bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Receptors as a Transducer in the Co-Occurrence of Neurological/Psychiatric and Cardiovascular Disorders: A Hypothesis
Authors: Skaper Stephen D. , Giusti Pietro
Published: August 2009

Background.Over-stimulation of the purinergic receptor may bring about cellular dysfunction and injury in settings of neurodegeneration, chronic inflammation, as well as in psychiatric and cardiovascular diseases. Here we speculate how receptor over-activation may lead to the co-occurrence of neurological and psychiatric disorders with cardiovascular disorders.Presentation.We hypothesize that proinflammatory cytokines, in particular interleukin-1, are key players in the pathophysiology of neurological, psychiatric, and cardiovascular diseases. Critically, this premise is based on a role for the receptor in triggering a rise in these cytokines. Given the broad distribution of receptors in nervous, immune, and vascular tissue cells, this receptor is proposed as central in linking the nervous, immune, and cardiovascular systems.Testing.Investigate, retrospectively, whether a bidirectional link can be established between illnesses with a proinflammatory component (e.g., inflammatory and chronic neuropathic pain) and cardiovascular disease, for example, hypertension, and whether patients treated with anti-inflammatory drugs have a lower incidence of disease complications. Positive outcome would indicate a prospective study to evaluate therapeutic efficacy of receptor antagonists.Implications.It should be stressed that sufficient direct evidence does not exist at present supporting our hypothesis. However, a positive outcome would encourage the further development of receptor antagonists and their application to limit the co-occurrence of neurological, psychiatric, and cardiovascular disorders.
Asymptotic Behavior of Tail Density for Sum of Correlated Lognormal Variables
Authors: Gao Xin , Xu Hong , Ye Dong
Published: August 2009

We consider the asymptotic behavior of a probability density function for the sum of any two lognormally distributed random variables that are nontrivially correlated. We show that both the left and right tails can be approximated by some simple functions. Furthermore, the same techniques are applied to determine the tail probability density function for a ratio statistic,
and for a sum with more than two lognormally distributed random variables under some stricter conditions. The results yield new insights into the problem of characterization for a sum of lognormally distributed random variables and demonstrate that there is a need to revisit many existing approximation methods.
An Improved Method to Knock Out the asd Gene of Salmonella enterica Serovar Pullorum
Authors: Geng Shi-Zhong , Jiao Xin-An , Pan Zhi-Ming , Chen Xiao-Juan , Zhang Xiao-Ming , Chen Xiang
Published: August 2009

An asd‐deleted (Δ asd) mutant of Salmonella enterica serovar Pullorum (SP) was constructed using an improved method of gene knockout by combining the π‐suicide plasmid system with the Red Disruption system. The asd gene was efficiently knocked out by the recombinant suicide vector, which replaced the asd gene with the CmR gene. Based on the balanced lethal host‐vector system, the phenotype of the Δ asd mutant was further defined. The improved method was simpler and more effective than previously reported conventional methods.
Resonant Light Absorption by Semiconductor Quantum Dots
Authors: Lang I. G. , Pavlov S. T.
Published: August 2009

The cross-section of light absorption by size-quantized semiconductor quantum dots (QD) is calculated in the case of a resonance with an exciton in cubical crystals of class. The interference of stimulating and induced electric and magnetic fields is taken into account. The cross-section of light absorption is proportional to the exciton nonradiative damping .
Generation and Characterization of Novel Human IRAS Monoclonal Antibodies
Authors: Wang Bo , Liu Ying , Shan Yajun , Yao Zhenyu , Liu Xiaolan , Su Ruibin , Sun Qihong , Cong Yuwen , Li Jin
Published: August 2009

Imidazoline receptors were first proposed by Bousquet et al., when they studied antihypertensive effect of clonidine. A strong candidate for I1R, known as imidazoline receptor antisera‐selected protein (IRAS), has been cloned from human hippocampus. We reported that IRAS mediated agmatine‐induced inhibition of opioid dependence in morphine‐dependent cells. To elucidate the functional and structure properties of I1R, we developed the newly monoclonal antibody against the N‐terminal hIRAS region including the PX domain (10–120aa) through immunization of BALB/c mice with the NusA‐IRAS fusion protein containing an IRAS N‐terminal (10–120aa). Stable hybridoma cell lines were established and monoclonal antibodies specifically recognized full‐length IRAS proteins in their native state by immunoblotting and immunoprecipitation. Monoclonal antibodies stained in a predominantly punctate cytoplasmic pattern when applied to IRAS‐transfected HEK293 cells by indirect immunofluorescence assays and demonstrated excellent reactivity in flow immunocytometry. These monoclonal antibodies will provide powerful reagents for the further investigation of hIRAS protein functions.
Consistency in Global Climate Change Model Predictions of Regional Precipitation Trends
Authors: Anderson Bruce T. , Reifen Catherine , Toumi Ralf
Published: August 2009

Projections of human-induced climate change impacts arising from the emission of atmospheric chemical constituents such as carbon dioxide typically utilize multiple integrations (or ensembles) of numerous numerical climate change models to arrive at multimodel ensembles from which mean and median values and probabilities can be inferred about the response of various components of the observed climate system. Some responses are considered reliable in as much as the simulated responses show consistency within ensembles and across models. Other responses—particularly at regional levels and for certain parameters such as precipitation—show little intermodel consistency even in the sign of the projected climate changes. The authors’ results show that in these regions the consistency in the sign of projected precipitation variations is greater for intramodel runs (e.g., runs from the same model) than intermodel runs (e.g., runs from different models), indicating that knowledge of the internal “dynamics” of the climate system can provide additional skill in making projections of climate change. Given the consistency provided by the governing dynamics of the model, the authors test whether persistence from an individual model trajectory serves as a good predictor for its own behavior by the end of the twenty-first century. Results indicate that, in certain regions where intermodel consistency is low, the short-term trends of individual model trajectories do provide additional skill in making projections of long-term climate change. The climate forcing for which this forecast skill becomes relatively large (e.g., correct in 75% of the individual model runs) is equivalent to the anthropogenic climate forcing imposed over the past century, suggesting that observed changes in precipitation in these regions can provide guidance about the direction of future precipitation changes over the course of the next century.
Challenges to Reproduce Vegetation Structure and Dynamics in Amazonia Using a Coupled Climate–Biosphere Model
Authors: Senna Mônica Carneiro Alves , Costa Marcos Heil , Pinto Lucía Iracema Chipponelli , Imbuzeiro Hewlley Maria Acioli , Diniz Luciana Mara Freitas , Pires Gabrielle Ferreira
Published: August 2009

The Amazon rain forest constitutes one of the major global stocks of carbon. Recent studies, including the last Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report and the Coupled Climate Carbon Cycle Model Intercomparison Project, have suggested that it may reduce in size and lose biomass during the twenty-first century through a savannization process. A better understanding of how this ecosystem structure, dynamics, and carbon balance may respond to future climate changes is needed. This article investigates how well a fully coupled atmosphere–biosphere model can reproduce vegetation structure and dynamics in Amazonia to the extent permitted by available data. The accurate representation of the coupled climate–biosphere dynamics requires the accurate representation of climate, net primary production (NPP), and its partition among the several carbon pool components. The simulated climate is validated against precipitation (within 5% of four datasets) and incident solar radiation (within 7% of observations). The authors also validate (i) simulated land cover, which reproduces well the observed patterns; (ii) NPP, within 5% of observations; and (iii) respiration rates, within 15% of observations. The performance of simulated variables that depend on carbon allocation, like NPP partitioning, leaf area index, and aboveground live biomass, although good on a regional mean, is significantly low when spatial patterns are considered. These errors may be attributed to fixed carbon allocation and residence time parameters assumed by the model. Carbon allocation apparently varies spatially, and to simulate this spatial variability is quite a challenge.
Space and Time Variations in Turbulence during the Manhattan Midtown 2005 Field Experiment
Authors: Hanna S. R. , Zhou Y.
Published: August 2009

The Manhattan Midtown-2005 field experiment (MID05) collected turbulence observations at 12 street-level sites (at 3-m height) and at 5 rooftop sites (at 220-m average height). The MID05 observations of 30-min averaged standard deviations of wind speed components and temperature and of sensible heat and momentum flux are found to be consistent with the authors’ previously reported averaged observations in similar tall-building surroundings in the Oklahoma City Joint Urban 2003 (JU2003) and Manhattan Madison Square Garden 2005 (MSG05) field experiments. The main focus of this paper, though, is on the magnitudes of the space and time variations of the 30-min averaged turbulence values. Wind tunnel experiments and computational fluid dynamics model outputs would suggest large variations, but the full-scale urban observations show that the standard deviations of the space and time variations are usually less than 50% of the averages. Some individual observations are tabulated and the minimum and maximum listed, showing a typical range at street level for, say, συ of about ±10%–20% in time and about ±40% in space. It is suggested that the reason for the observed lack of large variations in turbulence is the large amount of mixing generated by (i) the 20°–40° meanders in wind direction over the 30-min periods, which cause a “flopping” of building wakes, and (ii) the strong vertical mixing around the tall buildings.
Impacts of Evaporation from Raindrops on Tropical Cyclones. Part I: Evolution and Axisymmetric Structure
Authors: Sawada Masahiro , Iwasaki Toshiki
Published: August 2009

Cloud-resolving simulations of an ideal tropical cyclone (TC) on an f plane are performed to investigate the effects of evaporative cooling on the evolution and structure of a TC. Evaporative cooling has markedly different impacts on the TC development and structure than melting/sublimation cooling because of the formation of rainbands. Evaporative cooling suppresses the organization of a TC at the early development stage. Evaporative cooling effectively forms convective downdrafts that cool and dry the boundary layer. Stabilizing the TC boundary layer reduces convective available potential energy (CAPE) around the eyewall by about 40% and slows the development. However, at the mature stage evaporative cooling steadily develops the TC for a longer period and enlarges the TC size because of rainbands, which are formed by the cold pool associated with evaporative cooling outside the eyewall. The large amounts of latent heating greatly induce the secondary circulation and transport large absolute angular momentum inward around the midtroposphere, resulting in the steady development of the TC. After a three-day integration, both the area-averaged precipitation and the kinetic energy become greater than when evaporative cooling is excluded.
Simulations of Processes Associated with the Fast Warming Rate of the Southern Midlatitude Ocean
Authors: Cai Wenju , Cowan Tim , Godfrey Stuart , Wijffels Susan
Published: August 2009

Significant warming has occurred across many of the world’s oceans throughout the latter part of the twentieth-century. The increase in the oceanic heat content displays a considerable spatial difference, with a maximum in the 35°–50°S midlatitude band. The relative importance of wind and surface heat flux changes in driving the warming pattern is the subject of much debate. Using wind, oceanic temperature, and heat flux outputs from twentieth-century multimodel experiments, conducted for the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the authors were able to reproduce the fast, deep warming in the midlatitude band; however, this warming is unable to be accounted for by local heat flux changes. The associated vertical structure and zonal distribution are consistent with a Sverdrup-type response to poleward-strengthening winds, with a poleward shift of the Southern Hemisphere (SH) supergyre and the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. However, the shift is not adiabatic and involves a net oceanic heat content increase over the SH, which can only be forced by changes in the net surface heat flux. Counterintuitively, the heat required for the fast, deep warming is largely derived from the surface heat fluxes south of 50°S, where the surface flux into the ocean is far larger than that of the midlatitude band. The heat south of 50°S is advected northward by an enhanced northward Ekman transport induced by the poleward-strengthening winds and penetrates northward and downward along the outcropping isopycnals to a depth of over 1000 m. However, because none of the models resolve eddies and given that eddy fluxes could offset the increase in the northward Ekman transport, the heat source for the fast, deep warming in the midlatitude band could be rather different in the real world.
Dynamics of Terrestrial Water Storage Change from Satellite and Surface Observations and Modeling
Authors: Tang Qiuhong , Gao Huilin , Yeh Pat , Oki Taikan , Su Fengge , Lettenmaier Dennis P.
Published: August 2009

Terrestrial water storage (TWS) is a fundamental component of the water cycle. On a regional scale, measurements of terrestrial water storage change (TWSC) are extremely scarce at any time scale. This study investigates the feasibility of estimating monthly-to-seasonal variations of regional TWSC from modeling and a combination of satellite and in situ surface observations based on water balance computations that use ground-based precipitation observations in both cases. The study area is the Klamath and Sacramento River drainage basins in the western United States (total area of about 110 000 km2). The TWSC from the satellite/surface observation–based estimates is compared with model results and land water storage from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) data. The results show that long-term evapotranspiration estimates and runoff measurements generally balance with observed precipitation, suggesting that the evapotranspiration estimates have relatively small bias for long averaging times. Observations show that storage change in water management reservoirs is about 12% of the seasonal amplitude of the TWSC cycle, but it can be up to 30% at the subbasin scale. Comparing with predevelopment conditions, the satellite/surface observation–based estimates show larger evapotranspiration and smaller runoff than do modeling estimates, suggesting extensive anthropogenic alteration of TWSC in the study area. Comparison of satellite/surface observation–based and GRACE TWSC shows that the seasonal cycle of terrestrial water storage is substantially underestimated by GRACE.
A Comparison of Australian Open Water Body Evaporation Trends for Current and Future Climates Estimated from Class A Evaporation Pans and General Circulation Models
Authors: Johnson Fiona , Sharma Ashish
Published: August 2009

Trends of decreasing pan evaporation around the world have renewed interest in evaporation and its behavior in a warming world. Observed pan evaporation around Australia has been modeled to attribute changes in its constituent variables. It is found that wind speed decreases have generally led to decreases in pan evaporation. Trends were also calculated from reanalysis and general circulation model (GCM) outputs. The reanalysis reflected the general pattern and magnitude of the observed station trends across Australia. However, unlike the station trends, the reanalysis trends are mainly driven by vapor pressure deficit changes than wind speed changes. Some of the GCMs modeled the trends well, but most showed an average positive trend for Australia. Half the GCMs analyzed show increasing wind speed trends, and most show larger changes in vapor pressure deficit than would be expected based on the station data. Future changes to open water body evaporation have also been assessed using projections for two emission scenarios. Averaged across Australia, the models show a 5% increase in open water body evaporation by 2070 compared to 1990 levels. There is considerable variability in the model projections, particularly for the aerodynamic component of evaporation. Assumptions of increases in evaporation in a warming world need to be considered in light of the variability in the parameters that affect evaporation.
The Advantage of Theft over Honest Toil
Authors: Agassi Joseph
Published: August 2009

Gregory Landini offers a new and an illuminating reading of Ludwig Wittgenstein’s idea about his own innovation: it is the invention of a notation that removes the mystery from all theorems of logic and of mathematics as it renders their proofs part of their wordings. This makes all theorems in principle as boring as “all four-legged animals are animals.” This idea is Wittgenstein’s doctrine of showing. It is worthless; yet, as Landini shows, every time Wittgenstein offered an elaboration on it, Russell checked it carefully and found it of no value. This, let me add, shows that Russell was in error in suggesting that intellectually there is no “advantage of theft over honest toil”: at times one may pay back and with high interest. Other cases may be due to misjudgment rather than to sloth.
Evaluating the Speech of Younger and Older Adults: Age, Gender, and Speech Situation
Authors: Odato Christopher V. , Keller-Cohen Deborah
Published: August 2009

This study examines how listeners arrive at judgments of speech as irrelevant or off-topic (off-target). Older adults and college students evaluated a set of narratives ascribed to speakers differing in age and gender and presented as conversations or interviews.The results show that young and old adults bring different understandings of age and situation to the evaluation task. Older evaluators judged narratives more on-target than younger evaluators. Differences between evaluator age groups were also observed in the effects of speaker age and speech situation: Younger evaluators judged older speakers more on-target than younger speakers, but older evaluators did not; and younger evaluators judged speech in interviews more off-target than older evaluators did. However, both old and young evaluators judged female speakers more on-target than males. This study contributes to our understanding of the role of age stereotypes in evaluating speech, highlighting the listener’s role in constructing an interlocutor’s speech as off-target.
Subjective fatigue is not associated with cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis: cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis
Authors: Morrow SA , Weinstock-Guttman B , Munschauer FE , Hojnacki D , Benedict RHB
Published: August 2009

Background

Studies in multiple sclerosis (MS) report conflicting conclusions regarding fatigue and cognition, which may partly be due to the use of small sample sizes and frequent reliance on a cross-sectional approach.

Objective

The ability to distinguish between these two disabling symptoms is necessary in order to properly assess and treat MS patients.

Methods

In a retrospective analysis, we assessed the correlation between fatigue and neuropsychological (NP) testing using a cross-sectional ( n = 465) and longitudinal approach ( n = 69). Cognition was measured using a comprehensive battery called the Minimal Assessment of Cognitive Function in MS (MACFIMS), and fatigue was measured with the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). FSS scores were categorized as normal (≤4.0), borderline fatigue (4 < FSS < 5.0), and fatigued (≥5.0). Repeat assessments ( n = 69) were categorized as improved or worsened by a change in FSS of either 0.5 or 1.0.

Results

MS patients had significantly higher FSS scores than normal controls ( P < 0.001). No correlation was found between FSS and NP scores in either cross-sectional or longitudinal analyses. Fatigue was moderately correlated with depression, assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory Fast Screen (BDIFS) ( r = 0.44, P < 0.001). Longitudinally, there was a medium correlation between change in FSS and BDIFS ( r = 0.34, P = 0.001), but no significant differences on NP scores using either definition of change.

Conclusion

We conclude that self-reported fatigue, while correlated with self-reported depression, is not significantly related to cognitive capacity in MS.
Multiple sclerosis risk in radiologically uncovered asymptomatic possible inflammatory-demyelinating disease
Authors: Siva A , Saip S , Altintas A , Jacob A , Keegan BM , Kantarci OH
Published: August 2009

Background

Natural history of patients with incidentally discovered lesions that fulfill magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) criteria for multiple sclerosis (MS) in the absence of objective clinical symptoms suggestive of central nervous system (CNS) inflammatory-demyelinating disease is not well defined.

Objective

We evaluated the risk of developing symptomatic MS in patients with radiologically uncovered asymptomatic possible inflammatory-demyelinating disease (RAPIDD).

Methods

We identified and longitudinally followed a cohort of 22 patients from two tertiary care MS centers: Istanbul University, Cerrahpasa School of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey, and Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, after an initial MRI study fulfilling the Barkhof–Tintore MRI criteria completed for other reasons unrelated to MS.

Results

Eight of 22 patients developed an objective clinical symptom consistent with a CNS inflammatory-demyelinating syndrome and fulfilled dissemination in space and time criteria for definite MS. Median age at the time of diagnosis of MS was 44.8 years (range 28.3–71.4 years). Time taken for the development of definite MS was studied by survival analysis. Cumulative event rates were; 12 months: 9%, 24 months: 15%, 36 months: 30.4%, and 60 months: 44.6%. Six of 22 patients were followed beyond 60 months. Two of these six patients developed MS later (at 66 and 112 months, respectively). Three patients remained asymptomatic despite follow-up of 10 years.

Conclusions

Patients with RAPIDD develop MS at a similar rate to treated patients (and less frequently than placebo groups) with clinically isolated syndromes from prior randomized controlled studies. Some patients with RAPIDD continue to have radiological evolution of subclinical disease without MS symptoms despite long follow-up periods.
Serial combination therapy: is immune modulation in multiple sclerosis enhanced by initial immune suppression?
Authors: Bar-Or A , Oger J , Gibbs E , Niino M , Aziz T , Renoux C , Alatab S , Shi FD , Campagnolo D , Jalili F , Rhodes S , Yamashita T , Fan B , Freedman MS , Panitch H , Arnold DL , Vollmer T
Published: August 2009

Background

Although the concept that an initial course of immune-suppression facilitates subsequent immune-modulation (such as Th1 to Th2 deviation) is attractive for several autoimmune diseases, such a mechanism for serial-combination therapy has never been formally demonstrated. Recently, brief mitoxantrone induction-chemotherapy followed by immune-modulation with glatiramer acetate (GA) was significantly more effective at reducing multiple sclerosis disease activity than with GA alone.

Objective

To examine whether the benefit of initial immune suppression with mitoxantrone before GA treatment is associated with more efficient immune modulation.

Methods

IgG1/IgG4 GA-reactive antibody profiles, previously established as markers of GA-induced Th2 immune-deviation, were prospectively measured in vivo in patients treated with GA alone or with mitoxantrone induction therapy followed by GA.

Results

Significant and sustained increase in IgG4 antibodies (and the anticipated reversal of the IgG1/IgG4 ratio) was seen in patients treated with GA alone. Combination therapy resulted in lesser IgG4 induction (and no reversal of IgG1/IgG4 ratio). Thus, the enhanced efficacy of mitoxantrone–GA combination regimen was associated with decreased, rather than increased, efficiency of shifting the GA-reactive IgG1/IgG4 antibody profile.

Conclusion

These results provide important insights into mechanisms of combination therapy and therapeutic strategies for autoimmune diseases.
Magnetic resonance evidence of cortical onset of multiple sclerosis
Authors: Calabrese M , Gallo P
Published: August 2009

Background

Despite clinical symptoms and signs of central nervous system dysfunction, conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain and spinal cord may appear normal in multiple sclerosis (MS) at clinical onset.

Objective

To demonstrate cortical pathology, namely the presence of cortical lesions (CLs) in patients with symptoms/signs suggestive of MS but having normal appearing white matter (WM) on MRI.

Methods

CLs were disclosed by double inversion recovery (DIR) MRI sequence. The final diagnosis of MS was achieved by the demonstration of the dissemination in space and time of WM lesions, and the absence of a better explanation of symptoms/signs, according to the established international diagnostic criteria.

Results

We describe four patients with MS, in which CLs were observed by DIR months/years before the MRI evidence of inflammatory lesions in the WM.

Interpretation

We suggest that, at least in some patients with MS, the pathological process underlying MS starts in the cortex. DIR sequence should be included in the MRI examination of suspected patients with MS with normal conventional MRI sequences at clinical onset. CLs should be evaluated for their inclusion in the MRI diagnostic criteria for MS.
Nonparametric estimator of relative time with application to the Acyclovir Prevention Trial
Authors: Cole Stephen R , Haitao Chu  , Lei Nie
Published: August 2009

Background Relative hazard is a central measure of association in randomized clinical trials. Relative time (RT) is a competing measure that is rarely used.

PurposeWe describe a simple area-based nonparametric estimator of RT and illustrate its use in the Acyclovir Prevention Trial.

Methods Let Q x(p) be the quantile function for the xth treatment group, defined as the time by which p% of the treatment group experience the event, and p x be the maximum event proportion observed. Our consistent estimator is defined as the ratio of the integrals of Q1(p) and Q0 (p) with integration over 0 to p, where p =min(p1, p 0). Confidence limits (CL) are provided by bootstrap.

Results A total of 703 immunocompetent adult men and women (54% male, 79% Caucasian, median age 49 years) with a history of ocular herpes simplex virus (HSV) were enrolled in 1992—1996, randomized to acyclovir or placebo, followed for up to 1 year for the 1st episode of ocular HSV, and 170 events were confirmed by a study-certified ophthalmologist using slit-lamp biomicroscopy. The nonparametric RT comparing acyclovir use with nonuse was 2.6 (bootstrap 95% CL: 1.6, 4.2). For comparison, the best-fitting parametric model was the lognormal (RT = 2.5; 95% CL: 1.5, 3.9). In limited simulations, the average proposed estimate of RT was similar to the true RT with a relative root mean squared error of 1.13 compared to a correctly specified parametric (lognormal) model.

Limitations An analytical variance estimator for the proposed RT is lacking. Also, more examples and more extensive simulations are warranted.

Conclusions Similar to Cox’s relative hazard estimator, the proposed RT does not assume the data are generated from a particular distribution. RTs should be more widely used as a measure of association in clinical trials. Clinical Trials 2009; 6: 320—328. http://ctj.sagepub.com
Effects of sources of variability on sample sizes required for RCTs, applied to trials of lipid-altering therapies on carotid artery intima-media thickness
Authors: Gould A Lawrence , Koglin Joerg , Bain Raymond P , Pinto Cathy-Anne , Mitchel Yale B , Pasternak Richard C , Sapre Aditi
Published: August 2009

Objective Studies measuring progression of carotid artery intima-media thickness (cIMT) have been used to estimate the effect of lipid-modifying therapies cardiovascular event risk. The likelihood that future cIMT clinical trials will detect a true treatment effect is estimated by leveraging results from prior studies. The present analyses assess the impact of between- and within-study variability based on currently published data from prior clinical studies on the likelihood that ongoing or future cIMT trials will detect the true treatment effect of lipid-modifying therapies.

Methods Published data from six contemporary cIMT studies (ASAP, ARBITER 2, RADIANCE 1, RADIANCE 2, ENHANCE, and METEOR) including data from a total of 3563 patients were examined. Bayesian and frequentist methods were used to assess the impact of between study variability on the likelihood of detecting true treatment effects on 1-year cIMT progression/regression and to provide a sample size estimate that would specifically compensate for the effect of between-study variability.

Results In addition to the well-described within-study variability, there is considerable between-study variability associated with the measurement of annualized change in cIMT. Accounting for the additional between-study variability decreases the power for existing study designs. In order to account for the added between-study variability, it is likely that future cIMT studies would require a large increase in sample size in order to provide substantial probability (≥90%) to have 90% power of detecting a true treatment effect.

Limitation Analyses are based on study level data. Future meta-analyses incorporating patient-level data would be useful for confirmation.

Conclusion Due to substantial within- and between-study variability in the measure of 1-year change of cIMT, as well as uncertainty about progression rates in contemporary populations, future study designs evaluating the effect of new lipid-modifying therapies on atherosclerotic disease progression are likely to be challenged by large sample sizes in order to demonstrate a true treatment effect.
Effect of mechanical properties of annealed Al 5005 sheets on void formation and growth during metal forming
Authors: Ravindran R. , Manonmani K. , Narayanasamy R.
Published: August 2009

In the present paper, the effect of mechanical properties of Al 5005 alloy are studied at different annealing temperatures and they are correlated with a range of key void parameters. The L/ W ratio (the ratio of the length to the width) of the oblate or prolate voids at fracture is correlated with microstructure, minor strain at fracture ϵ2, Mohr's circle shear strains, stress, and strain triaxiality factors. The Lode factor θ is determined and correlated with the stress triaxiality factor T, which is the ratio of mean stress σm to effective stress σe. Void area fraction Va is determined and correlated with the strain triaxiality factor To. It is found that the sheets annealed at 500°C have higher n value and possess better formability compared to the other annealing temperatures.
One-dimensional Stacks of Triphenylenes Stabilized by a Peripheral Hydrogen-bonding Network
Authors: Tatewaki Yoko , Hatanaka Tatsuya , Kimura Mutsumi , Shirai Hirofusa
Published: August 2009

Triphenylenes bearing chiral amide termini were found to form self-assembled nanofibers by the combination of π–π stacking of triphenylene moieties with a hydrogen-bond network of amide terminates.
The Dogs of War and the Dogs at Home: Thresholds of Loss
Authors: Pellegrini Ann
Published: August 2009

In the media room at the Freud Museum in Vienna, home movies of the Freud family run on an endless loop. Entitled Freud: 1930–1939, the movies are narrated by Anna Freud, who oversaw their compilation and editing during the last two years of her life. Within these ostensibly "private" scenes of the Freud family, the family dogs assume a surprisingly central role. This essay argues that the focus on the dogs becomes a way to narrate and narrate around traumatic loss. For the Freuds these traumatic losses involved their forced exile to London, in 1938, as well as the later deaths of four of Freud's sisters in concentration camps. In combination, the flickering images from 1930–1939 and Anna Freud's voiceover—recorded some fifty years later—generate an elliptical and asynchronous accounting of loss. In addition to offering an intimate glimpse of the Freud family, the home movies thus raise broader questions about the temporality of witness and how we can see and hear the pain of the other. As one way into these questions, the essay reads with and against Sigmund Freud's account of repetition compulsion and the management of loss in Beyond the Pleasure Principle .
Revisiting das gupta: Refinement and extension of standardization and decomposition
Authors: Chevan Albert , Sutherland Michael
Published: August 2009

Standardization and decomposition are established and widely used demographic techniques for comparing rates and means between groups with differences in composition. The difference in rates and means has heretofore been resolved in terms of the contribution of variables to compositional effects for each variable and an overall rate effect. This study demonstrates that the resolution of differences is attainable at the categorical level for both compositional effects and rate effects. Refinements to Das Gupta’s equations yield a complete decomposition because of the additivity of categorical compositional and rate effects. Other refinements allow the decomposition of polytomous variables. Extensions to the method provide for the decomposition of the standard deviation and the multivariate index of dissimilarity.
Job opportunities, economic resources, and the postsecondary destinations of American youth
Authors: Bozick Robert
Published: August 2009

Using a nationally representative sample of graduates from the high school class of 2003-2004, I test the warehouse hypothesis, which contends that youth are more likely to leave school and enter the labor force when there are available job opportunities (and vice versa). Using two measures of job opportunities—local unemployment rates and the percentage of local workers employed in jobs that require a bachelor’s degree—I find support for the warehouse hypothesis. In areas where unemployment is low, with ample jobs that do not require a bachelor’s degree, youth have higher odds of entering the labor force. In areas where unemployment is high, with few jobs that require only a high school diploma, youth have higher odds of entering college. The effect of unemployment on enrollment is more pronounced for low-income youth than for high-income youth, with both low- and high-income youth turning to four-year schools rather than two-year schools when job opportunities are limited.
Ecosystem Services and Human Well-Being in a Globalized World: Assessing the Role of Law
Authors: Blanco Elena , Razzaque Jona
Published: August 2009

There is no denying the close linkage between ecosystem services and human well-being. Human well-being is dependent on the sustainable management of ecosystem services. With economic globalization and free trade, there is an increasing demand for these services. Yet, poverty, inefficient management of common resources, and inadequate legal and governance frameworks have a negative impact on human well-being. This article examines the impact of globalization as well as the legal mechanisms for the management of ecosystem services arguing that the need for a concerted and synergistic legal approach to manage ecosystem services in a sustainable manner that includes human rights principles alongside market-based instruments.
Irreversible inhibition of human cathepsins B, L, S and K by hypervalent tellurium compounds
Authors: Cunha Rodrigo L.O.R. , Gouvêa Iuri E. , Feitosa Geovana P.V. , Alves Márcio F.M. , Brömme Dieter , Comasseto João V. , Tersariol Ivarne L.S. , Juliano Luiz
Published: August 2009

The inhibition of human cysteine cathepsins B, L, S and K was evaluated by a set of hypervalent tellurium compounds (telluranes) comprising both organic and inorganic derivatives. All telluranes studied showed a time- and concentration-dependent irreversible inhibition of the cathepsins, and their second-order inactivation rate constants were determined. The organic derivatives were potent inhibitors of the cathepsins and clear specificities were detected, which were parallel to their known substrate specificities. In all cases, the activity of the tellurane-inhibited cathepsins was recovered by treatment of the inactivated enzymes with reducing agents. The maximum stoichiometry of the reaction between cysteine residues and telluranes were also determined. The presented data indicate that it is possible to design organic compounds with a tellurium(IV) moiety as a novel warhead that covalently modifies the catalytic cysteine, and which also form strong interactions with subsites of cathepsins B, L, S and K, resulting in more specific inhibition.
Ductile Damage Analysis for Small Punch Specimens of Type 304 Stainless Steel Based on GTN Model
Authors: Zhou Zhixiang , Ling Xiang
Published: August 2009

Based on small punch (SP) tests on Type 304 stainless steel at room temperature, a finite element (FE) model with Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman (GTN) constitutive equations was established to analyze the ductile damage in SP specimens. Influences of the friction coefficient between SP specimen and steel ball and element size to the FE results were discussed. The evolution of void volume fraction (VVF) with time along different paths and the relation between VVF and equivalent plastic strain (PEEQ) under constant punching velocity were analyzed further by using the FE model. Good agreements between experimental results and simulation data were proved by load-displacement curves and failure locations. The numerical results show that initial crack occurs at the bottom surface about 0.86 mm away from the centre and damage localization phenomenon is extraordinarily severe in the SP specimen, and PEEQ has great effect on the evolutional rate of VVF.
Suchbasierte Interaktion mit FahrerinformationssystemenSearch-Based User Interfaces for In-Car Interaction
Authors: Spießl Wolfgang , Graf Stefan , Schmidt Albrecht
Published: August 2009

Immer neue Funktionsangebote und eine stark wachsende Menge an dynamischen Daten und Medien stellen zunehmend eine Herausforderung für das Interaktionsdesign bei heutigen Fahrerinformationssystemen dar. Klassische hierarchische und menübasierte Interaktion funktioniert nur bis zu einem bestimmten Grad, während neue suchbasierte Ansätze vielversprechend erscheinen. In diesem Beitrag werden unterschiedliche textbasierte Suchtechniken und Suchinterfaces untersucht. Wir widmen uns im Besonderen dem Vergleich einer freien Schlagwortsuche über alle verfügbaren Dateneinheiten mit einer kategorienbasierten Suche. In unseren Experimenten mit funktional implementierten Prototypen stellte sich heraus, dass eine freie Suchinteraktion effizienter und einfacher zu benutzen ist als über Kategorien eingeschränkte Daten zu suchen. Untersuchungen im Fahrsimulator haben vielversprechende Ergebnisse in Bezug auf Sicherheit und mentale Belastung gezeigt. Eine Möglichkeit zur alphanumerischen Eingabe erscheint als absolut notwendig, um eine sichere und effiziente Suchinteraktion im Fahrzeug anbieten zu können.
Ortsbasierte Websuche – Herausforderung einer FahrzeugintegrationRequirements for Automotive Local Web Search
Authors: Ahlers Dirk , Boll Susanne
Published: August 2009

Ein zukünftiges Fahrzeuginformationssystem mit Zugang zum Internet wird den Reisenden neue Dienste und Informationsangebote zur Verfügung stellen können. Im Gegensatz zur üblichen mobilen Nutzung des Internet stellt die Fahrzeugumgebung deutlich andere Anforderungen, bietet jedoch auch interessante Möglichkeiten, beispielsweise die Verwendung aktueller Kontextinformationen des Fahrzeuges und der Nutzer in den Diensten. Als wichtiger Anwendungsfall wird die Suche nach ortsbasierten Informationen diskutiert, die neue Interaktionsformen im Fahrzeug möglich macht. So wird es beispielsweise während der Fahrt möglich sein, aktuelle Informationen aus dem Web abzurufen, wie etwa zu Sehenswürdigkeiten der Umgebung, dem Theaterprogramm am Zielort oder einer Raststätte passend zum Füllstand des Tanks und der eigenen Vorlieben. Diese Informationen müssen aus dem WWW erfasst, verarbeitet und für den individuellen Kontext der Reisenden aufbereitet werden. Dieser Artikel diskutiert die daraus erwachsenden Herausforderungen und Lösungsmöglichkeiten. Im Sinne einer innovativen Infotainment-Lösung soll eine ortsbasierte Websuche als Mittler zwischen WWW und Reisenden dienen.
Abstrakte Beschreibung automobiler HMI-SystemeAbstract Description of Automobile HMI systems
Authors: Weber Michael , Berton André , Reich Björn
Published: August 2009

In diesem Artikel wird eine Beschreibungssprache für automobile HMI-Systeme definiert, die es er-möglicht ein solches System unabhängig von einem zur Modellierung eingesetzten Programm zu beschreiben. Vor der Definition dieser eigenen Beschreibungssprache werden vorhandene Sprachen auf ihre Tauglichkeit hin untersucht. Anschließend wird am Beispiel von Web-Services gezeigt, wie mit einer solchen Beschreibungssprache auch die Anbindung neuer Dienste an ein HMI-Modell beschrieben werden kann.
Die Evaluation von Fahrerinformationssystemen mit dem ”Lane Change Test“: Ergänzungen zum Normenentwurf ISO/DIS 26022Evaluating Driver Information Systems Using the “Lane Change Test”: Extensions to the Draft International Standard ISO/DIS 26022
Authors: Vöhringer-Kuhnt Thomas
Published: August 2009

In der öffentlichen Diskussion rücken Einflüsse der Bedienung von Fahrerinformationssystemen auf die Verkehrssicherheit mehr und mehr in den Fokus. Um diese Einflüsse zu überprüfen, sind allgemein anerkannte und standardisierte Methoden nötig, die auch früh im Entwicklungszyklus eingesetzt werden können. Der Lane Change Test ist eine normierte Fahraufgabe zur Ermittlung der Ablenkungswirkung von Zweitaufgaben im Fahrzeug. In einem Normenentwurf sind konkrete Maße zur Beurteilung der Ablenkungswirkung definiert. Im Artikel werden ergänzende Maße vorgeschlagen, die eine absolute Vergleichbarkeit verschiedener Systeme ermöglichen und eine Zertifizierungsgrundlage für sichere Fahrerinformationssysteme liefern können.
CARS – Configurable Automotive Research SimulatorCARS – Konfigurierbarer Fahrsimulator zur Bewertung der Fahrerablenkung
Authors: Kern Dagmar , Stefan Schneegaß
Published: August 2009

The complexity of automotive user interfaces increased rapidly in the last decades, drivers are now confronted with many new functions. Infotainment, entertainment and comfort systems as well as driver assistance systems contribute to this trend. The use of new functionalities inevitably increases the driver′s interaction with the user interface and decreases the driver′s focus on driving. Before introducing new functionalities in the car it is essential to evaluate their effect on driver distraction. We present CARS, an open source driving simulator tool for evaluating automotive user interfaces. We give an overview of CARS′ characteristics and present the map editor, the driving simulation tool, and the analysis tool included in CARS. Based on results from initial user studies we illustrate the effectiveness of CARS in evaluating different secondary tasks with regard to driver distraction.
Influence of Age and Gender on the Reaction Performance in Human-Vehicle InteractionEinfluss von Alter und Geschlecht auf die Reaktionszeit bei Fahrer-Autor Interaktion
Authors: Riener Andreas
Published: August 2009

Excess workload in vehicle control and inappropriateness of the common two interaction modalities seeing and hearing requires to consider ways and means for new interaction capabilities in vehicles. We have investigated haptic force displays for transmitting feedback from vehicular services to the driving person by using vibro-tactile elements integrated into the car seat and backrest. A haptic display would be implicit perceivable and passive in its attentiveness, and would furthermore display only private messages. Empirical studies regarding reaction times for the different modalities vision, sound, and touch, as well as age- and genderdependent evaluations have been conducted, with the aim to identify general conditions for an all-purpose vehicle interaction system and to justify the usage of haptic feedback. Experimental data have been acquired in a simulated driving environment in order to guarantee safety for test persons, repeatability of the experiment itself, and similar conditions for each test run.
Centrifuge model tests on soil-nailed slopes subjected to seepage
Authors: Deepa V. , Viswanadham B. V. S.
Published: August 2009

This paper presents the results of centrifuge model tests on the behaviour of a slope subjected to seepage with and without soil nails. For this purpose, a custom-designed seepage flow simulator was developed for evaluating the deformation behaviour of slopes with and without soil nails at the onset of seepage flow at 30g. A series of centrifuge model tests was carried out on 2V:1H slopes by varying nail layout and length of soil nails. Bored and grouted soil nails including nail heads were modelled using thin aluminium tubes covered with a thin layer of sand-coated adhesive. A soil nail inclination of 15° with the horizontal was adopted with two different layouts. All the models were thoroughly instrumented with displacement transducers for measuring settlements and using pore pressure transducers to capture the development of the phreatic surface within the slope during the centrifuge test. A digital image analysis technique was employed to arrive at displacement vectors of markers placed on the front elevation of the slope. The displacements were used to compare slopes with and without soil nails and to identify the occurrence of failure surfaces. The results indicate that stabilising the earth slope using soil nails has a significant effect in improving the stability and deformation behaviour of a slope subjected to seepage. For a soil nail layout, the stabilising effect was observed to diminish with a decrease in soil nail length and increasing vertical and horizontal spacing of the soil nails in the slope surface. Stability analysis of the slope models with and without soil nails was found to be in good agreement with physically observed centrifuge test results.
Linear Solvation Energy Relationship in the Reaction between Phenacyl Bromide and 2-Mercaptobenzothiazole
Authors: Ramesh B. , Bharathi D. Vijaya , Kavitha B. , Manikyamba P.
Published: August 2009

The reaction between phenacyl bromide and 2-mercaptobenzothiazole was studied conductometrically in 17 different protic and aprotic solvents. The second order rate constants determined are found to be highly susceptible to changes in the solvation abilities of the solvents. Correlation of the rate constants with different solvent parameters indicated that the solvation of the reactants and the transition state is due to the electrophilicity, hydrogen bond donor ability, specific polarisability and a non-specific polarity of the solvent. by statistical analysis, a linear solvation energy relationship is derived and the percentage contributions of each type of solvation are estimated.