bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Influence of Baseline Characteristics on Response to a Laser Acupuncture Intervention: An Exploratory Analysis
Authors: Glazov Gregory
Published: March 2010

Objectives

In clinical practice it is known that subjects vary in their response to acupuncture, but there is little data on what predicts the outcome. The aim of this study was to identify such predictors.

Method

A secondary analysis was performed on data from 100 participants in a trial of laser and sham laser acupuncture for chronic non-specific low back pain. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify which baseline characteristics predicted pain change in the immediate, short and intermediate term. An analysis of covariance was performed based on these results to re-examine the primary result of the trial.

Results

Strong predictors of poor response were receipt of disability support pension, headache, the regular use of analgesics or previous failed back surgery. Higher pain scores or exacerbation of pain at baseline predicted a greater proportionate pain relief after the intervention. Adjusted analysis suggested a clinically important effect of laser compared to sham (p<0.05), at short term follow-up only.

Conclusion

The findings of this study suggest which characteristics of patients with chronic low back pain are more likely to respond to laser acupuncture treatment, but require replication in other studies. The findings may not apply in other acupuncture interventions and treatment of different conditions. They may also be used to set selection criteria for future studies, and to aid interpreting the effect of baseline imbalances on trial results.
Management of Shoulder Injuries Using Dry Needling in Elite Volleyball Players
Authors: Osborne Nichola J , Gatt Ian T
Published: March 2010

These case reports describe the short-term benefits of dry needling in shoulder injuries in four international female volleyball athletes during a month-long intense competitive phase, using both replicable subjective and objective measures. Dry needling of scapulohumeral muscles was carried out. Range of movement, strength and pain were assessed before and after treatment, with a functional assessment of pain immediately after playing and overhead activity, using the short form McGill Pain Questionnaire. All scores were improved post-treatment and athletes were able to continue overhead activities. Previous studies have suggested that myofascial trigger points may cause significant functional weakness and reduced range of motion, with referred pain. Trigger point dry needling has been successful in treating athletes with myofascial pain and impingement symptoms but with only subjective improvement and not during a competitive phase. These cases support the use of dry needling in elite athletes during a competitive phase with short-term pain relief and improved function in shoulder injuries. It may help maintain rotator cuff balance and strength, reducing further pain and injury.
Medical Students and Acupuncture: A Short Sharp Placement Experience!
Authors: Donald Graeme K , Mackereth Peter , Tobin Irene
Published: March 2010

Background

Acupuncture and other complementary therapies (CTs) have become increasingly popular, with patients calling for more integrated care. It is questionable whether doctors know enough about these therapies to provide balanced and informed advice to patients and, given that most will come across patients accessing CTs, this is an area of concern.

Method

This was an exploratory study of 40 students attending a placement at a CT service within an acute hospital trust in the UK. A questionnaire was given at the start of placement to record their scepticism towards CTs on a 0–10 scale and again, on placement completion.

Result

Of the students attending, 73% (n=29) completed the questionnaire. There was a statistically significant reduction in scepticism scores assessed before and after placement (p<0.001). Of the respondents, 90% (n=26) were shown or attempted acupuncture. 76% of students reported that the placement would definitely influence the rate of CT referrals in their future practice.

Conclusion

The placement experience provided students an opportunity to reconsider their attitudes towards CTs. The study was limited to one site and students independently elected to participate in the experience. Similar exposure could be of value to the wider medical student population, ultimately leading to more informed advice available to patients. Future research should include greater numbers, which could include a multi-site study.
An Experimental Study on the Self-Report of Acupuncture Needle Sensation during Deep Needling with Bi-Directional Rotation
Authors: Benham Alex , Phillips Gillian , Johnson Mark I
Published: March 2010

Background

Traditionally, acupuncturists manipulate needles to enhance sensations referred to as de qi or ‘acupuncture needle sensation’. Acupuncture needle sensations are complex and quantifying the experience has been difficult. The aim of this crossover study was to measure self-reported needle sensation during deep and bi-directional rotated needling in 15 healthy volunteers.

Methods

Each participant received an experimental intervention consisting of superficial needling followed by deep needling and then deep needling with bi-directional rotation. The control intervention consisted of superficial needling, followed by mock deep needling and then mock bi-directional rotation of the needle. The intensity of overall needle sensation was measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS). The subjective acupuncture sensation scale was used to capture component sensations.

Results

VAS scores were higher during ‘deep’ needle penetration when compared to superficial needling with mock deep insertion (p=0.0002). VAS scores were also higher during deep needling with bi-directional rotation compared to superficial needling with mock bi-directional rotation (p<0.0001). There were higher scores for total component sensation scores and for the sensation of throbbing during the deep needling with bi-directional rotation (p=0.001) when compared to superficial needling with mock bi-directional rotation. Tentative evidence that bi-directional needle rotation generated stabbing, tingling, heaviness, soreness and aching was also found.

Conclusion

Bi-directional rotation of a needle inserted into deep soft tissue produced higher acupuncture needle sensation intensities when compared to superficial needle insertion with mock deep penetration and bi-directional rotation.
Validation of a Simplified Sham Acupuncture Technique for Its Use in Clinical Research: A Randomised, Single Blind, Crossover Study
Authors: Kreiner Marcelo , Zaffaroni Ana , Alvarez Ramón , Clark Glenn
Published: March 2010

Objectives

The validity of a new sham acupuncture technique was tested on acupuncture naïve healthy subjects.

Methods

The procedure was tested in accupoints LI4 and ST6 in a randomised, single blind and crossover study. The participants were blind to which technique they received. 32 healthy volunteers (15 men, 17 women, aged between 20 and 62 years, mean age 34 years) were recruited at the Universidad de la República, Uruguay. Interventions Participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups: (1) real acupuncture or (2) sham acupuncture. After 30 min, the patients were ‘needled’ again in a crossover design. Main outcome measures A yes/no questionnaire was used to assess the credibility and characteristics of the procedure.

Results

For the credibility question (do you think you received real acupuncture?) no statistically significant group differences were evident before or after the crossover. Subjects who answered yes to this question ranged from 14/16 (87.5%) before crossover to 10/16 (62.5%) after crossover for the sham and 12/16 (75%) before crossover to 15/16 (93.8%) after crossover for the real acupuncture. The question that showed a significant difference (only after crossover) was the question, “did you feel the needle penetrating the skin?”; after crossover 12/16 (75%) subjects in the real acupuncture group said yes and 2/16 (12%) subjects in the sham group said yes to this question (p<0.01).

Conclusions

These data suggests that this method is credible and constitutes a simple and inexpensive technique for use as a control in clinical research in acupuncture naïve subjects.
Acupuncture in the Management of Anxiety Related to Dental Treatment: A Case Series
Authors: Rosted Palle , Bundgaard Mads , Gordon Sian , Pedersen Anne Marie Lynge
Published: March 2010

Background

Anxiety related to dental treatment is a common phenomenon that has a significant impact on the provision of appropriate dental care. The aim of this case series was to examine the effect of acupuncture given prior to dental treatment on the level of anxiety.

Methods

Eight dentists submitted 21 case reports regarding the treatment of dental anxiety. The level of anxiety was assessed by the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Only patients with moderate to severe anxiety (BAI score ≥16) were included. The remaining 20 patients, 16 women and 4 men, with a mean age of 40.3 years, had a median BAI score of 26.5 at baseline. The BAI score was assessed before and after the acupuncture treatment. All patients received acupuncture treatment for 5 min prior to the planned dental treatment using the points GV20 and EX6.

Results

There was a significant reduction in median value of BAI scores after treatment with acupuncture (26.5 reduced to 11.5; p<0.01), and it was possible to carry out the planned dental treatment in all 20 cases after acupuncture treatment. Previously this had only been possible in six cases.

Conclusion

Acupuncture prior to dental treatment has a beneficial effect on the level of anxiety in patients with dental anxiety and may offer a simple and inexpensive method of treatment. However, the present results need to be tested in a larger randomised clinical trial in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the acupuncture treatment in patients with dental anxiety.
Allele-specific wild-type blocker quantitative PCR for highly sensitive detection of rare JAK2 p.V617F point mutation in primary myelofibrosis as an appropriate tool for the monitoring of molecular remission following therapy
Authors: Siebolts Udo , Lange Thoralf , Niederwieser Dietger , Wickenhauser Claudia
Published: March 2010

Screening of JAK2 V617F point mutation becomes more and more important in monitoring of JAK2 positive MPN following stem cell transplantation. In an attempt to achieve the required high sensitivity (1:105), specifity and robustness we created an approach applicable on bone marrow biopsies where we adapted the principle of wild-type blocker PCR with allele-specific Q-PCR. The significance of the assay was demonstrated on a retrospective series of sequential bone marrow biopsies as diagnosis of molecular relapse now preceded the diagnosis of clinical relapse by far. This method offers the urgently needed tool for a systematic molecular analysis of sequential biopsies in the course of stem cell transplantation to develop guidelines for the management of these patients.
In vitro susceptibility ofClostridium difficileto rifaximin and rifampin in 359 consecutive isolates at a university hospital in Houston, Texas
Authors: Jiang Z-D , DuPont H L , La Rocco M , Garey K W
Published: March 2010

Aim

This was an in vitro study to analyse the susceptibility ofClostridium difficileisolates to rifampin and rifaximin.

Methods

Stool samples from patients who had nosocomial diarrhoea andC difficiletoxin B at a university hospital between August 2006 and December 2007 were cultured forC difficile. Susceptibility ofC difficileisolates to rifaximin and rifampin was determined by agar dilution and E strips, respectively.C difficileisolates were analysed via PCR for genes encoding toxins A and B, for binary toxin (BT), and for partial deletions of thetcdCgene (tcdC-del).

Results

Rifaximin exhibited high-level activity against 359C difficileisolates, with MIC50<0.01 μg/ml and MIC900.25 μg/ml; rifampin had MIC50<0.002 μg/ml and MIC904 μg/ml. Among isolates analysed, 55 (15%) were positive for BT andtcdC-del. 28 (8% of 359) isolates were resistant to rifampin (≥32 μg/ml), of which 6 (2% of 359) were resistant to rifaximin and rifampin with MIC values ≥32 μg/ml. 2 of the 28 isolates resistant to rifampin were A+/B+/BT+/tcdC-del+, 5 were A+/B+/BT−/tcdC-del+, 4 were A+/B+/BT+/tcdC-del−, 13 were A+/B+/BT−/tcdC-del−, and 4 had no detectable toxin genes. Of the 11 isolates resistant to rifaximin alone, 1 was A+/B+/BT−/tcdC-del+, 2 were A+/B+/BT+/tcdC-del−, 6 were A+/B+/BT−/tcdC-del−, and 2 had no detectable toxin genes.

Conclusions

The study demonstrates that rifaximin has high-level activity againstC difficilein vitro. Determination of resistance to rifampin by E strip did not predict rifaximin resistance.
An audit of the implementation of the international consensus group's guidelines on reporting of blood films
Authors: Galloway M J , Charlton A , Holland D , Trigg G , Gibson R
Published: March 2010

Aims

This study was carried out as part of the Pathology Benchmarking Review and it audits the implementation of the guidelines for the reporting of blood films published by the International Consensus Group for Haematology Review.

Methods

Each laboratory completed a questionnaire about the number of blood counts and blood films performed. Information was collected on the criteria that were used for preparing a blood film and whether they had followed the guidelines of the International Consensus Group.

Results

74 National Health Service organisations (151 laboratory sites) participated in the study. 24 laboratories had implemented the guideline, 21 with local modification, and 3 without modification. The reasons that prevented the full implementation of the guideline included the inability of laboratory information systems to be modified to include the guideline rules, the laboratory not agreeing with the guideline criteria, and the staff time required to implement the guide to justify the perceived local benefits of implementation.

Conclusion

This is the first study that has assessed the implementation of the International Consensus Guidelines at a national level. Many laboratories had experienced difficulty in implementing the consensus guideline partly due to the complexity of the guideline. As a result 21 of the 24 laboratories that had attempted to implement the guideline had made local modification to the guideline. Since it was not possible to estimate the impact that local modification of the guideline would have on the percentage of blood films it was not possible to establish a benchmark of practice following implementation of the guideline.
Age-related differences in granulomatous gastritis: a retrospective, clinicopathological analysis
Authors: Renault Macey , Goodier Aimee , Subramony Charu , Hood Brandy , Bishop Phyllis , Nowicki Michael
Published: March 2010

Background

Granulomatous gastritis (GG) is an uncommon pathological finding that may accompany systemic disease, infections, foreign body reaction, malignancy or vasculitis, but may also be an isolated finding. Clinical and pathological features of GG have been systematically evaluated in adults but not children.

Objectives

To compare clinical and pathological features of GG in adults and children, and also determine the prevalence of GG in children from a single centre.

Methods

A retrospective analysis of 23 children and 23 adults with GG was conducted. Demographic and clinical information was recorded for each patient. Gastric biopsy specimens were evaluated for the presence of gastritis, infectious organisms, and number and location of the granulomas.

Results

Children were a mean±SD age of 12.5±3.0 years, had a male predominance, and were most often Caucasian. Adults were a mean±SD age of 49.2±13.2 years, had a female predominance, and were most often African–American. Primary diagnoses were Crohn's disease in children, and sarcoidosis and isolated GG in adults. In both groups, granulomas were most often located in the antrum, with no difference in the number of granulomas per biopsy between children and adults. All biopsy specimens were negative for acid-fast bacilli and fungal organisms;Helicobacter pyloriinfection was uncommon. Overall prevalence of GG in children in this study was 1.7% for all diagnostic upper endoscopies.

Conclusion

Differences in aetiology of GG between children and adults reflect age-specific disease states. Gender differences can be partially explained by gender differences intrinsic to the underlying aetiology. Irrespective of the underlying aetiology, the number and location of granulomas are similar in children and adults.
Pulmonary thrombotic microangiopathy caused by gastric carcinoma
Authors: Yokomine Tatsuo , Hirakawa Hiroshi , Ozawa Eisuke , Shibata Kenichiro , Nakayama Toshiyuki
Published: March 2010

Pulmonary tumour thrombotic microangiopathy (PTTM) is characterised by wide spread tumour emboli along with fibrocellular intimal proliferation and thrombus formation in small pulmonary arteries and arterioles. PTTM is a rare but fatal complication of carcinoma, but the pathogenesis remains to be clarified. An autopsy case of PTTM caused by gastric adenocarcinoma is described, in which tumour cells in the PTTM lesion had positive immunoreactivity for platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and PDGF receptor (PDGFR), and proliferating fibromuscular intimal cells also showed expression of PDGFR. In addition, the overexpression of PGDF was detected in the alveolar macrophages. These findings suggest that PDGF derived from alveolar macrophages and from tumour cells may act together in promoting fibrocellular intimal proliferation. To the best of the authors' knowledge, the possible involvement of activated alveolar macrophages in PTTM has not been previously reported.
ONE-LOOP VACUUM ENERGY IN NON-PARALLEL D1-BRANES: A PATH INTEGRAL FORMULATION
Authors: JAHAN A.
Published: March 2010

We derive the one-loop vacuum energy of the bosonic string theory in a system of non-parallel D1-branes using the path integral method.
NULL ZIG-ZAG WILSON LOOPS IN $\mathcal{N}=4$ SYM
Authors: XIE ZHIFENG
Published: March 2010

In planar [Formula: see text] supersymmetric Yang–Mills theory we have studied one kind of (locally) BPS Wilson loops composed of a large number of light-like segments, i.e. null zig-zags. These contours oscillate around smooth underlying spacelike paths. At one-loop in perturbation theory, we have compared the finite part of the expectation value of null zig-zags to the finite part of the expectation value of non-scalar-coupled Wilson loops whose contours are the underlying smooth spacelike paths. In arXiv:0710.1060 [hep-th] it was argued that these quantities are equal for the case of a rectangular Wilson loop. Here we present a modest extension of this result to zig-zags of circular shape and zig-zags following non-parallel, disconnected line segments and show analytically that the one-loop finite part is indeed that given by the smooth spacelike Wilson loop without coupling to scalars which the zig-zag contour approximates. We make some comments regarding the generalization to arbitrary shapes.
THE EFFECT OF RANDOM COUPLING COEFFICIENTS ON DECOHERENCE
Authors: CASTAGNINO MARIO , FORTIN SEBASTIAN , LOMBARDI OLIMPIA
Published: March 2010

The aim of this letter is to analyze the effect on decoherence of the randomness of the coupling coefficients involved in the interaction Hamiltonian. By studying the spin-bath model with computer simulations, we show that such randomness greatly improves the "efficiency" of decoherence and, then, its physical meaning deserves to be considered.
CPT-VIOLATING NEUTRINO OSCILLATIONS
Authors: ESPOSITO S. , SALESI G.
Published: March 2010

We propose a simple phenomenological model predicting, through Lorentz symmetry breaking, a CPT-violating asymmetry between particle and antiparticle states in neutrino oscillations involving sterile neutrinos. Such a model is able to explain the apparently observed anomalous excess of low-energy νe-like events, reported by the MiniBooNE collaboration, as well as the non-observation of the corresponding anomalous excess of [Formula: see text]-like events. The present model leads to very specific physical predictions in the neutrino oscillations scenario, and account for the observed anomalies in terms of only one CPT-Lorentz violation parameter of the order of the Grand-Unification energy scale.
THE WAKE IN MID-CENTRAL NUCLEAR COLLISIONS
Authors: DREMIN I. M.
Published: March 2010

It is argued that PHENIX collaboration observed for the first time the radiation of the longitudinal wake oscillations formed behind the parton penetrating the quark–gluon medium. It shifts the maximum of a hump in two-particle correlations and changes its width in the case of some special orientation of the trigger particle.
SUPER SYMMETRY IN STRONG AND WEAK INTERACTIONS
Authors: SESHAVATHARAM U. V. S. , LAKSHMINARAYANA S.
Published: March 2010

For strong interaction two new fermion mass units 105.32 MeV and 11450 MeV are assumed. Existence of "Integral charge quark bosons", "Integral charge effective quark fermions", "Integral charge (effective) quark fermi-gluons" and "Integral charge quark boso-gluons" are assumed and their masses are estimated. It is noticed that, characteristic nuclear charged fermion is Xs · 105.32 = 938.8 MeV and corresponding charged boson is Xs(105.32/x) = 415.0 where Xs = 8.914 is the inverse of the strong coupling constant and x = 2.26234 is a new number by using which "super symmetry" can be seen in "strong and weak" interactions. 11450 MeV fermion and its boson of mass = 11450/x = 5060 MeV plays a crucial role in "sub quark physics" and "weak interaction". 938.8 MeV strong fermion seems to be the proton. 415 MeV strong boson seems to be the mother of the presently believed 493,496 and 547 MeV etc, strange mesons. With 11450 MeV fermion "effective quark-fermi-gluons" and with 5060 MeV boson "quark boso-gluon masses" are estimated. "Effective quark fermi-gluons" plays a crucial role in ground state charged baryons mass generation. Light quark bosons couple with these charged baryons to form doublets and triplets. "Quark boso-gluons" plays a crucial role in ground state neutral and charged mesons mass generation. Fine and super-fine rotational levels can be given by [I or (I/2)] power(1/4) and [I or (I/2)] power(1/12) respectively. Here, I = n(n+1) and n = 1, 2, 3, ….
PHOTON EMISSION FROM OUT OF EQUILIBRIUM DISSIPATIVE PARTON PLASMA
Authors: BHATT JITESH R. , SREEKANTH V.
Published: March 2010

Using the second order Israel–Stewart hydrodynamics we discuss the effect of viscosity on photon production in a parton plasma created in relativistic heavy ion collisions. We find that photon production rates can be enhanced by several factors due to the viscous effect in a chemically nonequilibrated plasma.
KINEMATIC CORRELATION OF THE TERNARY FISSION FOR THE SYSTEM197Au+197Au
Authors: TIAN JUNLONG , LI XIAN , YAN SHIWEI , WU XIZHEN , LI ZHUXIA
Published: March 2010

Collisions of very heavy nuclei197Au +197Au at the energy of 15A MeV has been studied with the improved quantum molecular dynamics model. The experimental mass distributions of ternary fission fragments for the system197Au +197Au are reproduced well. The direct and sequential ternary fission modes are studied by the time dependent snapshots of typical ternary events. The analysis of deviation from Viola systematics indicates the nonstatistical feature of the ternary fission in these reactions.
A HIERARCHICAL MODEL FOR MULTI-PHASE FRACTAL MEDIA
Authors: MEI MAOFEI , YU BOMING , CAI JIANCHAO , LUO LIANG
Published: March 2010

The size distributions of solid particles and pores in porous media are approximately hierarchical and statistically fractals. In this paper, a model for single-phase fractal media is constructed, and the analytical expressions for area, fractal dimension and distribution function for solid particles are derived. The distribution function of solid particles obtained from the proposed model is in good agreement with available experimental data. Then, a model for approximate two-phase fractal media is developed. Good agreement is found between the predicted fractal dimensions for pore space from the two-phase fractal medium model and the existing measured data. A model for approximate three-phase fractal media is also presented by extending the obtained two-phase model.
NON-GAUSSIAN STATISTICS OF OIL PRICING TIME-SERIES: A CASE STUDY
Authors: MOMENI M. , KOURAKIS I.
Published: March 2010

The stochastic nature of oil price fluctuations is investigated over a twelve-year period, borrowing feedback from an existing database (USA Energy Information Administration database, available online). We evaluate the scaling exponents of the fluctuations by employing different statistical analysis methods, namely rescaled range analysis (R/S), scale windowed variance analysis (SWV) and the generalized Hurst exponent (GH) method. Relying on the scaling exponents obtained, we apply a rescaling procedure to investigate the complex characteristics of the probability density functions (PDFs) dominating oil price fluctuations. It is found that PDFs exhibit scale invariance, and in fact collapse onto a single curve when increments are measured over microscales (typically less than 30 days). The time evolution of the distributions is well fitted by a Lévy-type stable distribution. The relevance of a Lévy distribution is made plausible by a simple model of nonlinear transfer. Our results also exhibit a degree of multifractality as the PDFs change and converge toward to a Gaussian distribution at the macroscales.
THE QUASI-SINE FIBONACCI HYPERBOLIC DYNAMIC SYSTEM
Authors: WANG XING-YUAN , GE FENG-DAN
Published: March 2010

This paper researches the dynamic behavior of a general form of the Fibonacci function, which is a quasi-sine Fibonacci function. It analyses the fixed points of the quasi-sine Fibonacci function on the real axis and the complex plane, and then constructs the Julia set of it using the escape-time method, discovering that the Julia set is fractal and it is on the x-axis symmetry. Using the conception of critical point, the quasi-sine Fibonacci function is generalized. Later the paper examines the dynamic behavior of the generalized quasi-sine Fibonacci function on critical points, and finds that the Mandelbrot set is also on the x-axis symmetry. Finally, it is discovered that there is a jumping phenomenon on the critical points.
NON-ARCHIMEDEAN SCALE INVARIANCE AND CANTOR SETS
Authors: RAUT SANTANU , DATTA DHURJATI PRASAD
Published: March 2010

The framework of a new scale invariant analysis on a Cantor set C ⊂ I = [0,1], presented recently1 is clarified and extended further. For an arbitrarily small ε > 0, elements [Formula: see text] in I\C satisfying [Formula: see text], x ∈ C together with an inversion rule are called relative infinitesimals relative to the scale ε. A non-archimedean absolute value [Formula: see text], ε → 0 is assigned to each such infinitesimal which is then shown to induce a non-archimedean structure in the full Cantor set C. A valued measure constructed using the new absolute value is shown to give rise to the finite Hausdorff measure of the set. The definition of differentiability on C in the non-archimedean sense is introduced. The associated Cantor function is shown to relate to the valuation on C which is then reinterpreated as a locally constant function in the extended non-archimedean space. The definitions and the constructions are verified explicitly on a Cantor set which is defined recursively from I deleting q number of open intervals each of length [Formula: see text] leaving out p numbers of closed intervals so that p + q = r.
DETECTING FRACTAL/MULTIFRACTAL AND ASYMMETRIC PROPERTIES IN AN ARTIFICIAL QUOTE-DRIVEN FINANCIAL MARKET
Authors: HE LING-YUN , ZHENG FENG
Published: March 2010

In this paper, we detected the fractal/multifractal and asymmetric properties in a simple financial market model which is an analog of the Ising model. We introduced the virtual market with heterogeneous agents characterized by agents with bounded rationality, by which we mean that agents only have local information, and a market maker who is responsible for market liquidity. To investigate the heterogeneity and psychological factors in real financial market, we designed the parameters of individual expectations of agents to this model. Applying fractal/multifractal and Zipf techniques, we conducted many simulations under different scenarios and then analyzed the generated time series of this virtual market. We acquired some nontrivial findings: first, the virtual price returns generated by our model display fractal and multifractal features; secondly, we found that the price have the asymmetric behaviors; finally, our findings have qualitative similarities with many empirical results, which imply that although our toy model is seemingly simple, it can generate complex dynamics and thus can be a useful tool to investigate complex market behaviors and phenomena.
POSTURE CONTROL OF A HUMANOID ROBOT WITH A COMPLIANT ANKLE JOINT
Authors: KIM MIN-SU , OH JUN HO
Published: March 2010

This paper contains an adjustment of the stiffness and control algorithm of an ankle joint to maintain the posture of a humanoid biped walking robot using an IMU (Inertial measurement Unit) in single support phase. One of the difficulties in maintaining the balance of a robot in single support phase involves the sole of the robot, which is easy to separate from the ground. This phenomenon is caused by an external disturbance or when the sole lands on uneven terrain. A method of adjusting the compliance in the ankle joint is introduced to reduce the tendency of this type of occurrence. In order to maintain the posture of a robot with a compliant ankle joint, a posture controller composed of a body balancing controller and a vibration reduction controller is adopted. A walking experiment is implemented using a compliant ankle joint and the posture controller. The proposed method is shown to enable rapid walking as well as walking on uneven terrain.
REAL-TIME BIPEDAL WALKING GAIT ADJUSTMENT MODES BASED ON A TRUNCATED FOURIER SERIES MODEL
Authors: YANG LIN , CHEW CHEE-MENG , POO AUN-NEOW , ZIELINSKA TERESA
Published: March 2010

This paper presents three basic bipedal walking gait adjustment modes: step-frequency, step-length and biped lower extremities' pattern adjustments. All the adjustment modes are based on a simple Fourier Series formulation named the Truncated Fourier Series (TFS) model which is newly proposed as a walking pattern generator. Making use of these three gait adjustment modes, bipedal walking can be modified in real-time according to the environment changes. In this paper, the developed gait adjustment modes have been studied by dynamic simulations. The results obtained show that stable walking on uneven terrains as well as human-like walking behaviors can be achieved.
DESIGN AND SIMULATION OF A 1-DOF ANTHROPOMORPHIC CLUTCHED ARM FOR HUMANOID ROBOTS
Authors: GU HAO , CECCARELLI MARCO , CARBONE GIUSEPPE
Published: March 2010

In this paper, problems for an anthropomorphic robot arm are approached for an application in a humanoid robot with the specific features of cost oriented design and user-friendly operation. One DOF solution is proposed by using a suitable combination of gearing systems, clutches, and linkages. Models and dynamic simulations are used both for designing the system and checking the operation feasibility.
NIKOLAI ALEKSANDROVICH BERNSTEIN — PIONEER IN CONTROL AND CYBERNETICS
Authors: VUKOBRATOVIĆ MIOMIR , JOVANOVIĆ MILOŠ
Published: March 2010

The article presents the facts about the pioneering research results of Professor Nikolai Bernstein in the area of man's voluntary movements. Relevant data are given concerning the priority of introducing the notion of feedback in the process of active voluntary human movements, twelve years before the known Wiener's publication. Bernstein demonstrated how the problems of general physiology can be explored in terms of the structural analysis of movements. He dealt with the most important aspects of the vital activity of higher organisms, and how this has been accorded the place in physiology and, when it developed, promised to be of the greatest value in cybernetics and in the exact mathematical formulation of a physiological theory of motor behavior. In his research, Bernstein modeled the function of the central nervous system and offered the cyberneticists a system for the development of analogs for experimental model-making that was not only incomparably richer than examples of internal stabilizing processes (blood-pressure, temperature and sugar-level regulating systems, for example), and also more complex than the systems of dynamic regulation that have already been studied in some depth, such as the mechanisms of ocular accommodation, or of the pupillary reaction.
GRAVITY AS A GAUGE THEORY OF TRANSLATIONS
Authors: MARTÍN-MARTÍN J. , TIEMBLO A.
Published: March 2010

The Poincaré group can be interpreted as the group of isometries of a Minkowskian space. This point of view suggests to consider the group of isometries of a given space as the suitable group to construct a gauge theory of gravity. We extend these ideas to the case of maximally symmetric spaces to reach a realistic theory including the presence of a cosmological constant. Introducing the concept of "minimal tetrads" we deduce Einstein gravity in the vacuum as a gauge theory of translations.
ON MODULI SPACE OF HIGGS Gp(2n, ℂ)-BUNDLES OVER A RIEMANN SURFACE
Authors: BISWAS INDRANIL , PAL SARBESWAR
Published: March 2010

Let X be a compact connected Riemann surface; the holomorphic cotangent bundle of X will be denoted by KX. Let [Formula: see text] denote the moduli space of semistable Higgs Gp (2n, ℂ)-bundles over X of fixed topological type. The complex variety [Formula: see text] has a natural holomorphic symplectic structure. On the other hand, for any ℓ ≥ 1, the Liouville symplectic from on the total space of KX defines a holomorphic symplectic structure on the Hilbert scheme Hilb ℓ(KX) parametrizing the zero-dimensional subschemes of KX. We relate the symplectic form on Hilb ℓ(KX) with the symplectic form on [Formula: see text].
A COMPLETE LIFT FOR SEMISPRAYS
Authors: BUCATARU IOAN , DAHL MATIAS F.
Published: March 2010

In this paper, we define a complete lift for semisprays. If S is a semispray on a manifold M, its complete lift is a new semispray Scon TM. The motivation for this lift is two-fold: First, geodesics for Sccorrespond to the Jacobi fields for S, and second, this complete lift generalizes and unifies previously known complete lifts for Riemannian metrics, affine connections, and regular Lagrangians. When S is a spray, we prove that the projective geometry of Scuniquely determines S. We also study how symmetries and constants of motions for S lift into symmetries and constants of motions for Sc.
NONHOLONOMIC DISTRIBUTIONS AND GAUGE MODELS OF EINSTEIN GRAVITY
Authors: VACARU SERGIU I.
Published: March 2010

For (2 + 2)-dimensional nonholonomic distributions, the physical information contained into a spacetime (pseudo) Riemannian metric can be encoded equivalently into new types of geometric structures and linear connections constructed as nonholonomic deformations of the Levi–Civita connection. Such deformations and induced geometric/physical objects are completely determined by a prescribed metric tensor. Reformulation of the Einstein equations in nonholonomic variables (tetrads and new connections, for instance, with constant coefficient curvatures and/or Yang–Mills like potentials) reveals hidden geometric and rich quantum structures. It is shown how the Einstein gravity theory can be redefined equivalently as certain gauge models on nonholonomic affine and/or de Sitter frame bundles. We speculate on possible applications of the geometry of nonholonomic distributions with associated nonlinear connections in classical and quantum gravity.
A CHARACTERIZATION OF COMPACTIFICATIONS OF LOCAL COMPACT HAUSDORFF SPACE
Authors: ELMALI CEREN SULTAN , KOPUZLU ABDULLAH , UĞUR TAMER
Published: March 2010

It is known that different compactification methods are applied to different spaces. In this paper, it is examined some relations among spaces obtained by being applied different compactification methods (One-point compactification, Stone–Cech compactification, Wallman compactification, Fan–Gottesman compactification) to local compact Hausdorff space and these compactifications are characterized with the inequality αX ≅ wX ≅ X* ≤ ⋯ ≤ βX by the addition of lindelöf conditions to studied space. Moreover, it is found maximum and minimum element of the class of all compactifications of the space. We also give an example to illustrate how to apply mathematical result to an application of compactification in physics.
SQL databases v. NoSQL databases
Authors: Stonebraker Michael
Published: March 2010

The
Communications
Web site, http://cacm.acm.org, features more than a dozen bloggers in the BLOG@CACM community. In each issue of
Communications
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Michael Stonebraker considers several performance arguments in favor of NoSQL databases---and finds them insufficient.
Functional logic programming
Authors: Antoy Sergio , Hanus Michael
Published: March 2010

Combining the paradigm features of both logic and functional programming makes for some powerful implementations.
Q&A: Systematic thinking
Authors: Hoffmann Leah
Published: March 2010

Andrew S. Tanenbaum talks about MINIX, microkernels, and electronic voting systems.
Capstone programming courses considered harmful
Authors: Wright Keith
Published: March 2010

When Edgster Dijkstra wrote his paper
Go To Statements Considered Harmful
, programmers were lost in millions of lines of spaghetti code. Now programmers have lost their way again---this time amidst thousands of unread resumes. Between 2000 and 2004, the percentage of incoming computer science freshmen fell by 60%. Drop rates of 30--50% are common. Results are similar for the other computing related fields including Information Systems, Software Engineering, and Information Technology. Many of these degree programs, which H.A. Simon referred to collectively as the Artificial Sciences, have failed or are about to fail.

This loss of student interest in artificial sciences has been blamed in part on the impression that they require extraordinary programming skills. Computing journals perpetuate these notions. For example, in capstone (senior level) computer science courses, students should design and code a 'real world' application. This article is an opposing viewpoint.
WWW recycling for a better world
Authors: Ferretti Stefano , Furini Marco , Palazzi Claudio E. , Roccetti Marco , Salomoni Paola
Published: March 2010

Web 2.0 is affecting the structure of our society by creating new spaces of freedom, giving voice to any opinion, easing interpersonal relationships, and encouraging the creation of collaborating collectivities. Technologies such as blog, podcasting, wiki, and news feeds have the power to transform every user from a mere information consumer to a potential producer, from a spectator to an actor. The success of YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, and Wikipedia is under everybody's eyes. Generally speaking, Web 2.0 is seen as a powerful tool that, by exploiting Internet technologies, supplies services to the society, helping the entire socio-cultural system to develop and to move toward a democratic direction.

Unfortunately, this imagery is partially distorted: first, Web 2.0 and Internet technologies are differently accessible by different parts of the society and, second, as many sociologists pointed out, their applications often appeal to users' egoistic purposes and self-celebration spirit. Although we cannot dismiss the value of current Web 2.0 applications, we are convinced there is a much more valuable potential that has not been exploited yet. By comparing the immense benefits that Web 2.0 could bring to the whole society, with its factual employment, one could provocatively change the meaning of the acronym WWW into World Wide
Waste.
We are hence convinced that it is necessary to redesign the utilization paradigm of Web 2.0 and, in general, of the Internet in order to recycle unused parts of Web 2.0 into altruistic bricks that could be appropriately rerouted and composed for alternative, unselfish employment.
A Reexamination of MRD-Based Word Sense Disambiguation
Authors: Baldwin Timothy , Kim Sunam , Bond Francis , Fujita Sanae , Martinez David , Tanaka Takaaki
Published: March 2010

This article reconsiders the task of MRD-based word sense disambiguation, in extending the basic Lesk algorithm to investigate the impact on WSD performance of different tokenization schemes and methods of definition extension. In experimentation over the Hinoki Sensebank and the Japanese Senseval-2 dictionary task, we demonstrate that sense-sensitive definition extension over hyponyms, hypernyms, and synonyms, combined with definition extension and word tokenization leads to WSD accuracy above both unsupervised and supervised baselines. In doing so, we demonstrate the utility of ontology induction and establish new opportunities for the development of baseline unsupervised WSD methods.
Case Studies of Liberal Arts Computer Science Programs
Authors: Baldwin D. , Brady A. , Danyluk A. , Adams J. , Lawrence A.
Published: March 2010

Many undergraduate liberal arts institutions offer computer science majors. This article illustrates how quality computer science programs can be realized in a wide variety of liberal arts settings by describing and contrasting the actual programs at five liberal arts colleges: Williams College, Kalamazoo College, the State University of New York at Geneseo, Spelman College, and Calvin College. While the example programs differ in size, mission, and the nature of their home institutions, all take advantage of their liberal arts setting to offer rich computer science educations. Comparing these programs to each other and to the latest ACM/IEEE Computer Society computer science curriculum shows that the liberal arts programs are distinguishable from the ACM/Computer Society recommendations, but at the same time are strong undergraduate majors.
Third international workshop on software product management -- IWSPM'09
Authors: Gorschek Tony , Fricker Samuel , Brinkkemper Sjaak , Ebert Christof
Published: March 2010

Software product management steers the success of a product in all its lifecycle stages by thoughtful application of planning, coordination, and control.

The third international workshop on software product management (IWSPM´09) was held in conjunction with the International Conference on Requirements Engineering (RE'09) in Atlanta USA. The aim was to bring researchers and industry practitioners together to discuss the area and unique challenges of software and technology product management. Selected challenges put forward by accepted papers from both industry and academia were analyzed. The session discussions focused on identifying future needs for research, the relevance of which was assured by good industry presence at the workshop. The workshop homepage can be found http://2009.iwspm.org
Modeling of state transition rules and its application
Authors: Bandyopadhyay Anup Kumar
Published: March 2010

A state transition rule is viewed as a cause and effect relationship. An example is selected from the common sense world. Six different instances of this relationship are enumerated. A temporal logic based on observation is proposed. This logic is used to model the enumerated instances. Assuming some necessary properties of a transition rule only two relevant models are selected. One of them ensures that the precondition is necessary where the other guarantees its sufficiency. Noting these two characteristics the first one is opted for proving the safety property where the second is used to prove progress. We have considered Peterson's two process mutual exclusion algorithm as an illustrative example
Teaching software engineering
Authors: Dahiya Deepak
Published: March 2010

In teaching software engineering, it is a major challenge to integrate applied methodology and theory into the practice of software development. Today teaching a course in software engineering involves a theoretical approach with white board and doing a project at the end of the course. Teaching Software engineering as a course involves many disciplines and requires delivering lectures accompanied by lecture demos and hands on lab sessions to accompany individual constituent topics or areas that form the bricks and mortar of this course. Only when the bricks and mortar of software engineering have delivered a solid foundation, is it then that software engineering as a course will be delivered in a true and meaningful sense. This paper presents a method to teach Software Engineering using the applied approach that the author designed and successfully used
Testing functional requirements using B model specifications
Authors: Gupta Amit , Bhatia Rajesh
Published: March 2010

Testing is very important part of software development. Almost 80% software fails because of the improper or inefficient testing. Testing is performed by different types of strategies. Generally testing is performed on code, but if the software can be tested in the earlier phases then most of the errors can be eliminated and can be stopped from propagating to next phase. Thus there is a need to explore testing possibilities in earlier phases.

This paper present a novel requirement based testing approach that can fix errors in initial phase. Formal Specification languages play a vital role in software testing. Formal models provide a precise specification of the system, and can be used as a vehicle for driving the development process. To perform requirement based testing, we need a formal language that can deal with the requirement specification efficiently.

Many researchers have proposed various approaches to generate test cases from formal specifications. These approaches include test case generation from various state based languages like Z, VDM and B specifications.

In this paper we proposed a technique that can provide better coverage of requirements as compared to other approaches. For maximizing the coverage of requirements in our model, we annotate our specifications with requirement identifiers, which help in later stages to detect which requirements are covered and which are yet to be tested. Test cases are generated by extracting invariants and post conditions from our specification, and are transformed in a generalized form. Using test selection criteria, we can cover all parts of our model and generates test cases for each of our test objective
Process algebraic support for web service composition
Authors: Ripon Shamim H.
Published: March 2010

Web services technology provides a platform on which we can develop distributed services. The interoperability among these services is achieved by various standard protocols. In recent years, several researches suggested that process algebras provide a satisfactory assistance to the whole process of web services development. Business transactions, on the other hand, involve the coordination and interaction between multiple partners. With the emergence of web services, business transactions are conducted using these services. The coordination among the business processes is crucial, so is the handling of faults that can arise at any stage of a transaction. Compensation is an error recovery mechanism to handle faults in business transactions. Compensating CSP (cCSP) is a language defined to model business transactions within the framework of standard CSP process algebra. The language defines a transaction as a process and has the constructs for orchestration of compensations. In this short note, we report a case study showing how cCSP can be used to model business transactions. We also show a mechanical verification technique to verify theoretical properties of the language