bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Study of environmental risks incurred by leakage of lithium cells to the food chain in a freshwater ecosystem
Authors: Zhao-xia Dai , Ying Yin , Hong-yan Guo , Shi-he Wang
Published: April 2013

Water flea (Daphnia magna) and fish (Carassius auratus) at trophic level were used for comprehensive evaluation of environmental risks incurred by manufactured nanomaterial (nNi(OH)2) as leaked from lithium cells to the food chain in freshwater ecosystem. The 48, 72 and 96 h acute toxicities of water suspensions of nNi(OH)2 to the flea and the fish were tested, using the immobilization and the mortality as toxicological endpoints. The results showed that the water flea was more highly sensitive to nNi(OH)2 than the fish. Then, the fish were exposed to 1.0 mg/L nNi(OH)2 for 6, 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72 and 96 h, and the relationship between the concentrations in the water and the fish were described by a bioconcentration factor (BCF). After calculation, lgBCF is 1.61. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation was studied after fish were exposed to 1.0 mg/L water suspensions of nNi(OH)2 for 24 h. As proved by electron paramagnetic resonance, nNi(OH)2 may induce the generation of hydroxyl radical in the fish, and nNi(OH)2 as concentrated in the fish may incur redox reaction and produce redox metabolic intermediates. As one of the important toxic mechanisms of nNi(OH)2 to the fish, the oxidative stress mechanism requires further study.
A stochastic optimization approach for integrated urban water resource planning
Authors: Huang Y. , Chen J. , Zeng S. , Sun F. , Dong X.
Published: April 2013

Urban water is facing the challenges of both scarcity and water quality deterioration. Consideration of nonconventional water resources has increasingly become essential over the last decade in urban water resource planning. In addition, rapid urbanization and economic development has led to an increasing uncertain water demand and fragile water infrastructures. Planning of urban water resources is thus in need of not only an integrated consideration of both conventional and nonconventional urban water resources including reclaimed wastewater and harvested rainwater, but also the ability to design under gross future uncertainties for better reliability. This paper developed an integrated nonlinear stochastic optimization model for urban water resource evaluation and planning in order to optimize urban water flows. It accounted for not only water quantity but also water quality from different sources and for different uses with different costs. The model successfully applied to a case study in Beijing, which is facing a significant water shortage. The results reveal how various urban water resources could be cost-effectively allocated by different planning alternatives and how their reliabilities would change.
Impact of the As Samra wastewater treatment plant upgrade on the water quality (COD, electrical conductivity, TP, TN) of the Zarqa River
Authors: Al-Omari A. , Al-houri Z. , Al-Weshah R.
Published: April 2013

The impact of the As Samra wastewater treatment plant upgrade on the quality of the Zarqa River (ZR) water was investigated. Time series data that extend from October 2005 until December 2009 obtained by a state-of-the-art telemetric monitoring system were analyzed at two monitoring stations located 4 to 5 km downstream of the As Samra effluent confluence with the Zarqa River and about 25 km further downstream. Time series data that represent the ZR water quality before and after the As Samra upgrade were analyzed for chemical oxygen demand (COD), electrical conductivity (EC), total phosphorus (TP) and total nitrogen (TN). The means of the monitored parameters, before and after the As Samra upgrade, showed that the reductions in the COD, TP and TN were statistically significant, while no reduction in the EC was observed. Comparing the selected parameters with the Jordanian standards for reclaimed wastewater reuse in irrigation and with the Ayers & Westcot guidelines for interpretation of water quality for irrigation showed that the ZR water has improved towards meeting the required standards and guidelines for treated wastewater reuse in irrigation.
The proposal for updating the EU Accounting Directives: The adequacy of the proposal versus the legislative targets
Authors: Venuti Marco
Published: April 2013

The European Commission issued its proposal for a new accounting Directive at the end of 2010, aimed at substituting the Directives currently in force and applicable to limited companies - the 4th and 7th Directives for company regulation. This article is intended to present a critical examination of such a proposal. It presents an initial evaluation as to the overall adequacy of the proposal as issued, versus the legislative objectives set up as goals by the Commission. In particular, it takes into consideration the set of accounting rules proposed as to their capacity to satisfy the legislative objectives in a reasonably exhaustive manner. This involves an in-depth evaluation of the actual progress made by the Commission in the arena of the accounting Directives, as well as identifying the gaps still present and the further corrective actions that appear necessary to fully realize the objectives set forth.
Autonomia lavorativa e benessere nella professione infermieristica: l'influenza del contesto di lavoro e del percorso formativo
Authors: Toderi Stefano , Sarchielli Guido , Giani Luca
Published: April 2013

La mancanza di autonomia è un fattore di rischio particolarmente rilevante per il benessere lavorativo degli infermieri, soprattutto a seguito della riforma che a partire da metà degli anni '90 ha modificato profondamente il loro profilo professionale. L'obiettivo della ricerca è quello di studiare la relazione tra autonomia e benessere degli infermieri, considerandoli come categoria eterogenea e differenziandoli in base al contesto di svolgimento del lavoro (area dipartimentale) e al tipo di formazione ricevuta (percorso formativo). I dati raccolti attraverso un questionario somministrato a 69 infermieri confermano l'effetto di moderazione di entrambe le variabili. L'autonomia predice il benessere solo nell'area dipartimentale geriatrico-riabilitativa e, in questa, in misura maggiore per gli infermieri con una formazione di tipo professionale. I risultati, che confermano la necessità di considerare gli infermieri come categoria eterogenea, vengono discussi in relazione al diverso significato che l'autonomia può assumere in contesti sanitari diversi e al diverso valore che infermieri con particolari caratteristiche personali le possono dare. Tali differenze sono critiche per pianificare interventi mirati per la riduzione del rischio stress lavoro-correlato.
Macrocyclic Spermidine Alkaloids from Androya decaryi L. Perrier
Authors: Le Lamer Anne-Cécile , Ibrahim Nehal , Manjary Frédéric , Mallet-Ladeira Sonia , Girardi Cynthia , Valentin Alexis , Fabre Nicolas , Moulis Claude
Published: April 2013

Three new spermidine alkaloids and two known compounds were isolated from the leaves of Androya decaryi. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of their spectroscopic data (NMR and mass spectrometry), by X-Ray diffraction and by comparison with literature values. Evaluation of the in vitro antiplamosdial properties of the isolated compounds revealed they did not possess any significant activity.
Separation of Short Single- and Double-Stranded DNA Based on Their Adsorption Kinetics Difference on Graphene Oxide
Authors: Huang Po-Jung , Liu Juewen
Published: April 2013

Separation of short single- and double-stranded DNA typically requires gel electrophoresis followed by DNA extraction, which is a time consuming process. Graphene oxide adsorbs single-stranded DNA more quickly than double-stranded ones, allowing for selective removal of the former with a simple mixing and centrifugation operation. The effect of DNA length and salt on adsorption selectivity has been characterized and its application in DNA melting curve measurement has been demonstrated.
Evaluation of the Clinical Benefits of Nanoparticle Albumin-Bound Paclitaxel in Women with Metastatic Breast Cancer in British Columbia
Authors: Lohmann A.E. , Speers C.H. , Chia S.K.
Published: April 2013

Background: Altered formulations of taxanes may lack cross-resistance with standardly used solvent-based taxanes. The primary objective of the present study was to assess the clinical benefit of nanoparticle albumin-bound (nab)–paclitaxel in women with metastatic breast cancer previously treated with and without adjuvant taxane in British Columbia. Methods: The BC Cancer Agency Pharmacy data repository and Breast Cancer Outcomes Unit database were linked to identify all patients who received nab-paclitaxel in British Columbia since its introduction in 2007. Hormone receptor status, demographic characteristics, number of cycles prescribed, and time to treatment failure were extracted and analyzed. Results: From 2007 to 2011, 138 patients in British Columbia received nab-paclitaxel, with 122 patients available for analysis. Most (70.5%) received adjuvant chemotherapy; about a quarter (24.6%) received an adjuvant taxane. Patients who received adjuvant taxane were more likely to have node-positive (86.7% vs. 48.9%, p = 0.007), estrogen receptor–negative (46.7% vs. 13.0% p < 0.001) disease and to receive initial adjuvant radiotherapy (76.7% vs. 51.1%, p < 0.001). For the entire cohort, the median number of nab-paclitaxel cycles prescribed was 4.4 (range: 0.3–13). The median number of nab-paclitaxel cycles was greater when that agent was given as first- or second-line therapy than as third-line or greater therapy (5.0 cycles vs. 3.7 cycles respectively). The median time to treatment failure was 96 days in the prior adjuvant taxane group (range: 0–361) and 73.5 days in the no prior adjuvant taxane group (range: 0–1176). Conclusions: This retrospective study demonstrates potential clinical activity of nab-paclitaxel in metastatic breast cancer regardless of whether patients had prior exposure to adjuvant taxanes.
New Chart Review Data Validate Administrative Data–Based Indicator for Guideline-Recommended Treatment of Locally Advanced Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer and Shed Light on Reasons for Non-Referral and Non-Treatment
Authors: Klein–Geltink J. , Forte T. , Rahal R. , Darling G. , Cheung W. , Alvi R. , Noonan G. , Russell C. , Vriends K. , Niu J. , Lockwood G. , Bryant H.
Published: April 2013

The 2012 Cancer System Performance Report is the 4th annual report on the Canadian cancer control system produced by the System Performance initiative at the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, in collaboration with its provincial and national partners. [...]
Countercurrents: A New Kind of Breast Cancer Gene Mutation
Authors: Narod S.A.
Published: April 2013

A fascinating article, recently published in Nature and titled “Mosaic PPM1D Mutations Are Associated with Predisposition to Breast and Ovarian Cancer” by Nazneen Rahman and her colleagues, is a rare example of a discovery that causes a re-evaluation of our assumptions about cancer and cancer genes. [...]
Asymmetric synthesis of a highly functionalized bicyclo[3.2.2]nonene derivative
Authors: Tabuchi Toshiki , Urabe Daisuke , Inoue Masayuki
Published: April 2013

The stereoselective Diels–Alder reaction between an optically active 1,4-dimethylcycloheptadiene and acrolein was effectively promoted by TBSOTf to produce a bicyclo[3.2.2]nonene derivative bearing two quaternary carbons. Seven additional transformations from the obtained bicycle delivered the C2-symmetric bicyclo[3.3.2]decene derivative, a key intermediate in our synthetic study of ryanodine.
Coping Strategies for Child Bully-Victims
Authors: Buxton David , Potter Mona Patel , Bostic Jeff Q.
Published: April 2013

CME Educational Objectives

1.

Distinguish what types of bullying are most common at different ages.

2.

Describe six questions to screen for bullying and its effects.

3.

Identify three interventions for students and parents to address bullying, victimization, bystanding, and system rules that allow bullying.

Bullying affects most children in some way, as victims, bystanders, or bullies, during childhood. Children exposed to bullying may present with physical as well as psychological symptoms, and experience negative effects lasting into adulthood. This article provides information regarding bullying screening and interventions with pediatric and adolescent patients. Taking into account a child’s developmental stage, age-appropriate tactics are provided to address bullying, victimization, bystanding, and system “rules” that tolerate or foster bullying.
Foreign Direct Investment and Technology Spillovers in the Turkish Manufacturing Industry
Authors: Sönmez Alper , Pamukçu Mehmet Teoman
Published: April 2013

Technology spillovers from foreign to local firms in emerging economies are considered to be the most important channel through which Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) influences the host economy. Empirical evidence about the existence, magnitude, and direction of FDI-related spillovers in these countries is contradictory, pointing to the necessity of conducting more econometric studies using firm-level data. The authors conduct an econometric analysis to assess the impact of FDI-related horizontal technology spillovers on output growth of local firms in the Turkish manufacturing industry over 2003-2006. When a broad definition of foreign ownership is adopted, their findings suggest that horizontal spillovers occur from foreign to local firms in the sector of activity. Export-oriented firms do not benefit from these spillovers in contrast to firms producing mainly for the local market. However, when foreign ownership is defined according to whether the minority or majority of capital is detained by the foreign partner, horizontal spillovers seem to originate from foreign firms with majority or full foreign ownership, while no such effect is associated with minority-owned foreign firms.
Innovation Cluster Development Potential in the Regions of Turkey
Authors: Sakarya Arif Orçun
Published: April 2013

The assessment of firms’ innovativeness levels in a specific territory can be assumed to be an important indicator of future innovative collaboration, some of which might also be cluster setup initiatives. Assuming that geographical proximity can also provide a favorable opportunity for strengthening inter-firm ties, the goal of the chapter is to discover the best innovation variables for Turkish firms in terms of being members of potential innovative cluster formations. Following an overview of the innovation parameters used in the study, the current situation of the firms in question and their problems are briefly stated. The analysis part includes a regression test to discover the variables affecting firms’ innovativeness in order to tackle the problems stated. Regression results have shown that intellectual capital, technology infrastructure, and geographical concentration levels affect the innovation performance of the firms in different regions. The conclusion involves further policy improvements for empowering regional innovation capabilities.
Explaining the Lack of Dynamics in the Diffusion of Small Stationary Fuel Cells
Authors: Droste-Franke Bert , Krüger Jörg , Lingner Stephan , Ziesemer Thomas H.W.
Published: April 2013

Fuel cell technology is using the reaction of hydrogen with oxygen to water in order to produce electricity and heat. It promises a high electrical efficiency even in small devices, which can be installed close to the consumer. This approach seems to be an impressive idea to contribute to a viable future energy supply under the restrictions of climate change policy. Major reasons currently hampering the diffusion of such technology for home energy supply in Germany are analyzed in this chapter. The barriers revealed include high production costs as well as economic and legal obstacles for installing the devices so that they can be operated in competition to central power plants and beside others in tenancies.
An E-Health System for Treatment of Childhood Obesity
Authors: Baños Rosa M. , Cebolla Ausiàs , Oliver Elia , Castellano Soledad Quero , Botella Cristina
Published: April 2013

Obesity is one of the greatest public health challenges of the 21st century and the most prevalent health problem among children in Europe. Treatment is complex due to the multiple causes of obesity that include many dimensions of children’s lives, such as nutritional habits, physical activity, and lifestyle. E-health technologies can be useful in this area; they may improve health care delivery and acceptability, facilitate the provision of interventions to wider populations, and improve treatment efficacy by taking advantage of new technologies such as the Internet and mobile technologies. The objective of this chapter is to describe an e-health platform called ETIOBE. It comprises three complementary applications connected in real time that support different components of weight loss treatment: the Clinical Support System (CSS), the Home Support System (HSS), and the Mobile Support System (MSS). It was designed to treat childhood obesity by improving treatment adherence, promoting the mechanisms of self-control in patients, obtaining the maintenance of patients’ achievements (reducing body weight), and preventing relapses by establishing healthy life habits.
Blogging
Authors: Strand Cecilia
Published: April 2013

Upon learning about an HIV-positive status, the individual is often faced with immense psychological stress. Besides coming to terms with a life-threatening disease, fears of stigma and discrimination are often attributed as stressors. The purpose of this chapter is to explore blogging as a tool to cope with a lifelong and highly stigmatized disease such as HIV/AIDS. A literature review and content analysis of six HIV-positive individuals’ blogs indicate that blogging can be regarded as a tool for coping with HIV and potentially a form of self-administered therapy. Due to the ephemeral nature of blogs, the case blogs were revisited after 7 months to determine if they had been maintained. The fact that all six were still being updated regularly indicates that the bloggers found blogging about HIV/AIDS beneficial in one or several ways.
Can Stored Data Answer All Questions
Authors: Palme Jacob
Published: April 2013

One often hears statements such as eighty percent of the questions can be answered by twenty percent of the answers, or other similar statements, indicating that a small set of answers are enough to answer most of the questions in a particular topical area. To investigate this statement, a set of 630 questions, which were sent to an on-line service, were analyzed. All the questions were about eating disorders and obesity. The conclusion is that the statement, which was investigated, was not true. There was a large variation of different questions, and even though some questions did appear more than once, it was much less than eighty percent of all questions. The chapter offers insight into different types of questions posted on-line in the area of eating disorders. From the study follows that to provide satisfactory answers to a large part of the questions, it is necessary to have humans answering the questions.
Dynamic Stress Management
Authors: Smedberg Åsa , Sandmark Hélène
Published: April 2013

Different kinds of applications for self-help are available on the Internet today. Some aim to intervene with users’ life patterns such as negative stress exposure. It is not always an easy task to manage stressful life situations and to develop and maintain healthy living. It involves learning how to balance perceived demands from working and personal life, and to question underlying thoughts and beliefs. E-health communities can assist in this process through continuous interactions between community members. However, previous studies have shown that combining knowledge of health experts and the experiences of peers can create a good synergy. The question is how these findings can be applied to the area of stress management. In this chapter, the authors present a web-based self-help system for stress management based on a holistic view of actors and their different types of support. The system offers the user information in the form of research and real life stories, practical exercises (both text- and video-based), and the opportunity to interact with health experts and peers, all in an integrated way.
The Amazing Impossibilities of Technology
Authors: Conradsen Stein
Published: April 2013

Using this model of motivation, five factors are suggested which may either enable or constrain engagement. These factors are (1) synchronicity, (2) identification, (3) specified diagnosis, (4) organizational trust, and (5) accessibility.
Developing Virtual Communities to Support Drug Policy Knowledge Exchange
Authors: Househ Mowafa , Kushniruk Andre W. , Maclure Malcolm , Carleton Bruce , Cloutier-Fisher Denise
Published: April 2013

Within Canada, there is a growing need in the area of drug policy to develop virtual communities to facilitate knowledge exchange between academics and policy-makers. Such collaborations are regarded as a way to make research relevant by influencing the policy-making process. This chapter presents an action case study of three drug policy groups participating in various virtual knowledge exchange activities. The experiences and lessons learned by each group participating in this study are provided. Recommendations and solutions to conduct successful virtual knowledge exchange meetings based on the findings of this research are also provided.
Effects of Product Development Phases on Innovation Network Relationships
Authors: Öberg Christina
Published: April 2013

In research literature, product development has frequently been associated with four distinct phases: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. While these phases have been related to and used for the study of product life cycle, market strategies and competition, less or no attention has been given to the subject of Innovation Network Relationships (INRs), and more specifically, to whether and how INRs are affected by these Product Development Phases (PDPs). Based on a literature review of Resource Dependence Theory (RDT) and four case studies, this chapter contributes by discussing how various INRs are affected by PDPs of an innovative firm. Findings include: (1) the specific needs and resource dependence by the innovative firm during different PDPs affect the status of the firm’s INRs, whereas new relationships are built and old ones are finished; (2) during product development, the INRs become increasingly complex where network parties become negative resources of the innovative firm through increased uncertainty being introduced into previous relationships; and (3) the development of INRs cannot be captured on a dyadic level, but various parties’ relationships with one another need to be considered.
Maturity in Innovation Network Management
Authors: Van Rijnbach Caspar , Endo Gustavo de Boer , Leonardi Suzana Monteiro
Published: April 2013

Companies are focusing increasingly on the creation and maintenance of external networks for innovation. The purpose of this chapter is to introduce the reader to the concept of network management and demonstrate the principal attributes that impact the formation and optimization of innovation networks, based on the network´s objectives, the combination of the characteristics of the network’s participants as well as the network’s organizational format to attract and maintain the partnership. To reach this purpose, we present the results of a benchmark study undertaken in Brazil, the United States of America and Europe between March and June 2009. In this study, we interviewed executives at 24 leading companies known as innovators in their industry. Through the results we were able to identify a maturity model consisting of four levels for innovation network management: initiators, explorers, established and world class.
Innovation and Knowledge Management for Sustainability
Authors: Jorna René J. , Faber Niels R.
Published: April 2013

This chapter supports the argument that innovation is a special case of knowledge management; it is about knowledge creation. With economic profit as its driving force, innovation is mostly short term and commercial, feeding the question whether innovation really can be applied to ecological and social systems. The problem concerns the goal of innovation: what does it suppose to realize? In this chapter, we combine knowledge management (KM) and innovation concepts with sustainability and we argue that as long as the emphasis in innovation is on “profit” and not on “people” and “planet” (the three P’s of sustainability) we have no guiding mechanism for innovation, namely the existence of a sustainable future. In a sustainable perspective, innovation becomes an instrument that benefits society at large. In this chapter, we explore concepts behind issues of KM and innovation through literature review and we argue along three lines of thinking. First, we demonstrate that innovation is knowledge creation at an individual and collective level. Second, we argue that innovation should be a means and not a goal. Third, we offer a perspective to operationalize the relationship between knowledge, innovation and sustainability. Sustainability as an issue requires adaptation of human and social systems to ever-changing environments. This continuous need for change demands people to constantly develop and obtain new knowledge to realize the balance between system and environment. We conclude this chapter by introducing concepts on Knowledge of Sustainability (KoS) and Sustainability of Knowledge (SoK) that form the synthesis of our discussion, and we set the outline of a framework for sustainable innovation.
Institutional Innovation Practices in Technopoles
Authors: Berthinier-Poncet Anne , Bocquet Rachel , Brion Sébastien , Mothe Caroline
Published: April 2013

This chapter aims at filling a void in the literature on the question as to whether organizational proximity can be fostered within clusters. We address a dimension that has received little attention until recently, namely the local governance structures of technopoles. The objective was to gain an insight into such institutional practices and to evaluate their effects on firms’ innovation performance. By identifying how geographical and organizational (cognitive and relational) proximity interrelate in the analysis of cluster forms we sought to contribute to the burgeoning literature on the different types of proximity. The empirical research relies on a representative sample of 88 firms implanted within the Savoie Technolac technopole, in the French Rhône-Alpes region. Our results suggest that, even though local governance contributes to territorial anchoring, only the local labor market had a direct significant impact on the firms’ innovation performance. In addition, territorial anchoring combined with the roles played by governance in terms of ‘matchmaking’ and support for technology transfer significantly increased the number of innovation projects. These results suggest that governance has a decisive role in the creation of communication and interaction structures between firms, which are essential for firm innovation. This research may have important implications for governance modes, in not only technopoles but also more generally in clusters.
Choosing Locations for Technology and Innovation Support Centers
Authors: Batalha Mário Otávio , Tatiane dos Santos Daniela , Guedes de Alcântara Nelson , Granemann Sérgio Ronaldo
Published: April 2013

This chapter discusses the structuring of problems of location of Technology and Innovation Support Centers (TISC) through multicriteria analyses to identify factors of demand and supply of these services. The methodology uses quantitative and qualitative elements, establishing a sequence of steps that include a variety of aspects ranging from criteria preferences to global valuation of the model. Multicriteria analysis was applied to the choice of geographic locations for Brazilian Technology Centers, allowing for the identification of the most suitable regions for the creation of technology centers and revealing particular characteristics of the dynamics of such services in the regions in question.
The Recent Internationalization of Brazilian Companies
Authors: Arbix Glauco , Caseiro Luiz
Published: April 2013

The recent wave of internationalization among Brazilian companies differs from past experiences, in terms of volume, reach, destination and quality. Brazilian multinationals are not restricting their activities solely to regional markets, nor are their first steps entirely directed towards South America. In amount of investment and number of subsidiaries there are signs they prefer assets and activities in advanced markets—including Europe and North America—where they compete on an equal footing with major conglomerates for a share of these markets. Some Brazilian companies have previous internationalization experience, and a significant portion had been prepared and initiated outward growth in the 1990s, after the economy opened up. However, the boom of internationalization that began in 2004 took place in such unusual conditions as to deserve highlight and special analysis. This chapter discusses the recent expansion of Brazilian multinationals as a result of: (1) the functioning of a more responsive and targeted system of financing, (2) transformation of the Brazilian productive structure, which led to the emergence of a group of companies seeking internationalization as a strategy, (3) preference for seeking more advanced economies as a means to expand access to new markets and suppliers, as well as to absorb innovations and technology, (4) the State’s performance in several dimensions, especially in financing the implementation of policies which support the creation of large national groups with a presence in the globalized market.
Tools That Drive Innovation
Authors: Caudill Jason G.
Published: April 2013

The purpose of this chapter is to examine computer technology as a tool to support innovation and innovative processes. The primary problem that this chapter is intended to address is the multitude of widely held misconceptions that seem to exist regarding technology and innovation; technology is not innovative in and of itself. The primary method of research for this chapter is a literature review and case study method examining how technology is being successfully integrated into innovative processes in industry. Specifically this chapter focuses on technology’s role in communication and creativity, two of the many activities found in an innovative process. Findings indicate that while directly connecting technology use to innovation is difficult, technology can play a substantial role in facilitating the innovative process. Thus, technology is a qualifier for many innovative processes, a resource that is necessary for the work of innovation to take place.
Corpus Corvus
Authors: Raikes Heather
Published: April 2013

Corpus Corvus is a mixed reality performance artwork that utilizes stereoscopic projection, motion capture animation, an integrated physical/media choreographic vocabulary, and electroacoustic composition to explore the Pacific Northwest Native American myth of the raven as god and thief who steals the sun and creates the universe. Formally, the work explores the relationship between movement of a physical body and stereoscopic animation in a physical/digital three-dimensional image field. The animation is generated from motion capture data and kinesthetic media composition processes based on physical choreography. Through precise temporal alignment and stereoscopic theatrical effect, the projected animation is perceived to surround the performing body in physical space. The art/research process contextualizing Corpus Corvus is a practice-based exploration and discovery of an emerging poetics that extends the human sensory system into immersive media perceptual hyperspaces. This paper illuminates the process of research, manifestation, and discovery that informs the artwork and its poetics.
'Pragmatic Evaluation'
Authors: Scott Richard E.
Published: April 2013

E-Health continues to be implemented despite continued demonstration that it lacks value. Specific guidance regarding research approaches and methodologies would be beneficial due to the value in identifying and adopting a single model or framework for any one ‘entity’ (healthcare organisation, sub-national region, country, etc.) so that the evidence-base accumulates more rapidly and interventions can be more meaningfully compared. This paper describes a simple and systematic approach to e-health evaluation in a real-world setting, which can be applied by an evaluation team and raises the quality of e-health evaluations. The framework guides and advises users on evaluation approaches at different stages of e-health development and implementation. Termed ‘Pragmatic Evaluation,’ the approach has five principles that unfold in a staged approach that respects the collective need for timely, policy relevant, yet meticulous research.
Functions of the Performance Appraisal System
Authors: Umihanic Bahrija , Cebic Mirela
Published: April 2013

In this paper, the authors integrate the analysis of functions of the performance appraisal system and research of their impact on the level of employees’ motivation in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina. They start from the assumption that the purpose of effective performance appraisal system is reflected in linking employees’ activities through the stabilization function and documentary function, using valid and useful information in making administrative decisions about employees and providing feedback to employees which they will use for developing. One of the most important benefits should be enhanced employees’ motivation at work. The hypothesis was tested by stratified random sampling method, and all levels of management were encompassed. Results of empirical research have established that the existing system primarily has documentary and administrative functions, and such as that does not provide raising of level of motivation, and it should be considered in redesigning the performance appraisal system of employees.
Transition and Multifunctional Agriculture in Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Authors: Cejvanovic Ferhat , Umihanic Bahrija , Hodžic Kadrija , Jukan Meldina Kokorovic
Published: April 2013

In the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FB&H) modern agricultural household is developing slowly and it is not on the satisfying level. Main feature of FB&H agriculture in the future will be based on small and mid-sized agricultural households. Elements of production diversity and extensively will be kept for a while with relatively higher number of people in rural areas. This can be achieved by modern forms of ruralization or neo-ruralization which can be used as possible theoretical redefinition of current rural paradigms, especially in connection to the modernization theories. In the profiling process of rural areas, institution of village could be of great use, and have to be developed and adapted, with forming the new ones. This applies to the traditional village institutions, but also to the new ones such as modern agencies for rural development on national, regional and local level which exists in many countries in the world.
Linear Programming in Agriculture
Authors: Andreea Ion Raluca , Adrian Turek Rahoveanu
Published: April 2013

In agriculture, the production structure of farms can be highly diversified to reduce risk and uncertainty related to unsealing the products. To determine the optimal structure of crops, different methods which take into account the income and expenditure of crops per hectare are used. As a result, the area of each crop is identified, so that, in combining them to derive maximum profit level. In this paper, linear programming method is used for optimizing profit, investigating whether, after applying the econometric model, the profit increased or not. The results show that profit rose to 143% and costs reduced to 81%.
Female Athletic Training Students' Perceptions of Motherhood and Retention in Athletic Training
Authors: Mazerolle Stephanie M. , Gavin Kerri
Published: April 2013

Context:

Motherhood appears to be a catalyst in job turnover for female athletic trainers, especially those employed at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I level. However, most researchers examining this topic have investigated the perspectives of those who are currently employed rather than those who are preparing to enter the profession.

Objective:

To evaluate female athletic training students' perceptions of motherhood and retention.

Design:

Qualitative study.

Setting:

Athletic training education program.

Patients or Other Participants:

A total of 18 female athletic training students volunteered to participate. They were enrolled in 1 Commission on Accrediting Athletic Training Education–accredited athletic training program and represented 3 levels of academic study.

Data Collection and Analysis:

The participants responded to a series of questions related to work–life balance and retention in athletic training. Analysis of the data followed a general inductive process. Credibility was established by interpretive member checks and peer review.

Results:

The first theme, clinical setting, speaks to the belief that work–life balance and retention in athletic training require an employment setting that fosters a family-friendly atmosphere and a work schedule (including travel) that allows for time at home. The second theme, mentorship, reflects the acknowledgment that a female mentor who is successful in balancing the roles of mother and athletic trainer can serve as a role model. The final theme, work–life balance strategies, illustrates the need to have a plan in place to meet the demands of both home and work life.

Conclusions:

A female athletic trainer who is successfully balancing her career and family responsibilities may be the most helpful factor in retention, especially for female athletic training students. Young professionals need to be educated on the importance of developing successful work–life balance strategies, which can be helpful in reducing attrition from the profession.
One-year analysis of rain and rain erosivity in a tropical volcanic island from UHF wind profiler measurements
Authors: Réchou A. , Plu M. , Campistron B. , Decoupes R.
Published: April 2013

Abstract. La Réunion is a volcanic island in a tropical zone, which soil undergoes intense erosion. The possible contribution of rainfall to erosion is analyzed and quantified using one year of UHF radar profiler data located at sea level. Measurements of reflectivity, vertical and horizontal wind allow, with suitable assumptions, to determine raindrop vertical and horizontal energy fluxes, which are both essential parameters for erosion. After calibration of radar rain rates, one-year statistics between May 2009 to April 2010 allow to identify differences in rain vertical profiles depending on the season. During the cool dry season, the mean rain rate is less than 2.5 mm h−1 as high as 1.25 km and it decreases at higher altitudes due to the trade winds inversion. During the warm moist season, the mean rain rate is nearly uniform from ground up to 4 km, around 5 mm h−1. The dynamical and microphysical properties of rainfall events are investigated on three cases that are representative of meteorological events in La Réunion: summer deep convection, a cold front and a winter depression embedded in trade winds. For intense rainfall events, the rain rate deduced from the gamma function is in agreement with the rain rate deduced from the mere Marshall Palmer exponential relationship. For less intense events, the gamma function is necessary to represent rain distribution. The deep-convection event is associated to strong reflectivity reaching as high as 10 km, and strong negative vertical velocity. Wind shear is responsible for a deficiency of radar rain detection at the lower levels. During a cold front event, strong reflectivities reach the trade wind inversion (around 4 km high). The trade wind depression generates moderate rain only as high as 2 km. For all the altitudes, the horizontal kinetic energy fluxes are one order of magnitude stronger that than the vertical kinetic energy fluxes. A simple relationship between the reflectivity factor and vertical kinetic energy fluxes is found for each case study.
Teaching and Learning about Africana Religions through Multimedia
Authors: Castañeda Angela N. , Hayes Kelly E. , Martin Darnise C. , Murphy Joseph M.
Published: April 2013

The centrality of the visual, experiential, sensory, and performative in African and African diasporic religions practically demands that educators incorporate multimedia resources when teaching about these religions, especially to undergraduate populations that may have very little personal experience with peoples of African descent. While older technologies like documentary film and video are important resources, new digital technologies and interactive websites have expanded the repertoire of multimedia resources available to teachers and scholars. This round table of essays provides a forum where those actively involved in teaching about Africana religions share their experiences with developing pedagogic materials and innovative strategies that incorporate multimedia resources (audio, video, music, images, dance, performance, websites, podcasts, YouTube, and so on) in the classroom.
Perceptions of Preventive Health Care and Healthy Lifestyle Choices for Low Income Families: A Qualitative Study
Authors: Fleary Sasha A. , Ettienne-Gittens Reynolette , Heffer Robert W.
Published: April 2013

This paper examines Head Start parents’ perceptions of preventive health and healthy lifestyle choices and Head Start administrators’ perceptions of the needs of parents they serve. To address the preventive health of the population, it is necessary that we explore perceptions, risks, and protective factors of preventive health. Focus groups were conducted with parents and administrators to elicit this information and to obtain suggestions for improving preventive health and healthy lifestyle choices among this group. Overall, nutrition and physical activity emerged as themes in parents’ definition of preventive health and healthy lifestyle choices. They further identified social support and education as major protective factors for engaging in preventive health and healthy lifestyle choices. Results of this study can be used to inform research and practice to develop interventions to increase preventive health and healthy lifestyle choices among low income families.
Absent Without Leave: A Travel Memoir of Strange Mourning
Authors: Bradley Smith Susan
Published: April 2013

This creative non-fiction essay is from a book in progress, a parenting memoir called ‘Hunting Flowers’. The edge with this memoir is that is written honestly in the (guilty) voice of a female academic who has 'run away' from home for work far too often - and gets into too much trouble, both at home and away. It covers two decades, five children, four continents, a few husbands, and more universities than sensible in any one life. Absent Without Leave in particular uses the confessional voice to tells stories not only against the self, but against the larger dramatis persona, the institutions and people we work with and for. The main thematic concern - is it ethical, this hunt for success, when we absent ourselves form our children? - is swallowed by the constant feminist nag: is this the only way to do it?
Return Visits: The European Background of Transcultural Life Writing
Authors: Hornung Alfred
Published: April 2013

In this article I read autobiographies by East Europeans who immigrated to Canada in connection with the Second World War as examples of transcultural life writing. My focus on the representation of return visits of these loyal Canadian citizens to their country of origin after 1989 reveals the underlying intention of relating the experience of life in a multicultural democratic society to the emergence of a new political consciousness in Eastern Europe. In my analysis I distinguish four types of concerns which try to bridge the past of their childhood experiences with the formation of a transcultural life in the 21st century: 1. Anna Porter’s return visit to Hungary for family reunion and an encounter with history in The Storyteller; 2. Modris Eksteins’s political motivation in Walking Since Daybreak as a historian who revisits his birthplace in Latvia as well as the stages of his displacement in German refugee camps for research on the history of the war years; 3. Janice Kulyk Keefer’s private driving tour of the Ukraine and Poland and the discovery of new political realities in Honey and Ashes; 4. Lisa Appignanesi’s search for the traces of the Holocaust in her native Poland in Losing the Dead. These reconnections with an earlier life from the Canadian perspective in transcultural life writings can be likened to the recent discussions of the constitution of transnational societies in a cosmopolitan world.
Water Quality Credit Trading: It Could Be Coming to a Water Body Near You
Authors: Ullo F. Joseph
Published: April 2013

The US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) implements the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit program under the Clean Water Act to control point source pollution and help restore and maintain the health of US waters. Despite this permit program's success during its 30 years of existence, almost half of all surface waters had water qualities not meeting their designated use in 2003 when the USEPA adopted its Final Water Quality Trading Policy; noting that “40% of the rivers, 45% of the streams and 50% of the lakes … do not support their designated uses.”
Perceptions of the Press in Nineteenth-Century British Periodicals
Authors: Palmegiano E. M.
Published: April 2013

This annotated bibliography of nineteenth-century British periodicals reveals how Victorian commentaries on journalism shaped the discourse on the origins and contemporary character of the domestic, imperial and foreign press.
Lionel Groulx devant la France catholique: contacts, échanges et collaboration
Authors: Bock Michel
Published: April 2013

L’étude de la construction du réseau français de Lionel Groulx permet de jeter un éclairage probant sur les moyens par lesquels on a tenté, au sein de l’élite canadienne-française, de bâtir des ponts avec l’Hexagone au début du XXe siècle. C’était vers les milieux associés à la « renaissance littéraire catholique » des années 1910 et 1920 que gravitait tout naturellement l’abbé Groulx, que séduisait le combat des catholiques militants contre la « décadence » engendrée par la modernité philosophique et pour la restauration morale et spirituelle du « génie » français, un combat qui pouvait englober celui des maurrassiens, du moins avant la condamnation pontificale de 1926, mais qui le débordait largement. Sensible aux divergences qui caractérisaient les milieux catholiques de France, Groulx entretenait très peu de liens avec le « noyau dur » du mouvement maurrassien et préférait s’associer à des militants et à des intellectuels dont le rapport au religieux ne souffrait d’aucune ambiguïté, d’une part, et qui, d’autre part, s’intéressaient de plus près aux affaires canadiennes-françaises.
Prédire le suicide ou prédire l’imprévisible dans un monde incertain. Modèle du suicide selon l’apprentissage par renforcement
Authors: Desseilles Martin
Published: April 2013

De manière générale, il apparaît que l’acte suicidaire est hautement imprévisible par les moyens scientifiques actuellement à notre disposition. Dans cet article, nous formulons l’hypothèse que la prédiction du suicide est compliquée parce qu’elle résulte de la prédiction d’un choix, lequel est lui-même imprévisible. Nous proposons un modèle du suicide selon l’apprentissage par renforcement. Dans ce modèle, nous intégrons d’une part les quatre principaux modulateurs ascendants (acétylcholine, noradrénaline, sérotonine, dopamine) avec leurs régions de projections et d’afférences respectives, et d’autre part, différentes observations d’imagerie cérébrales trouvées à ce jour dans le processus suicidaire.