bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Infrared: A Key Technology for Security Systems
Authors: Corsi Carlo
Published: December 2012

Infrared science and technology has been, since the first applications, mainly dedicated to security and surveillance especially in military field, besides specialized techniques in thermal imaging for medical diagnostic and building structures and recently in energy savings and aerospace context. Till recently the security applications were mainly based on thermal imaging as surveillance and warning military systems. In all these applications the advent of room temperature, more reliable due to the coolers avoidance, low cost, and, overall, completely integrable with Silicon technology FPAs, especially designed and tailored for specific applications, smart sensors, has really been impacted with revolutionary and new ideas and system concepts in all the infrared fields, especially for security applications. Lastly, the advent of reliable Infrared Solid State Laser Sources, operating up to the Long Infrared Wavelength Band and the new emerging techniques in Far Infrared Submillimeter Terahertz Bands, has opened wide and new areas for developing new, advanced security systems. A review of all the items with evidence of the weak and the strong points of each item, especially considering possible future developments, will be reported and discussed.
Photodegradation of Methyl Green by Nickel‐Dimethylglyoxime/ZSM‐5 Zeolite as a Heterogeneous Catalyst
Authors: Nezamzadeh-Ejhieh Alireza , Shams-Ghahfarokhi Zahra
Published: December 2012

Ni‐DMG/ZSM‐5 zeolite was prepared by ion exchange and complexation procedures. FT‐IR, XRD, SEM, TG, and DTG methods were used for characterization of the raw and modified samples. The prepared composite was used as a catalyst in the photodegradation process of an aqueous solution methyl green (MG) dye under UV irradiation. The effect of key operating parameters such as catalyst dosage, temperature, the initial concentration of the dye, and pH of the samples was studied on the degradation extent of the dye. UV‐Vis spectrophotometric measurements were performed for determination of the decolorization and mineralization extents. The optimal operation parameters were found as follows: pH = 9, temperature of 60°C, 0.6 g L−1 of the catalyst, and 40 ppm of the dye concentration. The Ni‐DMG particles out of zeolite framework did not show significant degradation efficiency. The degradation process obeys the first‐order kinetic.
Innate Immunity Modulation by the IL-33/ST2 System in Intestinal Mucosa
Authors: García-Miguel Marina , González M. Julieta , Quera Rodrigo , Hermoso Marcela A.
Published: December 2012

Innate immunity prevents pathogens from entering and spreading within the body. This function is especially important in the gastrointestinal tract and skin, as these organs have a large surface contact area with the outside environment. In the intestine, luminal commensal bacteria are necessary for adequate food digestion and play a crucial role in tolerance to benign antigens. Immune system damage can create an intestinal inflammatory response, leading to chronic disease including inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Ulcerative colitis (UC) is an IBD of unknown etiology with increasing worldwide prevalence. In the intestinal mucosa of UC patients, there is an imbalance in the IL-33/ST2 axis, an important modulator of the innate immune response. This paper reviews the role of the IL-33/ST2 system in innate immunity of the intestinal mucosa and its importance in inflammatory bowel diseases, especially ulcerative colitis.
Trace Level Determination of Polyether Ionophores in Feed
Authors: Rokka Mervi , Jestoi Marika , Peltonen Kimmo
Published: December 2012

A liquid chromatography-mass spectrometric method was developed and validated to determine six polyether ionophores (lasalocid sodium, monensin sodium, salinomycin sodium, narasin, maduramicin ammonium alpha, and semduramicin sodium) in feed samples. The method developed was very straightforward, involving extraction with 84% acetonitrile of the coccidiostats from the feed samples and filtration of the raw extract prior to chromatographic analysis. Method validation included the determination of selectivity, linearity, specificity, repeatability, the limit of detection, limit of quantification, decision limit (CCα), detection capability (CCβ), and recovery. Feed samples from the Finnish national feed control programme and suspected carry-over samples from a feed manufacturer were analysed in parallel with an existing liquid chromatography method coupled with ultraviolet detection. All feed control samples were negative in LC-UV, but with the developed MS method, monensin, salinomycin, and narasin were detected at concentrations of <0.025–0.73 mg/kg, <0.025–0.027 mg/kg, and <0.025–1.6 mg/kg, respectively. In suspected carry-over samples after an output of 2.0 tonnes of unmedicated feed in the pelletizer line, the concentrations of monensin, salinomycin, and narasin varied from undetected to 16 mg/kg. In the mixer line, after 3.2 tonnes of unmedicated feed output, the concentrations of monensin, salinomycin, and narasin varied from undetected to 2.4 mg/kg.
Dietary Intake of Macro- and Micronutrients in Slovenian Adolescents: Comparison with Reference Values
Authors: Fidler Mis Nataša , Kobe Helena , Štimec Matevž
Published: December 2012

Background: Data on a nationally representative dietary intake in Central Europe is lacking. We investigated the diet of adolescents in Slovenia. Methods: Dietary habits were assessed using a food frequency questionnaire (n = 2,661), and present nutrition was assessed using a 3-day weighted dietary protocol (n = 197) for validation purposes. Dietary intake was calculated and compared with Central European [German (D), Austrian (A), and Swiss (CH); D-A-CH] recommendations and World Health Organization/Food and Agriculture Organization (WHO/FAO) recommendations. Results: Adolescents consumed exceeding reference intake values of free sugars (boys 16% of energy, girls 17%), saturated fatty acids (SFA; 13% of energy), and sodium (boys 203%, girls 210% of the WHO/FAO upper limit), but below-reference intake values of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA; boys 5% of energy; girls 6%), water (boys 1,786 ml/day, girls 2,016 ml/day), and fiber density (only girls 2.8 g/MJ, p < 0.001). Among micronutrients, below-reference intakes (% of D-A-CH: boys and girls, respectively, p < 0.05) were reported for folate (64 and 69%), fluoride (28 and 31%), and calcium (91 and 97%), as well as for vitamin D (20 and 20%). Conclusions: The dietary habits of Slovenian adolescents are less than optimal. They are characterized by exceeding reference intake values of free sugars, salt, and SFA, and a below-reference intake of PUFA, water, and several micronutrients.
Direct Cardiac Ventriculoatrial Shunt: Technical Note
Authors: Heuer Gregory G. , Ranalli Nathan J. , Pisapia Jared , Storm Phillip B. , Gruber Peter J. , Sutton Leslie N.
Published: December 2012

There are a number of choices for placement of the distal catheter during ventricular shunting for hydrocephalic patients. In very rare instances, patients with multiple revisions can no longer have their shunt placed in the routine locations. We describe the placement of the distal catheter into the atrium through direct cardiac access, a technique described decades ago but rarely needed in clinical practice. This can be a useful location in the limited number of patients who have exhausted other more routine locations.
Ischemic Vagus Nuclei Lesions and Hyperglycemia: A Study in 26 Patients with Lateral Medullary Infarction and Matched Controls
Authors: Ruano Luis , Alves Ivânia , Barreto Rui , Araújo Isabel , Veira Carlos , Cruz Vítor Tedim
Published: December 2012

Background: Hyperglycemia is common after stroke in diabetic and nondiabetic patients. Furthermore, it has been associated with infarct expansion, worse functional outcomes and higher mortality. In a previous study, infarction of the insular region was related to higher poststroke glucose levels than infarcts in other cortical areas. Experimental studies in animal models suggested that the lower brainstem nuclei of the vagus nerve modulate insulin secretion. These nuclei are usually affected in lateral medullary infarction (LMI). We evaluated whether patients with lateral medullary stroke have worse poststroke glycemic control than other stroke patients. Methods: A hospital-based stroke registry was used to identify 26 patients from the years 2000 to 2010 who fulfilled the following inclusion criteria: (1) a first-ever stroke; (2) neurological deficits compatible with LMI; (3) MRI confirmation of an ischemic lesion of the lateral medulla involving the vagus nerve nuclei, and (4) no simultaneous infarcts. Patients were excluded if they were admitted to the hospital more than 24 h after stroke onset or died in the first 24 h after hospital admission. A control group of other stroke patients was randomly selected from the same stroke registry and over the same time period, matching for the age and gender of the LMI group. The average glycemia was compared between the two groups using a linear regression model adjusted for confounders. Glycated hemoglobin at admission was used to estimate prestroke glycemic control. Prestroke glycemic averages were then compared with poststroke glycemia for the two groups using the Wilcoxon signed test for related samples. Results: The average glycemia of the LMI patients in the first 24 h after stroke was 9.4 mmol/l (SD 3.2), and from 24 to 72 h it was 7.6 mmol/l (SD 2.8). In the comparison group, these values were 7.7 (SD 2.8) and 7.1 mmol/l (SD 2.7), respectively. As expected, diabetic patients had a significantly higher glycemia than nondiabetic patients (p < 0.0001). The adjusted linear regression model showed the average glycemia differences to be significant for the first 24 h (p = 0.001; R2 = 55.6%) but not for the 24– 72 h period. The frequency of previous diabetes mellitus was similar in both groups. As compared to prestroke glycemic estimates, glycemia in lateral medullary stroke patients increased significantly more than in controls during the first 24 h after stroke (p = 0.01), but again there were no significant differences for the 24–72 h period. Conclusions: This study suggests that ischemic lesions of the vagus nerve nuclei are associated with worse early poststroke glycemic control than stroke in other locations. Confirmation of this hypothesis and the long-term implications of glucose control impairment warrant further prospective studies.
Polyneuropathy in Impaired Glucose Tolerance: Is Postprandial Hyperglycemia the Main Culprit? A Mini-Review
Authors: Papanas N. , Ziegler D.
Published: December 2012

There is accumulating evidence for the mutual relationship between peripheral neuropathy and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). The key factor in the pathogenesis of neuropathy in IGT is postprandial hyperglycemia, which induces increased oxidative stress, endothelial dysfunction, and activation of both protein kinase C and the polyol pathway, leading to impaired neuronal metabolism and DNA damage. Other pathogenic factors include dyslipidemia and the metabolic syndrome. The cornerstone of management is improved glycemic control, although a long sustainable effect has not been documented yet, calling for further supportive trials. Secondary therapeutic targets encompass hypolipidemic and antihypertensive treatment, smoking cessation and weight loss. The increasing awareness of peripheral neuropathy in IGT is expected to improve healthcare provision in subjects with this condition.
Central Nervous System Gαi
2
-Subunit Proteins Maintain Salt Resistance via a Renal Nerve–Dependent Sympathoinhibitory Pathway
Authors: Kapusta Daniel R. , Pascale Crissey L. , Kuwabara Jill T. , Wainford Richard D.
Published: December 2012

In salt-resistant phenotypes, chronic elevated dietary sodium intake evokes suppression of renal sodium-retaining mechanisms to maintain sodium homeostasis and normotension. We have recently shown that brain Gαi
2
protein pathways are required to suppress renal sympathetic nerve activity and facilitate maximal sodium excretion during acute intravenous volume expansion in Sprague-Dawley rats. Here, we studied the role of brain Gαi
2
proteins in the endogenous central neural mechanisms acting to maintain fluid and electrolyte homeostasis and normotension during a chronic elevation in dietary salt intake. Naive or bilaterally renal denervated adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to receive an intracerebroventricular scrambled or Gαi
2
oligodeoxynucleotide infusion and then subjected to either a normal salt (0.4%) or high-salt (8.0%) diet for 21 days. In scrambled oligodeoxynucleotide-infused rats, salt loading, which did not alter blood pressure, evoked a site-specific increase in hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus Gαi
2
protein levels and suppression of circulating norepinephrine content and plasma renin activity. In salt-loaded rats continuously infused intracerebroventricularly with a Gαi
2
oligodeoxynucleotide, animals exhibited sodium and water retention, elevated plasma norepinephrine levels, and hypertension, despite suppression of plasma renin activity. Furthermore, in salt-loaded bilaterally renal denervated rats, Gαi
2
oligodeoxynucleotide infusion failed to evoke salt-sensitive hypertension. Therefore, in salt-resistant rats subjected to a chronic high-salt diet, brain Gαi
2
proteins are required to inhibit central sympathetic outflow to the kidneys and maintain sodium balance and normotension. In conclusion, these data demonstrate a central role of endogenous brain, likely paraventricular nucleus-specific, Gαi
2
-subunit protein–gated signal transduction pathways in maintaining a salt-resistant phenotype.
Twentieth-Century Global-Mean Sea Level Rise: Is the Whole Greater than the Sum of the Parts?
Authors: Gregory J. M. , White N. J. , Church J. A. , Bierkens M. F. P. , Box J. E. , van den Broeke M. R. , Cogley J. G. , Fettweis X. , Hanna E. , Huybrechts P. , Konikow L. F. , Leclercq P. W. , Marzeion B. , Oerlemans J. , Tamisiea M. E. , Wada Y. , Wake L. M. , van de Wal R. S. W.
Published: December 2012

Confidence in projections of global-mean sea level rise (GMSLR) depends on an ability to account for GMSLR during the twentieth century. There are contributions from ocean thermal expansion, mass loss from glaciers and ice sheets, groundwater extraction, and reservoir impoundment. Progress has been made toward solving the “enigma” of twentieth-century GMSLR, which is that the observed GMSLR has previously been found to exceed the sum of estimated contributions, especially for the earlier decades. The authors propose the following: thermal expansion simulated by climate models may previously have been underestimated because of their not including volcanic forcing in their control state; the rate of glacier mass loss was larger than previously estimated and was not smaller in the first half than in the second half of the century; the Greenland ice sheet could have made a positive contribution throughout the century; and groundwater depletion and reservoir impoundment, which are of opposite sign, may have been approximately equal in magnitude. It is possible to reconstruct the time series of GMSLR from the quantified contributions, apart from a constant residual term, which is small enough to be explained as a long-term contribution from the Antarctic ice sheet. The reconstructions account for the observation that the rate of GMSLR was not much larger during the last 50 years than during the twentieth century as a whole, despite the increasing anthropogenic forcing. Semiempirical methods for projecting GMSLR depend on the existence of a relationship between global climate change and the rate of GMSLR, but the implication of the authors' closure of the budget is that such a relationship is weak or absent during the twentieth century.
Greenhouse Gas Policy Influences Climate via Direct Effects of Land-Use Change
Authors: Jones Andrew D. , Collins William D. , Edmonds James , Torn Margaret S. , Janetos Anthony , Calvin Katherine V. , Thomson Allison , Chini Louise P. , Mao Jiafu , Shi Xiaoying , Thornton Peter , Hurtt George C. , Wise Marshall
Published: December 2012

Proposed climate mitigation measures do not account for direct biophysical climate impacts of land-use change (LUC), nor do the stabilization targets modeled for phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) representative concentration pathways (RCPs). To examine the significance of such effects on global and regional patterns of climate change, a baseline and an alternative scenario of future anthropogenic activity are simulated within the Integrated Earth System Model, which couples the Global Change Assessment Model, Global Land-Use Model, and Community Earth System Model. The alternative scenario has high biofuel utilization and approximately 50% less global forest cover than the baseline, standard RCP4.5 scenario. Both scenarios stabilize radiative forcing from atmospheric constituents at 4.5 W m−2 by 2100. Thus, differences between their climate predictions quantify the biophysical effects of LUC. Offline radiative transfer and land model simulations are also utilized to identify forcing and feedback mechanisms driving the coupled response. Boreal deforestation is found to strongly influence climate because of increased albedo coupled with a regional-scale water vapor feedback. Globally, the alternative scenario yields a twenty-first-century warming trend that is 0.5°C cooler than baseline, driven by a 1 W m−2 mean decrease in radiative forcing that is distributed unevenly around the globe. Some regions are cooler in the alternative scenario than in 2005. These results demonstrate that neither climate change nor actual radiative forcing is uniquely related to atmospheric forcing targets such as those found in the RCPs but rather depend on particulars of the socioeconomic pathways followed to meet each target.
Diffusion of Innovation Theory and Xbox Live
Authors: Gray Kishonna L.
Published: December 2012

This article examines the response of minority gamers as they adopt new innovations in Xbox Live. Using diffusion of innovation theory, specific attention is given to gamers’ rate of adoption of the new Xbox Live environment, which was a recent update to the Xbox Live interface. By employing virtual ethnography, observations, and interviews reveal that gaming duration and gender are significant factors in identifying a gamer’s successful rate of adoption of the new innovation. Female participants reveal that Xbox Live intentionally targets males as the default gamer and enact changes based on their needs. The research concludes with a plea to Xbox Live to acknowledge minority gamers such as women to incorporate their needs within the decision-making process of new innovations.
Association between hyperuricemia, prediabetes, and prehypertension in the Croatian adult population - a cross-sectional study
Authors: Vučak Jasna , Katić Milica , Bielen Ivan , Vrdoljak Davorka , Lalić Dragica Ivezić , Kranjčević Ksenija , Marković Biserka Bergman
Published: December 2012

Background

The association between hyperuricemia, hypertension, and diabetes has been proved to have strong association with the risk for cardiovascular diseases, but it is not clear whether hyperuricemia is related to the early stages of hypertension and diabetes. Therefore, in this study we investigated the association between hyperuricemia, prediabetes, and prehypertension in Croatian adults, as well as that between purine-rich diet and hyperuricemia, prediabetes, or prehypertension.

Methods

A stratified random representative sample of 64 general practitioners (GP) was selected. Each GP systematically chose participants aged ≥ 40 year (up to 55 subjects) . Recruitment occurred between May and September 2008. The medical history, anthropometric, and laboratory measures were obtained for each participant.

Results

59 physicians agreed to participate and recruited 2485 subjects (response rate 77%; average age (± standard deviation) 59.2 ±10.6; 61.9% women. In bivariate analysis we found a positive association between hyperuricemia and prediabetes (OR 1.66, 95% CI 1.09–2.53), but not for prehypertension (OR 1.68, 95% CI 0.76–3.72). After controlling for known confounders for cardiovascular disease (age, gender, body mass index, alcohol intake, diet, physical activity, waist to hip ratio, total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein, high density lipoprotein, and triglycerides), in multivariate analysis HU ceased to be an independent predictor(OR 1.33, CI 0.98–1.82, p = 0.069) for PreDM. An association between purine-rich food and hyperuricemia was found (p<0.001) and also for prediabetes (p=0.002), but not for prehypertension (p=0.41). The prevalence of hyperuricemia was 10.7% (15.4% male, 7.8% female), 32.5% for prediabetes (35.4% male, 30.8% female), and 26.6% for prehypertension (27.2% male, 26.2% female).

Conclusion

Hyperuricemia seems to be associated with prediabetes but not with prehypertension. Both, hyperuricemia and prediabetes were associated with purine-rich food and patients need to be advised on appropriate diet.

Trial registration

Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN31857696
Data-driven subtypes of major depressive disorder: a systematic review
Authors: van Loo Hanna M , de Jonge Peter , Romeijn Jan-Willem , Kessler Ronald C , Schoevers Robert A
Published: December 2012

Background

According to current classification systems, patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) may have very different combinations of symptoms. This symptomatic diversity hinders the progress of research into the causal mechanisms and treatment allocation. Theoretically founded subtypes of depression such as atypical, psychotic, and melancholic depression have limited clinical applicability. Data-driven analyses of symptom dimensions or subtypes of depression are scarce. In this systematic review, we examine the evidence for the existence of data-driven symptomatic subtypes of depression.

Methods

We undertook a systematic literature search of MEDLINE, PsycINFO and Embase in May 2012. We included studies analyzing the depression criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV) of adults with MDD in latent variable analyses.

Results

In total, 1176 articles were retrieved, of which 20 satisfied the inclusion criteria. These reports described a total of 34 latent variable analyses: 6 confirmatory factor analyses, 6 exploratory factor analyses, 12 principal component analyses, and 10 latent class analyses. The latent class techniques distinguished 2 to 5 classes, which mainly reflected subgroups with different overall severity: 62 of 71 significant differences on symptom level were congruent with a latent class solution reflecting severity. The latent class techniques did not consistently identify specific symptom clusters. Latent factor techniques mostly found a factor explaining the variance in the symptoms depressed mood and interest loss (11 of 13 analyses), often complemented by psychomotor retardation or fatigue (8 of 11 analyses). However, differences in found factors and classes were substantial.

Conclusions

The studies performed to date do not provide conclusive evidence for the existence of depressive symptom dimensions or symptomatic subtypes. The wide diversity of identified factors and classes might result either from the absence of patterns to be found, or from the theoretical and modeling choices preceding analysis.
Prognostic Implications of the Seventh Edition of the International Union Against Cancer Classification for Patients With Gastric Cancer: The Western Experience of Patients Treated in a Single-Center European Institution
Authors: Reim Daniel , Loos Martin , Vogl Fabian , Novotny Alexander , Schuster Tibor , Langer Rupert , Becker Karen , Höfler Heinz , Siveke Jens , Bassermann Florian , Friess Helmut , Schuhmacher Christoph
Published: December 2012

Purpose

Validity of the seventh edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer/International Union Against Cancer (AJCC/UICC) staging systems for gastric cancer has been evaluated in several studies, mostly in Asian patient populations. Only few data are available on the prognostic implications of the new classification system on a Western population. Therefore, we investigated its prognostic ability based on a German patient cohort.

Patients and Methods

Data from a single-center cohort of 1,767 consecutive patients surgically treated for gastric cancer were classified according to the seventh edition and were compared using the previous TNM/UICC classification. Kaplan-Meier analyses were performed for all TNM stages and UICC stages in a comparative manner. Additional survival receiver operating characteristic analyses and bootstrap-based goodness-of-fit comparisons via Bayesian information criterion (BIC) were performed to assess and compare prognostic performance of the competing classification systems.

Results

We identified the UICC pT/pN stages according to the seventh edition of the AJCC/UICC guidelines as well as resection status, age, Lauren histotype, lymph-node ratio, and tumor grade as independent prognostic factors in gastric cancer, which is consistent with data from previous Asian studies. Overall survival rates according to the new edition were significantly different for each individual's pT, pN, and UICC stage. However, BIC analysis revealed that, owing to higher complexity, the new staging system might not significantly alter predictability for overall survival compared with the old system within the analyzed cohort from a statistical point of view.

Conclusion

The seventh edition of the AJCC/UICC classification was found to be valid with distinctive prognosis for each stage. However, the AJCC/UICC classification has become more complex without improving predictability for overall survival in a Western population. Therefore, simplification with better predictability of overall survival of patients with gastric cancer should be considered when revising the seventh edition.
Oriental Purity: Postcolonial Discomfort and Asian Values
Authors: Goh Daniel P. S.
Published: December 2012

Studies of Asian values discourse emphasize its link to the ideological articulation of Singapore's ruling elite in contemporary circumstances of global modernity. Significantly, an influential commentary has reflexively raised the postcolonial discomfort connected to the hybrid political space of Singapore. Focusing on postcolonial discomfort as the central problem, I locate the articulation of Asian values in the psychic-cultural consequences of colonial hybridity. I argue that the discomfort stemmed from the Anglicized Chinese elite's realization that British colonial discourse repudiated his racialized body as signifying Oriental perfidy. The consequential trauma then provoked the desire for Oriental purity and drove him toward imaginary identification with the putative original nation. The subject fulfilled desire and drive by fetishizing the Confucian junzi identity. I trace how postcolonial discomfort affected the trajectory of elite hegemony in decolonizing and postcolonial Singapore. The elite initially adopted a hybrid Malayan identity, which emulated the transformative multiracialism of their leftist comrades-turned-opponents. After undesired separation from Malaysia, the identity was no longer tenable, and the elite resorted to the “communist” abject to create the tentative boundaries of an imaginary, cleansed national entity during rapid industrialization. As Xiaoping Deng's reforms in China reoriented their search for an Asian identity, the elite adopted Confucianism as their personal junzi identity and as a public discourse for citizen morality. But political opposition to the regime led to the revival of the communist abject in the “Marxist conspiracy” crackdowns, which failed in the liberalizing post – Cold War context. The elite subsequently privatized their Confucianism and transposed it into Asian values to shore up domestic and international legitimacy. While fulfilling the desire for Oriental purity and assuaging the postcolonial discomfort experienced in hybrid Singapore, Asian values guide the elite in implementing new forms of governmentality for neoliberal globalization.
The Modern Girl and the Vamp: Hollywood Film in Tanizaki Jun'ichirô's Early Novels
Authors: Shamoon Deborah
Published: December 2012

Chijin no ai (Naomi, 1924) and Nikukai (A Lump of Flesh, 1923), by Tanizaki Jun'ichirô, were seminal texts in forming the image of the “modern girl” in Japan in the 1920s. In both novels, Hollywood actresses famous for playing vamp roles are central to the construction of the modern girl character. The title Chijin no ai references the Japanese title of the US film A Fool There Was (1915), starring Theda Bara as the prototypical vamp. In a US context, the vamp character embodies not only the threat of the sexual woman but also anxieties surrounding racial mixing. In importing the vamp narrative to a Japanese context, Tanizaki reproduces this racial tension. This article examines the actresses, including Mary Pickford, Gloria Swanson, Bebe Daniels, and others, that Tanizaki uses as models for the modern girl in these two novels. The existing narrative of the Hollywood vamp informs Tanizaki's description of the modern girl, even as that narrative is necessarily transformed in a Japanese context. Furthermore, Tanizaki in both novels also employs a narrative voice that evokes the filmic mode of seeing, including the close-up and montage. This article examines Chijin no ai and Nikukai as intersections of filmic and novelistic modes of narrative. Tanizaki's fascination with the new technology of cinema inspired him to experiment with new modes of narrative and intertextuality in prose fiction. However, his use of the cinematic mode of narrative, as well as the vamp character, also results in the highlighting of white/nonwhite racial tension and an attraction/repulsion toward racial impurity.
JAK/STAT autocontrol of ligand-producing cell number through apoptosis
Authors: Borensztejn Antoine , Boissoneau Elisabeth , Fernandez Guillaume , Agnès François , Pret Anne-Marie
Published: December 2012

During development, specific cells are eliminated by apoptosis to ensure that the correct number of cells is integrated in a given tissue or structure. How the apoptosis machinery is activated selectively in vivo in the context of a developing tissue is still poorly understood. In the Drosophila ovary, specialised follicle cells [polar cells (PCs)] are produced in excess during early oogenesis and reduced by apoptosis to exactly two cells per follicle extremity. PCs act as an organising centre during follicle maturation as they are the only source of the JAK/STAT pathway ligand Unpaired (Upd), the morphogen activity of which instructs distinct follicle cell fates. Here we show that reduction of Upd levels leads to prolonged survival of supernumerary PCs, downregulation of the pro-apoptotic factor Hid, upregulation of the anti-apoptotic factor Diap1 and inhibition of caspase activity. Upd-mediated activation of the JAK/STAT pathway occurs in PCs themselves, as well as in adjacent terminal follicle and interfollicular stalk cells, and inhibition of JAK/STAT signalling in any one of these cell populations protects PCs from apoptosis. Thus, a Stat-dependent unidentified relay signal is necessary for inducing supernumerary PC death. Finally, blocking apoptosis of PCs leads to specification of excess adjacent border cells via excessive Upd signalling. Our results therefore show that Upd and JAK/STAT signalling induce apoptosis of supernumerary PCs to control the size of the PC organising centre and thereby produce appropriate levels of Upd. This is the first example linking this highly conserved signalling pathway with developmental apoptosis in Drosophila.
Value of Geotechnical Site Investigation in Reliability-Based Design
Authors: Ching Jianye , Phoon Kok-Kwang
Published: December 2012

This study aims to address how efforts spent in geotechnical site investigation can link to the final design dimensions of a geotechnical structure. An example of pad foundation design supported by boulder clay (developed by European Technical Committee 10) is used as a demonstration. Three aspects of geotechnical information are addressed: variety of in-situ and laboratory tests, precision of the tests, and local experiences in soil properties that permit reduction of transformation uncertainties between test indices and design parameters. Three design methods (allowable stress design ASD, partial-factor design PFD, and reliability-based design RBD) are considered. Among these methods, RBD is found to be most responsive to the availability of geotechnical information, whether in the form of site investigation efforts and/or local experiences. It is accurate to say that RBD can fill a critical gap in current geotechnical design practice, namely to monetize the value of geotechnical information in the form of increase/reduction of construction costs associated with changes in the design dimensions.
Two-Fluid CFD Simulations of Cap Bubble Flow Using the Two-Group Interfacial Area Transport Equations
Authors: Prabhudharwadkar Deoras , Vaidheeswaran Avinash , de Bertodano Martin Lopez , Buchanan John , Guilbert Paul
Published: December 2012

The two-group interfacial area transport equations (IATE) are coupled with an existing three dimensional three-field two-fluid model for adiabatic flow simulations in the bubbly-cap bubble regime. The mechanisms of the two-group IATE bubble interactions that have been proposed and validated in the past for one dimension are extended to a multi-dimensional model. The CFD simulations were validated using the data of Sun et al. [1] where the phase distribution, interfacial area concentration and velocity distribution in the cross-section for small and cap bubbles were measured separately using the four-sensor conductivity probe at four axial locations. The results demonstrate that the coupling is feasible. An interfacial turbulent diffusion force constitutive relation is modified and a new mechanism for inter-group bubble transport is identified and constituted.
NEPTUNE_CFD Analysis of Flow Field in Rectangular Boiling Channel
Authors: Končar B. , Matkovičc M. , Prošek A.
Published: December 2012

The boiling flow experiments in a rectangular vertical channel, performed at the Texas A&M University, were used to validate the prediction capabilities of the NEPTUNE_CFD code. The refrigerant HFE-301 was used as a working fluid. Liquid velocity and turbulent kinetic energy profiles close to the heated wall were compared. NEPTUNE_CFD simulations successfully predict the main experimental tendencies associated with the heat flux and Reynolds number variation. Nevertheless, at lower Reynolds numbers, a somewhat higher disagreement in velocity and turbulent kinetic energy can be observed in the boiling region. The size of bubble diameter at departure from the heated wall is assessed by the means of non-dimensional analysis and compared with model predictions.
Impact of Climate Change Induced Cyclonic Surge on the Coastal Island: Kutubdia and Sandwip and Proper Adaptive Measures
Authors: Hasan Md. M. , Navera Umme K
Published: December 2012

Climate change is the burning issue and utmost environmental challenge for the world today and Bangladesh is considered as the most vulnerable in recent days. Besides, due to its geophysical setting Bangladesh coast is frequently visited by the cyclone-induced storm surge. The assessment of impact of climate change induced cyclonic storm surge and evaluation of potential adaptive measures requires use of scientifically based and tested state-of-the-art mathematical modelling tools. In this study SIDR (a severe cyclone that hit the coast of Bangladesh in 2007) has been selected to assess the vulnerability of selected two islands Sandwip and Kutubdia. Three different tracks were simulated to assess the effect of position of Landfall for each island. It is evident from the model results that if SIDR comes with 0.59m Sea Level Rise (SLR) and 1.0m SLR during high tide, maximum surge height above land level will be 5.1 m and 5.5 m for Kutubdia island and 6.5 m and 6.9 m for Sandwip island respectively. If the same cyclone comes with 10% increased wind speed during high tide with 59 cm SLR, surge height may increase by 0.9 m for Sandwip island and 0.45m for Kutubdia island. Again, it has been found from the study that 200m, 400m and 600 m width of Mangrove can reduce the surge height by 12 cm, 15 cm and 18 cm respectively. This reduction is not enough but it reduces current speed to one-third from 1.8 m/s to 0.65 m/s at Sandwip island. As it reduces the current speed to a larger extent it is favourable for the stability of the coastal embankment and other coastal infrastructure. In view of the above it is the high time to revisit the coastal infrastructure to make it climate resilient.
Response Prediction of Foam-Insulated Concrete Sandwich Panels Subjected to Blast Loads Using Bilinear Weighted-Resistance SDOF Models
Authors: Newberry Charles M. , Hoemann John M. , Bewick Bryan T. , Davidson James S.
Published: December 2012

This paper presents the development and validation of a single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) methodology that can be used for the analysis and design of foam-insulated concrete sandwich panels subjected to blast loads. The experimental program used for validation involved both static and dynamic testing of full-scale wall panels. Static testing demonstrated that the degree of composite action provided depends greatly upon the shear connector used and that the internal shear resistance mechanisms change as the panel undergoes large deflection. Given the extreme complexities involved, a simplified bilinear resistance definition was developed using weighted averages between the composite and non-composite resistances. The weighting values were based upon equating the averaged energy absorption capacity measured during the large deflection static testing with that of the analytical definition. The analytical resistances were then used in SDOF models to examine their applicability through comparison to full-scale blast test responses. The weighted resistance SDOF approach was shown to be a viable option for analyzing foam-insulated sandwich panels subjected to blast loads.
Collapse Mechanisms of Seawall Due to the March 2011 Japan Tsunami Using the MPS Method
Authors: Arikawa Taro , Ishikawa Nobutaka , Beppu Masuhiro , Tatesawa Hiroshi
Published: December 2012

On March 11 2011 a huge tsunami was caused by a magnitude 9.0 earthquake, which devastated the sea defenses in the Tohoku coastal region of Japan. We investigated one of the disaster areas, the Taro district, which had been very famous for having a 10m high seawall. This paper focuses on why the seawall in the Taro district collapsed during the tsunami. To this end the present work involves (1) the field disaster investigation, (2) the scale of the March 11 tsunami by performing its runup calculation, (3) the overflowing effects of the tsunami on the seawall by using the MPS (Moving Particle Semi-implicit) method, (4) the overflowing model test of a seawall and (5) the possible collapse mechanisms of the seawalls, in which they were mainly destroyed by the overflowing and the ensuing draw down wave of the tsunami.
Marketing Managers' Perceptions of Value Cocreation
Authors: Cassidy Kim , Baron Steve , Elliott Dominic , Efstathiadis George
Published: December 2012

Cocreation of value is a key construct in service science and the service-dominant logic. Little is known about how practicing managers perceive their own value cocreating activities. The paper is one of the first to gather manager perceptions of value cocreation activities and categorize them in terms of marketing logics. The paper offers insights on how marketing managers perceive value cocreation based on an analysis of examples of its application in practice. It responds to pleas for studies on how organizations can manage the cocreation process. Fifty-one managers of public and private sector organizations in Albania, Kosovo, Serbia, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, and Macedonia were asked to provide examples of how their organizations cocreate value with customers through marketing activities. The resulting 99 examples were classified according to perspectives contrasting the goods- and service-dominant logics. Many examples concerned marketing communications, market research, or new product development, which fit more closely with goods-dominant logic. The examples incorporating cocreation of value as espoused in the service-dominant logic involved reciprocity, high levels of trust, and knowledge sharing. Managers who are keen to adopt the notion of cocreation of value are advised to focus on the metacompetencies of education, knowledge sharing, and capacity building.
The ‘policy-preferences model’: a new perspective on how researchers can facilitate the take-up of evidence by educational policy makers
Authors: Brown Chris
Published: December 2012

The phrase ‘knowledge adoption’ refers to the often-complicated process by which policy makers ‘take on board’ evidence. While models have been put forward to explain this activity, this paper argues that such models are flawed and fail to fully address those complexities affecting the successful realisation of knowledge adoption efforts. Existing frameworks are examined, critiqued and an alternative, sociologically based approach presented. It is argued that this alternative conceptualisation provides a more effective account of the knowledge adoption process. The paper illustrates how this model has been tested and examines its implications for both research impact and evidence-informed policy making.
Reconciling the Past/Imagining the Future: The Korean Adoption Issue and Representations of Adopted Koreans in Korean Popular Culture
Authors: Hübinette Tobias
Published: December 2012

This article is a presentation of a study of representations of adopted Koreans in Korean popular culture. After a background to the history of international adoption from Korea and an introduction to the Korean adoption issue, the article looks at the representations of adopted Koreans
in four Korean popular songs and feature films, respectively. At the end, these representations are linked to the ethnic and postcolonial character of Korean nationalism and to the fractured and fragmented state of the Korean nation itself, and are conceptualized as an attempt at reconciling
with a tragic history and imagining a new future for a global Korean community.
Lost Heroes: A Comparative Study of Contemporary Japanese and Hong Kong Gangster Films
Authors: Ono Yoko
Published: December 2012

In this paper, I shall examine the depiction and portrayal of masculine heroism of Woo's and Kitano's works, namely A Better Tomorrow and Sonatine (1993), and analyze the thematic concerns in these two films. This comparison will highlight the high evaluation of loyalty in the homosocial
world of Woo, if not Hong Kong Noir, and how Kitano, and with him contemporary Japanese society, lost belief in heroism.
There Is A Beauty in the Door(way) of Flying Daggers
Authors: Chen Ya-chen
Published: December 2012

This article begins with my interpretation of possible interrelations between the film and the above-mentioned poem that begins with 'beifang you jiaren' ('There is a beauty in the North'; my own English translation). In Li Yannian's poem, the 'jiaren' (the beauty) is compared with
the 'cheng' (the city or castle) and 'guo' (the nation or country) and thus objectified. Li Yannian inadvertently turns the jiaren into a scapegoat if the country and citizens are not taken good care of. Zhang Yimou revises the destiny of the jiaren by permitting her to speak her mind and
decide her fate.
Characterizing Masculinity: Moving Toward Male Bonding
Authors: Park SungBok , Hwang Ha Sung
Published: December 2012

This paper intends to examine how masculinity has been presented in the films of John Woo. We will examine his vision using two of his action films: The Killer, a Hong Kong film, and Broken Arrow, a Hollywood film. In these two films, Woo provides an interesting representation of masculinity.
His films celebrate a vision of masculinity that combines intimacy and action (work), physical strength and emotion, and heroism and villainy. We will compare and contrast Woo's use of masculinity in the two action films by analyzing how the vision of masculinity is presented differently in
The Killer and Broken Arrow.
Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi by Kitano Takeshi: Not a Mere "Entertainment"
Authors: Hall Ken
Published: December 2012

Kitano employs his wellknown "offbeat" sensibilities to add memorable dimensions to the ambiance through which his characters move. Despite his protestations that the film is "an entertainment," and presumably not to be taken too seriously within his oeuvre, it is
quite apparent that his use of color, music, and shot composition, as well as his pastiches of Japanese film and of Japanese culture more widely, make of this much more than another installment in the long-running Zatoichi series. These aspects, as well as the particular characterization of
Zatoichi by Kitano, will be the focus of this study.
Mitochondrial Protein Synthesis, Import, and Assembly
Authors: Fox Thomas D
Published: December 2012

The mitochondrion is arguably the most complex organelle in the budding yeast cell cytoplasm. It is essential for viability as well as respiratory growth. Its innermost aqueous compartment, the matrix, is bounded by the highly structured inner membrane, which in turn is bounded by the intermembrane space and the outer membrane. Approximately 1000 proteins are present in these organelles, of which eight major constituents are coded and synthesized in the matrix. The import of mitochondrial proteins synthesized in the cytoplasm, and their direction to the correct soluble compartments, correct membranes, and correct membrane surfaces/topologies, involves multiple pathways and macromolecular machines. The targeting of some, but not all, cytoplasmically synthesized mitochondrial proteins begins with translation of messenger RNAs localized to the organelle. Most proteins then pass through the translocase of the outer membrane to the intermembrane space, where divergent pathways sort them to the outer membrane, inner membrane, and matrix or trap them in the intermembrane space. Roughly 25% of mitochondrial proteins participate in maintenance or expression of the organellar genome at the inner surface of the inner membrane, providing 7 membrane proteins whose synthesis nucleates the assembly of three respiratory complexes.