bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Immunohistochemical Characterization of Three Monoclonal Antibodies Raised against the Epidermal Growth Factor and Its Receptor in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Their Potential Use in the Selection of Patients for Immunotherapy
Authors: Rengifo Charles E. , Blanco Rancés , Blanco Damián , Cedeño Mercedes , Frómeta Milagros , Calzado Enrique Rengifo
Published: December 2012

Adequate methods to identify which lung cancer patients are most likely to benefit from the targeted drugs against both epidermal growth factor receptor/epidermal growth factor (EGFR/EGF) are needed. For this reason, we evaluated both the tissue reactivity of ior egf/r3 monoclonal antibody (Mab) in human lung carcinomas and its biological activity in NCI-H125 cells. Additionally, we assessed the tissue expression of EGF using two Mabs, CB-EGF1 and CB-EGF2. The overexpression of EGFR was detected in 33.33% and 62.71% of small-cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) and non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), respectively. The ability of ior egf/r3 Mab to bind the extracellular domain of EGFR inhibiting cell proliferation and inducing apoptosis in NCI-H125 cells was also demonstrated. The EGF expression was observed in about 17% and 70% of SCLC and NSCLC, respectively. However, differences in the reactivity of CB-EGF1 and CB-EGF2 were evidenced. A dual expression of EGFR and EGF was observed in 16.67% and 57.63% of SCLC and NSCLC patients, respectively. But, a correlation between them was only obtained in NSCLC. Our results permit to recommend the development of diagnostic kits using ior egf/r3 and/or CB-EGF1 Mabs in order to achieve a better selection of patients to EGFR/EGF-targeting treatment.
Influence of Pyrazine Ring Doping on the 15N and 11B NMR and Electronic Structure Parameters in Zigzag Boron Nitride Nanotube: A DFT Study
Authors: Arshadi Sattar , Asghari Ameneh , Raheimi Hojatollah , Abedini Saboora
Published: December 2012

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations have been performed to investigate the properties of the electronic structures of pyrazine‐doped boron nitride nanotubes (PD‐BNNTs). The structural forms were firstly optimized and then nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) parameters have been calculated on the optimized structures. The chemical shielding isotropic (CSI) and chemical shielding anisotropic (CSA) parameters were calculated at the sites of 11B and 15N nuclei in structural forms of BNNT including the perfect (a) model and PD‐BNNTs (b), (c), and (d) models. The results indicated that the changes are most significant for those nuclei placed in the nearest neighborhood of the pyrazine‐doped ring. The changes of the electronic sites of the N atoms are also more significant than those of the B atoms. The difference of LUMO‐HOMO gap for the perfect model was larger than the PD‐BNNTs models. Also the atomic charge distribution of N and B atoms has been determined in nanotubes by natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis. All calculations were performed by the B3LYP method and 6‐311G** basis set using Gaussian 98 package of program.
Antitumor Activity of Cell-Permeable RUNX3 Protein in Gastric Cancer Cells
Authors: Lim Junghee , Duong Tam , Do Nga , Do Phuong , Kim Jaetaek , Kim Hyuncheol , El-Rifai Wael , Ruley H. Earl , Jo Daewoong
Published: December 2012

Purpose: Gastric cancer is a leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Limited therapeutic options highlight the need to understand the molecular changes responsible for the disease and to develop therapies based on this understanding. The goal of this study was to develop cell-permeable (CP-) forms of the RUNT-related transcription factor 3, RUNX3–a candidate tumor suppressor implicated in gastric and other epithelial cancers–to study the therapeutic potential of RUNX3 in the treatment of gastric cancer.

Experimental Design: We developed novel macromolecule transduction domains (MTD) which were tested for the ability to promote protein uptake by mammalian cells and tissues and used to deliver of biologically active RUNX3 into human gastric cancer cells. The therapeutic potential CP-RUNX3 was tested in the NCI-N87 human tumor xenograft animal model.

Results: RUNX3 fusion proteins, HM57R and HM85R, containing hydrophobic MTDs enter gastric cancer cells and suppress cell phenotypes (e.g., cell-cycle progression, wounded monolayer healing, and survival) and induce changes in biomarker expression (e.g., p21Waf1 and VEGF) consistent with previously described effects of RUNX3 on TGF-β signaling. CP-RUNX3 also suppressed the growth of subcutaneous human gastric tumor xenografts. The therapeutic response was comparable with studies augmenting RUNX3 gene expression in tumor cell lines; however, the protein was most active when administered locally, rather than systemically (i.e., intravenously).

Conclusions: These results provide further evidence that RUNX3 can function as a tumor suppressor and suggest that practical methods to augment RUNX3 function could be useful in treating of some types of gastric cancer. Clin Cancer Res; 19(3); 680–90. ©2012 AACR.
Early Routine versus Late Selective Surfactant in Preterm Neonates with Respiratory Distress Syndrome on Nasal Continuous Positive Airway Pressure: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Kandraju Hemasree , Murki Srinivas , Subramanian Sreeram , Gaddam Pramod , Deorari Ashok , Kumar Praveen
Published: December 2012

Background: Preterm neonates with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) benefit from early application of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP). However, it is not clear whether surfactant should be administered early as a routine to all such infants or later in a selective manner. Objective: It was the aim of this study to compare the efficacy of early routine versus late selective surfactant treatment in reducing the need for mechanical ventilation (MV) during the first week of life among moderate-sized preterm infants with RDS being supported by nCPAP. Methods: Infants born at 280/7 to 336/7 weeks of gestation with RDS and on nCPAP were randomly assigned within the first 2 h of life to early routine surfactant administration by the InSurE technique (early surfactant group) or to late selective administration of surfactant (late surfactant group). The primary outcome was need for MV in the first 7 days of life. Results: Among 153 infants randomized to early (n = 74) or late surfactant (n = 79) groups, the need for MV was significantly lower in the early surfactant group (16.2 vs. 31.6%; relative risk 0.41, 95% confidence interval 0.19–0.91). The incidence of pneumothorax (1.9 vs. 2.3%) and the need for supplemental O2 at 28 days (2.7 vs. 8.9%) were similar in the two groups. Conclusion: Early routine surfactant administration within 2 h of life as compared to late selective administration significantly reduced the need for MV in the first week of life among preterm infants with RDS on nCPAP.
Staphylococcus aureus Proteases Degrade Lung Surfactant Protein A Potentially Impairing Innate Immunity of the Lung
Authors: Kantyka Tomasz , Pyrc Krzysztof , Gruca Milosz , Smagur Jan , Plaza Karolina , Guzik Krzysztof , Zeglen Slawomir , Ochman Marek , Potempa Jan
Published: December 2012

The pulmonary surfactant is a complex mixture of lipids and proteins that is important for respiratory lung functions, which also provides the first line of innate immune defense. Pulmonary surfactant protein-A (SP-A) is a major surfactant component with immune functions with importance during Staphylococcus aureus infections that has been demonstrated in numerous studies. The current study showed that S. aureus can efficiently cleave the SP-A protein using its arsenal of proteolytic enzymes. This degradation appears to be mediated by cysteine proteases, in particular staphopain A (ScpA). The staphopain-mediated proteolysis of SP-A resulted in a decrease or complete abolishment of SP-A biological activity, including the promotion of S. aureus phagocytosis by neutrophils, aggregation of Gram-negative bacteria and bacterial cell adherence to epithelium. Significantly, ScpA has also efficiently degraded SP-A in complete bronchi-alveolar lavage fluid from human lungs. This indicates that staphopain activity in the lungs is resistant to protease inhibitors, thus suggesting that SP-A can be cleaved in vivo. Collectively, this study showed that the S. aureus protease ScpA is an important virulence factor that may impair innate immunity of the lungs.
Changes in Heart Failure Outcomes After a Province-Wide Change in Health Service Provision A Natural Experiment in Alberta, Canada
Authors: McAlister Finlay A. , Bakal Jeffrey A. , Kaul Padma , Quan Hude , Blackadar Robyn , Johnstone David , Ezekowitz Justin
Published: December 2012

Background—

The Alberta Cardiac Access (ACA) initiative was implemented in the spring of 2008 to increase access to specialized heart failure (HF) clinics after hospital discharge.

Methods and Results—

We identified all adults hospitalized with a most responsible diagnosis of HF between April 1999 and December 2009. We randomly selected 1 episode of care per patient and evaluated outcomes using interrupted time series: the a priori specified primary outcome was all-cause readmission or death in the first 30 days postdischarge. Between 1999 and 2009, median length of stay increased from 8 days to 10 days (
P
<0.001), and 30-day mortality increased from 9.1% to 11.5% (
P
<0.001) in the 37891 HF hospitalizations we examined. However, these temporal changes were attributable to the increasing comorbidity burden over time: the adjusted Risk Ratio for 30-day mortality in 2009 versus 1999 was 0.99, 95% confidence interval, 0.86 to 1.15. After adjusting for secular trends, the ACA initiative was associated with changes in 30-day postdischarge mortality or readmission rates (which were increasing 0.3% per month [0.2%–0.3%] pre-ACA and decreased 1.4% per month [0.3%–2.5%] in the 18 months post-ACA;
P
=0.008). After roll out of the ACA initiative, patients discharged from vanguard regions (those that had specialized HF clinics) exhibited lower 30-day postdischarge death/readmission rates than those discharged from other areas of the province (18.6% versus 22.2%, adjusted odds ratio 0.83, 95% confidence interval, 0.75–0.93).

Conclusions—

An initiative which increased specialized HF clinic access was associated with a statistically significant improvement in 30-day postdischarge mortality/readmission rates.
Chest Compression Alone Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Is Associated With Better Long-Term Survival Compared with Standard Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
Authors: Dumas Florence , Rea Thomas D. , Fahrenbruch Carol , Rosenqvist Marten , Faxén Jonas , Svensson Leif , Eisenberg Mickey S. , Bohm Katarina
Published: December 2012

Background—

Little is known about the long-term survival effects of type-specific bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in the community. We hypothesized that dispatcher instruction consisting of chest compression alone would be associated with better overall long-term prognosis in comparison with chest compression plus rescue breathing.

Methods and Results—

The investigation was a retrospective cohort study that combined 2 randomized trials comparing the short-term survival effects of dispatcher CPR instruction consisting either of chest compression alone or chest compression plus rescue breathing. Long-term vital status was ascertained by using the respective National and State death records through July 31, 2011. We performed Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression to evaluate survival according to the type of CPR instruction. Of the 2496 subjects included in the current investigation, 1243 (50%) were randomly assigned to chest compression alone and 1253 (50%) were randomly assigned to chest compression plus rescue breathing. Baseline characteristics were similar between the 2 CPR groups. During the 1153.2 person-years of follow-up, there were 2260 deaths and 236 long-term survivors. Randomization to chest compression alone in comparison with chest compression plus rescue breathing was associated with a lower risk of death after adjustment for potential confounders (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.83–0.99;
P
=0.02).

Conclusions—

The findings provide strong support for long-term mortality benefit of dispatcher CPR instruction strategy consisting of chest compression alone rather than chest compression plus rescue breathing among adult patients with cardiac arrest requiring dispatcher assistance.
Substance Use Disorders, Comorbidity, and Arrest Among Indigenous Adolescents
Authors: Sittner Hartshorn Kelley J. , Whitbeck Les B. , Prentice Patricia
Published: December 2012

Indigenous adolescents are overrepresented at multiple stages of the justice system, but we know very little about the role that mental health, particularly substance use disorder, plays in Indigenous pathways to arrest. This study examined the association between substance use disorder, its comorbidity with other disorders, and arrest using a longitudinal sample of Indigenous youth from the Northern Midwest and Canada. Of the 16% of youth who reported at least one arrest at Wave 5, half met criteria for substance abuse/dependence and slightly more for conduct disorder. Substance abuse/dependence and conduct disorder were each associated with an increased risk of arrest, although co-occurring disorders were not. The reciprocal effects of arrest and mental disorder are discussed.
Alcohol Outlets and Neighborhood Crime
Authors: White Garland F. , Gainey Randy R. , Triplett Ruth A.
Published: December 2012

This article examines the relationship between the number of alcohol outlets in block groups and the number of incidents of street crimes in Norfolk, Virginia. Cross-sectional and longitudinal panel designs are used to explore the relationship. Results were corrected for spatial autocorrelation and controlled for variation in size of population, socioeconomic disadvantage, and a dummy variable for being the downtown area. The cross-sectional analysis revealed a strong relationship between the number of alcohol outlets and the number of street crimes for on-premises and off-premises outlets. A panel design was then used to examine the effects of newly established outlets on the change in the number of street crime events over three periods. All three panels showed significant relationships between the number of alcohol outlets and the number of street crime events controlling for prior levels of crime, socioeconomic disadvantage, population size, and a spatial lag.
The Effect of Sanctions on Police Misconduct
Authors: Harris Christopher J. , Worden Robert E.
Published: December 2012

Police disciplinary systems are predicated on the notion of deterrence, particularly that officers more severely sanctioned for misconduct will be less likely to repeat those behaviors compared with less severely or unsanctioned officers. Using retrospective, longitudinal data from a large police department in the northeastern United States, we explore whether this fundamental assumption of police disciplinary systems is supported. Specifically, we examine both the likelihood and timing of complaints filed against officers who had obtained at least one complaint in their career that was sustained (i.e., upheld in an investigation), and compare outcomes of sanction severity on future sustained complaints. The results demonstrate that while a few demographic and complaint characteristics significantly affect the likelihood and timing of future misconduct in expected ways, officers who received more severe sanctions were actually more likely to obtain an additional sustained complaint when compared with nonsanctioned officers. Why this is the case is unclear from the data, but the most plausible explanation is that the perceived injustice of the disciplinary system may actually promote officer deviance.
Physical and thermal properties of microwave-dried wood lumber impregnated with phenol formaldehyde resin
Authors: Khalil HPS Abdul , Amouzgar P , Jawaid M , Abdullah CK , Issam AM , Zainudin ES , Paridah MT , Hassan A
Published: December 2012

In this study, microwave-dried oil palm trunk core lumber was impregnated with phenol formaldehyde resin using high pressure vacuum chamber. The impregnation of oil palm trunk core lumber was performed under 3 bar pressure and cured in an oven at 150℃ for 2 h. The impregnation of oil palm trunk core lumber was carried out at different time intervals (15, 30, 60, 90, 120 min) to obtain different density lumber and compared with microwave-dried oil palm trunk core lumber and rubberwood. The physical and thermal properties of microwave-dried oil palm trunk core lumber, impregnated oil palm trunk core lumber and rubberwood were studied. In general, the impregnated oil palm trunk core lumber obtained better physical properties than microwave dried oil palm trunk core lumber but slightly lower than rubberwood. The thermal stability of oil palm trunk core lumber was analyzed by using thermogravimetric analysis and it shows that rubberwood exhibited better thermal stability than impregnated oil palm trunk core lumber.
Interlaminar stress distribution of laminated composites using the mixed-dimensional transition element
Authors: Ahn Jae-Seok , Woo Kwang-Sung
Published: December 2012

This article presents the efficient mixed model analysis, often called global–local approach, to obtain interlaminar stresses at free edges in the laminated composite system under extension and flexure. For the proposed analysis, first, the discrete-layer elements are adopted as three-dimensional elements in the local region. Second, the equivalent single-layer elements are considered as two-dimensional elements in the global region. Finally, the mixed-dimensional transition elements are formulated to connect two different element types used in the global as well as the local regions, respectively. All the elements have higher order shape functions derived from the Lobatto shape function. Modes of the elements are classified into nodal and nodeless modes. The nodal modes have physical meaning, while nodeless modes with respect to the increase of order of the Lobatto shape function do not have physical meaning but improve accuracy of analysis. Therefore, fixing mesh arrangement of present analysis, the quality of the analysis can be enhanced without remeshing work. Some results obtained by the proposed approach are verified with comparison with published references. Also, efficiency of the mixed model analysis using the mixed-dimensional transition element is shown through comparison with numerical results obtained by the single model analysis using only discrete-layer elements.
Emotions, Body and Self: Critiquing Moral Decline Sociology
Authors: Hookway Nicholas
Published: December 2012

Morality is argued to be in a state of decline in the contemporary West. This article identifies two dominant strands of moral decline sociology: the ‘cultural pessimists’ and the ‘communitarians’. The article argues that these two dominant assessments of moral loss are underwritten by a set of assumptions concerning ‘society’ as the necessary source of morality and a disparaging view of emotion, body and self-authenticity culture. Drawing on Bauman, Ahmed, Irigaray and Taylor, the cultural pessimist and communitarian diagnoses of the moral present are critiqued as offering an overly pessimistic account of contemporary morality that ignores society as a ‘morality-silencing’ force and denies the ethical significance of self, emotions, body and therapeutic ideals of self-improvement and authenticity.
A Very Economic Elite: The Case of the Danish Top CEOs
Authors: Ellersgaard Christoph Houman , Larsen Anton Grau , Munk Martin D
Published: December 2012

Although the business elites in western societies have a very privileged social background in common, there are substantial differences in the reproduction mechanisms and social trajectories leading to a position within this elite group. These differences are explored by comparing the career paths of the top 100 CEOs in Britain, France, Germany and Denmark. In France and Britain, this reproduction is mediated through degrees from elite universities. In Germany, the principle of admission is the incorporated cultural capital acquired through an exclusive bourgeois origin combined with any university degree. Elite universities also hold little importance for Danish top CEOs, partly due to the institutions’ historic decline; instead, reproduction is mediated through time spent in the economic field, placing the case of the Danish CEOs between that of their British and German counterparts. Specific trajectories of Danish executives, in particular sales people, are identified using Multiple Correspondence Analysis and cluster analysis.
The Extent and Role of Domestic Tourism in a Small Island
Authors: Canavan Brendan
Published: December 2012

This article presents a case concerning microdomestic tourism on the Isle of Man, British Isles. Despite being a small island, research highlights that considerable domestic tourism occurs (referred to as microdomestic tourism to reflect the small island size and distinguish from wider British Isles tourism), including day trips and overnight stays. Participants identified such behavior as touristic, and distinct from other leisure activities. Qualitative interviews with residents explore the nature of and reasons for microdomestic tourism within a small island. Breaks from routine, entertaining friends and family, and exploring less well known landscapes are shown to underpin. Highlighted is that microdomestic tourism has a variety of potential benefits, which may counter some of the restrictions typically faced by a small island community. Support for an otherwise ailing tourism industry may help to protect facilities and infrastructure used by the wider community, maintain tourism capacity, and provide atmosphere attractive to foreign visitors.
Sports-Based Interventions and the Local Governance of Youth Crime and Antisocial Behavior
Authors: Kelly Laura
Published: December 2012

Drawing on analysis of youth crime and antisocial behavior reduction policies and a qualitative study of sports-based interventions (SBIs) in England, the article considers three ways in which SBI staff, managers, partners, and participants suggest projects contribute to youth crime reduction: encouraging young people’s “self-transformation” through the development of supportive and mentoring relationships (changing people), providing alternative activities and “sanctioned” spaces (changing environments), and influencing the ways in which transgressive behavior is dealt with by criminal justice agencies through multiagency relationships and partnerships (changing responses). Arguments developed in the criminological literature on the community governance of youth are applied to the interpretation of these findings to interrogate and expand current understandings of the role played by SBIs within broader strategies for governing young people and the professionals working with them.
New Media, Professional Sport and Political Economy
Authors: Dart Jon
Published: December 2012

New media technologies are seen to be changing the production, delivery and consumption of professional sports and creating a new dynamic between sports fans, athletes, clubs, governing bodies and the mainstream media. However, as Bellamy and McChesney (2011) have pointed out, advances in digital technologies are taking place within social, political, and economic contexts that are strongly conditioning the course and shape of this communication revolution. This essay assesses the first wave of research on professional sport and new media technologies and concludes that early trends indicate the continuation of existing neoliberal capitalist tendencies within professional sport. Using the concept of political economy, the essay explores issues of ownership, structure, production and delivery of sport. Discussion focuses on the opportunities sports fans now have available to them and how sports organization and media corporations shifted from an initial position of uncertainty, that bordered on hostility, to one which has seen them embrace new media technologies as powerful marketing tools. The essay concludes by stating as fundamental the issues of ownership and control and advocates that greater cognizance be accorded to underlying economic structures and the enduring, all-pervasive power of neoliberal capitalism and its impact in professional sport.
How can I clarify my responsibility as a headteacher as I provide opportunities to enable all children in the school to create talents?
Authors: Cripps Louise
Published: December 2012

In this account I explore and clarify my responsibility as I explain how I have come to my current understanding of talent creation, and why I feel it is so important to develop an inclusive approach to talent creation which provides opportunities for all the children to develop talents through their time at school, and to have them recognised and be able to give them as gifts to the school community.
Emotions, communicative responses, and relational consequences of boundary turbulence
Authors: McLaren Rachel M. , Steuber Keli Ryan
Published: December 2012

Guided by communication privacy management theory and appraisal theories of emotion this study examined how emotions (hurt, anger, and fear) and communicative responses (approach and withdrawal strategies) to boundary turbulence correspond with relational outcomes. A community sample of individuals ( N = 273) reported on instances when another person mishandled their private information. Results showed that hurt, anger, fear, distancing, and a combination of anger and distributive responses all corresponded with relational damage, whereas integrative responses and anger were associated with relational improvement. Taken together, our study provides evidence that boundary turbulence does not have to be a negative experience and can actually result in improved relational functioning.
Parental rearing style as a predictor of attachment and psychosocial adjustment during young adulthood
Authors: Betts Lucy R. , Trueman Mark , Chiverton Lousie , Stanbridge Abigail , Stephens Jessica
Published: December 2012

Parental rearing styles are crucial for psychosocial adjustment both during childhood and adulthood. The current study examined whether (a) parental rearing styles predicted psychosocial adjustment in young adulthood, (b) this relationship was mediated by attachment styles, and (c) gender differences occur in these relationships. A total of 240 (103 male, 132 female, and 5 unknown) university students completed measures assessing parental rearing style, current attachment style, romantic relationship satisfaction, friendship quality, self-esteem, and social competence. Multigroup structural equation modelling, conducted separately by gender, revealed that parental rearing style predicted psychosocial adjustment during young adulthood. Furthermore, there was also evidence of gender differences and that self-models and other models of attachment mediated this relationship. Together, these findings reinforce the importance of perceived parental rearing style for subsequent psychosocial adjustment.
Anti-consumption Choices Performed in a Drinking Culture
Authors: Cherrier Hélène , Gurrieri Lauren
Published: December 2012

This article explores the normative barriers to anti-consumption practices and highlights that not-for-profit organizations have an important role to play in facilitating the rejection of consumption. The study is based on thirteen phenomenological interviews with individuals who engaged in one month of alcohol abstinence and illustrates three cultural barriers to rejecting alcohol consumption, namely: the collective obligation to participate in entrenched sharing practices, the collective expectation to reciprocate in gift-giving practices of alcoholic commodities, and the identification of abstinence as deviant nonconformity. The study also discusses the role of nonprofits as change agents within society, emphasizing their ability to mobilize disenfranchised groups, give voice to unpopular causes and facilitate community building that breeds trust and cooperation.
Henry Dunant’s Imagined Community
Authors: Warner Daniel
Published: December 2012

Humanitarian intervention and the responsibility to protect are two examples often used of the separation between humanitarian action and the political. To say that humanitarianism is separate from the political comes from a very particular theological reading. To understand this reading, the article provides a detailed analysis of the life of Henry Dunant, the founder of the ICRC, to show his religious and historical environment in Calvinist Geneva.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Offenders and the Need for Early Intervention
Authors: Belcher John R.
Published: December 2012

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can be, for some people, a pathway to prison. Intervening at an early age may prevent delinquency. Generally, these interventions consist of a combination of medication, cognitive-behavioral therapy, family intervention, and educational support. Despite these interventions, some people with ADHD still develop antisocial and criminal behavior. This article examines the link between ADHD and delinquency, and reviews relevant treatments.
Engendering an Endogenous Framework for Socio-economic Development in the ECOWASSub-region
Authors: Adeniran Adebusuyi Isaac
Published: December 2012

This study explores how a home-grown framework could be advanced for the process of socio-economic transformation of the ECOWAS sub-region. Subsisting cleavages toward former colonial powers (and other global powers), existence of multiple monetary zones and border posts have been hindering productive socio-economic interactions among over 300 million inhabitants of West Africa. The study analyzes how uncensored cross-border mobility and institutionalization of a single monetary zone could facilitate regional socio-economic integration and development of West Africa. It identifies extant culture of ‘transnational simultaneity’ among Nigerian migrants in Cote d’Ivoire as a formidable means in this regard. Imperative data for the study were derived from primary (interviews) and secondary (evaluative) sources.
Towards an African-centered Sociological Approach to Africana Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersexed Identities and Performances: The Kemetic Model of the Cosmological Interactive Self
Authors: (Cher Love McAllister) Sekhmet Ra Em Kht Maat
Published: December 2012

This essay seeks to contribute to the development of an African-centered sociological approach to examine Africana lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersexed identities and performances. While sociologists using the most progressive approaches outline the Western hegemonic nature of Africana peoples’ perceptions of gender and sexuality, neither approach allows sociologists to view the relationship between social formations, human consciousness, and cosmological patterns. African-centered social scientists and social theorists typically determine that Africana lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersexed identities and performances are outside of Africana humanity. Within this essay, the author relies upon the Kemetic Anunian cosmology and personality constructs as sources through which to develop an African-centered framework to explain the multiple expressions of Africana gender and sexuality. This model considers that one’s gender and sexuality are contained within and inseparable from one’s higher-self that animates one’s existence. This work, then, opens the door for further theory development and praxis in the emerging field of African-centered sociology and African-centered gender and sexuality studies within the discipline of Africana studies.
The Façade of Safety in California’s Shelter-In-Place Homes: History, Wildfire, and Social Consequence
Authors: Fu Albert S.
Published: December 2012

This article examines the seemingly incongruous ways in which Shelter-in-Place (SIP) practices have been sold, deployed, and discussed in Southern California to battle wildfire. In particular, this will be a critique of the technical literature and application of fire safety in housing, as well as the anthropocentric hubris that humans can outsmart wildfire. Rather than focus on the success or failure of SIP, I am situating the SIP within the context of architecture, the history of fire safety, and the push of neoliberalism. The purpose of this approach is to make SIP and fire safe home design less about technology and know-how, and more about broader social issues such as privatization and social inequality.
Consideration of Age-Related Changes in Behavior Trends in Older Adults in Assessing Risks of Environmental Exposures
Authors: Tuttle Lauren , Meng Qingyu , Moya Jacqueline , Johns Douglas O.
Published: December 2012

Objectives: To explore age-related behavior differences between older and younger adults, and to review how older adult activity patterns are considered in evaluating the potential risk of exposure to environmental pollutants. Methods: Activity pattern data and their use in risk assessments were analyzed using the U.S. EPA Exposure Factors Handbook (EFH), U.S. EPA Consolidated Human Activity Pattern Database (CHAD), and peer-reviewed literature describing human health risk assessments. Results: The characterization by age of some factors likely to impact older adults’ exposures remains limited. We demonstrate that age-related behavior trends vary between younger and older adults, and these differences are rarely explicitly considered in environmental health risk assessment for older adults. Discussion: Incorporating older adult exposure factors into risk assessments may be challenging because of data gaps and difficulty in defining and appropriately binning older adults. Additional data related to older adult exposure factors are warranted for evaluating risk among this susceptible population.
International Doctoral Science and Engineering Students
Authors: Su Xuhong
Published: December 2012

As more international doctoral students flow into science and engineering departments in American research universities, a marked shift on the demographic composition of doctoral student bodies has been witnessed. Using a dataset combining a survey of science and engineering department chairs with the latest department evaluation information, this study reveals that international students are overrepresented in least prestigious departments and underrepresented in top programs. Research findings suggest doctoral cohorts’ career prospects are stratified by the representation of international students, department prestige and academic fields. The doctoral cohorts with more international students are more likely to head for less research-oriented faculty appointments and less likely to take postdoctoral positions. The cohorts minted out of prestigious departments demonstrate a greater success in landing research-oriented faculty positions. Relative to the cohorts in life science, the cohorts in engineering and physical sciences are presented with different job opportunities. The study concludes with a discussion of research findings and policy implications.
“I Came Back as a New Human Being”
Authors: Root Elizabeth , Ngampornchai Anchalee
Published: December 2012

While education abroad programs are part of an emphasis to prepare university students to be more interculturally competent, one criticism is that programs often send students overseas without adequate preparation. This study aims to explore what students have learned from education abroad programs and how their stories might reveal the need for predeparture and postdeparture training. Using the concept of intercultural competence from the field of intercultural communication, this study analyzes reflective papers of 18 students who have returned from education abroad programs. The results indicate that while experiences abroad have an obvious impact on students’ cognitive, affective, and behavioral skills, they do not necessarily help to develop deeper levels of intercultural competence. This study concludes that immersion into the culture alone may not increase intercultural competence. Ways in which intercultural communication courses can leverage the students’ experiences in education abroad programs are also discussed.
Negotiating the Meaning of Team Expertise
Authors: Minei Elizabeth , Bisel Ryan
Published: December 2012

In this case study, we report how a team of firefighters critiqued one of its member’s decisions to facilitate learning and process improvement. The study is supported by 500+ hr of ethnographic observations, documents, and 11 retrospective interviews, which captured how the team’s talk about the member’s decision shaped their interpretations of their own and others’ expertise—interpretations that ironically undermined learning. Constant comparative analysis revealed that these firefighters positioned themselves as experts by crediting either personal experience or technical knowledge and then discrediting the alternative way of knowing. We labeled this process epistemic denial. The process of epistemic denial was rooted in identity concern; specifically, veteran team members relied on personal experience and newer members relied on technical information gained from training to assert their expertise, and to devalue others’ expertise. The article concludes with recommendations for avoiding problems associated with epistemic denial in high-reliability teams.
The Relationship Between Surgical Patients and Nurses Characteristics With Their Perceptions of Caring Behaviors
Authors: Patiraki Elisabeth , Karlou Chryssoula , Efstathiou Georgios , Tsangari Haritini , Merkouris Anastasios , Jarosova Darja , Leino-Kilpi Helena , Suhonen Riitta , Balogh Zoltan , Palese Alvisa , Tomietto Marco , Papastavrou Evridiki
Published: December 2012

The purpose of this European survey was to examine the relationship of surgical patients’ and nurses’ personal characteristics with their perceptions of caring behaviors. Caring Behaviors Inventory (CBI) was completed by convenience samples of 1,659 patients and 1,195 nurses from six countries of Europe. The results showed that the older the patients, the more positive were their evaluations of CBI. Those with planned admission and good/very good health conditions gave higher ratings compared to those with an emergency and poor health conditions. Type of admission, age, and health conditions explained 5.2% of CBI variance. Nurses with more work experience and experience in the unit gave significantly higher ratings compared to nurses with less experience. Nurses’ total experience and gender explained 2.3% of the variance of perceived care. Therefore, in a multinational surgical environment, caring behaviors may be influenced by other variables, better captured by using different research methods.
Relocating the mobile
Authors: Hjorth Larissa
Published: December 2012

While the 20th-century media practice was marked by the focus of visual and audio screen cultures, the 21st-century media can be characterized by three key features: locative, mobile and social. With the transformation of mobile media from a communication tool into a multimodal device accompanied by global positioning systems (GPS), the significance of location-based services (LBS) has taken centre stage. Google maps, Facebook places and Foursquare are but a few of the locative media, a phenomenon creating new forms of co-presence that disrupt old binaries between online and off-line. In this transformation, a paradoxical relationship between identity, personalization and place occurs. On one hand, we see new ways for engaging with people, place and co-presence. On the other hand, we see the potential for corporations to create new levels of surveillance – a type of ‘überveillence’ – that put into question individual’s sense of privacy and identity. If ‘social networking sites don’t publicize community, they privatize it’ as Andrejevic notes, then second-generation locative media further challenge these distinctions. In this paradoxical struggle, we see that locative media highlight the pivotal role place has played in the evolution of mobile media practices. In each location, various factors such as sociocultural and technonational inform the types of media practices. One location experiencing a covert paradoxical struggle with locative media is South Korea. As one of the centres for technological innovation and tech-savvy youth, Seoul provides a fascinating case study for the tensions around localized notions of identity, privacy and sociality as it plays out through locative media.
Practitioner research
Authors: Casey Ashley
Published: December 2012

This article explores the current demands that teachers engage in year-on-year continued professional development (CPD) as a means of showing their ongoing competence to teach. In particular it highlights two types of CPD: the talked about notion of the ‘reflective practitioner’ and the actioned reality of CPD as a measure of technical and competent practice. The paper explores the feelings of teachers towards CPD and then, drawing on a seven-year longitudinal practitioner research study, uses the example of physical education to highlight the discordance between the intentions of the provider and the learning of the teachers. Finally, it uses the self-same study to illustrate the difference between traditional CPD and an idea of professional development that focuses on the use of practitioner research. It argues that through the use of inquiry and research teachers are able to focus their learning on ‘their kids’ and ‘their problems’ rather than engage in CPD which is delivered off-site and which assumes that ‘one size fits all’.
Students’ attitudes toward an after-school physical activity programme
Authors: Agbuga Bulent , Xiang Ping , McBride Ron
Published: December 2012

Though considerable research on student attitudes has been conducted in physical education, little information exists concerning student attitudes toward after-school physical activity programmes. This study assessed students’ attitudes toward their after-school physical activity programme located in southwest Texas, USA. Participants included 158 students in grades three to six, with ages ranging from eight to 12 years. They completed a five-item attitude questionnaire drawn from the attitude literature. Twenty students were also randomly selected and interviewed individually. Both the questionnaire and interview data indicated students in this study had positive attitudes toward their after-school physical activity programme. The interview data further revealed that students had positive attitudes primarily because they had fun, played a variety of games, and benefited from participation in the physical activities. Students’ attitudes were also examined in relation to their attendance of the programme. No significant relationship was found between the two variables.
University students’ conceptions of an excellent physical education teacher in China
Authors: Song Lihua , Chen Junjun
Published: December 2012

This study investigated how university students perceive an excellent physical education (PE) teacher at the university level. A sample of 2000 university students at four universities in China responded to a 53-item questionnaire. A 6-factor, 28-item model of an excellent teacher in PE was subsequently generated with a statistical good fit, using exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. The model included two traditional Chinese concepts, best defined as ‘Caring For Students’ and ‘Being Responsible.’ The other four concepts were: ‘Being A Subject Expert, Being Student-Focused, Prompting Students’ All-Around Growth’ and ‘Being A Lifelong Learner.’ Multivariate analysis of variance showed that students’ grade level and major contributed to statistically-significant differences in their conceptualisation of excellent PE teaching. Study findings were compared with those in other relevant literature.
Cognate facilitation effect in balanced and non-balanced Spanish–English bilinguals using the Boston Naming Test
Authors: Rosselli Mónica , Ardila Alfredo , Jurado María Beatriz , Salvatierra Judy Lee
Published: December 2012

The “cognate facilitation effect” refers to the advantage cognate words have over non-cognates in speed of recognition and production of words during the performance of multiple oral and written language tasks. It has been demonstrated that bilinguals produce and recognize cognates faster than non-cognates. Questions remain about the variables affecting the cognate facilitation effect. The present study investigated whether naming ability in a relatively large sample of balanced and non-balanced Spanish–English bilinguals is affected by the cognate status of the target words and whether the magnitude of this effect is influenced by bilinguals’ relative levels of proficiency in their two languages. One hundred and three (53 balanced, 50 non-balanced) participants (mean age= 42.52; SD =19.09) from South Florida were administered the Boston Naming Test (BNT) in Spanish and English. Half of the sample received the English version first and the other half the Spanish version first. Results showed that whereas the cognate effect in the balanced bilinguals is similar in both languages, the non-balanced group showed a more prominent cognate effect in the non-preferred language. Current results may contribute to the understanding of language representation in bilinguals. Results demonstrated that the retrieval of words in the BNT is influenced by the knowledge of another language and that this effect seems to be mediated by how balanced the bilingual is.
Through the skin: Exploring pastoralist marks and their meanings to understand parts of East African rock art
Authors: Russell Thembi
Published: December 2012

Influenced by Lynch’s 1978 hypothesis that the megalithic and geometric engraved Namoratung’a sites in northern Kenya are made by Eastern Cushitic pastoralists, and by the presence in the area today of Nilotic-speaking Turkana pastoralists who mark the skin of their livestock with geometric clan brands, this article uses the ethnography of modern pastoralists in an attempt to understand the meanings of the markings they make. It emphasizes the importance of understanding the particular contexts of image-making on skin and on rock, and suggestions are made as to how these results can be used to interpret engravings and paintings made in the past and to determine whether there is such a thing as a Cushitic or a Nilotic pastoralist rock art tradition. A consideration of image-making processes challenges the simple ascription of ethnic identity based on resemblances in image form.
Bourdieu and urban politics: Conceptualizing a Bourdieusian relational framework for urban politics research
Authors: Shin Yongjun
Published: December 2012

This study purposes to build a generic theoretical framework of urban politics, drawing on Bourdieu’s relational sociology and theory of practice. Through a Bourdieusian relational mode of analysis, the study has conceptualized subfields of urban politics and the possible dimensions of politics among stakeholders in different subfields. In addition, the two conceptual spaces of positions and position-takings in the field of urban politics were hypothetically constructed with a methodological suggestion of Galois lattice analysis. The concepts of capital and habitus have also been related to develop the theoretical framework.