bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
THE INFLUENCE OF BLACKS IN STATE AND LOCAL FAIR HOUSING POLICY‐MAKING
Authors: Chandler Mittie Olion
Published: June 2005

The influence of black officials and organizations on public policy varies among political settings. Factors responsible for this variation include the relatively limited political resources still available to blacks, the size of the black population in a location, the representation of blacks in elective office, the control of political gate keepers, and prevailing ideology. The ability of blacks to influence fair housing policy is further predicated upon the level of government addressed. Black individuals and organizations were in‐ strumental in gaining agenda status for the passage of federal fair housing legislation in the 1960s. Experiences in Cleveland and Ohio reveal a less prominent role for blacks in state and local fair housing policy. Two major factors peculiar to this topic, inattention of traditional civil rights groups and diminished public support for civil rights policies, combine with repre‐ sentational issues to require a broader coalition for support of these policies. The lead in advocacy has been assumed by black/liberal white coalitions that promote managed residential integration contrary to the preferences of black‐dominated interests that prefer equality of housing opportunity regardless of racial impact. The latter group, lacking the politi‐ cal resources of the former, usually reacts to policy rather than initiating policy. Black elected officials, who play a pivotal role in responding to the demand‐protests of their constituents, may be hampered or helped by the political resources available in state and local settings. The theory of politi‐ cal incorporation helps to explain the incremental gains of blacks as com‐ pared to long‐term policy responsiveness in state and local policy‐making.
Perceptions of admission committee members: some aspects on individual admission to dental education at Karolinska Institutet
Authors: Röding Karin
Published: June 2005

Abstract  The aim of the study was to generate an overall impression of the admission committee's (AC) perspective on individualised admission procedures, derived from some perceived experience of the individual committee members using semi‐structured interviews. Qualitative research was used and data were collected by use of interviews. The results show that the committee members are highly committed to the task and try to identify desirable, non‐cognitive attributes in the applicants, such as motivation, empathy, drive, and tenacity: ‘emotional intelligence’. The committee members were of the opinion that it was possible to identify these attributes in an applicant. The AC further believes that the admissions procedure influences academic achievements because students regard themselves as specially selected and therefore aspire to higher achievements.
Profile and competences for the European dentist
Authors: Plasschaert A. J. M. , Holbrook W. P. , Delap E. , Martinez C. , Walmsley A. D.
Published: June 2005

Abstract  This paper presents the profile and competences for the European Dentist as approved by the General Assembly of the Association for Dental Education in Europe at its annual meeting held in Cardiff in September 2004. A taskforce drafted the document, which was then sent to all European Dental Schools. Reactions received were used to amend the document. European dental schools are expected to adhere to the profile and the 17 major competences but the supporting competences may vary in detail between schools. The document will be reviewed in 5 years time. This paper will be disseminated to ministries of health, national dental associations and dental specialty associations or societies in Europe and these organisations will be asked to offer their comments. This information will be used in the reviewing process to be started in 2007. It is hoped that the availability of this document will assist dental schools in Europe to further harmonise and improve the quality of their curricula.
German dental faculty attitudes towards computer‐assisted learning and their correlation with personal and professional profiles
Authors: Welk A. , Rosin M. , Seyer D. , Splieth C. , Siemer M. , Meyer G.
Published: June 2005

Background: Compared with its potential, computer technology use is still lacking in medical/dental education.

Objectives: To investigate the primary advantages of computer‐assisted learning (CAL) systems in German dental education, as well as the reasons for their relatively low degree of use correlated with personal and professional profiles of respondents.

Method: A questionnaire was mailed to heads in the departments of conservative dentistry and prosthetic dentistry in all dental schools in Germany. Besides investigating the advantages and barriers to the use of computer technology, the questionnaire also contained questions regarding each respondent's gender, age, academic rank, experience in academia and computer skills.

Results: The response rate to the questionnaire was 90% (112 of 125). The results indicated a distinct discrepancy between the desire for and actual occurrence of lectures, seminars, etc. to instruct students in ways to search for and acquire knowledge, especially using computer technology. The highest‐ranked advantages of CAL systems in order, as seen by respondents, were the possibilities for individual learning, increased motivation, and both objective theoretical tests and practical tests. The highest‐ranked reasons for the low degree of usage of CAL systems in order were the inability to finance, followed equally by a lack of studies of CAL and poor cost‐advantage ratio, and too much effort required to integrate CAL into the curriculum. Moreover, the higher the computer skills of the respondents, the more they noted insufficient quality of CAL systems (r = 0.200,P = 0.035) and content differences from their own dental faculty's expert opinions (r = 0.228,P = 0.016) as reasons for low use.

Conclusion: The correlations of the attitudes towards CAL with the personal and professional profiles showed not only statistical significant reinforcements of, but also interesting deviations from, the average responses.
ON THE QUANTUM INVARIANT FOR THE BRIESKORN HOMOLOGY SPHERES
Authors: HIKAMI KAZUHIRO
Published: June 2005

We study an exact asymptotic behavior of the Witten–Reshetikhin–Turaev SU(2) invariant for the Brieskorn homology spheres Σ(p1, p2, p3) by use of properties of the modular form following a method proposed by Lawrence and Zagier. Key observation is that the invariant coincides with a limiting value of the Eichler integral of the modular form with weight 3/2. We show that the Casson invariant is related to the number of the Eichler integrals which do not vanish in a limit τ → N ∈ ℤ. Correspondingly there is a one-to-one correspondence between the non-vanishing Eichler integrals and the irreducible representation of the fundamental group, and the Chern–Simons invariant is given from the Eichler integral in this limit. It is also shown that the Ohtsuki invariant follows from a nearly modular property of the Eichler integral, and we give an explicit form in terms of the L-function.
A HIERARCHICAL A POSTERIORI ERROR ESTIMATE FOR AN ADVECTION-DIFFUSION-REACTION PROBLEM
Authors: ARAYA RODOLFO , POZA ABNER H. , STEPHAN ERNST P.
Published: June 2005

In this work we introduce a new a posteriori error estimate of hierarchical type for the advection-diffusion-reaction equation. We prove the equivalence between the energy norm of the error and our error estimate using an auxiliary linear problem for the residual and an easy way to prove inf–sup condition.
COMPACT REPRESENTATIONS OF SEARCH IN COMPLEX DOMAINS
Authors: BEN-ASHER YOSI , FARCHI EITAN
Published: June 2005

We introduce a new zero-sum matrix game for modeling search in structured domains. In this game, one player tries to find a "bug" while the other tries to hide it. Both players exploit the structure of the "search" domain. Intuitively, this search game is a mathematical generalization of the well known binary search. The generalization is from searching over totally ordered sets to searching over more complex search domains such as trees, partial orders and general set systems. As there must be one row for every search strategy, and there are exponentially many ways to search even in very simple search domains, the game's matrix has exponential size ("space"). In this work we present two ways to reduce the space required to compute the Nash value (in pure strategies) of this game:

• First we show that a Nash equilibrium in pure strategies can be computed by using a backward induction on the matrices of each "part" or sub structure of the search domain. This can significantly reduce the space required to represent the game.

• Next, we show when general search domains can be represented as DAGs (Directed Acycliqe Graphs). As a result, the Nash equilibrium can be directly computed using the DAG. Consequently the space needed to compute the desired search strategy is reduced to O(n2) where n is the size of the search domain.
HELPING AND SABOTAGING IN TOURNAMENTS
Authors: KRÄKEL MATTHIAS
Published: June 2005

A two-stage, two-person tournament is discussed, in which each player can influence the other one at the first stage by choosing help, sabotage or no action. At the second stage, the players choose effort to win the tournament. Helping and sabotaging have two effects — they influence the likelihood of winning (likelihood effect) and they determine the equilibrium efforts and, therefore, effort costs (cost effect). Depending on the interplay of the two effects, diverse types of equilibria are possible. In particular, if the cost effect dominates the likelihood effect (i.e., both players concentrate on minimizing effort costs), two asymmetric equilibria will coexist in which one player helps his opponent, whereas the other one chooses sabotage and vice versa.
Trends in the Maximum, Mean, and Low Flows of Turkish Rivers
Authors: Cigizoglu H. K. , Bayazit M. , Önöz B.
Published: June 2005

In this study the existence of trend in maximum, mean, and low flows of Turkish rivers has been investigated. The data consisted of the daily mean flows of nearly 100 flow stations in 24 hydrological regions of Turkey. Trend analysis has been carried out using the parametric t test and nonparametric τ (Mann–Kendall) test. Both tests have been applied to annual maximum, mean, 1-day, and 7-day low flows. Trend existence was detected in the majority of rivers in western and southern Turkey and in some parts of central and eastern Turkey. Trends in mean and low flows were more common compared with maximum flows. Except at a few stations, flows showed a decreasing trend. In the time period of the last 30–60 yr, statistically significant decrease was found especially in the mean and low flows (and in some of the maximum flows) in western, central, and southern parts of Turkey. Such trends were not observed in other regions. These results are in agreement with those of the precipitation trend studies in Turkey.
The Effects of Snow Cover on Midlatitude Cyclones in the Great Plains
Authors: Elguindi N. , Hanson B. , Leathers D.
Published: June 2005

The impacts of snow cover on the structure and intensity of midlatitude cyclones are examined. The fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University–National Center for Atmospheric Research (Penn State–NCAR) Mesoscale Model (MM5) was used to simulate eight synoptic events in which a well-developed cyclone moved across the central and northern Great Plains region of the United States. Two simulations were performed for each event: a control run with the actual snow cover and a perturbed run with an extensive snow cover.

In all of the cases, increasing the snow cover, and thereby reducing the available potential energy, weakened the cyclones. Among the eight cases, the averaged minimum central low pressure of the cyclones in the perturbed runs was approximately 4 mb greater than the control cyclones. The reduction in temperature and moisture in the lower atmosphere was most pronounced in the warm sector, which significantly reduced the thermal and moisture gradients near the surface. This resulted in a weakening of the fronts, less convergence near the surface, and decreased precipitation. Averaged among the cases, the upward vertical velocity near the center of the low was about 3.5 cm s−1 less in the perturbed simulations. Accumulated vertically integrated rainwater was reduced by 0.64 × 109 m3 when averaged for all of the cases in the perturbed simulations. In addition, the weaker gradients across the surface fronts in the increased snow-covered simulations decreased thermal and moisture advection near the surface and may have contributed to limiting the cyclones’ intensification in some of the cases by dampening positive feedback processes between the surface and midtroposphere.
Production of Temporally Consistent Gridded Precipitation and Temperature Fields for the Continental United States*
Authors: Hamlet Alan F. , Lettenmaier Dennis P.
Published: June 2005

The availability of long-term gridded datasets of precipitation, temperature, and other surface meteorological variables offers the potential for deriving a range of land surface conditions that have not been directly observed. These include, for instance, soil moisture, snow water equivalent, evapotranspiration, runoff, and subsurface moisture transport. However, gridding procedures can themselves introduce artificial trends due to incorporation of stations with different record lengths and locations. Hence, existing gridded datasets are in general not appropriate for estimation of long-term trends. Methods are described here for adjustment of gridded daily precipitation and temperature maxima and minima over the continental United States based on newly available (in electronic form) U.S. Cooperative Observer station data archived at the National Climatic Data Center from the early 1900s on. The intent is to produce gridded meteorological datasets that can be used, in conjunction with hydrologic modeling, for long-term trend analysis of simulated hydrologic variables.
International Relations Theory, Communitarianism, and U.S. Grand Strategy
Authors: Hentz James J.
Published: June 2005

A central paradox of Amitai Etzioni’s From Empire to Community: A New Approach to International Relations relates to how U.S. hegemony, or semi-empire, will be transcended. The United States is expected to use its hegemony to create a new world order that will transcend that hegemony and concomitantly hasten the end of the unipolar moment in international politics. How does this fit with U.S. grand strategy, in particular that of the Bush administration? And is there a place for Africa in this strategy and in the communitarian project? The answer to these questions largely rests in the relationship between U.S. foreign policy and the push and pull of domestic politics.
The Communitarian Approach to International Relations and the Future of World Order
Authors: Falk Richard
Published: June 2005

This article comments on Amitai Etzioni’s advocacy of “soft communitarianism” as the preferred approach to the establishment of a global governance architecture responsive to the current range of world order challenges facing the world and the United States. The article criticizes the effort to combine an insider discussion of American foreign policy with the presentation of a framework for ethical problem solving that has the potential for acceptance throughout the world. A related criticism is the degree to which the foreign policy agenda is discussed in the terms within which it has arisen in Washington, giving the communitarian approach a discrediting nationalistic tilt.
Sandcastle of Theory
Authors: Gray Colin S.
Published: June 2005

Amitai Etzioni’s communitarianism offers an attractive but impractical vision. The global threats that he cites as engines for a communitarian future are not convincing as the triggers for epochal benign change in human security arrangements. Communitarianism has four especially fatal flaws: it is too large an idea and as a consequence, it overreaches; it poses the wrong question, and therefore provides a wrong answer; it rests on the fallacy that history can register a grand benign transformation in security affairs; and it assumes, unreasonably, that struggles for power and influence among the greater powers will not occur in the future.
Being Tough on Terrorism or Respecting Human Rights
Authors: Müllerson Rein
Published: June 2005

Today the world has become too small to remain too different—liberal-democratic and authoritarian-totalitarian, rich and poor, healthy and mired in epidemics. Such variations also constitute a fertile ground for terrorism. The concepts of East and West, South and North have all emerged as Homo sapiens, starting from an African village, spread throughout the world. Today we are creating the global village of planet Earth. In this village, differences acquired during the millennia of separation and isolation not only enrich humankind but some also can serve as a cause, a catalyst, or a pretext for conflicts, including terrorism. Having dissimilated for millennia, humankind is slowly and often reluctantly assimilating. However, sustainable integration, whether economic or political, is not possible without some kind of assimilation taking place (i.e., integrating entities becoming in some respect similar to each other).
An Alternative Route to a Global Community
Authors: Kampelman Max M.
Published: June 2005

This period in our history is characterized by the growth of democracy in all areas of the world. There is understandable resistance to that trend on the part of those political, religious, and tribal forces whose power is thereby undermined. Terrorism is an extension of that resistance. The United States is a symbol of that democratic trend and the United Nations is the forum in which the political competition is taking place. To strengthen our resolve, our defenses, and our democratic commitment, the author calls for the American and international leadership to eliminate all nuclear weapons in the world and for a national resolve to establish a national voluntary Civilian Conservation Corps for 18- to 21-year-old men and women coupled with a new education incentive along the line of the Roosevelt GI Bill of Rights.
Labour Migration into Russia: The Response of State and Society
Authors: Yudina Tatiana Nikolaevna
Published: June 2005

The problems connected with the presence of international migrants in the Russian labour market are analysed in this article. The study reveals the role of foreign citizens in the labour market structure of the capital of Russia - Moscow - and the effect of the presence of migrants on the employment of Muscovites. The particular character of the main flows of migrants is described and its effect on different spheres of the Moscow population’s activities is determined. The study also looks at migrants’ social protection. Muscovites’ relations to international migrants of different social groups, and the causes of these relations, are defined. Finally, the article looks at possible measures regulating the flows of labour migrants.
The Spatially Ruptured Practices of Migrant Families: A Comparison of Immigrants from El Salvador and the People’s Republic of China
Authors: Landolt Patricia , Wei Da Wei
Published: June 2005

This study draws insights from scholarship on immigrant families and transnational migration to examine the multi-local transnational family practices of Salvadoran refugee-migrants in the US and middle-class emigrants from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to Australia. We compare the contexts of exit and reception and state-migrant relations that characterize the two migration flows; explore the elite and popular narratives in which family migration experiences are embedded; and provide a range of family biographies that capture some of the more emblematic long-distance practices and livelihood strategies of transnational families. The article examines three types of border-crossing family practices including long-distance conjugal relations, spatial ruptures in mother-child relationships, and caregiving arrangements that involve shuttling non-working-age members of the family across locations. PRC and Salvadoran migrant families navigate dramatically different institutional and discursive landscapes, which impacts the character and quality of the resources they bring to bear on their long-distance family arrangements. The findings challenge existing conceptualizations of the immigrant family, gender role performances and gender ideologies, and highlight the gendered aspects of the institutional landscapes and discursive narratives in which the livelihood and mobility strategies and long-distance practices of immigrant families are embedded.
The Emergence of Pan-Mayan Ethnicity in the Guatemalan Transnational Community Linking Santa Eulalia and Los Angeles
Authors: Popkin Eric
Published: June 2005

This article explores how the migratory process shapes ethnicity in transnational communities through an examination of the Guatemalan Mayan (Kanjobal) migrant circuit that links Santa Eulalia and Los Angeles. Relying on extensive qualitative fieldwork in both locales and a household census carried out in Santa Eulalia, this study concludes that transnational migration exacerbates class and social stratification in the sending community as immigrants in the host society confront adverse conditions that include racial/ethnic discrimination, restrictive US immigration policies, and an increasingly competitive secondary sector labor market. These conditions generate new forms of resistance reflected in the emergence of Pan-Mayan community organizations at both ends of the migrant circuit. The case study demonstrates how ethnicity becomes the cohesive force that empowers dislocated indigenous workers on both sides of the US-Mexican border, enabling them to feel a sense of common purpose in the face of challenging economic and social conditions.
Terrorism and Collective Memories
Authors: Tota Anna Lisa
Published: June 2005

Commemorative rituals are opportunities for civil and political society to contribute to the values of democracy. They also are significant to the process of hegemony. This article compares the processes of civil society in remembering collectively or in forgetting events defined as terrorism in three major train explosions in Bologna, Naples and Madrid. The Bologna case is an example of the perfect memorial. The incident is commemorated on the anniversary day, same time and place of the attack and includes rituals by both government and private groups. The second incident, the explosion of train 904 in Val di Sambro, between Bologna and Naples, represents a case of imperfect oblivion, even if ironically this event is commemorated twice every year. Despite attempts by various groups to organize a more successful on-site ritual as in the case of Bologna, chronic fear of retaliation by the Camorra (the Naples ‘Mafia’) over the years has silenced political and civil institutions. Attempts to memorialize the event are fragmented at best and almost forgotten. The third case, in Madrid, exemplifies a commemoration in the making. Comparison of these three cases shows that the continual remembrance of terrorist victims has helped families to heal. Local and political outrage is expressed - through art, culture, and mass media - against the terrorists from whom the state is unable to defend its citizens. But, when processes of remembering are fragmented, interrupted or silenced, the state prevents citizens from organizing and systematically presenting their ideas, opinions and challenges in a peaceful but effective form, an essential element of a democracy.
State Torture in the Contemporary World
Authors: Cohen Irwin M. , Corrado Raymond R.
Published: June 2005

This article argues that the variation in the use of torture as a mechanism of state terrorism can be best explained by recent changes in the global economy, the increasing influence of liberal-democratic political ideology, and the advent of anti-state Islamic terrorism. Specifically, although the use of state torture as a matter of policy is widespread, as societies shift from an agrarian society to an industrial and an advanced capitalist society, the disutility of policies of state torture increases primarily due to economic interdependence, the distribution of wealth, minimum standards of living, and the influence of the global media and the international community. While advanced liberal, capitalist states have employed state torture in the past and to a lesser extent more recently, these instances typically involve the use of torture against the citizens of other countries, privatizing torture organizations, or employing surrogate countries. The main focus of this article, however, is to explain the current growing disutility of policies of state torture as a form of state terror against real or perceived internal threats to the government or the state. Nonetheless, national variations in the extent or type of state torture will remain; however, this variation is primarily dependent on the type of macroeconomic structure of a country and its consequent economic integration in the emergent global economy.
News about Genetics and Smoking
Authors: Cappella Joseph N. , Lerman Caryn , Romantan Anca , Baruh Lemi
Published: June 2005

Print news stories about genetics convey information to the public. This study assesses the effects of priming a belief in genetic susceptibility to smoking addiction on smokers’ inferences about their own susceptibility to smoking addiction, their efficacy to quit smoking, and their intention to get a genetic test for addiction susceptibility. Respondents were 450 young adult smokers surveyed on the telephone in a randomized experiment embedded in a questionnaire about cigarette smoking practices. In the priming condition, respondents heard a news story about genes for smoking addiction. In the unprimed condition, respondents heard a news story concerning the gender of the offspring of smokers. Priming with the genetics news story did not affect respondents’ inferences about personal genetic susceptibility to smoking addiction. However, those finding the news story believable and having a strong family history of smoking were more likely to infer a greater personal genetic susceptibility.
School Psychological Services in Moscow
Authors: Malykh Sergey B. , Barsky Philipp I. , Kutuzova Daria A. , Malykhin Pavel A.
Published: June 2005

Since 1998 the Moscow City University for Psychology and Education has conducted a bi-annual research programme with the aim of investigating the current status and development of the school psychological service in Moscow. This article provides an analysis of data obtained in 2002. The history of school psychology in Russia is briefly outlined. Demographical, social and psychological characteristics of psychologists working in different settings within the Moscow school psychology services (schools, kindergartens, psychological centres) are compared. In the discussion, a comparison is made with foreign practice and experience.
An Integrated Model of School Crisis Preparedness and Intervention
Authors: Jimerson Shane R. , Brock Stephen E. , Pletcher Sarah W.
Published: June 2005

In an effort to promote the social and cognitive competence of youth, school psychologists must be prepared to address a multitude of contextual factors and life events that impact children’s performance and adjustment in school and subsequent developmental trajectories. The domain of crisis preparedness and intervention has received increased attention during the past decade (as evidenced by a growing school crisis intervention literature) and is currently a training standard for school psychologists in some parts of the world. Crisis situations may emerge following natural disasters such as floods, fires, tornadoes or earthquakes and also from human generated situations such as bombings and school shootings. Each of these events is likely to affect the children and families in schools and communities by presenting them with problems that will be challenging to cope with. There are a variety of crisis preparedness and intervention models and strategies available to address crisis situations. Without a shared foundation for crisis intervention, responding to crisis situations may be further complicated, especially in situations where international colleagues are collaborating. Therefore, a shared foundation that includes both preparedness and intervention while emphasizing both developmental and school considerations will be invaluable in our efforts to facilitate collaboration among diverse colleagues across multiple contexts. The purpose of this article is to incorporate several models and frameworks in order to provide a shared foundation for school psychologists and other educational and mental health professionals regarding crisis preparedness and intervention. To establish a shared foundation for international crisis collaboration, it is also necessary to review the original works discussed in this brief overview and participate in relevant workshops.
An Examination of Peer Relationships of Children With and Without Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Authors: Heiman Tali
Published: June 2005

The study examined Friendship Qualities among 39 children with attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) and 17 children without ADHD, studying in mainstreamed classes, and compared their self-reports with their parents’ and teachers’ perceptions. Although the literature has described ADHD children as having social difficulties, a higher rate of social difficulties and being at higher risk for peer rejection, the results of this study showed that the number of friends for children with ADHD was not significantly lower and their self-reported activities during leisure time were as varied as those of their peers without ADHD. Results also indicated that children with ADHD did not express more intense feelings of loneliness, nor did they report on continuous problems in their social relationships as compared to children without ADHD. Significant differences were obtained regarding the perceived characteristics of ‘a close friend’, and regarding places to meet friends. Comparing adults’ and children’s perceptions indicated that parents and teachers of children with ADHD perceived their children’s loneliness as higher than parents and teachers of the control group. The findings highlight the need for parents and teachers to develop awareness and involvement in children’s friendship relationships.
A Framework of Principles and Best Practice for Managing Student Behaviour in the Australian Education Context
Authors: De Jong Terry
Published: June 2005

Public opinion over the past 30 years consistently rates lack of discipline in public schools in the USA to be the biggest problem communities have to contend with (Charles, 1999). Similar concerns are apparent in Australia. The issue of student behaviour was raised at the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) in 2002. The Council recognized that behavioural problems were both ongoing and growing and were of major concern nationally. Consequently, the Student Behaviour Management Project was established. This article briefly describes the aim, research process and outcome of this project. It reports on the core principles and key characteristics of best practice that were identified and the predominant models and approaches of student behaviour management that appear to inform best practice across Australia. Of what relevance is this project to school psychology? The effective management of student behaviour is arguably the business of school psychology practice in many countries around the world. This article is intended to contribute to international perspectives and debate on contemporary theories, principles and best practice associated with the effective management of student behaviour.
Labour Market Flexibility in the UK: Regional Variations and the Role of Global/Local Forces
Authors: Monastiriotis Vassilis
Published: June 2005

Despite the interest in the issue of labour market flexibility, there is markedly little research attempting to measure, let alone evaluate, the extent to which flexible labour arrangements have penetrated labour relations in the UK and elsewhere. One of the implications of this is that little is known about the specific forms that labour market flexibility takes across and within each country. Given this, it comes as little surprise that the discussion about the link between globalization and flexibility has remained largely theoretical, with only a few references to usually incidental anecdotal evidence. This article exploits a unique set of labour market flexibility indicators that have been developed at the regional level for the UK over the period 1979-98 and examines empirically the relationship between globalization and flexibility. Through a spatial-temporal exploratory analysis, significant patterns of geographical and functional specialization (in levels and types of flexibility) are identified and then related to local structural factors and demand conditions and to global influences. Global forces are found to have played a significant role for the patterns observed. The implications of this finding are discussed in the concluding section.
Regional Union Response to Regional Restructuring: A Case Study of Union Agency
Authors: Rittau Yasmin
Published: June 2005

The article examines how a regional peak union council is structured in its response to regional restructuring. It focuses on an Australian regional peak union council, the South Coast Labour Council (SCLC), which pursued a goal of local employment generation from 1983 to 1996. The SCLC is based in the Illawarra region on the east coast, south of Sydney in the state of New South Wales. Its operations are centred on the city of Wollongong and Port Kembla, where the region’s economic activity is focused. The region had experienced unemployment greater than the state and national averages through the 1980s and 1990s. The article demonstrates how the SCLC’s structure allows it to perform its role as an agent of exchange with governments and employers, and thereby attempts to shape the political and industrial environment in which it resides. At the same time, the environment, in terms of government and employer policy and regional need, shapes the SCLC with it becoming involved with local employment generation.
Characteristics of Knowledge Interactions between Universities and Small Firms in Japan
Authors: Fukugawa Nobuya
Published: June 2005

Based on university-level data, characteristics of industry-university linkages in Japan were examined. The results of statistical analysis present a contrasting picture regarding the characteristics of knowledge interactions according to the size of industrial partners. On the one hand, on the basis of direct connections, university-based scientists with high research potential are linked with large firms in broad areas through highly interactive spillover channels such as joint research. On the other hand, through the intermediation of liaison offices, university-based scientists with low research potential are linked with small firms, through less interactive spillover channels such as technical consultation.
‘Mind the Gap’
Authors: Pittaway Luke , Thedham Jon
Published: June 2005

The purpose of the study was to analyse the perceptions that small business owner-managers held of graduates and graduate skills. The research focused on the tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors and used two methods, focus groups and a survey of firms in Surrey, UK. Firms employing less than 10 people dominated the study. The research highlighted some interesting results and perception gaps and this article will present these results. Micro-business owners, for example, believed that their businesses were not appropriate for graduate employment and that they could not utilize graduate skills. As firms grew, however, their readiness to recruit graduates increased and owner-managers who had professional qualifications were also more likely to recruit graduates. The study indicated that smaller firms placed greater emphasis on the ability of the graduates to ‘fit’ within the business and findings suggested that SMEs expected graduates to be able to perform and contribute immediately. The results of the study are drawn out in this article because they impact on the way students are developed in Higher Education.
Acute hypercarbic gas exposure reveals functionally distinct subpopulations of serotonergic neurons in rats
Authors: Johnson Philip L. , Hollis Jacob H. , Moratalla Rosario , Lightman Stafford L. , Lowry Christopher A.
Published: June 2005

Although increasing evidence suggests that anatomically defined subpopulations of serotonergic neurons have unique stress-related functional properties, the topographical distribution of the serotonergic neurons involved in responses to stress-related stimuli have not been well-defined. Inspiration of air containing elevated concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2; hypercarbic gas exposure) at high concentrations activates both hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and sympathetic responses in rats and humans. In order to determine the effects of acute hypercarbic gas exposure on subpopulations of topographically organized serotonergic neurons, conscious adult male rats were placed in flow cages and exposed to either atmospheric air or increasing environmental CO2concentrations (from baseline concentrations up to 20% CO2) for 5min. The presence of immunoreactivity for the protein product of the immediate-early gene c-fos was used as a measure, at the single cell level, of functional cellular responses within subpopulations of serotonergic, noradrenergic and adrenergic neurons. Rats exposed to hypercarbic gas had increased numbers of c-Fos/tryptophan hydroxylase immunoreactive (ir) and c-Fos/tyrosine hydroxylase-ir neurons in specific topographically organized subdivisions of brainstem nuclei, compared to control rats. Within serotonergic cell groups (B1-B9), the most striking effects occurred in a subpopulation of large, multipolar serotonergic neurons within the ventrolateral periaqueductal grey and ventrolateral part of the dorsal raphe nucleus, a region implicated in serotonin-dependent suppression of stress-induced sympathetic outflow and serotonin-dependent inhibition of ‘fight or flight’ behaviour. These findings have important implications for understanding the role of serotonergic systems in the modulation of stress-related physiology and behaviour and stress-related neuropsychiatric disorders.
Single doses of Panax ginseng (G115) reduce blood glucose levels and improve cognitive performance during sustained mental activity
Authors: Reay Jonathon L. , Kennedy David O. , Scholey Andrew B.
Published: June 2005

Single doses of the traditional herbal treatment Panax ginseng have recently been shown to elicit cognitive improvements in healthy young volunteers. The mechanisms by which ginseng improves cognitive performance are not known. However, they may be related to the glycaemic properties of some Panax species. Using a double-blind, placebo-controlled, balanced crossover design, 30 healthy young adults completed a 10min test battery at baseline, and then six times in immediate succession commencing 60min after the day’s treatment (placebo, 200mg G115 or 400mg G115). The 10 min battery comprised a Serial Threes subtraction task (2min); a Serial Sevens task (2min); a Rapid Visual Information Processing task (5min); then a ‘mental fatigue’ visual analogue scale. Blood glucose was measured prior to each day’s treatment, and before, during and after the post-dose completions of the battery. Both the 200mg and 400mg treatments led to significant reductions in blood glucose levels at all three post-treatment measurements ( p 0.005 in all cases). The most notable behavioural effects were associated with 200mg of ginseng and included significantly improved Serial Sevens subtraction task performance and significantly reduced subjective mental fatigue throughout all (with the exception of one time point in each case) of the post-dose completions of the 10min battery ( p 0.05). Overall these data suggest that Panax ginseng can improve performance and subjective feelings of mental fatigue during sustained mental activity. This effect may be related to the acute gluco-regulatory properties of the extract.
Augmentation strategy with olanzapine in resistant obsessive compulsive disorder: an Italian long-term open-label study
Authors: Marazziti Donatella , Pfanner Chiara , Dell’osso Bernardo , Ciapparelli Antonio , Presta Silvio , Corretti Giorgio , Di Nasso Elena , Mungai Francesco , Dell’osso Liliana
Published: June 2005

The present study reports the results of an open-label trial on the use of the combination of olanzapine (an atypical antipsychotic) serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs) in 26 resistant outpatients affected by resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

All patients had been suffering from OCD, according to DSM IV criteria, for at least 2 years and had different comorbid disorders; they had been treated with an SRI at adequate dosages for at least 6 months, or had tried different augmentation strategies with no or poor response. As a result, olanzapine was added and continued for 1 year.

After 12 weeks of this regimen, most of the patients (17) had shown a reduction in OC symptoms, as assessed by a decrease in the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale total score, which continued throughout subsequent months. Only mild side-effects were recorded and no patient halted the treatment.

The addition of olanzapine would appear to be a useful short- and long-term strategy for augmenting SRI effectiveness in resistant OCD patients, especially in those presenting comorbidity with bipolar disorders.
A survey of the off-label use of mood stabilizers in a large psychiatric hospital
Authors: Haw Camilla , Stubbs Jean
Published: June 2005

The term ‘off-label’ prescribing refers to the use of a drug outside the terms of its Marketing Authorization, including prescribing for an unlicensed indication. The aims of the study were to determine the frequency of off-label prescriptions for mood stabilizers (lithium and antiepileptics) among inpatients of a large psychiatric hospital, the nature of the off-label clinical indications in use and whether patients had been informed about the off-label usage.

A cross-sectional survey of inpatients aged 18-65 years at St Andrew’s Hospital, Northampton, UK and interviews with consultant psychiatrists about off-label usage of mood stabilizers were carried out.

Of the 249 patients studied, 75 (30.1%) were receiving one or more mood stabilizers, of which 71 (94.7%) were off-label. The most frequently cited off-label indications for mood stabilizers were: prophylaxis of mood swings (48 cases), treatment of aggression (31), manic symptoms (10), antipsychotic augmentation in treatment-resistant schizophrenia (7) and post-traumatic stress disorder (6). Lithium was prescribed infrequently. The reasons for this are discussed. Although in most instances the psychiatrist was aware the drug was being used off-label, in less than one-third of cases had the patient been informed of this, partly because of anticipated difficulties in their understanding the off-label concept, but also because of concerns that this information could adversely affect compliance.

The off-label prescription of mood stabilizers is very common in psychiatry and such usage benefits patients. When prescribing off-label, psychiatrists should consider the evidence that the drug is likely to be effective for the unlicensed indication. Where there is limited evidence of benefit, a trial of the drug, with clinical monitoring, may be indicated. Patients should be fully informed about their medication, and this includes information that the prescription is off-label. Pharmacists can assist this process. The off-label concept may be difficult for some patients to understand.
Medicinal plants for insomnia: a review of their pharmacology, efficacy and tolerability
Authors: Wheatley David
Published: June 2005

A number of medicinal plants are traditionally endowed with anxiolytic or sedative properties and, in the context of this revue, both indications are considered since the former may induce a mood conducive to the latter. For any sleep-inducing drug to be effective, a tranquil ambience needs to be established a priori. Thus, physical ailments (i.e. pain), factors interfering with sleep (i.e. noise), psychological conditions causing stress, psychiatric illnesses (i.e. depression) and other drugs that interfere with sleep (i.e. caffeine) need to be controlled, if possible. Kava-kava is a well-established hypnotic drug, with a rapid onset of effect, adequate duration of action and minimal morning after-effects. However, reports of serious hepatotoxicity with this preparation have led to it being banned in most countries worldwide. On the other hand, side-effects with valerian would appear to be bland indeed. However, it’s slow onset of effect (2-3 weeks) renders it unsuitable for short-term use (i.e. ‘jet-lag’), but it does have profound beneficial effects on sleep architecture (augments deep sleep) that may make it particularly suitable for long-term use and for the elderly. In a personal trial (not double-blind) in stress-induced insomnia, both kava and valerian improved sleep and the ill-effects of stress, and the combination of the two was even more effective for the control of insomnia. Aromatherapy (lavender, chamomile, Ylang-Ylang) would appear to improve sleep, but how practical a form of treatment this may be remains to be determined. The only other plant drug that may have some effect on sleep is melissa, but reports are too scanty to form any opinion about this. Based on animal experiments, passion flower (passiflora) may have a sedative action, but the sedative action of hops has not been investigated in any detail. In conclusion, there is a need for longer-term controlled studies with some of these compounds (particularly valerian). Aromatherapy constitutes a tantalising possibility. In the interpretation of this review, it should be borne in mind that the evidence on which it is based is often incomplete or missing, but that is all that is available. Consequently some conjecture on the part of the author is inevitable and should be appreciated as such.
Neuroleptic malignant syndrome due to three atypical antipsychotics in a child
Authors: Chungh Dong-Seon , Kim Boong-Nyun , Cho Soo-Churl
Published: June 2005

Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome (NMS) is a rare, potentially fatal and idiosyncratic drug reaction. It is characterized by a sudden loss of body temperature control, renal and respiratory failure, muscle rigidity, loss of consciousness and impairment of autonomic nervous system. Although NMS was previously associated with the use of classical high-potency neuroleptics, cases have started to emerge with atypical neuroleptics. This article discusses the first case of NMS in a child, induced by the use of risperidone, olanzapine and quetiapine.