bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Symmetry aspects of diatomics‐in‐molecules (DIM) calculations. II. Construction of symmetry‐adapted diatomic fragment subspaces
Authors: Vojtík Jan
Published: March 2012

A new general procedure is presented for the construction of symmetry adapted diatomic fragment sub‐spaces of spin‐adapted polyatomic DIM bases obtained by direct diagonalization of the polyatomic spin‐square operator. The spin part of the construction is accomplished by the diagonalization in the DIM basis of the diatomic spin‐square operators. The spatial part of relevant transformations is given in terms of quantum numbers of the constituent atomic functions. Simple expressions for the spatial symmetry and spin designation of the resulting symmetry‐adapted diatomic fragment states are obtained. Special attention is paid to consistent phases of diatomic fragment functions corresponding to equivalent fragments. The approach eliminates such mental operations from the construction of symmetry‐adapted diatomic fragment subspaces which are difficult to formulate in a way suitable for straightforward computer implementation.
A landmark‐bounded method for large‐scale underground mine mapping
Authors: Lavigne N. James , Marshall Joshua A.
Published: March 2012

A practical localization technology for underground drift networks—such as those excavated in the practice of underground mining—has yet to become commercially available. This paper focuses on the problem of mapping GPS‐deprived underground environments with the eventual goal of using these maps for navigation. Recent industry‐directed work in the creation of a landmark‐bounded occupancy grid mapping tool that combines odometry, scanning laser data, and sporadically placed passive RFID tags is described. Unlike other work, the suggested approach holds the philosophy that precise localization of the actual landmark locations is not necessary; rather, landmarks serve as a global means for partitioning the map. Successful field experiments were conducted in two underground environments, with the results used to conduct a basic analysis of the described method. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Efficient estimation in model‐based clustering of Gaussian regression time series
Authors: Melnykov Volodymyr
Published: March 2012

This paper discusses an alternative approach to the estimation procedure presented in a recently published paper. The authors developed a model‐based clustering approach for regression time series and proposed the APECM procedure as an acceleration method for the expectation–maximization algorithm. The process of the estimation of model parameters was discussed in great detail. In this paper, we show how the proposed procedure can be modified to achieve substantial acceleration and better stability. In particular, numerical maximization suggested for the estimation of parameters can be replaced with analytical closed‐form expressions, and inverting high dimensional matrices can be avoided entirely. A convenient approach for assessing variability in parameter estimates is also provided. The results of conducted experiments are very promising. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Statistical Analysis and Data Mining, 2012
Indications for Surgery and Significance of Unrecognized Cancer in Endemic Multinodular Goiter
Authors: Lasithiotakis Konstantinos , Grisbolaki Evangelia , Koutsomanolis Dimosthenis , Venianaki Maria , Petrakis Ioannis , Vrachassotakis Nikolaos , Chrysos Emanuel , Zoras Odysseas , Chalkiadakis George
Published: March 2012

Background

The exclusion of cancer in endemic goiter is often difficult mainly because of the high number of nodules and the as‐yet unclear natural history of diagnosed cancer in endemic goiter patients. In a large number of consecutive patients who were to undergo total thyroidectomy for endemic multinodular goiter, we assessed indications for surgery and thyroid cancer outcome.

Methods

All patients who were to undergo total thyroidectomy for diffuse multinodular goiter on histological examination between January 1990 and October 2008 were evaluated.

Results

Of the 1,161 patients included in the study, 252 were cases of thyroid cancer (21.7%). Sensitivity of thyroid ultrasound (US) and fine‐needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) for cancer detection was 30.3 and 64.1%, respectively. Differentiated thyroid carcinoma accounted for most of the tumors (96%), with 54.8% of them being papillary microcarcinomas, while bilateral‐multicentric cancer occurred in 20.3%. In multivariate analysis, younger age (p = 0.06), sonographic findings (p = 0.03), and presence of histological thyroiditis (p = 0.09) were independently associated with the occurrence of tumors with diameter greater than 2 cm. The percentage of transient and permanent postoperative complications were approximately 25 and below 2%, respectively. After a median follow‐up time of 78.5 months, overall recurrence rate was 6.7% and disease‐specific mortality was 1.2%.

Conclusion

As US and FNAC did not consistently detect cancer in patients with diffuse multinodular goiter in our endemic area, evidence‐based indications for surgery in this group of patients is needed, although radical surgery and favorable tumor histology offer favorable outcomes in commonly diagnosed thyroid cancer after total thyroidectomy for endemic multinodular goiter.
Digital Animation as a Method to Disseminate Research Findings to the Community Using a Community‐Based Participatory Approach
Authors: Vaughn Nicole A. , Jacoby Sara F. , Williams Thalia , Guerra Terry , Thomas Nicole A. , Richmond Therese S.
Published: March 2012

Community‐based participatory research (CBPR) has garnered increasing interest over the previous two decades as researchers have tackled increasingly complex health problems. In academia, professional presentations and articles are major ways that research is disseminated. However, dissemination of research findings to the people and communities who participated in the research is many times forgotten. In addition, little scholarly literature is focused on creative dissemination of research findings to the community using CBPR methods. We seek to fill this gap in the literature by providing an exemplar of research dissemination and partnership strategies that were used to complete this project. In this paper, we present a novel approach to the dissemination of research findings to our targeted communities through digital animation. We also provide the foundational thinking and specific steps that were taken to select this specific dissemination product development and distribution strategy.
International Note: Between‐domain relations of Chinese high school students’ academic achievements
Authors: Yangyang Liu
Published: March 2012

The present study examined the between‐domain relations of Chinese high school students’ academic achievements. In a sample of 1870 Chinese 10th grade students, the results indicated that Chinese high school students’ academic achievements were correlated across nine subjects. In line with the previous Western findings, the findings suggested that academic achievement was largely domain‐general in nature.
Characterization of BshA, bacillithiol glycosyltransferase from Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis
Authors: Upton Heather , Newton Gerald L. , Gushiken Melissa , Lo Kelly , Holden Dhiraj , Fahey Robert C. , Rawat Mamta
Published: March 2012

The first step during bacillithiol (BSH) biosynthesis involves the formation of N‐acetylglucosaminylmalate from UDP‐N‐acetylglucosamine and l‐malate and is catalyzed by a GT4 class glycosyltransferase enzyme (BshA). Recombinant Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis BshA were highly specific and active with l‐malate but the former showed low activity with d‐glyceric acid and the latter with d‐malate. We show that BshA is inhibited by BSH and similarly that MshA (first enzyme of mycothiol biosynthesis) is inhibited by the final product MSH.
Adipocyte pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4 expression is associated with augmented PPARγ upregulation in early‐life programming of later obesity
Authors: Holness Mark J. , Zariwala Gulrez , Walker Celia G. , Sugden Mary C.
Published: March 2012

We studied adipocytes from 8‐week‐old control rat offspring (CON) or rat offspring subjected to maternal low (8%) protein (MLP) feeding during pregnancy/lactation, a procedure predisposing to obesity. Acute exposure to isoproterenol or adenosine enhanced PDK4 and PPARγ mRNA gene expression in CON and MLP adipocytes. Enhanced adipocyte Pdk4 expression correlated with increased PPARγ expression. Higher levels of PDK4 and PPARγ were observed in MLP adipocytes. SCD1 is a PPARγ target. Isoproterenol enhanced adipocyte PDK4 and SCD1 gene expression in parallel. This could reflect augmented PPARγ expression together with enhanced lipolytic stimulation to supply endogenous PPARγ ligands, allowing enhanced adipocyte PDK4 and SCD1 expression via PPARγ activation. In contrast, the effect of adenosine to increase PDK4 expression is independent of stimulation of lipolysis and, as SCD1 expression was unaffected by adenosine, unlikely to reflect PPARγ activation. Increased adipocyte expression of both PDK4 and SCD1 in the MLP model could participate as components of a “thrifty” phenotype, favouring the development of obesity.
The Wnt pathway destabilizes adherens junctions and promotes cell migration via β‐catenin and its target gene cyclin D1
Authors: Vlad-Fiegen Annica , Langerak Anette , Eberth Sonja , Müller Oliver
Published: March 2012

The Wnt pathway regulates cell proliferation, mobility and differentiation. Among the many Wnt target genes is CCND1 which codes for cyclin D1. Cyclin D1, in complex with cdk4 and cdk6, regulates G1/S phase transition during cell cycle. Independently of CDK, cyclin D1 also regulates the migration of macrophages. Here we analyzed the effects of cyclin D1 on the migration of cancer cell lines using the transwell migration and scratch assays. We also tested the effect of cyclin D1 and β‐catenin on E‐cadherin‐mediated cell–cell contacts. Our results show that the Wnt pathway promotes cellular migration via its target gene cyclin D1. Moreover we show that cyclin D1 influences the actin cytoskeleton and destabilizes adherens junctions.
Brands as relationship partners: Warmth, competence, and in‐between
Authors: Fournier Susan , Alvarez Claudio
Published: March 2012

The dialogue between social perception and consumer–brand relationship theories opens new opportunities for studying brands. To advance branding research in the spirit of interdisciplinary inquiry, we propose to (1) investigate the process of anthropomorphism through which brands are imbued with intentional agency; (2) integrate the role of consumers not only as perceivers but also as relationship agents; (3) consider important defining dimensions of consumer–brand relationships beyond warmth and competence, including power and excitement; and (4) articulate the dynamics governing warmth (intentions) and competency (ability) judgments to yield prescriptive guidance for developing popular and admired brands.
The universality of warmth and competence: A response to brands as intentional agents
Authors: Bennett Aronté Marie , Hill Ronald Paul
Published: March 2012

Considerable effort has been devoted towards the understanding of the ways in which people interact with brands. However, little attention has been paid to the personal differences that may impact these interactions. The framework for brands as intentional agents by Kervyn, Fiske, and Malone (this issue) is the groundbreaking application of almost three decades of research on warmth and competence as predictors of interpersonal stereotypes to the realm of brands. Our paper argues that demographic differences impact interactions with brands and offer additional explanatory power to the framework. Findings support conclusions of Kervyn et al., but they also suggest the importance of age, education, and income on warmth and competence evaluations.
Understanding the richness of brand relationships: Research dialogue on brands as intentional agents
Authors: Keller Kevin Lane
Published: March 2012

This essay offers some perspectives on Kervyn et al.'s insightful research on brand relationships and the role of perceived intentions and ability. After briefly discussing the importance of brand knowledge and functionality in understanding the diversity of brand relationships, some other antecedents and consequences of brand relationships are reviewed. Three antecedents of corporate credibility — expertise, trust, and likability — are suggested as another means to differentiate how consumers view different brands. Brand resonance — an intense, active loyalty relationship — is also suggested as an important outcome of brand relationships. The essay concludes by noting that any concept as complex as brand relationships lends itself to multiple concepts, perspectives, and analysis.
Does brand spelling influence memory? The case of auditorily presented brand names
Authors: Luna David , Carnevale Marina , Lerman Dawn
Published: March 2012

We present a framework based on psycholinguistic theory to explain how individuals spell auditorily‐presented information. We use the framework to predict and test how spelling‐related characteristics of brand names and factors related to the context in which brand names are presented (e.g., spelling primes) will make the brands more or less memorable. Further, we reveal the process through which spelling‐related linguistic variables influence brand recall: the dual‐code (both written and auditory) that results from spelling a brand correctly leads to greater ability to later recall the brand. Our framework identifies two routes that interact when individuals have to transcribe a brand: the lexical (top‐down) route and the sublexical (bottom‐up) route.
Inertial particle relative velocity statistics in homogeneous isotropic turbulence
Authors: Salazar Juan P. L. C. , Collins Lance R.
Published: March 2012

In the present study, we investigate the scaling of relative velocity structure functions, of order two and higher, for inertial particles, both in the dissipation range and the inertial subrange using direct numerical simulations (DNS). Within the inertial subrange our findings show that contrary to the well-known attenuation in the tails of the one-point acceleration probability density function (p.d.f.) with increasing inertia (Bec et al., J. Fluid Mech., vol. 550, 2006, pp. 349–358), the opposite occurs with the velocity structure function at sufficiently large Stokes numbers. We observe reduced scaling exponents for the structure function when compared to those of the fluid, and correspondingly broader p.d.f.s, similar to what occurs with a passive scalar. DNS allows us to isolate the two effects of inertia, namely biased sampling of the velocity field, a result of preferential concentration, and filtering, i.e. the tendency for the inertial particle velocity to attenuate the velocity fluctuations in the fluid. By isolating these effects, we show that sampling is playing the dominant role for low-order moments of the structure function, whereas filtering accounts for most of the scaling behaviour observed with the higher-order structure functions in the inertial subrange. In the dissipation range, we see evidence of so-called ‘crossing trajectories’, the ‘sling effect’ or ‘caustics’, and find good agreement with the theory put forth by Wilkinson et al. (Phys. Rev. Lett., vol. 97, 2006, 048501) and Falkovich & Pumir (J. Atmos. Sci., vol. 64, 2007, 4497) for Stokes numbers greater than 0.5. We also look at the scaling exponents within the context of the model proposed by Bec et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 646, 2010, pp. 527–536). Another interesting finding is that inertial particles at low Stokes numbers sample regions of higher kinetic energy than the fluid particle field, the converse occurring at high Stokes numbers. The trend at low Stokes numbers is predicted by the theory of Chun et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 536, 2005, 219–251). This work is relevant to modelling the particle collision rate (Sundaram & Collins, J. Fluid Mech., vol. 335, 1997, pp. 75–109), and highlights the interesting array of phenomena induced by inertia.
Plume flows in porous media driven by horizontal differential heating
Authors: Adamou-Graham P. , Daniels P. G.
Published: March 2012

In this paper we describe flow through a porous medium in a two-dimensional rectangular cavity driven by differential heating of the impermeable lower surface. The upper surface is held at constant pressure and at a constant temperature equal to the minimum temperature of the lower surface, while the sidewalls are impermeable and thermally insulated. Numerical results for general values of the Darcy–Rayleigh number $R$ and the cavity aspect ratio $A$ are compared with theoretical predictions for the small Darcy–Rayleigh number limit $(R\ensuremath{\rightarrow} 0)$ where the temperature field is conduction-dominated, and with a boundary-layer theory for the large Darcy–Rayleigh number limit $(R\ensuremath{\rightarrow} \infty )$ where convection is significant. In the latter case a horizontal boundary layer near the lower surface conveys fluid to the hot end of the cavity where it rises to the upper surface in a narrow plume. Predictions are made of the vertical heat transfer through the cavity.
Effects of heat conduction in a wall on thermoacoustic-wave propagation
Authors: Sugimoto N. , Hyodo H.
Published: March 2012

This paper examines the effects of heat conduction in a wall on thermoacoustic-wave propagation in a gas, as a continuation of the previous paper (Sugimoto, J. Fluid Mech., 2010, vol. 658, pp. 89–116), enclosed in two-dimensional channels by a stack of plates or in a periodic array of circular tubes, both being subject to a temperature gradient axially and extending infinitely. Within the narrow-tube approximation employed previously, the linearized system of fluid-dynamical equations for the ideal gas coupled with the equation for heat conduction in the solid wall are reduced to single thermoacoustic-wave equations in the respective cases. In this process, temperatures of the gas and the solid wall are sought to the first order of asymptotic expansions in a small parameter determined by the square root of the product of the ratio of heat capacity of gas per volume to that of the solid, and the ratio of thermal conductivity of the gas to that of the solid. The effects of heat conduction introduce into the equation two hereditary terms due to triple coupling among viscous diffusion, thermal diffusion of the gas and that of the solid, and due to double coupling between thermal diffusions of the gas and solid. While the thermoacoutic-wave equations are valid always for any form of disturbances generally, approximate equations are derived from them for a short-time behaviour and a long-time behaviour. For the short-time behaviour, the effects of heat conduction are negligible, while for the long-time behaviour, they will affect the propagation as a wall becomes thinner. It is unveiled that when the geometry of the channels or the tubes, and the combination of the gas and the solid satisfy special conditions, the asymptotic expansions exhibit non-uniformity, i.e. a resonance occurs, and then the thermoacoustic-wave equations break down. Discussion is given on modifications in the resonant case by taking full account of the effects of heat conduction, and also on the effects on the acoustic fields.
Current applications of oogram methodology in experimental schistosomiasis; fecundity of femaleSchistosoma mansoniand egg release in the intestine of AKR/J mice following immunomodulatory treatment with pentoxifylline
Authors: Mati V.L.T. , Melo A.L.
Published: March 2012

Oogram methodology permitted a direct assessment of the fecundity ofSchistosoma mansoniand the passage of parasite eggs from mesenteric vessels into the intestinal lumen in AKR/J mice that had been infected via the intraperitoneal route with 60 cercariae of the trematode and later subjected to short-term subcutaneous treatments with pentoxifylline (PTX). The administration of PTX did not change oviposition kinetics, the individual fecundity of female parasites (as determined by the study of the ratio of second-stageS. mansonieggs per g intestine/number of female parasites recovered from the portal system), nor the number of mature and dead eggs retained in the host tissue, though the drug has known immunomodulatory effects, as shown previously in experimental schistosomiasis. A better appraisal was also carried out, including the study of statistical parameters, concerning the utilization of the ratios of each stage of immature eggs (first to fourth) per g intestine/number of female worms from the portal system. The second-stage eggs had the lowest variability, confirming that the utilization of this stage as an indicator of the individual fecundity of parasite females is indeed viable. In the light of our findings, current uses of oogram methodology are discussed. Moreover, additional consideration is given to data obtained in the present study concerning intraperitoneal infection withS. mansonicercariae in both untreated and treated mice of the AKR/J strain, such as the recovery of mature worms, eggs and free granulomas from the peritoneal cavity of these rodents.
Disorder, dictatorship and government effectiveness: cross-national evidence
Authors: Whitford Andrew , Lee Soo-Young
Published: March 2012

Institutional design balances the costs and benefits of dictatorship and disorder. Democracy can be efficient if it improves the performance of government. Yet, sometimes authoritarian governments can be efficient if they reduce disorder. We show that democratisation has a non-linear effect on income-adjusted perceptions of government effectiveness. These findings present a new opportunity to revisit the study of government performance for researchers working in public administration and political science.
When Spanish owns English words
Authors: Balteiro Isabel
Published: March 2012

The English language and the Internet, both separately and taken together, are nowadays well-acknowledged as powerful forces which influence and affect the lexico-grammatical characteristics of other languages world-wide. In fact, many authors like Crystal (2004) have pointed out the emergence of the so-called Netspeak, that is, the language used in the Net or World Wide Web; as Crystal himself (2004: 19) puts it, ‘a type of language displaying features that are unique to the Internet […] arising out of its character as a medium which is electronic, global and interactive’. This ‘language’, however, may be differently understood: either as an adaptation of the English language proper to internet requirements and purposes, or as a new and rapidly-changing and developing language as a result of a rapid evolution or adaptation to Internet requirements of almost all world languages, for whom English is a trendsetter. If the second and probably most plausible interpretation is adopted, there are three salient features of ‘Netspeak’: (a) the rapid expansion of all its new linguistic developments thanks to the Internet itself, which may lead to the generalization and widespread acceptance of new words, coinages, or meanings, hundreds of times faster than was the case with the printed media. As said above, (b) the visible influence of English, the most prevalent language on the Internet. Consequently, (c) this new language tends to reduce the ‘distance’ between English and other languages as well as the ignorance of the former by speakers of other languages, since the ‘Netspeak’ version of the latter adopts grammatical, syntactic and lexical features of English. Thus, linguistic differences may even disappear when code-switching and/or borrowing occurs, as whole fragments of English appear in other language contexts. As a consequence of the new situation, an ideal context appears for interlanguage or multilingual word formation to thrive: puns, blends, compounds and word creativity in general find in the web the ideal place to gain rapid acceptance world-wide, as a result of fashion, coincidence, or sheer merit of the new linguistic proposals.
Why no mips?
Authors: Bulley Michael
Published: March 2012

This article is about some very short words: the permutations for monosyllables in common use in standard British English having the phonetic pattern: single consonant + short vowel + single consonant. It is similar, therefore, to my article ‘Consonantal beginnings’ (ET80), in which I looked at what pairs of consonantal sounds could be found at the beginnings of English words. The pronunciation is to be taken as that given in the OED for British English.
Non-native attitudes towards teaching English as a lingua franca in Europe
Authors: Groom Chloe
Published: March 2012

English as a lingua franca (ELF) is a means of communication in English between speakers who have different first languages. While some definitions (e.g. House, 2003) exclude native speakers of English (NSs) from ELF interactions, others allow NSs to take part in ELF interactions as long as they defer to ELF norms (Jenkins, 2009b). In order for an interaction to be classified as ELF, however, NS contributions are always expected to be minimal (Jenkins, 2009b: 41). ELF is therefore mainly, if not exclusively, used between non-native speakers of English (NNSs).
Evolutionary tinkering with visual photoreception
Authors: GOLDSMITH TIMOTHY H.
Published: March 2012

Eyes have evolved many times, and arthropods and vertebrates share transcription factors for early development. Moreover, the photochemistry of vision in all eyes employs an opsin and the isomerization of a retinoid from the 11-cisto the all-transconfiguration. The opsins, however, have associated with several different G proteins, initiating hyperpolarizing and depolarizing conductance changes at the photoreceptor membrane. Beyond these obvious instances of homology, much of the evolutionary story is one of tinkering, producing a great variety of morphological forms and variation within functional themes. This outcome poses a central issue in the convergence of evolutionary and developmental biology: what are the heritable features in the later stages of development that give natural selection traction in altering phenotypic outcomes? This paper discusses some results of evolutionary tinkering where this question arises and, in some cases, where the reasons for particular outcomes and the role of adaptation may not be understood. Phenotypic features include: the exploitation of microvilli in rhabdomeric photoreceptors for detecting the plane of polarized light; different instances of retinoid in the visual pigment; examples of the many uses of accessory pigments in tuning the spectral sensitivity of photoreceptors; selection of opsins in tuning sensitivity in aquatic environments; employing either reflection or refraction in the optics of compound eyes; the multiple ways of constructing images in compound eyes; and the various ways of regenerating 11-cisretinals to maintain visual sensitivity. Evolution is an irreversible process, but tinkering may recover some lost functions, albeit by new mutational routes. There is both elegance and intellectual coherence to the natural processes that produce such variety and functional complexity. But marginalizing the teaching of evolution in public education is a continuing social and political problem that contributes to the reckless capacity of humans to alter the planet without trying to understand how nature works.
Functional and morphological analysis of the subretinal injection of retinal pigment epithelium cells
Authors: ENGELHARDT MAREN , TOSHA CHINATSU , LOPES VANDA S. , CHEN BRYAN , NGUYEN LISA , NUSINOWITZ STEVEN , WILLIAMS DAVID S.
Published: March 2012

Replacement of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells by transplantation is a potential treatment for some retinal degenerations. Here, we used a combination of invasive and noninvasive methods to characterize the structural and functional consequences of subretinal injection of RPE cells. Pigmented cells from primary cultures were injected into albino mice. Recovery was monitored over 8 weeks by fundus imaging, spectral domain optical coherence tomography (sdOCT), histology, and electroretinography (ERG). sdOCT showed that retinal reattachment was nearly complete by 1 week. ERG response amplitudes were reduced after injection, with cone-mediated function then recovering better than rod function. Photoreceptor cell loss was evident by sdOCT and histology, near the site of injection, and is likely to have been the main cause of incomplete recovery. With microscopy, injected cells were identified by the presence of apical melanosomes. They either established contact with Bruch’s membrane, and thus became part of the RPE monolayer, or were located on the apical surface of the host’s cells, resulting in apposition of the basal surface of the injected cell with the apical surface of the host cell and the formation of a series of desmosomal junctions. RPE cell density was not increased, indicating that the incorporation of an injected cell into the RPE monolayer was concomitant with the loss of a host cell. The transplanted and remaining host cells contained large vacuoles of ingested debris as well as lipofuscin-like granules, suggesting that they had scavenged the excess injected and host cells, and were stressed by the high digestive load. Therefore, although significant functional and structural recovery was observed, the consequences of this digestive stress may be a concern for longer-term health, especially where RPE cell transplantation is used to treat diseases that include lipofuscin accumulation as part of their pathology.
Probabilistic models of state estimation predict visuomotor transformations during prism adaptation
Authors: YAMAMOTO MASAKI , ANDO HIROSHI
Published: March 2012

This study aims to create a prediction model for state-space estimation and to elucidate the required information processing for identifying an external space in prism adaptation. Subjects were 57 healthy students. The subjects were instructed to rapidly perform reaching movements to one of the randomly illuminating light-emitting diode lights. Their movements were measured while wearing prism glasses and after removing that. We provided the following four conditions and control. In target condition, reaching error distance was visually fed back to the subject. In trajectory condition, the trajectory of fingertip movement could be seen, and the final reaching error was not fed back. Two restricted visual feedback conditions were prepared based on a different presentation timing (on-time and late-time conditions). We set up a linear parametric model and an estimation model using Kalman filtering. The goodness of fit between the estimated and observed values in each model was examined using Akaike information criterion (AIC). AIC would be one way to evaluate two models with different number of parameters. In the control, the value of AIC was 179.0 and 154.0 for the linear model and Kalman filtering, respectively, while these values were 173.6 and 161.1 for the target condition, 202.8 and 159.7 for the trajectory condition, 192.7 and 180.8 for the on-time condition, and 206.9 and 174.0 for the late-time condition. Kalman gain in the control was 0.07–0.26. Kalman gain relies on the prior estimation distribution when its value is below 0.5. Kalman gain in the trajectory and late-time conditions was 0.03–0.60 and 0.08–0.95, respectively. The Kalman filter, a state estimation model based on Bayesian theory, expressed the dynamics of the internal model under uncertain feedback information better than the linear parametric model. The probabilistic estimation model can clearly simulate state estimation according to the reliability of the visual feedback.
Changes in pupil diameter entrained by cortically initiated changes in attention
Authors: DANIELS LORI B. , NICHOLS DAVID F. , SEIFERT MATHEW S. , HOCK HOWARD S.
Published: March 2012

The diameter of the pupil is affected by changes in ambient illumination, color, spatial structure, movement, and mental effort. It has now been found that pupil diameter can be affected by cognitive processes. That is, it can be entrained by alternations between broadly spread and narrowly focused attention that are cued exogenously (attention is “summoned” by the cue) or endogenously (attention changes under the perceiver’s intentional control). Pupil diameter also is affected by post-eye-blink constrictions that occur most often when attention is narrowed, and possibly by changes evoked by the near reflex, although changes in attention state parsimoniously account for the entirety of the results. Changes in pupil diameter produce differences in spherical aberration that alternately blur (when the pupil dilates) and sharpen the retinal image (when the pupil constricts), affecting the relative sensitivity of large receptive fields that mediate broadly spread attention compared with smaller receptive fields that mediate more narrowly focused attention. Results for endogenously cued, intentional changes in attentional spread provide definitive behavioral evidence for cortical feedback to subcortical nuclei that control pupil diameter, either directly or through pupil-constricting eye blinks. Analyses of convergent and divergent changes in eye position indicate that the near reflex was activated long after the initiation of relatively gradual attentionally cued changes in pupil diameter, and further, that when it occurs, the near reflex facilitates ongoing changes in pupil diameter.
The effect of the novel HO2 + NO → HNO3 reaction channel at South Pole, Antarctica
Authors: Boxe C.S. , Hamer P.D. , Ford W. , Hoffmann M. , Shallcross D.E.
Published: March 2012

It is well established that the reaction of HO2 with NO plays a central role in atmospheric chemistry, by way of OH/HO2 recycling and reduction of ozone depletion by HOx cycles in the stratosphere and through ozone production in the troposphere. Utilizing a photochemical box model, we investigate the impact of the recently observed HNO3 production channel (HO2+NO → HNO3) on NOx (NO + NO2), HOx (OH + HO2), HNO3, and O3 concentrations in the boundary layer at the South Pole, Antarctica. Our simulations exemplify decreases in peak O3, NO, NO2, and OH and an increase in HNO3. Also, mean OH is in better agreement with observations, while worsening the agreement with O3, HO2, and HNO3 concentrations observed at the South Pole. The reduced concentrations of NOx are consistent with expected decreases in atmospheric NOx lifetime as a result of increased sequestration of NOx into HNO3. Although we show that the inclusion of the novel HNO3 production channel brings better agreement of OH with field measurements, the modelled ozone and HNO3 are worsened, and the changes in NOx lifetime imply that snowpack NOx emissions and snowpack nitrate recycling must be re-evaluated.
Responses of common diving petrel chicks (Pelecanoides urinatrix) to burrow and colony specific odours in a simple wind tunnel
Authors: Cunningham Gregory B. , Van Buskirk Richard W. , Hodges Mark J. , Nevitt Gabrielle A.
Published: March 2012

Researchers have previously assumed that common diving petrels (Pelecanoides urinatrix) have a limited sense of smell since they have relatively small olfactory bulbs. A recent study, however, showed that adult diving petrels prefer the scent of their own burrow compared to burrows of other diving petrels, implying that personal scents contribute to the burrow's odour signature. Because diving petrels appear to be adapted to use olfaction in social contexts, they could be a useful model for investigating how chemically mediated social recognition develops in birds. A first step is to determine whether diving petrel chicks can detect familiar and unfamiliar odours. We compared behavioural responses of chicks to three natural stimuli in a wind tunnel: soil collected from their burrow or colony, and a blank control. During portions of the experiment, chicks turned the least and walked the shortest distances in response to odours from the nest, which is consistent with their sedentary behaviour within the burrow. By contrast, behaviours linked to olfactory search increased when chicks were exposed to blank controls. These results suggest that common diving petrel chicks can detect natural olfactory stimuli before fledging, and lay the foundation for future studies on the role of olfaction in social contexts for this species.
After the Clearances: Evander McIver and the ‘Highland Question’, 1835–73
Authors: RICHARDS ERIC , TINDLEY ANNIE
Published: March 2012

This article explores how estates in the Scottish Highlands were managed after the clearances. The land system had been radically redrawn, creating consequences that those who inherited the post-clearance world endeavoured to manage. At the centre of the post-clearance Highlands were the estate managers, or factors, who were effectively responsible for the economic and social conditions on their employers’ estates. They controlled the levers of Highland life and faced the realities of the post-clearance order. Prominent among this group was Evander McIver. This article examines McIver's career up to 1873, framed by a discussion of the ‘Highland Question’ of how estates reacted to the continuing poverty and occasional destitution of their small tenants, or crofters. McIver held adamant views on this question, and the origins and expression of these views through his career are delineated in this article.
CUFP 2011 Workshop Report
Authors: MADHAVAPEDDY ANIL , MINSKY YARON , ERIKSEN MARIUS
Published: March 2012

Commercial Users of Functional Programming (CUFP) is a yearly workshop that is aimed at the community of software developers who use functional programming in real-world settings. This scribe report covers the talks that were delivered at the 2011 workshop, which was held in association with ICFP in Tokyo. The goal of the report is to give the reader a sense of what went on, rather than to reproduce the full details of the talks. Videos and slides from all the talks are available online at http://cufp.org.
Still tied by golden fetters: the global response to the US recession of 1937–1938
Authors: Urban Scott , Straumann Tobias
Published: March 2012

The US recession of 1937–8 is one of the deepest on record. Yet it did not produce a global depression – quite unlike 1930. According to the standard view, this reflected an unfettering of central banking after the collapse of the international gold standard circa 1931. We challenge this view. While Germany and a couple of Central and Eastern European countries were sheltered by binding exchange controls, most countries were still constrained by their golden fetters, as our new exchange rate regime classification suggests. The underlying policy regime was surprisingly similar to that of the 1929–30 downturn. What mattered was a quick reversal in US policy in 1938 and, for many countries, a more plentiful stock of international reserves.
IMPLEMENTING THE BEST STEADY STATE WITH SAVINGS IN UNBACKED RISKY ASSETS
Authors: Dávila Julio
Published: March 2012

This paper shows, in an overlapping-generations economy à la Diamond [American Economic Review 55, 1126–1150 (1965)], that when savings in an unbacked asset (e.g., fiat money) bear some risk of becoming suddenly worthless, the market does not implement the best steady state attainable with that asset. Nonetheless, in the absence of absolutely riskless fiat money and excluding resorting to redistributive fiscal policies that would make it possible to attain the first-best steady state, this best monetary steady state can be implemented as a competitive equilibrium with the adequate policy of taxes on returns to capital, subsidies to returns to monetary savings, and lump-sum transfers. The policy is, at the steady state, balanced every period and nonredistributive.
UNFUNDED PENSIONS AND ENDOGENOUS LABOR SUPPLY
Authors: Andersen Torben M. , Bhattacharya Joydeep
Published: March 2012

A classic result in dynamic public economics states that there is no welfare rationale for pay-as-you-go (PAYG) pensions in a dynamically efficient overlapping-generations economy with exogenous labor supply. Parenthetically, a welfare justification for PAYG pensions exists if the economy is dynamically inefficient. Under the sufficient condition that the old be no less risk-averse than the young, both these results extend to an economy with endogenous labor supply.
ADAPTIVE LEARNING IN REGIME-SWITCHING MODELS
Authors: Branch William A. , Davig Troy , McGough Bruce
Published: March 2012

We study adaptive learning in economic environments subject to recurring structural change. Stochastically evolving institutional and policymaking features can be described by regime-switching models with parameters that evolve according to finite state Markov processes. We demonstrate that in nonlinear models of this form, the presence of sunspot equilibria implies two natural schemes for learning the conditional means of endogenous variables: under mean value learning, agents condition on a sunspot variable that captures the self-fulfilling serial correlation in the equilibrium, whereas under vector autoregression learning (VAR learning), the self-fulfilling serial correlation must be learned. We show that an intuitive condition ensures convergence to a regime-switching rational expectations equilibrium. However, the stability of sunspot equilibria, when they exist, depends on whether agents adopt mean value or VAR learning: coordinating on sunspot equilibria via a VAR learning rule is not possible. To illustrate these phenomena, we develop results for an overlapping-generations model and a New Keynesian model.
Obesogenic neighbourhoods: the impact of neighbourhood restaurants and convenience stores on adolescents’ food consumption behaviours
Authors: He Meizi , Tucker Patricia , Irwin Jennifer D , Gilliland Jason , Larsen Kristian , Hess Paul
Published: March 2012

Objective

To examine the relationship between the neighbourhood food environment and dietary intake among adolescents.

Design

Cross-sectional design using: (i) a geographic information system to assess characteristics of the neighbourhood food environment and neighbourhood socio-economic status; (ii) the modified Healthy Eating Index (HEI) to assess participants’ overall diet quality; and (iii) generalized linear models to examine associations between HEI and home and school food environmental correlates.

Setting

Mid-sized Canadian city in Ontario, Canada.

Participants

Grade 7 and 8 students (n810) at twenty-one elementary schools.

Results

Students living in neighbourhoods with a lower diversity of land-use types, compared with their higher diversity counterparts, had higher HEI scores (P< 0·05). Students with more than 1 km between their home and the nearest convenience store had higher HEI scores than those living within 1 km (P< 0·01). Students attending schools with a distance further than 1 km from the nearest convenience store (P< 0·01) and fast-food outlet (P< 0·05) had higher HEI scores than those within 1 km. Those attending schools with three or more fast-food outlets within 1 km had lower HEI scores than those attending schools with no fast-food outlet in the school surroundings (P< 0·05).

Conclusions

Close proximity to convenience stores in adolescents’ home environments is associated with low HEI scores. Within adolescents’ school environments, close proximity to convenience and fast-food outlets and a high density of fast-food outlets are associated with low HEI scores.
Egg consumption and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus: a case–control study
Authors: Radzevičienė Lina , Ostrauskas Rytas
Published: March 2012

Objective

Type 2 diabetes mellitus appears to involve an interaction between susceptible genetic backgrounds and environmental factors including highly calorific diets. As it is important to identify modifiable risk factors that may help reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus, the aim of the present study was to determine the association between egg consumption and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Design

A specifically designed questionnaire was used to collect information on possible risk factors of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The odds ratios and 95 % confidence intervals for type 2 diabetes mellitus were calculated by conditional logistic regression.

Setting

A case–control study in a Lithuanian out-patient clinic was performed in 2001.

Subjects

A total of 234 cases with a newly confirmed diagnosis of type 2 diabetes mellitus and 468 controls free of the disease.

Results

Variables such as BMI, family history of diabetes, cigarette smoking, education, morning exercise and plasma TAG level were retained in multivariate logistic regression models as confounders because their inclusion changed the value of the odds ratio by more than 10 % in any exposure category. After adjustment for possible confounders more than twofold increased risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus was determined for individuals consuming 3–4·9 eggs/week (OR = 2·60; 95 % CI 1·34, 5·08) and threefold increased risk of the disease was determined for individuals consuming ≥5 eggs/week (OR = 3·02; 95 % CI 1·14, 7·98) compared with those eating <1 egg/week.

Conclusions

Our data support a possible relationship of egg consumption and increased risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus.
The Obama Presidency and Health Insurance Reform: Assessing Continuity and Change
Authors: Béland Daniel , Waddan Alex
Published: March 2012

During the 2008 federal campaign, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama placed comprehensive health care reform at the centre of his platform. In the light of the growing problems facing the US health care system, the time seemed ripe for another attempt to control health costs while expanding insurance coverage. Elected in the context of the deepest recession since World War II, President Obama nonetheless decided to reform the US health care system at the beginning of his presidency. Drawing on the historical institutionalist perspective, which stresses the effects of existing institutions and policy legacies on social policy development, this article analyzes health politics during the first fifteen months of the Obama administration before assessing the impact of the legislation enacted in March 2010. Although it does not radically break from the past, this legislation should bring about crucial changes to the US health care system.
Nitrogen contribution of rye–hairy vetch cover crop mixtures to organically grown sweet corn
Authors: Lawson Andrew , Fortuna Ann Marie , Cogger Craig , Bary Andy , Stubbs Tami
Published: March 2012

Organic cropping systems that utilize winter grown cereal–legume cover crop mixtures can increase plant available nitrogen (N) to a subsequent cash crop, but the rate of N release is uncertain due to variations in residue composition and environmental conditions. A study was conducted to evaluate N availability from rye (Secale cerealeL.)–hairy vetch (Vicia villosaRoth) cover crop mixtures and to measure the response of organically grown sweet corn (Zea maysL.) to N provided by cover crop mixtures. Nitrogen availability from pure rye, pure hairy vetch, and rye–vetch mixtures was estimated using laboratory incubation with controlled temperature and soil moisture. Sweet corn N response was determined in a 2-year field experiment in western Washington with three cover crop treatments as main plots (50:50 rye–vetch seed mixture planted mid September, planted early October, and none) and four feather meal N rates as subplots (0, 56, 112 and 168 kg available N ha−1). Pure hairy vetch and a 75% rye–25% hairy vetch biomass mixture (R75V25) released similar amounts of N over 70 days in the laboratory incubation. But, the initial release of N from the (R75V25) treatment was nearly 70% lower, which may result in N release that is better timed with crop uptake. Cover crops in the field were dominated by rye and contained 34–76 kg ha−1total N with C:N ranging from 18 to 27. Although time of planting and management of cover crop quality improved N uptake in sweet corn, cover crops provided only supplemental plant available N in this system.