bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Geographical distribution of allozyme variation in relation to post‐glacial history in Carex digitata, a widespread European woodland sedge
Authors: Tyler Torbjörn
Published: March 2003

Aim

To investigate the distribution, and broad‐scale geographical patterns, of variation, in the widespread boreo‐nemoral woodland herb Carex digitata throughout its native European range. To interpret the revealed geographical pattern of variation in terms of glacial survival, post‐glacial migration and inter‐regional gene‐flow.

Location

The whole of Europe divided into twenty‐five geographical regions.

Methods

Genetic variation at nine polymorphic allozyme loci was analysed in 10–25 individuals from 66 populations from throughout the European range of C. digitata. Allele frequencies were calculated both at the level of populations and at the level of geographical regions, and these frequencies were used to calculate the Cavalli‐Sforza chord distance (CSCD). CSCD between neighbouring regions were presented on geographical maps. CSCD at both the population and the regional level were subjected to UPGMA cluster analysis. Standard measures of genetic diversity were calculated and divided into within population, region and species components.

Results

Most alleles had a scattered distribution throughout, but several alleles were mainly found in Fennoscandia and regional allelic richness was the highest here. Cluster analysis on the level of populations did not recover any geographical structure. However, genetic distances between regions, each consisting of 1–4 populations, revealed a clear geographical pattern. Genetic distances were low between (1) Scandinavian and British regions and (2) between Mediterranean regions, moderate between Central European regions and high between far‐east European and Caucasian regions.

Main conclusions

A post‐glacial scenario involving independent glacial survivals in south‐eastern European Russia, the Caucasian Mountains, the Mediterranean area and central Europe is proposed. Northern Europe (i.e. Fennoscandia) appears to have been colonized through many independent long‐distance dispersals from different extra‐Fennoscandian populations. High regional population densities in Fennoscandia are assumed to have facilitated accumulation of genetic variation and inter‐regional gene‐flow as compared with more southern populations which are generally of restricted size and appear to have been mutually isolated and subjected to strong genetic drift.
Korapuki Island as a case study for restoration of insular ecosystems in New Zealand
Authors: Towns David R.
Published: March 2003

Aim

Success with eradicating invasive species from islands around New Zealand raises the prospect of reversing the loss of species by restoring biotic communities on modified islands. I seek to identify methods that can be used to clarify restoration targets on Korapuki Island, which was modified by introduced mammals until 1987.

Location

Korapuki, Green and Middle islands, Mercury Islands, north‐eastern New Zealand.

Methods

I describe methods of identifying restoration targets by using biogeographical frameworks, and benchmark systems based on neighbouring unmodified islands. Methods that can help identify directions and rates of change are also investigated.

Results

The benchmark islands (Middle and Green) have complex forest systems with a distinctive component of large, flightless invertebrates, dense populations of tuatara Sphenodon punctatus (Gray), dense and diverse populations of lizards and dense populations of burrowing seabirds. The restoration island (Korapuki) has simplified forest systems, few large invertebrates, no S. punctatus, a depauperate fauna of lizards and scattered populations of seabirds. These differences are consistent with the recorded effects of rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.) and Pacific rats Rattus exulans (Peale) removed from Korapuki Island in 1986–87. Three restoration scenarios are described and restoration targets identified. Time scales for natural succession are likely to be influenced by a long‐lived colonizing tree species that now predominate over much of the island. The rate of expansion of reintroduced animals is influenced by the very low productivity of many of the species apparently extirpated by introduced mammals.

Main conclusions

Ecological restoration of island ecosystems has been likened to reconstituting the ambiguous because of conceptual and practical difficulties. Goals for restoration of island systems are often dependent on value judgements. Biological outcomes or targets can be clarified by the use of unmodified neighbouring islands as benchmarks. However, successional pathways on the restored island may not converge with the benchmarks because of environmental differences between sites.
Breakage of mutualisms by exotic species: the case of Cneorum tricoccon L. in the Balearic Islands (Western Mediterranean Sea)
Authors: Riera Núria , Traveset Anna , García Oscar
Published: March 2003

Aim

In this study we tested the hypothesis that the dispersal success (estimated here as fruit removal rate) of a native shrub species living in the Balearic Archipelago, Cneorum tricoccon L. (Cneoraceae), has decreased significantly in those islands where endemic lizards of the genus Podarcis have disappeared. These lizards acted as the main seed dispersers of the plant and became extinct after the introduction of carnivores. At least one of these carnivores, the pine marten (Martes martes L.), is also an important frugivore, consuming the fruits and dispersing the seeds of C. tricoccon and thus allowing the comparison of fruit removal rates between the two groups of vertebrates (lizards and mammals). We further tested the possibility that lizards (in particular, P. pityusensis Boscà) could be exerting selection on seed size.

Methods

In seven populations from four islands, we monitored fruit removal by either lizards or mammals. The fruits of C. tricoccon do not drop after ripening, remaining attached to the branches for long periods if not removed. In order to test whether lizards might be exerting selection on seed size, we compared seed diameter and weight between defecated and uningested (collected directly from plants) seeds for each of the populations.

Results

Fruits were removed in significantly greater proportions in those populations where lizards are still present. Data showed that in two of the examined populations in the Pityusic islands, defecated seeds were lighter and smaller than controls suggesting that lizards selected fruits of smaller size than the average of the population.

Main conclusions

The introduction of carnivores in the Balearics has led to important changes in the population dynamics of many native species. In the larger islands (Mallorca and Menorca), carnivores seemed to have caused the extinction of endemic lizards who acted as the only dispersers of some plants such as C. tricoccon. Pine martens, in particular, are in turn frugivorous and thus can `replace' to some extent the `lost' seed dispersers. We hypothesize that besides having decreased fruit removal rates in this shrub, these `new' dispersers have modified considerably the distribution of the plant on Mallorca island, as the fossil record shows that lizards lived at low altitudes (<500 m a.s.l.) and the plant can be currently found up to 1000 m a.s.l. Furthermore, preliminary data suggest that lizards might be exerting a selective pressure on seed size. If this is true, this pressure might have been released – or counteracted if carnivores select for fruit size as well – after the extinction of lizards from some islands, which would have important ecological consequences for the plant.
Variation at high latitudes: the geography of body size and cranial morphology of the muskox, Ovibos moschatus
Authors: Smith Paul A. , Schaefer James A. , Patterson Brent. R.
Published: March 2003

Abstract Aim Bergmann's rule, one of the most studied and controversial ecogeographical generalizations, has rarely been tested with observations from high latitudes. We tested the rule using cranial measurements of the muskox [Ovibos moschatus (Zimmerman)], a homeotherm with an extremely northern distribution. We also used these data to describe geographical patterns in the species' dental architecture, an extension of the framework developed from interspecific comparisons.

Location Specimens were compiled from arctic Canada, Alaska and Greenland, a latitudinal range of 60° N−83° N.

Methods Body size was estimated from principal components analysis (PCA) of five cranial characters from 128 specimens. Mean scores on the first principal component from each locality were regressed against latitude and mean temperature to identify geographical variation in body size; scores on the second principal component were regressed against latitude to assess patterns in dental architecture. Regression analyses of the individual characters were performed as a complement to PCA.

Results No latitudinal or climatic trend in body size was observed in either sex. On the other hand, for males, significant latitudinal variation was found for the second PCA axis (r = −0.434), and the feature which loaded most heavily on it, maxillary tooth row length (r = 0.429). For females, this dental structure also tended to increase with latitude (r = 0.423), but the trend was only marginally significant (P=0.12), perhaps owing to a smaller sample size.

Main conclusions The geographically invariant body size of muskoxen failed to support current hypotheses of size variation. Behavioural and physiological adaptations may exempt the muskox from selective pressures underlying these hypotheses. We interpret latitudinal variation in dental architecture as a reflection of a cline in diet, dominated by graminoids at the expense of willows at higher latitudes. This intraspecific geographical trend is a recapitulation of the interspecific framework for large mammalian herbivores.
Monitor lizards: a pan‐African check‐list of their zoogeography (Sauria: Varanidae: Polydaedalus)
Authors: Bayless Mark K.
Published: March 2003

Aim  This goal of this paper is to present an up‐to‐date, accurate check‐list and distribution of the monitor lizards on the African continent. No such list of their distribution has been attempted since Robert F. Mertens' (1942) treatise (Abhandlungen Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft, 462, 465, 466).

Location  The localities included herein are all countries on the African continent, and adjacent islands, with a list of Varanus known to Yemen and Saudi Arabian Republics included for clarity. One fossil Varanus rusingensis is included, as it is the first, and only described, fossil African Varanus known.

Methods  Locality records were reviewed from literature sources, museum voucher specimens, personal comments, field observations and photographic records.

Results  A summation of 3,268 locality records are included herein from the methods listed, with maps depicting these records.

Main conclusions  From the locality records listed herein, it is evident that the Nile monitor (V. niloticus) has the widest distribution, and that the Yemen monitor (V. yemenensis) has the most restricted distribution; paradoxically, both features may be indicative of their relic habitation on the African continent.
Factors associated with the adaptation of parents with a chronically ill child
Authors: Hentinen Maija , Kyngäs Helvi
Published: March 2003

• The purpose of this paper is to describe the adaptation of parents who have a child with a chronic condition and some factors connected to it.

• Data were collected by a questionnaire from 189 parents who had a child with a chronic condition, such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis or asthma. Most (85%) of the responses were from mothers.

• The data were analysed using factor analysis. A four‐factor model turned out to describe best the adaptation of the parents and their coping with the care of a chronically ill child. Two factors showed good adaptation and two poor adaptation.

• Emotional and instrumental support were connected to adaptation on each of the four factors.

• Support from health care staff and the parents' need to obtain more information were not connected to adaptation as clearly as emotional and instrumental support.

• Parents wished for support more in families where the child was under nine years old than in families where the child was over nine years old.
Advanced practice nursing in the Nordic countries
Authors: Lorensen Margarethe , Jones Dorothy E. , Hamilton Glenys A.
Published: March 2003

• Changes in the delivery of health care and changes in population characteristics and health care requirements mandate changing requirements in nursing education.

• This is necessary to meet patient and family needs and to deliver quality health care.

• This paper describes the background to nursing education in the Nordic countries and gives an account of an initiative in Norway to prepare advanced practice nurses for clinical practice in this dynamic environment.
Parental guidance and counselling by doctors and nursing staff: parents' views of initial information and advice for families with disabled children
Authors: TAANILA ANJA , JÄrvelin MARJO‐RIITTA , Kokkonen Jorma
Published: March 2003

• This paper describes changes that have taken place, over a period of 10 years, in the way physicians and nursing staff in Finland give initial information and advice to the parents about their child's disability. It also discusses the association between quality of information given and parents' feelings of insecurity or helplessness.

• In the study, we compared the experiences of parents of older (aged 12–17) disabled children with those of parents with younger (aged 7–9 years) disabled children. There were 85 children, whose disabilities were either learning or physical, or, in a few cases, both.

• Parents completed a questionnaire and were interviewed by a social worker.

• According to these reports, the initial information and advice received by the parents with younger children about their child's disability and its treatment, and on coping with the child at home, was better than that received by the parents of the older children. The parents of the younger children also reported feeling better prepared to take care of their child.

• Those parents who reported having received little information and practical advice on coping with their child at home experienced feelings of insecurity and helplessness five times as often as those who were satisfied with the information and advice.

• Feelings of being poorly prepared to take care of their child at home were reported four times more often by dissatisfied parents than by satisfied parents.

• More attention should be paid to the manner in which information is given to parents, and doctors and nurses need to develop better ways to support parents and facilitate their adaptation.
An evaluation of the lecturer‐practitioner role in the independent health care sector
Authors: McGee Paula
Published: March 2003

• This study examined the impact of the introduction of lecturer‐practitioner (LP) roles in four Nuffield Hospitals over a period of two years. A series of interviews was conducted with the practitioners themselves, the staff and the managers. LPs also maintained structured diaries.

• Nursing practice in the independent sector is influenced by a number of factors, including caring for patients in individual rooms and working directly with consultants because there are no junior medical staff. Nurses encountered patients with very diverse problems, and accordingly needed help to maintain a wide professional knowledge base.

• Nursing staff benefited from the presence of an LP in terms of linking theory to practice, role modelling, obtaining career advice and introducing change. Non‐nursing staff also benefited from the LPs' adoption of an interdisciplinary approach to certain care situations.

• LPs were valued as a resource for staff and seen as important in enabling the company to maintain its image as a provider of high‐quality care. The LP was also well placed to raise the profile of nursing in the independent sector through research activities.

• LPs themselves benefited from their experiences and were able to develop their own skills.
The assessment and management of self‐harming patients in an Accident and Emergency department: an action research project
Authors: Mc ELROY ALASTAIR , SHEPPARD GERRY
Published: March 2003

• The Government, in Health of the Nation (DoH, 1992), set targets for health authorities to introduce specific interventions intended to reduce the rates of suicide in the districts for which they are responsible.

• Those who deliberately harm themselves are an important group for interventions aimed at suicide prevention.

• Self‐harming individuals are known to seek help from a range of care providers, not just those specifically intended to meet their needs.

• Individuals with problems of self‐poisoning and self‐injury have placed increasing pressure on general hospital staff involved in their care. There should therefore be adequate services for suicide attempters in every general hospital.

• Policies and protocols must be introduced and evaluated, to ensure that the self‐harmer's experience during crisis is not a catalogue of unhelpful encounters.

• This paper is an account of an action research project concerned with the assessment and management of self‐harming patients in one accident and emergency department.

• The project aimed to enhance departmental policies and procedures for managing this group of patients.

• Practical problems can inhibit the introduction of even the most desirable of innovations. Action research provides a way of overcoming these problems whilst doing research at the same time.
The effectiveness of a group approach to clinical supervision in reducing stress: a review of the literature
Authors: WILLIAMSON GRAHAM R. , DODDS SARAH
Published: March 2003

•There is little research evidence to suggest that clinical supervision reduces stress. However, this probably does not mean that clinical supervision is not valuable, just that the evidence is not yet there, because consensus exists that group clinical supervision may be beneficial in reducing stress in nurses.

•The work by Butterworth et al. is the only directly relevant study investigating the stress‐reducing potential that a group approach to clinical supervision has, and this work establishes ground rules for future evaluation.
Intervention studies to reduce the prevalence and incidence of pressure sores: a literature review
Authors: Gould Dinah , James Trudi , Tarpey Aideen , Kelly Daniel , Pattison Dorothy , Fox Carolyn
Published: March 2003

• Much has been written about the prevention of pressure sores. However, electronic and manual searches located only 10 studies within the literature in the UK that described interventions able to reduce either their incidence or prevalence.

• All the studies located contained serious methodological flaws. Apparent success in reducing the number or severity of pressure sores could have resulted because staff involved in data collection were aware that the study was being undertaken and thus took more interest in pressure area care.

• From the review findings it is apparent that there is a dearth of research evidence upon which to base practice in the sphere of pressure sore prevention and further research is urgently required.
Assessment and documentation of bowel care management in palliative care: incorporating patient preferences into the care regimen
Authors: Cadd Ann , Keatinge Diana , Henssen Monika , O’Brien Lynne , Parker Deborah , Rohr Yvonne , Schneider Jennifer , Thompson Judith
Published: March 2003

• Nurses in a palliative care unit (PCU) recognized that there were several inconsistencies relating to assessment and documentation of patient preferences in bowel care management.

• Although bowel care is recognized as of key importance to the wellbeing of palliative care patients, there is little evidence in current literature about accommodation of patient preferences in bowel care management.

• A questionnaire was developed to assess whether patient preferences were elicited on admission to the PCU, were documented, and were included in the bowel care regimen.

• Data were collected from 100 patients in two PCUs in Australia.

• The findings suggested that little was assessed or documented about bowel care management on admission except functional or pharmacological information.

• According to patients in the study, their preferences were seldom incorporated into the bowel care regimen. Lack of documentation of bowel care preferences was also found following an audit of patient notes.

• Techniques for eliciting information, awareness of alternative or complementary methods of bowel care and better documentation procedures are all recommended for inclusion in nursing practice in the palliative care setting.
Feminist research or humanistic research? Experiences of studying prostatectomy
Authors: Pateman Brian
Published: March 2003

• This paper highlights issues related to men’s health research arising from a small‐scale study, carried out by a male researcher, to identify the experience of men following transuretheral resection of prostate (TURP) for benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH). The intention of this paper is to stimulate methodological debate rather than to be a research report.

• For the study, an informal interview approach was used within a phenomenological framework, and interview experiences raised issues which have been previously discussed under the rubric of feminist research.

• The conclusion drawn is that a style of research which attempts to gain a holistic view of patients’ experiences is better termed ‘humanistic research’ because the term ‘feminist research’ clearly cannot be applied to men studying men’s health‐related experiences.
Caring in nursing: perceptions of Hong Kong nurses
Authors: Yam Bernard M. C. , Rossiter Joh Chin
Published: March 2003

• Ten registered nurses in Hong Kong were interviewed on their perceptions of caring behaviours in their clinical settings, barriers to these behaviours, and possible ways to overcome those barriers.

• Findings showed that respondents valued the importance of expressive behaviours and interpersonal communication skills in providing holistic patient care. They felt constrained by social, economic, cultural, and personal variables such as staff shortages, the traditional task‐orientated approach of nursing, the dominance of medicine in the healthcare system, the influence of Chinese culture on work attitudes, and their limited skills and lack of education.

• The situation could be improved through better staff education, colleague support, effective human resources allocation, and promotion of a democratic working environment.

• A creative approach is necessary to integrate these strategies into a healthcare system dominated by technology and economic constraints.
Patient satisfaction with emergency nurse practitioners in A & E
Authors: Byrne Geraldine , Richardson Marion , Brunsdon Julie , Patel Asmita
Published: March 2003

• In recent years the complex process of managing services for patients requiring emergency care has been increasingly under scrutiny and considerable diversity has arisen in the organization of emergency care in both hospital and community settings.

• One innovation which has been particularly widespread is the development of Emergency Nurse Practitioners (ENPs): experienced Accident and Emergency nurses who assume entire responsibility for patients with minor injuries, in emergency settings.

• The present paper reports on a study which compared patients’ satisfaction with care given by Emergency Nurse Practitioners with that provided by doctors and nurses working together in a traditional A & E.

• Patients were significantly more likely to have received health education and first aid advice from an ENP than from a doctor. They were also significantly more likely to have been given written instructions to take home and told whom to contact if they needed more help and advice following discharge. Those seen by an ENP also reported that they were subsequently significantly less worried about their health, than did patients seen in a traditional A & E.
A randomized trial of a Telephone Reassurance Programme for patients recently discharged from an ophthalmic unit
Authors: Boter Han , Mistiaen Patriek , Groenewegen Ingrid
Published: March 2003

• Patients often experience problems after discharge, for instance with housekeeping or a general lack of information.

• The effect of a nurse‐initiated Telephone Reassurance Programme (TRP) on ophthalmic patient outcomes was investigated.

• Patients in the intervention group were phoned by a nurse 3–6 days after being randomized and discharged home.

• Patients in both intervention and control groups received a questionnaire 1 week and 1 month after discharge to assess the patient outcomes ‘Informational needs’, ‘Uncertainty’, ‘Emotional complaints’ and ‘Functional limitations’.

• In an attempt to explain the lack of statistically significant results, the limitations related to the participants, intervention and outcomes are discussed.
Self‐care in adults with asthma: how they cope
Authors: MÄkinen Satu , Suominen Tarja , Lauri Sirkka
Published: March 2003

• The purpose of this study was to find out how well adult asthma patients in Finland cope with self‐care in three areas of asthma treatment. The areas of physical, psychological and social asthma treatment were examined. Associations between demographic background data and self‐care were also studied.

• Data (n = 130) for the study were collected using a questionnaire specially developed for this study. A deductive perspective was employed in data analysis.

• Respondents showed fairly good competence in self‐care in all three areas of asthma treatment. However, up to 30% of the asthma patients had pets and 16% were smokers.

• Extra stress was reduced by exercise and positive thinking. Humour was also important in helping most of the respondents cope mentally.

• Social support played a significant part in fighting the sense of powerlessness which is caused by asthma.

• According to the results, women coped better than men in the social area of self‐care.
Prevalence and nursing staff awareness of hearing impairment in older hospital patients
Authors: Heron Rebecca , Wharrad Heather J.
Published: March 2003

•  This paper reports on a research study carried out on three Health Care of the Elderly wards in Nottinghamshire.

•  Two cross‐sectional surveys were undertaken to determine nursing competence in relation to the assessment and care of hearing impaired elderly patients.

•  Using pure‐tone audiometry, 90.5% of the sample were found to have a hearing impairment of ≥25 dBHL in the better‐hearing ear.

•  Results indicated that nurses possessed the relevant theoretical knowledge but that their practical skills were limited.
Screening swallowing function of patients with acute stroke. Part two: detailed evaluation of the tool used by nurses
Authors: Perry Lin
Published: March 2003

• Stroke is a common problem and a major consumer of health and social care budgets in the UK.

• Dysphagia is a frequent accompaniment and its management has the potential to exert significant influence within the rehabilitation process.

• This study explores in detail the performance of a screening tool (based on the Standardized Swallowing Assessment) used by nurses.

• Based on 68 complete screening episodes by independently competent nurses, with the effects of chance removed, the tool demonstrated good agreement with summative clinical judgement of swallow function (κ=0.88). The accuracy of results supported the full training and education programme for nurses.

• Not all components of the tool were required; analyses suggested elimination of three variables but further exploration is warranted.

• As a component of evidence‐based guidelines for nutritional support in acute stroke, the screening initiative contributed to improved patient outcomes.
Nursing activity in general intensive care
Authors: HARRISON LYNNE , NIXON GILLIAN
Published: March 2003

• In this cost‐conscious climate there is a need to make explicit and justify the rationale to support direct patient contact by Registered Nurses. The current shortage of qualified nursing staff means that it is essential that experience and expertise be utilized to the benefit of patients and the service as a whole.

• This study used a descriptive approach to describe, categorize and quantify the activities of nurses working in a six‐bed general intensive care unit.

• Data were collected using a self‐reporting diary log sheet that identified the focus of an individual's activity at 5‐minute intervals. All Registered Nurses, on all shifts over a 7‐day period, completed log sheets.

• The results demonstrate that nurses working in this general intensive care unit spent 85% of their time in activities associated with providing direct patient care. However, up to 6% of time was spent undertaking non‐nursing duties, and analysis of unit activity provided data to support an increase in the establishment and review of the shift patterns of health care assistants.

• The findings of the study indicate that nurses in charge of shifts spend 24.1% of their time in managerial and administrative activity; this reduces the amount of time spent in direct patient contact.
Children's nursing and interprofessional collaboration: challenges and opportunities
Authors: KENNY GERARD
Published: March 2003

• Interprofessional working has been the subject of recent debate in the nursing press.

• Despite this heightened scrutiny little attention has been given to putting this development in the context of practitioners working within children's nursing.

• This paper seeks to redress this imbalance by focusing on the challenges and opportunities for professional development that interprofessional collaboration working offers.

• This is illustrated by acknowledging existing themes of good practice, and identifying the potential for new ways of working that maintain professional status, skills and knowledge but also facilitate wider collaboration.
Management of relatives of patients who are dying
Authors: Main Jill
Published: March 2003

? Previous research in a retrospective community‐based study suggested that some relatives had difficulty coping with their bereavement when the pre‐bereavement period had not been managed well.

? This prospective study in a hospital setting explored the issues further to include the views and needs of staff as well as relatives.

? Staff were interviewed in focus groups and relatives were interviewed individually.

? Analysis of data was qualitative using thematic analysis.

? Findings demonstrated that staff often felt ill‐equipped for providing support for relatives when a patient is dying.

? Training is required to help nurses support and care for the relatives of dying patients.
Psychosocial maturity among people with diabetes mellitus
Authors: Hörnsten Åsa , Norberg Astrid , Lundman Berit
Published: March 2003

? There is a relationship between coping with chronic illness and a person's psychosocial development.

? The aim of this study was to describe dimensions of psychosocial development based on results of a previous factor analysis of the Modified Erikson Psychosocial Stage Inventory among people with type 2 diabetes.

? Interviews were carried out with 10 people with diabetes. The transcribed interviews were analysed by qualitative content analysis into main categories, categories and themes.

? The categories were trust, lack of trust, positive identity, identity confusion, integrity and lack of integrity. Themes that permeated the categories in a positive way were ‘activity’ and ‘involvement’, while themes that permeated the categories in a negative way were ‘passivity’ and ‘alienation’. Our interpretation is that the category ‘trust’ is the basis for ‘identity’, and together ‘trust’ and ‘identity’ are the basis for maturity and ‘integrity’.

? A conclusion is that positive psychosocial maturity has to do with attaining trust, identity and integrity through activity and involvement. Qualities important for maturation through trust, identity and integrity are understanding, capacity, purposefulness and fortitude. Our interpretation of maturity is considered as being an important and interesting focus in nursing, while the above related qualities are closely connected to coping with diabetes.
‘Understanding and being understood’ as a creative caring phenomenon – in care of patients with stroke and aphasia
Authors: Sundin Karin , Jansson Lilian
Published: March 2003

• Five care providers particularly successful at communicating with patients with communication difficulties were video‐recorded together with three patients with aphasia after stroke, during morning care activities. The care providers were then interviewed immediately after the video‐recordings, about their experiences of communicating with such patients.

• The interviews with the care providers were interpreted by means of a phenomenological hermeneutic method.

• Co‐creating was the main theme found.

• Care providers invite the patient to participate in the creative act of communication. They have a communicative attitude and show interest in the patients' personal desires. The care providers encounter the patient as a presence in a caring communion. In part, care providers communicate by continuously conveying their presence to the patient and even creating availability in a close and open intersubjective relationship.

• A relaxed and supportive atmosphere facilitates reciprocity between care provider and patient. The communication is not technical or strategic; instead care providers share the patients' experiences in a silent dialogue. This silent dialogue involves sharing the patients' feelings and thus receiving messages from the patient.
The effect of gender on children’s software preferences
Authors: Joiner R. W.
Published: March 2003

Previous studies have found that gender differences in computer‐based problem solving can be ameliorated by changes in the software content. A study is reported in this paper which tests the hypothesis that this finding can be explained in terms of gender differences in software engagement. The children (16 boys and 16 girls) were aged between 10 and 11 and were shown four versions of the same computer‐based problem: a male stereotyped version (the Pirates); a female stereotyped version (the Princesses); a gender neutral version (the Honeybears) and an abstract version (Blocksworld). The boys preferred the Pirates significantly more than the Princesses. There was no significant differences in the girls’ preference for either the Honeybears, the Pirates or the Princesses. Although these findings do not support the hypothesis, they are consistent with research concerned with the effects of gender stereotyping on children’s toy selections.
A multi‐agent framework to assist networked learning
Authors: Stamatis D. , Kefalas P. , Kargidis T.
Published: March 2003

Through the use of continuously evolving information technologies, the concept of Networked Learning (NL) offers an effective and low cost means for open and distance learning. However, NL is far from being a process without problems. Apart from the pedagogical model used, NL heavily relies on organisational/management and other educational aspects. It is suggested that Artificial Intelligence (AI) provides mechanisms which have the potential to support NL both at the organisational and educational level. This paper proposes a framework based on multiple AI agents which can be used to automatically or semi‐automatically assist various stages of NL. This assistance is indented for both learners and course providers who need to carry out specific tasks before, during and after the delivery of a course.
The effects of liquid honey as a partial substitute for sugar on the physical and sensory qualities of a fat‐reduced muffin
Authors: Conforti Frank D. , Strait Matthew J.
Published: March 2003

This study investigated the effect of liquid honey as a partial substitute for sugar on the baking and keeping qualities of a fat‐reduced muffin. In the formulation, the fat‐reduced muffin used a hydrocolloid fat replacer, bacterial and fungal amylases and an emulsifier (DATEM). Honey caused a significant (P0.05) increase in crust and crumb colour at all replacement levels; however, the use of honey at the 25% replacement level was favourably increased the crust colour in the fat‐reduced formulation. The addition of honey increased moisture content and decreased water activity, but did not decrease firmness or the staling rate, especially after prolonged frozen storage. Sensory results indicated that honey increased cohesiveness and decreased tenderness in the muffin. The added moisture in the fat‐reduced muffin did not improve the perceived moistness, as indicated by the results.
Public involvement in policy‐making: the case of a Citizens’ Jury on genetic testing for common disorders
Authors: Iredale Rachel , Longley Marcus
Published: March 2003

Abstract: Improving public involvement in policy‐making is generally accepted to be a good thing, and a whole range of methods now exist in the UK that try to achieve this aim. However, few steps have been taken to involve the public directly in decisions on policy issues that will be vital in the future but are not yet on the immediate agenda of policy‐makers. One attempt to do just this was made in Wales in November 1997 when a Citizens’ Jury explored future policies for genetic testing for common disorders in the NHS. This paper describes the Citizens’ Jury experiment and also includes a summary of this Jury's recommendations.
Reflections on Citizens' Juries: the case of the Citizens' Jury on genetic testing for common disorders
Authors: Iredale Rachel , Longley Marcus
Published: March 2003

Introduction

Citizens' Juries are a relatively innovative way of involving ordinary members of the public in decision‐making processes. Participants in Wales' first Citizen Jury reflect on their experiences, and some observers give their view about Citizens' Juries as a method of involving the public in policy making.
Assessment of the effects of environmental change on the performance and density ofBistorta vivipara: the use of multivariate analysis and experimental manipulation
Authors: Totland Ø. , Nyléhn J.
Published: March 2003

1 Studies of plant performance in relation to local variability in environmental conditions can be used to predict the responses of species to environmental change.

2We used redundancy analysis to study how interpopulation variation in average plant weight, flower and bulbil number, bulbil weight and population density among 28 populations ofBistorta viviparawas related to variation in 15 environmental factors. We also examined the responses of plants to a 4‐year experimental increase in temperature.

3Significant differences in average plant performance were found between populations. Variance partitioning of the response data showed that environmental factors explained 45% of the variation in plant performance and density between populations, whereas variation due to transect position was small (10.8%). Soil pH, altitude and season length were the most influential of the environmental variables, and explained 23%, 21% and 14%, respectively, of the variation. Plant performance was in general negatively correlated with these variables, whereas plant density increased along the pH and altitude gradients, suggesting that environmental factors associated with elevation (temperature and vegetation cover) and pH (soil fertility) had opposing effects on individual performance and density. Season length was highly important for average bulbil weight.

4Plants growing in open top chambers had significantly enhanced growth and produced significantly heavier bulbils than those in control plots, whereas flower and bulbil number were unaffected by experimentally increased temperatures. Plant density was equal for warmed and control plots.

5Although warming may increase bulbil weight and plant size inB. vivipara, the response to climate change is complicated by the fact that population densities may decrease due to intensified competition for light caused by a denser vegetation cover.
Separating the effects of number of individuals sampled and competition on species diversity: an experimental and analytic approach
Authors: Goldberg Deborah E. , Estabrook George F.
Published: March 2003

1 Species richness typically increases with the number of individuals sampled, although many ecological processes that influence species richness are also well known to depend on density of individuals. We separated the effects of density on species richness that are due to sampling, from those due to density‐dependent ecological processes such as competition or predation, by manipulating the density of an entire community.

2 A seed bank from a community of desert annual plants that occur on semi‐stabilized sand dunes in Israel was collected from the field and sown in an experimental garden at a range of densities from 1/16 to eight times the natural density. The species pool observed in the lowest density plots was used as the null community, which was repeatedly sampled to calculate the species richness (and other diversity indices) in higher density plots that would be expected from sampling considerations alone. The significance of deviations of observed diversity from this expected diversity was then evaluated.

3 Both observed and expected number of species increased substantially with the experimental increase in density. However, observed species richness, the Shannon–Wiener diversity index and Simpson's diversity index were often significantly lower than that expected based on sampling considerations. The magnitude of the deviation from expected increased significantly with increasing density for richness and the Shannon–Wiener index. This provides some of the first direct experimental evidence from diverse natural assemblages that increasing competition among all the individuals in a community can lead to competitive exclusion.
The ecology of pollen limitation in buzz‐pollinated Rhexia virginica (Melastomataceae)
Authors: Larson Brendon M. H. , Barrett Spencer C. H.
Published: March 2003

1 Pollen limitation of female fertility has often been documented in animal‐pollinated plants, but seldom have the ecological mechanisms responsible been investigated. We examined factors influencing pollen limitation in Rhexia virginica (Melastomataceae), a species in which pollen transfer depends on bumblebees capable of buzz pollination. Experimental studies were conducted in two populations at Lake Matchedash, southern Ontario, Canada, where the species occurs at the edge of its familial range.

2 Supplemental hand pollination of flowers increased their probability of fruit set compared with open‐pollinated control flowers by an average of 57.6%. Pollen limitation was assessed on a per flower basis because the median floral display size at Lake Matchedash was one flower. Pollen limitation was prevalent throughout the 3–4‐week blooming period in one population, whereas in the other it was only evident at the beginning of flowering, despite their close proximity.

3 Bumblebee visits (primarily Bombus impatiens) to R. virginica flowers were infrequent and variable in their occurrence. Visitation was recorded on 14 days during flowering. The median number of visits was 0.65 bees per hour; on 6 days there was virtually no bee activity, but on 2 days visitation rates were high. Variation in pollinator activity was apparently unrelated to local weather conditions.

4 Field experiments demonstrated that the poricidal anthers of R. virginica dispense pollen gradually, with only 10.2% of pollen removed from flowers during a single bumblebee visit. This level of pollen removal is lower than reported in other flowering plants. On average, 47.3% of pollen remained in anthers at the end of anthesis.

5 Investigation of the relation between pollen dispersal and pollen limitation demonstrated a significant negative correlation between the proportion of pollen removed from anthers on a given day and the intensity of pollen limitation. It appears that the pollen‐dispensing mechanism of R. virginica and infrequent visitation by bumblebees compromise pollen dispersal, causing pollen limitation in Ontario populations.
Intraclonal regulation in a perennial caespitose grass: a field evaluation of above‐ and below‐ground resource availability
Authors: Derner J. D. , Briske D. D.
Published: March 2003

1
 Intraclonal regulation of the C4 caespitose perennial grass Schizachyrium scoparium was evaluated in response to various levels of above‐ground (radiation intensity) and below‐ground (soil volume) resource availability in the field for three successive growing seasons. We reasoned that the relative plasticity of clonal growth in response to various levels of resource availability may provide insight into the mechanism of intraclonal regulation.

2  Six naturally occurring clones were randomly assigned to each of five treatments: (i) unrestricted soil volume (control); (ii) large soil volume in which roots were confined to a cylinder of soil with a radius four times that of the clone; (iii) small soil volume, twice the clone radius; (iv) large soil volume with radiation intensity reduced to 55% of ambient; and (v) small soil volume with reduced radiation intensity.

3  Ramet recruitment increased within the first season following root confinement in large soil volumes, while ramet and leaf growth exhibited less plasticity. The effects of a reduction in radiation intensity were smaller, and, in contrast, increased ramet and leaf growth, but did not modify ramet recruitment.

4  The pattern and magnitude of ramet mortality in clones confined to the large soil volume were similar to those of clones in unrestricted soil volume, indicating that intraclonal regulation was sufficient to reduce ramet recruitment and thus density to within the carrying capacity established by resource availability.

5  Similar growth and ramet demography of clones in the unrestricted and small soil volumes suggest that unrestricted clones normally access resources from a soil volume similar to that of the small soil volumes.

6  Rapid clonal growth in response to root confinement to large soil volumes, resource acquisition from a relatively small soil volume that contains the zone of resource accumulation, and the capacity for rapid expression of ramet plasticity provide circumstantial evidence that individual caespitose clones may respond to resource accumulation in soils beneath them.