bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Spectral estimation
Authors: Fokianos Konstantinos
Published: January 2010

We review spectral analysis and its application in inference for stationary processes. As can be seen from the list of references, the practice of spectral analysis is widespread in diverse scientific and engineering fields, particularly in signal processing and communications.

One of the most striking characteristics of time series is their oscillatory behavior. This behavior is manifested, for example, in electroencephalogram (EEG) records, weekly sales, monthly environmental data, hourly financial indices, and in numerous economic data observed periodically in time. When observing such data the intuitive notion of periodicity is inescapable, and this led to the statistical problem of estimation of ‘hidden periodicities’ in time series. Schuster [47] was among the first who studied the problem seriously, and is credited with the invention of the so‐called periodogram, a tool for discovering periodicities in oscillatory data. Consequently, spectral analysis and its ramification was further advanced by the pioneering works of Slutsky, Yule, Khintchine, Wiener, Cramer, Kolmogorov, Bartlett, Tukey, Parzen, Rosenblatt, Grenander, Koopmans, Brillinger, and Hannan. The goal of this communication is to introduce the reader to the topic of spectral analysis, and to review some state‐of‐the‐art developments.

It is of course not possible to give a full account of the literature on spectral analysis within this limited space. The selection of the references has been influenced by my own personal research interests. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

This article is categorized under:

Data: Types and Structure > Time Series, Stochastic Processes, and Functional Data
What Does it Mean to be a Man Today?: Bloke Culture and the Media
Authors: Hodgetts Darrin , Rua Mohi
Published: January 2010

Psychologists have paid scant attention to the positive relationships and community contributions of working class men who are not in trouble, and have focused instead on men who are ‘in trouble.’ In addressing this oversight, we draw on insights from ethnographic observations, life narrative interviews, photographic techniques and media items, which have been compiled by 12 working class men from a shared community of practice in New Zealand. We illustrate how these men often appropriate aspects from contemporary media deliberations regarding what it means to be a man today in order to make sense of their own lives. The implications of participants' emphasis on friendship, support, familial obligations, and community participation are discussed in relation to the place of working class men in society.
High glucose down‐regulates miR‐29a to increase collagen IV production in HK‐2 cells
Authors: Du Bin , Ma Li-Ming , Huang Mian-Bo , Zhou Hui , Huang Hui-Lin , Shao Peng , Chen Yue-Qin , Qu Liang-Hu
Published: January 2010

Deposition of collagen IV in proximal tubule cells (PTCs) plays an important role during diabetic nephropathy, but the mechanism underlying excessive production of collagen IV remains poorly understood. In this study, we examined the miRNA profile of HK‐2 cells and found that high glucose/TGF‐β1 induced significant down‐regulation of miR‐29a. We then showed that miR‐29a negatively regulated collagen IV by directly targeting the 3′UTRs of col4a1 and col4a2. These results suggest that miR‐29a acts as a repressor to fine‐tune collagen expression and that the reduction of miR‐29a caused by high glucose may increase the risk of excess collagen deposition in PTCs.
The role of protonation in protein fibrillation
Authors: Jeppesen Martin D. , Westh Peter , Otzen Daniel E.
Published: January 2010

Many proteins fibrillate at low pH despite a high population of charged side chains. Therefore exchange of protons between the fibrillating peptide and its surroundings may play an important role in fibrillation. Here, we use isothermal titration calorimetry to measure exchange of protons between buffer and the peptide hormone glucagon during fibrillation. Glucagon absorbs or releases protons to an extent which allows it to attain a net charge of zero in the fibrillar state, both at acidic and basic pH. Similar results are obtained for lysozyme. This suggests that side chain pK
a values change dramatically in the fibrillar state.
Fundamental Solutions in Elastodynamics
Authors: Kausel Eduardo
Published: January 2010

This 2006 work is a compilation of fundamental solutions (or Green's functions) for classical or canonical problems in elastodynamics presented with a common format and notation. These formulas describe the displacements and stresses elicited by dynamic sources in solid elastic media like full spaces, half-spaces, strata and plates in both two and three dimensions, using the three major coordinate systems (Cartesian, cylindrical and spherical), and also for transient and harmonic motions. Such formulas are useful for numerical methods and practical application to problems of wave propagation in elasticity, soil dynamics, earthquake engineering, mechanical vibration, or geophysics. These formulas were heretofore only found scattered throughout the literature. The solutions are tabulated without proof, but giving reference to appropriate modern papers and books containing full derivations. Most formulas in the book have been programmed and tested within the MATLAB environment. The program listings are available for free download on the book's website.
The Clausal Theory of Types
Authors: Wolfram D. A.
Published: January 2010

Logic programming was based on first-order logic. Higher-order logics can also lead to theories of theorem-proving. This book introduces just such a theory, based on a lambda-calculus formulation of a clausal logic with equality, known as the Clausal Theory of Types. By restricting this logic to Horn clauses, a concise form of logic programming that incorporates functional programming is achieved. The book begins by reviewing the fundamental Skolem-Herbrand-Gödel Theorem and resolution, which are then extrapolated to a higher-order setting; this requires introducing higher-order equational unification which builds in higher-order equational theories and uses higher-order rewriting. The logic programming language derived has the unique property of being sound and complete with respect to Henkin-Andrews general models, and consequently of treating equivalent terms as identical. First published in 1993, the book can be used for graduate courses in theorem-proving, but will be of interest to all working in declarative programming.
Kingship and State
Authors: Wrigley Christopher
Published: January 2010

The precolonial kingdom of Buganda, nucleus of the present Uganda state, has long attracted scholarly interest. Since written records are lacking entirely until 1862, historians have had to rely on oral traditions that were recorded from the end of the nineteenth century. These sources provide rich materials on Buganda in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, but in this 1996 book Christopher Wrigley endeavours to show that the stories which appear to relate to earlier periods are largely mythology. He argues that this does not reduce their value since they are of interest in their own mythical right, revealing ancient traces of sacred kingship, and also throwing oblique light on the development of the recent state. He has written an elegant and wide-ranging study of one of Africa's most famous kingdoms.
Domesday Book and the Law
Authors: Fleming Robin
Published: January 2010

The Domesday Book contains a great many things, including the most comprehensive, varied, and monumental legal material to survive from England before the rise of the common law. This book argues that it can - and should - be read as a legal text. When the statistical information present in the great survey is stripped away, there is much material still left, almost all of which stems directly from inquest, testimony given by jurors impanelled in 1086, or from the sworn statements of lords and their men. This information, read in context, can provide a picture of what the law looked like, the ways in which it was changing, and the means whereby the inquest was a central event in the formation of English law. The volume provides translations (with Latin legal terminology included parenthetically) for all of Domesday Book's legal references, each numbered and organised by county, fee, and folio.
Explicit Brauer Induction
Authors: Snaith Victor P.
Published: January 2010

Explicit Brauer Induction is an important technique in algebra, discovered by the author in 1986. It solves an old problem, giving a canonical formula for Brauer's induction theorem. In this 1994 book it is derived algebraically, following a method of R. Boltje - thereby making the technique, previously topological, accessible to algebraists. Once developed, the technique is used, by way of illustration, to re-prove some important known results in new ways and to settle some outstanding problems. As with Brauer's original result, the canonical formula can be expected to have numerous applications and this book is designed to introduce research algebraists to its possibilities. For example, the technique gives an improved construction of the Oliver–Taylor group-ring logarithm, which enables the author to study more effectively algebraic and number-theoretic questions connected with class-groups of rings.
Fast Multipole Boundary Element Method
Authors: Liu Yijun
Published: January 2010

The fast multipole method is one of the most important algorithms in computing developed in the 20th century. Along with the fast multipole method, the boundary element method (BEM) has also emerged as a powerful method for modeling large-scale problems. BEM models with millions of unknowns on the boundary can now be solved on desktop computers using the fast multipole BEM. This is the first book on the fast multipole BEM, which brings together the classical theories in BEM formulations and the recent development of the fast multipole method. Two- and three-dimensional potential, elastostatic, Stokes flow, and acoustic wave problems are covered, supplemented with exercise problems and computer source codes. Applications in modeling nanocomposite materials, bio-materials, fuel cells, acoustic waves, and image-based simulations are demonstrated to show the potential of the fast multipole BEM. Enables students, researchers, and engineers to learn the BEM and fast multipole method from a single source.
A History of Egypt
Authors: Al-Sayyid Marsot Afaf Lutfi
Published: January 2010

Egypt occupies a central position in the Arab world. Its borders between sand and sea have existed for millennia and yet, until 1952, the country was ruled by foreigners. Afaf al-Sayyid Marsot explores the paradoxes of Egypt's history in a new edition of her successful A Short History of Modern Egypt. Charting the years from the Arab conquest, through the age of the Mamluks, Egypt's incorporation into the Ottoman Empire, the liberal experiment in constitutional government in the early twentieth century, followed by the Nasser and Sadat years, the new edition takes the story up to the present day. During the Mubarak era, Egyptians have seen major changes with the rise of globalization and its effects on their economy, the advent of new political parties, the entrenchment of Islamic fundamentalism and the consequent changing attitudes to women. This short history is ideal for students and travelers.
Francophone Sub-Saharan Africa 1880–1995
Authors: Manning Patrick
Published: January 2010

This edition of Patrick Manning's established text includes two new chapters that discuss developments in the region since 1985, emphasising the democratisation movements of the 1980s and 1990s, the Francophone movement, and the crises in Rwanda and Burundi. Focusing on the French-speaking countries of west and central Africa, the book brings out the way in which the precolonial African heritage shaped new societies, in interaction with French and Belgian colonial rules, and with global economic and cultural forces. Three eras of change are described: the transition to colonial rule from 1880 to 1940, the transition to independent states from 1940 to 1985, and the reconfiguration of post-colonial society after 1985. The first edition of this book has been widely used in courses in African studies and African history.
The Films of Federico Fellini
Authors: Bondanella Peter
Published: January 2010

The Films of Federico Fellini examines the career of one of Italy's most renowned filmmakers through close analysis of five masterpieces that span his career: La Strada, La Dolce Vita, 8 1/2, Amarcord and Interview. Providing an overview of Fellini's early career as a cartoonist and scriptwriter for neorealist directors such as Roberto Rossellini, this study traces the development of Fellini's unique and personal cinematic vision as it transcends Italian neorealism. Rejecting an overtly ideological approach to Fellini's cinema, Bondanella emphasizes the director's interest in fantasy, the irrational and individualism.
The Films of Woody Allen
Authors: Girgus Sam B.
Published: January 2010

The Films of Woody Allen was the first full-length work to examine the director as a serious filmmaker and artist. Sam Girgus argues that Allen has consistently been on the cutting edge of contemporary critical and cultural consciousness, challenging our notions of authorship, narrative, perspective, character, theme, ideology, gender and sexuality. This revised and updated edition includes two new chapters that examine Allen's work since 1992. Girgus argues that the scandal surrounding Allen's personal life in the early 1990s has altered his image in ways that reposition moral consciousness in his work. The union between Allen's public and private selves that created a special 'aura' about him remains intact despite the director's concerted efforts to separate his private life from his screen image. Allen now assumes a postmodern moral relativism and 'sensual realism' that differs profoundly from the moral sensibility of his earlier work.
A Systematic Theory of Argumentation
Authors: Eemeren Frans H. van , Grootendorst Rob
Published: January 2010

In this book two of the leading figures in argumentation theory present a view of argumentation as a means of resolving differences of opinion by testing the acceptability of the disputed positions. Their model of a 'critical discussion' serves as a theoretical tool for analysing, evaluating and producing argumentative discourse. They develop a method for the reconstruction of argumentative discourse that takes into account all aspects that are relevant to a critical assessment. They also propose a practical code of behaviour for discussants who want to resolve their differences in a reasonable way. This is a major contribution to the study of argumentation and will be of particular value to professionals and graduate students in speech communication, informal logic, rhetoric, critical thinking, linguistics, and philosophy.
Inconsistency in Roman Epic
Authors: O'Hara James J.
Published: January 2010

How should we react as readers and as critics when two passages in a literary work contradict one another? Classicists once assumed that all inconsistencies in ancient texts needed to be amended, explained away, or lamented. Building on recent work on both Greek and Roman authors, this book explores the possibility of interpreting inconsistencies in Roman epic. After a chapter surveying Greek background material including Homer, tragedy, Plato and the Alexandrians, five chapters argue that comparative study of the literary use of inconsistencies can shed light on major problems in Catullus' Peleus and Thetis, Lucretius' De Rerum Natura, Vergil's Aeneid, Ovid's Metamorphoses, and Lucan's Bellum Civile. Not all inconsistencies can or should be interpreted thematically, but numerous details in these poems, and some ancient and modern theorists, suggest that we can be better readers if we consider how inconsistencies may be functioning in Greek and Roman texts.
Filtering and System Identification
Authors: Verhaegen Michel , Verdult Vincent
Published: January 2010

Filtering and system identification are powerful techniques for building models of complex systems. This 2007 book discusses the design of reliable numerical methods to retrieve missing information in models derived using these techniques. Emphasis is on the least squares approach as applied to the linear state-space model, and problems of increasing complexity are analyzed and solved within this framework, starting with the Kalman filter and concluding with the estimation of a full model, noise statistics and state estimator directly from the data. Key background topics, including linear matrix algebra and linear system theory, are covered, followed by different estimation and identification methods in the state-space model. With end-of-chapter exercises, MATLAB simulations and numerous illustrations, this book will appeal to graduate students and researchers in electrical, mechanical and aerospace engineering. It is also useful for practitioners. Additional resources for this title, including solutions for instructors, are available online at www.cambridge.org/9780521875127.
The Films of Roberto Rossellini
Authors: Bondanella Peter
Published: January 2010

The Films of Roberto Rossellini traces the career of one of the most influential Italian filmmakers through close analysis of the seven films that mark important turning points in his evolution: The Man with a Cross (1943), Open City (1945), Paisan (1946), The Machine to Kill Bad People (1948–52), Voyage in Italy (1953), General della Rovere (1959) and The Rise to Power of Louis XIV (1966). Beginning with Rossellini's work within the fascist cinema, it discusses his invention of neorealism, a new cinematic style that resulted in several classics during the immediate postwar period. Almost immediately, however, Rossellini's continually evolving style moved beyond mere social realism to reveal other aspects of the camera's gaze, as is apparent in the films he made with Ingrid Bergman during the 1950s; though unpopular, these works had a tremendous impact on the French New Wave critics and directors. Rossellini's late career marks a return to his nonrealist period, now critically reexamined, in such works as the commercially successful General della Rovere, and his eventual turn to the creation of didactic films for television.
Identity through History
Authors: White Geoffrey M.
Published: January 2010

For people who live in small communities transformed by powerful outside forces, narrative accounts of culture contact and change create images of collective identity through the idiom of shared history. How may we understand the processes that make such accounts compelling for those who tell them? Why do some narratives acquire a kind of mythic status as they are told and retold in a variety of contexts and genres? Identity Through History attempts to explain how identity formation developed among the people of Santa Isabel in the Solomon Islands who were victimised by raiding headhunters in the nineteenth century, and then embraced Christianity around the turn of the century. Making innovative use of work in psychological and historical anthropology, Geoffrey White shows how these significant events were crucial to the community's view of itself in shifting social and political circumstances.
Fritz London
Authors: Gavroglu Kostas
Published: January 2010

Fritz London was one of the twentieth century's key figures in the development of theoretical physics. A quiet and self-effacing man, he was one of the founders of quantum chemistry, and was the first to give a phenomenological explanation of superconductivity. This thoroughly researched biography gives a detailed account of London's life and work in Munich, Berlin, Oxford, Paris, and finally in the United States. Covering a fascinating period in the development of theoretical physics, and containing an appraisal of London's work by the late John Bardeen, this book will be of great interest to physicists, chemists, and to anyone interested in the history of science.
The Films of Jean-Luc Godard
Authors: Sterritt David
Published: January 2010

The Films of Jean-Luc Godard examines the work of one of the most versatile and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. With a career ranging from France's New Wave movement in the early 1960s to a period of political experimentation in the late 1960s and 70s, and, currently, a contemplative period in which Godard has explored issues of spirituality, sexuality, and the aesthetics of sound, image, and montage, the filmmaker's work defies easy categorization. In this study, David Sterritt offers an introductory overview of Godard's work as a filmmaker, critic, and video artist. In subsequent chapters, he traces Godard's visionary ideas through six of his key films, including Breathless, My Life to Live, Weekend, Numéro deux, Hail Mary, and Nouvelle Vague formats. Linking Godard's works to key social and cultural developments, The Films of Jean-Luc Godard explains their importance in modernist and postmodernist art of the last half century.
Institutions in Economics
Authors: Rutherford Malcolm
Published: January 2010

This book examines and compares the two major traditions of institutionalist thinking in economics: the 'old' institutionalism of Veblen, Mitchell, Commons, and Ayres, and the 'new' institutionalism developed more recently from neoclassical and Austrian sources and including the writings of Coase, Williamson, North, Schotter, and many others. The discussion is organized around a set of key methodological, theoretical, and normative problems that necessarily confront any attempt to incorporate institutions (defined to include organizations, laws, and social norms) into economics. These are identified in terms of the issues surrounding the use of formal or non-formal analytical methods, individualist or holistic approaches, the respective roles of rational choice and rule-following behavior, the relative importance of the spontaneous evolution and deliberative design of institutions, and questions concerning the normative appraisal of institutions. The old and the new institutionalism have often been paired on opposite sides of these issues, and the issues themselves presented in a series of sharp dichotomies. Professor Rutherford argues, however, that matters are both more complex and more challenging. Although each tradition embodies fascinating insights into the study of economic institutions - their functioning, evolution, and impact on human welfare - neither has as yet provided fully satisfactory answers to the problems identified.
The Clinical Anaesthesia Viva Book
Authors: Barker Julian M. , Mills Simon J. , Maguire Simon L. , Lalkhen Abdul Ghaaliq , McGrath Brendan A. , Thomson Hamish
Published: January 2010

The second edition of the hugely popular The Clinical Anaesthesia Viva Book builds on the success of the first by providing a thorough review of short and long case questions typically given to Final FRCA viva candidates. An introductory chapter gives invaluable practical advice on preparation for the viva. This is followed by almost 100 short cases and 25 long cases, all based on viva questions posed at recent examinations. Answers have been constructed from a combination of popular textbooks, recent publications and the extensive practical experience of the authors. Short further reading lists are provided for more in-depth preparation. Written by a team of expert consultants and senior trainees with (successful!) experience of the Final FRCA, this second edition of The Clinical Anaesthesia Viva Book, is a must-have for anyone preparing for the Final FRCA viva.
Effects ofdl-2-hydroxy-4-methylthiobutyrate on the first-pass intestinal metabolism of dietary methionine and its extra-intestinal availability
Authors: Fang Zhengfeng , Huang Feiruo , Luo Jie , Wei Hongkui , Ma Libao , Jiang Siwen , Peng Jian
Published: January 2010

The present study was conducted in a one-factorial arrangement to determine the effects ofdl-2-hydroxy-4-methylthiobutyrate (dl-HMTB) on the first-pass intestinal metabolism of dietary methionine and its extra-intestinal availability. Barrows (n6; aged 35 d; weight 8·6 kg), implanted with arterial, portal, mesenteric and gastric catheters, were fed a diet containingdl-methionine (dl-MET) ordl-HMTB once hourly and infused intramesenterically with 1 %p-aminohippurate and intragastrically with [1-13C]methionine at 7·0 μmol/kg body weight per h. Arterial and portal blood samples were taken at hourly intervals until 6 h of tracer infusion and pigs was then killed for collection of muscle, intestine, liver and kidney samples. The net portal appearance of methionine, expressed as the fraction of ingested directly availablel-methionine, was higher (P < 0·05) in thedl-HMTB than in thedl-MET diet, and there was no difference (P = 0·26) in the fractional portal balance of [1-13C]methionine between the diets. [1-13C]methionine enrichment (tracer:tracee ratio; mol/100 mol amino acid) in the jejunum, arterial and portal plasma, liver, kidney and muscle was also not different (P>0·05) between the groups. Over the 6 h period after the start of feeding, the average concentration of citrulline both in the arterial and portal plasma was higher (P < 0·05) in thedl-HMTB than in thedl-MET group, and arterial plasma ornithine and taurine concentration was also higher (P < 0·05) in thedl-HMTB than in thedl-MET group. However, plasma urea concentration both in the arterial and portal vein was lower (P < 0·05) in thedl-HMTB than in thedl-MET group. These results suggested that the potential difference in the first-pass use of methionine by the intestine between thedl-HMTB anddl-MET diets might affect intestinal and systemic metabolism of other amino acids, which may provide new important insights into nutritional efficiency of different methionine sources.
Functional characterisation of a recombinant xylanase fromPichia pastorisand effect of the enzyme on nutrient digestibility in weaned pigs
Authors: He Jun , Yin Jia , Wang Li , Yu Bing , Chen Daiwen
Published: January 2010

Thexyn2gene of a filamentous mesophilic fungus,Trichoderma reesei, coding xylanase 2 (Xyn2) was previously expressed inPichia pastoris. In the present study, the recombinant Xyn2 was prepared from a 15 litre fermenter, and subsequently characterised. It has been confirmed to have a molecular mass of 21 kDa, an optimal pH of 6·0 and an optimal temperature of 60°C. When tested using oat-spelt xylan, it showed aKmand catalytic rate constant (kcat) of 1·1 mg/ml and 512·4/s, respectively. Analysis of the products from oat-spelt xylan degradation confirmed that the enzyme was an endoxylanase with xylotriose and xylobiose as the main degradation products. The unprocessed Xyn2 was supplemented to a xylan-containing diet to determine its influences on performance and nutrient digestibilities by weaned pigs. Results showed that the average body-weight gain increased 16·9 % when piglets received Xyn2 at a concentration of 500 U/kg diet. There also was a positive (0·05 < P < 0·10) effect on the digestibility values of crude protein, ash, Ca and acid-detergent fibre with Xyn2 supplementation. The potential benefits of Xyn2 in the nutrition of weaned pigs should make it an alternative applicant for industrial xylanase production.
Spectral analysis of a class of hermitian Jacobi matrices in a critical (double root) hyperbolic case
Authors: Naboko Serguei , Simonov Sergey
Published: January 2010

We consider a class of Jacobi matrices with periodically modulated diagonal in a critical hyperbolic (‘double root’) situation. For the model with ‘non-smooth’ matrix entries we obtain the asymptotics of generalized eigenvectors and analyse the spectrum. In addition, we reformulate a very helpful theorem from a paper by Janas and Moszynski in its full generality in order to serve the needs of our method.
Superlinear elliptic equation for fully nonlinear operators without growth restrictions for the data
Authors: Esteban Maria J. , Felmer Patricio L. , Quaas Alexander
Published: January 2010

We deal with existence and uniqueness of the solution to the fully nonlinear equation

−F(D2u) + |u|s−1u = f(x) in ℝn,

where s > 1 and f satisfies only local integrability conditions. This result is well known when, instead of the fully nonlinear elliptic operator F, the Laplacian or a divergence-form operator is considered. Our existence results use the Alexandroff-Bakelman-Pucci inequality since we cannot use any variational formulation. For radially symmetric f, and in the particular case where F is a maximal Pucci operator, we can prove our results under fewer integrability assumptions, taking advantage of an appropriate variational formulation. We also obtain an existence result with boundary blow-up in smooth domains.
On the support of tempered distributions
Authors: Vindas Jasson , Estrada Ricardo
Published: January 2010

We show that if the summability means in the Fourier inversion formula for a tempered distribution f ∈ S′(ℝn) converge to zero pointwise in an open set Ω, and if those means are locally bounded in L1(Ω), then Ω ⊂ ℝn\supp f. We prove this for several summability procedures, in particular for Abel summability, Cesàro summability and Gauss-Weierstrass summability.
Existence and blow-up of solutions for a non-local filtration and porous medium problem
Authors: Latos E. A. , Tzanetis D. E.
Published: January 2010

We consider a non-local filtration equation of the form

and a porous medium equation, in this case K(u) = um, with some boundary and initial data u0, where 0 < p < 1 and f, f′, f″ > 0. We prove blow-up of solutions for sufficiently large values of the parameter λ > 0 and for any u0 > 0, or for sufficiently large values of u0 > 0 and for any λ λ 0.
Quasilinear elliptic problems with critical exponents and Hardy terms in ℝN
Authors: Kang Dongsheng
Published: January 2010

We deal with a singular quasilinear elliptic problem, which involves critical Hardy-Sobolev exponents and multiple Hardy terms. Using variational methods and analytic techniques, the existence of ground state solutions to the problem is obtained.
On a gauge-invariant functional
Authors: Gherghe Cătălin
Published: January 2010

We define a new functional which is gauge invariant on the space of all smooth connections of a vector bundle over a compact Riemannian manifold. This functional is a generalization of the classical Yang-Mills functional. We derive its first variation formula and prove the existence of critical points. We also obtain the second variation formula.
Bilinear character sums and sum-product problems on elliptic curves
Authors: Ahmadi Omran , Shparlinski Igor
Published: January 2010

Let E be an ordinary elliptic curve over a finite field q of q elements. We improve a bound on bilinear additive character sums over points on E, and obtain its analogue for bilinear multiplicative character sums. We apply these bounds to some variants of the sum-product problem on E.
On one-sided primitivity of Banach algebras
Authors: Crabb M. J. , Duncan J. , McGregor C. M.
Published: January 2010

Let S be the semigroup with identity, generated by x and y, subject to y being invertible and yx = xy2. We study two Banach algebra completions of the semigroup algebra ℂS. Both completions are shown to be left-primitive and have separating families of irreducible infinite-dimensional right modules. As an appendix, we offer an alternative proof that ℂS is left-primitive but not right-primitive. We show further that, in contrast to the completions, every irreducible right module for ℂS is finite dimensional and hence that ℂS has a separating family of such modules.
RECONSTRUCTING THE HOUSEHOLD: THE NORTHERN CAPE COLONY BEFORE AND AFTER THE SOUTH AFRICAN WAR
Authors: DOOLING WAYNE
Published: January 2010

A major component of the South African War, the imperialist conflict that gave birth to modern South Africa, was the violence that occurred between white settlers and indigenous black populations. This article seeks to understand the particular nature of this violence in the northern districts of the Cape Colony. The war intruded into a region in which memories of conquest were alive, and where recently established settler authority was extremely fragile. Here, the war has to be seen as the final chapter in the closing of a nineteenth-century colonial frontier. The conflict was one between masters and servants in a region where capitalist relations of production had yet to take hold. Conflict continued in the years immediately after the war, and an essential task of the post-war state was to calm disgruntled black subjects.
The Signaling Hypothesis Revisited: Evidence from Foreign IPOs
Authors: Francis Bill B. , Hasan Iftekhar , Lothian James R. , Sun Xian
Published: January 2010

While the signaling hypothesis has played a prominent role as the economic rationale associated with the initial public offering (IPO) underpricing puzzle (Welch (1989)), the empirical evidence on it has been mixed at best (Jegadeesh, Weinstein, and Welch (1993), Michaely and Shaw (1994)). This paper revisits the issue from the vantage point of close to two decades of additional experience by examining a sample of foreign IPOs—firms from both financially integrated and segmented markets—in U.S. markets. The evidence indicates that signaling does matter in determining IPO underpricing, especially for firms domiciled in countries with segmented markets, which as a result face higher information asymmetry and lack access to external capital markets. We find a significant positive and robust relationship between the degree of IPO underpricing and segmented-market firms’ seasoned equity offering (SEO) activities. For firms from integrated markets, in contrast, the analyst-coverage purchase hypothesis appears to matter more in explaining IPO underpricing, and the aftermarket price appreciation explains these firms’ SEO activities. The evidence, therefore, clearly supports the notion that some firms are willing to leave money on the table voluntarily to get a more favorable price at seasoned offerings when they are substantially wealth constrained, a prediction embedded in the signaling hypothesis.
Energy coupling among the degrees of freedom in an electron–positron plasma
Authors: ZHANG WENMIN , YU M. Y. , KARIMOV A. R. , STENFLO L.
Published: January 2010

Nonlinear coupling of the motion in the three spatial degrees of freedom of a cold fluid electron–positron plasma is investigated. Exact solutions describing expanding flows with oscillations are obtained. It is found that the energy in the irrotational flow component is in general transferred to the rotational components, but not in the reversed direction. Furthermore, since the density evolution need not be related to all the three flow components, oscillations in one or two of the flow fields can be purely electromagnetic and are not accompanied by density oscillations.
PROTEINURIA IN PREECLAMPSIA: FROM BENCH TO BEDSIDE
Authors: RITCHIE ANGUS , BROWN MARK A
Published: January 2010

Pre-eclampsia (PE) remains the leading cause of maternal and fetal mortality in the developed world and parts of the developing world. Morbidity and mortality from PE is increased in the developing world compared to the developed world, as availability and access to antenatal care and pathology services are limited.
On Browsing Through the New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics: I
Authors: Thweatt William O.
Published: January 2010

Last January I received my four volume set of the New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics. As has been said, it really is not a dictionary but an encyclopedia. Many of the entries bring the reader up to date on the latest advances in economic theory. But “over 700 of the nearly 2000 entries” are on the lives and works of important economists who either have passed away or “have reached the age of seventy by 1 January 1986” (I. ix). Even the theoretical entries often contain a history of the subject, and many subjects would be classified as history of economic thought entries. (See the Subject Index. IV. 980-988.)
The Institutional Base of the Stockholm School: The Political Economy Club (1917–1951)
Authors: Henriksson Rolf G.H.
Published: January 2010

On October 1, 1936 the Stockholm economists hosted a very distinguished guest, John Maynard Keynes. Homeward bound from a visit to the Soviet Union, Keynes appeared at the Political Economy Club. The minutes, as recorded by Ingvar Svennilson, relate:

1.

At the invitation of the club, Mr. J.M. Keynes lectured at the Institute of Social Science on the subject “My grounds for departure from orthodox economic traditions.” The lecture was arranged with support from J.H. Palme's fund for economic education and economic research. Some 100 persons attended the lecture.

2.

Following the lecture, the club arranged a dinner at the student union building. In addition to Mr. and Mrs. Keynes, the dinner was attended by: the chairman Professor Ohlin, Miss Kock, Messrs. Björ, Böök, Cederwall, Dahlgren, Hammarskjöld, Helger, Johansson, Lagercrantz (guest), Lundberg, Myrdal, Rothlieb, Rooth, Suoviranta (Finland, guest) and Wigforss, as well as the undersigned. After dinner there was a discussion that continued until midnight.
On Composition of Demand and Income Distribution In Classical Economics
Authors: Hollander Samuel
Published: January 2010

In several reviews of my Classical Economics (1987; henceforth CE) a criticism recurs relating to my proposition that distribution in Ricardian economics is dependent upon the pattern of final demand. Anthony Brewer, who is convinced by the demonstration in the book of ‘a fundamentally important core of general equilibrium economics accounting for resource allocation in terms of the rationing function of relative prices,’ has stated the objection fairly and his formulation invites and deserves a response:

[Hollander] does overstate his case at times. For example, he claims that, in Ricardo's theory, changes in the pattern of demand should react on the demand for labour, and thus on wages, while admitting that ‘Ricardo himself never formally made’ this extension [CE, p. 104]. He later uses exactly this interaction of demand and wages to support his interpretation of Ricardo against Dobb [CE, p. 360]. Surely, the fact that Ricardo did not ‘formally make’ this point (i.e., did not make it at all) is an argument against Hollander's reading, not for it (1988, p. 555).
What Has Happened to Gustav von Schmoller in English?
Authors: Senn Peter R.
Published: January 2010

In 1954 the American Economic Association held its first session on “The International Flow of Economic Ideas.” As a discussant, the great scholar of Walras, William Jafft said, “The Iron and Bamboo Curtains of today were preceded three-quarters of a century ago by nationalistic, linguistic, and other curtains–all impending the free flow of ideas in the learned world,” (1955, 38–9). A.W. Coats later added some other obstacles, “…the unavailability of modern information retrieval methods, or perhaps a plain ornery human unwillingness to cooperate or personal dislike, all have at times been impediments to the progress of knowledge,” (1987, 66).
Vitamins A, E and fatty acid composition of the eggs of caged hens and pastured hens
Authors: Karsten H.D. , Patterson P.H. , Stout R. , Crews G.
Published: January 2010

In the US farmers often market pastured poultry eggs for a premium price, claiming animal and human health benefits. We examined how moving pastured hens to forage legumes or mixed grasses influenced hen (Gallus gallusL.) egg omega-3 fatty acids and concentrations of vitamins A and E. We also compared the eggs of the pastured hens to those of hens fed a commercial diet in cages. We used a cross-over design to compare pasture species: 75 sister hens were assigned to one of three pasture treatment groups: (1) alfalfa (Medicago sativaL.), (2) red and white clover (Trifolium pretenseL. andTrifolium repensL.) or (3) mixed cool season grasses. Groups were rotated to all three pasture treatments, each for 2 weeks and supplemented with 70 g commercial hen mash bird−1day−1. Pasture botanical composition, forage mass, leaf to total ratio and plant fatty acid composition were compared among pasture treatments. Eggs of the pastured hens were compared to eggs of 50 sister hens that were fed only commercial hen mash in cages for the entire 6 weeks. Forage parameters varied somewhat, but did not explain plant linolenic acid variation. Seventeen of the 18 quantified egg fatty acids, and vitamin A concentrations did not (P<0.05) differ among the three pasture treatment groups. Eggs of the hens that foraged grasses had 23% more (P<0.0001) vitamin E than eggs of hens that foraged clover. Compared to eggs of the caged hens, pastured hens' eggs had twice as much vitamin E and long-chain omega-3 fats, 2.5-fold more total omega-3 fatty acids, and less than half the ratio of omega-6:omega-3 fatty acids (P<0.0001). Vitamin A concentration was 38% higher (P<0.05) in the pastured hens' eggs than in the caged hens' eggs, but total vitamin A per egg did not differ. At the end of the experiment, pastured hens weighed 14% less and averaged 15% lower hen-day egg production than caged birds (P<0.0001). Results suggest that grass pastures may enhance vitamin E in eggs of pastured hens more than clover, and pastured hens supplemented with commercial mash will produce eggs with significantly more vitamin E and total omega-3 fatty acids compared to eggs from caged hens fed only commercial hen mash. Pastured hens may have lower body weight and egg production than caged hens, unless they are supplemented adequately to meet their dietary energy and crude protein needs.
Constitutional revolutions: Israel as a case-study
Authors: Sapir Gideon
Published: January 2010

From its foundation in 1948 and until the 1990s, the State of Israel lacked a formal Bill of Rights. Although the Declaration of Independence had promised a constitution, a series of obstacles prevented its adoption. In the intervening years, several attempts to anchor a Bill of Rights in a Basic Law met with failure.

In 1992, the Knesset adopted two Basic Laws dealing with human rights. The Supreme Court used these laws as a platform for creating a full-fledged Bill of Rights, and Israeli scholars helped to expedite this process. And yet, despite extensive academic discussion of these developments, the dearth of legal literature remains conspicuous on one question: How did it happen? How is it that after forty-four years of failures and parliamentary paralysis, the Knesset suddenly voted in favour of anchoring a Bill of Rights in Basic Laws?

In this article, I examine four possible explanations. The first attributes these developments to the successful exploitation of a constitutional moment that reflected a severe erosion of public trust in politics. The second pins success on the tactics adopted by the proponents of the law. Instead of insisting on the adoption of a complete Bill of Rights, they split it into small sections and worked to enact only the consensual ones. According to the third thesis, the adoption of these laws was enabled by their proponents’ failure to expose the full import of this move, thereby lulling their traditional opponents into a false sense of security. According to the fourth explanation, success resulted from two major shifts in Israeli politics. The first was the Labor Party’s loss of hegemony and the ensuing uncertainty regarding the identity of future coalitions, and the second was the strengthening of sectorial elements that threatened the dominance of the secular bourgeoisie. The first shift weakened the coalition’s inherent resistance to the constitutionalization of the political system, and the second neutralized the institutional interest of Knesset members representing the old elites against the constitutional project.

Finally, my conclusion points out that these explanations are not mutually exclusive, and all the elements they consider joined together to bring about the ‘constitutional revolution’, as it came to be known.
Magnetostratigraphic and rock magnetic study of the Neogene upper Yaha section, Kuche Depression (Tarim Basin): Implications to formation of the Xiyu conglomerate formation, NW China
Authors: Huang Baochun , Piper John D. A. , Qiao Qingqing , Wang Hailong , Zhang Chunxia
Published: January 2010

Magnetostratigraphic study of 251 horizons through the younger Yaha succession in the Kuche Depression of the Tarim Basin, NW China, lying beneath a massive regionally extensive (Xiyu) conglomerate formation identifies nine reversed and eight normal polarity chrons correlating with the Geomagnetic Polarity Time Scale to show that deposition spanned the interval ∼5.3 to ∼1.7 Ma. Sedimentation rates fell episodically from ∼49 to ∼24 cm/kyr as neotectonic deformation in the southern Tian Shan thrust belt became focused on two major anticlines with the northern (Qiulitage) anticline being initiated at ∼5.5 Ma and developing a northern hinged limb that embraces the basal part of the studied section. Rock magnetic parameters show multiple signatures of lithologic change, deformation, burial diagenesis, and climate with the latter identifying an early Pliocene warm/humid interval followed by cooling and desertification after ∼2.6 Ma. Diachronous commencement of Xiyu conglomerate deposition ranged from mid‐Miocene in the north of the southern flank of the Tian Shan to Pleistocene in the south advancing as a clastic wedge derived from the uplifted range front to the north. This southward progradation was not climatically controlled although climatic effects may have modulated deposition during the Pleistocene. Uplift in the Tian Shan at ∼16–15 Ma correlates with rapid increase in sedimentation rate and episodic increases occurred subsequently until the initiation of the Qiulitage anticline. Reduced rates since ∼5.0 Ma contrast with increases more commonly recorded in foreland basins and have been controlled by accelerated growth of this regional structure counterbalancing uplift of the mountain front to the north.
Subcritical propagation and coalescence of oil‐filled cracks: Getting the oil out of low‐permeability source rocks
Authors: Jin Z.‐H. , Johnson S. E. , Fan Z. Q.
Published: January 2010

We use a fracture mechanics model to study subcritical propagation and coalescence of single and collinear oil‐filled cracks during conversion of kerogen to oil. The subcritical propagation distance, propagation duration, crack coalescence and excess oil pressure in the crack are determined using the fracture mechanics model together with the kinetics of kerogen‐oil transformation. The propagation duration for the single crack is governed by the transformation kinetics whereas the propagation duration for the multiple collinear cracks may vary by two orders of magnitude depending on initial crack spacing. A large amount of kerogen (>90%) remains unconverted when the collinear cracks coalesce and the new, larger cracks resulting from coalescence will continue to propagate with continued kerogen‐oil conversion. The excess oil pressure on the crack surfaces drops precipitously when the collinear cracks are about to coalesce, and crack propagation duration and oil pressure on the crack surfaces are strongly dependent on temperature.