bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Measuring Social Inequalities in Health in the United States: A Historical Review, 1900–1950
Authors: Krieger Nancy , Fee Elizabeth
Published: May 2005

For over two centuries, U.S. vital statistics routinely have been stratified by age, sex, and race, but not by social class. The usual explanation is that U.S. government officials have not considered social class relevant to health. During the first third of the 20th century, however, questions of socioeconomic inequalities in morbidity and mortality ranked high on the agenda of federal and other public health agencies, and routine reporting of U.S. vital statistics and health survey data by socioeconomic measures was nearly institutionalized. This history has largely been lost. In this article, the authors focus on the period from 1900 to 1950 and examine how public health researchers and agencies conceptualized and analyzed socioeconomic inequalities in health. Highlights include production, for 1930, of the first U.S. national death rates stratified by social class, in work sponsored by the National Tuberculosis Association and Bureau of the Census, and the Public Health Service's 1935–1936 National Health Survey, which reported morbidity data stratified by socioeconomic measures. Efforts like these were cut short by the onset of World War II and their legacy erased by the Cold War. Recovering this rich history can help inform current debates about collecting and evaluating data on social inequalities in health.
Migraine and Muscle-Contraction Headache: Psychiatric and Personality Issues—A Review
Authors: Roy Ranjan
Published: May 2005

Presented is a selected review of the literature pertaining to migraine and tension headache of the past thirty or more years. Existence of “migraine” personality is explored. Association between psychiatric disorders and headache is examined. Problems of definition of these concepts are discussed and current thinking to resolve some of the clinical issues of these two types of headaches is presented.
Some Political and Ethical Problems in the Development of Family Planning
Authors: Reynolds Reid T.
Published: May 2005

This paper is concerned with the political and ethical aspects of the development of family planning for the underprivileged and with the use of the underprivileged as subjects in clinical trials of new contraceptive technology. In the past decade family planning has evolved from a component of corporate philanthropy to a major U.S. government policy. The diffusion of family planning has been aided by its apparent “depoliticization” and “internationalization.” Differences of sex, race, nationality and class between researchers and subjects suggest ethical shortcomings in the clinical investigation of new contraceptive technology. The further diffusion of family planning depends partly on developing more acceptable methods and partly on developing new methods of dissemination. Various public opinion campaigns and incentive schemes designed to increase the acceptance of family planning by the underprivileged represent a move from voluntarism toward coercion. It is unfortunate that the development of the potentially liberating practice of family planning has been accompanied by these exploitative phenomena.
The Small-Group System and Training on an Acute Psychiatric Ward
Authors: Goldberg Daniel A. , Goodman Berney
Published: May 2005

The functions of an acute, general hospital psychiatric inpatient teaching unit include patient evaluation and treatment, resident training and the staff communication necessary to both. On our ward, this work is complicated by heterogeneity of patient population, a large and diverse staff, and a pivotal role for inexperienced first-year residents. This paper describes a model using a small group system to integrate the multiple ward functions in light of the complicating factors. The ward is divided into two teams, and the staff and patients of each meet together four times weekly; a post-group staff meeting follows. The patient meeting is oriented around the realities of daily living. The post-group flexibly covers four areas: diagnosis and management; group process and techniques; intra-staff conflict; and ward issues. Converging on the system are multiple and overlapping observations which can be used to integrate ward functions. The simultaneous presence of all the staff increases the efficiency and accuracy of patient evaluation. Data complementing or contradicting individual interviews are supplied, enriching both assessment and teaching. Better staff communication and conflict resolution reflect the intimacy and constancy of the small group. Adjustment to the shifting and blurring of traditional roles has been progressive and there has been an impressive acceptance of more assessment and treatment responsibility by the non-medical staff. Residents' adaptation is consistently an unpredictable factor.
His Master's Voice: Tiro and the Rise of the Roman Secretarial Class
Authors: Renzo Anthony Di
Published: May 2005

The foundation for Rome's imperial bureaucracy was laid during the first century B.C., when functional and administrative writing played an increasingly dominant role in the Late Republic. During the First and Second Triumvirates, Roman society, once primarily oral, relied more and more on documentation to get its official business done. By the reign of Augustus, the orator had ceded power to the secretary, usually a slave trained as a scribe or librarian. This cultural and political transformation can be traced in the career of Marcus Tullius Tiro (94 B.C. to 4 A.D.), Cicero's confidant and amanuensis. A freedman credited with the invention of Latin shorthand (the notae Tironianae), Tiro transcribed and edited Cicero's speeches, composed, collected, and eventually published his voluminous correspondence, and organized and managed his archives and library. As his former master's fortune sank with the dying Republic, Tiro's began to rise. After Cicero's assassination, he became the orator's literary executor and biographer. His talents were always in demand under the new bureaucratic regime, and he prospered by producing popular grammars and secretarial manuals. He died a wealthy centenarian and a full Roman citizen.
Dependent Convergence: The Importation of Technological Hazards by Semiperipheral Countries
Authors: Siqueira Carlos Eduardo , Levenstein Charles
Published: May 2005

This article complements the substantial body of literature produced over the last three decades on the export of hazards from developed countries to developing countries. After reviewing the central arguments proposed by this literature, the authors add to the debate by focusing on the role of national actors in the importation of these hazards, based on the experience of late 1970s' developments in the petrochemical industry in Brazil. The Brazilian case indicates that social struggles and/or interactions among actors in developing and developed nations determine to what extent hazardous technologies are imported without environmental controls and to what extent their hazardous effects are controlled by these nations. This study suggests that the future development of a more inclusive theory of export-import of hazardous technologies and products should take into account the dialectical relationship established between social actors internal to the exporting and importing countries.
The Communication Situation—A Model and Discussion
Authors: Davis Richard M.
Published: May 2005

In any situation in which a written communication is produced, eight variables and three processes are present. The variables are the occasion, the author, the subject, the purpose, the supporting facilities, time, the communication itself, and the recipient. The processes are the preparation, transmission, and consideration and use of the communication. The success of the communication is governed largely by the effectiveness with which the author evaluates the situation and produces a communication appropriate to the attainment of his purposes within it. Fortuitous circumstances beyond the control of the author (and of which he may be unaware) may affect the likelihood that the communication will be successful.
A Health Education Approach to Training Village Health Workers in Nigeria
Authors: Brieger William R. , Akpovi Samuel U.
Published: May 2005

Health education plays an important role in the primary health care process, particularly in the training of village health workers. Three educational concepts, training based on community felt needs, trainee involvement and social and cultural realism, are essential in designing these programs. These concepts were applied over a three year period in the training of village health caretakers in Idere town of Oyo State, Nigeria. Volunteer village health workers from ten villages were able to bring about changes in knowledge, behaviour and health status of their fellow villagers indicating that the health education approach fostered skill transfer to the communities.
The Use of an Emergency Ward by Patients with Depressive or Anxiety Disorders: A One Year Follow-up Study
Authors: Marchesi Carlo , Brusamonti Elisabetta , Giannini Alfredo , Di Ruvo Roberto , Mineo Francesco , Maggini Carlo
Published: May 2005

Objective:

The present study examined patients during the year after the index hospitalization in an Emergency Ward (ED) to determine whether patients with depressive or anxiety disorders have a higher rate of readmission than patients without these conditions.

Method:

For this purpose, 165 subjects (85 diagnosed with DSM-IV depressive or anxiety disorders and 80 controls) were evaluated with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and with the Duke Severity of Illness Scale both during the index hospitalization and one year later. Hospitalizations during the follow-up period were determined using the hospital database.

Results:

During the follow-up period, depressed and anxious patients were more frequently rehospitalized in ED wards than controls ( p = 0.006), after controlling for the effect of medical illnesses severity, marital status, living arrangement, and employment status. No difference was found regarding the admissions to wards different from ED.

Conclusions:

Patients with depressive or anxiety disorders use the ED ward more frequently than controls for the diagnosis and treatment of somatic symptoms.
The Politics of “Natural” Disaster: Who Made Mitch So Bad?
Authors: Cockburn Alexander , St. Clair Jeffrey , Silverstein Ken
Published: May 2005

The devastation in Central America following the 1998 hurricane (Hurricane Mitch) resulted more from economic and political policies than from “natural” disaster. Over the last 30 or 40 years, huge numbers of poor people in these countries have been forced off good, stable agricultural land onto degraded hillsides and into shanty towns constructed on floodplains—areas known to pose serious hazards of flooding and mudslides. This, together with the failure of impoverished countries to anticipate disaster through mass evacuations or to respond effectively to the hurricane's widespread damage—ensured the loss of thousands of lives.
The Need for Computer Literacy and Computer Applications in the Nation's Classrooms
Authors: Hirschbuhl Katherine
Published: May 2005

This paper reviews the need for computer literacy in education, what the dangers are without it, and why it is a necessary survival skill in the age of artificial intelligence. Instructional computer applications, benefits and achievements are discussed in terms of what has been done and where the art is at this time. Emphasis is placed on its adaptability to serve needs at opposite ends of the learning continuum. The results of the author's three year study in the use of CAI in a program for failure oriented children are described along with some notes on results of several other studies. The status of children in today's society is clarified with statistical evidence to support the need for utilizing newer and more powerful instructional tools.
Introduction: Kinship Bereavement in Later Life
Authors: De Vries Brian
Published: May 2005

This article introduces a volume devoted to the examination of later-life bereavement: an analysis of variation in cause, course, and consequence. Six articles address and represent this variation and comprise this volume: 1) Prigerson et al. present case histories of the traumatic grief of spouses; 2) Hays et al. highlight the bereavement experiences of siblings in contrast to those spouses and friends; 3) Moss et al. address the role of gender in middle-aged children's responses to parent death; 4) Bower focuses on the language adopted by these adult children in accepting the death of a parent; 5) de Vries et al. explore the long-term, longitudinal effects on the psychological and somatic functioning of parents following the death of an adult child; and 6) Fry presents the short-term and longitudinal reactions of grandparents to the death of a grandchild. A concluding article is offered by de Vries stressing both the unique and common features of these varied bereavement experiences touching on some of the empirical issues and suggesting potential implications and applications.
Developing a Cross-Cultural Model of Grief: The State of the Field
Authors: Klass Dennis
Published: May 2005

The article explores the state of the field in developing a cross-cultural model of grief. Dialogues within several disciplines bear on the question, but those dialogues are very separated from each other. After drawing a distinction between cross-cultural and multi-cultural, the article reviews research from a broad range of psychological and social sciences. The issue of psychic unity vs. cultural diversity had prevented fuller use of anthropologists' work, but sociology of knowledge mediates between those poles. Contemporary work on the universality of emotions provides the concept of innate meta interpretive schemas within cognitive models supplied by culture. Cultural historians trace changes in how death is perceived and in the acceptability of emotional expression. The article concludes with two suggestions to carry the field forward: one a large scale cross-cultural survey and the other qualitative study in both the researcher's culture and in other cultures.
A New Technical Writer?
Authors: Balk Walter L.
Published: May 2005

Pervasive changes are occurring in large organizations which will have an impact upon the role of technical writers. This should reward the writer with an increase in status; yet, the cost may entail higher anxiety on the job and a need for additional training.
Job Levels, Communication Activity, and Decisions
Authors: McKeown Henry S.
Published: May 2005

Factual information about the communication activity of employees in various job levels in a firm can provide a partial data base for decisions about employee selection, promotion, and participation in educational programs. This paper discusses the communication activities of technical/engineering employees in eight different job levels in an architect/engineering firm.
The End of Days
Authors: Spector Samuel I.
Published: May 2005

Judaic tradition from the 10th century B.C. to the present era, has always attempted to soften the blow of death. In its various aspects, it has engaged both the dying and the remaining living in principles and ceremonies that would make death more acceptable. Of equal importance is the preparation for the end of days through historical, theological, philosophical and psychological approaches. Most of these avenues are of interest and adaptability to other traditions as well.
A Nested Analysis of Factors Affecting Bachelor's Degree Completion
Authors: DesJardins Stephen L. , Kim Dong-Ok , Rzonca Chester S.
Published: May 2005

The main objective of this study was to examine the effects of selected factors on retention, graduation, and timely bachelor's degree completion at The University of Iowa. An additional purpose was to identify the stage-varying effects of selected variables. Reflecting the sequential nature of bachelor's degree completion, this study focused on three stages of students' progress to graduation: 1) dropout vs. persistence in the first year, 2) graduation vs. failure to graduate among first year persisters, and 3) graduation in four years or less vs. graduation in five years or more. We found that college academic performance, pre-matriculation academic achievement, and college major were the most important variables in explaining success at The University of Iowa. We also found fairly consistent results across the three models.
Viewing Primary Mental Health Care at a Time of Social Transition in South Africa
Authors: Freeman Melvyn , de Beer Cedric
Published: May 2005

As South Africa shifts from a social structure based on the principles of apartheid to a democratic society, social policies must be developed that are consonant with the ideals of the “new” society. These must, however, take into account the current realities of the South African context. This article suggests that the application of the principles of primary mental health care is the approach most likely to meet mental health needs in the future South Africa, but that difficulties are likely to arise in the transition to this approach. These difficulties must be identified and dealt with. The authors discuss the problems in providing competent curative care to all and in shifting emphasis to prevention and promotion in mental health care. The discussion covers both practical and political complications. The authors conclude that though the process to primary mental health care will be a long one, the problems are unlikely to be insurmountable.
Religion and Medicine II: Religion, Mental Health, and Related Behaviors
Authors: Koenig Harold G.
Published: May 2005

In this second in a series of articles on religion and medicine, I focus on the relationship between religion and mental health. This discussion is based on a comprehensive and systematic review of a century of research examining religion's relationship to mental health, social support, substance abuse, and other behaviors affecting mental or social functioning. This review includes over 630 separate data-based reports that focus on religion and well-being, hope and optimism, meaning and purpose, depression, suicide, anxiety, psychosis, social support and marital stability, alcohol and drug abuse, cigarette smoking, extra-marital sexual behaviors, and delinquency. Reasons for the associations found are discussed and conclusions drawn in light of the findings.
Asking More than Where: Developing a Site Contextual Model Based on Reconstructing past Environments
Authors: Frink Douglas S.
Published: May 2005

Contract archaeology accounts for the majority of archaeological studies conducted in Vermont. As these studies serve the development community, the focus of investigation has been to identify and avoid sites, not to research and evaluate the information they contain. Native-American site locational models have limited application because they are based primarily on the landforms' proximity to water. The Archaeology Consulting Team is developing a contextual model based on reconstructing the pre-European settlement environment. Hypotheses comparing expected size and function of Native-American sites in different environments can be posed at the Phase I level of archaeological studies. Furthermore, with Phase I level data, these hypotheses can provide the framework for research designs at Phase II and III levels of archaeological study.
A Study of the Development of Programming Ability and Thinking Skills in High School Students
Authors: Kurland D. Midian , Pea Roy D. , Clement Catherine , Mawby Ronald
Published: May 2005

This article reports on a year-long study of high school students learning computer programming. The study examined three issues: 1) what is the impact of programming on particular mathematical and reasoning abilities?; 2) what cognitive skills or abilities best predict programming ability?; and 3) what do students actually understand about programming after two years of high school study? The results showed that even after two years of study, many students had only a rudimentary understanding of programming. Consequently, it was not surprising to also find that programming experience (as opposed to expertise) does not appear to transfer to other domains which share analogous formal properties. The article concludes that we need to more closely study the pedagogy of programming and how expertise can be better attained before we prematurely go looking for significant and wide reaching transfer effects from programming.
Understanding Short Stories: An American-Hungarian Cross-Cultural Study
Authors: Halász László
Published: May 2005

This article presents a cross-cultural study about the relationship between story understanding, memory, and attitude towards the contents of a story. An American and a Hungarian short story dealing with the social class versus repression dimension were used. Thirty-four American freshmen (average age 18.5) and forty-eight Hungarian secondary school students (average 17.5) took part in the study. Half of each population read one, the second half the other story, in three-three segments. Following the reading of a segment, the subjects reported their understanding, answering some questions. They were asked to recognize some sentences in a set of original and false, aggressive, cooperative, evasive versions on 7 seven-point scales; and judged the content of the sentences from the points of view of refusal, activity, aggressivity, security, oppression, strength, and anxiety on 5-point scales. There were significant cross-cultural differences between the two populations in the frequency of the response-items of understanding and the recognition of sentences and in the content of the response-categories of understanding and the sensitivity towards aggressivity, oppression and anxiety. The results are discussed in terms of different issues of the social role of literature and literary competence on the one hand, and as those of some culture-dependent themes that influence literary understanding on the other hand.
Critical Elements of an Internet Based Asynchronous Distance Education Course
Authors: Anderson Margaret D.
Published: May 2005

Asynchronous distance education options are rapidly becoming attractive to a number of audiences for a variety of reasons. Unlike synchronous models, asynchronous courses do not require extensive technological or facilities support, they do not require laborious scheduling formulas or restrictive time commitments. They offer students freedom in choosing times and locations of engaging in the course, and can be conducted with hardware and software readily available to most students. The present article outlines some of the issues that need to be considered when developing an asynchronous distance course. It describes the components of a course currently being offered using this model, and concludes with a discussion of some problem areas that students and faculty may face when engaging in this new course format.
Hyperemesis Gravidarum: A Biopsychosocial Perspective
Authors: Katon Wayne J. , Ries Richard K. , Bokan John A. , Kleinman Arthur
Published: May 2005

The literature on the psychological, social and biological factors in the etiology of hyperemesis gravidarum is reviewed. Four cases seen in the last year in psychiatric consultation in a general hospital are then presented to illustrate and highlight the biopsychosocial factors in the literature that seemed most relevant to diagnosis and treatment. Emphasis is placed on the concept of hyperemesis gravidarum as a special type of somatization (an illness behavior in which dysphoric affect is expressed with physical symptoms), whereby physical symptoms are expressed to elicit care by physicians and family and to gain a “time out” from stressful home environments.
New Responsibilities for the Technical Writer
Authors: Schmelzer Richard W.
Published: May 2005

As questions of public policy become more involved with the uses of scientific and technological knowledge, the public must increasingly rely upon interpreters of that knowledge to be able to form and express valid opinions. Here is a new and important role for the technical writer.

The President's Commission on the Accident at Three Mile Island stated that the most serious effect of that accident was severe mental stress. The stress was caused by incompetent reporting by people who lacked the necessary scientific and technological knowledge, or by people who possessed that knowledge but who were unable to express it in terms that lay people could understand.
Funeral and Bereavement Rituals of Kota Indians and Orthodox Jews
Authors: Goldberg Helene S.
Published: May 2005

Two ancient subcultures, the Kota Indians and Orthodox Jews, existing in the contemporary world today, practice funeral and bereavement rituals as they did in past centuries. Although these societies differ greatly, their rituals are in close parallel. These rituals show respect for the body of the deceased, remove the defiling spirit, assure its proper arrival to the afterlife, and assist the bereaved. The expression of grief is encouraged through a prolonged and graduated bereavement period. A clearly defined emotional closure limits grief and acknowledges the continuation of life. The requirement of community involvement relieves the mourner from isolation and provides the comforters with an opportunity for anticipatory socialization.
Historical Perspectives and Comments on the Current Status of Death-Related Literature for Children
Authors: Johnson Joy
Published: May 2005

The children found a dead bird.

They wrapped it up.

They buried it.

They said some words and felt sad.

They brought flowers for a few days.

Then they forgot.

This is the theme of the story in the first modern, in-print, actual hold-in-your-hands children's book about grief in my memory— The Dead Bird, by Margaret Wise Brown. It was dear to me because she wrote the first edition the year I was born, 1938, making me one of the gray-haired grandmothers and leaving Wise Brown dead now for more than 45 years. When my husband, Marv, and I founded Centering Corporation in 1977, The Dead Bird was the only book we could find for children. I'm sure there were others; we just didn't find them. They were hidden. Grief wasn't “in” then, and definitely not for children.
DIADS: Computer-Based System for Development of School Drug Prevention Programs
Authors: Bosworth Kris , Yoast Richard
Published: May 2005

The Drug Information, Assessment and Decisions for Schools (DIADS) is a computer-based information and decisions support system for the development of school drug abuse prevention programs. DIADS provides access to a cost-effective planning resource that has information to programs about alcohol, other drugs, and prevention. Also, DIADS helps the school assess the effectiveness of its current prevention efforts using an expert-generated school assessment model containing fourteen factors. Feedback from the assessment provides suggestions for improvements in current prevention programs. DIADS guides the selection of future activities and helps in program planning. Pilot test of DIADS at several sites indicates school personnel find the information on DIADS helpful, timely and easy to access.
A Comparison of Non-Certified and Certified Grief Counselors in Regard to Education, Experience, Credentials, and Supervision
Authors: Locicero Jack P.
Published: May 2005

This study utilized a causal-comparative research design to explore the similarities and differences between non-certified and certified grief counselors in the areas of education, training, experience, credentials, and supervision. Respondents included 623 non-certified and certified grief counselors, all of whom were members of the Association for Death Education and Counseling (ADEC). The response rate was 63 percent. The findings of this study provide data on certified and non-certified grief counselors who are members of ADEC. Certified grief counselors report significantly more experience as counselors at the post-master's level, significantly more grief counseling experience, significantly more credentials, significantly higher mean composite scores on the 14 knowledge areas adapted from ADEC (1995) and the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC), and significantly higher scores on 12 of the 14 individual knowledge areas. ADEC is the oldest multi-disciplinary professional organization dedicated to promoting excellence in death education, bereavement counseling, and care of the dying. Through theory and research, ADEC provides information, support, and resources to its multicultural membership, and through them, to the public. ADEC is the only professional organization that provides credentialing in grief counseling and death education.
An Evaluation of a Level-One Instructional Videodisc Program
Authors: Hasselbring Ted , Sherwood Robert , Bransford John , Fleenor Kathryn , Griffith Debi , Goin Laura
Published: May 2005

In this project, a Level 1 videodisc program called “Mastering Fractions” was evaluated. The evaluation was conducted in two parts. Part 1 was a controlled study that compared the “Mastering Fractions” program to a more traditional fractions curriculum while controlling for any novelty effect of the videodisc medium. Part 2 of the evaluation was a descriptive study that examined the use of “Mastering Fractions” in non-experimentally controlled classroom environments. The results of the evaluation indicated that the use of the “Mastering Fractions” program resulted in significant gains in fraction skills and computations. Further, it was concluded that the achievement gains found in the study were attributed to the instructional content of the “Mastering Fractions” program and not to the novelty of the videodisc medium. Finally, it was found that even though the program had a positive effect on student achievement, the effectiveness of “Mastering Fractions,” like other instructional programs, is somewhat dependent upon the commitment and quality of the teacher using the materials.
Conflicting Agendas, Interests, and Actors in Disease Prevention Policy-Making: Business, Labor, and the High Risk Act
Authors: Wysong Earl
Published: May 2005

During 1985–1988, the U.S. Congress considered and nearly passed the controversial “High Risk Act.” This article analyzes the case in terms of a class-dialectic perspective that views contradictory class interests, the political economy context, intraclass divisions, and institutional biases favoring dominant class interests as important, underlying factors in shaping the character, course, and outcome of the policy-making process. These concepts are used as the basis for explicating the political conflicts surrounding the legislation, the course of its consideration by the Congress, and its ultimate defeat. The sharp labor-business conflicts over the bills are shown to be closely tied to the legislation's potential effects upon their class-based economic and ideological/political interests. The course of Congressional consideration of the legislation is demonstrated as strongly influenced by contextual factors and intraclass divisions, especially those within the business community. Finally, indirect and direct institutional biases favoring business interests are shown to be particularly relevant to the legislation's defeat. In conclusion, the author develops a series of lessons regarding the disease prevention policy-making process which illustrate how the political dynamics and outcomes associated with episodes of occupational health policy reform may be interpreted through a class-dialectic perspective focusing upon class interests, divisions, and struggle.
Parental Bereavement: Levels of Grief as Affected By Gender Issues
Authors: Sidmore Kimberly Varney
Published: May 2005

This study examined differences between men's and women's levels of grief associated with the death of a child. Nineteen bereaved individuals were contacted through a local parental bereavement group. Gender and other variable data were gathered on a demographic data form. To measure levels of grief, the Grief Experience Inventory (GEI) was employed. Analyses of the results were performed using, t-tests, and eta-squared calculations. An alpha level of .05 was used for all parametric tests. Results supported only one hypothesis, that women experience higher levels of grief then men. The hypotheses that women who lost daughters would experience higher levels of grief then women who lost sons, and that men who lost sons would experience higher levels of grief then women who lost sons were not supported. The hypotheses that men who lost sons would experience higher levels of grief than men who lost daughters, and that women who lost daughters would experience higher levels of grief then men who lost daughters were also not supported.
A Basic Unit on Ethics for Technical Communicators
Authors: Markel Mike
Published: May 2005

To make informed decisions about ethical issues, technical communicators need to understand how to apply general ethical principles to the kinds of dilemmas they will face routinely, concerning such issues as plagiarism, trade secrets, and misrepresentation of text and graphics. This article reviews the controversy about the relationship between ethics and rhetoric among the Greeks, provides basic definitions of ethics, and applies the literature of business and professional ethics to the concerns of technical communicators and other professionals who communicate, showing how they must think through the conflicts of obligations to their employer, the public, and the environment. It provides a case study that can be used to reinforce a student's understanding of the relationship between technical communication and ethics.
Perishable Industries from the Windover Bog: An Unexpected Window into the Florida Archaic
Authors: Adovasio J. M. , Andrews R. L. , Hyland D. C. , Illingworth J. S.
Published: May 2005

Multi-disciplinary excavations at the Windover Bog site (8BR246) in 1986 and 1987 yielded a remarkably well-preserved but very fragile corpus of fiber-based and wood artifacts in direct association with a series of Early Middle Archaic burials. This suite of mid-sixth millennium B.C. materials includes not only the oldest textiles from the American Southeast but also sophisticated basketry, cordage, and wood items previously undocumented (and unanticipated!) at this time horizon in this part of Florida. The textile assemblage includes close-simple and close-diagonal twining, both with S-Twist wefts (paired and trebled); open twining with paired, Z-Twist wefts; and balanced plain weave. Significantly, many of these items are in the form of non-heddle loom-woven cloth. Represented forms include circular or globular bags, hoods, blankets, clothing, and what may be intentionally produced burial shrouds. Also observed are twisted and braided cordage, composite fiber, and fiber and wood construction. The wood assemblage includes a wide array of forms from minimally modified burial “stakes” to complex, extensively worked, “dumbbell“-style mullers. The Windover fiber and wood assemblage is summarized and compared to others in North and South America and the myriad roles of perishable industries are discussed in terms of the lives and deaths of their makers.
Rising Death Rates among Polish Men
Authors: Cooper Richard , Schatzkin Arthur , Sempos Christopher
Published: May 2005

All-causes mortality rates turned sharply upward for Polish men around 1972. Increases of 25 percent or greater were recorded for all five-year age groups between 40 and 59 years. Other indices, including infant mortality and death rates for women, either continued to improve or did not change. The primary causes accounting for this upturn appear to be cardiovascular diseases and cancer of the lung. The epidemiological pattern in Poland reflects in part the long-term trend for consumption of food, alcohol, and tobacco to approximate that found in Western industrialized countries. The role of more generalized social changes associated with Poland's rapid industrialization cannot be evaluated directly. Although it is still too early to see the effect of the social crisis of the last two years, economic disruption and shortages are not the main factors accounting for the upturn in Polish mortality through 1980. In fact, the success of the Polish economic strategy appears to be the underlying social cause.
Popular Misconceptions about Suicide: How Popular are they?
Authors: Domino George
Published: May 2005

This study explores the prevalence of misconceptions about suicide in a sample of 643 United States residents who were administered the Suicide Opinion Questionnaire (SOQ). Responses to the twenty SOQ items concerning various misconceptions were analyzed for percentage of endorsement and differential endorsement as related to gender, age, and ethnic background. The results indicate that misconceptions about suicide are not as prevalent as suggested by the literature; that significant differences exist among groups differing in age and ethnic background, but not in gender; and that several misconceptions may in fact not be misconceptions.
The “Noncommunicating Suicide”: Does He Exist?
Authors: Rudestam Kjell Erik
Published: May 2005

An attempt was made to isolate empirically the syndrome of the “noncommunicating suicide” from a sample of 50 established cases of completed suicide in Los Angeles County. The suggestion was made that indirect indicants of suicidality may be present in some suicidal individuals in lieu of direct, verbal communication of intent. Even those few cases where direct and/or indirect verbalized communication of intent were presumably absent were characterized by cues (i.e., previous attempts, depression, unusual behavior, complaints, recent doctor's visits, psychotherapy or hospitalization, and contacts with significant others just prior to death) that have prophylactic significance.
Constructing Social Metrics for Health Status Indexes
Authors: Patrick Donald L.
Published: May 2005

Health status indexes used to make collective decisions satisfying the principles of equality and social minimum must incorporate a social metric for health. Any index or indicator applied to populations for determining health status or to health programs for evaluating outcome must confront the question of who prefers which states of health under which circumstances? Utility models, psychometric scaling, and empirical social decision valuation have been used to measure preferences for states of health. Efforts should be directed toward constructing social metrics for health that are prospective, context-independent, relevant, community-wide, ratio scaled, sensitive, empirically validated, and applicable to program evaluation. These efforts represent the application of normative social theory to research, an important advance in uncovering the mysteries of social action and its consequences.
Acute Dementia with Delirium Due to Vitamin B12 Deficiency: A Case Report
Authors: Lerner Vladimir , Kanevsky Michael
Published: May 2005

Objective:

Vitamin B12 (cobalamin) is a key component in the catabolism of monoamines. B12 deficiency is associated with various neuropsychiatric disorders and may be more frequent in psychiatric inpatients. The authors describe a case report of a newly admitted and relatively young patient (52 years old) with organic psychosis secondary to vitamin B12 deficiency. No other overt clinical features of cobalamin deficit were observed. Symptoms were resolved with B12 and folate replacement. The patient's mental status remained stable over the 3 months after the treatment. The authors note that organic mental changes were reversible with B12 replacement.

Conclusions:

The authors propose that determination of serum vitamin B12 and folic acid levels should be recommended as routine screening in all new admissions of psychiatric patients regardless of their age or previous state of health.
Marxism, Ideology, Power and Scientific and Technical Writing
Authors: Ding Dan
Published: May 2005

This article claims that the primary determinant of how texts are structured and produced in scientific and technical communication is the ideology of the ruling force. Scholars concerned with ideology in scientific and technical communication have treated ideology as a competing approach to writing not as the determinant of writing. Thus, they have not been able to suggest how texts are structured and produced. Scientific and technical writing actually belongs to a tradition in which science and scientific activities have always been used to create and transmit the ideology of the ruling force. An examination of several cases of scientific and technical communication suggests that ideology of the ruling force indeed determines how a text is structured and produced. The immediate implication is that we should perhaps avoid resistant pedagogy and try what I call the “revelation pedagogy,” which is aimed at dialogue rather than resistance.
Adolescent Parent Mourning Reactions Associated with Stillbirth or Neonatal Death
Authors: Welch Kelly J. , Bergen M. Betsy
Published: May 2005

Case studies of the mourning reactions observed in six adolescent mothers who lost their infants to stillbirth or neonatal death are reported. The adolescent mothers were interviewed in a semi-structured format during their pregnancy, at the loss of the pregnancy or neonate, and two, four, six, and twelve months after the death of the infant. Bereaved adolescent mothers experienced extreme fluctuations in emotions following their loss. Additionally, they experienced losses associated with development and their successful transition to adulthood: identity losses, separation from family of origin losses, and friendship losses. No bereavement support or educational programs currently exist for bereaved adolescent mothers; they thus face potential deleterious impacts on their physiological, interpersonal, familial, and social well-being.
Medical Origins of Psychiatric Emergencies: The Systems Approach
Authors: Gross David A.
Published: May 2005

Nowhere else in the discipline of Psychiatry is the use of medical model differential diagnosis more relevant than in the evaluation of the psychiatric emergency. This article discusses the psycho-physiological states that present clinically as psychiatric emergencies.
Wedges, Pieces Esquillees, Bipolar Cores, and Other Things: An Alternative to Shott's View of Bipolar Industries
Authors: LeBlanc Raymond
Published: May 2005

In a recent paper, M. Shott evaluates experimental, archaeological, and ethnographical evidence for the existence of small stone wedges. He concludes that virtually all objects that are called stone wedges are in fact expediently produced bipolar cores and that interpretations of bone/antler working are unwarranted. I argue that there is considerable evidence to the contrary that indicates clear association of wedges with bone/antler tools and debris in archaeological sites in the northern Yukon, and that experimental work shows that the wear and damage found on replicated specimens is definitely associated with a wedging function. Generalizations concerning the precise function of these pièces esquillées objects are therefore impossible without evaluating the archaeological context of the finds and, in the absence of organic preservation, undertaking use-wear studies.
Bereavement and Companion Animals
Authors: Weisman Avery D.
Published: May 2005

Loss of a companion animal accompanied by intense grief and mourning is seldom recognized as an important and authentic occasion for bereavement. While pet ownership is praised and its virtues celebrated, corresponding grief is often trivialized and not recognized as truly significant. The author established a bereavement counseling program at a humane society and reports findings that confirm parallels between human and animal bonding and bereavements. The act of consenting to euthanasia was particularly disturbing, as if the owner had betrayed a trust by opting for death over life. Most of the bereaved owners reported depths of feeling that were unique and in most cases beyond those experienced in other deaths.
Disenchantment, Ambivalence, and the Precautionary Principle: The Becalming of British Health Policy
Authors: Wainwright David
Published: May 2005

Before the election of May 1997, Britain's Conservative government was committed to giving general practitioners a lead role in health service development. However, a qualitative study of managers and primary care workers, charged with implementing the initiative in the south of England, revealed that while many relished the opportunity to make service provision more responsive to local needs, they were concerned that such changes might fragment the National Health Service and damage the relationship between doctor and patient. This ambivalence gave rise to a precautionary principle, in which innovative change was stifled by the desire to avoid adverse consequences. This “becalming” of health policy stemmed from disenchantment with both rational comprehensive planning and quasi-market incrementalism, leaving the government without an ideological basis on which to develop a new organizational form for health sector decision-making. The new Labour government pledged to eradicate the irrationality associated with the internal market. However, a return to the old NHS planning model is not proposed, and Labour is equally committed to involving GPs in commissioning health services at the local level, suggesting that the tension between centralized planning and local incrementalism may continue to undermine the development and implementation of health policy.
Population Control: Latin America and the United States
Authors: Hall M-Françoise
Published: May 2005

There are numerous reasons why Latin Americans do not place a high priority on the control of their hitherto unprecedented rate of population growth. Some of these are known and discussed at length in the United States. Others seem more difficult for us to understand. They are usually little discussed and if they are, find little sympathy. This article focuses on these little discussed reasons. In order to improve communications between our nation and Latin America, it is important that we see population growth and its meaning as it appears to Latin Americans for whom the implications of large-scale demographically-effective family planning programs are very different from our own.
Microlithic Drills from the Anderson Mound at Jungle Prado: Possible Evidence for Late Prehistoric Craft Production on the Gulf Coast of Florida
Authors: Austin Robert J.
Published: May 2005

Recent test excavations at Jungle Prado, a late prehistoric and protohistoric (ca. A.D. 1200-1700) Safety Harbor culture, shell mound and midden complex on the Gulf coast of Florida, resulted in the recovery of numerous stone artifacts and waste debris from their manufacture and maintenance. Use-wear analysis of a large assemblage of microliths recovered from archaeological contexts dated at cal. A.D. 1300-1450, indicates that these specialized tools were used predominantly to drill shell and bone, and perhaps to manufacture beads and drilled shark teeth. The stratigraphic and spatial isolation of this assemblage within the site suggests that it may represent the presence of craft specialists. The possible presence of craft production at Jungle Prado has important implications for the study of emergent Safety Harbor political economy.