bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Developing and pretesting a new patient reported outcome measure for paediatric Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ Myalgic Encephalopathy (CFS/ME): cognitive interviews with children
Authors: Parslow Roxanne M. , Shaw Alison , Haywood Kirstie L. , Crawley Esther 
Published: November 2019

AbstractBackgroundThere is a lack of patient derived, child specific outcome measures to capture what health outcomes are important to children with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ Myalgic Encephalopathy (CFS/ME). We developed a new Patient Reported Outcome Measure (PROM) for paediatric CFS/ME through qualitative research with children. This study aimed to pre-test the new measure through cognitive interviews with children with CFS/ME.MethodsCognitive interviews were undertaken in children’s homes or over Skype. The Three-Step Test-Interview (TSTI) method was used to assess the quality of the draft PROM with children with CFS/ME to identify problems with initial content and design and test modifications over subsequent interview rounds. Children were purposively sampled from a single specialist paediatric CFS/ME service in England.ResultsTwenty-four children and their parents took part. They felt the new measure captured issues relevant to their condition and preferred it to the generic measures they completed in clinical assessment. Changes were made to item content and phrasing, timeframe and response options and tested through three rounds of interviews.ConclusionsCognitive interviews identified problems with the draft PROM, enabling us to make changes and then confirm acceptability in children aged 11–18. Further cognitive interviews are required with children 8–10 years old to examine the acceptability and content validity and provide evidence for age related cut offs of the new PROM to meet FDA standards. This study demonstrates the content validity of the new measure as relevant and acceptable for children with CFS/ME. The next stage is to undertake a psychometric evaluation to support the reduction of items, confirm the structure of the PROM and provide evidence of the data quality, reliability and validity.
Maximizing opportunities at medical school to support a career in surgery
Authors:   STARSurg Collaborative
Published: November 2019

Introduction: During medical school, students have numerous opportunities to develop their portfolios for a career in surgery, such as undertaking additional surgical placements and participating in surgical research. However, at present, there is little guidance available for medical students on how to build a strong portfolio for the UK core surgical training application. This article outlines work undertaken to provide concise guidance to support future surgeons, via application of the competency-based CanMEDS framework to the current UK core surgical training specification. Materials and methods: A pre-conference meeting was arranged for medical students at the Society of Academic and Research Surgeons annual conference in January 2018. Self-selected research enthusiasts from different university years discussed practical approaches to pair the CanMEDS model with the core surgical training specification, with support from the STARSurg Collaborative committee to facilitate discussion. A nominal group-based method was adopted in order to reach areas of consensus. Results: Practical tips and recommendations for each respective CanMEDS domain (communicator, collaborator, leader, health advocate, scholar, professional) were made in relation to the core surgical training specification. These included key action points and named opportunities that are currently available to UK medical students. Conclusions: A consensus approach was taken to address key areas of competence across each CanMEDS domain. This informed the development of a guidance framework to support students to develop a strong portfolio for a core surgical training application. This framework can be followed by medical students, equipping them with the skills necessary to succeed in their future surgical career.
Hacia una identidad y cultura academica colaborativa. Los equipos docentes como innovación en los Grados universitarios.
Authors: Alonso Sáez Israel , Darretxe Leire , Beloki Nekane 
Published: November 2019

Este trabajo profundiza en el valor que tiene la colaboración docente en la Educación Superior (ES). A partir de una revisión de la literatura científica internacional, se presentan los resultados de un estudio de caso realizado en un Grado de Educación Social. En él, la creación y establecimiento de equipos docentes en cada cuatrimestre durante cuatro años, ha permitido desvelar las potencialidades de este avance hacia una identidad y cultura docente más colaborativa, pero también las dificultades y condiciones necesarias para transitar hacia ese horizonte. Se discuten los resultados obtenidos con otros estudios e investigaciones realizadas y se concluye afirmando el valor que tiene para la formación universitaria trabajar de modo colaborativo y convergente.
Reformulando la comunicación institucional de la universidad pública española desde el enfoque de la comunicación participativa
Authors: Simancas González Esther , García López Marcial 
Published: November 2019

La teoría y la práctica de la comunicación institucional de las universidades públicas en España tienen un marcado carácter corporativo e instrumental. En esta investigación se discute la posibilidad de implementar una planificación y gestión comunicativa centradas en priorizar procesos comunicativos más horizontales y participativos. Para ello, se realiza un estudio cualitativo empleando la técnica del panel Delphi con 10 investigadores e investigadoras destacadas de universidades españolas, cuyas líneas de investigación están enmarcadas en la comunicación participativa o para el cambio social. El estudio evidencia que la apuesta por un modelo de comunicación institucional universitaria participativa requeriría el convencimiento y la implicación de la comunidad universitaria al completo y conllevaría que se estableciesen procedimientos y mecanismos que garanticen la transversalidad de la comunicación así como la presencia activa de los diferentes grupos intra y extrauniversitarios que conforman la institución en el diagnóstico, diseño, ejecución y evaluación de la comunicación institucional.
Bioremediation of Hydrocarbon Contaminated Soil: Assessment of Compost Manure and Organic Soap
Authors: Uguru Hilary , O. I. Akpokodje, 
Published: November 2019

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of compost manure and organic soap on hydrocarbon degradation in petroleum products contaminated soil. 10 kg of top soil collected at a depth of 0-20 cm, air dried and sieved, were poured into plastic containers. The soil samples were was pounded with 1 L of spent engine oil, 1 L of kerosene, 1 L of petrol and 1 L of diesel daily for five days. The containers were placed under natural environmental conditions for three weeks to enable full acclimatization of the petroleum products with the soil. A completely randomized design comprising T1 (Polluted soil without treatment ‘control’); T2 (10 kg contaminated soil + 500 g organic soap); T3 (10 kg contaminated soil + 500 g compost manure); and T4 (10 kg contaminated soil + 500 g compost manure + 500 g organic soap) was used for this study. Some physical characteristics (soil porosity and specific gravity) and Total Hydrocarbon Content (THC) of the soil samples were tested for, after the full acclimatization of the soil samples, and at the end of the 10 week experimental period, in accordance with standard methods. Results of the study showed that addition of the compost manure and organic soap the contaminated soil samples significantly (p ≤0.05) degraded the THC, and improved the soil physical characteristics. The result showed that the combination of compost manure and organic soap gave the best remediation result (from 957.21 mg/kg to 154.36 mg/kg), followed by organic soap (from 957.21mg/kg to 203.61 mg/kg), and then compost manure (from 957.21 mg/kg to 262.03 mg/kg). At the end of the experimental period, vegetative growth was observed in the treated soil samples; whereas, in the control soil samples vegetative growth was absent. Results obtained from this study have shown that amending petroleum products contaminated soils with compost manure and organic soap will enhance remediation of petroleum products contaminated sites.
Role of Usability on using Biometrics for Cybersecurity
Authors: Hausawi Yasser 
Published: November 2019

ABSTRACT
Biometrics are traits that allow individuals to be identified. Popular biometrics include fingerprints, faces, and irides. A common use of biometric systems is for authentication of users desiring access to a system or resource. However, the use of biometrics presents challenges and opportunities unique to other authentication methods, such as passwords and tokens. Biometric systems are also vulnerable to poor usability. Such systems must be engineered with wide user accessibility and acceptability in mind, but must still provide robust security as well. As lack of usability causes systems' failures, and enhancing systems' usability reduces such failures. This article first presents an overview of biometric systems employed today, including their usage and security merits. We then consider the specific role usability plays on both the development and long-term utility of biometric systems used for Cybersecurity.
Bitter Tongue: Yehuda Amichai’s Poetic Monolanguage
Authors: Gordinsky Natasha 
Published: November 2019

Abstract
This article explores Yehuda Amichai’s reflection on the meaning of language and demonstrates how his early poetry navigates between different views on the concept of ‘mother tongue.’ Building on Jacques Derrida’s seminal essay Monolingualism of the Other, it proposes a new hermeneutic frame for interpreting Amichai’s early poetry – particularly the poems collected in Shirim 1948–1962 – through the prism of monolingualism. In order to examine Amichai’s version of Derridean monolingualism, the article offers close readings of his paradigmatic poems, such as “Be-yalduti” (“When I Was a child”) and “Va-hagirat horai lo nirg‘eah bi” (“And the Migration of My Parents Has Not Subsided in Me”), that address, both directly and indirectly, the question of language. Furthermore, this article traces the influence of the experience of immigration on the development of Amichai’s poetic thinking on language. The various lyrical manifestations of this experience, such as a mediation on the meaning of the language of the mother, or the possibility to write with an accent, reveal Amichai’s growing ethical understanding of language as something that belongs to the other. Thus, I argue that Amichai’s unique monolingualism should be understood as a poetic site of negotiation between owning and dispossessing a language.
Liberal Nomos, National Narrative: Karl Kraus’s Critique of Law
Authors: Hertz Gal 
Published: November 2019

Abstract
The critique of law and judicial practice is a central theme in Karl Kraus’s oeuvre. However, it is mostly understood by scholars as – to use Robert Cover’s terms – addressing law as nomos (what law says) rather than as narrative (its normative grounding). This article claims that the narratival critique of law, which Kraus develops via Shakespeare, Goethe, and other literary sources, should not be seen as a merely aesthetic complement to his legal arguments, but rather as essential to his approach to jurisprudence and social justice. This view challenges a non-critical application of pre-given values and fixated norms, since such practice undermines contingent moral concerns and often leads to social harm. From this perspective, this analysis shows how Kraus captures and documents the historical political transition of the Habsburg Monarchy, in which criminalization was put to use as a political tool, as a liberal institution co-opted by national discourse and populist ideology.
Anti-biofilm activity of two novel, borate based, bioactive glass wound dressings
Authors: Jung Steven , Day Ted , Boone Tyler , Buziak Brenton , Omar Amin 
Published: November 2019

Abstract
Bioactive glass was first developed in the late 1960’s as a compound that would facilitate bone re-growth. In more recent years, this technology has been used to promote wound healing through its ability to stimulate soft tissue growth, angiogenesis, reduce inflammation, and prevent infection. Chronically infected wounds, which result from biofilm formation, affect millions of patients in the Unites States each year and cost billions of dollars to treat. The present studies demonstrate exposure of pre-formed biofilms to bioactive glass, under simulated body conditions, resulted in significant reduction in bacterial load. Additionally, specific therapeutically active metal ions such as copper and zinc were added to a borate bioactive glass formulation through a process of ion doping and found to further enhance the anti-biofilm activity. Based on the present findings, the antibiofilm agents released by borate bioactive glasses may prove effective to eradicate the biofilm infections that prevent healing in patients with chronic wounds.
The Impact of the Pre-Treatment in Ethanol Solution on the Drying Kinetics and Selected Properties of Convective Dried Apples
Authors: Zubernik Joanna , Dadan Magdalena , Cichowska Joanna , Witrowa-Rajchert Dorota 
Published: November 2019

AbstractThe aim of this study was to investigate the effects of pre-treatment in ethanol solution carried out in variable time with and without ultrasound (US) assistance on convective drying kinetics, total phenolic content (TPC) and hygroscopicity of an apple. The drying time after immersion in ethanol solution was shorter up to 13.4 (without US) and 18.3 % (with US) in comparison to intact slices. The most appropriate model that described kinetics of drying was the one proposed by Sledz et al. Drying of the untreated apple resulted in a decrease of the TPC by 18 %, compared with raw apples and the pre-treatment led to further losses. The tissue after ethanol pre-treatment was less hygroscopic, which proves the possibility to maintain a characteristic texture of the dried apple with prolonged storage stability. The best quality of dried apples was obtained after 1 min of ethanolic pre-treatment with US.
Analysis of the Heat Transfer of Ginkgo Biloba Seeds during Radio-Frequency Heating
Authors: Song Chunfang , Chen Yao , Wu Jingke , Li Zhenfeng , Chen Haiying , Li Jing 
Published: November 2019

AbstractFresh ginkgo biloba (GB) seeds are seasonal and susceptible to microbial spoilage, especially the growth of mold owing to GB seeds’ high-water content, which greatly limits their shelf life. As an efficient and special heating method, radio-frequency (RF) heating can be used to dehydrate ginkgo to preserve its nutritional value and reduce postharvest losses. However, the non-uniformity of RF heating restricts the development in industrialized application. In this study, the RF drying of GB seeds was performed to investigate the effect of RF heating on temperature. The distribution law of the entire temperature field was also observed. Using numerical simulation method, the coupling model of electromagnetic and heat transfer was established. The model was validated by the 6-min heating profile of GB seeds in a 12 kw and 27.12 MHz RF system. The model was also qualitatively validated by comparing the simulated temperature profiles on the three planes in the GB seeds with the corresponding thermal images. Quantitative validation was performed by comparing the simulated temperature of GB seeds on the three planes with experimental temperature acquired at places using thermocouples. Furthermore, the model can be effectively used to identify the distribution of electric fields in different positions and to achieve satisfactory heating uniformity.
The Functional Variable Method to Find New Exact Solutions of the Nonlinear Evolution Equations with Dual-Power-Law Nonlinearity
Authors: Rezazadeh Hadi , Vahidi Javad , Zafar Asim , Bekir Ahmet 
Published: November 2019

Abstract
In this work, we established new travelling wave solutions for some nonlinear evolution equations with dual-power-law nonlinearity namely the Zakharov–Kuznetsov equation, the Benjamin–Bona–Mahony equation and the Korteweg–de Vries equation. The functional variable method was used to construct travelling wave solutions of nonlinear evolution equations with dual-power-law nonlinearity. The travelling wave solutions are expressed by generalized hyperbolic functions and the rational functions. This method presents a wider applicability for handling nonlinear wave equations.
Commodity Storage, Post-Harvest Losses, and Food Security: Panel Data Evidence from Ethiopia
Authors: Gebreegziabher Zenebe , van Kooten G. Cornelis 
Published: November 2019

Abstract
In Ethiopia, 95 % of total agricultural output comes from some 11 million smallholder farmers. A relatively significant proportion of the food grown in the country is stored at the household level by smallholder farm households, mainly for own consumption. Storage losses, generally perceived to be high, have significant implications for household food security. This study provides a microeconomic perspective of commodity storage, post-harvest losses (PHL), and food security in Ethiopia. It relies on a large-scale household panel dataset, the Ethiopia Socioeconomic Survey (ESS), which comprises 4,000 households in rural areas and small towns that are representative of the most populous regions of Ethiopia. The data were collected as part of the World Bank’s LSMS-ISA project; it involved three “waves” or collection periods: 2011/12, 2013/14, and 2015/16. Data from only the second and third waves were used to estimate a random-effects probit model. Findings show that the magnitude of PHL is substantial: damage is due to rodents and rotting related to traditional storage facilities, poor ventilation, humidity/temperature, and undesirable post-harvest handling. Findings also show that PHL decreases with better market access and improved storage practices. Mitigation measures that improve and promote modern grain storage facilities appear to provide a double dividend – reducing PHL while addressing food insecurity.
Farmers’ Grain Storage and Losses in Ethiopia
Authors: Bachewe Fantu , Minten Bart , Seyoum Taffesse Alemayehu , Pauw Karl , Cameron Alethia , Genye Endaylalu Tirsit 
Published: November 2019

Abstract
While storage losses at the farm are often assumed to be an important contributor to presumed large postharvest losses in developing countries, reliable and representative data on these losses are often lacking. We study farmers’ storage decisions and self-reported storage losses for grains based on two large-scale household surveys conducted in major agricultural areas in Ethiopia. We show that a relatively large share of grain production is stored by farm households for own consumption and that storage technologies are rudimentary. Farmers’ self-reported storage losses amount to an average of 4 % of all grains stored and 2 % of total harvest. These storage losses differ significantly by socioeconomic variables and wealth, as well as by crop and humidity. We further see strong spatial heterogeneity in storage losses being significantly higher in southwest Ethiopia. Efforts to scale up the adoption of improved storage technologies to reduce storage losses at the farm level should consider these characteristics.
The Gender-specific Role of Body Weight for Health, Earnings and Life Satisfaction in Piecewise and Simultaneous Equations Models
Authors: Hübler Olaf 
Published: November 2019

AbstractBased on the German Socio-Economic Panel, the correlation between the body mass index, health, earnings and life satisfaction is analysed by gender. The previous literature has found no consistent results. This might have several reasons. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the gender-specific role of weight in single equation, piecewise and simultaneous equations models. We ask whether this distinction is important for the degree of association between health, earnings, satisfaction and body weight. In our context, piecewise modelling means a separate inspection of weight coefficients for under- and overweight people, allowing the detection of non-linear influences. As a benchmark, we begin our estimations under the assumption that the association between health, earnings, satisfaction, and weight is the same for under- and overweight people, and that there are no jointly dependent influences between our three outcome variables. The basic results are: health worsens, income declines and satisfaction is poorer with higher body mass index. If the association with weight is separately determined for over- and underweight people, the estimates show striking differences between overweight men and women. Underweight women earn more and overweight less than others. For normal-weight men the income is on average higher than for over- and underweight men but this difference is insignificant. When matching and instrumental variables procedures are applied, the health outcome for overweight people matches that of independent and unmatched estimates. Stronger positive effects on health are found for underweight women. No clear-cut advantages in income of overweight women can be found. Underweight women and especially underweight men tend to be less happy. For overweight men this influence is ambiguous but more speaks in favour of a lesser level of satisfaction. Overweight women seem to be happier.
Antihyperglycaemic, haemorheological and antioxidant activities of Lychnis chalcedonica L. extract in a streptozotocin-induced rat model of diabetes mellitus
Authors: Plotnikov Mark B. , Zibareva Larisa N. , Vasil’ev Aleksander S. , Aliev Oleg I. , Anishchenko Anna M. , Maslov Mikhail Yu. 
Published: November 2019

Abstract

Background
New therapeutic strategies, such as the use of agents to correct rheological disorders, are needed for the prevention and treatment of angiopathy in diabetic patients. The aim of this work was to study the antihyperglycaemic, haemorheologic and antioxidant activities of an extract from the flowering plant Lychnis chalcedonica L. (ELC) and 20-hydroxyecdysone using the streptozotocin-induced model of diabetic rats.

Methods
The streptozotocin-induced model of diabetes was produced using streptozotocin at a dose of 50 mg/kg (ip). Animals from the experimental groups were treated with ELC (150 mg/kg) or 20-hydroxyecdysone (1.1 mg/kg) intragastrically in 1% aqueous starch mucilage daily, for 14 days; rats of control groups received an equal volume of starch mucilage. The following parameters were measured: glucose concentration (GC) in blood, whole blood viscosity (WBV), conjugated dienes in RBC membranes. Macro- and microrheological indicators (viz. plasma viscosity, haematocrit, RBC aggregation (T1/2) and the RBC elongation index (EI)) were additionally measured in rats that received ELC, and in the control group.

Results
After treatment with ELC, the GC in rats was 19% lower than that in the control group (14.7 ± 0.9 mM compared to 18.2 ± 1.1 mM). Rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes have hyperviscosity syndrome, which is characterized by increased WBV, increased RBC aggregation and decreased deformability. ELC treatment reduced WBV at shear rates of 10–90 s−1 by 5–8%, and T1/2 and EI in the experimental group were 31% and 5–10% higher compared to the control group. 20-Hydroxyecdysone decreased WBV at shear rates of 10–90 s−1 by 3–11%. Finally, ELC and 20-hydroxyecdysone lowered the content of conjugated dienes by 27% and by 26% compared to the control groups.

Conclusion
In the streptozotocin-induced diabetic rat model, ELC showed measurable antihyperglycaemic activity; ELC and 20-hydroxyecdysone demonstrated similar haemorheological, and antioxidant activities.