bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Role of a National Library in Supporting Research Information Infrastructure
Authors: Cathro Warwick
Published: December 2006

The National Library of Australia is collaborating in a national program to improve the nation’s research information infrastructure. These activities have provided a focus for the Library in its engagement with the university community. The Library has developed integrated discovery services, actively participated in three research information infrastructure projects, and worked with partners on the problem of sustaining university repositories to support long-term access. The Library is an active partner in Project ARROW (Australian Research Repositories Online to the World), which is developing a solution for institutional repositories in collaboration with a commercial vendor, and also in the Australian Partnership for Sustainable Repositories (APSR), where the Library is helping to develop a sound approach to assessing the obsolescence risk of file formats, advising on a strategy for including preservation metadata in the repositories, and seeking to influence the future development of open source repository software to make use of preservation metadata.
Governmental Libraries Development: an experience of strategic collaboration in the field of social sciences
Authors: Dorta-Duque Maria Elena
Published: December 2006

The Institute of Scientific and Technological Documentation and Information (IDICT), of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment of Cuba, (CITMA) convoked a meeting in October 1995 of some governmental and non-governmental libraries and information centres that manage political, social and economic information. The purpose of the meeting was to create a working group to promote the development of such type of centres in the field of social sciences. The group was charged with promoting a closer relationship among the centres and the development of collaborative projects, stimulating partnership, cooperation and coordination of specific tasks. This paper describes the work and achievements of the group, the Comité de Coordinación de Centros de Información Política y Social, COIPS, which now comprises 32 centres.
Measuring the Impact of Knowledge Management
Authors: Kim Jong-Ae
Published: December 2006

With the growing popularity of knowledge management, the need for frameworks for evaluating the impacts of knowledge management on organizational performance has been recognized by practitioners. Despite the wide implementations of knowledge management, there is yet no standardized framework for measuring the performance within organizations. This paper provides an overview of the approaches to evaluate the contributions of knowledge management implementations to organizational performance. It presents methods such as return on investment, balanced scorecard approach, qualitative case studies, and success case method to aid practitioners to identify and develop the evaluation frameworks. Thus, it seeks to serve as a foundation for further research and development.
Cooperation on Local History and the Concept of Network Building between Libraries, Museums and Archives in China
Authors: Shushi Wu
Published: December 2006

Chinese ancient books and local history documents are collected in archives, libraries, museums (ALM), and other academic institutions all over the country. This paper introduces the cooperation in document conservation and cataloging that has occurred between ALM in China. It briefly describes The Digital Local History Project constructed by the National Library of China. Finally, it proposes the concept of cooperation between archives, libraries, and museums in digitizing local history.
Surface Pressure Analysis of Poly(ethylene oxide)-Modified Fusogenic Liposomes Incorporated into a Phospholipid Monolayer
Authors: Morone Nobuhiro , Ueda Takehiko , Tsudo Yasuhiro , Okumura Yukihisa , Rosilio Veronique , Baszkin Adam , Sunamoto Junzo
Published: December 2006

Fusogenic liposomes have a wide-range of applications as DDS and gene/protein delivery into living cells. A variety of surface modifications of drug carriers, to enable fusion with cells, have been proposed, however, the mechanism of fusion has still not been determined. To further improve the efficiency of drug carriers, a simple and easily examinable model of a living cell surface is needed. In this study, the time-course of a fusion phenomena was made by measuring the surface pressure increase of a phospholipid monolayer spread at the air/water interface due to the fusion of liposomes carrying PEO-lipid (dialkyl-terminated polyethylene oxide) reconstituted on their outer surface. The kinetics of the surface pressure change appeared to be bimodal, indicating the coexistence of different fusion pathways. It was found that the presence of the PEO-lipid on the liposome surface led to a faster lipid transfer compared to non-modified DMPC liposomes. This indicated that the reconstitution of PEO-lipid provided an alternative transfer pathway to that for non-fusogenic liposomes that show only a slow lipid transfer to phospholipid monolayers. The relation between the rate of fusion and the surface pressure of the host membrane is discussed.
Perspectives On: Local and Sustained Delivery of Angiogenic Growth Factors
Authors: Lee Hyukjin , Chung Hyun Jung , Park Tae Gwan
Published: December 2006

This review emphasizes the role of angiogenesis in tissue engineering, introduces various angiogenic growth factors, and highlights current status of delivery systems for angiogenic growth factors using natural and synthetic biomaterials. A short overview of angiogenic growth factors is presented, followed by the introduction of emerging strategies for designing smart delivery carriers.
Preparation of PLLA/PEG Nanofibers by Electrospinning and Potential Applications
Authors: Spasova M. , Stoilova O. , Manolova N. , Rashkov I. , Altankov G.
Published: December 2006

Poly(L-lactide) (PLLA)/polyethylene glycol (PEG) mixed solutions were successfully electrospun into micro-or nanofibrous polymer mats. The fiber diameter was in the range 100nm-6μm. The effect of the concentration of the spinning solutions and the ratio of PLLA/PEG on the fiber diameter and morphology was investigated. The hydrophilicity was tuned by varying the PLLA/PEG ratio. The tissue compatibility of the electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds was screened using two different cell models of human dermal fibroblasts and the osteoblast-like cell line MG-63. Both types of cells attached uniformly and approximately equally to all PLLA/PEG nanofibers. In long-term cultures osteoblast-like cells tend to spatially organize in tissue-like structure, particularly within the scaffold with the highest PEG content (PLLA/PEG at weight ratio 70/30). These results indicate that PLLA mixed with hydrophilic PEG produces a promising new biocompatible material for engineering scaffolds.
Pulmonary Anti-inflammatory Effects of Chitosan Microparticles Containing Betamethasone
Authors: Huang Y. C. , Vieira A. , Yeh M. K. , Chiang C. H.
Published: December 2006

Chitosan microparticles (CMs) are of potential interest for controlled delivery of therapeutic agents to cells and tissues, especially to mucosal-epithelial surfaces in the body. CM incorporation efficiency and release kinetics for betamethasone (B), an epimeric synthetic glucocorticoid, were investigated. Evidence for mild but significant inflammatory reactions in rat lung exposed to high CM concentrations was observed. Inflammation in the rat lung was significantly decreased by inhalation of B-loaded CMs (BCMs). Decreases in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid protein, content of polymorphonuclear neutrophils, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity, lung tissue myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity, and leukocyte infiltration were observed. For all biochemical parameters tested, CMs loaded with 1.0-1.2mg/kg B decrease the inflammation by 1.63±0.14 fold, to near air-inhalation control levels. Thus, the drug was efficiently delivered and active in the pulmonary tissues by this technique.
Three-dimensional Gelatin and Gelatin/Hyaluronan Hydrogel Structures for Traumatic Brain Injury
Authors: Zhang Ting , Yan Yongnian , Wang Xiaohong , Xiong Zhuo , Lin Feng , Wu Rendong , Zhang Renji
Published: December 2006

Brain tissue engineering has now emerged as one of the most promising treatments for the traumatic brain injury. In this article, two groups of three-dimensional (3D) hydrogel structures composed of gelatin and gelatin/hyaluronan have been formed using our 3D cell assembly technique for in vivo study in rats, in order to investigate their effects in reparation of injury in the central nervous system (CNS). The structures were implanted into cortical defects created in rat brains, and their abilities to improve the brain tissue reconstruction were then evaluated. After 4, 8, 10, and 13 weeks of implantation, sections of brains were processed with NISSL staining for observing the immigration of host neural cells into the implanted materials and the degradation property of the materials. The results showed that simplex gelatin and gelatin/hyaluronan (20:1) with 3D structures both have good biocompatibility with brain tissue while gelatin/hyaluronan has a better contiguity with the surrounding tissue. Through our primary study, it seems that 3D gelatin/hyaluronan structures may be useful in brain tissue repair.
Synthesis of New Prodrugs Based on β-CD as the Natural Compounds Containing β-lactam Antibiotics
Authors: Namazi Hassan , Kanani Asghar
Published: December 2006

Synthesis of telechelic polymer of β-CD-poly(ethylene glycol) using poly(ethylene glycol) and mono-6- O-tosyl-β-CD is described. Three β-lactam antibiotics: ampicillin (Amp), amoxicillin (Amo), and cephalexin (Ceph) were attached to β-CD-poly(ethylene glycol) and to unmodified β-CD as the carrier agents. Structures of these prodrugs were confirmed using spectroscopic methods. The profiles of drug’s release indicated that the isolated pro-drugs could have potential applications for controlled drug release as oral drug delivery systems.
Structural Vibration Control via R-L Shunted Active Fiber Composites
Authors: Belloli Alberto , Niederberger Dominik , Pietrzko Stanislaw , Morari Manfred , Ermanni Paolo
Published: December 2006

This article presents a successful extension of passive R-L shunt damping to piezoelectric ceramic elements working in direct 3-3 mode and a performance comparison to elements working in indirect 3-1 mode. A new circuit topology is implemented to synthesize the very large inductances required by the low inherent piezoelectric device capacitance at relatively low frequencies. This allows for efficient tuning of the R-L circuit to the structure resonance frequency to be damped. The vibration suppression performance of monolithic piezoelectric ceramic actuators and active fiber composites is compared in this study. For this purpose, different actuators are bonded on aluminum cantilever plates. An integrated FE model is implemented for the prediction of structure resonance frequencies, optimum values for electric components, and the resulting vibration suppression performance. The passive structure, bonded active patch, and shunted electrical network are analyzed within the same FE model. Active fiber composite patches working in the direct 3-3 mode show equivalent specific damping performance compared to conventional monolithic 3-1 actuated patches. Issues related to the sensitivity of R-L shunts to variations in environmental and operational conditions are discussed in this study. In short, monolithic actuators operating on the 3-1 piezoelectric effect seem to be the best for use in R-L shunting.
Mechanical Strength Characteristics of Fiber Bragg Gratings Considering Fabrication Process and Reflectivity
Authors: Kang Dong-Hoon , Park Sang-Oh , Hong Chang-Sun , Kim Chun-Gon
Published: December 2006

Application fields of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) have gradually expanded to include primary structures as well as secondary structures and specimens. For this reason, verification for FBG reliability, such as signal characteristics and mechanical strength, has become increasingly important. In this study, the mechanical strength characteristics of FBGs of various grating lengths are investigated considering their fabrication process and reflectivity. Tension tests show that the mechanical strength of optical fibers decreases about 50% just by jacket stripping and that the amount of decrease is dependent on the stripping methods. The mechanical strength of the stripped optical fibers with gratings formed in the core decreases 55% regardless of grating lengths or reflectivity. However, the width of strength distribution increases relative to increases in reflectivity.
Modeling Rearrangement Process of Martensite Platelets in a Magnetic Shape Memory Alloy Ni2MnGa Single Crystal under Magnetic Field and (or) Stress Action
Authors: Gauthier J. Y. , Lexcellent C. , Hubert A. , Abadie J. , Chaillet N.
Published: December 2006

The aim of the article is the modeling of the rearrangement process between martensite variants in order to use magnetic shape memory alloys (MSMs) as actuators. In the framework of the thermodynamics of irreversible processes, an efficient choice of the internal variables to take into account the magnetic and mechanical actions and a free energy function are stated. The behavior is chosen as magnetically reversible and mechanically irreversible. An equivalence between magnetic field action H and uniaxial stress action σ for the initiation of the rearrangement is established. Finally, model predictions are compared with experimental measurements.
Online Phase Tracking of Interferometric Optical Fiber Sensors for Vibration Control
Authors: Chang Young-Hwan , Kim Do-Hyung , Han Jae-Hung , Lee IN
Published: December 2006

Online phase tracking of an extrinsic Fabry—Perot interferometer (EFPI) and experimental vibration control of a composite beam with a sensing patch are investigated. EFPI sensors have nonlinearity due to their interferometric characteristics. We propose a new sensing patch for compensation of this interferometric nonlinearity. This newly developed sensing patch consists of an EFPI sensor and another sensor that can produce directional information. Therefore, it uses the advantages of their components used in conjuction in order to overcome the disadvantages of the components used separately. A sensing patch that comprises an EFPI sensor and a piezoceramic is fabricated, and the characteristics are experimentally investigated. A simple and practical logic is applied to real-time tracking of the optical phase of an interferometer. The experimental results show that the proposed sensing patch does not suffer from the nonlinear behavior of conventional EFPI sensors and the hysteretic behavior of piezoelectric materials. Moreover, it has excellent strain resolution and a wide dynamic sensing range. The application of a sensing patch has been also investigated: vibration control with this sensing patch has been performed using a fuzzy logic controller (FLC), and the possibility of using a sensing patch as a sensoriactuator is considered.
Numerical Evaluation of Effective Material Properties of Transversely Randomly Distributed Unidirectional Piezoelectric Fiber Composites
Authors: Kari Sreedhar , Berger Harald , Rodriguez-Ramos Reinaldo , Gabbert Ulrich
Published: December 2006

This article presents a method for the evaluation of effective material properties of transversely randomly distributed unidirectional piezoelectric fiber composites using homogenization techniques based on the finite element method (FEM) and representative volume element (RVE) method. Modified random sequential adsorption (RSA) algorithm is used to generate three-dimensional (3D) RVE models of transversely randomly distributed unidirectional fiber composites. Numerical studies are carried out to estimate the influence of diameter and arrangement of fibers on the effective material properties. Using different diameters of fibers, RVE models are generated up to 80% volume fraction. All effective material properties of transversely randomly distributed unidirectional piezoelectric fiber composites are evaluated and comparisons are made with regular packing like square and hexagonal arrangement of piezoelectric fiber composites.
Health Monitoring of UAV Wing Skin-to-spar Joints using Guided Waves and Macro Fiber Composite Transducers
Authors: Lanza Discalea Francesco , Matt Howard , Bartoli Ivan , Coccia Stefano , Park Gyuhae , Farrar Charles
Published: December 2006

This article deals with the monitoring of the composite wing skin-to-spar joint in unmanned aerial vehicles using ultrasonic guided waves. The study investigates simulated wing skin-to-spar joints with two different types of bond defects, namely poorly cured adhesive and disbonded interfaces. The bond-sensitive feature considered is the ultrasonic strength of transmission through the joints. The dispersive wave propagation problem is studied numerically by a semi-analytical finite element method that accounts for viscoelastic damping, and experimentally by ultrasonic testing that uses highly durable, flexible macro fiber composite transducers. The discrete wavelet transform is also employed to de-noise and compress the ultrasonic measurements. Both numerical and experimental tests confirm that the ultrasonic strength of transmission increases across the defected bonds.
A Reliable Plain Solution for Rectangular Plates with Piezoceramic Patches
Authors: Edery-Azulay Lucy , Abramovich Haim
Published: December 2006

The present study investigates the behavior of a laminated composite plate with embedded or bonded piezoelectric materials. An exact mathematical model based on Reissner—Mindlin theory for plates (FSDT) has been developed for laminated composite plates with continuous piezoelectric layers. The flexural behavior has been solved based on Levy's method for plates. Therefore, the study has been limited to obtain exact solutions only for the cases of plates with at least two opposite simply supported edges, and only continuous piezoelectric layers.

For a plate with piezoelectric patches, an approximate energy solution is presented, using Reissner—Mindlin theory, where the lateral displacement and the two bending rotations are expressed as infinite series. The point of merit for this model is its simplicity and reliability (depending on the number of terms) to solve a plate with any required boundary conditions and lay-ups. Furthermore, this model can be easily adapted to solve piezo-composite plates with an unlimited number of piezoelectric patches in arbitrary locations over the plate.

A comprehensive parametric investigation has been performed to study the behavior of a plate actuated by extension or shear piezoelectric mechanisms. This investigation has been performed to yield results for plates with various boundary conditions and arbitrary patch locations.
Thermodynamics of Stress and Electric Field Induced Phase Transition in Relaxor Ferroelectric Crystals
Authors: Tieqi Liu  , Lynch Christopher S. , Mclaughlin Elizabeth A.
Published: December 2006

A thermodynamics based analysis of measured material behavior in (110) orientated (PMN-32%PT) and (PZN-4.5%PT) crystals under combined stress, electric field and temperature loading leads to a determination of the relative energy levels of phases. The approach is to perform path integrals to determine external work done by electrical and mechanical loads at constant temperature and to remove the effect of heat generated by irreversible strain and electric displacement increments. This yields relative internal energy density levels of phases. It also yields Gibbs energy density, a measure of the driving force for the phase transformation. The approach is used to analyze two types of phase transition, a jump type transition from rhombohedral to orthorhombic with associated hysteresis in (011) loaded PZN-4.5%PT, and a continuous transition from rhombohedral to orthorhombic with rotation through an intermediate monoclinic phase in (001)loaded PMN-32%PT.
Incomplete Syllogisms as Techniques of Medicalization: The Case of Direct-to-Consumer Advertising in Popular Magazines, 1997 to 2003
Authors: Arney Jennifer , Rafalovich Adam
Published: December 2006

The researchers collected a data set of consumer-directed print advertisements for antidepressant medications from three female-directed magazines, three male-directed magazines, and four common readership magazines published between 1997 and 2003. They evaluated these data for advertising techniques that enable drug advertisements to function as agents of medicalization. The investigators discuss the use of incomplete syllogisms in drug advertisements and identify strategies that might lead readers to frame personal physical and/or emotional conditions medically. Key features in advertisements function as the particular and general premises of a syllogism, and the concluding premise—that the reader has a mood disorder—is unarticulated but implied. The researchers examine the implications of incomplete syllogisms in advertisements and suggest that their use might lead readers to redefine their physical and/or emotional problems to fit medical models of mental distress.
Making Sense of Data: How Public Health Graduate Students Build Theory Through Qualitative Research Techniques
Authors: Wright Mary C.
Published: December 2006

Data interpretation and theory building are two key skills often taught in health sciences qualitative methods courses. However, little is known about how novice researchers make sense of data, as well as how their thought processes differ from those of expert researchers. In this classroom research project, the author explores how qualitative methods students in a public health graduate program describe their processes of making sense of data and building theory. She then compares these processes with “expert” guidelines to draw implications for how to enhance teaching in a qualitative research class.
“Have You Seen Your Aura Lately?” Examining Boundary-Work in Holistic Health Pamphlets
Authors: Ho Evelyn Y.
Published: December 2006

An increasing number of people in the United States are using holistic therapies. Both encouraging and informing this trend in growth, printed leaflets are a popular and important medium for holistic health practitioners. Using a discourse analytic approach, the author analyzed pamphlets and printed texts distributed at a holistic health fair. These texts reflect and construct specific understandings of holistic health and proper health care. Understood through the notion of boundary-work, pamphlets demarcated holism as the proper way of conceptualizing health and health care. However, holistic medicine's boundaries are quite porous, as these practices are also legitimized through the use of scientific conventions and the practice of integration, both commonly associated with biomedicine.
Health Among Men in Rural Bengal: Exploring Meanings Through a Culture-Centered Approach
Authors: Dutta Mohan Jyoti , Basu Ambar
Published: December 2006

Researchers in health communication usually adopt a linear approach to the study of health. Under this linear model, the emphasis is on the transmission of beliefs, information, and knowledge from key points at the core (the traditional senders) to the peripheral receivers of messages. A growing body of scholarship foregrounds the importance of understanding health communication from a culture-centered perspective that privileges the dialogue with community members. Drawing on a culture-centered approach, the authors examine the meanings of health among men in rural Bengal. Their dialogue with these men suggests that communication in the realm of health exists in the context of responsibility as care providers, work life, structural barriers, and solutions through participatory processes. The findings elucidate the connection between structure and the communication practices of marginalization. The authors' discursive engagement with the participants points toward spaces of entry for theorizing health communication and developing culture-centered praxis.
Living With Moderate-Severe Chronic Heart Failure as a Middle-Aged Person
Authors: Nordgren Lena , Asp Margareta , Fagerberg Ingegerd
Published: December 2006

In this article the authors describe a study focusing on middle-aged persons living with chronic heart failure (CHF), a group with which few studies have been conducted. They used the lifeworld perspective to focus on persons' lived experiences of the phenomenon, that is, living with moderate-severe CHF as a middle-aged person. They interviewed 7 middle-aged persons (4 men, 3 women; aged 38 to 65 years) and analyzed the data obtained using a phenomenological approach. The phenomenon's essence is described as a life situation characterized by a failing body, a life constantly under threat, a rapidly changing health condition, and an altered self-image, which implies that the persons live in a changed life situation. The essence was further illuminated by three meaning constituents: an ambiguity of the body, losing track of life, and balancing life. Knowledge from this study will help caregivers understand and support patients with this debilitating condition.
The Experiences of Adolescents With Thalassemia in West Bengal, India
Authors: Roy Tanuka , Chatterjee Suhita Chopra
Published: December 2006

In disadvantaged settings, where medical and socioeconomic support structures are inadequately developed, adolescent thalassemic patient respondents (ATPRs) live a dismal existence. In this article, the authors explore the experiences of ATPRs in West Bengal, India, with a view to addressing the question of whether thalassemia can be considered a disability, using a qualitative research design involving a purposive sampling method. The authors conducted in-depth interviews with 36 patients. The findings show that culture and education play a major role in illness experiences. The consequence of thalassemia is extremely stressful, and patients face a variety of physical, psychological, and social problems. Considering these experiences, the study concludes that thalassemia might be officially considered as a disability in India, requiring a multiple theoretical as well as a multipronged intervention method to tackle it adequately.
Explanatory Models and Help-Seeking Behavior: Pathways to Psychiatric Care Among Patients Admitted for Depression in Mulago Hospital, Kampala, Uganda
Authors: Okello Elialilia S. , Neema Stella
Published: December 2006

In this article, the authors present findings from a qualitative study exploring how people diagnosed with depression conceptualize their condition and how their conceptualization shaped their efforts to seek help. They used an interview guide based on an explanatory model framework for data collection. Four major themes emerged from the analysis: (a) somatization, social meaning of illness, and help seeking; (b) meaning and perceived consequences of illness; (c) How did I get here? Making sense of psychiatric admission; and (d) variations in the causal attribution and the role of significant others in help seeking. Somatization of emotional problems, variations in causal attribution between patients and their significant others, the nature of the available health care system, and burden of infectious disease complicate access to care. These findings suggest the need to raise the awareness of primary care providers on how to recognize and help people with depression appropriately in this setting.
Using Focus Groups With Minority Ethnic Communities: Researching Infertility in British South Asian Communities
Authors: Culley Lorraine , Hudson Nicky , Rapport Frances
Published: December 2006

Little attention has been given to the specific methodological issues that can accompany the use of focus groups with minority ethnic communities in the United Kingdom. In this article, the authors discuss the use of this method in a study of the provision of infertility services to South Asian communities in three English cities. Focus groups are an invaluable research method for working in a diverse linguistic and cultural environment, providing interesting, rich, and complex data. However, their use can raise significant methodological and ethical challenges for researchers working with minority ethnic communities. The authors discuss key issues that arose in their exploration of ethnicity and infertility around language and cultural diversity, the role of community facilitators, access and recruitment, infertility as a “sensitive” topic, and reciprocity in research relations.
Key Informants' Perspectives Prior to Beginning a Cervical Cancer Study in Ohio Appalachia
Authors: Katz Mira L. , Wewers Mary Ellen , Single Nancy , Paskett Electra D.
Published: December 2006

Higher-than-average cervical cancer incidence and mortality rates occur in Ohio Appalachia. Little is known, however, about societal norms and social determinants that affect these rates. To examine county-level sociocultural environments to plan a cervical cancer prevention program, the authorsinterviewed key informants from 17 of 29 Ohio Appalachia counties. Findingsinclude the perceived offensiveness of the term Appalachia, the importance of long-standing family ties, urban and rural areas within counties, use and acceptability of tobacco, the view that cancer is a death sentence, and the stigmatization of people with cancer. Barriers to screening included cost, lack of insurance, transportation problems, fear, embarrassment, and privacy issues. These findings highlight the important role of geography, social environment, and culture on health behaviors and health outcomes. The interviews provided information about the unique characteristics of this population that are important when developing effective strategies to address cancer-related health behaviors in this medically underserved population.
The Global Justice Movement’s Use of “Jail Solidarity” as a Response to Police Repression and Arrest
Authors: Thompson Beverly Yuen
Published: December 2006

This article ethnographically analyzes the use of direct action, or “jail solidarity”, behind bars, during mass protest episodes. The global justice movement has been the most recent inheritors of this historical tactic, and it has been utilized since the World Trade Organization (WTO) protests in Seattle. Unjust arrests are countered with noncooperation behind bars, to pressure for charges to be reduced or dropped. Ethnography is appropriate for obtaining information on this high-risk, concealed behavior. Based on fieldwork, participant observation, and in-depth interviewing, the perspectives, self-reflexivity, and sociolinguistic construction of jail solidarity is presented in the participants’ own words.
Telling Secrets, Revealing Lives
Authors: Ellis Carolyn
Published: December 2006

This article focuses on relational ethics in research with intimate others. Relational ethics requires researchers to act from our hearts and minds, acknowledge our interpersonal bonds to others, and take responsibility for actions and their consequences. Calling on her own research studies, the author examines relational ethics in ethnographies in which researchers are friends with or become friends with participants over the course of their projects. Then she examines autoethnographic narratives in which researchers include intimate others in stories focusing on their own experience. Considering ethical responsibilities to identifiable others, she discusses writing about those who are alive and those who have died. She then reflects on the ways co-constructed autoethnographies circumvent some of the ethical issues in traditional qualitative studies on unfamiliar others, yet avoid some of the ethical concerns in writing about intimate others. The last section presents advice for those who long to write about intimate others.
The Research Interview as Discourses Crossing Swords
Authors: Tanggaard Lene
Published: December 2006

This article presents a conception of the qualitative research interview as discourses crossing swords. The article draws on examples showing how the researchers’ view on learning is challenged by the interviewed apprentices. The apprentices do not assume learning in itself to be an important aspect of their lives. They consider the process of becoming a competent professional the main motive of their working lives. In the presented interview situations, these differing assumptions of the researcher and the apprentices become apparent as competing discourses: learning versus professional competence. These discourses cross each other and become the context of a productive negotiation of meaning. In the article it is suggested that in such cases, the qualitative research interview can be understood on the background of a battlefield metaphor highlighting the antagonistic character of conversations in an interview setting aimed at research.
The World Becomes Stranger, the Pattern More Complicated
Authors: Quinney Richard
Published: December 2006

Along the way, as we get older, as T. S. Eliot writes in his poem, “The world becomes stranger, the pattern more complicated/Of dead and living.” Lately, I have been spending more of my time at the farm. This is the farm that has belonged to my family for generations, since first being settled by my great-grandparents fleeing the potato famine in Ireland, and it is the farm of my birth and early years. Although it would be easy to think of the farm more in the past tense than in the present, I have come to know the place in present terms. Solace is found in this place, here and now. Even among the ruins, in a world becoming stranger, and a pattern more complicated.
Daisies on the Road
Authors: Roets Griet , Goedgeluck Marijke
Published: December 2006

In this article, the authors trace the possible political potential of their post-modernist, feminist approach to life story research with people with the label of “learning difficulties.” As a self-advocate with an ally, they define tagging along with each other as discovery science. The authors reflect on how they openly and critically write themselves into their life (story) as subjects in dialogue, which makes the driving force to negotiate openness, expose hegemonic power arrangements and inherent silences, highlight secrets of oppression and resistance, and revalue knowledge that risks being disqualified in current social sciences. To be able to do so, and to recognize activism, the authors reveal their choice to creatively apply a variety of research methodologies. Finally, they attempt to rethink and refine conceptualizations that pervade current theoretical developments in disability studies.
Real-time Detection of Debonding between Honeycomb Core and Facesheet using a Small-diameter FBG Sensor Embedded in Adhesive Layer
Authors: Minakuchi Shu , Okabe Yoji , Takeda Nobuo
Published: December 2006

The authors have developed a novel technique to detect debonding in honeycomb sandwich structures using small-diameter fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors. A small-diameter FBG sensor is embedded in the adhesive layer between the core and the facesheet during the curing process of the adhesive layer. After the curing process, the reflection spectrum from the small-diameter FBG sensor is distorted because the formation of fillets induces a non-uniform strain distribution in the adhesive layer. However, after debonding, the core with the fillets peels off the facesheet, and, as a result, the reflection spectrum recovers its original shape due to the release of the non-uniform strain. Debonding can thus be detected with high sensitivity in real time from the recovery in the shape of the reflection spectrum. In addition, a more reliable debonding detection technique using a small-diameter chirped FBG sensor is proposed, in which two indicators in the reflection spectrum have been successfully used for a more reliable judgment of debonding.
Soft-core Sandwich Panels with Embedded Rigid Inclusions
Authors: Rabinovitch Oded
Published: December 2006

The structural response of sandwich panels hosting rigid inclusions (inserts) embedded in a soft core is analytically investigated. Three approaches for the mathematical modeling of the structural behavior of the sandwich panel hosting the rigid inclusion are formulated, examined, and compared. In the first approach, the rigid body displacement field of the inclusion is introduced through a unique constitutive law. The second approach uses a multilayered high-order model in which the rigid insert is modeled using significantly increased but finite mechanical properties. In the third approach, the embedded inclusion is considered infinitely rigid and the compatibility and interaction between the rigid insert and the adjacent structural components are imposed using Lagrange multipliers. In all the cases, the field equations and the boundary condition are derived using variational principles. The continuity conditions that connect between the region hosting the rigid insert and the adjacent ordinary sandwich regions are also derived using the variational principle. The mathematical models resulting from the first and second approaches take the form of a set of coupled differential equations. On the other hand, the third approach, which takes advantage of the rigid body displacement field of the embedded inclusion, yields a reduced order set of coupled differential-integral equations. An analytical procedure for the solution of this set of equations is derived. Numerical results that focus on the deformed shape of the panel under load, the distributions of the internal stress resultants, the shear and vertical normal stresses in the core, and the interaction between the rigid insert and the adjacent components are presented. The numerical results compare between the various modeling approaches, demonstrate their capabilities, and reveal some of the characteristics of such sandwich panels. A summary and conclusions closes the paper.
Effect of Soft Honeycomb Core on Flexural Vibration of Sandwich Panel using Low Order and High Order Shear Deformation Models
Authors: Liu Qunli , Zhao Yi
Published: December 2006

Low order and high order shear deformation models are applied to investigate the effect of honeycomb core (transversely shear deformable) on flexural vibration of thick rectangular sandwich panel with isotropic facesheets. Strain and kinetic energy of sandwich panel are expressed in terms of material properties and structural parameters. Partial differential equations are derived based upon a variational principle. Solutions in Navier form are obtained for a simply supported rectangular panel. The effect of honeycomb core parameters, such as characteristic angle, cell wall thickness, and cell size is studied. Comparison between low order model, high order model, and finite element method is provided. It is shown that in most cases results from a high order model without facesheet shear effect are close to those from finite element analysis.
College student travel: A revised model of push motives
Authors: Kim Kakyom , Oh Ick-Keun , Jogaratnam Giri
Published: December 2006

The purpose of the current study was to determine push motives of students attending US colleges and universities and to confirm if an existing push motivation model would find support and statistical acceptance in the college and university market. A total of 484 students were surveyed to collect data. Important push motivation factors for the college student market included ‘Knowledge’, ‘Sports’, and ‘Adventure’. Although a confirma-tory factor analysis revealed that the model was quite plausible based on the evaluation of five overall model fit indices, there were notable exceptions as well. Marketing implications based on these findings are discussed.
Hidden messages: A polysemic reading of tourist brochures
Authors: Edelheim Johan R.
Published: December 2006

It is self-evident that tourist brochures are selling a positive and attractive destination to travellers; what is not as clear are the hidden messages conveyed by the selection of certain pictures in the brochures produced. By coding each picture appearing in a series of tourist brochures according to their content this research aims at showing how the brochures are overtly aimed at different groups of travellers, while they simultaneously are reinforcing certain hegemonic views of society. The suggestion that hegemonic messages appear is not an accusation against the producers of the brochures of covert propaganda, but rather that taken-for-granted views of society as unproblematic truths portrayed in the brochures is not correct-the brochures should rather be viewed as highly sensitive polysemic constructs.
Developing a service quality questionnaire for the hotel industry in Mauritius
Authors: Ramsaran-Fowdar Rooma Roshnee
Published: December 2006

The evaluation of customer satisfaction is a primary goal for any service firm that would like to survive in this increasingly competitive market. Keeping tourists satisfied and delighted is even more important for the Mauritian tourism industry given that the destination faces fierce competition abroad. Developing a measure of hotel service quality is an important precursor to attracting and retaining tourists and hence ensuring the survival of hotels. SERVQUAL has been proposed as a generic measure of service quality that may be applicable to hotel services. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether SERVQUAL dimensions are pertinent to the hotel industry. Results from this study verify SERVQUAL dimensions, but demonstrate additional dimensions that are specific to the hotel sector.
Packaging places: Designing heritage trails using an experience economy perspective to maximize visitor engagement
Authors: Hayes Deborah , MacLeod Nicola
Published: December 2006

Heritage trails are a unifying mechanism within the urban cultural tourism landscape and this article explores these tourism products against the principles of experience design suggested by Pine and Gilmore.1 Content analysis of trail brochures and leaflets incorporated both qualitative and quantitative dimensions in order to ascertain whether these are positioned as products or experiences. The results indicate that whilst trails utilize some of the approaches recommended by Pine and Gilmore,2 there is still considerable scope for improvement in terms of their positioning and presentational format, if they are to maximize their potential.
If you have their minds, will their bodies follow? Factors effecting customer loyalty in a ski resort setting
Authors: Clark John S. , Maher Jill K.
Published: December 2006

In many business situations, the primary focus of marketing activities can be viewed as developing and maintaining repeat patronage or loyalty from the firm’s customer base. Due to many alternatives for consumers, vacation marketers are building loyalty by developing relationships with consumers. While organizations may conceptualize and even implement relationship marketing practices into their consumer loyalty strategies, it is necessary to examine the variables contributing to a more loyal consumer base. This paper explores the relationship between organizationally related factors and consumer attitudinal loyalty in the resort industry using data collected from a ski resort. All factors in the study have been linked to loyalty, but have not previously been examined in one study. Regression results indicate that trust, commitment, satisfaction, past behavior, and value predict 60 percent of the variance in attitudinal loyalty. Implications suggest resort marketers need to segment customers based on number of visits, creating strategies to manipulate factors that are most important to each segment.
Acute fingertip injuries
Authors: Chakravarthy J , Qureshi A , Waldram M A , Porter K
Published: December 2006

The nail is unique to primates as a specialized structure on the dorsum of the distal portion of each finger, thumb and toe. The nail allows for increased sensory perception on the volar pulp by compressing sensory organs against the unyielding nail. The nail is vital for increased prehension which is so unique in primate function. In addition it protects the fingertip and also serves as a temperature regulator.

Fingertips are often our first contact with the environment, are one of the most common injuries presenting to a hand surgeon and may seriously impair the abilities of individuals if injured. The fingertip is the most sensitive part of the hand and has a large area of representation in the sensory cortex.

The severity of injury to the nail bed is commonly underestimated because the nail conceals the true extent of injury. The consequences of mismanaged fingertip injuries is often manifest in the form of chronic nail and fingertip deformities, which are more difficult to treat than the original injury. It is therefore important for junior doctor to competently assess the patient, appreciate the potential disabilities and to arrange prompt referral to a hand unit. This article discusses the relevant anatomy, physiology and management of acute perionychial injuries.
Free fall trauma
Authors: Tan S , Porter K
Published: December 2006

In the abrupt vertical deceleration that occurs on impact after a free fall, tissue damage is caused by the absorption by the body of the energy accumulated during the free fall. Patients sustain a unique injury pattern that is predicatably different from that seen with other forms of blunt multiple trauma. The present paper reviews the pathophysiology and pattern of injury sustained following free fall.
Sir Harold Gillies: surgical pioneer
Authors: Bamji Andrew
Published: December 2006

Innumerable articles and eulogies have been written about Harold Delf Gillies (HDG) detailing his contributions to the field of plastic surgery. There is perhaps more to HDG than this alone. While his singular personality led him to think ‘outside the box’ in surgical terms, his innovations extended past mere technique and he was perhaps responsible for a more generally applicable philosophy -that of the multidisciplinary team. This article examines some of his achievements and looks behind the surgeon to the visionary.
Fractures of the elbow: supracondylar fractures
Authors: Temple A , Bache C E , Gibbons P J
Published: December 2006

Fractures about the elbow are second in frequency only to the distal radius. Trauma specialists should be familiar with the range of possible injuries, complications, and be confident in their diagnosis and management.
Calcaneus fractures
Authors: Rammelt Stefan , Zwipp Hans
Published: December 2006

Assessment and treatment of calcaneal fractures have made substantial progress over the last two decades. Open reduction and stable internal fixation without joint transfixation has been established as standard therapy for most displaced intra-articular fractures with good to excellent results in more than two-thirds of patients in larger clinical series. The use of bone grafting or bone substitutes appears unnecessary in most cases. Important prognostic factors are anatomical reduction of subtalar joint congruity and the overall shape of the calcaneus. Therefore, quality of joint reduction should be reliably proved intra-operatively either with open subtalar arthroscopy or high-resolution (3D) fluoroscopy. Treatment results are adversely affected by open fractures, delayed reduction after more than 14 days, a high body mass index and smoking. The extended lateral approach respects the neurovascular supply to the heel and allows a good exposition of the fractured lateral wall, the subtalar and calcaneocuboid joints in complex fractures. In simple fracture patterns percutaneous screw fixation, supplemented by arthroscopic control if necessary, is a good alternative. Open fractures, compartment syndrome and fractures with severe soft tissue compromise are treated as emergency cases. Early, stable soft tissue coverage exploiting the full armamentarium of pedicled and free tissue transfer appears promising in improving the functional results and infection rates after open fractures. Calcaneal malunions after conservative therapy of displaced fractures are disabling conditions that can be treated successfully with a staged protocol according to the type of deformity. Treatment options include lateral wall decompression, in situ or correctional subtalar arthrodesis and calcaneal osteotomies.