bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Globalization, Computer-mediated Communications and the Rise of e-Arabic
Authors: Daoudi Anissa
Published: August 2011

This article highlights an as yet overlooked consequence of the expansion of computer-mediated communication in the Arab world, the emergence and extensive use of a new language (e-Arabic). This is a language that mixes, borrows and adapts, uses numbers, Roman letters, Arabic script characters, emotions and words from other languages (English and French) to engage not only with the globalized discourse, but also to examine the specific ways in which the local frames the global. Using an analysis of the language used in e-literature (novels) such as Nessyane Com (2009), 'Ayza atgawiz (2008) and Banat al-Riyadh (2005), this article explores whether globalization processes have changed modern standard Arabic (MSA) and colloquial Arabic at the level of the single word, compound and phrase levels, while also examining the metaphorical language that has emerged.
A New-Look for Muslim Women in the Canadian Media: CBC's Little Mosque on the Prairie
Authors: Khan Sarah , Eid Mahmoud
Published: August 2011

The coverage of Muslim women in Western media has long been using Orientalist stereotypes and portrayals of Muslims as outsiders. Even though racist stereotypes exist in Canada, Canadian legislation and the media are attempting to portray an idealistic form of multiculturalism. Recently, Canadian mainstream media have refrained from stereotypical representations of Muslims, especially women, and shifted toward non-Orientalist representations. CBC's Little Mosque on the Prairie (LMP), a satirical Canadian comedy sitcom, is one of the first such instances. LMP criticizes and refutes negative stereotypes, portraying Muslims as ordinary Canadians with problems and lifestyles that are shared across Canada. A qualitative and quantitative content analysis of the first season's eight episodes investigates how Muslim women have been portrayed in LMP, drawing on Luhmann's (1987) theory on representation of society, Millar's (1793) observations about women in society, Hall's (1997) Other, Said's (1978) Orientalism, Kristeva's (1991) theories on foreigners, and Bhabha's (1994) Third Space. Findings demonstrate that Muslim women on CBC are not oppressed or stereotyped; instead, they participate normally in Canadian culture and the workplace and are not considered outsiders. Muslim women in Canada exist in Third Spaces that allow Canadian and Islamic practices to merge, resulting in a uniquely Canadian artifact like LMP.
Framing Political Islam in Popular Egyptian Cinema
Authors: Allagui Ilhem , Najjar Abeer
Published: August 2011

Political Islam has been at the forefront of political discussions in and of the Middle East and has often been associated with violence and 'terrorism'. Much has been written on political Islam, but there has been little work on how Arab audiences respond to and view political Islam and the groups seen to be acting under this generic framework, including al-Qa'eda. In the absence of serious audience research that would give us a better idea about attitudes, this article examines how Arab popular culture frames active Islamist groups; in particular we focus on Egyptian films that help shape Arab audiences' perspectives of political Islam. The article analyzes how political Islam is discussed in these films and by film producers, directors and media owners, and how Islamist groups are often framed as the 'other'.
Tramps vs. Sweethearts: Changing Images of Arab and American Women in Hollywood Films
Authors: Yunis Alia , Picherit-Duthler Gaelle
Published: August 2011

The portrayal of Arab women in Hollywood from the silent movies to today stands in sharp contrast to the portrayal of American women over the same time period and can be defined by off screen politics. By examining important American films over nearly 100 years, this article describes Arab and American women characters through five political-historical phases of US international relations that define their Hollywood images: 1) pre-World War II, 2) from World War II to the 1960s, 3) the 1970s, 4) the 1980s to 11 September 2001 and 5) post-9/11. The analysis reveals a variety of archetypes for both Arab and American women, but the main finding suggests a limited role for American women and the near absence of Arab women in Hollywood movies. Independent filmmakers and upcoming Arab-American movie makers may yet be able to fill this void.
Phylogenetic analysis of the genus Orthaea Dallas (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Rhyparochromidae: Rhyparochrominae: Myodochini), and the description of a closely related new genus and species of Myodochini
Authors: Montemayor Sara , Dellapé Pablo
Published: August 2011

A new genus and species from Brazil, oraea brasiliensis, is described and illustrated, and its phylogenetic affinities are discussed. The genus oraea is diagnosed by the V-shaped buccular juncture, the presence of jugal ridge, evaporative area extensive, mesepimeron barely emergent, male protibia and mesofemur spinose, posterior pronotal lobe with four rounded yellowish macula, unspined aedeagus with two vesical lobes and the gonoporal process enlarged distally. The male of Orthaea meloae Dellapé & Montemayor is described, and the male genitalia of O. meloae and O. alveusincola Harrington are also described and illustrated; O. consuta Dallas is recorded for the first time from Belize, O. meloae from Panama, and O. montana Dellapé & Montemayor from Bolivia. A cladistic analysis of the species of Orthaea Dallas is performed. One most parsimonious tree was obtained, with the following topology: (Myodocha serripes ((Heraeus triguttatus, Paisana brachialis) (oraea brasiliensis (O. consuta ((O. procincta, O. montana) (O. alveusincola, O. meloae)))))). Orthaea was recovered as monophyletic supported by seven synapomorphies.
Online coaching: An alternative source of social support for female entrepreneurs during venture creation
Authors: Fielden Sandra L. , Hunt Carianne M.
Published: August 2011

This article explores women’s experiences of accessing social support from traditional sources during venture creation and identifies the key aspects of social support desired, required and sought. It explores how an online coaching programme could provide the specific types of social support that would be most effective in assisting female entrepreneurs during venture creation. A study is presented based upon interviews with 30 established and 30 potential female entrepreneurs. The findings suggest that an online relationship with a dedicated coach of the same gender could provide the required support in terms of quantity and quality in respect of all functional aspects of social support.
An uncertain balance: Negotiating theory, politics and love in academic writing
Authors: Leggatt-Cook Chez
Published: August 2011

Writing up qualitative research requires researchers to consider many issues, including the representation of participants, academic standards for scholarship and researcher subjectivity or agency. In this article I refer to Žižek's notion of the ideal love relationship to examine some of the messy processes involved in constructing the written texts of such research. Principally, I describe the loss of authorial voice that occurred in my doctoral thesis following my appropriation of Žižek's post-Lacanian psychoanalytic approach as the methodological framework. In an attempt to untangle the tensions that plagued my use of Žižek's work and convey a sense of their disruptive implications, I adopt a writing style that is intermittently disordered, a voice that is inconsistently empowered and a reflexive engagement that is critically self-conscious. I argue that the negotiation of an academic writing style is an under-acknowledged site of ethical, political and personal struggle that, as such, represents an important methodological concern for feminist researchers.
An Evidence-Based Model of Work Engagement
Authors: Bakker Arnold B.
Published: August 2011

Employees who are engaged in their work are fully connected with their work roles. They are bursting with energy, dedicated to their work, and immersed in their work activities. This article presents an overview of the concept of work engagement. I discuss the antecedents and consequences of engagement. The review shows that job and personal resources are the main predictors of engagement. These resources gain their salience in the context of high job demands. Engaged workers are more open to new information, more productive, and more willing to go the extra mile. Moreover, engaged workers proactively change their work environment in order to stay engaged. The findings of previous studies are integrated in an overall model that can be used to develop work engagement and advance job performance in today’s workplace.
Can Feeling Too Good Be Bad?
Authors: Gruber June
Published: August 2011

Positive emotions are vital to attaining important goals, nurturing social bonds, and promoting cognitive flexibility. However, one question remains relatively unaddressed: Can positive emotions also be a source of dysfunction and negative outcomes? An ideal point of entry to understand how positive emotion can go awry is bipolar disorder, a psychiatric disorder marked by abnormally elevated positive emotion. In this review I provide an overview of recent experimental evidence from individuals at risk for, and diagnosed with, bipolar disorder. I present a novel account of positive-emotion disturbance, referred to as positive emotion persistence (PEP), and consider potential mechanisms. The central thesis guiding PEP is that persistent activation of positive emotion across contexts and not solely in response to positive or rewarding stimuli is a marker of emotion dysfunction in bipolar disorder. I discuss implications for the study of bipolar disorder and positive emotion generally.
Social Class as Culture
Authors: Kraus Michael W. , Piff Paul K. , Keltner Dacher
Published: August 2011

Social class reflects more than the material conditions of people’s lives. Objective resources (e.g., income) shape cultural practices and behaviors that signal social class. These signals create cultural identities among upper- and lower-class individuals—identities that are rooted in subjective perceptions of social-class rank vis-à-vis others. Empirical studies find that perceptions of social-class rank influence patterns of contextual versus dispositional cognition and other- versus self-oriented affect and behavior that are consistent with objective resource-based measures of social class. Our theoretical conceptualization emphasizes the utility of measuring and manipulating perceptions of social-class rank to better understand how social class influences thought and action across diverse social domains.
Effects of Prosocial Media on Social Behavior
Authors: Greitemeyer Tobias
Published: August 2011

Helping and aggression are core topics in social psychology. So far, abundant evidence that violent media decreases helping and increases aggression has been collected. However, recent theoretical and empirical work has demonstrated that the media may also increase prosocial outcomes and decrease antisocial outcomes. In fact, exposure to media with prosocial content increases the accessibility of prosocial thoughts, empathy, and helping behavior and decreases aggression and aggression-related cognition and affect. The present article reviews this research and provides an overview of when and why media exposure instigates helping and reduces aggression.
Social Acceptance and Rejection
Authors: DeWall C. Nathan , Bushman Brad J.
Published: August 2011

People have a fundamental need for positive and lasting relationships. In this article, we provide an overview of social psychological research on the topic of social acceptance and rejection. After defining these terms, we describe the need to belong and how it enabled early humans to fulfill their survival and reproductive goals. Next, we review research on the effects of social rejection on emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and biological responses. We also describe research on the neural correlates of social rejection. We offer a theoretical account to explain when and why social rejection produces desirable and undesirable outcomes. We then review evidence regarding how people cope with the pain of social rejection. We conclude by identifying factors associated with heightened and diminished responses to social rejection.
The Role of Oxytocin in Human Affect
Authors: Kemp Andrew H. , Guastella Adam J.
Published: August 2011

Social behavior is crucial for day-to-day activities, and oxytocin has emerged as playing a central regulatory role. Oxytocin increases positive social emotions such as trust and altruism, leading to the hypothesis that oxytocin facilitates positive prosocial behaviors. However, other findings suggest that oxytocin may play a more general role that includes the facilitation of negative social emotions. These findings have led to the broader social-salience hypothesis. We propose a third possible alternative explanation for the impact of oxytocin on negative social emotions and review evidence to support our social-approach/withdrawal hypothesis. We also provide directions for future studies, highlighting the need for a direct comparison of alternative hypotheses relating to the impact of oxytocin on human social behavior.
What Causes Trade-led Growth in India?
Authors: Gupta Ruchi
Published: August 2011

The impact of the recent rise in India’s exports on its economic growth is tested using the Johansen cointegration technique. On using different measures of both trade and economic growth variables, a unidirectional causality has been found from trade to economic growth. It is concluded that in India the most important sources of causation from trade to economic growth have been externalities generated by the export sector and a relatively higher productivity of the export sector, while no evidence is found in favour of a positive impact of knowledge spillovers generated by trade on economic growth.
Comparative Analysis of Australian Residential Mortgage (Home Loan) Interest Rates
Authors: Karamujic Harry M.
Published: August 2011

The contention of this article is to ascertain whether or not the selected Australian home loan interest rates exhibit the expected cyclical and seasonal variations, and whether seasonality, if present, is stochastic or deterministic. The article uses a structural time series modelling approach and product-level home loan interest rates data from two major banks in Australia, National Australia Bank (NAB) and Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA).1 The modelling results overall confirm cyclicality of the selected home loan interest rates. Although most of the variables analysed also show the presence of statistically significant seasonal factors, the majority of the statistically significant seasonal factors observed cannot be attributed to any of the three considered seasonal effects.
Tax-and-Spend Principle in Budget Management in Sri Lanka in the Post-reform Period
Authors: Maitra Biswajit
Published: August 2011

The correlation between a government’s expenditure and revenue has attracted a lot of interest thanks to its policy relevance. This paper delves into the fiscal adjustment process through the expenditure and the revenue of Sri Lanka in the post-reform era from 1979 to 2009. The Augmented Dickey–Fuller study for the unit root testifies that both expenditure and revenue in Sri Lanka over the period have been I(0) stationary. The vector autoregression (VAR) model along with innovation accounting show that one-year lagged revenue leads to a rise in government expenditure in the next period. Revenue innovations also have a significant role in changing the expenditure profile. These findings uphold the tax-and-spend approach as the prevalent feature of the Sri Lankan economy’s fiscal system over the period of this study. Therefore, fiscal adjustments based on the revenue side of the budget need to be analysed.
Emotions as regime of justification?: The case of civic anger
Authors: Silber Ilana F.
Published: August 2011

The aim of this article is to explore the implications of a specific type of anger — termed here ‘civic’ anger — with regard to the place of emotions and their relation to regimes of justification in the framework of Boltanski and Thévenot’s sociology of critical capacity. Drawing upon interviews with a sample of Israeli philanthropic mega-donors, it will highlight the distinctive features and context-bound operation of civic anger as a type of moral and political emotion that has not yet received its due conceptualization. In the case at hand here, civic philanthropic anger will be shown to correspond to a cultural configuration that included regimes of justification equivalent to those already identified by Boltanski and Thévenot (mainly ‘civic’ and ‘industrial’), but also allowed a distinctive cluster of emotions to develop into an additional, ‘quasi’ regime of justification (‘benevolence’). As such, it points to ways in which a renewed sociology of morality needs enlist the fecund idea of regimes of justification, but also draw more systematic theoretical and empirical attention to the variable and multifaceted relation between emotions and justifications in practices of moral interpretation.
Pragmatic sociology and competing orders of worth in organizations
Authors: Jagd Søren
Published: August 2011

Different notions of multiple rationalities have recently been applied to describe the phenomena of co-existence of competing rationalities in organizations. These include institutional pluralism, institutional logics, competing rationalities and pluralistic contexts. The French pragmatic sociologists Luc Boltanski and Laurent Thévenot have contributed to this line of research with a sophisticated theoretical framework of orders of worth, which has been applied in an increasing number of empirical studies. This article explores how the order of worth framework has been applied to empirical studies of organizations. First, I summarize the basic ideas of the framework, stressing the aspects of special relevance for studies of organizations. Second, I review the empirical studies focusing on the coexistence of competing orders of worth in organizations showing that the order of worth framework primarily has been related to three main themes in organizational research: non-profit and co-operative organizations, inter-organizational co-operation, and organizational change. Third, I discuss how the pragmatic, process-oriented aspect of the research program, focusing on the intertwining of values and action in various forms of ‘justification work’, has been translated into empirical studies. I argue that even if highly interesting empirical studies have begun to appear on the pragmatic aspects of the order of worth program, empirical studies of ‘justification work’ may be a potentially very promising focus for future empirical studies.
Multilingual literacy at the Lusignan court: the Cypriot royal chancery and its Byzantine heritage
Authors: Beihammer Alexander
Published: August 2011

An important aspect of the social and administrative transformations resulting from the establishment of Western feudal lordships and colonial regimes in Byzantium and the Eastern Mediterranean was the emergence of a multilingual literacy in the contact zones between foreign elites and the native population. This article examines these phenomena with respect to the royal chancery of the Lusignan kingdom of Cyprus from the late twelfth until the beginning of the fourteenth century. It is argued that the Frankish ruling class of the island opted for a parallel use of Latin and Byzantine chancery practices without fusing them into hybrid mixtures. The Lusignan lords adopted Byzantine titles, symbols of authority and modes of expression for legal transactions with Greek subjects and the local tax system. Another area in which the heritage of the imperial chancery helped express new forms of hegemonial self-representation was the kingdom’s diplomatic relations with non-Frankish rulers.
Exchanging logoi for aloga: cultural capital and material capital in a letter of Michael Psellos
Authors: Bernard Floris
Published: August 2011

In a letter to his friend lasites (Sathas 171), Michael Psellos proposes to give the letter itself in exchange for a horse. Exploiting the polysemy of alogon and logos in Greek, Psellos is able to frame this playful representation of a gift exchange in a philosophical opposition between materiality and reason. This allows him to present his intellectual competences as an exclusive kind of cultural capital that deserves material support from other members of society.
Butrint in the mid-Byzantine period: a new interpretation
Authors: Kamani Solinda
Published: August 2011

Butrint, on the southwest coast of Albania, has been subject to excavation since 1928, initiated and carried out by the Italian Archaeological Mission until 1940, and then from the late 1950s by the Albanian Institute of Archaeology. In the last fifteen years, under the direction of the Butrint Foundation, the Albanian Institute of Archaeology and the University of East Anglia, extensive excavations have taken place in the site. Recent excavations in the western stretch of the circuit wall in the Lower City of Butrint, known as the Western Defences, have revealed new and important evidence especially for early–mid Byzantine Butrint. These excavations are the focus of this paper which aims to cast more light on the chronology and history of the Western Defences in particular and that of Butrint in general. The first part of the paper discusses the evidence concerning the Western Defences’ late antique construction and its occupation up to the seventh century. The second part deals in turn with succeeding phases of occupation (from eighth to fifteenth century) and offers a new interpretation related to mid Byzantine Butrint.
Of frogs and hangmen: the production and reception of the Corona Preciosa
Authors: Lauxtermann Marc D.
Published: August 2011

The reception of the Corona Preciosa (Venice 1527), the first dictionary of vernacularGreek, by Western European scholars (16th–18th centuries) is described. The role of Stefano da Sabbio, Pietro Borrani and Dimitrios Zinos in the production of the Corona is investigated.
From Patmos to Venice: two Greek translations of Paolo Segneri’s works and their long journey to publication
Authors: Tsakiris Vasileios
Published: August 2011

A reconstruction of the long journey to the Glykys printing house in Venice undertaken by the Greek translations of two works by Paolo Segneri shows that these translations were part of one of the largest such translation projects on Ottoman territory. Our research investigates the factors which led to and influenced these translations of Roman Catholic works on the remote island of Patmos as well as their later publication, and demonstrates the major role of nexuses between St John’s monastery and the Vatican on the one hand, and with certain Ottoman dignitaries of Greek nationality and Wallachian princes on the other.
Consequences of allegory: a case study of Vizyenos’ Platonic imagery
Authors: Kalligas Pavlos
Published: August 2011

An analysis of Georgios Vizyenos’ story ‘The Consequences of the Old Story’ reveals considerable influences from the work of Plato, especially from the Phaedrus. These pertain both to some basic motifs governing its plot and to some structural aspects of the work. The central theme of the three types of madness (erotic, divinatory and poetic) pervades both works, but there are also questions concerning the characteristics of writing and the role of authorial presence (and absence), which seem to establish a significant relation between them.
‘Common women’ or ‘women of free morals’: the suppression of prostitution in post-war Thessaloniki (1945–1955)
Authors: Dordanas Stratos N.
Published: August 2011

During the German occupation (1941–4), the once multicultural city of Thessaloniki underwent an unprecedented decline in population, at the same time experiencing a degradation of its morals and pre-war social values with the flourishing of brothels supplying sexual services to the occupying forces. Post-war Thessaloniki, however, presented a totally different picture. Within the framework of improving the quality of society, prostitution came to be regarded as a leftover from past barbarian times that not only threatened the moral and ethical standards of society but even put the very existence of the Greek race in jeopardy. A campaign of moral cleansing was introduced, which was based on repressive measures rather than on any meaningful societal reform. Hence, the ‘priestesses of love’ became scapegoats for those in power who envisaged the creation of a modern, virtuous city by closing down its brothels; a city that wanted to sever all ties with its past merely by eradicating rather than by solving its problems and ethical dilemmas.
Local Responses to the Ethnic Geography of Colonialism in the Gusii Highlands of British-Ruled Kenya
Authors: Parsons Timothy
Published: August 2011

In an effort to generate labor, protect European settler interests, and rationalize administration, the Kenyan imperial regime sought to impose a new ethnic geography on the African majority that confined communities to specific “native reserves” based on their supposed ethnicity. Theoretically, each “tribe” had a “homeland” that the state set aside for their exclusive use. Problems developed when more populous ethnic groups outgrew their assigned reserves and coveted the territory of European settler farmers in the “white highlands” and that of less populous tribes. The resulting “infiltration,” or illegal movement between the reserves, threatened the rationalizing ethnic geography of colonialism. This covert migration put British authorities in a difficult position. They wanted to encourage cross-border settlement to relieve population (and thus political) pressure in the overcrowded reserves, but the unchecked movement of people threatened to break down tribal divisions, thereby undermining a vital cornerstone of indirect rule. In an attempt to balance these conflicting commitments, colonial officials developed a policy of interpenetration in the late 1940s that allowed migrants to settle in sparsely populated reserves if they were legally “adopted” into the tribe of their hosts. This article shows how interpenetration proved unworkable in the Gusii reserve as illegal Kikuyu settlers and their Gusii hosts invented, adapted, and blurred distinctions of identity to circumvent and exploit the imperial regime's official ethnic geography. This ethnic creativity in a specific community in western Kenya shows that colonial efforts to determine the physical and imagined tribal boundaries merely set the scene for African identity creation in the twentieth century. In practice, Kenyan identities in the late-colonial era were more flexible, adaptable, and informal than either tribally focused colonial ethnographies or the scholarly literature on identity formation would suggest.
Cardiac rehabilitation outcomes in a conventional versus telemedicine-based programme
Authors: Dalleck Lance C , Schmidt Lindsey K , Lueker Richard
Published: August 2011

We studied patients who were eligible for phase II cardiac rehabilitation. Rehabilitation was delivered either conventionally or by telemedicine using videoconferencing. There were 226 participants: 173 at the conventional site and 53 at the telemedicine site. At baseline, blood pressure, anthropometric measurements, lipid profiles, activity levels, dietary intake and behaviours were assessed. Assessments at baseline were repeated after 12 weeks, at the end of the rehabilitation programme. There were no significant differences ( P > 0.05) in the change from baseline to post-programme values between the conventional and the telemedicine groups. The results show the suitability of telemedicine for delivering cardiac rehabilitation for risk factor modification and exercise monitoring to patients who otherwise would not have access to it.
Improving the access of young urban children to speech, language and hearing screening via telehealth
Authors: Ciccia Angela Hein , Whitford Bridgid , Krumm Mark , McNeal Kay
Published: August 2011

We studied the feasibility of low-cost videoconferencing (using Skype) in urban community health clinics for speech, language and hearing screening of children up to six years of age. During a two-year study, screening services were provided via videoconferencing at two community clinics in an inner city area of Cleveland, Ohio. In total, 411 screenings were completed. Of these, 358 children (87%) received hearing screenings, 377 (92%) received tympanometry screening and 263 (64%) received speech and language screening only. A total of 151 children were aged three years or under (37%). The reliability of pure tone hearing screening ( n = 7), DPOAE screening ( n = 51) and speech-language screening ( n = 10) was 100%. Typanometry screenings ( n = 55) were 84% reliable. Families reported a high level of satisfaction with both the technology and with the videoconferencing. The results indicate that low-cost videoconferencing for screening of speech, language and hearing development in very young children in urban community health clinics is feasible, reliable and strongly supported by the community.
Telemedicine in the Solomon Islands: 2006 to 2009
Authors: Martiniuk Alexandra , Negin Joel , Hersch Fred , Dalipanda Tenneth , Jagilli Rooney , Houasia Patrick , Gorringe Lilijana , Christie Annie
Published: August 2011

Telemedicine has been used in the Solomon Islands since 2000. We used quantitative and qualitative methods to examine telemedicine use in the Solomon Islands from January 2006 to June 2009. During the study period 66 telemedicine cases were submitted to the store and forward telemedicine system being used there. These included orthopaedic, oncology, cardiothoracic, infectious, congenital, gastroenterology and dermatology cases. Most cases (52%) were submitted by doctors at the National Referral Hospital (NRH) in Honiara. The majority of responses came from the NRH (27%). A final, firm recommendation regarding patient diagnosis and/or care was given for 46% of the cases. Interviews were conducted with 23 stakeholders in the Solomon Islands and in Australia to better understand the current and future use of telemedicine. The interviews identified the fragility of the Solomon Islands infrastructure, including the lack of training, as the largest barrier to the future use of telemedicine. The best use of telemedicine appears to be case sharing within the Solomon Islands, with connections to clinicians in other countries as a secondary benefit when particular expertise is required.
Effectiveness and safety of a glucose data-filtering system with automatic response software to reduce the physician workload in managing type 2 diabetes
Authors: Cho Jae-Hyoung , Choi Yoon-Hee , Kim Hun-Sung , Lee Jin-Hee , Yoon Kun-Ho
Published: August 2011

We conducted a randomized controlled trial to investigate the efficacy and safety of a system for online glucose monitoring of type 2 diabetes patients. The software automatically filtered the self-monitored blood glucose data to reduce physicians' time. In the control group, the physicians had to contact the patients manually. We measured the time spent by physicians for online management in a 24-week study. Seventy-nine patients were recruited. The frequency of physicians' online monitoring of the patients was decreased by 55% in patients with HbA1c ≤ 6.5% and by 29% when HbA1c > 6.5% ( P < 0.01). Physicians' log-in time was reduced by 67% and 55% in patients with HbA1c ≤6.5% and >6.5%, respectively ( P <0.05). HbA1c levels were maintained at <6.5% during the study period in both groups. The study showed the efficacy and safety of the software for online communication in diabetes management. The results suggest that it could improve the cost-effectiveness of online communication systems and form the basis of future clinical applications.
Mental health professionals' perspectives of telemental health with remote and rural First Nations communities
Authors: Gibson Kerri , O'Donnell Susan , Coulson Heather , Kakepetum-Schultz Tina
Published: August 2011

We conducted an online survey and interviews amongst mental health workers in Canada who reported experience in working with rural and remote First Nations (although not necessarily telemental health). Sixty-three respondents (of the 164) to the online survey reported experience in working with clients in remote and rural First Nations. Only 16 of the online survey respondents with remote and rural First Nations experience reported having received training in videoconferencing use. When asked how frequently they used videoconferencing with clients, 51% reported never using it, 19% used it once every few months and 10% reported using it a few times a month. Approximately 50% of participants reported finding it useful. Approximately 38% found the technology easy or very easy to use, and 15% found it very difficult. Individual in-depth interviews were also conducted with professionals who had First Nations telemental health experience specifically ( n = 5). A quantitative data analysis was used to explore their perceptions of usefulness and ease of use of telemental health, as well as the relationships among these constructs. Advantages, disadvantages and challenges in using the technology were identified from the qualitative data. Promising ways forward include incorporating traditional practices and the Seven Teachings into telemental health services.
Patient adherence to recommendations after teleconsultation: survey of patients from a telemedicine centre in Switzerland
Authors: Rimner Timo , Blozik Eva , Begley Chantal , Grandchamp Chantal , von Overbeck Jan
Published: August 2011

We investigated patients' adherence to recommendations after telephone triage at the Swiss Centre for Telemedicine. We studied cases where the medical problem was assessed as not requiring an immediate face-to-face consultation. Two weeks after teleconsultation, follow-up telephone interviews were conducted with 1129 self-care patients. The patients were asked if they had adhered to the telephone recommendations and whether they had had a subsequent face-to-face consultation. A total of 1003 patients (88%) were available for the follow-up telephone interview. Of those, 85% reported that they had adhered to all self-care recommendations and 86% had followed the advice about further use of the health-care system. Overall, 28% of patients had attended a face-to-face consultation. Half of them were referred by the teleconsultation centre, and half of them had decided themselves not to follow the centre's recommendation. Since acceptance of self-care recommendations after teleconsultation was high, teleconsultation may be an efficient alternative to face-to-face consultations for some conditions.
Telemedicine in acute stroke care: the TESSA model
Authors: Johansson Tim , Mutzenbach Sebastian Johannes , Ladurner Gunther
Published: August 2011

We conducted a retrospective controlled study to assess the safety and effectiveness of intravenous thrombolysis via videoconferencing, followed by patient transport to a specialized stroke unit. Between 2006 and 2009, 47 stroke patients were treated in peripheral hospitals in the county of Salzburg in Austria by intravenous thrombolysis via telemedicine; 304 patients who were treated with intravenous thrombolysis at a stroke unit served as the control group. The mean age of the patients was 67 years in the telemedicine group and 71 years in the control group. Haemorrhagic bleeding occurred in 6.4% of the telemedicine group compared to 7.6% of the control group. The mean onset-to-needle time was 113 min in the telemedicine group and 122 min in the control group ( P = 0.263). At three-month follow-up, 47% of the patients in the telemedicine group had good functional outcomes (mRS, dichotomized analysis 0–1) versus 43% in the control group ( P = 0.694). The overall mortality at three-month follow-up was 19% in the telemedicine group and 13% in the control group ( P = 0.248). Telemedicine can be used to support regional areas with little experience in delivering intravenous thrombolysis, thus raising the standard of stroke care and minimizing inequalities.
Disruption of virus-host cell interactions and cell signaling pathways as an anti-viral approach against influenza virus infections
Authors: Ludwig Stephan
Published: August 2011

Influenza is still one of the major plagues worldwide with the threatening potential to cause pandemics. In recent years, increasing levels of resistance to the four FDA approved anti-influenza virus drugs have been described. This situation underlines the urgent need for novel anti-virals in preparation for future influenza epidemics or pandemics. Although the anti-virals currently in use target viral factors such as the neuraminidase or the M2 ion channel, there is an increase in pre-clinical approaches that focus on cellular factors or pathways that directly or indirectly interact with virus replication. This does not only include inhibitors of virus-supportive signaling cascades but also interaction blockers of viral proteins with host cell proteins. This review aims to highlight some of these novel approaches that represent a paradigm change in anti-viral strategies against the influenza virus. Although most of these approaches are still in an early phase of preclinical development they might be very promising particularly with respect to the prevention of viral resistance to potential drugs.
On the Number of Points in a Lattice Polytope
Authors: Akopyan Arseniy , Tagami Makoto
Published: August 2011

In this article we will show that for every natural
An Extreme Family of Generalized Frobenius Numbers
Authors: Beck Matthias , Kifer Curtis
Published: August 2011

We study a generalization of the
On the Distance Between Smooth Numbers
Authors: De Koninck Jean-Marie , Doyon Nicolas
Published: August 2011

Let
Supremum of Representation Functions
Authors: Grekos Georges , Haddad Labib , Helou Charles , Pihko Jukka
Published: August 2011

For a subset
Application of a Suction Control System in the Method of Specimen Saturation in Triaxial Tests
Authors: Teng Fu-Chen , Ou Chang-Yu
Published: August 2011

A new soil suction control system was developed to saturate soils in triaxial tests. The suction control system was used to reduce the void ratio change during the saturation stage in triaxial tests and to preserve their small-strain behavior. A series of CK0UAC triaxial tests (K0 consolidation and undrained axial compression) on Taipei silty clay, saturated with and without suction control, are presented. The results are presented in terms of the stress-strain behavior during consolidation and undrained shearing. Bender element tests were also performed during the K0-consolidation stage. Results show that the new saturation method with suction control resulted in a better quality soil specimen than conventional saturation. Both the measured Young’s modulus and the shear modulus of the specimens saturated conventionally were underestimated by 20 % and 14 % compared with those saturated with suction control for the reconstituted soil. It is expected that such a difference would be much larger for soils sampled at greater depths. However, the proposed suction control system is not applicable to soil specimens with suctions greater than 100 kPa. The proposed approach would only be applicable for high air-entry value soils so that the suction does not cause desaturation in the soil specimen. Finally, two empirical equations are proposed to estimate the shear modulus of in-situ soils.
Tensile Testing of a Push-On Restrained Joint PVC Pipe
Authors: Fisher Craig , Quesada Guido
Published: August 2011

Pipes installed using trenchless methods such as horizontal directional drilling (HDD) are subjected to tensile forces during installation. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe employing the Bulldog Restraint System (BRS) is being used for installation via HDD. Tensile tests were conducted for assemblies of PVC pipe 4 in. through 8 in. in diameter using BRS. The test specimens were subjected to constant displacement; load and strain were measured. The observations from and results of the tests are reported in this paper.
Influence of Surface Hardening Depth on the Cavitation Erosion Resistance of a Low Alloy Steel
Authors: Goulart-Santos S. , Mancosu R. D. , Godoy C. , Matthews A. , Leyland A.
Published: August 2011

In this paper, the influence of surface hardening depth promoted by plasma nitriding and Cr–Al–N coating deposition on the cavitation erosion resistance of a low alloy steel was investigated. Samples that were plasma nitrided for 2 and 4 h were produced and coated with 1 and 2 μm Cr–Al–N coatings deposited by plasma assisted physical vapor deposition. The characterization was carried out by X-ray diffraction (θ–2θ and glancing angle configurations), scanning electron microscopy, Rockwell C adhesion test, and three dimensional (3D) profilometry. Knoop microhardness tests were also performed. Cavitation erosion tests were carried out according to ASTM G32-03 Standard. The incubation period and cavitation erosion rate were determined. Coating deposition had a major influence on the incubation period, with thicker coatings resulting in longer times. Plasma nitriding treatment was more effective on reducing the average erosion rate. The plasma nitriding treatment and Cr–Al–N coating deposition in conjunction led to a decrease in both incubation period and erosion rate. The hardened systems presented mass loss up to 11 times lower than the nonhardened steel for the same time. It was concluded that the surface hardening was effective to improve the cavitation erosion resistance of a low alloy steel and the wear rate decreased with the increase of the hardening depth.
Development of a More Physiological Loading Protocol for Spine In Vitro Flexibility Testing
Authors: Niosi Christina A. , Thompson Rosemary E. , Froehlich Markus
Published: August 2011

With motion preserving systems, whose behavior is dependent on the loading applied, it is becoming more important to produce a loading environment that better simulates the situation in vivo. Several studies show that the spine experiences high compressive loads that change as a function of position. The purpose of this study was to apply a high compressive dynamic follower load and determine the moment required to produce a physiological range of motion in vitro. Six human specimens (L2-L3) were subjected to a pure moment, in combination with a high compressive dynamic follower load. Appropriate compressive loads were obtained from literature based on in vivo intradiscal pressure measurements. The moments necessary to produce pre-defined angles of rotation in flexion, extension, lateral bending, and axial rotation (in vivo literature values) were recorded. The follower load was attached laterally in flexion-extension and axial rotation and anterior-posteriorly in lateral bending. Tests were also conducted using two traditional loading protocols for comparison: ±10 Nm (no follower load); and ±10 Nm with a 600 N constant follower load, in terms of range of motion (ROM), helical axis of motion (HAM), and flexibility coefficients.The new loading protocol resulting from this study consisted of a compressive follower load of 800 N in the neutral position, a flexion moment of 35 Nm combined with a maximum compressive follower load of 2000 N, an extension moment of 10 Nm combined with 900 N, a moment of ±15 Nm in lateral bending with 1100 N, and a moment of ±20 Nm in axial rotation with 1250 N. The anterior-posterior follower load fixation in lateral bending allowed more unrestrained movement. The moments necessary to produce physiological motion under a dynamic compressive follower load are higher than what is currently used and are comparable to calculated in vivo moments.
Moisture Susceptibility of Polymerized Stone Matrix Asphalt Mixtures using Warm Mix Asphalt Technologies using Moist Aggregates
Authors: Shivaprasad Punith V. , Xiao Feipeng , Amirkhanian Serji N.
Published: August 2011

The present study is focused on evaluating the moisture susceptibility of polymerized stone matrix asphalt (SMA) mixtures using moist aggregates and three different warm mix asphalt (WMA) additives. Indirect tensile strength (ITS), tensile strength ratio (TSR), deformation, and toughness were performed to determine the moisture sensitivity of these mixtures. The experimental design included two aggregate moisture contents (0% and ∼0.5% by weight of dry mass of the aggregate), three sources of aggregates (A, B, and C) and three WMA additives (Asphamin, Sasobit, and Evotherm) along with control mixture, and four different types of binders (i.e., PG 64-22 + 10% crumb rubber (−40 mesh CR), PG 64-22 + 15% CR, PG 64-22 + 20% CR, and PG 76-22 with fibers) were used in this study. In total, 384 samples were utilized for the ITS testing in this study. Test results indicated that even though by using 2% hydrated lime as an anti-stripping agent, 32% of the mixtures failed to meet the TSR requirement of 85% as per SCDOT specifications. Mixtures with PG 76-22 + fibers showed improved wet ITS values compared to rubberized SMA mixtures as using moist aggregates. No significant differences in the wet deformation values were observed for mixtures using WMA additives using moist aggregates. Mixtures with 15% CR content showed improved resistance to the percent toughness loss under a warm water bath treatment. Test results indicated that recycled rubberized asphalt binder can be effectively used to improve resistance to moisture-induced damage of SMA mixtures as using WMA technology.
Creep Fatigue Behavior of Creep Strength Enhanced Ferritic Steels
Authors: Parker Jonathan
Published: August 2011

Creep Fatigue knowledge is necessary for meaningful reliability assessment of existing power generating plant because cyclic operation of an aging power plant fleet requires better understanding of factors affecting damage initiation and propagation, as well as technologies and methods to predict damage accumulation for individual components and overall safe/economic life. Utilities typically adopt operating practices which involve more severe cycles, either in terms of number or magnitude or both, so that there is, and will continue to be, a requirement to assess the creep fatigue performance of traditional boiler and turbine components. The recent installation of large numbers of combustion turbines and the associated heat recovery steam generators has significantly increased the number of materials and components which are operating under cyclic conditions at high temperatures. Indeed, the materials and component types susceptible to creep-fatigue is increasing since much of the new high efficiency coal plant will be operating with steam/metal temperatures much higher than those of traditional plant. Recent expert review has reemphasized that with most practical scenarios regarding future generation mix, fossil plant will continue to be important. Thus, there is the expectation that creep-fatigue damage will increase in occurrence, and affect an increased range of components. Different challenges will be faced since the new components will involve a greater range of alloys, methods of manufacture, and types of operation than conventional fossil generating stations. It is therefore apparent that operation under cyclic conditions at temperatures where creep can occur the potential for creep/fatigue damage is, and will continue to be, a matter of significant concern. The present paper considers specific challenges associated with creep/fatigue in creep strength enhanced ferritic steels such as Grade 91 and Grade 92.