bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Rural Social Combustibility in Eastern Europe (1880–1914): A Cross-Border Perspective
Authors: MARIN IRINA 
Published: February 2017

Abstract:This article proposes a comparative, cross-border analysis of the sources of rural combustibility around the complex frontier between Austria-Hungary, Tsarist Russia and the states that emerged out of the fringes of the Ottoman Empire, Romania, Serbia and Bulgaria, at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries. Starting from the major peasant uprising that took place in 1907 in Romania, the article seeks to account for the fledgling country's explosiveness in contrast to its neighbours, given the structural and functional similarities of the systems around the frontier. It argues that, despite these skin-deep similarities, there were vital differences as regards the initial terms of peasant emancipation and the presence of a system of checks and balances, which could curb the impositions of the great landowners onto the peasants.
Economies and Strategies of the Northern Rural Poor: the Mitigation of Poverty in a West Riding Township in the Nineteenth Century
Authors: RAWSON GRAHAM 
Published: February 2017

Abstract:In the agricultural township of Rigton, ten miles north of Leeds, three-quarters of labouring households had recourse to poor relief at some stage between 1815 and 1861. The chronology of this microhistory straddles the end of the French Wars, the Sturges Bourne reforms, and, due to the existence of the country's largest Gilbert Unions, the region's laggardly application of the Poor Law Amendment Act. It seeks, by source linkage, to establish the contexts of labour, welfare and the life cycle within a northern community, and place the poor and their experiences of, and strategies against, poverty within that community. A demographic overview introduces the contexts of labouring families' lives, whilst a commentary on expositions of biographical reconstitutions of two generations of a labouring family, forms a major part of this exploration. This argues that whilst relationships with, and mitigation against, poverty were fluid and complex, as the century progressed labouring families had a decreasing interface with the Poor Law, and adopted and developed new economic strategies to add to their portfolio of makeshifts.1
Network analysis reveals why Xylella fastidiosa will persist in Europe
Authors: Strona Giovanni , Carstens Corrie Jacobien , Beck Pieter S. A. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractThe insect vector borne bacterium Xylella fastidiosa was first detected in olive trees in Southern Italy in 2013, and identified as the main culprit behind the ‘olive quick decline syndrome’. Since then, the disease has spread rapidly through Italy’s main olive oil producing region. The epidemiology of the outbreak is largely unstudied, with the list of X. fastidiosa hosts and vectors in Europe likely incomplete, and the role humans play in dispersal unknown. These knowledge gaps have led to management strategies based on general assumptions that require, among others, local vector control and, in certain areas, the destruction of infected plants and healthy ones around them in an attempt to eradicate or halt the spreading pest. Here we show that, regardless of epidemiological uncertainties, the mere distribution of olive orchards in Southern Italy makes the chances of eradicating X. fastidiosa from the region extremely slim. Our results imply that Southern Italy is becoming a reservoir for X. fastidiosa. As a consequence, management strategies should keep the prevalence of X. fastidiosa in the region as low as possible, primarily through vector control, lest the pathogen, that has also been detected in southern France and the island of Mallorca (Spain), continues spreading through Italy and Europe.
Amplification on Undirected Population Structures: Comets Beat Stars
Authors: Pavlogiannis Andreas , Tkadlec Josef , Chatterjee Krishnendu , Nowak Martin A. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractThe fixation probability is the probability that a new mutant introduced in a homogeneous population eventually takes over the entire population. The fixation probability is a fundamental quantity of natural selection, and known to depend on the population structure. Amplifiers of natural selection are population structures which increase the fixation probability of advantageous mutants, as compared to the baseline case of well-mixed populations. In this work we focus on symmetric population structures represented as undirected graphs. In the regime of undirected graphs, the strongest amplifier known has been the Star graph, and the existence of undirected graphs with stronger amplification properties has remained open for over a decade. In this work we present the Comet and Comet-swarm families of undirected graphs. We show that for a range of fitness values of the mutants, the Comet and Comet-swarm graphs have fixation probability strictly larger than the fixation probability of the Star graph, for fixed population size and at the limit of large populations, respectively.
On the key role of droughts in the dynamics of summer fires in Mediterranean Europe
Authors: Turco Marco , von Hardenberg Jost , AghaKouchak Amir , Llasat Maria Carmen , Provenzale Antonello , Trigo Ricardo M. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractSummer fires frequently rage across Mediterranean Europe, often intensified by high temperatures and droughts. According to the state-of-the-art regional fire risk projections, in forthcoming decades climate effects are expected to become stronger and possibly overcome fire prevention efforts. However, significant uncertainties exist and the direct effect of climate change in regulating fuel moisture (e.g. warmer conditions increasing fuel dryness) could be counterbalanced by the indirect effects on fuel structure (e.g. warmer conditions limiting fuel amount), affecting the transition between climate-driven and fuel-limited fire regimes as temperatures increase. Here we analyse and model the impact of coincident drought and antecedent wet conditions (proxy for the climatic factor influencing total fuel and fine fuel structure) on the summer Burned Area (BA) across all eco-regions in Mediterranean Europe. This approach allows BA to be linked to the key drivers of fire in the region. We show a statistically significant relationship between fire and same-summer droughts in most regions, while antecedent climate conditions play a relatively minor role, except in few specific eco-regions. The presented models for individual eco-regions provide insights on the impacts of climate variability on BA, and appear to be promising for developing a seasonal forecast system supporting fire management strategies.
Patterns of acute inflammatory symptoms prior to cancer diagnosis
Authors: Setiawan Andrea , Yin Li , Auer Gert , Czene Kamila , Smedby Karin E. , Pawitan Yudi 
Published: February 2017

AbstractAlthough many studies have examined the role of chronic inflammation in cancer development, few studies discuss the patterns of acute inflammation prior to cancer diagnosis. Patients with lung, colorectal, prostate, or breast cancer between 1 July 2006 and 31 December 2009 and their metastatic status at diagnosis were determined through the Swedish Cancer Register. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) use in the year prior to cancer diagnosis was assessed through the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register. There were 13,945 patients identified with breast cancer, 6501 with prostate cancer, 5508 with lung cancer, and 12,723 with colon cancer. For metastatic patients, there is strong evidence of higher NSAIDs use 1–3 months compared to 10–12 months prior to diagnosis (breast odds ratio (OR) = 3.54, 95% CI 2.26–5.54; prostate OR = 3.90, 95% CI 3.10–4.90; lung OR = 2.90 95% CI 2.44–3.44; colorectal OR = 1.67, 95% CI 1.36–2.05). For non-metastatic patients, increased NSAIDs use 1–3 months prior to diagnosis was also observed, but only to a smaller extent for lung and prostate cancer (prostate OR = 1.48, 95% CI 1.27–1.72; lung 1.41, 95% CI 1.19–1.67). In conclusion, if NSAIDs use reflects underlying inflammatory symptoms, there is support for the hypothesis that advanced cancer was associated with an acute inflammatory process.
Ultra‐wideband RCS reduction of microstrip antenna array by optimised multi‐element metasurface
Authors: Kang Xiaole , Su Jianxun , Zhang Hui , Li Zengrui , Yang Yaoqing (Lamar) 
Published: February 2017

A microstrip antenna array (MAA) loading with metasurface is designed and fabricated for ultra‐wideband radar cross‐section (RCS) reduction while preserving its radiation characteristics. A new physical mechanism based on size adjustment of the multiple basic unit cells is proposed for ultra‐wideband manipulation of electromagnetic waves. To obtain the excellent RCS performance, the selection of the basic unit cells is optimised by the hybrid optimisation algorithm. Both simulated and measured results indicate that the proposed MAA can reduce the RCS significantly in an ultra‐wide frequency band from 6.2 to 27.3 GHz under x‐ and y‐polarised normal incidence. The radiation characteristics of the MAA are well preserved simultaneously.
Legislative coalitions with incomplete information
Authors: Dragu Tiberiu , Laver Michael 
Published: February 2017

Significance
It is rare in parliamentary democracies for one party to win more than half the votes. Choosing new policies or new governments depends on coalitions of legislative parties. We study the formation of these coalitions under the assumption of incomplete information. Therefore, rather than assuming that each politician’s private preferences are known to everybody, we make the more plausible and general assumption that politicians can never be certain about the preferences of others, especially because those others may have strategic incentives to misstate these preferences. This approach has implications that are both distinctive and plausible. Policy coalitions should typically be either of the center left or the center right, but should not comprise parties from both left and right of center.
Voltage-sensitive rhodol with enhanced two-photon brightness
Authors: Kulkarni Rishikesh U. , Kramer Daniel J. , Pourmandi Narges , Karbasi Kaveh , Bateup Helen S. , Miller Evan W. 
Published: February 2017

Significance
Fast changes in membrane potential drive the unique physiology of neurons. Despite the critical importance of coordinated neuronal firing, observing neuronal activity in a noninvasive, highly parallel manner remains an outstanding challenge, due in part to a lack of tools that can report on fast changes in membrane potential with sufficient speed, sensitivity, and brightness. We report an optical voltage reporter based on a fluorescent rhodol that shows improved photostability and brightness under both one- and two-photon illumination. We use the indicator RhodolVoltageFluor-5 to probe dynamics of neuronal excitability in a mouse model of genetic epilepsy, both in culture and in brain slices.
Enhanced groundwater recharge rates and altered recharge sensitivity to climate variability through subsurface heterogeneity
Authors: Hartmann Andreas , Gleeson Tom , Wada Yoshihide , Wagener Thorsten 
Published: February 2017

Significance
Understanding the implications of climate changes on hydrology is crucial for water resources management. Widely used global hydrological models generally assume simple homogeneous subsurface representations to translate climate signals into hydrological variables. We study groundwater recharge in the carbonate rock regions of Europe, Northern Africa, and the Middle East, which are known to exhibit strong subsurface heterogeneity. We demonstrate that subsurface heterogeneity alters the sensitivity of recharge to climate variability and enhances recharge estimates, resulting in potentially more available water per capita, than previously estimated. Our results are opposing previous modeling studies on future groundwater availability that assumed homogeneous subsurface properties everywhere. We suggest that water management strategies in regions with heterogeneous subsurface properties need to consider these revised estimates.
Vitamin D receptor regulates autophagy in the normal mammary gland and in luminal breast cancer cells
Authors: Tavera-Mendoza Luz E. , Westerling Thomas , Libby Eric , Marusyk Andriy , Cato Laura , Cassani Raymundo , Cameron Lisa A. , Ficarro Scott B. , Marto Jarrod A. , Klawitter Jelena , Brown Myles 
Published: February 2017

Significance
Epidemiological evidence suggests that vitamin D can protect women from developing breast cancer (BC). This study reveals that vitamin D and its receptor regulate autophagy in both normal mammary epithelial cells and luminal BCs, and suggests a potential mechanism underlying the link between vitamin D levels and BC risk. In addition, this work suggests that vitamin D receptor ligands could be exploited therapeutically for the treatment of a significant subset of BCs.
Cooperation of two distinct coupling proteins creates chemosensory network connections
Authors: Abedrabbo Samar , Castellon Juan , Collins Kieran D. , Johnson Kevin S. , Ottemann Karen M. 
Published: February 2017

SignificanceSignal transduction systems are important pathways that organisms use to sense and respond to their environments. Chemotaxis is controlled by a signal transduction system that allows bacteria to coordinate their movement in response to their environment. This response requires proper assembly and localization of large multiprotein chemotaxis complexes, which are built by interactions between coupling proteins. The significance of having multiple types of coupling proteins in a single signal transduction system is poorly understood. Here, we show that multiple coupling proteins allow bacteria to build superprotein interaction networks and localize them to cell poles, a role that is required for optimal chemotaxis.
Stepwise Distributed Open Innovation Contests for Software Development: Acceleration of Genome-Wide Association Analysis
Authors: Hill Andrew , Loh Po-Ru , Bharadwaj Ragu B. , Pons Pascal , Shang Jingbo , Guinan Eva , Lakhani Karim , Kilty Iain , Jelinsky Scott A. 
Published: February 2017

Abstract
Background: The association of differing genotypes with disease-related phenotypic traits offers great potential to both help identify new therapeutic targets and support stratification of patients who would gain the greatest benefit from specific drug classes. Development of low-cost genotyping and sequencing has made collecting large-scale genotyping data routine in population and therapeutic intervention studies. In addition, a range of new technologies is being used to capture numerous new and complex phenotypic descriptors. As a result, genotype and phenotype datasets have grown exponentially. Genome-wide association studies associate genotypes and phenotypes using methods such as logistic regression. As existing tools for association analysis limit the efficiency by which value can be extracted from increasing volumes of data, there is a pressing need for new software tools that can accelerate association analyses on large genotype-phenotype datasets. Results: Using open innovation (OI) and contest-based crowdsourcing, the logistic regression analysis in a leading, community-standard genetics software package (PLINK 1.07) was substantially accelerated. OI allowed us to do this in &lt;6 months by providing rapid access to highly skilled programmers with specialized, difficult-to-find skill sets. Through a crowd-based contest a combination of computational, numeric, and algorithmic approaches was identified that accelerated the logistic regression in PLINK 1.07 by 18- to 45-fold. Combining contest-derived logistic regression code with coarse-grained parallelization, multithreading, and associated changes to data initialization code further developed through distributed innovation, we achieved an end-to-end speedup of 591-fold for a data set size of 6678 subjects by 645 863 variants, compared to PLINK 1.07's logistic regression. This represents a reduction in run time from 4.8 hours to 29 seconds. Accelerated logistic regression code developed in this project has been incorporated into the PLINK2 project. Conclusions: Using iterative competition-based OI, we have developed a new, faster implementation of logistic regression for genome-wide association studies analysis. We present lessons learned and recommendations on running a successful OI process for bioinformatics.
Ischemic Optic Neuropathy in Cardiac Surgery
Authors: Rubin Daniel S. , Matsumoto Monica M. , Moss Heather E. , Joslin Charlotte E. , Tung Avery , Roth Steven 
Published: February 2017

Abstract

Background
Ischemic optic neuropathy is the most common form of perioperative visual loss, with highest incidence in cardiac and spinal fusion surgery. To date, potential risk factors have been identified in cardiac surgery by only small, single-institution studies. To determine the preoperative risk factors for ischemic optic neuropathy, the authors used the National Inpatient Sample, a database of inpatient discharges for nonfederal hospitals in the United States.

Methods
Adults aged 18 yr or older admitted for coronary artery bypass grafting, heart valve repair or replacement surgery, or left ventricular assist device insertion in National Inpatient Sample from 1998 to 2013 were included. Risk of ischemic optic neuropathy was evaluated by multivariable logistic regression.

Results
A total of 5,559,395 discharges met inclusion criteria with 794 (0.014%) cases of ischemic optic neuropathy. The average yearly incidence was 1.43 of 10,000 cardiac procedures, with no change during the study period (P = 0.57). Conditions increasing risk were carotid artery stenosis (odds ratio, 2.70), stroke (odds ratio, 3.43), diabetic retinopathy (odds ratio, 3.83), hypertensive retinopathy (odds ratio, 30.09), macular degeneration (odds ratio, 4.50), glaucoma (odds ratio, 2.68), and cataract (odds ratio, 5.62). Female sex (odds ratio, 0.59) and uncomplicated diabetes mellitus type 2 (odds ratio, 0.51) decreased risk.

Conclusions
The incidence of ischemic optic neuropathy in cardiac surgery did not change during the study period. Development of ischemic optic neuropathy after cardiac surgery is associated with carotid artery stenosis, stroke, and degenerative eye conditions.
Elevated Mean Airway Pressure and Central Venous Pressure in the First Day of Mechanical Ventilation Indicated Poor Outcome
Authors: Long Yun , Su Longxiang , Zhang Qing , Zhou Xiang , Wang Hao , Cui Na , Chai Wenzhao , Wang Xiaoting , Rui Xi , Liu Dawei 
Published: February 2017

Objectives:
The relationship between respiratory mechanical parameters and hemodynamic variables remains unclear. This study was performed to determine whether mean airway pressure and central venous pressure in the first day of mechanical ventilation are associated with patient outcomes.

Design:
Retrospective first 24-hour comparison during ICU stay.

Setting:
The Department of Critical Care Medicine of Peking Union Medical College Hospital.

Patients:
Patients with mechanical ventilation.

Interventions:
None.

Measurements and Main Results:
The clinical data of patients who received mechanical ventilation, especially respiratory and hemodynamic data, were collected and analyzed. In terms of the hemodynamic and perfusion data, the nonsurvivors group (177/2,208) had higher heart rate, respiratory rate, central venous pressure, and lactates and a lower perfusion index and P(v-a)co
2 (p < 0.05). In terms of respiratory condition, mean airway pressure, peak airway pressure, positive end-expiratory pressure, driving pressure, and inspiratory time/total respiration time of nonsurvivors were significantly higher, and arterial oxygen pressure and dynamic compliance worsened and were lower than the survivors (p < 0.05). Increased central venous pressure (odds ratio, 1.125; 95% CI, 1.069–1.184; p < 0.001) and elevated mean airway pressure (odds ratio, 1.125; 95% CI, 1.069–1.184; p < 0.001) were independently associated with 28-day mortality. The area under receiver operating characteristic demonstrated that central venous pressure and mean airway pressure were measured at 0.795 (95% CI, 0.654–0.757) and 0.833 (95% CI, 0.608–0.699), respectively. Based on the cutoff of central venous pressure and mean airway pressure, all of the participants were divided into the following groups: low central venous pressure and mean airway pressure, only high central venous pressure or mean airway pressure, or high central venous pressure and mean airway pressure. Post hoc tests showed significant differences among these three groups based on 28-day survival (log rank [Mantel-Cox], 131.931; p < 0.001).

Conclusions:
During the first 24 hours of mechanical ventilation, patients with elevated mean airway pressure and elevated central venous pressure had worse outcomes.
Repeatability of Central Corneal Thickness Measurement Using Rotating Scheimpflug Camera in Dry and Normal Eyes
Authors: Lee Jong-Hyuck , Kim Jae Hyuk , Kim Sun Woong 
Published: February 2017

Purpose:
To compare the repeatability of central corneal thickness (CCT) measurement using the Pentacam between dry eyes and healthy eyes, as well as to investigate the effect of artificial tears on CCT measurement.

Methods:
The corneal thicknesses of 34 patients with dry eye and 28 healthy subjects were measured using the Pentacam. One eye from each subject was assigned randomly to a repeatability test, wherein a single operator performed three successive CCT measurements time points—before and 5 min after instillation of one artificial teardrop. The repeatability of measurements was assessed using the coefficient of repeatability and the intraclass correlation coefficient.

Results:
The coefficient of repeatability values of the CCT measurements in dry and healthy eyes were 24.36 and 10.69 μm before instillation, and 16.85 and 9.72 μm after instillation, respectively. The intraclass correlation coefficient was higher in healthy eyes than that of in dry eyes (0.987 vs. 0.891), and it had improved significantly in dry eyes (0.948) after instillation of one artificial teardrop. The CCT measurement fluctuated in dry eyes (repeated-measures analysis of variance, P<0.001), whereas no significant changes were detected in healthy eyes, either before or after artificial tear instillation.

Conclusions:
Central corneal thickness measurement is less repeatable in dry eyes than in healthy eyes. Artificial tears improve the repeatability of CCT measurements obtained using the Pentacam in dry eyes.