bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Youth culture, subculture and the importance of neighbourhood
Authors: Shildrick Tracy
Published: January 2006

Investigations into youth culture are marginal to the field of youth studies. The Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS) at the University of Birmingham published studies of the post-war youth subcultures, such as the teddy boys and the punks, in the late 1970s and early 1980s (see Hall and Jefferson, 1976). From the 1980s onwards, however, the main concerns for youth studies were the transitions that young people made into the labour market.Transitions research continues to dominate, although the advent of the rave and dance cultures of the late 1980s prompted a partial return to investigations of youth culture. In direct contrast to the influential theories of the CCCS, many recent accounts of youth culture have moved away from structural and class-based accounts of young people’s experiences and have produced studies that stress the ‘tribal’ (Bennett, 1999, 2000), ‘individualized’ (Miles, 2000) and distinctly ‘postsubcultural’ (Muggleton, 2000) nature of the contemporary youth cultural experience. Recently, however, questions have been raised as to how far these theoretical insights are useful across youth cultural identities and experiences (Hollands, 2002; Nayak, 2003; Pilkington and Johnson, 2003). This article adds to this slowly growing literature. By drawing upon data collected for a PhD, it is suggested that structural factors, such as neighbourhood residence, can be influential in shaping the cultural identities and experiences of some groups of young people.
Fitness as ‘social heritage’: a study of elementary school pupils in Berlin
Authors: Pfister Gertrud , Reeg Annemarie
Published: January 2006

Health and fitness among children and adolescents is a subject currently receiving public attention. This article focuses on the fitness of German pupils (third and fourth grades) in five schools in Berlin with widely differing social catchment areas as well as children from differing social backgrounds. Besides an orthopaedic examination and measurements of height and weight, we tested the children’s motor skills. In addition, a survey was carried out among pupils and their parents. For this purpose, questionnaires were developed which, besides furnishing demographic data, also provided information on attitudes towards the issue of sport and health as well as on sporting activities. In this contribution, we concentrate on the influence of parents and schools on the fitness and motor competencies of the children. The results of the test and the survey clearly showed correlations between the fitness level of the pupils and the education level of the parents. According to our results, fitness and physical skills are, at least to a certain extent, socially inherited. The fitness differences found in the different schools can be explained partly by the different social back ground of the children, but differences in facilities and provisions have also to be taken into consideration. Children who participated in a special programme and visited classes with an emphasis on physical education had a better fitness than pupils in ‘normal classes’. However, most of the children in these special classes were from a middle-class background.
The effects of an integrated curriculum model on student learning and attainment
Authors: Thorburn Malcolm , Collins Dave
Published: January 2006

In an earlier article, we considered the pedagogy and assessment practices enacted by physical education (PE) teachers when attempting to translate a centrally prescribed rationale into meaningful performance-led teaching within an integrated curriculum - Higher Still Physical Education (HSPE) in Scotland. Through further research this article analyses the consequences of teachers’ curriculum decision-making on students’ learning and assessment experiences, and on the development of their analytical abilities. Additionally, comparison with BSSSS Senior Physical Education in Queensland, Australia, highlights discussion points for the further review of policy and practice. Specifically, both data and comparisons reveal the need for the inclusion of students’ achievement evidence in subsequent evaluations of curriculum integration and teacher effectiveness. We also discuss whether the learning imperatives underpinning school examinations in PE are achievable within the constraints and pressures revealed by our investigations.
Irish physical educators’ attitude toward teaching students with special educational needs
Authors: Meegan Sarah , MacPhail Ann
Published: January 2006

This study examined the relationship among the specific special educational needs (SEN) of emotional/behavioural disorder (EBD), specific learning disabled (SLD), mild-moderate mentally impaired (MMMI), and moderate-severe mentally impaired (MSMI) and the selected attributes of gender, academic preparation and previous experience in teaching students with SEN. The Physical Educators’ Attitudes Toward Teaching Individuals with Disabilities-III (PEATID-III) (Rizzo, 1993) instrument was used to collect the data. The instrument was sent to all secondary school physical educators in the Republic of Ireland. Results from ANOVA analysis found that female physical educators displayed more positive attitudes than male physical educators toward SLD and MSMI students. For previous experience, a significant difference in physical educators’ attitudes was found for MMMI students only. Results also found low numbers of physical educators having completed initial teacher training (ITT) in SEN relevant to physical education (PE) at undergraduate as well as postgraduate levels. The results provide evidence that there is a need to promote positive attitudes among Irish physical educators toward teaching students with SEN as well as improved ITT and postgraduate training for SEN in PE.
In search of common ground
Authors: Leurdijk Andra
Published: January 2006

The article explores conceptualizations of multicultural programming by commissioning editors and programme-makers working for public broadcasters in five west European countries. It discusses current ideas concerning multicultural programming as well as resulting programme formats. The article shows how makers of multicultural programmes have developed several strategies to address both minority and mainstream audiences. These vary from creating common points of reference and concentrating on so-called universal experiences such as death, birth, love and friendship to making use of lighthearted formulas. It also shows how, especially in the Netherlands and the UK, multicultural programming has developed into a broad range of formats, labelled ‘cross-cultural’. Factual entertainment or infotainment formats, addressing urban and young audiences, are favoured at the cost of social realist styles and programmes addressing older audiences or first-generation immigrants.
Pop goes religion
Authors: Neumann Iver B.
Published: January 2006

The success of the Harry Potter phenomenon may be seen as co-constitutive of the general resurfacing of religion in Europe and the United States. The first part of this article introduces Geertz’s definition of the religious, which includes magic as ‘slippage’. The second part draws on historical work on witchcraft in early-modern Europe to demonstrate that Harry’s world shares so many traits with the lifeworlds of that period that its self-presentation as being an evolved version of those worlds is a credible one. The article speculates that the observable de-differentiation between the religious and consumption of popular culture artefacts such as Harry Potter may herald an individualization of the religious that is of a kind with the individualization of magic observed by Mauss. It is closely tied to the duality between individualized reading and mass-medialized social consumption, and suits the post-sovereign subject.
Walking in Virginia Woolf’s footsteps
Authors: Plate Liedeke
Published: January 2006

The past two decades have seen the rise of the walking tour as a tourist practice that stands in uneasy and contradictory relation to commodity culture. Focusing on the guided tour to Virginia Woolf’s London, this article examines what happens when we literally go back to Bloomsbury, walking the literary text as we write the urban one. Placing it in a tradition of walking as a cultural, critical and aesthetic practice, this article explores the literary walk as a mapping of the city, a reading of the streets that is also a performance of the text and that, as an embodied experiencing of urban space, is the corollary of the present obsession with heritage and cultural memory.
Political Roof and Sacred Canopy?
Authors: Schlesinger Philip , Foret François
Published: January 2006

Debate over the place of Christianity in European politics and society has made an important come-back. The Convention on the Future of Europe’s deliberations over the EU Constitution has thrown into relief the role of religion in defining ‘Europeanness’. In the context of a secularized Europe, Christianity is fighting for its institutional recognition and space in the public sphere. Religion may offer a cultural identity and work both to resist and to accommodate change. However, the Christian mobilization has been challenged by those who defend the secular order. The debate over whether Christianity should be seen as constitutive of European identity has been framed by wider concerns about collective identities and memories in Europe.
Toy houses: a socio-anthropological approach to analysing objects
Authors: Brougère Gilles
Published: January 2006

This article analyses the toy house as an object away from its usual context, using a socio-anthropological approach. In an earlier publication (2003), Brougère analysed the social dimension of the toy where it was viewed as part of a socially built system of networks involving many actors (manufacturers, parents, children and others) and many processes (manufacturing, distributing, advertising, buying, giving presents, using, playing, destroying). However, this interdependent system must be considered first through the objects that form the nodes of this network as only by examining its material culture can we can better understand the way it functions.
An inventory of traces: children’s photographs of their toys in three London homes
Authors: Pahl Kate
Published: January 2006

This article draws on a longitudinal ethnographic study of three London homes. It considers photographs taken by three 5-7 year old boys of collections of toys, arranged on floor spaces and bedrooms, and objects within homes. Two households were working class, and the third home middle class. Using the concept of the inventory, representations of toys and their semiotic affordances are considered. Time and space are considered with regard to the collections photographed, as well as the implications for a visual ethnography of the home in the context of the ethnography of everyday life.
Entry points and reading paths on newspaper spreads: comparing a semiotic analysis with eye-tracking measurements
Authors: Holsanova Jana , Rahm Henrik , Holmqvist Kenneth
Published: January 2006

The aim of this article is to compare general assumptions about newspaper reading with eye-tracking data from readers’ actual interaction with a newspaper. First, we extract assumptions about the way people read newspapers from socio-semiotic research. Second, we apply these assumptions by analysing a newspaper spread; this is done without any previous knowledge of actual reading behaviour. Finally, we use eye-tracking to empirically examine so-called entry points and reading paths. Eye movement data on reading newspaper spreads are analysed in three different ways: the time sequence in which different areas attract attention is calculated in order to determine reading priorities; the amount of time spent on different areas is calculated in order to determine which areas have been read most; the depth of attention is calculated in order to determine how carefully those areas have been read. General assumptions extracted from the socio-semiotic framework are compared to the results of the actual behaviour of subjects reading the newspaper spread. The results show that the empirical data confirm some of the extracted assumptions. The reading paths of the five subjects participating in the eye-tracking tests suggest that there are three main categories of readers: editorial readers, overview readers and focused readers.
A Contribution to the Validation of the Motivation to Lead Scale (MTL): A Research in the Italian Context
Authors: Bobbio Andrea , Rattazzi Anna Maria Manganelli
Published: January 2006

The study is a contribution to the validation of the Motivation to Lead Scale (MTL), recently proposed by Chan and Drasgow (2001) in order to reveal three types of motivation to be a leader. Participants are 624 university and post-degree specialization students, both male and female, who answered self-report structured questionnaires. The factorial structure of the MTL Scale was investigated through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and via multi-sample procedures. Following the analyses, the original scale was reduced into a 15-item form with satisfactory reliability. Other analyses showed the existence of correlations between the MTL Scale, the Social Desirability Scale and the McClelland Scales. Results indicate that the MTL Scale can be considered a useful research instrument in social, personality and organizational psychology. Correlations with the Social Desirability and McClelland Scales should be taken into consideration in order to improve and apply the MTL Scale.
Chief Executives and the Modernization of the English National Health Service
Authors: Blackler Frank
Published: January 2006

The popular image of an empowered, proactive leader fails to reflect the reality of senior managers’ roles in public sector organizations in the UK at the present time. This point is developed through a study of senior chief executives in the English National Health Service (NHS) between 2000 and 2002 when, in response to perceptions that the Service was in crisis, the New Labour government introduced a ten-year modernization programme backed by substantial increases in public funding. In previous years considerable interest had been shown in the importance of leadership within public sector organizations. However, by the time of this study senior politicians in the UK had become suspicious about the abilities of public sector managers in general, and those within the NHS in particular, to deliver the reforms that they had deemed essential. A series of interviews with NHS chief executives over the 2000-2 period recorded the pressures that they were subjected to: rather than being given the scope to help lead the reform of the NHS, chief executives were treated as little more than conduits for the policies of the centre. The interviews illustrate how undermined and demoralized many of them came to feel. Relating the episode to the broader literature on leaderships it is suggested that the study of leadership in the public sector cannot be divorced from broader study of the institutions of the state and, in this case, from the centralized performance audit regime that government developed to drive forward its modernization policy. In the light of such issues, the article draws attention to the importance of ‘bureaucratic discretion’ to the theory of public sector leadership.
Does Woman + a Network = Career Progression?
Authors: Perriton Linda
Published: January 2006

Question: I am an ambitious and talented junior manager who has recently been hired by FAB plc, a large multinational company. I am also a woman and, as part of my induction pack, have received an invitation to join FABFemmes — the in-company women's network. I don't think my gender has been an obstacle to my success thus far and so I don't really feel the need to join. But on the other hand I don't want to turn my back on something that might offer me a useful source of contacts to help me advance up the career ladder. What would be the best thing to do? — Ms Ambitious, UK
Hydrogen peroxide scavenging is not a virulence determinant in the pathogenesis of Haemophilus influenzae type b strain Eagan
Authors: Vergauwen Bjorn , Herbert Mark , Van Beeumen Jozef J
Published: January 2006

Background

A potentially lethal flux of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is continuously generated during aerobic metabolism. It follows that aerobic organisms have equipped themselves with specific H2O2 dismutases and H2O2 reductases, of which catalase and the alkyl hydroperoxide reductase (AhpR) are the best-studied prokaryotic members. The sequenced Haemophilus influenzae Rd genome reveals one catalase, designated HktE, and no AhpR. However, Haemophilus influenzae type b strain Eagan (Hib), a causative agent of bacterial sepsis and meningitis in young children, disrupted in its hktE gene is not attenuated in virulence, and retains the ability to rapidly scavenge H2O2. This redundancy in H2O2-scavenging is accounted for by peroxidatic activity which specifically uses glutathione as the reducing substrate.

Results

We show here that inside acatalasaemic H. influenzae all of the residual peroxidatic activity is catalyzed by PGdx, a hybrid peroxiredoxin-glutaredoxin glutathione-dependent peroxidase. In vitro kinetic assays on crude hktE
-
pgdx
-
H. influenzae Rd extracts revealed the presence of NAD(P)H:peroxide oxidoreductase activity, which, however, appears to be physiologically insignificant because of its low affinity for H2O2 (K
m = 1.1 mM). Hydroperoxidase-deficient hktE
-
pgdx
-
H. influenzae Rd showed a slightly affected aerobic growth phenotype in rich broth, while, in chemically defined medium, growth was completely inhibited by aerobic conditions, unless the medium contained an amino acid/vitamin supplement. To study the role of PGdx in virulence and to assess the requirement of H2O2-scavenging during the course of infection, both a pgdx single mutant and a pgdx/hktE double mutant of Hib were assayed for virulence in an infant rat model. The ability of both mutant strains to cause bacteremia was unaffected.

Conclusion

Catalase (HktE) and a sole peroxidase (PGdx) account for the majority of scavenging of metabolically generated H2O2 in the H. influenzae cytoplasm. Growth experiments with hydroperoxidase-deficient hktE
-
pgdx
-
H. influenzae Rd suggest that the cytotoxicity inflicted by the continuous accumulation of H2O2 during aerobic growth brings about bacteriostasis rather than bacterial killing. Finally, H2O2-scavenging is not a determinant of Hib virulence in the infant rat model of infection.
Morphological development of Aspergillus niger in submerged citric acid fermentation as a function of the spore inoculum level. Application of neural network and cluster analysis for characterization of mycelial morphology
Authors: Papagianni Maria , Mattey Michael
Published: January 2006

Background

Although the citric acid fermentation by Aspergillus niger is one of the most important industrial microbial processes and various aspects of the fermentation appear in a very large number of publications since the 1950s, the effect of the spore inoculum level on fungal morphology is a rather neglected area. The aim of the presented investigations was to quantify the effects of changing spore inoculum level on the resulting mycelial morphology and to investigate the physiology that underlines the phenomena. Batch fermentations were carried out in a stirred tank bioreactor, which were inoculated directly with spores in concentrations ranging from 104 to 109 spores per ml. Morphological features, evaluated by digital image analysis, were classified using an artificial neural network (ANN), which considered four main object types: globular and elongated pellets, clumps and free mycelial trees. The significance of the particular morphological features and their combination was determined by cluster analysis.

Results

Cell volume fraction analysis for the various inoculum levels tested revealed that by rising the spore inoculum level from 104 to 109 spores per ml, a clear transition from pelleted to dispersed forms occurs. Glucosamine formation and release by the mycelium appears to be related to spore inoculum level. Maximum concentrations detected in fermentations inoculated with 104 and 105 spores/ml, where pellets predominated. At much higher inoculum levels (108, 109 spores/ml), lower dissolved oxygen levels during the early fermentation phase were associated with slower ammonium ions uptakes and significantly lower glucosamine concentrations while the mycelium developed in dispersed morphologies. A big increase in the main and total hyphal lengths and branching frequency was observed in mycelial trees as inoculum levels rise from 104 to 109 spores/ml, while in aggregated forms particle sizes and their compactness decreased.

Conclusion

The methods used in this study, allowed for the detailed quantification of the transition between the two extreme morphological forms. The impact of spore inoculum level on the detailed characteristics of the particular morphological forms produced was high. Control of mycelial morphology is often regarded as a prerequisite to ensure increased productivities in industrial applications. The research described here demonstrates that adjusting the spore inoculum level controls effectively mycelial morphology.
An exact solution of the conversion point for the converted waves from a dipping reflector with homogeneous (isotropic) overburden
Authors: Yuan Chunfang , Peng Suping , Li Chunming
Published: January 2006

For converted waves, stacking traces with a common reflection point, forming gathers, and performing dip moveout (DMO) all require accurately calculating the location of conversion points. Because of the asymmetrical paths of converted waves, even for horizontally layered media, the calculation of a conversion point for converted waves is complicated. Previous authors have obtained analytic solutions for the conversion point for converted waves in a horizontally layered media. We extend those results to the more general case of converted waves from a dipping reflector with a homogeneous, isotropic overburden. By using Snell's law, we derive a quartic equation and solve it uniquely for the conversion point. The resultant analytic expression is a function of offset, compressional-, and shear-wave velocities; normal reflector depth; and dip angle at the conversion point. This solution can be readily used to generate accurate synthetic seismic responses for converted waves based on ray theory. It also can be extended to operators for stacking converted waves and applying DMO correction.
Fluid mobility and frequency-dependent seismic velocity — Direct measurements
Authors: Batzle Michael L. , Han De-Hua , Hofmann Ronny
Published: January 2006

The influence of fluid mobility on seismic velocity dispersion is directly observed in laboratory measurements from seismic to ultrasonic frequencies. A forced-deformation system is used in conjunction with pulse transmission to obtain elastic properties at seismic strain amplitude ([Formula: see text]) from 5 Hz to 800 kHz. Varying fluid types and saturations document the influence of pore-fluids. The ratio of rock permeability to fluid viscosity defines mobility, which largely controls pore-fluid motion and pore pressure in a porous medium. High fluid mobility permits pore-pressure equilibrium either between pores or between heterogeneous regions, resulting in a low-frequency domain where Gassmann's equations are valid. In contrast, low fluid mobility can produce strong dispersion, even within the seismic band. Here, the low-frequency assumption fails. Since most rocks in the general sedimentary section have very low permeability and fluid mobility (shales, siltstones, tight limestones, etc.), most rocks are not in the low-frequency domain, even at seismic frequencies. Only those rocks with high permeability (porous sands and carbonates) will remain in the low-frequency domain in the seismic or sonic band.
Permeability-porosity transforms from small sandstone fragments
Authors: Kameda Ayako , Dvorkin Jack , Keehm Youngseuk , Nur Amos , Bosl William
Published: January 2006

Numerical simulation of laboratory experiments on rocks, or digital rock physics, is an emerging field that may eventually benefit the petroleum industry. For numerical experimentation to find its way into the mainstream, it must be practical and easily repeatable — i.e., implemented on standard hardware and in real time. This condition reduces the size of a digital sample to just a few grains across. Also, small physical fragments of rock, such as cuttings, may be the only material available to produce digital images. Will the results be meaningful for a larger rock volume? To address this question, we use a number of natural and artificial medium- to high-porosity, well-sorted sandstones. The 3D microtomography volumes are obtained from each physical sample. Then, analogous to making thin sections of drill cuttings, we select a large number of small 2D slices from a 3D scan. As a result, a single physical sample produces hundreds of 2D virtual-drill-cuttings images. Corresponding 3D pore-space realizations are generated statistically from these 2D images; fluid flow is simulated in three dimensions, and the absolute permeability is computed. The results show that small fragments of medium– to high-porosity sandstones that are statistically subrepresentative of a larger sample will not yield the exact porosity and permeability of the sample. However, a significant number of small fragments will yield a site-specific permeability-porosity trend that can then be used to estimate the absolute permeability from independent porosity data obtained in the well or inferred from seismic techniques.
Geophone array formation and semblance evaluation
Authors: Craig Mitchell S. , Genter Ronald L.
Published: January 2006

The performance of a variety of areal geophone arrays was evaluated using seismic data recorded on a dense receiver grid in a walkaway survey conducted in the Permian Basin of west Texas. Surface waves, trapped waves, and scattered energy have long been recognized as a significant noise problem in this area. Arrays were formed by extracting sets of traces from the main data set and stacking them to produce individual traces of a receiver gather. We calculated semblance of each receiver gather to evaluate array performance. High values of semblance indicate that an array effectively removes surface waves while preserving reflections. Differences in data quality associated with variations in geophone-array design are often subtle and difficult to discern through simple inspection of field records. By calculating frequency-dependent semblance, we were able to detect and quantify differences in array performance.
Crosscorrelogram migration of inverse vertical seismic profile data
Authors: Yu Jianhua , Schuster Gerard T.
Published: January 2006

We present the theory of crosscorrelogram migration of ghost reflections, also known as interferometric imaging, to delineate reflector geometries from inverse vertical seismic profile data. The theory includes the equations for forward modeling, migration, asymptotic inversion, and model resolution of crosscorrelgrams. Rather than using primary reflections, crosscorrelogram migration can use ghost reflections to reconstruct the reflector geometry. Other multiples can be used as well, including pegleg multiples and higher-order multiples. Its main advantages over conventional Kirchhoff migration are (1) both source location (e.g., drill-bit position) and source wavelet need not be known (such as when using a drill bit as a source in a deviated well), (2) it is insensitive to source-related static errors, and (3) it has wider subsurface illumination than conventional Kirchhoff migration of primary reflections. Crosscorrelation migration can effectively widen the source-receiver aperture by more than 50% compared to standard inverse vertical seismic profile (IVSP) migration. The primary disadvantages are (1) it uses ghost reflections for imaging, which can be weaker (or sometimes more distorted) than primary reflections; (2) crosscorrelation creates virtual multiples that can sometimes appear as coherent noise in the final image; and (3) it has poorer horizontal resolution than standard IVSP migration. Results from imaging simulated IVSP traces show that crosscorrelation migration produces reflectivity-like images that correlate well with the actual reflector geometry of a layered fault model. These images are almost completely immune to static errors at the source location and have wider subsurface illumination than conventional IVSP migration images. We also apply crosscorrelation migration to IVSP data recorded at a Friendswood, Texas, test site. Results show that the crosscorrelation image correlates better with the well log and wider subsurface illumination than a conventional Kirchhoff migration image.
Explicit expressions for prestack map time migration in isotropic and VTI media and the applicability of map depth migration in heterogeneous anisotropic media
Authors: Douma Huub , Hoop Maarten V. de
Published: January 2006

We present 3D prestack map time migration in closed form for qP-, qSV-, and mode-converted waves in homogeneous transversely isotropic media with a vertical symmetry axis (VTI). As far as prestack time demigration is concerned, we present closed-form expressions for mapping in homogeneous isotropic media, while for homogeneous VTI media we present a system of four nonlinear equations with four unknowns to solve numerically. The expressions for prestack map time migration in VTI homogeneous media are directly applicable to the problem of anisotropic parameter estimation (i.e., the anellipticity parameter η) in the context of time-migration velocity analysis. In addition, we present closed-form expressions for both prestack map time migration and demigration in the common-offset domain for pure-mode (P-P or S-S) waves in homogeneous isotropic media that use only the slope in the common-offset domain as opposed to slopes in both the common-shot and common-receiver (or equivalently the common-offset and common-midpoint) domains. All time-migration and demigration equations presented can be used in media with mild lateral and vertical velocity variations, provided the velocity is replaced with the local rms velocity. Finally, we discuss the condition for applicability of prestack map depth migration and demigration in heterogeneous anisotropic media that allows the formation of caustics and explain that this condition is satisfied if, given a velocity model and acquisition geometry, one can map-depth-migrate without ambiguity in either the migrated location or the migrated orientation of reflectors in the image.
Meshing for velocity modeling and ray tracing in complex velocity fields
Authors: Rüger Andreas , Hale Dave
Published: January 2006

In seismic processing, velocity fields are commonly represented on finely sampled Cartesian grids. Attractive alternatives are unstructured grids such as meshes composed of triangles or tetrahedra. Meshes provide a space-filling framework that enables editing of velocity models while facilitating numerical tasks such as seismic modeling and inversion. In this paper, we introduce an automated process to generate meshes of subsurface velocity structures for highly resolved velocity fields without providing additional external constraints such as horizons and faults. Our analysis shows that these new meshes can represent both smooth and discontinuous velocity profiles accurately and with less computer memory than grids.
75-plus years of anisotropy in exploration and reservoir seismics: Ahistorical review of concepts and methods, GEOPHYSICS, 70, 9ND–23ND
Authors: Helbig Klaus , Thomsen Leon
Published: January 2006

On page 18ND, right column, the phrase “in the Valhall oil field in Norway” was incorrect. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by this error.
Acquisition and processing strategies for 3D georadar surveying a region characterized by rugged topography, GEOPHYSICS, 70, K53–K61
Authors: et al. Heincke
Published: January 2006

To: “Acquisition and processing strategies for 3D georadar surveying a region characterized by rugged topography,” Heincke et al. GEOPHYSICS, 70, K53–K61
The Eleventh International Workshop on Seismic Anisotropy (11IWSA)
Authors: Grechka Vladimir , Helbig Klaus , Pšenčík Ivan
Published: January 2006

The [Formula: see text] International Workshop on Seismic Anisotropy (11IWSA), hosted by Memorial University of Newfoundland and chaired by Michael Slawinski, was held July 25–30, 2004, at St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. Attendees presented more than 40 papers covering recent developments of the theory of seismic wave propagation in anisotropic media and its various applications to seismic exploration.
Media Review
Authors: Salomone Joseph A.
Published: January 2006

Medical Toxicology, Third Edition.: Edited by Richard C. Dart. Philadelphia, PA:
Bench to Bedside: Evidence for Brain Injury after Concussion—Looking beyond the Computed Tomography Scan
Authors: Bazarian Jeffrey J. , Blyth Brian , Cimpello Lynn
Published: January 2006

The emergency management of cerebral concussion typically centers on the decision to perform a head computed tomography (CT) scan, which only rarely detects hemorrhagic lesions requiring neurosurgery. The absence of hemorrhage on CT scan often is equated with a lack of brain injury. However, observational studies revealing poor long‐term cognitive outcome after concussion suggest that brain injury may be present despite a normal CT scan. To explore this idea further, the authors reviewed the evidence for objective neurologic injury in humans after concussion, with particular emphasis on those with a normal brain CT. This evidence comes from studies involving brain tissue pathology, CT scanning, magnetic resonance image (MRI) scanning, serum biomarkers, formal cognitive and balance tests, functional MRI, positron emission tomography, and single‐photon emission computed tomography scanning. Each section is accompanied by technical information to help the reader understand what these tests are, not to endorse their use clinically. The authors discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the evidence in each case. These reports make a compelling case for the existence of concussion as a clinically relevant disease with demonstrable neurologic pathology. Areas for future emergency medicine research are suggested.
The Emergency Department: First Line of Defense in Preventing Secondary Stroke
Authors: Ovbiagele Bruce
Published: January 2006

Stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA) are increasingly common conditions that are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The strongest predictor of recurrent stroke risk is an initial stroke or TIA; in fact, nearly 30% of all strokes are recurrent events. It is often the emergency department (ED) physician who, while treating the initial event, has the first opportunity to initiate effective preventive strategies, including pharmacotherapy and behavior modification. Evidence‐ and consensus‐based guidelines are well established for the use of antiplatelet medications, anticoagulants, and antihypertensives for prevention of secondary stroke. Recent evidence suggests that the use of statins may be associated with improved clinical outcomes after ischemic stroke. In addition, behavioral interventions, such as smoking cessation, exercise, diet, and stroke education, can help patients avoid stroke recurrence. By initiating prevention therapies during the acute stroke or TIA encounter, EPs convey the message to patients that these therapies are important for the prevention of recurrent events and are an essential part of the treatment.
The Effect of Triage‐applied Ottawa Ankle Rules on the Length of Stay in a Canadian Urgent Care Department: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Fan Jerome , Woolfrey Karen
Published: January 2006

Objectives:To determine whether triage nurses ordering ankle or foot radiographs according to the Ottawa Ankle Rules (OAR) before physician evaluation decreases the length of stay for patients visiting an urgent care department.

Methods:From July to September 2004, a randomized controlled trial of consecutive adult patients with ankle or foot twisting injuries who arrived at an urgent care department was conducted. Patients were included if their age was 18 years or older and their injury had occurred within seven days. They were excluded if there were neurovascular deficits, limb deformities, open fractures, or nonisolated ankle or foot injuries. Patients were randomly allocated to a roentgenogram–ordering clinical pathway (intervention) or to standard departmental care (control). Those assigned to the intervention group had triage nurses applying the OAR, and those with positive OAR were sent for roentgenograms before physician evaluation. Physicians were blinded to negative OAR nurse assessments. Investigators were blinded to group allocation. The primary outcome was the total mean length of stay (TLOS). The secondary outcomes were patient satisfaction (five‐point ordinal scale) and the proportion willing to return to the site for future care. Two–independent sample t‐test was used to analyze the TLOS. The Kruskal‐Wallis test was used to analyze satisfaction ratings differences between groups. Fisher's exact test was used to analyze the willing‐to‐return outcome. This study had 80% power to detect an effect size of 25 minutes.

Results:Two hundred thirty‐two patients were eligible; 130 patients gave consent and were enrolled. Three patients were then excluded, three were lost to follow‐up, and one left without being seen. The intervention and control groups had mean TLOS of 73.0 minutes and 79.7 minutes, respectively. There was a statistically nonsignificant time difference of −6.7 minutes (95% CI =−20.9 to 7.4) between groups. There were no differences in patient satisfaction ratings (p‐value = 0.343) or WOR (3.8%; 95% CI =−3.3% to 11.0%).

Conclusions:The use of OAR and the ordering of roentgenograms by triage nurses before physician evaluation for twisting ankle or foot injuries does not decrease the length of stay in an urgent care department.
Patient and Physician Perceptions as Risk Factors for Oligoanalgesia: A Prospective Observational Study of the Relief of Pain in the Emergency Department
Authors: Miner James , Biros Michelle H. , Trainor Arleigh , Hubbard Daniel , Beltram Maryam
Published: January 2006

Objectives:
Previous studies have reported that pain is undertreated in the emergency department (ED), but few physician‐dependent risk factors have been identified. In this study, the authors determine whether pain treatment and relief in ED patients are negatively associated with the physician's perception of whether the patient was exaggerating symptoms, and with the patient and physician's perceptions of the interaction between them, as well as whether demographic characteristics were associated with these perceptions.

Methods:
This was a prospective observational study of patients who were undergoing treatment for painful disorders in the ED. Before treatment for pain, patients were asked to complete a 100‐mm visual analog scale (VAS) describing their pain. Demographic information and pain treatments administered were recorded. Patients completed a second pain VAS before discharge from the ED. Patients were then asked to complete three queries describing their perception of their interaction with the physician. After the patient had left the department, the patient's physician was asked to complete a query describing his or her perception of the interaction and to complete a VAS describing how likely it was that the patient was exaggerating symptoms to obtain pain medicines for nonmedical purposes.

Results:
There were 1,695 patients enrolled in the study; 32 patients were excluded because of missing or incomplete data, leaving 1,663 for analysis. Of these patients, 71.9% received a pain medication while in the ED. There was no association between the physician's VAS for perceived exaggeration of symptoms, the queries describing physician–patient interactions, and patient ethnicity and whether patients received pain treatment in the ED. There was a negative correlation between the physician's VAS for perceived exaggeration of symptoms and the change in the patient's pre‐ and posttreatment pain VAS scores. The physician's VAS score for perceived exaggeration of symptoms was higher among Native American patients than among other ethnic groups (p ≤ 0.001). The patient and physician queries rating their interaction show a decreased absolute reduction of VAS pain scores (p ≥ 0.001) and a reduction in the number of patients having at least a 50% reduction in their pain VAS score when interactions were rated “bad” and “very bad” (p ≤ 0.001).

Conclusions:
The physician's perception of whether a patient was exaggerating symptoms was associated with the patient's ethnic background and with both the physician's and patient's perception of their interaction. These perceptions were negatively associated with the achievement of pain relief and the change in the patient's pain VAS scores, but not with whether a patient was treated with a pain medication.
Decreased Mortality by Normalizing Blood Glucose after Acute Ischemic Stroke
Authors: Gentile Nina T. , Seftchick Michael W. , Huynh Tien , Kruus Linda K. , Gaughan John
Published: January 2006

Objectives:
Hyperglycemia after cerebral ischemia exacerbates brain injury and worsens the outcome of stroke patients. The authors sought to examine the effect of glycemic control on mortality after acute stroke.

Methods:
This was a retrospective study of patients discharged with a diagnosis of ischemic stroke during a 40‐month period from a large urban U.S. health system. Patients were compared by initial blood glucose (BG) levels and by glycemic control during the first 48 hours of hospitalization.

Results:
Of 960 patients with thromboembolic stroke, 373 (38.9%) were hyperglycemic (BG ≥130 mg/dL) on hospital admission. Admission hyperglycemia was associated with a higher mortality rate than was euglycemia (odds ratio [OR] = 3.15; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.45 to 6.85; p = 0.004). Persistent hyperglycemia (PerHyp) during 48 hours of hospitalization was associated with even higher mortality rate (unadjusted logistic regression, OR = 6.54; 95% CI = 2.41 to 17.87; p < 0.001). Glycemic control (normalization of BG to < 130 mg/dL) was associated with a 4.6‐fold decrease in mortality risk as compared with the case of patients with PerHyp (p < 0.001). Multiple logistic regression showed glycemic control to be a strong independent determinant of survival (OR = 5.95; 95% CI = 1.24 to 28.6; p = 0.026) after acute stroke even after adjustment for age, gender, concomitant hypertension and diabetes, and stroke severity.

Conclusions:
Admission hyperglycemia is associated with a worse outcome after stroke than is euglycemia. Normalization of blood glucose during the first 48 hours of hospitalization appears to confer a potent survival benefit in patients with thromboembolic stroke.
Emergency Department Visits for Sledding Injuries in Children in the United States in 2001/2002
Authors: Skarbek‐Borowska Sara , Amanullah Siraj , Mello Michael J. , Linakis James G.
Published: January 2006

Objectives:
To describe the characteristics of nonfatal sledding‐related injuries in U.S. children resulting in emergency department (ED) visits in 2001/2002 and to explore the implications of these findings for injury prevention efforts.

Methods:
A stratified probability sample of U.S. hospitals providing emergency services in the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System–All Injury Program was utilized for 2001/2002. ED visits resulting from injuries involving sleds, snow discs, snow tubes, and toboggans were analyzed for patients 19 years of age or younger.

Results:
In 2001/2002, there were an estimated 57,866 ED visits for sledding‐related injuries in the United States for all age groups. Of these, 41,272 (71%) occurred in patients 19 years of age or younger, 58% of whom were male. The highest number of injuries occurred in children between five and 14 years of age (74%), and the injuries were most often caused by falls or collisions (75%). The head or neck was the most frequently injured body region among those 0–9 years of age, while the extremities were injured most commonly among those 10–19 years of age. Head and neck injuries occurred in 56% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 32% to 81%) of children 0–4 years of age versus 19% (95% CI = 9% to 29%) of patients 15–19 years of age. Nine percent (95% CI = 6% to 12%) of patients sustained a traumatic brain injury. Three percent (95% CI = 1% to 5%) of patients required admission to the hospital.

Conclusions:
Sledding injuries resulting in ED visits predominantly affect children and are a source of measurable morbidity in this population. An increase in injury prevention efforts for this activity is warranted.
Glucocorticoid-induced osteogenesis is negatively regulated by Runx2/Cbfa1 serine phosphorylation
Authors: Phillips Jennifer E. , Gersbach Charles A. , Wojtowicz Abigail M. , García Andrés J.
Published: January 2006

Glucocorticoid hormones have complex stimulatory and inhibitory effects on skeletal metabolism. Endogenous glucocorticoid signaling is required for normal bone formation in vivo, and synthetic glucocorticoids, such as dexamethasone, promote osteoblastic differentiation in several in vitro model systems. The mechanism by which these hormones induce osteogenesis remains poorly understood. We demonstrate here that the coordinate action of dexamethasone and the osteogenic transcription factor Runx2/Cbfa1 synergistically induces osteocalcin and bone sialoprotein gene expression, alkaline phosphatase activity, and biological mineral deposition in primary dermal fibroblasts. Dexamethasone decreased Runx2 phosphoserine levels, particularly on Ser125, in parallel with the upregulation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) phosphatase-1 (MKP-1) through a glucocorticoid-receptor-mediated mechanism. Inhibition of MKP-1 abrogated the dexamethasone-induced decrease in Runx2 serine phosphorylation, suggesting that glucocorticoids modulate Runx2 phosphorylation via MKP-1. Mutation of Ser125 to glutamic acid, mimicking constitutive phosphorylation, inhibited Runx2-mediated osteoblastic differentiation, which was not rescued by dexamethasone treatment. Conversely, mutation of Ser125 to glycine, mimicking constitutive dephosphorylation, markedly increased osteoblastic differentiation, which was enhanced by, but did not require, additional dexamethasone supplementation. Collectively, these results demonstrate that dexamethasone induces osteogenesis, at least in part, by modulating the phosphorylation state of a negative-regulatory serine residue (Ser125) on Runx2. This work identifies a novel mechanism for glucocorticoid-induced osteogenic differentiation and provides insights into the role of Runx2 phosphorylation during skeletal development.