bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Political Parties and Democratic Developmental States
Authors: Randall Vicky
Published: August 2007

This article focuses on the contribution, actual or potential, of political parties to the project of a ‘democratic developmental state’. In the classic developmental state, individual hegemonic parties often, though by no means always, played a key role. However, on the available evidence, parties make a very limited contribution to the emergence of new democratic developmental states, in terms of either democracy‐building or policy‐making, recruitment, ensuring accountability or policy implementation. Reasons include weak institutionalisation and the prevalence of clientelism. External assistance, nevertheless, is likely to be limited in impact and, given the importance of autonomous party development, should ideally be indirect.
Talk the talk: Learner‐generated podcasts as catalysts for knowledge creation
Authors: Lee Mark J. W. , McLoughlin Catherine , Chan Anthony
Published: August 2007

Podcasting allows audio content from one or more user‐selected feeds or channels to be automatically downloaded to one's computer as it becomes available, then later transferred to a portable player for consumption at a convenient time and place. It is enjoying phenomenal growth in mainstream society, alongside other Web 2.0 technologies that enable Internet users to author and distribute rich media content quickly and easily. Instead of using the technology for the mere recording and dissemination of lectures and other instructor‐centred information, the project reported on in this article focused on enabling students to create their own podcasts for distribution to their peers. The article describes how engaging in the podcasting exercise promoted collaborative knowledge building among the student‐producers, as evidenced through focus‐group interviewing and an analysis of the products of their shared dialogue and reflection. The findings suggest that the collaborative development of audio learning objects enabling student conceptualisations of disciplinary content to be shared with peers is a powerful way of stimulating both individual and collective learning, as well as supporting social processes of perspective‐taking and negotiation of meaning that underpin knowledge creation.
Seeking to institutionally embed lessons from a funded project: Experiences from the Digital Libraries in the Classroom Spoken Word project at Glasgow Caledonian University
Authors: Donald David , Wallace Iain
Published: August 2007

The Joint Information Systems Committee and the National Science Foundation programme, Digital Libraries in the Classroom (DLiC), addresses implications for the learning of the revolution in scholarly communication. What are the obstacles to undergraduates ‘ “writing” on and for the Internet’? Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) is a partner in one of the DLiC‐funded projects, Spoken Word. At GCU the focus was on the practical demonstration of the implications and potential for learning of a remote electronic library extremely and extensively rich in culturally significant multimedia; the archives of the British Broadcasting Corporation. This paper considers one significant objective—embedding the developments generated in the project. It considers the reactions of major stakeholders to the attempts of the project team to raise institutional awareness of developments and pursue a strategy to induce change. This account is interim; the project has a 5‐year life, from 2003 to 2008.
Introducing new cultural and technological approaches into institutional practice: an experience from geography
Authors: Durham Helen , Arrell Katherine
Published: August 2007

With increasing international collaboration in the delivery of higher education e‐learning programmes, the requirement for changes in institutional practice needs to be considered in relation to the creation of shared online resources. A group of academic and learning technologists involved in a US/UK project experimented with technology and a new cultural approach to creating learning material suitable for use in geography programmes on either side of the Atlantic. The methodology, called Collaborative Learning Activity Design was undertaken to develop a series of learning activities to support the use and understanding of the Global Positioning System. As a result of this study, effective communication, reliable and flexible technology and a robust, iterative methodology were identified as critical factors for successful outcomes. These outcomes included learning materials that are readily redeployable in other institutions and cross‐fertilisation of ideas and knowledge to produce higher quality resources. The experiences of designing and developing multi‐institutional learning materials from the viewpoint of practitioners at the University of Leeds are discussed in this paper.
Institutional perspectives: The challenges of e‐learning diffusion
Authors: Nichols Mark
Published: August 2007

There has been significant recent interest in the dynamics of institutional change and e‐learning. This paper reports on the findings from a series of discussions about e‐learning diffusion held with institutional e‐learning representatives from across the globe. In the course of discussion it became clear that in some institutions e‐learning was an accepted part of everyday activity, while in others it struggled to gain traction. There were identifiable common elements in those institutions that had appeared to have successfully engaged with e‐learning across their teaching and learning functions. The findings of this exploratory study indicate that institutions have either achieved a state of sustainable embedding for e‐learning, or else need to. Unless a state of institutional sustainability is achieved, it is likely that e‐learning activity will in the long term be limited to enthusiasts.
The effects of active versus reflective learning style on the processes of critical discourse in computer‐supported collaborative argumentation
Authors: Jeong Allan , Lee JeongMin
Published: August 2007

This study examined how message‐response exchanges produced in the interactions between active learners only, reflective learners only, active‐reflective learners and reflective‐active learners affected how often active versus reflective learners posted rebuttals to arguments and challenges across four types of exchanges that believed to promote critical discourse (argument–challenge, challenge–counterchallenge, challenge–explain, challenge–evidence) in computer‐supported collaborative argumentation (CSCA). This study found that the exchanges between reflective learners produced 44% more responses than in the exchanges between active learners (ES = +0.17). The reflective–reflective exchanges produced 47% more responses than the active–reflective exchanges (ES = +0.18). These results suggest that groups with reflective learners only are likely to produce more critical discourse than groups with active learners only, and the ratio of active–reflective learners within a group can potentially influence overall group performance. These findings illustrate how specific traits of the learner can affect discourse processes in CSCA and provide insights into process‐oriented strategies and tools for structuring dialogue and promoting critical inquiry in online discussions.
Guilt, Remorse and Victims
Authors: Cordner Christopher
Published: August 2007

In Shame and Necessity, Bernard Williams describes the experience of guilt in terms of fear at the anger of an internalised other, who is a “victim or enforcer.” Williams says it is a merit of his account that it shows how our guilt turns us towards the victims of our wrongdoing. I argue that his account in fact misses the most important form of guilt's “concern with victims”– the experience of remorse. I consider, and reject, one way of trying to supplement this lack in Williams's account of guilt. Finally, I sketch some features of remorse that suggest that remorse belongs to a very different moral picture from the one painted by Williams.
Moral Particularism Reconfigured
Authors: Gleeson Andrew
Published: August 2007

In one version, moral particularism says that morality has no need of principles. Jonathan Dancy has argued for this in his recently published Ethics Without Principles. For Dancy, the central issue is whether it is necessary for moral reasons to be codified in principles. He thinks not. This misses the point. Whether or not it needs to be or can be codified, moral agents should not follow rules, on pain of a bad‐faith rule‐fetishism. The authority of particular cases does not reside in any alleged failure of codifiability. It rests on the fact that moral agents cannot palm off responsibility for their actions on to experts or rules and that they must respond freshly to each case with an appropriate moral reaction: indignation, pity, remorse, etc. Ironically, this reconfiguration of the particularism issue follows from the proper appreciation of a passage from George Eliot, which Dancy cites as his own inspiration.
From Blair to Brown: The Condition of British Government
Authors: HENNESSY PETER
Published: August 2007

Peter Hennessy examines the conduct of central government since 1997, especially Cabinet processes during the build‐up to the Iraq war of 2003. He discusses the degree to which both Blair and Brown over the past months have appeared to run against aspects of the governing style of the administrations they have jointly dominated. He assesses what Gordon Brown's floated idea of a written constitution might mean in practical terms and makes a particular case for a War Powers Act.
The House of Lords: A Deliberative Democratic Defence
Authors: PARKINSON JOHN
Published: August 2007

This article defends the idea of an appointed House of Lords using deliberative democratic theory. The analysis suggests that while one might well think that current appointment procedures leave much to be desired, a reformed but still appointed House of Lords would be better at maximising the deliberative democratic qualities of inclusiveness and the scrutiny of arguments than a fully elected one; indeed, that election might do actual damage. It suggests that the debate thus far has been focused too narrowly on an outdated account of democracy, and too narrowly on the peculiarities of the House of Lords in isolation from its institutional context.
Regulating Lobbyists: A Comparative Analysis of the United States, Canada, Germany and the European Union
Authors: CHARI RAJ , MURPHY GARY , HOGAN JOHN
Published: August 2007

Lobbying is central to the democratic process. Yet, only four political systems have lobbying regulations: the United States, Canada, Germany and the EU (most particularly, the European Parliament). Despite the many works offering individual country analysis of lobbying legislation, a twofold void exists in the literature. Firstly, no study has offered a comparative analysis classifying the laws in these four political systems, which would improve understanding of the different regulatory environments. Secondly, few studies have analysed the views of key agents—politicians, lobbyists and regulators—and how these compare and contrast across regulatory environments.

We firstly utilise an index measuring how strong the regulations are in each of the systems, and develop a classification scheme for the different ‘ideal’ types of regulatory environment. Secondly, we measure the opinions of political actors, interest groups and regulators in all four systems (through questionnaires and elite interviews) and see what correlations, if any, exist between the different ideal types of system and their opinions. The conclusion highlights our findings, and the lessons that can be used by policy‐makers in systems without lobbying legislation.
The Limits of Partnership: An Exit-Action Strategy for Local Democratic Inclusion
Authors: Davies Jonathan S.
Published: August 2007

The challenge of enhancing the ‘democratic anchorage’ of partnerships has become a central concern in policy studies. Radical reform proposals designed to level the deliberative playing field include community veto powers and the appointment of neutral arbiters. Welcome as they would be, however, it is questionable whether such reforms would overcome power asymmetries in the partnership arena. A study of the local politics of social inclusion in two UK cities, Dundee and Hull, suggests that managerialism, driven by national governments, is eroding the prospects for partnership democratisation. But more significantly for the reformist agenda, public managers and community activists think in incompatible frames about the role of partnerships and in ways that are not understood by the other party. Non-communication undermines the prospects for an equitable democratic consensus. Insights from Bourdieu suggest that even in environments more favourable to equitable democratic discourse than those in Dundee and Hull, subtle manifestations of power in culture, discourse and bearing would undermine the potential for a Habermasian consensus between radically unequal actors. In a radical departure from the network governance paradigm, it is therefore argued that empowerment may depend less on enhanced network democracy than on strong independent community organisation capable of acting separately and coercively against governing institutions and elites – an exit-action strategy. These preliminary conclusions point to a substantial research agenda on the politics of the state–civil society nexus.
Resources, Group Conflict and Symbols: Explaining Anti-Immigration Hostility in Britain
Authors: McLaren Lauren , Johnson Mark
Published: August 2007

This article analyses the causes of variation in attitudes to immigration policy in the UK. The key theoretical approaches emphasised are: the role of self-interest; group conflict over resources; and group conflict over important symbols of Britishness. The connection between perceptions of immigration and crime is also investigated. Based on the 2003 British Social Attitudes Survey, the findings indicate that self-interest has very little bearing on opposition to immigration and that British citizens instead appear to be most concerned with threats to ingroup resources posed by immigration, threats to the shared customs and traditions of British society (particularly those posed by Muslims) and – to a lesser extent – the potential for increased crime that may result from immigration.
AN ARGUMENT FOR AGENT‐NEUTRAL VALUE
Authors: Alm David
Published: August 2007

This paper argues (a) that to any agent‐relative value maker there will correspond an agent‐neutral value maker, and the latter explains the former; and (b) that to each agent‐relative constitutive ground there corresponds a neutral one, and the latter explains the former. It follows from (b), if not from (a), that agent‐neutral value exists if agent‐relative value does.
POLITICAL LIBERALISM WITHOUT SCEPTICISM
Authors: Quong Jonathan
Published: August 2007

Political liberalism famously requires that fundamental political matters should not be decided by reference to any controversial moral, religious or philosophical doctrines over which reasonable people disagree. This means we, as citizens, must abstain from relying on what we believe to be the whole truth when debating or voting on fundamental political matters. Many critics of political liberalism contend that this requirement to abstain from relying on our views about the good life commits political liberalism to a kind of scepticism: we should abstain from relying on our views about the good life because we should be uncertain about the truth of those views. But this kind of scepticism is itself a controversial epistemic position which many reasonable people reject, thus apparently making political liberalism internally incoherent. This is the sceptical critique of political liberalism. This paper shows the sceptical critique to be false. The paper argues that the epistemic restraint required of citizens in political liberalism does not assume or imply any version of scepticism about our ability to know the good life. Liberal neutrality is motivated not by scepticism about our own views, but rather by a desire to justify fundamental political principles to others.1
‘An anthropological concept of the concept’: reversibility among the Siberian Yukaghirs
Authors: Jiménez Alberto Corsín , Willerslev Rane
Published: August 2007

This article attempts to sketch a new anthropological epistemology. It does so by revisiting the work that concepts do in economic models, and by suggesting an alternative ‘anthropological concept of the concept’ for the economy. The article looks to how concepts create their own limits of meaning and uses the very idea of limit to rethink how conceptual thought out‐grows and transforms itself. We develop our epistemology by looking at the socio‐economic practices and institutions of the Yukaghirs, a small group of indigenous hunters, living along the Kolyma River in northeastern Siberia. The Yukaghirs' moment of creative possibilities is given through the reversibility of every one of their economic practices, informed by the work of a shadow force (ayibii) that aims for the limit. We gain insights from this notion of reversibility to rethink the purchase of the ‘economic’ in our contemporary world, questioning the validity of such ‘conceptual’ descriptions as virtualism or the knowledge economy.

Les auteurs tentent ici d'ébaucher une nouvelle épistémologie anthropologique en revisitant l'action des concepts dans les modèles économiques et en suggérant un autre « concept anthropologique du concept » en économie. L'article étudie la manière dans les concepts créent leurs propres limites de signification et utilise cette idée de limite pour revoir la façon dont la pensée conceptuelle se dépasse et se transforme elle‐même. Les auteurs développent leur épistémologie par l'étude des pratiques et institutions socio‐économiques des Yukaghirs, un petit groupe de chasseurs indigènes vivant le long de la rivière Kolyma, dans le nord‐est de la Sibérie. Le moteur des possibilités créatives des Yukaghirs est constitué par la réversibilité de chacune de leurs pratiques économiques, informées par l'œuvre d'une force de l'ombre (ayibii) qui tend vers la limite. Cette notion de réversibilité fournit des éléments pour repenser l'emprise de « l'économique » sur notre monde contemporain et remettre en question la validité des descriptions « conceptuelles » telles que l'économie virtuelle ou celle de la connaissance.
A groundwork for West Indian cultural openness
Authors: Wardle Huon
Published: August 2007

Sidney Mintz aptly describes the cultural openness characteristic of West Indian life. But his historical sociology leaves a gap in our understanding of what cultural openness consists in and how it is organized in the ethnographic here and now. Cultural openness needs to be considered with regard to, and as dependent on, active practices of ambiguation. A case study of religious experience in Kingston, Jamaica describes one person's involvement in the Jamaican cult Revival Zion, foregrounding concurrent processes of subjective disambiguation/commitment, diacritical/disjunctural cultural framing, and ambiguation. Ambiguation in the West Indies is driven by a need to express inter‐subjectively recognized truths for which there is no public moral terminology. Its wider context is the ‘theatre state’ quality of West Indian politics. Its results are cultural phenomena which elude categorical closure. Understanding how cultural openness is sustained in the Caribbean provides a contrastive insight into the Euro‐American experience of modernity.

Bien que Sidney Mintz décrive très pertinemment le caractère d'ouverture culturelle de la vie dans les Caraïbes, sa sociologie historique ne nous permet pas de comprendre en quoi consiste l'ouverture culturelle ni comment elle est organisée dans l'ici et maintenant ethnographiques. L'ouverture culturelle doit être envisagée par rapport aux pratiques actives d'ambiguation et en lien avec celle‐ci. Une étude de cas d'expérience religieuse à Kingston, à la Jamaïque, décrit l'implication d'un sujet dans le culte jamaïcain Revival Zion, jetant les bases de processus concomitants de désambiguation et d'engagement subjectifs, d'encadrement culturel diacritique et disjoncturel et d'ambiguation. Dans les Caraïbes, l'ambiguation est née de la nécessité d'exprimer des vérités reconnues au niveau intersubjectif et pour lesquelles il n'existe pas de terminologie morale publique. Elle s'inscrit dans le contexte plus large d'une qualité« d'Etat‐spectacle » de la politique aux Caraïbes. Il en résulte des phénomènes culturels qui échappent à la catégorisation. En comprenant comment l'ouverture culturelle se maintient dans les Caraïbes, nous obtenons par contraste une image de l'expérience euro‐américaine de la modernité.
Ethnicizing the subject: domestic violence and the politics of primordialism in Kazakhstan
Authors: Snajdr Edward
Published: August 2007

This article examines how people understand domestic violence through primordialist notions of ethnicity in post‐Soviet Kazakhstan. Drawing on fieldwork among police, victim advocates, and Muslim activists, I examine how these groups ethnically frame, or ‘ethnicize’, the topic of domestic violence, its victims and perpetrators, as well as its root causes and possible remedies. From explaining away ineffective policing to blaming past imperialism, I show how ethnicizing violence has political significance for these different stakeholders, whose assertions about gender behaviour and the function of the law compete with one another in a multi‐ethnic state's transition from communism. I also discuss not only how these disparate identity positionings serve as local explanations and/or solutions, but also how they may inevitably contribute to concealing the problem.

L'auteur étudie la manière dont certains peuples appréhendent la violence familiale à travers des notions primordialistes d'appartenance ethnique dans le Kazakhstan post‐soviétique. À partir d'un travail de terrain dans les milieux de la police, des défenseurs des droits des victimes et des activistes musulmans, il étudie la manière dont ces groupes inscrivent dans une argumentation ethnique ou « ethnicisent » la question de la violence familiale, de ses victimes et de ses auteurs, ainsi que de ses causes fondamentales et des remèdes possibles. De la justification de l'inefficacité policière à l'incrimination de l'impérialisme passé, l'auteur montre comment l'ethnicisation de la violence a une signification politique pour ces différents groupes. Leurs affirmations sur les comportements de genre et le fonctionnement de la loi se font concurrence dans le contexte de l'émergence d'un État multi‐ethnique sorti du communisme. Par ailleurs, il examine non seulement la manière dont ces positionnements identitaires disparates servent d'explications et ou de solutions locales, mais aussi comment ils peuvent inévitablement contribuer à masquer le problème.
The vernacularization of democracy: political participation and popular politics in North India
Authors: Michelutti Lucia
Published: August 2007

Anthropologists have largely left unexplored the analysis of how ideas and practices of democracy have been internalized in the popular consciousness of different societies and neglected the development of an anthropology of democratization processes. Using the political ethnography of a powerful northern India caste (the Yadavs), the article unravels what I call the process of vernacularization of democratic politics, meaning the ways in which values and practices of democracy become embedded in particular cultural and social practices, and in the process become entrenched in the consciousness of ordinary people. The analysis of how the local idioms of caste, kinship, kingship, religion, and politics (‘the vernacular’) inform popular perceptions of the political world and of how the democratic process shapes in turn ‘the vernacular’ provides a line of inquiry to understand the rise of popular politics in different parts of the world.

Les anthropologues se sont peu intéressés à la manière dont les idées et pratiques de la démocratie ont été incorporées dans la conscience populaire de différentes sociétés, et ont négligé le développement d'une anthropologie des processus de démocratisation. À travers l'ethnographie politique d'une caste du nord de l'Inde, les puissants Yadavs, l'auteur restitue ce qu'elle appelle un processus de vernacularisation de la politique démocratique, autrement dit la manière dont les valeurs et pratiques de la démocratie s'intègrent dans des pratiques culturelles et sociales particulières, et s'ancrent au cours de ce processus dans la conscience des gens. L'analyse des manières dont les idiomes locaux de caste, parenté, royauté, religion et politique (« le vernaculaire ») informent les perceptions populaires du monde politique et dont le processus démocratique donne forme à son tour au « vernaculaire » fournit une méthode d'enquête pour comprendre la montée en puissance de la politique populaire dans différentes parties du monde.
The limits of commodification in traditional Irish music sessions
Authors: Kaul Adam R.
Published: August 2007

This article analyses the economics of paid‐for traditional Irish music sessions in Doolin, County Clare in the Republic of Ireland. In part, it takes up Shepherd's recent call for research on the commodification of culture in tourist destinations. It is argued here that ‘commodification’ should be distinguished from the more general process of ‘commercialization’. I suggest that commercialization is simply the build‐up of commercial relationships surrounding the production of an activity or an object, while commodification, following Helgasson and Palsson, is the intensive sequestering of that production into the realm of commensurable exchange‐values. This clarification has important theoretical and political implications. Theoretically, the distinction bolsters and extends the critique of the notion of ‘authenticity’ in tourist destinations. In turn, this legitimizes the credibility of commercialized activities if and when productive control remains primarily in the hands of the producers themselves.

L'auteur analyse l'économie des soirées payantes de musique traditionnelle irlandaise dans les comtés de Doolin et Clare, en république d'Irlande. Il répond en partie à l'appel récent de Sheperd en faveur d'une recherche sur la marchandisation de la culture dans les destinations touristiques. Il avance ici que la « marchandisation » doit être distinguée du processus plus général de « commercialisation » et suggère que la commercialisation est simplement la création de relations commerciales entourant la production d'une activité ou d'un objet, tandis que la marchandisation est, selon Helgasson et Palsson, la séquestration intensive de cette production dans le domaine des valeurs d'échanges commensurables. Cet éclaircissement a d'importantes implications théoriques et politiques. En théorie, cette distinction renforce et élargit les critiques de la notion « d'authenticité» dans les destinations touristiques, légitimant ainsi la crédibilité des activités commercialisées pour autant que le contrôle de la production reste en majeure partie entre les mains des producteurs eux‐mêmes.
Canada's Anti‐dumping and Safeguard Policies: Overt and Subtle Forms of Discrimination
Authors: Bown Chad P.
Published: August 2007

Like many countries in the international trading system, Canada repeatedly faces political pressure from industries seeking protection from import competition. I examine Canadian policymakers’ response to this pressure within the economic environment created by its participation in discriminatory trade agreements such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). In particular, I exploit new sources of data on Canada's use of potentially WTO‐consistent import‐restricting policies such as anti‐dumping, global safeguards and a China‐specific safeguard. I illustrate subtle ways in which Canadian policymakers may be structuring the application of such policies so as to reinforce the discrimination inherent in Canada's external trade policy because of the preferences granted to the United States and Mexico through NAFTA.
Suffering, Vice, And Justice: Religious Imaginaries and Welfare Agencies in Post‐War Melbourne
Authors: MURPHY JOHN
Published: August 2007

Faith‐based welfare agencies vary considerably, dependent on the nature of their leadership, the inheritance of their services, and the niche that they are assigned by state policy in the mixed economy of welfare. Another dimension of their diversity can derive from the discursive structures of their faith. This article examines the theological inheritances that shaped how three key welfare agencies in post‐war Melbourne imagined what they were doing, as they drew on the diversity of teachings about the poor derived from the Catholic, Anglican, and Methodist traditions.
The Elusiveness of Protestantism: The Last Expatriations for “Apostasy” from the Church of Sweden (1858) in a European Perspective*
Authors: SIDENVALL ERIK
Published: August 2007

By studying the responses to the last expulsion for “apostasy” from the Swedish National Church in 1858, this article examines how an international Protestant identity was constructed in mid‐nineteenth‐century Europe. It is the argument of this study that a comprehensive identity — including both evangelicals and theological progressives — could be built around the notion of religious liberty. The advocacy of religious freedom became a line of demarcation that separated this group from the Roman Catholic Church, as well as from those Protestants that were firmly attached to an exclusivist position. In order to manufacture this unity, strategies that had been used to fortify the Catholic–Protestant divide were now also used to establish distinctions between different forms of Protestant belief. It is the argument of this article that this unity definitely broke with the theological disputes of the 1860s.
Stereotactic cortical resection in non‐lesional extra‐temporal partial epilepsy
Authors: Shields D. C. , Costello D. J. , Gale J. T. , Hoch D. B. , Eskandar E. N.
Published: August 2007

The presentation and treatment of a patient with extra‐temporal non‐lesional partial epilepsy is discussed herein. His clinical semiology was consistent with supplementary motor area seizures; however, MR imaging did not demonstrate a lesion. A region of stable cortical glucose hypermetabolism in the left frontal region was noted with 2‐fluoro‐2‐deoxy‐D‐glucose (FDG)‐PET. This was consistent with the frequent interictal discharges evident over the left fronto‐temporal region and the stereotypic high amplitude ictal discharges arising with highest amplitude from the left frontal region. Epileptiform activity evident on an intracranial 64‐point subdural recording grid placed over the left dorsolateral frontal cortex confirmed a distribution concordant with FDG‐PET findings. The subsequent resection was guided by the PET and EEG findings rather than structural MR imaging, and a limited cortical resection led to an immediate and substantial reduction in seizure frequency.
Practical aspects of management of recurrent aphthous stomatitis
Authors: Altenburg A , Abdel‐Naser MB , Seeber H , Abdallah M , Zouboulis CC
Published: August 2007

Treatment of recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) remains, to date, empirical and non‐specific. The main goals of therapy are to minimize pain and functional disabilities as well as decrease inflammatory reactions and frequency of recurrences. Locally, symptomatically acting modalities are the standard treatment in simple cases of RAS. Examples include topical anaesthetics and analgesics, antiseptic and anti‐phlogistic preparations, topical steroids as cream, paste or lotions, antacids like sucralfate, chemically stable tetracycline suspension, medicated toothpaste containing the enzymes amyloglucosidase and glucoseoxidase in addition to the well‐known silver nitrate application. Dietary management supports the treatment. In more severe cases, topical therapies are again very useful in decreasing the healing time but fail to decrease the interval between attacks. Systemic immunomodulatory agents, like colchicine, pentoxifylline, prednisolone, dapsone, levamisol, thalidomide, azathioprine, methotrexate, cyclosporin A, interferon alpha and tumour necrosis factor (TNF) antagonists, are helpful in resistant cases of major RAS or aphthosis with systemic involvement.
Isotopic and petrological evidence of fluid–rock interaction at a Tethyan ocean–continent transition in the Alps: implications for tectonic processes and carbon transfer during early ocean formation
Authors: ENGSTRÖM A. , SKELTON A. , GRASSINEAU N.
Published: August 2007

We report overprinting stable isotope evidence of fluid–rock interaction below two detachment faults along which mantle rocks were exhumed to the seafloor, between the respective landward and seaward limits of oceanic and continental crust, at a Tethyan ocean–continent transition (OCT). This OCT, which is presently exposed in the Tasna nappe (south‐eastern Switzerland) is considered an on‐land analogue of the well‐studied Iberian OCT. We compare our results with the fault architecture (fault core–damage zone–protolith) described by Caine et al. [Geology (1996) Vol. 24, pp. 1025–1028]. We confirm the existence of a sharp boundary between the fault core and damage zone based on isotopic data, but the boundary between the damage zone and protolith is gradational. We identify evidence for: (1) pervasive isotopic modification to 8.4 ± 0.1‰ which accompanied or post‐dated serpentinization of these mantle rocks at an estimated temperature of 67–109°C, (2) either (i) partial isolation of some highly strained regions [fault core(s) and mylonite] from this pervasive isotopic modification, because of permeability reduction (Caine et al.) or (ii) subsequent isotopic modification caused by structurally channelled flow of warm fluids within these highly strained regions, because of permeability enhancement, and (3) isotopic modification, which is associated with extensive calcification at T = 54–100°C, primarily beneath the younger of the two detachment faults and post‐dating initial serpentinization. By comparing the volumetric extent of calcification with an experimentally verified model for calcite precipitation in veins, we conclude that calcification could have occurred in response to seawater infiltration, with a calculated flux rate of 0.1–0.2 m year−1 and a minimum duration of 0.2–4.0 × 104 years. The associated time‐averaged uptake flux of carbon during this period was 8–120 mol m−2 year−1. By comparison with the estimated area of exhumed mantle rocks at the Iberian OCT, we calculate a maximum annual uptake flux for carbon of 2–30 Tg year−1. This is an order of magnitude greater than that for carbon exchange at the mid‐ocean ridges and 0.1–1.4% of the global oceanic uptake flux for carbon.
Familial Mediterranean Fever In Lebanon: Founder Effects For DifferentMEFVMutations
Authors: Jalkh Nadine , Génin Emmanuelle , Chouery Eliane , Delague Valérie , Medlej‐Hashim Myrna , Idrac Charles‐Antoine , Mégarbané André , Serre Jean‐Louis
Published: August 2007

Haplotype analysis of 376 Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) patients and 100 controls from Lebanon was performed using 4 microsatellite loci to study founder effects for the five most frequent mutations within theMEFVgene (M694V, M694I, V726A, M680I and E148Q).

Each of these mutations was associated with a particular haplotype that was less frequent among controls, confirming that they have probably arisen from unique mutation events and that the carrier chromosomes derived from a common ancestor. The estimated ages of the most recent common ancestor for each of the 5 mutations, using the ESTIAGE program, were 7000, 8500, 15000, 23000 and 30000 years for M694V, M694I, V726A, M680I and E148Q, respectively. Varying the mutation rate at one of the markers led to younger age estimates, but the mutation E148Q remained the oldest one.

Comparison of haplotype distributions among the different Lebanese religious groups confirmed that Muslim sub‐populations (Shiites and Sunnites) as well as Christian ones, including Armenians who were formerly settled in the South‐Eastern part of Asia Minor (Cilicia), are all derived from an ancient common ancestral population in which most of theMEFVmutations were already present with their respective associated haplotypes.
New light on old shoulders: palaeopathological patterns of arthropathy and enthesopathy in the shoulder complex
Authors: Roberts Alice M. , Peters Tim J. , Brown Kate Robson
Published: August 2007

Rotator cuff disease represents the most common cause of modern shoulder pain and disability. Much of the clinical literature on rotator cuff disease focuses on subacromial impingement and supraspinatus tendinopathy, although other patterns of lesions are also recognised. Rotator cuff disease has received relatively little attention in palaeopathological literature, but signs relating to subacromial impingement have been reported. Given the variety and patterns of lesions that are recognized clinically as rotator cuff disease, this study aimed to investigate whether a similarly wide range of lesions could be identified in human skeletal remains. Degenerative changes in surfaces around the shoulder were recorded in a sample of 86 skeletons. The resultant data were assessed using both simple descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis. Degenerative changes characteristic of modern subacromial impingement formed a minor underlying pattern in the data. The predominant underlying variable in the data represented an association between lesser tuberosity, bicipital sulcus and glenohumeral degenerative changes. This pattern reflects recent reports in the clinical literature highlighting the prevalence of subscapularis tendinopathy, and also supports a pathoaetiological model of progression from subscapularis to long head of biceps to glenohumeral involvement. The degenerative changes seen at the non‐articular, fibrocartilaginous entheses on the humeral tuberosities were similar to those seen in subchondral bone in osteoarthritis.
Centrality of visual product aesthetics, tactile and uniqueness needs of fashion consumers
Authors: Workman Jane E. , Caldwell Lark F.
Published: August 2007

The purposes of this study were to determine whether fashion consumer groups (fashion followers, fashion innovators, fashion opinion leaders and innovative communicators) differ in centrality of visual product aesthetics, consumers' need for uniqueness and need for touch, and to examine possible correlations among these variables. Fashion design and merchandizing students completed the following scales: Need for Touch, Consumers' Need for Uniqueness, Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics, Measure of Fashion Innovativeness and Opinion Leadership plus demographic information. Innovative communicators had a greater need for uniqueness than followers and opinion leaders, but not than innovators. Fashion followers scored lower on Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics than did innovative communicators, innovators and opinion leaders. There was no difference in Need for Touch among fashion consumer groups. Scores on Need for Touch were positively correlated with scores on Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics and Consumers' Need for Uniqueness. Scores on Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics were positively correlated with scores on Consumers' Need for Uniqueness. Scores on Fashion Innovativeness and Opinion Leadership were positively correlated with scores on Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics and Consumers' Need for Uniqueness. Scores on Fashion Innovativeness and Opinion Leadership were not significantly correlated with those on Need for Touch. Fashion consumer groups did differ in centrality of visual product aesthetics and need for uniqueness, but not in need for touch.
Contradictions in food consumption
Authors: Leipämaa‐Leskinen Hanna
Published: August 2007

This study asked consumers to identify the possible contradictions in their food consumption. The article takes the so‐called ‘antinomies of taste’– health vs. indulgence, convenience vs. care, extravagance vs. economy, novelty vs. tradition and together vs. alone – by Warde and Mäkelä as a starting point. The empirical part of the research analyses between which opposing poles the contradictions emerge when the consumers themselves are asked. Findings from a survey (745 respondents) indicate that consumers prefer to engage in food‐related activities that would be more aesthetic, healthful, tasty, convenient, caring and economic, but state significant barriers for not being able to fulfil these desires. Finally, the article draws theoretical conclusions about the connections between the prevailing food consumption‐related contradictions and contemporary consumer society.
Comparison of the sensory profiles of kefir, buttermilk and yogurt
Authors: MUIR D D , TAMIME A Y , WSZOLEK M
Published: August 2007

The composition and sensory profiles of buttermilk, kefir made by using ‘traditional’ and ‘modified’ starter cultures and plain yogurt have been characterized. There were clear differences between the sensory characters of the fermented milk products. In particular, there was a contrast between ‘traditional’ kefir and a ‘modified’ version developed in Poland. The ‘modified’ kefir was less acid, had little serum separation and was characterized by its creamy flavour. Based on previous experience of the key attributes influencing consumer choice of other types of fermented milk, it is likely to be more acceptable to the consumer in Western Europe than the ‘traditional’ kefir.
High pressure processing of milk‐the first 100 years in the development of a new technology
Authors: BALCI A TÜLAY , WILBEY R ANDREW
Published: August 2007

The year 1999 marks the centenary of the first publication on the effects of high hydrostatic pressure on milk. After the initial activity, interest was revived with improvements to the high pressure processing equipment. High pressure processing has been demonstrated to be an effective method of modifying protein structure in milk and milk products and to have a bacteriocidal effect. Vegetative bacteria vary in their barosusceptibility and elimination of pathogens cannot be guaranteed.
Searching a biomedical bibliographic database from Bulgaria: the ABS database
Authors: Abhijnhan Akhil , Surcheva Zhenya , Wright Judy , Adams Clive E.
Published: August 2007

Background:  The University of Sofia, Bulgaria, disseminates local biomedical literature (1994 to present) through a free online database, ABS.

Objectives:  Our objectives were to systematically search ABS, identify citations to controlled trials and discover what proportion of these studies are to be found on medline.

Methods:  We searched using Bulgarian and English phrases; manually selected citations of controlled trials and sought these citations on medline.

Results:  Using the two languages, we found a total of 628 unique citations, 47 of which seem to be relevant controlled trials (precision 7.48%, 13% of ABS citations were found on medline). The trials in ABS commonly focused on evaluation of care for people with cardiovascular or urological problems.

Discussion: ABS is another source of easily accessed trials not readily available elsewhere.
The role of reflection in the library and information sector: a systematic review
Authors: Grant Maria J
Published: August 2007

Objectives: To systematically review published literature on the role of reflection in the library and information science sector. To identify examples of good practice and to investigate the reported contribution, if any, of reflection by library and information workers as part of their professional practice.

Methods: Free text searches (reflective or reflection* or reflexion*) were conducted for English language papers on the Library and Information Science Abstracts (lisa) bibliographic database in two phases; in March 2004 for literature dating from 1969 to 2003 and between 2004 and 2006 in January 2006. Thirteen papers met the inclusion criteria and were coded and analysed using thematic analysis.

Results: Two categories of reflection exist: analytical and non‐analytical. These focus on events in the recent and distant past. Non‐analytical reflective accounts generally adopt a retrospective tone in reporting on multiple events over a number of decades. In contrast, analytical accounts of reflection focused on single events and attempt to understand the relationship between past experiences and how this might impact on future practice.

Conclusion: From the examples of reflective practice identified, greatest personal and professional benefit is reported when time is given to considering the implications of past events on future practice, that is, analytical reflection.
Dopamine D1 and D3 receptors oppositely regulate NMDA‐ and cocaine‐induced MAPK signaling via NMDA receptor phosphorylation
Authors: Jiao Hongyuan , Zhang Lu , Gao Fenge , Lou Danwen , Zhang Jianhua , Xu Ming
Published: August 2007

Development of drug addiction involves complex molecular changes in the CNS. The mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway plays a key role in mediating neuronal activation induced by dopamine, glutamate, and drugs of abuse. We previously showed that dopamine D1 and D3 receptors play different roles in regulating cocaine‐induced MAPK activation. Although there are functional and physical interactions between dopamine and glutamate receptors, little is known regarding the involvement of D1 and D3 receptors in modulating glutamate‐induced MAPK activation and underlying mechanisms. In this study, we show that D1 and D3 receptors play opposite roles in regulating N‐methyl‐d‐aspartate (NMDA) ‐induced activation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase (ERK) in the caudate putamen (CPu). D3 receptors also inhibit NMDA‐induced activation of the c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase and p38 kinase in the CPu. NMDA‐induced activation of the NMDA‐receptor R1 subunit (NR1), Ca2+/calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II and the cAMP‐response element binding protein (CREB), and cocaine‐induced CREB activation in the CPu are also oppositely regulated by dopamine D1 and D3 receptors. Finally, the blockade of NMDA‐receptor reduces cocaine‐induced ERK activation, and inhibits phosphorylation of NR1, Ca2+/calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II, and CREB, while inhibiting ERK activation attenuates cocaine‐induced CREB phosphorylation in the CPu. These results suggest that dopamine D1 and D3 receptors oppositely regulate NMDA‐ and cocaine‐induced MAPK signaling via phosphorylation of NR1.