bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Modeling and simulation of air pollutant distribution in street canyon area with Skytrain stations
Authors: Chomcheon Suranath , Khajohnsaksumeth Nathnarong , Wiwatanapataphee Benchawan , Ge Xiangyu 
Published: October 2019

Abstract
This paper focuses on effects of the wind flow velocity on the air flow and the air pollution dispersion in a street canyon with Skytrain. The governing equations of air pollutants and air flow in this study area are the convection–diffusion equations of species concentration and the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations of compressible turbulent flow, respectively. Finite element method is utilized for the solution of the problem. To investigate the impact of the air flow on the pattern of air pollution dispersion, three speeds of inlet wind in three different blowing directions are chosen. The results illustrate that our model can depict the airflows and dispersion patterns for different wind conditions.
On the realization of the recognition-primed decision model for artificial agents
Authors: Danial Syed Nasir , Smith Jennifer , Veitch Brian , Khan Faisal 
Published: October 2019

Abstract
This work proposes a methodology to program an artificial agent that can make decisions based on a naturalistic decision-making approach called recognition-primed decision model (RPDM). The proposed methodology represents the main constructs of RPDM in the language of Belief-Desire-Intention logic. RPDM considers decision-making as a synthesis of three phenomenal abilities of the human mind. The first is one’s use of experience to recognize a situation and suggest appropriate responses. The main concern here is on situation awareness because the decision-maker needs to establish that a current situation is the same or similar to one previously experienced, and the same solution is likely to work this time too. To this end, the proposed modeling approach uses a Markov logic network to develop an Experiential-Learning and Decision-Support module. The second component of RPDM deals with the cases when a decision-maker’s experience becomes secondary because the situation has not been recognized as typical. In this case, RPDM suggests a diagnostic mechanism that involves feature-matching, and, therefore, an ontology (of the domain of interest) based reasoning approach is proposed here to deal with all such cases. The third component of RPDM is the proposal that human beings use intuition and imagination (mental stimulation) to make sure whether a course of action should work in a given situation or not. Mental simulation is modeled here as a Bayesian network that computes the probability of occurrence of an effect when a cause is more likely. The agent-based model of RPDM has been validated with real (empirical) data to compare the simulated and empirical results and develop a correspondence in terms of the value of the result, as well as the reasoning.
Individual and community level associates of contraceptive use in Ethiopia: a multilevel mixed effects analysis
Authors: Abate Masrie Getnet , Tareke Amare Abera 
Published: October 2019

Abstract

Background
Family planning is one of the four pillars of safe motherhood initiative to reduce maternal death in developing countries. Despite progress in contraceptive use, unmet needs are wide open and fertility remains high. Ethiopia have a higher fertility rate which contributes to maternal and child health destitution, putting pressure on the already weak health system. This study examined individual and community-level factors associated with contraceptive use in Ethiopia.

Methods
Data from Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey 2016 were used to identify individual and community level associated factors among reproductive-age women. Non-pregnant, fecund and sexually active women aged 15–49 were included. Six hundred forty-two communities and 6854 women were involved from this two-stage cluster sampled data. The analysis was done using two-level mixed-effects logistic regression to determine fixed effects of individual and community-level factors and random intercept of between characteristics.

Results
From the total eligible women for contraceptive use 2393 (34.9%) of them were users. Injectables were the commonest of all contraceptive methods. Various individual-level variables were associated with contraceptive use. Household wealth index, women’s age, number of living children, husband’s occupation, ever experience of a terminated pregnancy, current working status of the women, number of births in the last 3 years, and hearing of FP messages through different media were significantly associated individual-level variables after adjusting other factors. Community characteristics like region, place of residence, religion, and community-level wealth were the factors associated with contraceptive use.

Conclusion
Both individual and community-level characteristics were significant predictors of use of contraceptives in Ethiopian women. Besides the individual-level factors, interventions should also consider community-level associates.
Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) screening and isolation in the general medicine ward: a cost-effectiveness analysis
Authors: Mac Stephen , Fitzpatrick Tiffany , Johnstone Jennie , Sander Beate 
Published: October 2019

AbstractBackgroundVancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) are a serious antimicrobial resistant threat in the healthcare setting. We assessed the cost-effectiveness of VRE screening and isolation for patients at high-risk for colonisation on a general medicine ward compared to no VRE screening and isolation from the healthcare payer perspective.MethodsWe developed a microsimulation model using local data and VRE literature, to simulate a 20-bed general medicine ward at a tertiary-care hospital with up to 1000 admissions, approximating 1 year. Primary outcomes were accrued over the patient’s lifetime, discounted at 1.5%, and included expected health outcomes (VRE colonisations, VRE infections, VRE-related bacteremia, and deaths subsequent to VRE infection), quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), healthcare costs, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA) and scenario analyses were conducted to assess parameter uncertainty.ResultsIn our base-case analysis, VRE screening and isolation prevented six healthcare-associated VRE colonisations per 1000 admissions (6/1000), 0.6/1000 VRE-related infections, 0.2/1000 VRE-related bacteremia, and 0.1/1000 deaths subsequent to VRE infection. VRE screening and isolation accrued 0.0142 incremental QALYs at an incremental cost of $112, affording an ICER of $7850 per QALY. VRE screening and isolation practice was more likely to be cost-effective (> 50%) at a cost-effectiveness threshold of $50,000/QALY. Stochasticity (randomness) had a significant impact on the cost-effectiveness.ConclusionVRE screening and isolation can be cost-effective in majority of model simulations at commonly used cost-effectiveness thresholds, and is likely economically attractive in general medicine settings. Our findings strengthen the understanding of VRE prevention strategies and are of importance to hospital program planners and infection prevention and control.
Fragile X-associated tremor ataxia syndrome with co-occurrent progressive supranuclear palsy-like neuropathology
Authors: Sacino Amanda N. , Prokop Stefan , Walsh Meggen A. , Adamson Jennifer , Subramony S. H. , Krans Amy , Todd Peter K. , Giasson Benoit I. , Yachnis Anthony T. 
Published: October 2019

Abstract
Co-occurrence of multiple neuropathologic changes is a common phenomenon, most prominently seen in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD), complicating clinical diagnosis and patient management. Reports of co-occurring pathological processes are emerging in the group of genetically defined repeat-associated non-AUG (RAN)-translation related diseases. Here we report a case of Fragile X-associated tremor-ataxia syndrome (FXTAS) with widespread and abundant nuclear inclusions of the RAN-translation related FMRpolyG-peptide. In addition, we describe prominent neuronal and glial tau pathology representing changes seen in progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). The highest abundance of the respective pathological changes was seen in distinct brain regions indicating an incidental, rather than causal correlation.
Climatic reconstruction at the Sannai-Maruyama site between Bond events 4 and 3—implication for the collapse of the society at 4.2 ka event
Authors: Kawahata Hodaka 
Published: October 2019

Abstract
The Jōmon period/culture corresponds to the Neolithic period/culture in Japanese prehistory. The Sannai-Maruyama site (5.9–4.2 cal. kyr BP), the most famous, the largest, and the well-studied mid-Holocene (mid-Jōmon) archeological site inhabited by hunter-gatherers with sedentary lifestyle in northern Japan, started at early Bond event 4 and collapsed at late Bond event 3 (4.2 cal. kyr BP at the boundary between mid-Holocene, Northgrippian, and late-Holocene, Meghalayan), synchronous with the decline of the north Mesopotamian civilization and the Yangtze River civilization in China. Alkenone sea surface temperatures (SSTs), a proxy for early-midsummer SSTs, generally suggest that the early-midsummer SSTs (and atmospheric temperatures (ATs)) at 41° 00′ N, 140° 46′ E, about 20 km north to the Sannai-Maruyama site, located in Aomori Prefecture, peaked around 4.8–4.3 cal. kyr BP and showed minima at 5.9 and 4.1 cal. kyr BP. In spite of some discrepancy in short periods, this feature is consistent with that estimated from the assemblages of Ostracodas. δ18O value of benthic foraminifera of Nonionellina labradorica and Nonionella stella, alkenone production flux, and pollen assemblages could reflect annual-based temperature, which generally suggests that the climate was warmer at 6.0–4.2 cal. kyr BP, which could show the warmer environments at 6.0–5.0 cal. than expected from alkenone SST in early-midsummer. Overall, northward shift of the westerly jet, in association with a strengthened East Asian Summer Monsoon, could cause a relatively warm climate around 6.0–4.3 cal. kyr BP, when the Sannai-Maruyama site flourished. High food production density, by effective hansaibai (selective preservation or growth) in Castanea- and Aesculus-dominated forests, up to one sixth of the rice production density, could have supported high population density, resulting large community at the Sannai-Maruyama site. Cooling episode at 4.2 cal. kyr BP could have resulted in the decline of chestnut hansaibai, leading to the collapse of the site. Recent results from a compiled archeological site map suggested no large decline of the population but, instead, a dispersal to the surrounding area at 4.2 cal. kyr BP. It is consistent with ancestral population dynamics for the descendent from Jōmon people, in contrast to those from the immigrants from Far East Asia to the Japanese Archipelago with paddy rice cultivation technology after 2.9 cal. kyr BP, based on modern Japanese molecular sequences.
Contemporary Asian art and Western societies: cultural “universalism” or “uniqueness” in Asian modern art
Authors: Michel-Schertges Dirk 
Published: October 2019

AbstractThe expectations modern art has to fulfill are of various kind. Modern art is to be a seismograph of societal developments and thus sensitive to political and economic themes. Thus, Western (critical) contemporary art is in the dilemma to deal with and challenge capitalism in mostly bourgeois frameworks of musealized exhibitions, criticizing political leadership and social inequalities and presenting it largely to exactly the established classes. Here contemporary art’s task lies in both the individual and arts self-reflection and self-critique. Creating awareness of individual and collective historical processes and being able to sense and experience societal antagonisms can be described as conscious making by the means of critical modern art. Taking in account that to learn (socio-historically) art and thus to be able to sense dissonances is a pre-condition to understand modern art the question arises: How to deal with contemporary art from foreign cultures and unfamiliar civilizations? How to understand Asian critical contemporary art with a Western sensual kind of sensing and understanding? It is the question of universality and uniqueness of modern art and/or the integrating power of Western capitalism and consumerism within the sphere of critical art. Is it possible to sense and understand Chinese or Japanese art with a Western education and different socio-historical and political-economical understanding? How to decipher and contextualize modern art without “cultural expertise”? This contribution deals with the contradictions between the (cultural) particular and the general serving as gatekeepers for sensing societal and historical grown antagonisms and sensing of cultural and social dissonances in modern art production. Is modern art by definition Western? By experiencing Asian modern art the purpose of this research is to find the particularities and the general of (Asian) critical modern art.
First record of the ragged-tooth shark, Odontaspis ferox (Risso, 1810), in the Venezuelan Caribbean
Authors: Tavares Rafael , Sanchez Leonardo , Briceño Jose Manuel 
Published: October 2019

Abstract
One specimen of the ragged-tooth shark, Odontaspis ferox, was caught by a commercial shark fishery to the north of Cape Codera (10° 56′ N, 66° 02′ W), northeastern Venezuela. The specimen (sex unidentified, ~ 180 cm TL, ~ 30 kg) was identified on the basis of its dry jaw and characteristic dentition: which comprise teeth moderately large, with prominent narrow cusps and two or three pairs of lateral cusplets. This is the first record of O. ferox in the Venezuelan Caribbean, and this finding complements the knowledge of geographic distribution of this rare species in the Western Central Atlantic.
Case report: isolated lower lip lesion following cavernoma resection in prone position
Authors: Sajid Mir Ibrahim , Malik Noor , Jooma Rashid 
Published: October 2019

AbstractBackgroundSurgery in a prone position is necessary when access to posterior anatomical structures is needed. A procedure in this position is associated with complications such as injuries to the eyes, peripheral nerves, and pressure points and swelling of the tongue. We report a rare complication of isolated lower lip swelling following neck dissection in the prone position.Case presentationA 25-year-old male patient presented to the clinic with complaint of neck pain for the past 2 months. A cervical spine MRI was done which showed the presence of a cavernoma. C2 laminectomy was performed for resection of the tumor in prone position with the head fixed on a three-point Mayfield clamp. Postoperatively, isolated swelling of the lower lip was observed. The patient was managed conservatively.ConclusionCervical spine surgeries done in prone positions carry an increased risk of postoperative vision loss and swellings including those of the oropharynx and in the periorbital region. Possible risk factors for such conditions include anemia, hypotension, long duration of surgery, and significant intraoperative hydration.
Idiopathic intracranial hypertension in pediatric and adolescent patients
Authors: Abouhashem Safwat , Gad Ahmed A. M. , El-Malkey Mohamed , Daoud Esam A. 
Published: October 2019

Abstract

Objectives
Pediatric idiopathic intracranial hypertension is a rare condition, but inappropriate diagnosis and management may lead to devastating outcome with loss of vision and lifelong handicap. Dandy criteria are used for diagnosis of idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) in adult, but these criteria cannot be applied in all pediatric patients.
The aim of this study is to evaluate the diagnostic criteria and outcome of management of IIH in pediatric patients.

Methods
Nineteen patients with IIH and age less than 16 years old have been evaluated for the diagnostic criteria and outcome of management. The patients were classified according to the secondary sexual criteria into adolescent IIH and pediatric IIH. Full neurological and ophthalmological evaluation was completed in all patients. The patients were managed and followed up for a mean period of 12 ± 8.6 months at Zagazig University hospitals or Kingdom Hospital in the time period from 2009 to 2018.

Results
Nineteen patients (16 females and 3 males) had been diagnosed and treated with idiopathic intracranial hypertension, their age is between 4 and 15 years, and the patients have been divided into two groups. Group I (pediatric IIH) involved 9 patients (6 females and 3 males), and their age is ranging between 4 and 9 years with mean age 5.56 ± 1.9 years while group II (adolescent IIH) involved 10 patients, all of them are females and their age ranges between 12 and 15 years with mean age 13.5 ± 1.3. Diagnostic criteria of the patients are papilledema, symptoms and signs of intracranial hypertension, and elevated CSF opening pressure with normal MRI. Headache, delayed school performance, and sixth nerve palsy are the most common clinical finding in the patients of group I while headache is the most common presenting symptom in group II. Anemia and otitis media are the most common associated risk factors in group I while obesity and female gender were the most common associated risk factors in group II. The minimum value for opening pressure in group I is 180 mmH2O while the minimum value in group II is 250 mm. 16 patients improved after the first lumbar puncture and drainage of CSF; two patients improved after repeated lumbar puncture while lumbo-peritoneal shunt was inserted for two patients, both of them were in group II. Recurrence was diagnosed in four patients (21%), one of them (11.1%) was in group I while three of them (30%) were in group II.

Conclusion
Pediatric idiopathic intracranial hypertension can be classified into two subtypes: pediatric type and adolescent type according to the secondary sexual criteria.
Modified Dandy criteria can be applied for the diagnosis of adolescent type, but pediatric type is not associated with obesity, has no female predominance, and usually responds to the initial lumbar puncture with a low rate of recurrence.
Genome-scale data resolve ancestral rock-inhabiting lifestyle in Dothideomycetes (Ascomycota)
Authors: Ametrano Claudio G. , Grewe Felix , Crous Pedro W. , Goodwin Stephen B. , Liang Chen , Selbmann Laura , Lumbsch H. Thorsten , Leavitt Steven D. , Muggia Lucia 
Published: October 2019

Abstract
Dothideomycetes is the most diverse fungal class in Ascomycota and includes species with a wide range of lifestyles. Previous multilocus studies have investigated the taxonomic and evolutionary relationships of these taxa but often failed to resolve early diverging nodes and frequently generated inconsistent placements of some clades. Here, we use a phylogenomic approach to resolve relationships in Dothideomycetes, focusing on two genera of melanized, extremotolerant rock-inhabiting fungi, Lichenothelia and Saxomyces, that have been suggested to be early diverging lineages. We assembled phylogenomic datasets from newly sequenced (4) and previously available genomes (238) of 242 taxa. We explored the influence of tree inference methods, supermatrix vs. coalescent-based species tree, and the impact of varying amounts of genomic data. Overall, our phylogenetic reconstructions provide consistent and well-supported topologies for Dothideomycetes, recovering Lichenothelia and Saxomyces among the earliest diverging lineages in the class. In addition, many of the major lineages within Dothideomycetes are recovered as monophyletic, and the phylogenomic approach implemented strongly supports their relationships. Ancestral character state reconstruction suggest that the rock-inhabiting lifestyle is ancestral within the class.
Fungal clones win the battle, but recombination wins the war
Authors: Drenth André , McTaggart Alistair R. , Wingfield Brenda D. 
Published: October 2019

AbstractClonal reproduction is common in fungi and fungal-like organisms during epidemics and invasion events. The success of clonal fungi shaped systems for their classification and some pathogens are tacitly treated as asexual. We argue that genetic recombination driven by sexual reproduction must be a starting hypothesis when dealing with fungi for two reasons: (1) Clones eventually crash because they lack adaptability; and (2) fungi find a way to exchange genetic material through recombination, whether sexual, parasexual, or hybridisation. Successful clones may prevail over space and time, but they are the product of recombination and the next successful clone will inevitably appear. Fungal pathogen populations are dynamic rather than static, and they need genetic recombination to adapt to a changing environment.
Design of Polymeric Biomaterials: The “Intermediate Water Concept”
Authors: Tanaka Masaru , Kobayashi Shingo , Murakami Daiki , Aratsu Fumihiro , Kashiwazaki Aki , Hoshiba Takashi , Fukushima Kazuki 
Published: October 2019

Abstract
When biomaterials come into contact with biological fluids, water molecules immediately adsorb onto the surface of the materials. To understand the origin of the crucial roles of water molecules in biological interfaces, it is necessary to relate particular states of hydration water to various physicochemical properties of hydrated polymers. Here, advances in the intermediate water concept are reviewed. This account provides an overview of the progress made in the design of multi-functional biomedical polymers by controlling the bio-interfacial water states. Using principles of intermediate water, which is common in hydrated biopolymers and only biocompatible synthetic polymers, we found the synthetic methodology to create novel biocompatible polymers moves toward a more high-throughput way.
Efficacy of Curcuma longa in treatment of postprandial distress syndrome: An open-label randomized-controlled trial
Authors: Sawangroj Nicharat , Budkaew Jiratha , Chumworathayi Bandit 
Published: October 2019

Background: Proton pump inhibitors are effective for functional dyspepsia but ineffective in relieving postprandial distress syndrome. Curcuma longa might be effective for postprandial distress syndrome. The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of Curcuma longa and simethicone for postprandial distress syndrome in an open-label randomized-controlled trial. Methods: This trial was conducted between July 2018 and February 2019. In total, 78 patients were randomly assigned to receive 4 weeks of treatment with 750 or 1,500 mg oral Curcuma longa per day or 240 mg simethicone per day. The patients assessed their symptoms using the dyspepsia Global Overall Symptom scale at baseline, week 2, and week 4. After stopping medication for 2 weeks, the patients assessed recurrent symptoms and day of recurrence by themselves at the end of week 6. Results: In total, 78 patients underwent randomization (27 in 750 mg Curcuma longa, 26 in 1500 mg Curcuma longa, and 25 in simethicone groups). After 2 weeks, there were no significant differences in all mean changes of symptoms scores (95%CI) of postprandial distress syndrome [-4.1 (-4.5, -2.6) vs -4.3 (-5.2, -3.3) vs -4.2 (-4.8, -3.5), P=0.954]. Over a period of 4 weeks, the reduction in mean scores was greater among participants receiving simethicone (although not statistically significant) compared with two intervention groups [-4.6 (-5.7, -3.6) vs -5.4 (-6.6, -4.1) vs -6.2 (-7.2, -5.2), P=0.122]. The rate of recurrence was significantly lower in simethicone than the two Curcuma longa groups (42.9 vs 45.5 vs 13.6%, P=0.047). There was no serious adverse event reported in all three groups. Conclusions: Curcuma longa had a similar effect on treatment outcomes to simethicone after 2 and 4 weeks, but the recurrence rate of symptoms was significantly higher without serious adverse events. Registration: Registered with the Thai Clinical Trials Registry on 31 January 2018; TCTR20180131001.