bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pediatric Nurses’ Perceptions of Obstacles and Supportive Behaviors in End-of-Life Care
Authors: Beckstrand Renea L. , Rawle Nicole L. , Callister Lynn , Mandleco Barbara L.
Published: December 2009

Background

Each year 55 000 children die in the United States, and most of these deaths occur in hospitals. The barriers and supportive behaviors in providing end-of-life care to children should be determined.

Objective

To determine pediatric intensive care unit nurses’ perceptions of sizes, frequencies, and magnitudes of selected obstacles and helpful behaviors in providing end-of-life care to children.

Method

A national sample of 1047 pediatric intensive care unit nurses who were members of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses were surveyed. A 76-item questionnaire adapted from 3 similar surveys with critical care, emergency, and oncology nurses was mailed to possible participants. Nurses who did not respond to the first mailing were sent a second mailing. Nurses were asked to rate the size and frequency of listed obstacles and supportive behaviors in caring for children at the end of life.

Results

A total of 474 usable questionnaires were received from 985 eligible respondents (return rate, 48%). The 2 items with the highest perceived obstacle magnitude scores for size and frequency means were language barriers and parental discomfort in withholding and/or withdrawing mechanical ventilation. The highest supportive behavior item was allowing time alone with the child when he or she has died.

Conclusions

Pediatric intensive care unit nurses play a vital role in caring for dying children and the children’s families. Overcoming language and communication barriers with children’s families and between interdisciplinary team members could greatly improve the end-of-life experience for dying children.
Current Practices for Withdrawal of Life Support in Intensive Care Units
Authors: Kirchhoff Karin T. , Kowalkowski Jennifer A.
Published: December 2009

Background

Nurses are present at the bedside of patients undergoing withdrawal of life support more often than any other member of the health care team, yet most publications on this topic are directed at physicians.

Objectives

To describe the training, guidance, and support related to withdrawal of life support received by nurses in intensive care units in the United States, how the nurses participated, and how the withdrawal of life support occurred.

Methods

A questionnaire about withdrawal of life support was sent to 1000 randomly selected members of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, with 2 follow-up mailings.

Results

Responses were received from 48.4% of the nurses surveyed. Content on withdrawal of life support was required in only 15.5% of respondents’ basic nursing education and was absent from work site orientations for 63.1% of respondents. Nurses’ actions during withdrawal were most often guided by individual physician’s orders (63.8%), followed by standardized care plans (20%) and standing orders (11.8%). Nurses rated the importance of emotional support during and after the withdrawal of life support very highly, but they did not believe they were receiving that level of support. Most respondents (87.5%) participated in family conferences where withdrawal of life support was discussed. After physicians, nurses were most influential concerning administration of palliative medications. Patients’ families were present during withdrawal procedures between 32.3% and 58.4% of the time.

Conclusions

To improve their practice, intensive care nurses should receive formal training on withdrawal of life support, and institutions should develop best practices that support nurses in providing the highest quality care for patients undergoing this procedure.
Recruitment and Differentiation of Conventional Dendritic Cell Precursors in Tumors
Authors: Diao Jun , Zhao Jun , Winter Erin , Cattral Mark S.
Published: December 2009

The origin of dendritic cells (DCs) in tumors remains obscure. Recent studies indicate that conventional DCs (cDCs) in lymphoid tissues arise from a distinct population of committed cDC precursors (pre-cDCs) that originate in bone marrow and migrate via blood. In this study, we show that pre-cDCs are precursors for cDCs in tumors. Pre-cDCs from tumors, bone marrow, and spleen exhibit similar morphologic, immunophenotypic, and functional properties. Adoptive transfer studies show that bone marrow pre-cDCs migrate from blood into the tumor where they generate cDCs. The chemokine CCL3, which is markedly upregulated in tumors, promotes pre-cDC recruitment. Both pre-cDCs and their cDC progeny actively proliferate within the tumor. cDCs that arise from pre-cDCs in tumors express lower levels of CD11c and MHC class II as compared with those in spleen; however, there was no difference in their abilities to respond to maturation stimuli or activate Ag-specific lymphocytes in vitro. Our study provides the first evidence supporting a role for pre-cDCs in DC development in tumors and suggests a potential target for cancer immunotherapy.
Depression Following Thrombotic Cardiovascular Events in Elderly Medicare Beneficiaries: Risk of Morbidity and Mortality
Authors: Blanchette Christopher M. , Simoni-Wastila Linda , Shaya Fadia T. , Orwig Denise , Noel Jason , Stuart Bruce
Published: December 2009

Purpose. Depression and antidepressant use may independently increase the risk of acute myocardial infarction and mortality in adults. However, no studies have looked at the effect of depression on a broader thrombotic event outcome, assessed antidepressant use, or evaluated elderly adults.Methods. A cohort of 7,051 community-dwelling elderly beneficiaries who experienced a thrombotic cardiovascular event (TCE) were pooled from the 1997 to 2002 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey and followed for 12 months. Baseline characteristics, antidepressant utilization, and death were ascertained from the survey, while indexed TCE, recurrent TCE, and depression (within 6 months of indexed TCE) were taken from ICD-9 codes on Medicare claims. Time to death and first recurrent TCE were assessed using descriptive and multivariate statistics.Results. Of the elders with a depression claim, 71.6% had a recurrent TCE and 4.7% died within 12 months of their indexed TCE, compared to 67.6% and 3.9% of those elders without a depression claim. Of the antidepressant users, 72.6% experienced a recurrent TCE and 3.9% died, compared to 73.7% and 4.6% in the subset of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) users. Depression was associated with a shorter time to death (P=.008) in the unadjusted analysis. However, all adjusted comparisons revealed no effect by depression, antidepressant use, or SSRI use.Conclusions. Depression was not associated with time to death or recurrent TCEs in this study. Antidepressant use, including measures of any antidepressant use and SSRI use, was not associated with shorter time to death or recurrent TCE.
The Impact of Adenosine Fast Induction of Myocardial Arrest during CABG on Myocardial Expression of Apoptosis-Regulating Genes Bax and Bcl-2
Authors: Shalaby Ahmed , Rinne Timo , Järvinen Otso , Latva-Hirvelä Juha , Nuutila Kristiina , Saraste Antti , Laurikka Jari , Porkkala Helena , Saukko Pekka , Tarkka Matti
Published: December 2009

Background. We studied the effect of fast induction of cardiac arrest with denosine on myocardial bax and bcl-2 expression.Methods and Results. 40 elective CABG patients were allocated into two groups. The adenosine group (n=20) received 250 μg/kg adenosine into the aortic root followed by blood potassium cardioplegia. The control group received potassium cardioplegia in blood. Bcl-2 and bax were measured. Bax was reduced in the postoperative biopsies (1.38 versus 0.47,P=.002) in the control group. Bcl-2 showed a reducing tendency (0.14 versus 0.085,P=.07). After the adenosine treatment, the expression of both bax (0.52 versus 0.59,P=.4) and bcl-2 (0.104 versus 0.107,P=.4) remained unaltered after the operation.Conclusion. Open heart surgery is associated with rapid reduction in the expression of apoptosis regulating genes bax and bcl-2. Fast Adenosine induction abolished changes in their expression.
Special Values of Class Group L-Functions for CM Fields
Authors: Masri Riad
Published: December 2009

Abstract. Let H be the Hilbert class field of a CM number field K with maximal totally real subfield F of degree n over ℚ. We evaluate the second term in the Taylor expansion at s = 0 of the Galoisequivariant L-function ΘS∞(s) associated to the unramified abelian characters of Gal(H/K). This is an identity in the group ring C[Gal(H/K)] expressing Θ (n)S∞ (0) as essentially a linear combination of logarithms of special values ﹛Ψ (zσ)﹜, where Ψ: ℍn →ℝ is a Hilbert modular function for a congruence subgroup of SL2 (OF) and ﹛zσ : σ ∈ Gal(H/K)﹜ are CM points on a universal Hilbert modular variety. We apply this result to express the relative class number hH/hK as a rational multiple of the determinant of an (hK − 1) × (hK − 1) matrix of logarithms of ratios of special values Ψ (zσ), thus giving rise to candidates for higher analogs of elliptic units. Finally, we obtain a product formula for Ψ (zσ) in terms of exponentials of special values of L-functions.
Polymorphisms in CRHR1 and the serotonin transporter loci: Gene × Gene × Environment interactions on depressive symptoms
Authors: Ressler Kerry J. , Bradley Bekh , Mercer Kristina B. , Deveau Todd C. , Smith Alicia K. , Gillespie Charles F. , Nemeroff Charles B. , Cubells Joseph F. , Binder Elisabeth B.
Published: December 2009

Gene × environment (G × E) interactions mediating depressive symptoms have been separately identified in the stress‐sensitive serotonergic (5‐HTTLPR) and corticotropin‐releasing hormone (CRHR1) systems. Our objective was to examine whether the effects of child abuse are moderated by gene × gene (G × G) interactions between CRHR1 and 5‐HTTLPR polymorphisms. We used an association study examining G × G × E interactions of CRHR1 and 5‐HTTLPR polymorphisms and measures of child abuse on adult depressive symptomatology. The participant population (N = 1,392) was African‐American, of low socioeconomic status (60% with <$1,000/month family income), and with high rates of childhood and lifetime trauma. Depressive symptoms were measured with Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and history of Major Depression by Structure Clinical Interview based on DSM‐IV (SCID). We first replicated an interaction of child abuse and 5‐HTTLPR on lifetime SCID diagnosis of major depression in a subsample (N = 236) of the study population—the largest African‐American 5‐HTTLPR cohort reported to date. We then extended our previously reported interaction with both a CRHR1 SNP (rs110402) and TCA haplotype interacting with child abuse to predict current symptoms (N = 1,059; P = 0.0089). We found that the 5‐HTTLPR S allele interacted with CRHR1 haplotypes and child abuse to predict current depressive symptoms (N = 856, P = 0.016). These data suggest that G × E interactions predictive of depressive symptoms may be differentially sensitive to levels of childhood trauma, and the effects of child abuse are moderated by genetic variation at both the CRHR1 and 5‐HTTLPR loci and by their G × G interaction. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
An alternative CuCl–piperidine‐catalyzed oxidative homocoupling of terminal alkynes affording 1,3‐diynes in air
Authors: Zheng Qingwei , Hua Ruimao , Wan Youzhi
Published: December 2009

CuCl with the use of a catalytic amount of piperidine as additive shows high catalytic activity for the oxidative homocoupling reactions of terminal alkynes in toluene at 60 °C in air to afford 1,3‐diynes in high yields. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Autism spectrum and obsessive–compulsive disorders: OC behaviors, phenotypes and genetics
Authors: Jacob Suma , Landeros‐Weisenberger Angeli , Leckman James F.
Published: December 2009

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are a phenotypically and etiologically heterogeneous set of disorders that include obsessive–compulsive behaviors (OCB) that partially overlap with symptoms associated with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD). The OCB seen in ASD vary depending on the individual's mental and chronological age as well as the etiology of their ASD. Although progress has been made in the measurement of the OCB associated with ASD, more work is needed including the potential identification of heritable endophenotypes. Likewise, important progress toward the understanding of genetic influences in ASD has been made by greater refinement of relevant phenotypes using a broad range of study designs, including twin and family‐genetic studies, parametric and nonparametric linkage analyses, as well as candidate gene studies and the study of rare genetic variants. These genetic analyses could lead to the refinement of the OCB phenotypes as larger samples are studied and specific associations are replicated. Like ASD, OCB are likely to prove to be multidimensional and polygenic. Some of the vulnerability genes may prove to be generalist genes influencing the phenotypic expression of both ASD and OCD while others will be specific to subcomponents of the ASD phenotype. In order to discover molecular and genetic mechanisms, collaborative approaches need to generate shared samples, resources, novel genomic technologies, as well as more refined phenotypes and innovative statistical approaches. There is a growing need to identify the range of molecular pathways involved in OCB related to ASD in order to develop novel treatment interventions.
Resampling in Multiple‐Dose Factorial Designs
Authors: Frommolt Peter , Hellmich Martin
Published: December 2009

Multiple‐dose factorial designs may provide confirmatory evidence that (fixed) combination drugs are superior to either component drug alone. Moreover, a useful and safe range of dose combinations may be identified. In our study, we focus on (A) adjustments of the overall significance level made necessary by multiple testing, (B) improvement of conventional statistical methods with respect to power, distributional assumptions and dimensionality, and (C) construction of corresponding simultaneous confidence intervals. We propose novel resampling algorithms, which in a simple way take the correlation of multiple test statistics into account, thus improving power. Moreover, these algorithms can easily be extended to combinations of more than two component drugs and binary outcome data. Published data summaries from a blood pressure reduction trial are analysed and presented as a worked example. An implementation of the proposed methods is available online as an R package.
“Over‐and‐under” pericardial covered stent with paclitaxel balloon in a saphenous vein graft
Authors: Wykrzykowska Joanna J. , Gutiérrez‐Chico Juan Luis , van Geuns Robert‐Jan
Published: December 2009

Treatment of vein graft disease remains a challenge in interventional cardiology because of the risk of embolization and no‐reflow phenomenon. Currently available distal protection devices have their limitations. The PTFE‐covered stents may be well suited for venous graft lesion treatment, but those available commercially to date have poor crossing profiles, and deliverability and high rates of restenosis. We report the first use of over‐and‐under pericardium‐covered stent in combination with drug‐eluting balloon to treat venous graft disease. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Complexation and Dynamic Switching Properties of Fluorophore‐Appended Resorcin[4]arene Cavitands
Authors: Shirtcliff Laura D. , Xu Hai , Diederich François
Published: December 2009

Fluorophore‐appended resorcin[4]arene‐based cavitands having pyrene (2) and anthracene (3) moieties attached to the rims were prepared by short synthetic routes. Both undergo reversible temperature‐ and acid‐ (CF3COOD) induced vase → kite switching as evidenced by 1H NMR spectroscopy. The 1H NMR spectra also suggest that suitably sized solvents, such as [D8]toluene, efficiently solvate the cavity, reducing the conformational flexibility. In [D12]mesitylene, both cavitands undergo remarkably stable host‐guest inclusion complexation with cycloalkanes. The larger cavity of 3 preferentially hosts cyclohexane, whereas the smaller cavity of 2 forms the most stable complex with cyclopentane. The propensity for the cavitands to facilitate π–π stacking between the chromophores was confirmed by both 1H NMR and fluorescence spectroscopy. The interchromophoric interaction is strongly solvent‐dependent: π–π stacking between the pyrene moieties of 2 is not as efficient in [D8]toluene, as it solvates the inner cavity and prevents the two chromophores from approaching each other. Fluorescence studies revealed an unexpectedly large conformational flexibility of the cavitand structures both in the vase and kite forms, which was further confirmed by molecular dynamics simulations. Excimer formation is most preferred in [D12]mesitylene when the cavities are empty, whereas efficient solvation or guest binding in the interior spaces reduces the propensity for excimer formation. The observed high conformational flexibility of the cavitands in solution explains previous differences from the behavior of related systems in the solid state. This study shows that the rigid, perfect vase and kite geometries found for bridged resorcin[4]arene cavitands in the solid state are largely a result of crystal packing effects and that the conformational flexibility of the structures in solution is rather high.
Discretizing two‐dimensional complex fractured fields for incompressible two‐phase flow
Authors: Mustapha Hussein , Dimitrakopoulos Roussos
Published: December 2009

A method is introduced to discretize irregular and complex two‐dimensional fractured media. The geometry of the fractured media is first analysed by searching and treating the complex configurations. Based on that, the method generated a good mesh quality and allows for including finer grids. An incompressible two‐phase flow problem is solved to compare the developed method and a public method based on the approximation of a 1D fracture by the edges of a 2D finite element grid of the porous media. The comparison showed that the developed method (i) represents better the fractured domain by maintaining the geometric integrity of input surfaces and geologic data, (ii) provides, for sample and complex fractured domains, excellent and more accurate results, and (iii) is much less sensitive to the grid sizes. Furthermore, the method has to be more efficient than the other methods for transport problems and has to provide better predictable results; this is mainly based on point (ii) and because the method produces optimal triangular grids. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Reduction in drag and vortex shedding frequency through porous sheath around a circular cylinder
Authors: Bhattacharyya S. , Singh A. K.
Published: December 2009

A numerical study on the laminar vortex shedding and wake flow due to a porous‐wrapped solid circular cylinder has been made in this paper. The cylinder is horizontally placed, and is subjected to a uniform cross flow. The aim is to control the vortex shedding and drag force through a thin porous wrapper around a solid cylinder. The flow field is investigated for a wide range of Reynolds number in the laminar regime. The flow in the porous zone is governed by the Darcy–Brinkman–Forchheimer extended model and the Navier–Stokes equations in the fluid region. A control volume approach is adopted for computation of the governing equations along with a second‐order upwind scheme, which is used to discretize the convective terms inside the fluid region. The inclusion of a thin porous wrapper produces a significant reduction in drag and damps the oscillation compared with a solid cylinder. Dependence of Strouhal number and drag coefficient on porous layer thickness at different Reynolds number is analyzed. The dependence of Strouhal number and drag on the permeability of the medium is also examined. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Homotopy perturbation method to obtain new solitary solutions with compact support for Boussinesq‐like B(2n, 2n) equations with fully nonlinear dispersion
Authors: Yıldırım Ahmet , Gülkanat Yağmur
Published: December 2009

The aim of this paper is to obtain new solitary solutions with compact support for Boussinesq‐like B(2n, 2n) equations with fully nonlinear dispersion using the homotopy perturbation method (HPM). The special case B(2, 2) is chosen to illustrate the concrete scheme of the HPM in B(2n, 2n) equations. General formulas for the solutions of B(2n, 2n) equations are established. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Interpretation of treatment outcome in the clinically node‐negative neck in primary parotid carcinoma: A systematic review of the literature
Authors: Valstar Matthijs H. , van den Brekel Michiel W. M. , Smeele Ludwig E.
Published: December 2009

Background

Critical evaluation of outcome of primary parotid carcinoma treatment is limited by pathologic diversity and low incidence numbers. Scientific evidence for the optimal management of the N0‐neck is scarce and was, therefore, investigated in a systematic literature review.

Methods

The articles included were published in English between 1997 and 2007 and describe populations with the definitive pathology, staging, and treatment. Of 1104 articles, 19 were selected, describing 2703 patients.

Results

Of eligible populations, 83% were clinically N0. Pathology reporting of elective lymph node dissection (ELND) had limitations, but 23% showed occult metastases. Regional recurrence occurred in 5% of patients.

Conclusion

The discrepancy between the relatively high percentage of occult metastases and reported low regional recurrence rates may indicate the efficacy of treatment, being either ELND or radiotherapy of the neck. Pooling, standardized collection, and reporting of data are essential in comparing outcomes in populations to determine optimal treatment. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2010
A green and efficient synthesis of 3,3′‐arylidenebis[4‐hydroxy‐6‐methyl‐2(1H)‐3‐pyridinone]s in water under microwave irradiation
Authors: Shi Feng , Cao Longji , Ma Ning , Zhang Ge , Chen Rongshun , Zhang Yajie , Tu Shujiang
Published: December 2009

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A series of 3,3′‐arylidenebis[4‐hydroxy‐6‐methyl‐2(1H)‐3‐pyridinone]s were synthesized via three‐component reactions of aromatic aldehydes, 4‐hydroxy‐6‐methyl‐2H‐pyran‐2‐one, and ammonium acetate in water under microwave irradiation. This method has the advantages of environmental friendliness, short reaction time, high yields, and easy operation. This efficient synthesis not only offers an economical and green synthetic strategy to this class of significant compounds but also enriches the investigations on microwave‐assisted synthesis in water. J. Heterocyclic Chem., (2010).
An efficient one‐pot synthesis of some new 2,4‐diaryl pyrido[3,2‐c]coumarins as potent antimicrobial agents
Authors: Dawane Bhaskar S. , Konda Shankaraiah G. , Bodade Ragini G. , Bhosale Raghunath B.
Published: December 2009

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Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG‐400) has been used as sustainable, nonvolatile, and environmental friendly reaction solvent for the synthesis of title compounds. Various diaryl pyrido[3,2‐c]coumarins have been synthesized in one step by reacting 4‐hydroxy‐7‐methyl‐coumarin with α,β‐unsaturated ketones in the presence of ammonium acetate. Further, in vitro antimicrobial (antibacterial and antifungal) activities of the compounds were screened against different pathogens. The results revealed that most of them showed potent activity. J. Heterocyclic Chem., (2010).
Chiral stationary phases for separation of intermedine and lycopsamine enantiomers from Symphytum uplandicum
Authors: Pawar Rahul S. , Grundel Erich , Mazzola Eugene , White Kevin D. , Krynitsky Alexander J. , Rader Jeanne I.
Published: December 2009

Enantioseparation of the pyrrolizidine alkaloid isomers intermedine and lycopsamine, isolated from Symphytum uplandicum, is discussed. The separatory power of two immobilized carbohydrate‐based chiral HPLC columns, Chiralpak IA and IC, in different chromatographic conditions is compared. The study demonstrated the importance of solvent and column selection while developing such chiral HPLC separation methods. The baseline HPLC separation of the two alkaloid isomers in preparatory scale is reported for the first time. The optimized separations were achieved on a Chiralpak IA column with mobile phases of ACN/methanol (80:20) and methanol/methyl‐t‐butyl ether (90:10), both containing 0.1% diethylamine.
Knockdown of IGF‐binding protein 7 inhibits transformation of the endometrial gland in an in vitro model
Authors: Kutsukake Masahiko , Tamura Kazuhiro , Yoshie Mikihiro , Tachikawa Eiichi
Published: December 2009

Uterine endometrial glands and their secretory products are critical for the implantation and survival of the peri‐implantation embryo, and for the establishment of uterine receptivity. We previously reported that insulin‐like growth factor binding protein 7 (IGFBP7) is abundantly expressed in uterine glandular epithelial cells during the secretory phase of the menstrual cycle. In the present study, we used a cultured glandular epithelial cell line of human (EM1) to investigate the significance of IGFBP7 in the function of endometrial glands. EM1 cells formed a mesh‐like structure on Matrigel, which was accompanied by elevated levels of intracellular cyclic AMP. However, these morphological changes were blocked by treatment with protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor (H89). IGFBP7 knockdown using specific short interference RNA (siRNA) inhibited the formation of the mesh‐like structure on Matrigel. Cyclic AMP analogs, dibutyryl‐cAMP, and N6‐phenyl‐cAMP induced the expression of leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) which is essential for the onset of implantation. Enhanced LIF expression was suppressed by IGFBP7 siRNA treatment. Western blot analysis revealed that IGFBP7 knockdown results in the aberrant, constitutive expression of the MAPK signaling pathway. These results suggest that IGFBP7 regulates morphological changes of glandular cells by interfering with the normal PKA and MAPK signaling pathways that are associated with the transformation and/or differentiation of endometrial glands. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 77: 265–272, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A proteome map of the pituitary melanotrope cell activated by black‐background adaptation of Xenopus laevis
Authors: Devreese Bart , Sergeant Kjell , Van Bakel Nick H. M. , Debyser Griet , Van Beeumen Jozef , Martens Gerard J. M. , Van Herp François
Published: December 2009

Upon transfer of Xenopus laevis from a white to a black background, the melanotrope cells in the pituitary pars intermedia secrete α‐melanocyte‐stimulating hormone, which stimulates dispersion of melanin pigment in skin melanophores. This adaptive behavior is under the control of neurotransmitters and neuropeptides of hypothalamic origin. The α‐melanocyte‐stimulating hormone‐producing cells and their hypothalamic control system provide an interesting model to study proteins required for biosynthetic and secretory processes involved in peptide hormone production and for brain–pituitary signaling. We present a 2‐D PAGE‐based proteome map of melanotrope cells from black‐adapted animals, identifying 204 different proteins by MS analysis.
Micro ATR‐FTIR study of the hydration state of poly(N‐tert‐butylacrylamide‐co‐acrylamide) copolymers during phase transition in aqueous media and in the mixture of water–methanol
Authors: Mahdavi Hossein , Sadeghzadeh B. O. Mahdi
Published: December 2009

Coil‐globule transition of poly(N‐tert‐butylacrylamide‐co‐acrylamide) P(NTBAM‐co‐AM) copolymers is investigated in the aqueous solution and in the mixture of water–methanol by micro ATR‐FTIR spectroscopy technique. In this study the microstructure and its changes in the hydration states of the distinct groups of these copolymers are investigated by micro ATR/FTIR technique. The results showed that by heating the solution above the LCST hydrogen bonding between CO and water was decreased but the hydrogen bonding between polymeric chains increased, which prove the aggregation of polymer chain during phase separation. The chemical shifts of IR bands are also studied in the mixture of water–methanol. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 356–363, 2010
A Bulk‐Current Model for Advanced MOSFET Technologies Without Binning: Substrate Current and Fowler‐Nordheim Current
Authors: Inagaki Ryosuke , Sadachika Norio , Navarro Dondee , Miura‐Mattausch Mitiko , Inoue Yasuaki
Published: December 2009

A bulk‐current model for advanced metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) is proposed and implemented. The model consists of an impact ionization mechanism, the drain to bulk current and a tunneling mechanism, the gate to bulk current, and requires totally 21 model parameters covering all bias conditions. The simulated results with the parameter values reproduce measurements for any device size without binning. Validity of the model has been tested with circuits, which are sensitive to the change of the stored charge due to impact ionization current and tunneling current. Copyright © 2010 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Pentraxin 3 in amniotic fluid as a marker of intra‐amniotic inflammation in women with preterm premature rupture of membranes
Authors: Kacerovsky Marian , Tosner Jindrich , Drahosova Marcela , Hornychova Helena , Andrys Ctirad
Published: December 2009

Objective

To determine whether amniotic fluid levels of pentraxin 3 (PTX3) are of value in the prenatal diagnosis of acute histological chorioamnionitis in preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM).

Methods

Forty pregnant women with PPROM between 24 and 36 weeks of pregnancy without (n = 21) and with (n = 19) histological chorioamnionitis (PPROM group) and 42 women between 16 and 20 weeks of pregnancy (midtrimester group) were included in the study. We compared amniotic fluid PTX3 levels in the PPROM group with versus without histological chorioamnionitis, and between the PPROM and the midtrimester groups using nonparametric tests (Mann‐Whitney test), given the non‐normal distribution of the analyte.

Results

Patients with histological chorioamnionitis had a significantly higher median amniotic fluid PTX3 concentration than patients without the histological signs of chorioamnionitis (3.69 ng/mL [0.51–106.8] versus 0.8 ng/mL [0.36–121.0]; P = 0.015). Patients in the PPROM group reached a significantly higher median amniotic fluid concentration of PTX3 compared with those in the midtrimester group (1.0 ng/mL [0.36–121.0] versus 0.67 ng/mL [0.4–2.8]; P = 0.007).

Conclusion

Histological chorioamnionitis is associated with a significant increase of amniotic fluid pentraxin 3 levels. Amniotic fluid pentraxin 3 appears to be a marker of intra‐amniotic inflammation.
Semi-Supervised Response Modeling
Authors: Lee Hyoung-joo , Shin Hyunjung , Hwang Seong-seob , Cho Sungzoon , MacLachlan Douglas
Published: December 2009

Response modeling is concerned with identifying potential customers who are likely to purchase a promoted product, based on customers’ demographic and behavioral data. Constructing a response model requires a preliminary campaign result database. Customers who responded to the campaign are labeled as respondents while those who did not are labeled as non-respondents. Those customers who were not chosen for the preliminary campaign do not have labels, and thus are called unlabeled. Then, using only those labeled customer data, a classification model is built in the supervised learning framework to predict all existing customers. However, often in response modeling, only a small part of customers are labeled, and thus available for model building, while a large number of unlabeled data may give valuable information. As a method to exploit the unlabeled data, we introduce semi-supervised learning to the interactive marketing community. A case study on the CoIL Challenge 2000 and the Direct Marketing Educational Foundation data sets shows that the transductive support vector machine, one of widely used semi-supervised models, can identify more respondents than conventional supervised models, especially when a small number of data are labeled. Semi-supervised learning is a viable alternative and merits further investigation.
Fairy Tales, Sexuality, and Gender in France, 1690–1715
Authors: Seifert Lewis C.
Published: December 2009

Between 1690 and 1715, well over one hundred literary fairy tales appeared in France, two-thirds of them written by women. This 1996 book explores why fashionable adults were attracted to this new literary genre and, integrating socio-historical, structuralist, and post-structuralist approaches, considers how it became a medium for reconceiving literary and historical discourses of sexuality and gender. The first part of the book considers how the marvellous is used to legitimize the genre, to exemplify theories of 'modern' culture, and to reaffirm women's potential as writers. The second part examines how specific groups of tales both reiterate and unsettle late seventeenth-century discourses of love, masculinity and femininity through conventions such as the romantic quest, the marriage closure, chivalric heroes and good and evil fairies.
The Other Prussia
Authors: Friedrich Karin
Published: December 2009

This book considers the phenomenon of nation-building before the age of modern nationalism. It focuses on royal (Polish) Prussia - the 'other' Prussia - a province of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1466 to 1772/3, and its major cities Danzig, Thorn and Elbing. As an integral part of the Polish state the Prussian estates took pride in their separate institutions and privileges. Although its urban elites became predominantly Protestant and German-speaking, they formulated a republican identity deliberately hostile to the competing monarchical-dynastic myth in neighbouring ducal Prussia, ruled by the Brandenburg-Hohenzollerns from 1618. After 1700, the Polish crown increasingly antagonized the Prussian burghers by its centralizing policies and its failure to protect the integrity of the Commonwealth's borders. The decline of Poland and the partitions of 1772–93 guaranteed that it was not the tradition of liberty but the Hohenzollern version of Prussian identity that survived into the modern era. Joint winner of the Orbis book prize, The American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies.
The Armada of Flanders
Authors: Stradling R. A.
Published: December 2009

The Flanders armada, took shape in response to the use of seapower by the Dutch rebels, and evolved into the most effective unit in Spain's defence establishment. In combination with its privateering auxiliaries, this elite striking force dominated the North Sea for some twenty years (1625–45), and campaigned also in the Mediterranean and Atlantic theatres of war. Yet its contribution to the tenacious survival of Spanish hegemony has never before been assessed. A narrative of the armada's fighting record over the century of its meaningful existence is presented with constant reference to the strategic-logistical context and analysis of policymaking in Madrid. Attention is paid to the political significance of maritime policy, and particularly the relationship between Madrid and its subordinate headquarters in Brussels; the infrastructure of the armada; the ships themselves, above all the revolutionary but elusive 'frigate'; the social hierarchy of crews and commanders; and details of administration and financing.
Shen Pao-chen and China's Modernization in the Nineteenth Century
Authors: Pong David
Published: December 2009

The Opium Wars ushered in an era of intensive Western imperialism in China, at a time when the Ch'ing dynasty was already in decline, forcing a small number of Chinese officials to come to the realisation that China must protect itself by adopting the same military technology that had brought it national humiliation. Shen Pao-chen was one such official. Abandoning the comfort of his successful career, Shen devoted his life to building China's first modern naval dockyard and academy. His successes and failures shed new light on the story of China's efforts at modernization - a story that has not come to a conclusion. As China engages in new rounds of economic and industrial modernization in the post-Mao era, many of these issues acquire new meanings and significance.
Groups as Galois Groups
Authors: Volklein Helmut
Published: December 2009

This book describes various approaches to the Inverse Galois Problem, a classical unsolved problem of mathematics posed by Hilbert at the beginning of the century. It brings together ideas from group theory, algebraic geometry and number theory, topology, and analysis. Assuming only elementary algebra and complex analysis, the author develops the necessary background from topology, Riemann surface theory and number theory. The first part of the book is quite elementary, and leads up to the basic rigidity criteria for the realisation of groups as Galois groups. The second part presents more advanced topics, such as braid group action and moduli spaces for covers of the Riemann sphere, GAR- and GAL- realizations, and patching over complete valued fields. Graduate students and mathematicians from other areas (especially group theory) will find this an excellent introduction to a fascinating field.
Hugo Riemann and the Birth of Modern Musical Thought
Authors: Rehding Alexander
Published: December 2009

Generally acknowledged as the most important German musicologist of his age, Hugo Riemann (1849–1919) shaped the ideas of generations of music scholars, not least because his work coincided with the institutionalisation of academic musicology around the turn of the last century. This influence, however, belies the contentious idea at the heart of his musical thought, an idea he defended for most of his career - harmonic dualism. By situating Riemann's musical thought within turn-of-the-century discourses about the natural sciences, German nationhood and modern technology, this book reconstructs the cultural context in which Riemann's ideas not only 'made sense' but advanced an understanding of the tonal tradition as both natural and German. Riemann's musical thought - from his considerations of acoustical properties to his aesthetic and music-historical views - thus regains the coherence and cultural urgency that it once possessed.
Modernism, Race and Manifestos
Authors: Winkiel Laura
Published: December 2009

The modernist avant-garde used manifestos to outline their ideas, cultural programs and political agendas. Yet the manifesto, as a document of revolutionary change and a formative genre of modernism, has heretofore received little critical attention. This 2007 study reappraises the central role of manifestos in shaping the modernist movement by investigating twentieth-century manifestos from Europe and the Black Atlantic. Manifestos by writers from the imperial metropolis and the colonial 'periphery' drew very different emphases in their recasting of histories and experiences of modernity. Laura Winkiel examines archival materials as well as canonical texts to analyse how Sylvia Pankhurst, Virginia Woolf, Mina Loy, Wyndham Lewis, Nancy Cunard, C. L. R. James, W. E. B. Du Bois, Zora Neale Hurston, Aimé Césaire and others presented their modernist projects. This focus on manifestos in their geographical and historical context allows for a revision of modernism that emphasizes its cross-cultural aspects.
Discourse and Context
Authors: Dijk Teun A. van
Published: December 2009

How do social situations influence language use, discourse and conversation? This book is a monograph which presents a multidisciplinary theory of context and the way context influences language use and discourse. Unlike in earlier approaches, contexts are not defined as objective social 'variables', such as gender or age. Rather, they are constructs of the participants themselves, that is, 'subjective definitions of the communicative situation' that are made explicit in the sociocognitive notion of context models. These models dynamically control all language use, make sure that discourses are appropriate in the communicative situation and hence are the basis of pragmatics. In this book, context models are studied especially from a (socio) linguistic and cognitive perspective. In another book published by Cambridge University Press, Society and Discourse, Teun A. van Dijk develops the social psychological, sociological and anthropological dimensions of the theory of context.
Newton as Philosopher
Authors: Janiak Andrew
Published: December 2009

Newton's philosophical views are unique and uniquely difficult to categorise. In the course of a long career from the early 1670s until his death in 1727, he articulated profound responses to Cartesian natural philosophy and to the prevailing mechanical philosophy of his day. Newton as Philosopher presents Newton as an original and sophisticated contributor to natural philosophy, one who engaged with the principal ideas of his most important predecessor, René Descartes, and of his most influential critic, G. W. Leibniz. Unlike Descartes and Leibniz, Newton was systematic and philosophical without presenting a philosophical system, but over the course of his life, he developed a novel picture of nature, our place within it, and its relation to the creator. This rich treatment of his philosophical ideas will be of wide interest to historians of philosophy, science, and ideas.
The Experience of Middle Australia
Authors: Pusey Michael
Published: December 2009

This book puts middle Australia under the microscope, examining how quality of life is faring in the face of change and uncertainty. 400 Australians from around the country shared their experiences of work, family, and community for this book, creating a striking picture of Australian society into a new millennium. This lived experience is set against hard data so that we can truly understand the impact - good and bad - of economic restructuring on the broad Australian middle class. Meticulously researched, it mounts a moral and intellectual counter-argument to economic reform. A sequel to the best-selling Economic Rationalism in Canberra, Michael Pusey's book will be equally important.
Palestrina and the German Romantic Imagination
Authors: Garratt James
Published: December 2009

Focusing on the reception of Palestrina, this bold interdisciplinary study explains how and why the works of a sixteenth-century composer came to be viewed as a paradigm for modern church music. It explores the diverse ways in which later composers responded to his works and style, and expounds a provocative model for interpreting compositional historicism. In addition to presenting insights into the works of Bruckner, Mendelssohn and Liszt, the book offers fresh perspectives on the institutional, aesthetic and ideological frameworks sustaining the cultivation of choral music in this period. This publication provides an overview and analysis of the relation between the Palestrina revival and nineteenth-century composition and it demonstrates that the Palestrina revival was just as significant for nineteenth-century culture as parallel movements in the other arts, such as the Gothic revival.
Facing Black and Jew
Authors: Newton Adam Zachary
Published: December 2009

A reading of African American and Jewish American writers from Henry Roth and Ralph Ellison to Philip Roth and David Bradley. Reading the work of such writers alongside and through one another, Newton's book offers an original way of juxtaposing two major traditions in modern American literature, and rethinking the sometimes vexed relationship between two constituencies ordinarily confined to sociopolitical or media commentary alone. Newton combines Emmanuel Levinas's ethical philosophy and Walter Benjamin's theory of allegory in shaping an innovative kind of ethical-political criticism. Through artful, dialogical readings of Saul Bellow and Chester Himes, David Mamet and Anna Deavere Smith, and others, Newton seeks to represent American Blacks and Jews outside the distorting mirror of 'Black-Jewish Relations', and restrictive literary histories alike. A final chapter addresses the Black/Jewish dimension of the O. J. Simpson trial.
Poets and Power from Chaucer to Wyatt
Authors: Meyer-Lee Robert J.
Published: December 2009

In the early fifteenth century, English poets responded to a changed climate of patronage, instituted by Henry IV and successor monarchs, by inventing a new tradition of public and elite poetry. Following Chaucer and others, Hoccleve and Lydgate brought to English verse a style and subject matter writing about their King, nation, and themselves, and their innovations influenced a continuous line of poets running through and beyond Wyatt. A crucial aspect of this tradition is its development of ideas and practices associated with the role of poet laureate. Robert J. Meyer-Lee examines the nature and significance of this tradition as it developed from the fourteenth century to Tudor times, tracing its evolution from one author to the next. This study illuminates the relationships between poets and political power and makes plain the tremendous impact this verse has had on the shape of English literary culture.
Representations of the Natural World in Old English Poetry
Authors: Neville Jennifer
Published: December 2009

This book examines descriptions of the natural world in a wide range of Old English poetry. Jennifer Neville describes the physical conditions experienced by the Anglo-Saxons - the animals, diseases, landscapes, seas and weather with which they had to contend. She argues that poetic descriptions of these elements were not a reflection of the existing physical conditions but a literary device used by Anglo-Saxons to define more important issues: the state of humanity, the creation and maintenance of society, the power of individuals, the relationship between God and creation and the power of writing to control information. Examples of contemporary literature in other languages are used to provide a sense of Old English poetry's particular approach, which incorporated elements from Germanic, Christian and classical sources. The result of this approach was not a consistent cosmological scheme but a rather contradictory vision which reveals much about how the Anglo-Saxons viewed themselves.
The Rhetoric of the Body from Ovid to Shakespeare
Authors: Enterline Lynn
Published: December 2009

This persuasive book analyses the complex, often violent connections between body and voice in Ovid's Metamorphoses and narrative, lyric and dramatic works by Petrarch, Marston and Shakespeare. Lynn Enterline describes the foundational yet often disruptive force that Ovidian rhetoric exerts on early modern poetry, particularly on representations of the self, the body and erotic life. Paying close attention to the trope of the female voice in the Metamorphoses, as well as early modern attempts at transgendered ventriloquism that are indebted to Ovid's work, she argues that Ovid's rhetoric of the body profoundly challenges Renaissance representations of authorship as well as conceptions about the difference between male and female experience. This vividly original book makes a vital contribution to the study of Ovid's presence in Renaissance literature.