bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Everyone needs good neighbours: the UK as an international document supplier
Authors: Bradford Jean
Published: June 2008

Purpose

This paper seeks to report the results of an investigation into the way that British libraries supply copies and returnables in response to requests from overseas libraries.

Design/methodology/approach

An e‐mail questionnaire was sent to the mailing list lis‐ill@jiscmail.ac.uk to explore the policies and practices of other libraries in the UK.

Findings

The research showed that there is great variation between British libraries in their response to requests from overseas. Some libraries supplied very few items and others received many more requests. As an informal survey was used there is an opportunity for further more systematic research into the policies and practices of UK libraries. It is suggested that more use can be made of web pages to provide information about the policies and services that individual libraries offer. It is reported that the use of credit cards and IFLA vouchers as methods of payment has removed some barriers to co‐operation. IDS librarians are encouraged to do more to help their colleagues overseas as UK libraries need to obtain copies and returnables from their neighbours outside the UK.

Originality/value

The study gives insights into the workings of the UK system of providing loans and copies to other countries from the perspective of a major research library.
Library customer service in an Italian university library: from ILL to circulation and back
Authors: Vaglio Anna , D'Urso Manuela
Published: June 2008

Purpose

This paper aims to describe the changes taking place at Bocconi University in Milan, Italy, after the introduction of a new automated system, and to propose the integration of the work of the Document Supply (DS) and the Circulation Departments with radical changes in the job descriptions of both.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is descriptive in nature.

Findings

Automation has led to process changes but not yet to the staffing changes that have become possible.

Originality/value

The paper shows how one university is responding to the changes that are taking place technologically and particularly in relation to document supply librarians and staff in the service areas of the main library.
Becoming a community of critically reflective HR practitioners
Authors: Lawless Aileen , McQue Liz
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the central role of critical reflection for practitioners.

Design/methodology/approach

This joint paper is informed by a practitioner and an academic perspective and is an output from ongoing research. An MA in Strategic HR provides the initial focus. This partnership programme is informed by action learning ethos and method and the emancipatory potential of critical reflection. The paper illustrates how students talk about becoming critically reflective, and in doing so it explores the opportunities and challenges involved.

Findings

It is argued that in order for critical reflection to realise its potential of emancipatory change, pedagogy needs to be underpinned by critical process and critical content. However, it is unfortunate that a majority of critical literature appears to be addressed to an academic audience. The paper also highlights the need to support learning conversations beyond the original set.

Originality/value

The paper highlights the need for development initiatives to support the questioning of taken‐for‐granted assumptions. This draws attention to the necessity of supporting an emerging community of critically reflective practitioners by ensuring an open dialogue about values and practice.
Fostering an action‐reflection dynamic amongst student practitioners
Authors: Francis Helen , Cowan John
Published: June 2008

Purpose

This paper seeks to explore changes taking place in a curriculum design for postgraduate teaching in personnel and development, aimed at enhancing lifelong learning. A scheme is described which aims to improve the alignment for professional development of students, in ways that facilitate critically reflective practice.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors draw on their personal experiences as a programme leader (Master's in HRM) and an educational consultant to describe their strategy for critically reflective continuous professional development (CPD). In doing so, their practice is related to some of the theories underlying critical reflection, and the key challenges in seeking to engage student practitioners in professional development of this kind are drawn out.

Findings

It is argued that achieving an alignment between the development and assessment of student capabilities is vital to the development of critical reflection, and it is explained how the strategy presented for CPD supports self‐management of this process.

Practical implications

Although the paper is grounded in the authors' particular experiences and structure for student support, it is hoped that reflections on these can be of general value to those interested in developing critically reflective practice amongst students which is both effective and practical in the increasingly demanding world of higher education.

Originality/value

The self‐managed process explored in the paper is framed by a social approach to learning that places peer interaction at the forefront of the learning processes involved.
Postgraduate education to support organisation change: a reflection on reflection
Authors: Stewart Jim , Keegan Anne , Stevens Pam
Published: June 2008

Purpose

This paper aims to explore how teaching and assessing reflective learning skills can support postgraduate practitioners studying organisational change and explores the challenges for tutors in assessing these journals.

Design/methodology/approach

Assessment criteria were developed from the literature on reflective practice and organisational power and politics and mapped against the content of the journals to understand how and why students had benefited from keeping the journals. The extent to which they had engaged in “deep” learning was also assessed.

Findings

Tensions arose between giving students sufficient scope and designing appropriate assessment guidelines. Students submitted a wide variety and quality of journals; everything from a DVD, to a diary to a “standard” essay. Reflective journals were found to be an effective tool for students who are practitioners involved in organisational change through their capacity to promote deep rather than surface learning. An unintended outcome of the study was the recognition that reflective practice in postgraduate education supports the skills required to develop the “thinking performer”.

Research limitations/implications

The study was small scale, and not retested.

Practical implications

The study has reinforced the significance of the link between thinking (critical reflection) and performing (workplace application), within organisational change. It has also demonstrated that non‐traditional forms of assessment have greater capacity to promote deep learning than do conventional essays, especially where students are not HR specialists yet are tasked with leading complex organisational change projects. Therefore the use of reflective journals could be extended to other postgraduate programmes with skill requirements in organisational change and management.

Originality/value

While there is now a growing body of literature on reflective practice, few studies exist which examine how learning journals are assessed, particularly for line managers. The analysis has encouraged further research into the development of critical reflection, the use and benefits of learning journals and more specifically, how educators can develop sufficiently robust assessment criteria for such journals.
Critical reflection in the workplace: is it just too difficult?
Authors: Rigg Clare , Trehan Kiran
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The intentions of this article are to contribute reflections of an empirical account of working with critical reflection within an organisational development programme, addressing the following questions: What space is there for critical reflection in organisational development? What issues are raised for in‐company developers and providers by advocating critical reflection in organisation practice?

Design/methodology/approach

A case study approach is taken, presenting an empirical account of a management and organisational development programme that integrated action learning and critical reflection.

Findings

The account illustrates difficulties of employing critical reflection within the workplace arising from the more complex power relations between the multiple stakeholders in a commercial context. In particular, dissonance provoked by critical reflection confronts the client with a tension over whether to see organisation members primarily as customers to please or as participants in a change process which inevitably will disrupt.

Practical implications

In making sense of the perspectives of different stakeholders a model is presented to help practitioners in development of this kind to anticipate potential issues.

Originality/value

The paper presents a rare account of employing critical reflection in a work organisation development programme.
Decision making under uncertainty for a class of production systems with serial and parallel operations
Authors: Orski D. , Hojda M.
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present results concerning resource distribution problems for a class of production systems composed of production operations described by relations with uncertain parameters – for newly considered serial‐parallel and parallel‐serial structures.

Design/methodology/approach

The resource distribution problems are formulated. For the typical mathematical model of a single production operation, the resource distribution algorithms are derived analytically or, when that is impossible, numerical procedures for finding solutions to distribution problems are suggested.

Findings

The uncertain variables have been proved as a convenient tool for solving specific optimization problems in production management based on relational knowledge representation with unknown parameters.

Originality/value

The paper presents analytical resource distribution and numerical algorithms for determining the optimal resource distribution, which may be applied in knowledge‐based management‐level decision systems for serial‐parallel and parallel‐serial structures of production systems.
Exploring the components of success for the Korean chaebols
Authors: Sig Choi Du , Michell Paul , Palihawadana Dayananda
Published: June 2008

Purpose

This paper aims to discuss the profiles of Korean chaebols involved in global electronics

Design/methodology/approach

The research was conducted among 132 of their Korean suppliers, with linked in‐depth interviews with chaebol managers. From an initial set of literature‐based variables, factor analysis is used to generate six chaebol characteristics, which are then correlated with four chaebol‐supplier relationship outcomes.

Findings

“Decision making” and “social exchange”, in particular, are found to correlate positively with all four chaebol‐supplier relationship outcome measures, relationship satisfaction, performance, cooperation and conflict resolution. “Partnership” is associated positively with three of these outcomes, and “strategy‐longevity” with relationship satisfaction. The chaebols' “structure‐control” and “leadership” are not found to be predictors of successful relationship outcomes as measured in this study. A combination of higher quality, lower cost products with linkages to a foundation of decision making, social exchange, partnership and strategy‐longevity appears to be a potent mix for global players.

Originality/value

The paper provides the underpinnings of the marketing strategy and component strategy profiles of a number of major Korean multinationals in the belief that they would inform western relationship marketing strategies.
Overcoming the difficulties of accessing the ETF library intervention fund in Nigeria
Authors: Enyia Christian O.
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to report the problems which the library management at the National Institute for Nigerian Languages (NINLAN) encounter in accessing and utilizing library intervention money from the Education Trust Fund (ETF) in Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper discusses problems experienced by NINLAN Library, including: inadequate period specified for retirement of utilized funds, delay in securing approval for new projects, effort of some members of committees to influence award of contracts, and absence of librarians in most ETF project committees.

Findings

The management of NINLAN Library, educational institutions in Nigeria and ETF, should be proactive in planning for development programmes, and articulating projects to be funded by the ETF. There should be clear guidelines for accessing, utilizing and retiring the funds approved for different projects.

Originality/value

The paper offers suggestions to alleviate the problems. These include increasing in the allocation of library intervention funds, extending the period for utilization and retirement of project funds, and inclusion of librarians in various committees for library intervention projects.
Trying to thrive: making do without making waves
Authors: Steele Kirstin
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of the paper is to consider how a stationary materials budget might be rearranged to permit the purchase of new electronic resources.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper examines the likely ways money can be saved or reallocated: canceling; negotiating better prices; substituting free resources; and finding money outside the annual institutional allotment.

Findings

It was surprising not to find in the current literature a tool for comparing journal aggregates and library databases with open source options, since there seem to be plenty of comparisons between commercial and open source software programs.

Originality/value

The paper offers suggestions as to how libraries can save or reallocate money.
Interoperable data
Authors: Evans Joanne , Reed Barbara , McKemmish Sue
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The ability to establish sustainable frameworks for creating and managing recordkeeping metadata is one of the key challenges for recordkeeping in digital and networked environments. The purpose of this article is to give an overview of the Clever Recordkeeping Metadata Project, an Australian research project which sought to investigate how the movement of recordkeeping metadata between systems could be automated.

Design/methodology/approach

The project adopted an action research approach to the research, utilising a systems development method within this framework to iteratively build a prototype demonstrating how recordkeeping metadata could be created once in particular application environments, then used many times to meet a range of business and recordkeeping purposes.

Findings

Recordkeeping metadata interoperability, like recordkeeping metadata itself, is complex and dynamic. The research identifies the need for standards and tools to reflect and have the capacity to handle this complexity.

Originality/value

This paper provides insights into the complex nature of recordkeeping metadata and the kind of infrastructure that needs to be developed to support its automated capture and re‐use in integrated systems environments.
Performance evaluation of the cell‐based algorithms for domain decomposition in flow simulation
Authors: Wang Junye , Zhang Xiaoxian , Bengough Anthony G. , Crawford John W.
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The cell‐based method of domain decomposition was first introduced for complex 3D geometries. To further assess the method, the aim is to carry out flow simulation in rectangular ducts to compare the known analytical solutions.

Design/methodology/approach

The method is not based on equal subvolumes but on equal numbers of active cells. The variables of the simulation are stored in ordered 1D arrays to replace the conventional 3D arrays, and the domain decomposition of the complex 3D problems therefore becomes 1D. Finally, the 3D results can be recovered using a coordinate matrix. Through the flow simulation in the rectangular ducts how the algorithm of the domain decompositions works was illustrated clearly, and the numerical solution was compared with the exact solutions.

Findings

The cell‐based method can find the subdomain interfaces successfully. The parallelization based on the algorithm does not cause additional errors. The numerical results agree well with the exact solutions. Furthermore, the results of the parallelization show again that domains of 3D geometries can be decomposed automatically without inducing load imbalances.

Practical implications

Although, the approach is illustrated with lattice Boltzmann method, it is also applicable to other numerical methods in fluid dynamics and molecular dynamics.

Originality/value

Unlike the existing methods, the cell‐based method performs the load balance first based on the total number of fluid cells and then decomposes the domain into a number of groups (or subdomains). Thus, the task of the cell‐based method is to recover the interface rather than to balance the load as in the traditional methods. This work has examined the celled‐based method for the flow in rectangular ducts. The benchmark test confirms that the cell‐based domain decomposition is reliable and convenient in comparison with the well‐known exact solutions.
Angel grants employees their wish – for time off in return for high performance
Authors: Parkes Carole
Published: June 2008

Purpose

Describes a new breed of HR strategies that encourage employee involvement and commitment as part of high‐performance working (HPW).

Design/methodology/approach

Focuses on managing employee attitudes and skills through careful attention to leadership, reward and job‐design policies. Highlights the differences between people's formal employment contracts and their less formal “psychological contracts”, and emphasizes the importance of the latter. Provides a case study of UK recruitment consultancy Angel Services Group Ltd, which allows staff who meet their daily targets to go home an hour early.

Findings

Urges companies to have processes in place to understand the needs of individual employees. This can be done through leadership policies that require all supervisors and managers not only to manage their staff but also to know them as people.

Practical implications

Emphasizes that organizations need to see HPW initiatives as part of the normal way of managing people, and not as “flavour of the month”.

Originality/value

Outlines a wide range of initiatives that could help organizations to gain their employees' commitment.
Risk aversion and brand loyalty: the mediating role of brand trust and brand affect
Authors: Matzler Kurt , Grabner‐Kräuter Sonja , Bidmon Sonja
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between the customer's risk aversion and its relationship with brand loyalty and to test empirically whether this relationship is mediated by brand trust and brand affect.

Design/methodology/approach

A randomly selected sample of Austrian mobile phone users was drawn. Their risk aversion, two forms of loyalty (attitudinal and repurchase loyalty), brand trust and brand affect have been measured with existing and tested scales. The hypothesized model has been tested using PLS (Partial least squares).

Findings

Customer's risk aversion is significantly related to the two forms of loyalty (attitudinal loyalty and brand loyalty). When brand affect and brand trust are introduced into the model, the previously highly significant relationship between domain‐specific risk aversion and attitudinal loyalty becomes insignificant and the risk aversion‐repurchase relationship becomes much weaker, while risk aversion strongly influences brand trust and brand affect.

Research limitations/implications

The findings are limited to mobile phone users. The generalisation of the results could be extended by broadening the list of products, for example with other durable products and services in which brand affect and brand trust may be even more important in developing brand loyalty.

Practical implications

This paper explains why certain customers have more trust and experience more affect than others and how this is related to loyalty. Hence, marketers can increase brand loyalty by targeting more risk aversive customers.

Originality/value

From a theoretical point of view the results of this study illuminate the relationship between enduring individual differences and important brand related constructs. From a practical point of view, they explain why certain customers have more trust and experience more affect than others. It is hypothesized and demonstrated empirically that risk aversion is also related to loyalty via brand trust and brand affect.
First‐line supervisor's perceptions of police integrity
Authors: Schafer Joseph A. , Martinelli Thomas J.
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine supervisor perceptions of police integrity situations using the measurement of police integrity instrument. Additional survey questions focused on aspects of integrity of particular relevance within the study agency. The latter concerned that agency's on‐going legal arrangement with the federal government to address alleged sub‐standard patterns and practices of officer/agency performance.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 478 sergeants and lieutenants from the study agency completed the survey instrument. This represented 97 percent of those asked to complete the instrument and approximately 60 percent of first‐line supervisors.

Findings

The results paralleled some aspects found in prior research, in particular that respondents cast themselves as having stronger integrity than their peers. Findings also illustrated potential weaknesses in efforts to enhance police integrity in light of federal intervention in the study agency.

Research limitations/implications

The findings represented the first focused effort to replicate the measurement of police integrity instrument among first‐line supervisors. Such personnel were key figures in efforts to modify deficient patterns and practices, making them a prime focus for research consideration.

Practical implications

The skepticisms expressed by some supervisors illustrated issues worthy of consideration in future efforts to enhance integrity in police organizations. First‐line supervisors play key roles in shaping officer conduct, particularly in larger agencies. As such, more consideration needs to be given to the role they play in organizational change efforts.

Originality/value

In addition to informing scholarly understanding through the measurement of police integrity instrument, the findings are of importance in applied efforts to enhance integrity or otherwise modify police organizations.
The new Italian Banking Regulation concerning banks' organization and corporate governance
Authors: Opromolla Gabriella
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe the Bank of Italy's new comprehensive regulatory framework containing guidelines on the organization and corporate governance of banks.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper describes the structure of the regulatory framework and the content of the rules, including rules on a bank's choice of board model, a bank's corporate governance project representing bylaws and internal organization, tasks and powers of governing bodies, composition of governing bodies, compensation and incentive mechanisms, and information flows.

Findings

The paper reveals that the new rules are in line with recent prudential measures that assign a central role to corporate organization and require banks to establish appropriate corporate governance arrangements and efficient management and control mechanisms aimed to support the risks to which they are exposed. The new regulatory framework also pivots on the principles set forth by Basel Committee's guidance on corporate governance for banking organizations.

Originality/value

The paper provides a useful introduction to new Italian organization and corporate governance guidelines for banks by an experienced banking and securities lawyer.
A question concerning subject in The Spirit of Chinese Capitalism
Authors: Xu Qi
Published: June 2008

Purpose

Recognising interest in the nascent “rise of China”, the purpose of this paper is to engage with the normative social science approach to comparative management, positing that it is inadequate for an enlightened view of the Chinese subject.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper presents a critical appraisal of extant literature, specifically Redding's The Spirit of Chinese Capitalism, by drawing resources from Fabian's epistemological critique of anthropology and Levinas' ethics to replace ontology as first philosophy, and by reference to historical studies on China's economic culture and its language.

Findings

Attention is drawn to how Redding's research subject is made an object of knowledge. In the objectification process, the subject's continuity is interrupted, its voice deprived, and its capacity for dialogue denied. This is evident in Redding's framework for analysis. Indeed, his Weberian social science template manifests a certain “imperialism of the same” and is symptomatic of much in comparative management regarding non‐western subjects. After critique, this essay then explores a supplement to Redding.

Practical implications

The paper proposes three principles for finding one's way out of objectification: ethics before “knowledge”, justice before “power”, and dialogue before “vision”.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to discourse on how comparative management must transcend its imperial social science legacy before it can find a just footing, and be born again.
Emerging technology assessment
Authors: Chen Hongyi , Daim Tugrul U.
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess effective integration of two emerging technologies, new emerging opportunities for them and their diffusion in China.

Design/methodology/approach

A multi‐perspective analysis and causal models were developed to assess the emerging technologies as a result of the integration. In addition, an initial system dynamics model is developed to explore their diffusion.

Findings

Based on multi‐perspective analysis and causal models in both global and national environments, problems such as security and reliability are identified. System dynamics modeling is used in this paper to assist such foresight process. Different scenarios are proposed by the modeling to offer possible solutions facilitating the development of voice and video over wireless area network (VVoWLAN) in China.

Research limitations/implications

While, the purpose of system dynamics modeling is to demonstrate the application of the methodology, simplifying assumptions are made. To deliver an accurate foresight model, additional data and modeling details will be required. This will lead to future works as an improvement of the model.

Practical implications

A multi‐perspective analysis and causal models were developed to assess the emerging technologies as a result of the integration. These models can easily be used by decision makers evaluating such technologies. The framework suggests that the diffusion of such emerging technologies like VVoWLAN needs to be planned strategically in order to fully realize the value of the integration opportunities identified in the first step.

Originality/value

The paper provides a framework for assessing emerging technologies in China.
Creating melodies and baroque harmonies with ant colony optimization
Authors: Geis Michael , Middendorf Martin
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to propose an algorithm that is based on the ant colony optimization (ACO) metaheuristic for producing harmonized melodies. ACO is a nature inspired metaheuristic where a colony of ants searches for an optimum of a function. The algorithm works in two stages. In the first stage it creates a melody. The obtained melody is then harmonized according to the rules of baroque harmony in the second stage. A multi‐objective version of the algorithm is also proposed, where each tier is optimized as a separate objective.

Design/methodology/approach

The ACO metaheuristic is adapted to graphs representing notes and chords. Desirability of a sequence of notes is measured by conformance to compositional rules. The fitness of a melody is evaluated with five equally weighted rules governing smoothness of the melody curve, its contour, tendency tone resolution, tone colors and the pitch of the final note. Harmonization is guided by six rules, grouped into three tiers of two rules each. These rules cover chord arrangement, voice distance, voice leading, harmonic progression, smoothness, and chord resolution. Rules of a tier do not score unless those of the previous tier yield high values.

Findings

The proposed algorithm improves on the only other existing musical ACO by adding the notion of harmony and by evolving voices codependently. The output is comparable to different types of other existing algorithms (genetic algorithm, rule‐based search algorithm) in the field. The multi‐objective variant significantly enhances solution quality and convergence speed, which makes extensions of the system for real time performance realistic.

Originality/value

This algorithm is the first ACO algorithm proposed for the problem of melody creation and harmonization.
An agent‐based simulation for multi‐UAVs coordinative sensing
Authors: Ming Chen Yee , Hao Chang Shu
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a model developed for emergent formation of multi‐unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) into functional teams that cooperatively complete a mission in which they search for specific mobile targets and escape obstacles.

Design/methodology/approach

The design and development of distributed UAVs simulator use agent‐based platform employing a decentralized control which follows the flocking behavior‐based design philosophy.

Findings

The results of the simulation indicate that the emergent behavior‐based search procedure for UAVs is autonomous, effective and robust. It is especially well suited for emergent teams to quickly solve dynamic teaming and task allocation.

Practical implications

The development of a UAV is expensive, and a small error in automatic control results in a crash. Therefore, the platform is useful to develop and verify the coordination behavior of UAVs through software simulation prior to real testing.

Originality/value

The proposed emergent behavior simulated environment is working on an agent‐based UAV simulated platform, and hence, it naturally adapts to the behavior of a distributed and concurrent situation. The authors' can easily improvise the execution environment without changing the UAV simulator.
Energy efficient grid‐based routing in wireless sensor networks
Authors: Vidhyapriya Ranganathan , Thangapandian Vanathi Ponnusamy
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore grid‐based routing in wireless sensor networks and to compare the energy available in the network over time for different grid sizes.

Design/methodology/approach

The test area is divided into square‐shaped grids of certain length. Energized nodes are placed randomly in the terrain area with the sink node in a fixed position. One node per grid is elected as the leader node based on the highest energy level and the proximity to the centre of the grid. The sink node floods the network to identify a path from sink to source. The path from the sink to the source through the leader nodes are computed using three different methods: shortest path; leader nodes which have the highest energy; and leader nodes based on their received signal strength (RSS) indicator values. After the path is computed, transmission of data is continued until the leader nodes run out of energy. New leader nodes are then elected using the same mechanism to replace the depleted ones.

Findings

Identified the optimal grid size to minimize the energy consumption in sensor networks and to extend the network lifetime. Also proposed is a new routing protocol which identifies routes based on energy threshold and RSS threshold.

Research limitations/implications

The use of RSS threshold is identified to be the good metric for path selection in routing the data between source and the sink.

Practical implications

Simulator software and the protocol developed can be used for in optimizing energy efficiency in sensor networks.

Originality/value

This work contributes to the discussion on uniform and non‐uniform grid sizes and emphasizes a new method for reducing the energy consumption by identifying an optimum grid size. It also utilizes bursty data for simulation.
FDI algorithms of abrupt faults in controlled autoregressive processes
Authors: Shaolin Hu , Guoji Sun , Huajiang Ouyang , Rushan Chen
Published: June 2008

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present research in detecting and identifying abrupt faults in controlled auto‐regressive (CAR) processes.

Design/methodology/approach

Model‐based approach is adopted in this paper. Two series of fault‐tolerant iterative estimators are set up to estimate online the coefficients in a CAR process. Based on these fault‐tolerant estimators, the detailed detecting and identifying algorithms are obtained for not only the pulse‐type faults but also the step‐type faults in CAR process.

Findings

This paper illustrates the useful information that can be obtained from residuals and that can be used to detect pulse‐type faults as well as step‐type faults. A fault‐tolerant recursive estimator for the coefficients of the CAR process is put forward. Using a simple transformation from step‐ to pulse‐type faults, all kinds of diagnosis methods to detect and identify step‐type faults can be used.

Research limitations/implications

Fault‐tolerant estimators and fault detection and identification algorithms are aimed at abrupt faults in CAR processes.

Practical implications

Most of the algorithms given in this paper can be used in many different fields, such as process monitoring, safety control and change detection, etc.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to research of abrupt faults and abrupt changes in a CAR process and emphasizes identification of magnitudes of abrupt faults. The fault‐tolerant estimators are effective not only to detect faults but also to identify safely the coefficients CAR model.
NMR spectroscopy as a tool for the rapid assessment of the conformation of GST‐fusion proteins
Authors: Liew Chu Kong , Gamsjaeger Roland , Mansfield Robyn E. , Mackay Joel P.
Published: June 2008

Glutathione‐S‐transferase (GST)‐fusion proteins are used extensively for structural, biochemical, and functional analyses. Although the conformation of the target protein is of critical importance, confirmation of the folded state of the target is often not undertaken or is cumbersome because of the requirement to first remove the GST tag. Here, we demonstrate that it is possible to record conventional 15N‐HSQC NMR spectra of small GST‐fusion proteins and that the observed signals arise almost exclusively from the target protein. This approach constitutes a rapid and straightforward means of assessing the conformation of a GST‐fusion protein without having to cleave the GST and should prove valuable, both to biochemists seeking to check the conformation of their proteins prior to functional studies and to structural biologists screening protein constructs for suitability as targets for structural studies.
Structural basis of the zinc‐ and terbium‐mediated inhibition of ferroxidase activity in Dps ferritin‐like proteins
Authors: Havukainen Heli , Haataja Sauli , Kauko Anni , Pulliainen Arto T. , Salminen Annika , Haikarainen Teemu , Finne Jukka , Papageorgiou Anastassios C.
Published: June 2008

Streptococcus suis Dpr is an iron‐binding protein involved in oxidative stress resistance. It belongs to the bacterial Dps protein family whose members form dodecameric assemblies. Previous studies have shown that zinc and terbium inhibit iron incorporation in Listeria innocua Dps protein. In order to gain structural insights into the inhibitory effect of zinc and terbium, the crystal structures of Streptococcus suis Dpr complexes with these ions were determined at 1.8 Å and 2.1 Å, respectively. Both ions were found to bind at the ferroxidase center and in the same location as iron. In addition, a novel zinc‐binding site formed by His40 and His44 was identified. Both His residues were found to be present within all known Streptococcus suis Dpr variants and in Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus gordonii, and Streptococcus sanguinis Dpr proteins. Amino acid sequence alignment of Dpr with other Dps family members revealed that His44 is highly conserved, in contrast to His40. The inhibitory effect of zinc and terbium on iron oxidation in Dpr was studied in vitro, and it was found that both ions at concentrations >0.2 mM almost completely abolish iron binding. These results provide a structural basis for the inhibitory effect of zinc and terbium in the Dps family of proteins, and suggest a potential role of the Dps proteins in zinc detoxification mechanisms involving the second zinc‐binding site.
Characterization of Plasmodium falciparum integral membrane protein Pf25‐IMP and identification of its red blood cell binding sequences inhibiting merozoite invasion in vitro
Authors: Curtidor Hernando , Arévalo Gabriela , Vanegas Magnolia , Vizcaíno Carolina , Patarroyo Manuel A. , Forero Martha , Patarroyo Manuel E.
Published: June 2008

The identification of proteins present on the surface of Plasmodium falciparum‐infected red blood cells as well as of free merozoites has been widely considered as one of the main areas of research in the development of an antimalarial vaccine due to their involvement in the parasite's pathogenesis and invasion mechanisms. Major advances had been accomplished in this area thanks to the analysis of the reported genomic sequence of P. falciparum, allowing for the identification of genes encoding for putative integral membrane proteins. This study reports for the first time the transcription of the MAL8P1.3 gene, which codifies for a 25‐kDa integral membrane protein of P. falciparum (FCB‐2 strain), namely, Pf25‐IMP. Western blot and immunofluorescence assays using goat polyclonal sera indicate that this protein is expressed in erythrocytic asexual blood stages. A highly robust, sensible, and specific receptor–ligand interaction assay allowed identification of two high activity binding peptides (HABPs) derived from Pf25‐IMP: 30577 (41YKTANENVKLASSLSDRLSR60) and 30583 (161LNKKTVVRKIAEGLGYTIVF180). Both HABPs bound with high affinity to human red blood cells (RBCs), and such binding was susceptible to enzyme treatment with trypsin. A common RBC surface receptor of apparently 48 kDa was found for both HABPs, plus an additional 31‐kDa receptor for HABP 30577. HABP 30577 inhibited merozoite invasion in vitro by 73%, while HABP 30583 showed a 59% inhibition at 200 μM concentration. The data suggest a possible role of Pf25‐IMP in merozoite invasion to RBCs and support its inclusion in further immunological studies for evaluating its potential as vaccine candidates.
Environmental controls over carbon exchange of three forest ecosystems in eastern China
Authors: YU GUI‐RUI , ZHANG LEI‐MING , SUN XIAO‐MIN , FU YU‐LING , WEN XUE‐FA , WANG QIU‐FENG , LI SHENG‐GONG , REN CHUAN‐YOU , SONG XIA , LIU YUN‐FEN , HAN SHI‐JIE , YAN JUN‐HUA
Published: June 2008

Net ecosystem productivity (NEP) was continuously measured using the eddy covariance (EC) technique from 2003 to 2005 at three forest sites of ChinaFLUX. The forests include Changbaishan temperate mixed forest (CBS), Qianyanzhou subtropical coniferous plantation (QYZ), and Dinghushan subtropical evergreen broad‐leaved forest (DHS). They span wide ranges of temperature and precipitation and are influenced by the eastern Asian monsoon climate to varying extent. In this study, we estimated ecosystem respiration (RE) and gross ecosystem productivity (GEP). Comparison of ecosystem carbon exchange among the three forests shows that RE was mainly determined by temperature, with the forest at CBS exhibiting the highest temperature sensitivity among the three ecosystems. The RE was highly dependent on GEP across the three forests, and the ratio of RE to GEP decreased along the North–South Transect of Eastern China (NSTEC) (i.e. from the CBS to the DHS), with an average of 0.77 ± 0.06. Daily GEP was mainly influenced by temperature at CBS, whereas photosynthetic photon flux density was the dominant factor affecting the daily GEP at both QYZ and DHS. Temperature mainly determined the pattern of the interannual variations of ecosystem carbon exchange at CBS. However, water availability primarily controlled the interannual variations of ecosystem carbon exchange at QYZ. At DHS, NEP attained the highest values at the beginning of the dry seasons (autumn) rather than the rainy seasons (summer), probably because insufficient radiation and frequent fog during the rainy seasons hindered canopy photosynthesis. All the three forest ecosystems acted as a carbon sink from 2003 to 2005. The annual average values of NEP at CBS, QYZ, and DHS were 259 ± 19, 354 ± 34, and 434 ± 66 g C m−2 yr−1, respectively. The slope of NEP that decreased with increasing latitude along the NSTEC was markedly different from that observed on the forest transect in the European continent. Long‐term flux measurements over more forest ecosystems along the NSTEC will further help verify such a difference between the European forest transect and the NSTEC and provide insights into the responses of ecosystem carbon exchange to climate change in China.
Using temperature‐dependent changes in leaf scaling relationships to quantitatively account for thermal acclimation of respiration in a coupled global climate–vegetation model
Authors: ATKIN OWEN K. , ATKINSON LINDSEY J. , FISHER ROSIE A. , CAMPBELL CATHERINE D. , ZARAGOZA‐CASTELLS JOANA , PITCHFORD JON W. , WOODWARD F. IAN , HURRY VAUGHAN
Published: June 2008

The response of plant respiration (R) to temperature is an important component of the biosphere's response to climate change. At present, most global models assume that R increases exponentially with temperature and does not thermally acclimate. Although we now know that acclimation does occur, quantitative incorporation of acclimation into models has been lacking. Using a dataset for 19 species grown at four temperatures (7, 14, 21, and 28 °C), we have assessed whether sustained differences in growth temperature systematically alter the slope and/or intercepts of the generalized log–log plots of leaf R vs. leaf mass per unit leaf area (LMA) and vs. leaf nitrogen (N) concentration. The extent to which variations in growth temperature account for the scatter observed in log–log R–LMA–N scaling relationships was also assessed. We show that thermal history accounts for up to 20% of the scatter in scaling relationships used to predict R, with the impact of thermal history on R–LMA–N generalized scaling relationships being highly predictable. This finding enabled us to quantitatively incorporate acclimation of R into a coupled global climate–vegetation model. We show that accounting for acclimation of R has negligible impact on predicted annual rates of global R, net primary productivity (NPP) or future atmospheric CO2 concentrations. However, our analysis suggests that accounting for acclimation is important when considering carbon fluxes among thermally contrasting biomes (e.g. accounting for acclimation decreases predicted rates of R by up to 20% in high‐temperature biomes). We conclude that acclimation of R needs to be accounted for when predicting potential responses of terrestrial carbon exchange to climatic change at a regional level.
Can long‐distance migratory birds adjust to the advancement of spring by shortening migration distance? The response of the pied flycatcher to latitudinal photoperiodic variation
Authors: COPPACK TIMOTHY , TINDEMANS ILSE , CZISCH MICHAEL , VAN der LINDEN ANNEMIE , BERTHOLD PETER , PULIDO FRANCISCO
Published: June 2008

Many organisms use day length as a cue for synchronizing their life cycles with seasonal changes in environmental productivity. Under rapid climate change, however, responses to day length may become maladaptive, and photo‐responsive organisms may only be able to evade increasingly unsuitable habitats if they can accommodate to a wide range of photoperiodic conditions. A previous experiment showed that the pied flycatcher,Ficedula hypoleuca, a Palaearctic‐Afrotropical migratory bird, would strongly advance the timing of spring migration and reproductive maturation if it shifted its wintering area from sub‐Saharan Africa to the Mediterranean region. However, it is unknown whether this marked response to latitudinal variation in photoperiodic conditions is continuous over the entire range of potential wintering areas, and if a shortening of migration distance would be an effective mechanism to adjust the timing of migration to rapidly changing climatic conditions. Here, we experimentally show that a moderate northward displacement of the pied flycatcher's current wintering grounds by 10° would result in a clear advancement of the termination of prenuptial moult and the initiation of spring migratory activity and gonadal growth. However, we found no further advancement under conditions simulating higher wintering latitudes, suggesting the existence of a critical photoperiodic threshold or a steep gradual response within a narrow geographical range between 10° and 20° northern latitude. Because habitat conditions in this area are deteriorating rapidly, the potential for pied flycatchers to adjust their life cycle to changing climatic conditions by shortening the migration distance may be limited in the future.
FADD and the NF‐κB family member Bcl‐3 regulate complementary pathways to control T‐cell survival and proliferation
Authors: Rangelova Svetla , Kirschnek Susanne , Strasser Andreas , Häcker Georg
Published: June 2008

Fas‐associated protein with death domain/mediator of receptor induced toxicity (FADD/MORT1) was first described as a transducer of death receptor signalling but was later recognized also to be important for proliferation of T cells. B‐cell lymphoma 3 (Bcl‐3) is a relatively little understood member of the nuclear factor (NF)‐κB family of transcription factors. We recently found that Bcl‐3 is up‐regulated in T cells from mice where FADD function is blocked by a dominant negative transgene (FADD‐DN). To understand the importance of this, we generated FADD‐DN/bcl‐3−/− mice. Here, we report that T cells from these mice show massive cell death and severely reduced proliferation in response to T‐cell receptor (TCR) stimulation in vitro. Transgenic co‐expression of Bcl‐2 (FADD‐DN/bcl‐3−/−/vav‐bcl‐2 mice) rescued the survival but not the proliferation of T cells. FADD‐DN/bcl‐3−/− mice had normal thymocyte numbers but reduced numbers of peripheral T cells despite an increase in cycling T cells in vivo. However, activation of the classical NF‐κB and extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) pathways and expression of interleukin (IL)‐2 mRNA upon stimulation were normal in T cells from FADD‐DN/bcl‐3−/− mice. These data suggest that FADD and Bcl‐3 regulate separate pathways that both contribute to survival and proliferation in mouse T cells.