bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Relation of Postural Vasovagal Syncope to Splanchnic Hypervolemia in Adolescents
Authors: Stewart Julian M. , McLeod Kenneth J. , Sanyal Sanjukta , Herzberg Gilbert , Montgomery Leslie D.
Published: October 2004

Background—

The mechanisms of simple faint remain elusive. We propose that postural fainting is related to excessive thoracic hypovolemia and splanchnic hypervolemia during orthostasis compared with healthy subjects.

Methods and Results—

We studied 34 patients 12 to 22 years old referred for multiple episodes of postural faint and 11 healthy subjects. Subjects were studied in the supine position and during upright tilt to 70° for 30 minutes and subgrouped into S+, historical fainters who fainted during testing (n=24); S−, historical fainters who did not faint during testing (n=10); and control subjects. Supine venous occlusion plethysmography showed no differences between blood flows of the forearm and calf in S+, S−, or control. Cardiac index, total peripheral resistance, and blood volume were not different. Using impedance plethysmography, we assessed blood redistribution during upright tilt. This demonstrated decreased thoracic blood volume and increased splanchnic, pelvic, and leg blood volumes for all subjects. However, thoracic blood volume was decreased in S+ compared with control volume, correlating well with the maximum upright heart rate. Splanchnic volume was decreased in the S+ and S− groups, correlating with the change in thoracic blood volume. Pelvic and leg volume changes were similar for all groups and uncorrelated to thoracic blood volume.

Conclusions—

Enhanced postural thoracic hypovolemia and splanchnic hypervolemia are associated with postural simple faint.
L-Type Ca
2+
Current Downregulation in Chronic Human Atrial Fibrillation Is Associated With Increased Activity of Protein Phosphatases
Authors: Christ T. , Boknik P. , Wöhrl S. , Wettwer E. , Graf E.M. , Bosch R.F. , Knaut M. , Schmitz W. , Ravens U. , Dobrev D.
Published: October 2004

Background—

Although downregulation of L-type Ca
2+
current (
I
Ca,L
) in chronic atrial fibrillation (AF) is an important determinant of electrical remodeling, the molecular mechanisms are not fully understood. Here, we tested whether reduced
I
Ca,L
in AF is associated with alterations in phosphorylation-dependent channel regulation.

Methods and Results—

We used whole-cell voltage-clamp technique and biochemical assays to study regulation and expression of
I
Ca,L
in myocytes and atrial tissue from 148 patients with sinus rhythm (SR) and chronic AF. Basal
I
Ca,L
at +10 mV was smaller in AF than in SR (−3.8±0.3 pA/pF, n=138/37 [myocytes/patients] and −7.6±0.4 pA/pF, n=276/86, respectively;
P
<0.001), though protein levels of the pore-forming α
1c
and regulatory β
2a
channel subunits were not different. In both groups, norepinephrine (0.01 to 10 μmol/L) increased
I
Ca,L
with a similar maximum effect and comparable potency. Selective blockers of kinases revealed that basal
I
Ca,L
was enhanced by Ca
2+
/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II in SR but not in AF. Norepinephrine-activated
I
Ca,L
was larger with protein kinase C block in SR only, suggesting decreased channel phosphorylation in AF. The type 1 and type 2A phosphatase inhibitor okadaic acid increased basal
I
Ca,L
more effectively in AF than in SR, which was compatible with increased type 2A phosphatase but not type 1 phosphatase protein expression and higher phosphatase activity in AF.

Conclusions—

In AF, increased protein phosphatase activity contributes to impaired basal
I
Ca,L
. We propose that protein phosphatases may be potential therapeutic targets for AF treatment.
Cellular Physiology of Cholesterol Efflux in Vascular Endothelial Cells
Authors: O’Connell Brian J. , Denis Maxime , Genest Jacques
Published: October 2004

Background—

Of the cells that compose the atherosclerotic plaque, vascular endothelial cells are the most resistant to cholesterol accumulation. Cholesterol efflux pathways may play an important role in endothelial cholesterol homeostasis.

Methods and Results—

We examined the global genetic response of endothelial cells to cholesterol and in particular the contribution of the cholesterol efflux proteins ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1), ATP-binding cassette transporter G1 (ABCG1), and scavenger receptor B-I (SR-BI) to endothelial cell cholesterol efflux. The ABCG1 gene is induced in endothelial cells by cholesterol, whereas ABCA1 is not. Using specific chemical inhibitors of ABC transporters and SR-BI, we have shown that neither ABC transporters nor SR-BI is required for apolipoprotein A-1–mediated endothelial cholesterol efflux.

Conclusions—

Endothelial cells may use nontraditional pathways for cholesterol efflux.
Heritability of Ambulatory Heart Rate Variability
Authors: Kupper Nina H.M. , Willemsen Gonneke , van den Berg Mireille , de Boer Dolf , Posthuma Daniëlle , Boomsma Dorret I. , de Geus Eco J.C.
Published: October 2004

Background—

Reduced heart rate variability (HRV) is a prognostic factor for cardiac disease and cardiac mortality. Understanding the sources of individual differences in HRV may increase its diagnostic use and provide new angles for preventive therapy. To date, the contribution of genetic and environmental factors to the variance in HRV has not been investigated during prolonged periods of ambulatory monitoring in a naturalistic setting.

Methods and Results—

In 772 healthy twins and singleton siblings, ambulatory ECG was recorded during 24 hours. Two time domain measures of HRV were used: the standard deviations of all normal-to-normal intervals across 5-minute segments (SDNN index) and the root mean square of successive differences between adjacent normal RR intervals (RMSSD). Multivariate genetic analyses across 4 periods of day (morning, afternoon, evening, night) yielded significant estimates for genetic contribution to the mean ambulatory SDNN index (ranging from 35% to 47%) and the mean ambulatory RMSSD (ranging from 40% to 48%).

Conclusions—

Ambulatory HRV measures are highly heritable traits that can be used to support genetic association and linkage studies in their search for genetic variation influencing cardiovascular disease risk.
Sagittal Abdominal Diameter and Risk of Sudden Death in Asymptomatic Middle-Aged Men
Authors: Empana J.P. , Ducimetiere P. , Charles M.A. , Jouven X.
Published: October 2004

Background—

Abdominal (visceral) and overall obesity are both related to coronary heart disease mortality risk; however, the relative contribution of these 2 components of fat deposit in the etiology of sudden death is unknown.

Methods and Results—

We used the data from 7079 asymptomatic men of the Paris Prospective Study I who were free of ischemic heart disease and who were 43 to 52 years of age at first clinical examination between 1967 and 1972. Body mass index (BMI) and sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) were measured at baseline and used as markers of overall and abdominal obesity. During a follow-up of 23 years, there were 118 sudden deaths and 192 fatal myocardial infarctions. After adjustment for baseline level of cardiovascular risk factors, trunk subcutaneous fat, and thoracic diameter, the ratio of the fifth over the first quintile of SAD was 2.6 (95% CI 1.0 to 6.7) and 2. 6 (95% CI 1.3 to 5.1) for sudden death and fatal myocardial infarction, respectively, and the risk of sudden death increased proportionally with SAD level. The corresponding ratios for BMI were 2.0 (95% CI 1.1 to 3.8) and 1.0 (95% CI 0.6 to 1.7), respectively. Compared with men with low SAD (first tertile) and normal BMI (<25 kg/m
2
), men with elevated SAD (third tertile) were at increased risk of sudden death but not of fatal myocardial infarction, whether they were of normal weight (multivariate adjusted relative risk 3. 0 [95% CI 1.3 to 6. 9]) or overweight (BMI ≥25 kg/m
2
; 1.9 [95% CI 1.0 to 3.9]).

Conclusions—

In asymptomatic French middle-aged men, larger SAD was associated with a particularly increased risk of sudden death, independent of BMI level and known cardiovascular risk factors.
Neutral Endopeptidase Inhibition Augments Vascular Actions of Bradykinin in Patients Treated With Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibition
Authors: Cruden Nicholas L.M. , Fox Keith A.A. , Ludlam Christopher A. , Johnston Neil R. , Newby David E.
Published: October 2004

Angiotensin-converting enzyme and neutral endopeptidase (EC 3.4.24.11; neprilysin) are metallopeptidases present on the endothelium that metabolize bradykinin. Inhibitors of angiotensin-converting enzyme potentiate bradykinin-mediated vasodilatation and endothelial tissue plasminogen activator release. Combined angiotensin-converting enzyme and neutral endopeptidase inhibition may have additional beneficial cardiovascular effects mediated through bradykinin potentiation. We investigated the effects of local neutral endopeptidase inhibition on the vascular actions of bradykinin in heart failure patients maintained on chronic angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition. Ten patients received intrabrachial infusion of thiorphan (30 nmol/min), a neutral endopeptidase inhibitor, in a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trial. Thiorphan was coinfused with Lys-des-Arg
9
-bradykinin (1 to 10 nmol/min), bradykinin (30 to 300 pmol/min), atrial natriuretic peptide (10 to 100 pmol/min), and sodium nitroprusside (2 to 8 μg/min). Bradykinin, atrial natriuretic peptide, and sodium nitroprusside caused dose-dependent vasodilatation (peak blood flow 14.4±2.2, 3.6±0.6, and 8.6±1.3 mL per 100 mL/min, respectively;
P
<0.0001). Bradykinin caused dose-dependent increases in tissue plasminogen activator antigen and activity (peak concentration 31.8±3.4 ng/mL and 21.9±7.6 IU/mL, respectively;
P
<0.001) and estimated antigen and activity release (peak release 152±46 ng per 100 mL/min and 154±22 IU/100 mL/min, respectively;
P
<0.005). Compared with placebo, thiorphan augmented bradykinin-mediated vasodilatation (1.4-fold;
P
<0.0001) and net tissue plasminogen activator release (1.5-fold;
P
<0.005). Neutral endopeptidase contributes to bradykinin metabolism in heart failure patients maintained on angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor therapy. Our findings may explain some of the clinical effects of combined angiotensin-converting enzyme and neutral endopeptidase inhibition, including the greater vasodepressor effect observed with combined therapy when compared with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition alone.
Upregulation of Vascular Arginase in Hypertension Decreases Nitric Oxide–Mediated Dilation of Coronary Arterioles
Authors: Zhang Cuihua , Hein Travis W. , Wang Wei , Miller Matthew W. , Fossum Theresa W. , McDonald Michelle M. , Humphrey Jay D. , Kuo Lih
Published: October 2004

One characteristic of hypertension is a decreased endothelium-dependent nitric oxide (NO)-mediated vasodilation; however, the underlying mechanism is complex. In endothelial cells (ECs),
l
-arginine is the substrate for both NO synthase (NOS) and arginase. Because arginase has recently been shown to modulate NO-mediated dilation of coronary arterioles by reducing
l
-arginine availability, we hypothesized that upregulation of vascular arginase in hypertension contributes to decreased NO-mediated vasodilation. To test this hypothesis, hypertension (mean arterial blood pressure >150 mm Hg) was maintained for 8 weeks in pigs by aortic coarctation. Coronary arterioles from normotensive (NT) and hypertensive (HT) pigs were isolated and pressurized for in vitro study. NT vessels dilated dose-dependently to adenosine (partially mediated by endothelial release of NO) and sodium nitroprusside (endothelium-independent vasodilator). Conversely, HT vessels exhibited reduced dilation to adenosine but dilated normally to sodium nitroprusside. Adenosine-stimulated NO release was increased ≈3-fold in NT vessels but was reduced in HT vessels. Moreover, arginase activity was 2-fold higher in HT vessels. Inhibition of arginase activity by N
ω
-hydroxy-nor-
l
-arginine or incubation with
l
-arginine partially restored NO release and dilation to adenosine in HT vessels. Immunohistochemistry showed that arginase expression was increased but NOS expression was decreased in arteriolar ECs of HT vessels. These results suggest that NO-mediated dilation of coronary arterioles is inhibited in hypertension by an increase in arginase activity in EC, which limits
l
-arginine availability to NOS for NO production. The inability of arginase blockade or
l
-arginine supplementation to completely restore vasodilation may be related to downregulation of endothelial NOS expression.
Community-based rehabilitation
Authors: Lightfoot Elizabeth
Published: October 2004

Community-based rehabilitation (CBR) is a fast-growing model of providing services to people with disabilities. This article introduces the underlying philosophy and structure of the CBR model; the strengths and weaknesses of the model; and its implications for social workers in the field of disability services throughout the world.
Effects of Composition Levels on the Cellular Structure and the Thermal Properties of Biodegradable Cushioning Extrudates
Authors: Lui Wai-Bun , Peng Jinchyau
Published: October 2004

Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to analyze the effect of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and calcium carbonate (CaCO3) on the cellular structure and the thermal properties of a biodegradable cushioning extrudate. A central-composite design (CCD) was used to develop models for the objective responses. The experiments were run at 105 C with a feed rate of 27.8 L/h, a screw speed of 500 rpm and a die diameter of 3.92 mm. The responses were most affected by changes in polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) levels and to a lesser extent by calcium carbonate (CaCO3) levels. The objective of this study is to focus on the composition levels affecting the cellular structure (average pore size) and the thermal properties (specific heat capacity and thermal conductivity) of extruded foams and to evaluate the possibility of using corn/PVA extrudates as packaging and insulating materials.

The experimental results indicated that:

1. The cell sizes become smaller and more uniform and the cell walls become thinner with the increase in the PVA ratio. Moreover, using the CaCO3 also made the cell sizes become smaller and more uniform.

2. For all the treatments, the specific heat increased linearly as the temperature increased.

3. Several treatments have potential applications for thermal insulation because of their relatively high specific heat values and low thermal conductivity values.
Structure-Property Relationships in Coextruded Foam/Film Microlayers
Authors: Ranade Aditya P. , Hiltner Anne , Baer Eric , Bland David G.
Published: October 2004

In this work, we have shown for the first time that assemblies of up to 64 alternating foam and film layers can be successfully made via the microlayer coextrusion technology. We have investigated the effect of some important processing variables on the foam-film structure, and have demonstrated how they can be optimized. With the optimum concentration of the right type of chemical blowing agent, the cell size can be significantly reduced for the polypropylene foam-film systems by increasing the number of layers. The foam layer density does not change significantly with increasing number of layers. Measurements of the cell density and cell volume indicate that enhanced nucleation and/or reduced coalescence is responsible for the reduction in cell size with an increasing number of layers. Constrained cell growth comes into play when a single cell/layer morphology is observed. Different types of polymers can be used as the film layer to alter the flexibility of the foam/film composite. The compressive behavior of the hard/hard polypropylene foam/polypropylene film system is similar to that of cork in terms of the compressive modulus, collapse stress, and densification strain. The tensile and compressive moduli increase with the increasing number of layers and this could be explained on the basis of an increase in the fraction of material in the cell walls, using the conventional Gibson-Ashby model. The soft/soft polyethylene foam/ethylene-styrene copolymer film system exhibits enhanced toughness in tension. The effect of the foam/film composition on the tensile and compressive moduli can be explained using the composite series and parallel models.
Assessing the use of Tensor Closure Methods with Orientation Distribution Reconstruction Functions
Authors: Jack David A. , Smith Douglas E.
Published: October 2004

Orientation tensors are widely used to describe fiber orientations in mold filling simulations of short-fiber-reinforced composite systems. In these flow calculations, a closure is employed that approximates the fourth-order orientation tensor as a function of the second-order orientation tensor. Sixth-order closures have also been proposed. This paper assesses the effect of using closure approximations in fiber orientation predictions by reconstructing the fiber orientation distribution function from successively higher order orientation tensors in a Fourier series representation. This approach recognizes that the orientation tensors are related to the series expansion coefficients of the distribution function. An error metric is introduced and applied that makes it possible to compare closures of varying order. Errors associated with several fourth-order closures and a sixth-order closure are investigated and compared with the truncation error that results from a reconstruction of the exact second-, fourth-, and sixth-order orientation tensors. Examples are provided over a range of interaction coefficients and flow fields typical of injection molded fiber-reinforced composites to illustrate the proposed closure assessment method.
Fabrication of Particle-Reinforced Polymers with Continuous Gradient Architectures Using Twin Screw Extrusion Process
Authors: Gallant Frederick M. , Bruck Hugh A. , Kota Arun K.
Published: October 2004

The operation of the twin screw extrusion (TSE) process under transient conditions is investigated for the manufacture of particle-reinforced polymers with continuous gradient architectures. Mixing models of the residence time distribution (RTD) and residence volume distribution (RVD) are used to characterize the TSE process. By convolving the mixing models with the transient input conditions, a new convolution process model has been developed to predict the gradient architectures that evolve within the extrudate. In situ optical contrast measurements and a posteriori measurements of optical contrast, density, and solids loading are used to verify the convolution process model for a step change in the input conditions.
Orthotropic Polymeric Composites with Microstructure Tailored by Electric Field
Authors: Kim G. H. , Moeller D. K. , Shkel Y. M.
Published: October 2004

Solid composites having a microtailored structure are produced by curing liquid polymeric suspensions in an electric field. The field-induced redistribution of inclusions exceeds the effect of hydrodynamic interactions in polymeric flows and sedimentation during centrifugation. Using an electric field, one can locally control the micro- or nanometer-sized inclusions. An electric field can be employed to produce a composite having a uniformly oriented structure or to modify the material only in selected regions. This article presents an experimental study of micro- and nanocomposites. The relationships between the microstructure and the mechanical and thermal properties are obtained for uniformly graded composites. These results are needed for the next step in developing the field-aided technology - optimization of material structure for a given design objective.
Design and Manufacture of Woven Reinforced Glass/Polypropylene Composites for Mass Transit Floor Structure
Authors: Vaidya Uday K. , Samalot Francis , Pillay Selvum , Janowski Gregg M. , Husman George , Gleich Klaus
Published: October 2004

Recent developments in hot-melt impregnation, extrusion, and thermoforming offer multiple avenues for the design and manufacture of low-cost thermoplastic composites for mass transit and automotive applications. Fiber reinforced thermoplastics such as glass/polypropylene (glass/PP) have found their applications in front-end bumper beams, under body shields, and other automotive applications. These materials also have potential usage in mass transit vehicles, such as buses. The present study focuses on the design and manufacture of a segment of the floor of a mass transit bus using glass/PP woven tape forms developed through a hot-melt impregnation process. An initial study on the existing mass transit buses found that a metal skeletal frame and plywood panels are used in the construction of the floor structure. The representative thermoplastic composite floor segment featured a glass/PP woven tape material, belt-pressed to form a flat laminate, and adhesively bonded to a vacuum thermoformed ribbed laminate. A combination of analysis software including Pro/Engineer, Hyper Mesh, and ANSYS 7.0 were used for the design and analysis. Weight savings up to 40% were realized using glass/PP woven tape thermoplastic composites as compared to the conventional metal/ plywood design
Dyadic Hostility and the Ties That Bind: State-to-State versus State-to-System Security and Economic Relationships
Authors: Benson Michelle A.
Published: October 2004

An important question in the conflict processes literature concerns what types of international relationships are more likely to lead to peaceful interactions. Both security and economic ties have been posited as powerful determinants of conflict, yet their effects are often examined independently from one another. Furthermore, a debate exists as to whether it is states’ ties to the international order or to each other that are most important in determining conflict. A resolution of the competing perspectives would expect that two states that have a tight network of security and economic relationships, both to each other and to the international order, should be extremely unlikely to engage in hostile action against each other. Surprisingly, a series of multinomial logits using non-directed dyads from 1951 to 1985 suggests that dyads with tight economic and security ties at both the state-to-state and statetosystem levels are only slightly less likely to engage in dyadic disputes than those without such simultaneous ties. However, this study finds that both (1) tight security and economic ties to the international order and (2) tight intra-dyadic security and economic ties have important, independent effects in limiting dyadic hostility. This suggests that the states within a dyad have two separate paths to more peaceful interactions - the first lies in tightening ties between states, the second in strengthening dyadic security and economic ties to the international order.
Norms and Interests in US Asylum Enforcement
Authors: Rosenblum Marc R. , Salehyan Idean
Published: October 2004

What happens when the normative goal of granting asylum to applicants in need conflicts with US strategic interests? Asylum represents a critical case for the norms-versus-interests debate, because the protection of vulnerable individuals is a quintessential humanitarian project, but may entail strategic costs. In this article, a general theoretical framework for weighing the importance of norms and interests is developed and tested in the case of US asylum enforcement with respect to 42 countries of origin during and after the Cold War. Both norms and interests influence asylum decisions, and when they prescribe similar actions in regard to asylum cases, state agents face no difficulty in making choices. When human rights norms and state interests prescribe contradictory actions, however, analysts know little about the relative importance of each factor. The findings in this article suggest that the ways in which norms and interests affect asylum enforcement have changed over time. Normative admissions were primarily a function of procedural democracy during the 1980s, and substantive human rights have been increasingly influential since then. Second, enforcement reflected security and diplomatic considerations during the 1980s, but these concerns gave way during the 1990s to goals of maintaining good relations with trade partners and preventing undocumented migration. Finally, there is no evidence that the importance of norms relative to interests has increased over time, contrary to the predictions of some constructivists.
Estonian Identity Formations and Threat Framing in the Post-Cold War Era
Authors: Noreen Erik , Sjöstedt Roxanna
Published: October 2004

This article shows that threat framing by the Estonian elite has changed significantly since the end of the Cold War. In order to explain these changes, the identity formations salient in Estonian political discourse are analyzed using discourse analysis and contrasted to two other explanatory approaches: one based on the ideas of realism, the other on cognitive theory. This demonstrates that the variation of threat images, as well as Estonia’s wish to join international organizations, is guided not solely by fear of Russia, but also by a desire to re-establish bonds with an identity formation Estonia once was part of. Thus, the change of threat images can be explained by the dynamics of identity formations, which in turn are linked to processes of socialization, as Estonia adapts to the discourse of the West. It is further argued that previous research on the linkages between identity formations and threat images has tended to oversimplify this relationship. In contrast to earlier research, this article claims that after independence, the Estonian Self has not developed in polarized terms vis-‡-vis the Russian state and the domestic Russian Other. Rather, it is concluded that what is at issue is a process of socialization. This implies not only learning and using language as a means towards the recognition of a multicultural Estonia and the inclusion of the Russian minority in the Estonian Self, but also the institutionalization of such a language in terms of official policies.
Fifty is a Good Age for a Journal
Authors: d’Ormesson Jean
Published: October 2004

Normally a journal is the work of enthusiastic young people and more often than not it is a short-lived enterprise. And in my lifetime - and in yours too, I suppose - we have seen many journals live and die that survived for only one or two issues. We are now at the 200th issue of Diogenes. Why has it been so successful and lasted so long? Well, first of all, for the key to this success we have to give thanks where thanks are due, to UNESCO. Without UNESCO Diogenes could not have come into being. Diogenes was created by UNESCO and relies on UNESCO's assistance and trust.
Rediscovering Central Asia
Authors: Sinor Denis
Published: October 2004

The expression ‘Central Asia’ has been in use for about a century and a half and has been known mainly by aficionados of 19th-century travelogues, or students of the history of the so-called Great Game played between the British and the Russians in the second half of the 19 th century. For the larger public of our times, there has been barely any political substance connected with the name. Luckily, or unluckily (it depends on one's point of view), since the fall of the Soviet Union the situation has changed drastically, and ‘Central Asia’ has become more widely known by journalists, a wider public and even by the civil servants working in various ministries of foreign affairs. A further and significant increase in the role played by Central Asian states in world politics occurred in the wake of a successful raid undertaken against the United States on 11 September 2001 by a group of young men with no connection to Central Asia. The attackers, usually referred to as terrorists, were all Arabs. Other Arabs and people of other nationalities, including British and American citizens, were trained for further attacks in Afghanistan, thus providing a pretext for the overthrow of the odious regime of the Taliban which then ruled over that country. Cooperation between the United States and Uzbekistan greatly facilitated their rapid defeat and a wider public became aware of the whereabouts of the river Amu-darya and of Uzbekistan.
On the Logics of Delusion
Authors: Bodei Remo
Published: October 2004

Delusion is an exceptional test case for the principal categories of common sense and philosophical thought such as ‘reason’, ‘truth’ and ‘reality’. Via an engagement with the legacy of Freud and the most remarkable results of 20th-century psychiatry, my aim will be to analyse its paradoxical forms and to shed light on the logics that underlie and orient its specific modalities of temporalization, conceptualization and argumentation.
Atlantis-Sardinia
Authors: Castellani Vittorio
Published: October 2004

This is a multi-authored review of a book that is extremely rich and lengthy (43 chapters, among whose titles are: Chapter III, In the name of the Lord God, this round Earth of the Ancients becomes flat again. Or perhaps not? (In which — by way of preface — the story is told of how our great Sphere, which was measured and drawn by Egyptian Alexandria, became a Mystery, Sacrilege and dark until ten years ago); Chapter X, Strabo: ‘The Pillars? Gibraltar or Cádiz! But none of us have ever really seen them' (An impossible Interview with the great Greek historian/geographer who summarizes for us what was known by the great men who preceded him. Christ had not yet been born and the site of those famous pillars had already been lost); Chapter XII, With Herodotus in the Eldorado of silver. A voyage to Tartessos, the Andalusian Atlantis (In which it will be seen that neither the Bible nor Herodotus ever said Tartessos was Spain. But only that it was in the West and beyond the Pillars of Hercules: exactly like Sardinia …); Chapter XXVIII, The Peoples-of-the-Sea versus Ramses III or the Very First World War). The author writes on culture for the daily newspaper La Repubblica.
Further towards a Sociology of Evil
Authors: Smith Karl E.
Published: October 2004

Alexander’s invitation to a sociology of evil begins from the premise that the social sciences have long neglected direct analyses of evil. They have focused instead on questions of the good and treated its other as an absence or residual category. His most direct foray into this field must be read against his strong program in cultural sociology and his more concrete analysis of the development of narratives of the Holocaust as a moral ‘trauma drama’. I argue that the analytic frame Alexander constructs in ‘Towards a Sociology of Evil’ is too narrow to achieve the ambitions declared in ‘The Strong Program in Cultural Sociology’. A multi-dimensional social theoretical approach to evil must recognize that while its significations are clearly culturally variable, they also refer to something beyond the limits of discourse.
The Alexander School of Cultural Sociology
Authors: Emirbayer Mustafa
Published: October 2004

I pursue three aims in this article: (1) a contextualization of Jeffrey Alexander’s cultural sociology within the broader trajectory of his intellectual development; (2) a sketch of the key ideas of his approach to cultural analysis against the backdrop of contemporary debates regarding culture and social structure; and (3) an appreciation and critical assessment of Alexander’s program.
Durkheimian Cultural Sociology and Cultural Studies
Authors: Thompson Kenneth
Published: October 2004

Alexander has made a major contribution to the development of a neo-Durkheimian cultural sociology. Two central elements have been: the semiotic analysis of sacred symbols and rituals that evoke the solidarity attached to the idealized nation; analysis of structures and processes that constitute a civil society. Some questions can be raised. The first concerns the tensions between ethnic-nationalisms and the kind of culture of civil society that is said to be congruent with the liberal-democratic state. Secondly, not all groups share the binary constructions of the civil code of liberal democracy. Thirdly, more attention needs to be given to the relationship between the rational public sphere and the spheres of entertainment and popular culture. Cultural studies of popular genre, such as television talk shows, reveal that, rather than exhibiting universal characteristics of liberal-democratic society, these public cultural performances reproduce the particularities of national differences.
Jeffrey Alexander and the Cultural Turn in Social Theory
Authors: Eyerman Ron
Published: October 2004

This paper traces developments in Jeffrey Alexander’s cultural sociology. The aim is to introduce the reader to the key components of this theory as it developed from a functionalist focus on societal values through semiotics and linguistic structuralism to a theory of cultural trauma and collective performance.
Reconstructing the Social Space of Culture
Authors: Giesen Bernhard
Published: October 2004

This paper retraces the conceptual development of Jeffrey Alexander’s cultural sociology. It centres on three major conceptual achievements: first, the distinction between inside and outside and its more peculiar variants (like system and environment or friend and foe); second, the elaboration of the temporal axis as a distinct dimension of cultural analysis; and finally, the close focus on performativity that took centre-stage in cultural analysis during the last years.
Alexander and the Cultural Refounding of American Sociology
Authors: Kurasawa Fuyuki
Published: October 2004

This paper considers and evaluates Jeffrey Alexander’s strong program in cultural sociology, which represents an exercise in paradigm formation and an ambitious attempt to refound American sociology along interpretive lines. Cultural sociology is assessed according to four axes, namely its social constructivist epistemology, culturalizing methodology, analytical realism, and internal and external positioning. In addition to discussing the accomplishments and limitations of cultural sociology in all these areas, the paper indicates ways to strengthen it by setting it in conversation with other and more explicitly critical currents of thought.
Marcel Proust as Successor and Precursor to Pierre Bourdieu: A Fragment
Authors: Smith Philip
Published: October 2004

Commentators are in general agreement that Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of habitus and practice is too deterministic, but they have failed to provide a workable template for revisions. Here the French novelist Marcel Proust is proposed as a phenomenological corrective. There are strong family resemblances between his approach to social life and that of Bourdieu. In Remembrance of Things Past, however, Proust offers an understanding of action that is more sensitive to contingency, self-reflexivity, change, desire and the layering of the self. Attention to this will pay dividends for those seeking to creatively reconstruct Bourdieu’s project.
Fire Resistance of Light-framed Wood Floors Exposed to Real and Standard Fire
Authors: Park Joo-Saeng , Lee Jun-Jae
Published: October 2004

A performance-based design method related to fire safety should begin at the stage of fire resistance evaluation using the fire severity to assess the fire risk of any structures. This study developed a new model to predict the fire growth behavior in a real compartment and to provide an alternative to the existing standard fire in terms of fire safety design. This method could provide a quick evaluation of natural fire curves for use in structural fire safety design. In addition, heat transfer through light-framed wood floor was modeled using the temperatures provided from fire growth model as the input values, which predicted the time-dependent temperature distributions at a certain time step. The time-dependent temperature distributions were converted into the distributions of mechanical properties within the structural elements by employing the relationship between temperature and the mechanical properties, which were then transformed into sections with the strength and stiffness at a particular ambient temperature. The fire growth model and heat transfer model were verified using full-scale compartment fire tests.
Experimental Study on the Burning Characteristics of Wood Cribs in a Confined Space
Authors: Hu L. H. , Huo R. , Li Y. Z. , Wang H. B.
Published: October 2004

A series of experiments were conducted to study the burning characteristics of wood cribs in a confined space. The results show that burning conditions of wood cribs in a confined space fall into two regimes: the smaller porosity factor burning regime and the larger porosity factor burning regime. The scaled steady mass loss rates of wood cribs burning in the larger porosity factor regime linearly increases with the increase of the porosity factor in a confined space. The concentrations of CO, CO2 and O2 in combustion products, the flame temperature and the mass loss rate exhibit different time-variations or relationships with the porosity factor for wood cribs burning in these two different regimes.
Life Risk Analysis in Residential Building Fires
Authors: Lin Yuan-Shang
Published: October 2004

This study focuses on the life risk investigations in residential building fires. A total of 419 cases in residential building fires during 1998-2000 in some area of Taiwan are examined. Contexts of investigations include possible influencing variables or factors related to the activities of pre-fire as well as during fire and the resulting life casualties. Possible influencing variables or factors are measured by two questionnaires that include both fire departments and the households who owned or lived in the fire-hit residential buildings.

The resultant fire life risk (the dependent variable) in this study is a dichotomous variable with two categories, casualties and non-casualties. Factors such as fire-fighting situations, degree of difficulty of fire escape, and disabled people in the building are mostly significant to estimate the life risk. That disabled people exist in the building in case of a fire has the strongest effect on life risk. A statistical interpretation is given of the model-developed estimates in terms of the odds ratio. Given that particular identified characteristics considered in residential buildings exist or not, the changes of the probabilities of causing casualties in case of a fire are predicted. The findings show that logistic regression used in this research provides good meaningful interpretations that can be used for future safety improvements.
Advances in Thermoplastic Matrix Towpregs Processing
Authors: Nunes J. P. , Van Hattum F. W. J. , Bernardo C. A. , Silva J. F. , Marques A. T.
Published: October 2004

The present work reports the development of new technologies to fabricate long and continuous-fiber-reinforced composite structures from low-cost thermoplastic matrix semiproducts. These semiproducts, thermoplastic matrix towpregs and preconsolidated tapes (PCTs), were produced in a purposely-built prototype machine, by deposition of a thermoplastic polymer in powder form on continuous fibers. The work also presents the advances made in the processing of these materials into composites by conventional techniques, such as pultrusion, filament winding and compression molding. Finally, it describes the investigation of the optimal processing conditions that maximize the mechanical properties of the composites. These properties are good enough for the composites to be used as engineering materials in many structural applications.
Physico-mechanical Properties of Paper Sludge-Thermoplastic Polymer Composites
Authors: Son Jungil , Yang Han-Seung , Kim Hyun-Joong
Published: October 2004

This study investigates the effect of paper sludge’s mixing ratio and the types and concentrations of coupling agents on the physical and mechanical properties of paper sludge-thermoplastic polymer composites. In the experiment, four levels of mixing ratios of paper sludge to thermoplastic polymer (10: 90, 20: 80, 30: 70 and 40: 60) and three levels of coupling agent (Epolene G-3003TM) content (1, 3, and 5 wt.%) were designed to discuss the physical and mechanical properties of composite. Composite density, as expected, increased but melt flow index decreased when the paper sludge content increased. Thickness swelling and water absorption of composites was slightly improved by the addition of paper sludge compared with control specimens. Tensile properties of composites significantly increased as the mixing ratio of paper sludge increased. Especially, tensile modulus improved with the increase of paper sludge content. Flexural strength and modulus showed similar trends to that of the tensile properties. Notched and unnotched Izod impact strengths lowered by the addition of paper sludge.

With the addition of coupling agent, G-3003TM, tensile and flexural properties improved considerably compared with control specimens (without any coupling agent). Epolene G-3003TM, with high molecular weight, was effective in the improvement of the composites’ tensile and flexural properties.
Three-dimensional Buckling Analysis of Thermoplastic Composite Laminated Plates with Single Vertical or Horizontal Strip Delamination
Authors: Zor Mehmet , Çallioglu Hasan , Akbulut Hamit
Published: October 2004

In this study, the effects of the strip vertical or horizontal delamination width on the buckling loads of the simply supported woven steel-reinforced thermoplastic (LDFE, F.2.12) laminated composite plates of four layers have been investigated. Three-dimensional finite element models of the square laminated plates have been established. There are two different delamination shapes, between second and third layers in each of these models. The stacking sequences are chosen as [0]4, [15°/-15°]s, [15°/-15°]2, [30°/-30°]s, [30°/-30°]2, [45°]4, and [45°/-45°]s. Firstly the harmony between theoretical and finite element solutions’ results of the plate without delamination has been shown. Then, the buckling loads have been determined for each models having different delamination width. The results show that important decreases in the buckling loads occur after a certain value of the delamination width. The changing ratios of the results of the symmetric or antisymmetric cases are approximately the same for each angle. For the high values of orientation angles, the values and changing ratios of the buckling loads are also higher than those of the low angles.
On the Weakness of Institutional Rules - The Case of Addiction Group Therapy
Authors: Arminen Ilkka
Published: October 2004

This article discusses how new clients in an addiction therapy in-patient clinic are instructed about the rules for group therapy. Only rarely are the rules presented without any modification. In most cases, rules are rephrased, enriched through contextual knowledge or interpreted via the patients’ common sense. However, there is a systematic distinction between the majority of rules, which are ‘modifiable,’ and a few rules that are, without exception, presented without further modification. The patients’ persisting orientation to this distinction between ‘modifiable rules’ and ‘non-negotiable rules’ articulates a difference between basic moral rules and institutionally distinct rules that apply in that setting only. These setting-specific constraints become accountable in terms of the parties’ common sense competence, thus emphasizing that institutional practices do not take place in a vacuum: the parties’ common sense competence makes possible, but also sets limits on, the therapy process itself. This may also partially explain the paradoxical finding that very different types of addiction treatment seem to achieve almost the same results.
Courtroom Questioning as a Culturally Situated Persuasive Genre of Talk
Authors: Chang Yanrong
Published: October 2004

Questioning takes on culture-specific forms and has culturespecific functions. The purpose of questioning in Chinese criminal courtrooms is not to obtain information; rather it is to persuade. Five patterns of questioning, invoking Chinese cultural notions of shame and morality, are used to extract confessions and remorse from defendants: (i) repeating key questions, (ii) invalidating excuses or accounts, (iii) asking unanswerable questions, (iv) supplying answers, and (v) paraphrasing or restating defendants’ responses. The persuasive power of the questioning discourse structure and the deterrent function of criminal trials in China are also discussed.
Gender and Cultural Socialization in Indian Immigrant Families in the United States
Authors: Kallivayalil Diya
Published: October 2004

This study sought to examine the processes of cultural and gender socialization within a sample of the Indian immigrant community in the United States. It examines the nature of the mother-daughter relationship, and the messages daughters receive about their Indian heritage and their roles as women in the family and community. Interview data were collected from 25 Indian-American women. The article argues that mothers are primarily responsible for the cultural and gender socialization of daughters; however, this transmission is based on a relatively essentialized view of Indian culture, which the daughters also endorse. This method may reflect a need on the part of parents in the Indian community to retain what they perceive as vital to their cultural heritage in the face of assimilation into mainstream US society through the behavior of women, who reflect the community’s standing. This process often elicits feelings of ambivalence in the younger generation, but, ultimately, these women create discourses around gender and culture that represent their own understanding of their place within their community.
Winnicott, Participation and Gender
Authors: Gerson Gal
Published: October 2004

Winnicott’s work has been both criticized and commended by feminists: it was attacked for normalizing women’s traditional role, but praised for conceptualizing relationships which are free of the I-other oppositions. In the picture painted by his advocates, Winnicott appears as a participationist who values the transformative qualities of social interaction and public deliberation. I argue that, while Winnicott does hold participation up as an ideal, he relegates other pursuits to subsidiary roles that are distanced from participation, and so divides the world into two realms that complement and exclude each other. His work is therefore at odds with feminism’s project of overcoming the sphere division.
Hybrid Piezoelectric Damping for Structural Vibration Suppression
Authors: Adachi Kazuhiko , Awakura Yoshifumi , Iwatsubo Takuzo
Published: October 2004

This paper aims at developing a new design method of the active-shunted hybrid type of piezoelectric damping system for structural vibration suppression. Piezoelements are actively driven with series tuned RL shunting circuits. Considering shunting circuits as compensators (or filters), both shunt resistors and active control gains are designed by using filtered LQ control theory. Experimental test and numerical simulation of a simple cantilevered beam demonstrate the structural damping capability of the hybrid piezoelectric damping system. Control effort by the active control could be reduced by the hybrid piezoelectric damping system.
Optimization of a Cantilever Microswitch with Piezoelectric Actuation
Authors: Chen X. , Fox C. H. J. , Mcwilliam S.
Published: October 2004

This paper considers MEMS microswitches with piezoelectric-film actuation. A mathematical actuator model is established that accounts for normal stress at the piezo-substrate interface, in addition to shear stress. This model gives more accurate predictions for relatively thicker piezoelectric layers.

Maintaining adequate contact force between switch electrodes is important in ohmiccontact switches, but parallel contact geometry is also important in switches that provide capacitive coupling between the signal lines. Furthermore, ‘off-state’ isolation is governed by electrode gap when open. The presented mathematical model demonstrates the relationships between these factors and the switch geometry. Optimum conditions are derived.