bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
HLA and RBC immunization after filtered and buffy coat‐depleted blood transfusion in cardiac surgery: a randomized controlled trial
Authors: Van de Watering Leo , Hermans Jo , Witvliet Marian , Versteegh Michel , Brand Anneke
Published: December 2004

BACKGROUND: WBC reduction of all blood components is being introduced in many countries. Prevention of immunologic side effects of transfusions is part of the motivation. To compare the immunogenicity of before‐ or after‐storage WBC‐reduced RBCs with RBCs without buffy coat, a randomized clinical trial was performed.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Cardiac surgery patients were randomly assigned to receive either RBCs without buffy coat (PCs), WBC‐reduced RBCs that were filtered before storage (FFs), or WBC‐reduced RBCs that were filtered after storage (SFs). Serum samples for antibody analyses were collected before and after surgery.

RESULTS: Sera of 404 patients were tested. Of the 317 patients with negative preoperative screening, 12.6 percent developed anti‐WBC antibodies (PC, 14.5%; FF, 9.6%; SF, 13.3%). Of the 87 patients with preoperative anti‐WBC antibodies, 28.7 percent showed a marked increase in panel reactivity (PC, 31.3%; FF, 29.0%; SF, 25.0%). ELISA showed the newly formed antibodies to be of IgG class and directed against HLA class I in more than 90 percent of the samples tested. Newly formed anti‐RBC antibodies appeared in 5.3 percent (PC, 7.1%; FF, 3.4%; SF 5.4%). Alloimmunization against WBCs and RBCs was strongly correlated (p < 0.01). The differences in newly formed anti‐WBC antibodies and anti‐RBC antibodies between the trial arms did not show significance.

CONCLUSION: Buffy coat removal, and additional WBC reduction by filtration, either before or after storage, result in similar posttransfusion alloimmunization frequencies after a single transfusion event with multiple RBCs.
Prevalence of transfusion‐transmissible viral infections in first‐time US blood donors by donation site
Authors: Wang B. , Schreiber G.B. , Glynn S.A. , Nass C.C. , Smith J.W. , Higgins M.J. , Hutching S.T. , Wright D.J. , McEntire R.L. , For The Retrovirus Epidemiology Donor Study E.L. Murphy
Published: December 2004

BACKGROUND: Understanding the donor base, infectious disease prevalence, and donation loss at various blood donation sites will help maximize blood collection efforts and blood availability.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Using donation data collected at five US blood centers, the prevalence of HIV, HTLV, HBsAg, and HCV in first‐time whole‐blood donations at 10 donation sites was evaluated: military, education, religious, professional, industry, services, community, health care, government, and fixed sites. Donation loss from screening test reactivity at each donation site was also evaluated.

RESULTS: During the study, 1.2 million first‐time whole‐blood donations were collected. Military and education sites had a low prevalence of all viral markers, except for HBsAg, which was highest at education sites. Variations in viral marker prevalence among donation sites were partially explained by donor demographic differences. Donation loss varied by donation site, ranging from 3.3 percent at education sites to 6.4 percent at industry sites, indicating differential efficiency of blood collection efforts.

CONCLUSION: Different rates of positive viral test results and donation loss in first‐time whole‐blood donors were observed at various types of donation sites. This information may be useful in estimating the yield of usable units from specific blood drives and in allocating resources to meet blood center collection goals.
Evaluation of a visual risk communication tool: effects on knowledge and perception of blood transfusion risk
Authors: Lee D.H. , Mehta M.D.
Published: December 2004

BACKGROUND: Effective risk communication in transfusion medicine is important for health‐care consumers, but understanding the numerical magnitude of risks can be difficult. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of a visual risk communication tool on the knowledge and perception of transfusion risk.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Laypeople were randomly assigned to receive transfusion risk information with either a written or a visual presentation format for communicating and comparing the probabilities of transfusion risks relative to other hazards. Knowledge of transfusion risk was ascertained with a multiple‐choice quiz and risk perception was ascertained by psychometric scaling and principal components analysis.

RESULTS: Two‐hundred subjects were recruited and randomly assigned. Risk communication with both written and visual presentation formats increased knowledge of transfusion risk and decreased the perceived dread and severity of transfusion risk. Neither format changed the perceived knowledge and control of transfusion risk, nor the perceived benefit of transfusion. No differences in knowledge or risk perception outcomes were detected between the groups randomly assigned to written or visual presentation formats.

CONCLUSION: Risk communication that incorporates risk comparisons in either written or visual presentation formats can improve knowledge and reduce the perception of transfusion risk in laypeople.
Efficacy, recovery, and safety of RBCs from autologous placental blood: clinical experience in 52 newborns
Authors: Brune Thomas , Garritsen Henk , Hentschel Roland , Louwen Frank , Harms Erik , Jorch Gerhard
Published: December 2004

BACKGROUND:  In the present study, the efficacy, recovery, and safety of RBCs from autologous placental blood (PB‐RBCs) were investigated.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS:  A total of 52 newborns received transfusion with PB‐RBCs. The number of newborns requiring no additional allogeneic RBCs was calculated. In 22 of these 52 neonates with a birth weight of 1000 to 2500 g, vital measures were performed during transfusion, and serum potassium levels were measured up to 3 days after transfusion. The results were compared with those of a matched control group given allogeneic RBC transfusions.

RESULTS:  All neonates of the study group with a birth weight of less than 1000 g, but only 59 percent those with a birth weight of 1000 to 2500 g and 58 percent of those requiring surgery directly after delivery needed allogeneic transfusions in addition to PB‐RBCs. The mean Hb increase after RBC transfusion of 10 mL per kg of body weight was 3 g per dL per kg of body weight in both groups; the Hb decrease was accelerated in the placental blood group (0.32 vs. 0.24 g/dL/day; p < 0.05). There were no intergroup differences in the vital parameters.

CONCLUSION:  Our results show no difference in efficacy and safety between PB‐RBC transfusion and allogeneic RBC transfusion. According to well‐defined criteria, 40 percent of anemic neonates can be supported by autologous placental blood transfusions alone.
Evolution of quality management: integration of quality assurance functions into operations, or “quality is everyone's responsibility”
Authors: Foss Mary L. , Breanndan Moore S.
Published: December 2004

The management of quality in the Division of Transfusion Medicine at our institution has undergone a lengthy, sometimes painful but always progressive evolution over nearly four decades. Initially, it consisted of one laboratory technologist who was assigned the task of performing certain basic QC checks on a predetermined list of laboratory, collection, and processing steps. This technologist reported directly to the medical director. The tasks gradually grew in volume and complexity so that a four‐person quality unit was established, administratively quite separate from the operations and accountable only to the Medical Director. The next stage in the evolutionary process was more revolutionary in scope because it involved a comprehensive cultural shift toward the concept of “quality is everyone's responsibility.” The evolutionary process in our institution to date and the planning and organization involved in the direction and management of the evolution itself are described.
Preliminary results of colour Doppler‐guided intratendinous glucocorticoid injection for Achilles tendonitis in five patients
Authors: Koenig M. J. , Torp‐pedersen S. , Qvistgaard E. , Terslev L. , Bliddal H.
Published: December 2004

Background:It is debated as to whether Achilles tendonitis (AT) has an inflammatory component. The intratendinous hyperaemia demonstrated with colour Doppler has been interpreted as neovascularisation. Glucocorticoid injection around the tendon is a common therapeutic procedure.

Hypotheses:The intratendinous hyperaemia seen with ultrasound (US) colour Doppler represents an inflammatory background. Glucocorticoid injections will be effective if administered inside the tendon where the inflammation seems to be.

Study design:An uncontrolled, prospective study with a minimum follow‐up of 3 months.

Methods:Six tendons in five patients were evaluated with grey‐scale US and colour Doppler before and after US‐guided intratendinous glucocorticoid injection. Pain at rest and at activity was evaluated on a visual analogue scale.

Results:With colour Doppler all tendons had intratendinous flow. Pain and colour Doppler activity decreased during a mean follow‐up of 182 days (range 92–309 days). One tendon relapsed after 199 days.

Conclusion:Intratendinous glucocorticoid injections seem to have a marked effect on both symptoms and colour Doppler findings, which may be taken as an indication of an inflammatory component in the disease.

Colour Doppler adds significant information to grey‐scale US with regard to diagnosis, location and follow‐up of AT.
Zebrafish
GADD45
β genes are involved in somite segmentation
Authors: Kawahara Atsuo , Che Yong-Suk , Hanaoka Ryuki , Takeda Hiroyuki , Dawid Igor B.
Published: December 2004

Somites in vertebrates are periodic segmented structures that give rise to the vertebrae and muscles of body. Somites are generated from presomitic mesoderm (PSM), but it is not fully understood how cellular differentiation and segment formation are achieved in the anterior PSM. We report here that zebrafish
gadd45
β
1
and
gadd45
β
2
genes are periodically expressed as paired stripes adjacent to the neural tube in the anterior PSM region where presomitic cells mature. In mammals, it is known that GADD45 (growth arrest and DNA damage) family proteins play a role in cell-cycle control. We found that both knockdown and overexpression of
gadd45
β genes caused somite defects with different consequences for marker gene expression. Knockdown of
gadd45
β genes with antisense morpholino oligonucleotides caused a broad expansion of
mesp-a
in the PSM, and both cyclic expression of
her1
and segmented expression of
MyoD
were disorganized. On the other hand, injection of
gadd45
β
1
or
gadd45
β
2
suppressed expression of
mesp-a
and
her1
in anterior PSM and
MyoD
in paraxial mesoderm. These results indicate that regulated expression of
gadd45
β genes in the anterior PSM is required for somite segmentation.
Condensed mitotic chromatin is accessible to transcription factors and chromatin structural proteins
Authors: Chen Danyang , Dundr Miroslav , Wang Chen , Leung Anthony , Lamond Angus , Misteli Tom , Huang Sui
Published: December 2004

During mitosis, chromosomes are highly condensed and transcription is silenced globally. One explanation for transcriptional repression is the reduced accessibility of transcription factors. To directly test this hypothesis and to investigate the dynamics of mitotic chromatin, we evaluate the exchange kinetics of several RNA polymerase I transcription factors and nucleosome components on mitotic chromatin in living cells. We demonstrate that these factors rapidly exchange on and off ribosomal DNA clusters and that the kinetics of exchange varies at different phases of mitosis. In addition, the nucleosome component H1c-GFP also shows phase-specific exchange rates with mitotic chromatin. Furthermore, core histone components exchange at detectable levels that are elevated during anaphase and telophase, temporally correlating with H3-K9 acetylation and recruitment of RNA polymerase II before the onset of bulk RNA synthesis at mitotic exit. Our findings indicate that mitotic chromosomes in general and ribosomal genes in particular, although highly condensed, are accessible to transcription factors and chromatin proteins. The phase-specific exchanges of nucleosome components during late mitotic phases are consistent with an emerging model of replication independent core histone replacement.
Genetic and environmental causes of the interrelationships between self‐reported fears. A study of a non‐clinical sample of Norwegian identical twins and their families
Authors: Sundet Jon Martin , Skre Ingunn , Okkenhaug Jan J. , Tambs Kristian
Published: December 2004

The present study reports results from a study of the self‐reported fears of identical twins and their spouses and offspring. Factor analysis with oblique rotation of questionnaire responses yielded four correlated fear dimensions: situational fears, illness–injury fears, social fears, and fear of small animals. Models allowing for genetic and cultural transmission, together with specially correlated environments for twins, were fitted, both for separate fears and across fears. Simple models with only genetic and uncorrelated environments were sufficient to account for each the fear dimensions considered separately. The cross‐dimensional analyses revealed a genetic and an environmental factor common to the four fear dimensions, together with fear‐specific genetic and environmental factors. The impact of the common genetic and common environmental factor varied across dimensions. No evidence of cultural transmission or specially correlated twin environments of the cross‐dimensional environments was detected. It is concluded that both common and fear‐specific genes and (individual‐specific) common and fear‐specific environments are necessary to account for the data. The results are discussed in terms of the prepared learning hypothesis and the expectancy bias hypothesis.
School‐related stress, social support, and distress: Prospective analysis of reciprocal and multilevel relationships
Authors: Torsheim Torbjorn , Aaroe Leif Edvard , Wold Bente
Published: December 2004

This three‐wave prospective study investigated the reciprocal relationships among school‐related stress, school‐related social support, and distress in a cohort of 767 secondary school students (mean age 13.9 years). Stress, support, and distress were measured at three occasions with six‐month lags between. Reciprocal relationships were analyzed with multivariate multilevel modeling (MLwiN). Each of the three factors at baseline predicted change in one or two of the other factors at subsequent measurements, indicating a complex pattern of reciprocal relationships among stress, support, and distress across time. A high level of distress at baseline predicted a lower level of support and a higher level of stress six months later. High levels of stress at baseline predicted a higher level of distress and a lower level of support 12 months later. The results are consistent with a transactional and dynamic model of stress, support, and distress, and indicate the need to view school‐related stress, support, and distress as mutually dependent factors.
Preattentive processing of alcohol stimuli
Authors: Ingjaldsson Jon T. , Thayer Julian F. , Laberg Jon C.
Published: December 2004

An experiment was conducted to test the automatic analysis of briefly presented alcohol stimuli in alcohol‐dependent individuals. Alcoholics and controls were exposed to four different conditions: two brief (30 ms) and two long (130 ms) exposure conditions, each containing alcoholic and non‐alcoholic pictures. Heart rate (HR) interbeat intervals were recorded and phasic cardiac responses assessed. Alcoholics had a stronger initial HR deceleration after exposure to masked alcohol slides compared with masked control slides, indicating a preattentive analysis of alcohol stimuli. This initial HR deceleration in the masked condition suggests an automatic attentional focusing to degraded alcohol cues. No such attentional effect was found when the pictures were presented unmasked and were clearly perceived. The implication of these results for the understanding of relapse in addictive behavior is discussed.
The legacy of the silver methods and the new anatomy of the basal forebrain: Implications for neuropsychiatry and drug abuse
Authors: Heimer Lennart
Published: December 2004

The first part of the paper highlights the remarkable legacy of the silver methods, with special emphasis on the travails and opportunities offered by the various Nauta methods and their modifications. When the tracer methods based on axoplasmic flow were introduced in the early 1970s, they were exploited on a backdrop of a basic anatomical framework, which had already been established through the tracing of the major CNS pathways by the aid of the silver methods, especially the widely used Nauta–Gygax methods and their modifications. Some of the silver methods that were developed in the late 1960s for the staining of degenerating boutons (e.g. the Fink–Heimer method and de Olmos cupric silver method) provided the necessary technical improvements that eventually led to a new and more productive way to look at the basal forebrain functional/anatomical organization; if it was not for the silver methods, we would in all likelihood still be promoting the nebulous notion of the substantia innominata rather than the concepts of the ventral striatopallidal system and the extended amygdala. The discovery and elaboration of these two macroanatomical systems symbolize what might deservedly be called the “new anatomy” of the basal forebrain. Following a review of the critical experiments which led to the development of the new anatomy of the basal forebrain, its topography in the human is reviewed in drawings of an abbreviated series of coronal sections. The discovery of the ventral striatopallidal system and its thalamic projection to the mediodorsal thalamus rather than to the ventral anterior‐ventral lateral thalamic complex ushered in the idea of parallel cortico‐subcortical reentrant circuits, which to a large extent has replaced the limbic system as a theoretical framework for neuropsychiatric disorders. The extended amygdala, which appears as a large ring formation around the internal capsule, is still controversial in some quarters, although it is slowly but surely making its way into the general neuroscience literature, especially in the field of addictive disorders. The ventral striatopallidal system and the extended amygdala are interwoven in a complex fashion with the basal nucleus of Meynert within the basal forebrain. Together, these three systems represent important output channels for so‐called “limbic” forebrain regions, especially orbitomedial prefrontal cortex and medial temporal lobe structures, which are increasingly implicated in major neuropsychiatric disorders.
Medial preoptic area/anterior hypothalamus and sexual motivation
Authors: Paredes Raúl G.
Published: December 2004

The medial preoptic area/anterior hypothalamus (MPOA/AH) is a brain site derived from proliferative zones from the diencephalon and telencephalon. It is probably this characteristic that makes this brain region participate in different physiological and behavioral functions. The present review addresses the role of the MPOA/AH in the control of male sexual behavior. It is clear that the MPOA/AH is a crucial site in the control of sexual behavior in males of all species studied to date. But although many different publications have followed the contribution of Heimer and Larsson there is no agreement as to what is specifically the role of the MPOA/AH in sexual behavior. At least three hypotheses have been presented. The first one suggests that this brain region is involved in the consummatory aspects (execution) of sexual behavior. The second indicates that the MPOA/AH is involved in the appetitive components (motivation) of masculine sexual behavior. The third hypothesis considers that MPOA/AH neurons are involved in the regulation of consummatory and appetitive aspects of sexual behavior. From the literature reviewed, it will become evident that the evidence supporting a role of the MPOA/AH in the execution of sexual behavior is based on a number of limited studies not easy to interpret. On the other hand, several lines of evidence using a variety of methodologies support the notion that the MPOA/AH is involved in the motivational aspects of male sexual behavior.
Emerging concepts in the regulation of female sexual behavior
Authors: Mani Shaila
Published: December 2004

Recent advances in the field of steroid hormone action have significantly advanced our understanding of neuroendocrine regulation of sexual behavior in female rodents. The presumed classical steroid receptor–steroid hormone functional relationship has undergone significant modifications to integrate the wider context of cellular signaling mechanisms initiated by sensory and environmental stimuli and their transcriptional regulation of steroid hormone receptors in reproductive behavior. This effort has greatly been aided by recent studies identifying steroid hormone receptors as transcriptional mediators of a variety of ligands, whose functional flexibility is dependent upon their recruitment of coregulators, and the availability of gene knockout animal models. This review provides a framework for current concepts in the field of steroid hormone action in the context of their regulation of female sexual behavior.
Enhanced feminine sexual behavior and infertility in female rats prenatally treated with an antiestrogen
Authors: Matuszczyk Josefa Vega
Published: December 2004

An attempt to elucidate the possible role of prenatal estrogen on the development of feminine sexual behavior and reproductive function was made by treating females with the antiestrogen CI628 prenatally on days 13–19. Control females were prenatally treated with saline or remained untreated. The animals were delivered by caesarian section on day 22 of pregnancy and placed with foster mothers whose newborn pups had been previously removed. Intact peripubertal females in each treatment group were observed for several reproductive measures, including the capacity to become pregnant. Other females were ovariectomized in adulthood and treated with estradiol benzoate (EB) (1, 1.5, 2 or 4 µg/rat) and 0.5 mg progesterone and tested for receptivity, proceptivity and sexual partner preference. Two weeks after the completion of these tests, the females were injected daily for 7 days with 0.25 mg testosterone and tested for sexual partner preference and mounting behavior. The results obtained showed accelerated vaginal opening, and infertility in the antiestrogen‐treated intact females and enhanced receptivity and proceptivity in response to 1 µg EB in the antiestrogen ovariectomized females. Sexual partner preference and mounting behavior did not differ between groups. These results suggest an involvement of prenatal estrogen on the development of female reproductive function, but not on behavioral differentiation.
Bicuculline infusion into the accessory olfactory bulb facilitates the induction of maternal behavior in rats
Authors: Carretero M. I. , Segovia S. , Gomez F. , Del Cerro M. C. R.
Published: December 2004

The GABAA antagonist bicuculline, intracranially infused into the accessory olfactory bulb (AOB), facilitated the expression of maternal behavior (MB) in virgin Wistar female rats. Behavioral effects were observed 24 hours after infusion and were injection dependent. Pheromonal stimuli, generated by the pups, are thought to exert an inhibitory effect on vomeronasal nuclei involved in MB in virgin rats. The present study investigated the possibility that a decrement in AOB output, resulting from long‐term compensatory synaptic changes to chronic bicuculline infusion, would facilitate the expression of MB. The implications of our findings for the mechanisms involved in the induction of MB and the maternal experience effect are discussed.
From rat sexual behavior to schizophrenia: A tribute to Professor Emeritus Knut Larsson
Authors: Ågmo Anders , Vega Matuszczyk Josefa
Published: December 2004

In July of 2002 Knut Larsson celebrated his 80th birthday. He could by then have looked back at a long and distingusihed career in the field of biological psychology. His research on sexual behavior had contributed to a basic understanding of many behavioral, endocrine and neural phenomena associated with or underlying sexual activity. Instead of looking back at his past achievements, Knut has preferred to look forward, constantly trying to find ways to stimulate interest in his own field and in biological psychology in general. This issue is a humble contribution to the noble end of enhancing the standing of biological psychology, particularly in Scandinavia. Foremost, however, it is a homage to a man of outstanding vision and intellectual integrity: Knut Larsson.
Conditional Likelihood Estimators for Hidden Markov Models and Stochastic Volatility Models
Authors: Genon‐Catalot Valentine , Jeantheau Thierry , Laredo Catherine
Published: December 2004

ABSTRACT. This paper develops a new contrast process for parametric inference of general hidden Markov models, when the hidden chain has a non‐compact state space. This contrast is based on the conditional likelihood approach, often used for ARCH‐type models. We prove the strong consistency of the conditional likelihood estimators under appropriate conditions. The method is applied to the Kalman filter (for which this contrast and the exact likelihood lead to asymptotically equivalent estimators) and to the discretely observed stochastic volatility models.
Likelihood Methods for Controlled Calibration
Authors: Bellio Ruggero
Published: December 2004

Abstract. This paper presents the use of likelihood‐based methods for controlled calibration. Recent results on higher‐order asymptotics are exploited to obtain confidence regions for the output of the calibration process. A general likelihood‐based approach is presented, and several types of calibration problems are tackled within this framework. The methods provide simple and accurate solutions which may have some potential usefulness for applications. The results are illustrated with reference to widely used models.
Correction of Density Estimators that are not Densities
Authors: Glad Ingrid K. , Hjort Nils Lid , Ushakov Nikolai G.
Published: December 2004

Abstract. Several old and new density estimators may have good theoretical performance, but are hampered by not being bona fide densities; they may be negative in certain regions or may not integrate to 1. One can therefore not simulate from them, for example. This paper develops general modification methods that turn any density estimator into one which is a bona fide density, and which is always better in performance under one set of conditions and arbitrarily close in performance under a complementary set of conditions. This improvement‐for‐free procedure can, in particular, be applied for higher‐order kernel estimators, classes of modern h4 bias kernel type estimators, superkernel estimators, the sinc kernel estimator, the k‐NN estimator, orthogonal expansion estimators, and for various recently developed semi‐parametric density estimators.
A Formal Restatement of Durkheim's “Division of Labor” Theory
Authors: Gibbs Jack P.
Published: December 2004

Despite frequent references in the sociological literature to Durkheim's theory about the division of labor, sociologists have made few attempts to test it. The paucity of attempts and the very debatable outcomes thereof are due largely to Durkheim's use of the traditional discursive mode of theory construction. A discursively stated theory's logical structure is likely to be obscure, and for that reason alone tests of it are difficult and controversial. Rather than perpetuate the exegetical tradition in sociological treatments of the subject, this paper restates Durkheim's theory in accordance with a particular formal mode. That restatement identifies the theory's shortcomings and problems. But the eight premises imply only one testable theorem, and the theorem's predictive accuracy appears minimal unless “population concentration” is substituted for “density” in the first axiom. Nonetheless, the restatement clearly shows how extension of the theory (additional postulates) could further its testability.
Spiritual Capital: Theorizing Religion with Bourdieu against Bourdieu
Authors: Verter Bradford
Published: December 2004

Bourdieu's theory of culture offers a rich conceptual resource for the social-scientific study of religion. In particular, his analysis of cultural capital as a medium of social relations suggests an economic model of religion alternative to that championed by rational choice theorists. After evaluating Bourdieu's limited writings on religion, this paper draws upon his wider work to craft a new model of “spiritual capital.” Distinct from Iannaccone's and Stark and Finke's visions of “religious capital,” this Bourdieuian model treats religious knowledge, competencies, and preferences as positional goods within a competitive symbolic economy. The valuation of spiritual capital is the object of continuous struggle and is subject to considerable temporal and subcultural variation. A model of spiritual capital illuminates such phenomena as religious conversion, devotional eclecticism, religious fads, and social mobility. It also suggests some necessary modifications to Bourdieu's theoretical system, particularly his understanding of individual agency, cultural production, and the relative autonomy of fields.
A Minimalist Approach to Verb Movement in Standard Arabic
Authors: Rahhali Mohammed , Souâli El Hassan
Published: December 2004

This article addresses the issue of overt and covert V‐movement in Standard Arabic within the minimalist framework. We will demonstrate that overt steps of this process do not go beyond Agrs, the only exception being positive imperatives, where C is also affected. This entails that VSO order in VSO languages such as Standard Arabic is not an outcome of overt V‐to‐C, as sometimes claimed in the literature. As for covert V‐movement, we will focus especially on its application from Agrs to Mood, and show that in this case it may skip an intervening negative head not selecting a MoodP.
Floating Bodies of Equilibrium
Authors: Wegner Franz
Published: December 2004

A long cylindrical body of circular cross‐section and homogeneous density may float in all orientations around the cylinder axis. It is shown that there are also bodies of non‐circular cross‐sections which may float in any direction. Apart from those found by Auerbach for ρ= 1/2, there are one‐parameter families of cross‐sections for ρ≠ 1/2 which have a p‐fold rotation symmetry. For given p they have this property for p− 2 different densities ρ. The differential equation governing the non‐circular boundary curve is derived. Its solution is expressed in terms of an elliptic integral.
Movements of Mind: The Matrix, Metaphors, and Re-imagining Education
Authors: Cook-Sather Alison
Published: December 2004

Using the popular movie The Matrix to evoke both metaphors for human existence and models for teaching and learning, this article revisits arguments made by educators, philosophers, linguists, and anthropologists that metaphors govern our ways of perceiving, naming, and acting in the world, whether we are aware of this phenomenon or not. Building on this premise and through an examination of two metaphors that have dominated notions of and approaches to education in the United States, the article invites readers to make conscious the metaphors that inform our thoughts and actions, discern the “realities” we construct for ourselves and for others, and imagine the possibility of changing those. The argument made is for seeking, crafting, and embracing metaphors that cast students not only as active participants in their own education but as the principle creators of their education and themselves.
The Twisting Path of Concept Development in Learning to Teach
Authors: Smagorinsky Peter , Cook Leslie Susan , Johnson Tara Star
Published: December 2004

Teacher education is often viewed as too theoretical and not sufficiently concerned with the realities of classroom practice. From this perspective theory and practice are cast as distinct realms whose only connection comes when theory influences practice. We argue that the theory-practice dichotomy lacks the richness of Vygotsky's notion of concepts, in which abstract principles are interwoven with worldly experience. More specifically, Vygotsky distinguishes two types of concepts, spontaneous concepts and scientific concepts. Spontaneous concepts are learned through cultural practice and, because they are tied to learning in specific contexts, allow for limited generalization to new situations; scientific concepts are learned through formal instruction and, because they are grounded in general principles, can more readily be applied to new situations. Vygotsky argues that while spontaneous concepts may be developed without formal instruction, scientific concepts require interplay with spontaneous concepts; hence the problematic nature of the theory-practice dichotomy. He further identifies two types of generalization that approximate concepts yet do not achieve their theoretical unity: complexes, in which some members of the set may be unified with others but all are not unified according to the same principle; and pseudoconcepts, in which members of the set appear unified but include internal inconsistencies. We argue that teacher educators should strive to teach concepts, though the overall structure of teacher education programs makes it more likely that their students will learn complexes or pseudoconcepts. We illustrate these problems with examples from case studies of teachers making the transition from their teacher education programs to their first jobs.
Staying Close to the Teacher
Authors: Silin Jonathan G. , Schwartz Fran
Published: December 2004

Although the critical role of teachers in curricular reform is well documented, there has been less focus on how the messiness of life in schools affects the daily work of change agents. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative data collected over a 5-year period, we argue that in troubled urban school districts, teacher buy-in to curricular reform is best achieved when change agents adapt their program to the daily needs and problems of classroom teachers. We look in detail at how staff developers help teachers generate strategies for reading and dealing effectively with district demands, so they can simultaneously fulfill official directives and implement progressive classroom practices. Staff developers enable teachers to function as street-level bureaucrats, who then determine how policy will come to life in their classrooms. In turn staff developers learn to read resistance as a form of communicative action to be interpreted rather than a roadblock to be overcome. Finally, we identify three roles—strategist, translator, and advocate—that staff developers play when working with teachers to create the orderly and coherent classrooms children need to learn and thrive.
Collecting Data on Train Performance
Authors: Porkess Roger
Published: December 2004

This article illustrates many of the problems of defining and obtaining a ‘representative’ sample in the context of a real‐life survey of train performance.
A Theoretical Framework for Teaching Statistics
Authors: Mills Jamie D.
Published: December 2004

This article explores a theoretical framework to consider when teaching statistics. It is discussed and illustrated using one innovative approach to teaching using computer simulation methods. This framework can be considered across many different disciplines and age levels.
Free Trade and Laissez Faire: Has the Wheel Come Full Circle?
Authors: Lal Deepak
Published: December 2004

This paper notes that there is a need to get to a fourth stage in the evolution of the relationship of free trade to laissez faire going beyond the three stages identified in Max Cordon's magisterial book Trade Policy and Economic Welfare. In the first stage free trade was a special case of the argument for laissez faire. In the second stage many arguments for protection arose with various qualifications to the case of free trade and laissez faire. In the third stage the link between free trade and laissez faire was broken and in the theory of domestic distortions it was noted that all arguments for protection except in the case of monopoly power in trade were second best arguments. Moreover, it was possible to devise measures such as taxes and subsidies that reduced the distortion through government intervention. But noting that government intervention itself carries with it problems of rent seeking and directly unproductive activities as well as the taking into the proper role of Government, laissez faire seems the best policy. Hence the need for a fourth stage in the evolution of free trade and laissez faire to link them together again.
Goods versus Factors: When Borders Open, Who Moves?
Authors: Michaely Michael
Published: December 2004

This paper raises the question when both goods and factors can move in an opening of two countries’ borders whether it is possible to say a priori which of the two would move and which moves faster as both move. The paper notes that this question should be answered in terms of the extent of the existing barriers whether natural or policy based and the ability to shift production activities in the two countries or regions. The issue is analysed taking into account the movement of goods and factors between the centres of activity in Israel and the West Bank and Gaza. The main finding of the analysis in this case is that following the opening of the borders, adjustment took place predominantly through the movement of factors, almost exclusively labour: and only to a very limited extent through the exchange of goods. This may be due to the short distances and prohibition of shifting residences. In steady state this is expected to be large and sustained compared to an increase and a decline of labour movement in steady state if residency were available..
Regression Models for Cyclic Data
Authors: Upton Graham J. G. , Hickey Kenneth A. , Stallard Aaron
Published: December 2004

Geologists take slices through rock samples at a series of different orientations. Each slice is examined for a phenomenon which may occur in one of two states labelled clockwise and anticlockwise. The probability of an occurrence being in the clockwise state is dependent on the orientation. Motivated by these data, two models are presented that relate the probability of an event to orientation. Each model has two parameters, one identifying the orientation corresponding to the peak probability, and the other controlling the rate of change of probability with orientation. One model is a logistic model, whereas the other involves a power of the sine function. For the given data neither model consistently outperforms the other.
Tests for a Difference in Timing of Physiological Response Between Two Brain Regions Measured by Using Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Authors: Landau S. , Ellison-Wright I. C. , Bullmore E. T.
Published: December 2004

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI) measures the physiological response of the human brain to experimentally controlled stimulation. In a periodically designed experiment it is of interest to test for a difference in the timing (phase shift) of the response between two anatomically distinct brain regions. We suggest two tests for an interregional difference in phase shift: one based on asymptotic theory and one based on bootstrapping. Whilst the two procedures differ in some of their assumptions, both tests rely on employing the large number of voxels (three-dimensional pixels) in non-activated brain regions to take account of spatial autocorrelation between voxelwise phase shift observations within the activated regions of interest. As an example we apply both tests, and their counterparts assuming spatial independence, to FMRI phase shift data that were acquired from a normal young woman during performance of a periodically designed covert verbal fluency task. We conclude that it is necessary to take account of spatial autocovariance between voxelwise FMRI time series parameter estimates such as the phase shift, and that the most promising way of achieving this is by modelling the spatial autocorrelation structure from a suitably defined base region of the image slice.
The importance of activities of daily living and social contact for loneliness: a survey among residents in nursing homes
Authors: Drageset Jorunn
Published: December 2004

The aim of this study was to examine associations between functional ability to perform basic activities of daily living (ADL) functions (feeding, continence, going to the toilet, transferring from bed to chair, dressing and bathing), social contacts with family and friends/neighbours and emotional and social loneliness. A quantitative research approach, using a survey design, was performed. The sample comprised 113 subjects aged 65–101 years, living in nursing homes. Data were gathered through structured interviews by using the following measures: the modified Katz Index of ADL, the Revised Social Provisions Scale (SPS), and Family and Friendship Contacts Scale. Descriptive statistics, factor analyses, multiple correlation analyses and multiple regression analyses were used. Data showed a statistically significant relationship between dependence on the environment in carrying out ADL and low level of social loneliness. Likewise, high frequencies of social contact with sons, daughters and grandchildren had a statistically significant effect on low level of social loneliness. A confirmatory factor analysis (varimax rotation, eigenvalue 1.0) was employed to explore the two predefined dimensions (attachment and social integration) of the SPS. The results confirmed, to a very high degree, the two dimensions of the Weiss Model. Reliability (internal consistency), measured by Chronbach alpha, was 0.85 and 0.92, for attachment and social integration respectively. Based on this analysis, dependence in ADL function is important for a low level of social loneliness. From the present study it is concluded that ADL (feeding, continence, going to the toilet, transferring from bed to chair, dressing and bathing) and contact with a social network have a statistical effect on a low level of social loneliness. Hence, such associations may be of significance in nursing intervention and may influence the well‐being of residents in nursing homes in different stages of life.
Wound care specialization: A proposal for a comprehensive fellowship program
Authors: William J. Ennis DO, MBA  , Wesley Valdes DO  , Patricio Meneses PhD
Published: December 2004

This article represents a process paper describing the development, at our facility, of a wound care fellowship that was scheduled to begin in July of 2003. The proposed program is in no way a finished product or our statement of how the program must be. This article is presented as a call to wound care professionals for input, criticism, guidance, and—we hope—adoption and acceptance of wound care fellowships in some format in the future. After many years of work in this field, it has become apparent that without medical specialization wound care will never rise from its current status of part‐time avocation to full‐time occupation. After a brief background and description of the present status of wound care education, an initial curriculum, program objectives, and clinical rotation schedule are presented. We look forward to the day when this program will have been replaced with a fully accredited, readily accepted, board‐certifiable fellowship program with all the rights and responsibilities afforded the other medical specialties.
Beds comprising debrite sandwiched within co‐genetic turbidite: origin and widespread occurrence in distal depositional environments
Authors: Talling P. J. , Amy L. A. , Wynn R. B. , Peakall J. , Robinson M.
Published: December 2004

Co‐genetic debrite–turbidite beds occur in a variety of modern and ancient turbidite systems. Their basic character is distinctive. An ungraded muddy sandstone interval is encased within mud‐poor graded sandstone, siltstone and mudstone. The muddy sandstone interval preserves evidence of en masse deposition and is thus termed a debrite. The mud‐poor sandstone, siltstone and mudstone show features indicating progressive layer‐by‐layer deposition and are thus called a turbidite. Palaeocurrent indicators, ubiquitous stratigraphic association and the position of hemipelagic intervals demonstrate that debrite and enclosing turbidite originate in the same event. Detailed field observations are presented for co‐genetic debrite–turbidite beds in three widespread sequences of variable age: the Miocene Marnoso Arenacea Formation in the Italian Apennines; the Silurian Aberystwyth Grits in Wales; and Quaternary deposits of the Agadir Basin, offshore Morocco. Deposition of these sequences occurred in similar unchannellized basin‐plain settings. Co‐genetic debrite–turbidite beds were deposited from longitudinally segregated flow events, comprising both debris flow and forerunning turbidity current. It is most likely that the debris flow was generated by relatively shallow (few tens of centimetres) erosion of mud‐rich sea‐floor sediment. Changes in the settling behaviour of sand grains from a muddy fluid as flows decelerated may also have contributed to debrite deposition. The association with distal settings results from the ubiquitous presence of muddy deposits in such locations, which may be eroded and disaggregated to form a cohesive debris flow. Debrite intervals may be extensive (> 26 × 10 km in the Marnoso Arenacea Formation) and are not restricted to basin margins. Such long debris flow run‐out on low‐gradient sea floor (< 0·1°) may simply be due to low yield strength (≪ 50 Pa) of the debris–water mixture. This study emphasizes that multiple flow types, and transformations between flow types, can occur within the distal parts of submarine flow events.
Differential mRNA translation contributes to gene regulation under non‐stress and dehydration stress conditions in Arabidopsis thaliana
Authors: Kawaguchi Riki , Girke Thomas , Bray Elizabeth A. , Bailey‐Serres Julia
Published: December 2004

Translational regulation was evaluated for over 2000 genes by measurement of the proportion of individual mRNA species in polysomal (PS) complexes in leaves of non‐stressed and moderately dehydration‐stressed Arabidopsis. The amount of each mRNA in polysomes ranged from 23 to 97% in non‐stressed leaves and was significantly reduced for a large portion of the genes (71%) in response to dehydration. The effect of dehydration on translational status varied extensively between mRNA species. Sixty per cent of the dehydration‐inducible mRNAs with twofold or greater increase in abundance maintained PS levels in response to water‐deficit stress, while 40% showed impaired ribosome loading (RL). PS association declined significantly for 92% of the mRNAs that displayed a strong decrease in abundance, indicating a relationship between translation and decreased gene transcription and/or mRNA stability. Interestingly, many mRNAs that encode proteins of similar biological function displayed coordinate translational regulation. Thus, the abundance of PS mRNA may provide a more accurate estimate of gene expression than total cellular mRNA because of extensive differential translational regulation.