bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Experimental Study and Modeling NaCl Mass Transfer during Feta Cheese Ripening
Authors: Zhu Xujun , Zhao Liming , Liu Shaowei , Huang Wei , Zhao Shuang
Published: August 2011

The NaCl spatial distribution and model development during two ripening stages of Feta cheese were studied in the paper. The results showed that NaCl spatial distribution of 12 locations for each layer had no significant differences (P>0.05) during the whole ripening, while the values of NaCl spatial distribution of each layer had significant differences (p<0.05) during stage I (from day 1 to day 20) but no significant differences (P>0.05) during stage II (from day 20 to day 60). Based on statistical analysis of experimental data, the power models with three sets of parameters for three layers were developed during stage I, and a sigmoid model was developed for the entire cheese during stage II. The R2 of the four models were 0.975, 0.978, 0.991 and 0.997, respectively. The models had a good fit of experimental values and can be used to predict the spatial distribution of NaCl content in Feta cheese ripening.
Evidence That HLA Class I and II Associations With Type 1 Diabetes, Autoantibodies to GAD and Autoantibodies to IA-2, Are Distinct
Authors: Howson Joanna M.M. , Stevens Helen , Smyth Deborah J. , Walker Neil M. , Chandler Kyla A. , Bingley Polly J. , Todd John A.
Published: August 2011

OBJECTIVE

A major feature of type 1 diabetes is the appearance of islet autoantibodies before diagnosis. However, although the genetics of type 1 diabetes is advanced, the genetics of islet autoantibodies needs further investigation. The primary susceptibility loci in type 1 diabetes, the HLA class I and II genes, are believed to determine the specificity and magnitude of the autoimmune response to islet antigens. We investigated the association of glutamic acid decarboxylase autoantibodies (GADA) and insulinoma-associated antigen-2 autoantibodies (IA-2A) with the HLA region.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

Associations of GADA and IA-2A with HLA-DRB1, HLA-DQB1, HLA-B, HLA-C, HLA-A, MICA, and 3,779 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were analyzed in 2,531 childhood-onset case subjects (median time since diagnosis 5 years). All analyses were adjusted for age-at-diagnosis and duration of diabetes.

RESULTS

GADA and IA-2A were associated with an older age-at-diagnosis (P < 10−19). For GADA, the primary association was with HLA-DQB1 (P = 9.00 × 10−18), with evidence of a second independent effect in the HLA class I region with SNP, rs9266722 (P = 2.84 × 10−6). HLA-DRB1 had the strongest association with IA-2A (P = 1.94 × 10−41), with HLA-A*24 adding to the association, albeit negatively (P = 1.21 × 10−10). There was no evidence of association of either IA-2A or GADA with the highly type 1 diabetes predisposing genotype, HLA-DRB1*03/04.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite genetic association of type 1 diabetes and the islet autoantibodies localizing to the same HLA class II genes, HLA-DRB1 and HLA-DQB1, the effects of the class II alleles and genotypes involved are quite different. Therefore, the presence of autoantibodies is unlikely to be causal, and their role in pathogenesis remains to be established.
The Accuracy of Optical Scanning: Influence of Convergence and Die Preparation
Authors: Chan DCN , Chung AK-H , Haines J , Yau EH-T , Kuo C-C
Published: August 2011

The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of the data acquisition and modeling process of laser and white light scanners by evaluating the reproducibility of digitized simulated crowns with different convergences. A secondary purpose was to analyze the influence of die preparation by testing this hypothesis with a set of dies without ditching compared with a set with well-defined margins. Ditching or trimming the die defines the position of the margin and acts as a guide to gingival contour when the restoration is being waxed. Two light scanners (a white light optical scanner [Steinbichler Gmbh, Neubeuern, Germany] and red laser light scanner [TurboDent System, Taichung, Taiwan]) were evaluated. Two sets of simulated crowns were fabricated as cone frustrum models with a total occlusal convergence (TOC) of 0°, 5°, 10°, 15°, 20°, and 25° and a 9-mm base and 3-mm height using a precision milling machine and computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) technique. One set of the dies was ditched immediately below the finish line to enhance marginal definition. Each die was optically digitized five times directly with the two different measuring systems. The area of each triangle in the scan that is occlusal to the margin line was calculated and summed to produce the final surface area measurement provided. The digitizing error was compared with the computed surface area of the original master die sets and compared with a paired t-test (df=4; 95% CI). There was no difference in accuracy of the untrimmed dies between the two systems evaluated. We also did not find any difference in the 0° (p=0.12) and 5° degree (p=0.21) groups among the ditched dies. However, when the TOC exceeded 5°, there was a significant difference between the two groups, with the laser groups having a smaller error percentage. Three-dimensional light scanning was not affected by the convergence angle except in the 0°-5° range. Trimming the dies greatly affected the accuracy of scanning.
Enamel Wetness Effects on Bond Strength Using Different Adhesive Systems
Authors: Furuse AY , Cunha LF , Moresca R , Paganeli G , Mondelli RFL , Mondelli J
Published: August 2011

Objective

To evaluate, through the application of different dentin bonding systems, the influence of wetness on shear bond strength in enamel.

Methods

This study evaluated three etch-and-rinse adhesive systems (Scotchbond MP [used with and without primer]; Singlebond; and Prime&Bond 2.1) and two self-etching adhesive systems (Clearfil SE Bond; and Xeno IV). Flat bovine enamel surfaces were either air-dried for 30 seconds or blotted with absorbent paper after acid-etching for the conventional bonding agents or before the application of self-etching bonding agents. The resin composite EsthetX was bonded to flat surfaces that had been treated with one of the adhesives, following the manufacturer's instructions. After being stored in water at 37°C for one week, bonded specimens were broken in shear. Data were evaluated with two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Student-Newman-Keuls tests (α=0.05). For comparing each condition individually, regardless of the adhesive or wetness condition, a one-way ANOVA and a Student-Newman-Keuls test (α=0.05) were applied.

Results

The two-way ANOVA showed significant differences among adhesive systems. An interaction effect was also observed (p<0.05), but wetness did not influence shear bond strength (p=0.98). The one-way ANOVA showed that the all-in-one adhesive was the only material influenced by the presence of water at the enamel's surface.

Conclusion

The all-in-one adhesive behaved differently depending on whether the enamel surface was dry or wet.
Effect of Grape Seed Extract on the Bond Strength of Bleached Enamel
Authors: Vidhya S , Srinivasulu S , Sujatha M , Mahalaxmi S
Published: August 2011

Clinical Relevance

Bleached enamel is not conducive to immediate composite restoration. The use of oligomeric proanthocyanidin complexes as antioxidants enables an immediate composite restoration post bleaching.
Effect of CPP-ACP Application on Flexural Strength of Bleached Enamel and Dentin Complex
Authors: Khoroushi M , Mazaheri H , Manoochehri AE
Published: August 2011

Clinical Relevance

In the absence of saliva, flexural strength of the bovine enamel-dentin complex decreases after in vitro simulation of both at-home and in-office bleaching procedures. Application of Casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP-ACP) subsequent to both bleaching regimens could compensate for this decrease.
Chemical Analysis of Enamel and Dentin Following the Application of Three Different At-home Bleaching Systems
Authors: Cakir FY , Korkmaz Y , Firat E , Oztas SS , Gurgan S
Published: August 2011

Purpose

To determine the change in the chemical composition of enamel and dentin as well as to evaluate the differences in surface texture of the same dental hard tissues following three at-home bleaching systems in vitro.

Methods

Sixty extracted intact human anterior teeth were used in this study. Thirty teeth were used as samples for enamel, and the buccal surfaces of the remaining 30 teeth were abraded and used as dentin samples. Prior to bleaching treatments, calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), sodium (Na), magnesium (Mg), fluoride (F), and oxygen (O) levels of each sample were measured using an energy dispersive spectrometer. The teeth were then randomly allocated into three groups according to the bleaching system used, as follows: GI, 10% carbamide peroxide (CP); GII, 20% CP; GIII, and 35% CP. Following the bleaching treatments, Ca, P, K, Na, Mg, F, and O measurements were repeated. The surface configurations were examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The data were analyzed using Wilcoxon signed rank and Kruskal-Wallis tests followed by the Dunn test.

Results

All three bleaching systems tested caused similar changes in the chemical composition of enamel and dentin. Bleaching systems decreased Ca and K, while F and O levels increased in enamel. In dentin, Ca, P, and K levels decreased; however, Na, F, and O levels increased. SEM observations revealed no deleterious effect on enamel and dentin.

Conclusion

The use of home bleaching agents could affect the chemical composition of dental hard tissues, whereas the change in the chemical composition of enamel and dentin was not affected by the CP concentration of the bleaching systems used.
ERp57/GRP58: A protein with multiple functions
Authors: Turano Carlo , Gaucci Elisa , Grillo Caterina , Chichiarelli Silvia
Published: August 2011

The protein ERp57/GRP58 is a stress-responsive protein and a component of the protein disulfide isomerase family. Its functions in the endoplasmic reticulum are well known, concerning mainly the proper folding and quality control of glycoproteins, and participation in the assembly of the major histocompatibility complex class 1. However, ERp57 is present in many other subcellular locations, where it is involved in a variety of functions, primarily suggested by its participation in complexes with other proteins and even with DNA. While in some instances these roles need to be confirmed by further studies, a great number of observations support the participation of ERp57 in signal transduction from the cell surface, in regulatory processes taking place in the nucleus, and in multimeric protein complexes involved in DNA repair.
Cooperative Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning for Multi-Component Robotic Systems: guidelines for future research
Authors: Graña Manuel , Fernandez-Gauna Borja , Lopez-Guede Jose Manuel
Published: August 2011

Reinforcement Learning (RL) as a paradigm aims to develop algorithms that allow to train an agent to optimally achieve a goal with minimal feedback information about the desired behavior, which is not precisely specified. Scalar rewards are returned to the agent as response to its actions endorsing or opposing them. RL algorithms have been successfully applied to robot control design. The extension of the RL paradigm to cope with the design of control systems for Multi-Component Robotic Systems (MCRS) poses new challenges, mainly related to coping with scaling up of complexity due to the exponential state space growth, coordination issues, and the propagation of rewards among agents. In this paper, we identify the main issues which offer opportunities to develop innovative solutions towards fully-scalable cooperative multi-agent systems.
Effect of the turbulence models on Rushton turbine generated flow in a stirred vessel
Authors: Chtourou Wajdi , Ammar Meriem , Driss Zied , Abid Mohamed
Published: August 2011

In this paper, we performed a comparison of four turbulence models using for numerical simulation of the hydrodynamic structure generated by a Rushton turbine in a cylindrical tank. The finite volume method was employed to solve the Navier-Stokes equations governing the transport of momentum. In this study four closure models tested were: k-ɛ standard, k-ɛ RNG, k-ɛ Realizable and RSM (Reynolds Stress Model). MRF (Multi Reference Frame) technique was used with FLUENT software package. The present work aimed to provide improved predictions of turbulent flow in a stirred vessel and in particular to assess the ability to predict the dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy (e) that constitutes a most stringent test of prediction capability due to the small scales at which dissipation takes place. The amplitude of local and overall dissipation rate is shown to be strongly dependent on the choice of turbulence model. The numerical predictions were compared with literature results for comparable configurations and with experimental data obtained using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). A very good agreement was found with regards to turbulence.
Expression and characterisation of the ryegrass mottle virus non-structural proteins
Authors: Baļķe Ina , Resēviča Gunta , Skrastiņa Dace , Zeltiņš Andris
Published: August 2011

Expression and characterisation of the ryegrass mottle virus non-structural proteins

The Ryegrass mottle virus (RGMoV) single-stranded RNA genome is organised into four open reading frames (ORF) which encode several proteins: ORF1 encodes protein P1, ORF2a contains the membrane-associated 3C-like serine protease, genome-linked protein VPg and a P16 protein gene. ORF2b encodes replicase RdRP and the only structural protein, coat protein, is synthesised from ORF3. To obtain the non-structural proteins in preparative quantities and to characterise them, the corresponding RGMoV gene cDNAs were cloned in pET- and pColdI-derived expression vectors and overexpressed in several E. coli host cells. For protease and RdRP, the best expression system containing pColdI vector and E. coli WK6 strain was determined. VPg and P16 proteins were obtained from the pET- or pACYC- vectors and E. coli BL21 (DE3) host cells and purified using Ni-Sepharose affinity chromatography. Attempts to crystallize VPg and P16 were unsuccessful, possibly due to non-structured amino acid sequences in both protein structures. Methods based on bioinformatic analysis indicated that the entire VPg domain and the C-terminal part of the P16 contain unstructured amino acid stretches, which possibly prevented the formation of crystals.
H1-antihistamines suppress wheal-and-flare reaction and skin blood perfusion measured by Laser Dopppler flowmetry: randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design study
Authors: Bukovskis Māris , Tirzīte Madara , Strazda Gunta , Jurka Normunds , Ligere Renāte , Isajevs Sergejs , Taivans Immanuels
Published: August 2011

H1-antihistamines suppress wheal-and-flare reaction and skin blood perfusion measured by Laser Dopppler flowmetry: randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design study

The aim of our study was to compare the influence of pre-treatment with H1-antihistamines (levocetirizine, desloratadine, clemastine, quifenadine, and sequifenadine) and a placebo on the histamine-induced weal and flare reaction, increase of skin blood perfusion and sedation. Thirty healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study. The study design was a prospective, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover, balanced clinical trial. Volunteers in randomised and double-blind order were treated with oral levocetirizine 5 mg, desloratadine 5 mg, clemastine 1 mg, quifenadine 50 mg, sequifenadine 50 mg or a placebo. Two hours after intake of medication, the histamine skin prick test was performed and skin blood perfusion was registered with further evaluation of sedative effect. We conclude that levocetirizine induced a significant and pronounced decrease of weal and flare reaction and skin blood perfusion compared to the placebo and the other H1-antihistamines. The effect of quifenadine and sequifenadine on weal reaction area was similar to desloratadine and clemastine. Regarding the sedative effect, we can conclude that second generation antihistamines appear to be not non-sedative but the least impairing, and the first generation antihistamines appear to be the most impairing on central nervous system function. There is a necessity to consider the sedating potential of antihistamines, along with other factors such as efficacy, when prescribing antihistamines to patients.
Wavelet analysis of the Baltic region river runoff longh-term trends and fluctuations
Authors: Timuhins Andrejs , Rodinovs Valērijs , Kļaviņš Māris
Published: August 2011

Wavelet analysis of the Baltic region river runoff longh-term trends and fluctuations

The study of changes in river discharge and flood regime can provide important information on climate change and its impacts. Wavelet analysis offers new possibilities to study changes of river discharge patterns in regard to periodical processes on a background of climate change. In this study wavelet analysis was used to study long-term changes of river discharge in the Baltic region. Periodic oscillations of discharge intensity, and low- and high-water flow years are common for the major rivers in the Eastern Baltic region. Main frequencies of river discharge were estimated to be 14, 28, 37 years for the studied rivers. Wavelet analysis allowed to identify similarities between the river discharge regime, and thus, the factors influencing it. Years of maximal and minimal discharges for major rivers were identified and the impact of large-scale atmospheric circulation processes on the river discharge was studied.
Gender Differences in Substance Use, Problems, Social Situation and Treatment Experiences among Clients Entering Addiction Treatment in Stockholm
Authors: Storbjörk Jessica
Published: August 2011

AIM

While gender differences in substance use/problems have been found to be smaller in more gender-equal countries such as Sweden, gender-specific norms still prevail, and women's (mis)use continues to be more condemned than men's. This article analyses and discusses similarities and differences between the sexes in alcohol and drug treatment in terms of men's and women's treatment experiences, consumption/problems, social situation, and life-domain problems.

METHOD

1865 respondents were interviewed (structured interview) at the beginning of a new treatment episode in 2000–2002 in Stockholm County (sample representative of those starting a new treatment episode for alcohol or drug problems in Stockholm County). Responses are cross-tabulated by sex and multivariate logistic regression is used to predict whether men or women have more severe problems in various life domains of the Addiction Severity Index (ASI composite scores).

Results

Bivariate analyses showed that women and men differ significantly in their treatment experiences. Women are more likely to have contact with mental health services, whereas men tend to deal more with the criminal justice system. The sexes do not differ in alcohol and drug problem severity, but women are more likely to have problems with pharmaceuticals. In contrast to the hypothesis, it turned out that men, not women, are more marginalised as concerns housing, income, family situation, lack of friends. Women report more problems related to family, social life and mental/physical health, while men report higher criminality and financial problems.

Conclusions

There are no gender differences among the clients in the treatment system when it comes to substance problem severity but differences occur concerning the clients’ social situation and different life-domain problems. As men are more socially exposed a focus on women may obscure problems among men.
Research Report
Authors: Reitan Therese
Published: August 2011

AIM

The aim of this article is to present a first overview of pregnant substance abusers in compulsory care in Sweden. The current legislation does not allow for compulsory care on the grounds of pregnancy, i.e. out of consideration for the foetus. Nonetheless, a number of the women placed in compulsory care every year also “happen to be” pregnant.

DATA

Through client screening interviews, which include a question about whether the client is pregnant, and data from the client administrative system of the National Board of Institutional Care, a total of 81 unique pregnancies (79 unique women) were identified between 2001 and 2008. The average age at admission was 28 years and the women for whom such data was available were on average 5.9 months pregnant.

Results

Compared to other clients in compulsory care the situation of the pregnant clients was relatively favourable in some domains, such as living conditions, and physical and psychological status. Their drug profile mostly resembled that of the youngest client group in compulsory care, i.e. dominated by heroine and amphetamine. There were, however, relatively speaking fewer pregnant women who never have injected drugs and it was more common among the pregnant clients to have lost custody of a child or to have a child placed in foster care.

Conclusions

More empirical studies are necessary in order to increase our knowledge about this selected group of clients, both follow-ups on the women and their children as well as in-depth studies of how these women are “processed” in the social and legal systems.
Alcohol Prevention and Evaluation in the Era of Evidence Based Practice – the Need for a Systematic Approach to Evaluation
Authors: Sandberg Bo
Published: August 2011

AIMS

This article focuses on the shortcomings of experimental outcome evaluations.

MATERIAL

The study uses two studies of the alcohol prevention program Prime for Life (PFL) to illustrate problems associated with a ‘one dimensional’ goal focus and how implementation may affect the efficiency of an intervention.

Results

As evidence based practice often fails to acknowledge the importance of context and implementation quality in its quest to find ‘what works’, it is argued in the article that a wider perspective on efficiency is needed in evaluations of alcohol prevention.

CONSLUSIONS

To be able to find out what works and during what circumstances, evaluators need to look for a wider set of traits that constitute effective interventions.
Impact of Pain Reported During Isometric Quadriceps Muscle Strength Testing in People With Knee Pain: Data From the Osteoarthritis Initiative
Authors: Riddle Daniel L. , Stratford Paul W.
Published: August 2011

Background

Muscle force testing is one of the more common categories of diagnostic tests used in clinical practice. Clinicians have little evidence to guide interpretations of muscle force tests when pain is elicited during testing.

Objective

The purpose of this study was to examine the construct validity of isometric quadriceps muscle strength tests by determining whether the relationship between maximal isometric quadriceps muscle strength and functional status was influenced by pain during isometric testing.

Design

A cross-sectional design was used.

Methods

Data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative were used to identify 1,344 people with unilateral knee pain and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) pain subscale scores of 1 or higher on the involved side. Measurements of maximal isometric quadriceps strength and ratings of pain during isometric testing were collected. Outcome variables were WOMAC physical function subscale, 20-m walk test, 400-m walk test, and a repeated chair stand test. Multiple regression models were used to determine whether pain during testing modified or confounded the relationship between strength and functional status.

Results

Pearson r correlations among the isometric quadriceps strength measures and the 4 outcome measures ranged from −.36 (95% confidence interval=−.41, −.31) for repeated chair stands to .36 (95% confidence interval=.31, .41) for the 20-m walk test. In the final analyses, neither effect modification nor confounding was found for the repeated chair stand test, the 20-m walk test, the 400-m walk test, or the WOMAC physical function subscale. Moderate or severe pain during testing was weakly associated with reduced strength, but mild pain was not.

Limitations

The disease spectrum was skewed toward mild or moderate symptoms, and the pain measurement scale used during muscle force testing was not ideal.

Conclusions

Given that the spectrum of the sample was skewed toward mild or moderate symptoms and disease, the data suggest that isometric quadriceps muscle strength tests maintain their relationship with self-report or performance-based disability measures even when pain is elicited during testing.
Expedition Yukon 1967: Centennial and the Politics of Mountaineering in Kluane
Authors: Reichwein PearlAnn
Published: August 2011

Abstract:

The Yukon Alpine Centennial Expedition was a mass outdoor adventure to celebrate Canada's Centennial in 1967. Organized by the Alpine Club of Canada, it mobilized unifying narratives of federal nationhood through athletic exploits and sporting bodies. Funded by federal, provincial, and territorial governments, three prongs of this major expedition involved more than three hundred mountaineers and resulted in thirty-three climbs in the St Elias Range, including twenty-seven first ascents. The expedition named many geographic features and left imprints on the cultural landscape. Although the expedition officially commemorated nationhood, climbers nonetheless challenged common assumptions through their ways of knowing mountain landscapes. Looking back to the 1925 first ascent of Mt Logan and forward to the declaration of Kluane National Park in 1972, yace represented Canadian federalist nationalism in northern mountain landscapes, situated amid the Southern Tutchone homelands. Imagining peaks in the St Elias Range as the domain of Canada's national alpine club contributed to imagining Canada's northern national parks established in the 1970s. This study considers how encounters and stories associated with the expedition might be read to place the study of commemoration and mountaineering history within discussions of local knowledge, cultural landscapes, and environmental philosophy.
Rats in Alberta: Looking at Pest-Control Posters from the 1950s
Authors: McTavish Lianne , Zheng Jingjing
Published: August 2011

Abstract:

How did the rat-control program, launched by the Government of Alberta in 1950, become associated with the identity and heritage of the province? The authors answer this question by undertaking close visual analyses of the anti-rat posters and pamphlets that were distributed by the government throughout the 1950s. Using a visual methodology inspired by semiotics, they argue that the early rat-control program ambitiously promoted Alberta as a unified, clean province that was both distinct from its prairie neighbours and for the most part populated with vigilant, hardworking citizens eager to remove unwanted intruders.
Discourses on Bilingualism in Canadian French Immersion Programs
Authors: Roy Sylvie , Galiev Albert
Published: August 2011

The present article examines discourses on bilingualism in French immersion schools and connects local ideologies of bilingualism to a more global view of what it means to be bilingual in Canada. Bilingualism is usually regarded as two isolated monolingualisms (or monolingual systems) in which there is no place for code-switching, uneven language proficiencies, or certain varieties of French. Although French immersion students choose French because it is one of the official languages and it is valuable to speak additional languages, they face the challenge of not speaking like native speakers of French. The present article presents ethnographic and sociolinguistic research, conducted in two junior high schools in Alberta, which indicates that although French immersion offers cognitive and social benefits to students, their challenge is to be recognized as bilinguals. Looking at discourses on bilingualism is important for enabling every student learning French in Canada to have a ‘voice’.
Working Smarter, Not Working Harder: Revisiting Teacher Feedback in the L2 Writing Classroom
Authors: Lee Icy
Published: August 2011

Although second language (L2) teachers spend a significant amount of time marking students’ writing, many of them feel that their efforts do not pay off. While students want teachers to give them feedback on their writing and value teacher feedback, they might experience feelings of frustration and confusion once they receive it. What is amiss in L2 writing teachers’ feedback practices? The present article is predicated on the belief that if teachers are to improve the effectiveness of conventional feedback practices, they have to challenge taken-for-granted assumptions and problematize their current practices. Using teacher feedback data from 26 English teachers from Hong Kong and interview data from six of them, the present article analyzes the problems that underlie teachers’ feedback practices, discusses alternative approaches, and concludes with recommendations to help teachers maximize the formative potential of feedback.
BLACK EXPERIENCE IN THE UNION ARMY: THE OTHER CIVIL WAR
Authors: Reid Richard M.
Published: August 2011

Viewed from an international perspective, one of the distinctive features of the American Civil War, especially given the widespread material destruction and the bloody loss of life, was the restraint and control exercised by the armed participants on both sides. It stood in sharp contrast to many of the wars, civil and international, in Europe, Asia and Africa, where the line between combatants and noncombatants blurred and where atrocities became all too frequent. A major factor contributing to this restraint had been the Union decision at the War's start, "to treat the Confederate forces as if they were the army of a legitimate belligerent" even though the Union denied legitimacy of the Confederate government.1 As long as the rebel army and the Southern population observed the laws and usages of war they were effectively treated as a foreign power. Moreover, courage, combat, and a common background, as Gerald Lindeman and James Robertson have recently shown, helped create a bond between Johnny Reb and Billy Yank which acted "to contain violence within the limits of formal battle."2
CONDITIONED RESPONSE: DAVID RABE'S THE BASIC TRAINING OF PAVLO HUMMEL
Authors: Fenn Jeffery W.
Published: August 2011

David Rabe's "Vietnam Trilogy," comprising The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummell (1968), Streamers (1976), and Sticks and Bones (1969), exemplifies many of the recurring themes and motifs that came not only to characterize, but virtually to define, the genre of drama that emerged from the Vietnam War. This genre of dramatic literature constantly and consistently reflects the stresses, anxieties and tensions that shattered the social equilibrium of the America of the 1960s, and focusses on the consequences of these stresses for both the individual and his society. The events of the period fractured American society in a manner unknown since the Civil War, and the stresses associated with the Vietnam conflict exacerbated the social, political and intellectual divisiveness which characterized this period of American history.
FROM ILLUSION TO DISILLUSION SARTRE'S VIEWS OF AMERICA
Authors: Peters Renate
Published: August 2011

At least since the time of Tocqueville, European intellectuals have tried to explain America both to themselves and to each other. The United States, especially as it gained power and influence in the twentieth century, both lured and repelled the European intellectual. The playwrights Tucholsky and Hasenclever pictured America as an "earthly paradise," while Freud preferred to see America as a "mistake," an "anti-paradise."1 Both views existed not only side-by-side in the European intellectual community, but were often expressed by the same individual on different occasions. This schizophrenic attitude may well be a result of the conflict between the myth of America and the reality—especially the socio-political reality—of America. The same intellectual who was lured by the myth was repelled by the reality.
IMMIGRATION AND THE MORAL CRITICISM OF AMERICAN HISTORY: THE VISION OF OSCAR HANDLIN
Authors: Ueda Reed
Published: August 2011

Oscar Handlin, the leading American social historian in the early Cold War era, envisioned immigration as the key to America's national and world historical destiny.1 For Handlin, the history of American immigration was the source of universal insights about the possibilities for co-existence under the conditions of freedom that could illuminate a pathway in a problematic modern world. America as the quintessential immigrant nation was the quintessential modern nation, and as such its national destiny had much to say about human destiny.
A LITERARY NOTE - AN UNNOTICED SOURCE FOR THE GREAT GATSBY: THE INFLUENCE OF EDITH WHARTON'S THE GLIMPSES OF THE MOON
Authors: Killoran Helen
Published: August 2011

In Edith Wharton's The Glimpses of the Moon, Nick Lansing leaves his wife after an argument and boards a train at random. In a coffee shop in Genoa, he is approached by Mr. Buttles, who has recently left the employ of the Hickses, wealthy Americans yachting around Europe. He has resigned because of a disagreement with Coral Hicks, ostensibly over the merits of the Tiepolo angels on the ceiling of the Scalzi Chapel. Nick feels sorry for Mr. Buttles, regarding him as "a limp image of unrequited passion" for Coral, a "hopeless suitor".1 Coral and Mr. Buttles, associated as they are with Tiepolo's angels, become two of Wharton's "guardian angel" figures, both of whom view the world clearly through spectacles of various types and take action to heal moral ills.2
EXTRA-VAGANCE CONSOLIDATED THOREAU
Authors: Lane, Jr. Lauriat
Published: August 2011

Henry D. Thoreau. Cape Cod, ed. Joseph Moldenhauer. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1988. 441 pp. Robert Sattelmeyer. Thoreau's Reading: A Study in Intellectual History. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1988. xv + 333 pp. Joel Myerson, ed. Critical Essays on Henry David Thoreau's Walden. Boston: G.K. Hall, 1988. ix + 254 pp. This is my fourth review of a group of Thoreau books, the third for this journal. It affords a good chance to consider how we stand toward Thoreau and how we got here. In the "Conclusion" to Walden, Thoreau "fear[ed] chiefly lest my expression may not be extra-vacant enough" (324) but promised us, pace Walter Benn Michaels, "there is a solid bottom everywhere" (330).1 More and more, in separate projects and in their cooperative interrelations, the intent and industry of Thoreau studies have been to consolidate the bottom over which Thoreau extra-vagantly saunters. Each of these three books, in different ways, does so.
TWO PERSPECTIVES ON THE SECESSION CRISIS
Authors: Kellow Margaret M.R.
Published: August 2011

Charles Hoffman and Tess Hoffman. North by South: The Two Lives of Richard James Arnold. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1988. xxii + 318 pp. Richard H. Sewell. A House Divided: Sectionalism and Civil War, 1848-1865. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1988. xii + 223 pp. These two books survey the sectional crisis as if from opposite ends of a powerful telescope. Beginning in 1848 with "the legacy of the Mexican War," Richard Sewell's A House Divided deftly surveys the broad range of events which led up to the firing on Fort Sumter in April of 1861 and which culminated four years later in Lee's surrender at Appomattox, giving as it were a macroscopic view of the sectional crisis. In North by South, the Hoffmans painstakingly reconstruct the experience of one man, Richard James Arnold. A member of a wealthy Northern mercantile family, Arnold became by his 1823 marriage, a Southern planter and slaveholder. For fifty years, his life and work straddled the Mason-Dixon Line, and thus, the Hoffmans argue, Arnold's experience epitomizes the sectional crisis microscopically.
PERENNIAL QUESTIONS REVISITED
Authors: Simpson Craig
Published: August 2011

Robert E. May. John A. Quitman: Old South Crusader. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1985. xviii + 465 pp. Thomas E. Schott. Alexander H. Stephens of Georgia: A Biography. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1988. xx + 552 pp. Whatever the fascination of new-fangled nineteenth-century social history and however compelling, in particular, matters of gender have recently become, these two important studies reaffirm the enduring significance of slavery, secession and manhood. Moreover, they are critical assessments, not mere hagiographie memorials to the so-called "achievements" of their subjects. Although one is more successful than the other, both volumes are superbly designed and illustrated products of the Southern Biography Series at Louisiana State University. Each also enhances our knowledge on large and contentious issues, particularly the vexed problems of diversity and change over time in the antebellum South.
THE POLITICS OF REPRESENTATION: SOME RECENT AFRICAN-AMERICAN LITERARY CRITICISM
Authors: Sanders Leslie
Published: August 2011

Bernard Bell. The Afro-American Novel and Its Tradition. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1987. xix + 421 pp. Hazel V. Carby. Reconstructing Womanhood: The Emergence of the Afro-American Woman Novelist. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987. 223 pp. Robert Elliot Fox. Conscientious Sorcerers: The Black Postmodernist Fiction of LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka, Ishmael Reed, and Samuel R Delany. New York: Greenwood Press, 1987. xi + 142 pp. Norman Harris. Connecting Times: The Sixties in Afro-American Fiction. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1988. 297 pp. Ann Allen Shockley. Afro-American Women Writers, 1746-1933: An Anthology and Critical Guide. Boston: G.K. Hall, 1988, xxviii + 465 pp. Valerie Smith. Self-Discovery and Authority in Afro-American Narrative. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1987. viii 4- 167 pp. In Self-Discovery and Authority in Afro-American Narrative, Valerie Smith centers her work on the paradox that "by fictionalizing one's life, one bestows a quality of authenticity upon it" (2). She argues that certain slave narrators and protagonists of twentieth-century African-American fiction "affirm and legitimate their psychological autonomy by telling the stories of their own lives." Building on Robert Stepto and other critics who have plumbed the connection between literacy and freedom as it arises throughout African- American literature, Smith maintains a focus both on texts and on the social and political milieu which gave rise to their production, and which they themselves recreate.1
THE PLAYWRIGHT AND THE LADY FROM DUBUQUE: RABE BIBLIOGRAPHY AND ALBEE INTERVIEWS
Authors: Rabillard Sheila
Published: August 2011

Philip C. Kolin, cd. Conversations with Edward Albee. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1988. xxix + 223 pp. Philip C. Kolin. David Rabe: A Stage History and a Primary and Secondary Bibliography. New York: Garland, 1988. xii + 273 pp. It is difficult to determine the readership for whom Conversations with Edward Albee is intended. The reviewer who digests the book as a whole and absorbs the inevitable repetitions of twenty-seven different interviewers is far from an ideal audience. Yet if one dips into the collection casually, looking for the illuminating biographical detail or even an entertaining bit of gossip, it offers merely the mildest diversion. Despite the fact that critics have attempted to link Albee's dramas with both the difficult marriage of his adoptive parents and the playwright's homosexuality, there are only oblique references to Albee's personal life. On the other hand, Kolin seems to overstate the case for scholarly edification when he assures the reader that the very repetitiveness of the collection will provide material for useful comparisons. He himself admits that Albee resists discussion of stylistic development in his plays—"I've written five plays; each of them is in a different style" (Diehl interview), consistently describes much of the work of composition as an unconscious process that cannot be investigated too carefully, lest it "evaporate" (Flanagan interview), and displays considerable scepticism about the worth of the conversations here recorded: "It's not that I mind being interviewed. I think it's really a waste of time" (Smith interview).
REGIONAL AND NATIONAL PERSPECTIVES ON AMERICAN URBAN HISTORY
Authors: Russell James Michael
Published: August 2011

Kenneth Severens. Charleston: Antebellum Architecture and Civic Destiny. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1988. xiii + 315 pp. Illus. Margaret Ripley Wolfe. Kingsport, Tennessee: A Planned American City. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1987. xii + 259 pp. Illus., maps. Michael H. Ebner. Creating Chicago's North Shore: A Suburban History. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988. xxx + 338 pp. Illus., maps. Eric H. Monkkonen. America Becomes Urban: The Development of U.S. Cities & Towns, 1780-1980. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988. xvi + 332 pp. Illus. Although it can be dated at least as far back as 1933 and the publication of Arthur Schlesinger, Sr.'s The Rise of the City: 1878-1898, urban history as a specialty in American historiography clearly came into its own in the 1960s, at the same time that politicians, public figures and the media in the United States publicized the idea of an "urban crisis." Amidst signs of hope and despair, urban renewal and ghetto riots, scholars and the general public alike paid more attention to the nation's cities than ever before. American urban history thrived in this climate of public awareness of "urban dilemmas." Oxford University Press, for example, in 1967 launched its Urban Life in America series, which published a number of pivotal works in the field. A new journal, the Journal of Urban History, began in 1974. During the 1960s and early 1970s, much scholarly attention was given to the social and geographic mobility of the "inarticulate," an historical perspective on the under-class of American cities which was in keeping with the ideology of political activists involved with contemporary problems. This topic was the central preoccupation of those who engaged in the "new urban history."
Chemo-Enzymatic Synthesis of Ester-Linked Docetaxel-Monosaccharide Conjugates as Water-Soluble Prodrugs
Authors: Shimoda Kei , Kubota Naoji
Published: August 2011

Three new docetaxel prodrugs, i.e., 7-propionyldocetaxel 3''-O-b-D-glycopyranosides, which contain ester-linked monosaccharides, were synthesized by a chemo-enzymatic procedure involving enzymatic transglycosylations with lactase, b-galactosidase, or b-xylosidase. The water-solubility of 7-propionyldocetaxel 3''-O-b-D-glucopyranoside was 52-fold higher than that of docetaxel. 7-Propionyldocetaxel 3''-O-b-D-glucopyranoside and 7-propionyldocetaxel 3''-O-b-D-xylopyranoside were effectively hydrolyzed by the relevant enzyme(s) of human cancer cells to release docetaxel, whereas 7-propionyldocetaxel 3''-O-b-D-galactopyranoside was relatively resistant under similar conditions. 7-Propionyldocetaxel 3''-O-b-D-glucopyranoside and 7-propionyldocetaxel 3''-O-b-D-xylopyranoside showed in vitro cytotoxic activity against human cancer cells, whereas 7-propionyldocetaxel 3''-O-b-D-galactopyranoside exerted low cytotoxicity.
Defensins: Potential Effectors in Autoimmune Rheumatic Disorders
Authors: Vordenbäumen Stefan , Schneider Matthias
Published: August 2011

Defensins are small cationic peptides with antimicrobial properties. They constitute a highly conserved innate immune defense mechanism across species. Based on the arrangement of disulfide-bonds, α- and β-defensins are distinguished in humans. Both types of defensin comprise several distinct molecules that are preferentially expressed at epithelial surfaces and in blood cells. In the last decade, multiple immunomodulatory functions of defensins have been recognized, including chemotactic activity, the promotion of antigen presentation, and modulations of proinflammatory cytokine secretion. These findings suggested a role for defensins not only as a first line of defense, but also as connectors of innate and adaptive immune responses. Recently, increasingly accumulating evidence has indicated that defensins may also be involved in the pathogenesis of autoimmune rheumatic disorders such as systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis. The current review summarizes the data connecting defensins to autoimmunity.
Optimizing Two-Color Semiconductor Nanocrystal Immunoassays in Single Well Microtiter Plate Formats
Authors: Sapsford Kim E. , Spindel Samantha , Jennings Travis , Tao Guoliang , Triulzi Robert C. , Algar W. Russ , Medintz Igor L.
Published: August 2011

The simultaneous detection of two analytes, chicken IgY (IgG) and Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB), in the single well of a 96-well plate is demonstrated using luminescent semiconductor quantum dot nanocrystal (NC) tracers. The NC-labeled antibodies were prepared via sulfhydryl-reactive chemistry using a facile protocol that took
A Low-Cost CMOS-MEMS Piezoresistive Accelerometer with Large Proof Mass
Authors: Khir Mohd Haris Md , Qu Peng , Qu Hongwei
Published: August 2011

This paper reports a low-cost, high-sensitivity CMOS-MEMS piezoresistive accelerometer with large proof mass. In the device fabricated using ON Semiconductor 0.5 μm CMOS technology, an inherent CMOS polysilicon thin film is utilized as the piezoresistive sensing material. A full Wheatstone bridge was constructed through easy wiring allowed by the three metal layers in the 0.5 μm CMOS technology. The device fabrication process consisted of a standard CMOS process for sensor configuration, and a deep reactive ion etching (DRIE) based post-CMOS microfabrication for MEMS structure release. A bulk single-crystal silicon (SCS) substrate is included in the proof mass to increase sensor sensitivity. In device design and analysis, the self heating of the polysilicon piezoresistors and its effect to the sensor performance is also discussed. With a low operating power of 1.5 mW, the accelerometer demonstrates a sensitivity of 0.077 mV/g prior to any amplification. Dynamic tests have been conducted with a high-end commercial calibrating accelerometer as reference.
Efficient gold(I)/silver(I)-cocatalyzed cascade intermolecular N-Michael addition/intramolecular hydroalkylation of unactivated alkenes with α-ketones
Authors: Xiao Ya-Ping , Liu Xin-Yuan , Che Chi-Ming
Published: August 2011

The gold(I)/silver(I)-cocatalyzed cascade intermolecular N-Michael addition/intramolecular hydroalkylation reaction offers a simple and efficient method for the synthesis of pyrrolidine derivatives in moderate to excellent product yields and with moderate to good diastereoselectivities. The reaction conditions and the substrate scope of this reaction are examined, and a possible mechanism involving AgClO4 catalyzed intermolecular N-Michael addition and the subsequent gold(I)-catalyzed hydroalkylation is proposed.
Advancing the Prevention of Substance Abuse via Translational Research
Authors: Fishbein Diana
Published: August 2011

This research brief highlights the relevance and utility of promoting a transdisciplinary translational model as the foundation for the next generation of research on substance abuse. This model is based on research teams with investigators from multiple disciplines—from the basic sciences to applied research and practice. Their goal will be to match psychosocial programs to the social, environmental, psychological, and biological attributes of individuals and groups, resulting in tailored, targeted interventions. Investment in this line of research has the potential to advance the field of substance abuse and lead to significant advancements in the prevention of the global substance abuse problem.