bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Strategies for Values Inquiry: An Exploratory Case Study
Authors: Renger Ralph , Bourdeau Beth
Published: August 2005

Values inquiry refers to systematic investigation of the values relevant to a program, including understanding those outcomes most prized by stakeholders. Although much attention has been given to stakeholder involvement, the literature on value inquiries per se as an approach is limited. This paper demonstrates how several of the steps used in the ATM approach to developing logic models [Am. J. Eval. 23 (2002) 493] are congruent with the tenets of values inquiry and can serve to advance values inquiry methodology. Using a case study approach, we describe how interview and deliberative approaches were combined to prioritize a large number of potential outcomes for a coalition of agencies working toward the same goal. Successes and challenges in understanding the application of the ATM approach to furthering the development of values inquiry methods are offered.
Formative Evaluation for Implementation: Evaluating Educational Technology Applications and Lessons
Authors: Weston Tim
Published: August 2005

Educational technology applications and lessons, such as learning modules, activities, and user-authored systems, face substantial implementation challenges in public schools and post-secondary institutions. The design of technology impacts the willingness of teachers to implement new technology; evaluators examining implementation obstacles can help improve design. In this article, both summative and formative implementation evaluation are discussed in non-technology contexts and compared with current practices with educational technology. Formative evaluation has traditionally focused on making applications and lessons “work”; however, many implementation problems are caused by non-technical/interface concerns and related to the compatibility of the technology with its surroundings. An overview of research on implementation of applications and lessons is provided and linked to a model of formative evaluation for implementation in this area. Technical, curricular/instructional, and practical areas of implementation are examined. Common implementation problems and typical design recommendations are presented. The use of the model is discussed in other areas, such as medicine and assistive technology.
Modeling Trajectories in Social Program Outcomes for Performance Accountability
Authors: Gordon Rachel A. , Heinrich Carolyn J.
Published: August 2005

Government and public focus on accountability for program outcomes, combined with practical and ethical constraints on experimental designs, make nonexperimental studies of social programs an increasingly common approach to producing information on program performance. In this paper, we compare the effectiveness of alternative nonexperimental evaluation methods used with longitudinal data to produce information about social program outcomes. The analysis is applied in an evaluation of a demonstration program designed to help young parents and their partners make the transition from receiving public transfer income to earned income. Empirical findings indicate that modeling outcome trajectories using multilevel methods generates more complete information about the nature of the program effects, relative to standard econometric alternatives as commonly applied in evaluations. With increased access to sources of administrative and management information system data covering multiple time points, we urge researchers to help social policy and program decision-makers appropriately model and produce more accurate information on program outcomes.
Evaluating Youth Justice in the UK
Authors: Paylor Ian , Simmill-Binning Cheryl
Published: August 2005

In the UK, following the Crime and Disorder Act of 1998, the Youth Justice Board (YJB) funded over 450 separate crime prevention schemes. The YJB in approving these various schemes stressed the importance of monitoring and evaluation. Local evaluators were appointed whose role was to report back to the funding agency and the national evaluators. We were commissioned to undertake the local evaluation of four separate schemes. This article attempts an overview of the evaluation process and identifies five crucial areas that raise questions about whether the Youth Offending Teams are the ‘unqualified success’ and such a fine example of ‘joined-up government’ that the Youth Justice Board claims (YJB, 2001). In this article, we examine the setting up process (and offer a case study of one particular scheme), issues of inter-agency work and the links between schemes and local communities; procedures and protocols and on what evidence policy was being based; the relationship between the national and local evaluators (and other stakeholders); and finally, the feasibility of achieving the scheme’s ambitions given the duration of the funding and the resources available.
Quality in Early Childhood Programs: Reflections from Program Evaluation Practices
Authors: Lee Jin-Hee , Walsh Daniel J.
Published: August 2005

This study investigates how program evaluation has contributed to the definition of quality in early childhood programs and what social and cultural conditions have influenced these definitions. First, a review of evaluation reports from the last 3 decades identified three types of quality used to evaluate early childhood programs: (a) outcome-determined quality, (b) standards-based quality, and (c) developmental appropriateness. An analysis of questionnaire responses from evaluators and interviews with early childhood practitioners was also conducted in order to explore underlying social and cultural conditions of each quality definition. The authors conclude that, in order to be valid and meaningful, evaluation of early childhood programs should be based on in-depth understanding of dynamic program processes and diverse stakeholders’ perspectives on program quality. Evaluation should challenge and expand the dominant perspectives on early childhood program quality.
Welfare Reform and Addiction: A Priori Hypotheses, Post Hoc Explorations, and Assisted Sensemaking in Evaluating the Effects of Terminating Benefits for Chronic Substance Abusers
Authors: Orwin Robert G. , Campbell Bernadette , Campbell Kevin , Krupski Antoinette
Published: August 2005

The passage of the Contract with America Advancement Act terminated the Social Security Administration’s Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income benefits for persons diagnosed with drug or alcohol addiction (also known as DA&A recipients), effective January 1, 1997. From an evaluation standpoint, the law created the opportunity for a “natural” experiment, specifically, an interrupted time series quasi-experiment. Through the availability of person-level data on an entire state population, the present study combines the design tradition of interrupted time series with the analytic tradition of growth curve modeling to create an “enriched” interrupted time series with greater flexibility and explanatory power than the standard design based on aggregate data. Additional techniques from the contemporary evaluation toolkit include: use of propensity scoring for matching and covariance adjustment, multilevel modeling, alternate estimates of the counter-factual, and sensitivity analyses to empirically test the plausibility of validity threats. The study assesses the net impact of the law on labor force participation and criminal behavior among former DA&A recipients in Washington State, using person-level data on employment and arrests from 2 years before implementation to 3 years after. Hypothesis tests showed unambiguously that the law increased employment but did not increase arrests. Post hoc exploratory analyses—framed by Mark et al. [Mark, M. M., Henry, G. T., & Julnes, G. (2000). Evaluation: An integrated framework for understanding, guiding, and improving policies and programs. San Francisco: Jossey Bass] theory of evaluation as assisted sensemaking with particular attention to generative mechanisms and social betterment—suggest a more nuanced interpretation. The combination of a priori and post hoc analyses confirmed that, as a result of the law, there were fewer DA&As on public supports, more DA&As in the workforce, and no evidence of more criminals menacing the public. Analyses also confirmed that a segment of the population, already poor, was made destitute.
The Inauguration of the International Organization for Cooperation in Evaluation
Authors: Mertens Donna M.
Published: August 2005

Building an international evaluation community has the potential to strengthen the presence, practice, policies, and theories of evaluation and its contribution to improving the effectiveness of programs, policies, and services by making evaluation more rigorous, visible, and responsive to stakeholders. Following 7 years of work by evaluation leaders from many different countries, a major step toward realizing this vision occurred when the inaugural assembly of the International Organization for Cooperation in Evaluation (IOCE) was held in Lima Peru in March 2003. This article provides a rationale for the establishment of IOCE in terms of expected benefits, as well as a summary for the historical record of the challenges and opportunities that emerged in the process of planning such a complex undertaking, and the accomplishments of the IOCE to date. Finally, the road ahead for the IOCE is discussed.
Quality, Context, and Use
Authors: Cooksy Leslie J. , Caracelli Valerie J.
Published: August 2005

Metaevaluations are systematic reviews of evaluations to determine the quality of their processes and findings. The knowledge about evaluation quality that results from metaevaluation of multiple evaluations can be used to inform researchers’ decisions about which studies to include in evaluation syntheses. Metaevaluations of multiple studies are also used to identify strengths and weaknesses in evaluation practice in order to develop evaluation capacity. This article discusses the multiple ways in which quality can be defined, the political and cultural contexts of metaevaluation, and issues surrounding use and misuse. A metaevaluation of evaluations of international agricultural research centers illustrates these topics.
Have We Learned Anything New About the Use of Evaluation?
Authors: Weiss Carol H.
Published: August 2005

“Use of evaluation” used to mean the use of results for making program decisions. Now we are aware of its larger dimensions. Many aspects of evaluation can be used-ideas and insights, signals that are sent by the very fact of evaluating, the processes of learning through cooperation with evaluation, the choice of outcome indicators that herald success, even the study design. “Use” encompasses a broad array of effects by multiple classes of users. The paper highlights the importance of considering further potential collective users-the program organization, client groups, and civil society.
Beyond Statistical Significant Tests: The Importance of Using Other Estimates of Treatment Effects to Interpret Results Evaluation
Authors: Kellow J. Thomas
Published: August 2005

For decades, the most common method used to detect differences between groups in comparative studies has been the use of statistical significance tests. Unfortunately, many current evaluation students are still being taught the use of such significance tests without being warned about their limitations and the need to supplement them with other estimates of treatment effects necessary to interpret between-group differences correctly. In this paper I describe briefly the problem and what new evaluators may do to better understand this issue and improve their evaluation practice, including references to sources where they can delve more deeply into this subject than is possible in this brief paper.
The Qualitative Method of Impact Analysis
Authors: Mohr Lawrence B.
Published: August 2005

Consider the qualitative approach to evaluation design (as opposed to measurement) to be typified by a case study with a sample of just one. Although there have certainly been elaborate and emphatic defenses of the qualitative approach to program evaluation, such defenses rarely attempt to qualify the approach explicitly and rigorously as a method of impact analysis. The present paper makes that attempt. The problem with seeking to advance a qualitative method of impact analysis is that impact is a matter of causation and a non-quantitative approach to design is apparently not well suited to the task of establishing causal relations. The root of the difficulty is located in the counterfactual definition of causality, which is our only broadly accepted formal definition of causality for social science. It is not, however, the only definition we use informally. Another definition, labeled “physical causality,” is widely used in practice and has recently been formalized. Physical causality can be applied to the present problem. For example, it explains the persuasiveness of Striven’s “Modus Operandi” approach tailored case study design with a sample size of one in principle as strong a basis for making inferences program impact as a randomized experiment. Crucial program evaluation finding that people’s “operative reasons” for doing what they do are the physical actions. it is shown that external validity using this qualitative approach would have exceptional strengths.
Putting Program Theory into Operation
Authors: Sidani Souraya , Sechrest Lee
Published: August 2005

The emphasis on understanding how a program works and what makes a program work led to the development of the theory-driven approach to program evaluation. Theory plays a major role in guiding a program design and evaluation. The theory defines the presenting problem and the target population for whom the program is designed, specifies the causal processes underlying the program effects, and identifies its expected outcomes as well as factors that affect treatment processes. In this article, a conceptual framework is presented as a tool for putting the program theory into operation. The framework incorporates variables that reflect theoretical concepts and implementation issues addressed in program evaluation. The framework organizes the variables into three categories: input, process, and output, and proposes direct and indirect relationships among them. Implications of the framework for program evaluation are discussed.
Advancing the Development and Application of Theory-based Evaluation in the Practice of Public Health
Authors: Cole Galen E.
Published: August 2005

Early proponents of theory-based evaluation have provided strong reasoning for this approach. Still, tools are needed for implementing it in practice. This paper helps fill the gap by providing strategies for constructing theories. Illustrations are given in the area of public health. The suggested techniques are designed to systematize and bring objectivity to the process of theory construction. Also introduced is a framework that illustrates different levels, and processes within each level, that should be considered when constructing program theories. The framework is valuable for theory-based discrepancy evaluation, the essence of which is to determine the extent of discrepancy that exists between the expected theory, as constructed using the tools introduced here, and what is actually observed in the evaluation.
A Review of Cross-Cultural Training: Best Practices, Guidelines, and Research Needs
Authors: Littrell Lisa N. , Salas Eduardo
Published: August 2005

The purpose of this article is to present the best practices of cross-cultural training (CCT) in terms of what organizations are doing and what they should be doing. In presenting the best practices, the following questions will be investigated: (a) why is CCT an important research domain, (b) what is the general purpose of CCT, (c) how is CCT designed and delivered, (d) which CCT strategies are organizations currently implementing, (e) what guidelines can be offered to organizations offering CCT, and (f) what additional research is needed. This article contributes to existing CCT research by providing a condensed set of guidelines instructing organizations on the techniques necessary for maximizing the benefits of CCT.
Reciprocal tapping in spastic hemiparesis
Authors: van Roon Dominique , Hulstijn Wouter
Published: August 2005

Objective: To locate the source of slowness in typing movements in subjects with spastic hemiparesis and to examine whether enlargement of keys would facilitate typing.

Design: Experimental within-subjects design.

Setting: Werkenrode, a special school for physically disabled young children.

Subjects: Eleven subjects (mean age 17.1 years) diagnosed as having spastic hemiparesis, most as a result of cerebral palsy.

Interventions: Subjects made fast reciprocal tapping movements with one finger of both hands separately within a 10-second interval. Keys of 12 × 12 mm and 24 × 24 mm were used.

Main outcome measures: Interkey response interval (IRI), dwell time (interval during which the key is pressed) and forces were measured. Also, the standard deviation and coefficient of variation of the variables were calculated to determine regularity of the movements.

Results: The impaired hand tapped slower and more irregularly and exerted less force. In addition, the duration of the dwell phase was lengthened for this hand. However, the percentage dwell time as a function of IRI was not different between hands. Enlargement of the keys shortened flight time (i.e. time in which the finger moves through the air from one key to the next) of the impaired hand, but not dwell time.

Conclusions: The entire movement is slower for the impaired hand. Disturbances are not exclusively located at the inversion of the movement. With respect to keyboard design, enlarged keys and a locked repeat function of the keys may be beneficial for subjects suffering from spasticity.
The Southampton Needs Assessment Questionnaire (SNAQ): a valid tool for assessing the rehabilitation needs of disabled people
Authors: Kersten Paula , Mclellan Lindsay , George Steve , Smith Jenifer A E
Published: August 2005

Objective: To validate the Southampton Needs Assessment Questionnaire (SNAQ) for use with disabled people during face-to-face interviews.

Design: The SNAQ was designed to be used in a cross-sectional survey of disabled people with a physical disability with a follow-up study one year later. Content and criterion validity was examined using 32 disabled people who took part in the pilot study. Construct validity and internal reliability was examined using data from 93 disabled people who took part in the main survey. Responsiveness of the questionnaire was evaluated using the data gathered during a follow-up study of 77 people had taken part in the original study.

Outcome measures: The OPCS Disability Severity Scales (OPCS) and the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) were used to measure level of disability of participants, the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) and the UK version of the SF-36 to examine perceived health status.

Participants: People with a primary physical disability, aged 16–65, randomly selected from two disability registers in southern England.

Main results: Content and criterion validity were established. Construct validity and internal reliability of the SNAQ was good. Inter-rater reliability was not tested since only one researcher conducted the interviews. Test–retest reliability was not formally tested because of the probability that participants would learn from the first needs assessment questionnaire and that different results on a retest occasion could arise from this. The SNAQ was sensitive in picking up changes over time.

Conclusion: The SNAQ has shown good validity (content, coverage and construct), internal reliability, sensitivity and responsiveness. Further studies are needed to define the consequences of meeting or not meeting the rehabilitation needs of disabled people. Inter-rater reliability remains to be established.
Effect of a physical therapeutic intervention for balance problems in the elderly: A single-blind, randomized, controlled multicentre trial
Authors: Wolf Bernard , Feys Hilde , De Weerdt Willy , van der Meer Jaap , Noom Margo , Aufdemkampe Geert
Published: August 2005

Objective: To establish the effect of a short, individualized exercise programme on balance dysfunction in the elderly.

Design: A single-blind, randomized, controlled, multicentre trial. Setting: Physical and recreational therapy departments from two rehabilitation centres.

Participants: Ninety-four subjects of ≥75 years with functional balance problems living independently or in a residential care facility. Seventy-seven subjects completed the intervention period and four-week follow-up. At a one-year follow-up 49 subjects were evaluated on balance functioning.

Interventions: Twelve sessions of an individualized balance training programme (experimental group) or 12 sessions of an individualized extra attention programme (control group) given in 4–6 weeks.

Main outcome measures: Berg Balance Scale and the Dynamic Gait Index to establish balance functioning, a visual analogue scale to establish fear of falling in daily life and the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale to verify feelings of anxiety and depression.

Results: Subjects in the experimental group improved significantly more on the Berg Balance Scale and the Dynamic Gait Index than those in the control group (p ≤ 0.001, p ≤ 0.001, respectively). However the effect disappeared at a one-year follow-up on the Berg Balance Scale. No prognostic factors could be identified to determine who would benefit most from the individualized exercise programme. Results on the other response variables revealed no effect of the intervention.

Conclusion: A short individualized exercise programme can improve functional balance in people aged 75 years and older. This improvement was maintained at least for one month but had worn off by one year.
A comparison of two types of electrical stimulation of the quadriceps in the treatment of patellofemoral pain syndrome. A pilot study
Authors: Callaghan Michael J , Oldham Jacqueline A , Winstanley Julie
Published: August 2005

Objective: To compare a commercially available electrical muscle stimulation regime with a new form of stimulation for the rehabilitation of the quadriceps in patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome.

Setting: A research facility within a teaching hospital.

Methods: Sixteen patients (four men, 12 women) with patellofemoral pain, demonstrable quadriceps atrophy, but normal gait parameters were randomly allocated to one of two treatment groups. One group received a sequential mixed frequency stimulation pattern from a standard device. The other group received a new form of stimulation from an experimental stimulation device that contained simultaneous mixed frequency components.

Outcome measures: Isometric and isokinetic extension torque, muscle fatigue rate, pain, functional questionnaire, step test, knee flexion, and quadriceps cross-sectional area.

Results: These showed significant improvements for both groups after treatment (p < 0.05) in all outcome measures except flexion and fatigue rates, but no significant differences between the two stimulation regimes (p > 0.05).

Conclusion: Both stimulators performed similarly on patients with patellofemoral pain giving significant improvements for all patients for muscle strength, pain, self-reporting function and step testing. There were no significant differences between the two types of stimulation.
Statistical methods for HIV dynamic studies in AIDS clinical trials
Authors: Wu Hulin
Published: August 2005

Studies of HIV dynamics in AIDS research are very important for understanding pathogenesis of HIV infection and for assessing the potency of antiviral therapies. Since the viral dynamic results from clinical data were first published by Ho et al. and Wei et al., the study of HIV-1 dynamics in vivo has drawn a great attention from AIDS clinicians and researchers. Although the important findings from HIV dynamic studies have been published in many prestigious scientific journals, statistical methods for estimating viral dynamic parameters have not been paid enough attention by HIV dynamic investigators. The estimation methods in many viral dynamic studies are very crude and inefficient. In this paper, we review the statistical methods and mathematical models for HIV dynamic data analysis developed in recent years. We also address some practical issues and share our experiences in the design and analysis of viral dynamic studies. Some principles and guidelines for the design and analysis of viral dynamic studies are provided. The methodologies reviewed in this paper are also applicable to studies of other viruses such as hepatitis B virus or hepatitis C virus. We also pose some challenging statistical problems in this area in order to stimulate further study by the statistical research community.
Revisiting proportion estimators
Authors: Böhning Dankmar , Viwatwongkasem Chukiat
Published: August 2005

Proportion estimators are quite frequently used in many application areas. The conventional proportion estimator (number of events divided by sample size) encounters a number of problems when the data are sparse as will be demonstrated in various settings. The problem of estimating its variance when sample sizes become small is rarely addressed in a satisfying framework. Specifically, we have in mind applications like the weighted risk difference in multicenter trials or stratifying risk ratio estimators (to adjust for potential confounders) in epidemiological studies. It is suggested to estimate p using the parametric family (see PDF for character) and p(1 - p) using (see PDF for character), where (see PDF for character). We investigate the estimation problem of choosing c 0 from various perspectives including minimizing the average mean squared error of (see PDF for character), average bias and average mean squared error of (see PDF for character). The optimal value of c for minimizing the average mean squared error of (see PDF for character) is found to be independent of n and equals c = 1. The optimal value of c for minimizing the average mean squared error of (see PDF for character) is found to be dependent of n with limiting value c = 0.833. This might justifiy to use a near-optimal value of c = 1 in practice which also turns out to be beneficial when constructing confidence intervals of the form (see PDF for character).
The Role of Perceptual Skills in Newborns' Perception of Partly Occluded Objects
Authors: Valenza Eloisa , Zulian Luisa , Leoy Irene
Published: August 2005

This study explored whether the reported inability of newborns to perceive object unity could result from the limited abilities of newborns to recognize the correspondence between 2 stimuli that were identical except for the presence or absence of an occluder. Five experiments were carried out using a visual habituation technique. The results of Experiment 1 indicated that newborns were capable of recognizing the perceptual correspondence between a nonoccluded and an occluded form. More intriguing, the outcomes of Experiments 2, 3, and 4 suggested that newborns find a partly occluded form to be more similar to a completely unoccluded form than to an unoccluded form containing a gap. Finally, even if newborns are able to perceive the correspondence between a partly occluded object and a complete form, the presence of this skill does not appear sufficient to imply the ability to manifest veridical object unity perception at birth (Experiment 5).
The Notch targetsEsr1andEsr10are differentially regulated inXenopusneural precursors
Authors: Lamar Elise , Kintner Chris
Published: August 2005

The HES family of bHLH repressors plays a key role in regulating the differentiation of neural precursors in the vertebrate embryo. Members of the HES gene family are expressed in neural precursors as targets of the Notch signaling pathway, but how this occurs in the context of neurogenesis is not known. Here, we address this issue by identifying enhancers driving Notch-dependent gene expression of two Hes5-like genes expressed in Xenopus called Esr1 and Esr10. Using frog transgenesis, we identify enhancer elements driving expression of Esr1 and Esr10 in neural precursors or in response to ectopic expression of the proneural protein, Xngnr1. Using deletion and mutation analysis, we define motifs required for enhancer activity of both genes, namely Notch-responsive elements and, in the case of Esr10, E-box motifs. We find that Esr1 and Esr10 are differentially regulated both in terms of Notch input and its interaction with heterologous factors. These studies reveal inputs required for proneural expression of genes encoding bHLH repressors in the developing vertebrate nervous system.
Surge and destroy: the role of auxin in plant embryogenesis
Authors: Jenik Pablo D. , Barton M. Kathryn
Published: August 2005

For nearly a century, the plant hormone auxin has been recognized for its effects on post-embryonic plant growth. Now recent insights into the molecular mechanism of auxin transport and signaling are uncovering fundamental roles for auxin in the earliest stages of plant development, such as in the development of the apical-basal (shoot-root) axis in the embryo, as well as in the formation of the root and shoot apical meristems and the cotyledons. Localized surges in auxin within the embryo occur through a sophisticated transcellular transport pathway causing the proteolytic destruction of key transcriptional repressors. As we discuss here, the resulting downstream gene activation, together with other, less well-understood regulatory pathways,establish much of the basic body plan of the angiosperm embryo.
Signaling interactions between squamous and columnar epithelia of the Drosophila wing disc
Authors: Pallavi S. K. , Shashidhara L. S.
Published: August 2005

Understanding the interactions between distinct epithelial cells would help us to understand the development of tissues. Drosophila imaginal discs, which are made up of two types of epithelial cells, provide good model systems for such studies. The disc proper or the columnar epithelial cells are apposed to a layer of squamous epithelial cells (the peripodial membrane). We have examined organization of peripodial and disc proper cells vis-à-vis their polarity since cell polarity plays an important role in the polarized transport of signaling molecules. With the help of polarity-specific cell markers, we have observed that apical surfaces of peripodial and disc proper cells face each other. This provides the cellular basis for the recently demonstrated signaling interactions between peripodial and disc proper cells during disc patterning. We also report significant similarities as well as differences between peripodial and disc proper cells in Engrailed-dependent wingdisc-patterning events, which make them an appropriate model system for studying the mechanism of diffusion of signal molecules, such as Hedgehog. Results with wild-type and two mutant forms of Hedgehog suggest that direct cell-cell contact is a requirement for the movement of wild-type Hedgehog signal and reconfirm that cholesterol-modification of Hedgehog makes it a short-range signaling molecule by restricting its movement.
The E22K mutation of myosin RLC that causes familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy increases calcium sensitivity of force and ATPase in transgenic mice
Authors: Szczesna-Cordary Danuta , Guzman Georgianna , Zhao Jiaju , Hernandez Olga , Wei Jianqin , Diaz-Perez Zoraida
Published: August 2005

Familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (FHC) is an autosomal dominant disease caused by mutations in all of the major sarcomeric proteins, including the ventricular myosin regulatory light-chain (RLC). The E22K-RLC mutation has been associated with a rare variant of cardiac hypertrophy defined by mid-left ventricular obstruction due to papillary muscle hypertrophy. This mutation was later found to cause ventricular and septal hypertrophy. We have generated transgenic (Tg) mouse lines of myc-WT (wild type) and myc-E22K mutant of human ventricular RLC and have examined the functional consequences of this FHC mutation in skinned cardiac-muscle preparations. In longitudinal sections of whole mouse hearts stained with hematoxylin and eosin, the E22K-mutant hearts of 13-month-old animals showed signs of inter-ventricular septal hypertrophy and enlarged papillary muscles with no filament disarray. Echo examination did not reveal evidence of cardiac hypertrophy in Tg-E22K mice compared to Tg-WT or Non-Tg hearts. Physiological studies utilizing skinned cardiac-muscle preparations showed an increase by ΔpCa50≥0.1 in Ca2+ sensitivity of myofibrillar ATPase activity and force development in Tg-E22K mice compared with Tg-WT or Non-Tg littermates. Our results suggest that E22K-linked FHC is mediated through Ca2+-dependent events. The FHC-mediated structural perturbations in RLC that affect Ca2+ binding properties of the mutated myocardium are responsible for triggering the abnormal function of the heart that in turn might initiate a hypertrophic process and lead to heart failure.
Evaluation of hexagonal chiral structure for morphing airfoil concept
Authors: Bornengo D , Scarpa F , Remillat C
Published: August 2005

In this paper a concept of hexagonal chiral honeycomb is proposed as a truss-like internal structure for adaptive wing box configurations. In contrast with classical centresym-metric cellular structures like rectangular or hexagonal grids, the proposed honeycomb did not present inversion symmetry, and featured an in-plane negative Poisson's ratio behaviour. The cellular structure considered exhibited this Poisson's ratio behaviour under a large range of strain. A set of numerical (finite element, FE) simulations have been carried out in order to correct the initial theoretical predictions to take into account axial, shear and elastic deformations of all elements composing the unit cell when subjected to uniaxial loading. The homogenized linear elastic mechanical properties were then introduced in an FE wing box model of a racecar wing coupled to a panel code to simulate unidirectional static fluid—structure coupling between the wing box and the flow surrounding the airfoil. The cellular solid proposed as the internal layout of the wing box allowed conforming deformations with the external flow, giving a variation of the camber line and trailing edge displacement, and acting as an aileron
Numerical investigation of transverse sonic injection in a non-reacting supersonic combustor
Authors: Manna P , Chakraborty D
Published: August 2005

Efficient combustion and heat release in scramjet flows depend on effective mixing of the fuel in supersonic streams. Usually, transverse sonic injection in-stages are employed as one of the suitable means for efficient supersonic combustor design. Numerical simulations are carried out to study the mixing characteristics of staged sonic air injections in supersonic stream ( M = 2.07) behind a backward-facing step in scramjet combustor by solving three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations along with K-ε turbulence model with a commercial CFD software CFX-TASCFlow. Computed results of the jet penetration and spreading show very good agreement with the experimental values and the results of other computations. A good overall match has been obtained between the experimental values and the computation for various flow profiles at various axial locations in the combustor. However, the values differ in the near-field region at the injection plane. The assumed uniformity of the flow-field properties at the injection orifice and/or the inadequacy of the turbulence model considered in this study is conjectured to be the cause of the difference.
Use of Natural Medicines in the Danish Population: A National Cross-Sectional Survey
Authors: Nielsen Merete Willemoes , Hansen Ebba H , Rasmussen Niels K
Published: August 2005

BACKGROUND:

The use of natural medicines is widespread and increasing. In addition, natural medicine use is based primarily on individual's decisions without counseling from health professionals. Unlike with conventional medicines, it is not possible to evaluate sales statistics and prescription records to determine how much natural medicine is being used and by whom. Self-reporting is the only method available for investigating use of these products.

OBJECTIVE:

To investigate the use of natural medicines with respect to sociodemographic factors, health status, and conventional drug therapy in a general national population.

METHODS:

Data were derived from the Danish Health and Morbidity Survey 2000. A representative sample of the Danish population (N = 16 690%) was interviewed face-to-face. The association between use of natural medicines within the past 14 days and age, education, health status, and conventional medicine use was analyzed by logistic regression. All analyses were performed separately for each gender.

RESULTS:

Fourteen percent of the sample population had taken natural medicines within the past 14 days. Use was most prevalent among women and increased with age, but decreased again in the oldest age group (≥80 y). Respondents with poor health were the greatest consumers of natural medicines. Use was not associated with educational level and conventional drug therapy. Among conventional medicine users, 14% and 22% of men and women, respectively, used natural medicines.

CONCLUSIONS:

This study demonstrated that natural medicine use is common and widespread health behavior in all strata of the population and should not be regarded as an alternative to conventional medicine. Clinicians should ask patients about natural medicine use to avoid interactions with conventional drugs.
Antipsychotic Dose-Sparing Effect with Addition of Memantine
Authors: Sleeper Rebecca B
Published: August 2005

OBJECTIVE:

To describe a case of an antipsychotic-sparing effect achieved after the addition of memantine to the regimen of a patient with severe Alzheimer's disease and aggressive behavioral disturbances.

CASE SUMMARY:

A 78-year-old white man with severe Alzheimer's disease was receiving risperidone 2 mg 3 times daily for persistent aggressive and dangerous behavioral disturbances. Memantine was initiated, and the dose was titrated to 10 mg twice daily. The patient's response included improvement in functional status and resolution of problematic behaviors, allowing repeated reduction of the risperidone dose and ultimate discontinuation.

DISCUSSION:

Antipsychotics are often employed to treat behavioral disturbances for patients with Alzheimer's disease; however, the adverse effect potential of these agents remains a significant concern. Adjunctive medications that maintain or improve behavioral symptoms yet allow an antipsychotic-sparing effect are attractive. Such experiences have previously been described with other drug classes, but clinical experience is evolving with memantine. For this patient, the effect of this agent on behavioral symptoms and risperidone requirements is one example of such an antipsychotic-sparing effect.

CONCLUSIONS:

Response to memantine therapy may include behavioral improvements allowing a dose-sparing effect of antipsychotic medication. Changes in psychoactive drug burden may be a valuable surrogate marker of memantine's effects on behavior.
Sensitized Liquid Phase Room Temperature Phosphorescence Applied to the Detection of Polychloronaphthalenes: The Influence of the Reversed Energy Transfer Reaction on the Linearity
Authors: Donkerbroek J. J. , Veltkamp A. C. , Praat A. J. J. , Gooijer C. , Frei R. W. , Velthorst N. H.
Published: August 2005

The detection of a series of polychloronaphthalenes (PCN's), i.e., mono-, di-, tri-, and tetra-substituted compounds, via sensitized room temperature phosphorescence of biacetyl in azeotropic acetonitrile/water is investigated. The detection limits are on the order of 10−8 to 10−9 M, except for 1,2,3-trichloro- and 1,2,3,4-tetrachloronaphthalene, and are comparable to those we obtained with fluorescence. Phosphorescence measurements at 77 K reveal that, with the exception of 1,2,3-trichloronaphthalene, for the tri- and tetra-substituted compounds the triplet state energies are lower than for biacetyl. Hence, for these PCN's the influence of the reversed energy transfer on the sensitized RTPL (room temperature phosphorescence in liquids) detection must be considered. On the basis of a theoretical treatment it is demonstrated that the reversed energy transfer manifests itself mainly via the linearity of the response. Furthermore, it is shown that the parameters needed for a quantitative interpretation of the results can be deduced from measurements of the direct phosphorescence of biacetyl.
Volatile Species in Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy: Implications for Enhanced Sensitivity
Authors: Summerhays K. D. , Lamothe P. J. , Fries T. L.
Published: August 2005

We propose a sample introduction method involving the formation of volatile species in solution and subsequent pneumatic nebulization for inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. A study of osmium oxidized to OsO4 and preliminary results for mercury reduced to the elemental form suggest that enhancements in sensitivity by a factor of 10 to 100 are achievable without degradation in analytical precision, in comparison with pneumatic nebulization of solutions containing the element of interest in a nonvolatile form. We discuss the physical basis for the method and support it by a brief theoretical treatment. The technique promises a broad applicability to elements capable of existing in a volatile form in solution. For the elements studied, no modifications of a commercial ICP spectrometer or sample introduction system are required.
Analysis of Trichothecene Mycotoxins
Authors: Stahr H. M. , Lerdal D. , Hyde W. , Pfeiffer R.
Published: August 2005

Diagnostic toxicology requires the analysis of feeds and diagnostic specimens for the toxic principles involved in the poisoning. The trichothecene mycotoxins are both acutely irritating and very poisonous. They may be analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and thin layer chromatography (TLC) and their presence confirmed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The level of sensitivity we readily achieve is micrograms per gram of feed. T-2 toxin (T-2) and diacetoxyscirpenol (DAS) give sharp peaks by GC using 10% OV-101 at 260 °C. Vomitoxin (VT) does not give a single sharp peak but rather a broad peak resulting in much lower sensitivity for VT than T-2 and DAS. Acetate derivatization can be done to provide equal sensitivity for all three compounds by GC. Group I trichothecenes, represented by DAS and T-2, may be hydrolyzed to the tetraol and triol and reacetylated. This allows for more generic analysis to be done. The group II and IV cyclic esters may be acetylated and analyzed. TLC is used for Group IV and both TLC gas liquid chromatography for Group II. The advantages of derivatization and selective detection extend the analytical sensitivity for the analysis of trichothecene mycotoxins in tissues. A cleanup procedure that uses a water extraction followed by a partition into ethyl acetate is used in the preparation, cleanup, and analysis of VT. Sep-Pak C18 cartridges are used to clean up extracts from toxicology specimens for precision chromatography. VT is eluted from the cartridge with H2O and T-2 and DAS are eluted with 75% MeOH/HOH.
Asymmetric Abel Inversions on Inductively Coupled Plasma Spatial Emission Profiles Collected from a Photodiode Array
Authors: Blades M. W.
Published: August 2005

The utility of a photodiode array based spatial emission profiling system has been enhanced by using a method for performing an Abel inversion on asymmetric lateral data which preserves the asymmetry in the radial emission profiles. This procedure has been implemented with an APPLE II plus computer, coupled with a Reticon RL-1024S photodiode array that has been masked with a narrow exit slit. The method has been tested with a theoretical set of lateral data and with actual measured spatial emission profiles.
Stokes/Anti-Stokes Raman Vibrational Temperatures: Reference Materials, Standard Lamps, and Spectrophotometric Calibrations
Authors: Malyj M. , Griffiths J. E.
Published: August 2005

The problem of measuring equilibrium vibrational temperatures in materials by using Raman spectroscopy has been analyzed theoretically and experimentally. One major problem is the determination of the corrections, due to the Raman instrument response, that must be applied to raw data to obtain the temperature. Normally a “standard” lamp is used for this purpose but the problems that can arise are legion. Methods for determining spectral response and temperature response function corrections that must be applied to raw Raman data, for ultimately deriving the equilibrium temperatures of various materials, have been developed such that standard lamps are not required. Instead pure vitreous silica and liquid cyclohexane, which are both readily available in all spectroscopy laboratories, are selected as reference materials of choice for determining the appropriate spectral corrections applicable to the spectrophotometric data. The results were tested against data obtained from other transparent materials, namely CCl4, CHCl3, CH3PCl2, GeCl4, GeBr4, and CS2. GeBr4 and CS2 were poor choices because of the proximity of the melting point of the former to room temperature and laser-induced photolysis of the latter. Detailed statistical analyses of the results indicate a marked lowering of systematic errors over those yielded by standard lamp calibrations. Shortcomings of both methods are also discussed, including several lesser known spectral abnormalities arising from the use of a standard lamp.
Technique for Measuring the Amount of Pressure-Induced Polarization Scrambling by Optical Windows in High Pressure Light Scattering Cells
Authors: Perry S. , Sharko P. T. , Jonas J.
Published: August 2005

A simple method for estimating the amount of pressure-induced polarization scrambling by optical windows in the high pressure Raman scattering cells is proposed. This method is based on the measurement of the depolarization ratio ρ for a polarized band (ρ = 0) for which a nonzero value of ρ is produced by the leakage of the Ivv component due to stress-induced birefringence of the window material. As an illustrative example the measurement of ρ for the polarized ν3(A1) band in liquid tetramethyltin is presented.
Analysis of Aluminum by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectroscopy
Authors: Barnes Ramon M. , Fernando Lancelot , Jing Lu Shang , Mahanti Himansu S.
Published: August 2005

Inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) is applied in the determination of 21 elements in primary, refined, and alloy aluminum. Rapid and reliable sample preparation procedures are developed. Spectral lines are selected after examination of experimental wavelength scans at each analyte wavelength. The limits of detection, background equivalent concentration, and analytical figures of merit are determined. For high silicon-containing aluminum, HF solutions were analyzed by employing an inert nebulizer utilizing polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) capillary tubes, a PTFE spray chamber, and an ICP torch with a graphite injector tube.
Infrared Determination of Quartz in Clay Minerals
Authors: Graham J. A. , Walker J. M.
Published: August 2005

A method for the quick and reliable quantitative determination of quartz in clay by infrared spectroscopy by using the cast film technique is presented. The technique is demonstrated for two different internal standards, calcium carbonate and manganese carbonate, and is compared with a mull oil technique. The calibration curves were prepared with synthetic mixtures of standard kaolinite and quartz. Analysis of powdered samples demonstrated an absolute precision of less than 1.0% with an accuracy of less than 1.0% when using the manganese carbonate as the internal standard.