bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Response of Alteromonadaceae and Rhodobacteriaceae to glucose and phosphorus manipulation in marine mesocosms
Authors: Allers Elke , Gómez‐Consarnau Laura , Pinhassi Jarone , Gasol Josep M. , Šimek Karel , Pernthaler Jakob
Published: June 2007

Microbial successions were studied in experimental mesocosms of marine water in the presence of additional organic carbon (glucose), phosphorus (P) or both. P addition lead to pronounced blooms of phytoplankton and to significantly enhanced bacterial production. Characteristic succession patterns were observed for two phylogenetic groups of bacteria that both transiently formed > 50% of total cells. An initial bloom of bacteria affiliated to the Alteromonadaceae could not be assigned to any specific treatment and was interpreted as a response to the manipulations during mesocosm set‐up. These bacteria rapidly declined with the appearance of heterotrophic nanoflagellates, suggesting a negative effect of selective grazing. The persistence of Alteromonadaceae in the microbial assemblages was significantly favored by the presence of additional glucose. During the second half of the experiment, bacteria affiliated to Rhodobacteriaceae formed a dominant component of the experimental assemblages in treatments with addition of P. The community contribution of Rhodobacteriaceae was significantly correlated with chlorophyll a concentrations only in the P‐amended mesocosms (r2 = 0.58). This was more pronounced in the absence of glucose (r2 = 0.85). The phylogenetic and morphological diversity among Rhodobacteriaceae was high, and treatment‐specific temporal successions of genotypes related to Rhodobacteriaceae were observed. We suggest that the observed succession patterns reflect different niche preferences: Alteromonadaceae rapidly responded to disturbance and profited from allochthonous glucose input, whereas Rhodobacteriaceae benefited from the phytoplankton bloom.
The informational basis for nursing intuition: philosophical underpinnings
Authors: Effken Judith A.
Published: June 2007

Abstract  In a previous paper, I argued that expert nursing intuition is a form of what James J. Gibson termed ‘direct perception’ and, as such, is information‐based and can be accepted as part of nursing science. In this paper, I explore the philosophical basis for these claims. I begin by describing analogous problems in philosophy and psychology related to how we know the world. After describing the various solutions proposed and the problems they engender, I summarize Gibson’s theoretical solution together with some of the supporting empirical evidence, but emphasizing the ecological realism on which it relies. I then use these insights to reconsider nursing intuition and the implications for its further exploration.
Telecommunications Policy Reform in Turkey
Authors: Akdemir Erkan , Başçı Erdem , Togan Sübidey
Published: June 2007

This paper, considering the economic effects of liberalisation in the telecommunications sector on the Turkish economy, makes use of the empirical studies on the linkages between regulatory regimes and telecommunications prices. Since Turkey is trying to liberalise the telecommunications sector by following the EU approach to liberalisation, the paper considers briefly the regulatory regimes in the telecommunications sectors of the EU and Turkey, determines the ad valorem equivalent of barriers to the telecommunications services sector in Turkey, and derives estimates of the welfare effects of adopting the EU rules and regulations in the Turkish telecommunications sector. It shows that there is tremendous scope for Turkey to benefit from adopting and implementing the legislative, regulatory and institutional framework of the EU telecommunications sector.
“Wild Oats or Acorns?” Social Purity, Sexual Politics and the Response of the Late‐Victorian Church
Authors: MORGAN SUE
Published: June 2007

The late‐Victorian social purity movement heralded a new phase in the history of moral regulation, generating significant levels of Anglican and Nonconformist support for male chastity and the elimination of the sexual double standard. Historians have so far highlighted the more repressive aspects of these campaigns such as their willingness to use criminal legislation and censorship to elevate standards of public morality. This article rehabilitates the discourse and activity of churchwomen — not least Ellice Hopkins — who were prominent campaigners for social purity. Women purity workers exerted enormous pressure upon the professional hierarchies of church and chapel, actively reworking Christian readings of the body so as to bring the moral influence of the churches to bear upon public opinion. In so doing they brought about a significant transformation in clerical attitudes that regarded discussions of sex as beyond the boundaries of civilized discourse and led in the promotion of a regulatory, but nonetheless highly public, religious discourse on sexuality.
PARTISAN POLITICS, INTEREST RATES AND THE STOCK MARKET: EVIDENCE FROM AMERICAN AND BRITISH RETURNS IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
Authors: MUKHERJEE BUMBA , LEBLANG DAVID
Published: June 2007

We examine the relationship between government partisanship, interest rates and the mean and volatility of stock prices in the United States and United Kingdom. We suggest that traders in the stock market rationally expect higher (lower) post‐electoral interest rates during the incumbency of the left‐wing (right‐wing) party – Democrats and Labor (Republican and Conservative) – and in election years when they expect the left‐wing (right‐wing) party to win elections. We hypothesize that expectations of higher (lower) interest rates decrease (increase) the mean and volatility of stock prices during the actual incumbency or even anticipation of a left‐wing (right‐wing) party holding the office of the chief executive. Results from empirical models estimated on data from U.S. and U.K. markets over most of the twentieth century statistically support our claims.
FREE TRADE AREAS AND RULES OF ORIGIN: ECONOMICS AND POLITICS
Authors: DUTTAGUPTA RUPA , PANAGARIYA ARVIND
Published: June 2007

Incorporating an intermediate input into a simple small‐union general‐equilibrium model, this paper first develops the welfare economics of preferential trading under the rules of origin (ROO) and then demonstrates that ROOs can improve the political viability of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). Two interesting outcomes are derived. First, a welfare‐reducing FTA that was rejected in the absence of ROOs can become feasible in the presence of these rules. Second, a welfare‐ improving FTA that was rejected in the absence of ROOs can be endorsed in their presence, but upon endorsement it can become welfare inferior relative to the status quo.
‘LE STYLE, C'EST LE DIABLE’: TWENTIETH‐CENTURY GERMAN POETRY IN DIALOGUE WITH PAUL VALÉRY
Authors: Vilain Robert
Published: June 2007

This article explores the dialectic of rejection and affinity shared by the responses to Paul Valéry of three non‐German German‐language poets. Despite significant affinities in cultural ambition and poetics (notably between ‘L'Âme et la danse’ and ‘Das Gespräch über Gedichte’), there is little evidence of an influence exerted by Valéry on Hofmannsthal, who was strangely suspicious of him. In contrast, Rilke was hugely enthusiastic, and although his translations of Valéry did not give the often asserted impetus for the creative flowering of 1922, other somewhat uncharacteristic poems (such as ‘Zueignung an M.’ and ‘Der Magier’) positively reflect his encounter with Valéry's Mallarméan conception of the poet. However, his versions of Charmes display less poetological proximité than the revisionary effects of a much less overtly self‐conscious view of poetry, shown here with ‘Les Grenades’. Celan's translation of La Jeune Parque was a systematic attempt to subvert the solipsism of the original study in self‐consciousness and ostensibly incarnates his rejection of the aesthetics of an overly intellectual poetry. However, possible reasons why his initial reluctance to translate Valéry was eventually overcome are discernible in the near‐contemporaneous speech, ‘Der Meridian’, which explores the utopian notion of ‘freiwerdende Sprache’, partly in response to Valéry.
OF SAILORS AND POETS: ON CELAN, GRÜNBEIN, AND BRODSKY
Authors: Eskin Michael
Published: June 2007

In this essay, I trace the metamorphoses of the trope of poetry as ‘message in a bottle’ in the works of Paul Celan, Durs Grünbein, and Joseph Brodsky. Beginning from a juxtaposition of Osip Mandelstam's conception of the poetic text as a ‘letter in a bottle’ with Bertolt Brecht's depiction of lyric poetry as ‘Flaschenpost’ in light of their conceptual discrepancies, I inquire into the different ways in which three of Brecht's and, above all, Mandelstam's most notable successors – Celan, Grünbein, and Brodsky – have appropriated and deployed the trope in response to their singular socio‐historical situations. Through a number of close readings of contextually relevant texts (including Celan's Bremen Prize Speech, Grünbein's discussion of Celan and Mandelstam as avatars of what he calls the ‘new Robinson’, and Brodsky's programmatic poem, ‘Letter in a Bottle’), I disclose important differences, poetic and ethical, between Celan's, Grünbein's, and Brodsky's (and, by extension, others') recourse to the ostensibly monosemous figure of poetry as ‘Flaschenpost’, as it was signally launched, in the twentieth century, by Mandelstam in particular.
‘FLASCHENPOST’: SPRACHE ALS METAPHER IN DER LYRIK DES 20. JAHRHUNDERTS
Authors: Kohl Katrin
Published: June 2007

Der Beitrag erkundet unter Bezug auf eine kognitiv orientierte Metapherntheorie Funktionen metasprachlicher Metaphorik in der deutschen Lyrik des 20. Jahrhunderts. Vorausgesetzt wird die grundlegende Metaphorizität der Alltagssprache sowie die wesenhafte Verbindung zwischen lyrischer Kommunikation und Alltags‐kommunikation: Auch avantgardistische Lyrik lebt aus dem Umgang mit etablierten sprachlichen Konventionen. Mit metasprachlichen Metaphern erkunden Dichter die Beziehung zwischen Sprache, Vorstellungen und den Dingen der Welt, sensibilisieren den Leser für alogische geistige Prozesse und evozieren die gestaltende Kraft der menschlichen Sprache. Metaphern dienen typischerweise nicht der hermetischen Abschottung einer ästhetisch selbstgenügsamen Wortkunst, sondern initiieren eine besonders intensive Kommunikation. Denn gerade wenn lyrische Metaphern eine rein logische, informative Verständigung verhindern, fordern sie den Leser heraus, in jeweils anderen Konstellationen sprachliche, logisch‐gedankliche, imaginative und emotionale Prozesse zu aktivieren – wobei die kognitiven Wissenschaften gegenwärtig die empirische Interaktivität solcher Prozesse aufzeigen. Die Lyrik des 20. Jahrhunderts macht Sprache als komplexes Zusammenspiel der menschlichen Geisteskräfte erfahrbar, bei dem auch physische Erfahrungen gestaltgebend mitwirken. Berücksichtigt werden in dem Beitrag Gedichte von Brecht, Celan, Jandl, Krüger, Draesner, Pastior, Mayröcker und Rühmkorf. Allerdings geht es weniger um individuelle Poetiken als um den Erfindungsreichtum, mit dem Dichter ihr Medium vorstellbar machen.
THE LONG GERMAN POEM IN THE LONG TWENTIETH CENTURY
Authors: Ryan Judith
Published: June 2007

The appearance in recent years of several book‐length German poems raises important questions. What accounts for this revival of interest in a form that seems an unlikely vehicle for contemporary writers? In what ways do these new long poems relate to the verse epic tradition from classical antiquity to the late nineteenth century? How do they situate themselves with respect to the long, modernist poems of the twentieth century, those of Eliot and Pound? To what extent are they part of a larger international renaissance of the long poem, represented by such works as Derek Walcott's Omeros? This essay approaches these questions by considering long poems from the early twentieth century to the present. Beginning with attempts by Rilke and Benn to respond to their predecessors and contemporaries, the article moves to the postwar revival of the long poem from 1970 to 2006. Poets discussed include Enzensberger, Sebald, Grünbein, Krechel, and Falkner. The essay argues that the long poem allows for a historically informed treatment of war, violence and destruction, themes common to these texts. The reflective modality of the long poem also permits a sophisticated and more critical approach to the ‘nostalgic turn’.
WER SPRICHT? LYRIK NACH AUSCHWITZ ALS GENERATIONENPROBLEM
Authors: Emmerich Wolfgang
Published: June 2007

Dies ist ein Versuch, die Frage nach der Möglichkeit von Lyrik über die Shoah im Lande der Täter nicht allgemein zu erörtern (wie bereits oft geschehen), sondern konkret (literar‐)historisch. Der Verfasser geht von der Annahme aus, dass sich die Lyriker deutscher Sprache in einem Zeitraum von mittlerweile sechzig Jahren in sehr unterschiedlicher Weise zu dieser Frage ins Verhältnis gesetzt und dementsprechend auch ganz verschiedenartige Gedichte geschrieben haben. Ausgehend von den Fragen: Wer spricht? Zu wem? Und wann? wird gezeigt, dass diese Unterschiede auch solche der Generationen sind. Eine je andersartige ‘Erlebnisschichtung’ führt zu je anderen ‘natürlichen Weltbildern’ (Karl Mannheim) und Schreibweisen – auch und gerade, wenn es um ‘Lyrik nach Auschwitz’ geht.
THE POETRY OF SCIENCE AND THE SCIENCE OF POETRY: GERMAN POETRY IN THE LABORATORY OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
Authors: Leeder Karen
Published: June 2007

This essay addresses the interest in science among modern German poets. Although, in the twentieth century at least, literature and science have often been considered quite separate cultures, it could be argued that they share similarities of mode and preoccupation, especially in the use of metaphor. Whether they are, however, ‘chance acquaintances’ or share more profound ‘affinities’ is examined with special reference to two distinguished young writers: Durs Grünbein and Raoul Schrott. Both, however different their tone and diction, do not simply raid the exotic and seductive vocabularies of science as do many contemporaries. Instead they employ a scientific view as a way of apprehending the world. Finally, both attend to that which is beyond the reach of scientific thinking and try to give it voice.
ON THE ‘FITTINGNESS’ OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH
Authors: CRISP OLIVER D.
Published: June 2007

In modern theology the doctrine of the Virgin Birth of Christ, including the doctrine of his Virginal Conception, has been the subject of considerable scepticism. One line of criticism has been that the traditional doctrine of the Virgin Birth seems unnecessary to the Incarnation. In this essay I lay out one construal of the traditional argument for the doctrine and show that, although one can offer an account of the Incarnation without the Virgin Birth which, in other respects, is perfectly in accord with catholic Christianity, such a doctrine is still contrary to the plain teaching of Scripture and the Creeds on the question of the mode of the Incarnation. It might still be thought that the Incarnation was an ‘unfitting’ means of Incarnation. In a final section I draw upon Anselm's arguments in defence of the Incarnation to show that this objection can also be overcome.
THE ART OF DYING: IN LUTHER'S SERMON ON PREPARING TO DIE
Authors: NGIEN DENNIS
Published: June 2007

Luther counseled those preparing to die to ponder the three ‘glowing pictures’ of Christ –‘life, grace, and heaven’, as well as the affective ‘sign’ of the sacrament – to drive out the three counterpictures produced by the devil –‘death, sin, and hell’. The proper timing of contemplation before death and the proper orientation of clinging to Christ and his merciful acts on the cross will empower the sufferer to face death with confidence. Before the saving image of Christ, the trilogy produced by evil vanishes of itself without opposition, a psychological phenomenon which incites faith in us and praise of God at this last hour. The annihilating knowledge of the negative images may be useful, therefore, if it drives us into the arms of Christ.
A Novel Approach to Detect Parent‐of‐Origin Effects from Pedigree Data with Application to Beckwith‐Wiedemann Syndrome
Authors: Shete Sanjay , Elston Robert C. , Lu Yue
Published: June 2007

The parent‐of‐origin phenomenon in humans is now well recognized, and the deregulation of imprinted genes has been implicated in a number of human diseases. Recently, several linkage analysis methods have been developed to allow for parent‐of‐origin effects in the analysis of pedigree data. However, in general, one does not know a priori if disease‐causing loci are imprinted or not. Linkage methods that allow for imprinting can lose power if there is no imprinting. Conversely, linkage methods that do not allow for imprinting will lose power if there is imprinting, because of penetrance values not being correctly specified. Therefore, it is important to know whether imprinting is a possible mode of disease inheritance before performing linkage analyses. In this paper we describe a simple covariate‐coding scheme to test for the presence of parent‐of‐origin effects, and provide a formula for calculating parent‐specific penetrance values prior to any linkage analysis. In simulation studies our coding scheme successfully detected parent‐of‐origin effects and, when pedigrees were ascertained sequentially or through a single proband, inclusion of this covariate more accurately estimated penetrance values than when such a covariate was not included. The use of accurate penetrance values in a linkage analysis that allows for imprinting can provide higher power when the disease locus is imprinted. Finally, we applied our approach to 27 pedigrees affected with Beckwith‐Wiedemann syndrome (BWS), an overgrowth syndrome, and found that a maternally expressed parent‐of‐origin model based on the likelihood ratio test was the most parsimonious, suggesting a role for paternally imprinted genes in BWS.
Baseline human papillomavirus status of women with abnormal smears in cervical screening: a 5‐year follow‐up study in the Netherlands
Authors: Prinsen CFM , Fles R , Wijnen‐Dubbers CW , De Valk HA , Klaassen CHW , Mravunac M , Horrevorts AM , Thunnissen FBJM
Published: June 2007

Objective  To determine in a screening population the human papillomavirus (HPV) status in those with cytological abnormalities and to evaluate the presence of high‐risk (HR) HPV with a minimum of 5‐year follow up.

Design  Retrospective examination of HPV status on prospectively collected and cytologically screened cervical smears.

Setting  Canisius‐Wilhelmina Hospital in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.

Population  Three hundred and fifty‐seven women aged 30–60 years, from the population screened.

Methods  Three hundred and fifty‐seven women with borderline or higher cytological abnormalities were retrospectively examined for HPV with DNA microarray typing. Follow up was through the nationwide Dutch Pathology database (PALGA).

Main outcome measures  For the cytological abnormalities, the CISOE‐A classification was used. HPV was scored as negative or positive. In case of positive HPV polymerase chain reaction, the HPV genotype was determined. The occurrence of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia lesions of grade 3 or higher was considered as endpoint for follow up.

Results  The majority of the women with borderline cytology in this study were HPV negative (87%). Among the HPV‐positive women in borderline cytology group, 74% had HR‐HPV or probable high‐risk types. The overall percentage of HR‐HPV types increased with progressive cytological abnormalities. The cytological classifications of borderline dyskaryosis and moderate dyskaryosis contain all types of HPVs, e.g. low risk, HR and unknown risk. The samples with severe dyskaryosis or higher contain only HR types. The negative predictive value for HR‐HPV typing in the group with borderline cytological abnormalities is more than 99%.

Conclusions  In cervical screening with an interval of 5 years, HPV can be reliably used as triage point in cases of borderline cytological abnormalities.
Safety versus success in elective single embryo transfer: women’s preferences for outcomes of in vitro fertilisation
Authors: Scotland GS , McNamee P , Peddie VL , Bhattacharya S
Published: June 2007

Objective  To assess whether women waiting to undergo in vitro fertilisation (IVF) view adverse outcomes associated with twin pregnancy as more desirable than having no pregnancy at all.

Design  Women’s preference values for five adverse birth outcomes associated with twin pregnancy were compared with their preference value for treatment failure (TF), i.e. no pregnancy at all.

Setting  Aberdeen Fertility Centre, University of Aberdeen, UK.

Population  A total of 74 women waiting to undergo IVF.

Methods  The standard gamble method was used to elicit women’s preference values for giving birth to a child with physical impairments (PI), cognitive impairments (CI), or visual impairments (VI), perinatal death (PD) without a subsequent pregnancy, premature delivery (PremD), and TF (no pregnancy).

Main outcome measures  Preference values were elicited on a scale where 1 represents giving birth to a healthy child and 0 represents immediate death.

Results  The median preference values for having a child with PI, CI, or VI were 0.940, 0.970, and 0.975, respectively. The median values for PremD, PD, and TF were 0.955, 0.725, and 0.815, respectively. Having no child at all was valued significantly lower than having a child with PI, CI, or VI (P < 0.01) but significantly higher than PD (P < 0.01).

Conclusions  Some women waiting for IVF treatment view severe child disability outcomes associated with double embryo transfer as being more desirable than having no child at all. Women embarking on IVF may be influenced more strongly by considerations of ‘treatment success’ rather than future risks to their offspring.
Assessment of an in vitro model for laparoscopic pelvic lymphadenectomy
Authors: Bowring J , Shepherd JH , Ind TEJ
Published: June 2007

An in vitro model was developed for laparoscopic pelvic lymphadenectomy. A construct validity study was performed comparing experienced laparoscopic surgeons with inexperienced trainees. Outcome measures included global and task‐orientated scoring and data from electromagnetic motion analysis of hands. Marking was performed by three independent surgeons using video playback. A significant difference was found in the time taken, number of movements made and total distance travelled between the groups. Both scoring systems discriminated between the expert and inexperienced group, demonstrating the model’s construct validity.
Conservative surgical management of small‐volume stage IB1 cervical cancer
Authors: Naik R , Cross P , Nayar A , Mayadevi S , Lopes A , Godfrey K , Hatem H
Published: June 2007

Objective  To determine outcomes of women with small‐volume stage IB1 disease managed by conservative surgical treatment.

Design  A retrospective review.

Setting  The Northern Gynaecological Oncology Center, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Gateshead, UK.

Population  Women with stage IB1 cervical cancer who were managed by conservative surgery over a 6‐year period between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2005.

Main outcome measures  Pelvic lymph node metastases, recurrence rates and outcome survival.

Results  A total of 17 women with conservatively managed stage IB1 cervical cancer were identified. Their ages were 25–67 years, median 37 years, 4 women were nulliparous. All women presented with an abnormal screening smear showing at least severe dyskaryosis. Estimated tumour volumes ranged from 16 to 640 mm3, median 72 mm3. Four women showed multifocal invasion. All four nulliparous women and one parous woman underwent fertility‐sparing treatment, i.e. loop cone ± laparoscopic pelvic node dissection. The other 12 women underwent laparoscopic assisted vaginal hysterectomy/total abdominal hysterectomy ± pelvic lymph node dissection. There were no cases of residual disease in any of the definitive treatment specimens. There were no cases of metastatic spread to pelvic lymph nodes. To date, no women have developed recurrent disease, and all women are alive and well (median follow up, 29 months).

Conclusions  The conservative surgical management of small‐volume stage IB1 cases in this series showed an excellent outcome with no cases showing pelvic lymph node involvement and no cases developing recurrent disease. A more formal assessment of tumour volume with a more active approach to determining the third dimension will allow more women the option of conservative treatment, thereby minimising the adverse effects of radical surgery.
Income inequalities and self‐reported maternal health status: cross‐sectional national survey
Authors: Petrou S , Kupek E , Gray R
Published: June 2007

The objective of this study was to examine income inequalities in the self‐reported health status of women during the postnatal period. We analysed data from a cohort of 18 523 birth mothers of children who participated in the Millennium Cohort Study. Data on income and self‐reported health status were collected during face‐to‐face interviews conducted at 9 months postpartum. Total take‐home household income from employment, government and other sources was estimated and equivalised to reflect household composition, while self‐reported health status was converted into a dichotomous measure. Complex survey logistic regression models were used to explore the association between equivalised household income and fair or poor self‐reported health status. Compared with mothers with equivalised household income in the first quintile (bottom 20%) of the income distribution, mothers in the third (OR 0.69; 95% CI 0.59–0.81), fourth (OR 0.43; 95% CI 0.38–0.50) and fifth (OR 0.32; 95% CI 0.27–0.37) quintiles had a decreased likelihood of reporting fair or poor health status (P < 0.001). However, following adjustment for other predictors of postnatal health status, only mothers with equivalised household income in the fifth quintile (top 20%) had a decreased likelihood of reporting fair or poor health status (OR 0.72; 95% CI 0.58–0.90; P= 0.004). We conclude that this study provides support for the existence of an income gradient for postnatal health status. Efforts to reduce income inequalities in adverse maternal health outcomes are likely to require macro and microeconomic initiatives.
Making a difference? Measuring the impact of an information literacy programme for pre‐registration nursing students in the UK
Authors: Craig Ann , Corrall Sheila
Published: June 2007

Objectives:  To investigate whether an information literacy programme for pre‐registration nursing students at a UK higher education institution is effective in developing their skills and confidence: examines students’ skill levels, factors affecting their confidence, and relationships between skills, confidence and demographic characteristics.

Methods:  Quantitative and qualitative techniques were used: pre‐ and post‐tests to measure changes in students’ skills and self‐assessed confidence levels after two key sessions in their first semester (n = 29); semi‐structured interviews to explore factors affecting confidence (n = 5).

Results:  Findings demonstrated positive impacts on skills and confidence. Key areas of skill development included: identifying journal articles, selecting search terms and evaluating website quality. Factors affecting confidence included: successful ‘mastery’ experiences in searching for information and the programme itself, especially small‐group sessions, handouts and staff support. Evidence on links between skills, confidence and demographic factors was inconclusive.

Conclusions:  The study demonstrated the programme's effectiveness and identified areas for development, including the need to help students understand the relative merits of search engines and other sources. Evidence has contributed to a change in departmental policy, making attendance at sessions mandatory. Further studies have been recommended.
The role of an NHS library service in the UK; the perceptions of clinical managers in Portsmouth, UK
Authors: Blagden Pauline
Published: June 2007

Background:  Portsmouth NHS Library Service is exploring methods of raising its profile within its host organization and wishes to demonstrate its contribution to achieving organizational goals, perhaps by means of an impact study.

Objective:  The objective of this small scale study, regarded as a possible precursor to an impact study, was to identify areas where there is potential to increase awareness among clinical managers of the Library's contribution.

Methods:  An e‐mail survey was sent to clinical managers to elicit their opinions regarding the contribution of the Library Service to organizational goals.

Results:  Perhaps unsurprisingly, the role of the Library Service in education, research and effectiveness was most widely recognized. Of responses, 30/42 (71%) rated it as ‘very important’ and a further 11 (26%) rated it as ‘important’. The low appreciation of the Library Service to Clinical Services is a disappointment in view of the body of research evidence. Only 12 respondents (29%) thought that the Library Service contributed ‘significantly’ by ‘supporting informed and timely clinical decision making’.

Conclusion:  The study suggested areas where there might be scope to raise awareness of the Library contribution. In considering how best to achieve this, the benefits need to be weighed against the resource implications. Portsmouth NHS Library Service decided to increase its marketing efforts but not to carry out an impact study in the short term.
Examining online chat within a domain of uncertainty: the case of Asperger's syndrome
Authors: Lorence Daniel
Published: June 2007

Objective:   To determine whether grounded theory can be applied as a cross‐disciplinary evaluative framework for assessing health information, especially within domain‐specific peer‐to‐peer networks.

Methods:   Using a grounded‐theory approach, we seek to identify recurring themes of peer‐based interaction, without the ongoing management of clinical experts, as a way to determine stakeholder concerns and interests in a domain of frequent clinical uncertainty and treatment, Asperger's syndrome.

Results:   We find that users of web‐based information in such areas often report reliance on information for medical decision making and disease management, at times to the point where interaction becomes a form of ‘cybertherapy.’ Further, such groups often evolve into disease‐specific, ‘virtual support groups’, even where discussions highlight a lack of consensus regarding the role, function and quality of information within this unique domain.

Conclusion:   A grounded theory approach can successfully be applied in a domain‐specific setting to identify themes in unstructured peer‐to‐peer discussion of ill‐defined diseases and treatments.
Polymorphic microsatellite DNA markers for Banksia attenuata (Proteaceae)
Authors: HE TIANHUA , KRAUSS SIEGFRIED , LAMONT BYRON B.
Published: June 2007

We developed 11 polymorphic microsatellite DNA markers for an Australian native shrub Banksia attenuata. The number of alleles per locus in 50 individuals varied from five to 18, observed and expected heterozygosities ranged from 0.300 to 0.740 and from 0.537 to 0.918, respectively. Six loci showed no significant deviation from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (P > 0.05), and null alleles appear to exist at locus BA‐B1. All loci showed independent inheritance.
Adult sex ratios in wild bird populations
Authors: DONALD PAUL F.
Published: June 2007

Offspring sex ratios in wild bird populations, and the extent to which they vary from the equality expected by random genotypic sex determination, have received much recent attention. Adult sex ratios (ASRs) in wild birds, on the other hand, remain very poorly described, and many of the questions about them posed by Ernst Mayr in 1939 remain unanswered. This review assesses population‐level sex ratio patterns in wild bird populations, with an emphasis on the ASR. A quantitative assessment of over 200 published estimates of ASR, covering species from a wide range of taxa, regions and habitats, supported Mayr's assertion that skewed ASRs are common in wild bird populations. On average, males outnumbered females by around 33%, and 65% of published estimates differed significantly from equality. In contrast, population‐level estimates of offspring sex ratio in birds did not generally differ from equality, and mean ASR across a range of wild mammal species was strongly female‐skewed. ASR distortion in birds was significantly more severe in populations of globally threatened species than in non‐threatened species, a previously undescribed pattern that has profound implications for their monitoring and conservation. Higher female mortality, rather than skewed offspring sex ratio, is the main driver of male‐skewed ASRs in birds, and the causes and implications of this are reviewed. While estimates of ASR in wild bird populations may be subject to a number of biases, which are discussed, there is currently no quantitative evidence that an ASR of one male to one female represents the norm in birds. A better understanding and reporting of ASRs in wild bird populations could contribute greatly to our understanding of population processes and could contribute much to theoretical and applied research and conservation.
Dynamic assembly of chromatin complexes during cellular senescence: implications for the growth arrest of human melanocytic nevi
Authors: Bandyopadhyay Debdutta , Curry Jonathan L. , Lin Qiushi , Richards Hunter W. , Chen Dahu , Hornsby Peter J. , Timchenko Nikolai A. , Medrano Estela E.
Published: June 2007

The retinoblastoma (RB)/p16INK4a pathway regulates senescence of human melanocytes in culture and oncogene‐induced senescence of melanocytic nevi in vivo. This senescence response is likely due to chromatin modifications because RB complexes from senescent melanocytes contain increased levels of histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity and tethered HDAC1. Here we show that HDAC1 is prominently detected in p16INK4a‐positive, senescent intradermal melanocytic nevi but not in proliferating, recurrent nevus cells that localize to the epidermal/dermal junction. To assess the role of HDAC1 in the senescence of melanocytes and nevi, we used tetracycline‐based inducible expression systems in cultured melanocytic cells. We found that HDAC1 drives a sequential and cooperative activity of chromatin remodeling effectors, including transient recruitment of Brahma (Brm1) into RB/HDAC1 mega‐complexes, formation of heterochromatin protein 1β (HP1β)/SUV39H1 foci, methylation of H3‐K9, stable association of RB with chromatin and significant global heterochromatinization. These chromatin changes coincide with expression of typical markers of senescence, including the senescent‐associated β‐galactosidase marker. Notably, formation of RB/HP1β foci and early tethering of RB to chromatin depends on intact Brm1 ATPase activity. As cells reached senescence, ejection of Brm1 from chromatin coincided with its dissociation from HP1β/RB and relocalization to protein complexes of lower molecular weight. These results provide new insights into the role of the RB pathway in regulating cellular senescence and implicate HDAC1 as a likely mediator of early chromatin remodeling events.
Long‐lived dwarf mice: are bile acids a longevity signal?
Authors: Gems David
Published: June 2007

Pathways that control aging act via regulated biochemical processes, among which metabolism of xenobiotics (potentially harmful chemical agents encountered as environmental toxicants, for example, drugs, or produced internally) is one possible candidate. A new study of long‐lived Ghrhr mutant mice reports that increased bile acid levels activate xenobiotic metabolism via the nuclear receptor, farnesoid X receptor. This increases resistance to xenobiotic stress, possibly contributing to longevity.
Identification of the Orthotropic Elastic Stiffnesses of Composites with the Virtual Fields Method: Sensitivity Study and Experimental Validation
Authors: Pierron F. , Vert G. , Burguete R. , Avril S. , Rotinat R. , Wisnom M. R.
Published: June 2007

ABSTRACT:  This paper presents the use of a sensitivity study to find the best combinations of free length and fibre angle in an unnotched Iosipescu test processed with the virtual fields method. The sensitivity to noise coefficients arising from the special virtual fields procedure are used to build up a cost function. This function is aimed at balancing out the coefficients of the different orthotropic stiffnesses so that the same confidence level can be reached on all these parameters. Then, experimental validation was performed using a speckled interferometry (ESPI) system. Full‐field strains were measured and stiffnesses identified and compared between the usual 0°, 30 mm configuration and an improved 25°, 40 mm configuration. The outcome of the optimisation was confirmed by testing the same specimen several times and comparing scatter between the two configurations. This is a first promising result on the way to the design of a new test for orthotropic stiffness identification on a single specimen from full‐field measurements.
Thermographic Analysis of Fatigue Dissipation Properties of Steel Sheets
Authors: Berthel B. , Wattrisse B. , Chrysochoos A. , Galtier A.
Published: June 2007

ABSTRACT:  This paper presents several properties of heat source fields accompanying the high‐cycle fatigue of a dual‐phase steel grade. Heat sources were derived from thermal data provided by an infrared focal plane array camera. An especially developed image processing estimates separately the thermoelastic coupling source amplitude and the mean dissipation per cycle. Our experiments underline that dissipation sources are heterogeneous and this forms the beginning of the fatigue test. They also point out a linear evolution of the mean dissipation per cycle as a function of the loading frequency for a given stress range and a given loading ratio.
Age‐related changes in static accommodation and accommodative miosis
Authors: Radhakrishnan Hema , Neil Charman W.
Published: June 2007

An attempt was made to explore the validity of the Hess–Gullstrand and Duane–Fincham models of presbyopia development, on the assumption that accommodative miosis could be used as an indicator of ciliary muscle effort. Monocular accommodation response and pupil size were measured as a function of accommodation demand over the range 0–4 D, in 48 normal subjects with ages between 17 and 56 years. The slope of the response/stimulus curve was found to decrease only slowly with age up to about 35 years and then to decline more rapidly. Accommodative miosis per dioptre of accommodation response did not change systematically with age up to about 35 years, this being apparently more in accord with the Hess–Gullstrand model. However, accommodative miosis varied very widely between younger subjects of similar age and accommodative amplitude (from zero to around 1 mm per dioptre of accommodation response for subjects in their twenties). It is concluded that miosis does not necessarily accompany accommodation and that its magnitude is not related in any simple general way to ciliary muscle contraction. Hence it cannot be used to support or refute particular theories of presbyopia.
Using scotopic and photopic flicker to measure lens optical density
Authors: Wooten Billy R. , Hammond Billy R. , Renzi Lisa M.
Published: June 2007

Many applications require knowledge of lens absorption. Measuring lens optical density (OD), however, is often difficult and time‐consuming. For example, psychophysical measurement typically requires a long period of dark adaptation (e.g. about 40 min) and assessment of absolute scotopic thresholds. In this study, we examined efficient scotopic and photopic methods for measuring lens OD. In Experiment 1, 30 subjects were tested using a Maxwellian‐view optical system. Relative scotopic thresholds were obtained after 15 min of dark adaptation using slow‐rate (2 Hz) flicker photometry. A 3° test stimulus, presented at 10° nasal, was used that alternated between measuring wavelengths (420 and 460 nm) and a reference field (540 nm). The results showed that the relative scotopic method produces values that are consistent with published lens spectral curves. In Experiment 2, relative photopic measures (i.e. no dark adaptation period) were also obtained at 406 nm in natural view and compared with lens data obtained in Maxwellian view at 407 nm using the absolute scotopic method. The photopic method compared well with the absolute scotopic values obtained on the same subjects. Taken together, the two experiments showed that a relative method can yield valid lens density estimates. Using a relative rather than an absolute method reduces the time needed for dark adaptation and is an easier task for subjects to perform and may therefore be preferable when expeditious measures are desirable.
Technical Note: Measurement of retinal contour and supine axial length using the Zeiss IOLMaster
Authors: Mallen Edward A. H. , Kashyap Priti
Published: June 2007

Accurate and repeatable assessments of ocular biometric factors are of vital importance to research laboratories conducting studies of ametropia. This is of particular importance to studies assessing the efficacy of myopia control strategies, and when investigating the effect of accommodation and posture on ocular biometry. In this technical note, two novel adaptations of the Zeiss IOLMaster are described: an adaptation to enable measurement of the axial length of the eye of a subject in a supine position, and an attachment to enable measurement of peripheral ocular dimensions and plotting of the central 80° of the retina relative to the anterior corneal surface. Pilot data obtained using these modifications to the instrument are presented.
Technical Note: Accounting for anatomical symmetry in the first‐order optical character of left and right eyes
Authors: Harris W. F.
Published: June 2007

In quantitative analyses of the optical character of eyes (and related systems) it is sometimes necessary to deal with left and right eyes in the same context. In accounting for anatomical symmetry (mirror symmetry in the mid‐sagittal plane) one treats a cylinder axis at 20°, say, in a left eye as equivalent to an axis at 160° in a right eye. But this is only one aspect of the linear optical character of an eye. The purpose of this note is to show how to account for anatomical symmetry in the linear optical character of eyes in general. In particular the note shows how to modify the optical properties of left (or right) eyes so that anatomical symmetry is accounted for in quantitative analyses in contexts in which both left and right eyes are involved.
Superior short‐wavelength contrast sensitivity in asthenopics during reflexive readjustments of ocular accommodation
Authors: Richter H. O. , Knez I.
Published: June 2007

The purpose of this work was to characterize contrast sensitivity (CS) under short‐wavelength illumination in 20 symptom‐free subjects and eight asthenopics: all had normal unaided or corrected visual acuity and no sign of oculomotor disease. Threshold CS was assessed using the von Békésy tracking method from a viewing distance of 2.4 m (0.40 D). Three counterbalanced tasks required central fixation of black‐and‐white square‐wave gratings (1, 5, 10, 14 and 17 c/deg) presented through a low‐pass filter blue lens and (1) a +1.50 D lens; (2) a −1.50 D lens and (3) a 0 D lens, while attempting accommodation to minimize blur. Baseline increases in eye strain, which approached high levels at the end of the experiment, did not differentiate between the two groups of volunteers. All the subjects made evident appropriate accommodation during the low blur condition (0 D); the CS curve exhibited the expected characteristics. When the minus lens was placed before the eyes of the observers the distant square‐wave gratings were still seen clearly, the eyes presumably had accommodated by an amount equal to the power of the negative lens. Compared with symptom‐free subjects, asthenopics exhibited greater CS at the intermediate spatial frequencies both during the low blur and the minus blur conditions. Asthenopics may exhibit an individualized sensory tendency to react more strongly to shorter wavelengths of light and may therefore reflexively ‘drive’ their accommodative system harder than symptom‐free subjects. This would explain the presence of their asthenopia in the first place. Blue light may, in addition, induce more arousal and higher alertness in this category of participants. This would boost the oculomotor aspects of their performance. These findings add to the current understanding of individual variability in the level of oculomotor loads following strenuous near work.
The Implications of the National Curriculum Orders for Art for GCSE and Beyond
Authors: BINCH NORMAN
Published: June 2007

This paper sets out to emphasise the importance of providing some aspects of the curriculum in which children can experience a true sense of ownership and in which the content and learning methodologies are appropriate to their own ideas, perceptions, values and needs. Taking the position that the national curriculum and GCSE are assessment‐led, the types of assessment provided by them are compared in order to define the value of formative assessment within the learning process, and its potential role in avoiding the type of teaching that results in orthodoxies. The paper concludes by speculating on potential 14–18 routes into higher education involving accreditation and continuity.
Teaching Visual Literacy ‐ Some Reflections on the Term
Authors: ALLEN DAVE
Published: June 2007

The statutory Order for art in the national curriculum identifies visual literacy as an essential aim of contemporary art education. In the Order visual literacy is located in the second attainment target.

This paper suggests that, since the concept of literacy embraces reading and writing, the term visual literacy might be more usefully employed as an overarching concept embracing both attainment targets. This suggestion draws upon some of the extensive work carried out into literacy within the discipline of English.

Further, the paper suggests that the ambition of the Order for art must be weighed against the dominant practices of art and design education and asks whether a curriculum which centres on painting and drawing can realistically be considered to be providing an adequate education for visual literacy in the 1990s.
Human Language and Drawing Development: Their Productive Interactions
Authors: FIELDING ROB
Published: June 2007

The connection between language and drawing development has always seemed a plausible proposition despite the lack of research in this area. This paper reports on the research findings and theory offered to date in support of links that are purported to exist between these two human abilities. The most convincing arguments for this proposition emanate from the work and ideas of the Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky who claims that drawing behavior is inextricably linked to the development of language in humans. In addition, more recent research by Dysonet alhas revealed a crucial role for drawing as a prerequisite for the development of writing skills.