bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Reaching Out to Vulnerable Groups in China: a broad library with social inclusion
Authors: Li Zhaochun  , Huang Qunqing
Published: March 2008

In developing China, groups of people are facing social exclusion. They are citizens unemployed or with ill health, laborers with poor skills, teenagers in prisons, residents suffering a disaster, and peasants in remote country-side. Library service is crucial for these vulnerable groups. The Sun Yat-sen Library has been active in providing services to these vulnerable groups, creating 56 branch libraries countrywide. The paper describes innovative services provided to residents of a special community for families with financial difficulties, to prisoners — especially juveniles and prisoner students — to a library devastated by flooding, and to two remote mountain communities in Tibet.
Library Services for Blind People: an African perspective
Authors: Rowland William
Published: March 2008

The aim of this paper is to raise awareness in the IFLA community regarding the situation of blind people in Africa. There are nearly 7 million blind people in Africa; in most African countries, less than 10 percent of blind children receive schooling. This paper is based on information gathered from African delegates to the IFLA Libraries for the Blind Section Conference in Grahamstown, South Africa, in August 2007. No information was available about the Francophone or Lusophone countries of sub-Saharan Africa. The paper briefly outlines the situation of library services for the blind in South Africa, Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Gambia, and goes on to discuss issues of literacy and education, scarcity of services, standards and expectations, and the technological divide. The author concludes that what we do in the field of education, and what we do about education in each and every country, will change the future prospects of blind people.
Resonance: No Music without Resonance- without Resonance no Group1
Authors: Thygesen Bente
Published: March 2008

This article discusses the phenomenon of resonance defined by S.H. Foulkes as: `communication without any message being sent or received, an a-causal and transpersonal process at the primordial level in the psychic network of communication, the matrix'. By discussing clinical examples from a group-analytic therapy-group, I try to show how resonance unfolds as a-causal expression of meaning rather than causal interactions. This concept is used in accordance with Foulkes' suggestion, that Jung's concept of the `collective unconscious' was relevant to understand processes at the primordial level. It is defined as a psychoid field characterized by synchronicity signifying an a-causal connection by a shared meaning or sense between inner subjective (psychic) and outer objective phenomena. From analytical psychology the concept of the `interactive field' in relation to the concept of `quantum fields' in physics and their `non-locality' are brought into the discussion. Quantum fields express a deep interconnectedness and interdependence shown by `true instantaneous action-at-a-distance', and are thought to further the understanding of the process of resonance, important not only clinically as a therapeutic factor but to group formation as such.
Mental Health Services for Older Adults in Rural Areas: An Ecological Systems Approach
Authors: Sanders Gregory F. , Fitzgerald Margaret A. , Bratteli Marlys
Published: March 2008

Groups of North Dakota professionals from health and aging services participated in a focus group study of mental health needs and barriers to service among older adults. Data were collected from 13 focus groups that included human service providers, public health nurses, out-reach workers, and advisory groups who discuss mental health and aging issues in a number of ecological systems contexts. Lack of knowledgeable care providers, funding cutbacks, accessibility of services, and ageism were frequently cited barriers to mental health services for older adults in rural areas. Focus groups also discussed the needs of older adults including information on services, how to access services, the need for service providers in rural areas, and routine assessments by physicians. Participants suggested that the main needs of providers were education, more services, and changes or flexibility in the types of services.
Effects of BSO, GSH, Vit-C and DMPS on the nephrotoxicity of mercury
Authors: Zhaofa Xu  , Jinghua Yang  , Jiaming Yu  , Zhongwei Yin  , Wei Sun  , Jing Li
Published: March 2008

Objective: To study the effects of BSO, GSH, Vit-C and DMPS on the nephrotoxicity of mercury. Methods: The rats in groups 1, 2 and 3 were sc injected with 0.75, 1.5 and 2.5mg/kg HgCl2, respectively. Fourth group rats were ip injected with 0.5mmol/kg BSO and 4h later sc administrated with 0.75mg/kg HgCl2. The rats in groups 5, 6 and 7 were ip injected with 3 mmol/kg GSH, 4mmol/kg Vit-C, 200 μmol/kg DMPS, respectively, and 2h later sc administrated with 2.5mg/kg HgCl2. Eighth group rats were sc injected with saline as a control. Mercury concentrations in the liver, renal cortex and urine, urinary NAG, ALP, LDH activities, protein and BUN contents were determined. Results: Urinary NAG, ALP activities, protein and BUN contents in the rats of BSO pretreatment group were significantly higher than that of 0.75 mg/kg HgCl2 alone group and control group. As compared with 2.5 mg/kg HgCl2 alone group, urinary NAG, ALP, LDH activities, urinary protein and BUN contents decreased significantly. Conclusion: BSO pretreatment could enhance the renal toxicity of mercury and GSH, Vit-C and DMPS pretreatment had antagonistic effects on nephrotoxicity of mercury. Toxicology and Industrial 2007; 23: 403—410.
The potential role of combined anti-oxidants against cadmium toxicity on liver of rats
Authors: Koyuturk Meral , Yanardag Refiye , Bolkent Sehnaz , Tunali Sevim
Published: March 2008

Cadmium (Cd), a widely distributed toxic trace metal, has been shown to accumulate in liver after long- and short-term exposure. Cd (2mg/kg/day CdCl2) was intraperitoneally given to rats for eight days. Vitamin C (250mg/kg/day) + vitamin E (250mg/kg/day) + sodium selenate (0.25 mg/kg/day) were given to rats by oral means. The animals were treated by anti-oxidants one hour prior to treatment with Cd every day. The degenerative changes were observed in the groups given only Cd and anti-oxidants + Cd. Metallothionein (MT) immunoreactivity increased in cytoplasm of hepatocytes of the rats given Cd when compared with controls. In a number of cells with Cd and anti-oxidants treatment, immunoreactivity increase was more than in the group given Cd only and nuclear MT expression was also detected. Cell proliferation was assessed with proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) immunohistochemistry. PCNA expressions increased in all groups more than in the controls. Anti-oxidants treatment increased cell proliferation. In the animals administered with Cd, an increase in serum aspartate (AST) and alanine (ALT) aminotransferases, liver glutathione (GSH) and lipid peroxidation (LPO) levels were observed. On the other hand, in the rats treated with anti-oxidants and Cd, serum AST and ALT, liver glutathione and LPO levels decreased. As a result, these results suggest that combined anti-oxidants treatment might be useful in protection of liver against Cd toxicity. Toxicology and Industrial Health 2007; 23: 393—401.
Constructing librarians' information literacy expertise in the domain of nursing
Authors: Sundin Olof , Limberg Louise , Lundh Anna
Published: March 2008

This article investigates negotiations of librarians' expertise in relation to information literacy at the micro-level, specifically in the domain of nursing education. A qualitaitve empirical framework is employed. The study draws on 18 semi-structured interviews, 16 with Swedish nursing students, one with a librarian and one with a nursing professor. Three themes on librarians' expertise emerge in the findings: technical-administrative, information searching and source evaluation expertise. The themes have different foci which are shown to be relatively independent, or dependent on the domain of nursing. The results indicate that it is important for librarians to navigate between two different strands of perceiving information literacy practices, either as generic or as embedded.
Multicultural Living?
Authors: Herbert Joanna , May Jon , Wills Jane , Datta Kavita , Evans Yara , McIlwaine Cathy
Published: March 2008

Since the 1990s migrants from smaller, legally differentiated and non-citizen immigrant groups have formed the main flows of migration to the UK and yet they have been overlooked in academic and public debates and agendas. While much academic research has been devoted to racism, the new forms of racism which accompany the `new migration' have also received little attention. This article, therefore, demonstrates the continuing importance and changing nature of contemporary racisms as experienced by Ghanaians; a less-established migrant group. The article traces the particular forms of racisms experienced within their working lives as well as their diverse responses to racism: a relatively unexplored dimension of discrimination. The various coping strategies which the workers developed to overcome difficulties are highlighted, at the individual and collective levels, and this reveals the importance of diaspora groups and transnational links. It is argued that focusing on responses to racism is a crucial facet in helping to understand the actual impact of racial discrimination and also avoids portraying minority ethnic groups as the passive recipients of racisms. The article is also an intervention into the current debates about multicultural Britain. It is argued that the current discourse on the failures of multiculturalism should focus less on minority ethnic groups as the principal problem for integration and engage with the issues of racism, exclusion and material inequalities which penetrate the lives of low-paid migrant workers.
Tracing Multicultural Cities From the Perspective of Women's Everyday Lives
Authors: Lykogianni Rouli
Published: March 2008

The article discusses everyday life in multicultural cities from a feminist perspective. It aims to engage, theoretically and through empirical research, with everyday life, a concept which brings to the foreground of inquiry a variety of urban experiences and reveals the mutual constitution of gender and place/space. Everyday life is connected to places where different women and men, as individuals, have to live, think and act (in terms of negotiation and/or reconciliation).They construct their everyday life, their personal identities and relations, drawing upon — and, simultaneously, negotiating with — existing macro-level spatial, temporal and discursive structures/meanings.

In the context of geographical debates, the study of everyday life starts from the subject's everyday spatio-temporal practices and experiences, aiming to show not only how they are organized by socio-spatial relations and structures, but also how people's (everyday) actions (re)produce and (trans)-form these relations and structures. In this line of thought, space/place is understood as particular constellations of social relations and practices, with local and supralocal determinants, meeting and weaving together in a particular locality. The article will discuss such relations and practices drawing from research in Athens.
Practice, Narrative and the`Multicultural City'
Authors: Simonsen Kirsten
Published: March 2008

Cities can basically be conceived of as encounters, as spatial formations resulting from dense networks of interaction, and as places of meeting with `the stranger'. In European cities these encounters, due to increased mobility and immigration, have increasingly taken the form of meetings between different cultures and modes of life. This article is concerned with the understanding of the `multicultural city'. It approaches the problem from the perspective of everyday life, from the popular construction of the city in practice and narrative. Urban everyday life, it assumes, is increasingly influenced by transnational relations, in the form of multiscalar practices and experiences, encounters between different cultures and different imaginations of the `multicultural' city. The article starts from a case-study in the city of Copenhagen, using qualitative in-depth interviews with different occupational groups to collect narratives on practices and imaginations of the contemporary city.Theoretically, the interpretation draws upon two streams of literature, on postcolonialism and cosmopolitanism respectively, and in particular two concepts — of `practical orientalism' and `affective cosmopolitanism' — are developed to grasp the everyday, banal and embodied character of the construction of the city.The article concludes on the different spatialities produced in these constructions.
Cities and Organized Interest Intermediation in the EU Multi-Level System
Authors: Heinelt Hubert , Niederhafner Stefan
Published: March 2008

It is argued that European cities gain new room for political manoeuvre because the process of Europeanization implies the opening-up of a new political sphere in which cities can play a new multi-level game or traditional structures of domestic policy making can — at least partly — be bypassed. First, we consider whether there are specific points of access for local-level actors to EU institutions. Cities can enter into the European policy-making process by providing EU institutions with knowledge, legitimacy and ways to monitor the implementation of EU policies. Second, we analyse how cities organize their activities to utilize these access points. Based on an investigation of two pan-European cities' organizations, the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) and Eurocities, we consider how different organizational models influence their effectiveness as a part of the EU governance system. Eurocities is a network type of organization whose activities are based on the modus of coordination. The CEMR, however, is a classic international umbrella organization consisting of national sections; its activities are based on the modus of cooperation. Finally, we conclude the article with some reflections about the potentials and the constraints which apply to each type of organization.
Leisure Textiles: Salary Versus Piece Rate
Authors: Rana Arif Iqbal , Chaudhry Hassan Rauf
Published: March 2008

This case study deals with Leisure Textiles, a knitwear manufacturer in Lahore, Pakistan. It describes the general practices followed in the sewing industry with reference to the compensation systems followed. It also deals with the roles of key characters in the sewing industry. Leisure Textiles had followed the predominant system of ‘piece rate’ for compensating its sewing workforce. However, in 2000 the company's CEO implemented the salary-based system in one of the sewing units on a test case basis. The case discusses the efforts made at implementing a salary-based system in place of the piece rate system and the problems associated with these efforts.
Oman Air
Authors: Rajasekar James , Moideenkutty Unnikammu
Published: March 2008

This case study describes the journey of Oman Air, the flag carrier of the Sultanate of Oman from operating losses to profitability. The main concern of Oman Air's top management now is to consolidate these gains and to ensure sustained profitability and growth over the long term. The airline has faced challenges from existing and emerging competitors operating on both full-service and low-cost business models. In addition, the recent strategic decision of the Government of Oman to pull out of the much larger Gulf Air made Oman Air the only national airline of Oman. Oman Air now needs to reposition itself from a major regional airline to a full-fledged international airline to service the long-haul markets.
Measuring Regional Backwardness
Authors: Borooah Vani K. , Dubey Amaresh
Published: March 2008

This paper examines regional disparity in India from the perspective of the smallest geographical unit for which a consisent set of data is available: the district. By doing so, we are able to focus on pockets of deprivation rather than viewing deprivation as a phenomenon affecting a state or a region in its entirety: ‘forward’ states have deprived districts while ‘backward’ states have districts that are not deprived. Consistent with the United Nations’ Human Development Index, the paper examines deprivation from a broader perspective than that of simply income. More specifically, it looks at six indicators of district-level deprivation: the poverty rate; the food scarcity rate; the (gender-sensitive) literacy rate; the infant mortality rate; the immunisation rate; and the sex ratio for 0–6 year olds. The central conclusion that emerges from this study is that different districts were ‘most backward’ on different metrics. Districts in Orissa were the poorest; districts in Arunchal Pradesh had the highest rates of food scarcity; districts in Bihar and Jharkhand had the lowest rates of literacy; tribal districts in the North-East, along with districts in Bihar and Jharkhand, had the lowest rates of immunisation; districts in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh had the highest rates of infant mortality; and districts in Punjab and Haryana had the lowest (0–6 years) sex ratios.
Preliminary Evaluation of Children's Psychosocial Rehabilitation for Youth with Serious Emotional Disturbance
Authors: Williams Nathaniel J.
Published: March 2008

Objective: This article introduces and evaluates children's psychosocial rehabilitation, a home- and community-based treatment for children with serious emotional disturbance. Method: In an open-trial design, the author used repeated-measures analysis of variance and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests to assess pre—post outcome ratings for 218 participants, ages 3 to 18, on the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale or the Preschool and Early Childhood Functional Assessment Scale. Average treatment time was 13 months. Results: Participants improved significantly in psychosocial functioning and psychological symptoms, with effect sizes ranging from large to small. Improvements were clinically significant for 78% of participants. Conclusions: Children's psychosocial rehabilitation shows promise as an empirically based treatment for serious emotional disturbance.
The Effectiveness of Aftercare Services for African American Families in an Intensive Family Preservation Program
Authors: Nelson Kristine E. , Nash James K.
Published: March 2008

Objective: This project tested the effectiveness of extended aftercare in an intensive family preservation program for African American families. Method: Service providers collected pretest and posttest data for 49 families who received intensive services only and 69 who received aftercare in addition to intensive services. Results: In the year following termination, nonrelative placements for the entire sample were reduced to 20.3% from 41.5% in the year prior to receiving services ( p < .01). Families receiving aftercare had a postservice placement rate of 13.0% (p < .05). Services were less effective with caregivers with criminal involvement or mental health issues. Discussion: Significant reductions in re-referrals for neglect (p < .01) and improvement in factors contributing to child well-being (p < .01) indicate that child safety was not compromised by providing in-home services as an alternative to placement.
Modeling of the Degradation of Elastic Properties due to the Evolution of Ductile Damage
Authors: Wallin Mathias , Olsson Mattias , Ristinmaa Matti
Published: March 2008

An elasto-plastic constitutive model for porous materials is formulated within the thermodynamic framework. The formulation facilitates a natural modeling of damage as well as growth and the shrinkage of voids. Metal plasticity is used for demonstrating the possibilities of the formulation. The yield function employed is assumed to depend upon the void-volume fraction, whereas the free energy is dependent on a scalar damage field. To show the capabilities of the model the algorithmic constitutive equations are derived and implemented into a finite element program. It is shown that an extremely simple system involving only two scalar equations needs to be solved in the constitutive driver. Two numerical examples are considered: the necking of an axi-symmetric bar and localization in a notched specimen.
Impact on patient satisfaction with a structured counselling approach on natural health products
Authors: Malfair Taylor Suzanne C , de Lemos Mário L , Jang Dennis , Man Juliana , Annable Dawn , Mithani Saira , John Leela , Vu Thanh , O'Brien Robin K
Published: March 2008

Purpose. Natural health products (NHP) are commonly used by cancer patients. The provision of better information on NHP may improve the patient satisfaction and quality of life. We report the impact on patient satisfaction by routine counselling on NHP.

Methods. Patients visiting the pharmacy of a comprehensive cancer centre for the first time were recruited before (control) and after (intervention) the introduction of routine structured counselling on NHP by pharmacists. The primary endpoint was patient satisfaction. Overall cost and cost per improvement in satisfaction were estimated.

Results. 265 patients completed the questionnaires. The average age was about 60 years old, with roughly equal number of men and women. Breast and genitor-urinary cancers made up about 80% of the patients. Nearly 45% of patients had some college or university education. The scores for overall satisfaction and each subscale were all increased in the intervention group. This was statistically significant regarding information on NHP. Counselling was associated with an increase of about 9 minutes of counselling time and a mean additional cost of CDN$7.49 per patient.

Conclusion. We found increased patient satisfaction with routine counselling on NHP. There was only minimal increase in workload and cost for each counselling section. J oncol pharm practice (2008) 14: 37—43.
Comparison of chemotherapy education and patient preferences in community versus academic gynecology oncology clinicsa
Authors: Jones Kellie L , Saucier Jennifer M , Sun Charlotte C , Bevers Michael W , Ramondetta Lois M , Brown Jubilee , Smith Judith A
Published: March 2008

Purpose. To evaluate and compare patients' preferences in receiving chemotherapy education from health care teams in community versus academic clinics.

Methods. Results from a 13-question questionnaire about the chemotherapy education preferences of patients in three community gynecology oncology clinics were compared to the results from a similar study previously conducted in an academic gynecology oncology clinic.

Results. A total of 57% of the 203 communityclinic respondents (116) and 67% of the 282 academic-institution respondents (189) who completed questionnaires had previously received chemotherapy. Of the patients treated in community clinics, almost 60% preferred chemotherapy education to be provided in written form and directly by a health care professional compared to 87% of the patients in academic clinics. Overall, 88% of the patients in the community clinics believed they received adequate information, compared to 63% of the patients in the academic setting. Patients in the community clinics wanted to get more in-depth answers to questions such as `What is chemotherapy?' (54%) and `How it is given?' (55%). In addition, community patients also wanted to know more about `Why chemotherapy stops working?' (72%) and `What to do and who to call about side effects?' (60%). In the academic setting, patients were less likely to want to know more about these chemotherapy related questions (42, 35, 57, and 49, respectively).

Conclusions. Patients preferred to receive written chemotherapy education that was reviewed with a healthcare professional and that gave more detailed information about the chemotherapeutic drugs themselves and how to prevent and manage side effects. As a result of this questionnaire, the patient education materials used at our institution will be revised to better address patients' preferences in both treatment settings. J Oncol Pharm Practice (2008) 14: 31—36.
Successful treatment with etoposide phosphate in patients with previous etoposide hypersensitivity
Authors: Collier Kathleen , Schink Cordula , Young Anna Mary , How Katharine , Seckl Michael , Savage Philip
Published: March 2008

Objective. To review the experience of treatment with etoposide phosphate in patients with acute etoposide hypersensitivity treated in a large tertiary referral center hospital specializing in curable malignancies.

Case summaries. The cases of 6 patients with advanced malignancies who experienced acute etoposide hypersensitivity are documented. There were 3 male and 3 female patients and their ages ranged from 16 to 68. Four patients had curable malignancies with trophoblast tumors or germ cell tumors and two were receiving palliative chemotherapy for other malignancies. All of the 6 patients who experienced etoposide hypersensitivity developed their symptoms in the first few minutes of the initial infusion. The most common symptoms were chest pain, facial flushing, and bronchospasm. All of the patients had emergency treatment with discontinuation of the infusion and usually the administration of hydrocortisone and chlorpheniramine, which lead to the rapid resolution of their symptoms.

For the next cycle of chemotherapy each patient was rechallenged with etoposide phosphate, with steroid cover given in only two of the cases. None of the 6 patients experienced any hypersensitivity symptoms on treatment with etoposide phosphate and in one the steroids were withdrawn for all the subsequent cycles. The 4 patients with curable malignancies all remain disease free, while the 2 palliative patients obtained significant control of their disease.

Discussion. Etoposide is one of the most important chemotherapy drugs in the treatment of many curable malignancies but an acute hypersensitivity reaction occurs in around 1% of patients. Retreatment with etoposide in these patients is difficult and generally alternative drugs/regimens have to be used. A small number of case reports have suggested that etoposide phosphate can be safely used in these patients and 6 cases have been found in the pharmacy records where this has been done. In all of the patients, treatment with etoposide phosphate proceeded without any symptoms or the use of repeated steroid cover in 5 of the 6 patients.

Conclusion. Etoposide hypersensitivity is a rare clinical problem and responds promptly to drug discontinuation, steroids, and chlorpheniramine. Patients with previous etoposide hypersensitivity can safely be treated with etoposide phosphate and do not need any additional hypersensitivity prophylaxis. J Oncol Pharm Practice (2008) 14: 51—55.
Efficacy vs. effectiveness — docetaxel and prednisone in hormone refractory prostate cancer
Authors: Howard Diana N , Chambers Carole , Cusano Frances
Published: March 2008

Objectives. To assess the clinical effectiveness of docetaxel and prednisone in a clinical setting and to compare the results to those seen in the pivotal clinical trial. To assess the impact of various factors on the prognosis of patients treated with docetaxel.

Design. Retrospective chart review. The primary outcome measured was survival. Survival data was analyzed through the Kaplan—Meier methodology. A multivariate analysis of prognostic variables was also conducted.

Setting. Public cancer centers within the Canadian province of Alberta.

Patients. Hormone refractory, metastatic prostate cancer patients initiated on docetaxel chemotherapy between September 2004 and February 2007 within the Alberta Cancer Board.

Main Outcome Measured. The primary outcome measured was median survival.

Results. Among 161 patients eligible for review, median survival was 17.22 months. Chemotherapy received after docetaxel was determined to be a significant favorable prognostic factor for survival ( p<0.0001).

Conclusion. In a clinical setting, docetaxel and prednisone did not perform as well in terms of median survival, as it was shown to in prior clinical trials (17.22 vs. 18.9 months). Further investigation into the impact of docetaxel and prednisone on quality of life in clinical practice, would complement the findings of this study. J Oncol Pharm Practice (2008) 14: 45—49.
Parenteral iron with erythropoiesis-stimulating agents for chemotherapy-induced anemia
Authors: Shord Stacy S , Hamilton J.M. , Cuellar Sandra
Published: March 2008

Purpose. To discuss the clinical issues we addressed in the development of our institutional guidelines regarding the assessment of iron stores for cancer- and treatment-related anemia and the administration of parenteral iron with erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs).

Data sources. Studies published from January 1995 to August 2007 were identified by computer searches of Medline and hand searching of bibliographies of the articles identified via the computer searches. The current clinical practice guidelines were identified by computer searches of the web sites for national professional organizations that represent health care professionals who treat patients with cancer.

Results of data analysis. Hematopoietic responses demonstrate that epoetin alfa and darbepoetin alfa provide similar outcomes for patients with chemotherapy-induced anemia (CIA); however, up to 50% of patients receiving these agents fail to adequately respond. Functional iron deficiency defined as a state of iron-restricted erythropoiesis is likely the primary contributor to the lack of response. Hematopoietic responses following ESA therapy with parenteral iron are substantially higher compared to response with no or oral iron.

Conclusions. Iron stores should be assessed in all patients with cancer- or treatment-related anemia and parenteral iron should be administered to patients receiving ESA therapy to improve hematopoietic response. A unique algorithm that summarizes our institutional guidelines to assess iron stores and administer parenteral iron with ESA therapy in patients with CIA is included. J Oncol Pharm Practice (2008) 14: 5—22.
On the Coupling of Guided Waves Propagation in Piezoelectric Crystals Subject to Initial Fields
Authors: Simionescu-Panait Olivian , Ana Iulian
Published: March 2008

This paper deals with the study of the coupling conditions for propagation of planar guided waves in a piezoelectric semi-infinite plane (called sagittal plane) subject to initial electro-mechanical fields. The piezoelectric material behaves linearly and without attenuation and the waveguide propagates in a normal mode. We suppose that the material is subject to initial electro-mechanical fields. If the sagittal plane is normal to a direct, resp. inverse dyad axis, we derive that the fundamental equations' system decomposes for particular choices of the initial electric field. In this way we obtain mechanical and piezoelectric waves generalizing the classical guided waves from the case without initial fields. Furthermore, we obtain a similar decomposition of mechanical and electrical boundary conditions, which enable us to characterize the obtained guided waves.
An Abstract Framework for Elliptic Inverse Problems: Part 2. An Augmented Lagrangian Approach
Authors: Gockenbach Mark S. , Khan Akhtar A.
Published: March 2008

The coefficient in a linear elliptic partial differential equation can be estimated from interior measurements of the solution. Posing the estimation problem as a constrained optimization problem with the PDE as the constraint allows the use of the augmented Lagrangian method, which is guaranteed to converge. Moreover, the convergence analysis encompasses discretization by finite element methods, so the proposed algorithm can be implemented and will produce a solution to the constrained minimization problem. All of these properties hold in an abstract framework that encompasses several interesting problems: the standard (scalar) elliptic BVP in divergence form, the system of isotropic elasticity, and others. Moreover, the analysis allows for the use of total variation regularization, so rapidly-varying or even discontinuous coefficients can be estimated.
Surface Transport in Continuum Mechanics
Authors: Fosdick Roger , Huang Tang
Published: March 2008

A moving surface is considered as a 3-dimensional submanifold in the 4-dimensional space-time setting. Elementary differential geometry is used to identify parameter-time and parameter independent normal-time derivatives, and their differences. A few elementary observations are made concerning surface transport theorems.
Binary Mixtures of Elastic Solids with Microstructure
Authors: Ieşan D.
Published: March 2008

In this paper we establish a nonlinear theory of binary mixtures of elastic solids with microstructure. The independent constitutive variables are the displacement fields, displacement gradients, microdeformation tensors and their gradients. The basic equations are derived in Lagrangian description. The theory is linearized and a uniqueness theorem with no definiteness assumption on the constitutive coefficients is presented. The theory is used to study a special kind of microstructure in which the microdeformation tensor is isotropic. The problem of a concentrated body moment is investigated.
Sarigazi, Istanbul
Authors: Moceri Toni
Published: March 2008

In Turkey, gecekondus (literally “set down by night”) are illegally constructed settlements that oftentimes become formalized over time. Through a description of the gecekondu settlement of Sarigazi, this article draws a connection between the function that Istanbul's historical monuments served in the past and the function of the gecekondus today. Through the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires and most recently the Turkish Republic, these monuments were in a continuous process of change and necessarily flexible to respond to changes in religion, culture, and power. At one time, Istanbul's ruins were lived monuments and authorities on life in the ancient city. Today, the gecekondus assert a similar authority. They reflect the epic lineage and personality of Istanbul— contradictory, incomplete, ambiguous, and heterogeneous—on a human scale.
Widespread maculopapular rash due to intramuscular interferon beta-1a during the treatment of multiple sclerosis
Authors: Serarslan G. , Okuyucu EE , Melek IM , Hakverdi S. , Duman T.
Published: March 2008

We describe a 41-year-old woman with multiple sclerosis, who presented erythematous maculopapular rash on the trunk and extremities after the second injection of interferon beta-1a. Histopathologic examination of the lesion revealed lymphocytic exocytosis and perivascular lymphocytic infiltrate in the dermis. Oral antihistamine and topical corticosteroid was started. After improvement of the lesions, the third injection was performed. However, the same reaction occurred. A prick test, which was performed 6 weeks after the eruption, also revealed positive reaction. Although injection-site reactions have been observed with interferon beta-1a, to our knowledge there have been no previous reports of interferon beta-1a-induced widespread cutaneous reaction. Multiple Sclerosis 2008; 14: 259—261. http://msj.sagepub.com
Fatigue in multiple sclerosis presenting as acute relapse: subjective and objective assessment
Authors: Flachenecker Peter , Meissner Heike
Published: March 2008

We report on a patient with multiple sclerosis (MS) who presented with fatigue as the only manifestation of an acute MS relapse. Fatigue was assessed by the `Würzburg Fatigue Inventory in MS (WEIMuS)' scale and confirmed by neuropsychological testing of attention. After high-dose corticosteroid therapy, subjective symptoms were completely abolished. The improvement was corroborated by both, the WEIMuS score and neuropsychological testing. MS-related fatigue may be the only symptom of an acute MS relapse, and neuropsychological methods may be used to objectively assess and follow the time course of this common and disabling symptom. Multiple Sclerosis 2008; 14: 274—277. http://msj.sagepub.com
An Ethnography of Iconoclash
Authors: Schacter Rafael
Published: March 2008

In the following study, I will be investigating the distinct Iconoclash made manifest on our city streets, exploring the various discourses and themes raised through the clash over graffiti. Conducting an analytic account of this conflict, it will be suggested that the images possess both a potent and multifaceted form of agency and are physically embodied by their patients; it will equally be implied that their efficacy is advanced through the explicitly performative nature of the graffiti act, the images' evident ephemerality and the specific character of their medium. Subsequently, through an investigation into the discourses of dirt and deceptiveness, the various rationales assumed for the images reviled nature will be discussed, and finally, utilising notions of appropriation and dètournement, the particular nature of the graffiti-artists engagement with their environment will be examined.

In concluding, the evident similarities between both graffiti-artists and graffiti-removers will be analyzed, and a personal account of the interaction with the images encountered will be attempted.
Dream Kitsch — Folk Art, Indigenous Media and `9/11'
Authors: Mukhopadhyay Bhaskar
Published: March 2008

This article explores the process of transmission of the image(s) of 9/11 through an ethnographic/art-historical examination of Bengali (Indian) pat (traditional scroll painting) made by a community of rural Indian artisans with little or no exposure to mass-media. It transpires that while the impact of mass-media — often held responsible for the extinction of `authentic' folk art — has been somewhat exaggerated, the argument put forward here is that the putative anteriority of a time before representation, is largely an illusion.
When Speaking Is a Risky Business
Authors: Bonshek Elizabeth
Published: March 2008

The increased importance placed upon interaction between `source communities' and museums which hold cultural heritage collections has been described by Peers and Brown ( Museums and Source Communities. A Routledge Reader , 2003, p. 1) as `one of the most important developments in the history of museums'. This interaction entails the relinquishment of the museum's authoritative voice and the empowerment of the indigenous voice. This development assumes that source communities would have something to say about museum collections. My experience in a rural community in Papua New Guinea revealed complex dynamics surrounding museum objects. In Wanigela, questions about objects in museum collections were often met with hesitancy and silence. It was only when these objects became relevant within the context of local issues, embedded within social relationships between people that silences were eventually broken and the diverse significances surrounding silences emerged. An approach driven by academic or museological concerns over collections proved to be problematic in identifying the contemporary significance of the collections for Wanigelans.
A Hard Rain
Authors: Moshenska Gabriel
Published: March 2008

Anti-aircraft shells exploding at high altitudes scattered shards of red-hot steel across the towns and cities of Britain during the Second World War. For many schoolchildren, collecting and trading this shrapnel became a popular social activity, often recalled today in oral history interviews. Drawing on testimonies collected as part of the People' s War project, this article examines these curious and neglected processes of accumulation, exchange and disposal, looking at the aesthetic qualities that gave shrapnel fragments their value and attractiveness. In doing so, it attempts to locate children's shrapnel collections within their social worlds, as well as within broader discussions of material culture and modern conflict. It highlights the significant differences from other more typical forms of collecting, and some of the more subversive uses that children found for their shrapnel. The article also raises the possibility that collecting these violent objects may have been a way for children to cope with the upheaval and brutality of total war.
Modern Natural Law Meets the Market
Authors: Ron Amit
Published: March 2008

Philosophers of the 17th and 18th centuries who worked within the tradition of modern natural law became interested in political economy in part as they attempted to reconcile two conflicting images of economic activity. On the one hand, from the legal point of view economic activity was understood as a morally neutral and benign activity that could be regulated by simple and clear rules of justice. On the other hand, it was seen as a realm of political struggle, manipulation, deceit and the exercise of hidden forms of domination. This article examines the legal and moral contexts of Adam Smith's excursion into political economy by interpreting the roles played by these two images of the market in the theory of value articulated in book I of The Wealth of Nations.
Commerce and Corruption
Authors: Hanley Ryan Patrick
Published: March 2008

Modern commercial society has been criticized for attenuating virtue and inhibiting the ethical self-realization of its participants. But Adam Smith, a founding father of liberal commercial modernity, anticipated precisely this critique and took specific measures to circumvent it. This article presents these measures via an analysis of his response to the critique of liberal commercial modernity set forth by Rousseau. It principally argues that Smith's distinctions of the love of praise from the love of praiseworthiness, and the love of glory from the love of virtue, were elements of a normative moral education that sought to elevate civilized man's corrupted self-love, and thereby recover within modern commercial society a respect for ethical nobility.
Reading Aristotle through Rome
Authors: Nederman Cary J. , Sullivan Mary Elizabeth
Published: March 2008

In recent years, scholars have begun to give greater attention to the 14th-century political writer, Ptolemy of Lucca, mostly on account of his avid defense of republican government in the treatise, De regimine principum. Educated in the scholastic curriculum at the University of Paris, Ptolemy has typically been identified by scholars as one of the most thoroughly Aristotelian medieval thinkers. Ptolemy, like many of his contemporaries, peppered his writing with citations from Aristotle's major works. This article, however, examines the sources employed in Ptolemy's republican arguments, finding that the legacy of Republican Rome played a far more critical role in shaping his republicanism than could be attributed to Aristotle's moral or political works. Though conversing fluently in an Aristotelian language system, Ptolemy's arguments in De regimine principum are derived, at their core, from his reading of Roman Republican sources, not from Aristotelian influence. This discovery reveals Ptolemy to be an even more artful and original writer than was previously assumed, and should add to, rather than detract from, his place as a key figure in the development of western political thought.
Mandated Nurse Staffing Ratios in California: A Comparison of Staffing and Nursing-Sensitive Outcomes Pre- and Postregulation
Authors: Burnes Bolton Linda , Aydin Carolyn E. , Donaldson Nancy , Storer Brown Diane , Sandhu Meenu , Fridman Moshe , Udin Aronow Harriet
Published: March 2008

This article examines the impact of mandated nursing ratios in California on key measures of nursing quality among adults in acute care hospitals. This study is a follow-up and extension of our first analysis exploring nurse staffing and nursing-sensitive outcomes comparing 2002 pre-ratios regulation data to 2004 postratios regulation data. For the current study we used postregulation ratios data from 2004 and 2006 to assess trends in staffing and outcomes. Findings for nurse staffing affirmed the trends noted in 2005 and indicated that changes in nurse staffing were consistent with expected increases in the proportion of licensed staff per patient. This report includes an exploratory examination of the relationship between staffing and nursing-sensitive patient outcomes. However anticipated improvements in nursing-sensitive patient outcomes were not observed. This report contributes to the growing understanding of the impacts of regulatory staffing mandates on hospital operations and patient outcomes.
Including Marginalized Populations in HIV Clinical Trials: A New Role for Nurse-Researchers
Authors: Cohn Elizabeth Gross
Published: March 2008

This article proposes a new paradigm for nurse-researchers to strengthen communication with participants, investigators, and the community in clinical trials. The author reviews the current state of HIV vaccine development in response to the human and fiscal cost of the HIV epidemic, both in the United States and globally. A translational model is proposed for restructuring the process by which participants in HIV trials are recruited and the results disseminated. Finally, it is proposed that nurses should play a unique and essential role in implementing this new model, advocating for individuals, strengthening societal trust, and fostering equity.
Patient Safety Legislation: A Look at Health Policy Development
Authors: Mattie Angela S. , Ben-Chitrit Rosalyn
Published: March 2008

On July 29, 2005, President Bush signed into law the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act. This long-awaited bill came after considerable debate in the Senate and the House that focused on patient safety highlighted by the Institute of Medicine's (IOM's) report, To Err Is Human . The IOM report brought the significance of patient safety issues to the national forefront and called for congressional action, but it was 6 years after that report before Congress passed legislation in this area. The article explores the development of patient safety legislation and provides a historical review and analysis of the events leading to the passage of the final bill. It provides background about the major issues requiring resolution and compromise, compares the positions of the competing stakeholders, and describes the importance and degree of influence that can derive from input by stakeholders in the passage of legislation.
A decade on
Authors: Willis Diane S.
Published: March 2008

Carr and Hollins highlighted the paucity of research on the menopause in women with intellectual disabilities and, 10 years on, this area still remains poorly researched. Work exploring the age of onset of the menopause has suggested that the menopause is earlier in this group of women, but studies exploring what women with intellectual disabilities understand and experience during the menopause are limited. In this study 15 women with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities were interviewed using a semi-structured interview on a one-to-one basis about their knowledge and understanding of the menopause. Findings revealed limited accessible information about the menopause and a paucity in the women's knowledge and understanding about the menopause. This suggests a need for more accessible information, in order to increase understanding and awareness of the menopause in these women.