bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Serotonin modulates muscle function in the medicinal leechHirudo verbana
Authors: Gerry Shannon P. , Ellerby David J.
Published: May 2011

The body wall muscles of sanguivorous leeches power mechanically diverse behaviours: suction feeding, crawling and swimming. These require longitudinal muscle to exert force over an extremely large length range, from 145 to 46 per cent of the mean segmental swimming length. Previous data, however, suggest that leech body wall muscle has limited capacity for force production when elongated. Serotonin (5-HT) alters the passive properties of the body wall and stimulates feeding. We hypothesized that 5-HT may also have a role in allowing force production in elongated muscle by changing the shape of the length–tension relationship (LTR). LTRs were measured from longitudinal muscle stripsin vitroin physiological saline with and without the presence of 10 µM 5-HT. The LTR was much broader than previously measured for leech muscle. Rather than shifting the LTR, 5-HT reduced passive muscle tonus and increased active stress at all lengths. In addition to modulating leech behaviour and passive mechanical properties, 5-HT probably enhances muscle force and work production during locomotion and feeding.
Picturing knowledge in the early Royal Society: the examples of Richard Waller and Henry Hunt
Authors: Kusukawa Sachiko
Published: May 2011

Much of science today relies on visual information of one kind or other for its experiments, observations, simulations and publications. The historical study of how visual resources (such as drawings, prints or models) became integral to scientific knowledge is a developing field and an area to which the pictorial remains of the early Royal Society have much to contribute. This paper examines the examples of Richard Waller (d. 1714 or 1715; FRS 1681) and Henry Hunt (d. 1713), Operator of the Society, who both created images for the Society's publications and meetings. By focusing on their contribution to knowledge rather than on their accuracy, I discuss how images were used to express the Society's aspirations and values, and were integral to the weekly business of investigating nature in the early Royal Society.
Gain from the two-envelope problem via information asymmetry: on the suboptimality of randomized switching
Authors: McDonnell Mark D. , Grant Alex J. , Land Ingmar , Vellambi Badri N. , Abbott Derek , Lever Ken
Published: May 2011

The two-envelope problem (or exchange problem) is one of maximizing the payoff in choosing between two values, given an observation of only one. This paradigm is of interest in a range of fields from engineering to mathematical finance, as it is now known that the payoff can be increased by exploiting a form of information asymmetry. Here, we consider a version of the ‘two-envelope game’ where the envelopes’ contents are governed by a continuous positive random variable. While the optimal switching strategy is known and deterministic once an envelope has been opened, it is not necessarily optimal when the content's distribution is unknown. A useful alternative in this case may be to use a switching strategy that depends randomly on the observed value in the opened envelope. This approach can lead to a gain when compared with never switching. Here, we quantify the gain owing to such conditional randomized switching when the random variable has a generalized negative exponential distribution, and compare this to the optimal switching strategy. We also show that a randomized strategy may be advantageous when the distribution of the envelope's contents is unknown, since it can always lead to a gain.
Stress and couple-stress invariance in non-centrosymmetric micropolar planar elasticity
Authors: Joumaa Hady , Ostoja-Starzewski Martin
Published: May 2011

The stress-invariance problem for a chiral (non-centrosymmetric) micropolar material model is explored in two different planar problems: the in-plane and the anti-plane problems. This material model grasps direct coupling between the Cauchy-type and Cosserat-type (or micropolar) effects in Hooke's law. An identical strategy of invariance is set for both problems, leading to a remarkable similarity in their results. For both problems, the planar components of stress and couple-stress undergo strong invariance, while their out-of-plane counterparts can only attain weak invariance, which restricts all compliance moduli transformations to a linear type. As an application, when heterogeneous (composite) materials are subjected to weak invariance, their effective (volume-averaged) compliance moduli undergo the same linear shift as that of the moduli of the local phases forming the material, independently of the microstructure, geometry and phase distribution. These analytical results constitute a valuable means to validate computational procedures that handle this particular type of material model.
Elastohydrodynamics induced by a rapidly moving microscopic body
Authors: Clarke R. J. , Potnis S.
Published: May 2011

The simple model involving a moving rigid particle, separated from a compliant wall by a thin film of viscous fluid, has previously been applied successfully to a number of important problems. For example, transport of blood cells, particle clearance in the lungs and the late stages of particle sedimentation. Considerable fluid forces are generated in the film, causing the compliant surface to deform. Hence, the usual goal is derivation and solution of an appropriate deformation evolution equation. In the applications considered to-date, however, flow inertia is neglected as flow speeds are not especially high. In this study, we are interested in regimes where unsteady flow inertia is significant, such as found in certain microdevices or thermal excitation of light particles. We present a novel model, which for the first time accounts for inertial effects in both the flow, and the deformable surface. The significant role that inertia plays is fully illustrated through surface deformation profiles, computed under a variety of parameter regimes, as well as calculations of associated hydrodynamic loading. Frequency response curves are seen to exhibit distinct shifts in resonant frequency and quality factor under different levels of inertia, a finding which we believe has important practical implications.
Chaitin's halting probability and the compression of strings using oracles
Authors: Barmpalias George , Lewis Andrew E. M.
Published: May 2011

If a computer is given access to an oracle—the characteristic function of a set whose membership relation may or may not be algorithmically calculable—this may dramatically affect its ability to compress information and to determine structure in strings, which might otherwise appear random. This leads to the basic question, ‘given an oracle
A
, how many oracles can compress information at most as well as
A
?’ This question can be formalized using Kolmogorov complexity. We say that
B
≤

LK

A
if there exists a constant
c
such that
K

A

(
σ
)<
K

B

(
σ
)+
c
for all strings
σ
, where
K

X

denotes the prefix-free Kolmogorov complexity relative to oracle
X
. The formal counterpart to the previous question now is, ‘what is the cardinality of the set of ≤

LK

-predecessors of 
A
?’ We completely determine the number of oracles that compress at most as well as any given oracle
A
, by answering a question of Miller (
Notre Dame J. Formal Logic
, 2010,
50
, 381–391), which also appears in Nies (
Computability and randomness
. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2009. Problem 8.1.13); the class of ≤

LK

-predecessors of a set
A
is countable if and only if Chaitin's halting probability
Ω
is Martin-Löf random relative to 
A
.
Dispersion and localization of elastic waves in materials with microstructure
Authors: Colquitt D. J. , Jones I. S. , Movchan N. V. , Movchan A. B.
Published: May 2011

This paper considers the interaction of elastic waves with materials with microstructure. The paper presents a mathematical model of elastic waves within a lattice system incorporating rotational motions and interaction between different lattice elements through elastic links. The waves are dispersive and the lattice system itself is heterogeneous, i.e. the elastic stiffness and/or mass are non-uniformly distributed. For such systems, one can identify stop bands, representing the intervals of frequencies of waves, which become evanescent and cannot propagate through the structure. Filtering properties of such lattices are studied in this paper. Defect modes are created by removing a periodic array of elastic links, which leads to localization within a macro-cell. Special attention is given to the evaluation of the effective group velocities and to the study of standing waves within the system. Analytical estimates are accompanied by numerical simulations and analysis of dispersion surfaces. We also consider an example showing the focusing and the creation of an
image point
by a flat elastic ‘lens’ formed from a finite micropolar lattice system.
Poor environmental tracking can make extinction risk insensitive to the colour of environmental noise
Authors: van de Pol Martijn , Vindenes Yngvild , Sæther Bernt-Erik , Engen Steinar , Ens Bruno J. , Oosterbeek Kees , Tinbergen Joost M.
Published: May 2011

The relative importance of environmental colour for extinction risk compared with other aspects of environmental noise (mean and interannual variability) is poorly understood. Such knowledge is currently relevant, as climate change can cause the mean, variability and temporal autocorrelation of environmental variables to change. Here, we predict that the extinction risk of a shorebird population increases with the colour of a key environmental variable: winter temperature. However, the effect is weak compared with the impact of changes in the mean and interannual variability of temperature. Extinction risk was largely insensitive to noise colour, because demographic rates are poor in tracking the colour of the environment. We show that three mechanisms—which probably act in many species—can cause poor environmental tracking: (i) demographic rates that depend nonlinearly on environmental variables filter the noise colour, (ii) demographic rates typically depend on several environmental signals that do not change colour synchronously, and (iii) demographic stochasticity whitens the colour of demographic rates at low population size. We argue that the common practice of assuming perfect environmental tracking may result in overemphasizing the importance of noise colour for extinction risk. Consequently, ignoring environmental autocorrelation in population viability analysis could be less problematic than generally thought.
Nonlinear acoustic complexity in a fish ‘two-voice’ system
Authors: Rice Aaron N. , Land Bruce R. , Bass Andrew H.
Published: May 2011

Acoustic signals play essential roles in social communication and show a strong selection for novel morphologies leading to increased call complexity in many taxa. Among vertebrates, repeated innovations in the larynges of frogs and mammals and the syrinx of songbirds have enhanced the spectro-temporal content, and hence the diversity of vocalizations. This acoustic diversification includes nonlinear characteristics that expand frequency profiles beyond the traditional categorization of harmonic and broadband calls. Fishes have remained a notable exception to evidence for such acoustic innovations among vertebrates, despite their being the largest group of living vertebrates that also exhibit widespread evolution of sound production. Here, we combine rigorous acoustic and mathematical analyses with experimental silencing of the vocal motor system to show how a novel swim bladder mechanism in a toadfish enables it to generate calls exhibiting nonlinearities like those found among frogs, birds and mammals, including primates. By showing that fishes have evolved nonlinear acoustic signalling like all other major lineages of vocal vertebrates, these results suggest strong selection pressure favouring this mechanism to enrich the spectro-temporal content and complexity of vocal signals.
Parents and offspring in an evolutionary game: the effect of supply on demand when costs of care vary
Authors: Grodzinski Uri , Johnstone Rufus A.
Published: May 2011

Current models of parent–offspring communication do not explicitly predict the effect of parental food supply on offspring demand (ESD). However, existing theory is frequently interpreted as predicting a negative ESD, such that offspring beg less when parental supply is high. While empirical evidence largely supports this interpretation, several studies have identified the opposite case, with well-fed offspring begging more than those in poorer condition. Here, we show that signalling theory can give rise to either a negative or a positive ESD depending on the precise form of costs and benefits. Introducing variation among parents in the cost of care, we show that the ESD may change sign depending upon the quantitative relation between two effects: (i) decreased supply leads to increased begging because of an increase in marginal fitness benefit of additional resources to offspring, (ii) decreased supply leads to reduced begging because it is associated with a decrease in parental responsiveness, rendering begging less effective. To illustrate the interplay between these two effects, we show that Godfray's seminal model of begging yields a negative ESD when care is generally cheap, because the impact of supply on the marginal benefits of additional resources then outweighs the associated changes in parental responsiveness to begging. By contrast, the same model predicts a positive ESD when care is generally costly, because the impact of care costs on parental responsiveness then outweighs the change in marginal benefits.
Achromatic nested Kirkpatrick–Baez mirror optics for hard X-ray nanofocusing
Authors: Liu Wenjun , Ice Gene E. , Assoufid Lahsen , Liu Chian , Shi Bing , Khachatryan Ruben , Qian Jun , Zschack Paul , Tischler Jonathan Z. , Choi J.-Y.
Published: May 2011

The first test of nanoscale-focusing Kirkpatrick–Baez (KB) mirrors in the nested (or Montel) configuration used at a hard X-ray synchrotron beamline is reported. The two mirrors are both 40 mm long and coated with Pt to produce a focal length of 60 mm at 3 mrad incident angle, and collect up to a 120 µm by 120 µm incident X-ray beam with maximum angular acceptance of 2 mrad and a broad bandwidth of energies up to 30 keV. In an initial test a focal spot of about 150 nm in both horizontal and vertical directions was achieved with either polychromatic or monochromatic beam. The nested mirror geometry, with two mirrors mounted side-by-side and perpendicular to each other, is significantly more compact and provides higher demagnification than the traditional sequential KB mirror arrangement. Ultimately, nested mirrors can focus larger divergence to improve the diffraction limit of achromatic optics. A major challenge with the fabrication of the required mirrors is the need for near-perfect mirror surfaces near the edge of at least one of the mirrors. Special polishing procedures and surface profile coating were used to preserve the mirror surface quality at the reflecting edge. Further developments aimed at achieving diffraction-limited focusing below 50 nm are underway.
Effectiveness of a stepped primary care smoking cessation intervention: cluster randomized clinical trial (ISTAPS study)
Authors: Cabezas Carmen , Advani Mamta , Puente Diana , Rodriguez‐Blanco Teresa , Martin Carlos ,   ISTAPS Study Group
Published: May 2011

Aim  To evaluate the effectiveness in primary care of a stepped smoking cessation intervention based on the transtheoretical model of change.

Design  Cluster randomized trial; unit of randomization: basic care unit (family physician and nurse who care for the same group of patients); and intention‐to‐treat analysis.

Setting  All interested basic care units (n = 176) that worked in 82 primary care centres belonging to the Spanish Preventive Services and Health Promotion Research Network in 13 regions of Spain.

Participants  A total of 2827 smokers (aged 14–85 years) who consulted a primary care centre for any reason, provided written informed consent and had valid interviews.

Measurements  The outcome variable was the 1‐year continuous abstinence rate at the 2‐year follow‐up. The main variable was the study group (intervention/control). Intervention involved 6‐month implementation of recommendations from a Clinical Practice Guideline which included brief motivational interviews for smokers at the precontemplation–contemplation stage, brief intervention for smokers in preparation–action who do not want help, intensive intervention with pharmacotherapy for smokers in preparation–action who want help and reinforcing intervention in the maintenance stage. Control group involved usual care. Among others, characteristics of tobacco use and motivation to quit variables were also collected.

Findings  The 1‐year continuous abstinence rate at the 2‐year follow‐up was 8.1% in the intervention group and 5.8% in the control group (P = 0.014). In the multivariate logistic regression, the odds of quitting of the intervention versus control group was 1.50 (95% confidence interval = 1.05–2.14).

Conclusions  A stepped smoking cessation intervention based on the transtheoretical model significantly increased smoking abstinence at a 2‐year follow‐up among smokers visiting primary care centres.
Examining gender differences in emerging tobacco use using the adolescents' need for smoking scale
Authors: Richardson Chris G. , Memetovic Jasmina , Ratner Pamela A. , Johnson Joy L.
Published: May 2011

Aims  To investigate the influence of gender on emerging tobacco use by testing for gender‐based measurement invariance of the Adolescents' Need for Smoking Scale (ANSS) and examining gender differences on each dimension across increasing levels of amount smoked.

Design  Cross‐sectional survey.

Setting  Thirteen secondary schools located in British Columbia, Canada.

Participants  Data from 1425 youth who reported smoking at least once in the past month.

Measurements  Survey questions about demographic characteristics, tobacco smoking history and need for smoking.

Findings  The multi‐dimensional structure of the ANSS is equivalent in boys and girls and the ANSS questions are not gender‐biased. There were no significant gender differences in the levels of physical dependence across increasing levels of amount smoked. Girls scored higher than boys on levels of emotional dependence across increasing levels of life‐time cigarette exposure. Girls also had higher scores on the social dimension of the ANSS compared to boys among those who smoked 100 or more cigarettes.

Conclusions  Canadian girls score higher than boys on measures of emotional dependence and social attitudes associated with tobacco smoking.
Antigen cross-presentation: extending recent laboratory findings to therapeutic intervention
Authors: Flinsenberg T W H , Compeer E B , Boelens J J , Boes M
Published: May 2011

The initiation of adaptive immune responses requires antigen presentation to lymphocytes. In particular, dendritic cells (DCs) are equipped with specialized machinery that promote effective display of peptide/major histocompatibility complexes (MHC), rendering them the most potent stimulators of naive T lymphocytes. Antigen cross-presentation to CD8+ T cells is an important mechanism for the development of specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses against tumours and viruses that do not infect antigen-presenting cells. Here, we review recent findings concerning antigen cross-presentation to CD8+ T lymphocytes. Specific subtypes of DCs in the mouse have been defined as being especially endowed for antigen cross-presentation, and a human homologue of these DCs has recently been described. DC vaccination strategies for the prevention and treatment of human diseases have been under investigation in recent years, but have not generally reached satisfying results. We here provide an overview of new findings in antigen cross-presentation research and how they can be used for development of the next generation of human DC vaccines.
Fertility disorder associated with celiac disease in males and females: fact or fiction?
Authors: Khoshbaten Manouchehr , Rostami Nejad Mohammad , Farzady Laya , Sharifi Nasrin , Hashemi Sayyed Hassan , Rostami Kamran
Published: May 2011

Aim:  The association between celiac disease and infertility is controversial in the literature. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of celiac disease among the couples with unexplained infertility.

Material & Methods:  Serum samples from 100 Iranian couples with unexplained infertility were evaluated for celiac disease by tissue transglutaminase antibody (tTGA). Two hundred couples not reporting reproductive problems and having delivered at least one uncomplicated birth served as controls. Total immunoglobulin A (IgA) was also obtained to investigate IgA deficiency. Those with IgA deficiency were tested with IgG tTG. Those cases with positive tTGA or tTGG (IgA deficients) underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy.

Results:  Positive results of tTGA were detected in 13 infertile subjects (6.5%, 6 males and 7 females) and 11 controls (2.8%, 4 males and 7 females) (P = 0.027). The odds ratio of celiac disease in unexplained infertile couples was 2.39 (95% CI: 1.15–5.01) compared with fertile couples. IgA deficiency was identified in 14 infertile cases and 11 controls. Only 5/24 tTGA‐positive and 4/24 IgA‐deficient infertile subjects and controls accepted to undergo duodenal mucosal biopsy. Celiac disease was confirmed by biopsy in three (1.5%) of the unexplained infertile patients.

Conclusion:  The results of this study show that there is a higher seroprevalence of celiac disease in those with infertility in comparison to those with normal fertility.
Potential source and sink locations for climate‐driven species range shifts in Europe since the Last Glacial Maximum
Authors: Ohlemüller Ralf , Huntley Brian , Normand Signe , Svenning Jens‐Christian
Published: May 2011

Aim  To identify potential source and sink locations for climate‐driven species range shifts in Europe since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM).

Location  Europe.

Methods  We developed a new approach combining past‐climate simulations with the concept of analogous climate space. Our index gives a continuous measure of the potential of a location to have acted as a source or a sink for species that have shifted their ranges since the LGM. High glacial source potential is indicated by LGM climatic conditions that are widespread now; high post‐glacial sink potential is indicated by current climatic conditions that were widespread at the LGM. The degree of isolation of source and sink areas was calculated as the median distance to areas with analogous climate conditions.

Results  We identified areas of high glacial source potential in the previously recognized refugial areas in the southern European peninsulas, but also in large areas in central‐western Europe. The most climatically isolated source areas were located in northern Spain, in north‐western Europe and in eastern Turkey. From here species would have had to cover substantial distances to find current climate conditions analogous to LGM conditions of these areas. Areas with high post‐glacial sink potential were mainly located in Fennoscandia and in central and south‐eastern Europe. Some of the most isolated sink areas were located in the Spanish highlands and around the Baltic Sea.

Main conclusions  Our species‐independent approach successfully identified previously recognized glacial refugial areas with high source potential for species range shifts in southern Europe and in addition highlighted other potential source areas in central Europe. This study offers new insights into how the distribution of past and current climatic conditions may have influenced past species range shifts and current large‐scale biodiversity patterns.
Recruitment, Retention and Exit from Union Membership. An Analysis of Member Flows in Swiss Union Locals
Authors: Oesch Daniel
Published: May 2011

This article enquires into the causes of union growth and decline by analysing flows in and out of membership at the level of 70 Swiss union locals over 2006–2008. Gross flows in union membership are much larger than the resulting net changes: annual membership turnover of 10 per cent is a surprisingly constant feature across unions. Net changes in membership are primarily determined by inflows: successful and languishing union locals differ in their entry rates, whereas exit rates are similar. Variance in union locals' entry rates is not usefully explained by the labour market context, but by differences in union strategy.
HRM Practices and the Within‐Firm Gender Wage Gap
Authors: Datta Gupta Nabanita , Eriksson Tor
Published: May 2011

The effect of HRM practices on the within‐firm gender gap in wages in manufacturing is investigated merging a 1999 survey on work practices among Danish firms to matched employer–employee panel data. Self‐managed teams, project organization and job rotation schemes are the most widely introduced practices. Accounting for non‐randomness in adoption, the pay gap is reduced among hourly paid workers but increases among salaried workers. Considering practices individually, wage gains from adoption accrue to males except for salaried workers in firms that adopt project organization and for hourly paid workers in firms that introduce quality control circles.
A Collarette on a Donkey: The Northern Ireland Women's Coalition and the Limitations of Contagion Theory
Authors: Cowell-Meyers Kimberly
Published: May 2011

When ideas or tactics catch on across parties in a multiparty system the process is termed contagion. Scholars have identified many examples of contagion, particularly dealing with gender quotas and the number of female candidates. The theory of contagion has, however, suffered from both narrow application and underdevelopment historically, particularly because the literature on contagion focuses exclusively on relations between parties. Yet the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition (NIWC), a tiny short-lived political party dedicated to ‘equitable and effective political participation’ for women, indicates that structural, historical and even international circumstances can facilitate or limit this process of transfer. Using the case study of the NIWC, which improved women's representation in nearly all the other political parties in the system, this article identifies six key variables that condition contagion. In addition, the article traces the NIWC's effects on multiple dimensions of women's representation, descriptive and substantive, in other parties. Considering the process of contagion more broadly enhances the theory but also may provide practical guidelines for expanding policy ideas related to women's representation, human or civil rights protections or environmental initiatives across political parties and across political systems.
Understanding the gender disparity in HIV infection across countries in sub‐Saharan Africa: evidence from the Demographic and Health Surveys
Authors: Magadi Monica Akinyi
Published: May 2011

Women in sub‐Saharan Africa bear a disproportionate burden of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections, which is exacerbated by their role in society and biological vulnerability. The specific objectives of this article are to (i) determine the extent of gender disparity in HIV infection; (ii) examine the role of HIV/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) awareness and sexual behaviour factors on the gender disparity and (iii) establish how the gender disparity varies between individuals of different characteristics and across countries. The analysis involves multilevel logistic regression analysis applied to pooled Demographic and Health Surveys data from 20 countries in sub‐Saharan Africa conducted during 2003–2008. The findings suggest that women in sub‐Saharan Africa have on average a 60% higher risk of HIV infection than their male counterparts. The risk for women is 70% higher than their male counterparts of similar sexual behaviour, suggesting that the observed gender disparity cannot be attributed to sexual behaviour. The results suggest that the risk of HIV infection among women (compared to men) across countries in sub‐Saharan Africa is further aggravated among those who are younger, in female‐headed households, not in stable unions or marital partnerships or had an earlier sexual debut.
An interactional approach to conceptualising small talk in medical interactions
Authors: Hudak Pamela L. , Maynard Douglas W.
Published: May 2011

In medical interactions, it may seem straightforward to identify ‘small talk’ as casual or social talk superfluous to the institutional work of dealing with patients’ medical concerns. Such a broad characterisation is, however, extremely difficult to apply to actual talk, and more specificity is necessary to pursue analyses of how small talk is produced and what it achieves for participants in medical interactions. We offer an approach to delineating a subgenre of small talk called topicalised small talk (TST), derived on the basis of conversation analytically‐informed analyses of routine consultations involving orthopaedic surgeons and older patients. TST is a line of talk that is referentially independent from their institutional identities as patients or surgeons, oriented instead to an aspect of the personal biography of one (or both), or to some neutral topic available to interactants in any setting (e.g. weather). Importantly, TST is an achievement of both patient and surgeon in that generation and pursuit of topic is mutually accomplished. In an exploratory but systematic analysis, when this approach was applied to a purposive sample of surgeon‐patient interactions, TST was much more prevalent in visits with White than African American patients. Accounts for possible ethnic differences in TST are suggested.
Of substances, palaces, and museums: the visible and the invisible in the constitution of Cameroon
Authors: ROWLANDS MICHAEL
Published: May 2011

This paper addresses how the materialization of visible worlds is directed towards the control and mastery of relevant invisible worlds. Drawing from various contexts to see how social spaces may be materialized in the imaginary world of control and mastery, we argue not only that this helps explain tendencies towards exaggeration and extremes, but also that it is through creation and manipulation of exhibition and display that the powerful can intervene in invisible worlds and make these work for them.

Le présent article décrit la façon dont la matérialisation des mondes visibles est axée sur le contrôle et la maîtrise des mondes invisibles correspondants. En partant de différents contextes pour voir comment les espaces sociaux peuvent être matérialisés dans le monde imaginaire du contrôle et de la maîtrise, l’auteur affirme que l’on peut, par ce moyen, expliquer les tendances à l’exagération et aux extrêmes, mais aussi que c’est par la création et la manipulation de l’exposition et de l’affichage que les puissants peuvent intervenir dans les mondes invisibles et les faire travailler pour leur compte.
‘Never again’: aesthetics of ‘genocidal’ cosmopolitanism and the Bangladesh Liberation War Museum
Authors: MOOKHERJEE NAYANIKA
Published: May 2011

This paper seeks to explore the affective aesthetics that are generated through the perceptions of ‘genocidal’ horrors in relation to accounts of sexual violence during wars, and to engagements with war memorials and museums commemorating such atrocities. In particular it focuses on the trope ‘never again’, which aptly captures the search for juridical and moral justice linked to events of conflict and violence in the twentieth and twenty‐first centuries. The cosmopolitan moral and aesthetic orientations by means of which such tropes come to represent the horrors of the Bangladesh War of 1971 are analysed via an examination of the Bangladesh Liberation War Museum. Through a study of exhibits and visitors to this ‘memorial museum’, the paper considers how ‘genocidal’ cosmopolitanism, involving connections and identification with global ‘genocidal’ tropes, alters the processes of ownership and appropriation of emotions towards, the sense of belonging to, and claims on the nation.

L’auteure explore ici l’esthétique affective générée par les perceptions des horreurs « génocidaires » en relation avec les récits de violences sexuelles en temps de guerre et avec les engagements vis‐à‐vis des mémoriaux et musées commémorant ces atrocités. Elle se concentre en particulier sur le leitmotiv « plus jamais », qui résume judicieusement la recherche de morale et de justice en lien avec les événements conflictuels et violents des XXe et XXIe siècles. Les orientations morales et esthétiques cosmopolites suivant lesquelles ces leitmotive en viennent à représenter les horreurs de la guerre du Bangladesh de 1971 sont analysées par le biais d’un examen du Bangladesh Liberation War Museum. Par une étude des pièces exposées et des visiteurs de ce « musée de la mémoire », l’auteure examine la façon dont le cosmopolitisme « génocidaire », avec ses liens et son identification aux leitmotive « génocidaires » mondiaux, influe sur les processus d’appropriation et de possession des émotions envers la nation, sur le sens d’appartenance à celle‐ci et sur les attentes vis‐à‐vis d’elle.
The nation as a scarce resource: reading a contested site of sacrifice in post‐apartheid South Africa
Authors: TODD LINDI R.
Published: May 2011

Stories of the nation unite and divide: those who are perceived as or who perceive themselves as authorized to speak from those who are not; those who belong ‘within’ from those who are consigned to the outside. By examining affective responses to a planned artistic appropriation of a historically significant site for Afrikaner separatists in post‐apartheid South Africa, this paper explores the process of relating the ‘nation’ to stories of the past and resulting contestations to this process. Significantly, it considers the implications of dis‐owned histories on its possessors and their relationship to ‘nation’.

Les histoires de la nation unissent et divisent à la fois : elles séparent ceux qui sont perçus ou se perçoivent comme autorisés à parler de ceux qui ne le sont pas, et ceux qui « font partie » de ceux qui sont relégués à l’extérieur. En examinant les réponses affectives à un projet d’appropriation artistique d’un site historiquement important pour les séparatistes afrikaners dans l’Afrique du Sud post‐apartheid, l’auteure explore le processus de liaison de la « nation » aux histoires du passé et les contestations qui enrésultent. Elle examine notamment les implications des histoires dont ils sont dépossédés et leur relation avec la « nation ».
On the possibility of cultural property: the Musée Guimet controversy and case study of events in Bangladesh
Authors: SELIM LALA RUKH
Published: May 2011

Bangladesh's multicultural and syncretic past is reflected in its artefacts. The Musée Guimet of France planned an exhibition of about 200 masterpieces from the five major museums of Bangladesh in 2007. Against a background of a wider public disinterest in the concept of ‘cultural property’, a plethora of demonstrations and lawsuits sought to block the export of objects as the process was perceived to disregard Bangladeshi and international laws. A polarization of positions emerged among the Bangladeshi left‐liberal networks. Through an exploration of the events of the Guimet débâcle this paper brings into focus the debates relating to the national and universal in the context of the status of artefacts as the identity and patrimony of the Bangladeshi nation. The Guimet affair exemplifies how artefacts can play a powerful role in the contestation of the politics of Bengali Muslim identity in a postcolonial nation.

Les artefacts du Bangladesh reflètent le passé multiculturel et syncrétique du pays. Le Musée Guimet français avait prévu d’organiser en 2007 une exposition d’environ 200 pièces maîtresses de cinq grands musées bangladeshis. Sur fond de désintérêt du public pour le concept de « propriété culturelle », manifestations et procès se sont multipliés pour tenter d’empêcher l’exportation des objets car la procédure était perçue comme contraire aux lois du Bangladesh et au droit international. Une polarisation des positions est apparue parmi les réseaux de la gauche libérale bangladeshie. En étudiant les événements qui aboutirent à la débâcle du projet, l’auteur met en lumière ici les débats liés au national et à l’universel dans le statut des artefacts en tant qu’identité et patrimoine de la nation bangladeshie. L’affaire du Musée Guimet est un exemple de la façon dont les artefacts peuvent jouer un rôle puissant dans la contestation de la politique d’identité bengalie musulmane dans la nation postcoloniale.
Modelling Member Behaviour in on-Line User-Generated Content Sites: A Semiparametric Bayesian Approach
Authors: Park Young-Hoon , Park Chang Hee , Ghosh Pulak
Published: May 2011

We develop a model to understand and describe the inherent behaviours and interactions of members over time through the medium of user-generated content (UGC) in an on-line community. Because the behavioural event counts of generating and accessing UGC by on-line users serve as the two most important metrics to judge the success of on-line communities, we propose a bivariate zero-inflated Poisson model to model simultaneously the daily counts of the two main UGC-related activities. In particular, we consider interdependences of the repeatedly measured behavioural events within members, model the dependence of the current event counts on the past event counts and explore the probable non-linear effects of time at the individual level. Furthermore, we incorporate interactions between members by constructing a set of individual-specific time varying measures in an integrated modelling framework. In our empirical applications, we examine key behavioural determinants influencing member behaviours in the UGC site. As part of our substantive contribution, we highlight the model’s ability to make accurate predictions about the evolution of the on-line community.
The Effect of Survey Design on Household Reporting of Financial Difficulty
Authors: Breunig Robert , McKibbin Rebecca
Published: May 2011

We compare two Australian studies which ask households to report on the incidence of specific events of financial difficulty such as failure to pay the utility bill on time or seeking help from welfare agencies. Although collected within the same year, the two studies use markedly different survey methodologies. One study uses a written self-completion questionnaire completed after a face-to-face interview, asks about individual experience of financial difficulty and interviews each member of the household over the age of 15 years. The other study uses a computer-assisted face-to-face interview and asks one randomly selected member of the household about household level experience of financial difficulty. We find substantial differences in response rates, even after controlling for individual and household characteristics. The self-completion questionnaire elicits 33% more reports of financial difficulty for singles and 36% more for couple-headed households.
MENTAL IMAGERY AND THE VARIETIES OF AMODAL PERCEPTION
Authors: BRISCOE ROBERT EAMON
Published: May 2011

The problem of amodal perception is the problem of how we represent features of perceived objects that are occluded or otherwise hidden from us. Bence Nanay (2010) has recently proposed that we amodally perceive an object's occluded features by imaginatively projecting them into the relevant regions of visual egocentric space. In this paper, I argue that amodal perception is not a single, unitary capacity. Drawing appropriate distinctions reveals amodal perception to be characterized not only by mental imagery, as Nanay suggests, but also by genuinely visual representations as well as beliefs. I conclude with some brief remarks on the role of object‐directed bodily action in conferring a sense of unseen presence on an object's occluded features.
Analysis and balance survey of discrete input‐output systems under random environment
Authors: Geng Xian‐Min , Li Liang , Geng Yu‐Chao , Cao Rong‐Mei
Published: May 2011

Abstract: Under random environment, the balance survey is difficult in many fields, such as in the industrial structure, the economics, and the society. In this paper, we study the random dynamic input‐output model with consumption, in which the time‐delay is one; and analyze the existence of the balanced growth solution by the theory of Markov processes. We present a new criterion of the imbalanced survey, which is a positive right eigenvector of the expectation of a matrix associated with the input‐output model. We also will prove that the collapse time is finite almost surely, which indicates that the random dynamic input‐output model does not possess a balanced growth solution, and consequently, the economic system must be adjusted constantly.
Adaptive fuzzy knowledge‐based systems for control metabots' mobility on virtual environments
Authors: Arroyo A. , Serradilla F. , Calvo O.
Published: May 2011

Abstract: The confluence of three‐dimensional (3D) virtual worlds with social networks imposes on software agents, in addition to conversational functions, the same behaviours as those common to human‐driven avatars. In this paper, we explore the possibilities of the use of metabots (metaverse robots) with motion capabilities in complex virtual 3D worlds and we put forward a learning model based on the techniques used in evolutionary computation for optimizing the fuzzy controllers which will subsequently be used by metabots for moving around a virtual environment.
Population dynamics in changing environments: the case of an eruptive forest pest species
Authors: Kausrud Kyrre , Økland Bjørn , Skarpaas Olav , Grégoire Jean‐Claude , Erbilgin Nadir , Stenseth Nils Chr.
Published: May 2011

In recent decades we have seen rapid and co‐occurring changes in landscape structure, species distributions and even climate as consequences of human activity. Such changes affect the dynamics of the interaction between major forest pest species, such as bark beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae, Scolytinae), and their host trees. Normally breeding mostly in broken or severely stressed spruce; at high population densities some bark beetle species can colonise and kill healthy trees on scales ranging from single trees in a stand to multi‐annual landscape‐wide outbreaks. In Eurasia, the largest outbreaks are caused by the spruce bark beetle, Ips typographus (Linnaeus), which is common and shares a wide distribution with its main host, Norway spruce (Picea abies Karst.). A large literature is now available, from which this review aims to synthesize research relevant for the population dynamics of I. typographus and co‐occurring species under changing conditions.

We find that spruce bark beetle population dynamics tend to be metastable, but that mixed‐species and age‐heterogeneous forests with good site‐matching tend to be less susceptible to large‐scale outbreaks. While large accumulations of logs should be removed and/or debarked before the next swarming period, intensive removal of all coarse dead wood may be counterproductive, as it reduces the diversity of predators that in some areas may play a role in keeping I. typographus populations below the outbreak threshold, and sanitary logging frequently causes edge effects and root damage, reducing the resistance of remaining trees. It is very hard to predict the outcome of interspecific interactions due to invading beetle species or I. typographus establishing outside its current range, as they can be of varying sign and strength and may fluctuate depending on environmental factors and population phase. Most research indicates that beetle outbreaks will increase in frequency and magnitude as temperature, wind speed and precipitation variability increases, and that mitigating forestry practices should be adopted as soon as possible considering the time lags involved.
A psycho‐political profile of party activists and left‐wing and right‐wing extremists
Authors: VAN HIEL ALAIN
Published: May 2011

Previous studies comparing ideological groups have been restricted to tests of between‐group differences in the means of relevant political psychological variables, thereby neglecting group differences in the variances, meanings and nomological networks of the tested variables. A first exploratory study used data from the European Social Survey (N = 7,314) comparing groups of political party members on the basis of their scores on a self‐placement left–right scale. The second study (N = 69) constituted an in‐depth test for the presence of differences between samples of political activists of moderate parties, communists, anarchists and right‐wing extremists. The results revealed that there is a fair amount of heterogeneity within left‐wing and right‐wing extremists, indicating a substantial amount of within‐group variance of social attitudes, values and prejudice. Moreover, the extremist ideologies are best approached as distinct ideologies that cannot be reduced to extreme versions of moderate ideology, and differences in the meanings and nomological networks of the various extremist ideologies were also obtained. It is erroneous to consider members of extremist groups as being ‘all alike’. The findings obtained from samples of political moderates are not a particularly solid basis for theories about extremism.
On either side of a moat? Elite and mass attitudes towards right and wrong
Authors: ALLEN NICHOLAS , BIRCH SARAH
Published: May 2011

This article develops a cognitive institutionalist account of mass and elite evaluations of political ethics, which is tested on a new dataset from the United Kingdom. The analysis explores the extent of contemporary disagreement among British political elites and those they represent by comparing responses to questions asked in a representative survey of the public with similar questions asked of incumbent MPs and parliamentary candidates. There are systematic differences between members of the public, candidates and MPs at both aggregate and individual levels – differences which can be accounted for with reference to the framing effects of Parliament as an institution. Candidates for parliamentary office display significantly more tolerance of ethically dubious behaviour than other members of the public. Within the elite category, elected MPs exhibit more permissive ethical standards than those candidates who are unsuccessful.
Protecting Children, Preserving Families: Moral Conflict and Actuarial Science in a Problem of Contemporary Governance
Authors: Scherz China
Published: May 2011

The United States Child Protective Services system is shaped by the unresolved tension between the aims of child protection and family preservation. Since the 1980s, child welfare experts have recommended the use of risk assessment tools in the hopes of standardizing the decisions made by social workers and judges. In this article, I show that despite their bureaucratic appearance, the tools implemented lacked a clear directive, allowing unresolved value conflicts to be papered over by the appearance of technocratic regularity. I argue that this case not only exemplifies Max Weber's classic distinction between problems of social science and moral value in the creation of social policy, but also raises questions about the effects and uses of audit technologies in situations of ongoing moral conflict.