bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A longitudinal study of hypomania and depression symptoms in pregnancy and the postpartum period
Authors: Heron Jessica , Haque Sayeed , Oyebode Femi , Craddock Nick , Jones Ian
Published: May 2009

Objectives: Childbirth is a potent precipitant of severe episodes of bipolar disorder. We investigate mood longitudinally through pregnancy and the postpartum period, using the Highs Scale and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), to examine if the postpartum period is a time of increased risk for hypomanic symptoms in the general population.

Methods: A total of 446 women were recruited at 12 weeks of pregnancy from the Birmingham Women’s Hospital and four midwife‐led community clinics. Women completed the Highs Scale and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale at 12 weeks of pregnancy, one week postpartum, and eight weeks postpartum.

Results: Cases of probable depression, as defined by an EPDS score of 13 or greater, did not significantly increase from pregnancy to the postpartum period. The prevalence of ‘the highs’ was eightfold higher in the postpartum week than during pregnancy.

Conclusions: Consistent with the increased rates of severe manic illness following childbirth, we find that more minor hypomanic states are also increased. We consider the clinical relevance of postpartum hypomanic symptoms and the implications of these findings for research into postpartum‐onset mood symptoms.
Clinical predictors of functional outcome of bipolar patients in remission
Authors: Rosa Adriane R , Reinares Maria , Franco Carolina , Comes Mercè , Torrent Carla , Sánchez‐Moreno Jose , Martínez‐Arán Anabel , Salamero Manel , Kapczinski Flávio , Vieta Eduard
Published: May 2009

Objectives:  A number of studies have now shown that subjects with bipolar disorder (BD) have significant psychosocial impairment during interepisode intervals. This study was carried out to assess the level of functioning as well as to identify potential predictors of functioning in a well‐defined, euthymic bipolar sample.

Methods:  The study included 71 euthymic bipolar patients and 61 healthy controls. The Functioning Assessment Short Test (FAST) was used to assess multiple areas of functioning such as autonomy, occupational functioning, cognitive functioning, interpersonal relationships, financial issues, and leisure time. Multivariate analysis was used to determine the global and specific clinical predictors of outcome.

Results:  Sixty percent (n = 42) of the patients had overall functional impairment (defined as a FAST total score > 11) compared to 13.1% (n = 8) of the control group (p = 0.001). Bipolar patients showed a worse functioning in all the areas of the FAST. Only four variables—older age, depressive symptoms, number of previous mixed episodes, and number of previous hospitalizations—were associated with poor functioning, on a linear regression model, which accounted for 44% of the variance (F = 12.54, df = 58, p < 0.001).

Conclusions:  A substantial proportion of bipolar patients experience unfavorable functioning, suggesting that there is a significant degree of morbidity and dysfunction associated with BD, even during remission periods. Previous mixed episodes, current subclinical depressive symptoms, previous hospitalizations, and older age were identified as significant potential clinical predictors of functional impairment.
Association between lithium serum level, mood state, and patient‐reported adverse drug reactions during long‐term lithium treatment: a naturalistic follow‐up study
Authors: Wilting Ingeborg , Heerdink Eibert R , Mersch Peter‐Paul A , Den Boer Johannes A , Egberts Antoine C G , Nolen Willem A
Published: May 2009

Objectives:  To assess the association between mood state and the prevalence and the severity of lithium adverse drug reactions (ADRs).

Methods:  A 26‐year follow‐up study was conducted among patients ≥18 years treated at the outpatient lithium clinic of the University Medical Center Groningen, The Netherlands, between November 1973 and December 2000. At each monthly scheduled visit, patients were questioned by a research nurse in a standardized manner about the presence and the severity of nine specific ADRs that frequently occur as a consequence of lithium treatment and that can be identified by the patients themselves. In addition, lithium serum level was measured and mood state was rated at each visit.

Results:  A total of 186 patients participated and the median duration of follow‐up was 5.7 years (interquartile range 2.2–11.8 years). We observed an increased prevalence and severity of ADRs with increased lithium serum level (p < 0.05), also when adjusting for mood state. The prevalence and the severity of ADRs increased with decreasing mood state into the depressive range and decreased with mood state increasing into the manic range (p < 0.05), also when adjusting for lithium serum level. Taking into account the intraindividual dependency of the data resulted in a statistically significant (p < 0.001) association between, respectively, lithium serum level, mood state, and the prevalence and severity of ADRs.

Conclusions:  Both physicians and researchers need to be aware that lithium serum level and mood state are independently associated with patient reporting and severity scoring of ADRs, which may complicate objective assessment of ADRs.
MEG auditory evoked fields suggest altered structural/functional asymmetry in primary but not secondary auditory cortex in bipolar disorder
Authors: Reite Martin , Teale Peter , Rojas Donald C , Reite Erik , Asherin Ryan , Hernandez Olivia
Published: May 2009

Objectives: Objective physiological indices independently characterizing affective and schizophreniform psychoses would contribute to our understanding of the nature of their relationships. Magnetoencephalography (MEG)‐based metrics of altered structural/functional asymmetry in the superior temporal gyrus have previously been found to characterize schizophrenia at the level of both the primary auditory (AI) and the secondary auditory (AII) cortex. This study examines these markers in patients with bipolar disorder, with the goal of improved understanding of the patterns of brain asymmetry that may independently characterize affective and schizophreniform psychosis.

Methods: We studied 17 euthymic bipolar subjects and 17 matched controls. Auditory evoked fields were generated by both 40 Hz auditory stimuli eliciting steady state gamma band (SSR), activating the AI cortex, and discrete 1 kHz tone pips, activating the AII cortex. MEG was recorded from the hemisphere contralateral to the ear stimulated using a 37‐channel MEG system. Source location estimates were calculated in both left and right hemispheres. Neuroanatomical location estimates for medial Heschl’s gyri were determined from magnetic resonance images for correlation with MEG source locations.

Results: Bipolar subjects failed to demonstrate normal laterality of SSR AI responses, indicating altered patterns of asymmetry at the level of AI cortex, but demonstrated normal asymmetry of AII responses (right anterior to left). Medial Heschl’s gyri centroids were similarly lateralized in both groups, however (right anterior to left), dissociating function from structure in the AI cortex in the bipolar group.

Conclusions: The findings are compatible with altered functional/structural relationships, including diminished left‐right hemisphere asymmetry of the AI, but not the AII cortex in bipolar disorder. In schizophrenia, both the AI and AII cortices exhibit such derangements; thus, the findings support both shared and nonshared features of auditory cortical disruption between the two disorders. This functional disorganization may help explain previously reported decreases in amplitude and phase synchrony of SSR gamma band responses in bipolar subjects, suggesting impaired neocortical synchrony in AI, possibly at a cortico‐thalamic level, but perhaps not extending to heteromodal association cortex, and may relate to the cognitive impairments found in bipolar disorder.
Capture of mass‐reared vs. wild‐like males ofCeratitis capitata(Dipt., Tephritidae) in trimedlure‐baited traps
Authors: Shelly T. E. , Edu J.
Published: May 2009

The sterile insect technique (SIT) is widely used to suppress or eradicate infestations of the Mediterranean fruit fly,Ceratitis capitata(Wied.), an insect whose broad polyphagy poses a serious threat to fruit and vegetable crops. The SIT involves the production, sterilization and release of sterile insects to obtain sterile male by wild female matings, thus yielding infertile eggs. Mass‐rearing over many generations is known to produce dramatic changes in the behaviour and life history ofC. capitata. This study investigated the possibility that mass‐rearing also alters male response to trimedlure, a sex‐specific attractant widely used in detection and monitoring programmes. We compared captures of released males from a mass‐reared strain and a recently established colony of wild flies in trimedlure‐baited Jackson traps at three spatial scales – open field, large field enclosures (75 m2) and small field cages (7 m2) – in two separate years. In the first year, males were used independently of flight ability, while in the second year only males with demonstrated flight capability were used. Trap capture was scored 2 days after release for the open field and the large field enclosures but either 1 h or 1 day after release in the small field cages. The findings were consistent across these different experiments: wild‐like males were captured in significantly greater numbers than mass‐reared males in both years of study, except in the trials lasting 1 day in the small field cages where significantly more wild than mass‐reared males were captured in 1 year but not the other. These results are compared with other studies, and their implications for SIT are discussed.
Vascular involvement in cutaneous sarcoidosis
Authors: Takemura Tamiko , Shlshiba Takako , Akiyarna Osamu , Oritsu Masaru , Watsui Yasuo , Eishi Yoshlnobu
Published: May 2009

Sarcoldorls is a systemlc granulomatous disease with systemic vascular Involvement, that Is, granulomatous anglitis and mieroanglapathy. To detarmlne if there is vascular Invoivement In cutaneous sarcoidosls, we examined 42 skin specimens taken from 32 patients with cutaneous lesions of narcoidosls. Cutaneous sarcoidosis was prevalent In older females with high serum anglotensin‐converting enzyme (ACE) levels. Most skin lesions appeered during the following up of narcoldosis. Granulomatous anglitls was present in 12 specimens of sarcold skin lesions (30.8%). Eight of the 12 specimens showed venous Involvement In the dermis. There was no correlation between the Incldence of granulomatous anglitis and the gross pattern of cutaneous sarcoldosls. Immunohistochemically, thrombomodulln was negative in the vascular endothelium close to the granuloma or a peri‐phlebltis lesion. Electron mlcroscopy revealed endothelial swelling, Iumlnal narrowing, and basal Iamina Iayering of the basement membrane in the capillaries and venules in the dermis. These findings demonstreted that granulomatous anglitis and mictoanglopathy coexist in cutaneous sarcoldosis.
Acute and reversible fatty metamorphosis of cultured rat hepatocytes
Authors: Yarnaki Toshifumi , Tsu‐ura Yukio , Watanabe Kazuo , Fukuda Takeaki , Suzuki Toshirnltsu
Published: May 2009

Rat hepatocyte cell line M6 B347 and J525, among which only M6 is slightly deviated from diploidy, showed marked microvesicular fatty metamorphosls in response to treatment with Tweens at concentratlons of 0.05–0.025% In Eagle's minimum essentlal medium (MEY). Within 24h treated cells became fatty at 100% In frequency and filled with small lipld droplets, as revealed by fat stalning or at the ultrastructural level. Fatty hepatocytes, however, took again non‐fatty morphology 72 h after withdrawal of Tweens from the culture medium. Growth of the cell exhibited mlld retardation at the early phase of the treatment but almost simllar cell density to that of control cells was achleved 24 h after the treatment. Other detergents without fatty‐acld moiety, including NP‐40, triton X‐100, sodium deoxychollc acld and sodium cholic acld, were ineffective to induce fatty change. Oleate, a fatty‐acld molety of Tween 80 or 85, and linolate caused reversible fatty metarnorphosls of the cell llnes at concentratlons of 1.9X10‐4 mol/L or more and 3.8X10‐‐4 mol/L or more, respectively. Ethanol Induced mild steatosls of the cell lines and enhanced fatty change by linolate. Hepatic fatty acid‐binding proteln was not detected in the cell lines before or after the Induction of fatty change. These results Indicate that fatty acid Itself Is directiy Incorporated In cultured rat hepatocytes and expelled 3 days later without apparent cell degeneration.
A statistical analysis of computerized pathologic autopsy data in Japan from 1974 through 1993
Authors: Alzawa Shlgeo , Fukushlma Tohru
Published: May 2009

A computerized natlonwide autopsy database was analyzed to assess the maln pathologic diagnoses and prlmary sltes of mallgnancies. in Japan from 1974 to 1993. The data contained more than 689000 casess, which corresponds to about 5.0% of des the in Japan during that time. Cases were anatyzed m four 5‐year perlods. The distrlbution at the diseases and tumor primary sltes for age and sex was listed. The histologic types at pulmonary and gartric mallgnancles and the frequencies of primary sites In brain metestasea were used as examples.
Bilateral breast tumors, malignant phyllodes tumor and invasive lobular carcinoma in a 46, XX/46, XY mosaic female with family history of breast cancer*
Authors: Kasami Masako , Yoshlda Masayukl , Isogaki Jun , Ogawa Hiroshi , Shinmura Kazuya , Endo Yutaka , Kiyokawa Etsuko , Naito Yasuhisa , Arai Tomlo , Kimura Taizo , Inoue Rie , Sugimura Haruhiko
Published: May 2009

Bllateral breast tumors, a malignant phyllodes tumor in the right breast and an Invasive Iobular carcinoma in the left breast, occurred In a 47‐yearold woman with 46XX/46XY mosalc karyotype in her peripheral blood lymphocytes and intersex external genitalia. Postmortem examinatlon revealed bllateral ovotestls. Three of the patient's sisters also had breast cancer.In situhybridization with a Y‐specific probe revealed Yehromosome‐speciflc signal in both tumors, suggesting that the clonal origin of tumors in this patient was Y‐contalnlng cells. Androgen‐receptor polymorphlsm also revealed a monoallelic X chromosome pattern in the recurrent phyllodes tumor tlssue taken at autopsy, in addltlon to loss of heterozygoslty demonstrated at locus TP53. The slippage of the CA repeats In the tumor was also shown at the locl of D5S82 and D11S527. The mechanistlc basis for the occurrence of bilateral malignant tumors of the breast, XX/MY mosalcism, and famllial clustering of breast cancer is still unknown. The present study, however, suggests that the sex chromosome abnormality may have modtfied the cancer phenotype in a manner simllar to breast cancer In Klinefel‐ter's syndrome (though phenotypically male) and the Y chromosome may have promoted cell growth.
Melanocytoma of the foramen magnum
Authors: Hirose Takanori , Horiguchl Hidehisa , Kaneko Fumihito , Kusaka Kazumasa , Morlzumi Hiroshi , Seki Kunihiko , Sano Toshlaki
Published: May 2009

This report concerns a 66‐year‐old man with a melanocytoma arlsing at the foramen magnum. Magnetic resonance Imaging disclosed a well‐clrcumscrlbed tumor extending from the medulla oblongata to C1 wtth gadolinium enhancement. A heavlly pigmented tumor located under the leptomeninges was removed surgically. Although the patient died 8 months later of renal cell carclnoma, no recurrence or metastasls of the melanocytoma was detected by radiographic examination. Microscopically, the resected tumor was composed of polygonal to spindle‐shaped cells contalning large amounts of melanin. The bland nuclei of the tumor cells were of uniform size. No mitotic figures were seen. The tumor cells were posltively immunostained for S‐100 protein and by antibody HMW‐45. They were not stained using the Ki‐67 (MIB‐1) antlbody, indicating low proliferative activity. The ultrastructural examinatlon revealed numerous mature mela‐nosomes and basal iamlnae surrounding nests of cells. The tumor was diagnosed as a melanocytoma on the bases of its microscopic features and the lack of KI‐67 Immunoreacthrity. The ultrastructural and immunohlstochemlcal features of melanocytomas are distinct from those of menlnglomas. It is likely that melanocytomas and melanotic schwannomas represent opposite extremes of the continuous spectrum of neuroectodennal tumors derlved from the neural crest.
Mucinous cystadenoma with malignant transformation arising in the renal pelvis
Authors: Toyoda Hiroshi , Mabuchi Tat‐ , Fukuda Kousel
Published: May 2009

Mucinous cystadenoma with malignant transformation occupying the lower half portion al the right renal peivis in a 64 year‐old Japanaese man was rocorded. The patient had recent dysuria but no clinical history of pyelonephritis or urollthiasis. Under the clinical diagnosis of unusual renal cyst, the right total nephrectomy was pertormed. Grossly, the cystic tumor, 5 cm across, formed a mondocular lumen filled with mucins and showed no direct communication with the renal peivis Inside. Microscopically, the epithetial lining was characterbad by a single layer of benign much producing columnar cells that scatered foci of non‐invasive papillary projections with cell Stratifiation and nuclear atypla suggestive of malignancy. Although there was non‐specific chronic pyelttis, no pyeittis cystica et glandularis was encountered. Of circa 60 glandular neoplasms arbing In the renal peivis reported previously, adenomas are only five Including two mucinous cystadenomas, while the remainder are adenocarcinomas. The histological findings of mucinous cystadenoma in the present case may represent the process of a transition from adenoma to adenocarcinoma. The result suggests the possibility that adenoma‐carcinoma sequence may exist among the glandular neoplasms arising in the renal peivis. The histogenesis was unciarffled.
Predation leads to assembly rules in fragmented fish communities
Authors: Englund Göran , Johansson Frank , Olofsson Patrik , Salonsaari Juha , Öhman Johanna
Published: May 2009

Diamond [Assembly of species communities. In: Ecology and Evolution of Communities (eds Cody, M.L. & Diamond, J.M.). Harvard University Press, Cambridge, pp. 342–444] proposed that resource competition leads to checkerboard‐like distributions of competing species. This proposal prompted research that revealed checkerboard patterns within a wide range of communities, but the mechanisms that generate such patterns are still poorly understood. Here we present whole‐lake natural experiments and analyses of species–environment relationships in small coastal lake fish communities that were fragmented when land uplift isolated these lakes from the Baltic Sea, showing that a combination of predation and habitat suitability generated checkerboard distributions. Checkerboard patterns developed because two piscivores, northern pike and Eurasian perch, caused the extinction of several prey species in deep lakes. Conversely, low oxygen levels in shallow lakes caused extinction of the piscivores, and these areas served as a refuge for tolerant prey species. Based on these findings, we suggest that habitat suitability and biotic interactions should be viewed simultaneously in null models of assembly rules.
Contribution of mobile genetic elements to Desulfovibrio vulgaris genome plasticity
Authors: Walker Christopher B. , Stolyar Sergey , Chivian Dylan , Pinel Nicolas , Gabster Jeffrey A. , Dehal Paramvir S. , He Zhili , Yang Zamin Koo , Yen Huei‐Che B. , Zhou Jizhong , Wall Judy D. , Hazen Terry C. , Arkin Adam P. , Stahl David A.
Published: May 2009

The genome of Desulfovibrio vulgaris strain DePue, a sulfate‐reducing Deltaproteobacterium isolated from heavy metal‐impacted lake sediment, was completely sequenced and compared with the type strain D. vulgaris Hildenborough. The two genomes share a high degree of relatedness and synteny, but harbour distinct prophage and signatures of past phage encounters. In addition to a highly variable phage contribution, the genome of strain DePue contains a cluster of open‐reading frames not found in strain Hildenborough coding for the production and export of a capsule exopolysaccharide, possibly of relevance to heavy metal resistance. Comparative whole‐genome microarray analysis on four additional D. vulgaris strains established greater interstrain variation within regions associated with phage insertion and exopolysaccharide biosynthesis.
Degradation of alkanes by bacteria
Authors: Rojo Fernando
Published: May 2009

Pollution of soil and water environments by crude oil has been, and is still today, an important problem. Crude oil is a complex mixture of thousands of compounds. Among them, alkanes constitute the major fraction. Alkanes are saturated hydrocarbons of different sizes and structures. Although they are chemically very inert, most of them can be efficiently degraded by several microorganisms. This review summarizes current knowledge on how microorganisms degrade alkanes, focusing on the biochemical pathways used and on how the expression of pathway genes is regulated and integrated within cell physiology.
Social Representations of Retirement in France: A Descriptive Study
Authors: Roland‐Lévy Christine , Berjot Sophie
Published: May 2009

The social representations of three social groups (students, people in the workforce, and retirees) are investigated. Comparison of the three samples allows one to describe how social representations of retirement differ according to age and employment status. It can be noted that both students and adults who are still working share some core elements in their representation of retirement, which is mainly perceived as a well‐deserved time to rest. However, the central nucleus of those people who have recently retired excludes this idea of needing some time to rest and centers more around having less stress, and more freedom; the end of work might mean undesired inactivity.

Les représentations sociales de la retraite de trois groupes sociaux (étudiants, individus issus de la population active et retraités) sont étudiées. La comparaison entre les trois échantillons permet de décrire comment les représentations sociales de la retraite diffèrent selon l'âge et le statut du sujet. On a pu noter que les étudiants et les adultes en activité partagent quelques éléments centraux de leur représentation sociale de la retraite, qui est essentiellement perçue comme un temps de repos bien mérité. Cependant, le noyau central des personnes récemment retraitées ne contient pas cette idée d'un besoin d'un temps de repos et se centre plus sur le fait d'être moins stressé et d'avoir plus de liberté; la fin du travail pourrait alors signifier une inactivité non désirée.
Naïve Diversification in the Swedish Premium Pension Scheme: Experimental Evidence
Authors: Hedesström Ted Martin , Svedsäter Henrik , Gärling Tommy
Published: May 2009

In the Swedish Premium Pension Scheme (PPS) all citizens in paid employment allocate part of their public pension savings to mutual funds. In so doing they tend to distribute their choices maximally across different stock fund categories. It is hypothesised that this reflects the naïve application of a variety‐inducing diversification heuristic. The results of two experiments simulating choices of fund categories in the PPS support this hypothesis by showing that participating undergraduates chose stock funds investing in overlapping and non‐overlapping markets or industries in a way demonstrating failure to take into account covariation among fund returns. Administrators of the PPS and similar defined‐contribution pension plans should provide participants with comprehensive advice on how to diversify their investment.

Dans le régime de retraite suédois (PPS), tous les citoyens ayant un emploi salarié allouent une part de l'épargne de leur retraite publique à des fonds d'investissements. Ce faisant, ils tendent majoritairement à répartir leurs choix dans différentes catégories de fonds. On a fait l'hypothèse que cela reflète l'application naïve d'une heuristique de la diversification. Les résultats de deux expérimentations simulant des choix entre différentes catégories de fonds pour le PPS confirment cette hypothèse : les sujets (étudiants) ont choisi des fonds en actions et devaient investir sur des marchés ou dans des branches industrielles relevant ou non du même secteur économique et cela d'une façon qui mettait en évidence leur incapacitéà prendre en considération le fait que le retour sur investissement de différents fonds pouvait être lié. Les administrateurs du PPS et de plans de pensions avec versements programmés devraient fournir aux participants des conseils avisés sur la façon de diversifier leur investissement.
Entrepreneurship and Risk Taking
Authors: Macko Anna , Tyszka Tadeusz
Published: May 2009

According to the definition of entrepreneurship and everyday observation, entrepreneurs are perceived as more risk prone than other people. However, laboratory studies do not provide conclusive support for this claim. In our study, three groups of students served as subjects. One group of students did not express any intention of starting up their own business in the near future. The second group consisted of students who had participated in a special course designed for future entrepreneurs. The third group consisted of students or alumni who became entrepreneurs before graduating. In accordance with Knight's claim, we found that actual entrepreneurs revealed the highest, and students who did not express an intention of starting their own business the lowest, level of self‐confidence of all groups participating in the experiment. On the other hand, in well‐defined risky situations we did not confirm a hypothesis that would‐be entrepreneurs or actual entrepreneurs were more risk prone than students with no intention of starting a business. Yet, in naturalistic‐business risky situations we found more risky choices among entrepreneurs than among non‐entrepreneurs.

Conformément à la définition même de l'esprit d'entreprise et à l'observation quotidienne, les entrepreneurs sont perçus comme étant plus enclins que les autres personnes à prendre des risques. Seulement, les recherches expérimentales ne confirment pas de façon définitive cette conception. Notre étude a porté sur trois groupes d'étudiants. L'un des groupes n'avait aucunement l'intention de créer une entreprise dans un avenir prévisible. Le deuxième groupe était composé d'étudiants qui suivaient un cours spécialement destiné aux futurs entrepreneurs. Le troisième groupe rassemblait des étudiants ou d'anciens étudiants qui devinrent entrepreneurs avant d'être diplômés. En accord avec les propositions de Knight, on a constaté que les entrepreneurs étaient ceux qui avaient la plus forte confiance en eux‐mêmes et les jeunes qui n'éprouvaient aucune vocation d'entrepreneur la plus faible. D'autre part, face à des situations de risque bien précises, il fut impossible de corroborer l'hypothèse que les aspirants entrepreneurs ou les chefs d'entreprise étaient plus portés sur le risque que les étudiants n'ayant aucunement l'intention de fonder une entreprise. Toutefois, devant des décisions risquées dans des situations concrètes industrielles ou commerciales, on a observé plus de choix aventureux chez les entrepreneurs que chez ceux qui ne l'étaient pas.
Effort and Aspirations in Tax Evasion: Experimental Evidence
Authors: Kirchler Erich , Muehlbacher Stephan , Hoelzl Erik , Webley Paul
Published: May 2009

Is the effort exerted to earn taxable income considered in compliance decisions? And if so, is hard‐earned income or easy money more likely to be concealed from authorities? While economic theory postulates that prior costs should not affect present decisions, psychological research shows that prior investments of money, time, or effort do matter. Findings from previous studies on the impact of effort on abstract decision tasks suggest two contradictory predictions for the context of tax compliance decisions: Either taxable income earned by high effort is subjectively of higher value, and therefore more likely to be evaded, or investments of effort cause a shift of the reference point through the establishment of an aspiration level, resulting in honest declaration of income. Two experiments were conducted to test these predictions. In a business simulation, taxable income was obtained by different levels of effort and consequently had to be reported to authorities. Results show that tax evasion was more pronounced in low‐effort conditions. This suggests that effort changes the reference point rather than the slope, and provides evidence that in tax compliance decisions aspiration levels serve as reference points. Implications for tax audits are discussed.

L'effort déployé pour obtenir des revenus imposables est‐il pris en compte dans les décisions qui en découlent? Et si c'est le cas, est‐ce l'argent facile ou les revenus durement gagnés qui présentent une plus forte probabilité d'être soustraits au fisc? Alors que la théorie économique postule que le coût antérieur n'a pas de retombées sur les décisions présentes, les recherches de psychologie montrent que les investissements passés en argent, temps ou effort ont leur importance. Des travaux sur l'impact de l'effort sur des tâches de décision abstraite débouchent sur deux prédictions contradictoires en ce qui concerne les décisions relatives à l'impôt: ou le revenu imposable obtenu à la suite d'un effort substantiel est subjectivement fortement valorisé et a de fortes chances d'être camouflé, ou l'effort investi provoque un changement de référence à travers l'instauration d'un niveau d'aspiration, ce qui a pour conséquence une déclaration honnête des revenus. On a réalisé deux expériences pour mettre à l'épreuve ces prédictions. Dans une simulation commerciale, le revenu imposable a été obtenu suite à différents niveaux d'effort et devait être portéà la connaissance du fisc. Les résultats montrent que l'évasion fiscale était plus accentuée dans les conditions où l'effort était modeste. Il faut en conclure que l'effort entraîne une mutation du système de référence plutôt qu'une simple modification de niveau et que dans les décisions relatives à l'impôt les niveaux d'aspiration servent de point de référence. On réfléchit aux leçons à en tirer pour le contrôle fiscal.
Sequence learning in infancy: the independent contributions of conditional probability and pair frequency information
Authors: Marcovitch Stuart , Lewkowicz David J.
Published: May 2009

The ability to perceive sequences is fundamental to cognition. Previous studies have shown that infants can learn visual sequences as early as 2 months of age and it has been suggested that this ability is mediated by sensitivity to conditional probability information. Typically, conditional probability information has covaried with frequency information in these studies, raising the possibility that each type of information may have contributed independently to sequence learning. The current study explicitly investigated the independent contribution of each type of information. We habituated 2.5‐, 4.5‐, and 8.5‐month‐old infants to a sequence of looming visual shapes whose ordering was defined independently by specific conditional probability relations among pair elements and by the frequency of occurrence of such pairs. During test trials, we tested infants’ sensitivity to each type of information and found that both types of information independently influenced sequence learning by 4.5 months of age.
Change of reference frame for tactile localization during child development
Authors: Pagel Birthe , Heed Tobias , Röder Brigitte
Published: May 2009

Temporal order judgements (TOJ) for two tactile stimuli, one presented to the left and one to the right hand, are less precise when the hands are crossed over the midline than when the hands are uncrossed. This ‘crossed hand’ effect has been considered as evidence for a remapping of tactile input into an external reference frame. Since late, but not early, blind individuals show such remapping, it has been hypothesized that the use of an external reference frame develops during childhood. Five‐ to 10‐year‐old children were therefore tested with the tactile TOJ task, both with uncrossed and crossed hands. Overall performance in the TOJ task improved with age. While children older than 5½ years displayed a crossed hand effect, younger children did not. Therefore the use of an external reference frame for tactile, and possibly multisensory, localization seems to be acquired at age 5.
THE THEORY OF SACRIFICE IN NIETZSCHE AND JOSEPH DE MAISTRE
Authors: CAUSSY FERDINAND
Published: May 2009

Mercure de France (1906)Translated by Jean Klucinskas
English as a lingua franca in Europe: an empirical perspective
Authors: BREITENEDER ANGELIKA
Published: May 2009

ABSTRACT:  In 2008, the need for intra‐European communication has long exceeded the limits set by language barriers. As a result, English acts extensively as a lingua franca among Europeans with different mother tongues, particularly so in the professional domains of education, business, international relations and scientific research. Yet, despite its omnipresence, English as a lingua franca (ELF) in Europe has not generally been recognized as a serious object of linguistic enquiry and has indeed often been dismissed as a defective form of English. Drawing on the Vienna–Oxford International Corpus of English (VOICE), this paper presents an empirical analysis of one particular, but symptomatic, feature of naturally occurring ELF data, namely the verbal ‐s suffix –‘the 3rd person ‐s’. The findings presented suggest that the occurrence of this feature follows general principles of language usage that have been observed in numerous varieties of English around the globe and indicate affinities between ELF and various world Englishes (WEs). The paper, consequently, proposes that ELF in Europe is an entirely natural development in the glocalization of the language, and points to synergies that could be gained from a truly collaborative effort of researchers in WEs and ELF.
Between status and solidarity in Singapore
Authors: CAVALLARO FRANCESCO , CHIN NG BEE
Published: May 2009

ABSTRACT: Language attitude studies have shown that the majority language and its speakers tend to be rated positively along status, intelligence, and power dimensions (‘Educated’, ‘Successful’, ‘Intelligent’), while the minority variety and its speakers elicit positive responses in the solidarity semantic category (‘Friendly’, ‘Honest’, ‘Responsible’). This study examines subjective reaction to Singapore Standard English (SSE) and Singapore Colloquial English (SCE), widely known as ‘Singlish’, using the matched guise technique. Though SCE has been widely reported to be a strong solidarity marker for Singaporeans, no systematic study has been carried out to attest this observation. In this study, 75 Singaporeans and 19 non‐Singaporeans listened to a recorded speech sample in SCE and another in SSE and were asked to rate the ‘speakers’ on a series of semantic traits. The results conformed to widely reported trends of other matched guise studies showing clustering of responses along dimensions of status and solidarity. However, unlike previous studies in other contexts, which tend to show increased solidarity ratings with non‐standard varieties, the data from this present study points to a different trend. Contrary to expectations, SCE was rated lower in solidarity traits compared to SSE. This raises questions about the widely perceived role of SCE as a high solidarity language. The discussion evaluates the attitudes of world Englishes in other contexts and seeks to explain the discrepancy in the findings by drawing on the unique and intense language awareness campaigns Singaporeans have been subjected to since independence.
Worlds apart? English in German youth cultures and in educational settings
Authors: GRAU MAIKE
Published: May 2009

ABSTRACT:  This paper focuses on German teenagers and their contact with English in two different contexts: in free‐time activities typically involving the mass media, and in institutionalised language learning settings at school. It draws on an empirical study carried out in German secondary schools. Its mixed methods approach combines a questionnaire study and focus group interviews with 15‐year‐old students and English teachers. The main aim of the enquiry was to find out how teenagers experience learning English in school in the light of their exposure to the language in their free time. Another focus lies on the teachers' perceptions of their students' contact with English outside school and on their practice in the classroom as to whether and how they use this experience in class. The data suggests that out‐of‐class contact with English is often not integrated into the EFL classroom. Thus, the classroom and the students' free time seem to be, by and large, two separate spheres, involving different methods of exposure to English in terms of text types, topics, activities, and language varieties.
Inclusive/exclusive? English as a lingua franca in the European Union
Authors: MODIANO MARKO
Published: May 2009

ABSTRACT:  The role which English maintains as a lingua franca is currently being conceptualized in differing ways. English as an international language, Euro‐English, and English as a lingua franca are analyzed from two main perspectives; first, the relevance that such descriptions of English‐language usage have for variety building (for mainland Europe); and second, the development of ELT ideologies, methodologies, and course materials which support efforts to incorporate intercultural communicative competence and identity into the instruction. It is maintained not only that the manner in which English is defined and appropriated in mainland Europe should facilitate the development of an endonormative variety, but also that the L2 English of the peoples of Europe should accommodate other Englishes across the Inner, Outer, and Expanding Circles. The English of mainland Europe, as it is conceptualized for ELT, can facilitate both Europeanization and globalization. A postcolonial theoretical argument is made for importing the world Englishes paradigm to Europe. For this to take place, traditional prescriptivist approaches, which perpetuate Inner Circle sociocultural hegemony and native‐speakerism, need to be replaced with a foundation for ELT better geared to further the aims of mainland European L2 users of the English language.
Age of Onset and Nativelikeness in a Second Language: Listener Perception Versus Linguistic Scrutiny
Authors: Abrahamsson Niclas , Hyltenstam Kenneth
Published: May 2009

The incidence of nativelikeness in adult second language acquisition is a controversial issue in SLA research. Although some researchers claim that any learner, regardless of age of acquisition, can attain nativelike levels of second language (L2) proficiency, others hold that attainment of nativelike proficiency is, in principle, impossible. The discussion has traditionally been framed within the paradigm of a critical period for language acquisition and guided by the question of whether SLA is constrained by the maturation of the brain. The work presented in this article can be positioned among those studies that have focused exclusively on the apparent counterexamples to the critical period. We report on a large‐scale study of Spanish/Swedish bilinguals (n = 195) with differing ages of onset of acquisition (<1–47 years), all of whom identify themselves as potentially nativelike in their L2. Listening sessions with native‐speaker judges showed that only a small minority of those bilinguals who had started their L2 acquisition after age 12, but a majority of those with an age of onset below this age, were actually perceived as native speakers of Swedish. However, when a subset (n = 41) of those participants who did pass for native speakers was scrutinized in linguistic detail with a battery of 10 highly complex, cognitively demanding tasks and detailed measurements of linguistic performance, representation, and processing, none of the late learners performed within the native‐speaker range; in fact, the results revealed also that only a few of the early learners exhibited actual nativelike competence and behavior on all measures of L2 proficiency that were employed. Our primary interpretation of the results is that nativelike ultimate attainment of a second language is, in principle, never attained by adult learners and, furthermore, is much less common among child learners than has previously been assumed.
Effects of Recasts and Elicitations in Dyadic Interaction and the Role of Feedback Explicitness
Authors: Nassaji Hossein
Published: May 2009

The present study investigated the effects of two categories of interactional feedback—recasts and elicitations—on learning linguistic forms that arose incidentally in dyadic interaction. The study also identified implicit and explicit forms of each feedback type and examined their subsequent effects immediately after interaction and after 2 weeks. Data came from 42 adult English as a second language learners who participated in task‐based interaction with two native‐ speaker English language teachers and received various forms of recasts and elicitations on their nontargetlike output. The effects of feedback were measured by means of learner‐specific preinteraction scenario descriptions and immediate and delayed postinteraction error identification/correction tasks. The results showed a higher degree of immediate postinteraction correction for recasts than for elicitations. The results also showed that in both cases the more explicit forms of each feedback type led to higher rates of immediate and delayed postinteraction correction than the implicit forms. However, the effects of explicitness were more pronounced for recasts than for elicitations. These latter findings suggest that although both recasts and elicitations may be beneficial for second language learning, their effectiveness might be closely, but differentially, related to their degree of explicitness.
Prompts Versus Recasts in Dyadic Interaction
Authors: Lyster Roy , Izquierdo Jesús
Published: May 2009

This study investigated the differential effects of prompts and recasts, in the context of dyadic interaction, on the acquisition of grammatical gender by adult second language learners of French. Participants were 25 undergraduate students enrolled in an intermediate‐level French course at an English‐speaking university. All students were exposed in class to a 3‐hr form‐focused instructional treatment distributed over 2 weeks and were then randomly placed in either the recast or prompt group. On two occasions outside of class, individual students participated in three different oral tasks during dyadic interaction with a native or near‐native speaker of French who, following learner errors in grammatical gender, provided feedback in the form of either prompts or recasts. Pretests and immediate and delayed posttests included two oral production tasks and a computerized reaction‐time binary‐choice test. Results of repeated‐measures ANOVA showed that both groups significantly improved accuracy and reaction‐time scores over time, irrespective of feedback type. We conclude that learners receiving recasts benefited from the repeated exposure to positive exemplars as well as from opportunities to infer negative evidence, whereas learners receiving prompts benefited from the repeated exposure to negative evidence as well as from opportunities to produce modified output.
HOW DO POLICY‐MAKERS ACTUALLY SOLVE PROBLEMS? EVIDENCE FROM THE FRENCH LOCAL PUBLIC SECTOR
Authors: LE MAUX BENOÎT
Published: May 2009

This article examines how policy‐makers solve problems within local representative democracies. It will be argued that politicians cannot undertake an exhaustive search of all possible policy choices; instead, they might use an incremental strategy such as the hill‐climbing heuristic. These possibilities will be formalized using the median voter model as an analytical framework. The corresponding models will then be estimated over a set of French jurisdictions (the départements). The empirical results lend support to the hill‐climbing model, given that: (1) for social welfare and secondary school expenditures, the influence of the past is significant; (2) a pure model of incrementalism, without any exogenous variables, is not appropriate for explaining the behavior of departmental council members; and (3) the impact of the past is more significant and stronger when expenditure levels are higher.
A PROTECTIONIST BIAS IN MAJORITARIAN POLITICS: AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION
Authors: EVANS CAROLYN L.
Published: May 2009

Do politics affect trade policy? Despite an extensive literature examining the relationship between trade policy and some political factors, relatively few studies have explored the role of a country's electoral system, arguably one of the most fundamental characteristics of a nation's political landscape. This paper examines the empirical relationship between tariffs and electoral systems across countries and over time. The broad theoretical framework is provided by Grossman and Helpman, which predicts a bias towards a non‐zero average tariff, i.e. a “protectionist bias”, in countries with majoritarian systems, since politicians in a majoritarian system aim to maximize the welfare of their home districts, as opposed to the welfare of the nation as a whole. I compare average tariffs of countries with majoritarian systems to those with proportional systems, using methods that address the omitted variables/sample selection problem inherent to this analysis. I find that countries with majoritarian systems do indeed appear to have higher average tariffs than do countries with proportional systems. This result holds after controlling for other country‐specific characteristics, such as a country's legal origins, colonial history, and geographic location.
THE IMPACT OF TERRORISM AND CONFLICTS ON GROWTH IN ASIA
Authors: GAIBULLOEV KHUSRAV , SANDLER TODD
Published: May 2009

This paper quantifies the impact of terrorism and conflicts on income per capita growth in Asia for 1970–2004. Our panel estimations show that transnational terrorist attacks had a significant growth‐limiting effect. An additional terrorist incident per million persons reduces gross domestic product per capita growth by about 1.5%. In populous countries, many additional attacks are needed to achieve such a large impact. Transnational terrorism reduces growth by crowding‐in government expenditures. Unlike developing countries, developed countries are able to absorb terrorism without displaying adverse economic consequences. An internal conflict has the greatest growth concern, more than twice that of transnational terrorism. Conflict variables are associated with smaller investment shares and increased government spending, with the crowding‐in of government spending being the dominant influence.