bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effect of active smoking on asthma symptoms, pulmonary function, and BHR in adolescents
Authors: Yoo S. , Kim H.B. , Lee S.Y. , Kim B.S. , Kim J.H. , Yu J. , Kim B.J. , Lee D.H. , Seong M.W. , Hong S.J. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractBackgroundActive smoking is known to increase asthma symptoms and bronchial hyper‐responsiveness (BHR) while decreasing pulmonary function in adults, but few studies have addressed these issues in adolescents.MethodsWe conducted a cross‐sectional survey involving questionnaires and assessment of urinary cotinine levels among 1,492 adolescents from three urban areas of South Korea. Current smoking was defined as having smoked more than 1 day in the prior 30 days or having urine cotinine levels ≥100 ng/ml. Spirometry, skin tests, and methacholine challenge tests were performed on adolescents in Seoul (n = 724).ResultsThe prevalence of current smoking was 8.2% in boys and 2.4% in girls. Reports of wheeze and exercise‐induced wheeze in the previous 12 months were more frequent in smokers than nonsmokers (15.2% vs. 8.5%, P = 0.024, and 20.4% vs. 10.7%, P = 0.004, respectively). In multiple logistic regression analysis, current smoking was found to be a significant risk factor for having wheezed in previous 12 months (OR = 4.5, 95% CI 1.5–13.2) and having exercise‐induced wheezing in previous 12 months (OR = 8.7, 95% CI, 3.7–20.9). The subgroup analysis revealed that the FEV1/FVC was lower in smokers than nonsmokers (mean ± SD, 105.1 ± 8.6% vs. 107.8 ± 7.8%, P = 0.019). In contrast, there was no significant difference in BHR. The effect of smoking on asthma symptoms were more pronounced in non‐atopic compared with atopic adolescents.ConclusionCurrent smoking was significantly associated with symptoms of asthma, such as having recent wheezing and recent exercise‐induced wheezing, especially for non‐atopics, in Korean adolescent population. Current smoking was further associated with lower pulmonary function, but not BHR. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2009; 44:954–961. ©2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Plant explosion emphasizes importance of implementing PSM
Authors: Howell Peter Paul 
Published: September 2009

AbstractA few years ago, there was an explosion in a reactor at the XYZ Chemical Company. The reactor was a block copolymerization reactor where butadiene and styrene monomers were added in a semibatch manner. The heat of reaction was removed by means of a refrigeration system. The incident occurred when the reactants were not added in the sequence or quantity required. The resulting runaway reaction overpressurized the reactor system and caused an expansion joint to rupture. The hydrocarbons released formed a vapor cloud that exploded, causing the death of two workers, serious injury to three others, and significant damage to the facility.The contributing causes of the incident include: (a) lack of information about the hazards of the chemicals in the process, (b) lack of information about the equipment in the process and inadequate equipment, (c) inadequate or no PHA, (d) inadequate training, (e) confusing operating procedures, (f) failure to use management of change procedures, (g) failure to perform a prestartup safety review, (h) failure to have an adequate contractor safety program, and (i) failure to investigate previous near misses and incidents and take corrective actions.This article describes this accident, the root causes, and the major plant deficiencies.The following expresses my opinion of the events that led to this explosion as testified to in open court. Others may have different opinions. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog, 2010
H∞ filtering for singular systems with time‐varying delay
Authors: Wu Zhengguang , Su Hongye , Chu Jian 
Published: September 2009

AbstractThis paper is concerned with the delay‐dependent H∞ filtering problem for singular systems with time‐varying delay in a range. In terms of linear matrix inequality approach, the delay‐range‐dependent bounded real lemmas are proposed, which guarantee the considered system to be regular, impulse free and exponentially stable while satisfying a prescribed H∞ performance level. The sufficient conditions are proposed for the existence of linear H∞ filter. Numerical examples are given to demonstrate the effectiveness and the benefits of the proposed methods. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot? the reverse transfer of knowledge through mobility ties
Authors: Corredoira Rafael A. , Rosenkopf Lori 
Published: September 2009

AbstractWhile mobility's effect on knowledge transfer to firms that hire mobile employees is well demonstrated, we choose to explore mobility's effect on knowledge transfer to firms that lose these employees. Focusing on this ‘outbound mobility’ allows us to isolate effects of social mechanisms associated with mobility. We find that semiconductor firms losing employees are more likely to subsequently cite patents of firms hiring these employees, suggesting that mobility‐driven knowledge flows are bidirectional. In addition, the outbound mobility effect is pronounced when mobility occurs between geographically distant firms, but attenuates for geographically proximate firms since other redundant knowledge channels exist within regions. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Acquisition vs. internal development as modes of market entry
Authors: Lee Gwendolyn K. , Lieberman Marvin B. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractAn established firm can enter a new product market through acquisition or internal development. Predictions that the choice of market entry mode depends on ‘relatedness’ between the new product and the firm's existing products have repeatedly failed to gain empirical support. We resolve ambiguity in prior work by developing dynamic measures of relatedness, and by making a distinction between entries inside vs. outside a firm's primary business domain. Using a fine‐grained dataset on the telecommunications sector, we find that inside a firm's primary business domain, acquisitions are used to fill persistent gaps near the firm's existing products, whereas outside that domain, acquisitions are used to extend the enterprise in new directions. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Pricing response to entry and agglomeration effects
Authors: McCann Brian T. , Vroom Govert 
Published: September 2009

AbstractIn contrast to the traditional approach that typically views entry solely as a threat, we argue that our understanding of this important phenomenon will remain incomplete until we consider the possibility that entry may also provide opportunity for incumbent firms. Drawing from agglomeration theory, which describes the benefit from colocating with competitors, we explicitly examine the combined impact of the competitive and agglomeration effects of entry using a unique dataset of Texas hotels. We find that incumbent establishments price higher when facing entrants whose agglomeration benefits are more likely to outweigh their competitive effects. This association is stronger for incumbents that have greater experience with entry. Our results bring a new perspective to the entry response literature helping clarify inconsistent empirical results. Further, we apply agglomeration theory to a new question, incumbent behavior, and demonstrate that experience appears to play an important role in recognizing situations that generate agglomeration externalities. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Characteristics of various elastomeric bearings in tension
Authors: Mangerig Ingbert , Mano Toshihisa 
Published: September 2009

AbstractIt has been a long time since seismic isolation was invented with the aim of protecting lives and structures against earthquakes. Seismic isolation is achieved by installing special bearings, so‐called isolators, between the foundations of buildings or the piers of bridges and the superstructure. These isolators support the structure in the vertical direction and at the same time allow horizontal movements during earthquakes so that the seismic force applied to the superstructure can be much reduced. In Japan elastomeric bearings are often used for this purpose and existing seismic‐isolated structures have demonstrated their effectiveness in the past. A number of research projects concerning elastomeric bearings have been carried out and their performance with respect to compression and shear loads is well understood. However, not much attention has been paid to their characteristics with respect to tensile loads. In some design standards a certain degree of tension in rubber bearings is already allowed to occur during earthquakes. This is inevitable since the ability of rubber to sustain tension was discovered and in seismic isolation applications in high‐rise buildings and bridges there is a possibility that isolators undergo tension due to the overturning moment. There are, however, still many uncertainties; for instance, the influence of damage to or cavities within the rubber caused by tension, the interaction between the shapes and dimensions of bearings and the tensile strength, and the influence of the out‐of‐plane deformation of flanges are not well understood. Currently, the Japanese design rules for both bridges and buildings regulate the allowable tensile stress without distinguishing the type of rubber, shapes or dimensions. This merely empirical value will need to be reconsidered.
A study of the new construction method for transverse box culverts by using the steel‐concrete composite sandwich deck slab – cutting the cost of constructing expressways
Authors: Ishikawa Hiroyuki , Konno Hisashi , Mitamura Hiroshi 
Published: September 2009

AbstractExpressways are typically constructed on high embankments to accommodate transverse box culverts. If the embankment height could be reduced while still accommodating culverts, then the road construction costs could be lowered by reducing the required volume of embankment soil. The authors achieved this by devising a transverse box culvert whose steel‐concrete composite sandwich deck slab resembles the composite slabs used for road bridges.The slab was tested indoors for bending failure, punching shear failure and fatigue strength under cyclic wheel loading. It was tested in an expressway for loading by heavy vehicles. The experiments demonstrated the soundness of the design method.This paper describes the design and construction of this structure, and the results of the indoor and outdoor experiments.
Estimation of punching shear fatigue strength for steel plate‐concrete composite decks
Authors: Kaido Hiroshi , Matsui Shigeyuki 
Published: September 2009

AbstractIn Japan a steel plate‐concrete composite deck, i.e. concrete connected to steel base plates with shear studs, is called a Robinson‐type deck. In order to decrease the deflection of the steel base plate due to the weight of the concrete, the steel base plate is stiffened with steel lateral ribs. In recent years the composite deck has been used for many highway bridge decks, such as steel twin‐girder bridges, open‐section steel box girder bridges, etc. Its predominant failure mode was discovered to be punching shear failure by repetition of wheel loads. In this paper the authors derive the estimation formula for the punching shear fatigue strength of the composite deck from the results of wheel trucking tests. Furthermore, the relationship between the non‐dimensional strength ratio of an applied load divided by the punching shear strength and the number of cycles until failure was confirmed and plotted on the S‐N curve for an RC slab. Therefore, the fatigue design of the composite deck can be executed reasonably with the S‐N curve.
The North Bridge in Warsaw
Authors: Schmiers Thomas , Sprinke Peter , Stein Thomas 
Published: September 2009

AbstractWarsaw, the capital of Poland, is developing into an important metropolis of Central Europe. With approx. 1.7 million inhabitants, Warsaw is one of the biggest cities and an important centre for traffic, economy and trade in Central and Eastern Europe, and within the European Union (Fig. 1). Warsaw is the principal focus of investment in Poland and of great political and cultural significance.The cityscape is characterized by the historic old town, by landmarks such as the Culture and Convention Centre and above all by the River Vistula which runs right through Warsaw and divides the city in a natural way.
On the asymptotic behaviour of the 2D Navier‐Stokes equations with Navier friction conditions towards Euler equations
Authors: Guillén‐González F. , Planas G. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractIn this paper, the two dimensional incompressible Navier‐Stokes problem in a bounded domain subject to nonhomogeneous Navier friction boundary conditions is considered. We establish the existence, uniqueness, and regularity of solutions to such problem and we demonstrate convergence towards the incompressible 2D Euler equations in the inviscid limit. We also show the stability and convergence of a time discrete implicit Euler's scheme as both parameters, viscosity and time step, go to zero.
Direct and inverse dipole electromagnetic scattering by a piecewise homogeneous sphere
Authors: Tsitsas N.L. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractThis paper deals with the investigation of the direct and the inverse electromagnetic scattering problem by a piecewise homogeneous sphere, excited by an interior or exterior dipole. The research is motivated by important physical, biomedical, and technological applications detailed in the introduction. First, we utilize Sommerfeld's and T‐matrix method to determine the exact electromagnetic Green's function, that is the solution of the direct scattering problem. Then, we use the low‐frequency assumption to derive asymptotic far‐field expansions of the Green's function of an electrically small piecewise homogeneous sphere. These low‐frequency expansions contribute essentially to the development of far‐field inverse scattering algorithms for the determination of the sphere's geometrical and physical characteristics. It is shown that for these algorithms interior dipoles offer additional information, which may be utilized effectively for the localization and reconstruction of the sphere. Several numerical results exhibit the variations of the far‐field quantities with respect to the dipole's and the sphere's characteristics. Reductions to plane wave scattering by a layered sphere and exterior dipole scattering by a homogeneous sphere are pointed out.
Rolled-Up Nanotech: Illumination-Controlled Hydrofluoric Acid Etching of AlAs Sacrificial Layers
Authors: Costescu Ruxandra M , Deneke Christoph , Thurmer Dominic J , Schmidt Oliver G 
Published: September 2009

Abstract
The effect of illumination on the hydrofluoric acid etching of AlAs sacrificial layers with systematically varied thicknesses in order to release and roll up InGaAs/GaAs bilayers was studied. For thicknesses of AlAs below 10 nm, there were two etching regimes for the area under illumination: one at low illumination intensities, in which the etching and releasing proceeds as expected and one at higher intensities in which the etching and any releasing are completely suppressed. The “etch suppression” area is well defined by the illumination spot, a feature that can be used to create heterogeneously etched regions with a high degree of control, shown here on patterned samples. Together with the studied self-limitation effect, the technique offers a way to determine the position of rolled-up micro- and nanotubes independently from the predefined lithographic pattern.
PHYSIOLOGICAL BASIS OF YIELD VARIATION OF TEA (CAMELLIA SINENSIS) DURING DIFFERENT YEARS OF THE PRUNING CYCLE IN THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS OF SRI LANKA
Authors: DE COSTA W. A. J. M. , NAVARATNE D. M. S. , ANANDACOOMARASWAMY A. 
Published: September 2009

SUMMARYThe objective of this study was to elucidate the physiological basis of the significant yield decline that occurs during the fourth year of the pruning cycle of tea. Biomass partitioning, which was hypothesized to be a major factor in causing this yield decline, was measured by destructive harvests of entire tea bushes, in two contrasting, mature, field-grown tea cultivars (TRI 2025 and DT1) at the end of different years of the pruning cycle. In both cultivars, yield showed continuous increases from year 1 to 3, followed by reductions of 44% and 35% in TRI2025 and DT1 respectively in the fourth year. Patterns of biomass partitioning to roots, stems or branches did not correlate with the above yield variation whereas harvest index, canopy leaf area index and mature leaf dry weight showed variations which paralleled the yield variation. The fourth-year decline in harvest index was brought about by reductions in both shoot number per m2 and mean individual shoot weight, which indicate a reduction in sink strength. Both cultivars showed reductions in light-saturated photosynthetic rate of maintenance foliage during the second half of the pruning cycle, indicating reduced source capacity. Hence, a combined reduction of both sink strength and source capacity during the fourth year could have brought about the significant yield reduction in tea. A significant increase of root starch in the fourth year indicated a down-regulation of physiological activities of the bush towards the end of the pruning cycle. Mechanisms responsible for this down-regulation need to be elucidated by further research.
A Portfolio Optimality Test Based on the First-Order Stochastic Dominance Criterion
Authors: Kopa Miloš , Post Thierry 
Published: September 2009

AbstractExisting approaches to testing for the efficiency of a given portfolio make strong parametric assumptions about investor preferences and return distributions. Stochastic dominance-based procedures promise a useful nonparametric alternative. However, these procedures have been limited to considering binary choices. In this paper we take a new approach that considers all diversified portfolios and thereby introduce a new concept of first-order stochastic dominance (FSD) optimality of a given portfolio relative to all possible portfolios. Using our new test, we show that the U.S. stock market portfolio is significantly FSD nonoptimal relative to benchmark portfolios formed on market capitalization and book-to-market equity ratios. Without appealing to parametric assumptions about the return distribution, we conclude that no nonsatiable investor would hold the market portfolio in the face of the attractive premia of small caps and value stocks.
Immune responses to polyethylenimine-mannose-delivered plasmid DNA encoding aFasciola giganticafatty acid binding protein in mice
Authors: Smitha S. , Raina O.K. , Singh B.P. , Samanta S. , Velusamy R. , Dangoudoubiyam S. , Tripathi A. , Gupta P.K. , Sharma Bhaskar , Saxena Meeta 
Published: September 2009

AbstractFasciola giganticafatty acid binding protein (FABP) was evaluated for evoking an immune response in mice, by delivering the gene coding for this protein with mannosylated-polyethylenimine (PEI) to peritoneal cells. Mice were immunized with 50 μg recombinant plasmid DNA (Group I) or DNA-PEI-mannose (a 22 kDa linear cationic polymer with mannose ligand) (Group II) via the intraperitoneal route. Antibody studies showed no significant humoral immune response evoked to this DNA immunization with either PEI-mannose-delivered or naked DNA. However, on protein boosting of these DNA-primed mice there was a significant enhancement of antibody titre. Flow cytometric bead array was used to measure quantitites of interleukin (IL)-2, IL-4, IL-5, interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and tumour necrosis factor (TNF) cytokines. Overexpression of T-helper 1 (Th1) cytokines such as IFN-γ and TNF, with a lower but significant expression of the T-helper 2 (Th2) cytokine IL-5 was detected. Gene delivery using polyethylenimine-mannose ligand showed significant expression of IFN-γ and TNF (P < 0.05), but no significant difference in IL-2, IL-4 and IL-5 (P>0.05) cytokine expression was observed between naked-DNA- and mannosylated PEI-DNA-delivered mice. Naked- or PEI-delivered-DNA immunization produced insignificant levels of IL-2 and IL-4 (P>0.05) cytokines in both groups of mice.
Intestinal parasites of the Arctic fox in relation to the abundance and distribution of intermediate hosts
Authors: STIEN A. , VOUTILAINEN L. , HAUKISALMI V. , FUGLEI E. , MØRK T. , YOCCOZ N. G. , IMS R. A. , HENTTONEN H. 
Published: September 2009

SUMMARYThe intestinal parasite community of Arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus) on the Svalbard archipelago in the High Arctic was investigated in relation to the abundance and distribution of intermediate hosts. Five species of cestodes (Echinococcus multilocularis, Taenia crassiceps, Taenia polyacantha, Taenia krabbei and Diphyllobothrium sp.), ascaridoid nematodes and one unidentified acanthocephalan species were found. The cestodes E. multilocularis, T. crassiceps and T. polyacantha all showed a decreasing prevalence in the fox population with increasing distance from their spatially restricted intermediate host population of sibling voles (Microtus levis). In addition, the prevalence of E. multilocularis in a sample from the vole population was directly related to the local vole abundance. The cestode T. krabbei uses reindeer as intermediate host, and its prevalence in female foxes was positively related to the density of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhyncus). Finally, the prevalence of the ascaridoid nematodes also decreased with increasing distance from the vole population, a finding that is consistent with the idea that voles are involved in transmission, most likely as paratenic hosts. The prevalence of the remaining species (Diphyllobothrium sp. and an unidentified acanthocephalan) was very low. We conclude that the distribution and abundance of intermediate host structure the gastrointestinal parasite community of the Arctic fox on the Svalbard archipelago.
Contrasting reservoirs for Schistosoma japonicum between marshland and hilly regions in Anhui, China – a two-year longitudinal parasitological survey
Authors: LU DA-BING , WANG TIAN-PING , RUDGE JAMES W. , DONNELLY CHRISTL A. , FANG GUO-REN , WEBSTER JOANNE P. 
Published: September 2009

SUMMARYSchistosoma japonicum remains highly endemic in many counties in China and has recently re-emerged, to a large extent, in previously controlled areas. To test the hypothesis that small rodents and less agriculturally important domestic animals such as dogs and cats may play an important role in the transmission and potential re-emergence of this disease, an annual investigation of S. japonicum among humans, domestic animals and rodents, combined with detailed surveys of the snail intermediate host, was performed across 3 marshland villages and 3 hilly villages in Anhui province of China over 2 consecutive years. The highest infection prevalence and intensity observed across all mammals was in rodents in the hilly region; while in the marshland, bovines were suspected as the main reservoirs. However, relatively high infection prevalence levels were also found in dogs and cats in both regions. Such results may have implications for the current human- and bovine-oriented control policy for this medically and veterinarily important disease, particularly within the hilly regions of mainland China.