bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Aluminium alloys welding processes: Challenges, joint types and process selection
Authors: Olabode Muyiwa , Kah Paul , Martikainen Jukka
Published: May 2013

Aluminium and its alloys have gained increasing importance in structural engineering due to advantageous properties such as light weight, ease of machining and corrosion resistance. This article presents surface-related challenges facing aluminium welding, specifically weld process limitations and joint limitations. The methodological approach is a critical review of published literature and results based on eight industrial welding processes for aluminium and six joint types. It is shown that challenges such as heat input control, hot cracking, porosity and weldable thickness vary with the process used and that there is no optimal general weld process for all aluminium alloys and thicknesses. A selection table is presented to assist in selection of the optimal process for specific applications. This study illustrates that knowledge of weld limitations is valuable in selection of appropriate weld processes.
Position of the separation point in machining with a rounded-edge tool
Authors: Ozturk Sabri , Altan Erhan
Published: May 2013

In this article, the effect of separation point on metal flows and the behavior of the material in front of the tool face with a rounded-edge tool are experimentally examined. The character of metal flow near the rake face has obvious significance to the partial problems of the surface finish and accuracy. Analysis of variance is used to determine the most significant parameter for the separation point height from the machined surface. As the distance between the separation point and the machined surface increased, the cutting edge radius grew. It is demonstrated through experiments that the edge radius of the cutting tool affects the machining and material flow process.
Production game of multifirms with different decision-making patterns
Authors: Huijun Sun , Jianjun Wu , Wei Wang , Wenyi Zhang
Published: May 2013

In production market, the decision-making patterns of firms producing a homogeneous kind of products are different. Some are under the control of a dominant firm called centralized pattern. In this case, there is only one decision maker who takes charge of all the firms and attempts to maximize the total utility of the system. Another is decentralized pattern, in which firms plan by themselves. In reality, there always exists a third pattern, where the centralized pattern and decentralized pattern firms are in the same market. This article deals with the last case and studies the effects of decentralized pattern firms’ decisions on centralized pattern firms in the same market, which is described as a Stackelberg game. It is supposed that centralized pattern firms are the leaders who affect the whole market by adjusting the production of each firm. Decentralized pattern firms are the followers who determine their productions in a manner of competitive equilibrium against the given centralized firm’s strategy. This game in this article is formulated as a bilevel programming model. Solution algorithm based on the sensitivity analysis is adopted to solve the model, and a numerical example is given to illustrate the model and algorithm.
Size-dependent dynamic behavior of microcantilevers under suddenly applied DC voltage
Authors: Rahaeifard Masoud , Ahmadian Mohammad Taghi , Firoozbakhsh Keikhosrow
Published: May 2013

This paper investigates the dynamic behavior of microcantilevers under suddenly applied DC voltage based on the modified couple stress theory. The cantilever is modeled based on the Euler–Bernoulli beam theory and equation of motion is derived using Hamilton’s principle. Both analytical and numerical methods are utilized to predict the dynamic behavior of the microbeam. Multiple scales method is used for analytical analysis and the numerical approach is based on a hybrid finite element/finite difference method. The results of the modified couple stress theory are compared with those from the literature as well as the results predicted by the classical theory. It is shown that the modified couple stress theory predicts size-dependent normalized dynamic behavior for the microbeam while according to the classical theory the normalized behavior of the microbeam is independent of its size. When the thickness of the beam is in order of its material length scale, the difference between the results given by the modified couple stress theory and those predicted by the classical theory is considerable. As the beam thickness increases, the results of the modified couple stress theory converge to those of the classical theory.
The effect of friction modifiers on wheel/rail isolation at low axle loads
Authors: Hardwick Christopher , Lewis Stephen , Lewis Roger
Published: May 2013

Signalling block occupancy is triggered by the wheelset of a rail vehicle ‘shunting’ the track circuit. The main cause of loss of shunting is the many materials that can be present on the rail head. These include iron oxides, leaves, ballast dust, oil, as well as products deliberately applied to the rail/wheel such as grease, friction modifiers, lubricants and sand. These may lead to an indication that a signal block is unoccupied when a train is actually present. Friction modifiers (FMs) are being increasingly used for reduction of noise, lateral forces, wear, rolling contact fatigue, etc. The Kelsan® high positive friction (HPF) solid stick FM is applied directly to the wheel tread creating a thin film. Although no effects have been observed during field operation, the intention in this work was to build on previous studies and evaluate conductance across a wider range of contact conditions as studies have shown that loss of shunt is more common with light axle loads where films could have a greater effect. The testing was performed at a contact pressure of 470 MPa (equating to a 4.9 tonne axle load). An HPF stick was spring loaded against the rotating wheel disc to generate a FM film at the contact. Tests were run to measure the impedance across the discs using a modified TI21 track circuit. Static testing was also performed using discs with a pre-generated HPF film. Analysis of the results showed that the application of HPF friction modifier had no significant effect on the measured level of impedance. The highest impedance levels were recorded under pure rolling (0% slip) where FMs were not being applied. In cases where the application of FM increased impedance, the recorded impedance values were still lower than the highest values measured in the absence of a FM. This is of key relevance as several light rail operators coast their trains.
Females Scan More Than Males
Authors: Heisz Jennifer J. , Pottruff Molly M. , Shore David I.
Published: May 2013

Recognition-memory tests reveal individual differences in episodic memory; however, by themselves, these tests provide little information regarding the stage (or stages) in memory processing at which differences are manifested. We used eye-tracking technology, together with a recognition paradigm, to achieve a more detailed analysis of visual processing during encoding and retrieval. Although this approach may be useful for assessing differences in memory across many different populations, we focused on sex differences in face memory. Females outperformed males on recognition-memory tests, and this advantage was directly related to females’ scanning behavior at encoding. Moreover, additional exposures to the faces reduced sex differences in face recognition, which suggests that males may be able to improve their recognition memory by extracting more information at encoding through increased scanning. A strategy of increased scanning at encoding may prove to be a simple way to enhance memory performance in other populations with memory impairment.
An experimental and theoretical study of a jet-pump refrigeration system designed using a new two-dimensional model for the entrainment region of the ejector
Authors: Soroureddin Amir , Mehr Ali Saberi , Mahmoudi SMS , Yari Mortaza
Published: May 2013

The performance of an ejector refrigeration cycle is investigated both theoretically and experimentally. By applying the equations for the conservation of mass, energy, and momentum as well as that for the exergy balance, for each component in the cycle, a new two-dimensional thermodynamic model is developed. The influence of flow viscosity is taken into account by assuming a two-dimensional flow near the ejector inner wall. Results indicate that the cycle coefficient of performance decreases with increasing generator temperature and the second law efficiency increases with increasing evaporator temperature and/or decreasing generator temperature. It is found that the maximum relative error occurred in calculating the entrainment ratio is 7.52%. Exergy analysis revealed that the ejector has almost the highest contribution in the total exergy destruction. In addition, increasing the evaporator temperature from 2 to 15.5 ℃ results in a decrease in ejector exergy destruction by up to 8%.
Cavitation inception and simulation in blade element momentum theory for modelling tidal stream turbines
Authors: Buckland Hannah C , Masters Ian , Orme James AC , Baker Tim
Published: May 2013

Blade element momentum theory (BEMT) is an analytical modelling tool that describes the performance of turbines by cross-referencing one-dimensional momentum theory with blade element theory. Each blade is discretised along its length and the dynamic properties of torque and axial force are determined. A compatible cavitation detection model is introduced to indicate any cavitating blade elements. Cavitation occurrence is dependent on proximity to the free surface, the incident flow velocity and inflow angle and the blade cross-section aerofoil shape. The shock waves associated with cavitation can significantly damage the blade surface and reduce performance; therefore, this model is a useful addition to BEMT and can be used in turbine design to minimise cavitation occurrence. The results are validated using the cavitation experiment observations.
Flurbiprofen-induced generalized bullous fixed drug eruption
Authors: Balta I , Simsek H , Simsek GG
Published: May 2013

Fixed drug eruption (FDE) is an unusual drug-related side effect that results in recurrent lesions whenever the causative drugs are used. FDEs usually occur as a single, sharply demarcated, round erythematous patch or plaque, occasionally with localized bullae. The most common offending agents include antimicrobials, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and antiepileptics. There are some reports where contact dermatitis and cutaneous vasculitis have been associated with the use of flurbiprofen. We present the case of a 50-year-old man with flurbiprofen-induced generalized bullous FDE. To the best of our knowledge, the most serious form of FDE, the generalized bullous FDE, to be caused by flurbiprofen has not been reported previously.
Liver radiofrequency ablation compromises the biological gut barrier
Authors: Ypsilantis P , Lambropoulou M , Kourkoutas I , Pechlivanis A , Simopoulos C
Published: May 2013

Aim:

Liver radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has been shown to disrupt the mechanical component of the gut barrier. The aim of the present study was to investigate the consequences of liver RFA on the biological gut barrier in terms of the effects of bile production rate and bowel inflammatory state on intestinal microflora balance.

Method:

A total of 25 New Zealand rabbits were assigned to five groups ( n = 5 per group): group CBD: subjected to common bile duct (CBD) extracorporeal bypass; group CBD-RFA: subjected to CBD bypass plus one session of open liver RFA; group RFA: subjected to liver RFA; group sham: subjected to sham operation; and group TBD: subjected to total bile deviation (TBD). In groups CBD and CBD-RFA, bile production rate was assessed for 48 h. In groups sham and RFA, measurement of biliary glycine conjugates of cholic and deoxycholic acid levels, histopathologic examination of the non-ablated liver tissue, morphometric analysis, and histopathologic examination of the terminal ileum and microbiological analysis of fecal and tissue samples collected from the jejunum and the cecum (and in group TBD) were performed at 48 h post-operation.

Results:

One session of liver RFA resulted in ablation of 18.7 ± 2.7% of liver weight. Following liver RFA, bile production rate was reduced, while the levels of biliary bile salts were not affected. There was mild injury of the non-ablated liver parenchyma, mild intestinal wall inflammation, intestinal mucosa atrophy, and intestinal microbial population overgrowth.

Conclusion:

Reduced in bile production and mild bowel inflammation secondary to liver RFA impaired the biological gut barrier as manifested by intestinal microflora imbalance.
Metabolism of the environmental toxicant benzo(a)pyrene by subcellular fractions of human ovary
Authors: Rekhadevi P V , Diggs D L , Huderson A C , Harris K L , Archibong A E , Ramesh A
Published: May 2013

Knowledge of the ability of the female reproductive system to metabolize environmental chemicals is critical not only from the standpoint of toxicity but also from infertility risk assessment. Benzo( a)pyrene (BaP) is a toxicant that is released into the environment from automobile exhausts, cigarette smoke, burning of refuse, industrial emissions, and hazardous waste sites. In exposed animals, BaP becomes activated to reactive metabolites that interfere with target organ function and as a consequence cause toxicity. Studies on animal models conducted in our laboratories and those of others have shown that BaP possess endocrine disrupting properties. Thus, this chemical has the potential to cause infertility and cancers in the female genital tract. An understanding of BaP metabolism in the female reproductive system will be of importance in the diagnosis and management of female fertility as well as cancers in the reproductive tissues. Therefore, the objective of our study was to examine the metabolism of BaP by human ovarian subcellular fractions. Human ovary samples (eight individuals) were obtained from postoperative tissue removed from subjects with uterine tumors. Subcellular fractions (nuclear, cytosolic, mitochondrial, and microsomal) were prepared by differential centrifugation. BaP (1 μM and 3 μM) was individually incubated with individual subcellular fractions for 15 min and the products were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. Among the different fractions tested, microsomal BaP metabolism was higher than the rest of the fractions. The BaP metabolites identified were as follows: BaP-9,10-diol, BaP-4,5-diol, BaP-7,8-diol, 9(OH) BaP, 3(OH) BaP, BaP-1,6-dione, BaP-3,6-dione, and BaP-6,12-dione. Of interest was the presence of DNA-reactive metabolites such as BaP-3,6-dione, BaP-6,12-dione, and BaP 7,8-diol, which have been implicated in the causation of infertility and cancer. Our results indicate that women who are exposed to BaP via cigarette smoke, occupational settings, and diet are more likely at a larger risk of this toxicant-induced infertility and cancer than others.
Ethical aspects of children’s perceptions of information-giving in care
Authors: Peña Ana L Noreña , Rojas Juan G
Published: May 2013

The aim of this study was to identify key aspects in the exchange of information and to determine how nurses communicate news to hospitalised children. For this study, we applied the critical incident technique with 30 children aged between 8 and 14 years. Data were collected in paediatric units in a hospital in Alicante (Spain) using participant observation and semi-structured interviews. The analysis yielded three main categories: the children’s reaction to the information, nursing staff behaviour as a key aspect in the exchange of information and communication of news as well as children’s experience. This article emphasises the need to promote children’s consent and participation in nursing interventions. An analysis of these aspects will verify whether children’s rights are being respected and taken into account in order to promote children’s well-being and adaptation to hospitalisation.
‘Like a prison without bars’
Authors: Heggestad Anne Kari T , Nortvedt Per , Slettebø Åshild
Published: May 2013

The aim of this article is to investigate how life in Norwegian nursing homes may affect experiences of dignity among persons with dementia. The study had a qualitative design and used a phenomenological and hermeneutic approach. Participant observation in two nursing home units was combined with qualitative interviews with five residents living in these units. The study took place between March and December 2010. The residents feel that their freedom is restricted, and they describe feelings of homesickness. They also experience that they are not being seen and heard as individual autonomous persons. This lack of freedom, experiences of homesickness and feelings of not being confirmed and respected as individual autonomous persons may be a threat to their personal dignity. In order to protect and enforce the dignity of persons with dementia living in nursing home, we should confirm them as whole and as individual persons, and we should try to make the nursing homes less institutional and more home like.
Comparison of professional values of Taiwanese and United States nursing students
Authors: Alfred Danita , Yarbrough Susan , Martin Pam , Mink Janice , Lin Yu-Hua , Wang Liching S
Published: May 2013

Globalization is a part of modern life. Sharing a common set of professional nursing values is critical in this global environment. The purpose of this research was to examine the professional values of nursing students from two distinct cultural perspectives. Nurse educators in Taiwan partnered with nurse educators in the United States to compare professional values of their respective graduating nursing students. The American Nurses Association Code of Ethics served as the philosophical framework for this examination. The convenience sample comprised 94 Taiwanese students and 168 US students. Both groups reported high scores on an overall measure of values. They did differ substantially on the relative importance of individual items related to advocacy, competence, education, self-evaluation, professional advancement, and professional associations. Global implications for the collaborative practice of nurses from different cultures working together can be improved by first recognizing and then attending to these differences in value priorities.
A comparative survey on potentially futile treatments between Japanese nurses and laypeople
Authors: Kadooka Yasuhiro , Asai Atushi , Fukuyama Miki , Bito Seiji
Published: May 2013

In the issue of futile treatments, patients and healthcare professionals tend to disagree. We conducted an Internet questionnaire survey and explored the Japanese nurses’ attitude toward this topic, comparing with that of laypeople. In total, 522 nurses and 1134 laypeople completed the questionnaire. Nurse respondents were significantly less in favor of providing potentially futile treatments in hypothetical vignettes and stressed quality of life of the patient for judging the futility of a certain treatment. Of them, 85.4% reported having experienced providing such treatments. Reasons for providing them included factors related to not only patients but also healthcare teams. Our results indicate that attitudes among Japanese nurses toward the issue of futile treatments are different from patients and that their actual practice is influenced by several situational factors.
‘Busyness’ and the preclusion of quality palliative district nursing care
Authors: Nagington Maurice , Luker Karen , Walshe Catherine
Published: May 2013

Ethical care is beginning to be recognised as care that accounts for the views of those at the receiving end of care. However, in the context of palliative and supportive district nursing care, the patients’ and their carers’ views are seldom heard. This qualitative research study explores these views. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 26 patients with palliative and supportive care needs receiving district nursing care, and 13 of their carers. Participants were recruited via community nurses and hospices between September 2010 and October 2011. Post-structural discourse analysis is used to examine how discourses operate on a moral level. One discourse, ‘busyness’, is argued to preclude a moral form of nursing care. The discourse of friendship is presented to contrast this. Discussion explores Gallagher’s ‘slow ethics’ and challenges the currently accepted ways of measuring to improve quality of care concluding that quality cannot be measured.
Foreign nurse recruitment
Authors: Delucas A Christine
Published: May 2013

Recruitment of nurses by industrialized nations from developing countries has been common practice for decades. Globalization, a crucial trend of the 21st century, raises the world’s awareness of the economic and social disparities between nations. The direct impact on nurse emigration emphasizes the ethical, economic, and social inequalities between source and destination countries. It is often more cost-effective for industrialized countries to recruit from developing countries; however, the depletion of source country resources has created a global healthcare crisis. Destination countries are being challenged on the ethical implications of aggressive recruitment and their lack of developing a sustainable self-sufficient domestic workforce. Similarly, source countries are confronting the same challenges as they struggle to fund and educate adequate numbers of nurses for domestic needs and emigrant replacement. This article will review the ethical, economic, and social impacts of continued unrestricted international recruitment of nurses and present a proposal for development of an international treaty addressing global sustainability.
Emotive responses to ethical challenges in caring
Authors: Msiska Gladys , Smith Pam , Fawcett Tonks
Published: May 2013

This article reports findings of a hermeneutic phenomenological study that explored the clinical learning experience for Malawian undergraduate student nurses. The study revealed issues that touch on both nursing education and practice, but the article mainly reports the practice issues. The findings reveal the emotions that healthcare workers in Malawi encounter as a consequence of practising in resource-poor settings. Furthermore, there is severe nursing shortage in most clinical settings in Malawi, and this adversely affects the performance of nurses because of the excess workload it imposes on them. The results of the study also illustrate loss of professional pride among some of the nurses, and the article argues that such a demeanour is a consequence of burnout. However, despite these problems, the study also reveals that there are some nurses who have maintained their passion to care.
The Risk of Losing 10 Years of Life Put in Perspective
Authors: Chuang Shu-Hui , Huang Song-Lih
Published: May 2013

Health messages have limited effects on young smokers. The health effects typically have long latent periods, and the appreciation of risk depends on the meaning given to longevity. This study aims to understand how college student smokers interpreted the risks of losing 10 years of life because of smoking. In-depth semistructured interviews were conducted with 23 male smokers from a relatively low-achieving college in southern Taiwan. The participants had vague ideas about the future; were not expecting a successful life, thought life was stressful and boring; and expressed that there was no need to live too long. Many believed that removing the stress and having a composed lifestyle was the way to becoming healthy, which could be achieved only by people with economic success. They would quit had they been rich. Empowerment to help young smokers gain control over their life events may be the key to tobacco control.
Macroeconomic policy challenges in the Asian century
Authors: Henry Ken
Published: May 2013

This is an edited version of a lecture by economist and former Australian Treasury Secretary (2001–2011) Dr Ken Henry, delivered at a Colloquium in honour of Professor J.W. Nevile, held at the University of New South Wales on 10 October 2012. Taking a practitioner’s perspective, the article surveys the management of the Australian economy from the 1970s to the present, with a focus on the reasons Australia escaped the global financial crisis of 2008 and the lessons for macroeconomic policymakers to be drawn from that experience. The author concludes that macroeconomic policy practitioners have to think deeply about microeconomic connections and the potency of different instruments in addressing shocks with different sources. They also have to deal with considerable uncertainty. The global financial crisis demonstrated forcefully that there is no separation between macroeconomics, financial system stability, prudential regulation, micro-level incentive structures and market efficiency.
An Exploration of the Effect of Cognitive and Collaborative Strategies on Keyboard Skills of Music Education Students
Authors: Pike Pamela D.
Published: May 2013

In the United States, all music education majors at the tertiary level who graduate from institutions accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music must demonstrate piano proficiency. Yet many practicing music educators report that they do not use the piano while teaching due to a lack of perceived competence. Peer collaboration and cognitive strategies have been demonstrated to be effective when learning. Typically, piano skills are taught in group piano laboratories, where collaborative work could be incorporated. This study explored development of sight-reading and harmonization skills among students ( N = 12) during the final semester of group piano, by employing cognitive strategies and collaborative learning. In this small study, students engaged in collaborative learning improved test scores. Additionally, they displayed improvement in self-efficacy, problem solving, and deliberate practice and demonstrated persistence in completing piano assignments.
Rural School Employees’ Status, Awareness, and Perceptions of Adult Vaccinations
Authors: Luthy Karlen E. , Thornton Eli , Beckstrand Renea L. , Macintosh Janelle , Lakin Richard G.
Published: May 2013

As key members of the school environment, it is important for school employees to be vaccinated. Employees are in direct contact with children in close quarters for long periods of time and such an environment can easily serve as an outbreak center for vaccine-preventable communicable diseases such as measles. Despite the fact that most school employees believe vaccines are safe and effective and many school employees report they are up-to-date with their vaccines, a closer examination reveals discrepancy between belief and behavior. This research study evaluates the vaccination status, awareness, and perceptions of school employees located in a large rural school district in Utah. As a vaccine advocate, the school nurse can be influential in providing adult vaccination education for school employees, thus increasing awareness of the importance of adult vaccines and knowing one’s vaccination status. Additionally, school nurses might need to meet with school district policy makers to promote vaccine mandates for school employees and to assist in the creation of containment plans in the event of a measles outbreak at school.
Effects of Direct Renin Inhibition on Atherosclerotic Biomarkers in Patients With Stable Coronary Artery Disease and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Irons Brian K. , Trujillo Alex , Seifert Charles F. , Simoni Jan S. , Doctolero Susan , Abo-Salem Elsayed , Meyerrose Gary E.
Published: May 2013

Objectives:

To evaluate whether the direct renin inhibitor, aliskiren, has a more favorable effect compared to amlodipine on atherosclerotic biomarkers in patients with stable coronary artery disease and diabetes currently receiving standard secondary prevention therapy.

Methods:

A total of 38 patients were randomly assigned initially to either aliskiren (150 mg daily) or amlodipine (5 mg daily) for 2 weeks after which the dose of either medication was increased to its maximum daily dose for 4 additional weeks. Baseline and 6-week blood samples were analyzed for changes from baseline and between treatment groups for vascular and intracellular cell adhesion molecule, C-reactive protein, nitric oxide, plasminogen activator inhibitor 1, 8-isoprostane, and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances.

Results:

Thirty-one patients completed the study. More of the dropouts occurred in patients receiving aliskiren. Systolic blood pressure decreased in both treatment arms with no differences between the groups being noted. Plasminogen activator inhibitor 1, nitric oxide, and C-reactive protein concentrations increased in both groups from baseline but changes from baseline or between groups were not significant. Vascular and intracellular cell adhesion molecule, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, and isoprostane concentrations decreased in each treatment arm from baseline, but these changes were not significant and no differences were noted between the groups.

Conclusions:

Treatment with either aliskiren or amlodipine did not significantly alter surrogate biomarkers of atherosclerosis in patients with both diabetes and established cardiovascular disease already receiving appropriate secondary cardiovascular prevention therapy. The study is limited in its size and duration to see an effect.
Effects of Ankaferd Blood Stopper and Celox on the Tissue Factor Activities of Warfarin-Treated Rats
Authors: Aktop Sertac , Emekli-Alturfan Ebru , Ozer Cuneyt , Gonul Onur , Garip Hasan , Yarat Aysen , Goker Kamil
Published: May 2013

The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of these new generation hemostatic agents on early-stage soft tissue healing of warfarin-treated rats by measuring the tissue factor (TF) activities. Rats in the warfarin group were treated intraperitonally with 0.1 mg/kg warfarin, and rats in the control group were treated with 1 mL/kg saline. All rats had 3 incisions on dorsal dermal tissue applied Celox, Ankaferd Blood Stopper (ABS), or no hemostatic agent. Six rats from each group were killed on day 4, and the other 6 were killed on day 8. Prothrombin time (PT) and TF activities were evaluated, respectively. Both the hemostatic agents positively affected the hemostasis. Warfarin treatment increased the PT levels as expected. Celox-treated dermal tissues had higher TF activity when compared to ABS-treated ones. The ABS affected the early-stage healing positively in clinical aspect, whereas Celox was more effective on hemostasis by means of increasing TF activities.
A Nonclinical Safety Assessment of MnTE-2-PyP, a Manganese Porphyrin
Authors: Gad Shayne C. , Sullivan Dexter W. , Crapo James D. , Spainhour Charles B.
Published: May 2013

Manganese (III) meso-tetrakis(N-ethylpyridinium-2-yl)porphyrin (MnTE-2-PyP or BMX-010; CASRN 219818-60-7) is a manganese porphyrin compound developed as a potential drug substance for use as a radioprotective and for the ex vivo treatment of cells, tissues, and organs intended for transplantation. In preparation for an investigational new drug filing, a full good laboratory practice nonclinical safety assessment was conducted in order to evaluate the safety of MnTE-2-PyP and included the performance of in vitro genotoxicity studies, local tissue tolerance evaluation, safety pharmacology core battery studies, and single- and repeat-dose intravenous (iv) toxicity studies in mice and monkeys. The MnTE-2-PyP was determined not to be genotoxic or hemolytic, did not demonstrate flocculation or elicit adverse pharmacologic effects on respiration, the central nervous system (CNS), and had limited transitory effects on the cardiovascular system only at levels well above the therapeutic target dose. The intended iv clinical solution did not cause venous irritation in rabbits. The no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) in mice was determined to be 10 mg/kg/day after 18 consecutive days of bolus iv dosing once daily in the morning. The NOAEL in monkeys after 14 days of bolus iv dosing in the morning was determined to be 5 mg/kg/day. At doses relevant to clinical use in humans, neither study revealed any indication of any specific target organ toxicity, including the classic heme porphyrin kidney, liver, CNS, or cardiac toxicities, or manganese toxicity. Mortality seen shortly after dosing in individual animals at higher doses was not accompanied by any organ or clinical pathology indications, suggesting a functional pharmacological-mediated effect. Based on the results of these studies, a conservative safe initial starting clinical dose of 5.0 mg (0.083 mg/kg in a 60 kg adult) was proposed for the initiation of human trials. Because of patent life issues, use of MnTE-2-PyP as a transplantation aid or radioprotective agent is not currently being pursued past the preclinical stages. It serves as a model for the clinical development of this class of drugs.
Sensemaking revisited
Authors: Holt Robin , Cornelissen Joep
Published: May 2013

We critique and extend theory on organizational sensemaking around three themes. First, we investigate sense arising non-productively and so beyond any instrumental relationship with things; second, we consider how sense is experienced through mood as well as our cognitive skills of manipulation based on standard categories, frames or narratives and third, we consider sense being governed by exposure to unknown possibility rather than retrospective assessment. We set these themes in the context of the study of Heidegger and discuss the implications of our theorization for further sensemaking research by revisiting Weick’s seminal reading of Norman Maclean’s book surrounding the tragic events of a 1949 forest fire at Mann Gulch, USA.
Retinal ganglion cell and inner plexiform layer thinning in clinically isolated syndrome
Authors: Oberwahrenbrock Timm , Ringelstein Marius , Jentschke Simon , Deuschle Katrin , Klumbies Katharina , Bellmann-Strobl Judith , Harmel Jens , Ruprecht Klemens , Schippling Sven , Hartung Hans-Peter , Aktas Orhan , Brandt Alexander U , Paul Friedemann
Published: May 2013

Background:

Axonal and neuronal damage are widely accepted as key events in the disease course of multiple sclerosis. However, it has been unclear to date at which stage in disease evolution neurodegeneration begins and whether neuronal damage can occur even in the absence of acute inflammatory attacks.

Objective:

To characterize inner retinal layer changes in patients with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS).

Method:

45 patients with CIS and age- and sex-matched healthy controls were investigated using spectral domain optical coherence tomography. Patients’ eyes were stratified into the following categories according to history of optic neuritis (ON): eyes with clinically-diagnosed ON (CIS-ON), eyes with suspected subclinical ON (CIS-SON) as indicated by a visual evoked potential latency of >115ms and eyes unaffected by ON (CIS-NON).

Results:

CIS-NON eyes showed significant reduction of ganglion cell- and inner plexiform layer and a topography similar to that of CIS-ON eyes. Seven eyes were characterized as CIS-SON and likewise showed significant retinal layer thinning. The most pronounced thinning was present in CIS-ON eyes.

Conclusion:

Our findings indicate that retinal pathology does occur already in CIS. Intraretinal layer segmentation may be an easily applicable, non-invasive method for early detection of retinal pathology in patients unaffected by ON.
Habit and the Limits of the Autonomous Subject
Authors: Lumsden Simon
Published: May 2013

After briefly describing the history and significance of the nature–reason dualism for philosophy this article examines why much of the Kantian inspired examination of norms and ethics continues to appeal to this division. It is argued that much of what is claimed to be rationally legitimated norms can, at least in part, be understood as binding on actions and beliefs, not because they are rationally legitimated, but because they are habituated. Drawing on Hegel’s discussion of ethical life and habit it is argued that human subjects identify most practices and norms as their own through self-feeling, not reason. It is on this basis that norms are taken not just as the basis for action but are constitutive of human identity, an identity that is spiritual, embodied and affective. While habit is central to the way Hegel reconfigures ethics and norms, as well as the distinct model of freedom that he develops in his social and political thought, it will be argued that habit has its limits as a model for human freedom, limits of which Hegel is well aware.
Habit and Habitus
Authors: Crossley Nick
Published: May 2013

This article compares the concept of habitus, as formulated in the work of Mauss and Bourdieu, with the concept of habit, as formulated in the work of Merleau-Ponty and Dewey. The rationale for this, on one level, is to seek to clarify these concepts and any distinction that there may be between them – though the article notes the wide variety of uses of both concepts and suggests that these negate the possibility of any definitive definitions or contrasts. More centrally, however, the purpose of the comparison is to draw out a number of important issues and debates which, it is argued, further work must address if the concepts of habit and habitus are to continue to prove useful and illuminating in social science.
The Search for Habit in Classical Liberalism
Authors: Poovey Mary
Published: May 2013

Using the Online Library of Liberty database, which is sponsored by the Liberty Fund, I explore the role played by the word habit in the history of classical liberalism. At the same time, I interrogate the usefulness of the Search function, the digital finding tool provided by the website. Simultaneously a survey of the changing uses of habit and a meditation on our scholarly research habits, this article investigates the intersections between ideas about free agency and habitual behaviors. It also tests the possibilities and limitations of digital archives, the increasing availability of which threatens to make conventional scholarly habits obsolete.
Engineering the fitness of older patients for chemotherapy: An exploration of Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment in practice
Authors: McCarthy Alexandra L , Cook Peta S , Yates Patsy
Published: May 2013

Clinicians often report that currently available methods to assess older patients, including standard clinical consultations, do not elicit the information necessary to make an appropriate cancer treatment recommendation for older cancer patients. An increasingly popular way of assessing the potential of older patients to cope with chemotherapy is a Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment. What constitutes Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment, however, is open to interpretation and varies from one setting to another. Furthermore, Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment’s usefulness as a predictor of fitness for chemotherapy and as a determinant of actual treatment is not well understood. In this article, we analyse how Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment was developed for use in a large cancer service in an Australian capital city. Drawing upon Actor–Network Theory, our findings reveal how, during its development, Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment was made both a tool and a science. Furthermore, we briefly explore the tensions that we experienced as scholars who analyse medico-scientific practices and as practitioner–designers charged with improving the very tools we critique. Our study contributes towards geriatric oncology by scrutinising the medicalisation of ageing, unravelling the practices of standardisation and illuminating the multiplicity of ‘fitness for chemotherapy’.
The Australian space of lifestyles in comparative perspective
Authors: Bennett Tony , Bustamante Mauricio , Frow John
Published: May 2013

This article (1) examines the social distribution of cultural practices in Australia, and (2) compares this with similar data for the UK in order to identify where and in what respects the social articulations of Australian cultural practices are distinctive. The article draws on the statistical data produced by the Australian Research Council-funded inquiry into Australian Everyday Cultures in the late 1990s and the data produced by the UK’s 2003–6 Economic and Social Research Council inquiry into the relations between cultural capital and social exclusion in Britain. It reports the findings of a comparison of multiple correspondence analyses of the survey data for these two projects. The two spaces of lifestyle produced by these procedures show strong similarities with regard to their relations to class, age and gender as the three most significant axes of differentiation. There are, however, differences in the roles that specific cultural fields (the music, literary and media fields, for example) play relative to one another in the two national contexts. Class culture divisions also appear more attenuated in the Australian than in the British case, with a significant clustering of classes in the middle of the space of lifestyles. However, working-class tastes and those of professionals appear strongly polarised in Australia while managers and professionals are more distinctive in their cultural practices than are their British counterparts.
The elite school as ‘cognitive machine’ and ‘social paradise’: Developing transnational capitals for the national ‘field of power’
Authors: Kenway Jane , Koh Aaron
Published: May 2013

In this article we draw on Bourdieu’s The State Nobility: Elite Schools in the Field of Power and his associated conceptual apparatus to examine Singapore as a ‘field of power’ and the formation of Singapore’s ‘state nobility’ through an elite secondary school. We ask how well Bourdieu’s conceptual apparatus travels, given Singapore’s geo-political history and its strategic positioning with regard to what it calls its ‘global hinterland’. We work with Bourdieu’s notions of ‘social alchemy’, ‘cognitive machine’ and ‘social paradise’ to illuminate how an elite school in Singapore carefully and successfully grooms the future state nobility for Singapore’s field of power, in part through the development of students’ transnational capitals. We show, however, that Bourdieu’s conceptual resources are not fully portable and point to their merits and limitations in explaining the workings of power in Singapore and in relation to one of its most elite schools.
Regulation, public interest and research in the professional field: The case of the health sector
Authors: Veloso Luísa , Freire João , Lopes Noémia , Oliveira Luísa
Published: May 2013

Taking into account the social conflicts and the many forces present in the domain of health occupations and professions, the authors propose a critical reflection on the role played by the state in the promotion of public interest and the delegation of this role to professional bodies, using a study of an occupational group in the health sector that was carried out in Portugal. The discussion is developed within the domain of the social conditions of sociological research that either uses public funding approved within a public tender and submitted to scientific evaluation, or uses private funding and is commissioned by the private sector, as is the case with one professional group.
Keeping it in the family: Parental influences on young people’s attitudes to police
Authors: Sargeant Elise , Bond Christine E.W.
Published: May 2013

Prior research finds young people are less satisfied with police than their older counterparts. Despite this, our understanding of youth attitudes to police is limited, as most research has focused on adult attitudes to police. This study adds to our understanding by examining the influence of parent–child dynamics on youth attitudes to police. We predict that youth attitudes to police will be influenced by their parents’ attitudes. A survey of 540 school students in South East Queensland reveals that perceived parental attitudes to police are associated with youth attitudes to police. However, this effect is partially mediated by maternal, but not paternal attachment. These findings suggest that youth attitudes to police are not simply influenced by contact with police and delinquency, but that familial context is important. Consequently, our theoretical understanding of youth attitudes to police must move beyond a focus upon police contact and delinquency.
Between the hammer of globalization and the anvil of nationalism: Is Europe's complex diversity under threat?
Authors: Conversi Daniele
Published: May 2013

Cultural diversity is very often conceived in relationship with the nation-state, but rarely problematized in tandem with transnational forces like political and economic globalization. The article begins by recognizing the need, and the difficulty, of studying both these forces simultaneously in relation to cultural diversity. As a supranational set of institutions, the European Union provides an ideal framework in which to assess the simultaneous impact of the nation-state and globalization on cultural diversity. The EU unification project, based on a pluralist, multicultural and multilateral vision of Europe, is diametrically opposed to previous state-making practices centred on rigid notions of internal uniformity and gravitating around the practices of ‘nation-statism’. This article first proposes the notion of ‘cultural homogenization’ as an explanatory tool to identify the role of normative visions of culture associated with the nationalizing practices of most modern nation-states. It then connects this to the scholarly literature on ‘nation-building’ and focuses particularly on its critique within theories of nationalism. This in turn is associated with various resurrected pluralist arrangements which have emerged in Europe, like cultural autonomy, multiculturalism and particularly, ‘consociationalism’. However, the article identifies a more immediate challenge to cultural diversity in the de-regulative policies associated with neo-liberal globalization. It concludes that, although European consociationalism remains a well-established and time-honoured tool for stabilizing inter-cultural relations and maintaining pluralist coexistence, it does not, and cannot, provide an incentive and framework for accommodating the normative and cultural conflicts unleashed by neo-liberal globalization.
Medication management concerns of ethnic minority family caregivers of people living with dementia
Authors: Gillespie Robyn J. , Harrison Lindsey , Mullan Judy
Published: May 2013

This qualitative study explored the medication management experiences of Australian ethnic minority family caregivers of people living with dementia. From the perspective of this group of caregivers, medication management was a source of stress resulting from the progressive loss of ability of care recipients to manage their own medications; the complexity of the medication regime and the caregiver’s lack of trust of the care recipient to safely and effectively manage medications. Caregivers used various strategies to manage medications and avoid conflict with care recipients including being watchful and involving other family members in medication management tasks. Family caregivers indicated that a lack of information and access to support to inform their medication management role added to their stress, which was exacerbated in some cases by limited English proficiency. Supportive factors noted by caregivers included a well-established relationship with a community pharmacist, involvement of a geriatrician, family support and caregiver support group participation.