bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
In vitro and In vivo Characterization of 64Cu-Labeled AbegrinTM, a Humanized Monoclonal Antibody against Integrin αvβ3
Authors: Cai Weibo , Wu Yun , Chen Kai , Cao Qizhen , Tice David A. , Chen Xiaoyuan
Published: October 2006

AbegrinTM (MEDI-522 or VitaxinTM), a humanized monoclonal antibody against human integrin αvβ3, is in clinical trials for cancer therapy. In vivo imaging using AbegrinTM-based probes is needed for better treatment monitoring and dose optimization. Here, we conjugated AbegrinTM with macrocyclic chelating agent 1,4,7,10-tetra-azacylododecane N,N′,N″,N‴-tetraacetic (DOTA) at five different DOTA/AbegrinTM ratios. The conjugates were labeled with 64Cu (half-life = 12.7 hours) and tested in three human (U87MG, MDA-MB-435, and PC-3) and one mouse (GL-26) tumor models. The in vitro and in vivo effects of these 64Cu-DOTA-AbegrinTM conjugates were evaluated. The number of DOTA per AbegrinTM varied from 1.65 ± 0.32 to 38.53 ± 5.71 and the radiolabeling yield varied from 5.20 ± 3.16% to 88.12 ± 6.98% (based on 2 mCi 64Cu per 50 μg DOTA-AbegrinTM conjugate). No significant difference in radioimmunoreactivity was found among these conjugates (between 59.78 ± 1.33 % and 71.13 ± 2.58 %). Micro-positron emission tomography studies revealed that 64Cu-DOTA-AbegrinTM (1,000:1) had the highest tumor activity accumulation (49.41 ± 4.54% injected dose/g at 71-hour postinjection for U87MG tumor). The receptor specificity of 64Cu-DOTA-Abegrin was confirmed by effective blocking of MDA-MB-435 tumor uptake with coadministration of nonradioactive Abegrin. 64Cu-DOTA-IgG exhibited background level tumor uptake at all time points examined. Integrin αvβ3-specific tumor imaging using 64Cu-DOTA-AbegrinTM may be translated into the clinic to characterize the pharmacokinetics, tumor targeting efficacy, dose optimization, and dose interval of AbegrinTM and/or Abegrin conjugates. Chemotherapeutics or radiotherapeutics using AbegrinTM as the delivering vehicle may also be effective in treating integrin αvβ3-positive tumors. (Cancer Res 2006; 66(19): 9673-81)
HER2/Neu (ErbB2) Signaling to Rac1-Pak1 Is Temporally and Spatially Modulated by Transforming Growth Factor β
Authors: Wang Shizhen Emily , Shin Incheol , Wu Frederick Y. , Friedman David B. , Arteaga Carlos L.
Published: October 2006

In HER2 (ErbB2)-overexpressing cells, transforming growth factor β (TGF-β), via activation of phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K), recruits actin and actinin to HER2, which then colocalizes with Vav2, activated Rac1, and Pak1 at cell protrusions. This results in prolonged Rac1 activation, enhanced motility and invasiveness, Bad phosphorylation, uncoupling of Bad/Bcl-2, and enhanced cell survival. The recruitment of the HER2/Vav2/Rac1/Pak1/actin/actinin complex to lamellipodia was abrogated by actinin siRNAs, dominant-negative (dn) p85, gefitinib, and dn-Rac1 or dn-Pak1, suggesting that the reciprocal interplay of PI3K, HER2 kinase, and Rac GTPases with the actin cytoskeleton is necessary for TGF-β action in oncogene-overexpressing cells. Thus, by recruiting the actin skeleton, TGF-β “cross-links” this signaling complex at cell lamellipodia; this prolongs Rac1 activation and increases metastatic properties and survival of HER2-overexpressing cells. (Cancer Res 2006; 66(19): 9591-600)
Genomic Copy Number Changes Affecting the Thymidylate Synthase (TYMS) Gene in Cancer: A Model for Patient Classification to Aid Fluoropyrimidine Therapy
Authors: Brody Jonathan R. , Hucl Tomas , Gallmeier Eike , Winter Jordan M. , Kern Scott E. , Murphy Kathleen M.
Published: October 2006

Thymidylate synthase (TS) is an important target for 5-fluorouracil (5FU)–based therapy. The TS polymorphic 5′-untranslated region tandem repeat sequence is under investigation to guide 5FU treatment, yet current protocols omit consideration of copy number changes at the TS locus. We surveyed the TS tandem repeat sequence and found copy number changes in gastrointestinal cancers. Ten of 12 informative cases had loss of heterozygosity (LOH), whereas two others and an additional cell line had a novel TS genotype, allelic imbalance at the TS locus due to polysomy. Experimentally, we studied a diploid colorectal cancer line heterozygous at TS to mimic three common TS genotypes of cancers. Using genetic engineering, we deleted the short tandem repeat (two repeats) allele and retained the long (three repeats) allele to produce artificial LOH at the TS gene; the TS+/− line had a reduced TS protein expression and was hypersensitive to 5FU and 5-fluoro-2′-deoxyuridine in vitro as compared with syngeneic control lines. We linked this sensitivity directly to the reduced TS expression by introducing exogenous TS cDNA expression into the TS+/− line (i.e., increased TS copies). Our model predicts that the 5FU sensitivity of a tumor is modified by aneuploidy producing copy number changes of TS alleles by one or more of the following: LOH, amplification, and, as presented here, copy number changes due to polysomy. The data suggest that TS copy number in a patient's tumor may be a dominating variable affecting 5FU responsiveness. (Cancer Res 2006; 66(19): 9369-73)
Dietary Administration of the Proapoptotic Vitamin E Analogue α-Tocopheryloxyacetic Acid Inhibits Metastatic Murine Breast Cancer
Authors: Hahn Tobias , Szabo Lajos , Gold Mikhal , Ramanathapuram Lalitha , Hurley Laurence H. , Akporiaye Emmanuel T.
Published: October 2006

The ability of the vitamin E (RRR-α-tocopherol) derivatives α-tocopheryl succinate (α-TOS) and α-tocopheryloxyacetic acid (α-TEA) to suppress tumor growth in preclinical animal models has recently led to increased interest in their potential use for treating human cancer. To make the use of these vitamin E analogues more clinically relevant, we compared the antitumor efficacy of orally and i.p. delivered forms of α-TEA and α-TOS against a murine mammary cancer (4T1) that bears resemblance to human breast cancer because of its poor immunogenicity and high metastatic potential. In cell culture studies, we showed that both compounds inhibited tumor colony formation and induced apoptotic death of tumor cells. To avoid solubility concerns associated with the hydrophobicity of α-TEA and α-TOS, we used the vesiculated forms of α-TEA (Vα-TEA) and α-TOS (Vα-TOS) for the in vivo tumor studies. Both compounds inhibited the growth of preestablished 4T1 tumors when given i.p. However, when given by oral gavage, only the esterase-resistant Vα-TEA was able to suppress primary tumor growth and reduce lung metastasis. To make this approach more translatable to the clinic, α-TEA was incorporated into the diet and fed to tumor-bearing mice. We report here for the first time that dietary α-TEA delivery significantly inhibited primary tumor growth and dramatically reduced spontaneous metastatic spread to the lung in prophylactic and therapeutic settings. This study suggests that dietary α-TEA could prove useful as a relatively easy and effective modality for treating metastatic breast cancer. (Cancer Res 2006; 66(19): 9374-8)
Notes on Pompeian Domestic Cults
Authors: Lipka Michael
Published: October 2006

The performance and setting of Pompeian domestic cults is investigated on the basis of the evidence from three Pompeian houses (Casa del Cenaculo, Casa degli Amorini Dorati, Casa di Marcus Lucretius). Wissowa's view that representations of gods in mural paintings received divine worship in the domestic sphere, as well as the conclusions drawn from it by modern scholars, are refuted. An attempt is made to outline the functioning of Pompeian domestic cults, including the worship of the emperor, solely on the basis of divine figurines, which are abundantly attested in Pompeian household shrines, but have never before received systematic attention.
Red (Herring?) Comments on a New Theory Concerning the Origin of the Triumph
Authors:   Versnel
Published: October 2006

In this paper it is argued that Jörg Rüpke's proposal to date the creation of the Roman triumph to the late 4th century BC cannot be accepted. First, it is demonstrated that some of R.'s reinterpretations of the triumphal phenomenology are debatable, others improbable or inconceivable, one (the most essential) impossible. Next, a few historical implications of the new theory are shown to evoke serious questions and objections. Finally, the four major historical arguments or premises on which the theory is founded are shown to be at variance with the available evidence. Consequently, there is no reason to reject the well-founded and practically unanimously accepted idea that the triumph was introduced in the "Etruscan period" of Rome (late 6th century BC).
Triumphator and Ancestor Rituals Between Symbolic Anthropology and Magic
Authors: Rüpke Jörg
Published: October 2006

This article argues that the Roman triumph with the figure of the triumphator and the burial of Roman nobles with the pompa imaginum should be interpreted within the framework of the prestige and practices related to honori fic statues. Using the red colour of the triumphator's skin as the main argument, the figure of the triumphator is interpreted as a temporary statue, and the triumph as an attempt on part of the senate to regulate the prestige of honori fic statues by tying it to a public ritual. Likewise, the bearers of imagines are interpreted as representing the ensemble of all legitimate — i.e. as based on public positions — statues used to construct a family. Both rituals, as known from late republican sources, developed from the fourth century BC onwards.
Music, Cosmos, and the Development of Psychology in Early China
Authors: Brindley Erica
Published: October 2006

Music plays an important role in the development of discourses on the body, and, in particular, on psychology. From the received and excavated textual record dating to the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. we gain insights into the emergence of an elaborate logos of the psyche, or "psychology," as such a psychology relates to the cosmos. The article explores two orientations on the role of music in psychology. The first and earlier orientation outlines what the author terms a "psychology of influence," which provides a rationale for the beneficial effects of good music in self-cultivation and social order. The second and later orientation outlines what the author calls a "psychology of cosmic attunement," which identifies music with the harmony of the cosmos and speaks of sages who attune themselves to it. Through a close examination of these two perspectives on music, the article delineates how a triangular relationship among music, cosmos, and psyche develops in early China, essentially forming a new paradigm within which human relationship to music and cosmic order is understood. La musique joue un rôle important dans le développement des discours sur le corps, en particulier sur la psychologie. Grâce aux textes reçus ou exhumés datant des 3e et 4e siècles avant notre ère, il est possible d'obtenir des aperçus sur l'émergence d'un logos élaboré sur la psyché, soit une "psychologie", dans la mesure où cette psychologie est en relation avec le cosmos. L'article explore deux orientations dans le rôle de la musique en psychologie. La première, plus ancienne, décrit ce que l'auteur appelle une "psychologie de l'influence", qui fournit une explication aux effets bénéfiques de la "bonne" musique sur la culture de soi et sur l'ordre social. La seconde orientation, plus récente, décrit ce que l'auteur appelle une "psychologie de l'harmonisation cosmique", qui identifie la musique avec l'harmonie du cosmos et évoque les sages qui s'accordent sur elle. En examinant de près ces deux perspectives sur la musique, l'article suggère la façon dont une relation triangulaire entre la musique, le cosmos et la psyché s'est développée dans la Chine ancienne, formant essentiellement un nouveau paradigme à l'intérieur duquel comprendre la relation de l'homme à la musique et à l'ordre cosmique.
Domesticity and the Dharma: Portraits of Buddhist Laywomen in Sung China
Authors: Halperin Mark
Published: October 2006

This article examines how literati depicted pious Buddhist laywomen during the Sung dynasty. Drawing on hundreds of funeral inscriptions for elite women, it illustrates how scholar-officials presented Buddhist practice within the ideological framework of domesticity. Pious women are seen to constitute a different sort of female exempla, displaying assertive, even defiant characters. In their diverse forms of devotion (and anti-clericalism), women both reinforce elite ideals for wives and mothers and serve as female analogues to male exempla of heroic conduct. Cet article examine la façon dont les lettrés dépeignaient les pieuses bouddhistes laïques à l'époque des Song. Basé sur plusieurs centaines d'inscriptions funéraires dédiées à des femmes de l'élite, l'auteur illustre la façon dont les lettrés-fonctionnaires représentaient la pratique bouddhiste dans le cadre idéologique de la vie domestique. Les femmes pieuses apparaissent comme constituant une catégorie différente d'exemples féminins, révélant un caractère affirmé, voire défiant. Dans leurs formes variées de dévotion (et d'anticléricalisme) ces femmes renforçaient les conceptions idéales de l'épouse et de la mère entretenues par l'élite, et en même temps servaient d'analogue féminin aux exemple masculins de comportement héroïque.
The Last Campaigns of Wang Yangming
Authors: Shin Leo
Published: October 2006

Given his grand humanistic vision, how should one explain Wang Yangming's (Wang Shouren; 1472-1529) deep engagements in borderland warfare? What did he think he was doing, and how should one place his approaches in the broader contexts of the intellectual and political discourses of mid-Ming China? Focusing on Wang's activities in the southern province of Guangxi in 1528 (particularly his "pacification" of the native domain of Tianzhou as well as his military campaign against the "Yao bandits" in the Rattan Gorge area), this essay explains not only how Wang dealt with the perceived problems of the "non-Chinese" (man, yi, etc.) but also how his approaches should be understood in terms of the inner logic of his thoughts as well as the intellectual and political debates of his time. Étant donné sa noble vision humaniste, comment expliquer que Wang Yangming (Wang Shouren, 1479-1529) ait pu s'engager à fond dans des guerres frontalières? Comment envisageait-il ses propres actions, et comment comprendre son approche dans le contexte plus large du discours intellectuel et politique au milieu des Ming? En se concentrant sur les activités de Wang Yangming dans la province méridionale du Guangxi en 1528 (plus particulièrement la façon dont il "pacifia" la principauté aborigène de Tianzhou, et sa campagne armée contre les "bandits Yao" de la Gorge du Rotin), l'article explique non seulement comment Wang abordait les problèmes des "non Chinois" (les man, yi, etc.) tels qu'ils étaient perçus, mais aussi comment son approche doit être comprise en fonction de la logique propre de sa pensée, ainsi que des débats intellectuals et politiques de son temps.
The Supernatural as the Author's Sphere: Jinghua Yuan's Reprise of the Rhetorical Strategies of Honglou Meng
Authors: Wang Ying
Published: October 2006

This study investigates the similarities between Li Ruzhen's nineteenth-century novel Jinghua yuan and Cao Xueqin's eighteenth-century masterpiece Honglou meng in terms of their artistic experimentation, by its focus on Li's appropriation of Cao's rhetorical strategies. It places the two novels in the context of vernacular literature in the mid- and late Qing period and attributes the disappearance of the "pseudo-oral" narrator in both novels to the dramatization of the narration and the establishment of a supernatural realm as the sphere of the author. The rhetorical strategies employed in Honglou meng, and subsequently evoked in Jinghua yuan, are not, as this study intends to show, the sporadic engagements of the supernatural seen in earlier novels. Instead, they are sophisticated mechanisms at work in both the model and its imitation. In comparing the similarities of rhetoric in these two novels, this essay emphasizes Li Ruzhen's artistic creativity by highlighting his critical responses to Honglou meng and his ingenuity in re-using Cao Xueqin's techniques. Cette étude examine les similitudes entre deux romans, le Jinghua yuan composé au 19e siècle par Li Ruzhen et le chef-d'œuvre de Cao Xueqin, le Honglou meng, qui date du siècle précédent, concernant leurs aspects expérimentaux dans le domaine artistique; pour ce faire elle se concentre sur la façon dont Li Ruzhen s'est approprié les stratégies rhétoriques de Cao Xueqin. L'article replace les deux romans dans le contexte de la littérature vernaculaire d'au milieu et de la fin des Qing, et attribue la disparition du narrateur "pseudo-oral" dans les deux œuvres à la dramatisation de la narration et à l'instauration d'un domaine surnaturel constituant la sphère de l'auteur. Comme entend le montrer cet essai, les stratégies rhétoriques employées dans le Honglou meng et reprises plus tard dans le Jinghua yuan ne se limitent pas à des interventions sporadiques du surnaturel comme dans les romans plus anciens. On a au contraire affaire à des mécanismes sophistiqués mis en œuvre tant dans le modèle que dans son imitation. La comparaison des similitudes rhétoriques dans les deux romans permet de mettre l'accent sur la créativité artistique de Li Ruzhen en mettant en lumière sa réponse critique au Honglou meng et l'ingéniosité avec laquelle il reprend à son compte les techniques de Cao Xueqin.
The Creative Structuring of Counterintuitive Worlds
Authors: Tweney Ryan , Upal M. Afzal , Gonce Lauren , Slone D. Jason , Edwards Kristin
Published: October 2006

Recent research has shown a memory advantage for minimally counterintuitive (MCI) concepts, over concepts that are either intuitive (INT) or maximally counterintuitive (MXCI), although the general result is heavily affected by context. Items from one such study were given to subjects who were asked to create novel stories using at least three concepts from a list containing all three types. Results indicated a preference for using MCI items (as in the recall studies), and further disclosed two styles of usage, an accommodative style and an assimilative style. The results extend recent memory research and suggest extensions to recent theories intended to explain the prevalence of counterintuitive religious concepts.
The Ghost in My Body: Children's Developing Concept of the Soul
Authors: Richert Rebekah , Harris Paul
Published: October 2006

Two experiments were conducted to explore whether children, who have been exposed to the concept of the soul, differentiate the soul from the mind. In the first experiment, 4- to 12-year-old children were asked about whether a religious ritual affects the mind, the brain, or the soul. The majority of the children claimed that only the soul was different after baptism. In a follow-up study, 6- to 12-year-old children were tested more explicitly on what factors differentiate the soul from the mind and the brain. Children differentiated the soul from the mind and the brain along two dimensions: function and stability. In contrast to their responses about the mind and the brain, children did not claim that the soul was important for cognitive, non-cognitive, or biological functioning. Children consistently indicated that the mind and the brain change and grow over time. In contrast, children indicated that the soul is something that stays constant and is devoted to various, predominantly spiritual, functions.
The Peculiar Logic of Value
Authors: Jackendoff Ray
Published: October 2006

A system of values plays an important intermediary role in the human conceptual system. An individual associates a value – an abstract valence and quantity – with a past, present, or contemplated object or action in the environment, and uses values to help determine what actions to take. Value can be categorized into a number of different types, the most important of which for the purposes of the present article are affective value (how good the action is for someone), normative value (how good the action is of someone), and esteem (how good a reputation someone has). Normative value in turn divides into several subdomains such as moral value, legality, etiquette, and religious value. In addition, values can be divided along the orthogonal dimension of objective (value tout court) versus subjective (value in the eyes of a particular person). Each type of value plays its own characteristic role in affecting choice of action in interaction with the others.Given an explicit formulation of systems of value, it then becomes possible to work out more precise accounts of value-laden systems of concepts. Two are explored here: fairness and freely chosen reciprocity, the latter including retaliation, restitution, honoring, shaming, and apologizing.The overall hypothesis that emerges from the investigation is that the basic categories of value and the inference rules built on them are human universals. Cultures' value systems differ primarily in (a) what actions and objects are assigned what values and (b) the relative weighting of different sources of value in cases where they interact.
The sacrifice and the reciprocity-programme in religious rituals and in man's everyday interactions
Authors: Høgh-Olesen Henrik
Published: October 2006

The sacrifice is a ritualized central structure in religious practice worldwide, but from a psychological point of view it may be much more than that. On the basis of cross-cultural, comparative, and experimental data, where 162 strangers are arranged to meet in twos without knowing that their interaction is being observed, it is argued that the sacrifice is not first and foremost a religious concept, let alone a behavioural structure primarily related to the man-god relation, but rather a key factor in man's sociality and a general evolutionary interaction unit based on a cognitive reciprocity-programme well known in animal life, from sperm whales and vampire bats to higher primates and ourselves. Furthermore, it is suggested that in our species the religious sacrifice becomes a ritualized sacred action, because this act symbolically highlights the natural reciprocity relations that have to prevail among men, if a society is to exist at all.
The making of peculiar artifacts: Living kind, artifact and social order in the Turkana sacrifice
Authors: Liénard Pierre
Published: October 2006

Using data collected among the Turkana of Kenya, I investigate specific configurations of actions found in sacrifices.I argue that Turkana sacrifice has specific cognitive effects and that those can be explained in terms of the activation of specific cognitive mechanisms. Turkana sacrifice elicits assumptions about living things and artifacts. It does that in a particular way: Living kinds are used as tools and artifacts, as if endowed with an essence. The systematic combination of such manipulations with ordinary action scripts, reoriented to build ritual sequences, and the display of social orders has important effects for participants' cognition.
Role of Context in the Recall of Counterintuitive Concepts
Authors: Gonce Lauren , Upal M. Afzal , Slone D. Jason , Tweney D. Ryan
Published: October 2006

Counterintuitive concepts have been identified as major aspects of religious belief, and have been used to explain the retention and transmission of such beliefs. To resolve some inconsistencies in the literature concerning counterintuitiveness, we conducted three experiments to study the effect of context on recall. Five types of items were used: intuitive, minimally counterintuitive, maximally counterintuitive, minimally counterintuitive with contradictory context, and intuitive with contradictory context. Items were presented with context or without context and participants were asked to recall them. Maximally counterintuitive concepts were found to have the poorest recall in both immediate and delayed recall conditions and regardless of the presence or absence of context. No significant differences were found in the recall rates of minimally counterintuitive concepts and intuitive concepts, although delayed recall affected minimally counterintuitive concepts less than intuitive concepts, suggesting the possibility of differential "fitness." Presence of contradictory context was found to be able to change minimally counterintuitive items into the functional equivalents of intuitive items (and vice versa). When relevant context was present, minimally counterintuitive concepts were recalled significantly better than intuitive concepts, which is consistent with the findings of Barrett & Nyhof (2001). For items presented as lists, intuitive items were recalled better, consistent with the findings of Norenzayan & Atran (2004b). Thus, context was the key element affecting recall and the discrepancy among prior studies (and the much earlier studies of Bartlett, 1932) was resolved. The results imply that no "item-centered" explanation of the formation and transmission of religious concepts can be adequate in itself. Instead, the nature of the surrounding context must be included in any such account.
Culture, Brain Transplants and Implicit Theories of Identity
Authors: Mahalingam Ramaswami , Rodriguez Joel
Published: October 2006

Using a brain transplant paradigm (BT), we examined the role of culture and status (privileged group membership) on beliefs about social and personal identity among Indians (Brahmins and Dalits, N = 202) and American participants (N = 114). Participants were presented a vignette about a hypothetical BT between members of two different ethnic groups and asked the following two questions: (a) whether a BT would change how the recipient would act; (b) whether the BT would change the social identity of the recipient. Americans believed that the BT recipient would act as the ethnicity of the donor. By contrast, Brahmin participants believed that a Brahmin recipient of a Dalit (formerly treated as "untouchables") brain would act like a Dalit but a Dalit who received a BT from a Brahmin would not act like a Brahmin. Both Americans and Indians believed that the social identity (the caste, race or ethnic identity) of a person would not be changed by a brain transplant. The role of culture and social status in affecting various implicit theories of identities are discussed.
Agent and Instrument in Judgements of Ritual Efficacy
Authors: Sørensen Jesper , Liénard Pierre , Feeny Chelsea
Published: October 2006

Justin Barrett and E. Thomas Lawson (2001) were among the first to operationalize experimentally a traditional topic of anthropology: 'ritual'. Using a similar experimental protocol, the authors further investigate the cognitive underpinning of representations of ritual actions. Participants were asked to judge the likelihood of success of variants of a series of prototypical ritual actions. In line with Barrett and Lawson's findings, it was expected that specific intuitions would guide participants' judgements about the well-formedness of ritual actions; that representation of superhuman agency would be pivotal in those judgements; and that the role of the ritual agent would be conceived as fundamental. The present study was particularly focused on the effect of changing Agent or Instruments in descriptions of a set of prototypical ritual actions. Following a second line of inquiry, contexts in which the prototypical actions were set were systematically manipulated. It was expected that this would affect patterns of answers. No such contextual effect was found, but the study revealed significant differences in how participants appraised different changes affecting Agent and Instrument. The authors finally speculate that specific systems dedicated to the processing of information about Agent and Instrument might explain these findings.
A Burning Desire: Steps Toward an Evolutionary Psychology of Fire Learning
Authors: Fessler Daniel
Published: October 2006

Although fire is inherently dangerous, leading many animals to avoid it, for most of human history, mastery of fire has been critical to survival. Humans can therefore be expected to possess evolved psychological mechanisms dedicated to controlling fire. Because techniques for starting, maintaining, and using fire differ across ecosystems, the postulated adaptations can be expected to take the form of domain-specific learning mechanisms rather than fixed behavioral templates. After outlining features that such mechanisms are predicted to possess, I review the literature on fire play in western children, finding that attraction to and interest in fire is widespread, experimentation with fire often begins in early childhood, and fire play typically peaks in late childhood or early adolescence. The latter aspect stands in contrast to results from a survey of ethnographers which reveals that, in societies in which fire is routinely used as a tool, children typically master control of fire by middle childhood, at which point interest in fire is already declining. This suggests that fire learning is retarded in western children, arguably due to patterns of fire use in modern societies that are atypical when viewed from a broader cross-cultural perspective. Together with the fact that western entertainment media provide a distorted portrait of the properties of fire, this pattern, while limiting the value of naturalistic observations of fire learning in the West, nevertheless has the benefit of providing a strong testing ground for future experiments exploring the universality of the psychology underlying the control of fire.
Cultural Understandings of “Religion”: The Hermeneutical Context of Teaching Religious Studies in North America
Authors: Murphy Tim
Published: October 2006

When students come into the classroom, they have a prefigured, albeit deeply implicit, notion of what “religion” is and what it is not. They see religion as private, inner, and personal, as distinct from “politics” and “economics.” This prefigured conception of religion is, in this author's view, one of the principle obstacles to teaching Religious Studies in an empirical, cross-cultural, comparative manner. Given the overall structure of the cultural configuration within which students think about and live out “religion,” i.e., that it is private, utilitarian, and simply an obvious given to them, how can we introduce theory into the Religious Studies classroom? The answer given here is that if we use language-based theoretical models of culture such as structuralism and hermeneutics, we do better, in the main, in applying that theory to the communicative context of the classroom than trying to teach theory directly to our undergraduate students. This paper offers an analysis, using such language-based theories, of those cultural conditions which our students bring into the classroom and which shape their “native” understanding of the category “religion,” as well as some suggestions as to how to cope with it in order to teach Religious Studies more effectively.
The Study of Religion as Theorienschmiede for Cultural Studies: A Test of Cognitive Science and Religious-Economic Modes of Access
Authors: Koch Anne
Published: October 2006

This article proposes understanding an important task of the Study of Religion as a monitoring system in the neuroscience sense, i.e. a higher-order-level of evaluation and reflexivity. The Study of Religion in the context of several specialized cultural studies approaches reflects on these approaches and on how they frame a discourse. These scientific and popular discourses as well form our contemporary world view. By its self-critical dissolution from theology and its intercultural focus the Study of Religion is specialized in differentiality in cultural systems as holistic entities and on how they generate normative attitudes. The fruits of this suggested self-understanding as monitoring are demonstrated in discussing three perspectives from the anthropology of religion, cognitive or aesthetic ritual theory (McCauley & Lawson), and the economics of religion (Alles)—all dealing with the same piece of fieldwork from Harvey Whitehouse.
Scientific Revolution and Religious Conversion: A Closer Look at Thomas Kuhn's Theory of Paradigm-Shift
Authors: Drønen Tomas Sundnes
Published: October 2006

This article seeks to show that Thomas Kuhn's theory of paradigm-shift can be used as a methodological tool in the study of religious conversion. The same way that the scientist is limited to work within a scientific paradigm, the believer can be said to exercise religion within a theological paradigm. And as anomaly can lead to science crises and a change of worldview, anomaly within the horizon of the believer can lead to existential crisis and religious reorientation. A reservation towards the application of Kuhn's theory on religious conversion is, however, proposed by the author who does not see that different worldviews necessarily are incommensurable. Religious conversion is more often than not a reorientation that combines (what Kuhn's theory would consider as) incompatible differences.
Die Gegenkraft und ihre Geschichte: Carl Schmitt, Reinhart Koselleck und der Bürgerkrieg
Authors: Missfelder Jan-Friedrich
Published: October 2006

The article explores the relationship between the German historian Reinhart Koselleck (1923-2006) and the Germanjurist Carl Schmitt (1888-1985). It focuses especially on how Koselleck's doctoral thesis ,,Kritik und Krise" (1959) approaches Schmitt's 1938 study on Thomas Hobbes (1938). Both scholars are contextualized in the intellectual and academic milieu of Heidelberg in the early 1950s.
Dr. Eduard Lasker – sein Stammbaum und Familienumfeld: Ein genealogischer Beitrag zur deutsch-jüdischen Geschichte
Authors: Dill Richard W.
Published: October 2006

On the basis of recently (re)discovered documents, the paper discusses the family tree of the Jewish Lasker dynasty, originating from Lask in Poland, formerly Prussia. The common forefather of all Laskers was Rabbi Meier Hindels, who lived around 1700. In Germany, the most successful of his descendants was Dr. Eduard Lasker (1829-1884). He was a lawyer, co-founder of the National Liberal party, and in his lifetime the most conspicuous parliamentary opponent to Reich Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. Germany owes him a considerable part of its present day legal structures in criminal, civil and public law. His younger brother Moritz/Morris (1840-1916) settled in Texas and became a prominent figure both in business and society. The Lasker family branch that he established in the United States is still flourishing today and has produced a number of personalities of public renown. While visiting his brother, Eduard Lasker died in New York in January 1884. Edward Lasker (1885-1981), a prominent US-based chess champion, descended from another family branch. One of his nieces, Anita Wallfisch-Lasker, wrote an autobiography that describes her ordeal as a member of the camp orchestra at Auschwitz.
,,Der Dichter versteht sehr gut das symbolische Idiom der Religion": Über Heines kritisch-produktives Verhältnis zu religiösen Traditionen
Authors: Kruse Joseph A.
Published: October 2006

Heine is one of Germany's most renowned poets. His Jewish heritage and his Christian baptism have informed both his life's work as well as its reception. He was an expert and a passionate reader of the Bible. Despite his criticism of the official system of churches and religious communities, he greatly appreciated religion and its symbolic language, which speaks especially to the poet – even in its silences.
A Lifeline in Time – Non-retroactivity and Continuing Violations under the ECHR
Authors: Buyse Antoine
Published: September 2006

The protective shield of a human rights treaty in principle only works once it has entered into force. But what about the frequent problem of human rights violations that occurred or started before that time; can one complain about those on the international level? In other words, what are the limitations of the ratione temporis jurisdiction of supervisory human rights mechanisms? This article explores this question in the context of general public international law through a case study of the European Convention on Human Rights. It argues that the European case law's variations on principles of international law can be explained by the special nature of human rights treaties.
Modernizing the Nationality Exception: Is the Non-extradition of Residents a Better Rule?
Authors: Deen-Racsmány Zsuzsanna
Published: September 2006

The equation of residents with nationals as recently envisaged under the European Arrest Warrant is – at least on paper – no novelty in international extradition. In addition, its predicted positive influence on the chances of rehabilitation of offenders provides strong moral-theoretical support for further modernizing the nonextradition of nationals in this manner. Yet, before this solution can be followed – explicitly or by implication – in other contexts, it must be considered whether international law permits states to expand the nationality exception commonly provided for in extradition treaties in this manner.The author assumes this task. She first reviews international precedents in search of a rule of customary international law on the extension of this exemption to residents. Subsequently, she identifies the norms of international law against which the limits of such a new rule must be set. She concludes with suggestions for appropriate ways to modernize the nationality exception along the lines of the rehabilitation argument.
International Human Rights and National Legislatures – Conflict or Balance?
Authors: Vedsted-Hansen Jens , Koch Ida Elisabeth
Published: September 2006

The complex and often sensitive interrelationship between international human rights obligations and national governments and legislatures is the subject of debate in the Nordic countries. Criticism has been voiced against the dynamic interpretation of human rights norms and the limitations on legislatures resulting from the judicial activities at the international level, in particular the European Court of Human Rights. Against this background, this article discusses the interdependence between democratic legitimacy and the protection of fundamental rights, as illustrated by recent ECtHR case law. While the need for democracy to be capable of defending itself has been recognised, the ECtHR has emphasised the impact of the rule of law in the context of restrictions of rights as well as the responsibility of domestic authorities to exercise their legislative and other competences as a precondition for being granted the margin of appreciation. The distinction between civil and political rights and socio-economic rights has had significant influence on the discussion of human rights, democracy and the division of powers, and the animosity against entrusting power to settle legal disputes to judicial bodies is particularly strong with regard to socio-economic rights. Therefore, this traditional perception of the normative character of the two sets of human rights is being questioned, and the indispensable role of social, economic and cultural rights in developing stable and sustainable democracies is illustrated by reference to theory and practice applying an integrated approach to the various types of rights. The article concludes with some reflections on the impact of the criticism of dynamic human rights on the future protection of socio-economic rights, and the dilemmas inherent in domestic implementation of evolving international norms.
The Power to Prosecute: the Special Court for Sierra Leone from a Defence Perspective
Authors: Knowles Phoebe
Published: October 2006

The Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) is a unique attempt by the international community to respond to conflict via a hybrid, in situ tribunal. In the Court's creation and operation key policy, judicial and institutional decisions- innovative elements of the SCSL structure, have impacted adversely on the rights of the accused and the broader social and justice-oriented obligations towards Sierra Leone and the international community. This paper considers the Court's hybridity, and questions the resulting opportunity afforded for participation by Sierra Leone in the post-conflict process; the Court's in situ nature and witness protection measures that may act to unnecessarily restrict the accused's right to a fair and public trial; the Court's interpretation of its jurisdiction over "those bearing greatest responsibility"; the noveland perhaps premature inclusion of the crime of child combatants; and finally, institutional decisions over the Defence Office and the capacity for equality of arms.
The International Criminal Court and Universal Jurisdiction
Authors: Abass Ademola
Published: October 2006

This article examines whether the International Criminal Court (ICC) can exercise universal jurisdiction. In particular, the author responds to the argument that the ICC can exercise universal jurisdiction on the basis of delegated criminal jurisdiction and the aut dedere aut judicare principle, and challenges the view that the trial of nationals of non-parties by the ICC neither creates obligations for such states nor contravenes the Monetary Gold principle. The author argues that although some Rome Statute crimes have universal character, this does not automatically entitle the ICC to exercise jurisdiction over non-party nationals outside such limited universal jurisdiction as may be conferred on the Court through the Security Council referral.
Drawing the Boundaries of Mens Rea in the Jurisprudence of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
Authors: Badar Mohamed Elewa
Published: October 2006

Even though more than a decade has passed since the creation of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the law of the most fundamental concept in international criminal law – mens rea – remains unsettled. Through its jurisprudence, the Yugoslavia Tribunal has made enormous efforts to assign different degrees of mens rea for different categories of crimes under its Statute. The present study is an attempt to clarify several issues with regard to the law of mens rea as developed in the case law of the Yugoslavia Tribunal. Among these issues are the following: what precisely is to be understood by the terms "specific intent", "special intent", "dolus specialis", or "surplus intent"? Similarly, what are the precise meanings of the terms "deliberately", "intention", "intent", "intentionally", "wilful or wilfully", "knowledge", and "wanton" as provided for in the ICTY Statute or as employed by the Chambers within its judgments.
Resolving Financial Distress: Informal Reorganization in The Netherlands as a Beacon for Policy Makers in the CIS and CEE/SEE Regions?
Authors: Kuijl Hans , Adriaanse Jan
Published: October 2006

In times of economic decline, increased attention is devoted to companies in financial difficulties. Partly as a result of this basic fact, many countries are currently working (under pressure) to improve existing insolvency legislation. This seems to be largely fuelled—as is the case in The Netherlands—by a strong desire to prevent bankruptcies as much as possible.Statutory legislation aimed at the deferment (or remission) of debt payments is introduced or relaxed in order to provide a fresh start for insolvent companies. An alternative possibility—in the form of informal reorganization—seems often to have been overlooked by legislators. This type of reorganization, therefore, is the focal point in this article.As far as the stimulation of rescue operations is concerned, the authors conclude that legislators must particularly focus their attention on informal reorganization. The thought is that such a policy focus for (member states in) the EU may also be of relevance (in whole or in part) for countries in the CIS/CEE/SEE regions.
A Viable Framework for Private Investment in the Utility Sector: An Analysis of the 2005 RF Law on Concession Agreements
Authors: Skyner Louis
Published: October 2006

This article is based on an analysis which the author produced for a working group of the RF Ministry of Economic Development established to draft a model concession agreement, a result of the new Law on Concession Agreements which entered into force on 21 July 2005. The work entailed identifying the necessary amendments to key areas of legislation that would enable such concession agreements—which the RF government has proclaimed its intention to grant for the operation and development of both infrastructure and networks in the water supply and wastewater sectors—to be workable in practice.With regards to the new Law on Concession Agreements itself, the present article highlights its failure, in the view of the author, to clearly identify the nature of the obligations and rights assumed by the parties of a concession agreement vis-à-vis one another, and to include provisions—typically found in other jurisdictions—that ensure a balance of interests and allow for the effective transfer and mitigation of risk. This analysis is located within a framework which recognizes that—as a result of the current circumstances, where unclear regulations, a lack of transparency about the financial status of utilities, and a lack of commercial tariffs, predominate—the nature of the reform which is required is all-encompassing. As a consequence, the author maintains that the erection of a framework for the development of concession agreements demands the integrated development: of the fiscal relationship between national and municipal government; of social policy, i.e., tariffs and subsidies, and, of access and right of usage rules.Finally, when identifying such problems, the author illustrates how and why the practical experience gained in other countries should be incorporated, emphasizing how this experience reveals both the difficulty and necessity of concluding balanced agreements for what are long-term projects the performance of which is vulnerable to changes in market conditions, and which involve the operation and development of assets of social significance.
Transplanting the Anglo-American Trust in Russian Soil
Authors: Zhdanov Andrey
Published: October 2006

This article is dedicated to comparative analysis of the most recent developments in Russian trust legislation during the period of post-Soviet economic reforms (1991-2005), and, especially, during the Presidency of Vladimir Putin (2000-2005). The article is based on a kandidatskaia dissertation dealing with history of trusts defended in the St. Petersburg State University in December 2003, and partly is an adoption of publications in Russian legal journals and university reviews that have appeared in the period 2002-2003.The author shows that the Russian trust—although originally structured as a contractual obligation (trust management contract)—is evolving closer to a property law concept and, therefore, requires a new, more appropriate legal framework. The author evaluates examples of trust in other jurisdictions as possible options for improving the Russian trust. However, the Anglo-American trust—if described in terms of Russian legal theory and based on its historical prerequisites (case law and in particular precedent, peculiarities of property law and landholding system, various social conditions)—proves to be irrelevant in Russia for a number of theoretical reasons.The proprietary trust concepts in other jurisdictions (where the trustee is the owner of the assets or has a limited right in rem to the trust assets) also seem to be inappropriate for use in Russia, mainly for political and economic reasons, such as the current role of Russian trust in management of state-owned assets.Finally, the author concludes that the most relevant option for Russian trust would be enriching the Russian trust management contract with various proprietary elements without replacing it with a proprietary concept.