bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Report on the third workshop on exploiting semantic annotations in information retrieval (ESAIR)
Authors: Kamps Jaap , Karlgren Jussi , Schenkel Ralf
Published: June 2011

There is an increasing amount of structure on the Web as a result of modern Web languages, user tagging and annotation, and emerging robust NLP tools. These meaningful, semantic, annotations hold the promise to significantly enhance information access, by enhancing the depth of analysis of today's systems. Currently, we have only started exploring the possibilities and only begin to understand how these valuable semantic cues can be put to fruitful use. The workshop had an interactive format consisting of keynotes, boasters and posters, breakout groups and reports, and a final discussion, which was prolonged into the evening. There was a strong feeling that we made substantial progress. Specifically, each of the breakout groups contributed to our understanding of the way forward. First, annotations and use cases come in many different shapes and forms depending on the domain at hand, but at a higher level there are commonalities in annotation tools, indexing methods, user interfaces, and general methodology. Second, there is a framework emerging to view annotation as (1) a linking procedure, connecting (2) an analysis of information objects with (3) a semantic model of some sort, expressing relations that contribute to (4) a task of interest to end users. Third, we should look at complex tasks that cannot be comprehensible articulated in a few keywords, and embrace interaction both to incrementally refine the search request and to explore the results at various stages, guided by the semantic structure.
DIR 2011
Authors: Boscarino Corrado , Hofmann Katja , Jijkoun Valentin , Meij Edgar , de Rijke Maarten , Weerkamp Wouter
Published: June 2011

The 11th edition of the annual Dutch-Belgian Information Retrieval workshop (DIR 2011) took place on February 4 in Amsterdam. It was organized by the University of Amsterdam and the Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica. The focus of this year's workshop was on interaction, with the goal of facilitating and increasing interaction, especially within the local research community, and between industry and academia. The scientific program included demos, research papers, and compressed contributions. The keynotes by Nick Belkin and Gabriella Kazai provided intriguing outlooks on the future of IR evaluation.
Fourth international workshop on uncovering plagiarism, authorship, and social software misuse
Authors: Stein Benno , Potthast Martin , Rosso Paolo , Barrón-Cedeño Alberto , Stamatatos Efstathios , Koppel Moshe
Published: June 2011

The Fourth International Workshop on Uncovering Plagiarism, Authorship, and Social Software Misuse (PAN10) was held in conjunction with the 2010 Conference on Multilingual and Multimodal Information Access Evaluation (CLEF-10) in Padua, Italy. The workshop was organized as a competition covering two tasks: plagiarism detection and Wikipedia vandalism detection. This report gives a short overview of the plagiarism detection task. Detailed analyses of both tasks have been published as CLEF Notebook Papers [3, 6], which can be downloaded at www.webis.de/publications.
DiversiWeb 2011
Authors: Simperl Elena , Madalli Devika P. , Vrandečić Denny , Alfonseca Enrique
Published: June 2011

DiversiWeb 2011, the First International Workshop on Knowledge Diversity on the Web, co-located with WWW2011 in Hyderabad, India, provided an interdisciplinary forum for researchers and practitioners to present and discuss their ideas related to the challenges posed by diversity on the Web. We addressed a wide array of interdisciplinary questions, which need to be tackled in order to preserve the fragile balance between a world that is continually converging and growing together, the rich diversity of the global society, and the dangers of fragmentation and splintering.
Eighth workshop on information integration on the web (IIWeb 2011)
Authors: Nambiar Ullas B. , Subramaniam L. Venkata
Published: June 2011

The goal of the Eighth Workshop on Information Integration on the Web (IIWeb 2011), held in conjunction with WWW 2011 on March 28th, 2011 at Hyderabad, India was to bring together academic researchers and industry practitioners in Information Integration. This edition had a special focus on challenges brought out in integrating cyber physical systems (CPS) for building a sustainable ecosystem for life on our planet. The workshop program consisted of three invited talks and six presentations from authors of accepted papers, all focussed in the area of cyber physical system creation for smarter traffic, intelligence gathering etc. The six papers were picked from a pool of twenty two papers submitted to the workshop after a peer review process. The workshop attracted about 30 registered delegates of WWW 2011.
Usage analysis and the web of data
Authors: Berendt Bettina , Hollink Laura , Hollink Vera , Luczak-Rösch Markus , Möller Knud , Vallet David
Published: June 2011

The workshop on Usage Analysis and the Web of Data (USEWOD2011) was the first workshop in the field to investigate combinations of usage data with semantics and the Web of Data. Questions the workshop aims to address are for example: How can semantics help in understanding usage data, how can semantic information be derived from usage data, and how can we learn about usage of and on the emerging Web of Data, and what can we learn from it? We report on the findings and results of this workshop, held on March 28, 2011 in conjunction with 20th International World Wide Web Conference, in Hyderabad, India.
Publishing survey articles on information retrieval topics
Authors: Oard Douglas W. , Sebastiani Fabrizio , Furner Jonathan , Marchionini Gary
Published: June 2011

Survey articles are an important way of sharing knowledge among interested researchers and contributing to the growth of a field. This brief note identifies several outlets for survey articles on information retrieval, and identifies some reasons to write articles of this type.
From people to entities
Authors: Demartini Gianluca
Published: June 2011

The exponential growth of digital information available in Enterprises and on the Web creates the need for search tools that can respond to the most sophisticated informational needs. Retrieving relevant documents is not enough anymore and finding entities rather than textual resources provides great support to the user both on the Web and in Enterprises. Many user tasks would be simplified if Search Engines would support typed search, and return entities instead of just Web pages. For example, an executive who tries to solve a problem needs to find people in the company who are knowledgeable about a certain topic. Aggregation of information spread over different documents is a key aspect in this process.

Finding experts is a problem mostly considered in the Enterprise setting where teams for new projects need to be built and problems need to be solved by the right persons. In the first part of the thesis, we propose a model for expert finding based on the well consolidated vector space model for Information Retrieval and investigate its effectiveness.

We can define Entity Retrieval by generalizing the expert finding problem to any entity. In Entity Retrieval the goal is to rank entities according to their relevance to a query (e.g., "Countries where I can pay in Euro"); the set of entities to be ranked is assumed to be loosely defined by a generic category, given in the query itself (e.g., countries), or by some example entities (e.g., Italy, Germany, France). In the second part of the thesis, we investigate different methods based on Semantic Web and Natural Language Processing techniques for solving these tasks both in Wikipedia and, generally, on the Web. Evaluation is a critical aspect of Information Retrieval. We contributed to the field of Information Retrieval evaluation by organizing an evaluation initiative for Entity Retrieval.

Opinions and other relevant information about entities can be provided by different sources in different contexts. News articles report about events where entities are involved. In such setting the temporal dimension is critical as news stories develop over time and new entities appear in the story and others are not relevant anymore. In the third part of this thesis, we study the problem of Entity Retrieval for news applications and the importance of the news trail history (i.e., past related articles) to determine the relevant entities in current articles. We also study opinion evolution about entities. In the last years, the blogosphere has become a vital part of the Web, covering a variety of different points of view and opinions on political and event-related topics such as immigration, election campaigns, or economic developments. We propose a method for automatically extracting public opinion about specific entities from the blogosphere.

Available online at http://www.gianlucademartini.net/research/phd/.
Combining concepts and language models for information access
Authors: Meij Edgar
Published: June 2011

Since the middle of last century, information retrieval has gained an increasing interest. Since its inception, much research has been devoted to finding optimal ways of representingboth documents and queries, as well as improving ways of matching one with the other. In cases where document annotations or explicit semantics are available, matching algorithms can be informed using the concept languages in which such semantics are usually defined. These algorithms are able to match queries and documents based on textual and semantic evidence.

Recent advances have enabled the use of rich query representations in the form of query language models. This, in turn, allows us to account for the language associated with concepts within the retrieval model, in a principled and transparent manner. Developments in the semantic web community, such as the Linked Open Data cloud, have enabled the association of texts with concepts on a large scale. Taken together, these developments facilitate a move beyond manually assigned concepts in domain-specific contexts into the general domain.

This thesis investigates how one can improve information access by employing the actual use of concepts as measured by the language that people use when they discuss them. The main contribution is a set of models and methods that enable users to retrieve and access information on a conceptual level. Through extensive evaluations, a systematic exploration and thorough analysis of the experimental results of the proposed models is performed. Our empirical results show that a combination of top-down conceptual information and bottom-up statistical information obtains optimal performance on a variety of tasks and test collections.

The dissertation is available online at http://phdthes.is/.
The successful implementation of customer relationship management (CRM) system projects
Authors: Saeed Khawaja A. , Grover Varun , Kettinger William J. , Guha Subo
Published: June 2011

We draw on information systems (IS) implementation, business process reengineering, and relationship management research to identify specific interventions that contribute to successful implementation of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system projects. These interventions are examined across multiple cases, which depict varying levels of performance outcomes. The analysis not only confirms the important role of top management found in early studies on IS implementation and information integration, but provides a more granular assessment of these executive level interventions. The study also shines light on the role of CRM system characteristics and cooperative cross-functional and inter-organizational relationships in facilitating successful implementation of CRM systems. Researchers and managers need to consider these interventions in the context of information systems that not only impact multiple functional units but also external business partners. The results of the study provide managers with insights into areas where they can successfully intervene to manage the behavioral aspects of CRM system projects, make effective resource allocation decisions, and better plan for system functionality and structural issues. The propositions derived from the data will provide scholars with impetus for further research in clarifying the formula for successful CRM system implementation.
What does it mean to trust facebook?
Authors: Lankton Nancy K. , McKnight D. Harrison
Published: June 2011

Researchers have recently studied technology trust in terms of the technological artifact itself. Two different kinds of trusting beliefs could apply to a website artifact. First, the trusting beliefs may relate to the interpersonal characteristics--competence, integrity, and benevolence. Second, they may relate to corresponding technology characteristics--functionality, reliability, and helpfulness. Since social networking websites like Facebook may demonstrate either interpersonal or technology trust characteristics, researchers may need to carefully choose the beliefs to model. Thus it is important to understand not only the conceptual meaning of these beliefs, but also whether human and technology trust beliefs are distinct. Using data collected from 362 university-student Facebook users, we test two second-order factor structures that represent alternative ways to model the three interpersonal and three technology trust beliefs. We find that the best-fitting measurement model depicts the three conceptually-related pairs of trust beliefs (competence-functionality, integrity-reliability, and benevolence-helpfulness) as three distinct second-order factors. This model outperformed the model splitting trusting beliefs into separate interpersonal and technology second-order factors. The results show people distinguish among three types of conceptually-related trust attributes, and that they trust Facebook as both a technology and a quasi-person. These second-order trust factors can be used in future research to better understand social networking trust and usage continuance intentions
Open source software adoption
Authors: Li Yan , Tan Chuan-Hoo , Xu Heng , Teo Hock-Hai
Published: June 2011

Adoption of an information system could be reflected in two ways: through the adoption intentions of the non-adopters and the extent of adoption for the adopters. This study seeks to identify the motivational factors influencing individuals' adoption intentions and the extent of a system adoption within the context of Open Source Software (OSS). Building on the theoretical underpinnings of the Self-Determination Theory, we proposed and empirically assessed two conceptual models to examine OSS adopters' extent of adoption (based on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation) and OSS non-adopters' intentions for adoption (based on amotivation). Results from the survey collected from 264 OSS adopters and 212 OSS non-adopters reveal that strategy belief amotivation is the major factor for not using OSS (i.e., non-adopters) while identified regulation is the major extrinsic motivation affecting the extent of adoption (i.e., adopters). Interestingly, intrinsic motivation to accomplish and capacity beliefs amotivation do not significantly affect adoption extent and adoption intention respectively. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Dynamic collaboration
Authors: Helquist Joel H. , Deokar Amit , Meservy Thomas , Kruse John
Published: June 2011

Groups and decision makers are increasingly running headlong into complexity as interconnections and interdependencies between individuals and organizations continue to grow, decision time horizons shrink and more work is being performed by distributed teams. These factors are driving up overall problem space complexity and limiting the effectiveness of time-tested decision and collaboration processes. Increases in problem space complexity lead to higher equivocality in collaborative processes and associated products. Electronic collaboration support tools and associated process management schemes have proven successful in many challenging contexts. However, current collaboration process management schemes and tools may not be able to effectively handle more complex tasks. We posit that heightened problem space complexity must be addressed with commensurate process and technological support for collaborative efforts. To achieve truly agile collaborative solutions, we propose Dynamic Collaboration -- a process management scheme that utilizes group consensus, and process evolution via iterative process alignment and product refinement phases to meet the challenges posed by complexity and equivocality.
DSL for the Uninitiated
Authors: Ghosh Debasish
Published: June 2011

One of the main reasons why software projects fail is the lack of communication between the business users, who actually know the problem domain, and the developers who design and implement the software model. Business users understand the domain terminology, and they speak a vocabulary that may be quite alien to the software people; it’s no wonder that the communication model can break down right at the beginning of the project life cycle.
Is virtual reality a useful tool in the teaching of physiology?
Authors: Richardson Daniel
Published: June 2011

This opinion statement points out some of the considerations and pitfalls in using virtual reality computer programs in the teaching of life sciences. Emphasis is placed on the possibility of such programs leading to reductionist thinking including how reductionist thinking could foster the formation of misconceptions. Negative feedback is used as the classic example of reductionist thinking in physiological regulation, including how classic negative feedback is inconsistent with evidence of complexity in living systems. This statement concludes that virtual reality can be a useful tool in the teaching of physiology so long as the complexity of living systems is taken into account.
Show the data, don't conceal them
Authors: Drummond Gordon B. , Vowler Sarah L.
Published: June 2011

Current standards of data presentation and analysis in biological journals often fall short of ideal. This is the first of a planned series of short articles, to be published in a number of journals, aiming to highlight the principles of clear data presentation and appropriate statistical analysis. This article considers the methods used to show data, in particular the value of the dot plot, and methods to summarise the distribution of values. The uses of measures such as standard deviation, standard error of the mean, and confidence intervals are contrasted.
Trial of integrated laboratory practice
Authors: Matsuo Osamu , Takahashi Yuzo , Abe Chikara , Tanaka Kunihiko , Nakashima Akira , Morita Hironobu
Published: June 2011

In most laboratory practices for students in medical schools, a laboratory guidebook is given to the students, in which the procedures are precisely described. The students merely follow the guidebook without thinking deeply, which spoils the students and does not entice them to think creatively. Problem-based learning (PBL) could be one means for the students themselves to actively learn, find problems, and resolve them. Such a learning attitude nurtures medical students with lifelong learning as healthcare professionals. We merged PBL and laboratory practices to promote deep thinking habits and developed an integrated laboratory practice. We gave a case sheet to groups of students from several schools. The students raised hypotheses after vivid discussion, designed experimental protocols, and performed the experiments. If the results did not support or disproved the hypothesis, the students set up another hypothesis followed by experiments, lasting for 4 or 5 consecutive days. These procedures are quite similar to those of professional researchers. The main impact achieved was the fact that the students developed the experimental design by themselves, for the first time in their college lives. All students enjoyed the laboratory practice, which they had never experienced before. This is an antidote to the guidebook-navigated traditional laboratory practice, which disappoints many students. As educators in basic medical sciences stand on the edge in terms of educating the next generation, there is a need to provide a strong foundation for medical students to design and perform scientific experiments. The integrated laboratory practice may provide the solution.
The work by Giulio Ceradini in explaining the mechanism of semilunar cardiac valve function
Authors: Troiani Diana , Manni Ermanno
Published: June 2011

Using an excised pig heart preparation with tubes, a manometer, and a visualizing apparatus, Giulio Ceradini, an Italian physiologist working in the years of 1871–1872 in Carl Ludwig's famous laboratory in Leipzig, Germany, illustrated the mechanism of closure of the semilunar valves. He was the first to conceive that the closure of the heart valves depends not on a static back pressure nor upon eddies but is primarily the consequence of the decelerated systolic efflux. This pioneer research of Ceradini was first published in German in 1872 ( 4 ). The purpose of the present report is to revisit Ceradini's pioneering experiments and his interpretation of heart valve closure, which remains as true as it was in 1872.
Teaching cardiovascular physiology with equivalent electronic circuits in a practically oriented teaching module
Authors: Ribarič Samo , Kordaš Marjan
Published: June 2011

Here, we report on a new tool for teaching cardiovascular physiology and pathophysiology that promotes qualitative as well as quantitative thinking about time-dependent physiological phenomena. Quantification of steady and presteady-state (transient) cardiovascular phenomena is traditionally done by differential equations, but this is time consuming and unsuitable for most undergraduate medical students. As a result, quantitative thinking about time-dependent physiological phenomena is often not extensively dealt with in an undergraduate physiological course. However, basic concepts of steady and presteady state can be explained with relative simplicity, without the introduction of differential equation, with equivalent electronic circuits (EECs). We introduced undergraduate medical students to the concept of simulating cardiovascular phenomena with EECs. EEC simulations facilitate the understanding of simple or complex time-dependent cardiovascular physiological phenomena by stressing the analogies between EECs and physiological processes. Student perceptions on using EEC to simulate, study, and understand cardiovascular phenomena were documented over a 9-yr period, and the impact of the course on the students' knowledge of selected basic facts and concepts in cardiovascular physiology was evaluated over a 3-yr period. We conclude that EECs are a valuable tool for teaching cardiovascular physiology concepts and that EECs promote active learning.
Student-centered physiology in high schools
Authors: Anjur Sowmya S.
Published: June 2011

Student test score percentages in the Physiology and Disease (PAD) course at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, a high school for students of the state of Illinois gifted in math and science, were studied over a period of 5 yr. Inquiry-based laboratory experiences in the course were slowly converted during this time from partly student centered and mostly teacher led to completely student centered beginning in fall 2008. Quarterly analysis of the effect of increased inquiry upon average weekly report submissions of 400 students over 4 yr showed a significant improvement in submission ( P < 0.0002) between quarters 1 and 2 and also improvement from year to year between the academic years of 2006/2007 and 2009/2010 ( P < 0.0001). A comparison of student test score percentages from 346 students in 4 major tests showed a significant increase ( P = 0.0125) beginning in the academic year of 2008/2009, when the conversion of all laboratories in the course from partly student centered to completely student centered was concluded compared with scores over the 2 yr from 2006/2007 up to this point. There was also a significant difference ( P < 00001) in test score percentages between the individual tests themselves over the 4 yr studied. Taking the study a step further, the 35 students registered in the two PAD classes offered in the fall 2010 semester were divided in each of their classes into student-centered and teacher-centered groups, with the former designing all their experiments and the latter following instructions from the teacher. Student score percentages on specific test questions from the four major tests that focused on transfer of student understanding were compared between these two groups. There was a significant improvement ( P = 0.012) when students designed their own laboratories (student-centered group) compared with doing what the teacher asked (teacher-centered group). There was also a significant difference between these student score percentages among the individual tests ( P < 0.0001). These data suggest that an increase in student-centered experiments may lead to a corresponding increase in test performance on questions involving student transfer.
Undergraduate student attitudes and perceptions toward low- and high-level inquiry exercise physiology teaching laboratory experiences
Authors: Henige Kim
Published: June 2011

The purpose of this investigation was to compare student attitudes toward two different science laboratory learning experiences, specifically, traditional, cookbook-style, low-inquiry level (LL) activities and a high-inquiry level (HL) investigative project. In addition, we sought to measure and compare students' science-related attitudes and attitudes toward science. Students participated in 5 wk of LL activities followed by a 5-wk HL project. An open-ended survey administered at the end of the semester and analyzed by a χ2-test revealed that 1) students enjoyed the HL project more than the LL activities, 2) high-level inquiry did not have a negative effect on student motivation in the laboratory, and 3) students perceived that they learned more about physiology principles with the LL activities. Most students liked the HL project, particularly the independence, responsibility, freedom, and personal relevance. Of the students who did not like the HL project, many reported being uncomfortable with the lack of structure and guidance. Many students gained a more positive and realistic view about scientific research, often reporting an increased respect for science. Likert scale surveys administered before and after each 5-wk period showed no significant changes in student attitudes to scientific inquiry, adoption of scientific attitudes, enjoyment of science lessons, or motivation toward science when the three time points were compared. The findings in this study have helped to provide suggestions for better implementation of HL projects in the future.
The Physiology undergraduate major in the University of Arizona College of Medicine: past, present, and future
Authors: Henriksen Erik J. , Atwater Anne E. , Delamere Nicholas A. , Dantzler William H.
Published: June 2011

The American Physiological Society (APS) and APS Council encourage the teaching of physiology at the undergraduate, graduate, and medical school levels to support the continued prominence of this area of science. One area identified by the APS Council that is of particular importance for the development of future physiologists (the “physiology pipeline”) is the teaching of physiology and physiology-related topics at the undergraduate level. In this article, we describe the historical development and implementation of an undergraduate program offered through the Department of Physiology, a basic science department in the College of Medicine at the University of Arizona, culminating in a Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences degree with a major in Physiology. Moreover, we discuss the current Physiology curriculum offered at our institution and explain how this program prepares our students for successful entry into a variety of postbaccalaureate professional programs, including medical school and numerous other programs in health professions, and in graduate study in the Masters and Doctoral programs in biomedical sciences. Finally, we cover the considerable challenges that we have faced, and continue to face, in developing and sustaining a successful physiology undergraduate major in a college of medicine. We hope that the information provided on the Physiology major offered by the Department of Physiology in the College of Medicine at the University of Arizona will be helpful for individuals at other institutions who may be contemplating the development and implementation of an undergraduate program in Physiology.
Medical students' evaluation of physiology learning environments in two Nigerian medical schools
Authors: Anyaehie U. S. B. , Nwobodo E. , Oze G. , Nwagha U. I. , Orizu I. , Okeke T. , Anyanwu G. E.
Published: June 2011

The expansion of biomedical knowledge and the pursuit of more meaningful learning have led to world-wide evidence-based innovative changes in medical education and curricula. The recent emphasis on problem-based learning (PBL) and student-centred learning environments are, however, not being implemented in Nigerian medical schools. Traditional didactic lectures thus predominate, and learning is further constrained by funding gaps, poor infrastructure, and increasing class sizes. We reviewed medical students' perceptions of their exposed learning environment to determine preferences, shortcomings, and prescriptions for improvements. The results confirm declining interest in didactic lectures and practical sessions with preferences for peer-tutored discussion classes, which were considered more interactive and interesting. This study recommends more emphasis on student-centered learning with alternatives to passive lecture formats and repetitive cookbook practical sessions. The institutionalization of student feedback processes in Nigerian medical schools is also highly recommended.
Teaching the renal tubular reabsorption of glucose using two classic papers by Shannon et al.
Authors: Braga Valdir A.
Published: June 2011

Most of the transport along the nephron uses membrane proteins and exhibits the three characteristics of mediated transport: saturation, specificity, and competition. Glucose reabsorption in the nephron is an excellent example of the consequences of saturation. Two classic papers by James A. Shannon and colleagues clearly show the ability of the kidney in transporting glucose and its saturation process, providing students with examples of the handling of glucose by the kidney. In addition, these articles demonstrate how stable and reproducible is the transport maximum of glucose in the proximal tubule under different experimental conditions. One key figure from each classic paper can be used to give students insight into how glucose transport becomes saturated, resulting in the excretion of glucose in urine, and will also give students a clear example of how careful experimentation and a clear interest in renal physiology led Shannon and colleagues to advance the field.
Peer assessment in large undergraduate classes: an evaluation of a procedure for marking laboratory reports and a review of related practices
Authors: Harris Judy R.
Published: June 2011

This study provides evidence that peer marking can be a reliable tool for assessing laboratory reports in large cohorts. It was conducted over a 4-yr period with first-year undergraduates (∼180 students/cohort) taking a mammalian physiology course, but the procedure adopted would be applicable to any other laboratory-based discipline. The process was found to be efficient in staff time, enabling a summative practical report to be marked in <1 h (<5% of the time that had previously been required for staff marking), facilitating rapid feedback to students on their performance. When samples of the peer-assessed reports were marked by a single member of staff, there was excellent correlation between peer and staff marks ( r = 0.96–0.98), although peer-awarded marks exceeded staff marks by an average of 2.5–3.0%. The validity of peer marking was independent of both the sex of the marker and the staff score awarded to the marker for the same piece of work. Feedback from students was largely positive; they reported that the procedure adopted was effective in increasing their understanding of the underlying physiology and contributed to their understanding of best practice in presenting a laboratory report. Seventy percent of students agreed that it was acceptable for peer assessment to contribute a small (up to 5%) component of the overall mark for the course. The results are discussed in relation to other reports of peer marking, particularly when used to assess an academic product or process in a scientific discipline.
Monitoring physiology trainee needs to focus professional society responses: the APS Trainee Needs Surveys
Authors: Matyas Marsha L. , Lowy Melinda E. , Sweazea Karen L. , Alvarez Diego F.
Published: June 2011

In 2004 and 2007, the American Physiological Society (APS) Trainee Advisory Committee (TAC) conducted surveys of graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and new investigators in physiology to identify topics and issues important to those trainees. Two major trends emerged from the data. First, trainees in 2007 expressed somewhat greater interest in professional development information than did those in 2004. Second, needs expressed by trainees in both years were closely related to their specific career development stage. Survey findings guided the TAC and other APS committees and groups to focus their efforts toward the issues that were of the greatest interest to trainees. It also led to improved communication with trainees and increased involvement of trainees in APS governance.
Academic genealogy and direct calorimetry: a personal account
Authors: Jackson Donald C.
Published: June 2011

Each of us as a scientist has an academic legacy that consists of our mentors and their mentors continuing back for many generations. Here, I describe two genealogies of my own: one through my PhD advisor, H. T. (Ted) Hammel, and the other through my postdoctoral mentor, Knut Schmidt-Nielsen. Each of these pathways includes distingished scientists who were all major figures in their day. The striking aspect, however, is that of the 14 individuals discussed, including myself, 10 individuals used the technique of direct calorimetry to study metabolic heat production in humans or other animals. Indeed, the patriarchs of my PhD genealogy, Antoine Lavoisier and Pierre Simon Laplace, were the inventors of this technique and the first to use it in animal studies. Brief summaries of the major accomplishments of each my scientific ancestors are given followed by a discussion of the variety of calorimeters and the scientific studies in which they were used. Finally, readers are encouraged to explore their own academic legacies as a way of honoring those who prepared the way for us.
Resources and practices to help graduate students and postdoctoral fellows write statements of teaching philosophy
Authors: Kearns Katherine D. , Sullivan Carol Subiño
Published: June 2011

students and postdoctoral fellows currently encounter requests for a statement of teaching philosophy in at least half of academic job announcements in the United States. A systematic process for the development of a teaching statement is required that integrates multiple sources of support, informs writers of the document's purpose and audience, helps writers produce thoughtful statements, and encourages meaningful reflection on teaching and learning. This article for faculty mentors and instructional consultants synthesizes practices for mentoring graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty members as they prepare statements of teaching philosophy. We review background information on purposes and audiences, provide writing resources, and synthesize empirical research on the use of teaching statements in academic job searches. In addition, we integrate these resources into mentoring processes that have helped graduate students in a Health Sciences Pedagogy course to collaboratively and critically examine and write about their teaching. This summary is intended for faculty mentors and instructional consultants who want to refine current resources or establish new mentoring programs. This guide also may be useful to graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty members, especially those who lack mentoring or who seek additional resources, as they consider the many facets of effective teaching.
The case of thyroid hormones: how to learn physiology by solving a detective case
Authors: Lellis-Santos Camilo , Giannocco Gisele , Nunes Maria Tereza
Published: June 2011

Thyroid diseases are prevalent among endocrine disorders, and careful evaluation of patients' symptoms is a very important part in their diagnosis. Developing new pedagogical strategies, such as problem-based learning (PBL), is extremely important to stimulate and encourage medical and biomedical students to learn thyroid physiology and identify the signs and symptoms of thyroid dysfunction. The present study aimed to create a new pedagogical approach to build deep knowledge about hypo-/hyperthyroidism by proposing a hands-on activity based on a detective case, using alternative materials in place of laboratory animals. After receiving a description of a criminal story involving changes in thyroid hormone economy, students collected data from clues, such as body weight, mesenteric vascularization, visceral fat, heart and thyroid size, heart rate, and thyroid-stimulating hormone serum concentration to solve the case. Nevertheless, there was one missing clue for each panel of data. Four different materials were proposed to perform the same practical lesson. Animals, pictures, small stuffed toy rats, and illustrations were all effective to promote learning, and the detective case context was considered by students as inviting and stimulating. The activity can be easily performed independently of the institution's purchasing power. The practical lesson stimulated the scientific method of data collection and organization, discussion, and review of thyroid hormone actions to solve the case. Hence, this activity provides a new strategy and alternative materials to teach without animal euthanization.
Baryonic Symmetries inAdS4/CFT3: An Overview
Authors: Rodriguez-Gomez Diego
Published: June 2011

Global symmetries play an important role in classifying the spectrum of a gauge theory. In the context of theAdS/CFTduality, global baryon-like symmetries are specially interesting. In the gravity side, they correspond to vector fields inAdSarising from KK reduction of the SUGRAp-form potentials. We concentrate on theAdS4/CFT3case, which presents very interesting characteristic features. Following arXiv:1004.2045, we review aspects of such symmetries, clarifying along the way some arguments in that reference. As a byproduct, and in a slightly unrelated context, we also study𝒵minimization, focusing on the HVZ theory.
Plasma 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Is Independently Associated with Hemoglobin Concentration in Male Subjects with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Meguro Shu , Tomita Masuomi , Katsuki Takeshi , Kato Kiyoe , Oh Henpiru , Ainai Akira , Ito Ryo , Takeda Shu , Kawai Toshihide , Atsumi Yoshihito , Itoh Hiroshi , Hasegawa Hideki
Published: June 2011

Introduction. It was reported that 25-hydroxyvitamin D level was independently associated with anemia in chronic kidney diseases, but the relation between vitamin D and anemia in diabetes mellitus is not still certain. We analyzed the relation between plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D level and hemoglobin concentration.Materials and Methods. A cross-sectional study in male patients with type 2 diabetes was performed. Correlation coefficients and standardized partial regression coefficient for the hemoglobin concentration were evaluated.Results. Hemoglobin concentration was positively correlated with body mass index, HbA1c, estimated glomerular filtration rate, cholinesterase, and 25-hydroxyvitamin D level and negatively correlated with age, duration of diabetes mellitus, serum creatinine, and urinary albumin creatinine ratio. Multiple regression analysis revealed the independent relation of 25-hydroxyvitamin D to hemoglobin concentration.Conclusions. Plasma circulating form of vitamin D is significantly associated with hemoglobin concentration in diabetes mellitus independent of the clinical markers for kidney function or nutrition.
Usage, Risk, and Benefit of Weight-Loss Drugs in Primary Care
Authors: Forslund Tomas , Raaschou Pauline , Hjemdahl Paul , Krakau Ingvar , Wettermark Björn
Published: June 2011

Purpose. To investigate the use of the weight-loss drugs rimonabant, sibutramine, and orlistat in primary care and to characterize the patients receiving the drugs.Methods. In this retrospective, descriptive study, 300 randomly selected patients having started weight-loss drug treatment at 15 primary care centres were investigated using the patient's medical records and their complete drug purchase data.Results. Even though 48% of the patients specifically demanded drug treatment, 77% continued treatment less than one year. 28% of rimonabant patients and 32% of sibutramine patients had a history of depression or antidepressant treatment. 41% of sibutramine patients had a history of hypertension and/or cardiovascular disease. 36% had no documented weight after treatment initiation.Conclusions. These results suggest that weight-loss drug treatment was often initiated upon patient request but was of limited clinical benefit as it was managed in a large portion of Swedish primary carecenters.
Bedside Endoscopic Ultrasound in Critically Ill patients
Authors: Mohamadnejad Mehdi , LeBlanc Julia K. , Sherman Stuart , Al-Haddad Mohammad , McHenry Lee , Cote Gregory A. , DeWitt John M.
Published: June 2011

Background. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role and impact of EUS in the management of critically ill patients.
Methods. We retrospectively identified all patients at our institution over a 68-month period in whom bedside inpatient EUS was performed. EUS was considered to have a significant impact if a new diagnosis was established and/or the findings altered subsequent clinical management.
Results. Fifteen patients (9 male; mean age years) underwent bedside EUS without complications. EUS-FNA (median 4 passes; range 2–7) performed in 12 (80%)
demonstrated a malignant mediastinal mass/lymph node (5), pancreatic abscess (1), excluded a pelvic abscess (1), established enlarged gastric folds as benign (1) and excluded malignancy in enlarged mediastinal (1) and porta hepatis adenopathy (1). In two patients, EUS-FNA failed to diagnose mediastinal histoplasmosis (1) and a hemorrhagic pancreatic pseudocyst (1). In three diagnostic exams without FNA, EUS correctly excluded choledocholithaisis () and cholangiocarcinoma (1), and found gastric varices successfully thrombosed after previous cyanoacrylate injection (1). EUS was considered to have an impact in 13/15 (87%) patients.
Conclusions. In this series, bedside EUS in critically ill patients was technically feasible, safe and had a major impact on the majority of patients.
Stochastic Fractional Programming Approach to a Mean and Variance Model of a Transportation Problem
Authors: Charles V. , Yadavalli V. S. S. , Rao M. C. L. , Reddy P. R. S.
Published: June 2011

In this paper, we propose a stochastic programming model, which considers a ratio of two nonlinear functions and probabilistic constraints. In the former, only expected model has been proposed without caring variability in the model. On the other hand, in the variance model, the variability played a vital role without concerning its counterpart, namely, the expected model. Further, the expected model optimizes the ratio of two linear cost functions where as variance model optimize the ratio of two non‐linear functions, that is, the stochastic nature in the denominator and numerator and considering expectation and variability as well leads to a non‐linear fractional program. In this paper, a transportation model with stochastic fractional programming (SFP) problem approach is proposed, which strikes the balance between previous models available in the literature.
Paracetamol and the Placebo Effect in Osteoarthritis Trials: A Missing Link?
Authors: Zeidler Henning
Published: June 2011

This paper addresses the role of paracetamol in placebo-controlled osteoarthritis (OA) trials and the potential contribution to the large placebo response in such trials. Paracetamol is used as rescue medication in nearly all OA placebo-controlled trials. Triggered by the discussion about the placebo effect in general and because of the lack of systematic reviews of placebo effect in OA trials, a recent meta-analysis examined the placebo effect and its potential determinants in the treatment of OA, as the main result came out that placebo is very effective in the treatment of OA, especially for pain, stiffness, and self-reported function. However, mostly limited data are available from published OA trials on the starting dose, final dose, dose over time of paracetamol use, and the percentage of patients who used rescue medication during the study. Paracetamol may be an important additional simulated effect of placebo administration mimicking the true placebo effect and thus a missing link contributing partially to the large placebo response in OA trials. Therefore, the positive effect of paracetamol on symptom relief as well as the need for standardized recording of rescue medication should be taken into account when designing, executing, and interpreting placebo-controlled OA studies.
Successful Bronchoscopic Cryorecanalization in a Case of Endobronchial Lipoma
Authors: Lamprecht B. , Hutarew G. , Porsch P. , Wegleitner B. , Studnicka M.
Published: June 2011

Endobronchial lipomas are rare benign tumors; less than 150 cases have been reported so far. Bronchial occlusion usually leads to a misdiagnosis of asthma/COPD or malignancy. We report the case of a 67-year-old man with a history of heavy smoking (100 pack years), dyspnea on exertion, cough, and malaise who was treated for pneumonia for three weeks. Due to nonresolving atelectasis of the superior segment of the right lower lobe, a malignant endobronchial tumor was suspected. Rigid bronchoscopy with cryorecanalization led to both the definite histopathological diagnosis of endobronchial lipoma and the reopening of an endoluminal airway obstruction during one procedure.
NSAIDs-Related Pyloroduodenal Obstruction and Its Endoscopic Management
Authors: Noor Mohd Talha , Dixit Pankaj , Kochhar Rakesh , Nagi Birinder , Dutta Usha , Singh Kartar , Poornachandra Kuchhangi Suresh
Published: June 2011

Endoscopic balloon dilatation (EBD) has important role in the management of benign gastric outlet obstruction. Although there are many reports on the role of EBD in the management of corrosive-induced and peptic benign GOO, there is scanty data on its role in the management of NSAID-induced GOO. We report 10 cases of NSAID-induced pyloroduodenal obstruction and their endoscopic management. The most common site of involvement was duodenum (5/10) followed by both pylorus and duodenum (4/10) and pylorus (1/10). Most of the strictures were short web-like, and the mean (SD) number of stricture was 2.0 (0.94). Endoscopic balloon dilatation was successful in 90% (9/10) cases requiring mean (SD) of 2.0 (1.6) sessions of dilatation to achieve target diameter of 15 mm and mean (SD) of 5.3 (2.7) sessions to maintain it over a treatment period of 4.5 months (IQR 2–15 months). There was no procedure-related complication or mortality.