Gradual Spread Research Articles

Heading northward to Scandinavia: Undaria pinnatifida in the northern Wadden Sea

Abstract The kelp Undaria pinnatifida, native to East Asian shores, was unintentionally introduced with Pacific oysters into the Mediterranean in 1971. Intentional introduction from there to the French Atlantic coast 12 years later led to a gradual spread to the British Isles and the North Sea. Here, we report on the northernmost established population in continental Europe, and suggest a further spread into Scandinavian waters to be almost inevitable. In 2016, several thalli were found washed ashore at the eastern side of the island of Sylt in the northern Wadden Sea (German Bight, Eastern North Sea). Most specimens bore fertile sporophylls and thallus lengths of >1 m were common. In June 2017, 91 sporophytes were found attached to a mixed bed of Pacific oysters and native blue mussels, located just below low tide level in a moderately sheltered position. Mean thallus length was 0.2 m and the longest 0.7 m. Most had distinctive sporophylls and released spores in the laboratory. From sporophylls collected in the previous year, we successfully reared a new generation, demonstrating the kelp’s potential for further spread by natural means or human vectors.

AKULTURASI ISLAM DAN BUDAYA MELAYU (Simbolisme Tradisi Kematian Orang Melayu Palembang)

This article discusses how Islam perceived, developed, and practiced by the Malay-Palembangnese in the context of death traditions. Islam and local culture influenced each other and this was shown through symbols. This article denotes the acculturation process between Islam and Malay-Palembang culture on death traditions. This article also emphasizes the contestative and gradual spread of Islam in Malay-Palembangnese society. The author found that the Malay-Palembangnese possesses distinctive characters on their death traditions that are different from the concepts of Geetrz’s, Woodward’s, Nur Syam”s, and Ricleft’s theories. Keyword: Acculturation, Islam, Culture, Malay, Tradition, Life Cycle, and Palembang.

Do wild boar movements drive the spread of African SwineFever?

The spatial behaviour of hosts can seriously affect the transmission of pathogens and spatial spread of diseases. Understanding the relationship between host movements and disease dynamics is of prime importance for optimizing disease control efforts. African swine fever (ASF), a devastating disease of wild and domestic suids, has been spreading continuously through eastern Europe since 2007. The wild boar (Sus scrofa) has been implicated in the epidemiology of this disease, but the role of wild boar movements in ASF dynamics and spread has not been studied and remains largely speculative. Here, we examined whether monthly parameters of wild boar movements (dispersal distance of yearlings, home range size of adult males and females) can explain variation in the spatio-temporal dynamics of the ASF outbreak in the wild boar population in north-eastern Poland, 2014-2015. We expected to observe a positive relationship between host mobility and disease spread. Contrary to our expectations, we found that movements of wild boar, despite their seasonal variation, were poor predictors of ASF dynamics in space and time. During the 2years of the study, ASF spread gradually at a steady pace of 1.5km/month without significant changes across seasons. None of the analysed movement parameters explained variation in the measures of ASF occurrence and spread (i.e., number of cases, prevalence, size and expansion rate of the outbreak area). We believe that the factor limiting the influence of host movements on ASF dynamics is the severity of the disease, which quickly hampers extensive movements and restricts disease transmission to only the most immediate individuals. Three natural factors constrain direct disease transmission: wild boar social structure, the short duration of low-level virus shedding and high virus-induced lethality, followed by indirect transmission through infected carcasses. These most likely shape the gradual spread of ASF in space and its persistence in already infected areas.

Stroke prevention in the elderly: effectiveness and safety of edoxaban in elderly patients according to the results of the ENGAGE AF study

Atrial fibrillation is the most common clinically relevant arrhythmia frequently causing systemic thromboembolic events. Traditionally vitamin K antagonists had been used for decades to prevent these events. The emerging of the new direct anticoagulants has revolutionized this treatment and a gradual growth and extensive spread of usage is expected. The latest one approved in Hungary, edoxaban, is a factor Xa inhibitor. Once-daily administration and favourable safety profile are major benefits of this drug. In a large clinical study with a high number of patients it proved to be at least as effective as warfarin in the prevention of stroke and systemic embolization while causing significantly less major bleedings. As the incidence of atrial fibrillation increases with age, the observation that, compared with the other direct oral anticoagulants, the administration of edoxaban in the elderly has a favourable net clinical benefit (in the rate of prevented thromboembolic events and the number of caused bleedings) may have a great importance. Orv Hetil. 2018; 159(20): 798-802.

Leptoglossus clypealis Heidemann (Hemiptera: Coreidae): Eastward Spread in North America, New Host Records, and Evaluation of Host Range

Described in 1910 from California, Colorado, New Mexico, Oregon, and Utah, Leptoglossus clypealis Heidemann was known as far east as eastern Missouri by the early 1940s; it was recorded only recently east of the Mississippi River (Illinois). Based mainly on images posted on BugGuide, its eastern North American range can be extended in the United States to New Jersey, Virginia, and North Carolina; an Ontario record is the first for Canada. Additional new state records and new localities in previously recorded states are presented. The eastward spread of L. clypealis is compared with that of a congener, L. occidentalis Heidemann. As a strong flier, L. clypealis might have undergone a gradual eastward spread, but the extensive planting of eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana L.) for shelterbelts in the Great Plains during the 1930s might have triggered increases in the coreid's population densities, enhancing the probability of further eastern spread. Long-distance dispersal aided by winds and transport via cargo and motor vehicles might also have been involved in its recent range expansion. Nymphs of L. clypealis were observed on five species of the coniferous genus Juniperus (54 sites), mainly on fruitbearing trees of J. scopulorum Sarg. and J. virginiana; adults were collected on two additional species of juniper at five sites. The coreid was found on a eudicot, the anacardiaceous shrub Rhus aromatica Aiton at three sites.

'Getting to Denmark': The Role of Elites for Development

We explore the role of elites for development and in particular for the spread of cooperative creameries in Denmark in the 1880s, which was a major factor behind that country's rapid economic catch-up. We demonstrate empirically that the location of early proto-modern dairies, so-called hollaenderier, introduced onto traditional landed estates as part of the Holstein System of agriculture by landowning elites from the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein in the eighteenth century, can explain the location of cooperative creameries in 1890, more than a century later, after controlling for other relevant determinants. We interpret this as evidence that areas close to estates which adopted the Holstein System witnessed a gradual spread of modern ideas from the estates to the peasantry. Moreover, we identify a causal relationship by utilizing the nature of the spread of the Holstein System around Denmark, and the distance to the first estate to introduce it, Sofiendal. These results are supported by evidence from a wealth of contemporary sources and are robust to a variety of alternative specifications.

ПАРТІЙНА СИСТЕМА РЕСПУБЛІКИ КІПР У ПЕРІОД ПІДГОТОВКИ ДО ВСТУПУ В ЄС ТА ЧЛЕНСТВА В ОРГАНІЗАЦІЇ

The purpose of the article is to analyze the party system of the Republic of Cyprus in the context of the country’s integration into the European Union. The purpose of the study is to clarify the role of political parties in the context of changing the vector of state development. Relevance stems from the possible use of the experience of the Cypriot parties for Ukraine during the European integration process. Based on the methodological foundations of institutional analysis, the hypothesis of European integration as a unifying factor for the Cypriot parties was put forward and confirmed. On the example of the party system in Cyprus, the process of adaptation of political parties, the legislative framework regulating the activities of associations of citizens, to European norms is disclosed. The process of еuropeanization of the parties of Cyprus in the formats of participation in the party groups of the European Parliament; сhange of electoral technologies; the process of party rhetoric transition to European themes. It focuses on the process of fragmentation of the party system based on the positions of the parties regarding the Cyprus problem. Attention is drawn to the gradual spread of radicalism and populism, the reduction of the strength of traditional parties, the gradual growth of absenteeism. The author has also researched the transformation of the Cypriot party system in the framework of the EU, determined the new features and phenomena in the functioning of the system during 2004–2016, defined the way the multi-party system was developing and the way the balance of forces was changing as a result of the national parliamentary and presidential elections and researched the election to the European Parliament in Republic of Cyprus as a factor of influence on the Cypriot party system.

Geo-Locating Census Micro-Data: Segregation, Clustering, and Residential Behaviours of Migrant Communities in London, 1881-1911

The settlement of foreign-born migrant communities in London has received considerable scholarly attention. Using the recently released Integrated Census Microdata, this article contributes to the literature as it argues that individualised mapping processes can reveal distinct settlement patterns within migrant communities. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that migrants were highly mobile entities and that communities continuously underwent radical transformations. Two areas of East London are used as case studies to highlight the different behaviours exhibited by migrant groups during a period of intense arrival and settlement. These neighbourhoods were selected on account of the availability of geo-spatial and census data. After processing in a Geographic Information System, data is explored and mapped to illustrate the concentration and composition of individual properties. Ultimately, this article presents evidence of tight migrant clustering and the gradual spread of migrants as they eventually settle entire streets. The decennial changes highlight some form of interchange. As migrants left one subsection, they moved to another. Although the literature indicated and suggested strong tendencies of residential clustering, this research has demonstrated the complexities of this point and revealed a number of previously unexplored behaviours.

Does Banking Behaviour Differ by Occupation? A Contextual Investigation

Besides providing access to financial services, the basic objective of financial inclusion programme is to develop banking awareness and positively influence the banking behaviour of various sections of society that remain excluded from the formal financial system. The mega financial inclusion programme of India, 'Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana' (PMJDY), provides the context to study the financial and banking behaviour of two major sections of society namely the self-employed and the service holders. In this research, important issues like (i) product and service awareness (ii) effective usage of technology (iii) banking behaviour and others have been compared between the two groups, i.e., service holders and the self-employed. This study finds that the financial inclusion programme has impacted the two occupation groups differently. Self-employed people were assumed to have higher level of awareness, behaviour and usage of technology related to banking, but it is the service holders who indicated higher levels of response in most of the banking parameters. The study suggests that education and self-employment context in rural areas could be the reason for lower level of acceptance and usage of banking services. There seems to be a need for occupation specific banking orientation, and usage programme. Policy success would actually depend on higher level of acceptance by all occupation groups. The study suggests that education moderates awareness about banking products and habits related to banking. The financial inclusion programme has prompted people to open bank accounts because there was no money required to open such an account and this has positively impacted their savings habits. The duration of banking service usage also could influence the usage and gradual spread of effective financial inclusion.

An Historical Overview of the New Cashless Policy in Nigeria

The most recent and ongoing development in the annals of monetary history in Nigeria is cashless policy which preparation began in 2010, but came on board on a pilot scheme for the first time on 1 st April, 2012. Although the policy can be regarded as a new stage and dimension of imperialism that tries to turn the whole world into global village in terms of financial transactions, if successfully adopted nationwide, it has the tendency of becoming a turning point in the history of not only currency in the country, but also the entire economy from cash oriented to a cashless one. It should however be noted that before the introduction of the policy, certain systems which provided an enabling environment for its take up were adopted by both banking sector and government in Nigeria. These are electronic banking (e-banking) and electronic payments (e-payments). The aim of this paper is to assess the journey so far, pertaining to the introduction and gradual spread of the new cashless policy in Nigeria. The paper first of all discusses the concept of cashless policy as well as adoption of e-banking and e-payment systems, which provided fertile ground for the eventual introduction and spread of the cashless policy. Benefits derivable from the policy as well as problems and challenges facing it are also examined.

Urbanization: Issues and Impacts on the Village of South 24 Parganas, West Bengal

Urban anthropology deals with the social and cultural processes in urban areas as well as cities. Contemporary issues of urban anthropology include rural-urban migration, demography, effects of urbanization among cultural pluralism and practical urban problems. The presents paper depicts the issues and impacts of urbanization on the concentration of rural areas, which has altered human life styles in dramatic and significant ways in a district of West Bengal the preliminary ethnographic account deals with the consequences as well as impact of global urbanization on the rural areas under study in general along with the changing aspects of the socio-cultural milieu. The present study finally depicts the gradual spread of global urbanism in the traditional life in the main stream and surrounding areas of the villages through a micro-ethnographic approach

A COMPUTER METHOD FOR MOMENT-CURVATURE ANALYSIS OF COMPOSITE STEEL-CONCRETE CROSS-SECTIONS OF ARBITRARY SHAPE

This paper presents a new computer method for moment-curvature analysis of arbitrary-shaped composite steel-concrete cross-sections that are subjected to biaxial bending and axial force. The complete moment-curvature diagrams are determined such that axial force and bending moment ratio is kept constant. A strain-driven algorithm has been developed, the solution of the nonlinear equilibrium equations is controlled by the assumed strain values in the most compressed point and by solving just two coupled nonlinear equations. Such an approach may be used to assess accurately the main features of the elasto-plastic behaviour of composite cross-sections: multiple yielding points associated to different materials, flexural and axial rigidity, moment-curvature relationship in pre and post-critical domain and curvature ductility detecting also unloaded regions of the cross-sections that may occur even under monotonically increasing of the total bending moment. Since the Jacobian’s of the resulted nonlinear system of equations is always positive definite the convergence stability is not sensitive to the initial/starting values of the iterative process and to the strain softening exhibited by the concrete in compression. By using a path integral technique on boundary of cross-section area, gradual spread of plasticity and residual stress distribution assumed for encased steel elements are accurately considered reducing also the computational time significantly. In order to illustrate the proposed method and its accuracy and efficiency, a computer program has been developed and used to study several representative examples. The numerical studies presented and comparisons made prove the effectiveness and time saving of the proposed method of analysis.

An electromagnetic forming analysis modelling using nodal integration axisymmetric thin shell

A novel modelling approach for the electromagnetic forming process (EMF) is proposed in this paper. In the present work, a stable nodal integration method (SNIM) is used to calculate the electromagnetic field and an axisymmetric thin shell element is firstly employed for mechanical field analysis to improve the computational efficiency. A layered approach is adopted to predict the gradual spread of plasticity in a shell. To solve the coupled electromagnetic-mechanical problem, a mapping rule is developed to transfer the nodal Lorentz force from the electromagnetic field to the mechanical field. Simultaneously, a solid element with the finite element method (FEM) is employed in the mechanical field for comparison to validate the efficiency of the proposed modelling approach; the FEM is customarily adopted in a conventional numerical method of EMF simulation. Several electromagnetic forming examples are presented to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed model for EMF problems, and the model is validated by comparing its results with available experimental results in the literature. The numerical results obtained by the proposed model are in good accordance with the experiments and show that the proposed model has much lower computational costs than the conventional one.

Madagascan isolates of Plasmodium falciparum showing low sensitivity to artemether in vitro.

In Madagascar, although chloroquine (CQ) remains the first-line treatment of choice for malaria, the gradual spread of resistance to this antimalarial drug is of increasing concern. As part of a larger investigation of the effectiveness of the second- and third-line drugs used to treat malaria, the in-vitro susceptibilities of Plasmodium falciparum collected in Madagascar to CQ, mefloquine (MQ) and artemether (ART) were therefore investigated. Median inhibitory concentrations (IC(50)) were determined for isolates collected from residents of two villages in the foothills of the central highlands. The IC(50) for ART ranged from 0.23-17.50 nM [N = 51; geometric mean = 4.02 nM; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.99-5.05 nM], four isolates exhibiting IC(50) (> 12 nM) indicative of resistance to this drug. The artemether IC(50) were found to be correlated with those of CQ (N = 46; Spearman's r = 0.51; P = 0.0002), which varied widely (0.4-254.3 nM; mean = 23.4 nM; CI = 7.1-39.7 nM; N = 46). Five (11%) of the 46 isolates exposed to CQ in vitro were considered resistant to this drug (i.e. to have IC(50) > 100 nM), with IC(50) ranging from 109-245.3 nM (mean = 171.6 nM; CI = 110.4-232.8 nM). However, all the CQ-resistant isolates were considered sensitive to ART and vice versa. All the isolates tested also appeared sensitive to MQ (IC(50) = 2.21-43.1 nM; mean = 10.5 nM; CI = 7.95-13.07 nM; N = 46), the IC(50) for MQ being correlated with those for CQ (N = 46; Spearman's r =0.46; P = 0.001). There was no significant correlation between ART and MQ activities. Although the sample was fairly small, the present results indicate that P. falciparum in Madagascar is generally becoming less sensitive to CQ and ART. The observation of a correlation between the IC(50) for these two drugs perhaps indicates that artemisinin derivatives would be better used in combination with antimalarial drugs other than 4-aminoquinolines.

심부 터널 주변 과응력 암반의 취성파괴 수치모델링

심부 터널 주변 암반의 파괴는 불연속면의 영향을 크게 받는 천부 터널 주변과 다르게 응력의 크기와 방향이 지배한다. 응력 지배 파괴의 양상은 응력 조건, 암석의 특성에 따라 연성과 취성으로 구분할 수 있으며 파석, 판상 파괴, 암석 파열 현상의 결과로 나타나는 V-형 홈 형태 취성 파괴 영역의 범위와 깊이는 심부 터널의 굴착과 보강 설계의 주요 인자이므로 이를 파악하는 것은 중요하다. 취성 파괴의 특성은 응력 조건에 따라 점착력 상실과 마찰력 전이로 구성된다는 점과 진행성 파괴라는 점이다. 본 연구는 이중 선형 절단 파괴 포락선과 탄성-탄소성 연계 해석과 점진적 탄소성 영역 확대라는 해석 절차와 방법을 도입하여 터널 주변 취성 암반의 파괴를 합리적으로 모사할 수 있는 3차원 수치 모델을 구현하였다. 이 수치 모델이 예상한 취성 파괴 영역의 깊이는 기존 사례 연구를 통한 경험식의 결과와 부합되었다. The failure of rock mass around deep tunnel, different from shallow tunnel largely affected by discontinuities, is dominated by magnitudes and directions of stresses, and the failures dominated by stresses can be divided into ductile and brittle features according to the conditions of stresses and the characteristics of rock mass. It is important to know the range and the depth of the V-shaped notch type failure resulted from the brittle failure, such as spalling, slabbing and rock burst, because they are the main factors for the design of excavation and support of deep tunnels. The main features of brittle failure are that it consists of cohesion loss and friction mobilization according to the stress condition, and is progressive. In this paper, a three-dimensional numerical model has been developed in order to simulate the brittle behavior of rock mass around deep tunnel by introducing the bi-linear failure envelope cut off, elastic-elastoplastic coupling and gradual spread of elastoplastic regions. By performing a series of numerical analyses, it is shown that the depths of failure estimated by this model coincide with an empirical relation from a case study.

LANDSCAPES IMPACTED BY LIGHT

The gradual spread of urbanization, the phenomenon known under the term urban sprawl, has become one of the paradigms that have characterized the urban development since the second half of the twentieth century and early twenty-first century. However, there is no unanimous consensus about what means "urbanization". The plurality of forms of human settlement on the planet difficult to identify the urbanization processes. The arrival of electrification to nearly every corner of the planet is certainly the first and more meaningful indicator of artificialization of land. In this sense, the paper proposes a new methodology based on the analysis of the satellite image of nighttime lights designed to identify the highly impacted landscapes worldwide and to build an index of Land Impacted by Light per capita (LILpc) as an indicator of the level of urbanization. The used methodology allows the identification of different typologies of urbanized areas (villages, cities or metropolitan areas), as well as “rural”, “rurban”, “periurban” and “central” landscapes. <br><br> The study identifies 186,134 illuminated contours (urbanized areas). In one hand, 404 of these contours could be consider as real “metropolitan areas”; and in the other hand, there are 161,821 contours with less than 5,000 inhabitants, which could be identify as “villages”. Finally, the paper shows that 44.5 % live in rural areas, 15.5 % in rurban spaces, 26.2 % in suburban areas and only 18.4 % in central areas.

LANDSCAPES IMPACTED BY LIGHT

Abstract. The gradual spread of urbanization, the phenomenon known under the term urban sprawl, has become one of the paradigms that have characterized the urban development since the second half of the twentieth century and early twenty-first century. However, there is no unanimous consensus about what means "urbanization". The plurality of forms of human settlement on the planet difficult to identify the urbanization processes. The arrival of electrification to nearly every corner of the planet is certainly the first and more meaningful indicator of artificialization of land. In this sense, the paper proposes a new methodology based on the analysis of the satellite image of nighttime lights designed to identify the highly impacted landscapes worldwide and to build an index of Land Impacted by Light per capita (LILpc) as an indicator of the level of urbanization. The used methodology allows the identification of different typologies of urbanized areas (villages, cities or metropolitan areas), as well as “rural”, “rurban”, “periurban” and “central” landscapes. The study identifies 186,134 illuminated contours (urbanized areas). In one hand, 404 of these contours could be consider as real “metropolitan areas”; and in the other hand, there are 161,821 contours with less than 5,000 inhabitants, which could be identify as “villages”. Finally, the paper shows that 44.5 % live in rural areas, 15.5 % in rurban spaces, 26.2 % in suburban areas and only 18.4 % in central areas.

Serial grouping of 2D-image regions with object-based attention in humans.

After an initial stage of local analysis within the retina and early visual pathways, the human visual system creates a structured representation of the visual scene by co-selecting image elements that are part of behaviorally relevant objects. The mechanisms underlying this perceptual organization process are only partially understood. We here investigate the time-course of perceptual grouping of two-dimensional image-regions by measuring the reaction times of human participants and report that it is associated with the gradual spread of object-based attention. Attention spreads fastest over large and homogeneous areas and is slowed down at locations that require small-scale processing. We find that the time-course of the object-based selection process is well explained by a 'growth-cone' model, which selects surface elements in an incremental, scale-dependent manner. We discuss how the visual cortical hierarchy can implement this scale-dependent spread of object-based attention, leveraging the different receptive field sizes in distinct cortical areas.

A rare cause of infection, Raoultella planticola: emerging threat and new reservoir for carbapenem resistance.

Severe cases of infections caused by Raoultella planticola are constantly being reported from all over the world with the increase in drug-resistance patterns. In this study, we retrospectively evaluated the clinical characteristics of R. planticola infections with patients' demographics and antimicrobial susceptibilities of the R. planticola isolates. R. planticola isolates were retrospectively evaluated. VITEK 2® automated system was used for identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Verification of the low-discriminated isolates was analyzed with MALDI-TOF method using VITEK MS® system. Gene-Xpert® system was used for detection of bla IMP-1-, bla KPC-, bla NDM-1-, bla OXA-48- and bla VIM-type carbapenemases. The data of the patients with R. planticola infection were collected from hospital records. During the 4-year period, 42 episodes of R. planticola infections were detected. MALDI-TOF was used for 11 of the low-discriminated isolates, and 1 of which identified as R. terrigena was excluded. Carbapenems and aminoglycosides were the most effective antimicrobial agents. Extended spectrum beta-lactamases were detected in seven of the isolates. Three carbapenem-resistant isolates were detected as bla OXA-48-type carbapenemase carrier. Nosocomial R. planticola infections constituted 80.9% (n=34) of the infections. Most common infections related with R. planticola were blood stream infections (n=24) (p<0.005). The presence of indwelling catheter and intensive care unit stay were the most common detected risk factors (p<0.005). Diabetes mellitus and chronic renal insufficiency commonly accompanied the infections (p>0.005). Challenging infections caused by Raoultella spp., like those of multidrug resistant Klebsiella spp., will probably become a concern for clinicians as well as microbiologists . In literature, there were few cases, but we believe that the incidence of Raoultella spp. infections, which may result from misidentification, are more common than expected , and it is not unlikely that there will be a gradual increase and spread in multidrug-resistant isolates.

Vasodegenerative Disease: Lessons from the Nervous System

Vasodegenerative diseases, such as atherosclerosis and hypertensive and diabetic vasculopathies, share many features with neurodegenerative diseases. These include complex and poorly understood etiologies; common risk factors; chronic progression; involvement of distinctive functional systems, regions and cell types; presence of extracellular deposits or intracellular inclusions; gradual spread to contiguous and sometimes distant sites; and a tendency to present clinically in later life. These commonalities may provide clues regarding pathophysiology and approaches to treatment.