bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
In situ wavelength calibration system for the X-ray Imaging Crystal Spectrometer (XICS) on W7-X
Authors: Kring J. , Pablant N. , Langenberg A. , Rice J. , Delgado-Aparicio L. , Maurer D. , Traverso P. , Bitter M. , Hill K. , Reinke M.
Published: August 2018

An in situ wavelength calibration system for the X-ray Imaging Crystal Spectrometer (XICS) on W7-X has been developed to provide routine calibration between plasma shots. XICS is able to determine plasma flow profiles by measuring the Doppler shift of x-ray line emission from highly charged impurity species. A novel design is described that uses an x-ray tube with a cadmium anode placed in front of the diffracting spherically bent crystal. This arrangement provides calibration lines over the full detector extent for both the Ar16+ and Ar17+/Fe24+ spectrometer channels. This calibration system can provide a relative wavelength accuracy of 3 × 10−7 Å across the full spatial extent of the detector, which corresponds to 50 m/s in the W7-X system. An absolute wavelength calibration of 1 × 10−5 Å is expected, corresponding to 1 km/s, based on the current known accuracy of the calibration wavelength and the achievable measurement of the absolute positioning of the hardware. This calibration system can be used to independently calibrate XICS systems on both stellarators and tokamaks, without the need for special plasma conditions often used for calibration, such as locked modes on tokamaks. Experimental and simulated results are shown along with expected results, and the complete design of the calibration hardware that is to be installed in the W7-X XICS system.
Double transition of information spreading in a two-layered network
Authors: Wu Jiao , Zheng Muhua , Wang Wei , Yang Huijie , Gu Changgui
Published: August 2018

A great deal of significant progress has been seen in the study of information spreading on populations of networked individuals. A common point in many of the past studies is that there is only one transition in the phase diagram of the final accepted size versus the transmission probability. However, whether other factors alter this phenomenology is still under debate, especially for the case of information spreading through many channels and platforms. In the present study, we adopt a two-layered network to represent the interactions of multiple channels and propose a Susceptible-Accepted-Recovered information spreading model. Interestingly, our model shows a novel double transition including a continuous transition and a following discontinuous transition in the phase diagram, which originates from two outbreaks between the two layers of the network. Furthermore, we reveal that the key factors are a weak coupling condition between the two layers, a large adoption threshold, and the difference of the degree distributions between the two layers. Moreover, we also test the model in the coupled empirical social networks and find similar results as in the synthetic networks. Then, an edge-based compartmental theory is developed which fully explains all numerical results. Our findings may be of significance for understanding the secondary outbreaks of information in real life.
Laser-induced modifications of HfO2 coatings using picosecond pulses at 1053 nm: Using polarization to isolate surface defects
Authors: Laurence Ted A. , Negres Raluca A. , Feigenbaum Eyal , Shen Nan , Ly Sonny , Alessi David , Bude Jeff D. , Carr C. Wren
Published: August 2018

For pulse lengths between 1 and 60 ps, laser-induced modifications of optical materials undergo a transition from mechanisms intrinsic to the materials to defect-dominated mechanisms. Elucidating the location, size, and identity of these defects will greatly help efforts to reduce, mitigate, or eliminate these defects. We recently detailed the role of defects in the ps laser-modifications of silica coatings. We now discuss the similar role of defects in HfO2 1/2-wave coatings and also include the environmental effects on the damage process. By switching between S and P polarizations, we distinguish the effects of defects at the surface from those throughout the material. We find that defects very near the surface are dependent on the environment, leading to worse damage in vacuum than in air. Air suppresses or lessens the effects of these defects, suggesting a photo-chemical component in the mechanism of laser damage in HfO2 coatings.
Measurement of nonlinear piezoelectric coefficients using a micromechanical resonator
Authors: Boales Joseph A. , Erramilli Shyamsunder , Mohanty Pritiraj
Published: August 2018

We describe and demonstrate a method by which the nonlinear piezoelectric properties of a piezoelectric material may be measured by detecting the force that it applies on a suspended micromechanical resonator at one of its mechanical resonance frequencies. Resonators are used in countless applications; this method could provide a means for better-characterizing material behaviors within real MEMS devices. Further, special devices can be designed to probe this nonlinear behavior at specific frequencies with enhanced signal sizes. The resonators used for this experiment are actuated using a 1-μm-thick layer of aluminum nitride. When driven at large amplitudes, the piezoelectric layer generates harmonics, which are measurable in the response of the resonator. In this experiment, we measured the second-order piezoelectric coefficient of aluminum nitride to be −(23.1±14.1)×10−22 m/V2.
Hierarchical nanostructure of CrCoNi film underlying its remarkable mechanical strength
Authors: Chen Yujie , Zhou Zhifeng , Munroe Paul , Xie Zonghan
Published: August 2018

A CrCoNi medium entropy alloy thin film is fabricated using magnetron sputtering. It exhibits a unique hierarchical nanostructure, featuring (1) a high density of planar defects (mostly stacking faults plus a small number of twin boundaries), (2) a dual-phase configuration (a mix of face-centred-cubic and hexagonal-close-packed), and (3) vertically aligned, textured nanocolumns, each with a width of ∼100 nm. The hierarchical nanostructure in this study is original, especially for its dual phase combination, since the bulk CrCoNi medium entropy alloy generally presents a single phase face-centred-cubic structure. The CrCoNi film shows a hardness quadruple that of its face-centred-cubic structured counterpart. The formation and its role of the hierarchical nanostructure in producing such mechanical strength are discussed.
Breakdown of Carr-Purcell Meiboom-Gill spin echoes in inhomogeneous fields
Authors: Jarenwattananon Nanette N. , Bouchard Louis-S.
Published: August 2018

The Carr-Purcell Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) experiment has been used for decades to measure nuclear-spin transverse (T2) relaxation times. In the presence of magnetic field inhomogeneities, the limit of short interpulse spacings yields the intrinsic T2 time. Here, we show that the signal decay in such experiments exhibits fundamentally different behaviors between liquids and gases. In gases, the CPMG unexpectedly fails to eliminate the inhomogeneous broadening due to the non-Fickian nature of the motional averaging.
Rheoscopic fluids in a post-Kalliroscope world
Authors: Borrero-Echeverry Daniel , Crowley Christopher J. , Riddick Tyler P.
Published: August 2018

In rheoscopic flow visualization, the working fluid is seeded with small reflective flakes that align preferentially in the flow due to their anisotropy. This leads to directed light scattering, which can be exploited to distinguish qualitatively different regions of the flow. For the past four decades, the gold standard in rheoscopic flow visualization has been Kalliroscope, a commercial product consisting of crystalline guanine particles. Recently, however, worldwide production of crystalline guanine has dropped precipitously, leading the Kalliroscope Corporation to halt production in 2014. Here, we present a short survey of alternative rheoscopic flow visualization techniques and introduce an inexpensive rheoscopic fluid based on stearic acid crystals extracted from shaving cream, which has a performance similar to, and in certain respects superior to, Kalliroscope.
Letter: The effect of surface viscosity on the translational speed of droplets
Authors: Narsimhan Vivek
Published: August 2018

This paper quantifies the effect of interfacial viscosity on the translational speed of a drop in Stokes flow. In the limit of negligible droplet deformation and surface concentration inhomogeneities, the droplet mobility is equal to a clean droplet with a modified interior viscosity ηin*=ηin+2ηκ3a, where ηκ is the interfacial dilational viscosity and a is the droplet radius. This paper focuses on the physical explanation of these results via symmetry/scaling arguments, which illustrates why interfacial shear viscosity is unimportant. We conclude by calculating how surface concentration inhomogeneities and two-body hydrodynamic interactions alter these results.
Riddling: Chimera’s dilemma
Authors: Santos V. , Szezech J. D. , Batista A. M. , Iarosz K. C. , Baptista M. S. , Ren H. P. , Grebogi C. , Viana R. L. , Caldas I. L. , Maistrenko Y. L. , Kurths J.
Published: August 2018

We investigate the basin of attraction properties and its boundaries for chimera states in a circulant network of Hénon maps. It is known that coexisting basins of attraction lead to a hysteretic behaviour in the diagrams of the density of states as a function of a varying parameter. Chimera states, for which coherent and incoherent domains occur simultaneously, emerge as a consequence of the coexistence of basin of attractions for each state. Consequently, the distribution of chimera states can remain invariant by a parameter change, and it can also suffer subtle changes when one of the basins ceases to exist. A similar phenomenon is observed when perturbations are applied in the initial conditions. By means of the uncertainty exponent, we characterise the basin boundaries between the coherent and chimera states, and between the incoherent and chimera states. This way, we show that the density of chimera states can be not only moderately sensitive but also highly sensitive to initial conditions. This chimera’s dilemma is a consequence of the fractal and riddled nature of the basin boundaries.
Factors that contribute to high-quality clinical supervision of the rural allied health workforce: lessons from the coalface
Authors: Martin Priya , Baldock Katherine , Kumar Saravana , Lizarondo Lucylynn
Published: August 2018

Objective
The aim of this study was to identify the factors contributing to high-quality clinical supervision of the allied health workforce in rural and remote settings.

Methods
This quantitative study was part of a broader project that used a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design. Participants were 159 allied health professionals from two Australian states. Quantitative data were collected using an online customised survey and the Manchester Clinical Supervision Scale (MCSS-26). Data were analysed using regression analyses.

Results
Supervisee’s work setting and choice of supervisor were found to have a positive and significant influence on clinical supervision quality. Supervisee profession and time in work role were found to have a negative and significant influence on the quality of clinical supervision.

Conclusions
High-quality clinical supervision is essential to achieve quality and safety of health care, as well as to support the health workforce. Information on high-quality clinical supervision identified in this study can be applied to clinical supervision practices in rural and remote settings, and to professional support policies and training to enhance the quality of supervision.

What is known about the topic?
There is mounting evidence on the benefits of clinical supervision to health professionals, organisations and patients. Clinical supervision enhances recruitment and retention of the health workforce. However, there are still gaps regarding the factors that contribute to high-quality clinical supervision, especially for rural and remote health professionals.

What does this paper add?
This study, the first of its kind, recruited rural and remote health professionals from seven allied health disciplines across two Australian states. It investigated the factors that influence high-quality clinical supervision in this under-resourced group. This paper outlines specific factors that contribute to clinical supervision quality for rural and remote allied health professionals.

What are the implications for practitioners?
Effective and high-quality clinical supervision of the rural and remote allied health workforce can enhance recruitment and retention in those areas. Healthcare organisations can facilitate effective clinical supervision delivery by using the evidence gathered in this study in clinical supervision policy, training and practice.
Corrigendum to: Consequences of genetic selection for environmental impact traits on economically important traits in dairy cows
Authors: Kandel Purna , Vanderick Sylvie , Vanrobays Marie-Laure , Soyeurt Hélène , Gengler Nicolas
Published: August 2018

Methane (CH4) emission is an important environmental trait in dairy cows. Breeding aiming to mitigate CH4 emissions require the estimation of genetic correlations with other economically important traits and the prediction of their selection response. In this study, test-day CH4 emissions were predicted from milk mid-infrared spectra of Holstein cows. Predicted CH4 emissions (PME) and log-transformed CH4 intensity (LMI) computed as the natural logarithm of PME divided by milk yield (MY). Genetic correlations of PME and LMI with traits used currently were approximated from correlations between estimated breeding values of sires. Values were for PME with MY 0.06, fat yield (FY) 0.09, protein yield (PY) 0.13, fertility 0.17; body condition score (BCS) –0.02; udder health (UDH) 0.22; and longevity 0.22. As expected by its definition, values were negative for LMI with production traits (MY –0.61; FY –0.15 and PY –0.40) and positive with fertility (0.36); BCS (0.20); UDH (0.08) and longevity (0.06). The genetic correlations of 33 type traits with PME ranged from –0.12 to 0.25 and for LMI ranged from –0.22 to 0.18. Without selecting PME and LMI (status quo) the relative genetic change through correlated responses of other traits were in PME by 2% and in LMI by –15%, but only due to the correlated response to MY. Results showed for PME that direct selection of this environmental trait would reduce milk carbon foot print but would also affect negatively fertility. Therefore, more profound changes in current indexes will be required than simply adding environmental traits as these traits also affect the expected progress of other traits.
Growth performance, digestibility, haematology, biochemistry, and some humoral immunity blood parameters of broiler chickens fed different levels of Boswellia serrata resin
Authors: Al-Yasiry Ali Ridha Mustafa , Kiczorowska Bożena , Samolińska Wioletta , Kowalczuk-Vasilev Edyta
Published: August 2018

The study determined the effect of three different levels of Boswellia serrata tree resin (BSR) supplementation in diets for broiler chickens on the growth performance, selected slaughter analysis, nutrient digestibility, as well as haematology, biochemical and some humoral immunity blood parameters. In total, 200 1-day-old broiler chickens were assigned randomly to four treatments. The broiler chickens were fed diets containing 0 (C), 1.5 (BSR1.5), 2 (BSR2), or 2.5% Boswellia serrata resin (BSR2.5). The BSR treatments improved (P < 0.05) the feed intake and feed conversion ratio at breeding Days 22–35, but did not differentiate the nutrient digestibility in the diets. The best-quality carcass with a high proportion of muscles and low fat content (Control versus BSR diets, linear, P < 0.05) was obtained in broiler chickens fed diets supplemented with 2% and 2.5% BSR. The blood profile was affected by the BSR treatments. The lymphocyte count increased linearly in blood (P < 0.05) along the increasing amounts of BSR. The content of uric acid and aspartate aminotransferase activity in blood plasma decreased upon the BSR supplementation (Control vs BSR diets, linear, P < 0.05; and Control vs BSR diets, linear, P < 0.01, respectively). The resin of Boswellia serrata can be considered as a good botanical feed additive, which can have positive effects on the performance and health of broiler chickens.
Physiological performance of drought-stressed olive plants when exposed to a combined heat–UV-B shock and after stress relief
Authors: Silva Sónia , Santos Conceição , Serodio João , Silva Artur M. S. , Dias Maria Celeste
Published: August 2018

Climate change scenarios increase the frequency of combined episodes of drought, heat and high UV radiation, particularly in the Mediterranean region where dryland farming of olive (Olea europaea L.) orchards remains a common practice. Nonirrigated olive plants (drought treatment) were subjected to an episode of heat plus UV-B radiation shock (DH+UV-B treatment) for 2 days. After the treatments, plants were allowed to grow under irrigated conditions (recovery). Compared with irrigated plants, drought treatment induced lower relative water content but this status was not aggravated when DH+UV-B shock was applied. Additionally, the effective quantum yield of PSII was similar in the drought-stressed and DH+UV-B treatments. Interestingly, the DH+UV-B treatment produced higher photosynthetic pigment contents than drought-stressed plants. Concerning oxidative status, the DH+UV-B treatment induced similar lipid peroxidation levels and only cell membrane permeability was higher than in drought-stressed plants. On other hand, drought-stressed plants showed higher levels of anthocyanins and proline. Our data suggest that plants grown under dryland conditions modulated some tolerance mechanisms that may prevent cumulative damages by other stressors. Moreover, drought-stressed and DH+UV-B plants were able to recover their physiological performance in a similar way. These data represent an important contribution to understanding how dryland -grown olive plants will cope with climate change.
The moonfish, Mene maculata (Perciformes: Menidae), and the crimson snapper, Lutjanus erythropterus (Perciformes: Lutjanidae), in Omani waters: a questioned occurrence and possible presence of self-sustaining populations
Authors: Jawad Laith A. , Al-Mamry Juma M. , Al-Marzouqi Abdul Aziz
Published: August 2018

The first confirmed record of the moonfish, Mene maculata (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) (Perciformes: Menidae), and the crimson snapper, Lutjanus erythropterus Bloch, 1790 (Perciformes: Lutjanidae), in Omani waters is reported on the basis of 10 (M. maculata) and 7 (L. erythropterus) specimens, ranging in total length 290–410mm and 300–720mm respectively, which were collected using gill-net on the coast of Muscat City, Oman. Morphometric and meristic data are provided and compared with those of several specimens of these species from other parts of the world. The present study reports on the largest recorded specimen of M. maculata. It also reports on the presence of a sustainable population of both species in the Oman Sea, Sultanate of Oman.
Conditions affecting oxide quantification in unknown tropical soils via handheld X-ray fluorescence spectrometer
Authors: Santana M. L. T. , Ribeiro B. T. , Silva S. H. G. , Poggere G. C. , Guilherme L. R. G. , Curi N.
Published: August 2018

Soil chemical characterisation has been accurately performed worldwide using portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF), contributing to fast, low-cost and environmentally-friendly soil analyses. However, many factors can influence the pXRF performance. Thus, this work was carried out to assess the oxides (SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, TiO2 and P2O5) in tropical soils via pXRF, evaluating the effects of soil packing prior to analysis and the soil matrix. The packing of soil samples was performed using X-ray thin-film and common, low-cost plastic bags. Different soil matrices were obtained by grouping of samples according to the Munsell colour system. The obtained results were compared with a conventional method employed for the determination of soil oxides. In addition, the pXRF measurements made on either sieved soil samples or directly on the soil profile were compared. The P2O5 content was below the detection limit of pXRF (0.05 g kg−1). The Fe2O3 and TiO2 contents of several tropical soils were accurately determined via pXRF using air-dried and sieved samples. This result was not observed for SiO2 and Al2O3. For Fe2O3, a good correlation (R2 = 0.91) was obtained between pXRF measurements made on sieved soil samples and directly on the soil profile. The packing of soil samples using plastic bags did not negatively influence the pXRF performance.
De novo formation of an aggregation pheromone precursor by an isoprenyl diphosphate synthase-related terpene synthase in the harlequin bug
Authors: Lancaster Jason , Khrimian Ashot , Young Sharon , Lehner Bryan , Luck Katrin , Wallingford Anna , Ghosh Saikat Kumar B. , Zerbe Philipp , Muchlinski Andrew , Marek Paul E. , Sparks Michael E. , Tokuhisa James G. , Tittiger Claus , Köllner Tobias G. , Weber Donald C. , Gundersen-Rindal Dawn E. , Kuhar Thomas P. , Tholl Dorothea
Published: August 2018

Significance

Many insects release volatile terpenes for chemical communication. However, the biosynthetic origin and evolution of these infochemicals are mostly unknown. We show that the harlequin bug,
Murgantia histrionica
, a stink bug pest (Hemiptera) of crucifer crops, produces a terpene aggregation pheromone by an enzyme that is unrelated to microbial and plant terpene synthases.
M. histrionica
terpene synthase activity is highly sex- and tissue-specific and makes a sesquiterpene alcohol, so far unknown in animals, as pheromone precursor. The enzyme evolved from ancestral isoprenyl diphosphate synthases and provides new evidence for de novo biosynthesis of terpenes in hemipteran insects. Knowledge of pheromone biosynthesis in stink bugs may lead to the development of new controls of these pests.
Specific oxylipins enhance vertebrate hematopoiesis via the receptor GPR132
Authors: Lahvic Jamie L. , Ammerman Michelle , Li Pulin , Blair Megan C. , Stillman Emma R. , Fast Eva M. , Robertson Anne L. , Christodoulou Constantina , Perlin Julie R. , Yang Song , Chiang Nan , Norris Paul C. , Daily Madeleine L. , Redfield Shelby E. , Chan Iris T. , Chatrizeh Mona , Chase Michael E. , Weis Olivia , Zhou Yi , Serhan Charles N. , Zon Leonard I.
Published: August 2018

Significance

Small-molecule enhancers of hematopoietic stem cell transplant could improve the safety of this treatment and expand the pool of eligible patients. We previously showed that the lipid 11,12-epoxyeicosatrienoic acid (EET) enhanced transplant in zebrafish and mice. We use a bioinformatic approach to identify candidate EET receptors and demonstrate that EET activates GPR132. We find that this receptor is important in zebrafish and mouse hematopoiesis, and we further show that GPR132 has responsiveness to additional oxygenated polyunsaturated fatty acids such as EET. Thus, GPR132 receives lipid-derived signals to regulate hematopoiesis and is a therapeutic target for enhancing HSC transplant.
5. The abolitionist renaissance and the coming of the Civil War
Authors: Newman Richard S.
Published: August 2018

Although abolitionists never enjoyed widespread popularity in the United States, they found that northerners were more interested in their critiques of slavery during the 1850s. “The abolitionist renaissance and the coming of the Civil War” explains how the passage of a stronger fugitive slave law, which turned white citizens into would-be slave catchers, raised new questions about the slave power and allowed abolitionist arguments to resonate more deeply, resulting in an abolitionist renaissance. From politics to pop culture, abolitionist ideas were diffused widely through American society. Even if most northerners did not join antislavery societies, the abolitionist struggle seemed ascendant in ways not seen since the late eighteenth century, a development that had profound consequences for sectionalism, disunion, and civil war.
Epilogue
Authors: Newman Richard S.
Published: August 2018

In the final decades of the nineteenth century, American abolitionists began writing memoirs, histories, and reminiscences of the grand struggle for freedom. Part of a battle over Civil War memory, they sought not only to claim a piece of history but also to combat Lost Cause narratives that already denigrated emancipation. Even though American slavery was history, abolitionist battles continued. The epilogue describes how across the Atlantic world abolitionists realized that their struggle was not over. British abolitionists focused on the perils of illegal slave trading while Iberian and Latin American abolitionists renewed their struggle against bondage itself. In the U.S. South, abolitionists fought against new forms of discrimination that seemed very much like slavery.
Choosing from the field of competitors
Authors: Simmons Leigh W.
Published: August 2018

There is now unequivocal evidence for Darwin’s long-rejected suggestion that females choose among potential mates based on their secondary sexual traits. This has shifted attention from the question of whether females exercised mate choice, to why they should exhibit the mating preferences they do. ‘Choosing from the field of competitors’ gives a contemporary view of mate choice and its occurrence in a wide variety of animal species, along with some examples of what females are choosing and why parasites and disease may play a role in the evolution of extravagant secondary sexual characteristics. Several theoretical models are discussed along with the role of sexual selection in the evolution of humans.
Sexual conflict
Authors: Simmons Leigh W.
Published: August 2018

The reproductive interests of males and females will almost always differ, for example over whether to mate and how often, when to produce offspring and how many, or how much to invest in each offspring. Whenever the reproductive interests of males and females differ, opposing selection on males and females to achieve their preferred outcome will generate sexually antagonistic selection. Such sexual conflict is reflected in differences in the appearance and behaviour of the sexes as each evolves to gain the advantage in a fitness ‘arms race’. ‘Sexual conflict’ explores the evolutionary consequences of these arms races in the context of sexual selection as it occurs both before and after mating.
3. Word, body, and gesture
Authors: Cummings Brian
Published: August 2018

‘Word, body, and gesture’ examines the Book of Common Prayer in detail, describing the nature and theology of the English services and prayers, and also their witness to gesture, faith, and worship. The Book of Common Prayer is a book of prayer, but also of ritual: a corpus of gestures, practices, and performances. While rejecting so many of the physical forms of the medieval rites, the Book of Common Prayer created its own grammar of social action. The services of Holy Communion, Morning and Evening Prayer, death, and the role of participation and mimesis are discussed. Special attention is paid to how the book’s rubrics changed from edition to edition, from 1549 to 1552 and afterwards.
5. Empire and prayer book
Authors: Cummings Brian
Published: August 2018

The words ‘to propagate the worship of God in the English tongue’ became the motto of the British Empire in the 19th century. Their first appearance, however, came in a proclamation accompanying the first edition made outside of England—in Dublin, 1551. ‘Empire and prayer book’ describes the history of new editions of the Book of Common Prayer first in Ireland and in North America after English settlement in 1607. It also outlines the publication of the American Book of Common Prayer after independence. From the middle of the 19th century, the Book of Common Prayer took on the mantle of colonial acculturation. Versions were published in Chinese, Tamil, Urdu, Bengali, Malay, Maori, and Swahili.
Stephanie Kwolek’s new polymer: from labs to riches
Authors: Dodgson Mark , Gann David
Published: August 2018

Innovation usually involves the combination of ideas derived from many different places. Innovation is also affected by wider social, cultural, political, and economic factors. These include contributions made by cities and regions, government policies, and the ‘systems of innovation’ organizations belong and contribute to. ‘Stephanie Kwolek’s new polymer: from labs to riches’ considers the various contributors to innovation: entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, research and development departments, customers and suppliers, collaborative partners, universities, and relationships with government. The case of Stephanie Kwolek and her product Kevlar epitomizes the corporate R&D department’s contribution to innovation, but also highlights its shortcomings; the polymer took eighteen years to develop.
2. General intelligence as the Holy Grail
Authors: Boden Margaret A.
Published: August 2018

A host of state-of-the-art AI applications exist, designed for countless specific tasks and used in almost every area of life, by laymen and professionals alike. Many outperform even the most expert humans. In that sense, progress has been spectacular. But the AI pioneers were also hoping for systems with general intelligence. ‘General intelligence as the Holy Grail’ explains why artificial general intelligence is still highly elusive despite recent increases in computer power. It considers the general AI strategies in recent research—heuristics, planning, mathematical simplification, and different forms of knowledge representation—and discusses the concepts of the frame problem, agents and distributed cognition, machine learning, and generalist systems.
Heart failure leads to altered β2-adrenoceptor/cyclic adenosine monophosphate dynamics in the sarcolemmal phospholemman/Na,K ATPase microdomain
Authors: Bastug-Özel Zeynep , Wright Peter T , Kraft Axel E , Pavlovic Davor , Howie Jacqueline , Froese Alexander , Fuller William , Gorelik Julia , Shattock Michael J , Nikolaev Viacheslav O
Published: August 2018

Aims

Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) regulates cardiac excitation–contraction coupling by acting in microdomains associated with sarcolemmal ion channels. However, local real time cAMP dynamics in such microdomains has not been visualized before. We sought to directly monitor cAMP in a microdomain formed around sodium–potassium ATPase (NKA) in healthy and failing cardiomyocytes and to better understand alterations of cAMP compartmentation in heart failure.

Methods and results

A novel Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based biosensor termed phospholemman (PLM)-Epac1 was developed by fusing a highly sensitive cAMP sensor Epac1-camps to the C-terminus of PLM. Live cell imaging in PLM-Epac1 and Epac1-camps expressing adult rat ventricular myocytes revealed extensive regulation of NKA/PLM microdomain-associated cAMP levels by β2-adrenoceptors (β2-ARs). Local cAMP pools stimulated by these receptors were tightly controlled by phosphodiesterase (PDE) type 3. In chronic heart failure following myocardial infarction, dramatic reduction of the microdomain-specific β2-AR/cAMP signals and β2-AR dependent PLM phosphorylation was accompanied by a pronounced loss of local PDE3 and an increase in PDE2 effects.

Conclusions

NKA/PLM complex forms a distinct cAMP microdomain which is directly regulated by β2-ARs and is under predominant control by PDE3. In heart failure, local changes in PDE repertoire result in blunted β2-AR signalling to cAMP in the vicinity of PLM.
Nitroglycerine limits infarct size through S-nitrosation of cyclophilin D: a novel mechanism for an old drug
Authors: Bibli Sofia-Iris , Papapetropoulos Andreas , Iliodromitis Efstathios K , Daiber Andreas , Randriamboavonjy Voahanginirina , Steven Sebastian , Brouckaert Peter , Chatzianastasiou Athanasia , Kypreos Kyriakos E , Hausenloy Derek J , Fleming Ingrid , Andreadou Ioanna
Published: August 2018

Aims

Nitroglycerine (NTG) given prior to an ischaemic insult exerts cardioprotective effects. However, whether administration of an acute low dose of NTG in a clinically relevant manner following an ischaemic episode limits infarct size, has not yet been explored.

Methods and results

Adult mice were subjected to acute myocardial infarction in vivo and then treated with vehicle or low-dose NTG prior to reperfusion. This treatment regimen minimized myocardial infarct size without affecting haemodynamic parameters but the protective effect was absent in mice rendered tolerant to the drug. Mechanistically, NTG was shown to nitrosate and inhibit cyclophilin D (CypD), and NTG administration failed to limit infarct size in CypD knockout mice. Additional experiments revealed lack of the NTG protective effect following genetic (knockout mice) or pharmacological inhibition (L-NAME treatment) of the endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS). The protective effect of NTG was attributed to preservation of the eNOS dimer. Moreover, NTG retained its cardioprotective effects in a model of endothelial dysfunction (ApoE knockout) by preserving CypD nitrosation. Human ischaemic heart biopsies revealed reduced eNOS activity and exhibited reduced CypD nitrosation.

Conclusion

Low-dose NTG given prior to reperfusion reduces myocardial infarct size by preserving eNOS function, and the subsequent eNOS-dependent S-nitrosation of CypD, inhibiting cardiomyocyte necrosis. This novel pharmacological action of NTG warrants confirmation in clinical studies, although our data in human biopsies provide promising preliminary results.
The Distribution of Phase Shifts for Semiclassical Potentials with Polynomial Decay
Authors: Gell-Redman Jesse , Hassell Andrew
Published: August 2018

This is the 3rd paper in a series [6, 9] analyzing the asymptotic distribution of the phase shifts in the semiclassical limit. We analyze the distribution of phase shifts, or equivalently, eigenvalues of the scattering matrix $S_h$, at some fixed energy $E$, for semiclassical Schrödinger operators on $\mathbb{R}^d$ that are perturbations of the free Hamiltonian $h^2 \Delta $ on $L^2(\mathbb{R}^d)$ by a potential $V$ with polynomial decay. Our assumption is that $V(x) \sim |x|^{-\alpha } v(\hat x)$ as $x \to \infty $, $\hat x = x/|x|$, for some $\alpha> d$, with corresponding derivative estimates. In the semiclassical limit $h \to 0$, we show that the atomic measure on the unit circle defined by these eigenvalues, after suitable scaling in $h$, tends to a measure $\mu $ on $\mathbb{S}^1$. Moreover, $\mu $ is the pushforward from $\mathbb{R}$ to $\mathbb{R} / 2 \pi \mathbb{Z} = \mathbb{S}^1$ of a homogeneous distribution. As a corollary we obtain an asymptotic formula for the accumulation of phase shifts in a sector of $\mathbb{S}^1$. The proof relies on an extension of results in [14] on the classical Hamiltonian dynamics and semiclassical Poisson operator to the larger class of potentials under consideration here.
Disseminated Mycobacterium abscessus Infection Secondary to an Infected Vascular Stent: Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: Tejura Nilesh , Bontempo Gilda , Chew Debra
Published: August 2018

Mycobacterium abscessus is a rapidly growing, multidrug-resistant mycobacteria, commonly associated with pulmonary, skin, and soft tissue infections. We describe a rare case of M abscessus endovascular stent infection; only 3 cases of graft infections have previously been reported.
Political Sociology and the People's Health
Authors: Beckfield Jason
Published: August 2018

Health, illness, and death are distributed unequally around the world. Babies born in Japan can expect to live to age 80 or over, while babies born in Malawi can expect to die before the age of 50. As important, birth into one race, class, and gender within one society vs. another also matters enormously for one’s health. To answer such questions about social inequalities in health, Political Sociology and the People’s Health responds to two research trends that are motivating scholarship at the leading edge of inquiry into population health. First, social epidemiology is turning toward policy and politics to explain the unequal global distribution of population health. Second, social stratification research is turning toward new conceptualizations and theorizations of how institutions—the “rules of the game” that organize power in social life—distribute social goods, including health. Political Sociology and the People’s Health advances these two turns by developing new hypotheses that integrate insights from political sociology and social epidemiology. Political sociology offers a rich array of concepts, measures, and data that help social epidemiologists develop new hypotheses about how macroscopic factors like social policy, labor markets, and the racialized and gendered state shape the distribution of population health. Social epidemiology offers innovative approaches to the conceptualization and measurement of population, etiologic period, and distribution that can advance research on the relationships between institutions and inequalities. Developing the conversation between these fields, Political Sociology and the People’s Health describes how human institutional arrangements distribute life and death.
Types of Speech Acts
Authors: Hanks Peter
Published: August 2018

Classical speech act theory, in the tradition of Austin and Searle, is based on a picture of propositional content due to Frege. This picture takes propositions to be the primary bearers of truth conditions, and it incorporates a sharp distinction between content and force. In this paper I defend an alternative picture of propositional content, on which the primary bearers of truth conditions are the actions we perform in thinking and speaking about the world. Propositions are types of these actions, and they inherit their truth conditions from them. This picture abandons the distinction between content and force and it leads to a three-way distinction between different kinds of propositions. Here I explore the consequences of this alternative picture for the nature and taxonomy of speech acts.
Semantic Typology and Composition
Authors: Pietroski Paul M.
Published: August 2018

How many types of expression meaning are there, and are some types more basic than others? According to a familiar tripartite proposal, languages like English generate (i) denoters of a basic type ; (ii) truth-evaluable sentences of a basic type ; and (iii) expressions of nonbasic types that are characterized recursively: if  and  are types, so is ; where expressions of type  signify functions, from things of the sort signified with expressions of type  to things of the sort signified with expressions of type . On this view, human languages are importantly like the language that Frege invented to study the foundations of arithmetic. In this chapter it is argued that each third of the tripartite proposal is wrong. An alternative is then sketched according to which there are exactly two semantic types, corresponding to monadic and dyadic concepts.
Atoms, Molecules, Crystals and Semiconductor Devices
Authors: Wolf E. L.
Published: August 2018

Properties of matter and of electronic devices are described, starting with Bohr’s model of the hydrogen atom. Motion of electrons in a periodic potential is shown to allow energy ranges with free motion separated by energy ranges where no propagating states are possible. Metals and semiconductors are described via Schrodinger’s equation in terms of their structure and their electrical properties. Energy gaps and effective masses are described. The semiconductor pn junction is described as a circuit element and as a photovoltaic device. We now extend Schrodinger’s method to more familiar matter, in the form of atoms, molecules and semiconductors. The solar cell, that produces electrical energy from Sunlight, in fact requires a sophisticated understanding of the semiconductor PN junction.
Italy
Authors: Ferrera Maurizio
Published: August 2018

Wars have had a clearly recognizable impact on Italy’s social policy since unification. The independence and early colonial wars prompted the introduction of veteran benefits and other forms of state compensation. The two world wars marked key turning points, creating the conditions for introducing compulsory social insurance and then extending its scope and coverage. The pronatalist policies introduced by Fascism were in their turn closely linked to the regime’s war mobilization strategy. In comparative perspective, a distinctive feature of Italian developments was the elaboration of very ambitious and comprehensive reform plans after both world wars, largely motivated by the wish to forge broad cross-class coalitions and safeguard democratic stability. Even if initially unsuccessful, such plans left an ideational legacy which contributed to inspire welfare state developments well throughout the so-called Golden Age.
Ovid's Presence in Contemporary Women's Writing
Authors: Cox Fiona
Published: August 2018

This monograph explores an understudied aspect of classical reception—the extraordinary response to Ovid on the part of contemporary women writers. To date, work on classical reception has focused predominantly upon the second-wave feminism preoccupations of recovering the silenced female voices and establishing a woman’s perspective within canonical works. This monograph extends this work by examining the intersections between Ovid’s imaginative universe and the political and aesthetic agenda of third-wave feminism. Ovid enters a new phase of feminism which emphasizes the imperatives of social responsibility and democratization of learning, while also exploring the fluidity of gender boundaries and the ways in which new virtual universes have modified our attitudes to both sexuality and fame. Authors selected for particular case studies include A. S. Byatt, Ali Smith, Marina Warner, Yoko Tawada, Alice Oswald, Saviana Stanescu, Mary Zimmerman, Jo Shapcott, Marie Darrieussecq, Josephine Balmer, Averill Curdy, Clare Pollard, Michèle Roberts, and Jane Alison. Through an analysis of the novels, memoirs, short stories, poems, plays, and translations/adaptations of these writers, Cox opens up the field of classical reception to third-wave feminism, while also casting new light upon the extraordinary plasticity of Ovid’s writing and the acuity of his psychological imagination.
The Overproduction of Truth
Authors: Pacchioni Gianfranco
Published: August 2018

The way science is done has changed radically in the last years. The personal reflections and experiences of a protagonist help us to understand the mechanisms of contemporary science. A system where passion, dedication and reliability, have increasingly less room, pressed by hard market laws. From vocation of a few, science has become the profession of many, possibly too many. With consequences and risks, such as the increase of frauds, plagiarism, but in particular with a huge amount of scientific publications, often of little relevance. The solution? A slow approach with more emphasis to quality than quantity, that helps us to rediscover the central role of a responsible scientist. The work is a critical review and assessment of present-day policies and behaviors in science production and publication, touching upon the tumultuous growth of scientific Journals, in parallel to the growth of self-declared scientists over the world. Along with personal reminiscences of times past, the author investigates the loopholes and hoaxes of pretended Journals and non-existing Congresses, so common nowadays in the scientific arena. The troubles with bibliometric indices are also discussed, as resulting in large part from the above distortions of science life.
Opacity and transparency in vowel harmony
Authors: van der Hulst Harry
Published: August 2018

The first chapter of this book offers an overview of the general causes of asymmetries in vowel harmony systems. This overview will characterize the general nature of vowel harmony, yet focus on what is taken to be a key issue in this area of phonology, which is the behavior of vowels ‘that do not play ball’. The chapter also provides an overview of general issues and characteristics such as vowel harmony, symmetrical harmony, transparency, opacity, root control, dominant/recessive systems, and harmonic domains.
Zurich and Geneva
Authors: Straumann Tobias
Published: August 2018

The Global Financial Crisis has had a strong negative effect on Zurich and Geneva by ending banking secrecy for foreign clients. The reason for this historical break was the rapid rise of public debt in the wake of the crisis which prompted major EU countries and the United States to intensify their fight against financial centres profiting from tax evasion. As Zurich and Geneva have always had other comparative advantages besides banking secrecy, they are likely to remain important hubs in the international financial geography. But there is no doubt that their golden age has come to an end. Brexit and fintech are unlikely to provide opportunities to reverse the relative decline, since Switzerland is not part of the EU and the Eurozone and does not have the economic size required to be a first mover in developing basic innovations.
Vector Calculus
Authors: Mann Peter
Published: August 2018

This chapter gives a non-technical overview of differential equations from across mathematical physics, with particular attention to those used in the book. It is a common trend in physics and nature, or perhaps just the way numbers and calculus come together, that, to describe the evolution of things, most theories use a differential equation of low order. This chapter is useful for those with no prior knowledge of the differential equations and explains the concepts required for a basic exposition of classical mechanics. It discusses separable differential equations, boundary conditions and initial value problems, as well as particular solutions, complete solutions, series solutions and general solutions. It also discusses the Cauchy–Lipschitz theorem, flow and the Fourier method, as well as first integrals, complete integrals and integral curves.
Osteoarthritis treatment
Authors: Saccomano Scott J.
Published: August 2018

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common articular disease. The condition results in bone-on-bone contact, stiffness, pain, and decreased mobility. By the year 2050, 40 million individuals will be severely disabled because of OA, and there will be over 130 million individuals suffering from OA worldwide.
Robotic-Assisted Sacrocolpopexy: Early Postoperative Outcomes After Surgical Reduction of Enlarged Genital Hiatus
Authors: Bradley Megan S. , Askew Amy L. , Vaughan Monique H. , Kawasaki Amie , Visco Anthony G.
Published: August 2018

(Abstracted from Am J Obstet Gynecol 2018;218:514.e1–514.e8)

Robotic-assisted sacrocolpopexy (RSC) has comparable surgical outcomes and less perioperative morbidity than abdominal sacrocolpopexy.
Effect of Maternal Iron Deficiency Anemia on Fetal Neural Development
Authors: Basu Sriparna , Kumar Dinesh , Anupurba Shampa , Verma Ashish , Kumar Ashok
Published: August 2018

(Abstracted from J Perinatol 2018;38:233–239)

The hippocampus region of the brain plays an important role in memory and learning and appears to show particular response to iron deficiency. In this study, the researchers evaluated brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) concentrations found in cord blood as well as the intracranial volumes of 70 singleton term neonates born to mothers with iron deficiency anemia, comparing the data with those of a control group of 20 gestational age–matched neonates born to healthy mothers.
Relaxation of the One Child Policy and Trends in Cesarean Section Rates and Birth Outcomes in China Between 2012 and 2016: Observational Study of Nearly Seven Million Health Facility Births
Authors: Liang Juan , Mu Yi , Li Xiaohong , Tang Wen , Wang Yanping , Liu Zheng , Huang Xiaona , Scherpbier Robert W. , Guo Sufang , Li Mingrong , Dai Li , Deng Kui , Deng Changfei , Li Qi , Kang Leni , Zhu Jun , Ronsmans Carine
Published: August 2018

(Abstracted from BMJ 2018;360:k817)

Health care communities around the world have expressed concerns about the health effects of increased cesarean delivery rates. In China, complex factors such as financial incentives and medicolegal concerns have influenced the high cesarean rates.