bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Some Remarks on the Government-Binding Theory and Anaphors
Authors: Bilý Milan
Published: December 2008

The Government-Binding theory cannot account for reflexives in Slavic languages. We may guess that the more a language differs from English with its quite rigid word-order, the worse are the predictions made by the theory.

One cannot exclude Slavic reflexives as non-anaphors in a non-arbitrary way while keeping the spirit of Chomsky et al. The Slavic reflexives behave “as they ought to” in tensed clauses, too. An attempt to exclude them would also be another step on the self-destructive path that started by excluding the Japanese reflexives in order to cope with the facts clashing with the Government-Binding theory. Many interesting cases of English reflexives would also have to be ignored for the sake of the theory.
Naturalness, Morphonology, and the Icelandic Velar Palatalisation
Authors: Gussmann Edmund
Published: December 2008

The Icelandic palatalisation of velar plosives has been used in several recent studies as evidence in the continuing search for an adequate model of phonology. Limitations of the naturalness of the rule in the modern language have led to suggestions that it is no longer a phonological but rather a morphonological process. The present paper reviews in some detail the status of the rule against a background of other phonological and morphological regularities in Modern Icelandic. It is concluded that while not every instance of a palatal consonant must necessarily be derived from an underlying velar, the evidence for the rule is overwhelming. The separation of phonological and morphonological rules is critically examined in the light of the Icelandic data and rejected; its untenability is further strengthened by the history of the rule. It is argued that while mechanical phonetic tendencies play a role in the rise of innovations, their entrenchment in the phonology of a language is not bound by such considerations. In effect phonological rules must always be to a greater or lesser extent unnatural.
On Morphological Naturalness
Authors: Wurzel Wolfgang Ullrich
Published: December 2008

The article presents in English, and in a condensed form, the central ideas of Wurzel (1984), a monograph devoted to an explication of the concept of naturalness in a theory of inflexional morphology. A set of theoretical distinctions and a set of principles (considered as universal tendencies) are formulated, which capture the naturalness criteria of inflexional morphology. Evidence for these principles, which are ranked according to applicational strength, is primarily drawn from data pertaining to linguistic change.
Subject Clitics and Ā-Bound Traces
Authors: Christensen Kirsti Koch
Published: December 2008

This paper presents a syntactic account of the distribution of subject clitics in the Oslo dialect of Norwegian. In addition to providing a unified explanation for some seemingly unrelated facts about subject clitics, this account will be shown to have implications for the proper definition of the notions ‘variable’ and ‘anaphor’.
Preposition-Stranding and Passive
Authors: Maling Joan , Zaenen Annie
Published: December 2008

Various linguists working within the theory of Government and Binding (e.g. Hornstein & Weinberg (1981), Kayne (1981)) have attempted to provide a unified account of preposition-stranding. This article uses evidence from Icelandic to show that preposition-stranding is not a unified phenomenon. Although Icelandic freely allows preposition-stranding in wh-movement constructions, it lacks prepositional passives in which the prepositional object of an active verb corresponds to the grammatical subject of a passive verb. Various syntactic tests which distinguish between grammatical subjects and topicalized NPs are used to demonstrate this. Our conclusion is that while lexical reanalysis is needed to account for prepositional passives, no such reanalysis is warranted for preposition-stranding due to wh-movement; hence, an adequate theory of preposition-stranding must allow for two separate parameters.
Finnish Verbal Morphophonology and Consonant Gradation
Authors: Cathey James E. , Wheeler Deirdre
Published: December 2008

This paper critically reviews S. J. Keyser and Paul Kiparsky's “Syllable Structure in Finnish Phonology” (1984). We also treat Finnish morphophonemics using a CV-tier analysis, but account for forms that their method fails on. We posit six stem types in the verbal lexicon and derive the forms of all inflections of all types with just twelve morphophonemic rules. After the stems are modified and suffixes (and person/number endings) are attached, a single, general, phonological rule of Consonant Gradation applies postlexically. To develop a general theory from our analysis, we consider restrictions on rules which may alter stems: lexical rules apply to stems before affixation and only to the final segments of stems; only post-lexical phonological rules apply to affixes. We eliminate all morphological conditions on individual rules and extrinsic ordering conditions.
Disorder and Regularity in Linguistic Change
Authors: Dørum Hallvard
Published: December 2008

This paper discusses variation in liguistic change on the basis of the distribution of apocope in Central Norway. The results of a detailed study of the dialect of Oppdal, which are compared with studies on variation in linguistic change in other languages, show that the diffusion of morphophonological innovations may depend on various linguistic as well as extra-linguistic factors. The investigation seems to support the hypothesis that there is no basic difference between the mechanisms of system-internal change and change produced by external influence.
An Object-oriented Dialogue System for Swedish
Authors: Ahrenberg Lars
Published: December 2008

This paper describes the analysis component of a natural language dialogue system called FALIN. The most important features of the system are its modularity and the combination of an object-oriented semantics with a constraint-based grammar formalism. I also illustrate how constraints in the form of descriptor schemata can be used to capture general correspondences between syntactic and semantic structure and argue that the contribution of contextual factors to interpretation to some extent can be handled within the same framework.
Experiments with Language-based Aids in Information Retrieval Systems
Authors: Fjeldvig Tove , Golden Anne
Published: December 2008

The fact that a lexeme can appear in various forms causes problems in information retrieval. As a solution to this problem, we have developed methods for automatic root lemmatization, automatic truncation and automatic splitting of compound words. All the methods have as their basis a set of rules which contain information regarding inflected and derived forms of words – and not a dictionary. The methods have been tested on several collections of texts, and have produced very good results. By controlled experiments in text retrieval, we have studied the effects on search results. These results show that both the method of automatic root lemmatization and the method of automatic truncation make a considerable improvement on search quality. The experiments with splitting of compound words did not give quite the same improvement, however, but all the same this experiment showed that such a method could contribute to a richer and more complete search request.
Symbolic Representation and Natural Language
Authors: Thrane Torben
Published: December 2008

The notion of symbolizability is taken as the second requisite of computation (the first being ‘algorithmizability’), and it is shown that symbols,quasymbols, are not symbolizable. This has far-reaching consequences for the computational study of language and for AI-research in language understanding. The representation hypothesis is formulated, and its various assumptions and goals are examined. A research strategy for the computational study of natural language understanding is outlined.
Themes and Tails: The Discourse Functions of Dislocated Elements
Authors: Aijmer Karin
Published: December 2008

The article deals with Themes (the function associated with left-dislocated structures) and Tails (the function associated with right-dislocated structures) in English conversation. The noun phrase is placed as Theme in “our maths chap he is an Indian” and as Tail in “they very often are these Eastern Europeans”. It is shown that Themes and Tails are functionally different phenomena. Themes are explained interactionally in terms of the negotiation of information which takes place between speaker and hearer, while Tails are associated with the interpersonal or polite function of speech.
Terminal Rise and Rise-fall Tunes in East Norwegian Intonation
Authors: Fretheim Thorstein , Nilsen Randi Alice
Published: December 2008

This paper argues that there is a phonological opposition between falling and non-falling utterance-terminal tunes in East Norwegian intonation. East Norwegian intonational foci are characterized by a rising pitch movement and there is no way that you can raise the pitch even further to express “rising intonation”. What you obtain instead is a distinction between a focal rise followed by a terminal fall in pitch and a focal rise without a subsequent falling terminal. The falling vs. non-falling terminal contrast is utilized differently in Intonation Units (IUs) with just one Intonational Phrase (IP) than in IUs with more than one Intonational Phrase. In the former type of IU structure a falling terminal constrains the illocutionary potential of the communicative act; in the latter type the falling terminal adds an attitudinal bias, without constraining the illocutionary potential. While most non-falling and falling terminals in connected discourse can ultimately be related to the difference between “openness” and “finality”, respectively, this intonational contrast is shown to have a seemingly quite different function in imperatives.
Utterances without Function Words: Comment on Christer Platzack's paper
Authors: Jordens Peter
Published: December 2008

With respect to child English, Radford has claimed that there are no functional categories in early child syntax. This means that in English, children's grammer lacks both the C-projection and the I-projection. For Swedish, Platzack also hypothesizes that “there are no functional categories [like C or I] in early child syntax” (p. 107).
The Zone of Proximal Development and Communicative Development
Authors: Junefelt Karin
Published: December 2008

This article deals with extensions of Vygotsky's (1978) theory of learning in the zone of proximal development. First, affect is added as an additional prerequisite Wertsch's (1979) extended version of it. Then, learning in the zone of proximal development is applied to communicative development. Finally, four main levels in the development from interindividual to intraindividual functioning of communication in the child are distinguished and exemplified.
Methodological Reflections on Studies of Preschoolers' Awareness of the Form/Content Distinction in Spoken Communication
Authors: Hedelin Lisbeth
Published: December 2008

In a series of studies designed to examine children's mastery of the form/content distinction in spoken communication, the results indicated that such mastery is dependent on the particular task and test procedures. The results showed that preschoolers, at least in their fourth to fifth year, remember and recognize form and content aspects of their own delivered messages. and of their interlocutor's message as well for some types of tasks. However, relationships between different types of tasks were generally low. The hypothesis expressed by David Olson and his colleagues that experience with written texts might prompt the development of this skill, only received weak support. The general conclusion is that there is a range of tasks which may reveal awareness of the form/content distinction, which also make it possible for younger children to make the distinction. Put differently, there is not one form/content distinction in verbal communication, but several.
Motion Mappings: An Example
Authors: Fauconnier Gilles
Published: December 2008

Because of the attention given to overt language structure at the expense of associated cognitive constructions, the importance of domain mappings in theories of meaning and language has too often been overlooked. This paper gives a brief outline of the general issues, and studies one intriguing example in more depth: how we talk and think about the cultural notion of schedule in terms of a motion schema with moving points on imaginary scales. At the abstract level considered, it turns out that ‘strange’ reflexives occurring in grammatical constructions linked to this phenomenon are triggered by the same double target configuration found in cases of metonymy, counterfactuals, and mental space connections.
Orientation in Inedxical Signs in Norwegian Sign language
Authors: Greftegreff Irene
Published: December 2008

This article discusses different transcription systems and models of sign language phonology that fall into two major categories: The innovative work of Stokoe, with later adaptations from different European countries on one hand, and on the other, several autosegmental models. The focus in the discussion is how these different models deal with hand orientation and specification of movement directionality. On the basis of this discussion, features and concepts for a new model are proposed.
Conceptual Spaces and Pronominal Reference in American Sign Language
Authors: van Hoek Karen
Published: December 2008

American Sign Language uses spatial locations as an integral part of its systems of pronominal reference. Referents mentioned in an ASL discourse may be associated with points in the signing space (“referential loci”). Pronominal signs are directed to those loci, unambiguously indicating their referents. Referential loci are sometimes analyzed as overt phonological representations of the semantic indices associated with referents in the discourse. In this paper I show that referential loci do not function merely to index or identify referents, but rather that they carry a great deal of additional information pertaining to the conceptual location of referents in the discourse space. I examine contexts in which one referent is associated with two distinct loci in the signing space, and offer a preliminary formulation of principles governing locus selection in such contexts.
Brains and Languages: A Survey of Neurolinguistics
Authors: Niemi Jussi , Laine Matti , Tesak Jürgen
Published: December 2008

Neurolinguistics, the study of language representations and processes in the human brain, is at the crossroads of fields of science such as linguistics, psychology, neuropsychology, and neurology. The present survey starts with a historical outline and continues with a review of recent studies on mental lexicon and syntax in aphasia. Those studies support the psychological reality of certain linguistic distinctions. We finish by mentioning some future trends in neurolinguistics.
Conceptualized Deviations from Expected Normality: A Semantic Comparison Between Lexical Items Ending in -ful and -less
Authors: Holmqvist Kenneth , Płuciennik Jarosław
Published: December 2008

In our article, we start by posing the question why some adjectival stems can end both in -ful and -less, while others take only one of the endings. Together these items make up around 1% of the entries in a good dictionary. It soon becomes clear that we need to use several basic concepts from cognitive linguistics to answer our question: boundedness, mass vs individual, part-whole relations and container metaphors. By so doing we can divide the -ful and -less items into a number of subgroups with different semantics. The most important aspect of their semantics, however, is that both -ful and -less express deviations from our expectations of how the normal world is structured. In other words, they represent the world by negating it.
The Impact of Context on Modal Meaning in English and Danish
Authors: Klinge Alex
Published: December 2008

In this article it is argued on the basis of English and Danish data that modal meanings traditionally discussed as semantic properties of the modal auxiliaries are derived from intra- and extra-sentential context. On the basis of preferred readings the article illustrates and discusses some of the central variables which determine the assignment of modal meaning to a sentence in a context of utterance.
Before Babel: Speculations on the Origins of Linguistic Diversity
Authors: Renfrew Colin
Published: December 2008

Recent research in historical linguistics suggests that groups or ‘families’ of languages may be classed together into larger language units or ‘macrofamilies’, for which some community of origin has been argued. The Afro-Asiatic macrofamily, for instance, which includes the Semitic and Berber languages as well as Ancient Egyptian and many languages of North and East Africa, is widely accepted among linguists. More controversial is the Nostratic macrofamily (including the Indo-European, the Altaic, the Uralic languages, etc.). The implications for prehistoric archaeology of the existence of such large linguistic units is examined. It is suggested that processes of agricultural dispersal may account for the widespread distribution of some of these macrofamilies.
Biology and Behaviour in Human Evolution
Authors: Lee Phyllis C.
Published: December 2008

Of the diverse approaches to understanding patterns and processes in human evolution, a focus on the biology of behaviour using principles derived from the non-human primates may have some utility for archaeologists. This article seeks to outline some biologically-based areas that could prove fruitful in exploring the origins of human behaviour within the archaeological record. It attempts to initiate a dialogue between biologists, even with their limited understanding of the problems facing those working with human origins, and archaeologists, in the hope that this dialogue will move beyond a simple reductionist approach towards the goal of integrating behaviour into a more sophisticated biological perspective.
Shamanism and Rock Art in Far Western North America
Authors: Whitley David S
Published: December 2008

Ethnographic data on the production of rock art in far western North America - the historic hunter-gatherer cultures of California and the Great Basin - are reviewed and analyzed to identify widespread patterns in the origin and, in certain cases, symbolism of the late prehistoric/historical parietal art of this region. These data, collected in the first few decades of this century by a variety of ethnographers, suggest only two origins for the art: production by shamans; and production by initiates in ritual cults. In both instances, the artists were apparently depicting the culturally-conditioned visions or hallucinations they experienced during altered states of consciousness. The symbolism of two sites, Tulare-19 and Ventura-195, is considered in more detail to demonstrate how beliefs about the supernatural world, and the shaman's relationship to this realm, were graphically portrayed.
On the Status and Purposes of Ancient Egyptian Art
Authors: Baines John
Published: December 2008

No term in the ancient Egyptian language corresponds neatly with Western usages of ‘art’, and Egyptologists have often argued that there is no such thing as ‘Egyptian art’. Yet aesthetically organized structures and artefacts constitute the majority of evidence from Egypt, a legacy created mainly for a small élite. The genres of these materials, all of which had functions additional to the purely aesthetic, are similar to those of many other cultures. They constitute a repository of civilizational values, related to the system of hieroglyphic writing, that was maintained and transmitted across periods. Civilization and artistic style are almost identified with each other. Funerary material constitutes one central context for artistic forms; others are temples and such poorly-preserved locations as palaces. The importance attached to artistic activities in Egypt, high-cultural involvement in them, and idiosyncratic developments can be illustrated from many periods. Egyptian art is a typically inward-looking and almost self-sustaining product of a professional group. It is no less ‘art’ for the wide range of functions and purposes it fulfilled.
Australia's Ancient Warriors: Changing Depictions of Fighting in the Rock Art of Arnhem Land, N.T.
Authors: Taçon Paul , Chippindale Christopher
Published: December 2008

Depictions of battle scenes, skirmishes and hand-to-hand combat are rare in hunter-gatherer art and when they do occur most often result from contact with agriculturalist or industrialized invaders. In the Arnhem Land region of the Northern Territory of Australia we have been documenting rare depictions of fighting and are able to show that there has been a long tradition of warrior art. At least three phases have been identified and in each of them groups of hunter-gatherers are shown in combat. The oldest are at least 10,000 years old, and constitute the most ancient depictions of fighting from anywhere in the world, while the newest were produced as recently as early this century. Significantly, a pronounced change in the arrangement of figures began with the second, middle phase — beginning perhaps about 6000 years ago. This appears to be associated with increased social complexity and the development of the highly complicated kinship relationships that persist in Arnhem Land today. Evidence from physical anthropological, archaeological and linguistic studies supports the idea of the early development of a highly organized society of the type more commonly associated with agriculturalists or horticulturalists.
How Religious were the Ancient Egyptians?
Authors: Kemp Barry J.
Published: December 2008

Ancient Egyptian culture was permeated by statements, symbolic and direct, which defined a world of deities and divine power. They amounted to a form of knowledge that was largely divorced from general personal behaviour and which afforded little recognition of individual experience. Furthermore, although practical provision for survival after death was important, life seems not to have offered a quest for enlightenment through enhanced knowledge of the divine. The exemplary life was a career pursued in what was basically a secular society. Our use of the term ‘religion’ for ancient Egypt, whilst justifiable as a convenience, clearly covers a relationship between belief and behaviour which is distinctive for its place and time. In this article, several kinds of evidence for religious behaviour in ancient Egypt are examined in an attempt to assess the nature and strength of the commitment that they represent. The question of whether the populace at large lived by reference to a world of superstitious gesture which has left little evidence behind is only briefly touched upon.
Surveying and Hydraulic Engineering of the Pre-Columbian Chimú State: ad 900–1450
Authors: Ortloff Charles R.
Published: December 2008

The Chimú state of northern coastal Peru (ad 900–1480) developed massive irrigation-based agricultural systems supplied by intricate networks of canals drawing water from river sources in coastal valleys under their political control. Further intervalley canal systems, some up to 50 miles in length, were constructed to shunt water between river valleys to augment intravalley supplies. A high degree of civil engineering skill was necessary to construct and maintain such complex systems; knowledge of surveying and of open channel flow hydraulics was paramount. Some of the technology used by the Chimú has been investigated: surveying instruments and calculating tools have been unearthed and analyzed to provide some understanding of the technical base used for canal design. Details of the hydraulics knowledge-base have been extracted from computer simulation of the functioning of ancient Chimú canal designs. This article assembles known pieces of information related to Chimú civil engineering practice and attempts to provide a plausible methodology that could have been implemented by the Chimú to survey the precise canal bed slopes necessary for proper hydraulic functioning of large canal systems through rugged Andean foothill and mountain areas.
Archetypal Landscapes and the Interpretation of Meaning
Authors: Nash Ronald J.
Published: December 2008

Carl Jung's analytic ideas on archetypes offer an approach to interpreting ancient meanings in the absence of historic records. The archetypes of the collective unconscious are said to maintain a uniformitarian consistency over time in form and meaning. Their recurrent expression in the vernacular arts, dreams, even film of recent times permits exploration of these same archetypes in ancient contexts. The theory is discussed and applied to three landscapes, archetypal landscapes of glacial wasteland, primordial sea and forest labyrinth.
An Archaeology of Remembering: Death, Bereavement and the First World War
Authors: Tarlow Sarah
Published: December 2008

Archaeological approaches to death and commemoration which privilege the negotiation of power relationships can underestimate the importance of personal and emotional responses to bereavement and mortality. Remembrance of the dead of the First World War is often understood in terms of the promotion of nationalist ideologies, but emotional factors such as grief and shock were also involved in the shaping of commemorative responses. In this article, responses to the First World War at national, local, and individual levels are considered. I suggest that people select monuments, places and ways of remembering for their power to express intense and personal feelings.
Astronomical References in the Throne Inscription of the Palace of the Governor at Uxmal
Authors: Bricker Harvey M. , Bricker Victoria R.
Published: December 2008

The Palace of the Governor at Uxmal is known from previous scholarship to be associated with Venus in terms of both its sculptural decoration and its orientation, which is aligned to an infrequently occurring extreme position of Venus on the horizon. A hieroglyphic inscription above the central doorway of the Palace is shown here to relate specifically to the concern with Venus and other celestial phenomena. Part of the inscription depicts zodiacal constellations, and its uppermost row is a sort of map of the constellations at the ‘base of the sky’ at the time of the Venus alignment. The Throne Inscription from Uxmal may now be recognized as one of the major sources of information about the pre-Columbian Maya zodiac.
Dancing and the Beginning of Art Scenes in the Early Village Communities of the Near East and Southeast Europe
Authors: Garfinkel Yosef
Published: December 2008

Dancing is depicted in the earliest art of the ancient Near East. It appears in many variations from the ninth to the sixth millennium BP over a vast geographical range. This article discusses the dancing performance, the social context of the dance and cognitive aspects of the dancing scenes. Ethnographic observations are used in order to gain a wider view of dancing and dancing scenes in pre-state societies. A correlation can be observed between art, symbolism, religion and social organization.
Veterinary vaccines: alternatives to antibiotics?
Authors: Potter Andrew , Gerdts Volker , Littel-van den Hurk Sylvia van Drunen
Published: December 2008

The prevention of infectious diseases of animals by vaccination has been routinely practiced for decades and has proved to be one of the most cost-effective methods of disease control. However, since the pioneering work of Pasteur in the 1880s, the composition of veterinary vaccines has changed very little from a conceptual perspective and this has, in turn, limited their application in areas such as the control of chronic infectious diseases. New technologies in the areas of vaccine formulation and delivery as well as our increased knowledge of disease pathogenesis and the host responses associated with protection from disease offer promising alternatives for vaccine formulation as well as targets for the prevention of bacterial disease. These new vaccines have the potential to lessen our reliance on antibiotics for disease control, but will only reach their full potential when used in combination with other intervention strategies.
Impact of sea‐level rise over the last deglacial transition on the strength of the continental shelf CO2 pump
Authors: Rippeth Tom P. , Scourse James D. , Uehara Katsuto , McKeown Stephanie
Published: December 2008

Although shelf seas account for only 7% of the oceanic surface area, recent observations demonstrate that they host significant ocean‐atmosphere CO2 fluxes. A mechanism implicated in driving a significant CO2 sink in the temperate shelf seas is the Continental Shelf Pump. Here we present an analysis of the impact of sea‐level rise, and the consequent flooding of continental shelves, on the growth of the continental shelf CO2 pump over the last deglacial transition. We combine reconstructions of shelf palaeogeography, bathymetry and tides, with contemporary shelf sea – atmosphere CO2 flux estimates, to demonstrate the potential of the expanding shelf seas to have impacted on the global carbon cycle, via the continental shelf CO2 pump, over the past 21,000 years and, by inference, earlier glacial‐interglacial cycles.
First Southern Hemisphere common‐volume measurements of PMC and PMSE
Authors: Klekociuk A. R. , Morris R. J. , Innis J. L.
Published: December 2008

Using Rayleigh lidar and Mesosphere‐Stratosphere‐Troposphere radar at Davis Antarctica (68.6°S) during the 2005–2006 austral summer, we obtained the first Southern Hemisphere common‐volume measurements of Polar Mesospheric Clouds (PMC) and Polar Mesosphere Summer Echoes (PMSE). PMC were observed with 6% probability during 349 hours of lidar observations. PMSE were simultaneously observed during 70% of the PMC events. The mean centroid altitudes of simultaneous PMC and PMSE were 83.97 ± 0.10 km and 85.31 ± 0.14 km, respectively. The altitude difference (∼1.3 km) is comparable to earlier boreal common‐volume measurements. Both phenomena show clear diurnal variations in altitude and occurrence. PMC had a unimodal local time occurrence distribution which peaked 4–6 hours after solar midnight. PMSE were most prevalent at this time, but had a secondary occurrence peak ∼6 hours after solar noon when PMC were absent. We explain the altitude‐time distributions of PMC and PMSE in terms of the thermal structure of the mesopause region determined using measurements from the Aura satellite.
An investigation of the common signal in tree ring stable isotope chronologies at temperate sites
Authors: Saurer M. , Cherubini P. , Reynolds‐Henne C. E. , Treydte K. S. , Anderson W. T. , Siegwolf R. T. W.
Published: December 2008

It is currently not well known how coherent carbon and oxygen isotope chronologies from different species and sites are under temperate climate conditions. Here we investigated nine chronologies from Switzerland covering the last two centuries, including three deciduous species (Fagus sylvatica, Fraxinus excelsior, and Quercus petraea) and three conifer species (Abies alba, Picea abies, and Pinus sylvestris) from sites neither strongly limited by temperature nor precipitation. All of the chronologies except Fraxinus were significantly correlated to at least one other chronology. Correlations between different species of the same site were of similar strength to correlations between the sites. We observed a strong common high‐frequency (interannual) signal for the δ13C chronologies, whereas the low‐frequency (decadal‐scale) signal was more similar among the δ18O chronologies. For both carbon and oxygen isotopes, we found significant positive relationships with annual and growing season temperatures and negative relationships with precipitation, again of similar magnitude for all species except for Fraxinus, which contained only minor climatic information. Averaging of all chronologies resulted in an increase in the climatic signal of the mean chronology. The combined δ18O record reflected decadal‐scale temperature variations remarkably well (r = 0.72). However, the relationship between climate and carbon isotopes declined over the last 3 decades of the 20th century, probably related to the steep increase in atmospheric CO2 concentrations, resulting in strongly diverging δ13C trends of the different chronologies. Our study indicates that combining chronologies from different species enhances the potential of isotope studies for extending climate reconstructions into areas of temperate climate.
From ab initio forecast of piezoelectric properties to growth of piezoelectric single crystals
Authors: Xin Jun , Zheng Yanqing , Kong Haikuan , Shi Erwei
Published: December 2008

The piezoelectric properties of two langasite type compounds, Ca3TaAl3Si2O14 and Ca3NbAl3Si2O14, were predicted by first-principle calculation and single crystal of Ca3TaAl3Si2O14 was successfully grown by conventional Czochralski method. The complete elastic and piezoelectric properties of Ca3TaAl3Si2O14, measured by resonant-antiresonant method, indicated that Ca3TaAl3Si2O14 was a promising substitute for quartz in the surface acoustic wave application. The high veracity of calculated results compared with measured ones suggested that first-principle predictions could be considered as a pertinent tool for the development of new materials.
Nonlinear structures: Explosive, soliton, and shock in a quantum electron-positron-ion magnetoplasma
Authors: Sabry R. , Moslem W. M. , Haas F. , Ali S. , Shukla P. K.
Published: December 2008

Theoretical and numerical studies are performed for the nonlinear structures (explosive, solitons, and shock) in quantum electron-positron-ion magnetoplasmas. For this purpose, the reductive perturbation method is employed to the quantum hydrodynamical equations and the Poisson equation, obtaining extended quantum Zakharov–Kuznetsov equation. The latter has been solved using the generalized expansion method to obtain a set of analytical solutions, which reflects the possibility of the propagation of various nonlinear structures. The relevance of the present investigation to the white dwarfs is highlighted.
Hydrogen diffusion in MgH2 and NaMgH3 via concerted motions of charged defects
Authors: Hao Shiqiang , Sholl David S.
Published: December 2008

The transport properties of hydrogen in metal hydrides are crucial to the kinetics of H2 storage in these materials. We use first principles calculations to identify the defects that are relevant for H transport in MgH2 and NaMgH3. In both materials, the physically relevant defects are charged and H diffusion is dominated by mobility of negatively charged interstitial H. Moreover, the diffusion of these species occurs via concerted “interstitialcy” mechanisms with low energy barriers. Our results indicate that any examination of H diffusion in light metal hydrides must consider the concerted diffusion of charged defects.
Higher order solutions to ion-acoustic solitons in a weakly relativistic two-fluid plasma
Authors: Gill Tarsem Singh , Bala Parveen , Kaur Harvinder
Published: December 2008

The nonlinear wave structure of small amplitude ion-acoustic solitary waves (IASs) is investigated in a two-fluid plasma consisting of weakly relativistic streaming ions and electrons. Using the reductive perturbation theory, the basic set of governing equations is reduced to the Korteweg–de Vries (KdV) equation for the lowest order perturbation. This analysis is further extended using the renormalization technique for the inclusion of higher order nonlinear and dispersive effects for better accuracy. The effect of higher order correction and various parameters on the soliton characteristics is investigated and also discussed.
Probing of a parametrically pumped magnon gas with a nonresonant packet of traveling spin waves
Authors: Neumann T. , Serga A. A. , Hillebrands B.
Published: December 2008

The magnon gas created by spatially localized longitudinal parametric pumping in an yttrium iron garnet film is probed by a traveling packet of spin waves nonresonant with the pumping field. The analysis of the influence of the magnon gas on the amplitude and phase of the propagating spin waves allows to determine characteristic properties of the parametrically pumped magnon gas. A simple theoretical model is proposed from which the magnon density in the pumping region is calculated.
US Immigration Law and its Geographies of Social Control: Lessons from Homosexual Exclusion during the Cold War
Authors: Coleman Mathew
Published: December 2008

Despite its preoccupation with issues of space, power, and subjectivity, as well as being a prominent home for immigration-related scholarship, geography includes little research on the intersection of immigration and sexuality as well as on their joint regulation through immigration law. This paper looks at the intersection of immigration and sexuality through the lens of the Cold War practice of homosexual exclusion in US immigration law. By drawing linkages between homosexual exclusion and current immigration law, I argue that homosexual exclusion is not an aberrant part of US immigration law history, that immigration law has important social control functions, and that, as a result, immigration researchers in geography attend to immigration control beyond border enforcement per se.
A taxonomic revision of the genus Rothia (Crotalarieae, Fabaceae)
Authors: Boatwright J. S. , Tilney P. M. , van Wyk B.-E.
Published: December 2008

Rothia Pers. is a genus of papilionoid legumes that consists of two species, R. indica (L.) Druce and R. hirsuta (Guill. & Perr.) Baker. The genus is a member of the tribe Crotalarieae and is widely distributed in Africa, Asia and Australia. Recent molecular systematic studies have shown the genus to be closely related to Robynsiophyton Wilczek and Pearsonia Dümmer; however, it is easily distinguished from these by its 10 small, rounded anthers and subequally lobed calyx (as opposed to the large, elongate anthers of Pearsonia or the 9 stamens of Robynsiophyton). These three genera share characters such as uniform anthers, straight styles and the presence of angelate esters of lupanine-type alkaloids. Leaf and fruit anatomy of Rothia and Robynsiophyton were also studied but revealed no informative differences. Both genera have dorsiventral leaves with mucilage cells in the epidermis and thin-walled fruits. A taxonomic revision of Rothia is presented, including a key to the species, correct nomenclature, descriptions, illustrations and distribution maps.
New chromosome numbers in Homoranthus (Myrtaceae: Chamelaucieae) and notes on their taxonomic utility
Authors: Copeland Lachlan M. , Bruhl Jeremy J. , Craven Lyn A. , Brubaker Curt L.
Published: December 2008

Diploid chromosome counts are reported for the first time for 23 species of Homoranthus (Myrtaceae) and published counts are confirmed for a further three species. H. wilhelmii (F.Muell.) Cheel was determined as having 2n = 14, which contrasts with an earlier report of n = 6 for the species. Dysploidy appears to be common within the genus, with diploid chromosome numbers of 2n = 14, 16, 18 and 20 being recorded. There was no evidence of recent polyploidy within Homoranthus nor of any infraspecific dysploidy. Chromosome numbers appear to be a useful taxonomic tool to confirm the distinctness of some morphologically similar taxa but may be of limited use in estimating phylogenetic relationships.
Describing Catalan–Spanish translation
Authors: Garcia De Toro Cristina
Published: December 2008

When tackling the issue of translation between Spanish and Catalan, Branchadell and West state that translation into a minority language like Catalan is truly an ill-studied and poorly understood phenomenon (2004:16). This paper aims to start a debate on a language pair that has scarcely been studied and is still poorly known even in the Spanish context: two languages that live together, two close languages, two languages always determined by the socio-political and historical circumstances around them, and, as a result, two languages well understood by all speakers in the crowded Catalan region.

We will focus on the contextual factors that take part and determine this translation practice: ­­the linguistic profile of their speakers, the bi-directionality of professional translation, self-translation and the specificity of fields in the professional marketplace. We will also examine the implications that derive from them, especially the implications for teaching.

This paper will reopen some interesting theoretical debates, like directionality, self-translation, market relations and power balances between a major and a minor language. For example, the closeness of these two languages does not guarantee success in translation, the concepts of direct and reverse translation are not very useful and precise in this language combination, and the reasons for commissioning a translation are not just to facilitate understanding among the readers of the target language.
Coping with complexity: Reconfiguring the navigation system for Santiago's new transportation plan
Authors: Allard José
Published: December 2008

This article1 reviews the navigation system developed for Santiago de Chile’s new public transportation plan “Transantiago” which considers a radical change in the way million of users navigate the city. It introduce some of the particular variables that affected the way the project was conceived, designed and implemented, presenting two of its main components: the Transantiago’s Typeface System and its Network Map.
Robot communication - human contact with androids
Authors: Hoorn Johan F. , Pontier Matthijs A.
Published: December 2008

We are increasingly communicating with robots, and the design of lifelike humanoid robots will face at least five challenges. 1) Robots should meet social needs – people are getting older, lonelier, and are looking for alternatives to face-to-face contact, for instance, in coaching and therapy. 2) Robot designers assume that the better they can simulate social and affective behavior, the more effective the robotic partner is. Yet, it is not always clear what natural behavior is, nor whether maximal humanlikeness equals optimal user satisfaction. 3) Multidisciplinary design teams require transdisciplinary theory to create mutual understanding and cover the wide-ranging facets of robot design. However, combining diverse theories from different domains means confronting major unification problems. 4) Empirical approaches to robot design usually miss out on logic consistency within theory. Conversely, formalization and mathematical modeling often lack external validity. Verification before validation seems to be the new way to go. 5) Finally, if it is actually possible to create lifelike, affective, sociable androids, the cognitive models underlying their behavior may be open to abuse, for example in malicious software that spies on people.
Combination chemotherapy of oxaliplatin and 5‐fluorouracil may be an effective regimen for mucinous adenocarcinoma of the ovary: A potential treatment strategy
Authors: Sato Seiya , Itamochi Hiroaki , Kigawa Junzo , Oishi Tetsuro , Shimada Muneaki , Sato Shinya , Naniwa Jun , Uegaki Kazunori , Nonaka Michiko , Terakawa Naoki
Published: December 2008

Resistance of ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma to standard chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin is associated with poor prognosis, and an effective treatment is needed. The present study aimed to identify an effective chemotherapy for ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma. Five human ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma cell lines (MN‐1, OMC‐1, RMUG‐L, RMUG‐S, TU‐OM‐1) were used in this study. Sensitivity of the cells to the anticancer agents was determined by 3‐(4,5‐dimethylthiazol‐2‐yl)‐2,5‐diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay, and we assessed drug sensitivity by calculating the assay area under the curve for each agent. Protein expression was confirmed by Western blot analysis. We also examined the efficacy of combination chemotherapy on survival in a xenograft model of nude mice. The IC50 to anticancer agents ranged widely. The assay area under the curve indicated that two of five cell lines (MN‐1, TU‐OM‐1) were sensitive to oxaliplatin, 5‐fluorouracil and etoposide, and only one (TU‐OM‐1) was sensitive to 7‐ethyl‐10‐hydroxycamptothecin, which is an active metabolite of camptothecin. All cell lines were resistant to cisplatin and paclitaxel. The combination of oxaliplatin and 5‐fluorouracil resulted in additive or synergistic effects on all cell lines. The combination of oxaliplatin and 5‐fluorouracil significantly prolonged survival in a ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma xenograft model of nude mice. Protein expression levels of the excision repair cross‐complementation group 1 were lower in oxaliplatin sensitive cell lines. Exposure to 5‐fluorouracil down‐regulated cross‐complementation group 1 expression in ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma cells. We conclude that combination chemotherapy consisting of oxaliplatin and 5‐fluorouracil was an effective treatment for ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma and may be a pivotal candidate for a novel treatment strategy. (Cancer Sci 2009; 100: 546–551)
Mercaptopurine treatment should be considered in azathioprine intolerant patients with inflammatory bowel disease
Authors: HINDORF U. , JOHANSSON M. , ERIKSSON A. , KVIFORS E. , ALMER S. H. C.
Published: December 2008

Background  Adverse drug reactions are a significant reason for therapeutic failure during thiopurine treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. Some smaller series in this patient population have shown that a switch to mercaptopurine may be successful in many cases of azathioprine intolerance.

Aim  To assess the long‐term outcome of mercaptopurine treatment in a large patient population with azathioprine intolerance.

Methods  We identified 135 patients (74 women; median age 40 years) with Crohn’s disease (n = 88) or ulcerative colitis (n = 47) and reviewed their medical records.

Results  A total of 70 patients (52%) tolerated mercaptopurine and were followed up for 736 (362–1080) days; 65 patients discontinued mercaptopurine due to adverse events after 25 (8–92) days. Mercaptopurine was tolerated in 71% (12/17) with hepatotoxicity and in 68% (13/19) with arthralgia/myalgia during azathioprine treatment. Previous abdominal surgery was more common in mercaptopurine intolerant patients [39/65 (60%) vs. 27/70 (39%); P = 0.02] and thiopurine methyltransferase activity was higher in mercaptopurine tolerant patients than in mercaptopurine intolerant patients [13.2 (11.4–15.3) vs. 11.8 (9.6–14.2) U/mL red blood cells; P = 0.04; n = 81].

Conclusions  A trial of mercaptopurine should be considered in azathioprine intolerance, as half of the patients tolerate a switch to mercaptopurine. Patients with hepatotoxicity or arthralgia/myalgia during azathioprine treatment might benefit more often than those with other types of adverse events.