bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparison of Neuropsychological and FDG-PET Findings between Early- versus Late-Onset Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Five-Year Longitudinal Study
Authors: Kim Sook Hui , Seo Sang Won , Yoon Doo Sang , Chin Juhee , Lee Byung Hwa , Cheong Hae-Kwan , Han Seol-Heui , Na Duk L.
Published: March 2010

Aims: Our purpose was to investigate differences in neuropsychological characteristics and glucose metabolism between early-onset mild cognitive impairment (EOMCI) and late onset MCI (LOMCI) patients and to determine if the baseline differences are predictive of conversion to dementia. Methods: We enrolled 28 patients with MCI (12 EOMCI, 16 LOMCI) and 2 age-matched control groups. At the end of a 5-year follow-up, we compared the baseline neuropsychological and PET data between converters and nonconverters. Results: The EOMCI patients obtained significantly higher scores in verbal recall and word fluency tests than the LOMCI patients. The EOMCI group, compared to the young controls, demonstrated hypometabolism in brain regions vulnerable in mild Alzheimer’s disease. Converters were significantly more impaired in the delayed verbal recall test than nonconverters (p = 0.028) and tended to be more impaired in the semantic word fluency test (p = 0.084). The baseline PET scan of the converters demonstrated severer hypometabolism in frontal areas than that of the nonconverters both in the EOMCI and LOMCI groups. Conclusion: Our study suggests that EOMCI patients may differ from LOMCI in the patterns of cognitive deficits and glucose hypometabolism. In addition, baseline neuropsychological and FDG-PET findings suggest that MCI patients with poor memory or frontal dysfunction are at greater risk of conversion to dementia.
Pittsburgh Compound-B and Alzheimer’s Disease Biomarkers in CSF, Plasma and Urine: An Exploratory Study
Authors: Degerman Gunnarsson M. , Lindau M. , Wall A. , Blennow K. , Darreh-Shori T. , Basu S. , Nordberg A. , Larsson A. , Lannfelt L. , Basun H. , Kilander L.
Published: March 2010

Background: The positron emission tomography (PET) radiotracer Pittsburgh Compound-B (PIB) is an in vivo ligand for measuring β-amyloid (Aβ) load. Associations between PET PIB and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Aβ1–42 and apolipoprotein E Ε4 (APOE Ε4) have been observed in several studies, but the relations between PIB uptake and other biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are less investigated. Method: PET PIB, PET 18Fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose and different AD biomarkers were measured twice in CSF, plasma and urine 12 months apart in 10 patients with a clinical diagnosis of mild to moderate AD. Results: PIB retention was constant over 1 year, inversely related to low CSF Aβ1–42 (p = 0.01) and correlated positively to the numbers of the APOE Ε4 allele (0, 1 or 2) (p = 0.02). There was a relation between mean PIB retention and CSF ApoE protein (r = –0.59, p = 0.07), and plasma cystatin C (r = –0.56, p = 0.09). Conclusion: PIB retention is strongly related to CSF Aβ1–42, and to the numbers of the APOE Ε4 allele.
Leg Ulceration in Rheumatoid Arthritis – An Underreported Multicausal Complication with Considerable Morbidity: Analysis of Thirty-Six Patients and Review of the Literature
Authors: Seitz Cornelia S. , Berens Nikolaus , Bröcker Eva-B. , Trautmann Axel
Published: March 2010

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic inflammatory disease which may present with extra-articular symptoms, including cutaneous manifestations. Ulcerated rheumatoid nodules, necrotic vasculitic lesions and pyoderma gangrenosum are fairly characteristic and well-recognized causes of skin ulcers in RA. However, most RA patients develop leg ulcers due to other pathophysiological factors posing a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge and leading to considerable morbidity. Methods: A retrospective chart analysis of all patients with RA and leg ulcers hospitalized at our Dermatology Department between January 1998 and March 2008 was performed to evaluate risk factors and identify underlying conditions that predispose RA patients to the development of leg ulcers. Results: A total of 36 patients with RA and leg ulcers were identified. Three patients presented with necrotizing vasculitis and 2 with pyoderma gangrenosum. Chronic venous insufficiency was diagnosed as the underlying cause of leg ulcers in 8 patients, peripheral arterial disease in 4 patients, and combined arterial and venous malfunction in 3 patients. Five patients suffered from pressure ulcers. Interestingly, in 11 patients (31%) other underlying causes besides constricted mobility followed by secondary lymphedema could not be identified, and these ulcers were classified as ‘inactivity leg ulcers’. Conclusions: The majority of leg ulcers in patients with RA are due to underlying venous/arterial malfunction while vasculitic or traumatic ulcers are less common. Additionally, we identified a relevant subgroup of patients with ‘inactivity ulcers’ due to impaired mobility and consecutive lymphedema. Morphology and localization of ulcerations as well as duplex sonography provide the most important clues for accurate diagnosis, ensuring adequate treatment.
Assessment of the Maximal Split-Half Coefficient to Estimate Reliability
Authors: Thompson Barry L. , Green Samuel B. , Yang Yanyun
Published: March 2010

The maximal split-half coefficient is computed by calculating all possible split-half reliability estimates for a scale and then choosing the maximal value as the reliability estimate. Osburn compared the maximal split-half coefficient with 10 other internal consistency estimates of reliability and concluded that it yielded the most consistently accurate estimate of reliability across the conditions explored. In this simulation study, the authors demonstrate that the maximal split-half coefficient can, under some conditions, badly overestimate reliability because of capitalization on chance and under other conditions appreciably underestimate reliability. Cross-validation can correct the former problem. A difficulty with the cross-validated coefficient is that it is a relatively inefficient estimator of reliability.
Back to the Future
Authors: Stout Margaret
Published: March 2010

This article presents a reconceptualization of public administration within a profoundly different political economy. The depiction is based on an alternative set of assumptions to those most typically held about human nature and the corollary approach to political and economic life. Ideas are drawn from two sets of scholars, each writing respectively at the turn of the last two centuries. As both historical periods are marked by claims of progressivism, the reconceptualization is framed around an alternative understanding of “progress” and exploration of a political economy that would support this different meaning. Specifically, in a relational rather than material understanding of progress, public administration would be transformed into a process of self-governance within political and economic institutions based on assumptions of generative rather than degenerative principles that replace fear with love, scarcity with abundance, self-interest with mutual interest, and dialectical competition and hierarchy with collaboration. Although this might sound utopian at face value, no such notions of perfection are assumed. Rather, the methods of progress—collaboration and cocreation—are simply assumed to be possible and the proper basis for social institutions seeking to foster them. This reconceptualization offers a transformational role for public administration in advocating a new meaning of progress, cocreating political democracy, democratizing the economy, and changing the role of government, in addition to a facilitative role in the resulting political economy.
Endurance of Multiplication Fact Fluency for Students With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Authors: Brady Kelly K. , Kubina Richard M.
Published: March 2010

This study examines the relationship between a critical learning outcome of behavioral fluency and endurance, by comparing the effects of two practice procedures on multiplication facts two through nine. The first procedure, called whole time practice trial, consisted of an uninterrupted 1 minute practice time. The second procedure, endurance building practice trials, had three 20 second practice trials. A total of 3 students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder participated. Results indicated that multiplication facts with the endurance building practice trials produced more efficient learning when compared to the whole time practice trial procedure for all 3 participants. Additionally, results show that even with the amount of practice time being equal, 1 minute in both conditions, on average participants practiced 30% more problems with the endurance building practice trials procedure than they did with the whole time practice trial procedure.
Vasovagal Syncope and Blood Donor Return: Examination of the Role of Experience and Affective Expectancies
Authors: Olatunji Bunmi O. , Etzel Erin N. , Ciesielski Bethany G.
Published: March 2010

Vasovagal sensations (e.g., dizziness, nausea, and fainting) are one of the main reasons people find blood donation unpleasant. A better understanding of predictors of vasovagal sensations during blood donation could inform interventions designed to increase donor return rates. The present investigation examined the extent to which experience with blood donation and vasovagal sensations during blood donation uniquely predict the likelihood of donor return, even when controlling for affective expectancies. Participants presenting at community blood drives indicated how many times they have given blood and provided ratings of expected anxiety, pain, disgust, as well as fear of fainting before giving blood. After donating, participants completed a measure of vasovagal sensations experienced during blood donation. They also rated the pleasantness of the experience and willingness to donate blood in the future. The findings showed that experience with blood donation and vasovagal sensations during blood donation uniquely predicted willingness to donate blood in the future even when controlling for age and negative affective expectancies about giving blood. This finding suggests that vasovagal sensations and experience with blood donation have unique (and perhaps additive) effects on willingness to donate blood in the future, suggesting that behavior modification interventions that directly target these variables could potentially increase donor retention.
Christ and Time—Part Three: “Telling Time” in the Fourth Gospel
Authors: Rowe Eric , Neyrey Jerome
Published: March 2010

Telling time is more than calculating the meanings of day or hour in the Fourth Gospel. After considering the typical time markers (day, year, hour), we turn to the anthropology of time to learn more subtle ways of “telling time.” Of the many classifications in anthropological literature, we focus on four as the most useful for reading the Fourth Gospel: (1) past, present, forthcoming, and future; (2) eternal and contingent; (3) sequence and duration; and (4) before and after. Of particular significance is the description of forthcoming time as the later completion of a present action. Jesus truly enjoys eternal time: uncreated in the past and imperishable in the future. He is temporally “after” John but in fact he was “before” him in time and precedence. We learn, moreover, that no character can “tell time,” the exclusive preserve of Jesus; misunderstanding his “time” remarks is a unique feature of this narrative.
The Priesthood in Ancient Israel
Authors: Leuchter Mark A.
Published: March 2010

The priesthood in ancient Israel developed through the confluence of different social forces over a broad spectrum of time. The social, textual, mythic and political concerns of Israel’s priestly groups are evident throughout the biblical record, and reveal the depth of influence the priesthood exerted not only on the formation of the Bible but on the growth of Israelite religion into early Judaism.
History, Human Rights and the Left
Authors: Davidson Alastair
Published: March 2010

Marxists should reconsider their usual attitude to universal human rights. On the Jewish Question did not reject the entire French Declaration of 1791. In 1843 Marx and Engels were close to Babouvism, the continuation of French rights. Nor was their view that the 1791 Declaration must be completed by economic and social rights; rather, their criticism concerned the reduction of universal rights to citizen rights because it left the state the final arbiter of justice, denying the ‘voice from below’. The source of human rights cannot be the state or its hegemonic rule of law. The article concludes that a politics of human rights would return justice to individuals and create a counter-hegemony.
Confinement of Vibrations in Flexible Structures Using Supplementary Absorbers: Dynamic Optimization
Authors: Ouled Chtiba M. , Choura S. , El-Borgi S. , Nayfeh A.H.
Published: March 2010

We propose a novel strategy for the optimal design of supplementary absorbers that warrant confinement with and without suppression of vibrations in flexible structures. We assume that the uncontrolled structure is sensitive to vibrations and that the absorbers are the elements where the vibrational energy is to be transferred. The design of these absorbers is formulated as a dynamic optimization problem in which the objective function is the total energy of the uncontrolled structure. The locations, masses, stiffnesses, and damping coefficients of these absorbers are optimized to minimize the total energy of the structure. We use the Galerkin method to discretize the equations of motion that describe the coupled dynamics of the flexible structure and the added absorbers. We develop a numerical code that computes the unknown parameters for a prespecified set of absorbers. We input a set of initial values for these parameters, and the code updates them while minimizing the total energy in the uncontrolled structure. To show the viability of the proposed design, we consider a simply supported beam with and without external excitations. In the absence of structural damping, we demonstrate that the beam, subjected to either an initial distributed energy or a harmonic excitation, periodically exchanges the vibration energy with the added absorbers. For damped beams, we show that the vibrational energy can be confined to the absorbers for suppression or harnessing purposes.
‘Ziegfeld Girls Coming Down A Runway’
Authors: Ferry Elizabeth Emma
Published: March 2010

Between 1876 and 1997, the exhibition policies and practices of the mineralogical collections of the Smithsonian Institution went through a number of shifts. Focusing on the social and intellectual contexts of these shifts and their reception by museum-goers and reviewers, this article looks at the process by which natural history museums capture, discipline and display natural objects. The article builds on the premise that natural history museums and exhibitions exist, in part, to teach people how they should look at and think about nature. The author draws on Arturo Escobar’s idea of ‘regimes of nature’ to examine how shifts in exhibitionary practices manifest shifting understandings of nature in the United States. From 1876 to 1997, she identifies four different nature regimes represented in the Smithsonian mineral exhibits. These regimes propose different articulations between nature, the nation-state, US capital and the museum-going public and the author labels them ‘nature as resource’, ‘nature as order’, ‘nature as spectacle’ and ‘nature as fine art’.
Negative life events and self-control as correlates of self-assessed re-offending probability among Finnish prisoners
Authors: Kivivuori Janne , Linderborg Henrik
Published: March 2010

This article examines the correlates of self-assessed re-offending probability (SARP) in a sample of Finnish short-term prisoners. The research focuses on the role of factors related to social control when individual self-control is held constant, and explores how selected prison activities relate to SARP. The associations between social control and re-offending probability manifest some erosion when self-control and criminality are factored in, a finding that replicates prior studies. However, several variables capturing a person’s ties to social control institutions remained robust correlates of SARP. Having many siblings, living in a nuclear family during childhood, parental supervision during childhood and youth, and avoiding negative events in adulthood appear to reduce the number of offences projected to the future. In prison, work participation, participation in alcohol abuse treatment, and remorse for past crimes are associated with reduced SARP. We draw on cross-sectional data combining a quantitative survey ( N = 351) and qualitative interviews ( N = 37).
Insecurities about crime in Germany, Austria and Switzerland: A review of research findings
Authors: Gerber Monica M. , Hirtenlehner Helmut , Jackson Jonathan
Published: March 2010

This paper reviews the research literature on insecurities about crime in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Making criminological studies written in German accessible to the wider European community, we first document how insecurities about crime have been conceptualized and measured in these three countries, and second review the various theoretical positions that have been empirically assessed.We highlight commonalities and differences in the German- and English-language literatures on the topic, making the review relevant to criminologists from all European countries. Our overall goal is to help stimulate a comparative research agenda on insecurities about crime across the European continent.
A Case of Recurred Hepatocellular Carcinoma Refractory to Doxorubicin After Liver Transplantation Showing Response to Herbal Medicine Product, Rhus verniciflua Stokes Extract
Authors: Hye Ryun Kim  , Kyung Seok Kim  , Hyun Sik Jung  , Won Cheol Choi  , Wan Kyu Eo  , Seong Ha Cheon
Published: March 2010

There is no established protocol proven to be beneficial for treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence after liver transplantation. Only a few reports have shown direct treatment by surgery or ablation to be independent predictors of survival for localized recurrence. Moreover, the necessity of immunosuppression to prevent allograft rejection makes many physicians hesitate to administer systemic chemotherapy. This case report documents a case in which the administration of an herbal product, an extract of the lacquer tree, Rhus verniciflua Stokes, was associated with a decrease in the size of lung metastases in a patient with recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma after liver transplantation refractory to doxorubicin. This patient experienced prolonged survival compared with average survival times and little toxicity.
Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms in Triplets
Authors: Kordowicz Andrew , Ghosh Jonathan , Baguneid Mohammed
Published: March 2010

We report the case of 3 male triplets, 2 of whom, both lifelong smokers, presented with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) within 24 hours of each other. One survived surgery but the other died from the rupture. The third brother, an ex-smoker, was found to have an ectatic aorta and was placed into a surveillance program. This case highlights and discusses the combination of genetic and environmental factors that underpin the etiology of aneurysms and demonstrates the importance of assessing first-degree relatives of patients presenting with AAA.
Double Microcatheter Single Vascular Access Embolization Technique for Complex Peripheral Vascular Pathology
Authors: Greben Craig R. , Setton Avi , Putterman Daniel , Caplin Drew , Naidich James , Gandras Eric
Published: March 2010

The authors describe an embolization technique that allows safe, controllable exclusion of complex vascular pathologies using a single vascular access and 2 microcatheters. This technique is particularly useful in situations where high flow increases the risk of coil migration and nontarget embolization and in large aneurysms. It affords precise placement and repositioning of coils. This method was used to treat patients with pulmonary arteriovenous malformations, renal arteriovenous fistulae and aneurysms, visceral arterial aneurysms and pseudoaneurysms, an aortic pseudoaneurysm, and occlusion of native parent vessels. The technique facilitated safe and successful endovascular closure in all cases.
The case for involving adult children outside of the household in the self-management support of older adults with chronic illnesses
Authors: Piette John D. , Rosland Ann Marie , Silveira Maria , Kabeto Mohammed , Langa Kenneth M.
Published: March 2010

Objectives: This study sought to (1) identify barriers to spousal support for chronic illness self-care among community-dwelling older adults; and (2) describe the potential availability of self-care support from adult children living outside of the household.

Methods: Nationally representative US sample of chronically ill adults aged 51+ were interviewed as part of the Health and Retirement Study (N = 14,862). Both participants and their spouses (when available) reported information about their health and functioning. Participants also reported information about their contact with adult children and the quality of those relationships.

Results: More than one-third (38%) of chronically ill older adults in the US are unmarried; and when spouses are available, the majority of them have multiple chronic diseases and functional limitations. However, the vast majority of chronically ill older adults (93%, representing roughly 60 million Americans) have adult children, with half having children living over 10 miles away. Most respondents with children (78%) reported at least weekly telephone contact and that these relationships were positive. Roughly 19 million older chronically ill Americans have adult children living at a distance but none nearby; these children are in frequent telephone contact and respondents (including those with multiple chronic diseases) report that the relationships are positive.

Discussion: As the gap between available health services for disease management and the need among community-dwelling patients continues to grow, adult children—including those living at a distance—represent an important resource for improving self-care support for people with chronic diseases.
Psychological health in older adult spousal caregivers of older adults
Authors: Lavela Sherri L. , Ather Nazneen
Published: March 2010

Objectives: The need for informal caregiving has been rapidly increasing across several countries. Spouses comprise a sizeable segment of informal caregivers and typically represent an older cohort with special health concerns. The objective of this review was to examine psychological health outcomes in older adult spouses caring for older adults.

Methods: Literature review/synthesis (1999—2009).

Results: Compared to demographically matched married non-caregiving controls, older adult spousal caregivers experienced more cognitive functioning difficulties, strain, distress, stress, loneliness, depression, anxiety and poorer mental health. Caregivers of spouses with cognitive impairments, quite often wives, were especially affected by poor psychological health, as were caregivers who were new to the caregiving role and those who rated caregiving as stressful. Psychological health improved when the caregiving role ceased.

Discussion: Several poor psychological outcomes were found in older adults caring for their spouses; the magnitude of which varied and were more pronounced under certain circumstances. To preserve caregiver health, maintain recipient health and care quality and avoid exceeding system of care capacity, efforts are needed to provide support to older adult spousal caregivers and recipients. Couples may need to be assessed as a unit, taking gender and cultural considerations into account, and additional resources may be required.
Violence, Chases and the Construction of Bodies in American and Soviet Animated Series
Authors: Blackledge Olga
Published: March 2010

This article explores the work of violence in animated films. The economic and social contexts of animated film production (of the USA and the USSR) are connected to the construction and dynamics of characters’ bodies. By analysing animated chase series, the author suggests that violence that results in the fluidity and changeability of animated bodies can be regarded as a manifestation of an intrinsic feature of animated film, similar in function to what Sergei Eisenstein called ‘plasmaticness’. This feature disappears from animated films when animated characters become humanized.
A Film of One’s Own: The Animated Self-Portraits of Young Contemporary Female Animators
Authors: Hernández María Lorenzo
Published: March 2010

This article analyses animated self-portraits created by contemporary young and emerging women in animation, and elucidates significant differences between this new generation of women animators and previous ones. Through their animated self-portraits, the animatrices from previous decades explored their own identity as women and artists, developing new discourses and models for a subgenre that existed from the early days of cinema animation. But the animated female self-portrayal of the new generation comes closer to documentary and has more universal concerns, appealing to a wider audience and reaching theatrical distribution; Marjane Satrapi’s feature-length animation film Persepolis (2007) exemplifies this and is a focus of the article.
The relationship between blood groups and disease
Authors: Anstee David. J.
Published: March 2010

The relative contribution of founder effects and natural selection to the observed distribution of human blood groups has been debated since blood group frequencies were shown to differ between populations almost a century ago. Advances in our understanding of the migration patterns of early humans from Africa to populate the rest of the world obtained through the use of Y chromosome and mtDNA markers do much to inform this debate. There are clear examples of protection against infectious diseases from inheritance of polymorphisms in genes encoding and regulating the expression of ABH and Lewis antigens in bodily secretions particularly in respect of Helicobacter pylori, norovirus, and cholera infections. However, available evidence suggests surviving malaria is the most significant selective force affecting the expression of blood groups. Red cells lacking or having altered forms of blood group-active molecules are commonly found in regions of the world in which malaria is endemic, notably the Fy(a−b−) phenotype and the S-s− phenotype in Africa and the Ge− and SAO phenotypes in South East Asia. Founder effects provide a more convincing explanation for the distribution of the D− phenotype and the occurrence of hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn in Europe and Central Asia.
The Impact on the Inuit of Environmental Degradation to the Canadian Arctic
Authors: Morse Bradford W. , Zakrison Michelle
Published: March 2010

The Canadian Arctic has been undergoing profound and damaging environmental changes in recent decades at an ever-accelerating rate. In addition to climate change, a wide variety of other factors are dramatically affecting water quality, biodiversity, land stability and ice reliability. These changes have a particularly negatively impact upon population health, local transportation, traditional knowledge, cultural identity, food supply and lifestyle of the Inuit. This paper examines the threats being imposed upon the Inuit in the Canadian Arctic and their capacity to respond directly through exercising opportunities available through recent land claim settlements and northern governments in which they play a dominant role. The paper then considers the limited capacity of the federal government to deal with northern environmental issues and the potential available through enforcing international environmental agreements and human rights.
Twenty-Five Years of Disability Equality? Interpreting Disability Rights in the Supreme Court of Canada
Authors: Vanhala Lisa
Published: March 2010

This paper explores the issue of disability equality in the Canadian context. It probes the ways in which the equality promises contained within the Charter of Rights and Freedoms have been interpreted by the Supreme Court of Canada in addressing disability issues. Drawing on legal cases brought by both disabled and non-disabled citizens the paper examines the extent to which the court has recognized disability as a social construction. Relying on socio-legal analyses incorporating the perspectives of disability rights activists and their allies the paper finds that the evolution of a substantive approach to equality for disabled persons has been (and continues to be) one of fits and starts.
Speech, Equality, and Citizenship in Canada
Authors: Mahoney Kathleen E.
Published: March 2010

Hardly a day goes by without another legal controversy somewhere in the world regarding the regulation or suppression of hate speech. The problem is not only topical and current, it is increasingly problematic. Hatred, racism, xenophobia and related forms of intolerance have gone global, moving from promoting hatred against individuals and groups within states, to singling out these groups for discriminatory and differential treatment everywhere. The globalization of hatred includes the additional feature of terrorist activity—the use of hate propaganda in recruitment efforts, the expansion of target groups, and the specific targeting of human rights defenders for violence and harassment. At the same time, the use of the Internet to incite violent crime and promote hatred has increased exponentially in the past 15 years. On the one hand, there is the marketplace of ideas approach, which posits that the solution for the hate speech problem is more speech. It flies in the face of the lived reality of victims of hate propaganda (such as survivors of genocide and other mass human rights violations) who understand that expression in an unregulated marketplace of ideas is used to the detriment of the search for the truth by undermining rationality and promoting deadly forms of intolerance, prejudice and violence. On the other hand, others are calling for increased limits on expression including the introduction of blasphemy laws to protect certain religious ideas from criticism, even when those ideas may promote hatred. The paper argues that the debate should be framed in terms of equality of citizenship, protection of speech rights for minorities and prevention of harm to individuals, not ideas. At the same time, a non-discriminatory understanding on the limits of expression must be found that avoids privileging of certain cultural and racial perspectives in the marketplace of ideas. The challenge is to develop protection for freedom of expression informed by principles of human dignity, equality and the prevention of harm. The Canadian Supreme Court has developed a unique and important jurisprudence in this area which should be considered.
Environmental Law — The Black Sheep in Rome Il's Drive for Legal Certainty? Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No. 864/2007 on the Law Applicable to Non-Contractual Obligations in Context
Authors: Guinchard Emmanuel , Lamont-Black Simone
Published: March 2010

Early in 2009, the Rome II Regulation on the law applicable to non-contractual obligations came into force in the European Community. As the very first European Regulation on choice of law, it finally enables environmental lawyers to refer to a single primary source throughout the EC when dealing with conflict of laws issues (that is, cases having a foreign element, such as those involving transboundary pollution) rather than asserting the law applicable according to the private international laws of the numerous Member States. This article focuses on the rules relating to environmental damage and, in particular, on Article 7, which appears to be the ‘black sheep’ of Rome II. In contrast to Rome II as a whole, Article 7 has no real background in European tradition; it is expressly grounded in Community law, and, last but not least, it deliberately creates uncertainty. Despite its character as an inverse mirror of the system of Rome II, Article 7 is a welcome solution in the interests of the protection of the environment and it reinforces Community policies in the absence of further harmonisation in this field since, for the purpose of deterrence, the burden of uncertainty falls on the alleged polluter.
Problems of Transferred Malice in Multiple-Actor Scenarios
Authors: Bohlander Michael
Published: March 2010

Transferred malice is a well-known concept that allows the extension of an offender's intent to a victim or object hit accidentally because the offender missed his intended target. Coupled to this doctrine is the annex doctrine of transferred defences which purports to transfer any defence the offender may have had vis-à-vis his intended victim to the actual victim. These doctrines cause systemic problems in single-actor scenarios, but those are increased exponentially if one applies them to multiple-actor situations, where the principles from Saunders and Archer apply which transpose the transferred malice doctrine to the secondary participant as long as the principal missed his target accidentally. The transferred defences doctrine has not been explored in these cases at all, as far as can be seen. This article examines the traditional doctrine and argues that based on a number of problematic constellations and a comparison to German law, it is in need of systematisation and clarification, and that the approach under Saunders and Archer is no longer fit for purpose.
The IUPAC-NIST Solubility Data Series: A guide to preparation and use of compilations and evaluations (IUPAC Technical Report)
Authors: Gamsjäger Heinz , Lorimer John W. , Salomon Mark , Shaw David G. , Tomkins Reginald P. T.
Published: March 2010

The IUPAC-NIST Solubility Data Series (SDS) is an ongoing project that provides comprehensive reviews of published data for solubilities of gases, liquids, and solids in liquids or solids. Data are compiled in a uniform format, evaluated, and, where data from independent sources agree sufficiently, recommended values are proposed. This paper is a guide to the SDS and is intended for the benefit of both those who use the SDS as a source of critically evaluated solubility data and who prepare compilations and evaluations for future volumes. A major portion of this paper presents terminology and nomenclature currently recommended by IUPAC and other international bodies and relates these to obsolete forms that appear in the older solubility literature. In addition, this paper presents a detailed guide to the criteria and procedures used in data compilation, evaluation, and presentation and considers special features of solubility in gas + liquid, liquid + liquid, and solid + liquid systems. In the past, much of this information was included in introductory sections of individual volumes of the SDS. However, to eliminate repetitive publication, this information has been collected, updated, and expanded for separate publication here.
Spool-and-line in a backpack: a new technique for studying movement of small mammals
Authors: Mendonça André Faria , Bocchiglieri Adriana , Vieira Marcus Vinícius
Published: March 2010

No abstract available
Beliefs and attitudes about endemic dental fluorosis among adolescents in rural Brazil
Authors: Castilho Lia Silva de , Ferreira Efigênia Ferreira e , Velásquez Leila Nunes Menegasse , Fantinel Lucia Maria , Perini Edson
Published: March 2010

OBJECTIVE: To understand beliefs and attitudes about fluorosis among young people living in a rural area. METHODOLOGICAL PROCEDURES: Qualitative study consisting of semi-structured interviews with 23 adolescents with dental fluorosis, 14 teachers and three health authorities in the city of São Francisco, Southeastern Brazil, in 2002. Content analysis and social representation theory were applied. ANALYSIS OF RESULTS: The organoleptic characteristics of carbonates that affect groundwater (salty flavor, whitish coloration, and turbidity) associated with negative aspects of household use of this water are considered a cause of mottled enamel. Even after contact with researchers who investigated this phenomenon and helped find a solution for this condition, the local population is still unwilling to accept fluoride as the cause of the problem and does not fully agree to use water from other sources because they are afraid of the quality of water. CONCLUSIONS: Misperceptions of the causes of dental fluorosis and water treatment costs compromise the implementation of uncontaminated surface water supplies. Health education strategies are required in parallel with solutions for securing water supply in drought-ravaged areas.
Determinação de áreas prioritárias para ações de controle da dengue
Authors: Resendes Ana Paula da Costa , Silveira Nelson Artur Prado Rodrigues da , Sabroza Paulo Chagastelles , Souza-Santos Reinaldo
Published: March 2010

OBJETIVO: Identificar áreas de risco de transmissão da dengue por meio da análise de cluster. MÉTODOS: Foi realizado um estudo de agregados, tendo como unidades primárias de análise os 48 bairros do município de Niterói, RJ. Os bairros foram agrupados segundo condições sociodemográficas em seis estratos, segundo a técnica de análise de cluster por meio do método k-médias. Após a definição dos estratos foi realizado o cálculo da incidência da dengue por estrato para quatro períodos distintos: 1998 - 2000; 2001; 2002; 2003 - 2006. RESULTADOS: A análise da incidência mostrou que as taxas para os três últimos períodos do estudo foram maiores no estrato 2.1, de piores condições de infraestrutura de serviços de saneamento e alto incremento populacional, e no estrato 3.1, onde há maior percentual de favelas. O estrato 1.2 apresentou a menor incidência e os melhores indicadores de saneamento e renda, além de um pequeno incremento populacional e menor proporção de favelas. As taxas de incidência em 2001 e 2002 foram elevadas na maioria dos estratos, exceto no estrato 1.2, cujos bairros apresentaram a menor heterogeneidade em relação aos indicadores utilizados. Em 2001, os estratos apresentaram altas taxas de incidência quando supostamente a imunidade de grupo havia se estabelecido para o sorotipo I, expressando a força de transmissão desse agente. CONCLUSÕES: A técnica de análise de cluster possibilita o reconhecimento de áreas prioritárias, indicando aquelas onde ações de controle e vigilância da dengue devem ser aprimoradas, bem como melhorias estruturais que interfiram nas condições de vida e saúde da população do município.
Household members and health care workers as supervisors of tuberculosis treatment
Authors: Maciel Ethel Leonor Noia , Guidoni Leticia Molino , Brioshi Ana Paula , Prado Thiago Nascimento do , Fregona Geisa , Hadad David Jamil , Molino Lucilia Pereira , Palaci Moises , Johnson John L , Dietze Reynaldo
Published: March 2010

OBJECTIVE: To compare tuberculosis cure rates among patients supervised by household members or health care workers. METHODS: Prospective cohort study of 171 patients treated by the program in Vitoria, Southeastern Brazil, from 2004 to 2007. Each patient was followed-up for six months until the end of the treatment. Of the patients studied, a household member supervised 59 patients and healthcare workers supervised 112 patients. Patients' sociodemographic and clinic data were analyzed. Differences between groups were assessed using chi-square test or Student's t-test. Significance level was set at 5%. RESULTS: Most patients had smear positive, culture confirmed pulmonary tuberculosis. Two patients were HIV-positive. There were more illiterate patients in the healthcare-supervised group, in comparison to those supervised by their families (p=0.01). All patients supervised by a household member were cured compared to 90% of the patients supervised by health care workers (p = 0.024). CONCLUSIONS: Successful tuberculosis treatment was more frequent when supervised by household members.
Sobrevida e fatores prognósticos de pacientes com câncer de próstata clinicamente localizado
Authors: Migowski Arn , Silva Gulnar Azevedo e
Published: March 2010

OBJETIVO: Estimar a sobrevida e os fatores prognósticos clínicos (pré-tratamento) de pacientes com adenocarcinoma de próstata localizado. MÉTODOS: Coorte hospitalar composta por 258 pacientes do Instituto Nacional de Câncer, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, de 1990 a 1999. As funções de sobrevida em cinco e dez anos foram calculadas empregando-se o estimador de Kaplan-Meier, tomando-se como início da observação a data do diagnóstico histológico e como eventos os óbitos por câncer de próstata. Para avaliação dos fatores prognósticos pré-tratamento foram calculadas hazard ratios (HR) e intervalos com 95% de confiança, seguindo-se o modelo de riscos proporcionais de Cox. O pressuposto desses riscos foi avaliado pela análise dos resíduos de Schoenfeld e a influência de valores aberrantes pelos resíduos martingale e escore. RESULTADOS: Dos 258 pacientes estudados, 46 foram a óbito durante o período de seguimento.A sobrevida específica por câncer de próstata foi de 88% em cinco anos e de 71% em dez. A classificação de Gleason maior que 6, PSA maior que 40ng/ml, estádio B2 e cor da pele branca foram marcadores independentes de pior prognóstico. CONCLUSÕES: A classificação de Gleason, o toque retal e o valor do PSA possuem grande poder preditivo e devem ser utilizados na estratificação de risco pré-tratamento dos pacientes com câncer de próstata localizado.
The Pyramid: A Unified Model of Psychology Based on Trigger-Reciprocity Theory for the Etiology of the Normal and Abnormal Mind/Brain
Authors: Stein David B. , Foltz Robert
Published: March 2010

A review of theoretical models that have attempted to integrate the relationship between the four basic responsemodalities studied in psychology—physiology, behavior, cognition, and affect—with the environment, or stress, is made. However, none of the models seem to adequately offer a clear, concise, easy-to-understand, visual model. A step toward such a model, called the pyramid, is made here. It fulfills some of the most importanttenants of theory, which is clarity and simplicity. All components of the model are explained, and potential heuristic directions are presented. It is believed that this model will serve as the most useful and thorough theoretical framework for psychology’s evolution. In addition, the pyramid offers a clear model for not only choosing treatment modalities but also combining treatment modalities as a framework for a multidimensional treatment package.
Reform of water institutions: review of evidences and international experiences
Authors: Araral Eduardo
Published: March 2010

This paper provides an overview of the reform of water institutions in developing countries in the last three decades focusing on the ‘what, why and how’ of institutional reform, and outlines their implications for policy and research. The review covers four areas: (1) water rights and river basin institutions; (2) decentralized irrigation management; (3) private sector participation in urban water supply; and (4) regulation of water infrastructure. The review suggests that (a) the theoretical rationale for reforms is mostly grounded on arguments for efficiency, effectiveness and fiscal sustainability with little considerations for equity; (b) models of institutional design varies from incremental to comprehensive; and (c) implementation experiences among countries are mixed, given the conditional nature of institutional reform; and (d) changes in elite perception holds the key to reform.
The regulatory reform of water infrastructure in Italy: overall design and local variations
Authors: Asquer Alberto
Published: March 2010

In 1994, the Italian Parliament passed a reform which aimed to radically change the economic regulatory institutions of the water sector in the country. The implementation of the reform, which lasted about twelve years, resulted in a new regulatory regime which combined selected features of public ownership, franchise allocation, and discretionary regulation. The reform was implemented in different ways across the country, resulting in different forms of organisation and management of water services at the local level. Drawing from this case, this paper aims to discuss two issues, namely why water regulatory reforms are designed as ‘hybrids’ between different regulatory ‘models’, and why, within a given regulatory institutional framework, water regulatory reforms may be implemented in different ways at the local level. This paper, therefore, aims to contribute to a broader scholarly discussion regarding the rationales for institutional variety of water infrastructure regulation at the national and sub-national levels, and regarding the practical implications for managing the implementation of water regulatory reforms.
Getting things done: bureaucratic and entrepreneurial approaches to the practice of participatory water management reforms in Brazil and India
Authors: Tankha Sunil , Fuller Boyd
Published: March 2010

Based on field investigations of initiatives to increase stakeholder participation in water management in Brazil and India, this paper provides insights into the practice of water sector reforms. Looking at the pace of reforms across both countries, we find that the process of creating institutions to facilitate stakeholder participation is proceeding rapidly but greater attention is required on administrative reforms and capacity building. We find that the supply and demand of participation opportunities is often mismatched, and that participation reforms in the water sector may follow two very different paths: the bureaucratic and the entrepreneurial.
Can regulation improve the performance of government-controlled water utilities?
Authors: Ehrhardt David , Janson Nils
Published: March 2010

This paper provides evidence on whether regulation can improve the performance of government-controlled water utilities. While other studies have examined whether private participation combined with regulation can improve the performance of government-controlled water utilities, there has been little research on whether regulation alone can improve performance.

This paper examines five case studies on water utility reform in Latin America and the Caribbean. In each case study, a regulatory regime designed for private companies was applied to a government-controlled utility. Assessing performance across a number of indicators, the evidence shows that performance was as likely to deteriorate as to improve during periods of regulation of government-controlled utilities. This contrasts with the evidence of improvement following reforms that combined regulation with private participation. The findings suggest that conventional regulation may be of little use in government-controlled utilities. Conventional regulation is designed to prevent a profit-maximizing utility from raising tariffs above reasonable cost-recovery levels. Government controlled utilities, however, are not commercially motivated and face systematic incentives for short-termism in tariff-setting. Therefore, limiting monopoly profits is not usually the problem that needs to be addressed.

We conclude that conventional regulation of a government-controlled utility is not useful in isolation. However, regulatory tools can complement governance reforms. One approach may be to adapt conventional regulatory tools so as to help citizens judge utilities' performance. Such an approach would help increase government accountability for the performance of government-controlled utilities.