bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Against physician assisted suicide in terminal illness: ethics from a theravada buddhist perspective
Authors: Brodrick Robert , Keown Damien
Published: March 2012

Background

The potential legalisation of physician assisted suicide (PAS) in the UK has become a hotly debated issue in recent years. Objections from the palliative care community have hitherto been largely based on Judeo-Christian and Humanistic perspectives. In this study the authors argue that the theoretical underpinnings of Buddhist practice also have the potential to add constructively to the debate, without reference to metaphysics.

Aims

The aim of this study was to examine traditional Buddhist texts as a means of discovering an alternative set of arguments relevant to palliative care and PAS in terminal illness.

Methods

As traditional Buddhist texts make no specific reference to palliative care or PAS, all passages which mention death, dying, illness, killing, kindness, intentionality and moral precepts contained within the five volumes of the Pali Sutta Pitika (the earliest recorded discourses of the Buddha) were selected for analysis. Using an inferential approach, several arguments relevant to palliative care and PAS were revealed. These were then tested for validity by checking for internal consistency within the texts and by analysis using modern applied ethics methods, namely Kantian, consequentialist, virtue ethics and four principles approaches.

Results

Several valid arguments in favour of palliative care and against PAS were discovered. Of note are the arguments from karma (that to care for the terminally ill potentially has beneficial effects on carers for the rest of their lives and that to assist in helping others to die has opposite, negative effects), transience (that the inevitability of death makes PAS ultimately unnecessary) and understanding (that for patients embracing life, despite inherent suffering, it can support the cultivation of wisdom and compassion, which benefit the individual and their community).

Conclusions

The analysis of traditional Buddhist texts provides novel, strong and relevant arguments in favour of palliative care in terminal illness, and against PAS.
Qualitative study on Thai physicians prognostic disclosure to patients with advance-staged cancer
Authors: Nimmanworawong Ninlawan , Jaturapatpon Darin , Hathirat Saipin
Published: March 2012

Background

Physicians who take care of advance-stage cancer patients always face the question ‘Doc, how much time do I have left?’ which make them feel awkward to answer the question.

Purpose

To understand how Thai physicians disclose prognosis to advance-staged cancer patients

Designs and methods

A qualitative indepth interview with purposeful sampling was conducted among 15 residents from six different departments in Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital from January to February, 2011. Content analysis was performed independently by three researchers.

Results

There were five attitudes that affected the prognosis disclosure in advanced-stage cancer patients including perceptions of inadequate skill and competency, attitudes toward prognosis in case of their own cancer diagnosis, attitudes toward own concepts of medical professionalism, attitudes toward death and attitudes toward prognosis disclosure in different groups of Thai patients. All five attitudes affected the feeling of each physician which in turn lead to the way physicians formed patterns in prognosis disclosure. Furthermore, prognosis disclosure patterns depended on the following factors including doctors, patients, doctor-patient relationship and working settings. There were several forms of prognosis disclosure, for example, obscure disclosure, ‘range of time’ disclosure,'exact time' disclosure, ‘statistical and technical-term’ disclosure, and patient-centred disclosure. However, some physicians chose to answer in either an optimistic or pessimistic way based on their own opinions. Some physicians disclosed relatives their actual estimation, but gave patients better hope, while some physicians only told relatives without discussing with patients.

Conclusion

Prognosis disclosure in advance-staged cancer patients is a challenge for Thai physicians. Different styles in prognostic disclosure were not only from physicians' attitudes, patients' status, but also the relationship between doctor and patient.
A critical appraisal of ethical sedative use for dying patients: comparative ethnographic study of three palliative care units
Authors: Arolker Milind , Epstein Miran , Seale Clive
Published: March 2012

Background and aim

The frequency and indications of use of drugs with sedative effect, for example, midazolam, for dying patients has been widely explored. Some authors have sought empirical evidence to argue a rationale that secures an ethical basis for sedation use by distinguishing it from euthanasia. A palliative care philosophy, that simultaneously promotes a symptom-control focus and a rejection of intentions to hasten death, underpins recent frameworks guiding sedative use. The authors present here empirical evidence to analyse the professional and clinical contexts influencing doctors and nurses when making ethical decisions to treat dying patients with sedatives.

Methods

Ethnographic methods in each of three UK palliative care units (PCUs): participant-observation of inpatient ward care for approximately 100–150 h, writing field notes after observing staff managing dying patients; 10–12 recorded interviews and two focus groups with doctors and nurses. Use of NVivo9 to thematically analyse transcribed data, and support cross-comparison of observations between PCUs. Data collection and analysis will be complete by January 2012, and data deposited with the UK Data Archive thereafter.

Results and conclusions

The main ethical justification for sedative use is that a dying patient's condition requires this. The degree of latitude given to nurses to administer doses of sedatives differs between PCUs; appearing related to the seniority of available nurses and the degree of medical control over nurses' practice generally. Staff actively manage relatives' impressions about sedation, often aiming to refute the intention of hastening death. Sedative drugs appear unique, compared to other end-of-life care drugs, facilitating the ‘emotional labour’ nurses must do to maintain a calm and orderly ward atmosphere and assisting in the production of an apparently ‘natural’ death. This in turn suggests that a dying patient's condition is not the only consideration that is relevant when choosing to use sedatives.
PREDICTION OF UNSTEADY STATES IN LID-DRIVEN CAVITIES FILLED WITH AN INCOMPRESSIBLE VISCOUS FLUID
Authors: HAMMAMI FAYÇAL , BEN-CHEIKH NADER , CAMPO ANTONIO , BEN-BEYA BRAHIM , LILI TAIEB
Published: March 2012

In this work, a numerical study devoted to the two-dimensional and three-dimensional flow of a viscous, incompressible fluid inside a lid-driven cavity is undertaking. All transport equations are solved using the finite volume formulation on a staggered grid system and multi-grid acceleration. Quantitative aspects of two and three-dimensional flows in a lid-driven cavity for Reynolds number Re = 1000 show good agreement with benchmark results.

An analysis of the flow evolution demonstrates that, with increments in Re beyond a certain critical value Rec, the steady flow becomes unstable and bifurcates into unsteady flow. It is observed that the transition from steadiness to unsteadiness follows the classical Hopf bifurcation. The time-dependent velocity distribution is studied in detail and the critical Reynolds number is localized for both 2D and 3D cases.

Benchmark solutions for 2D and 3D lid-driven cavity flows are performed for Re = 1500 and 6000.
ENTROPY SOLUTIONS OF A CHAPMAN–JOUGUET COMBUSTION MODEL
Authors: SUN MEINA
Published: March 2012

We consider the Riemann problem for a Chapman–Jouguet combustion model which comes from Majda's model with a modified, bump-type ignition function proposed in [G. Lyng and K. Zumbrun, Arch. Rational Mech. Anal. 173 (2004) 213–277; Physica D 194 (2004) 1–29]. The unique Riemann solutions are obtained constructively under the pointwise and global entropy conditions. Furthermore, we prove rigorously that these solutions are the limits of the Riemann solutions for the corresponding self-similar Zeldovich–von Neumann–Döring model as the reaction rate goes to infinity. Finally we analyze the ignition problem for this Chapman–Jouguet combustion model, and the solutions show that the unburnt state is stable (respectively unstable) when the binding energy is small (respectively large), which is the desired property for a combustion model. We can also observe the phenomenon of the transition from a weak deflagration to a strong detonation which cannot occur for the Chapman–Jouguet combustion model corresponding to Majda's model with a step-type ignition function.
CONVERGENT ADAPTIVE FINITE ELEMENT METHODS FOR PHOTONIC CRYSTAL APPLICATIONS
Authors: GIANI STEFANO
Published: March 2012

We prove the convergence of an adaptive finite element method for computing the band structure of two-dimensional periodic photonic crystals with or without compact defects in both the TM and TE polarization cases. These eigenvalue problems involve non-coercive elliptic operators with discontinuous coefficients. The error analysis extends the theory of convergence of adaptive methods for elliptic eigenvalue problems to photonic crystal problems, and in particular deals with various complications which arise essentially from the lack of coercivity of the elliptic operator with discontinuous coefficients. We prove the convergence of the adaptive method in an oscillation-free way and with no extra assumptions on the initial mesh, beside the conformity and shape regularity. Also we present and prove the convergence of an adaptive method to compute efficiently an entire band in the spectrum. This method is guaranteed to converge to the correct global maximum and minimum of the band, which is a very useful piece of information in practice. Our numerical results cover both the cases of periodic structures with and without compact defects.
在地 ∙ 跨域 ∙ 身体移动 ∙ 知识传播: 马来亚共产党史的再思考
Authors: 潘婉明
Published: March 2012

马来亚共产党 (简称 "马共"), 自1930年成立至1989年其总书记陈平与马泰两国政府签订和平协议为止，共历时约59年. 1930年代为马共草创期，因受殖民地政府牵制而进行地下活动。日据时期，马共动员组织人民抗日军，并与英军合作抗敌。战后，马共被承认为合法组织，公开活动，声势日隆，直到1948年6月中旬英殖民地政府颁布紧急状态，才改采武装斗争从事游击战斗。但马共在各方面条件悬殊的情况下处于下风，其部队向北撤到泰南边境，个别人士流亡到印尼，主要领导人则前往中国。许多被政府逮捕的马共成员或马共同情者被判刑复驱逐出境，大部分被安置在中国南方各省的 “华侨农场”，其中一些人在政策开放后又移居香港或澳门。换言之，马共的战斗虽为马来亚之独立而战，却也跨出了本土，跨越不同地域。当被研究的对象一直不断移动，我们不得不重新思考 “在地”与“跨域”的意义。而当研究者本身的位置和身份加入讨论以后，“在地”与“跨域”的问题就变得更复杂纠结了。另一方面，在地与否也可以与身体的移动无关。在战后意识形态大对决的20世纪40、50年代，知识通过刊物和书籍的翻译及传播，达到了惊人的效果。在新马，人民通过左翼阵营的读物来理解共产主义政治，憧憬延安，揣摩理想社会的图像，这是一种在地启蒙的境外想象。本文将尝试以马共的历史、田野调查和文献为例，讨论“在地”与“跨域”的相对性与不固定性。
Hypoxia recruits intrapulmonary arteriovenous pathways in intact rats but not isolated rat lungs
Authors: Bates Melissa L. , Fulmer Brendan R. , Farrell Emily T. , Drezdon Alyssa , Pegelow David F. , Conhaim Robert L. , Eldridge Marlowe W.
Published: March 2012

Intrapulmonary arteriovenous anastomoses (IPAVS) directly connect the arterial and venous circulations in the lung, bypassing the capillary network. Here, we used solid, latex microspheres and isolated rat lung and intact, spontaneously breathing rat models to test the hypothesis that IPAVS are recruited by alveolar hypoxia. We found that hypoxia recruits IPAVS in the intact rat, but not the isolated lung. IPAVS are at least 70 μm in the rat and, interestingly, appear to be recruited when the mixed venous Po2 falls below 22 mmHg. These data provide evidence that large-diameter, direct arteriovenous connections exist in the lung and are recruitable by hypoxia in the intact animal.
Impact of chronic exercise training on the blood pressure response to orthostatic stimulation
Authors: Sugawara Jun , Komine Hidehiko , Miyazawa Taiki , Imai Tomoko , Fisher James P. , Ogoh Shigehiko
Published: March 2012

Exercise training elicits morphological adaptations in the left ventricle (LV) and large-conduit arteries that are specific to the type of training performed (i.e., endurance vs. resistance exercise). We investigated whether the mode of chronic exercise training, and the associated cardiovascular adaptations, influence the blood pressure responses to orthostatic stimulation in 30 young healthy men (10 sedentary, 10 endurance trained, and 10 resistance trained). The endurance-trained group had a significantly larger LV end-diastolic volume normalized by body surface area (vs. sedentary and resistance-trained groups), whereas the resistance-trained group had a significantly higher LV wall thickness and aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) compared with the endurance-trained group. In response to 60° head-up tilt (HUT), mean arterial pressure (MAP) rose in the resistance-trained group (+6.5 ± 1.6 mmHg, P < 0.05) but did not change significantly in sedentary and the endurance-trained groups. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) decreased in endurance-trained group (−8.3 ± 2.4 mmHg, P < 0.05) but did not significantly change in sedentary and resistance-trained groups. A forward stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that LV wall thickness and aortic PWV were significantly and independently associated with the MAP response to HUT, explaining ∼41% of its variability ( R2 =0.414, P < 0.001). Likewise, aortic PWV and the corresponding HUT-mediated change in stroke volume were significantly and independently associated with the SBP response to HUT, explaining ∼52% of its variability ( R2 = 0.519, P < 0.0001). Furthermore, the change in stroke volume significantly correlated with LV wall thickness ( r = 0.39, P < 0.01). These results indicate that chronic resistance and endurance exercise training differentially affect the BP response to HUT, and that this appears to be associated with training-induced morphological adaptations of the LV and large-conduit arteries.
Effect of hyperoxic exposure during early development on neurotrophin expression in the carotid body and nucleus tractus solitarii
Authors: Chavez-Valdez Raul , Mason Ariel , Nunes Ana R. , Northington Frances J. , Tankersley Clarke , Ahlawat Rajni , Johnson Sheree M. , Gauda Estelle B.
Published: March 2012

Synaptic activity can modify expression of neurotrophins, which influence the development of neuronal circuits. In the newborn rat, early hyperoxia silences the synaptic activity and input from the carotid body, impairing the development and function of chemoreceptors. The purpose of this study was to determine whether early hyperoxic exposure, sufficient to induce hypoplasia of the carotid body and decrease the number of chemoafferents, would also modify neurotrophin expression within the nucleus tractus solitarii (nTS). Rat pups were exposed to hyperoxia (fraction of inspired oxygen 0.60) or normoxia until 7 or 14 days of postnatal development (PND). In the carotid body, hyperoxia decreased brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) protein expression by 93% ( P = 0.04) after a 7-day exposure, followed by a decrease in retrogradely labeled chemoafferents by 55% ( P = 0.004) within the petrosal ganglion at 14 days. Return to normoxia for 1 wk after a 14-day hyperoxic exposure did not reverse this effect. In the nTS, hyperoxia for 7 days: 1) decreased BDNF gene expression by 67% and protein expression by 18%; 2) attenuated upregulation of BDNF mRNA levels in response to acute hypoxia; and 3) upregulated p75 neurotrophic receptor, truncated tropomyosin kinase B (inactive receptor), and cleaved caspase-3. These effects were not observed in the locus coeruleus (LC). Hyperoxia for 14 days also decreased tyrosine hydroxylase levels by 18% ( P = 0.04) in nTS but not in the LC. In conclusion, hyperoxic exposure during early PND reduces neurotrophin levels in the carotid body and the nTS and shifts the balance of neurotrophic support from prosurvival to proapoptotic in the nTS, the primary brain stem site for central integration of sensory and autonomic inputs.
Requirements to Assess Feasibility of Phase 0 Trials during Major Abdominal Surgery: Variability of PARP Activity
Authors: Heitz Florian , du Bois Andreas , Rochon Justine , Scheil-Bertram Stefanie , Hils Rita , Fisseler-Eckhoff Annette , Barinoff Jana , Kaub Christine , Harter Philipp
Published: March 2012

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of phase 0 trials in the setting of a routine surgical procedure. Logistic considerations, tissue sampling and tissue handling, and variability of a biomarker during surgery, in here PARP, were evaluated.

Experimental Design: Patients with highly suspicious or proven diagnosis of advanced ovarian cancer, planned for debulking surgery were asked to allow sequential tumor biopsies during surgery. Biopsies were frozen immediately and PARP activity was measured subsequently.

Results: Baseline biopsies were obtained from eight patients after a median time of 88 minutes (minimum of 50 to maximum of 123 minutes). Second and third biopsies were obtained after a median of 60 (32–96) and 101 (79–130) minutes, respectively. Mean tumor load was 44% (5%–100%), with a cellular viability of 98% (85%–100%). Median baseline PARP activity was 1035 pg/mL (range, 429–2663 pg/mL). The observed interpatient variability at baseline was large: SD was 0.59 after natural logarithm transformation.

Conclusions: Conducting phase 0 trials during surgery seems to be feasible in terms of logistic considerations. In preparation of a phase 0 trial during surgery, a feasibility study like this should be conducted to rule out major interactions of the surgical intervention with respect to the targeted biomarker. Clin Cancer Res; 18(9); 2632–7. ©2012 AACR.
Phase I Trial of Intraperitoneal Pemetrexed, Cisplatin, and Paclitaxel in Optimally Debulked Ovarian Cancer
Authors: Chambers Setsuko K. , Chow H-H. Sherry , Janicek Mike F. , Cragun Janiel M. , Hatch Kenneth D. , Cui Haiyan , Laughren Cynthia , Clouser Mary C. , Cohen Janice L. , Wright Heather M. , Abu Shahin Nisreen , Alberts David S.
Published: March 2012

Purpose: This phase I trial evaluated intraperitoneal (i.p.) pemetrexed, cisplatin, and paclitaxel in optimally debulked ovarian cancer.

Experimental Design: Dose escalation of day 1 i.p. pemetrexed accrued three patients to each of five dose levels (60–1,000 mg/m2), along with day 2 i.p. cisplatin (75 mg/m2) and day 8 i.p. paclitaxel (60 mg/m2). The goals were to determine maximum tolerated dose (MTD), 18-month progression-free survival (PFS), and pharmacokinetics of i.p. pemetrexed.

Results: Cycles, given every 21 days, had an 80% 6-cycle completion rate. There was minimal grade III toxicity in the first 4 dose levels and remarkably an almost complete absence of peripheral neuropathy and alopecia. At the highest dose level, two of three patients experienced ≥grade III and dose-limiting toxicity (DLT; hematologic, infection, gastrointestinal). There was a pharmacokinetic advantage for i.p. pemetrexed with an intraperitoneal:plasma area under the concentration–time curve ratio of 13-fold. Neither analysis of pharmacokinetic nor homocysteine levels explains the unexpected severity of toxicity in those two patients. On the basis of plasma C24h levels, the 42 cycles at ≥500 mg/m2 i.p. pemetrexed without DLT, the MTD appears to be 500 mg/m2. Median PFS is 30.1 months; 18-month PFS is 78.6% (median follow-up 22.4 months).

Conclusions: This i.p.-only regimen in front-line ovarian cancer is feasible with PFS in line with recent literature. We suggest phase II trials of this regimen in this population with i.p. pemetrexed at 500 mg/m2. The favorable toxicity profile at doses <1,000 mg/m2, which needs to be confirmed, appears to compare well with standard combination i.v./i.p. platinum/taxane chemotherapy in this disease. Clin Cancer Res; 18(9); 2668–78. ©2012 AACR.
Regulation of Macrophage and Dendritic Cell Responses by Their Lineage Precursors
Authors: Cortez-Retamozo Virna , Etzrodt Martin , Pittet Mikael J.
Published: March 2012

Tissue macrophages (Mø) and dendritic cells (DC) are thought to derive from hematopoietic stem cells, which exist in the bone marrow and generate intermediate precursor populations with increasingly restricted lineage potentials. There exists several precursors committed to the Mø and DC lineages; these cells exhibit distinct tropism and function and respond differentially in pathophysiologic conditions. In this review, we consider experimental contexts in which Mø and DC responses in tissue are not only dictated by the local environment, but also by the quantity and quality of newly recruited lineage precursor cells. Consequently, we discuss whether therapeutic control of Mø and DC responses in tissue may be achieved through manipulation of their lineage precursors.
Streptococcal M1 Protein-Provoked CXC Chemokine Formation, Neutrophil Recruitment and Lung Damage Are Regulated by Rho-Kinase Signaling
Authors: Zhang Songen , Rahman Milladur , Zhang Su , Herwald Heiko , Qi Zhongquan , Jeppsson Bengt , Thorlacius Henrik
Published: March 2012

Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome is frequently caused by Streptococcus pyogenes of the M1 serotype. The aim of this study was to determine the role of Ras-homologous (Rho)-kinase signaling in M1 protein-provoked lung damage. Male C57BL/6 mice received the Rho-kinase-specific inhibitor Y-27632 before administration of M1 protein. Edema, neutrophil accumulation and CXC chemokines were quantified in the lung 4 h after M1 protein challenge. Flow cytometry was used to determine Mac-1 expression. Quantitative RT-PCR was used to determine gene expression of CXC chemokine mRNA in alveolar macrophages. M1 protein increased neutrophil accumulation, edema and CXC chemokine formation in the lung as well as enhanced Mac-1 expression on neutrophils. Inhibition of Rho-kinase signaling significantly reduced M1 protein-provoked neutrophil accumulation and edema formation in the lung. M1 protein-triggered pulmonary production of CXC chemokine and gene expression of CXC chemokines in alveolar macrophages was decreased by Y-27632. Moreover, Rho-kinase inhibition attenuated M1 protein-induced Mac-1 expression on neutrophils. We conclude that Rho-kinase-dependent neutrophil infiltration controls pulmonary tissue damage in response to streptococcal M1 protein and that Rho-kinase signaling regulates M1 protein-induced lung recruitment of neutrophils via the formation of CXC chemokines and Mac-1 expression.
Hyperinsulinemia Does Not Change Atherosclerosis Development in Apolipoprotein E Null Mice
Authors: Rask-Madsen Christian , Buonomo Erica , Li Qian , Park Kyoungmin , Clermont Allen C. , Yerokun Oluwatobi , Rekhter Mark , King George L.
Published: March 2012

Objective—

To determine the contribution of hyperinsulinemia to atherosclerosis development.

Methods and Results—

Apolipoprotein E (
Apoe
) null mice that had knockout of a single allele of the insulin receptor (
Insr
) gene were compared with littermate
Apoe
null mice with intact insulin receptors. Plasma insulin levels in
Insr
haploinsufficient/
Apoe
null mice were 50% higher in the fasting state and up to 69% higher during a glucose tolerance test, but glucose tolerance was not different in the 2 groups. C-peptide levels, insulin sensitivity, and postreceptor insulin signaling in muscle, liver, fat, and aorta were not different between groups, whereas disappearance in plasma of an injected insulin analog was delayed in
Insr
haploinsufficient/
Apoe
null mice, indicating that impaired insulin clearance was the primary cause of hyperinsulinemia. No differences were observed in plasma lipids or blood pressure. Despite the hyperinsulinemia, atherosclerotic lesion size was not different between the 2 groups at time points up to 52 weeks of age when measured as
en face
lesion area in the aorta, cross-sectional plaque area in the aortic sinus, and cholesterol abundance in the brachiocephalic artery.

Conclusion—

Hyperinsulinemia, without substantial vascular or whole-body insulin resistance and without changes in plasma lipids or blood pressure, does not change susceptibility to atherosclerosis.
Very Urgent Carotid Endarterectomy Confers Increased Procedural Risk
Authors: Strömberg Sofia , Gelin Johan , Österberg Torun , Bergström Göran M.L. , Karlström Lars , Österberg Klas ,   for the Swedish Vascular Registry (Swedvasc) Steering Committee
Published: March 2012

Background and Purpose—

Current Swedish guidelines recommend that carotid endarterectomy should be performed within 14 days of a qualifying neurological event, but it is not clear if very urgent surgery after an event is associated with increased perioperative risk. The aim of this study was to determine how the time between the event and carotid endarterectomy affects the procedural risk of mortality and stroke.

Methods—

We prospectively analyzed data on all patients who underwent carotid endarterectomies for symptomatic carotid stenosis between May 12, 2008, and May 31, 2011, with records in the Swedish Vascular Registry (Swedvasc). Patients were divided according to time between the qualifying event and surgery (0–2 days, 3–7 days, 8–14 days, 15–180 days). Stroke rate and mortality at 30 days postsurgery were determined.

Results—

We analyzed data for 2596 patients and found that the combined mortality and stroke rate for patients treated 0 to 2 days after qualifying event was 11.5% (17 of 148) versus 3.6% (29 of 804), 4.0% (27 of 677), and 5.4% (52 of 967) for the groups treated at 3 to 7 days, 8 to 14 days, and 15 to 180 days, respectively. In a multivariate analysis, time was an independent risk factor for perioperative complications: patients treated at 0 to 2 days had a relative OR of 4.24 (CI, 2.07–8.70;
P
<0.001) compared with the reference 3- to 7-day group.

Conclusions—

In this study of patients treated for symptomatic carotid disease, it was safe to perform surgery as early as Day 3 after a qualifying neurological event in contrast to patients treated within 0 to 2 days, which has a significantly increased perioperative risk.
Empirical Methods for the Study of Denotation in Nominalizations in Spanish
Authors: Peris Aina , Taulé Mariona , Rodríguez Horacio
Published: March 2012

This article deals with deverbal nominalizations in Spanish; concretely, we focus on the denotative distinction between event and result nominalizations. The goals of this work is twofold: first, to detect the most relevant features for this denotative distinction; and, second, to build an automatic classification system of deverbal nominalizations according to their denotation. We have based our study on theoretical hypotheses dealing with this semantic distinction and we have analyzed them empirically by means of Machine Learning techniques which are the basis of the ADN-Classifier. This is the first tool that aims to automatically classify deverbal nominalizations in event, result, or underspecified denotation types in Spanish. The ADN-Classifier has helped us to quantitatively evaluate the validity of our claims regarding deverbal nominalizations. We set up a series of experiments in order to test the ADN-Classifier with different models and in different realistic scenarios depending on the knowledge resources and natural language processors available. The ADN-Classifier achieved good results (87.20% accuracy).
Peter Heller’s a Child Analysis with Anna Freud
Authors: Midgley Nick
Published: March 2012

A Child Analysis with Anna Freud, a collection of Anna Freud’s detailed case notes of her treatment of the young Peter Heller between 1929 and 1932, was first published in English in 1990. Not only does this work give us direct access to Anna Freud’s ways of thinking and working at a crucial period in the early history of child analysis; it is also one of the few records of an adult reflecting in depth on the experience of being in analysis as a child. Yet to date this work has received little attention in the psychoanalytic literature. In an attempt to redress this neglect, the Heller case study is placed in the context of Anna Freud’s emerging ideas about child analysis. In particular, its significance in the development of her psychoanalytic thinking is investigated in the light of her 1927 book, The Technique of Child Analysis.
Sentencing and public confidence: Results from a national Australian survey on public opinions towards sentencing
Authors: Mackenzie Geraldine , Spiranovic Caroline , Warner Kate , Stobbs Nigel , Gelb Karen , Indermaur David , Roberts Lynne , Broadhurst Rod , Bouhours Thierry
Published: March 2012

This paper examines the critical issue of public confidence in sentencing, and presents findings from Phase I of an Australia-wide sentencing and public confidence project. Phase I comprised a nationally representative telephone survey of 6005 participants. The majority of respondents expressed high levels of punitiveness and were dissatisfied with sentences imposed by the courts. Despite this, many were strongly supportive of the use of alternatives to imprisonment for a range of offences. These nuanced views raise questions regarding the efficacy of gauging public opinion using opinion poll style questions; indeed the expected outcome from this first phase of the four phase sentencing and public confidence project. The following phases of this project, reported on elsewhere, examined the effects of various interventions on the robustness and nature of these views initially expressed in a standard ‘top of the head’ opinion poll.
‘But is it a normal thing?’ Teenage mothers’ experiences of breastfeeding promotion and support
Authors: Condon L , Rhodes C , Warren S , Withall J , Tapp A
Published: March 2012

Aim:

To explore teenagers’ experiences of the breastfeeding promotion and support delivered by health professionals.

Design:

A qualitative study conducted in an English city.

Methods:

Pregnant teenagers and teenage mothers (n = 29) took part in semi-structured interviews and focus groups between March and July 2009.

Results:

Breastfeeding is presented by health professionals as incontrovertibly the best choice of feeding method, but teenagers experience an array of conflicting norms which influence their infant feeding choices and behaviours.

Conclusions:

The social barriers to continuing breastfeeding are insufficiently recognized and addressed by health professionals. It is likely that teenage mothers would breastfeed for longer if they perceived that breastfeeding was a normal way to feed baby in their social milieu.
Applying the transtheoretical model to investigate behavioural change in type 2 diabetic patients
Authors: Lin Shu-Ping , Wang Ming-Jye
Published: March 2012

Background:

Long-term behaviour change in type 2 diabetic patients may provide effective glycemic control.

Purpose:

To investigate the key factors that promote behaviour change in diabetic subjects using the transtheoretical model.

Methods:

Subjects were selected by purposive sampling from type 2 diabetes outpatients. Self-administered questionnaires were used to collect the data related to the stages of behavioural change. HbA1C* values were measured to evaluate glycemic control. Data were analyzed with analysis of variance (ANOVA), multiple regression and multinomial logistic regression.

Results:

Routine management of diabetes was a key factor in behaviour change, which correlated indirectly with HbA1C values through compliance and was positively affected by social support. Undermining from family or friends was directly associated with HbA1C.

Conclusions:

Based on factors influencing stages of behaviour change in diabetic subjects, tailoring a programme to help patients balancing life-style with diabetes, strengthening the patients’ perceived confidence in routine management, and establishing a patient-friendly environment as well as support systems may show promise for changing the behaviours in all diabetic patients.
Comparative experimental studies of phosphate glass fiber/polypropylene and phosphate glass fiber/natural rubber composites
Authors: Zaman Haydar U. , Khan Mubarak A. , Khan Ruhul A.
Published: March 2012

Phosphate glass fiber (PGF)-reinforced polypropylene (PP)/natural rubber (NR)-based unidirectional composites with four levels of fiber loading (5, 10, 15, and 20 wt%) were fabricated by compression molding. The influence of the addition of fiber loadings on the mechanical properties such as tensile strength, bending strength, tensile modulus, and percentage elongation at break of the composites was investigated. Based on the fiber loading, 20% PGF-reinforced PP composites yielded better mechanical properties compared with the PGF/NR composites. Degradation tests of the composites were performed in aqueous and soil medium, and it was found that PGF/NR composites lost much of its original strength and modulus compared with that of the PGF/PP composites. Interfacial shear strength (IFSS) of PGF/PP and PGF/NR systems was investigated using the single-fiber fragmentation tests. The IFSS of PGF/PP and PGF/NR systems appeared to be 5.5 and 1.1 MPa, respectively.
Domestic abuse prevention after Raoul Moat
Authors: Gadd David
Published: March 2012

This article charts the development of domestic abuse policy between May 2010 and June 2011, a period in which: the UK witnessed a high profile domestic abuse case – that of Raoul Moat – pass almost without recognition as such; whilst the dismantling of much of the infrastructure used to prevent domestic abuse outside the criminal justice system commenced, in anticipation of cost-cutting reform designated necessary to the advent of the ‘Big Society’. The article uses both the research literature on domestic abuse and the case of Raoul Moat to argue that preventative work in this field needs to keep issues of gender – especially masculinity – in the political frame. This focus on masculinity should not, however, be reduced merely to attitudes accepting of violence or macho values, but should, the article argues, also keep the relationships between violence, emotional dependency, heterosexual propriety, and life crises in view. The article queries whether the Coalition government’s focus on ‘payback’, ‘discipline’ in schools and the ‘sexualization of children’ is likely to help more than hinder in this regard, and points to the real risks entailed in economic restructuring that increases the proportion of women and children vulnerable to repeat victimization.
Black longshoremen and the fight for equality in an ‘anti-racist’ union
Authors: Alimahomed-Wilson Jake
Published: March 2012

This paper uncovers the contradictions between official ‘anti-racist’ union principles and local practice by exploring the ways that racism shaped a racially progressive union’s politics. Using interview material, it centres on the past and present experiences of African American union members working as longshoremen in southern California. Contrary to accounts that locate racism and the racial division of workers solely as a practice utilised by capital, the author argues that it was the labour union local itself, not capital, that readily relied on racism to undermine Black workers, thereby recreating the very same destructive forces that the International Longshore and Warehouse Union’s principles purported to oppose.
Information literacy and engineering design: Developing an integrated conceptual model
Authors: Fosmire Michael
Published: March 2012

Engineering education is moving increasingly toward an active-learning based pedagogy. Traditionally relegated to a final-year design project, more and more engineering design projects are appearing earlier, even in the first-year of undergraduate education. With the increased frequency of these projects that are problems without a single ‘right’ answer, engineering librarians are finding more opportunities to work with students throughout their educational careers instead of just in a capstone course. To fully take advantage of these opportunities, librarians need to translate their own knowledge of information literacy into the language of engineering educators, and indeed inform the pedagogy of those educators. This paper attempts to create just such a bridge, focusing on the information resources and processes needed by engineers engaged in the design process and bringing together the literature of both the engineering education and library science communities.
Out of the classroom and into the laboratory: Teaching digital curation virtually and experientially
Authors: Harvey Ross , Bastian Jeannette A.
Published: March 2012

As graduate LIS/IS education seeks to respond to intensifying virtual information and preservation environments, it becomes increasingly clear that innovative teaching tools and methods are required. These teaching tools must complement and enhance state-of-the-art curriculum offerings in subjects such as digital curation. The digital curation courses offered in the LIS School at Simmons College, Boston illustrate an innovative virtual and experiential approach. At the heart of these courses is the Digital Curriculum Laboratory, a virtual archives and preservation laboratory. This paper discusses and demonstrates the relationship between a digital curriculum laboratory, the successful delivery of a digital curation curriculum and its wider international implications.
Self-Reported Functional Status Among the Old-Old
Authors: Litwin Howard , Shrira Amit , Shmotkin Dov
Published: March 2012

Objectives: To examine differences in functional status among two successive cohorts. Method: The study was a comparative analysis of Jewish respondents aged 75 to 94 from two nationwide random samples: the Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Aging Study (1989-1992; N = 1,200) and the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (2005-2006; N = 379). Self-reported functional limitation and disability were compared by means of logistic regressions and MANCOVA, controlling for age, gender, origin, education, marital status, income, self-rated health, and home care receipt. Results: Reported functional limitation decreased in the later cohort (SHARE-Israel), but activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) disability increased. Receipt of home care moderated these effects. ADL and IADL disability increased among home care–receiving respondents in the later cohort whereas functional limitation decreased among respondents not in receipt of home care. Discussion: The findings suggest that different measures used to assess the disablement process capture different aspects and that contextual factors influence how older people rate their own functional capacity.
Understanding “Made in China”
Authors: Han Gang (Kevin) , Wang Xiuli
Published: March 2012

This study uses an experiment to examine the effects of valenced news frames, in terms of risks and benefits, on participants perceptions’ of and attitudes toward the product-country image (PCI) of “Made in China.” Findings suggest that the risks frame elicits negative perception and attitude concerning “Made in China,” whereas the benefits frame induces positive evaluations. Participants perceive the product aspect of “Made in China” more positively than the country aspect. Personal relevance, shopping experience, and shopping habit jointly affect participants’ perceptions and attitudes as covariates.
The Use of Random Coefficient Modeling for Understanding and Predicting Job Performance Ratings
Authors: O’Neill Thomas A. , Goffin Richard D. , Gellatly Ian R.
Published: March 2012

Earlier research using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) suggests that most variance in job performance ratings is not attributable to ratee main effects. In this article, the authors point out several issues associated with CFA methodology and argue that random coefficient modeling (RCM) can be a useful alternative for estimating variances associated with ratee main effects, rater main effects, and the upper bound of Rater × Ratee interaction effects. Using an application of RCM on field data, the authors found that rater main effects variance was nearly two times as large as ratee main effects variance. They report meaningful contingencies of these findings by modeling rater familiarity with the ratee and the number of ratees rated by a rater. Finally, interactions revealed that Conscientiousness-related variables were positively related to job performance only when rater familiarity with the ratee was high or the number of ratees rated was high. The authors discuss how the RCM methodology can be used to assess the construct validity of job performance ratings and to test substantive hypotheses involving variance components, main effects, and interactions within nonindependent observations.
The mutual constitution of sensuous and discursive understanding in scientific practice: An autoethnographic lens on academic writing
Authors: Essén Anna , Värlander Sara Winterstorm
Published: March 2012

The research process and production of scientific knowledge has traditionally been understood to be based on abstract analysis and intellectual capacity rather than physical and emotional resources, promoting an understanding of academic practice as a detached, non-emotional and objective activity. Lately, several researchers have bemoaned this lack of recognition of the bodiliness of our work. In this study, we attempt to address this gap by exploring and conceptualizing some of the ways in which the embodied dimensions of academic research practices are intertwined with the articulation of ideas in the writing of scientific texts. In order to pursue our aim, we draw on experiences explicated through an autoethnographic approach, including the generation of personal narratives and in-depth conversations with 18 researchers from different universities in Europe and the US. The article contributes to the sociology of science and academic literacy literature, by conceptualizing the interconnectedness between sensuous and discursive understandings in this context. With the advancement of this theoretical approach, we illuminate how scientific practice is bound up with emotional, embodied, material, social, political and institutional forces. We also challenge the dichotomy between ‘knowledge work’ or theoretical tasks on the one hand, and ‘body work’ or physical labor on the other.
Socio-economic voter profile and motives for Islamist support in Morocco
Authors: Pellicer Miquel , Wegner Eva
Published: March 2012

Based on an original dataset of merged electoral and census data, this article is a study of electoral support for the Islamist Party in Morocco in the 2002 and 2007 elections. It differentiates between the clientelistic, grievance and horizontal network type of supporters. We disentangle these profiles empirically on the basis of the role of education, wealth and exclusion for Islamist votes. We find no evidence of the clientelistic profile, but a shift from grievance in 2002 to a horizontal network profile in 2007. World Values Survey individual level data are used as a robustness check, yielding similar results. Qualitative evidence on a changing mobilization pattern of the party between 2002 and 2007 supports our conclusions.
‘Don’t Box Me In’: Blurred Lines in Waking Life and A Scanner Darkly
Authors: Ruddell Caroline
Published: March 2012

This article seeks to evaluate the visual style of Waking Life and A Scanner Darkly, predominantly through an analysis of the films’ aesthetics. The use of Rotoshop as an expressive means to illustrate character and theme, where identity becomes sketched and multi-faceted rather than fixed or stable is explored here. Yet this aesthetic play with borders has a greater resonance than simply a means by which to delineate thematic preoccupations with troubled identity. While such representations are indeed key to these two films, the darkly outlined contours of character borders, which move and slide incessantly, also comment on the blurred divide between live action and animation. Central to the argument is the use of the animated line in understanding these two films; the line provides impetus for exploring several issues raised by the films and the use of Rotoshop. This article explores the following key ideas: the animated line and aesthetic analysis; Rotoshop technology; the representation of fragmentary identity; and the relationship between photo-real cinema and animation, with a particular focus on narrative and spectacle. The author addresses Rotoshop within the context of technology and spectacle; taking industry practices into account allows for an appreciation of how a technological innovation such as Rotoshop can change the shape of live-action cinema.
Responses of human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells to chemical microenvironment of the intervertebral disc
Authors: Liang Chengzhen , Li Hao , Tao Yiqing , Zhou Xiaopeng , Li Fangcai , Chen Gang , Chen Qixin
Published: March 2012

Background

Human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs) may be ideal source of cells for intervertebral disc (IVD) regeneration, but the harsh chemical microenvironment of IVD may significantly influence the biological and metabolic vitality of ADMSCs and impair their repair potential. This study aimed to investigate the viability, proliferation and the expression of main matrix proteins of ADMSCs in the chemical microenvironment of IVD under normal and degeneration conditions.

Methods

ADMSCs were harvested from young (aged 8-12 years, n = 6) and mature (aged 33-42 years, n = 6) male donors and cultured under standard condition and IVD-like conditions (low glucose, acidity, high osmolarity, and combined conditions) for 2 weeks. Cell viability was measured by annexin V-FITC and PI staining and cell proliferation was measured by MTT assay. The expression of aggrecan and collagen-I was detected by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis.

Results

IVD-like glucose condition slightly inhibited cell viability, but increased the expression of aggrecan. In contrast, IVD-like osmolarity, acidity and the combined conditions inhibited cell viability and proliferation and the expression of aggrecan and collagen-I. ADMSCs from young and mature donors exhibited similar responses to the chemical microenvironments of IVD.

Conclusion

IVD-like low glucose is a positive factor but IVD-like high osmolarity and low pH are deleterious factors that affect the survival and biological behaviors of ADMSCs. These findings may promote the translational research of ADMSCs in IVD regeneration for the treatment of low back pain.