bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Priced and Unpriced Online Markets
Authors: Edelman Benjamin
Published: August 2009

Some online resources are free and others are not—but it can be hard to predict which resources are in which category. In some cases, users are charged for things such as web-based e-mail, wireless Internet access, and software, while in other cases, they aren't. Zero prices offer important benefits, even relative to small positive prices. For one, fee-free access reduces transaction costs—eliminating the need for billing systems as well as, in many cases, account setup, usernames, and the like. Furthermore, zero prices seem to create an environment of experimentation and progress for products and consumers. Finally, consumers overwhelmingly favor zero-price products, even beyond what might be predicted by their ordinary efforts to maximize consumer surplus. Yet experience in other contexts offers cause for concern. Although marginal costs may be near zero for many levels of use of online resources, costs generally eventually increase as usage nears a capacity constraint given by technological capability or system design. More generally, experience in other contexts repeatedly reveals overconsumption, scarcity, and even hoarding when resources are provided without charge. With competing forces both supporting and opposing zero prices, typical Internet-related activities—like surfing the web, web searches, and e-mail, along with behind-the-scenes practices like domain names and the allocation of IP (Internet protocol) addresses—present a natural context to reevaluate our sense of the tradeoffs that arise between free and a positive price.
Subsidizing Creativity through Network Design: Zero-Pricing and Net Neutrality
Authors: Lee Robin S , Wu Tim
Published: August 2009

This paper focuses on the pricing aspect of the “net neutrality” debate—in particular, the de facto ban on fees levied by Internet service providers on content providers to reach users. This “zero-price” rule may prove desirable for several reasons. Using a two-sided market analysis, we suggest that it subsidizes creativity and innovation in new content creation—goals shared by copyright and patent laws. The rule also helps to solve a coordination problem: since Internet service providers do not completely internalize the effects of their own pricing decisions, lack of regulation may lead to even higher fees charged by all. Finally, allowing for such fees runs the risk of creating horizontally differentiated Internet service providers with different libraries of accessible content, thereby foreclosing consumers and leading to Internet fragmentation.
A Retrospective View of Olympic Structures in China
Authors: Lan Tien T.
Published: August 2009

Sports facilities for Olympic Games and other events are constructed all over the world. These buildings require a larger and larger space for operation, which is characterized by long span, lightweight and variable forms. Various forms of spatial structures proved to be a rational and effective form to serve the purpose. In the paper, the modern developments of Olympic structures employing double layer grids, cable-suspended and membrane structures in China are reviewed. The illustrated examples show the impact of the advanced technique from outside and innovations on its own effort. In addition, three main structures for 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, i.e. the National Stadium, the National Aquatic Center and the National Indoor Stadium are discussed. It is expected that a large amount of construction on sports buildings for Olympic Games etc. will be done in China. Through Olympic structures, the interflow and cooperation between China and the world will further flourish in the future.
Recent Developments in the Design of Glazed Grid Shells
Authors: Knippers Jan , Helbig Thorsten
Published: August 2009

Free-form geometries are very popular in today's architecture. Computer controlled fabrication methods allow for structures, which would not have been possible a few years ago. But how does one transfer 3D geometries into a load bearing structure without loosing the architectural vision of smoothly shaped building envelopes? An intense discussion is necessary to navigate architectural visions of elegant 3D shapes through the technical and economic constraints of realization. The role of the engineer is conceived as that of a mediator between the aesthetic ambitions of the architect, the budget of the client and the technical capabilities of the contractor. From the very early stages of form finding to the assembly on site, a consistent design process is absolutely necessary to achieve high quality free formed structures.

In this paper different examples are presented to demonstrate this. The projects vary from a single layer grid shell for Westfield's new shopping centre at White City, London and a large space structure in Frankfurt to a timber shell for a department store in Cologne
New Structures for Exhibition Buildings
Authors: Grohmann Manfred , Bollinger Klaus
Published: August 2009

In Summer 2007 the “BMW-World” in Munich, Germany was opened. It is a centre for entertainment for the public and for delivery of new cars to new customers. The whole building is a 90 by 180m wide cloud-like roof covering a big open space that serves as a kind of market place. The roof is a complex steel structure resting on the interior buildings used as restaurants and conference facilities. A significant steel tower shaped like a double-cone is also used as a support for the roof. This paper describes the difficulties and the solutions the planners had to face during planning and construction. The design of the building was developed during an architectural competition by the Vienna based architects COOP Himmelb(l)au Wolf Prix, Dieter Dreibholz and Partner accompanied by the Frankfurt based structural engineers Bollinger and Grohmann. The same team also won the competition for the new Science-Museum in Lyon, France. The museum is located right between the confluence of the river Saône into the river Rhône. That is where the name “Musée des Confluences” is derived from. The building has two parts: The transparent entrance and the opaque museum building being elevated above ground. Construction work for Musée des confluences started at the end of 2006 and completion should be in 2009.
Technical Note—Personalized Dynamic Pricing of Limited Inventories
Authors: Aydin Goker , Ziya Serhan
Published: August 2009

Prior work has investigated time- and inventory-level-dependent pricing of limited inventories with finite selling horizons. We consider a third dimension—in addition to time and inventory level—that the firms can use in setting their prices: the information that the firm has at the individual customer level. An arriving customer provides a signal to the firm, which is an imperfect indicator of the customer's willingness to pay, and the firm makes a personalized price offer depending on the signal, inventory level, and time. We consider two different models: full personalization and partial personalization. In the full personalization model, the firm charges any price it wishes given the customer signal, while in the partial personalization model, the firm can charge one of two prices. We find that a mere correlation between the signals and customers' willingness to pay is not sufficient to ensure intuitive relationships between the signal and the optimal prices. We determine a stronger condition, which leads to several structural properties, including the monotonicity of the optimal price with respect to the signal in the full personalization model. For the partial personalization model, we show that the optimal pricing policy is of threshold-type and that the threshold is monotonic in the inventory level and time.
Against Classification Attacks: A Decision Tree Pruning Approach to Privacy Protection in Data Mining
Authors: Li Xiao-Bai , Sarkar Sumit
Published: August 2009

Data-mining techniques can be used not only to study collective behavior about customers, but also to discover private information about individuals. In this study, we demonstrate that decision trees, a popular classification technique for data mining, can be used to effectively reveal individuals' confidential data, even when the identities of the individuals are not present in the data. We propose a novel approach for organizations to protect confidential data from such a classification attack. The key components of this approach include a set of entropy-based measures to evaluate disclosure risks of individual records, an optimal pruning algorithm to identify high-risk records, and a pair of data-swapping procedures to reduce the disclosure risks. The proposed method provides the best trade-off between data utility and privacy protection against classification attacks. It can be applied to data with both numeric and categorical attributes. An experimental study on six real-world data sets shows that the proposed method is very effective in protecting privacy while enabling legitimate data mining and analysis.
Gerardo Diego’s Heterocronismo and the Avant-Garde: Imagen and Manual de espumas
Authors: Silverman Renée M.
Published: August 2009

Spanish poet Gerardo Diego chafed against orthodox Creacionismo, one of the major twentieth-century avant-garde poetic movements in Spain and Latin America, as it was conceived by its Chilean leader, Vicente Huidobro. Diego argued for the loosening of Creacionismo poetry’s architectonic structures, in order that the music of lyric might sound through. In the volumes Imagen and Manual de espumas, as well as in correspondence with poet Juan Larrea, one of Spain’s prominent adherents to the Creacionismo movement, he articulates his at once avant-garde and profoundly lyric poetic. The temporal character of Diego’s musical lyric, defined by remembered fragments in rhythmic patterns and figures such as the refrain, brings memory and the subjectivity linked with remembrance back to the fore of vanguard poetry. At the same time, his use of musico-poetic figures reinforces avant-garde poetry’s architecture and serves as a reminder of poetic form’s dual function—lyric melody and harmonic structure.
A New Curriculum to Link the Basic Science of Aging with Geriatric Practice
Authors: Hamerman David
Published: August 2009

There is a growing national awareness that the extraordinary extension of life expectancy in our society poses an impending crisis for our health-care system. This is due in large part to the scarcity of primary-care providers, especially geriatricians. To address these concerns, the Obama administration has considered wide-ranging health-care reforms. Academic geriatric organizations have proposed that geriatricians take the lead in working with other primary-care providers to develop a continuum of care to optimize health across a range of ages and stages. This article recommends a collaboration between basic scientists and geriatricians in order to develop a curriculum that would identify how new knowledge derived from basic aging research bears on the inception of aging-related conditions and diseases that emerge over time. This information could be used to create new approaches to reducing or postponing diseases in later life. Health providers participating in this curriculum would gain new insights about aging, health maintenance, risk factors for disease inception, and appropriate interventions over the life course of their adult patients, helping them to achieve a healthier longevity.
“More Fatal than Powder and Shot”: Dysentery in the U.S. Army During the Mexican War, 1846–48
Authors: Cirillo Vincent J.
Published: August 2009

In terms of deaths due to disease, the Mexican War (1846–48) was the deadliest of all American wars. Nearly 13% of the entire U.S. force perished from disease. Of the total 12,535 war deaths, 10,986 (88%) were due to infectious diseases (overwhelmingly dysentery, both bacterial and amoebic); seven men died from disease for every man killed by Mexican musket balls. Camp pollution was the greatest error committed by U.S. troops in the Mexican War. The indifference of line officers and recruits to the need for proper sanitation and military hygiene fueled the dysentery outbreaks, and the poor conditions in military hospitals contributed further to the spread of disease. This defect in military culture undermined the health of the army and led to medical disaster. Disease caused an enormous drain on the U.S. Army’s resources, eroded troop morale, and influenced strategy and tactics. As we enter the 21st century, dysentery is still a major public health threat, killing hundreds of thousands of people annually—primarily children in developing countries where personal hygiene is poor and disposal of human and animal wastes is indiscriminate.
In Sickness and in Health Care: A Student’s Thoughts Before Beginning His Medical Training
Authors: Finkelman Brian S.
Published: August 2009

This essay is a “prespective”—the musings of a soon-to-be MD/PhD student on various aspects of the practice of medicine, written just before he began his training in the fall of 2008. It discusses some of the issues—genomic medicine, healthcare reform, and evidence-based medicine—that will likely impact medicine and medical care during his career. These thoughts are interwoven with the personal story of his grandfather’s fight against disease and the complications of diagnosis and treatment.
Responding with Dao : Early Daoist Ethics and the Environment
Authors: Nelson Eric Sean
Published: August 2009

Early Daoism, as articulated in the Daodejing and the Zhuangzi , indirectly addresses environmental issues by intimating a non-reductive naturalistic ethics calling on humans to be open and responsive to the specificities and interconnections of the world and environment to which they belong. "Dao" is not a substantial immanent or transcendent entity but the lived enactment of the intrinsic worth of the "myriad things" and the natural world occurring through how humans address and are addressed by them. Early Daoism potentially corrects both anthropocentrism and biocentrism in environmental ethics by disclosing the things themselves in the context of the self-cultivation of life. Given increasing environmental devastation and the dominance of views, practices, and institutions reducing nature to a background and/or raw material for human activity, this "ethics of encounter" discloses the life of things as inexhaustibly more than human projects and constructs, extending ethical recognition and responsibility beyond social relations and the social self.
"Embracing the One" in the Daodejing
Authors: Behuniak James
Published: August 2009

"Embracing the One" ( baoyi ) and "holding to the One" ( zhiyi ) are phrases that appear in different versions of the Daodejing . This essay argues that, in a specific philosophical context, these two phrases represent competing philosophical attitudes that stem from opposing cosmological visions. The recently unearthed "Great One Produces the Waters" ( Taiyishengshui ) assists in the reconstruction of this philosophical context, as does a re-reading of the "One" in the famous generative sequence of chapter 42 of the Daodejing . Ultimately, it is argued, the phrase "embracing the One" represents an attitude that is quintessentially "Daoist" in nature, while "holding to the One" signifies the adoption of the Daodejing by competing philosophical interests.
"Plenty of signs and wonders to make a landscape": Space, Place, and Identity in Cormac McCarthy's Border Trilogy
Authors: Bourne Ashley
Published: August 2009

Cormac McCarthy's Border Trilogy conjures up the stark and beautiful landscapes of the southwestern United States and Mexico, living terrain which the protagonists must constantly navigate as they attempt to achieve stability. The invisible process through which place is created is dependent on the ways that individuals and societies attempt to transform empty space into a fixed, stable location with ideological dimensions in order to obtain a sense of identity. Often this transformation is effected through ecological transformation, razing, and reconstructing the landscape in various ways to accommodate industry, technology, and human activity. Taking a phenomenological approach and building on theorists Edward S. Casey and Yi-Fu Tuan, the author argues that the movement between space and place in McCarthy—both a literal and figurative process—produces a sense of loss in the protagonists and in the cultural landscape of the novel. McCarthy highlights the paradox inherent in this process of the construction of place, namely, that although the characters crave the constancy of place, they are constantly compelled into motion in order to find the ideal place they seek and thus are never able to root themselves definitively or stabilize their individual identities. In a parallel sense, McCarthy emphasizes the region itself as a space that is in flux, in the process of being transformed by technological, industrial, and economic changes that preclude the protagonists from achieving the identities they internalized in their youth, which are associated with the western myths of roving cowboys and unsettled wilderness. Such myths in McCarthy's trilogy are, however, shrouded in violence and prove to be illusory, much like the idea of the stable home places that the protagonists seek and fail to find.
Disappearance in Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian
Authors: Snyder Phillip A.
Published: August 2009

Snyder discusses the trope of disappearance in Blood Meridian as a key aspect of McCarthy's revisionist version of the West according to (1) Paul Virilio's notion that we observe the world only as it is in the process of disappearing and (2) Jacques Derrida's notion that we always write as if under erasure, as well as the poststructural notion of language as spectral, that is, a ghostly presence that actually marks an absence. The textual analysis is focused especially on (1) the metacritical frame (narrator, glosser, and epilogue), (2) the Glanton gang as agents of disappearance, and (3) the search for the signified, both past and future, in the trace or artifact. The main argument is that everything in the novel seems to disappear.
"In a time before nomenclature was and each was all": Blood Meridian 's Neomythic West and the Heterotopian Zone
Authors: Holmberg David
Published: August 2009

Blood Meridian exists in a world, or worlds, apart from any we know, present or past, a world(s) we envision as emerging forth from the mists of a recent current of revisionist histories. One of these worlds creates a new twentieth-century history for an old nineteenth-century world, in which the unimaginable violence of our time might be reconciled with that of the past; another world or zone of Blood Meridian acts as a retelling of western expansion under the ostensibly swaying flag of a colonial manifest destiny. McCarthy's novel is history, but it is also myth, both narratively and stylistically, although the myth he creates runs concurrent and, importantly, through the realities of a revisionist West. Beyond the violence, the most troubling and unsettling feature of Blood Meridian is the creation of these multiple fictional zones, reproduced simultaneously and unbearably; McCarthy's text creates a postmodern heterotopian zone in which multiple disparate spaces come to exist impossibly together, leaving him to dispatch a gang of historical figures into a neomythic, postapocalyptic, and postmodern unreality that is and is not Texas, that is and is not the West.
A Robust Automated Measure of Average Antibody Staining in Immunohistochemistry Images
Authors: Choudhury Kingshuk Roy , Yagle Kevin J. , Swanson Paul E. , Krohn Kenneth A. , Rajendran Joseph G.
Published: August 2009

Identifying and scoring cancer markers plays a key role in oncology, helping to characterize the tumor and predict the clinical course of the disease. The current method for scoring immunohistochemistry (IHC) slides is labor intensive and has inherent issues of quantitation. Although multiple attempts have been made to automate IHC scoring in the past decade, a major limitation in these efforts has been the setting of the threshold for positive staining. In this report, we propose the use of an averaged threshold measure (ATM) score that allows for automatic threshold setting. The ATM is a single multiplicative measure that includes both the proportion and intensity scores. It can be readily automated to allow for large-scale processing, and it is applicable in situations in which individual cells are hard to distinguish. The ATM scoring method was validated by applying it to simulated images, to a sequence of images from the same tumor, and to tumors from different patient biopsies that showed a broad range of staining patterns. Comparison between the ATM score and manual scoring by an expert pathologist showed that both methods resulted in essentially identical scores when applied to these patient biopsies. This manuscript contains online supplemental material at http://www.jhc.org . Please visit this article online to view these materials.
The mRNA Distribution of C7orf24, a γ-Glutamyl Cyclotransferase, in Rat Tissues
Authors: Oda Keisuke , Makino Satoshi , Masuda Chiaki , Yoshiki Tatsuhiro , Kitamura Yoshihisa , Takata Kazuyuki , Yanagisawa Daijiro , Taniguchi Takashi , Tooyama Ikuo
Published: August 2009

The putative protein C7orf24 is encoded by Homo sapiens chromosome 7 open reading frame 24. C7orf24 was first identified as a 21-kDa cytochrome c-releasing factor detected in the cytosolic fraction of human leukemia U937 cells after treatment with geranyl-geraniol. C7orf24 protein was recently identified as a γ-glutamyl cyclotransferase, an enzyme in the $gL-glutamyl cycle. However, the exact localization of C7orf24 mRNA in normal tissues remains unknown. The present study examined the distribution pattern of C7orf24 mRNA in rat tissues using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and in situ hybridization histochemistry. The RT-PCR experiments demonstrated that C7orf24 and a variant C7orf24 mRNA were expressed in various tissues. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed significantly high levels of both C7orf24 mRNAs in the liver and kidney, compared with other tissues examined. In situ hybridization histochemistry localized C7orf24 mRNA to hepatocytes in the liver and renal tubules in the kidney. The present results thus implicated an important role for C7orf24 in liver and kidney. This manuscript contains online supplemental material at http://www.jhc.org . Please visit this article online to view these materials.
Application of a Novel Method of Double APAAP Staining With Subsequent Quantitative Image Analysis to the Examination of Integrin Expression in Undifferentiated-type Gastric Carcinomas
Authors: Yanchenko Natalia , Sugihara Hiroyuki , Hattori Takanori
Published: August 2009

In undifferentiated-type gastric carcinoma (UGC), recognition of cancer cells is not easy, which has hampered its precise phenotypic analysis. To examine alterations of the integrin phenotype during the progression of UGC, we used double alkaline phosphatase anti-alkaline phosphatase staining and computer-aided image analyses for the expression of α1, α2, α3, α5, α6, α V, β1, and β4 integrin subunits and αVβ3, αVβ5, and αVβ6 integrins in cytokeratin-positive cells in the mucosal, the submucosal, and the deeper parts of 10 early and 17 advanced UGCs, their non-neoplastic counterparts, and 9 lymph node (LN) metas-tases. We revealed declining expression of epithelial integrin subunits (α2, α3, α 6, β4) and increasing expression of mesenchymal integrin subunits (α1, α5) as the tumor invaded deeper, reflecting gradual epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition of the integrin phenotype during tumor invasion. Enhanced expression of the αV integrin subunit and αVβ3 and αVβ5 integrins correlated with tumor invasion, and that of αVβ6 integrins with LN metastasis. Our results have demonstrated that the method we introduced is suitable for analysis of dynamic alterations of the integrin repertoire in UGC progression.
Evaluation of the Durability Potential of Silyl Terminated Polyacrylate Based Construction Sealant
Authors: Nakagawa Yoshiki , Yukimoto Sadao
Published: August 2009

In this paper, we discuss the durability potential of silyl terminated polyacrylate based construction sealants. The durability and performance of a silyl terminated polyacrylate (STPA) based construction sealant have been evaluated in comparison to a typical silyl terminated polyether (STPE) and a silicone sealant in order to demonstrate the potential of the STPA sealant as a high durability, high performance construction sealant that is also suitable for glazing applications. The polyacrylate backbone of STPA polymer has higher durability, especially UV stability and heat resistance, than the polyether one of STPE polymer as shown by accelerated weathering tests using carbon-arc or superhigh irradiance xenon-light sources. Adhesion of the STPA sealant on glass was retained even after 10,000 h exposure to superhigh irradiance xenon-light [180 W/m2 (300–400 nm)]. The performance of the STPA based sealant has been compared to that of the STPE based sealant by testing according to several industrial International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS) standards. The STPA based sealant conforms to a higher durability class specification than the STPE sealant, for example, the requirements of class 10030 are passed with the STPA sealant, while the STPE sealant passes only class 9030 as stipulated in JIS A 5758. Furthermore, a cyclic movement test of the STPA based sealant in a compression-extension machine shows no damage to the sealant even after 200,000 cycles of ±40 % movement at room temperature. This performance is much better than that of sealants based on other materials, such as STPE, polyurethane, polysulfide, and silicone. These evaluations suggest a high potential of STPA based sealant as durable elastomeric joint sealant, which can be used on a glass, including photocatalytic self-cleaning glass, which functions by decomposing organic materials and by providing a superhydrophilic surface.
Setting Realistic Design Indoor Conditions for Residential Buildings by Vapor Pressure Difference
Authors: Roppel  Patrick , Lawton Mark , Brown William C.
Published: August 2009

Indoor relative humidity (RH) is commonly used to characterize the indoor environment for heat-air-moisture (HAM) simulations, chamber studies, analysis of monitoring data, or test hut studies of buildings without recognition that indoor RH and condensation potential depend on concurrent outdoor temperature and RH. This can lead to the use of unrealistic boundary conditions for HAM simulations and test programs, which may result in misleading conclusions. In buildings operating without mechanical dehumidification, the indoor air moisture level (vapor pressure) is directly related to the outdoor vapor pressure, moisture sources in the space, and the level of ventilation. Mathematics suggests that one can expect buildings with similar operation, occupancy, and construction, but affected by different weather conditions, to have a similar difference between indoor and outdoor vapor pressures. This paper provides a foundation for selecting appropriate and realistic boundary conditions for the design of residential buildings that are based on vapor pressure difference with the aim to eliminate any significant bias for a particular climate. The paper will present the following: (1) Discussion of current standards that provide some guidance to selecting appropriate indoor moisture levels based on vapor pressure difference; (2) Moisture balance equations will be used to show the impact of ventilation and moisture generation rates on the vapor pressure difference; (3) Monitoring data for six multi-unit residential buildings in two Canadian climates (Toronto and Vancouver) showing the relationship between the outdoor temperatures and vapor pressure difference; (4) Analysis of seasonal indoor moisture conditions and their impact on HAM modeling based on assumed indoor RH and conditions derived by a constant vapor pressure difference; and (5) Exploration of the concept that vapor pressure difference and indoor RH are limited by moisture removal on windows.
Reconstructing an Old Slavic toponymic field: the base *bĭrl- in Romanian toponymy and its historical implications
Authors: Moldovanu Dragos
Published: August 2009

After a brief presentation of the concept of toponymic field from a synchronic and diachronic perspective, as well as of a number of related methodological issues, the author discusses the etymologies proposed for the Romanian hydronym Bârlad, focusing on a South Slavic etymon: *Bĭrljadĭ. The incompatibility of the collective suffix with the toponymic category (hydronym) is elucidated through the reconstruction of the original toponymic field placed in the historical context of the Old Bulgarian knezates in South Moldavia. The question of locating the Berladniks and the Brodniks is also approached in the present paper.
Surgery and radioablation therapy combined: introducing a 1-week-condensed procedure bonding total thyroidectomy and radioablation therapy with recombinant human TSH
Authors: Emmanouilidis Nikos , Müller Jörg A , Jäger Mark D , Kaaden Stephan , Helfritz Fabian A , Güner Zeynep , Kespohl Holger , Knitsch Wolfgang , Knapp Wolfram H , Klempnauer Jürgen , Scheumann Georg F W
Published: August 2009

Objective

The objective of this study was to determine whether the use of recombinant human TSH (rhTSH) to stimulate radioiodine uptake after thyroidectomy is as efficacious as a period of withholding thyroid hormones, while at the same time avoiding hypothyroidism, reducing sick leave time and shortening the hospital stay.

Design

Our aim was to compare the standard procedure of differentiated thyroid cancer treatment, which consists of thyroidectomy followed by 4 weeks of hypothyroidism and a conclusive ablative activity of 131iodine, with a new shortened treatment in which l-thyroxine (T4) medication is initiated a day after thyroidectomy, followed by application of rhTSH stimulation and subsequent ablation a few days after surgery. We presumed our treatment to represent the most sophisticated strategy for the reduction in sick leave days overall without any reduction in safety or the efficacy of ablative therapy.

Methods

Patients (n=25) were randomized either for surgery and rhTSH stimulation or surgery and l-T4 abstinence before the first application of radioiodine. Ablation success was determined by neck ultrasound and serum thyroglobulin during follow-up. RhTSH receivers were monitored for an average of 635 days (s.d.±289) and patients in l-T4 abstinence for an average of 624 days (s.d.±205). Both groups were statistically compared for significant differences in treatment efficacy, safety and overall time of sick leave.

Results and conclusions

Our shortened treatment proved to be equally efficacious and safe in comparison with the conventional therapy regimen. At the same time, it showed economic advantages through the reduction in average sick leave time from ∼29 days (l-T4 abstinence) down to ∼6 days (rhTSH stimulation) as well as sustaining the patient's quality of life by the complete avoidance of hypothyroidism.
Diminished and irregular TSH secretion with delayed acrophase in patients with Cushing's syndrome
Authors: Roelfsema Ferdinand , Pereira Alberto M , Biermasz Nienke R , Frolich Marijke , Keenan Daniel M , Veldhuis Johannes D , Romijn Johannes A
Published: August 2009

Context

The hypothalamus–pituitary–thyroid axis in Cushing's syndrome may be altered. Previous reports have shown diminished serum TSH concentration and decreased response to TRH.

Objective

We analyzed serum TSH profiles in relation to cortisol profiles in patients with hypercortisolism of pituitary (n=16) or primary-adrenal origin (n=11) and after remission by pituitary surgery (n=7) in order to delineate aberrations in the hypothalamus–pituitary–thyroid system.

Intervention

Patients and controls (n=27) underwent a 24-h blood sampling study. Serum TSH and cortisol were measured with precise methods, and data were analyzed with a deconvolution program, approximate entropy (ApEn), and cosinor regression.

Results

Pulsatile TSH secretion and mean TSH pulse mass were diminished during hypercortisolism, independently of etiology (P<0.001). TSH secretion was increased in patients in remission only during daytime due to increased basal secretion (P<0.01). Pulse frequency and half life of TSH were similar in patients and controls. TSH ApEn (irregularity) was increased in patients with hypercortisolism (P<0.01), but was normal in cured patients. Cross-ApEn between TSH and cortisol, a measure of pattern synchrony loss, was increased in active disease, indicating (partial) loss of secretory synchrony. The TSH rhythm was phase delayed in hypercortisolemic patients, but normal in cured patients (P<0.01). Free thyroxine levels were decreased only in pituitary-dependent hypercortisolism compared with controls (P=0.003). Total 24-h TSH correlated negatively and linearly with log-transformed cortisol secretion (R=0.43, P=0.001).

Conclusion

Cortisol excess decreases TSH secretion by diminishing pulsatile release, whereas surgically cured patients have elevated nonpulsatile TSH release. Diminished TSH secretory regularity in active disease suggests glucocorticoid-induced dysregulation of TRH or somatostatinergic/annexin-1 control.
Testing for Spatially Divergent Selection: Comparing QST to FST
Authors: Whitlock Michael C , Guillaume Frederic
Published: August 2009

Q ST is a standardized measure of the genetic differentiation of a quantitative trait among populations. The distribution of QST's for neutral traits can be predicted from the FST for neutral marker loci. To test for the neutral differentiation of a quantitative trait among populations, it is necessary to ask whether the QST of that trait is in the tail of the probability distribution of neutral traits. This neutral distribution can be estimated using the Lewontin–Krakauer distribution and the FST from a relatively small number of marker loci. We develop a simulation method to test whether the QST of a given trait is consistent with the null hypothesis of selective neutrality over space. The method is most powerful with small mean FST, strong selection, and a large number (>10) of measured populations. The power and type I error rate of the new method are far superior to the traditional method of comparing QST and FST.
Fifty‐five years of soil development in restored freshwater depressional wetlands
Authors: Ballantine Katherine , Schneider Rebecca
Published: August 2009

Wetland restoration is increasingly used as a strategy both to address historical wetland losses and to mitigate new wetland impacts. Research has examined the success of restored wetlands for avifaunal habitat, plant biodiversity, and plant cover; however, less is known about soil development in these systems. Soil processes are particularly important as soil organic matter (SOM), cation exchange capacity (CEC), and other properties are directly linked to wetland functions such as water quality improvement. This research compared soil development processes and properties of 30 palustrine depressional wetlands of four different age classes (∼5, 14, 35, and 55 years since restoration) located in central New York (USA). Five natural wetlands were used as references. This chronosequence included wetlands 27 years older than previously conducted studies, making it the longest reported database available. Replicated soil cores from each site were analyzed for SOM, bulk density (Db), CEC, and concentrations of nutrients and other chemical constituents. Decomposition rate and aboveground plant and litter biomass were measured as key contributors to soil development. The results indicate that some soil properties critical for water quality functions take decades or centuries to reach natural reference levels. Of particular importance, in the top five centimeters of soil, SOM,Db, and CEC achieved<50% of reference levels 55 years after restoration. Soil development processes in these depressional wetlands appear to be driven by autochthonous inputs and by internal processes such as litter decomposition and are not accelerated in the initial phase of development by allochthonous inputs as has been documented in coastal salt marshes and riverine floodplains. While monitoring generally focuses on the initial establishment phase of restored ecosystems, our findings indicate that the later autogenic phase strongly influences development trajectories for important wetland soil properties. Therefore, the role of different successional phases in determining long‐term trajectories of ecosystem development should be considered in restoration design, research, and monitoring. This research highlights areas for improving the field of restoration through understanding of successional processes, increased efforts to jump‐start soil development, longer‐term monitoring programs, and greater focus on soil components of restored wetlands.
Stable oxygen isotope reconstruction of ambient temperature during the collapse of a cod (Gadus morhua) fishery
Authors: Jones J. Brin , Campana Steven E.
Published: August 2009

Changing environmental conditions set against a backdrop of high exploitation can result in severe consequences for commercially harvested stocks. The collapse of the Eastern Scotian Shelf cod (Gadus morhua L.) off eastern Canada was primarily due to overexploitation but may have been exacerbated by a widespread temperature decline. Recent studies have called for accurate determination of ambient temperature (the actual temperature exposure history of the fish) before discarding environmental conditions as a factor in the collapse. We used the stable oxygen isotope composition of otoliths (δ18Ooto) to reconstruct the ambient temperature history of Eastern Scotian Shelf cod from 1970 to 2000 in order to determine whether the stock experienced the temperature decline or shifted their distribution to avoid it. To correct δ18Ooto for seawater isotope content (δOw), we generated a new meta‐equation for the relationship between δ18Ow (per mil) and salinity (S, in psu) on the Eastern Scotian Shelf: δ18Ow = 0.539 × S − 18.790. The ambient temperature series revealed that the large‐scale geographic distribution of mature cod remained constant through the cooling period, although their ambient temperature was cooler than expected in warmer periods and warmer than expected in cooler periods, indicating small‐scale thermoregulatory movement. Although the mean hydrographic temperature was 4°C, mature cod usually inhabited the coldest available waters (mean ambient temperature = 3°C), while the juveniles usually inhabited warmer waters (mean ambient temperature = 5.5°C). Length‐at‐age was significantly related to ambient temperature, especially in the early years of growth, and therefore declining ambient temperatures were at least partially responsible for declines in asymptotic length (up to age 8 yr). The most active thermoregulatory movement occurred during a moderate warming period; therefore extreme warming events (such as those predicted under climate change) may force large‐scale northward latitudinal shifts in this historically sedentary stock. Retroactive stable isotope chronologies can be an important tool in sustainable management strategies under the shifting climate conditions predicted for years to come.
Invasive Andropogon gayanus (gamba grass) is an ecosystem transformer of nitrogen relations in Australian savanna
Authors: Rossiter-Rachor N. A. , Setterfield S. A. , Douglas M. M. , Hutley L. B. , Cook G. D. , Schmidt S.
Published: August 2009

Invasion by the African grass Andropogon gayanus is drastically altering the understory structure of oligotrophic savannas in tropical Australia. We compared nitrogen (N) relations and phenology of A. gayanus and native grasses to examine the impact of invasion on N cycling and to determine possible reasons for invasiveness of A. gayanus. Andropogon gayanus produced up to 10 and four times more shoot phytomass and root biomass, with up to seven and 2.5 times greater shoot and root N pools than native grass understory. These pronounced differences in phytomass and N pools between A. gayanus and native grasses were associated with an altered N cycle. Most growth occurs in the wet season when, compared with native grasses, dominance of A. gayanus was associated with significantly lower total soil N pools, lower nitrification rates, up to three times lower soil nitrate availability, and up to three times higher soil ammonium availability. Uptake kinetics for different N sources were studied with excised roots of three grass species ex situ. Excised roots of A. gayanus had an over six times higher uptake rate of ammonium than roots of native grasses, while native grass Eriachne triseta had a three times higher uptake rate of nitrate than A. gayanus. We hypothesize that A. gayanus stimulates ammonification but inhibits nitrification, as was shown to occur in its native range in Africa, and that this modification of the soil N cycle is linked to the species' preference for ammonium as an N source. This mechanism could result in altered soil N relations and could enhance the competitive superiority and persistence of A. gayanus in Australian savannas.
Improved water quality can ameliorate effects of climate change on corals
Authors: Wooldridge Scott A. , Done Terence J.
Published: August 2009

The threats of wide‐scale coral bleaching and reef demise associated with anthropogenic climate change are widely known. Moreover, rates of genetic adaptation and/or changes in the coral–zooxanthella partnerships are considered unlikely to be sufficiently fast for corals to acquire increased physiological resistance to increasing sea temperatures and declining pH. However, it has been suggested that coral reef resilience to climate change may be improved by good local management of coral reefs, including management of water quality. Here, using major data sets from the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia, we investigate geographic patterns of coral bleaching in 1998 and 2002 and outline a synergism between heat stress and nutrient flux as a major causative mechanism for those patterns. The study provides the first concrete evidence for the oft‐expressed belief that improved coral reef management will increase the regional‐scale survival prospects of coral reefs to global climate change.
Sources of nutrients to windward agricultural systems in pre‐contact Hawai‘i
Authors: Palmer Molly A. , Graves Michael , Ladefoged Thegn N. , Chadwick Oliver A. , Ka‘eo Duarte T. , Porder Stephen , Vitousek Peter M.
Published: August 2009

Prior to European contact in 1778, Hawaiians developed intensive irrigated pondfield agricultural systems in windward Kohala, Hawai‘i. We evaluated three potential sources of nutrients to windward systems that could have sustained intensive agriculture: (1) in situ weathering of primary and secondary minerals in upland soils; (2) rejuvenation of the supply of rock‐derived nutrients on eroded slopes and in alluvium; and (3) transport of rock‐derived nutrients to crops via irrigation water. Our results show that most windward soils are infertile and suggest that weathering of minerals within upland soils was insufficient to sustain intensive agriculture without substantial cultural inputs. Erosion enhances weathering and so increases nutrient supply, with soils of the largest alluvial valleys (>200 m deep) retaining 37% of calcium from parent material (compared to 2% in upland sites). However, soils of smaller valleys that also supported pre‐contact agricultural systems are substantially less enriched. Isotopic87Sr/86Sr analyses of stream water demonstrate that at low to moderate stream flow over 90% of dissolved strontium derives from weathering of basalt rather than deposition of atmospheric sources; most other dissolved cations also derive from basalt weathering. We calculate that irrigation water could have supplied ∼200 kg·ha−1·yr−1of calcium to pondfield systems, nearly 100 times more than was supplied by weathering in soils on stable geomorphic surfaces. In effect, irrigation waters brought nutrients from rocks to the windward crops.
Using telemetry to mitigate the bycatch of long‐lived marine vertebrates
Authors: McClellan Catherine M. , Read Andrew J. , Price Blake A. , Cluse Wendy M. , Godfrey Matthew H.
Published: August 2009

The unintended bycatch of long‐lived marine species in fishing gear is an important global conservation issue. One suite of management approaches used to address this problem restricts or modifies fishing practices in areas where the probability of bycatch is believed to be high. Information on the distribution and behavior of the bycaught species is a desirable component of any such scheme, but such observations are often lacking. We describe a spatially explicit approach that combines data on the distribution of fishing effort and observations of the distribution of bycatch species derived from satellite telemetry. In a case study, we used a spatially explicit predator–prey model to investigate real‐time interactions between three species of sea turtles (Caretta caretta, Chelonia mydas, and Lepidochelys kempii) and the fall large‐mesh gill net fishery that targets southern flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma) in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina between 2002 and 2004. The model calculates a spatial overlap index, thereby allowing us to identify which fishing areas have the greatest risk of encountering bycatch. In this study, our telemetry deployments (n = 50) were designed specifically to address existing fisheries conservation measures in Pamlico Sound intended to reduce sea turtle bycatch. We were able to predict the spatial distribution of bycatch and evaluate management measures. This approach offers a powerful tool to managers faced with the need to reduce bycatch.
Fire suppression and fuels treatment effects on mixed‐conifer carbon stocks and emissions
Authors: North Malcolm , Hurteau Matthew , Innes James
Published: August 2009

Depending on management, forests can be an important sink or source of carbon that if released as CO2could contribute to global warming. Many forests in the western United States are being treated to reduce fuels, yet the effects of these treatments on forest carbon are not well understood. We compared the immediate effects of fuels treatments on carbon stocks and releases in replicated plots before and after treatment, and against a reconstruction of active‐fire stand conditions for the same forest in 1865. Total live‐tree carbon was substantially lower in modern fire‐suppressed conditions (and all of the treatments) than the same forest under an active‐fire regime. Although fire suppression has increased stem density, current forests have fewer very large trees, reducing total live‐tree carbon stocks and shifting a higher proportion of those stocks into small‐diameter, fire‐sensitive trees. Prescribed burning released 14.8 Mg C/ha, with pre‐burn thinning increasing the average release by 70% and contributing 21.9–37.5 Mg C/ha in milling waste. Fire suppression may have incurred a double carbon penalty by reducing stocks and contributing to emissions with fuels‐treatment activities or inevitable wildfire combustion. All treatments reduced fuels and increased fire resistance, but most of the gains were achieved with understory thinning, with only modest increases in the much heavier overstory thinning. We suggest modifying current treatments to focus on reducing surface fuels, actively thinning the majority of small trees, and removing only fire‐sensitive species in the merchantable, intermediate size class. These changes would retain most of the current carbon‐pool levels, reduce prescribed burn and potential future wildfire emissions, and favor stand development of large, fire‐resistant trees that can better stabilize carbon stocks.