bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Theoretical Analysis of Model Seabed Behavior under Water Wave Excitation
Authors: Sawicki Andrzej , Mierczyński Jacek , Smyczyński Marcin 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
Theoretical analysis of the behavior of a model seabed subjected to water wave excitation is presented. The experiments were performed in the wave flume at the Danish Technological University in Lyngby. Such experiments are unique in engineering sciences and therefore provide unique empirical data for testing various models of the seabed. A controversial explanation of the experiments is presented in the literature. The goal of this research was to study pore pressure changes caused by water waves and the subsequent liquefaction of the seabed. The authors of the present contribution offer their own theoretical explanation of the wave flume experiments and discuss errors found in the literature cited. The analysis is based on the classical soil mechanics, including the Biot type approach
Assessment of Shear Strength in Silty Soils
Authors: Stefaniak Katarzyna 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
The article presents a comparison of shear strength values in silty soils from the area of Poznań, determined based on selected Nkt values recommended in literature, with values of shear strength established on the basis of Nkt values recommended by the author. Analysed silty soils are characterized by the carbonate cementation zone, which made it possible to compare selected empirical coefficients both in normally consolidated and overconsolidated soils
Slope Stability Estimation of the Kościuszko Mound in Cracow
Authors: Wrana Bogumił , Pietrzak Natalia 
Published: August 2015

Abstract
In the paper, the slope stability problem of the Kościuszko Mound in Cracow, Poland is considered. The slope stability analysis was performed using Plaxis FEM program. The outer surface of the mound has complex geometry. The slope of the cone is not uniform in all directions, on the surface of the cone are pedestrian paths. Due to its complicated geometry it was impossible to do computing by Plaxis input pre-procesor. The initial element mesh was generated using Autodesk Autocad 3D and next it was updated by Plaxis program. The soil parameters were adopted in accordance with the detailed geological soil testing performed in 2012. Calculating model includes geogrids. The upper part was covered by MacMat geogrid, while the lower part of the Mound was reinforced using Terramesh Matt geogrid. The slope analysis was performed by successives reduction of φ /c parameters. The total multiplayer ΣMsf is used to define the value of the soil strength parameters. The article presents the results of slope stability before and after the rainfall during 33 days of precipitation in flood of 2010.
In VivoTwo-Photon Imaging of Dendritic Spines in Marmoset Neocortex
Authors: Sadakane Osamu , Watakabe Akiya , Ohtsuka Masanari , Takaji Masafumi , Sasaki Tetsuya , Kasai Masatoshi , Isa Tadashi , Kato Go , Nabekura Junichi , Mizukami Hiroaki , Ozawa Keiya , Kawasaki Hiroshi , Yamamori Tetsuo 
Published: August 2015

AbstractTwo-photon microscopy in combination with a technique involving the artificial expression of fluorescent protein has enabled the direct observation of dendritic spines in living brains. However, the application of this method to primate brains has been hindered by the lack of appropriate labeling techniques for visualizing dendritic spines. Here, we developed an adeno-associated virus vector-based fluorescent protein expression system for visualizing dendritic spinesin vivoin the marmoset neocortex. For the clear visualization of each spine, the expression of reporter fluorescent protein should be both sparse and strong. To fulfill these requirements, we amplified fluorescent signals using the tetracycline transactivator (tTA)–tetracycline-responsive element system and by titrating down the amount of Thy1S promoter-driven tTA for sparse expression. By this method, we were able to visualize dendritic spines in the marmoset cortex by two-photon microscopyin vivoand analyze the turnover of spines in the prefrontal cortex. Our results demonstrated that short spines in the marmoset cortex tend to change more frequently than long spines. The comparison ofin vivosamples with fixed samples showed that we did not detect all existing spines by our method. Although we found glial cell proliferation, the damage of tissues caused by window construction was relatively small, judging from the comparison of spine length between samples with or without window construction. Our new labeling technique for two-photon imaging to visualizein vivodendritic spines of the marmoset neocortex can be applicable to examining circuit reorganization and synaptic plasticity in primates.
Age-Related Changes in the Circadian System Unmasked by Constant Conditions
Authors: Nakamura Takahiro J. , Nakamura Wataru , Tokuda Isao T. , Ishikawa Takahiro , Kudo Takashi , Colwell Christopher S. , Block Gene D. 
Published: August 2015

AbstractCircadian timing systems, like most physiological processes, cannot escape the effects of aging. With age, humans experience decreased duration and quality of sleep. Aged mice exhibit decreased amplitude and increased fragmentation of the activity rhythm, and lengthened circadian free-running period in both light-dark (LD) and constant dark (DD) conditions. Several studies have shown that aging impacts neural activity rhythms in the central circadian clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). However, evidence for age-related disruption of circadian oscillations of clock genes in the SCN has been equivocal. We hypothesized that daily exposure to LD cycles masks the full impact of aging on molecular rhythms in the SCN. We performedex vivobioluminescent imaging of cultured SCN slices of young and aged PER2::luciferase knock-in (PER2::LUC) mice housed under LD or prolonged DD conditions. Under LD conditions, the amplitude of PER2::LUC rhythms differed only slightly between SCN explants from young and aged animals; under DD conditions, the PER2::LUC rhythms of aged animals showed markedly lower amplitudes and longer circadian periods than those of young animals. Recordings of PER2::LUC rhythms in individual SCN cells using an electron multiplying charge-coupled device camera revealed that aged SCN cells showed longer circadian periods and that the rhythms of individual cells rapidly became desynchronized. These data suggest that aging degrades the SCN circadian ensemble, but that recurrent LD cycles mask these effects. We propose that these changes reflect a decline in pacemaker robustness that could increase vulnerability to environmental challenges, and partly explain age-related sleep and circadian disturbances.
Thyroid function and autoimmunity in Danish pregnant women after an iodine fortification program and associations with obstetric outcomes
Authors: Bliddal Sofie , Boas Malene , Hilsted Linda , Friis-Hansen Lennart , Tabor Ann , Feldt-Rasmussen Ulla 
Published: August 2015

ObjectiveAberrations in maternal thyroid function and autoimmunity during pregnancy have been associated with negative obstetric outcome. In Denmark, a national iodine fortification program was implemented in the year 2000 with the aim to alleviate the mild-moderate iodine deficiency. Following the iodine implementation, there has been an increase in thyroid autoimmunity in the background population. This study investigates the thyroid status of pregnant Danish women following the iodine fortification program, and a possible association with preterm delivery.DesignHistorical cohort study of 1278 randomly selected pregnant Danish women attending the national Down's syndrome screening program.MethodsThe main outcome measures were thyroid status according to laboratory- and gestational-age-specific reference intervals, and association with risk of abnormal obstetric outcome. Antibody-positivity was defined as an antibody-level (thyroid peroxidase and/or thyroglobulin antibodies) above 60 U/ml.ResultsEstablishing laboratory-specific gestational-age-dependent reference intervals, we found a prevalence of maternal thyroid dysfunction of 10%–15.8% by use of the cut-off suggested by the American Thyroid Association. Thyroid dysfunction was significantly associated with antibody-positivity (P<0.05). No associations were found between preterm delivery and thyroid dysfunction (adjusted OR 0.6, 95% CI: 0.1–2.3) or autoimmunity (adjusted OR 1.1, 95% CI: 0.4–2.7).ConclusionsAfter the implementation of the Danish iodine fortification program, the prevalence of thyroid dysfunction and autoimmunity in Danish pregnant women is high – even higher by use of pre-established reference intervals from international consensus guidelines. However, no associations were found with abnormal obstetric outcome. Large randomized controlled trials are needed to clarify the benefit of treating slight aberrations in pregnant women's thyroid function.
Diffusion Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging for the Classification of Focal Liver Lesions as Benign or Malignant
Authors: Caraiani Cosmin , Chiorean Liliana , Fenesan Diana-Ioana , Lebovici Andrei , Feier Diana , Gersak Mirela , Calin Adriana Mirela , Dan Marian , Militaru Claudia , Mare Codruta , Ciobanu Lidia , Badea Radu 
Published: August 2015

Background & Aims: To assess the role of diffusion weighted imaging sequence (DWI), routinely used in hepatic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for the differentiation of focal liver lesions (FLLs) as benign or malignant.
Method: 99 FLLs assessed by liver MRI in 80 patients were included in the present study. All lesions were retrospectively analyzed by two experienced radiologists, independent from each other, who were not aware of the previous results obtained by using different imaging techniques. All included FLLs had a final histological diagnosis or a final diagnosis based on consensus reading by two experienced radiologists and follow-up at 6 months. The FLLs signal was qualitatively appreciated on the b-800 sequences and on the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) map. The ADC value of each FLL was measured and the ADC ratio between the ADC value of the assessed FLL and that of the surrounding liver parenchyma were calculated.
Results: The mean ADC value for benign FLLs as assessed by the two independent readers was 1.78 x 10¯³ and 1.72 x 10¯³, respectively. The mean ADC value for malignant FLLs was 0.92 x 10¯³ for the first reader and 0.95 x 10¯³ for the second reader. The mean ADC ratio for benign FLLs was 1.91 and 1.85 for the two readers and for malignant FLLs was 0.91 and 0.94, respectively. Using an ADC value lower than 1.024 x 10¯³ offers a specificity of 100% and a sensitivity of 62.5% for the diagnosis of malignant FLLs. The ADC value is an indicator which is less prone to interobserver variability (correlation of 0.919→1). The ADC ratio has, as the analysis of the ROC curve shows, the best predictive value for differentiation between benign and malignant FLLs. Analysis of the signal intensity on the DWI b-800 image alone is of no significance in differentiating benign from malignant FLLs (p>0.05).
Conclusions: The ADC value and the ADC ratio assessed on liver DWI are useful diagnostic tools in the differential diagnosis of benign vs. malignant FLLs. Quantitative methods such as calculating the ADC value or ADC ratio have better diagnostic value than the qualitative techniques.
The Relationship of Serum Hemojuvelin and Hepcidin Levels with Iron Overload in Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
Authors: Boga Salih , Alkim Huseyin , Alkim Canan , Koksal Ali Riza , Bayram Mehmet , Ozguven Muveddet Banu Yilmaz , Neijmann Sebnem Tekin 
Published: August 2015

Background & Aims: Mild iron overload is frequently reported in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Hepcidin is the master iron-regulatory peptide and hemojuvelin (HJV) is the key regulator of iron-dependent secretion of hepcidin. The aims of this study were to evaluate serum HJV and hepcidin levels in patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD with and without hepatic iron overload, and to identify potential associations of HJV and hepcidin with the clinical characteristics of the patients enrolled.
Methods: Serum levels of HJV and hepcidin were measured in 66 NAFLD patients with (n=12) and without (n=54) iron overload, and controls (n=35) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Hemojuvelin and hepcidin levels were assessed in relation to clinical characteristics and liver histologic evaluation of the participants.
Results: Significantly lower serum HJV (281.1 [239.2-353.6] vs. 584.8 [440.3-661] ng/ml, p<0.001) and similar serum hepcidin levels (60.5±31.1 vs. 55.8±11.9 ng/ml, p=0.285) were found in NAFLD patients when compared to controls. İron-overloaded NAFLD patients had significantly lower HJV (249.9 [187.6-296.3] vs. 292.9 [243-435] ng/ml, p=0.032) and significantly higher hepcidin (78.4±35.5 vs. 56.5±28.9ng/ml, p=0.027) levels than NAFLD patients without iron overload. Fibrosis stage was significantly higher in iron overloaded NAFLD group (p<0.001). Ferritin levels correlated significantly both with HOMA-IR (r=0.368, p=0.002) and fibrosis stage (r=0.571, p<0.001).
Conclusions: Our findings suggest that HJV levels are low in NAFLD and even lower in iron overloaded NAFLD, while hepcidin levels are higher in NAFLD with iron overload. The gradually decreased HJV and increased hepcidin concentrations in our patients most likely reflect the physiological response to iron accumulation in the liver.
Bridging the Gap: Sella Turcica in Unilateral Cleft Lip and Palate Patients
Authors: Sundareswaran Shobha , Nipun C. A. 
Published: August 2015

Objectives The aims of this study were to analyze the prevalence of sella turcica bridging and to measure the size of the sella turcica on profile cephalograms in a homogenous group of surgically repaired unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) patients. Setting Tertiary care center. Design Retrospective cross-sectional study. Patients Preorthodontic lateral cephalometric radiographs of 64 UCLP individuals between the ages of 16 and 29 years along with an equal number of age- and sex-matched skeletal Class I controls. Main Outcome Measures The extent of calcification of the interclinoid ligament was quantified (completely calcified, partially calcified, no calcification) and mean values compared. Length, depth, and diameter of the sella turcica were also measured. The results were statistically analyzed using paired t test and Wilcoxon signed ranks test. Results Complete sella bridging of both type A (4.6%) and type B (21.7%) was significantly higher in UCLP patients. This has not been reported previously. Partial sella bridging was also higher in cleft patients as evaluated by two methods (42.18%, 39.06%). This study demonstrated a statistically significant decrease in all dimensions of sella turcica in UCLP patients. Conclusions The UCLP patients apparently had higher predilection for sella turcica bridging. The dimensions of sella turcica were also seen to be significantly smaller than the control group. Defective proliferation and deviated pathways of neural crest cell migration as well as premature rupture of contact between neuroepithelium and oral ectoderm as postulated causes are discussed.
Summer issue 2015
Authors: Lal Hamish 
Published: August 2015

Expertise, experts and expert evidence are key aspects of dispute avoidance and dispute resolution in complex construction matters, and so I have focused some attention on these topics. I am grateful to Roger Gibson and Gerry Lagerberg for their respective contributions. Mr Gibson is a wellrespected delay expert, and his article covers how best one can assess the impact of disruption and so-called ‘loss of productivity’. Mr Lagerberg’s paper deals with the so-called ‘hot tubbing’ of experts and the co-mingling of expert evidence. We have also chosen to look at case law dealing with the ‘battle of the forms’; engineers’ decisions as a precursor to arbitration or litigation; and the problems of letting another party handle or borrow your name for the purposes of litigation or arbitration. These are all important topics, and ones that I hope readers will also find to be of interest, use and a reference point.
Demineralized Dentin as a Semi‐Rigid Barrier for Guiding Periodontal Tissue Regeneration
Authors: Qin Xu , Zou Fang , Chen Weimin , Xu Yiwen , Ma Bo , Huang Zhibin , Zhu Guangxun , Zhou Bin 
Published: August 2015

Background: Guided tissue regeneration (GTR) is an accepted approach in the correction of periodontal bone loss. Nonetheless, the deficiencies of commonly applied absorbable membrane, such as flexibility and limited osteoconductive and osteoinductive capability, still leave much room for improvement. Thus, the feasibility of applying demineralized dentin tissue to improve the therapeutic effect of GTR in periodontal regeneration was explored.Methods: Demineralized dentin was harvested after acid treatment, and its physiochemical properties were assessed in terms of mineralization density, contact angle, three‐point test, and cell attachment. Because of its similar characteristics with bone tissue, dentin that had been acid‐treated for 6 hours was chosen to repair a periodontal defect using an induced‐periodontitis canine model. Histologic measurements were taken to compare its therapeutic effects to an absorbable membrane group and an untreated group.Results: The demineralized dentin displayed continually decreased hardness and density as the acid etching time was prolonged. Enhanced attachment and spreading of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were observed on the 6‐hour processed dentin. Furthermore, in the demineralized dentin group, more periodontal tissues were newly formed compared with the biomembrane and untreated groups.Conclusion: Acid etching represents an easy and promising approach to obtain demineralized dentin with desirable properties, similar to bone, for clinical application to promote periodontal tissue regeneration.
Robust Fully-Implicit Coupled Multiphase-Flow and Geomechanics Simulation
Authors: Alpak Faruk O. 
Published: August 2015

SummaryMaterial nonlinearity, boundary and arching constraints, nonuniform reservoir flows, sliding along material interfaces, or faults are among the causes of shear deformation or changes in the total stresses and the resulting stress redistribution in hydrocarbon reservoirs. Previous studies have demonstrated that shear or nonuniform deformation and stress redistribution in subsurface formations may have significant effects on reservoir fluid flows. Thus, a two-way coupled analysis is the required approach under circumstances where the shear deformation or changes in total stresses in the reservoir cannot be neglected.A coupled multiphysics simulator is developed for the dynamic modeling of multiphase thermal/compositional flow, and poroelastoplastic geomechanical deformation. The equations that govern multiphase flow in permeable media, heat transport, and poroelastoplastic geomechanics together lead to a highly nonlinear system. Finite-volume and Galerkin finite-element methods are used for the numerical solution of thermal/compositional multiphase fluid-flow and geomechanics equations on general hexahedral grids, respectively. Because of its improved stability and rapid convergence characteristics, the resulting multiphysics system of equations is solved with a fully-implicit formulation by use of an effective implementation of the Newton-Raphson method in the default mode.The coupled simulator is by design maximally modular with self-contained flow and geomechanics modules that can be operated in a two-way coupled mode with explicit-, iterative-, and fully-implicit-coupling options. The coupled-modeling system lends itself naturally not only to near-wellbore coupled flow and geomechanical deformation problems where poroplasticity may play a more prominent role, but also to reservoir-scale simulations where both poroelasticity and poroplasticity are relevant. The coupled simulator is validated against analytical solutions for simple cases, by use of published data in the open literature. Validation results demonstrate the robust, fast, and accurate predictive capabilities of the multiphysics modeling protocol.
Pressure-Transient Analysis of Bottomhole Pressure and Rate Measurements by Use of System-Identification Techniques
Authors: Mansoori M.. , Van den Hof P. M. , Jansen J.-D.. -D. , Rashtchian D.. 
Published: August 2015

SummaryThis study presents a novel perspective on pressure-transient analysis (PTA) of downhole-pressure and flow-rate data by use of system-identification (SI) techniques as widely used in advanced process engineering. Key features of the paper are that it considers the classic PTA process from a system-theoretical perspective; derives the causal structure of the flow dynamics; proposes a method to deal with continuously varying pressure and flow-rate signals contaminated with correlated noise, which estimates physical reservoir parameters through a systematic matching procedure in the frequency domain; and can cope with arbitrary (i.e., not necessarily piecewise constant) flow-rate signals. To this end, the wellbore and the reservoir are modeled as two distinct two-port power-transmitting systems that are bilaterally coupled at their common boundary. This structure reveals that, from an SI perspective, the wellbore dynamics affect the bottomhole data as a feedback mechanism. Because of this feedback structure, it is necessary to use closed-loop SI techniques, and, because of the presence of sensor noise, the reservoir model cannot be identified solely from the bottomhole measurements. Therefore, an auxiliary signal is needed, for which we choose the surface flow rate, although other signals, such as the bottomhole temperature, could potentially also be used. Then a suitable closed-loop SI technique is the so-called two-stage method. The first stage of the algorithm removes the dynamic effects of the wellbore from the noisy data, and the second stage identifies the reservoir model in terms of rational polynomials. Thereafter, the usual physical reservoir parameters (e.g., averaged permeability and skin factor) are obtained through matching the results of the identified reservoir model and those of typical analytical reservoir models in the frequency domain, as an alternative to classic graphical or numerical type-curve analysis. The method does not rely on a piecewise constant approximation of the flow-rate signal, unlike other known PTA methods such as time-domain deconvolution. Six numerical experiments, by use of a synthetic data set, and one field example, by use of data from a real gas well, illustrate the key aspects of the proposed method.
Accounting Information Systems and Ethics Research: Review, Synthesis, and the Future
Authors: Guragai Binod , Hunt Nicholas C. , Neri Marc P. , Taylor Eileen Z. 
Published: August 2015

ABSTRACTThe rapid evolution of technology and the increasingly integrated nature of Accounting Information Systems (AIS) in business provide opportunities for those who interact with these systems to act unethically. Accountants, as the managers of accounting information systems and gatekeepers of assets, records, and reporting, have a responsibility to understand and address ethical dilemmas related to these responsibilities in their organizations. A summary of AIS and ethics research calls attention to gaps in the literature and provides directions for future research. The ETHOs framework, which categorizes factors as environmental, technological, human, and organizational, provides a model for researchers to examine ethical issues related to the AIS functions of recordkeeping, reporting, and control.