bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Reappraisal of the sequence stratigraphy of the Humber Group of the UK Central Graben
Authors: Sansom P. J.
Published: May 2011

Deposition of the Callovian–Ryazanian Humber Group of the UK Central Graben occurred during rifting and long-term relative sea-level rise, which acted to suppress the formation of eustatically forced Exxon-type sequence boundaries. The superposition of highly variable halokinetically controlled subsidence means that classic, passive-margin derived sequence stratigraphic models are not appropriate to describe stratigraphic evolution in this rift setting. The sequence stratigraphy of the Humber Group has been re-evaluated using a transgressive–regressive sequence model, where maximum regressive surfaces are employed as sequence bounding surfaces. The Humber Group comprises two megasequences which reveal distinct phases of evolution of the basin. The latest Callovian–Kimmeridgian megasequence comprises a conformable sequence stack which lacks significant internal unconformities and records progressive marine flooding and overall backstepping onto the basin flanks during a phase of active rifting. The Volgian–Ryazanian megasequence is condensed and highly fragmentary due to punctuation by a number of unconformities which are consistently recognizable throughout the basin. The onset of this change in architectural style corresponds to the oldest unconformity at the base of the Volgian–Ryazanian succession, termed the Base Volgian–Ryazanian Unconformity, of latest Kimmeridgian to earliest Volgian age. The patterns of erosion of the Callovian–Kimmeridgian megasequence and the intra Volgian–Ryazanian unconformities record the effects of dramatic redistribution of underlying salt accompanied by probable uplift of the Forties–Montrose High and J Ridge, resulting in major modification of the basin morphology and the severing of possible earlier links with the Fisher Bank Basin. The kinematics of this event are equivocal, but it is possible that restricted Volgian–Ryazanian depocentres resulted from localized salt collapse rather than basement extension. Widespread erosion of Callovian–Kimmeridgian Humber Group sediments may have occurred in some areas where Volgian–Ryazanian Kimmeridge Clay deposits now overlie pre-Jurassic strata, and exploration models must incorporate the effects of Volgian reconfiguration in order to accurately predict reservoir distribution.
The Jasmine discovery, Central North Sea, UKCS
Authors: Archer S. , Ward S. , Menad S. , Shahim I. , Grant N. , Sloan H. , Cole A.
Published: May 2011

The Jasmine Field is located in blocks 30/06 and 30/07a on the J Ridge, the southeastern extension of the Forties–Montrose High, which separates the eastern and western basins of the UK Central North Sea. The field was discovered in 2006 and is close to two ConocoPhillips producing fields, Jade and Judy, which serve as useful local analogues. The main
West Limb
structure is a turtle-back faulted anticline NW of the Joanne salt pillow. The primary reservoir is Triassic in age and consists of stacked fluvial sandstones of the Joanne Member of the Skagerrak Formation. The HPHT exploration wells 30/06-6 and geological sidetrack 30/06-6Z discovered a rich gas condensate column of 2300 ft, some 1100 ft deeper than the mapped independent structural closure of the prospect, and achieved good flow rates on test. To appraise the discovery and assess the potential for significant additional volumes in an adjacent downfaulted terrace, a programme comprising a main well and two sidetrack wells was initiated in 2007. Appraisal well 30/06-7 discovered a 550 ft hydrocarbon column in the
Northern Terrace
with a hydrocarbon–water contact shallower than that observed in the West Limb, thereby proving structural compartmentalization between the two fault blocks. Good flow rates were achieved from a drill stem test in mechanical sidetrack well 30/06-7Z. Sidetracks 30/06-7Y and 30/06-7X were drilled to confirm the northwestern extension of the West Limb discovery and to test the northern extent of the Northern Terrace accumulation, respectively. This programme has reduced volumetric uncertainty but the trapping mechanism and the ultimate extent of the Jasmine accumulation remain unknown. Comprehensive data acquisition throughout the exploration and appraisal phases, including drill stem testing, core recovery and seismic data reprocessing, has facilitated a detailed reservoir characterization programme. Jasmine represents a significant new high pressure/high temperature resource in the mature Central North Sea and is currently undergoing development planning.
Managing the start-up of a fractured oil reservoir: development of the Clair field, West of Shetland
Authors: Witt A. J. , Fowler S. R. , Kjelstadli R. M. , Draper L. F. , Barr D. , McGarrity J. P.
Published: May 2011

The Clair oilfield was discovered in 1977 and began production in 2005. It is a heterogeneous fractured sandstone reservoir with an estimated STOIIP of
c
. 1.5 billion barrels in the Phase 1 development area. An extended appraisal programme was required to assess reservoir deliverability, which is controlled by the distribution of natural fractures. Development drilling increased the understanding of the fracture system, through acquisition of conventional core, open-hole logging, drilling mud-loss recording, production logging and well test transient analysis. These data revealed a complex fracture system of conductive faults and background joints. Post-production formation pressure measurements showed greater lateral and vertical connectivity than would be expected from matrix and fluid properties alone. However, large pressure differences were encountered close to or across features mappable at a seismic scale. Closed fractures or sealing faults can form baffles between compartments, and conductive faults or fractures allow rapid pressure communication. In some cases the connection path or barrier can be identified with seismically mapped features. When the field was put onto water injection, one year after start-up, a key concern was the degree of imbibition of water from the fractures to the matrix. Despite the observed pressure connectivity, water breakthrough did not take place until 2007. Most producers have completions designed to permit zonal water shut-off. A successful intervention was carried out in early 2008, after a production logging run had demonstrated water entry at the toe of a high-angle well. The crestal Core segment of the development benefits from a permanent 4D seismic array of ocean-bottom cables. In 2007 the first permanent monitor survey was acquired and processing gave indications of a 4D response. These 4D data are improving the dynamic reservoir understanding and providing valuable spatial context to the well results.
Predicting production behaviour from deep HPHT Triassic reservoirs and the impact of sedimentary architecture on recovery
Authors: Kape S. , Diaz De Souza O. , Bushnaq I. , Hayes M. , Turner I.
Published: May 2011

The Triassic Skaggerak Formation is one of the main reservoirs in the high pressure–high temperature province of the North Sea. Production to date has come from fields located on the intra-basinal highs within the Central Graben, between 10 000 and 15 000 ft TVDss. Undrilled prospectivity has been recognized in structural traps in the deeper parts of the Central Graben up to 20 000 ft TVDss, yet reservoir effectiveness remains a key risk. Therefore, in order to optimize future exploration, appraisal and development programmes, it is necessary to consider the likely reservoir performance and production behaviour of these deeper Skaggerak prospects. The Skagerrak Formation comprises two main reservoir sandstones, the Judy Member and the overlying Joanne Member, separated by a thick shale interval, the Julius Member mudstone (

Goldsmith
et al.
2003

). The two reservoirs show markedly different production behaviour despite their apparently similar character on wireline logs. Integration of the production behaviour from the Jade and Judy fields with the sedimentology has enabled the causes of this different production behaviour to be better understood, allowing the controls on reservoir flow to be modelled in both a static and dynamic environment. The understanding of the reservoir behaviour in the currently producing fields has been carried through to a predictive phase of simulation and modelling to determine the range of production behaviours expected for a deeper exploration portfolio. A clear porosity–depth trend exists within the Skagerrak Formation and this has been used to translate the robust history-matched reservoir models from the producing fields to the depth of the prospects. Sensitivity to fluid, porosity–depth trend and permeability of the deep reservoirs have been tested, and a range of likely production rates and behaviours established.
Tectonic history and petroleum geology of the Russian Arctic Shelves: an overview
Authors: Drachev S. S. , Malyshev N. A. , Nikishin A. M.
Published: May 2011

The Eastern Barents, Kara, Laptev, East Siberian seas and the western Chukchi Sea occupy a large part of the Eurasian Arctic epicontinental shelf in the Russian Arctic. Recent studies have shown that this huge region consists of over 40 sedimentary basins of variable age and genesis which are thought to bear significant undiscovered hydrocarbon resources. Important tectonic events controlling the structure and petroleum geology of the basins are the Caledonian collision and orogeny followed by Late Devonian to Early Carboniferous rifting, Late Palaeozoic Baltica–Siberia collision and Uralian orogeny, Triassic and Early Jurassic rifting, Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous Canada Basin opening accompanied by closure of the South Anyui Ocean, the Late Mesozoic Verkhoyansk–Brookian orogeny and Cenozoic opening of the Eurasia Oceanic Basin. The majority of the sedimentary basins were formed and developed in a rift and post-rift setting and later modified through a series of structural inversions. Using available regional seismic lines correlated with borehole data, onshore geology in areas with no exploration drilling, and recent Arctic-wide magnetic, bathymetry and gravity grids, we provide more confident characterization of the regional structural elements of the Russian Arctic shelf, and constrain the timing of basin formation, structural styles, lithostratigraphy and possible hydrocarbon systems and petroleum play elements in frontier areas.
Offset and curvature of the Novaya Zemlya fold-and-thrust belt, Arctic Russia
Authors: Scott R. A. , Howard J. P. , Guo L. , Schekoldin R. , Pease V.
Published: May 2011

The Novaya Zemlya archipelago contains a predominantly west-vergent fold-and-thrust belt that separates two contrasting hydrocarbon basins with enigmatic subsidence histories. On the foreland side is the deep depression of the eastern Barents Shelf that hosts the Shtokman gas condensate discovery; on the hinterland side is the South Kara Basin, an offshore continuation of the gas-dominated northern West Siberian Basin. Much of the compressional deformation recorded in Novaya Zemlya appears to have been later than the onset of subsidence in adjacent basins, and may therefore be expected to have had a potentially significant influence on hydrocarbon systems within them. Two characteristics of Novaya Zemlya immediately stand out on any topographic map: the
c
. 600 km westward offset compared with the remainder of the Uralian Orogen and the plan-view curvature (convex towards the Barents Shelf). Any regional tectonic model developed for the Novaya Zemlya fold-and-thrust belt must be able to explain these first-order features, and a wide range of mechanisms, geometries and timings has been proposed in the literature. However, as far as we are aware, there has been no previous attempt to link the geometry of structures on the archipelago with a potential mechanism that explains their curvature in plan view. Using field observations, information on geological maps and interpretation of satellite imagery, we demonstrate the link between structural geometries in Novaya Zemlya and the basins of the adjacent eastern Barents Shelf. We find no evidence to support previous interpretations of the fold-and-thrust belt as an orocline (bending of an originally straight deformation belt) or a far-travelled thin-skinned allochthon, and conclude that the offset from the remainder of the Uralian Orogen is a primary feature that results from an original embayment on the margin of Baltica.
A regional overview of the exploration potential of the Middle East: a case study in the application of play fairway risk mapping techniques
Authors: Fraser A. J.
Published: May 2011

The Middle East is the world's most prolific petroleum province, containing the world's top five countries in terms of oil reserves and four of the top 10 oil producers. This success is largely due to the stacked nature of what are essentially very simple play systems with multiple carbonate platform and deltaic clastic reservoirs, widespread evaporitic seals, world class source rocks and the overprint of very large compressional anticlines in both fold belt and foreland settings. As with most working petroleum systems, all areas of the Middle East are not equally endowed with petroleum resources and future potential. Using an analysis of the prolific Upper Jurassic ‘Arab’ play fairway of the Middle East, the application of play fairway risk mapping techniques is demonstrated.
New compilation of top basement and basement thickness for the Norwegian continental shelf reveals the segmentation of the passive margin system
Authors: Ebbing J. , Olesen O.
Published: May 2011

We present the first complete top basement map for the passive margin system of the Norwegian continental shelf, which covers the Northern North Sea, the mid-Norwegian margin system, and the western Barents Sea. This compilation is based largely on a review and synthesis of previously published portions on detailed depth to basement and 3D modelling studies, which in turn are based on a wealth of seismic profiles, commercial and scientific drilling on the shelf and mainland Norway, petrophysical sampling and a dense coverage of gravity and aeromagnetic data. The top basement defines the base of the sedimentary strata. Sedimentary thickness is larger than 14 km on the mid-Norwegian margin and the Barents Sea, but varies strongly along the different segments of the margin. In the northeastern North Sea, the Danish–Norwegian Basin, and over the Trøndelag Platform the top basement does not exceed 8 km in depth. The top basement map highlights the transition between the different segments of the Norwegian margin, between different basement domains (e.g. Caledonian and Precambrian basement), and shows a clear correlation with the normal faults mapped on the margin and prolongated from onshore Norway into the offshore realm. The distribution of basement domains provides a new regional understanding of the evolution of the entire passive margin system. We also present an updated Moho depth compilation, which allows calculation of a thickness of crystalline basement map for the entire margin. The basement thickness map enhances differences in crustal architecture for the different margin segments and shows extremely thin crust (less than 12.5 km) for large areas on the mid-Norwegian margin and westernmost Barents Sea, intermediate thin crust (15–20 km) below the Viking Graben, but moderately thin crust (20–30 km) below the Norwegian–Danish Basin and the remaining part of the Barents Sea.
Sedimentology, sandstone provenance and palaeodrainage on the eastern Rockall Basin margin: evidence from the Pb isotopic composition of detrital K-feldspar
Authors: Tyrrell S. , Souders A. K. , Haughton P. D. W. , Daly J. S. , Shannon P. M.
Published: May 2011

The Rockall Basin, west of Ireland, is a frontier area for hydrocarbon exploration, but currently the age and location of sand fairways through the basin are poorly known. A recently developed provenance approach based on
in-situ
Pb isotopic analysis of single K-feldspar grains by laser ablation multi-collector inductively coupled mass spectrometry (LA-MC-ICPMS) offers advantages over other provenance techniques, particularly when applied to regional palaeodrainage issues. K-feldspar is a relatively common, usually first-cycle framework mineral in sandstones and its origin is typically linked to that of the quartz grains in arkosic and sub-arkosic rocks. Consequently, in contrast to other techniques, the Pb-in-K-feldspar tool characterizes a significant proportion of the framework grains. New Pb isotopic data from K-feldspars in putative Permo-Triassic and Middle Jurassic sandstones in Well 12/2-1z (the Dooish gas condensate discovery) on the eastern margin of the Irish Rockall Basin are reported. These data suggest that three isotopically distinct basement sources supplied the bulk of the K-feldspar in the reservoir sandstones and that the relative contribution of these sources varied through time. Archaean and early Proterozoic rocks (including elements of the Lewisian Complex and its offshore equivalents), to the immediate east, NE and north of the eastern Rockall Margin, are the likely sources. More distal sourcelands to the NW cannot be ruled out but there was no significant input from southern sources, such as the Irish Massif. These data, together with previously published regional Pb isotopic data, highlight the important role played by old, near and far-field Archaean–Proterozoic basement highs in contributing sediment to NE Atlantic margin basins. The Irish Massif appears to have acted as a significant, but inert, drainage divide from the Permo-Triassic to the Late Jurassic and hence younger, Avalonian and Variscan sand sources appear to have been less important on the Irish Atlantic Margin.
Natural fractures in some US shales and their importance for gas production
Authors: Gale Julia F. W. , Holder Jon
Published: May 2011

Shale gas reservoirs are commonly produced using hydraulic fracture treatments. Microseismic monitoring of hydraulically induced fracture growth shows that hydraulic fractures sometimes propagate away from the present-day maximum horizontal stress direction. One likely cause is that natural opening-mode fractures, which are present in most mudrocks, act as weak planes that reactivate during hydraulic fracturing. Knowledge of the geometry and intensity of the natural fracture system and the likelihood of reactivation is therefore necessary for effective hydraulic fracture treatment design. Changing effective stress and concomitant diagenetic evolution of the host-rock controls fracture initiation and key fracture attributes such as intensity, spatial distribution, openness and strength. Thus, a linked structural-diagenesis approach is needed to predict the fracture types likely to be present, their key attributes and an assessment of whether they will impact hydraulic fracture treatments significantly. Steep (>75°), narrow (<0.05 mm), calcite-sealed fractures are described in the Barnett Shale, north-central Texas, the Woodford Formation, west Texas and the New Albany Shale in the Illinois Basin. These fractures are weak because calcite cement grows mostly over non-carbonate grains and there is no crystal bond between cement and wall rock. In bending tests, samples containing natural fractures have half the tensile strength of those without and always break along the fracture plane. By contrast, samples with quartz-sealed fractures do not break along the fracture plane. The subcritical crack index of Barnett Shale is >100, indicating that the fractures are clustered. These fractures, especially where present in clusters, are likely to divert hydraulic fracture strands. Early, sealed, compacted fractures, fractures associated with deformation around concretions and sealed, bedding-parallel fractures also occur in many mudrocks but are unlikely to impact hydraulic fracture treatments significantly because they are not widely developed. There is no evidence of natural open microfractures in the samples studied.
A study of the discovery process in 802.11 networks
Authors: Castignani German , Arcia Andrés , Montavont Nicolas
Published: May 2011

Today wireless communications are a synonym of mobility and resource sharing. These characteristics, proper of both infrastructure and ad-hoc networks, heavily relies on a general resource discovery process. The discovery process, being an unavoidable procedure, has to be fast and reliable to mitigate the effect of network disruptions. In this article, by means of simulations and a real testbed, our contribution is twofold. First we assess the discovery process focusing on the values of IEEE 802.11 timers: MinChannelTime and MaxChannelTime. Then, varying these timers, we propose and evaluate an adaptive discovery strategy from which we obtain notable improvements over a fixed timers strategy.
Polynomial computation of exact correlated equilibrium in compact games
Authors: Jiang Albert Xin , Leyton-Brown Kevin
Published: May 2011

In a landmark paper, Papadimitriou and Roughgarden described a polynomial-time algorithm ("Ellipsoid Against Hope") for computing sample correlated equilibria of concisely-represented games. Recently, Stein, Parrilo and Ozdaglar showed that this algorithm can fail to find an exact correlated equilibrium, but can be easily modified to efficiently compute approximate correlated equilibria. It remained an open problem to determine whether the algorithm can be modified to compute an exact correlated equilibrium. In a new paper, we showed that it can, presenting a variant of the Ellipsoid Against Hope algorithm that guarantees the polynomial-time identification of exact correlated equilibrium. Our new algorithm differs from the original primarily in its use of a separation oracle that produces cuts corresponding to pure-strategy profiles. As a result, we no longer face the numerical precision issues encountered by the original approach, and both the resulting algorithm and its analysis are considerably simplified. Our new separation oracle can be understood as a derandomization of Papadimitriou and Roughgarden's original separation oracle via the method of conditional expectations.
Linear solvers for nonlinear games
Authors: Wright James R. , Jiang Albert Xin , Leyton-Brown Kevin
Published: May 2011

Nash equilibria of two-player games are much easier to compute in practice than those of
n
-player games, even though the two problems have the same asymptotic complexity. We used a recent constructive reduction to solve general games using a two-player algorithm. However, the reduction increases the game size too much to be practically usable. An open problem is to find a more compact constructive reduction, which might make this approach feasible.
Optimal dynamic mechanism design via a virtual VCG mechanism
Authors: Kakade Sham M. , Lobel Ilan , Nazerzadeh Hamid
Published: May 2011

We consider the problem of designing revenue maximizing mechanisms for dynamic settings. We propose a simple optimal mechanism for rather general "separable" settings. The proposed mechanism is implemented via an affine transformation of a dynamic VCG mechanism.
Scalable SQL and NoSQL data stores
Authors: Cattell Rick
Published: May 2011

In this paper, we examine a number of SQL and socalled "NoSQL" data stores designed to scale simple OLTP-style application loads over many servers. Originally motivated by Web 2.0 applications, these systems are designed to scale to thousands or millions of users doing updates as well as reads, in contrast to traditional DBMSs and data warehouses. We contrast the new systems on their data model, consistency mechanisms, storage mechanisms, durability guarantees, availability, query support, and other dimensions. These systems typically sacrifice some of these dimensions, e.g. database-wide transaction consistency, in order to achieve others, e.g. higher availability and scalability.
Existence and Uniqueness of Generalized Solutions to a Telegraph Equation with an Integral Boundary Condition via Galerkin′s Method
Authors: Guezane-Lakoud Assia , Dabas Jaydev , Bahuguna Dhirendra
Published: May 2011

We consider a telegraph equation with nonlocal boundary conditions, and using the application of Galerkin′s method we established the existence and uniqueness of a generalized solution.
Stromal Niche Cells Protect Early Leukemic FLT3-ITD+ Progenitor Cells against First-Generation FLT3 Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors
Authors: Parmar Amanda , Marz Stefanie , Rushton Sally , Holzwarth Christina , Lind Katarina , Kayser Sabine , Döhner Konstanze , Peschel Christian , Oostendorp Robert A.J. , Götze Katharina S.
Published: May 2011

Targeting constitutively activated FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 [(FLT3); FLT3-ITD] with tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) leads to clearance of blasts in the periphery but not in the bone marrow, suggesting a protective effect of the marrow niche on leukemic stem cells. In this study, we examined the effect of stromal niche cells on CD34+ progenitors from patients with FLT3-ITD+ or wild-type FLT3 (FLT3-WT) AML treated with the TKIs SU5614 or sorafenib. TKIs effectively and specifically inhibited FLT3 and increased the fraction of undivided progenitors in both FLT3-ITD+ and FLT3-WT samples. Treatment with SU5614 and sorafenib also reduced the number of mature leukemic progenitors, whereas contact with stroma protected against this cell loss. In contrast, primitive long-term progenitors from both FLT3-ITD+ and FLT3-WT AML were resistant to TKIs. Additional contact with niche cells significantly expanded long-term FLT3-ITD+ but not FLT3-WT progenitors in the presence of SU5614 but not that of sorafenib. Thus, TKIs with first-generation inhibitors fail to eradicate early leukemic stem/progenitor cells in FLT3-ITD+ AML. Further, we defined a specific interaction between FLT3-ITD+ progenitors and niche cells that enables the maintenance of leukemic progenitors in the presence of TKI. Collectively, our findings suggest that molecular therapy may have unpredicted effects on leukemic progenitors, underscoring the necessity of developing strategies to selectively eliminate the malignant stem cell clone. Cancer Res; 71(13); 4696–706. ©2011 AACR.
Phenotypic Variation of Fluoride Responses between Inbred Strains of Mice
Authors: Yan Dong , Willett Thomas L. , Gu Xiao-Mei , Martinez-Mier E. Angeles , Sardone Laura , McShane Lauren , Grynpas Marc , Everett Eric T.
Published: May 2011

Excessive systemic exposure to fluoride (F) can lead to disturbances in bone homeostasis and dental enamel development. We have previously shown strain-specific responses to F in the development of dental fluorosis (DF) and in bone formation/mineralization. The current study was undertaken to further investigate F responsive variations in bone metabolism and to determine possible relationships with DF susceptibility. Seven-week-old male mice from FVB/NJ, C57BL/6J, C3H/HeJ, A/J, 129S1/SvImJ, AKR/J, DBA/2J, and BALB/cByJ inbred strains were exposed to NaF (0 or 50 ppm as F–) in drinking water for 60 days. Sera were collected for F, Ca, Mg, PO4, iPTH, sRANKL, and ALP levels. Bone marrow cells were subjected to ex vivo cell culture for osteoclast potential and CFU colony assays (CFU-fibroblast, CFU-osteoblast, CFU-erythrocyte/granulocyte/macrophage/megakaryocyte, CFU-granulocyte/macrophage, CFU-macrophage, and CFU-granulocyte). Femurs and vertebrae were subjected to micro-CT analyses, biomechanical testing, and F, Mg, and Ca content assays. DF was evaluated using quantitative fluorescence and clinical criteria. Strain-specific responses to F were observed for DF, serum studies, ex vivo cell culture studies, and bone quality. Among the strains, there were no patterns or significant correlations between DF severity and the actions of F on bone homeostasis (serum studies, ex vivo assays, or bone quality parameters). The genetic background continues to play a role in the actions of F on tooth enamel development and bone homeostasis. F exposure led to variable phenotypic responses between strains involving dental enamel development and bone metabolism.
Clinical Features and Treatment of Pediatric Somatotropinoma: Case Study of an Aggressive Tumor due to a New AIP Mutation and Extensive Literature Review
Authors: Personnier Claire , Cazabat Laure , Bertherat Jérôme , Gaillard Stephan , Souberbielle Jean-Claude , Habrand Jean Louis , Dufour Christelle , Clauser Eric , SainteRose Christian , Polak Michel
Published: May 2011

Context: Pediatric somatotropinoma is uncommon but usually more aggressive than in adults, creating therapeutic challenges. No treatment guidelines are available. Objectives: To describe the features of pediatric somatotropinomas and to assess therapeutic strategies based on an extensive literature review. Design: We describe a pediatric case of aggressive somatotropinoma with an AIP mutation. We identified 137 pediatric somatotropinoma cases published between 1981 and 2010, and found 41 cases with AIP mutations in the main review. Results: We found a slight male preponderance (59%). Median age was 9 years at symptom onset and 14 years at diagnosis. Macroadenomas accounted for 90% of the tumors; 2/3 of the children had hyperprolactinemia at diagnosis. The first-line treatment was pharmacotherapy in one third and surgery in 2/3 of the patients. Pegvisomant was used in 7 patients and produced significant improvement in 4. The male preponderance was higher in the subgroup with AIP mutations. Mutations leading to severe protein abnormalities were more common than reported in adults. Conclusion: Higher invasiveness and tumor volume in pediatric somatotropinomas require complex treatment combinations, which produce variable results. Pegvisomant is an effective drug whose usefulness in children remains to be determined. Genetic screening, particularly for AIP mutations, should be performed routinely.
Dementia Staging across Three Different Methods
Authors: Balsis Steve , Miller Tyler M. , Benge Jared F. , Doody Rachelle S.
Published: May 2011

Background/Aims: To investigate the effectiveness of an item response theory (IRT)-based approach to staging dementia. Methods: IRT estimates of dementia severity in 1,485 patients were used to stage dementia and then compared to dementia staging using the classic Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR) algorithm and the Sum of the Boxes (SOB) approach. Results: Measurement imprecision was highest when dementia stages were determined based on the classic algorithm (48% of sample), lower when they were determined based on the SOB approach (12%), and lowest when determined using IRT-based staging (0%). Conclusion: The classic CDR algorithm weights boxes largely according to clinical experience. The SOB approach weights all boxes equally. The IRT approach weights boxes according to their actual ability to identify dementia severity and therefore provides the most precise information for staging dementia.
Global Adaptation in Networks of Selfish Components: Emergent Associative Memory at the System Scale
Authors: Watson Richard A. , Mills Rob , Buckley C. L.
Published: May 2011

In some circumstances complex adaptive systems composed of numerous self-interested agents can self-organize into structures that enhance global adaptation, efficiency, or function. However, the general conditions for such an outcome are poorly understood and present a fundamental open question for domains as varied as ecology, sociology, economics, organismic biology, and technological infrastructure design. In contrast, sufficient conditions for artificial neural networks to form structures that perform collective computational processes such as associative memory/recall, classification, generalization, and optimization are well understood. Such global functions within a single agent or organism are not wholly surprising, since the mechanisms (e.g., Hebbian learning) that create these neural organizations may be selected for this purpose; but agents in a multi-agent system have no obvious reason to adhere to such a structuring protocol or produce such global behaviors when acting from individual self-interest. However, Hebbian learning is actually a very simple and fully distributed habituation or positive feedback principle. Here we show that when self-interested agents can modify how they are affected by other agents (e.g., when they can influence which other agents they interact with), then, in adapting these inter-agent relationships to maximize their own utility, they will necessarily alter them in a manner homologous with Hebbian learning. Multi-agent systems with adaptable relationships will thereby exhibit the same system-level behaviors as neural networks under Hebbian learning. For example, improved global efficiency in multi-agent systems can be explained by the inherent ability of associative memory to generalize by idealizing stored patterns and/or creating new combinations of subpatterns. Thus distributed multi-agent systems can spontaneously exhibit adaptive global behaviors in the same sense, and by the same mechanism, as with the organizational principles familiar in connectionist models of organismic learning.
Cross-Cultural Preferences in Spatial Reasoning
Authors: Knauff Markus , Ragni Marco
Published: May 2011

How do people reason about spatial relations? Do people with different cultural backgrounds differ in how they reason about space? The aim of our cross-cultural study on spatial reasoning is to strengthen this link between spatial cognition and culture. We conducted two reasoning experiments, one in Germany and one in Mongolia. Topological relations, such as “A overlaps B” or “B lies within C”, were presented to the participants as premises and they had to find a conclusion that was consistent with the premises (“What is the relation between A and C?”). The problem description allowed multiple possible “conclusions”. Our results, however, indicate that the participants had strong preferences: They consistently preferred one of the possible conclusions and neglected other conclusions, although they were also logically consistent with the premises. The preferred and neglected conclusions were similar in Germany and Mongolia. We argue that the preferences are caused by universal cognitive principles that work the same way in the western culture and Mongolia.
A Preliminary Study on Categorization Type (Rule-Based versus Family Resemblance Judgement) in a Group of Iranian Students
Authors: Mohsenifar Setareh , Arjmand Mohsen , Ghassemzadeh Habibollah , Salimi Shabnam
Published: May 2011

The ability to categorize has been known as one of the most important cognitive abilities in human beings. When it comes to the topic of categorization type, it seems different people select differently. Some of them categorize on the basis of similarity judgment and some based on the uni-dimensional rule. The present study attempts to evaluate the tendency toward a specific type of categorization as can be observed in a voluntary group of medical students in Iran. Most of the studies in categorization have been conducted in Western world and some of Eastern-Asian people. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study which has been done in categorization in Iran. The results suggest that Iranians, like Eastern-Asian people, tend to categorize mostly based on similarity. There was not any relationship between the IQ scores of the participants and the type of categorization. We also examined the implications of the words “similarity” and “belonging to” as translated into Persian.
Five Clarifications about Cultural Evolution
Authors: Gabora Liane
Published: May 2011

This paper reviews and clarifies five misunderstandings about cultural evolution identified by Henrich et al. (2008). First, cultural representations are neither discrete nor continuous; they are distributed across neurons that respond to microfeatures. This enables associations to be made, and cultural change to be generated. Second, ‘replicator dynamics’ do not ensure natural selection. The replicator notion does not capture the distinction between actively interpreted self-assembly code and passively copied self-description, which leads to a fundamental principle of natural selection: inherited information is transmitted, whereas acquired information is not. Third, this principle is violated in culture by the ubiquity of acquired change. Moreover, biased transmission is less important to culture than the creative processes by which novelty is generated. Fourth, there is no objective basis for determining cultural fitness. Fifth, the necessity of randomness is discussed. It is concluded that natural selection inappropriate is an explanatory framework for culture.
Is Weaker Inhibition Associated with Supernatural Beliefs?
Authors: Lindeman Marjaana , Riekki Tapani , Hood Bruce M.
Published: May 2011

Adults identified as believers and sceptics based on self-reports from a supernatural beliefs scale were assessed on two measures of inhibition; the Stroop Color‐Word Task and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Both groups were of equal educational status and background. However, believers made significantly more errors than sceptics on all subscales of the WCST but were equivalent in performance on the Stroop measure. This finding is consistent with the idea that supernatural beliefs in adults are related to some types of inhibitory control.
La ville de Sinope, réflexions historiques et archéologiques
Authors: Barat Claire
Published: May 2011

The City of Sinope: Historical and Archaeological ReflectionsThis contribution concentrates on the city of Sinope in antiquity, on the urban morphology of a city constantly under occupation from the time of its founding in the 7th century BC. It starts out by presenting the city of Sinope through literary and numismatic sources and then provides an account of the excavations undertaken during the 20th century (the German-Turkish expedition under L. Budde and E. Akurgal in 1951-1953 and urban prospecting work by British Byzantinists A. Bryer and D. Winfled in the years 1960-1970). The third part of the article brings readers an idea of the archaeology of the city drawing on studies of the walls of Sinope, the urban organization of the city in antiquity and the ancient monuments still visible, such as the “Temple of Serapis” and the “Balat Kilise”. In conclusion new themes for future reflection are suggested such as the identification of the “Temple of Serapis” as a herôon and the location of an aqueduct at Sinope, which had still been visible at the beginning of the 20th century.
Sinop in the Summer of 1215: The Beginning of Anatolian Seljuk Architecture
Authors: Redford Scott
Published: May 2011

A detailed analysis of the Seljuk inscriptions from the citadel of the Black Sea port of Sinop serves as the basis for a discussion of Anatolian Seljuk history, epigraphy, citadel architecture, and military and administrative organization and patronage. Because all of these inscriptions date to a 6 month period in the year 1215, they offer a circumscribed but profound introduction to these issues at one time and in one place.
Terres cuites architecturales de Sinope de l’époque archaïque à l’époque hellénistique
Authors: Billot Marie-Françoise
Published: May 2011

Architectural Terracottas of the Archaic to the Hellenistic Period from SinopeDecorated architectural terracottas held in the Sinope Museum are re-examined here from several angles: techniques of manufacture, combinations of different series on one and the same building, importing of models, export of these exclusively local products to cities of the North Pontic region, style and chronology. Reconsidered so as to take into account all significant features, this form of production ‐ recorded from as early as the 6th century BC ‐ provides some continuation of the ‘Milesian’ tradition, which was widespread in the North of the Aegean and in the poleis of the Black Sea region. Yet, from the second quarter of the 4th century BC onwards, this production also manifests real originality of its own. Sinope would, however, probably not have developed its own style, if it had not received specific orders from Panticapaeum and the main cities of the Bosporan Kingdom. After gradually being deprived of this stimulus for production towards 300 BC, the workshop in Sinope quickly lost its impressive reputation, even though the volume of its tile production remained considerable. From all points of view, it would appear to have been subject to the political and economic vicissitudes experienced by its clients.
Sinopean, Heraklean and Chersonesan “Carrot” Amphorae
Authors: Opaiţ Andrei
Published: May 2011

The aim of this paper is to improve the typology of Pontic amphorae by presenting brief morphological and fabric descriptions of some amphora types that imitate a famous Sinopean example‐the “carrot” amphora. These wine amphorae were manufactured from the 4th and throughout most of the 5th century AD. Although discoveries of these imitations are not very abundant, limited quantities occur not only in the northern and western parts of the Black Sea but also in the eastern Mediterranean at Athens and Palestine.
L’importation des amphores sinopéennes dans les territoires de Thrace
Authors: Bozkova Anelia
Published: May 2011

The Importing of Sinopean Amphorae into Thracian TerritoryThis article is based on collections ‐ both published and unpublished ‐ of amphora stamps from Sinope stemming from settlements in the West Pontic region and from centres of consumption within Thrace. The conclusions presented bear upon the chronology of imports from Sinope, their development and their intensity. A commentary is provided on the data relating to the fluctuating presence of merchandise from Sinope transported in amphorae to territories in the South and North of the Haemus Mons and these are viewed in the context of the commercial activity of the settlements of the West Pontic region.
Sinopean Amphorae and Chernyakhov Culture
Authors: Magomedov Boris , Didenko Sergey
Published: May 2011

The Chernyakhov culture existed in the Eastern Europe in the second third of the 3rd to the early 5th century AD. Its dominant population group was that of the Goths. Among the goods imported into the region were amphorae of “Delakeu” type, or type C Snp I according to the classification of D. Kassab Tezgör. A workshop which produced these amphorae has been discovered on the outskirts of Sinope. The amphorae from the region of the Chernyakhov culture belong largely to the variant C Snp I-1, module L and M, and, less frequently, to the variant C Snp I-2. Sometimes the clay of these amphorae does not have many added inclusions. This fact led to the mistaken conclusion that the amphorae of “Delakeu” type from the Chernyakhov territory might have been produced not in Sinope but somewhere else. Most of the types of the repertoire of Sinopean amphorae dating to the late Roman period occur across the whole Black Sea littoral. However, the variant C Snp I-1 is known mostly in the region of the Chernyakhov culture, and is not very common on the southern and eastern coasts of the Black Sea. We assume that this distribution pattern can be explained by the specific purpose of these containers. In AD 332, Constantine I signed an agreement with the Goths, whereby they received subsidies in exchange for service. A part of this agreement could have been the provision of wine. Approximately in the middle of 4th century, Sinopean wine started to be delivered to the Chernyakhov territory. Presumably, amphorae with a larger than normal capacity (the type “Delakeu” / C Snp I-1) were produced in order to deliver the wine. These circumstances might explain the mass appearance of such amphorae on the Chernyakhov sites and also the absence of these amphorae from Greek towns.
Introduction
Authors: Beck Andreas J.
Published: May 2011

This introduction briefly discusses the background of the conference out of which this volume emerged and summarizes the content of each essay in sequence. Thus it covers papers discussing historical and systematic considerations about the idea of reception, papers about the reception of Calvin in Reformed Orthodoxy, including the periods before, surrounding, and after the Synod of Dordrecht, and the concluding paper.
“Soberly and Skillfully”: John Calvin and Jerome Zanchi (1516–1590) as Proponents of Reformed Doctrine
Authors: te Velde Dolf
Published: May 2011

This paper compares the theological profiles of John Calvin and Jerome Zanchi, especially in their doctrines of predestination, on the basis of Calvin’s De aeterna Dei praedestinatione and Zanchi’s De natura Dei. It turns out that Calvin and Zanchi show substantial agreement in their understanding of predestination, both as election and as reprobation. At the same time, significant differences in presentation and argumentation can be detected. Placing both in their historical, ecclesiastical, and academic contexts, it is argued that Calvin’s insights, based on key biblical texts, require further conceptual exploration and clarification as provided by Zanchi.
“Cum delectu”: Jacob Arminius’s (1559–1609) Praise for and Critique of Calvin and His Theology
Authors: den Boer William
Published: May 2011

The Reformed pastor and professor Jacobus Arminius (1559–1609) is remembered as an anti-Calvinistic theologian whose views were in conflict with the very essence of the Reformation. The question concerning Arminius’s relation to the Reformation and to Calvin has occupied many already, and remains complex. This article illustrates that Arminius had great respect particularly for Calvin’s exegetical prowess, and was in agreement with the most important parts of his theology. However, Arminius shows significant divergence from Calvin’s view on God’s relationship to evil and sin because of its consequences; as far as Arminius is concerned, God is—unintentionally—made the author of sin. According to Arminius this undermines the most important pillar of the Christian religion, namely, God’s love for justice.
Maccovius (1588–1644) on the Son of God as ἀυτόθεος
Authors: Bell Michael D.
Published: May 2011

The character of the Second Person of the Trinity as eternally ἀυτόθεος, developed especially in the context of polemics with Antitrinitarians, is an important, albeit somewhat neglected, element in Calvin’s Christology. This article sets forth how, one theological generation later, Johannes Maccovius, the famed Polish Reformed theologian at Franeker, forcefully taught this doctrine within the context of his interactions with the followers of Arminius who denied this teaching, of whom he was one of their fiercest opponents. Maccovius dealt with this christological issue in a variety of works ranging from his work on theological aphorisms to his disputations and classroom lectures. Through a vast array of definitions, distinctions, and arguments, Maccovius is able to demonstrate his excellent qualities as an exegete, dogmatician, and polemicist, illustrating how he in his own writings strengthened and built on Calvin’s thought as a scholastic theologian from the period of early Reformed Orthodoxy.
"As Many Street Cops as Corners": Displacing 1905 in the Pinkertons
Authors: Dralyuk Boris
Published: May 2011

Renewed popular interest in the Pinkertonovshchina – pre-Revolutionary, Western-styled detective fiction – invites a closer look at this fascinating phenomenon. An examination of the original serial's reception among young readers holds out clues to the psychological motivations of those who devour popular cultural genres in times of social flux. Memoirs and letters by Valentin Kataev (1897-1986), Leonid Borisov (1897-1972), and Sergei Esenin (1895-1925), who had all experienced the first Pinkerton craze as 10- and 12-year-olds, indicate that these colorful, readily accessible parables of Manichean justice in exotic locales allowed young readers to displace their own anxieties about an all-too-confusing domestic situation in the wake of the 1905 Revolution and the subsequent "Reaction". In this, the Russian Pinkertons of the 1900s and '10s functioned in much the same way as American comic books of the 1940s and '50s – another cheaply priced, fixed-format, violent, and markedly graphic (i.e., visual) genre which captivated young readers during a highly reactionary period in their nation's history.