bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Grammar, Rhetoric and Usage in English
Authors: Yáñez-Bouza Nuria
Published: December 2014

The preposition is of particular interest to syntacticians, historians and sociolinguists of English, as its placement within a sentence is influenced by syntactic and sociolinguistic constraints, and by how the 'rules' regarding prepositions have changed over time, as a result of language change, of change in attitudes towards language, and of processes such as standardization. This book investigates preposition placement in the early and late Modern English periods (1500–1900), with a special focus on preposition stranding (The house which I live in) in opposition to pied piping (The house in which I live). Based on a large-scale analysis of precept and usage data, this study reassesses the alleged influence of late eighteenth-century normative works on language usage. It also sheds new light on the origins of the stigmatisation of preposition stranding. This study will be of interest to scholars working on syntax and grammar, corpus linguistics, historical linguistics and sociolinguistics.
Theoretical Philosophy, 1755–1770
Authors: Kant Immanuel , Meerbote Ralf
Published: December 2014

This is the first volume of the first ever comprehensive edition of the works of Immanuel Kant in English translation. The eleven essays in this volume constitute Kant's theoretical, pre-critical philosophical writings from 1755 to 1770. Several of these pieces have never been translated into English before; others have long been unavailable in English. We can trace in these works the development of Kant's thought to the eventual emergence in 1770 of the two chief tenets of his mature philosophy: the subjectivity of space and time, and the phenomena-noumena distinction. The volume has been furnished with substantial editorial apparatus, including a general introduction to the main themes of Kant's early thought, introduction to the individual works and résumés of their contents, linguistic and factual notes, bibliographies, a glossary of key terms, and biographical-bibliographical sketches of persons mentioned by Kant.
Changing Course in Latin America
Authors: Roberts Kenneth M.
Published: December 2014

This book explores the impact of economic crises and free-market reforms on party systems and political representation in contemporary Latin America. It explains why some patterns of market reform align and stabilize party systems, whereas other patterns of reform leave party systems vulnerable to widespread social protest and electoral instability. In contrast to other works on the topic, this book accounts for both the institutionalization and the breakdown of party systems, and it explains why Latin America turned to the Left politically in the aftermath of the market-reform process. Ultimately, it explains why this 'left turn' was more radical in some countries than others and why it had such varied effects on national party systems.
The Political Philosophy of Muhammad Iqbal
Authors: Sevea Iqbal Singh
Published: December 2014

This book reflects upon the political philosophy of Muhammad Iqbal, a towering intellectual figure in South Asian history, revered by many for his poetry and his thought. He lived in India in the twilight years of the British Empire and, apart from a short but significant period studying in the West, he remained in Punjab until his death in 1938. The book studies Iqbal's critique of nationalist ideology and his attempts to chart a path for the development of the 'nation' by liberating it from the centralizing and homogenizing tendencies of the modern state structure. Iqbal frequently clashed with his contemporaries over his view of nationalism as 'the greatest enemy of Islam'. He constructed his own particular interpretation of Islam – forged through an interaction with Muslim thinkers and Western intellectual traditions – that was ahead of its time, and since his death both modernists and Islamists have continued to champion his legacy.
Smart Grid (R)Evolution
Authors: Stephens Jennie C. , Wilson Elizabeth J. , Peterson Tarla Rai
Published: December 2014

The term 'smart grid' has become a catch-all phrase to represent the potential benefits of a revamped and more sophisticated electricity system that can fulfil several societal expectations related to enhanced energy efficiency and sustainability. Smart grid promises to enable improved energy management by utilities and by consumers, to provide the ability to integrate higher levels of variable renewable energy into the electric grid, to support the development of microgrids, and to engage citizens in energy management. However, it also comes with potential pitfalls, such as increased cybersecurity vulnerabilities and privacy risks. Although discussions about smart grid have been dominated by technical and economic dimensions, this book takes a sociotechnical systems perspective to explore critical questions shaping energy system transitions. It will be invaluable for advanced students, academic researchers, and energy professionals in a wide range of disciplines, including energy studies, energy policy, environmental science, sustainability science and environmental engineering.
Journal of a Residence and Tour in the Republic of Mexico in the Year 1826
Authors: Lyon G. F.
Published: December 2014

The British naval officer George Francis Lyon (1795–1832) survived extremes of African heat and Arctic cold during his colourful career. Remembered chiefly for the engaging journals he kept, and for his watercolours of the Arctic, he was fascinated by the indigenous peoples of the lands he explored, notably being tattooed by Inuit and eating raw caribou and seal meat with them. In 1826 he sailed to Mexico, then recovering from its war of independence, to serve as a commissioner for an English mining company. His vivid and often entertaining two-volume account of his experiences was published in 1828. In Volume 1, Lyon complains of his first nights being disturbed by 'dogs, pigs and restless cocks', and on his way to the mining area of Zacatecas he visits a church where a figure of Christ made him recall a 'creation of Frankenstein'.
Arithmetical Books from the Invention of Printing to the Present Time
Authors: De Morgan Augustus
Published: December 2014

In the preface to this work, mathematician Augustus De Morgan (1806–71) claims that 'The most worthless book of a bygone day is a record worthy of preservation.' His purpose in writing this catalogue, published in 1847, was to provide an accurate record of the early history of publishing on arithmetic, but describing only those books which he had examined himself. He surveyed the library of the Royal Society, works in the British Museum, the wares of specialist booksellers, and the private collections of himself and his friends to compile a chronological list of books from 1491 to 1846 (the final book being a work of his own), giving bibliographical details, a description of the contents, and sometimes comments on the mathematics on display. De Morgan's Formal Logic and a Memoir of Augustus De Morgan by his widow are also reissued in the Cambridge Library Collection.
A Practical and Scientific Treatise on Calcareous Mortars and Cements, Artificial and Natural
Authors: Vicat Louis-Joseph
Published: December 2014

Having devised an artificial cement in 1817, Louis-Joseph Vicat (1786–1861) sought to share and further the science surrounding calcareous cements. His son, Joseph Vicat, went on to found the eponymous company which became an international manufacturer of cement. This work was first published in French in 1828 and is reissued here in the English translation of 1837. Vicat addresses the subject of limes, the ingredients used to prepare mortars and cements, and how these building materials are affected by environmental conditions, such as immersion in water or exposure to damp soil and inclement weather. He also compares binding products of the time with those developed by the ancient Egyptians, Romans and Greeks. The translator, J. T. Smith, provides helpful explanatory notes and clarifies technical terms. Charles William Pasley's Observations on Limes, Calcareous Cements, Mortars, Stuccos, and Concrete (1838) is also reissued in this series.
The Holocaust and the Revival of Psychological History
Authors: Hughes Judith M.
Published: December 2014

Why did men and women in one of the best educated countries in the Western world set out to get rid of Jews? In this book, Judith M. Hughes focuses on how historians' efforts to grapple anew with matters of actors' meanings, intentions, and purposes have prompted a return to psychoanalytically informed ways of thinking. Hughes makes her case with fine-grained analyses of books by Hugh Trevor-Roper, Ian Kershaw, Daniel Goldhagen, Saul Friedländer, Christopher Browning, Jan Gross, Hannah Arendt and Gitta Sereny. All of the authors pose psychological questions; the more astute among them shed fresh light on the Holocaust - without making the past any less disturbing.
Recollections of Writers
Authors: Cowden Clarke Charles , Cowden Clarke Mary
Published: December 2014

Charles Cowden Clarke (1787–1877) and his wife Mary (1809–98) were born into literary and musical circles which deeply shaped their careers and supplied lifelong friendships with great artists and writers. Among Charles's closest school friends was John Keats, and his acquaintances later included William Hazlitt, Leigh Hunt, Coleridge and the Shelleys. Mary's childhood introduction to Charles and Mary Lamb's Tales from Shakespeare led to a lifetime of Shakespearean scholarship, friendship with the Lambs, and her performance in several Shakespearean roles for the amateur company run by Charles Dickens. Wed in 1828, the Cowden Clarkes were, as Mary writes, 'among the happiest of married lovers for more than forty-eight years', publishing jointly and enjoying mutual friendships. Their insightful recollections of their literary friends, first published serially towards the end of Charles's life, were afterwards collected by Mary, together with many important letters, and published in this 1878 work.
Memoirs of Baron Cuvier
Authors: Lee Sarah
Published: December 2014

The author and artist Sarah Lee (1791–1856) was a remarkable traveller and scientist in her own right. With her first husband, Thomas Bowdich, she explored the flora, fauna and local culture of the Asante region and Gabon in west Africa. The pair then went in 1819 to Paris, to study zoology under the famous Cuvier, in preparation for another trip to Africa. They financed their stay by translating French scientific books into English, and became close friends of Cuvier himself. Their second expedition proved a disaster, as Thomas Bowdich died in 1824, leaving Sarah alone in Africa with three small children. She made her way back to England, and made her living from scientific translation and her own writings. This biography of her mentor was published in 1833, shortly after his death, and remained the authoritative work in English on the most distinguished scientist of the age.
On Superstitions Connected with the History and Practice of Medicine and Surgery
Authors: Pettigrew Thomas Joseph
Published: December 2014

The surgeon Thomas Pettigrew (1791–1865) was interested in all aspects of antiquity, and gained fame in London society through his mummy-unwrapping parties. (His History of Egyptian Mummies is also reissued in the Cambridge Library Collection.) His interest in the early history of medicine is evidenced by this work, published in 1844, which describes the various forms of superstition which the science of medicine had always attracted since ancient times. Pettigrew considers alchemy and astrology, and the use of talismans, amulets and charms, as well as the history of Egyptian, Greek and Roman medicine, and some modern developments, including 'sympathetical cures' and the rejoining of severed fingers and ears. A chapter is devoted to the belief in the efficacy of the 'royal touch' against the King's Evil (scrofula), and another to the seventeenth-century faith healer Valentine Greatrakes, of whose alleged cures Pettigrew takes a robustly sceptical view.
Familiar Studies of Men and Books
Authors: Stevenson Robert Louis
Published: December 2014

This collection of literary essays by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) explores the lives and works of nine writers from around the world and across the centuries, including Victor Hugo, Robert Burns, Walt Whitman and Samuel Pepys. Published together in 1882, the studies here had previously appeared in periodicals, chiefly the Cornhill Magazine, and are known for their conversational style and unusual combination of character assessment and scholarly critique. In his preface, Stevenson describes the book as 'the readings of a literary vagrant', emphasising that the essays were inspired by a genuine personal interest in the authors and their works. Over the course of his own career as a writer, Stevenson published in a wide range of literary forms and genres. Today this collection reveals much about the diversity of his influences and tastes, as well as offering an insight into his moral and aesthetic values.
The Life and Adventures of Nathaniel Pearce
Authors: Pearce Nathaniel
Published: December 2014

Nathaniel Pearce (1779–1820) was, according to J. J. Halls, who edited and published his autobiographical writings in 1831, 'one of those remarkable and adventurous beings, whom Nature … seems to take delight in creating'. Having run away to sea twice, deserted from the navy, accidentally killed a man, and briefly converted to Islam, he came into his own as a guide and factotum to British travellers in Egypt. He accompanied Henry Salt's 1805 mission to Abyssinia, where he married a local girl and served the ruler of Tigré until the latter's death in 1816. Pearce's humorous account of his life is particularly interesting in the details it gives of the land and people of Ethiopia, then little known by Europeans. Volume 1 begins the narrative of Pearce's life and his African travels and also contains an account of an expedition to the city of Gondar by his friend William Coffin.
A Voyage into the Levant
Authors: Tournefort Joseph Pitton de
Published: December 2014

Joseph Pitton de Tournefort (1656–1708) was originally destined for the church, but his interest in botany led him to become professor of botany at the Jardin des plantes in Paris, and to travel all over Europe and beyond in search of interesting specimens. He was chiefly interested in the classification of plants, but is now best remembered for the accounts he wrote of voyages undertaken for the purpose of scientific discovery. This illustrated two-volume work, published posthumously in French in 1717 and translated into English the following year, recounts a journey begun in 1700, around the eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea, visiting Crete and other Greek islands, Istanbul, Armenia and Georgia. Tournefort notes not only plants, but geographical features, antiquities, the people he encounters, and their way of life, agriculture and industry. Volume 2 continues the journey around the Black Sea and describes the voyage home.
The Works of Anna Laetitia Barbauld
Authors: Barbauld Anna Laetitia
Published: December 2014

The writer Anna Laetitia Barbauld (1743–1825) was famous for her poems and essays, her writings for children (she and her husband ran a school), and for her edition of the correspondence of Samuel Richardson (also reissued in this series). The sister of John Aikin, the physician and writer, she moved in the dissenting circle of the Warrington Academy, where her father was a teacher: Joseph Priestley was a close friend. This two-volume edition of some of her poems and prose works was compiled by her niece Lucy Aikin (also a writer), and published soon after her death in 1825. The wit, elegance and deep feeling of Barbauld's works led to her being regarded as one of the most important writers of the early Romantic period. Volume 2 contains a selection of Barbauld's letters, and essays on a variety of topics, from literature to politics.
The Present State of Music in Germany, the Netherlands, and United Provinces
Authors: Burney Charles
Published: December 2014

Although a well-connected music teacher by profession, Charles Burney (1726–1814) gained greatest recognition for his writings on music. In this 1773 work, reissued here in its 1775 second edition, Burney recounts the 1772 journey that he undertook as one of two research trips for his General History of Music (1776–89). Throughout his travels, he was welcomed by the leading musicians of the day and heard many performances of the latest music. The whole account provides an invaluable first-hand insight into European musical life in the eighteenth century. Burney's General History and The Present State of Music in France and Italy (1772), the record of his first tour, are also reissued in this series. Volume 2 includes his visit to Potsdam to hear Frederick the Great's flute playing, and to Hamburg where he was welcomed by C. P. E. Bach.
Sartre
Authors: Flynn Thomas R.
Published: December 2014

Jean-Paul Sartre (1905–1980) was one of the most influential thinkers of the twentieth century. Regarded as the father of existentialist philosophy, he was also a political critic, moralist, playwright, novelist, and author of biographies and short stories. Thomas R. Flynn provides the first book-length account of Sartre as a philosopher of the imaginary, mapping the intellectual development of his ideas throughout his life, and building a narrative that is not only philosophical but also attentive to the political and literary dimensions of his work. Exploring Sartre's existentialism, politics, ethics, and ontology, this book illuminates the defining ideas of Sartre's oeuvre: the literary and the philosophical, the imaginary and the conceptual, his descriptive phenomenology and his phenomenological concept of intentionality, and his conjunction of ethics and politics with an 'egoless' consciousness. It will appeal to all who are interested in Sartre's philosophy and its relation to his life.
Vesalius: The China Root Epistle
Authors: Vesalius Andreas
Published: December 2014

This book provides the first annotated English translation from the original Latin of Andreas Vesalius' China Root Epistle. Ostensibly his appraisal of a fashionable herbal remedy, the China Root Epistle concentrates on Vesalius' skeptical appraisal of traditional Galenic anatomy, which was based on animal rather than human dissections. Along with reflections about his life as a young anatomist, Vesalius argued that the new science of anatomy should devote itself less to rhetorical polemics and more to the craft of direct observation based on human dissection. This volume provides annotations to link the Epistle with Vesalius' earlier and more famous work, On the Fabric of the Human Body, and includes illustrations from the famous woodcuts first used in the 1543 edition of the Fabrica.
Slavery and Forced Migration in the Antebellum South
Authors: Pargas Damian Alan
Published: December 2014

American slavery in the antebellum period was characterized by a massive wave of forced migration as millions of slaves were moved across state lines to the expanding southwest, scattered locally, and sold or hired out in towns and cities across the South. This book sheds new light on domestic forced migration by examining the experiences of American-born slave migrants from a comparative perspective. Juxtaposing and contrasting the experiences of long-distance, local, and urban slave migrants, it analyzes how different migrant groups anticipated, reacted to, and experienced forced removal, as well as how they adapted to their new homes.
Japanese
Authors: Hasegawa Yoko
Published: December 2014

This comprehensive introduction to the Japanese language consists of six parts. Following the introductory section, it explores the Japanese lexicon, grammatical foundations, major clause types, clause linkage, and language usage. The discussion of formal and structural properties of Japanese such as sound structure, vocabulary and grammar assist readers as they gain insight into historical and sociocultural aspects of Japanese; some are compared with those of English-speaking nations. An ideal choice for instructors, the book includes twenty-eight chapters, sufficient for approximately ninety hours of hands-on instruction. Each topic has been rigorously selected based on the author's experience of more than two decades teaching Japanese linguistics. The book's breadth and depth make it highly appropriate for learners of the Japanese language, for linguistics students interested in Japanese, and for researchers interested in Japanese linguistics. Online resources include exercises and supplementary multimedia materials to enhance the reader's comprehension and enjoyment.
Roman Girlhood and the Fashioning of Femininity
Authors: Caldwell Lauren
Published: December 2014

Elite women in the Roman world were often educated, socially prominent, and even relatively independent. Yet the social regime that ushered these same women into marriage and childbearing at an early age was remarkably restrictive. In the first book-length study of girlhood in the early Roman Empire, Lauren Caldwell investigates the reasons for this paradox. Through an examination of literary, legal, medical, and epigraphic sources, she identifies the social pressures that tended to overwhelm concerns about girls' individual health and well-being. In demonstrating how early marriage was driven by a variety of concerns, including the value placed on premarital virginity and paternal authority, this book enhances an understanding of the position of girls as they made the transition from childhood to womanhood.
Free Expression, Globalism, and the New Strategic Communication
Authors: Price Monroe E.
Published: December 2014

Vast changes in technologies and geopolitics have produced a wholesale shift in the way states and other powerful entities think about the production and retention of popular loyalties. Strategic communication has embraced these changes as stakes increase and the techniques of information management become more pervasive. These shifts in strategic communications impact free speech as major players, in a global context, rhetorically embrace a world of transparency, all the while increasing surveillance and modes of control, turning altered media technologies and traditional media doctrines to their advantage. This book exposes the anxieties of loss of control, on the one hand, and the missed opportunities for greater freedom, on the other. 'New' strategic communication arises from the vast torrents of information that cross borders and uproot old forms of regulation. Not only states but also corporations, nongovernmental organizations, religious institutions, and others have become part of this new constellation of speakers and audiences.
Noise Sensitivity of Boolean Functions and Percolation
Authors: Garban Christophe , Steif Jeffrey E.
Published: December 2014

This is a graduate-level introduction to the theory of Boolean functions, an exciting area lying on the border of probability theory, discrete mathematics, analysis, and theoretical computer science. Certain functions are highly sensitive to noise; this can be seen via Fourier analysis on the hypercube. The key model analyzed in depth is critical percolation on the hexagonal lattice. For this model, the critical exponents, previously determined using the now-famous Schramm–Loewner evolution, appear here in the study of sensitivity behavior. Even for this relatively simple model, beyond the Fourier-analytic set-up, there are three crucially important but distinct approaches: hypercontractivity of operators, connections to randomized algorithms, and viewing the spectrum as a random Cantor set. This book assumes a basic background in probability theory and integration theory. Each chapter ends with exercises, some straightforward, some challenging.
Violent Capitalism and Hybrid Identity in the Eastern Congo
Authors: Raeymaekers Timothy
Published: December 2014

This book discusses the radical transformation of eastern Congo's political order in the context of apparent armed destruction and state weakness. Looking beyond the dominant paradigms, the author critically assesses the premises of this region's presumed collapse into chaos. He traces violent rule patterns back to a tumultuous history of extra-economic accumulation, armed rebellion and de facto public authority in the margins of regional power plays. Rather than curing the world's ills, the originality of this book lies in its neat focus on cultural and economic uncertainty. It answers the question of what institutional changes are the result of strategies of daily risk management in an environment characterised by violent competition over the right to govern.
A History of Women's Political Thought in Europe, 1700–1800
Authors: Green Karen
Published: December 2014

During the eighteenth century, elite women participated in the philosophical, scientific, and political controversies that resulted in the overthrow of monarchy, the reconceptualisation of marriage, and the emergence of modern, democratic institutions. In this comprehensive study, Karen Green outlines and discusses the ideas and arguments of these women, exploring the development of their distinctive and contrasting political positions, and their engagement with the works of political thinkers such as Hobbes, Locke, Mandeville and Rousseau. Her exploration ranges across Europe from England through France, Italy, Germany and Russia, and discusses thinkers including Mary Astell, Emilie Du Châtelet, Luise Kulmus-Gottsched and Elisabetta Caminer Turra. This study demonstrates the depth of women's contributions to eighteenth-century political debates, recovering their historical significance and deepening our understanding of this period in intellectual history. It will provide an essential resource for readers in political philosophy, political theory, intellectual history, and women's studies.
A Concise Text on Advanced Linear Algebra
Authors: Yang Yisong
Published: December 2014

This engaging textbook for advanced undergraduate students and beginning graduates covers the core subjects in linear algebra. The author motivates the concepts by drawing clear links to applications and other important areas, such as differential topology and quantum mechanics. The book places particular emphasis on integrating ideas from analysis wherever appropriate. For example, the notion of determinant is shown to appear from calculating the index of a vector field which leads to a self-contained proof of the Fundamental Theorem of Algebra, and the Cayley–Hamilton theorem is established by recognizing the fact that the set of complex matrices of distinct eigenvalues is dense. The material is supplemented by a rich collection of over 350 mostly proof-oriented exercises, suitable for students from a wide variety of backgrounds. Selected solutions are provided at the back of the book, making it suitable for self-study as well as for use as a course text.
Optimization of relativistic laser–ion acceleration
Authors: Schreiber J. , Bell F. , Najmudin Z.
Published: December 2014

Experiments have shown that the ion energy obtained by laser–ion acceleration can be optimized by choosing either the appropriate pulse duration or the appropriate target thickness. We demonstrate that this behavior can be described either by the target normal sheath acceleration model of Schreiber et al. or by the radiation pressure acceleration model of Bulanov and coworkers. The starting point of our considerations is that the essential property of a laser system for ion acceleration is its pulse energy and not its intensity. Maybe surprisingly we show that higher ion energies can be reached with reduced intensities.
Antimicrobial Stewardship in Outpatient Settings: A Systematic Review
Authors: Drekonja Dimitri M. , Filice Gregory A. , Greer Nancy , Olson Andrew , MacDonald Roderick , Rutks Indulis , Wilt Timothy J.
Published: December 2014

Objective

Evaluate the effect of outpatient antimicrobial stewardship programs on prescribing, patient, microbial outcomes, and costs.

Design

Systematic review

Methods

Search of MEDLINE (2000 through November 2013), Cochrane Library, and reference lists of relevant studies. We included English language studies with patient populations relevant to the United States (eg, infectious conditions, prescription services) evaluating stewardship programs in outpatient settings and reporting outcomes of interest. Data regarding study characteristics and outcomes were extracted and organized by intervention type.

Results

We identified 50 studies eligible for inclusion, with most (29 of 50; 58%) reporting on respiratory tract infections, followed by multiple/unspecified infections (17 of 50; 34%). We found medium-strength evidence that stewardship programs incorporating communication skills training and laboratory testing are associated with reductions in antimicrobial use, and low-strength evidence that other stewardship interventions are associated with improved prescribing. Patient-centered outcomes, which were infrequently reported, were not adversely affected. Medication costs were generally lower with stewardship interventions, but overall program costs were rarely reported. No studies reported microbial outcomes, and data regarding outpatient settings other than primary care clinics are limited.

Conclusions

Low- to moderate-strength evidence suggests that antimicrobial stewardship programs in outpatient settings improve antimicrobial prescribing without adversely effecting patient outcomes. Effectiveness depends on program type. Most studies were not designed to measure patient or resistance outcomes. Data regarding sustainability and scalability of interventions are limited.

Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2014;00(0):1–11
Maximizing the Reliability of Cross-National Measures of Presidential Power
Authors: Doyle David , Elgie Robert
Published: December 2014

This article aims to maximize the reliability of presidential power scores for a larger number of countries and time periods than currently exists for any single measure, and in a way that is replicable and easy to update. It begins by identifying all of the studies that have estimated the effect of a presidential power variable, clarifying what scholars have attempted to capture when they have operationalized the concept of presidential power. It then identifies all the measures of presidential power that have been proposed over the years, noting the problems associated with each. To generate the new set of presidential power scores, the study draws upon the comparative and local knowledge embedded in existing measures of presidential power. Employing principal component analysis, together with the expectation maximization algorithm and maximum likelihood estimation, a set of presidential power scores is generated for a larger set of countries and country time periods than currently exists, reporting 95 per cent confidence intervals and standard errors for the scores. Finally, the implications of the new set of scores for future studies of presidential power is discussed.
GENDER-RELATED FACTORS INFLUENCING WOMEN'S HEALTH SEEKING FOR TUBERCULOSIS CARE IN EBONYI STATE, NIGERIA
Authors: OSHI DANIEL C. , OSHI SARAH N. , ALOBU ISAAC N. , UKWAJA KINGSLEY N.
Published: December 2014

This is a qualitative, descriptive study to explore gender-related factors that influence health seeking for tuberculosis (TB) care by women in Ebonyi State, Nigeria. In-depth interviews based on interview guides were conducted with participants selected through purposive sampling in communities in the state. The results show that gender relations prohibit women from seeking care for symptoms of TB and other diseases outside their community without their husbands' approval. Gender norms on intra-household resource ownership and control divest women of the power to allocate money for health care seeking. Yet, the same norms place the burden of spending on health care for minor illnesses on women, and such repeated, out-of-pocket expenditures on health care at the village level make it difficult for women to save money for use for health care seeking for major illnesses such as TB, which, even if subsidized, still involves hidden costs such as transport fare. The opening hours of TB clinics do not favour their use by most women as they are open when women are usually engaged in income-generating activities. Attending the clinics may therefore entail opportunity costs for many women. People with chronic, infectious diseases such as TB and HIV are generally stigmatized and avoided. Women suffer more stigma and discrimination than men. Stigma and discrimination make women reluctant to seek care for TB until the disease is advanced. Policies and programmes aimed at increasing women's access to TB services should not only take these gender norms that disempower women into explicit consideration but also include interventions to address them. The programmes should integrate flexible opening hours for TB treatment units, including introduction of evening consultation for women. Interventions should also integrate anti-stigma strategies led by the community members themselves.
Progressive motility – a potential predictive parameter for semen fertilization capacity in bovines
Authors: Li Y. , Kalo D. , Zeron Y. , Roth Z.
Published: December 2014

We examined the association between progressive motility of spermatozoa andin vitrofertilization (IVF) competence of bovine ejaculates. Fresh semen was evaluated using a computerized sperm quality analyzer for bulls using progressive motility as the primary parameter. Ejaculates with high progressive motility (HPM; >81%) were compared with those with low progressive motility (LPM; <62%). Semen concentration and sperm velocity were lower (P< 0.05) in HPM versus LPM ejaculates. Volume and motile sperm concentration did not differ between groups (P> 0.05). Examination of sperm morphology revealed a higher proportion of spermatozoa with abnormal morphology (P< 0.01) in LPM versus HPM ejaculates, the predominant abnormal feature being a bent tail (P< 0.05). Sperm viability, acrosome integrity and DNA fragmentation did not differ between HPM and LPM samples. Mitochondrial membrane potential was higher (P< 0.01) in HPM versus LPM semen. Zinc concentrations in the seminal plasma correlated with progressive motility (R2= 0.463,P= 0.03). In addition, representative ejaculates from HPM and LPM groups were cryopreserved in straws and used for IVF. The proportions of embryos cleaved to 2- and 4-cell stages (88.1 ± 1.1 versus 80.5 ± 1.7,P= 0.001) and developed to blastocysts (33.5 ± 1.6 versus 23.5 ± 2.2,P= 0.026) were higher for HPM than LPM semen. The total cell number of embryos and blastocyst apoptotic index did not differ between groups. Although sperm progressive motility is associated with IVF competence, further examination is required to determine whether progressive motility can serve as a predictor of semen fertilization capacityin vivo.
Introduction: elusive equalities – sex, gender and women
Authors: Albertyn Catherine , Fredman Sandra , Fudge Judy
Published: December 2014

Despite the fact that the Millennium Development Goals promised to achieve gender equality and maternal health by 2015, equality remains elusive for too many women. Indeed, austerity, the rise of fundamentalism and the continuing gendered division of labour, especially when it comes to socially necessary but unremunerated care work, have contributed to the increase in gendered inequalities in many areas of social life and in most regions of the world. There is a plenitude of international, transnational and national equality instruments and strategies at the same time as gendered inequality is increasing both within and between nations. These equality instruments and strategies have also had an uneven impact: some women benefit more than others. Moreover, if interpreted in a formal manner, equality can be achieved as much through levelling down men's employment opportunities as by elevating women's life chances.
Reversing roles: bringing men into the frame
Authors: Fredman Sandra
Published: December 2014

The attempt to secure maternity rights has been a major focus of decades of campaigning for women's equality. However, it is of concern that maternity rights might reinforce women's responsibility for childcare. This paper considers how we bring men back into the frame, through a critical assessment of the contrasting approaches in Europe and the US to claims by fathers for parenting rights. It is argued that the goal of equal participation of women in the workplace needs to be matched by equal participation of men in the home. This is only possible if the conception of equality is shaped by a conscious and explicit commitment to the social value of parenthood. Substantive equality can only be genuinely furthered if pregnancy and parenthood are appropriately distinguished. Whereas pregnancy is unique and should be treated as such, a true application of substantive equality requires a ‘levelling up’ option, extending women's parenting rights to fathers.
Gender, poverty and the development of the right to social security
Authors: Goldblatt Beth
Published: December 2014

The international right to social security has been given limited attention as a vehicle for addressing women's poverty. This paper highlights some of the issues shaping women's poverty globally that require a more responsive right to social security. It discusses the nature and purpose of social security and examines the international law relating to this right, arguing that recent interpretations lack an adequate framework for ensuring women's interests are fully accommodated. The paper challenges the relationship between the right to social security and traditional conceptions of work that exclude women's labour. It also argues that the right must have application at the transnational level if it is to address the changing nature of women's work. Drawing on ideas of substantive equality, it proposes an approach to the development of the right from a gender perspective including a set of principles to be followed in applying the right.
Telefonische Notfallkonsultationen
Authors: Schaufelberger Mireille , Goeldlin Adrian
Published: December 2014

Telefonkonsultationen gehören zum hausärztlichen Alltag. Der rasche und unkomplizierte Zugang zu einer medizinischen Beratung via Telefon wird von den Patienten sehr geschätzt, und die Nachfrage nach Telefonkonsultationen nimmt stetig zu. Telefonkonsultationen stellen für medizinisches Fachpersonal eine Herausforderung dar. Das Einhalten von Empfehlungen hilft, die Sicherheit zu erhöhen. Die zur Handhabung benötigten Fertigkeiten sind erlernbar.
Wenn die Kleinsten Fieber haben
Authors: Pirker Anna , Pirker Matthias
Published: December 2014

Mit der Beachtung weniger wichtiger Grundsätze lassen sich Kinder mit Fieber korrekt beurteilen und behandeln sowie schwerwiegende Fehleinschätzungen weitestgehend vermeiden. Dieser Artikel gibt hierzu einen Überblick.
Notfälle bei Demenz – was Sie tun können
Authors: Balmer Hannes
Published: December 2014

Häufige Notfälle bei Demenzerkrankten sind Aggressivität, Schreien, Tag-Nacht-Umkehr, sonstige Verhaltensstörungen und Stürze. Ursache ist nicht selten ein Delir, vor allem wenn es zu einer raschen Änderung gekommen ist. Besonders hypoaktive Delirien sind schwer zu erkennen. Akute somatische Erkrankungen haben bei Dementen eine andere Bedeutung als bei Nicht-Dementen, Prioritäten müssen der Hirnleistungsschwäche angepasst werden. Neben medizinischen müssen auch ethische Entscheide gefällt werden. Besondere Bedeutung kommt den Ressourcen des Betreuernetzes zu. Es werden nicht-medikamentöse und medikamentöse Lösungsansätze im Umgang mit Notfällen bei Demenzerkrankten aufgezeigt.
Management von lokalen Kälteschäden in und außerhalb der Praxis
Authors: Durrer Bruno
Published: December 2014

Lokale Erfrierungen treten meist in Kombination mit Unfällen, Intoxikationen oder psychiatrischen Notfällen auf. Präklinisch steht die rasche Aufwärmung des erfrorenen Körperteils in einem handwarmen Wasserbad und die Gabe von Aspirin® im Vordergrund. Neue Beurteilungskriterien erlauben eine raschere Prognosestellung. Für die klinische Behandlung scheint aktuell die Gabe von Prostatglandinen und Thrombolytika vielversprechend zu sein.
Clay minerals and metal oxides strongly influence the structure of alkane-degrading microbial communities during soil maturation
Authors: Steinbach Annelie , Schulz Stefanie , Giebler Julia , Schulz Stephan , Pronk Geertje J , Kögel-Knabner Ingrid , Harms Hauke , Wick Lukas Y , Schloter Michael
Published: December 2014

Clay minerals, charcoal and metal oxides are essential parts of the soil matrix and strongly influence the formation of biogeochemical interfaces in soil. We investigated the role of these parental materials for the development of functional microbial guilds using the example of alkane-degrading bacteria harbouring the alkane monooxygenase gene (alkB) in artificial mixtures composed of different minerals and charcoal, sterile manure and a microbial inoculum extracted from an agricultural soil. We followed changes in abundance and community structure of alkane-degrading microbial communities after 3 and 12 months of soil maturation and in response to a subsequent 2-week plant litter addition. During maturation we observed an overall increasing divergence in community composition. The impact of metal oxides on alkane-degrading community structure increased during soil maturation, whereas the charcoal impact decreased from 3 to 12 months. Among the clay minerals illite influenced the community structure of alkB-harbouring bacteria significantly, but not montmorillonite. The litter application induced strong community shifts in soils, maturated for 12 months, towards functional guilds typical for younger maturation stages pointing to a resilience of the alkane-degradation function potentially fostered by an extant ‘seed bank’.
DNA barcoding reveals diverse growth kinetics of human breast tumour subclones in serially passaged xenografts
Authors: Nguyen Long V. , Cox Claire L. , Eirew Peter , Knapp David J. H. F. , Pellacani Davide , Kannan Nagarajan , Carles Annaick , Moksa Michelle , Balani Sneha , Shah Sohrab , Hirst Martin , Aparicio Samuel , Eaves Connie J.
Published: December 2014

Genomic and phenotypic analyses indicate extensive intra- as well as intertumoral heterogeneity in primary human malignant cell populations despite their clonal origin. Cellular DNA barcoding offers a powerful and unbiased alternative to track the number and size of multiple subclones within a single human tumour xenograft and their response to continued in vivo passaging. Using this approach we find clone-initiating cell frequencies that vary from ~1/10 to ~1/10,000 cells transplanted for two human breast cancer cell lines and breast cancer xenografts derived from three different patients. For the cell lines, these frequencies are negatively affected in transplants of more than 20,000 cells. Serial transplants reveal five clonal growth patterns (unchanging, expanding, diminishing, fluctuating or of delayed onset), whose predominance is highly variable both between and within original samples. This study thus demonstrates the high growth potential and diverse growth properties of xenografted human breast cancer cells.
Asymmetric parental genome engineering by Cas9 during mouse meiotic exit
Authors: Suzuki Toru , Asami Maki , Perry Anthony C. F.
Published: December 2014

Mammalian genomes can be edited by injecting pronuclear embryos with Cas9 cRNA and guide RNA (gRNA) but it is unknown whether editing can also occur during the onset of embryonic development, prior to pronuclear embryogenesis. We here report Cas9-mediated editing during sperm-induced meiotic exit and the initiation of development. Injection of unfertilized, mouse metaphase II (mII) oocytes with Cas9 cRNA, gRNA and sperm enabled efficient editing of transgenic and native alleles. Pre-loading oocytes with Cas9 increased sensitivity to gRNA ~100-fold. Paternal allelic editing occurred as an early event: single embryo genome analysis revealed editing within 3 h of sperm injection, coinciding with sperm chromatin decondensation during the gamete-to-embryo transition but prior to pronucleus formation. Maternal alleles underwent editing after the first round of DNA replication, resulting in mosaicism. Asymmetric editing of maternal and paternal alleles suggests a novel strategy for discriminatory targeting of parental genomes.
Study of modern artistic materials using combined spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques. Case study: painting with the signature “Picasso”
Authors: López-Ramírez Maria Rosa , Navas Natalia , Rodríguez-Simón Luis R. , Otero Juan C. , Manzano Eloisa
Published: December 2014

A painting bearing the signature “Picasso” was investigated and its components were characterised using micro-Raman spectroscopy combined with other analytical techniques such as SEM/EDX, ATR-FTIR and GC-MS).
Rapid assay for testing superoxide anion radical scavenging activities to natural pigments by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-diode-array detection method
Authors: Wang Lu , Liu Shu , Zheng Zhong , Pi Zifeng , Song Fengrui , Liu Zhiqiang
Published: December 2014

A simple and rapid ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-diode-array detection (UPLC-DAD) method was developed for testing superoxide anion radicals (O2˙−) scavenging activities to natural pigments.
Rapid ultrasonic isothermal amplification of DNA with multiplexed melting analysis – applications in the clinical diagnosis of sexually transmitted diseases
Authors: Xu Gaolian , Gunson Rory N. , Cooper Jonathan M. , Reboud Julien
Published: December 2014

We demonstrate an acoustic platform for the multiplexed isothermal amplification of sexually transmitted diseases. The use of surface acoustic waves (SAW) enabled faster detection with high sensitivity down to 10 copies.
Ethanol induces the formation of water-permeable defects in model bilayers of skin lipids
Authors: Thind R. , O'Neill D. W. , Del Regno A. , Notman R.
Published: December 2014

We observe that ethanol can induce the formation of water-permeable defects in model bilayers of skin lipids and propose this as a new mechanism of action of ethanol as a membrane modulator.
Iron catalysed cross-couplings of azetidines – application to the formal synthesis of a pharmacologically active molecule
Authors: Parmar Dixit , Henkel Lena , Dib Josef , Rueping Magnus
Published: December 2014

A protocol for the cross-coupling of azetidines with aryl, heteroaryl, vinyl and alkyl Grignard reagents has been developed under iron catalysis. In addition, a short formal synthesis of a pharmacologically active molecule was demonstrated.
Photo-controlled targeted intracellular delivery of both nitric oxide and singlet oxygen using a fluorescence-trackable ruthenium nitrosyl functional nanoplatform
Authors: Xiang Hui-Jing , An Lu , Tang Wei-Wei , Yang Shi-Ping , Liu Jin-Gang
Published: December 2014

A multifunctional nitric oxide (NO) delivery nanoplatform that combines functionalities of target directing, fluorescence tracking, and photo-controlled target attacking was developed.
Structural modification in bimetallic Ru(iii)–Co(ii) metal–organic frameworks
Authors: Li Shenshen , Chen Yu-Sheng , Mulfort Karen L.
Published: December 2014

Two new mixed-metal MOFs were synthesized using the same Ru3O(OAc)6+-based struts and Co(ii)-based nodes but variation in synthesis conditions has yielded markedly different topology.
Growth mechanism and PL properties of β-sialon nanobelts/nanowires synthesized by a process of aluminothermic reduction nitridation of zircon
Authors: Liu Haitao , Meng Fanrong , Li Qing , Huang Zhaohui , Luo Shunqin , Yin Li , Fang Minghao , Liu Yan-Gai , Wu Xiaowen
Published: December 2014

Large scale β-sialon nanobelts/nanowires and ZrN–sialon composite powders were prepared via aluminothermic reduction nitridation with flowing N2.
An improved model for predicting electrical conductance in nanochannels
Authors: Taghipoor M. , Bertsch A. , Renaud Ph.
Published: December 2014

The net charge inside the nanochannel decreases by lowering the ionic concentration, which results in a lower electrical conductance.