy
Authors: González Darleny , Payri Blas
Published: February 2017

Our review of scientific literature shows that the activity inside the clarinetist’s vocal tract (VT) affects pitch and timbre, while also facilitating technical exercises. Clarinetists adapt their VT intuitively and, in some cases, may compensate an inadequate VT configuration through unnecessary pressure, resulting in technical blockage, fatigue, and impeding progress. The pedagogical literature sometimes disregards the explicit use of the VT, but common trends exist, using specific vowel formations to model VT configurations. To understand the actual approach of the VT in practice, we interviewed 12 renowned clarinetists from different continents. While all interviewees consider VT configurations important, some find VT manipulation an intuitively acquired skill. Most instructors use vowels to teach VT configurations. We propose a normalized system: /a/ for chalumeau, /ɔ/ for throat register, /i/ for clarion, /ø/ for altissimo, /o/ as a base vowel, /ɔ/–/i/ for ascending leaps, /i/–/ɔ/ for descending intervals. We have applied this method to clarinet teaching at the conservatory with very encouraging results, as students easily understand the vowel system, and in relatively short time have achieved better sound quality and technical ease. Students have gained a conscious control of their VT and consequently have acquired a technique that they now use intuitively.
Employability for music graduates: Malaysian educational reform and the focus on generic skills
Authors: Ghazali Ghaziah , Bennett Dawn
Published: February 2017

In Malaysia, the demand for employable higher education graduates has resulted in a national strategy that outlines desirable graduate attributes including “hard,” discipline-specific skills and “soft,” generic skills. As a result, music programs are under pressure to become more relevant to the conditions and characteristics of the industry. This article presents an overview of the whole-of-education trends in Malaysia and then reports empirical data from eight Malaysian music professionals, all higher education music graduates, who described their pre-sage, transitional and career experiences. Participants emphasized that hard and soft skills are equally important dimensions of graduate employability, which supports the heightened national focus on generic skills. However, participants’ focus was not on the skills per se; rather, they stressed the need for students to apply and reflect upon their development of skills during their studies. The article aligns this thinking with the Malaysian strategy and a commonly used employability framework to illustrate the soft skills that might be required of music graduates.
A new Spanish-language questionnaire for musical self-concept
Authors: Zubeldia Miren , Goñi Eider , Díaz Maravillas , Goñi Alfredo
Published: February 2017

The aim of this study is to analyze the psychometric properties of the Musical Self-Concept Questionnaire (CAMU), an abbreviated and culturally adapted Spanish language version of the Music Self-Perception Inventory (MUSPI) developed by Vispoel. Participants comprised 1,126 students from professional and advanced conservatories located in different autonomous regions of Spain. The internal consistency of the instrument was found to be high (Cronbach’s alpha = .907; AVE = .685). The exploratory factor analysis revealed an internal structure consisting of seven factors: singing, playing, reading, composing, listening, moving and general musical self-concept. Sex differences and correlations between musical self-concept and both verbal self-concept and causal attributions confirm the criterion validity of the questionnaire. In addition to being a useful tool for measuring musical self-concept in Spanish, the CAMU also enables cross-cultural research into this construct to be conducted, in line with that carried out in English.
The Ecology of Friendship: Early Tamil Landscapes of Irony and Voice
Authors: Selby Martha Ann
Published: February 2017

This article is a brief study of four female characters—a pair of daughters and a pair of mothers—who give voice to the majority of the poems in the Aiṅkuṟunūṟu, an Old Tamil anthology of love poetry from the early decades of the third century CE. Taking cues from recent ethnographies on friendship in South Asia and from Alan Bray’s compelling study of friendship in modern Britain, I will examine the ways in which bonds between female friends are expressed in the dense natural imagery so characteristic of Old Tamil convention, most often found within the poems in double entendre and in brief, almost allegorical statements. I focus primarily on the figure of the tōḻi, the ‘girlfriend’, who speaks with greatest frequency in these poems as she acts as the mediator between the talaivi (the ‘heroine’) and the talaivaṉ (the ‘hero’) through every stage of their romantic relationship, and also between the talaivi and her mothers—the cevili-t-ta −y or ‘foster mother’ and the naṟṟa −y, the ‘biological mother’ of the talaivi. In passing, I will briefly contrast this quartet with the voices of their corresponding male characters, which we hear especially within the context of the pa −caṟai, the ‘war camp’. I will analyze how the voices of the characters change—both in content and in register—according to shifts in poetic settings, and will discuss what these shifts can tell us about aesthetic representations of female friendship in early South India. Through a study of the conversational settings among these characters, I will illustrate how friendship, intimacy and love are conveyed in language and rhetorical gesture.
Practicing Friendship: Epistolary Constructions of Social Intimacy in the Bahmani Sultanate
Authors: Flatt Emma
Published: February 2017

This article considers epistolary friendships in the fifteenth-century Bahmani Sultanate. Focusing on letters written by the Bahmani Vizier, Mahmud Gavan, to distant friends in other parts of the Persianate world, including the Timurid Sufi-poet Jami, I examine how friendship could be constituted through the practice of letter-writing. I argue that despite common assumptions about the rule-bound and formulaic nature of the genre of inshāʿ (letter-writing), correspondents could subtly mobilize the generic rules to conjure up unique and potent metaphorical declarations of friendship. Second, I argue that the dense semiotic field created by the recurrent use of similar images and chains of metaphors to symbolize friendship in letters reified certain practices as constitutive of friendship, and thus actually contributed to friendship practices in the ‘real’ world. Finally, I suggest that the metaphorical language used in inshāʿ is not merely an ornamental flourish, but actually an attempt to constitute an alternative reality: By writing to each other in terms which evoked the friendship practices of physically proximate friends, two friends separated by distance could metaphorically undertake those practices together.
Book Review: V. Ravi Vaithees, Religion, Caste and Nation in South India: Maraimalai Adigal, the Neo-Saivite Movement, and Tamil Nationalism, 1876–1950
Authors: Basu Rajsekhar
Published: February 2017

V. Ravi Vaithees, Religion, Caste and Nation in South India: Maraimalai Adigal, the Neo-Saivite Movement, and Tamil Nationalism, 1876–1950, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 2015, ₹995, ISBN-13: 978-0-19-945181-4, ISBN-10: 978-0-19-945181-8.
Funding models in palliative care: Lessons from international experience
Authors: Groeneveld E Iris , Cassel J Brian , Bausewein Claudia , Csikós Ágnes , Krajnik Malgorzata , Ryan Karen , Haugen Dagny Faksvåg , Eychmueller Steffen , Gudat Keller Heike , Allan Simon , Hasselaar Jeroen , García-Baquero Merino Teresa , Swetenham Kate , Piper Kym , Fürst Carl Johan , Murtagh Fliss EM
Published: February 2017

Background:

Funding models influence provision and development of palliative care services. As palliative care integrates into mainstream health care provision, opportunities to develop funding mechanisms arise. However, little has been reported on what funding models exist or how we can learn from them.

Aim:

To assess national models and methods for financing and reimbursing palliative care.

Design:

Initial literature scoping yielded limited evidence on the subject as national policy documents are difficult to identify, access and interpret. We undertook expert consultations to appraise national models of palliative care financing in England, Germany, Hungary, Republic of Ireland, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United States and Wales. These represent different levels of service development and a variety of funding mechanisms.

Results:

Funding mechanisms reflect country-specific context and local variations in care provision. Patterns emerging include the following: Provider payment is rarely linked to population need and often perpetuates existing inequitable patterns in service provision. Funding is frequently characterised as a mixed system of charitable, public and private payers. The basis on which providers are paid for services rarely reflects individual care input or patient needs.

Conclusion:

Funding mechanisms need to be well understood and used with caution to ensure best practice and minimise perverse incentives. Before we can conduct cross-national comparisons of costs and impact of palliative care, we need to understand the funding and policy context for palliative care in each country of interest.
Cost analysis of a prospective multi-site cohort study of palliative care consultation teams for adults with advanced cancer: Where do cost-savings come from?
Authors: May Peter , Garrido Melissa M , Cassel J Brian , Kelley Amy S , Meier Diane E , Normand Charles , Smith Thomas J , Morrison R Sean
Published: February 2017

Background:

Studies report cost-savings from hospital-based palliative care consultation teams compared to usual care only, but drivers of observed differences are unclear.

Aim:

To analyse cost-differences associated with palliative care consultation teams using two research questions: (Q1) What is the association between early palliative care consultation team intervention, and intensity of services and length of stay, compared to usual care only? (Q2) What is the association between early palliative care consultation team intervention and day-to-day hospital costs, compared to a later intervention?

Design:

Prospective multi-site cohort study (2007–2011). Patients who received a consultation were placed in the intervention group, those who did not in the comparison group. Intervention group was stratified by timing, and groups were matched using propensity scores.

Setting/participants:

Adults admitted to three US hospitals with advanced cancer. Principle analytic sample contains 863 patients ( nUC = 637; nPC EARLY = 177; nPC LATE = 49) discharged alive.

Results:

Cost-savings from early palliative care accrue due to both reduced length of stay and reduced intensity of treatment, with an estimated 63% of savings associated with shorter length of stay. A reduction in day-to-day costs is observable in the days immediately following initial consult but does not persist indefinitely. A comparison of early and late palliative care consultation team cost-effects shows negligible difference once the intervention is administered.

Conclusion:

Reduced length of stay is the biggest driver of cost-saving from early consultation for patients with advanced cancer. Patient- and family-centred discussions on goals of care and transition planning initiated by palliative care consultation teams may be at least as important in driving cost-savings as the reduction of unnecessary tests and pharmaceuticals identified by previous studies.
Exploring the role of microglia in cortical spreading depression in neurological disease
Authors: Shibata Mamoru , Suzuki Norihiro
Published: February 2017

Microglia play a pivotal role in innate immunity in the brain. During development, they mature from myeloerythroid progenitor cells in the yolk sac and colonize the brain to establish a resident population of tissue macrophages. In the postnatal brain, they exert phagocytosis and induce inflammatory response against invading pathogens. Microglia also act as guardians of brain homeostasis by surveying the microenvironment using motile processes. Cortical spreading depression (CSD) is a slowly propagating (2–5 mm/min) wave of rapid, near-complete depolarization of neurons and astrocytes followed by a period of electrical suppression of a distinct population of cortical neurons. Not only has CSD been implicated in brain migraine aura, but CSD-like events have also been detected in stroke and traumatic injury. CSD causes a considerable perturbation of the ionic environment in the brain, which may be readily detected by microglia. Although CSD is known to activate microglia, the role of microglial activation in CSD-related neurological disorders remains poorly understood. In this article, we first provide an overview of microglial development and the multiple functions of microglia. Then, we review existing data on the relationship between microglia and CSD and discuss the relevance of CSD-induced microglial activation in neurological disease.
The augmentation of BK channel activity by nitric oxide signaling in rat cerebral arteries involves co-localized regulatory elements
Authors: Kyle Barry D , Mishra Ramesh C , Braun Andrew P
Published: February 2017

Large conductance, Ca2+-activated K+ (BK) channels control cerebrovascular tone; however, the regulatory processes influencing these channels remain poorly understood. Here, we investigate the cellular mechanisms underlying the enhancement of BK current in rat cerebral arteries by nitric oxide (NO) signaling. In isolated cerebral myocytes, BK current magnitude was reversibly increased by sodium nitroprusside (SNP, 100 μM) and sensitive to the BK channel inhibitor, penitrem-A (100 nM). Fostriecin (30 nM), a protein phosphatase type 2A (PP2A) inhibitor, significantly prolonged the SNP-induced augmentation of BK current and a similar effect was produced by sildenafil (30 nM), a phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5) inhibitor. Using proximity ligation assay (PLA)-based co-immunostaining, BK channels were observed to co-localize with PP2A, PDE5, and cGMP-dependent protein kinase (cGKI) (spatial restriction < 40 nm); cGKI co-localization increased following SNP exposure. SNP (10 μM) reversibly inhibited myogenic tone in cannulated cerebral arteries, which was augmented by either fostriecin or sildenafil and inhibited by penitrem-A. Collectively, these data suggest that (1) cGKI, PDE5, and PP2A are compartmentalized with cerebrovascular BK channels and determine the extent of BK current augmentation by NO/cGMP signaling, and (2) the dynamic regulation of BK activity by co-localized signaling enzymes modulates NO-evoked dilation of cerebral resistance arteries.