Clinical factors impacting quality of life and outcomes through the transition from pre-dialysis chronic kidney disease to early dialysis treatment

This thesis, “Clinical factors impacting quality of life and outcomes through the transition from pre-dialysis CKD to early dialysis treatment”, examines clinical factors that improve dialysis start and patient survival. The gathered data suggests that patient differences, which affect the way patients start dialysis, may be present in late stage CKD. Clinical interventions related to blood pressure, dialysis preparation, and home therapy use may benefit patients. The way patients start dialysis and dialysis changes in the first treatment year may impact quality of life perceptions. CKD clinical data analysis may help to personalize CKD care and improve the transition to dialysis start

A note on bacteriological sampling in seawater

In a comparative study, two existing bacteriological samplers and a newly designed device were tested for obtaining uncontaminated seawater samples. Serratia marinorubra was used as a tracer organism. It was possible to eliminate contamination to a large extent

Gender Differences in the Relational and Collective Bases for Trust

A variety of research suggests that men and women differ in their interdependent orientation: whereas women tend to be more relationally interdependent, men tend to be more collectively interdependent (e.g. Gabriel & Gardner, 1999). The current study sought to investigate differences in interdependence within the domain of trust. In particular, the authors predicted that men would tend to trust individuals based on whether or not they shared group memberships. On the other hand, women were predicted to trust those who shared direct or indirect relationship connections. Results from an online trust-dilemma game supported these predictions. Implications for our understanding of the impact of gender on social identity and self-representation are discussed

Chameleons bake bigger pies and take bigger pieces: strategic behavioral mimicry facilitates negotiation outcomes

Two experiments investigated the hypothesis that strategic behavioral mimicry can facilitate negotiation outcomes. Study 1 used an employment negotiation with multiple issues, and demonstrated that strategic behavioral mimicry facilitated outcomes at both the individual and dyadic levels: Negotiators who mimicked the mannerisms of their opponents both secured better individual outcomes, and their dyads as a whole also performed better when mimicking occurred compared to when it did not. Thus, mimickers created more value and then claimed most of that additional value for themselves, though not at the expense of their opponents. In Study 2, mimicry facilitated negotiators’ ability to uncover underlying compatible interests and increased the likelihood of obtaining a deal in a negotiation where a prima facie solution was not possible. Results from Study 2 also demonstrated that interpersonal trust mediated the relationship between mimicry and deal-making. Implications for our understanding of negotiation dynamics and interpersonal coordination are discussed

Large-eddy simulation of two-dimensional dunes in a steady, unidirectional flow

We performed large-eddy simulations of the flow over a typical two-dimensional dune geometry at laboratory scale (the Reynolds number based on the average channel height andmean velocity is 18,900) using the Lagrangian dynamic eddy-viscosity subgrid-scale model. The results are validated by comparison with simulations and experiments in the literature. The flowseparates at the dune crest, generating a shear layer that plays a crucial role in the transport of momentum and energy, and the generation of coherent structures. The turbulent kinetic energy budgets show the importance of the turbulent transport and mean-flow advection in the bulk flow above the shear layer. In the recirculation zone and in the attached boundary layers production and dissipation are the most important terms. Large, coherent structures of various types can be observed. Spanwise vortices are generated in the separated shear layer due to the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability; as they are advected, they undergo lateral instabilities and develop into horseshoe-like structures, are tilted downward, and finally reach the surface. The ejection that occurs between the legs of the vortex creates the upwelling and downdrafting events on the free surface known as "boils." Near-wall turbulence, after the reattachment point, is affected by large streamwise Taylor-Görtler vortices generated on the concave part of the stoss side, which affect the distribution of the near-wall streaks

Does Incident Solar Ultraviolet Radiation Lower Blood Pressure?

Background Hypertension remains a leading global cause for premature death and disease. Most treatment guidelines emphasize the importance of risk factors, but not all are known, modifiable, or easily avoided. Population blood pressure correlates with latitude and is lower in summer than winter. Seasonal variations in sunlight exposure account for these differences, with temperature believed to be the main contributor. Recent research indicates that UV light enhances nitric oxide availability by mobilizing storage forms in the skin, suggesting incident solar UV radiation may lower blood pressure. We tested this hypothesis by exploring the association between environmental UV exposure and systolic blood pressure (SBP) in a large cohort of chronic hemodialysis patients in whom SBP is determined regularly. Methods and Results We studied 342 457 patients (36% black, 64% white) at 2178 US dialysis centers over 3 years. Incident UV radiation and temperature data for each clinic location were retrieved from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration database. Linear mixed effects models with adjustment for ambient temperature, sex/age, body mass index, serum Na+/K+ and other covariates were fitted to each location and combined estimates of associations calculated using the DerSimonian and Laird procedure. Pre-dialysis SBP varied by season and was ≈4 mm Hg higher in black patients. Temperature, UVA and UVB were all linearly and inversely associated with SBP. This relationship remained statistically significant after correcting for temperature. Conclusions In hemodialysis patients, in addition to environmental temperature, incident solar UV radiation is associated with lower SBP. This raises the possibility that insufficient sunlight is a new risk factor for hypertension, perhaps even in the general population.</p

Multicultural experience enhances creativity: The when and how

Many practices aimed at cultivating multicultural competence in educational and organizational settings (e.g., exchange programs, diversity education in college, diversity management at work) assume that multicultural experience fosters creativity. In line with this assumption, the research reported in this article is the first to empirically demonstrate that exposure to multiple cultures in and of itself can enhance creativity. Overall, the authors found that extensiveness of multicultural experiences was positively related to both creative performance (insight learning, remote association, and idea generation) and creativity-supporting cognitive processes (retrieval of unconventional knowledge, recruitment of ideas from unfamiliar cultures for creative idea expansion). Furthermore, their studies showed that the serendipitous creative benefits resulting from multicultural experiences may depend on the extent to which individuals open themselves to foreign cultures, and that creativity is facilitated in contexts that deemphasize the need for firm answers or existential concerns. The authors discuss the implications of their findings for promoting creativity in increasingly global learning and work environments

Randomized Comparison of Everolimus- and Paclitaxel-Eluting Stents 2-Year Follow-Up From the SPIRIT (Clinical Evaluation of the XIENCE V Everolimus Eluting Coronary Stent System) IV Trial

ObjectivesWe sought to determine whether the differences in outcomes present between everolimus-eluting stents (EES) and paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES) in the SPIRIT (Clinical Evaluation of the XIENCE V Everolimus Eluting Coronary Stent System) IV trial at 1 year were sustained with longer-term follow-up.BackgroundIn the SPIRIT IV trial, patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention who were randomized to EES compared with PES experienced lower 1-year rates of target lesion failure (cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction [MI], or ischemia-driven target lesion revascularization [TLR]), with significant reductions in the individual rates of MI, TLR, and stent thrombosis.MethodsWe prospectively randomized 3,687 patients with up to 3 noncomplex previously untreated native coronary artery lesions to EES versus PES at 66 U.S. sites. Follow-up through 2 years is complete in 3,578 patents (97.0%).ResultsTreatment with EES compared with PES reduced the 2-year rates of TLF (6.9% vs. 9.9%, p = 0.003), all MI (2.5% vs. 3.9%, p = 0.02), Q-wave MI (0.1% vs. 0.8%, p = 0.002), stent thrombosis (0.4% vs. 1.2%, p = 0.008), and ischemia-driven TLR (4.5% vs. 6.9%, p = 0.004), with nonsignificantly different rates of all-cause and cardiac mortality. Between 1 year and 2 years, there were no significant differences in adverse event rates between the 2 stent types.ConclusionsIn the large-scale, prospective, multicenter, randomized SPIRIT IV trial, the benefits of EES compared with those of PES present at 1 year were sustained at 2 years. (Clinical Evaluation of the XIENCE V Everolimus Eluting Coronary Stent System; NCT01016041

A coalgebraic perspective on logical interpretations

In Computer Science stepwise refinement of algebraic specifications is a well-known formal methodology for rigorous program development. This paper illustrates how techniques from Algebraic Logic, in particular that of interpretation, understood as a multifunction that preserves and reflects logical consequence, capture a number of relevant transformations in the context of software design, reuse, and adaptation, difficult to deal with in classical approaches. Examples include data encapsulation and the decomposition of operations into atomic transactions. But if interpretations open such a new research avenue in program refinement, (conceptual) tools are needed to reason about them. In this line, the paper’s main contribution is a study of the correspondence between logical interpretations and morphisms of a particular kind of coalgebras. This opens way to the use of coalgebraic constructions, such as simulation and bisimulation, in the study of interpretations between (abstract) logics.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT