bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Research governance delays for a multicentre non-interventional study
Authors: Mallick Andrew A , O'Callaghan Finbar JK
Published: May 2009

Summary

Objectives

To evaluate the delay in research governance approval for a non-interventional, multicentre study in the United Kingdom.

Design

The times taken from application to the granting of research governance approval for an observational study of childhood stroke with ethical approval were prospectively recorded.

Setting

Ninety-two acute NHS Trusts in the United Kingdom.

Main outcome measures

Median delay (in working days) between application and research governance approval.

Results

The median delay between application and research governance approval was 43 working days (interquartile range 27–62, range 0–147). The reason for delay beyond 43 working days was inexplicable in 30 (70%) of 44 trusts.

Conclusions

There is considerable variation in the processes undertaken by research and development departments that can lead to significant delays in commencing an ethically approved study. Any improvements to the systems for gaining approval are welcome.
Medication Reconciliation Performed by Pharmacy Technicians at the Time of Preoperative Screening
Authors: Bemt Patricia Mla Van Den , Broek Sifra Van Den , Nunen Alfons K Van , Harbers Johannes Bm , Lenderink Albert W
Published: May 2009

Background

Medication errors occur regularly in surgical patients, especially due to transfer problems at the time of hospital admission. A method for decreasing the error rate is medication reconciliation by hospital pharmacists as part of a preoperative clinic. The role of pharmacy technicians in this process has not been studied.

Objective

To study the use of pharmacy technicians in medication reconciliation by measuring the effect of early reconciliation in the preoperative clinic on medication and allergy discrepancies and on inadvertent continuation of antithrombotics. A secondary objective was to study the effect of community pharmacist follow-up on recommendations to discontinue antithrombotic therapy.

Methods

During the pre intervention measurement period, patients received usual care by anesthesiologists, who recorded the medication and documented allergies of the patient. The intervention consisted of the addition of a pharmacy technician to the preoperative screening clinic to perform the same tasks as anesthesiologists as related to medication reconciliation. If necessary, the patient was advised on stopping the antithrombotic. On the day that the patient was supposed to stop the antithrombotic, that person's community pharmacist contacted the patient to determine whether this had been done. The main outcome measures were the proportions of patients with one or more medication discrepancy, one or more allergy discrepancy, and one or more antithrombotic error.

Results

In the preintervention period, 204 patients were evaluated; 93 were included in the postintervention analysis. The proportion of patients with one or more medication discrepancy (RR 0.29; 95% CI 0.12 to 0.71) was statistically significantly reduced in the postintervention group. The proportions of patients with one or more allergy discrepancy (RR 0.76; 95% CI 0.35 to 1.64) and one or more antithrombotic errors (RR 0.18; 95% CI 0.02 to 1.33) were reduced, but not significantly. Follow-up by the community pharmacist did not identify any patients who had not followed the preoperative clinic's advice on temporarily withholding their antithrombotics.

Conclusions

The results of this study show that pharmacy technicians can be successfully assigned to a preoperative clinic, resulting in a statistically significant decrease in medication discrepancies.
Hunger, Healing, and Citizenship in Central Tanzania
Authors: Phillips Kristin D.
Published: May 2009

This article draws on newspaper commentary, Nyaturu hunger lore, and ethnographic research to describe how central Tanzanian villagers accessed food aid from the state during the East African food crisis of 2006. Through leveraging their political support and their participation in national development agendas, rural inhabitants claimed their rights. Yet it was through these exchanges that the state converted food aid into political power. The article argues that the highly ritualized gift of food aid naturalizes a contemporary political and economic order in which, counterintuitively, it is rural farmers who go hungry.
Female Genital Cutting: Cultural Rights and Rites of Defiance in Northern Tanzania
Authors: Winterbottom Anna , Koomen Jonneke , Burford Gemma
Published: May 2009

This article reviews campaigns against female genital cutting (FGC) directed at Maasai communities in northern Tanzania. The authors argue that campaigns against FGC using educational, health, legal, and human rights–based approaches are at times ineffective and counterproductive when they frame the practice as a “tradition” rooted in a “primitive” and unchanging culture. We suggest that development interventions that do not address local contexts of FGC, including the complex politics and history of interventions designed to eradicate it, can in fact reify and reinscribe the practice as central to Maasai cultural identity.
Aḥmadu Bamba's Pedagogy and the Development of ʿAjamī Literature
Authors: Ngom Fallou
Published: May 2009

While African literature in European languages is well-studied, ʿajamī and its significance in the intellectual history of Africa remains one of the least investigated areas in African studies. Yet ʿajamī is one of the oldest and most widespread forms of literature in Africa. This article draws scholars' attention to this unmapped terrain of knowledge. First, it provides a survey of major West African ʿajamī literary traditions and examines the nexus between the pedagogy of Aḥmadu Bamba and the development of Wolofal (Wolof ʿajamī). Then, with reference to excerpts from Sëriñ Masoxna Ló's 1954 eulogy, it discusses the role of Wolofal in the diffusion of the Murīd ethos.
Ballad Hunting in the Black Republic: Alan Lomax in Haiti, 1936-37
Authors: Averill Gage
Published: May 2009

Les enregistrements réalisés par Alan Lomax en Haïti entre 1936 et 1937 (plus de 1500 au total), quoique peu connu, constituent un véritable trésor de l'expression culturelle haïtienne; ceux-ci ont été enregistrés peu après le départ des Marines américains et alors qu'Haïti était en voie d'un mouvement nationaliste et afro-centrique. Cet article présente une analyse de la complexité des motivations d'Alan Lomax (et les différents ethnographes américains traivallant simultanément en Haïti, y compris Melville et Frances Herskovits, George E. Simpson, Harold Courlander, Katherine Dunham et Zora Neale Hurston) en relation avec les luttes idéologiques de race et de l'identité de la diaspora africaine aux États Unis et en Haïti. L'article explique comment les préjugés de Lomax, les difficultés de terrain, les interactions avec les agents de la culture locale et les problèmes de santé et de financement ont affecté cet héritage.
Reading History, Performing Carib: The Santa Rosa Festival and Amerindian Identity in Trinidad
Authors: Ingram Amelia K.
Published: May 2009

Dans la plupart des travaux des sciences sociales sur la Caraïbe, il semble y avoir un consensus sur le fait que, la culture pré-coloniale autochtone a été absente ou sévèrement diminuée. Le mythe de la destruction totale des Amérindiens à Trinidad a été bloqué grâce à l'organisation et la renaissance d'un groupe appelé la Communauté des Caraïbes de Santa Rosa (ou SRCC), situé au centre de la ville de Arima. Sans aucune tentative de revendication de la pureté raciale, le SRCC a utilisé les paradigmes culturels et ethniques de la communauté pour ré-inventer une identité autochtone amérindienne. Le Festival de Santa Rosa, organisé par la Communauté des Caraïbes de Santa Rosa (SRCC) et l'Eglise catholique de Santa Rosa, est tenu en l'honneur du Saint patron de l'ancienne mission, Sainte-Rose de Lima, le premier saint du Nouveau Monde. «Parang», une musique d'origine vénézuélienne, est un élément central des spectacles du festival. Interprétée par les membres de la SRCC et d'autres membres de la communauté dans le cadre du festival, le Parang retrouve sa voie dans l'espace musical amérindien et est désormais perçu comme un fil culturel commun. Cet article se propose d'analyser la polémique de l'interprétation du Parang dans le Festival de Santa Rosa comme un moyen dialectique d'engager une nouvelle orientation de l'identité amérindienne actuelle de Trinidad.
The Subject of the Slave Trade: Recent Currents in the Histories of the Atlantic, Great Britain, and Western Africa
Authors: Sweet John Wood
Published: May 2009

The two hundredth anniversaries of the British and U.S. abolition acts have coincided with a surge of new scholarship on the trans-Atlantic slave trade. This essay surveys recent work and considers the benefits and limitations of approaching the slave trade through several common frameworks: the Atlantic, Great Britain, and Western Africa. Historians of the Atlantic—including the editors of the newly revised Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database—emphasize the complexity of trade networks and their far-reaching ramifications, but they have differed sharply on which subjects to emphasize and how to conceptualize the system as a whole. Historians of the slave trade and Great Britain have focused largely on issues of politics and morality and only to a lesser extent on the economic consequences of the slave trade and colonial slavery. Historians of Africa have been more concerned with issues of demography and political economy, viewing the slave trade in terms of long-term dynamics of underdevelopment, capitalism, and colonialism, including the rise of slavery within Africa in the nineteenth century and the advent of European colonialism. A number of recent back-to-Africa travelogues offer a chance to reflect on these divergent perspectives and the limits of the narrative of abolition.
Sailing with John Woolman: The Millennium and Maritime Trade
Authors: Plank Geoffrey
Published: May 2009

Over the course of his lifetime, the New Jersey Quaker antislavery campaigner John Woolman (1720–72) developed an increasingly comprehensive critique of the global economy, and he focused his attention ever more sharply on the worldwide influence of sailing ships. Wool-man believed that sailing carried great promise because it allowed Christians to reach out to “heathen” peoples around the world. At the same time, however, his encounters with sailing vessels repeatedly reminded him that they could serve as instruments of violence and corruption, destroying the lives of mariners and promoting a culture of extravagance, exploitation, impiety, and waste. Woolman sought to live an exemplary life and distance himself from pernicious commerce. He also wanted to travel because he believed that he had a message for the world. How, then, could he, as a good Christian, sail? Woolman struggled with this question for years, and though he boarded several ships for extended journeys, the experience increasingly tormented his conscience. His ambivalence toward sailing affected his tactics as a protestor, his vision for the future, and the content of his analysis of the slave trade.
“Faithful Portraits of Our Hearts”: Images of the Jay Family, 1725–1814
Authors: Pencak William
Published: May 2009

Portraits played a major role in the lives of the family of Chief Justice John Jay during his generation and those of his father and grandfather. Most of the surviving portraits were executed explicitly for family members before, during, or after trans-Atlantic journeys. Further, the modest character of Jay and his wife, Sarah Livingston Jay, comes across in likenesses devoid of wigs and fancy jewelry. Only after 1795, as governor of New York, did Jay begin to wear a wig (at precisely the time they were going out of fashion) to symbolize his dedication to a “Whig” republicanism that he feared the incipient Democracy (both lower and upper cases) was threatening to replace. Portraits, which began as private keepsakes, became public signifiers of political principles.
Enslaved Merchants, Enslaved Merchant-Mariners, and the Bermuda Conspiracy of 1761
Authors: Maxwell Clarence
Published: May 2009

During the autumn of 1761, news of a slave conspiracy reached the colonial government in Bermuda. Not since the seventeenth century had Bermuda’s slaveholders contended with a widespread uprising of their bondpeople. As will be shown, this rebellion, involving a number of enslaved merchant-mariners, reflected a contradiction between slavery and the capacity of slaves to garnish profits without threat of confiscation.
Introduction to and Translation of Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur’s “Origin of the Settlement at Socialburg”
Authors: White Ed
Published: May 2009

This is the first English translation of Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur’s “Origine de l’établissement de Socialburg,” from the third volume of the second French edition of Lettres d’un Cultivateur Américain (1787). This original utopian sketch imagines five immigrants to British North America—a Frenchman, a German, a Scot, an Englishman, and an Irishman—planning a settlement in New York; it may be read as a fascinating revision of the famous “What is an American?” letter from the 1782 edition.
Diabetes Disease Management Results in Hispanic Medicaid Patients
Authors: Berg Gregory D. , Wadhwa Sandeep
Published: May 2009

Objectives . To investigate outcomes of a telephonic nursing disease management program for Medicaid patients with diabetes residing in Puerto Rico.
Study design . A 12-month, matched-cohort study.
Study population . Four hundred and ninety (490) intervention group members matched to 490 controls.
Intervention . Disease management diabetes program. For those in the intervention group, the disease management program customized a self-management intervention plan.
Main outcome measures . Medical service utilization, including hospitalizations, emergency department visits, physician evaluation and management visits, selected clinical indicators, and financial impact.
Results . The intervention group showed significant effects compared with the control group, including a 48% reduction in inpatient bed days, and a 23% increase in ACE inhibitor use, resulting in a return on investment estimate of 3.8:1.
Conclusions . The study demonstrates that a nursing disease management program for diabetes can significantly improve hospitalizations, drug compliance, and vaccinations in a Hispanic Medicaid population.
U.S. Latino Population Composition Change and Comprehensive Cancer Centers
Authors: Flores Ann Marie , Jeffery Diana D. , Miller Barry A.
Published: May 2009

Background . We describe a typology characterizing population trends of U.S. Latinos/Hispanics from 1990 to 2000 with respect to National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer centers (CCCs) and corresponding consolidated metropolitan statistical or metropolitan statistical areas (CMSA/MSAs).
Methods . Using U.S. Census Bureau data, we constructed population pyramids to analyze population growth and composition for each CMSA/MSA with a CCC.
Results . We identified four types of population growth and composition: Type I—Very Fast and Unstable; Type II—Fast and Unstable; Type III— Somewhat Fast and Stable; Type IV—Slow and Stable.
Conclusions . The CCCs in areas with Types I and II population growth face the greatest challenges because of the lack of infrastructure for reaching medically underserved Latinos. In contrast, CCCs in areas with Types III and IV population growth may have significant infrastructure but must quickly develop interventions to reach and provide access to aging Latinos to reduce health disparities in cancer mortality and morbidity.
Inpatient Hospital Service Utilization of the Uninsured in Nebraska: Policy Implications for Addressing Uncompensated Care
Authors: Chen Li-Wu , Shambaugh-Miller Michael D. , Meza Jane L. , Zhang Wanqing , Shaw Kelly L. , Mueller Keith J.
Published: May 2009

In order better to inform policymakers about financing uncompensated hospital care through appropriate allocation of resources among Nebraska communities, this study used seven years (1996–2002) of county-level data from multiple sources to examine the relationship between population economic factors and the hospital inpatient care use by uninsured patients. The generalized estimating equation (GEE) regression analysis showed that, at the county level, the population uninsurance rate and other economic factors (e.g., per capita income, the percentage of population receiving welfare) are statistically significant predictors of average hospital self-pay inpatient charge per resident. Residents in the three western regions of the state also incurred statistically higher per-resident hospital self-pay inpatient charges than did their counterparts in the three eastern regions. State policymakers in Nebraska can use our study results to allocate resources on the basis of community economic characteristics and geographic location, to help reduce the financial burden of caring for the uninsured to safety net hospitals. The study may have a wide application to other states examining the same policy issues. The model used in this study can be easily created for other states, as the required data are readily available.
Beyond Medical Insurance: Delayed or Forgone Care among Children in Chinese Immigrant Families
Authors: Huang Z. Jennifer , Yu Stella M. , Liu Xiao Wei , Young Darwin , Wong Frank Y.
Published: May 2009

While Asian Americans are less likely than most Americans to use health services, little is known about their barriers to pediatric care. This study seeks to describe the prevalence of delayed/forgone pediatric care and its association with parental acculturation status in recent-immigrant Chinese families. Survey data were obtained from 76 families across two community services sites. Half of the surveyed families reported delayed/forgone pediatric care in the previous 12 months. Low-income families in suburban areas reported greater financial burdens, linguistic barriers, and a higher prevalence of delayed/forgone care than low-income families living in downtown area. Middle class immigrant families reported cultural barriers as a reason for delayed/forgone care. Traditional beliefs and not medical insurance were significant predictors of delayed/forgone care. Culturally and linguistically appropriate studies on risk reduction interventions will be needed to address the linguistic and cultural barriers to health care access.
CenteringPregnancySmiles™: Implementation of a Small Group Prenatal Care Model with Oral Health
Authors: Skelton Judith , Mullins Raynor , Langston LeAnn Todd , Womack Sara , Ebersole Jeffrey L. , Rising Sharon Schindler , Kovarik Robert
Published: May 2009

Preterm/low birth weights are the leading perinatal problem in the U.S., and an association between preterm/low birth weight outcomes and oral health has been identified. In response to this, a group prenatal care program—CenteringPregnancySmiles™—was implemented in rural Kentucky in 2006. This report describes the model and preliminary outcomes of the CenteringPregnancySmiles™ program.
Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors Among a Sample of HIV-Positive and HIV-Negative Females Visiting an Urban VCT Center in Haiti
Authors: Dévieux Jessy G. , Deschamps Marie-Marcelle , Malow Robert M. , Jean-Gilles Michèle , Saint-Jean Gilbert , Samuels Deanne , Marcelin Abdias , Pape Jean Willam
Published: May 2009

The knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of over 43,000 women attending the Groupe Hatien d’Etude du Sarcome de Kaposi et des Infections Opportunistes (GHESKIO) Centers in Haiti between 1999–2004 were examined. Comparative analyses were conducted for several sub-samples. Analyses revealed that across the entire sample, HIV-positive women appeared to engage in more risky behaviors than HIV-negative women (p<.01); however, as a group, pregnant HIV-positive women reported safer behaviors than non-pregnant HIV-positive women (p<.01). Women from all groups were generally knowledgeable about the risk of HIV transmission through dirty needles and mother to child. However, inaccurate information about transmission through supernatural means and mosquitoes was very common. These results suggest that knowledge and education are negatively associated with HIV status in this sample. Addressing gaps in knowledge and behavior and reducing the risky behaviors of HIV-positive individuals are important directions for future programs.
Are There Patient Disparities When Electronic Health Records Are Adopted?
Authors: Hing Esther , Burt Catharine W.
Published: May 2009

Using nationally representative samples of visits from the 2005–2006 National Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys (N=39,343), this study examines whether electronic health record (EHR) systems have been adopted by primary care physicians or providers (PCPs) for poor minority patients at the same rate as by the PCPs for wealthier non-minority patients. Although we found that electronic health record adoption rates varied primarily by type of practice of the PCP, we also found that uninsured Black and Hispanic or Latino patients, as well as Hispanic or Latino Medicaid patients were less likely to have PCPs using EHRs, compared with privately-insured White patients, after controlling for PCPs’ practice type and location, as well as patient characteristics. This finding reflects a mixture of high and low EHR adopters among PCPs for poor minority patients.
Relation of Domestic Violence to Health Status among Hispanic Women
Authors: Chen Ping-Hsin , Rovi Sue , Vega Marielos , Jacobs Abbie , Johnson Mark S.
Published: May 2009

Little research has addressed the association of domestic violence (DV) with physical and mental health in Hispanic women. We conducted a cross-sectional study with 146 Hispanic women patients in 2002 at an urban family medicine practice. Twenty-one percent of the women were identified as current victims of DV. Two-fifths of victims (41.9%) experienced physical and/or sexual abuse. Approximately two-thirds (64.5%) had depressive symptoms. Poorer mental health was associated with all forms of abuse. Relatively low socioeconomic status and acculturation level may lead to disparities in obtaining services for DV intervention. Culturally appropriate protocols are needed in primary care settings to prevent and intervene among Hispanic women at risk for DV.
Supports and Obstacles in the Medical School Application Process for American Indians and Alaska Natives
Authors: Patterson Davis G. , Baldwin Laura-Mae , Olsen Polly M.
Published: May 2009

Purpose . This study examines how a wide range of supports and obstacles are associated with the medical school admissions process of American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs), an under-studied population.
Method . All AI/AN applicants to the University of Washington School of Medicine during the 2002–2004 admissions cycles were sent a mail-in survey with numerical and open-ended items. We analyzed admissions data for all 107 applicants and data on supports and obstacles for 34 survey respondents.
Results . Compared with respondents accepted by at least one medical school, rejected respondents were older, more often were parents, submitted fewer applications, and reported receiving less support for the medical school application process. Obstacles included difficulty with the Medical College Admission Test, insufficient finances, and poor information about the process.
Conclusion . A conceptual framework that considers both supports and obstacles in the medical school application process will improve our understanding of the needs of AI/AN applicants.
Transnational Teachers of English in Mexico
Authors: Petrón Mary
Published: May 2009

Much has been written on the effects of Mexican immigration in the U.S., but little exists regarding the ways in which transnationals, who have returned to Mexico, have adapted to and/or transformed Mexican society and the education system. This article is based on a descriptive qualitative study of five transnational teachers of English in Mexico who acquired English as children of Mexican immigrants in the U.S. The transnational cultural capital they gained in the U.S. in the form of English and U.S. cultural knowledge has proven to be highly valuable in Mexico. As teachers of English, they bring their transnational experiences and knowledge into their classrooms and teach “real” English because they assume that many of their working-class students will be forced to immigrate to the U.S. in the future. At the same time, they encourage the maintenance of English among their transnational students. The U.S. has much to learn from the Mexican education example by valuing the language and cultural skills that already exist within the confines of the U.S.
Dominicanas entre La Gran Manzana y Quisqueya: Family, Schooling, and Language Learning in a Transnational Context
Authors: Rodríguez Tracy
Published: May 2009

Drawing from a one-year qualitative research study, this article explores the transnational lives and experiences of three young women and their little sisters in New York with close ties to the Dominican Republic. Using ethnographic research methods—life history interviews, focus groups, participant observation, and document analysis, I examine how transnationalism shapes immigrant Dominican families, from the perspective of adolescents in particular. I also share findings from the schooling experiences of the transnational youth in both the Dominican Republic and the U.S. However, the most compelling findings address language learning that takes place in and out of formal educational settings. Here, findings point to the injustices and ironies bilingual immigrant youth withstand in their Spanish-as-a-foreign-language classes. The insights of the youth point to immediate policy recommendations that could improve the U.S. schooling experiences of transnational Dominicans.
What’s Age Gotta Do With It?: Understanding the Age-Identities and School-Going Practices of Mexican Immigrant Youth in New York City
Authors: Martínez Isabel
Published: May 2009

Recent reports of out-of-school immigrant youth have brought attention to predominantly Mexican and Central American immigrant youth who immigrate to the United States and do not enroll in formal schooling (Fry, 2002; Hill and Hayes, 2007). Many arrive to the United States unaccompanied, joining their older, undocumented counterparts in becoming part of the undocumented labor queue (Esquivel, 2007). New York City is one of the more recent destinations for these immigrant youth, with Mexicans leading all immigrant groups in terms of the highest percentage of school-age youth not in school. This article examines how these youth understand their life stages, both pre-immigration in Mexico and post-immigration in New York City, as well as the behaviors and actions they undertake in both contexts that lead to earlier and more rapid transitions to adulthood across the transnational social space. Most often considering themselves adults, these youth remain outside of formal high schools to meet their own labor and life demands.
Even Beyond the Local Community: A Close Look at Latina Youths' Return Trips to Mexico
Authors: Sánchez Patricia
Published: May 2009

Drawing from nearly four years of qualitative research, this article examines the lives of three second-generation mexicanas living in northern California who maintain close ties to their families' natal communities in Mexico. This ethnographic portrait outlines the contours of belonging in these spaces, including the affection and close relationships established with members in Mexico and the enactment of their ritual and spiritual personae in local religious shrines in Jalisco. While the youth and other family members experience certain discrimination and marginalization in the United States—or are not treated as full citizens because they are immigrants of color—the local and family knowledge that the young women gain during their return trips to Mexico serves as a powerful counter-story of existence and helps temper the subtractive aspects of assimilation.
Take Your Pick
Authors: Pickering Neil
Published: May 2009

This feature in Philosophy, Psychiatry, & Psychology (PPP) is intended to provide ongoing commentary on main articles previously published in PPP. The essay by Pickering below is a response to Bengt Brülde’s paper in PPP (14, no. 2:93–102).
The Concept of Mental Disorder: A Proposal
Authors: Gaete Alfredo
Published: May 2009

Abstract:
During the last years, there has been an important discussion on the concept of mental disorder. Several accounts of such a concept have been offered by theorists, although neither of these accounts seems to have successfully answered both the question of what it means for a certain mental condition to be a disorder and the question of what it means for a certain disorder to be mental. In this paper, I propose an account of the concept of mental disorder that, if I am right, provides satisfactory answers to both of these questions. Furthermore, this account (unlike other accounts presented in the literature on the subject) meets the requirements for achieving a crucial goal underlying the project of sorting out the concept of mental disorder, namely the goal of allowing the existence of a dialogue between mental health professionals of different theoretical orientations. To achieve this goal, the account herein proposed is not based in any particular theoretical framework, but in both ordinary and technical theory-neutral concepts. In the last part of the paper, I argue that it follows from most accounts of the concept of mental disorder that the disciplines concerned with explaining some mental disorders are not branches of medicine, and that the treatment of some mental disorders is not a matter of medical intervention.
Men’s Involvement during Pregnancy and Childbirth: Evidence from Rural Ahmadnagar, India
Authors: Singh Abhishek , Ram Faujdar
Published: May 2009

Interventions that include men during pregnancy and childbirth have shown to yield positive health benefits to women and their children. Most previous studies in India examined male involvement during pregnancy and childbirth using qualitative data. In order to gain a quantitative insight on the subject, primary data collected from men aged 15–54 from rural Ahmadnagar in India is used to examine men’s involvement during pregnancy and child birth. The indicators of men’s involvement are designed to measure presence of men during antenatal visits and child birth, type of assistance provided during pregnancy, and men’s involvement in deciding the place of delivery and the person to conduct the delivery. This study, for the first time, uses a measure of social network and gender role attitudes in explaining men’s involvement during pregnancy and child birth in India. The results reveal that a substantial proportion of men are involved during pregnancy and child birth in rural Ahmadnagar. Gender role attitudes and social network are important predictors of men’s involvement during pregnancy and child birth.
The Influence of Changes in Fertility Related Norms on Contraceptive Use in Egypt, 1995–2005
Authors: Storey J. Douglas , Kaggwa Esther B.
Published: May 2009

The debate around the relative influence of ideation versus development on fertility reduction has been on-going at least since Cleland & Wilson’s “iconoclastic view” of fertility transition was published in 1987. While there is fairly wide recognition that the diffusion of new behaviors through a community can play an important role in fertility transitions, there is relatively little research on the effect of changes in the normative environment—a predictable consequence of the ideational process—on a woman’s fertility decisions. For the current study, we focus on collective or group norms, which have been defined as “regularities in attitudes and behavior that characterize a social group and differentiate it from other groups.” We infer these regularities in behavior and attitudes by aggregating across individual reports to calculate the objective prevalence of these phenomena within groups. Using multilevel analysis of consecutive 1995, 2000 and 2005 Egypt Demographic and Health Surveys (EDHS), we test the effect of changes in the norms related to the desire for a large family and the use of family planning at parity 0 or 1 on self-reported contraceptive use among married women in Egypt. The analysis included 2432 married women 15–49 years for the 1995–2000 period and 5285 women for the 2000–2005 period. Norms are defined at the cluster level, which serves as our community-level unit of analysis. After controlling for individual and other community factors, including changes in literacy, we found that women residing in communities where the desire for large families increased from 1995–2000 were more than 70% less likely to use a contraceptive method. While the trend was similar, no such effect of desired family size was observed from 2000–2005. Instead, residence in a community where use of family planning after the first child increased from 2000–2005 resulted in a more than three-fold increase in contraceptive use in 2005. Results indicate that changes in norms measured at the collective level affect individual contraceptive use. Specific attitudinal and behavioral changes that influenced individual action, however, changed over time, consistent with shifts in the emphasis of the national family planning program.
Under the Sign of Jonah: Studying Spirituality in a Time of Ecosystemic Crisis
Authors: Frohlich Mary
Published: May 2009

In Matthew’s “Sign of Jonah” text, Jesus went down “into the heart of the Earth” at the time of his transformation. The current global ecosystemic crisis represents an urgent call to reclaim the centrality of this solidarity with the Earth. Several decades ago, Gregory Bateson articulated key aspects of the radical change of human consciousness that is demanded by the crisis of the Earth. By reading John of the Cross through this lens, Bateson’s insights can be connected to Christian traditions of contemplative spirituality. The essay proposes that this contemplative interiority provides the ultimate critical principle for prophetic participation in ecosystemic adaptation.
Feminized Suffering in Modern French Catholicism: Raïssa Maritain (1883–1960) and Léon Bloy (1846–1917)
Authors: Moore Brenna
Published: May 2009

This essay examines the relationship between femininity, suffering, and holiness in the writings of two French Catholic Revival intellectuals, Léon Bloy and Raïssa Maritain. Much of the recent English-language scholarship analyzes the prominent place suffering holds in modern French Catholicism in terms of the doctrine of vicarious suffering. Here I seek to understand Maritain’s and Bloy’s texts in relation to other theological and literary currents, such as the decadent movement and the French School of Spirituality. Ultimately, I show how Raïssa Maritain, one of the few female writers of the French Catholic Revival, exerted creative intervention onto the discourse linking suffering, women, and holiness with her discovery of Thomas Aquinas and her prioritization of the faculty of the intellect.
The Farm Workers and the Franciscans: Reverse Evangelization as Social Prompt for Conversion
Authors: Warner Keith Douglass
Published: May 2009

The Franciscan spiritual tradition formulates conversion as an ongoing transformational process resulting from divine agency experienced in social encounter. Francis and Franciscans describe these encounters as spiritual journeys deeper into relationship with diverse “others,” and thus drawing closer to God. This essay argues that social encounter as prompt for conversion is an important theme in Franciscan spirituality, and that investigating this theme can open up fresh perspectives on the social dimension of conversion in Christian spirituality. It describes the impact that the California farm worker movement had on Franciscan Friars, and how the Friars interpreted these encounters with language consonant with Francis’ experience, but inflected by contemporary culture. Franciscans who engaged with the farm worker movement described these encounters as a kind of “reverse evangelization,” meaning that they, vowed members of a religious order, had the “good news” proclaimed to them by poor people. This study describes how members of one Christian spiritual tradition responded to a social justice movement calling for solidarity, and considers how they interpreted their responses in light of their religious imaginary of conversion.
Applying a Warfighter-Centric System Design Process to a Department of Defense Acquisition Program
Authors: Savage-Knepshield Pamela A.
Published: May 2009

This case study describes a user-centered system design process that was undertaken by a team of multidisciplinary engineers supporting the Joint Tactical Radio System Handheld, Manpack and Small Form Fit Program. Motivated by the need to manage the risk associated with designing a compact, software-programmable radio to meet the diverse needs of the joint forces, the team applied cognitive engineering methods at key points during the system development and demonstration phase of the acquisition process. To make sound, data-driven design decisions, the team conducted four research efforts with warfighters to understand their tactical communication needs and the impact that proposed designs would have on mission and individual performance. Key insights and lessons learned from the application of cognitive engineering methods during the process and their impact on system design are discussed.
The Products of the Reactions of o-Benzyne with Ethene, Propene, and Acetylene: A Combined Mass Spectrometric and Quantum Chemical Study
Authors: Friedrichs Gernot , Goos Elke , Gripp Joachim , Nicken Hauke , Schönborn Jan-Boyke , Vogel Henrik , Temps Friedrich
Published: May 2009

The primary products of the bimolecular reactions of ortho-benzyne, o-C6H4 (1,2-dehydrobenzene), with ethene, propene, and acetylene have been detected by molecular beam mass spectrometry at a combustion relevant temperature of T = 1475 K. o-Benzyne was produced by flash pyrolysis of phthalic anhydride in the absence and presence of the respective reactant. Potential reaction pathways of the addition reactions were investigated by quantum chemical calculations. Channels with biradical intermediates were found to be energetically more favorable than alternative quasi-concerted [2+1] cycloaddition and concerted H-transfer pathways. Bicyclic benzocyclobutene and benzocyclobutadiene were identified as the main products of the reactions with C2H4 and C2H2, respectively. At combustion temperatures, however, these cyclic products are likely to undergo sequential ring opening. In the case of propene, the presence of an allylic H atom initiates a favorable ene-type reaction sequence yielding the open-chain product allylbenzene. Overall, hydrocarbon reactivity was found to increase in the order C2H2, C2H4 to 3H8. The range of the estimated bimolecular rate constants is comparable to the rate constants of the corresponding phenyl radical reactions and hence point out a potentially important role of o-C6H4 reactions in flame and soot formation chemistry.
Conformation and Aggregation of Proline Esters and Their Aromatic Homologs: Pyramidal vs. Planar RR´N-H in Hydrogen Bonds
Authors: Hesse Susanne , Suhm Martin A.
Published: May 2009

The conformations of proline esters are investigated by infrared spectroscopy in supersonic slit jet expansions. Two easily convertible puckering variants of the pyrrolidine ring with intramolecular N-H···O contacts are shown to be particularly stable. The aggregation tendency of proline esters via intermolecular N-H···O hydrogen bonds is remarkably weak. IR differences between enantiopure and racemic dimers are difficult to quantify. Dehydrogenation of the pyrrolidine ring to pyrrole leads to a stable planar carboxylic ester conformation. Its aggregation tendency is pronounced due to the planar hybridization of the nitrogen atom and leads to a symmetric,βsheet-like dimer with strongly red-shifting hydrogen bonds. The spectroscopic observations underscore the differences between intermolecular interactions of N-terminal and peptide-bound amino acids in peptide chains.
Formation of H-atoms in the Pyrolysis of 1,3-butadiene and 2-butyne: A Shock Tube and Modelling Study
Authors: Peukert Sebastian , Naumann Clemens , Braun-Unkhoff Marina
Published: May 2009

For investigating the pyrolysis of 1,3-butadiene (1,3-C4H6) and 2-butyne (2-C4H6), reactive gas mixtures highly diluted with argon as bath gas were prepared. The experiments were carried out in a high purity shock tube device over a temperature range of about 1500–1800 K at total pressures between 1.2 and 1.9 bar. The time-dependent formation of H-atoms was measured behind reflected shock waves by using the very sensitive method of atomic resonance absorption spectrometry (ARAS). A detailed chemical kinetic reaction mechanism consisting of 33 elementary reactions and 26 species was used to model the experimentally obtained H-atom profiles. From kinetic modelling, with help of sensitivity and reaction flux analysis, it was concluded that reaction R 1 2-C4H6 ↔ 2-C4H5 + H is crucial for the observed formation of H-atoms during the thermal decomposition of both investigated species and within the investigated range of temperatures and pressures. Moreover, at temperatures above about 1650 K, the decay of propargyl radicals (C3H3) turns out to contribute significantly to the amount of produced H-atoms. The following rate expressions were obtained for three reactions (R 1–R 3) – among them the isomerisation from 2-butyne to 1,3-butadiene – important with respect to the formation of H-atoms within the investigated parameter range. The uncertainties are estimated to be ±30%:

2-C4H6 ↔ 2-C4H5 + H (R 1)

2-C4H6 ↔ 1,2-C4H6 (R 2)

1,3-C4H6 ↔ C2H2 + C2H4 (R 3)

k
1=3.8⋅1015exp(-44871K/T)s-1

k
2=6.9⋅1013exp(-32496K/T)s-1

k
3=7.0⋅1012exp(-33768K/T)s-1
Sampling Probe Influences on Temperature and Species Concentrations in Molecular Beam Mass Spectroscopic Investigations of Flat Premixed Low-pressure Flames
Authors: Struckmeier Ulf , Oßwald Patrick , Kasper Tina , Böhling Lena , Heusing Melanie , Köhler Markus , Brockhinke Andreas , Kohse-Höinghaus Katharina
Published: May 2009

New operating regimes for engines and combustors and the advocated use of non-conventional transportation fuels demand investigation of the combustion chemistry of different classes of chemicals, especially under premixed conditions. Detailed species compositions during combustion are needed to estimate hazardous emissions, and models for their prediction must be validated for the intended combustion conditions.Molecular-beam mass spectrometry (MBMS) is a common technique to measure quantitative species concentrations in flames. It is widely employed to characterize the flame chemistry of laminar premixed combustion, and it has been complemented with optical measurements for the detection of a number of molecular species and radicals. Significant progress has been made in recent studies through the introduction of synchrotron-based MBMS instruments. They have improved the identification process by using tunable vacuum-ultraviolet radiation for photoionization of the species to be detected, and isomer-specific measurements are now almost routinely possible. Along with quantitative species measurements, the temperature profile is needed as input parameter for chemical kinetic modeling. It is usually determined either using thermocouples or laser spectroscopic techniques.It is an ongoing discussion how sampling probes affect these measurements, and how MBMS results can be compared to combustion modeling. The present article is intended to contribute to this discussion by providing optical and MBMS results obtained with several sampling configurations.
Structures of Laminar Methane/Nitrogen/Oxygen, Methane/Oxygen and Methane/Liquid Oxygen Counterflow Flames for Cryogenic Conditions and Elevated Pressures
Authors: Urzica Daniela , Gutheil Eva
Published: May 2009

The understanding of physical and chemical processes occurring in many applications in sciences and engineering is important to ensure stability and efficiency of their performance. Examples are the combustion process in direct-injection engines, gas turbine combustors, and liquid rocket propulsion systems. The objective of this paper is the numerical investigation of laminar methane/air and methane/oxygen flames where different mixtures of nitrogen and oxygen in the oxidizer stream are studied. Moreover, liquid oxygen (LOX) spray flames with carrier gas methane directed against a methane stream are investigated in the counterflow configuration. These structures may be used in (spray) flamelet library or flamelet generated manifold computations of turbulent combustion. The mathematical model is based on two-dimensional equations which are transferred into one-dimensional equations using a similarity transformation. The numerical simulation concerns the axisymmetric configuration with an adaptive numerical grid for the gas phase. Detailed models of all relevant processes are employed; in particular, a detailed chemical reaction mechanism is used which comprises 35 species including C2 involving 294 elementary reactions. The thermodynamic data for CH4 and O2 below 300K are implemented for normal and elevated pressures. For the CH4/air and an oxygenated flame, the present results are compared with results from literature. The CH4/O2 flame is studied for elevated pressures up to 2MPa. Extinction conditions are evaluated for use in turbulent flamelet computations. It is shown that oxygen dilution, pressure, and strain rate have a pronounced effect on flame structure. The use of liquid compared to gaseous oxygen strongly affects flame structure.
Unraveling the Complex Trait of Crop Yield With Quantitative Trait Loci Mapping in Brassica napus
Authors: Shi Jiaqin , Li Ruiyuan , Qiu Dan , Jiang Congcong , Long Yan , Morgan Colin , Bancroft Ian , Zhao Jianyi , Meng Jinling
Published: May 2009

Yield is the most important and complex trait for the genetic improvement of crops. Although much research into the genetic basis of yield and yield-associated traits has been reported, in each such experiment the genetic architecture and determinants of yield have remained ambiguous. One of the most intractable problems is the interaction between genes and the environment. We identified 85 quantitative trait loci (QTL) for seed yield along with 785 QTL for eight yield-associated traits, from 10 natural environments and two related populations of rapeseed. A trait-by-trait meta-analysis revealed 401 consensus QTL, of which 82.5% were clustered and integrated into 111 pleiotropic unique QTL by meta-analysis, 47 of which were relevant for seed yield. The complexity of the genetic architecture of yield was demonstrated, illustrating the pleiotropy, synthesis, variability, and plasticity of yield QTL. The idea of estimating indicator QTL for yield QTL and identifying potential candidate genes for yield provides an advance in methodology for complex traits.