bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Green-revolution epistemologies in China and India: technocracy and revolution in the production of scientific knowledge and peasant identity
Authors: SAHA MADHUMITA , SCHMALZER SIGRID
Published: April 2016

This paper juxtaposes the epistemological challenges raised by new agricultural technologies in India and China during the mid- to late twentieth century. In both places, the state actively sought to adopt the ‘improved’ seeds and chemical inputs of what USAID triumphantly called the ‘green revolution’; however, in neither country did this imply an unproblematic acceptance of the technocratic assumptions that undergirded the US programme. India and China's distinct ideological contexts produced divergent epistemological alternatives to the US vision, with particularly important differences in the perceived relationship between the sociopolitical and technoscientific realms and also in the understanding of what constituted a ‘modern’ farmer. In India, critics persistently challenged the technocratic state to consider social, political and economic aspects of agrarian modernization, but radical leaders in Mao-era China went considerably further in attacking the very notion that technological change could be divorced from social and political revolution. Leaders in both India and China sought to overcome ‘backwardness’ and ‘superstition’; however, the Indian state held up examples of farmers who exemplified capitalist ideals of modernity through their willingness to take risks in pursuit of profit, while Chinese leaders valorized peasant technicians who combined experience in labour, new technical knowledge and faith in socialist revolution.
Late antiquity and Byzantium: an identity problem
Authors: Cameron Averil
Published: April 2016

1975 seems light years away. In parts of the field of Byzantine studies, at any rate, the world has shifted, and perhaps most of all in that contested territory of early Byzantium, otherwise known as late antiquity. The first issue ofByzantine and Modern Greek Studieswas published only four years after Peter Brown’sThe World of Late Antiquity,1and before the ‘explosion’ of late antiquity.2This was also the start of another explosion: the emergence of late antique archaeology as a discipline, leading to its vast expansion and the enormous and ever-growing amount of material available today. For the first time, John Hayes'sLate Roman Pottery(1972) enabled reliable dating criteria for the ceramic evidence that became the foundation of a new understanding of trade and economic life.3The UNESCO Save Carthage campaign, a landmark in the reliable recording of excavations of the late antique period, began in the following year, and since then the growth in data has been exponential.
On σκορδαψός: gut-knot or eyesore? A tribute toBMGS
Authors: Alexiou Margaret
Published: April 2016

Forty years ago, I contributed my first independent article to Volume 1 ofByzantine and Modern Greek Studies, ‘The lament of the Virgin in Byzantine literature and modern Greek folksong’. For this fortieth anniversary issue, dedicated to A. A. M. Bryer, I have, as in the closing words of Theodore Prodromos’ seventh letter to Aristenos (Πεϱὶ Γλώττης), nothing to offer but μικϱαῖς ἀντιδεξιοῦσα σταγόσι, καὶ ταύταις θολεϱαῖς (‘meagre and murky drops’),1further sullied with speculation on possible meanings of a single rare word:skordapsos. Does it mean ‘gut-knot’ or ‘eyesore’? Is it a vulgar form ofchordapsos, an affliction of the intestines (attested in early medical texts)? Or is it a later vernacular term for ‘eye disease’, for which garlic (skordo) was, and remains, a known curative? And does it matter?
Mesarites as a source: then and now
Authors: Angold Michael
Published: April 2016

I am guessing, but I suspect that Bryer's first introduction to Nicholas Mesarites was like mine through a very short article by A. A. Vasiliev, entitled ‘Mesarites as a source’,1which was a footnote to his much more substantial ‘The foundation of the Empire of Trebizond’,2which dominated the field for years. Vasiliev was responding to a criticism by Franz Dölger, who suggested that Vasiliev might have benefited from a perusal of the works of Nicholas Mesarites, which had been edited by his old master August Heisenberg.3Vasiliev was adamant Nicholas Mesarites had little to contribute to the early history of the Empire of Trebizond. In his opinion, the Seljuq inscription from the walls of Sinope, which Heisenberg included in his commentary, was far more valuable than anything that could be gleaned from Mesarites’ writings. This rather explains why they remained a neglected source.
To Suspend Finitude Itself: Hegel’s Reaction to Kant’s First Antinomy
Authors: Winegar Reed
Published: April 2016

Hegel famously criticizes Kant’s resolution of the antinomies. According to Sedgwick, Hegel primarily chastises Kant’s resolution for presupposing that concepts are ‘one-sided’, rather than identical to their opposites. If Kant had accepted the dialectical nature of concepts, then (according to Sedgwick) Kant would not have needed to resolve the antinomies. However, as Ameriks has noted, any such interpretation faces a serious challenge. Namely, Kant’s first antinomy concerns the universe’s physical dimensions. Even if we grant that the concept of the finite is necessarily related to that of the infinite, the physical universe cannot both have and lack a temporal beginning. I argue that Hegel neither adopts Sedgwick’s view that Kant’s antinomies require no resolution nor absurdly accepts that the physical universe both has and lacks a temporal beginning. Instead, Hegel proposes a sophisticated resolution of Kant’s first antinomy (including its physical aspect) that depends on Hegel’s theory of the Absolute.
The interaction between two oppositely travelling, horizontally offset, antisymmetric quasi-geostrophic hetons
Authors: Reinaud Jean N. , Carton Xavier
Published: April 2016

We investigate numerically the nonlinear interactions between hetons. Hetons are baroclinic structures consisting of two vortices of opposite sign lying at different depths. Hetons are long-lived. They most often translate (they can sometimes rotate) and therefore they can noticeably contribute to the transport of scalar properties in the oceans. Heton interactions can interrupt this translation and thus this transport, by inducing a reconfiguration of interacting hetons into more complex baroclinic multipoles. More specifically, we study here the general case of two hetons, which collide with an offset between their translation axes. For this purpose, we use the point vortex theory, the ellipsoidal vortex model and direct simulations in the three-dimensional quasi-geostrophic contour surgery model. More specifically, this paper shows that there are in general three regimes for the interaction. For small horizontal offsets between the hetons, their vortices recombine as same-depth dipoles which escape at an angle. The angle depends in particular on the horizontal offset. It is a right angle for no offset, and the angle is shallower for small but finite offsets. The second limiting regime is for large horizontal offsets where the two hetons remain the same hetonic structures but are deflected by the weaker mutual interaction. Finally, the intermediate regime is for moderate offsets. This is the regime where the formation of a metastable quadrupole is possible. The formation of this quadrupole greatly restrains transport. Indeed, it constrains the vortices to reside in a closed area. It is shown that the formation of such structures is enhanced by the quasi-periodic deformation of the vortices. Indeed, these structures are nearly unobtainable for singular vortices (point vortices) but may be obtained using deformable, finite-core vortices.
Dynamic Stress Analysis Around a Circular Cavity in Two-Dimensional Inhomogeneous Medium with Density Variation
Authors: Hei B.-P. , Yang Z.-L. , Sun B.-T. , Liu D.-K.
Published: April 2016

Based on the complex function theory and the homogenization principle, an universal approach of solving the dynamic stress concentration around a circular cavity in two-dimensional (2D) inhomogeneous medium is developed. The Helmholtz equation with variable coefficient is converted to the standard Helmholtz equation by means of the general conformal transformation method (GCTM) analytically. As an example, the inhomogeneous medium with density varying as a function of two spatial coordinates and the constant elastic modulus is studied. The dynamic stress concentration factors (DSCF) are calculated numerically. It shows that medium inhomogeneous parameters and wave numbers have significant influence on the dynamic stress concentration by the circular cavity in two-dimensional inhomogeneous medium.
Deep radiostratigraphy of the East Antarctic plateau: connecting the Dome C and Vostok ice core sites
Authors: CAVITTE MARIE G. P. , BLANKENSHIP DONALD D. , YOUNG DUNCAN A. , SCHROEDER DUSTIN M. , PARRENIN FRÉDÉRIC , LEMEUR EMMANUEL , MACGREGOR JOSEPH A. , SIEGERT MARTIN J.
Published: April 2016

Several airborne radar-sounding surveys are used to trace internal reflections around the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica Dome C and Vostok ice core sites. Thirteen reflections, spanning the last two glacial cycles, are traced within 200 km of Dome C, a promising region for million-year-old ice, using the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics High-Capacity Radar Sounder. This provides a dated stratigraphy to 2318 m depth at Dome C. Reflection age uncertainties are calculated from the radar range precision and signal-to-noise ratio of the internal reflections. The radar stratigraphy matches well with the Multichannel Coherent Radar Depth Sounder (MCoRDS) radar stratigraphy obtained independently. We show that radar sounding enables the extension of ice core ages through the ice sheet with an additional radar-related age uncertainty of ~1/3–1/2 that of the ice cores. Reflections are extended along the Byrd-Totten Glacier divide, using University of Texas/Technical University of Denmark and MCoRDS surveys. However, core-to-core connection is impeded by pervasive aeolian terranes, and Lake Vostok's influence on reflection geometry. Poor radar connection of the two ice cores is attributed to these effects and suboptimal survey design in affected areas. We demonstrate that, while ice sheet internal radar reflections are generally isochronal and can be mapped over large distances, careful survey planning is necessary to extend ice core chronologies to distant regions of the East Antarctic ice sheet.
Slight mass loss revealed by reanalyzing glacier mass-balance observations on Glaciar Antisana 15α (inner tropics) during the 1995–2012 period
Authors: BASANTES-SERRANO RUBÉN , RABATEL ANTOINE , FRANCOU BERNARD , VINCENT CHRISTIAN , MAISINCHO LUIS , CÁCERES BOLÍVAR , GALARRAGA REMIGIO , ALVAREZ DANILO
Published: April 2016

In this paper, we reanalyze the glacier mass balance on Glaciar Antisana 15α over the 1995–2012 period. Annual glacier mass balances were quantified on the basis of monthly glaciological measurements using an adaptation of Lliboutry's statistical approach. The geodetic mass balance was computed between 1997 and 2009 giving a cumulative balance of −1.39 ± 1.97 m w.e. and a slightly negative adjusted annual glaciological mass balance (−0.12 ± 0.16 m w.e. a−1). Despite a careful analysis of uncertainties, we found a large discrepancy between the cumulative glaciological and the geodetic mass balances over the common period, of 4.66 m w.e. This discrepancy can mainly be explained by underestimated net accumulation in the glacier upper reaches, which could be due to the peculiar climate conditions of the equatorial zone with year round accumulation, thereby preventing clear identification of annual layers. An increase of ~70% in measured rates of net accumulation would be needed to balance the glaciological and geodetic mass balances; a hypothesis confirmed by estimated ice flux in the vicinity of the ELA. Consequently, the vertical gradient of precipitation may be higher than previously estimated and the accumulation processes (including the role of frost deposition) need to be carefully analyzed.
Demonstration of a multi-technique approach to assess glacial microbial populations in the field
Authors: BARNETT MEGAN J. , PAWLETT MARK , WADHAM JEMMA L. , JACKSON MIRIAM , CULLEN DAVID C.
Published: April 2016

The ability to perform microbial detection and characterization in-field at extreme environments, rather than on returned samples, has the potential to improve the efficiency, relevance and quantity of data from field campaigns. To date, few examples of this approach have been reported. Therefore, we demonstrate that the approach is feasible in subglacial environments by deploying four techniques for microbial detection: real-time polymerase chain reaction; microscopic fluorescence cell counts, adenosine triphosphate bioluminescence assay and recombinant Factor C assay (to detect lipopolysaccharide). Each technique was applied to 12 subglacial ice samples, 12 meltwater samples and two snow samples from Engabreen, Northern Norway. Using this multi-technique approach, the detected biomarker levels were as expected, being highest in debris-rich subglacial ice, moderate in glacial meltwater and low in clean ice (debris-poor) and snow. Principal component analysis was applied to the resulting dataset and could be performed in-field to rapidly aid the allocation of resources for further sample analysis. We anticipate that in-field data collection will allow for multiple rounds of sampling, analysis, interpretation and refinement within a single field campaign, resulting in the collection of larger and more appropriate datasets, ultimately with more efficient science return.
Abrupt and moderate climate changes in the mid-latitudes of Asia during the Holocene
Authors: AIZEN ELENA M. , AIZEN VLADIMIR B. , TAKEUCHI NOZOMU , MAYEWSKI PAUL A. , GRIGHOLM BJORN , JOSWIAK DANIEL R. , NIKITIN STANISLAV A. , FUJITA KOJI , NAKAWO MASAYOSHI , ZAPF ALEXANDER , SCHWIKOWSKI MARGIT
Published: April 2016

A multiple parameter dating technique was used to establish a depth/age scale for a 171.3 m (145.87 m w.e.) surface to bedrock ice core (Bl2003) recovered from the cold recrystallization accumulation zone of the Western Belukha Plateau (4115 m a.s.l.) in the Siberian Altai Mountains. The ice-core record presented visible layering of annual accumulation and of δ18O/δD stable isotopes, and a clear tritium reference horizon. A steady-state glacier flow model for layer thinning was calibrated and applied to establish a depth/age scale. Four radiocarbon (14C) measurements of particulate organic carbon contained in ice-core samples revealed dates for the bottom part of Bl2003 from 9075 ± 1221 cal a BC at 145.2 ± 0.1 m w.e. (0.665 m w.e. from the bedrock) to 790 ± 93 AD at 121.1 m w.e. depth. Sulfate peaks coincident with volcanic eruptions, the Tunguska meteorite event, and the 1842 dust storm were used to verify dating. Analysis of the Bl2003 ice core reveals that the modern Altai glaciers were formed during the Younger Dryas (YD) (~10 950 to ~7500 cal a BC), and that they survived the Holocene Climate Optimum (HCO) (~6500 to ~3600 cal a BC) and the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) (~640 to ~1100 AD). A decrease in air temperature at the beginning and an abrupt increase at the end of the YD were identified. Intensification of winds and dust loading related to Asian desert expansion also characterized the YD. During the YD major ion concentrations increased significantly, up to 50 times for Na+ (background), up to 45 times for Ca2+ and Mg2+, and up to 20 times for SO42− relative to the recent warm period from 1993 to 2003. A warm period lasted for about three centuries following the YD signaling onset of the HCO. A significant and prolonged decrease in air temperature from ~2000 to ~600 cal a BC was associated with a severe centennial drought (SCD). A sharp increase in air temperatures after the SCD was coincident with the MWP. After the MWP a cooling was followed gradually with further onset of the Little Ice Age. During the modern warm period (1973–2003) an increase in air temperature is noted, which nearly reaches the average of HCO and MWP air temperature values.
A study of the neuropsychological correlates in adults with high functioning autism spectrum disorders
Authors: Fried Ronna , Joshi Gagan , Bhide Pradeep , Pope Amanda , Galdo Maribel , Koster Ariana , Chan James , Faraone Stephen V. , Biederman Joseph
Published: April 2016

Objective

To examine the unique neuropsychological presentation in adults with high functioning autism spectrum disorders (HF-ASD) by comparison with adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Methods

Adults with ASD referred to a specialty clinic (n=26) were compared to two non-ASD groups with (n=52) and without (n=52) ADHD of similar age and sex.

Results

No differences in IQ were found. Subjects with HF-ASD were significantly more impaired than both comparison groups in processing speed, cognitive flexibility and sight words. Subjects with HF-ASD were more impaired than controls in working memory, but not the ADHD group.

Conclusion

These findings suggest that there may be specific neuropsychological correlates of HF-ASD differing from ADHD that could have significant implications for identifying individuals at risk for ASD.
Can kunzea oil (Kunzea ambigua) control head lice (Pediculus humanus capitis)?
Authors: WILLIAMS C. R. , WEBB C. E. , ORRE S. , NAUNTON M. , THOMAS J.
Published: April 2016

Head lice (Pediculus humanus capitis) infestations are a public health concern. The insecticidal properties of the Australian native plantKunzea ambigua(commonly known as tick bush) have been documented. In this study, we tested activity of kunzea oil (KO) against head lice throughin vitrobioassays. Head lice were exposed to filter paper treated with either KO, as either a 5 or 100% oil, or commercial formulations containing either permethrin or tea tree oil (TTO) for 120 min. Head lice exposure to KO, both as a 5 and 100% solution oil, resulted in 100% mortality within 120 min with a mean survival times of 17·1 and 34·8 min, respectively. There was no significant difference between the mean mortality of head lice exposed to 5% KO (17·1 ± 1·0; 95% CI: 115·2–19·0) and 5% TTO (21·2 ± 1·9; 95% CI: 17·4–25·1). This study revealed, for the first time, that KO holds great potential as an effective alternative to current active ingredients contained within commercial pediculicide formulations.
Democratization and Economic Output in Sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: de Kadt Daniel , Wittels Stephen B.
Published: April 2016

Does democratization increase economic output? Answers to this question are inconsistent partly due to the challenges of examining the causal forces behind political and economic phenomena that occur at the national level. We employ a new empirical approach, the synthetic control method, to study the economic effects of democratization in Sub-Saharan Africa over the period 1975–2008. This method yields case-specific causal estimates, which show that political reform associated with the “third wave” of democracy had highly heterogeneous, yet often substantively important effects in Africa. In some countries democratization adversely affected economic output while in others it exerted an analogous positive effect.
The Minnesota Twin Family Registry: Some Initial Findings
Authors: Lykken D.T. , Bouchard T.J. , McGue M. , Tellegen A.
Published: April 2016

A birth-record based Registry is nearing completion of some 8,000 pairs of twins born in Minnesota from 1936 to 1955, plus some 1,200 pairs of male twins born 1971-81. The middle-aged twins were recruited with graded incentives so that ease of recruitment could be measured; it was found that pairs concordant for ease of recruitment were no more similar than discordant pairs in education, socioeconomic status (SES), or a variety of personality and interest factors, ie, that selection bias may not be a problem in research with adult twins when contacts are only by mail. A 50% decrease in neonatal mortality from 1936-55 to 1971-81 was associated with an increase from 3.5 to 4.0 per thousand in the frequency of viable MZ twin births. The broad heritability of SES, educational attainment, fecundity, and risk for divorce ranges from 0.30 to 0.50, although all 4 variables are plainly multifactorial and the latter 2 both involve variance contributed by a second person. Investigators interested in making use of this research resource are invited to submit proposals.
The Second Intifada
Authors: Matta Nada , Rojas René
Published: April 2016

Dominant theories fail to explain the use of terror during the Second Palestinian Intifada. Notably, they fail to explain Hamas’s abandonment of suicide attacks by 2005. We classified the universe of fatalities on both sides and examined the conflict’s patterns of lethal violence. Our analysis of fatality ratios and rates of change by fatality category supports a dual-arena theory of terror. Noting a rapid increase of indiscriminate Israeli civilian deaths and a relative evening out within this category in the conflict’s initial phase, we demonstrate that externally Hamas aimed to improve the balance of forces to compel Israel to negotiate on equal terms using the “out-suffering” mechanism. Internally, Hamas used terror to build confrontational capacity by attracting Palestinian factions to a resistance pole and isolating conciliatory elites. When their continued deployment became too costly relative to emerging options, the campaign was swiftly called off. In the end, while based on strategic calculations, Hamas’s use of terror proved to be a failure.
Governing Science
Authors: Gläser Jochen , Laudel Grit
Published: April 2016

This review explores contributions by science policy studies and the sociology of science to our understanding of the impact of governance on research content. Contributions are subsumed under two perspectives, namely an “impact of”—perspective that searches for effects of specific governance arrangements and an “impact on”—perspective that asks what factors contribute to the construction of research content and includes governance among them. Our review shows that little is known so far about the impact of governance on knowledge content. A research agenda does not necessarily need to include additional empirical phenomena but must address the macro-micro-macro link inherent to the question in its full complexity, and systematically exploit comparative approaches in order to establish causality. This requires interdisciplinary collaboration between science policy studies, the sociology of science, and bibliometrics, which all can contribute to the necessary analytical toolbox.
Citizenship for Sale
Authors: Tanasoca Ana
Published: April 2016

Opponents of commodification say that some things should not be for sale. Is citizenship one of them? Citizenship-by-investment schemes of naturalization allow investors virtually to “buy” citizenship. Revisiting objections to the older practice of selling another civic status—noble status—underscores many reasons why this trade may be regarded as problematic. The practice of selling citizenship is not only similar to that of selling honours but might also be thought wrong in analogous ways.
COMPETENCE CONFLICTS BETWEEN PHILOSOPHY AND MEDICINE: CAELIUS AURELIANUS AND THE STOICS ON MENTAL DISEASES
Authors: Polito Roberto
Published: April 2016

It is an established Hellenistic topos that philosophy is the ‘medicine’ of the soul, in charge of ‘healing’ the soul in the same way as medicine is in charge of healing the body. The ‘diseases’ of the soul deemed to be in need of healing are its passions, that is, its fears and desires, and the moral ‘health’ that philosophers pledge to grant their followers is freedom from passions and hence peace of mind.
SOPHOCLES THE KŌMŌIDOUMENOS: TWO FORGOTTEN COMIC FRAGMENTS
Authors: Nervegna Sebastiana
Published: April 2016

In his biography of Polemon, head of the Academy from 313 to 269, Diogenes Laertius comments on Polemon's fondness for Sophocles after detailing Polemon's relationship with his predecessor, Xenocrates (4.19–20):

ἐῴκει δὴ ὁ Πολέμων κατὰ πάντα ἐζηλωκέναι τὸν Ξενοκράτην· καὶ ἐρασθῆναι αὐτοῦ φησιν Ἀρίστιππος ἐν τῷ τετάρτῳ Περὶ παλαιᾶς τρυφῆς. ἀεὶ γοῦν ἐμέμνητο ὁ Πολέμων αὐτοῦ, τήν τ' ἀκακίαν καὶ τὸν αὐχμὸν ἐνεδέδυτο τἀνδρὸς καὶ τὸ βάρος οἱονεὶ Δώριός τις οἰκονομία. ἦν δὲ καὶ φιλοσοφοκλῆς, καὶ μάλιστα ἐν ἐκείνοις ὅπου κατὰ τὸν κωμικὸν τὰ ποιήματα αὐτῷ

κύων τις ἐδόκει συμποιεῖν Μολοττικός,

καὶ ἔνθα ἦν κατὰ τὸν Φρύνιχον

οὐ γλύξις οὐδ' ὑπόχυτος, ἀλλὰ Πράμνιος.

ἔλεγεν οὖν τὸν μὲν Ὅμηρον ἐπικὸν εἶναι Σοφοκλέα, τὸν δὲ Σοφοκλέα Ὅμηρον τραγικόν.

It would seem that Polemon imitated Xenocrates in all respects. In the fourth book of On the Luxury of the Ancients, Aristippos says that he loved him. Certainly Polemon kept him in mind and, like him, wore that simple, dry dignity that is proper of the Dorian mode. He also loved Sophocles, particularly in those passages where it seemed as if, in the words of the comic poet, ‘a Molossian dog co-authored’ plays with him and where the poet was, in the words of Phrynichus, ‘neither bland nor doctored but Pramnian’. Thus he would call Homer the epic Sophocles and Sophocles the tragic Homer.

The main source of Diogenes Laertius' Life of Polemon is Antigonus of Carystus, who was active in Athens and (apparently) Pergamon around the mid third century. In addition to being generally considered a reliable author, Antigonus is also chronologically close to Polemon's lifetime. He is also the source of Philodemus' History of Philosophers, a work preserved by two important papyri from Herculaneum. Philodemus, too, mentions Polemon's admiration for Sophocles, although he gives a shorter version than Diogenes Laertius: λέγεται δὲ καὶ φιλοσοφοκλῆς γενέσθαι καὶ μά || λιστα τὸ ΠΑ[.]Α[……….] | τῆς φωνῆς καὶ παρα[….] ἀποδέχεσθαι. In Dorandi's translation, Philodemus records that ‘si dice che [Polemone] fu ammiratore di Sofocle e soprattutto ne apprezzò l'audacia (del suono della lingua) e ciò che suonava duro’.
Cretaceous δ13C stratigraphy and the age of dolichosaurs and early mosasaurs
Authors: Jacobs L.L. , Ferguson K. , Polcyn M.J. , Rennison C.
Published: April 2016

Sediments in north-central Texas, ranging in age from >117 to 85 Ma, represent a variety of terrestrial and marine depositional settings. Isotopic analyses of wood fragments found throughout the section allow correlation to the standard secular marine δ13C curve because of characteristic peaks at the Aptian-Albian and Cenomanian-Turonian boundaries. Consistency of the north-central Texas δ13C curve with the marine standard facilitates correlation among non-marine and marine environments on a global scale. Radiometrically dated ammonite zones recognised in Texas provide calibration for the Cenomanian and Turonian portions of the section. Cenomanian and Turonian sediments in north-central Texas preserve the oldest (96 Ma) and the youngest (<85 Ma) well-documented Coniasaurus, a dolichosaur also known from the southern North Sea Basin during that interval. Haasiasaurus, the oldest known well-documented early mosasaur, is found at ‘Ein Yabrud, Israel (98 Ma), followed by other poorly dated Cenomanian taxa from the eastern Mediterranean region, and then by Dallasaurus turneri and Russellosaurus coheni in Texas (92 Ma) and Tethysaurus (90.5 Ma) in Morocco. Neither shifts in δ13C nor large-scale sea level change seem to have influenced dolichosaur or mosasaur evolution in substantial ways during the Cenomanian and Turonian stages.
“PLEASE DENY THESE MANIFESTLY FALSE REPORTS”: OTTOMAN DIPLOMATS AND THE PRESS IN BELGIUM (1850–1914)
Authors: Alloul Houssine , Markey Roel
Published: April 2016

Similar to ruling elites in Western Europe, the Ottomans were preoccupied with foreign “public opinion” regarding their state. Historians have devoted attention to Ottoman state efforts at image building abroad and, to a lesser degree, related attempts to influence the European mass press. Yet, an in-depth study of this subject is lacking. This article turns to one of the prime, though largely neglected, actors in Ottoman foreign policy making: the sultan's diplomats. Through a case study of Ottoman envoys to Belgium, it demonstrates how foreign “press management” evolved and was adapted to shifting domestic and international political circumstances. Increasingly systematic attempts to influence Belgian newspapers can be discerned from the reign of Abdülhamid II onward. Brokers between Istanbul and “liberal” Belgium's thriving newspaper business, Ottoman diplomats proved essential to this development. Ultimately, however, Ottoman efforts to counter Belgian (and European) news coverage of the empire had little impact and occasionally even worked counterproductively, generating the very Orientalist images they aimed to combat in the first place.
Humanitarian Pluralism: The Arctic Passage in an Age of Refugees
Authors: Naguib Nefissa
Published: April 2016

As I write, the Syrian migrant crisis is boiling over and the Arctic Circle has become the latest precarious route desperate Syrian refugees are braving in their pursuit of security and shelter. A young Syrian woman is interviewed on the Norwegian evening news. Earlier this year other members of her family had fled to Germany. She stayed in Syria, waiting to hear from them before setting out herself. When she finally managed to get a call through to her family, they recounted the humiliating agonies they had endured on their journey through Turkey and advised her to find another route. She decided to take the new migration route to Europe, the safer and less expensive Arctic route, as far as possible from the horrors of war. She doesn't go into the details of her long journey, other than to say that she has been hungry for a couple of years, often dizzy from hunger. As she is interviewed in the polar night, she stands in front of a building decorated with Christmas lights, a Bethlehem star in each of the windows, skinny pines covered in frost in the background, snow on the ground: “I don't mind that my ears are frozen and that I can see my breath. I want to be safe and have a dignified life. Get a proper education, work, and be able to feed myself.” The camera shows other Syrian families with young children, single men and women, and girls and boys, traveling alone. Volunteers from the “Refugees Welcome to Norway” (RWTN) association distribute warm clothes, nappies, prams, toys, coffee, tea, sandwiches, and traditional Christmas cakes.
Does septoplasty change the dimensions of compensatory hypertrophy of the middle turbinate?
Authors: Demir D , Asil K , Güven M , Erkorkmaz Ü
Published: April 2016

Objective:

To measure the dimensions of compensatory hypertrophy of the middle turbinate in patients with nasal septal deviation, before and after septoplasty.

Methods:

The mucosal and bony structures of the middle turbinate and the angle of the septum were measured using radiological analysis before septoplasty and at least one year after septoplasty. All pre- and post-operative measurements of the middle turbinate were compared using the paired samplet-test and Wilcoxon rank sum test.

Results:

The dimensions of bony and mucosal components of the middle turbinate on concave and convex sides of the septum were not significantly changed by septoplasty. There was a significant negative correlation after septoplasty between the angle of the septum and the middle turbinate total area on the deviated side (p= 0.033).

Conclusion:

The present study findings suggest that compensatory hypertrophy of the middle turbinate is not affected by septoplasty, even after one year.
Diagnostics of inhomogeneous plasmas: correction coefficients of the self-absorption and of the effect of spatial inhomogeneity
Authors: Amamou Hssaïne , Escarguel Alexandre , Ferhat Belkacem
Published: April 2016

A plasma spatial distribution model for a cylindrical geometry was developed to study the dependence of the spectral lines in the plasma emission spectra on plasma inhomogeneity and on the self-absorption effect. In this work, we consider a particular spatial distribution of a plasma. This distribution has allowed us to establish new correction coefficients of spectral lines on the self-absorption effect and to consider the media inhomogeneity effect. These coefficients are then used to analyse experimental spectral lines of emission of a single laser breakdown in an underwater medium. A spatial and time resolved spectroscopic method was used to study the spectrum. For the electron temperature and electron density measurements, trace impurities of Ca and K are added to the water.
Sound change in Māori and the influence of New Zealand English
Authors: Watson Catherine I. , Maclagan Margaret A. , King Jeanette , Harlow Ray , Keegan Peter J.
Published: April 2016

This article investigates sound change in the vowels of Māori, the indigenous language of New Zealand. It examines the relationship between sound changes in Māori and in New Zealand English, the more dominant language, with which Māori has been in close contact for nearly 200 years. We report on the analysis of three adult speaker groups whose birth dates span 100 years. All speakers were bilingual in Māori and New Zealand English. In total the speech of 31 men and 31 women was investigated. Analysis was done on the first and second formant values, extracted from the vowel targets. There has been considerable movement in the Māori vowel space. We find that the sound change in the Māori monophthongs can be directly attributed to the impact of New Zealand English, however the situation for the diphthongs is not so clear cut. There is some evidence that both New Zealand English monophthongs and diphthongs are impacting on the Māori diphthongs, but so too are the Māori monophthongs. We conclude that although New Zealand English has had a strong influence on Māori, there is very strong evidence that new generations of speakers of Māori are acquiring a phonemic system with its own internal parameters and consistencies.
Microdiversity of Echinococcus granulosus sensu stricto in Australia
Authors: ALVAREZ ROJAS C. A. , EBI D. , Gauci C. G. , SCHEERLINCK J. P. , WASSERMANN M. , JENKINS D. J. , LIGHTOWLERS M. W. , ROMIG T.
Published: April 2016

Echinococcus granulosus (sensu lato) is now recognized as an assemblage of cryptic species, which differ considerably in morphology, development, host specificity (including infectivity/pathogenicity for humans) and other aspects. One of these species, E. granulosus sensu stricto (s.s.), is now clearly identified as the principal agent causing cystic echinococcosis in humans. Previous studies of a small section of the cox1 and nadh1 genes identified two variants of E. granulosus s.s. to be present in Australia; however, no further work has been carried out to characterize the microdiversity of the parasite in its territory. We have analysed the sequence of the full length of the cox1 gene (1609 bp) from 37 isolates of E. granulosus from different hosts and geographic regions of Australia. The analysis shows that seven haplotypes of E. granulosus s.s. not previously described were found, together with five haplotypes known to be present in other parts of the world, including the haplotype EG01 which is widespread and present in all endemic regions. These data extend knowledge related to the geographical spread and host range of E. granulosus s.s. in a country such as Australia in which the parasite established around 200 years ago.
Tetractinomyxon stages genetically consistent withSphaerospora dicentrarchi(Myxozoa: Sphaerosporidae) found inCapitellasp. (Polychaeta: Capitellidae) suggest potential role of marine polychaetes in parasite's life cycle
Authors: RANGEL LUIS F. , CASTRO RICARDO , ROCHA SÓNIA , SEVERINO RICARDO , CASAL GRAÇA , AZEVEDO CARLOS , CAVALEIRO FRANCISCA , SANTOS MARIA J.
Published: April 2016

Known life cycles of myxosporean parasites have two hosts, but very few life cycles have been disclosed, especially in the marine environment.Sphaerospora dicentrarchiSitjà-Bobadilla and Álvarez-Pellitero, 1992 is a systemic parasite from the European seabass,Dicentrarchus labrax(Linnaeus, 1758), a highly valuable commercial fish. It affects its health, leading to aquaculture production losses. During 2013 and 2014, an actinospore survey was conducted in a total of 5942 annelids collected from a fish farm in Algarve and from the Aveiro Estuary, in Portugal. A new tetractinomyxon actinospore was found in a capitellid polychaete, belonging to the generaCapitellacollected at the fish farm. The tetractinomyxons were pyriform measuring 11·1 ± 0·7µm in length and 7·2 ± 0·4µm in width, and presented three rounded polar capsules measuring 2·4 ± 0·3µm in diameter. The molecular analysis of the 18S rRNA gene sequences from the tetractinomyxons revealed a similarity of 100% with the DNA sequences deposited in the GenBank fromS. dicentrarchimyxospores collected from the European seabass and the spotted seabass in the same fish farm and 99·9% similarity with the DNA sequence obtained from the myxospores found infecting the European seabass in the Aveiro Estuary. Therefore, the new tetractinomyxons are inferred to represent the actinospore phase of theS. dicentrarchilife cycle.
The diversity–disease relationship: evidence for and criticisms of the dilution effect
Authors: HUANG Z. Y. X. , VAN LANGEVELDE F. , ESTRADA-PEÑA A. , SUZÁN G. , DE BOER W. F.
Published: April 2016

The dilution effect, that high host species diversity can reduce disease risk, has attracted much attention in the context of global biodiversity decline and increasing disease emergence. Recent studies have criticized the generality of the dilution effect and argued that it only occurs under certain circumstances. Nevertheless, evidence for the existence of a dilution effect was reported in about 80% of the studies that addressed the diversity–disease relationship, and a recent meta-analysis found that the dilution effect is widespread. We here review supporting and critical studies, point out the causes underlying the current disputes. The dilution is expected to be strong when the competent host species tend to remain when species diversity declines, characterized as a negative relationship between species’ reservoir competence and local extinction risk. We here conclude that most studies support a negative competence–extinction relationship. We then synthesize the current knowledge on how the diversity–disease relationship can be modified by particular species in community, by the scales of analyses, and by the disease risk measures. We also highlight the complex role of habitat fragmentation in the diversity–disease relationship from epidemiological, evolutionary and ecological perspectives, and construct a synthetic framework integrating these three perspectives. We suggest that future studies should test the diversity–disease relationship across different scales and consider the multiple effects of landscape fragmentation.
Analysis of the transmission ofTrypanosoma cruziinfection through hosts and vectors
Authors: FABRIZIO MARÍA C. , SCHWEIGMANN NICOLÁS J. , BARTOLONI NORBERTO J.
Published: April 2016

Calculating epidemiological measures of infection byTrypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease, is complex, because it involves several species, different stages of infection in humans and multiple transmission routes. Using the next-generation matrix method, we analysed a model which considers the three stages of human infection, triatomines and dogs (the main domestic reservoirs ofT. cruziwhen triatomines are present) and the main transmission routes. We derivedR0and type-reproduction numbersT.We deduced formulas for the number of new infections generated through each transmission route by each infected individual. We applied our findings in Argentine Gran Chaco. The expressions achieved allowed quantifying the high infectivity of dogs and emphasizing the epidemiological importance of the long and asymptomatic chronic indeterminate stage in humans in the spread of the infection. According to the model, it is expected that one infected human infects 21 triatomines, that 100 infected triatomines are necessary to infect one human and 34 to infect a dog, and that each dog infects on average one triatomine per day. Our results may allow quantifying the effect of control measures on infected humans, triatomines and dogs (or other highly infected vertebrate) or on a specific route of transmission, in other scenarios.
Continental Potters? First-Century Roman Flagon Production at Duxford, Cambridgeshire
Authors: Anderson Katie , Woolhouse Tom , Marter-Brown Kayt , Quinn Patrick
Published: April 2016

Excavations in Duxford, Cambridgeshire, in 2013, revealed six early Roman (a.d.50–80) pottery kilns. The kilns were used for the production of flagons, specifically collared and ring-necked varieties. Flagons are generally scarce in contemporary domestic assemblages in Cambridgeshire, often only occurring in ‘special’ contexts, such as burials, while collared flagons are closely associated with military consumption. The excavations also produced a large, significant assemblage of perforated kiln plates. The technology and repertoire of vessels suggest that manufacture was conducted by non-local potters for a specialist market. The site forms part of a group of other early Roman kiln sites in the Cambridge environs and adds to the growing picture of pottery production in the decades following the Roman Conquest.
Immunological and histochemical analyses of cerebrospinal fluid and peripheral blood from patients with neurological and psychiatric disorders
Authors: Maxeiner Horst-G. , Rojewski Markus Thomas , Tumani Hayrettin , Herzog Sibylle , Fuchs Dietmar , Schmitt Anita , Schmitt Michael , Bechter Karl
Published: April 2016

Epidemiological, clinical and post mortem studies indicate that inflammatory and immune reactions are involved in the pathomechanisms of affective and schizophrenic spectrum disorders. However, in psychiatric patients, only sporadic investigation on immunochemistry has been performed and information about immunofunction derived by investigation of immunocompetent cells in the CSF is not available to date.

Here we present an interdisciplinary work of neurologists, psychiatrists and hemato-immunologists focusing on the immunology of psychiatric and neurological disorders. In a first study including 63 patients with therapy resistant affective and schizophrenic spectrum disorders we applied conventional, validated neurological CSF investigation such as analysis of albumin, IgG, IgA, IgM, oligoclonal IgG and specific antibodies, cell count and interpreted the data by Reibergrams.

In a second study, we applied the highly sensitive and specific multicolour flowcytometry of paired samples of CSF and peripheral blood cells to characterize the immunostatus of psychiatric and neurological patients. We demonstrate that flowcytometry technology constitutes an appropriate method to investigate subsets of lymphocytes even with low CSF cell numbers, and therefore as a promising diagnostic tool for routine purposes in the differential diagnosis of psychiatric diseases. Furthermore, knowledge of the frequencies of T cell subsets such as the T regulatory cell type might open new avenues to models of psychiatric and neurological diseases as well as diagnostic and monitoring implications.
Maternal mental well-being during pregnancy and glucocorticoid receptor gene promoter methylation in the neonate
Authors: Mansell Toby , Vuillermin Peter , Ponsonby Anne-Louise , Collier Fiona , Saffery Richard ,   Barwon Infant Study Investigator Team, Ryan Joanne
Published: April 2016

Maternal mental health during pregnancy has been linked to health outcomes in progeny. Mounting evidence implicates fetal “programming” in this process, possibly via epigenetic disruption. Maternal mental health has been associated with glucocorticoid receptor methylation (nuclear receptor subfamily 3, group C, member 1 [NR3C1]) in the neonate; however, most studies have been small (n < 100) and have failed to control for multiple testing in the statistical analysis. The Barwon Infant Study is a population-derived birth cohort with antenatal recruitment. Maternal depression and anxiety were assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and psychological distress using the Perceived Stress Scale. NR3C1 cord blood methylation levels were determined using Sequenom MassArray for 481 participants. Maternal psychological distress and anxiety were associated with a small increase in neonate NR3C1 methylation at specific CpG sites, thus replicating some previous findings. However, associations were only nominally significant and did not remain after correction for the number of CpG sites and exposures investigated. As the largest study to explore the relationship between maternal well-being and offspring NR3C1 cord blood methylation, our results highlight the need for caution when interpreting previous findings in this area. Future studies must ensure they are adequately powered to detect the likely small effect sizes while controlling for multiple testing.
Differences in quantitative methods for measuring subjective cognitive decline – results from a prospective memory clinic study
Authors: Vogel Asmus , Salem Lise Cronberg , Andersen Birgitte Bo , Waldemar Gunhild
Published: April 2016

Background:

Cognitive complaints occur frequently in elderly people and may be a risk factor for dementia and cognitive decline. Results from studies on subjective cognitive decline are difficult to compare due to variability in assessment methods, and little is known about how different methods influence reports of cognitive decline.

Methods:

The Subjective Memory Complaints Scale (SMC) and The Memory Complaint Questionnaire (MAC-Q) were applied in 121 mixed memory clinic patients with mild cognitive symptoms (mean MMSE = 26.8, SD 2.7). The scales were applied independently and raters were blinded to results from the other scale. Scales were not used for diagnostic classification. Cognitive performances and depressive symptoms were also rated. We studied the association between the two measures and investigated the scales’ relation to depressive symptoms, age, and cognitive status.

Results:

SMC and MAC-Q were significantly associated (r = 0.44, N = 121, p = 0.015) and both scales had a wide range of scores. In this mixed cohort of patients, younger age was associated with higher SMC scores. There were no significant correlations between cognitive test performances and scales measuring subjective decline. Depression scores were significantly correlated to both scales measuring subjective decline. Linear regression models showed that age did not have a significant contribution to the variance in subjective memory beyond that of depressive symptoms.

Conclusions:

Measures for subjective cognitive decline are not interchangeable when used in memory clinics and the application of different scales in previous studies is an important factor as to why studies show variability in the association between subjective cognitive decline and background data and/or clinical results. Careful consideration should be taken as to which questions are relevant and have validity when operationalizing subjective cognitive decline.
What Have We Learned? Needs Assessment
Authors: Deitchman Scott
Published: April 2016

Abstrtact

This is a synthesis of the presentations and discussions pertaining to Needs Assessments of the Conference, Health Aspects of the Tsunami Disaster in Asia, convened by the World Health Organization (WHO), in Phuket, Thailand, 04–06 May 2005. The topics discussed included: (1) Needs assessments; (2) Coordination; (3) Effectiveness of needs assessments; (4) Needs assessments change; (5) Qualifications for conducting needs assessments; (6) Dissemination; (7) Emergencies overlay background needs assessments; (8) Need for standards; and (9) Conclusions and recommendations.