Number Of Efforts Research Articles

Re-evaluating the reconstruction of Proto-Eskimo-Aleut

AbstractThe relationship between Unangam Tunuu (Aleut) and Eskimo was established in the early 19th century, and the 20th century especially saw a number of efforts on the reconstruction of Proto-Eskimo-Aleut (PEA). Reconstruction has supported assumptions of a largely genealogical relationship between the EA languages, assumptions which include a long history of independent development in isolation from other languages and language families. The reconstruction of PEA, however, is incomplete; many apparent cognates have irregular or imperfectly understood sound correspondences. Furthermore, advances in archaeology and genetics have called into question many assumptions about EA prehistory and about the isolation or lack thereof of Unangam Tunuu. In this study, I re-examine the proposed cognates and evaluate them based on the strength of their correspondences and their distribution within the lexicon, with reference to new findings regarding technological innovations and periods of cultural contact. Several patterns emerge, including a large group of proposed cognates with overly-specific semantic correlations relating to technologies or cultural practices post-dating the split of EA languages, a gender-based difference in the number of cognates relating to cultural activities, and a correlation between known borrowings and high levels of cognates in certain semantic domains. Results suggest extensive language contact, especially in the past millennium.

Tailoring solubility of methylammonium lead halide with non-stoichiometry molar ratio in perovskite solar cells: Morphological and electrical relationships for high current generation

Recent studies have shown a highly efficient performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) of 22.7%. Although a number of efforts have been made to reproduce flat, uniform, and dense perovskite films using a stoichiometric ratio of 'CH3NH3I: PbI2: DMSO = 1:1:1′, several complicated processes are required to achieve a regular grain-to-grain uniformity. Therefore, it was difficult to reproduce. This is because the conventional ratio of 'CH3NH3I: PbI2: DMSO = 1:1:1′ can cause the CH3NH3I-PbI2-DMSO intermediate phase and the CH3NH3PbI3 crystal phase to coexist in solution. As a result, the CH3NH3PbI3 crystals in the solution may deteriorate the quality of the thin film. In this study, the non-stoichiometric molar ratio among CH3NH3I:PbI2:DMSO solutions was applied to control the quality of the perovskite layers. We successfully fabricated uniform and dense CH3NH3PbI3 PSCs, by simply manipulating CH3NH3PbI3 solubility with the different DMSO molar amounts. Further, a homogeneous grain size and a regular inter-grain arrangement with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses were obtained in the optimized solubility. We also confirmed that the PSCs with the optimized condition exhibited higher Jsc (Current density) and PCE (Power Conversion Efficiency), due to the Lamer model effect on the enhancement of the internal light absorption.Furthermore, the device with the optimized solubility exhibited enhanced electrical properties. Especially, the improved-electrical properties of the charge carrier-separation, mobility, collection, generation, and resistances were confirmed by photoluminescence (PL) quenching/mapping of the space-charge limited current (SCLC), the photo current density as a function of internal voltage (Jph–Vint) characteristic, and the impedance. Consequently, it was shown that tailoring the solubility of CH3NH3PbI3 can have a critical effect on the production of high quality perovskite thin films. These films will have an appropriate particle size and uniformity that will have a promising approach for generating high current densities.

Quality of Medical Advice Provided Between Members of a Web-Based Message Board for Patients With Implantable Defibrillators: Mixed-Methods Study.

BackgroundPatients use Web-based medical information to understand medical conditions and treatments. A number of efforts have been made to understand the quality of professionally created content; however, none have described the quality of advice being provided between anonymous members of Web-based message boards.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to characterize the quality of medical information provided between members of an anonymous internet message board addressing treatment with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD).MethodsWe quantitatively analyzed 2 years of discussions using a mixed inductive-deductive framework, first, for instances in which members provided medical advice and, then, for the quality of the advice.ResultsWe identified 82 instances of medical advice within 127 discussions. Advice covered 6 topical areas: (1) Device information, (2) Programming, (3) Cardiovascular disease, (4) Lead management, (5) Activity restriction, and (6) Management of other conditions. Across all advice, 50% (41/82) was deemed generally appropriate, 24% (20/82) inappropriate for most patients, 6% (5/82) controversial, and 20% (16/82) without sufficient context. Proportions of quality categories varied between topical areas. We have included representative examples.ConclusionsThe quality of advice shared between anonymous members of a message board regarding ICDs varied considerably according to topical area and the specificity of advice. This report provides a model to describe the quality of the available Web-based patient-generated material.

Reproductive justice: A framework for abortion law reform

Australia has seen a number of efforts at reform of abortion laws in recent years. Some jurisdictions have decriminalised abortion entirely, and other states have made efforts to reform abortion law without complete decriminalisation. At the other end of the spectrum, Queensland in 2018 listed abortion as a criminal offence. This article uses the framework of questions in the Queensland Law Reform Commission consultation paper to reprise the need for abortion law reform in Queensland specifically, and Australia generally. While answering the Queensland Law Reform Commission questions, we frame our inquiry around empowering women’s self-determination to make decisions about their reproductive health as a hallmark of their equality as citizens.

Pancreatic surgery: we need clear definitions.

Pancreatic surgery has undergone substantial changes during the last decades. Improved surgical techniques and perioperative care have contributed to improved outcomes and allow safe surgery with mortality rates below 5% in specialized centers today. In parallel, surgical indications and procedures have been continuously extended especially with regard to pancreatic cancer surgery including vascular resections and multivisceral approaches for advanced findings. With the growing awareness of the need to report outcomes scientifically, it has become obvious that only standardized definitions allow a reasonable description and comparability with regard to indications, procedures, and especially complications. Consequently, a number of efforts have been undertaken to achieve this aim, including basic nomenclatures, preoperative definition of resectability, and specific outcome parameters. This review gives an overview on the development of international standardizations in pancreatic surgery and the current status and discusses their scientific importance and the most important current controversies in the context of the present literature as well as the ongoing future approaches in this field.

Developing a healthcare dataset information resource (DIR) based on Semantic Web

BackgroundThe right dataset is essential to obtain the right insights in data science; therefore, it is important for data scientists to have a good understanding of the availability of relevant datasets as well as the content, structure, and existing analyses of these datasets. While a number of efforts are underway to integrate the large amount and variety of datasets, the lack of an information resource that focuses on specific needs of target users of datasets has existed as a problem for years. To address this gap, we have developed a Dataset Information Resource (DIR), using a user-oriented approach, which gathers relevant dataset knowledge for specific user types. In the present version, we specifically address the challenges of entry-level data scientists in learning to identify, understand, and analyze major datasets in healthcare. We emphasize that the DIR does not contain actual data from the datasets but aims to provide comprehensive knowledge about the datasets and their analyses.MethodsThe DIR leverages Semantic Web technologies and the W3C Dataset Description Profile as the standard for knowledge integration and representation. To extract tailored knowledge for target users, we have developed methods for manual extractions from dataset documentations as well as semi-automatic extractions from related publications, using natural language processing (NLP)-based approaches. A semantic query component is available for knowledge retrieval, and a parameterized question-answering functionality is provided to facilitate the ease of search.ResultsThe DIR prototype is composed of four major components—dataset metadata and related knowledge, search modules, question answering for frequently-asked questions, and blogs. The current implementation includes information on 12 commonly used large and complex healthcare datasets. The initial usage evaluation based on health informatics novices indicates that the DIR is helpful and beginner-friendly.ConclusionsWe have developed a novel user-oriented DIR that provides dataset knowledge specialized for target user groups. Knowledge about datasets is effectively represented in the Semantic Web. At this initial stage, the DIR has already been able to provide sophisticated and relevant knowledge of 12 datasets to help entry health informacians learn healthcare data analysis using suitable datasets. Further development of both content and function levels is underway.

Computational thinking in elementary classrooms: measuring teacher understanding of computational ideas for teaching science

ABSTRACTA number of efforts have focused on preparing teachers to integrate CT within secondary disciplinary subject areas; however, there is little research on how CT ideas could be embedded within elementary subjects. We designed a professional development activity for elementary teachers to embed CT within science and examined how their understanding of CT emerged over the course of PD. This paper reports results from qualitative analysis of teacher responses to vignettes and open-ended questions, which presented teaching scenarios related to CT. We found that the vignettes allow us to see shift in teachers’ thinking about CT from broad and generalized ideas to more elaborate versions of those ideas. We discuss that while vignettes provided a good method to portray changes in teacher views about CT, we need additional mechanisms to monitor how teachers conceptualize and come to integrate computational thinking into elementary schools.

Safety First

Safety First

Privacy-preserving shared collaborative web services QoS prediction

Collaborative Web services QoS prediction (CQoSP) has been proved to be an effective tool to predict unknown QoS values of services. Recently a number of efforts have been made in this area, focusing on improving the accuracy of prediction. In this paper, we consider a novel kind of CQoSP, shared CQoSP, where multiple parties share their data with each other in order to provide more accurate prediction than a single party could do. To encourage data sharing, we propose a privacy-preserving framework which enables shared collaborative QoS prediction without leaking the private information of the involved party. Our framework is based on differential privacy, a rigorous and provable privacy model. We conduct extensive experiments on a real Web services QoS dataset. Experimental results show the proposed framework increases prediction accuracy while ensuring the privacy of data owners.

Uterine contractile efficiency indexes for labor prediction: A bivariate approach from multichannel electrohysterographic records

Abstract Labor prediction is one of the most challenging goals in obstetrics, mainly due to the poor understanding of the factors responsible for the onset of labor. The electrohysterogram (EHG) is the recording of the myoelectrical activity of myometrial cells and has been shown to provide relevant information on the electrophysiological state of the uterus. This information could be used to obtain more accurate labor predictions than those of the currently used techniques, such as the Bishop score, tocography or biochemical markers. Indeed, a number of efforts have already been made to predict labor by this method, separately characterizing the intensity, the coupling degree of the EHG signals and myometrial cell excitability, these being the cornerstones on which contraction efficiency is built. Although EHG characterization can distinguish between different obstetric situations, the reported results have not been shown to provide a practical tool for the clinical detection of true labor. The aim of this work was thus to define and calculate indexes from multichannel EHG recordings related to all the phenomena involved in the efficiency of uterine myoelectrical activity (intensity, excitability and synchronization) and to combine them to form global efficiency indexes (GEI) able to predict delivery in less than 7/14 days. Four EHG synchronization indexes were assessed: linear correlation, the imaginary part of the coherence, phase synchronization and permutation cross mutual information. The results show that even though the synchronization and excitability efficiency indexes can detect increasing trends as labor approaches, they cannot predict labor in less than 7/14 days. However, intensity seems to be the main factor that contributes to myometrial efficiency and is able to predict labor in less than 7/14 days. All the GEIs present increasing monotonic trends as pregnancy advances and are able to identify (p

(Invited) Domino Killing Isomerization of Azobenzene Embedded in Rigid Polymer Gel

Photoisomerization reactions of azobenzene derivatives have become the most common power source for molecular machines and photoresponsive polymers. Among photomechanical polymeric materials, a large response has been achieved exclusively using azobenzene-containing liquidcrystalline elastomers (azo-LCEs) and networks (azo-LCNs). Thus, although a number of efforts have been done to develop polymeric materials capable of transducing light to mechanical work, successful examples of bottom-up direct photomechanical transduction are still limited. Here we demonstrate that azobenzene containing rigid polymer networks, which consist of aromatic poly(amide acid) or polyimide backbones, show remarkable macroscopic deformation in response to blue (405 nm) and visible light (>532 nm) irradiation. The bending motion of the cantilever was recorded by a video camera and analyzed on a computer. Although, the centimeter-long cantilever of PAA gel rapidly bends and forms a 90° angle within 4 s upon 405nm laser irradiation at one point, that of PI gels deflect 90 degree within 1.5 s. The bent cantilever cannot smoothly return to a straight shape upon visible light (> 532 nm) irradiation at one point. Surprisingly, in order to return the polymer rod of PI gels to the upright state, it is necessary to irradiate the entire rod with visible light. We believe that this is because trans-cis isomerization of azobenzene at the light irradiation site induces domino killing isomerization of the polymer gel at the non-irradiated site. In this research, we discuss the possibility that domino killing isomerization of azobenzene is induced by laser irradiation from various evidence.

Kynjajafnrétti í íþróttum – á ríkið að tryggja það?

Í greininni er lagalegt umhverfi íþrótta á Íslandi kannað með hliðsjón af kynjajafnréttissjónarmiðum með hinni fræðilegu lagalegu aðferð (e. doctrinal method). Þannig eru skoðuð sjónarmið sem legið hafa til grundvallar lagasetningu um íþróttir, innlendar og alþjóðlegar skuldbindingar íslenskra stjórnvalda og rýnt í hvort jafnréttissjónarmiða gæti í stefnumótun og fjárútlátum stjórnvalda í íþróttamálum. Í ljósi lögbundins hlutverks íslensku íþróttahreyfingarinnar er inntak hennar og uppbygging skoðuð með hliðsjón af sömu sjónarmiðum. Niðurstöður rannsóknarinnar eru að ríkið er skuldbundið til þess að tryggja kynjajafnrétti í íþróttum. Inntak þeirrar skuldbindingar er þó að einhverju leyti óskýrt. Lagaleg ábyrgð á málaflokknum er nokkuð á reiki vegna sérstöðu íþróttahreyfingarinnar, en fyrirkomulag hreyfingarinnar á sér djúpar sögulegar rætur. Þá er vegna greiningar á milli íþrótta sem tómstunda- og æskulýðsstarfs annars vegar og sem atvinnugreinar hins vegar vakin athygli á að íþróttafélög á Íslandi reka sum þætti í starfsemi sinni í mismunandi félagaformi. Vegna þessa er hugsanlegt að einhver þeirra þurfi að skýra vinnusamband við afreksíþróttamenn og annað starfsfólk félaganna í ljósi nýlegra ákvæða laga um jafnlaunavottun fyrirtækja. Að lokum eru gerðar tillögur að úrbótum sem beinast bæði að ríkisvaldinu og íþróttahreyfingunni, en af niðurstöðum greinarinnar má ljóst vera að svigrúm er til úrbóta í lagaumgjörð, stefnumótun og fjárveitingum til þess að tryggja kynjajafnrétti í íþróttum á Íslandi.

Exploring the Lead Compounds for Zika Virus NS2B-NS3 Protein: an e-Pharmacophore-Based Approach.

The rapid spread of the Zika virus and its association with the abnormal brain development constitute a global health emergency. With a continuing spread of the mosquito vector, the exposure is expected to accelerate in the coming years. Despite number of efforts, there is still no proper vaccine or medicine to combat this virus. Of note, the NS2B-NS3 protein is proven to be the potential target for the Zika virus therapeutics. Hence, e-pharmacophore-based drug design strategy was employed to identify potent inhibitors of NS2B-NS3 protein from ASINEX database consisting of 467,802 molecules. A 3D e-pharmacophore model was generated using PHASE module of Schrödinger Suite. The generated model consists of one hydrogen bond acceptor (A), two hydrogen bond donors (D), and two aromatic rings (R), ADDRR. The model was further evaluated for its ability to screen actives using enrichment analysis. Subsequently, high-throughput virtual screening protocol was employed, and the resultant hit molecules were also examined for its binding free energies and ADME properties using Prime MM-GBSA and Qikprop module of Schrodinger packages, respectively. Finally, the screened hit molecule was subjected to molecular dynamics simulation to examine its stability. Overall, the results from our analysis suggest that compound BAS 19192837 could be a potent inhibitor for the NS2B-NS3 protein of the Zika virus. It is also noteworthy to mention that our results are in good agreement with literature evidences. We hope that this result is of immense importance in designing potential drug molecules to combat the spread of Zika virus in the near future.

A Look at the Reasons Behind the Establishment of Movements Aimed at Resuscitating the Ndebele/Mthwakazi Kingdom in Post-Colonial Zimbabwe

The resuscitation of the Ndebele kingdom has been a topical issue in Zimbabwe. The Ndebele kingdom, which was established by king Mzilikazi ka MaShobana was destroyed by white settlers during the reign of his son Lobengula. The years following the colonisation of Zimbabwe saw a number of efforts being made to liberate the country. The liberation struggle came to an end in 1980 when Zimbabwe, a country which came to being as a result of nationalists was liberated and the black majority assumed power. However, there have been growing calls for the resuscitation of the Ndebele kingdom, which in some circles mean breaking away from Zimbabwe. One wonders what the reasons behind the call for the resuscitation of the Ndebele kingdom were: Is this move fuelled by poor service delivery in Zimbabwe? Are the Ndebele people unhappy with the current state of affairs in Zimbabwe? Is this another revolution waiting to happen? This study sought to establish the reasons behind calls to resuscitate the Ndebele kingdom in Zimbabwe. A qualitative research methodology was employed and interviews held with one of the heirs to the Ndebele throne, as well as the leader of one of the movements advocating for the resuscitation of the Ndebele or Mthwakazi kingdom.

Abstract 249: Quality of Medical Advice Provided Online Between Anonymous Members of a Message Board for Implanted Defibrillator Patients

Background: As therapeutic interventions across medicine increase in complexity, most patients use the internet to research health issues to inform decisions, including whether or not to accept certain tests, medications, or devices. Online information is available any time and can be reviewed indefinitely by patients, filling some educational needs outside of appointments with care providers. The quality of information patients encounter online varies, and we found no models for examining anonymously-created medical advice in extant literature. We used implanted defibrillator (ICD) treatment, characterized by patient educational and supportive needs across the trajectory of care, as a model. We sought to characterize the quality of medical information provided between commenters on a typical patient-facing internet message board discussing ICDs. Methods: Two years’ of discussions appearing on a dedicated message board for ICD patients were qualitatively analyzed using a mixed-deductive framework. Discussions were first analyzed for instances in which members provided medical advice. This advice was then characterized for 1) topical area and 2) quality. Results: We identified 82 instances of medical advice within 127 discussions. Advice covered six topical areas: 1) Device Information, 2) Programming, 3) Cardiovascular Disease, 4) Lead Management, 5) Activity Restriction, and 6) Management of Other Conditions. Across all advice, 50.0% was deemed Generally Appropriate, 24.4% Inappropriate for Most Patients, 6.1% Controversial, and 19.5% Without Sufficient Context. Proportions of quality categories varied between topical areas. Representative examples of advice provided between members will be included. Conclusions: Patients use online medical information to understand conditions and treatment options. A number of efforts have been made to understand the quality of professionally-created educational content, while ours describes the quality of advice being provided between anonymous members of an online message board. The quality of advice varied considerably, both by topical area and the specificity of advice. This analysis provides a methodologic model by which to describe the quality of patient-generated material available online.

Professional-Competence-Based Model of Classroom Action Research Training Management for Islam Religion Education Teachers of Senior High School

A number of efforts have been made to improve the quality of teachers, such as providing training on curriculum, methods of learning, and further study for those who have not completed their undergraduate program. However, these efforts do not seem to be maximally successful in improving the quality of the learning process and outcomes. Therefore, training is needed in order to improve the professional competence of the teachers through classroom action research training. This research aimed to yield a product, that is the management model of classroom action research training for Islam Religion Education Teachers of Senior High Schoolof in Semarang City which is packaged in the form of a classroom action research management training manual for teachers as guidebooks for instructors and trainees to improve their professional competence. This study utilized a Research and Development approach which was preceded by a qualitative descriptive method. This method was used as a preliminary to obtain data on how to implement the training that has been running for this. A preliminary study revealed what the problem was with the training. The results show that the development of the management model of classroom action research training was carried out in accordance with the development procedures which include preliminary research, analysis, production/development, and revision, while the product was evaluated in accordance with the development of evaluation procedures.

Phytotherapeutics of polyphenolic-loaded drug delivery systems: A review

Phytopharmaceuticals stand out as recent promising candidates for the treatment of chronic diseases. Nanotechnology has become an important part of pharmaceutical industry, since it involves the development of novel drug delivery systems (nanomedicines) for the benefit of human health. The usefulness of nanotechnology has also been extended to natural products where, number of efforts is made for improvisation of bioavailability and therapeutic potential of polyphenolic compounds. A variety of novel drug delivery systems have been developed for polyphenolic compounds to enhance the relative bioavailability. The developed formulations have also shown sustain or prolonged release properties and also target delivery as evidenced by in-vitro and in-vivo studies. The novel formulations of Quercetin, Green tea catechins, epigallocatechin gallate, Genistein, Resveratrol, Breviscapine and Scutellarin etc. have been prepared by novel techniques and found to increase the therapeutic efficacy against various diseases. The present review focuses on various novel formulations developed for polyphenolic compounds including their therapeutic applications.

A Unified Framework for Evaluating Supply Chain Reliability and Resilience

As the complexity of supply chain structures and the frequency of their disruptions rise, businesses are increasingly recognizing the value of supply chain reliability and resilience (SCRR). A number of efforts have been devoted to define SCRR or to develop risk mitigation strategies for their improvement. However, a key question remaining to be answered is how SCRR should be quantified. Existing methods are insufficient in addressing this question on two important fronts: First, they do not adequately represent the interdependencies between different supply chain nodes; second, they do not allow for the modeling of actionable decisions and thus cannot be used to guide improvement strategies. This paper aims to fill this gap by proposing a unified framework for evaluating SCRR that internalizes design inputs and is flexible to varying degrees of data availability. The proposed framework captures risks involved in the supply, the demand, the firm itself, and the external environment. It also contributes to the literature by relating SCRR to the supply chain's risk-mitigating capabilities prior to or postdisruptions. A novel method using the supply chain's inherent buyer-supplier relationships is designed to model node interdependencies. Two example applications are discussed to demonstrate how this framework can be utilized to assist in reliable and resilient supply chain design.

Efisiensi Teknis Usaha Pembesaran Lobster di Pulau Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat

One aquaculture commodity that has a high economic value and potential to be developed in Indonesia is lobster. Lombok Island is a considerable lobster-producing area that has a great potential for the future development. However, lobster farming in this island lacks in productivity due to the management factors. Therefore, to achieve a sustainable development, the lobster farming needs a number of efforts to improve its productivity and technical efficiency. This study aims to: (1) analyze the influencing factors to the production of lobster farming and (2) analyze the level of technical efficiency and affecting factors on the technical inefficiency of lobster farming. The primary data were collected through surveys of 106 lobster - farming households. The stochastic frontier production function with Maximum Likelihood Estimator (MLE) method was used to analyze the efficiency of the cultivation system. The results suggested that most of the farmers are technically efficient with the average of the technical efficiency level of 0.91. The production inputs that have significant effects include the quantities of seed and feed and culture period. The technical inefficiency was influenced by the farmers’ age, experience, education and perceptions on sustainability of their farming. Keywords: technical efficiency, lobster farming, stochastic frontier production function, Cobb-Douglas, MLE

Demands of World Cup Competitions in Elite Women's Road Cycling.

To describe the demand of recent World Cup (WC) races comparing top-10 (T10) and non-top-10 (N-T10) performances using power data. Race data were collected in 1-d World Cup races during the 2012-2015 road cycling seasons. Seven female cyclists completed 49 WC races, finishing 25 times in T10 and 24 times in N-T10. Peak power (1s) and maximal mean power (MMP) for durations of 5, 10, 20, and 30s and 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 30, and 60min expressed as power to weight ratio were analyzed in T10 and N-T10. The percentage of total race time spent at different power bands was compared between T10 and N-T10 using 0.75-W·kg-1 power bands, ranging from <0.75 to >7.50 W·kg-1. The number of efforts in which the power output remained above 7.50 W·kg-1 for at least 10s was recorded. MMPs were significantly higher in T10 than in N-T10, with a large effect size for durations between 10s and 5min. N-T10 spent more time in the 3.01- to 3.75-W·kg-1 power band when compared to T10 (P = .011); conversely, T10 spent more time in the 6.75- to 7.50- and >7.50-W·kg-1 power bands (P = .009 and .005, respectively) than N-T10. A significantly higher number of short and high-intensity efforts (≥10s, >7.5 W·kg-1) was ridden by T10 than N-T10 (P = .002), specifically, 46 ± 20 and 30 ± 15 efforts for T10 and N-T10, respectively. The ability to ride at high intensity was determinant for successful road-cycling performances in WC races.