bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
What is hardware/software partitioning?
Authors: Vahid Frank
Published: September 2010

Hardware/software partitioning is the problem of dividing an application's computations into a part that executes as sequential instructions on a microprocessor (the "software") and a part that runs as parallel circuits on some IC fabric like an ASIC or FPGA (the "hardware"), such as to achieve design goals set for metrics like performance, power, size, and cost. The circuit part commonly acts as a coprocessor for the microprocessor. For example, a video compression application may be partitioned such that most of the frame handling computations execute on a microprocessor, while the compute-intensive DCT (discrete cosine transformation) part of the compression application is offloaded to execute in a fast DCT coprocessor circuit. Circuits can execute some computations thousands of times faster than sequential instructions, due largely to their parallel execution. For example, if a computation consists of 100 multiplications of independent data items, then while a microprocessor would have to execute the multiplications one (or a few) at a time thus requiring hundreds of clock cycles, a circuit could potentially (subject to data availability) execute all 100 multiplications in parallel using 100 multipliers and thus requiring just 1 or a few clock cycles. Energy reductions can also result.
What is a 3D Network-on-Chip?
Authors: Seiculescu Ciprian , Angiolin Federico , De Micheli Giovanni
Published: September 2010

While lithographic advances have made it possible to manufacture chips with ever smaller features (Moore's Law), the cost of the required machinery has been steadily increasing, and speculation is that finer geometries will become, if not technically infeasible, impractically expensive. At the same time, the "More than Moore" paradigm [1] has been advocating the creation of chip value through the integration of functionality beyond standard digital CMOS, for example sensing, radiofrequency, optoelectronics. These two trends meet in "3D" chip integration, whereby multiple dies, independently manufactured in possibly very heterogeneous technologies, are stacked together to provide a large amount of functionality in a small package footprint.
Improving Breast Cancer Control via the Use of Community Health Workers in South Africa: A Critical Review
Authors: Wadler Brianna M. , Judge Christine M. , Prout Marianne , Allen Jennifer D. , Geller Alan C.
Published: September 2010

Breast cancer is a growing concern in low- and middle-income countries (LMCs). We explore community health worker (CHW) programs and describe their potential use in LMCs. We use South Africa as an example of how CHWs could improve access to breast health care because of its middle-income status, existing cancer centers, and history of CHW programs. CHWs could assume three main roles along the cancer control continuum: health education, screening, and patient navigation. By raising awareness about breast cancer through education, women are more likely to undergo screening. Many more women can be screened resulting in earlier-stage disease if CHWs are trained to perform clinical breast exams. As patient navigators, CHWs can guide women through the screening and treatment process. It is suggested that these roles be combined within existing CHW programs to maximize resources and improve breast cancer outcomes in LMCs.
Phase I and Pharmacokinetic Studies of CYT-6091, a Novel PEGylated Colloidal Gold-rhTNF Nanomedicine
Authors: Libutti Steven K. , Paciotti Giulio F. , Byrnes Adriana A. , Alexander H. Richard , Gannon William E. , Walker Melissa , Seidel Geoffrey D. , Yuldasheva Nargiza , Tamarkin Lawrence
Published: September 2010

Purpose: A novel nanomedicine, CYT-6091, constructed by simultaneously binding recombinant human tumor necrosis factor alpha (rhTNF) and thiolyated polyethylene glycol to the surface of 27-nm colloidal gold particles, was tested in a phase I dose escalation clinical trial in advanced stage cancer patients.

Experimental Design: CYT-6091, whose dosing was based on the amount of rhTNF in the nanomedicine, was injected intravenously, and 1 cycle of treatment consisted of 2 treatments administered 14 days apart.

Results: Doses from 50 μg/m2 to 600 μg/m2 were well tolerated, and no maximum tolerated dose (MTD) was reached, as the highest dose exceeded the target dosage of 1-mg rhTNF per treatment, exceeding the previous MTD for native rhTNF by 3-fold. The first 2 patients on the study, each receiving 50 μg/m2, did not receive any prophylactic antipyretics or H2 blockade. A predicted, yet controllable fever occurred in these patients, so all subsequently treated patients received prophylactic antipyretics and H2 blockers. However, even at the highest dose rhTNF's dose-limiting toxic effect of hypotension was not seen. Using electron microscopy to visualize nanoparticles of gold in patient biopsies of tumor and healthy tissue showed that patient biopsies taken 24 hours after treatment had nanoparticles of gold in tumor tissue.

Conclusions: These data indicate that rhTNF formulated as CYT-6091 may be administered systemically at doses of rhTNF that were previously shown to be toxic and that CYT-6091 may target to tumors. Future clinical studies will focus on combining CYT-6091 with approved chemotherapies for the systemic treatment of nonresectable cancers. Clin Cancer Res; 16(24); 6139–49. ©2010 AACR.
The Initial Segment of the Rat Epididymis Is Able to Uptake Immature Germ Cells Shed by Testicular Damage
Authors: Quintar Amado A. , Nishioka Shigeki , Torres Alicia I. , Maldonado Cristina A. , Aoki Agustín
Published: September 2010

The initial segment of the caput epididymidis, the most proximal part of the rat epididymis, has specific functional characteristics. In the present study, the behavior of the epididymal epithelium from this region was evaluated after the exposure to a massive number of immature germ cells in the luminal fluid. The experimental release of immature germ cells from the seminiferous tubules was performed by injecting anti-microtubule compounds into the rete testis and the lumen of seminiferous tubules. Twenty-four hours after nocodazole or colchicine administration, a massive phagocytosis of immature spermatogenic cells, recognized as acrosin-positive structures, was easily observed in the epithelium of the initial segment of the epididymis assessed by light and electron microscopy. Immature germ cells were engulfed by epithelial cells, where most of them were found as cell debris at different stages of degradation. No signs of inflammation were observed either in the lumen or in the interstitium. The phagocytosis of immature germ cells was restricted to the epithelium of the initial segment of the epididymis, suggesting a role for this segment as the first selective barrier for the exclusion of abnormal gametes along the male genital tract.
Play Behavior of Red Colobus Monkeys in Kibale National Park, Uganda
Authors: Worch Eric A.
Published: September 2010

Play is a conspicuous behavior in primates, yet there are few detailed species-specific accounts of primate play. This article presents the results of a 1-year study of play in red colobus monkeys (Procolobus rufomitratus). Descriptions of play frequencies and types of play are provided from infancy through adulthood. Age and sex comparisons are discussed in light of other research and hypotheses that may explain these observations.
Trends in One-Year Recurrent Ischemic Stroke among the Elderly in the USA: 1994–2002
Authors: Allen Norrina B. , Holford Theodore R. , Bracken Michael B. , Goldstein Larry B. , Howard George , Wang Yun , Lichtman Judith H.
Published: September 2010

Background and Purpose: Of the 795,000 strokes occurring in the USA each year, over 20% are recurrent events. Little is known about how the rates of recurrent stroke in the country have changed over time. Our objective was to determine national trends in 1-year recurrent ischemic stroke rates by US county among the elderly from 1994 to 2002. Methods: One-year recurrent stroke rates following incident ischemic stroke (ICD-9 433, 434, 436) among all fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries were determined by US county for 1994–1996, 1997–1999, and 2000–2002. Bayesian spatiotemporal Poisson modeling was used to determine county-specific trends in recurrent stroke rates over time with risk adjustment for demographics, medical history and comorbid conditions. Results: The analysis included more than 2.5 million beneficiaries (56% women; mean age: 78 years; 87% white; n = 957,933 for 1994–1996; n = 838,330 for 1996–1999; n = 895,916 for 2000–2002) aggregated to all 3,118 US counties. After adjustment for changing patient demographics and comorbidities, there was a 4.5% decrease in recurrent stroke rates from 1994–1996 (13.2%) to 2000–2002 (12.6%; p for trend <0.0001). The geographic and temporal patterns were not uniform; the recurrent stroke rates decreased within sections of the Southeast (the ‘stroke belt’), but increased in counties in the middle and western sections of the USA. Conclusions: The overall recurrent ischemic stroke rates declined by almost 5% from 1994 to 2002, but temporal patterns varied markedly by region. Additional research is needed to identify the reasons for this geographic disparity.
Large-Scale Application of a Telephone-Based Test of Cognitive Functioning in Older Adults
Authors: Breitling Lutz P. , Wolf Melanie , Müller Heiko , Raum Elke , Kliegel Matthias , Brenner Hermann
Published: September 2010

Aims: The study of cognitive functioning in large epidemiological settings is hampered by a lack of instruments for the remote assessment of cognitive performance, especially when targeting variability across the full range of adult functioning. The present study examined the practicability of such investigations using a recently developed telephone interview (Cognitive Telephone Screening Instrument, COGTEL). Methods: A subcohort of an ongoing epidemiological study in the elderly German population (ESTHER) was interviewed via telephone by trained personnel. These data were combined with sociodemographic information obtained by standardized self-administered questionnaires, and analysed by tabulation, histograms and regression models. Results: A total of 1,697 interviews could be analysed. The eligible participants had a mean age ± standard deviation of 74.0 ± 2.8 years. The COGTEL total scores closely followed a normal distribution with no evidence of a ceiling effect. In adjusted regression models, COGTEL total and subcomponent scores were negatively associated with age and strongly positively with higher education, whereas the association with sex was less consistent. Conclusions: The results suggest that the COGTEL can readily be administered to large study populations and produces plausible and informative results. Education should be considered in all investigations using this instrument and requires further in-depth analyses. Future studies will need to elucidate its associations with risk factors and its prognostic potential for cognitive decline and dementia.
Emergence of Young Children’s Presentational Self in Daily Conversation and Its Semiotic Foundation
Authors: Komatsu Koji
Published: September 2010

In this article, I take a relational and discursive perspective on young children’s self observed in daily natural conversations, and consider the process of semiotic mediation in the observer’s recognition. Based on the ideas of co-construction of relationships and identities in conversation, and using excerpts of dialogues between a young child and her mother that deal with the child’s experiences at daycare center (hoikuen in Japan) recorded during their car rides, I present how the self of young children in relation to others appears to observers. I regard this genre of self – ‘presentational self’ – as a kind of Gestalt quality appearing in the act of positioning and in the configuration of the child and others presented through the conversation. As a basis of this process, I will discuss the semiotically mediated process of differentiation in 2 aspects of the conversation: first, in the process of conversation when the children and the partners make further extensions of what is shared, and second, in the array of self and others as exposed in the conversation.
A Clinical, Radiographic and Laboratory Evaluation of Prognostic Factors in 363 Patients with Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma
Authors: Tanrikulu Abdullah Cetin , Abakay Abdurrahman , Kaplan Mehmet Ali , Küçüköner Mehmet , Palanci Yilmaz , Evliyaoglu Osman , Sezgi Cengizhan , Sen Hadice , Carkanat Ali İhsan , Kirbas Gokhan
Published: September 2010

Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) has a poor prognosis. Objectives: Only few studies in literature investigated the presence of pleural fluid and radiographic findings for the prognosis of MPM. Methods: We retrospectively investigated the hospital charts of 363 MPM patients who were diagnosed from January 1989 to March 2010. Survival time was calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Pretreatment clinical, laboratory and radiographic features of each patient at the time of diagnosis were obtained from patients’ charts. Results: The mean age of 363 patients (217 men, 146 women) was 50.6 ± 11.2 years (range 19–85) and the mean survival time was 11.7 ± 8.6 months (range 1–53). Histological types of MPM were epithelial (71.2%), mixed (15.9%) and sarcomatous type (4.9%). The frequency of disease stages were 31.4% for stage 1, 24.2% for stage 2, 28.6% for stage 3 and 15.8% for stage 4. The most frequent symptoms were dyspnea (82.1%), chest pain (68.3%) and weight loss (58.9%). Results of univariate and multivariate analyses revealed that a Karnofsky performance score ≤60, a pleural fluid glucose level ≤40 mg/dl, a C-reactive protein level >50 mg/l, a serum lactate dehydrogenase level >500 U/l, the presence of pleural fluid, pleural thickening >1 cm and a platelet count of >420 × 103/µl were found to be associated with poor prognosis in MPM. Conclusions: Our data suggest that low pleural fluid glucose and high C-reactive protein, the presence of pleural fluid and pleural thickening were associated with poor MPM prognosis. Further prospective studies are needed to highlight prognostic factors more clearly.
F-18-2-Fluoro-2-Deoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography Compared to Technetium-99m Hexakis-2-Methoxyisobutyl Isonitrile Single Photon Emission Chest Tomography in the Diagnosis of Indeterminate Lung Lesions
Authors: Santini Mario , Fiorelli Alfonso , Vicidomini Giovanni , Laperuta Paolo , Busiello Luigi , Rambaldi Pier Francesco , Mansi Luigi , Rotondo Antonio
Published: September 2010

Background:18FDG-PET plays a significant role in diagnosing malignancy of lung lesions but remains an expensive test available at a limited number of sites in Italy. Objective: We prospectively compare the diagnostic accuracy of 99mTc-MIBI- SPECT and 18FDG-PET in patients with indeterminate lung lesions to demonstrate that 99mTc-MIBI-SPECT may be considered as a valid alternative when 18FDG-PET is not available. Methods: 52 patients with indeterminate lung lesion were examined by 18FDG-PET and 99mTc-MIBI-SPECT before surgery. The scintigraphic findings were analyzed visually and semiquantitatively and then correlated to the definitive diagnosis. Results: 38 were malignant lesions while 14 were benign. At visual analysis, the sensitivities of 18FDG-PET and 99mTc-MIBI-SPECT were 92 and 84%, respectively (McNemar test p = 0.4), whereas the specificities were 78.6 and of 93% (p = 1.0), respectively. At semiquantitative analysis, 18FDG-PET showed a sensitivity and specificity of 92 and 71.4%, respectively, while 99mTc-MIBI-SPECT produced a sensitivity and specificity of 86 and 100%, respectively (p = 0.194). For lymph node staging, 18FDG-PET and 99mTc-MIBI-SPECT have a sensitivity and specificity of 88 and 92 of 77 and 100%, respectively. Conclusion:99mTc-MIBI-SPECT is similar to 18FDG-PET in the detection of lung malignancies and represents an alternative when PET is not available. Yet, the combination of both techniques may improve patient selection for surgery.
Association Between Prehospital Time Intervals and ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction System Performance
Authors: Studnek Jonathan R. , Garvey Lee , Blackwell Tom , Vandeventer Steven , Ward Steven R.
Published: September 2010

Background—

Among individuals experiencing an ST segment–elevation myocardial infarction, current guidelines recommend that the interval from first medical contact to percutaneous coronary intervention be ≤90 minutes. The objective of this study was to determine whether prehospital time intervals were associated with ST-elevation myocardial infarction system performance, defined as first medical contact to percutaneous coronary intervention.

Methods and Results—

Study patients presented with an acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction diagnosed by prehospital ECG between May 2007 and March 2009. Prehospital time intervals were as follows: 9-1-1 call receipt to ambulance on scene ≤10 minutes, ambulance on scene to 12-lead ECG acquisition ≤8 minutes, on-scene time ≤15 minutes, prehospital ECG acquisition to ST-elevation myocardial infarction team notification ≤10 minutes, and scene departure to patient on cardiac catheterization laboratory table ≤30 minutes. Time intervals were derived and analyzed with descriptive statistics and logistic regression. There were 181 prehospital patients who received percutaneous coronary intervention, with 165 (91.1) having complete data. Logistic regression indicated that table time, response time, and on-scene time were the benchmark time intervals with the greatest influence on the probability of achieving percutaneous coronary intervention in ≤90 minutes. Individuals with a time from scene departure to arrival on cardiac catheterization laboratory table of ≤30 minutes were 11.1 times (3.4 to 36.0) more likely to achieve percutaneous coronary intervention in ≤90 minutes than those with extended table times.

Conclusions—

In this patient population, prehospital timing benchmarks were associated with system performance. Although meeting all 5 benchmarks may be an ideal goal, this model may be more useful for identifying areas for system improvement that will have the greatest clinical impact.
Anomalous Mitral Arcade in Twin-Twin Transfusion Syndrome
Authors: Losada Elizabeth , Moon-Grady Anita J. , Strohsnitter William C. , Wu Danny , Ursell Philip C.
Published: September 2010

Background—

Echocardiography has documented acquired pulmonary stenosis and cardiomyopathy in recipient fetuses in twin-twin transfusion syndrome. At autopsy, we also have identified anomalous mitral arcade, a rare valve deformity associated with mitral regurgitation.

Methods and Results—

To identify a profile for anomalous mitral arcade, we compared clinicopathological data from 11 sets of autopsied twin-twin transfusion syndrome fetuses, including 4 twin pairs in whom the recipient had anomalous mitral arcade (affected) and 7 pairs in whom both had structurally normal mitral valves (unaffected). Anomalous mitral arcade was characterized by a thick fibrous band at the free margin of the leaflets tethering papillary muscles and absent/short tendinous cords. One affected recipient also had pulmonary stenosis and tricuspid valve dysplasia. In all 11 sets, recipient hearts were larger than paired donor hearts. All 11 recipients had moderate to severe cardiac dysfunction by echocardiography. Echocardiography disclosed left atrial enlargement in all affected recipients but none of the unaffected recipients. Mitral regurgitation was present before demise in all affected recipients evaluated with color Doppler. Progressive decrease in mitral leaflet mobility was noted in those affected recipients with serial echocardiography.

Conclusions—

Previously unreported in twin-twin transfusion syndrome, anomalous mitral arcade was identified in 4 of 11 recipient fetuses (36%) in this autopsy series. Ultrasound or echocardiographic evidence of left atrial dilation, mitral regurgitation, and decreased leaflet mobility in recipients should raise suspicion for anomalous mitral arcade. Development of anomalous mitral arcade in twin-twin transfusion syndrome recipients suggests that the lesion is an acquired valve deformity in this setting, not a malformation.
Cost-Effectiveness of Using High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein to Identify Intermediate- and Low-Cardiovascular-Risk Individuals for Statin Therapy
Authors: Lee Keane K. , Cipriano Lauren E. , Owens Douglas K. , Go Alan S. , Hlatky Mark A.
Published: September 2010

Background—

Many myocardial infarctions and strokes occur in individuals with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels below recommended treatment thresholds. High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) testing has been advocated to identify low- and intermediate-risk individuals who may benefit from statin therapy.

Methods and Results—

A decision analytic Markov model was used to follow hypothetical cohorts of individuals with normal lipid levels but without coronary artery disease, peripheral arterial disease, or diabetes mellitus. The model compared current Adult Treatment Panel III practice guidelines, a strategy of hs-CRP screening in those without an indication for statin treatment by current practice guidelines followed by treatment only in those with elevated hs-CRP levels, and a strategy of statin therapy at specified predicted risk thresholds without hs-CRP testing. Risk-based treatment without hs-CRP testing was the most cost-effective strategy, assuming that statins were equally effective regardless of hs-CRP status. However, if normal hs-CRP levels identified a subgroup with little or no benefit from statin therapy (<20% relative risk reduction), then hs-CRP screening would be the optimal strategy. If harms from statin use were greater than generally recognized, then use of current clinical guidelines would be the optimal strategy.

Conclusion—

Risk-based statin treatment without hs-CRP testing is more cost-effective than hs-CRP screening, assuming that statins have good long-term safety and provide benefits among low-risk people with normal hs-CRP.
Superoxide Dismutase 1 Limits Renal Microvascular Remodeling and Attenuates Arteriole and Blood Pressure Responses to Angiotensin II via Modulation of Nitric Oxide Bioavailability
Authors: Carlström Mattias , Lai En Yin , Ma Zufu , Steege Andreas , Patzak Andreas , Eriksson Ulf J. , Lundberg Jon O. , Wilcox Christopher S. , Persson A. Erik G.
Published: September 2010

Oxidative stress is associated with vascular remodeling and increased preglomerular resistance that are both implicated in the pathogenesis of renal and cardiovascular disease. Angiotensin II induces superoxide production, which is metabolized by superoxide dismutase (SOD) or scavenged by NO. We investigated the hypothesis that SOD1 regulates renal microvascular remodeling, blood pressure, and arteriolar responsiveness and sensitivity to angiotensin II using SOD1-transgenic (SOD1-tg) and SOD1-knockout (SOD1-ko) mice. Blood pressure, measured telemetrically, rose more abruptly during prolonged angiotensin II infusion in SOD1-ko mice. The afferent arteriole media:lumen ratios were reduced in SOD1-tg and increased in SOD1-ko mice. Afferent arterioles from nontreated wild types had graded contraction to angiotensin II (sensitivity: 10
−9
mol/L; responsiveness: 40%). Angiotensin II contractions were less sensitive (10
−8
mol/L) and responsive (14%) in SOD1-tg but more sensitive (10
−13
mol/L) and responsive (89%) in SOD1-ko mice. Arterioles from SOD1-ko had 4-fold increased superoxide formation with angiotensin II at 10
−9
mol/L.
N
G
-nitro-
l
-arginine methyl ester reduced arteriole diameter of SOD1-tg and enhanced angiotensin II sensitivity and responsiveness of wild-type and SOD1-tg mice to the level of SOD1-ko mice. SOD mimetic treatment with Tempol increased arteriole diameter and normalized the enhanced sensitivity and responsiveness to angiotensin II of SOD1-ko mice but did not affect wild-type or SOD1-tg mice. Neither SOD1 deficiency nor overexpression was associated with changes in nitrate/nitrite excretion or renal mRNA expression of NO synthase, NADPH oxidase, or SOD2/SOD3 isoforms and angiotensin II receptors. In conclusion, SOD1 limits afferent arteriole remodeling and reduces sensitivity and responsiveness to angiotensin II by reducing superoxide and maintaining NO bioavailability. This may prevent an early and exaggerated blood pressure response to angiotensin II.
Pulse Pressure Amplification, Arterial Stiffness, and Peripheral Wave Reflection Determine Pulsatile Flow Waveform of the Femoral Artery
Authors: Hashimoto Junichiro , Ito Sadayoshi
Published: September 2010

Aortic stiffness, peripheral wave reflection, and aorta-to-peripheral pulse pressure amplification all predict cardiovascular risk. However, the pathophysiological mechanism behind it is unknown. Tonometric pressure waveforms were recorded on the radial, carotid, and femoral arteries in 138 hypertensive patients (age: 56±13 years) to estimate aorta-to-peripheral amplifications, aortic augmentation index, and aortic (carotid-femoral) pulse wave velocity. The femoral Doppler velocity waveform was recorded to calculate the reverse/forward flow index and diastolic/systolic forward flow ratio. The aorta-to-femoral and aorta-to-radial amplifications correlated inversely with the aortic augmentation index and pulse wave velocity. The femoral flow waveform was triphasic, composed of systolic forward, subsequent reverse, and diastolic forward phases in 129 patients, whereas it was biphasic and lacked a diastolic forward flow in 9 patients. Both the femoral reverse index (30±10%) and diastolic forward ratio (12±4%) correlated positively with the aorta-to-femoral amplification and inversely with the aortic augmentation index and pulse wave velocity; these correlations were independent of age, sex, diastolic pressure, and femoral artery diameter. Patients with biphasic (versus triphasic) flow were older, shorter, included more diabetics, had smaller femoral diameters, and showed greater aortic pulse wave velocity even when adjusted for all of these covariates. In conclusion, because of the inverse (peripheral-to-aortic) pressure gradient, pulse pressure amplification normally produces a substantial reversal of the femoral flow, the degree of which is determined by the aortic distensibility and peripheral wave reflection. Arteriosclerosis (increased stiffness, increased augmentation, and reduced amplification) decreases both the reverse and diastolic forward flows, potentially causing circulatory disturbance of truncal organs and lower extremities.
Distal Shift of Arterial Pressure Wave Reflection Sites With Aging
Authors: Sugawara Jun , Hayashi Koichiro , Tanaka Hirofumi
Published: September 2010

An early return of reflected waves, the backward propagation of the arterial pressure wave from the periphery to the heart, is associated with the augmentation of central pulse pressure and cardiovascular risks. The locations of arterial pressure wave reflection, along with arterial stiffening, have a major influence on the timing of the reflected wave. To determine the influence of aging on the location of a major reflection site, arterial length (via 3D artery tracing of MRI) and central (carotid-femoral) and peripheral (femoral-ankle) pulse wave velocities were measured in 208 adults varying in age. The major reflection site was detected by carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity and the reflected wave transit time (via carotid arterial pressure wave analysis). The length from the aortic valve to the major reflection site (eg, effective reflecting length) significantly increased with aging. The effective reflecting length normalized by the arterial length demonstrated that the major reflection sites were located between the aortic bifurcation and femoral site in most of the subjects. The normalized effective reflecting length did not alter with aging until 65 years of age and increased remarkably thereafter in men and women. The effective reflecting length was significantly and positively associated with the difference between central and peripheral pulse wave velocities (
r
=0.76). This correlation remained significant even when the influence of aortic pulse wave velocity was partial out (
r
=0.35). These results suggest that the major reflection site shifts distally with aging partly because of the closer matching of impedance provided by central and peripheral arterial stiffness.
Diagnosing Obesity by Body Mass Index in Chronic Kidney Disease
Authors: Agarwal Rajiv , Bills Jennifer E. , Light Robert P.
Published: September 2010

Although obesity is associated with poor outcomes, among patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), obesity is related to improved survival. These results may be related to poor diagnostic performance of body mass index (BMI) in assessing body fat content. Accordingly, among 77 patients with CKD and 20 controls, body fat percentage was estimated by air displacement plethysmography (ADP), skinfold thickness, and body impedance analysis. Defined by BMI ≥30 kg/m
2
, the prevalence of obesity was 20% in controls and 65% in patients with CKD. Defined by ADP, the prevalence increased to 60% among controls and to 90% among patients with CKD. Although sensitivity and positive predictive value of BMI to diagnose obesity were 100%, specificity was 72%, but the negative predictive value was only 30%. BMI correctly classified adiposity in 75%. Regardless of the presence or absence of CKD, subclinical obesity (defined as BMI <30 kg/m
2
but excess body fat by ADP) was often missed in people with low lean body mass. The adjusted odds ratio for subclinical obesity per 1 kg of reduced lean body mass by ADP was 1.14 (95% CI: 1.06 to 1.23;
P
<0.001). Skinfold thickness measurements correctly classified 94% of CKD patients, but bioelectrical impedance analyzer–assessed body fat estimation did so in only 65%. Air displacement plethysmography–, skinfold thickness–, and bioelectrical impedance analyzer–assessed body fat all provided reproducible estimates of adiposity. Skinfold thickness measurements may be a better test to classify obesity among those with CKD. Given the low negative predictive value of BMI for obesity, our study may provide an explanation of the “obesity paradox.”
Estimating Snow Water Equivalent Using Snow Depth Data and Climate Classes
Authors: Sturm Matthew , Taras Brian , Liston Glen E. , Derksen Chris , Jonas Tobias , Lea Jon
Published: September 2010

In many practical applications snow depth is known, but snow water equivalent (SWE) is needed as well. Measuring SWE takes ∼20 times as long as measuring depth, which in part is why depth measurements outnumber SWE measurements worldwide. Here a method of estimating snow bulk density is presented and then used to convert snow depth to SWE. The method is grounded in the fact that depth varies over a range that is many times greater than that of bulk density. Consequently, estimates derived from measured depths and modeled densities generally fall close to measured values of SWE. Knowledge of snow climate classes is used to improve the accuracy of the estimation procedure. A statistical model based on a Bayesian analysis of a set of 25 688 depth–density–SWE data collected in the United States, Canada, and Switzerland takes snow depth, day of the year, and the climate class of snow at a selected location from which it produces a local bulk density estimate. When converted to SWE and tested against two continental-scale datasets, 90% of the computed SWE values fell within ±8 cm of the measured values, with most estimates falling much closer.
Detiding Shipboard ADCP Data in Eastern Boundary Current
Authors: Vazquez Heriberto Jesus , Gomez-Valdes Jose , Ortiz Modesto , Dworak Juan Adolfo
Published: September 2010

Spatiotemporal fitting by the least squares method is commonly applied to distinguish the mean flow from the tidal current from shipboard ADCP data in coastal ocean. To analyze this technique in a pelagic region of an eastern boundary current system, a 6-yr period of shipboard ADCP data off Baja California is examined. A diverse set of basis functions is studied and a global tidal model is used for comparison purposes. The Gaussian function together with a nodal configuration of one node in the middle and close to the coast of the region is the best option. However, to obtain the optimal solution, the geostrophic flow, which is stronger than the tidal flow and highly variable off Baja California, might be removed prior to fitting the data. In general, the semimajor axis of the tidal ellipse (M2) is parallel to the coast and the phase speed is poleward and parallel to the coast, in agreement with Kelvin wave dynamics. Because the tides in eastern boundary currents are explained by Kelvin wave dynamics, the use of both the velocity field without geostrophic variability and the Gaussian function in the spatiotemporal fitting by least squares technique is a promising tool for detiding shipboard ADCP data from these systems.
Forecast Skill of Synoptic Conditions Associated with Santa Ana Winds in Southern California
Authors: Jones Charles , Fujioka Francis , Carvalho Leila M. V.
Published: September 2010

Santa Ana winds (SAW) are synoptically driven mesoscale winds observed in Southern California usually during late fall and winter. Because of the complex topography of the region, SAW episodes can sometimes be extremely intense and pose significant environmental hazards, especially during wildfire incidents. A simple set of criteria was used to identify synoptic-scale conditions associated with SAW events in the NCEP–Department of Energy (DOE) reanalysis. SAW events start in late summer and early fall, peak in December–January, and decrease by early spring. The typical duration of SAW conditions is 1–3 days, although extreme cases can last more than 5 days. SAW events exhibit large interannual variations and possible mechanisms responsible for trends and low-frequency variations need further study. A climate run of the NCEP Climate Forecast System (CFS) model showed good agreement and generally small differences with the observed climatological characteristics of SAW conditions.

Nonprobabilistic and probabilistic forecasts of synoptic-scale conditions associated with SAW were derived from NCEP CFS reforecasts. The CFS model exhibits small systematic biases in sea level pressure and surface winds in the range of a 1–4-week lead time. Several skill measures indicate that nonprobabilistic forecasts of SAW conditions are typically skillful to about a 6–7-day lead time and large interannual variations are observed. NCEP CFS reforecasts were also applied to derive probabilistic forecasts of synoptic conditions during SAW events and indicate skills to about a 6-day lead time.
In God We Trust: Religiosity as a Predictor of Perceptions of Media Trust, Factuality, and Privacy Invasion
Authors: Golan Guy J. , Day Anita G.
Published: September 2010

The current study brought together two important areas of scholarship in mass communications: media credibility, and religion and the media. Although both areas have been widely investigated by scholars, there have not been many empirical investigations that examine the potential impact of religion on individual perceptions of media credibility. The authors’ data analysis revealed mixed evidence for an association between religiosity and perceived media credibility. Although the study did not find consistent and overwhelming evidence of a significant single association between religiosity and media credibility, the authors did find strong evidence of a significant association between some form of media credibility and the Internet. Although these associations were multidirectional, they were nevertheless numerous and significant.
A Citizen-Eye View of Television News Source Credibility
Authors: Miller Andrea , Kurpius David
Published: September 2010

This experimental study used 244 participants to investigate citizen perceptions of news sources focusing on source credibility. Ten television news stories were created with varying source affiliation (officials or citizens), source race (African American or Caucasian), and type of story (hard or soft news). For the first time, results showed viewers do distinguish between the credibility of official and citizen sources. No difference was found in credibility on the basis of race. Results are discussed within the frameworks of civic journalism, hidden racism, and citizen sources.
The Palin Effect and Vote Preference in the 2008 Presidential Election
Authors: Kenski Kate
Published: September 2010

Previous studies suggest that vice presidential candidates have little impact on the presidential vote. Using data from the 2008 National Annenberg Election Survey (NAES), the author examines the extent to which the vice presidential selections from the two major parties had an impact on the presidential vote in 2008. The results show that vice presidential nominees’ favorability ratings were significantly related to vote preference. In addition, the results show that the contributions of the vice presidential nominee ratings on vote choice varied across the campaign, suggesting that campaign events primed the importance of the vice presidential candidates at different moments. Ultimately, Governor Sarah Palin did not help the Republican ticket.
Words and Their Ways in Campaign ’08
Authors: Hart Roderick P. , Lind Colene J.
Published: September 2010

This study reports certain lexical patterns produced during the general election of campaign 2008 by Senators John McCain and Barack Obama. As such, it continues a series of tracings begun a dozen years ago under the rubric of the Campaign Mapping Project. This is largely a descriptive project employing computerized language analysis, making specific use of the DICTION 5.0 program. The authors examine some 700 speech passages delivered during the primaries of 2007 and the general election of 2008 and compare them to around 4,000 passages from the 1948 through 2004 presidential campaigns. Overall, they find that popular understanding of the Obama style—that he is fiery, poetic, optimistic, and grandiloquent—to be wrong. Instead, they find Obama to be cautious, grounded, and highly focused. McCain, in contrast, was personal in style, quite partisan (as are most losing presidential candidates), and highly embellished. Obama’s “cool” style differed dramatically from McCain’s “emotional” style, thereby providing both a political and rhetorical contrast for voters during the 2008 campaign.
Still a green leader? The European Union’s role in international climate negotiations
Authors: Kilian Bertil , Elgström Ole
Published: September 2010

Since the early 1990s, the European Union (EU) has presented itself as a leader on climate change. Recently, however, this picture has been challenged in the media and by non-governmental organization representatives. The aim of our article is to evaluate the Union’s present role in the area of international climate politics. We do this by scrutinizing the EU’s own role conception, but also, and primarily, by investigating the perceptions and expectations of government representatives from outside the Union itself. Our results — reflecting external perceptions of the EU after COP 14 (Conference of the Parties) in December 2008 — demonstrate that the EU is indeed still seen as a green leader. Officials from both developing states and major powers share the view of the Union as a largely coherent and credible leader, though some observers question the correspondence between what the EU says and what it does. The EU is mainly perceived to lead by example by being a role model for other state actors. We discuss how these results fare in the light of the COP 15 Copenhagen meeting in December 2009.
The materials of practice: Nuclear warheads, rhetorical commonplaces and committee meetings in Russian–Atlantic relations
Authors: Pouliot Vincent
Published: September 2010

In this article I argue that the Cartesian dualism informing dominant theories of International Relations (IR) has limited analytical purchase at the level of practice. The materials that enable and constrain contemporary diplomatic practices between NATO and Russia seamlessly combine natural, cultural and organizational artefacts: nuclear warheads take on a symbolic life of their own; linguistic formulations transform into ‘things’; and committee meetings inscribe intersubjective dynamics with a new materiality. To materialist theories à la neo-realism, practice theory shows that material objects matter not because they have an immanent meaning, but rather because, in becoming part of social relations, they acquire a form of agency of their own, making people do things they would not have done otherwise. To IR constructivism, this article demonstrates that it is not only people who attach meanings to things; things also attach meanings to people. Enmeshed in social relations, material objects often acquire an epistemic life of their own that may affect, in turn, the very people who constructed them.
The affective production of others: United States policy towards the Israeli–Palestinian conflict
Authors: Coen Leep Matthew
Published: September 2010

IR scholars have recently turned to emotions to understand and explain events in world politics. Although this turn is appealing, most scholars have failed to critically examine the relationships between emotion, language, identity and foreign policy. This article aims to unpack these relationships. Drawing upon Sara Ahmed’s notion of the ‘emotionality of texts’, this article explores how foreign policy may be an affective practice, which can be defined as a ritualized practice of discursively binding emotions to Others’ identities and legitimating foreign policy through a discursive logic of feeling. In this way, identities are produced and policies are legitimated affectively. Neglecting the emotional narratives that constitute Self/Other relations leads to an insufficient understanding of emotion in global politics, an incomplete understanding of how identities emerge and matter as they do, and forecloses new alternatives of apprehending transformative ruptures and enduring patterns of Self/Other interaction. Through an analysis of United States policy towards the Israeli—Palestinian conflict, this article highlights the importance of emotion and affective practices in world politics.
Human capital, gender, and labor force incorporation: The case of immigrants from the Former Soviet Union
Authors: Logan John R , Rivera Drew Julia A
Published: September 2010

Women immigrating to the United States from the Former Soviet Union (FSU) were expected to incorporate seamlessly into the US labor force because of their strong educational and professional backgrounds. Using 2000 Census data, we find that FSU women were less successful than both FSU men and other non-Hispanic white female immigrants. After controlling for other factors, FSU women were more likely to rely on public assistance and less likely to be employed. If employed, they worked in less prestigious occupations and earned much less.These findings draw attention to the particular difficulties of incorporation of this wave of relatively advantaged immigrants.
Consumption and Dependency in Mandabi
Authors: Lincoln Sarah L.
Published: September 2010

In his 1968 film Mandabi, Senegalese filmmaker Ousmane Sembène warns of the consequences for sovereignty of unrestrained appetite and the easy credit that facilitates it. Sembène’s depiction of a poor man whose windfall gift of a money order leads ironically to increased debt, dependency and indignity is a cautionary allegory for his own newly postcolonial nation, which had received its first World Bank loan in 1966. Drawing on work by Frantz Fanon, J-F. Bayart and others, this essay examines the film’s critique of the “politics of the belly” in Africa and the effects of credit-fuelled consumerism on subjectivity, sovereignty and aesthetics in a postcolonial context.
Travel and/as Travail: Diasporic Dislocations in Abdulrazak Gurnah’s By the Sea and Kiran Desai’s The Inheritance of Loss
Authors: Masterson John
Published: September 2010

This article looks at two novels exploring the pains and gains of the immigrant experience. Both By the Sea and The Inheritance of Loss feature protagonists struggling to build their lives anew in a foreign land. I discuss them in relation to some of the key trends in postcolonial studies, arguing that Gurnah’s and Desai’s texts provide a necessary “re-grounding” to some of the more romanticizing tendencies in writing on diaspora and dislocation. I also consider how they might be seen in relation to ongoing debates about globalization, suggesting both provide timely reminders that celebrations of “fluidity and flow” are often only applicable to a privileged few. By attending to the material realities of bodies, both individual and collective, and to specific geo-political spaces, both Gurnah and Desai shift our readerly focus from the indeterminacies of “globalization” to the actualities of “glocalization”.
Sri Lankan “Gates of Fire”: Michael Ondaatje’s Transnational Literature, from Running in the Family to Anil’s Ghost
Authors: Knowles Sam
Published: September 2010

This article examines the implications of reading Michael Ondaatje’s Anil’s Ghost (2000) — a fictional treatment of the aftermath of civil war in Sri Lanka, from the point of view of a reluctant returnee to the island — in the context of Stephen Clingman’s assertions about “transnational fiction” as a “new way to understand the complexities of identity and location”.The article analyses the author’s adoption and adaptation of religious and mythical motifs in the novel, rereads the text’s recuperative religious/secular conclusion and considers the travel-inflected foundations of Anil’s Ghost in a text concerned with Ondaatje’s own return to the island, his Sri Lankan “travel memoir” Running in the Family (1982). The article presents Ondaatje’s work as a challenge to received political and cultural ideas about Sri Lanka.
Diaspora’s “Dark Room”: Photography and the Vision of Loss in Jhumpa Lahiri’s “Hema and Kaushik”
Authors: Banerjee Bidisha
Published: September 2010

In the long story “Hema and Kaushik” that comprises Part II of Jhumpa Lahiri’s most recent collection Unaccustomed Earth (2008), we find the recurrent trope of photographs and photography. Kaushik, the child of immigrants, becomes a photojournalist who visits war-torn areas documenting the destruction with his camera. The loss of homeland for second-generation immigrants like Kaushik is a phantom loss, since they cannot access the originary moment of departure in their memories. I argue that photography allows Kaushik to counter his unrootedness by providing him with a sense of presence. However, given photography’s double edge — its ability to capture a moment and preserve it for posterity and, conversely, its inalienable connection with absence, loss and even death — it ultimately renders his efforts false and exacerbates his sense of phantom loss and diaspora mourning. Using writings on photography theory by Roland Barthes, Susan Sontag and others, I posit a relation between the desire to photograph and the immigrant condition.