Temporary Conditions Research Articles

Tiroiditis

IntroductionThe term thyroiditis encompasses some relatively common inflammatory disorders of the thyroid gland, which have been classified according to their aetiology and course length. Etiopathogeny, classification and clinical courseInfectious agents cause acute suppurative thyroiditis, an unusual disorder that does not generate thyroid dysfunction. De Quervain's thyroiditis is the most common subacute thyroiditis. It is a self-limited process that is typically presented with a sharp pain in the anterior neck. The clinical course is bimodal: usually starts with a thyrotoxic period followed by a hypothyroid phase and eventually return to a euthyroid state. Others subacute thyroiditis are postpartum and silent thyroiditis. Both of them are painless temporary conditions of an autoimmune origin. Hashimoto's thyroiditis is the most representative of chronic thyroiditis. It has an autoimmune origin and normally progresses to a permanent hypothyroidism. Uncommon thyroiditis includes drug-related thyroiditis and the exceedingly rare Riedel's thyroiditis. Prognosis and treatmentThe treatment relies on the aetiology, but thyroiditis generally have a benign course.

Policy Frameworks Influencing Outdoor Water‐use Restrictions

AbstractWater‐use efficiency in the United States (U.S.) has improved in recent years. Yet continued population growth coupled with increasingly conservation‐oriented regulatory frameworks suggest that residential water suppliers will have to realize additional efficiency gains in coming decades. Outdoor water‐use restrictions (OWRs) appear to be an increasingly prevalent demand‐side management policy tool. To date little research has investigated the policy mechanisms that govern OWR adoption and influence the prevalence of OWRs. This article fills this gap with an assessment of state‐level policies influencing local‐level restrictions on residential outdoor water use in each of the 48 contiguous U.S. states, and with a detailed illustration of the cross‐scalar dynamic of one state's policy framework in practice. An examination of the implementation of OWRs in 24 neighboring towns in Massachusetts across the 2003‐2012 period indicates the interplay between state‐level and local‐level policies leads to OWRs implementation over extended time‐periods, even when drought conditions are not present. This finding suggests OWRs are being used as a tool for general‐purpose water conservation rather than as a stopgap measure justified by temporary water shortage conditions. Future research should investigate how local‐level water savings vary with differing state‐level approaches.

Group Climate and Creativity in Temporary Innovation Camp Settings

This study examines how perceived group climate shapes the creativity of groups in temporary, collaborative and non‐virtual innovation setting. As no previous studies have examined antecedents of group creativity in temporary non‐virtual innovation settings, this study takes as a starting point the findings of the current studies in conventional ongoing groups to examine the conditions of temporary group innovation camp settings. Through a survey study and partial least squares‐structural equation modelling (PLS‐SEM), the paper sheds light on the antecedents of group creativity in temporary conditions. According to the results, task orientation was the only significant antecedent of group creativity, supporting the assertion that temporary work settings tend to be more task oriented than relationship oriented. The results indicate that many aspects of the social working environment that have been found to affect group creativity in ongoing and stable settings do not exert a similar influence in temporary settings.

Soil Nailing in the 2010s: Its Evolution and Coming of Age

While the early 2000s witnessed soil nailing as a well-established method in the U.S. for providing temporary and permanent support of excavation (SOE), the technique has since continued to evolve thanks to the unceasing ingenuity of manufacturers, contractors, and designers. The advancement of soil nailing has also been bolstered by public and private entities that have expanded its use through increased acceptance for new temporary and permanent project conditions. This article presents a broad view of recent innovations and advances of this technology in the areas of materials and applications.

Between transparency and surveillance

The recent wave of whistleblowers and cyber-dissidents, from Julian Assange to Edward Snowden, has declared war against surveillance. In this context, transparency is presented as an attainable political goal that can be delivered in flesh and bones by spectacular and quasi-messianic moments of disclosure. The thesis of this article is that, despite its progressive promise, the project of releasing classified documents is in line with the Orwellian cold war trope of Big Brother rather than with the complex geography of surveillance today. By indicting the US federal government as the principal agent of surveillance, the ‘logic of the leak’ obfuscates that today’s surveillance is conducted mostly by the private sector in the form of dataveillance. What should we think, then, of this new fetish of transparency? Is it a symptom of the castigation of a desire for surveillance, the wish to be constantly observed and closely inspected? I claim that the meaning of the ‘expository society’, as Bernard Harcourt calls it, depends on how we interpret secrets. For secrets are not only temporary conditions of occultation that can, and should, be indiscriminately exposed, but sites of agency. In this perspective, the emancipatory promise hangs on the right to the secret, assumed as the right not to answer and not to belong.

Clinical Classification of Diseases and Conditions of Mammary Glands in Children and Adolescents

The article describes the proposed current clinical classification of breast diseases and pathology in childhood and adolescence. The classification is based on the analysis of data obtained from the examination and follow-up monitoring of 6,126 children for up to 8 years. The clinical classification is recommended for widespread use in the work of primary care physicians who conduct follow-up monitoring. The use of this classification creates groups for referral to specialists for further examination and further treatment and follow-up monitoring. The classification is based on the separation of physiological (normal conditions) and pathological processes, as well as on temporary deviations from normal development (temporary conditions not leading to pathological processes) and anomalies in development of mammary glands and nipple-areolar complex. If any abnormalities are suspected, a patient shall be sent to a mammologist for further examination and US scanning. Control of growth and development of mammary glands in childhood and adolescence ensures early detection of abnormalities and allows necessary remedial measures to protect reproductive health.

Metal Oxide Surge Arresters Modelling in Temporary Overvoltage Conditions

Metal Oxide Surge Arresters Modelling in Temporary Overvoltage Conditions

Yield Enhancement Through Fertilizer Placement by Machine Below the Seed in Rain-fed Soybean Crop Under Vertisols

Under the unpredictable behavior of monsoon in Central India, faster seedbed preparation and timely sowing are critical factors to achieve higher soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] yield. Therefore, a “tractor-drawn ridge fertilizer drill cum seed planter” hitched to the three-point linkage system of the tractor was conceived, fabricated, and farm validated for facilitating the development of ridges of soil along with placement of fertilizer under the ridges and sowing of seeds operations upon it. The study comprised of two treatments: (T1) normal fertilizer cum seed planter and (T2) tractor-operated ridge fertilizer drill cum seed planter with 10 replications. Planting of soybean using ridge fertilizer drill cum seed planter resulted in 17.22 % increased plant population and consequently seed yield by 31.16 %. The fertilizer drill cum seed planter is capable of placing the fertilizer deep as desired below the seed and mitigating the effect of dry spells as well as temporary waterlogged conditions. The ridge fertilizer drill cum seed planter system of sowing helps to save 44 % of starter basal fertilizer for the soybean crop which is placed below the seed of the plant unlike other methods of starter doze fertilizer application such as common practice of broadcasting of starter basal doze fertilizer followed by use of tine tiller to mix the fertilizer. Besides saving fertilizer, there was considerable reduction in weed growth in the field of soybean crop.

Simulated temporary hypoxia triggers the release of CD31+/Annexin+ endothelial microparticles: A prospective pilot study in humans.

Endothelial microparticles (EMP) are small membrane vesicles that originate from activated or apoptotic endothelial cells. Although the exact mechanism of EMP function is still relatively unknown, it has been shown that they modulate inflammatory processes, coagulation and vascular function. In this study we hypothesized that transient hypoxia may act as a trigger for the release of EMP into circulation. Fourteen healthy volunteers were subjected to transient normobaric hypoxia in an air-conditioned chamber simulating an oxygen concentration of a height of up to 5500 meters. Blood samples were evaluated for EMP using flow cytometry. During the experiment oxygen concentration was adjusted to a value equivalent to a height of 5500 meters to achieve hypoxic conditions. Oxygen saturation decreased to 78% . At the final height a significant increase of CD31+/Annexin+ EMP levels was evident (increase from 0.03% ± 0.01% SEM to 0.12% ± 0.04% SEM, p = 0.0188). These experimental results show that temporary hypoxic conditions can trigger the release of CD31+/ Annexin+ EMP also in healthy volunteers. In our previous studies we have shown that apoptotic bodies can confer pro-survival signals to cardiomyocytes during myocardial ischemia. Based on the experimental results of this current study we believe that the release of CD31+/Annexin+ EMP during hypoxia might act as an endogenous survival signal.

Development and validation of an ELISA kit (YF MAC-HD) to detect IgM to yellow fever virus

Yellow fever virus (YFV) is endemic in tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world, with around 180,000 human infections a year occurring in Africa. Serologic testing is the chief laboratory diagnostic means of identifying an outbreak and to inform the decision to commence a vaccination campaign. The World Health Organization disseminates the reagents for YFV testing to African reference laboratories, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is charged with producing and providing these reagents. The CDC M-antibody capture ELISA is a 2-day test, requiring titration of reagents when new lots are received, which leads to inconsistency in testing and wastage of material. Here we describe the development of a kit-based assay (YF MAC-HD) based upon the CDC method, that is completed in approximately 3.5h, with equivocal samples being reflexed to an overnight protocol. The kit exhibits >90% accuracy when compared to the 2-day test. The kits were designed for use with a minimum of equipment and are stored at 4°C, removing the need for freezing capacity. This kit is capable of tolerating temporary sub-optimal storage conditions which will ease shipping or power outage concerns, and a shelf life of >6 months was demonstrated with no deterioration in accuracy. All reagents necessary to run the YF MAC-HD are included in the kit and are single-use, with 8 or 24 sample options per kit. Field trials are envisioned for the near future, which will enable refinement of the method. The use of the YF MAC-HD is anticipated to reduce materials wastage, and improve the quality and consistency of YFV serologic testing in endemic areas.

New governmental regulatory system for regenerative medicine in Japan

The trend of regenerative medicine has been gaining a rising global attention and has been the target of growing research funds. This includes the importance of the application of cell-based therapy, especially stem cells, for various diseases. Hence, regulations on the use of cells and the pros and cons of its application in the clinical level should also be given equal attention. Recently, regulations in Japan have been reviewed and revised to create more effective and competitive marketing strategy. The Regenerative Medicine Promotion Law was established to provide prompt and safe regenerative medicine products. The Acts on the Safety of Regenerative Medicine entails that medical technologies can be categorized into 3 classes of regenerative medicines based on their risks potentials. It also determines the proper regulation or requirement for each class. Amendment of Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, on the other hand, is regulation in which products can be approved with temporary conditions to enable prompt provision of the products to patients after the safety and efficacy is confirmed. Due to these mitigations in Japan in the advancement of regenerative medicines, we can predict that Japan can be one of the top nations in the production and marketing stem cell therapeutic products by attracting Japanese as well as global companies. Hence, monitoring the changes in the legal policies of regenerative medicine in Japan could be advantageous in the advancement of the current provisions in South Korea geared towards the better achievements in providing the human population with safe, prompt, and effective regenerative medicine therapeutic strategies and products.

Stability of Large Reinforcing Column Cages during Temporary Construction Conditions

AbstractReinforcing cages for large columns requires shoring during the fabrication and erection stages of construction before concrete is placed to form a permanent load-bearing structure. Many column-reinforcing cage collapses have occurred, resulting in injuries and fatalities because the cages were not properly supported in the temporary condition. Guying systems are commonly used to stabilize large reinforcing cages during construction to avoid such accidents. This paper presents a two-dimensional first-principle stability analysis of reinforcing cages that are either pinned or fixed at the base, and supported by one level of guy wires along the height of the cage. The effect of lowering guy-wire attachment points on the stability of cages is also included because this construction practice is reported to be used in some locales. Critical buckling-load diagrams are determined that account for the relative stiffness of the guy wires with respect to the reinforcing cages and the effect of pretensioning...

Modelling price scenarios for sustainable collective action and farm production: pepper in El Roble settlement, Costa Rica

Pepper (Piper nigrum L.) is considered a non-traditional cash crop for enhancing local development in Costa Rica and a suitable activity for small farmers. Trade of pepper has been done by using contractual agreements between producers and processors, which provides at least three functions: insurance, incentives and information. Contracts also require a high level of commitment from contracting parties to keep the equity, efficiency, and sustainability of the trade relationship. The shift of trade conditions from a competitive to a monopsony market encouraged a group of farmers to start an association that aims to bulk and process pepper from members. Breaching contracts by members of the association endanger this effort of sustainable entrepreneurship. This usually happens when temporary market conditions yield higher procurement prices by other competitors. This situation is also worsened by the lack of proper information on production and processing costs between the contracting parties, and then, the disagreement on the procurement price fixation and payment conditions. By using a mixed integer linear optimization model, we aim to identify the ‘best’ price of fresh pepper traded between both parties. We make use of primary information from 12 different farms on production costs and from the association on processing costs. The model incorporates minimum required net margins for all contracting parties, while modelling the net margins of each party, the amount of traded fresh pepper and preferred contract possibilities, given different fresh pepper price scenarios. At lower prices, some of the farmers that supply pepper, do this to just break-even. At higher prices, more is supplied by more farmers. Under monopsony conditions and individual contracts between parties, it is in the interest of the buyer to offer higher fresh pepper prices in order to buy and process more pepper, up to the point that the marginal costs of buying more pepper are equal to the marginal benefits of that extra pepper. This is because the processor has fixed costs, next to variable costs. Higher volumes reduce the average total costs of processing per kg of pepper, and thereby increase profit. When group contracts are possible, thus under bilateral monopoly conditions – farmers acting as ‘one’ seller and the processor as the only buyer – more fresh pepper is supplied at higher prices than under monopsony conditions as more farmers would have higher surpluses. At the same time the processor would have a higher profit than using individual contracts.

Recourse Optimization of Construction on a Basis of the Frontal and Rhythmical Stream

In article is offered the method of calculation of a frontal and rhythmical stream, at which initial temporary operating conditions of crews periodically repeat (under a condition of continuous use of resources). It allows to provide the demanded duration of performance of work and the minimum quantity of resources.

A Reappraisal of the EU’s Expanding Readmission System

Readmission is not simply a means of removing undesirable foreigners through coercive methods. When viewed as a way of ensuring the temporary stay of foreign workers in the labour markets of European destination countries, readmission may also impact on the participatory rights of a growing number of native workers facing equally temporary (and precarious) labour conditions, in a context marked by employment deregulation and wage flexibility. These implications have clear democratic significance. A new analytical perspective applied to the expansion and development of the readmission system, is aimed at promoting a reflection on an unexplored research area bridging the gap between labour migration regulation and labour market deregulation.

Looking inside the box: evidence from the containerization of commodities and the cold chain

Conventional investigations about containerized transportation tend to overlook the goods being carried to focus upon the associated modes and terminals. Containerization is entering a new phase in its global diffusion and adoption by freight distribution systems. The emerging phase of containerization encompasses a complementarity with the commodity sector and the extraction of niche market opportunities to satisfy new demands. This phase is driven by a commodity-wise approach, which inherently creates an array of challenges. For instance, niche markets develop or disappear based on temporary market conditions, the balance of flows on trade routes, and the need for market size. Still, the nature of the commodities being carried is a fundamental element in the emerging containerization of commodities. This article aims at analyzing this emerging niche in the containerization process by ‘looking inside the box’. It particularly unravels the dynamics for a number of commodities and demonstrates which role the container fulfills in these commodity markets. The underlying factors that enable the growth or decline of commodity-based niche markets in containerization are discussed. It also looks at the dynamics of the specialized reefer market of cold chain logistics.

Optimizing in vitro large scale production of giant reed (Arundo donax L.) by liquid medium culture

Tissue culture methods offer the potential for large-scale propagation of giant reed (Arundo donax L.), a promising crop for energy biomass. In previous trials, giant reed resulted particularly suitable to in vitro culture.In this paper, with the final goal of enhancing the efficiency of in vitro production process and reducing costs, the influence of four different culture media (agar or gellan-gum solidified medium, liquid medium into a temporary immersion system-RITA®or in a stationary state) on in vitro shoot proliferation of giant reed was evaluated.Giant reed exhibited a particular sensitivity to gelling agents during the phase of secondary shoot formation. Gellan gum, as compared to agar, improved the efficiency of in vitro culture giving more shoots with higher mean fresh and dry weight. Moreover, the cultivation of this species into a liquid medium under temporary immersion conditions or in a stationary state, was comparatively as effective as and cheaper than that into a gellan gum medium. Increasing 6-benzylaminopurine (BA) up to 4 mg l−1 also resulted in a further enhancement of secondary shoot proliferation.The good adaptability of this species to liquid medium and the high multiplication rates observed indicate the possibility to obtain from a single node at least 1200 plantlets every six multiplication cycles (about 6 months), a number 100 fold higher than that obtained yearly per plant by the conventional methods of vegetative multiplication. In open field, micropropagated plantlets guaranteed a higher number of survived plants, secondary stems and above ground biomass as compared to rhizome ones.

Creating a More Responsive and Seamless Refugee Protection System: The Scope, Promise and Limitations of US Temporary Protection Programs

Temporary protection programs can provide haven to endangered persons while states and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) work to create durable solutions in sending, host and third countries.1 They have the potential to further the interests of forced migrants in protection, states in effective and coordinated migration management, and the international community in solidarity. US temporary protection programs rest primarily on executive discretion and have not been substantially revisited for nearly 25 years. “Parole” represents the primary vehicle for temporarily admitting noncitizens for emergency and humanitarian reasons.2 Prior to 1980, the United States used parole to admit large refugee and refugee-like populations to whom (in most cases) it later extended lawful permanent resident (LPR) status. The 1980 Refugee Act made the US refugee resettlement program the primary vehicle for refugee admissions, limited the use of parole to individuals (not groups), and created a presumption against granting parole to refugees. The United States provides immigrant (permanent) visas to abused, neglected and abandoned children, as well as to certain Iraqis and Afghanis who worked for the US military or for military contractors. It can also award up to 5,000 nonimmigrant (temporary) “T” visas each year to victims of human trafficking and up to 10,000 nonimmigrant “U” visas to survivors of crime who assist law enforcement officials in investigating and prosecuting crimes. However, since 1980, the United States has lacked a dedicated legal vehicle for admitting other refugee-like populations. Temporary protected status (TPS) applies to noncitizens from states experiencing armed conflict, the aftermath of natural disaster, or other extraordinary, temporary conditions that make it unsafe to return. The TPS statute allows the secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to designate states or regions within states for TPS, although the United States has never limited TPS to substate groups. TPS does not cover persons from designated states who arrive following the effective date of the designation, even those who fled great peril. TPS recipients cannot petition for the admission of close family members. In addition, TPS cannot be granted to persons in substantial need of protection from undesignated states. Like refugees and asylees, TPS recipients receive work authorization. Unlike refugees or asylees, they are not eligible for resettlement benefits or deemed “qualified” for most federal public benefit programs. They can apply for political asylum and immigration benefits. However, TPS does not, in itself, lead to permanent status or other durable solutions. Beyond TPS, the executive branch can exercise its discretion not to remove persons who fall outside its law enforcement priorities, including persons who might otherwise suffer violence, extraordinary hardship, or death at home. This paper outlines international standards for the design and operation of temporary protection programs, describes the US refugee protection program writ large, and identifies gaps in protection. It recommends that Congress create a nonimmigrant “protection” visa for noncitizens who are at substantial risk of persecution, danger, or harm in their home or host countries, and that DHS expand its use of parole for de facto refugees and individuals in refugee-like situations. It also argues that the United States should prioritize the reconstruction and development of TPS-designated states and work to establish regional migration and development agreements covering North America, Central America and the Caribbean. Congress should also pass legislation to extend LPR status to long-term recipients of temporary protection. In particular, it should advance the “registry” date to January 1, 1999 (which would provide LPR status to most noncitizens in the country since that date) and it should automatically move up the registry cut-off date each year thereafter by one year. It should also pass broad immigration reform legislation, including a legalization program that would credit years in receipt of temporary protection toward the time required to “earn” legalization. And it should allow temporary protection recipients to apply affirmatively for “cancellation of removal” (which brings LPR status) after 10 years. DHS should also create a more inclusive TPS determination process by hosting quarterly public hearings on conditions in TPS-designated and TPS-eligible nations. It should also re-designate more states for TPS in order to allow persons from designated states who have fled dangerous conditions and entered the United States between the initial designation and re-designation periods to qualify for TPS.

Ecological status assessment of Skalenski Lakes (Bulgaria)

Over the past decade new ecological indices based on phytoplankton and macrophytes were developed as part of the tools for assessment of the ecological status of water bodies. This study demonstrates the applicability of two of them (Assemblage index /Q/ and Algae Group Index /AGI/) for evaluation of water bodies from a lake type L4 as well as their comparability. Assessment of the ecological status of two lake ecosystems was performed in order to ensure successful protection, enhancement and management of lowland and semi-mountain lakes in Bulgaria. Data on the aquatic flora from Golyamo Skalensko Lake and Malko Skalensko Lake over a period of two years were used to assess their ecological status. In addition, the toxic potential of the established dominant cyanoprokaryotic species was also evaluated. Phytoplankton- and macrophyte-based metrics resulted in complementary evaluation of temporary and long-term environmental conditions. Despite the hydraulic connection and proximity between the two lakes, Golyamo Skalensko Lake and Malko Skalensko Lake appear as completely different ecosystems, according to the phytoplankton structure (species composition, number of species, abundance, seasonal succession), macrophytes and ecological status.

Numerical investigation of the failure of a building in Shanghai, China

The overturning failure of a 13 storey residential building in Shanghai, China, has been investigated by plane strain finite element analysis (FEA). The results of the FEA indicate that ultimate failure of the building was probably initiated by the formation of tensile cracking in the reinforced concrete piles located under the side of the building adjacent to an excavation. This eventually led to complete structural failure of the piles located along the excavation side, which probably caused further settlement of the building, leading eventually to a toppling failure resulting in overturning of the entire building. Excessive tensile stress in the piles was probably caused by the combination of excavation of soil at one side of the building and the temporary dumping of the excavated soil on the opposite side of the building. It is likely that the effect of temporary dumping of the excavated soil adjacent to the building was either not considered or not properly taken into account in the foundation design nor the construction operations. A simple but important lesson to be draw from this failure is the need for engineers who design foundations in soft soil regions to consider not only the final loading conditions, but also any temporary and transient loading conditions during the construction process.