bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Surgical dislocation of the hip for the fixation of acetabular fractures
Authors: Tannast M. , Krüger A. , Mack P. W. , Powell J. N. , Hosalkar H. S. , Siebenrock K. A.
Published: May 2010

Surgical dislocation of the hip in the treatment of acetabular fractures allows the femoral head to be safely displaced from the acetabulum. This permits full intra-articular acetabular and femoral inspection for the evaluation and potential treatment of cartilage lesions of the labrum and femoral head, reduction of the fracture under direct vision and avoidance of intra-articular penetration with hardware. We report 60 patients with selected types of acetabular fracture who were treated using this approach. Six were lost to follow-up and the remaining 54 were available for clinical and radiological review at a mean follow-up of 4.4 years (2 to 9).

Substantial damage to the intra-articular cartilage was found in the anteromedial portion of the femoral head and the posterosuperior aspect of the acetabulum. Labral lesions were predominantly seen in the posterior acetabular area. Anatomical reduction was achieved in 50 hips (93%) which was considerably higher than that seen in previous reports. There were no cases of avascular necrosis. Four patients subsequently required total hip replacement. Good or excellent results were achieved in 44 hips (81.5%). The cumulative eight-year survivorship was 89.0% (95% confidence interval 84.5 to 94.1). Significant predictors of poor outcome were involvement of the acetabular dome and lesions of the femoral cartilage greater than grade 2. The functional mid-term results were better than those of previous reports.

Surgical dislocation of the hip allows accurate reduction and a predictable mid-term outcome in the management of these difficult injuries without the risk of the development of avascular necrosis.
A modular femoral neck and head system works well in cementless total hip replacement for patients with developmental dysplasia of the hip
Authors: Sakai T. , Ohzono K. , Nishii T. , Miki H. , Takao M. , Sugano N.
Published: May 2010

We compared a modular neck system with a non-modular system in a cementless anatomical total hip replacement (THR). Each group consisted of 74 hips with developmental hip dysplasia. Both groups had the same cementless acetabular component and the same articulation, which consisted of a conventional polyethylene liner and a 28 mm alumina head. The mean follow-up was 14.5 years (13 to 15), at which point there were significant differences in the mean total Harris hip score (modular/non-modular: 98.6 (64 to 100)/93.8 (68 to 100)), the mean range of abduction (32° (15° to 40°)/28 (0° to 40°)), use of a 10° elevated liner (31%/100%), the incidence of osteolysis (27%/79.7%) and the incidence of equal leg lengths (≥ 6 mm, 92%/61%). There was no disassociation or fracture of the modular neck.

The modular system reduces the need for an elevated liner, thereby reducing the incidence of osteolysis. It gives a better range of movement and allows the surgeon to make an accurate adjustment of leg length.
Spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis in children and adolescents
Authors: Tsirikos A. I. , Garrido E. G.
Published: May 2010

A review of the current literature shows that there is a lack of consensus regarding the treatment of spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis in children and adolescents. Most of the views and recommendations provided in various reports are weakly supported by evidence. There is a limited amount of information about the natural history of the condition, making it difficult to compare the effectiveness of various conservative and operative treatments. This systematic review summarises the current knowledge on spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis and attempts to present a rational approach to the evaluation and management of this condition in children and adolescents.
Pessimistic explanatory style
Authors: Singh J. A. , O’Byrne M. M. , Colligan R. C. , Lewallen D. G.
Published: May 2010

Seligman’s theory of causal attribution predicts that patients with a pessimistic explanatory style will have less favourable health outcomes. We identified 702 patients who had undergone 894 primary total knee replacements between 1993 and 2005, who responded to follow-up surveys at two (n = 783 knee replacements) and/or five years (n = 443 knee replacements) and had also completed the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory long before the joint replacement (median = 16.6 and 14.5 years for two- and five-year cohorts, respectively). Scores from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory Optimism-Pessimism scale were used to categorise patients as pessimistic (t-score > 60) or non-pessimistic (t-score ≤ 60). Multivariate logistic regression models assessing the effect of pessimistic explanatory style on pain or improvement in knee function were adjusted for gender, age, distance from the place of treatment and depression score. Pessimists reported (a) significantly more moderate or severe pain at two years with odds ratio 2.21 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.12 to 4.35; p = 0.02), but not at five years when the odds ratio was 1.21 (95% CI 0.51 to 2.83; p = 0.67); and (b) less improvement in knee function at two years when the odds ratio was 0.53 (95% CI 0.30 to 0.96; p = 0.04), but not at five years when the odds ratio was 1.26 (95% CI 0.57 to 2.77; p = 0.57).

No significant associations with moderate or severe limitation of activity were seen at two or five years. We conclude that a pessimistic explanatory style is associated with worse pain and functional outcomes two years after total knee replacement.
Regeneration of tendo Achillis
Authors: Parkar A. A. H. , Taylor M. , Patel N. , Ramakrishnan V.
Published: May 2010

A child with traumatic laceration of the tendo Achillis developed secondary infection after primary repair. This resulted in the loss of 5 cm of the distal part of the tendon and overlying soft tissue. The patient was treated with a free skin flap to cover the wound and to control the infection leaving reconstruction for a second-stage procedure.

However, when he was assessed two years after the skin-flap, delayed reconstruction proved to be unnecessary since he had regained normal ankle function spontaneously and could demonstrate equal function in both tendons.
Musculofascial lengthening for the treatment of patients with medial epicondylitis and coexistent ulnar neuropathy
Authors: Gong H. S. , Chung M. S. , Kang E. S. , Oh J. H. , Lee Y. H. , Baek G. H.
Published: May 2010

The outcome of surgery in patients with medial epicondylitis of the elbow is less favourable in those with co-existent symptoms from the ulnar nerve. We wanted to know whether we could successfully treat such patients by using musculofascial lengthening of the flexor-pronator origin with simultaneous deep transposition of the ulnar nerve. We retrospectively reviewed 19 patients who were treated in this way. Seven had grade I and 12 had grade IIa ulnar neuropathy. At a mean follow-up of 38 months (24 to 48), the mean visual analogue scale pain scores improved from 3.7 to 0.3 at rest, from 6.6 to 2.1 with activities of daily living, and from 7.9 to 2.3 at work or sports, and the mean disabilities of the arm, shoulder and hand scores improved from 42.2 to 23.5.

These results suggest that this technique can be effective in treating patients with medial epicondylitis and coexistent ulnar nerve symptoms.
Open reduction and endobutton fixation of displaced fractures of the lateral end of the clavicle in younger patients
Authors: Robinson C. M. , Akhtar M. A. , Jenkins P. J. , Sharpe T. , Ray A. , Olabi B.
Published: May 2010

Displaced fractures of the lateral end of the clavicle in young patients have a high incidence of nonunion and a poor functional outcome after conservative management. Operative treatment is therefore usually recommended. However, current techniques may be associated with complications which require removal of the fixation device. We have evaluated the functional and radiological outcomes using a novel technique of open reduction and internal fixation. A series of 16 patients under 60 years of age with displaced fractures of the lateral end were treated by open reduction and fixation using a twin coracoclavicular endobutton technique. They were followed up for the first year after their injury.

At one year the mean Constant score was 87.1 and the median Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand score was 3.3. All fractures had united, except in one patient who developed an asymptomatic fibrous union. One patient had post-traumatic stiffness of the shoulder, which resolved with physiotherapy. None required re-operation.

This technique produces good functional and radiological outcomes with a low prevalence of complications and routine implant removal is not necessary.
Does delay to theatre for medical reasons affect the peri-operative mortality in patients with a fracture of the hip?
Authors: Holt G. , Smith R. , Duncan K. , McKeown D. W.
Published: May 2010

We have investigated how medical postponement, the time to surgery and the correction of medical abnormalities, according to McLaughlin criteria, before operation affected peri-operative mortality after fracture of the hip. From February to December 2007, in addition to core data, the Scottish Hip Fracture Audit collected information relating to surgical delay. Data were available for 4284 patients which allowed 30-day survival analysis to be performed. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to control for differences in case-mix.

Patients with major clinical abnormalities were more likely to have a postponement and had a lower unadjusted 30-day survival. The time to operation and postponement were not associated with higher mortality after adjustment for case-mix. Correction of major clinical abnormalities before surgery improved the adjusted survival, but this improvement was not significant (p = 0.10). Postponement without correction of a medical abnormality before surgery was associated with a significantly lower (p = 0.006) 30-day adjusted survival. The possible benefits of postponement need to be weighed against prolonged discomfort for the patient and the possibility of the development of other complications.
Rapid detection of glycogen storage disease type Ia by DNA microarray
Authors: Xu Shanshan , Qin Shengying , Gu Xuefan , Qiu Wenjuan , Ye Jun , Han Lianshu , He Lin
Published: May 2010

Background: Glycogen storage disease type Ia (GSD Ia) is an autosomal recessive disorder, and diagnosis depends on genetic testing. Recently, microarray analysis has become a useful new technique for mutation analysis. We developed a GSD Ia microarray capable of identifying known mutations in the G6PC gene and validate the feasibility of using it as a rapid detection method for DNA-based diagnosis.

Methods: An approach based on universal DNA microarray (UA) and ligase detection reaction (LDR) was used. Fifteen mutations and one polymorphism were detected in this microarray. A total of 102 DNA samples from GSD Ia patients were tested.

Results: The genotypes obtained using the DNA microarray were in full agreement with those obtained by direct sequencing. For each mutation, wild-type homozygote, heterozygote, and mutant-type homozygote were typed correctly into three groups.

Conclusions: The shortened assay time and high specifi-city validated by 102 GSD Ia patients suggest that the GSD Ia microarray has the potential to become an efficient, rapid detection method for DNA-based diagnosis and carrier detection.

Clin Chem Lab Med 2010;48:1229–34.
Serum albumin-bound proteomic signature for early detection and staging of hepatocarcinoma: sample variability and data classification
Authors: Camaggi Carlo M. , Zavatto Elena , Gramantieri Laura , Camaggi Valeria , Strocchi Elena , Righini Roberto , Merina Luca , Chieco Pasquale , Bolondi Luigi
Published: May 2010

Background: Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) proteomic signature might be of interest for the early detection and staging of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, published procedures have been criticized for the lack of data about analytical reproducibility, and the use of inadequate data processing.

Methods: MALDI-TOF profiling of peptides bound to serum albumin (“albuminome”) was performed using 90 μL of serum from 45 study subjects (HCV-related cirrhosis, small, unifocal HCCs and advanced HCCs). To overcome the large intra-sample variability, a Quality Assurance protocol was implemented, and 4–8 samples for each subject were processed and analyzed. Overall, 522 subject samples and 299 quality-control spectra were analyzed. A machine-learning approach (Random Forest) was applied to analyze the data sets.

Results: Mean intra-sample coefficient of variation (CV) of the analytical procedure was 17.6%–30.0%; inter-subject CV was in the range 48.8%–71.3% among the three study groups. The Random Forest procedure correctly classified 433/522 “patient samples” and 295/299 “reference samples”; 43/45 patients were correctly classified following this approach.

Conclusions: Our data suggest that, notwithstanding the large analytical variability found, multiple proteomic profiles obtained from each subject can differentiate cirrhosis with and without HCC, and HCCs with and without vascular invasion, warranting further investigation in a prospective setting.

Clin Chem Lab Med 2010;48:1319–26.
Recounting the Number of Rises, Levels, and Descents in Finite Set Partitions
Authors: Shattuck Mark
Published: May 2010

A finite set partition is said to have a
Multiplicities of Integer Arrays
Authors: Clark Lane
Published: May 2010

We prove a general theorem about the multiplicity of the entries in certain integer arrays which is best possible in general. As an application we give non-trivial bounds for the multiplicities of several well-known combinatorial arrays including the binomial coefficients, Narayana numbers and the Eulerian numbers. For the binomial coefficients we obtain the result of Singmaster [Amer. Math. Mon. 78: 385–386, 1971].
Sequences of Density ζ(k) – 1
Authors: Keith W. J.
Published: May 2010

A challenge involving interpreting the numbers
Irregular operator equations by iterative methods with undetermined reverse connection
Authors: Bakushinsky Anatoly , Smirnova Alexandra
Published: May 2010

In this paper, the possibility of using the reverse connection control for iteratively regularized Gauss–Newton-type algorithms is analyzed. It is shown that for the generalized Gauss–Newton iterations the diameter of the set containing the control elements can tend to ∞ as n → ∞. To further improve the stabilizing properties of the Gauss–Newton scheme, a new penalty term is proposed that can depend nonlinearly on the current iteration. As a test numerical example, a nonlinear inverse scattering problem of computing a 2D obstacle shape is considered.
A multi-step procedure for enriching limited two-dimensional acoustic far-field pattern measurements
Authors: Barucq Hélène , Bekkey Chokri , Djellouli Rabia
Published: May 2010

We propose a three-step solution methodology to increase the discrete set of acoustic far-field pattern (FFP) measurements, available in a small range of observation angles (small aperture). The first two steps of the proposed procedure allow the extension of the data to an aperture larger than π/2. They use a regularized Newton algorithm where the total variation of the FFP is incorporated as a regularization term. The third step consists in applying the standard Tikhonov regularization technique to recover the full aperture of the FFP from the previously extended field. Numerical results obtained using synthetic data illustrate the potential of the proposed procedure for reconstructing the full aperture of the FFP from data given in an aperture as small as backscattering measurements.
Exploring social-indexical knowledge: A long past but a short history
Authors: Foulkes Paul
Published: May 2010

This article has three main aims. First, I review what is known about encoding social-indexical information in phonetics/phonology, suggesting that it is more complex and more extensive than typically acknowledged in laboratory phonology. Secondly, I explore evidence for the development of indexical knowledge in phonological acquisition, considering indexical learning from the perspective of exemplar theory. One of the attractions of exemplar theory is its capacity to predict learning of both linguistic and social structures through the same mechanism. The tenets of exemplar theory also make a number of predictions about indexical learning: some types of indexical properties are likely to be transmitted more readily than others, as a function of the frequency and phonetic transparency with which they are manifested. The predictions appear to be borne out relatively well by the available data. I end by raising a number of implications and challenges, in particular, but not exclusively, for exemplar theory.
A sociophonetic analysis of perception of sexual orientation in Puerto Rican Spanish
Authors: Mack Sara
Published: May 2010

Listeners display acute sensitivity to phonetic variation that marks social identity; this sensitivity is observable in listener perceptions of a variety of social identities, including social class, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation. Most previous research on phonetic variation and sexual orientation has focused on English, with little data available from other languages. The current study addresses this gap by exploring associations between phonetic variation and perception of social categories in Spanish, with a focus on perception of sexual orientation. The study examined listener perceptions of speaker sexual orientation, height, age, and social class to determine to what extent Spanish-speaking listeners make uniform evaluations of sexual orientation based on speech, and, if so, what acoustic parameters correlate with those evaluations. The study also analyzed the relationships between perceptions of speaker sexual orientation and speaker height, age, and social class. Clusters of listeners determined a posteriori using factor analysis were found to share patterns of evaluations, and F2 frequencies of two mid front vowel (/e/) tokens were signifi cant correlates of evaluations of sexual orientation. Listener evaluations of perceived sexual orientation were correlated with evaluations of perceived height, highlighting the complexity of indexicality as well as the multi-faceted nature of social identity.
Lexical neighborhoods and phonological confusability in cross-dialect word recognition in noise
Authors: Clopper Cynthia G. , Pierrehumbert Janet B. , Tamati Terrin N.
Published: May 2010

Lexical neighborhood density is a well-known factor affecting phonological categorization in spoken word recognition. The current study examined the interaction between lexical neighborhood density and dialect variation in spoken word recognition in noise. The stimulus materials were real English words produced in two regional American English dialects. To manipulate lexical neighborhood density, target words were selected so that predicted phonological confusions across dialects resulted in real English words in the word-competitor condition and did not result in real English words in the nonword-competitor condition. Word and vowel recognition performance were more accurate in the nonword-competitor condition than the word-competitor condition for both talker dialects. An examination of the responses to specific vowels revealed the role of dialect variation in eliciting this effect. When the predicted phonological confusions were real lexical neighbors, listeners could respond with either the target word or the confusable minimal pair, and were more likely than expected to produce a minimal pair differing from the target by one vowel. When the predicted phonological confusions were not real words, however, the listeners exhibited less lexical competition and responded with the target word or a minimal pair differing by one consonant.
Sensitivity to grammatical and sociophonetic variability in perception
Authors: Drager Katie K.
Published: May 2010

Phonetic realizations vary depending on social characteristics of the speaker, and recent research provides evidence that individuals are sensitive to at least some of these sociophonetic relationships during perception (Strand and Johnson, Gradient and visual speaker normalization in the perception of fricatives, Mouton, 1996; Hay et al., Journal of Phonetics 34: 458–484, 2006). In addition to socially-conditioned variation, there is evidence that phonetic realizations in production vary depending on the grammatical function of a word (Plug, Phonetic reduction and categorisation in exemplar-based representation:Observations on a Dutch discourse marker, 2005; Hay and Bresnan, The Linguistic Review 23: 321–349, 2006), yet it is not known whether listeners can actively exploit this phonetic variation in speech perception. This paper reports on three perception experiments conducted to determine whether perceivers' sensitivity to fine phonetic detail can assist in extraction of both grammatical and social meaning from the signal.
Bringing semantics to sociophonetics: Social variables and secondary entailments
Authors: Smith E. Allyn , Hall Kathleen Currie , Munson Benjamin
Published: May 2010

This paper introduces a novel approach to the question of how sociophonetic information might be stored cognitively that makes use of the tools of formal semantics. This approach involves applying conventional semantic tests for types of lexicalized meanings (e.g. presuppositions, conventional implicatures) to sociophonetic variables, with the hypothesis that, insofar as sociophonetic meaning patterns like lexical meaning, it should be stored in the same way. Two examples of how this approach can be implemented experimentally are given, applying projections tests (Frege, Letter to Peano, University of Chicago, 1896) (i.e., the ‘Family of Sentences’ tests, Chierchia & McConnell-Ginet 1990) and the ‘Hey, Wait a Minute!’ test (Shannon, Foundations of language 14: 247–249, 1976, von Fintel, Would you believe it? The king of France is back! Presuppositions and truth-value intuitions, Oxford University Press, 2004) to patterns of /æ / tensing and retraction in Minnesotan English and /aI / monophthongization in Southern English, respectively. Preliminary results of these experiments indicate that sociophonetic meaning patterns like secondary entailments (such as presuppositions and conventional implicatures) from the semantics literature, being both conventional and subsidiary to the proffered content of an utterance, and thus should be considered lexical. The primary goal of the paper, however, is to present a new way of thinking rather than to provide conclusive laboratory evidence for a specific position.
Accessing psycho-acoustic perception and language-specific perception with speech sounds
Authors: Babel Molly , Johnson Keith
Published: May 2010

In this paper we review the results of four speech perception experiments that explore the difference between language-specific perception and psycho-acoustic auditory perception. The first two experiments examine this difference with voiceless fricatives by American English and Dutch listeners. The second series of experiments explores the perception of consonant palatalization by American English and Russian listeners. These experiments examine this processing difference through two tasks: speeded AX discrimination (“same” or “different” response) and similarity rating. The fast-paced nature of the AX discrimination task is designed to bypass linguistic processing and hone in on pure auditory similarity. The similarity rating task asks listeners to compare two stimuli at a more leisurely pace and language-specific perception is evaluated. The results of these experiments suggest that psycho-acoustic perception can be evaluated apart from linguistic perception. Other work using this experimental paradigm, however, has found language effects in both AX discrimination and rating tasks (Boomershine et al., The impact of allophony vs. contrast on speech perception, Mouton de Gruyter, 2008; McGuire, Phonetic category learning, The Ohio State University, 2007). We reconcile our findings with the contrary results by demonstrating that language effects tend to appear in the longer response latencies that naturally allow for linguistic processing and are attenuated in the fast responses.
Maturação e morfometria dos frutos de miconia Albicans (Swartz) triana (melastomataceae) em um remanescente de floresta estacional semidecídua montana em Lavras, MG
Authors: Vieira Fábio de Almeida , Carvalho Dulcinéia de
Published: May 2010

Os objetivos deste trabalho foram analisar a dinâmica da maturação dos frutos e avaliar quantitativamente algumas características físicas dos frutos de Miconia albicans (Swartz) Triana em um remanescente de Floresta Estacional Semidecídua Montana. A atividade, intensidade e sincronia de 20 indivíduos foram analisadas em relação aos eventos de frutificação, correlacionando-os com as variáveis climáticas. Analisou-se a morfometria (comprimento, largura e massa) de 130 frutos de 10 indivíduos. A intensidade da fenofase de frutos maduros nas plantas correlacionou-se significativamente com a precipitação média do período (rS = 0,611; P < 0,05). A espécie possui número elevado de pequenas sementes por fruto ( = 28,05 ± 1,45 d.p.). O coeficiente de correlação entre a massa fresca do fruto e a da polpa foi de rS = 0,988 (P < 0,001), ou seja, a massa fresca do fruto é linearmente proporcional à quantidade de polpa. Esta contribui, em média, com 94% da massa fresca total do fruto, demonstrando a importância da espécie para os frugívoros. Os resultados indicaram o período de alta sincronia intrapopulacional das fenofases analisadas, o que pode ser útil na orientação da coleta de sementes visando à criação de bancos de germoplasma e produção de mudas para a recuperação de áreas degradadas.
Solving boundary value problems of deformable systems
Authors: Razdolsky A. G.
Published: May 2010

Solving the non-linear boundary value problem that governs the equilibrium state of a deformable system is reduced to solving a sequence of linear boundary value problems for partial derivatives of unknown functions with respect to the load parameter These linear problems describe a change of the solution of the non-linear problem when the load parameter is subject to a small increment. The increment of each unknown function is a product of the load parameter increment by the mentioned partial derivative of the corresponding function. It is assumed that values of the unknown functions are known in the initial state when the numerical parameter has the initial value. The differential equations and boundary conditions of the linear boundary value problem are derived by a linearisation of differential equations and boundary conditions of the source non-linear problem. The required solution of the non-linear boundary value problem is a result of summing over all increments of the unknown functions. Use of the present method is demonstrated by solving the two-point boundary value problem on large deflections of a flexible cable freely fixed at a horizontally sliding end support. A pilot computer program has been developed for solving this problem. Numerical realisation of the present method is described in detail. Computer programs for numerical solution of the discussed non-linear boundary value problems can be simply realised by using the described algorithm.
Modelling the mechanical efficiency of a spur gear system
Authors: Chaari F. , Kantchev G. , Haddar M.
Published: May 2010

In this paper, the mechanical efficiency of a spur gear system is investigated. The internal loss coefficients owing to rolling and sliding friction are computed. The time-varying teeth pairs in contact is also taken into account, which generates a time-varying mechanical efficiency of the system. A numerical example is presented and the influence of pressure angle and teeth number variation on the mechanical efficiency is discussed.
Corrosion in cracked and uncracked concrete – influence of crack width, concrete quality and crack reopening
Authors: Otieno M.B. , Alexander M.G. , Beushausen H.-D.
Published: May 2010

Cracks influence the durability of reinforced concrete (RC) structures in aggressive environments by accelerating the ingress of corrosive agents to the embedded steel. This study investigated the influence of crack width (0·7 mm, 0·4 mm and incipient cracks), binder type (100% CEM I (ordinary Portland cement – OPC) and 50/50 OPC/Corex slag blend), water-to-binder (w/b) ratio (0·40 and 0·55) and crack reopening on chloride-induced corrosion in RC specimens with constant cover of 40 mm. Over the study period (31 weeks), corrosion rates varied from passive values of 0·01 μA/cm2 to active values of 1·50 μA/cm2. Results indicate that corrosion rate is sensitive to crack width, concrete quality (i.e. binder type and w/b ratio) and crack reopening. For a given binder type and w/b ratio, corrosion rate increased with increasing crack width; however, this increase was smaller in Corex slag specimens (increases of 40% or more) than in OPC specimens (increases 210% or more). Corex slag specimens generally had lower corrosion rates compared to OPC specimens. For both OPC and Corex slag specimens, corrosion rate decreased with decreasing w/b ratio. Crack reopening increased the corrosion rate in the cracked specimens. This increase in corrosion rate was higher if the specimen was actively corroding prior to the crack reopening.
Flexural strength of corroded reinforced concrete beams
Authors: Azad A.K. , Ahmad S. , Al-Gohi B.H.A.
Published: May 2010

The analytical prediction of residual flexural strength of corroded beams has been revisited in the context of relatively larger size beams reinforced with larger diameter tension bars to exclude the size-effect of beams in the proposed modelling and to improve further the accuracy of the analytical method. Most of the past research, including that conducted by the authors, has used smaller size beam specimens to generate test data for modelling. A new experimental programme was undertaken using 48 beams of width 200 mm and depth varying from 215 to 315 mm, reinforced with tension bars of 16 and 18 mm in diameter. The beams were subjected to a varying degree of corrosion damage using accelerated corrosion and then they were tested in a four-point bending test to determine their residual flexure capacity. When the two-step analytical procedure, proposed by the authors in an earlier work to determine the residual flexural strength of corroded beams, was applied to the test beams used in this new experimental work, it was found that the theoretical predictions were consistently lower than the actual flexural strength of the beams. The search for a more compliant prediction method has been accomplished by proposing a new correction factor that replaces the previous one by correctly taking into account the size-effect of the tension bars. In order to show the accuracy of the proposed method, the test data published by other researchers have been compared with the values predicted by the proposed method. The comparisons clearly show that the proposed method yields values which are in good agreement with the test data from this and other experiments, lending confidence to the proposed method to serve as a reliable analytical tool to predict the flexural capacity of a corroded concrete beam.
RESURGENCE OF INFANT CAREGIVING RESPONSES
Authors: Bruzek Jennifer L. , Thompson Rachel H. , Peters Lindsay C.
Published: May 2010

Two experiments were conducted to identify the conditions likely to produce resurgence among adult human participants. The preparation was a simulated caregiving context, wherein a recorded infant cry sounded and was terminated contingent upon targeted caregiving responses. Results of Experiment 1 demonstrated resurgence with human participants in this negative reinforcement preparation. Results of Experiment 2 showed that responses with a longer history of reinforcement showed a stronger resurgence effect relative to responses with a shorter and more recent history of reinforcement. These results show that the resurgence phenomenon occurs across populations and types of reinforcers. Additionally, results indicate that length of reinforcement history is a variable that may affect the magnitude of resurgence.
CHANGES IN BLOOD PRESSURE AND HEART RATE DURING FIXED‐INTERVAL RESPONDING IN SQUIRREL MONKEYS
Authors: DeWeese Jo
Published: May 2010

Episodic and sustained increases in heart rate and mean arterial blood pressure can occur with recurring patterns of schedule‐controlled behavior. Most previous studies were conducted under fixed‐ratio schedules, which maintained a consistent high rate of responding that alternated with periods of no responding during times when the schedule was not in operation. The present study examined changes in heart rate and blood pressure under fixed‐interval schedules which maintained a range of rates that varied from little or no responding at the beginning of the fixed interval to high rates at the end of the interval. The relations of cardiovascular function to rate of responding were examined. Squirrel monkeys prepared with arterial catheters were trained to respond under fixed‐interval schedules of electric‐shock presentation. The duration of the interval was varied across sessions and cardiovascular parameters were examined. Local rates of responding were typically near zero during timeout periods, low at the beginning of each fixed‐interval cycle, and then increased as the fixed interval progressed. At most schedule durations, arterial blood pressure and heart rate levels were lowest at the beginning of the interval cycles, increased as the rate of responding increased, and then decreased during the timeout periods. At all parameters studied, there was a direct relationship between changes in response rate within fixed‐interval cycles and changes in heart rate and blood pressure. The results suggest that a much closer concordance of these cardiovascular parameters and schedule‐controlled responding is obtained by examining ongoing behavior as it occurs within the contingencies by which it is maintained.
EFFECTS OF DRUGS AND DRUG COMBINATIONS IN PIGEONS TRAINED TO DISCRIMINAT AMONG PENTOBARBITAL, DIZOCILPINE, A COMBINATION OF THESE DRUGS, AND SALIN
Authors: McMillan D. E. , Wessinger William D. , Li Mi
Published: May 2010

Drugs with multiple actions can have complex discriminative‐stimulus properties. An approach to studying such drugs is to train subjects to discriminate among drug combinations and individual drugs in the combination so that all of the complex discriminative stimuli are present during training. In the current experiments, a four‐choice procedure was used to train pigeons to discriminate among dizocilpine (noncompetitive NMDA receptor blocker), pentobarbital (GABAAreceptor agonist), a fixed‐dose combination of these two drugs, and saline. Following extended training, low doses of pentobarbital or dizocilpine administered alone produced saline‐appropriate responding. Higher doses of pentobarbital produced responding on the pentobarbital‐appropriate key and higher doses of dizocilpine produced responding on the dizocilpine key. Administering the lowest doses of pentobarbital and dizocilpine together resulted in responding on the saline‐appropriate key. Increasing the dose of pentobarbital in the presence of low doses of dizocilpine produced responding primarily on the pentobarbital‐appropriate key; increasing the dose of dizocilpine in the presence of the lowest dose of pentobarbital produced responding primarily on the dizocilpine‐appropriate key. Combining the higher doses of pentobarbital and dizocilpine resulted in responding primarily on the drug‐combination key. Low doses of phencyclidine or ethanol produced responding on the saline‐appropriate key, but intermediate doses resulted in individual subjects responding predominately on either the pentobarbital key, the dizocilpine key, or the drug‐combination key depending on the subject. After the highest dose of phencyclidine or ethanol, most subjects responded predominantly on the drug‐combination key. Low doses of other drugs tested produced responding on the saline‐appropriate key. With the highest diazepam doses responding was largely confined to the pentobarbital‐appropriate key. The highest doses of dextromethorphan or dextrorphan resulted in responding on the dizocilpine key more frequently than on other keys. Across a range of doses, morphine produced responding predominantly on the saline key. The results using the four‐key procedure emphasized the role of both GABAAand NMDA receptors in the complex discriminative stimulus properties of phencyclidine and of ethanol.
LEARNING TO TIME: A PERSPECTIVE
Authors: Machado Armando , Malheiro Maria Teresa , Erlhagen Wolfram
Published: May 2010

In the last decades, researchers have proposed a large number of theoretical models of timing. These models make different assumptions concerning how animals learn to time events and how such learning is represented in memory. However, few studies have examined these different assumptions either empirically or conceptually. For knowledge to accumulate, variation in theoretical models must be accompanied by selection of models and model ideas. To that end, we review two timing models, Scalar Expectancy Theory (SET), the dominant model in the field, and the Learning‐to‐Time (LeT) model, one of the few models dealing explicitly with learning. In the first part of this article, we describe how each model works in prototypical concurrent and retrospective timing tasks, identify their structural similarities, and classify their differences concerning temporal learning and memory. In the second part, we review a series of studies that examined these differences and conclude that both the memory structure postulated by SET and the state dynamics postulated by LeT are probably incorrect. In the third part, we propose a hybrid model that may improve on its parents. The hybrid model accounts for the typical findings in fixed‐interval schedules, the peak procedure, mixed fixed interval schedules, simple and double temporal bisection, and temporal generalization tasks. In the fourth and last part, we identify seven challenges that any timing model must meet.
Suicide and Predicament: Life is a Predicament (Open Access)
Authors: Pridmore Saxby
Published: May 2010

"Suicide and Predicament: the medical model of suicide is incomplete" takes a broad view of suicide. It argues that a large proportion of people who suicide do not have a mental disorder, and therefore it is essential to know about the predicaments of people. The book draws on sociology and takes issue with the medicalization of distress and suicide. It discusses genetics and draws attention to the importance of alcohol in suicide. It takes as examples, 127 suicide cases found in public record. Unique features include 1) predicament model, 2) pathways model, 3) typology of suicide, and 4) prevention initiatives.
MILITARY LEADER SUICIDE
Authors: Pridmore Saxby
Published: May 2010

Suicide by defeated military leaders is well known.
Prominent examples (Eleazar, Brutus, Samsonov, Korechika Anami,
Hatazo Adachi, Himmler, Goring, Goebbels) are detailed, however
others are those who attempted suicide during peace time. The triggers
for these suicides are discussed along with the influence of rank.
Mention is made of the current misrepresentation of the suicide rate of
US troops serving overseas.
PREVENTION
Authors: Pridmore Saxby
Published: May 2010

The current approach to suicide prevention (high risk
approach) focuses on improved identification and treatment of mental
disorder. Around the world, this approach has failed to lower national
suicide rates. The prevention of suicide even in people known to be at
high risk is difficult and sometimes impossible. As the majority of the
total suicides comes from the low risk population, a population health
approach is necessary, which means reducing risk factors within the
community. The high risk (treatment) and the population health
approach should be conducted concurrently. Generally recommended
components include; 1) education of health and other helping
professionals, 2) reduction in the stigma associated with asking for
help, 3) active alcohol and drug abuse treatment and prevention, 4)
improving the well-being of the community, and 5) reduction of access
to lethal means. Arising from this monograph, additional suggestions
include, a) de-medicalization of non-medical suicidality, b) changing
the culture, and c) changing the predicament.
Web-Based Interactive System for Analyzing Achievement Gaps in Public Schools System
Authors: Wang Kening , Mulvenon Sean W. , Stegman Charles , Xia Yanling
Published: May 2010

The National Office for Research on Measurement and Evaluation Systems (NORMES) at the University of Arkansas developed a web-based interactive system to provide information on state, district, and school level achievement gaps between white students and black students, socioeconomically disadvantaged students and non-disadvantaged students, male students and female students, and mobile students and non-mobile students. The website of this system is http://normessasweb.uark.edu/alert/ . Using Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP) to generate interactive box plots and dynamic interpretation of effect sizes, this system provides K-12 educators with the information of the achievement gaps between the given groups. Dissemination of this system will help educators develop effective strategies for closing the achievement gaps. The information can be used by policy makers to create more accurate and effective policy decisions.
An Engraved Paleoindian Artifact from Northeast Pennsylvania
Authors: Gingerich Joseph A. M.
Published: May 2010

Engraved stones from Paleoindian contexts are extremely rare. Artifact engravings that have been recognized are often considered examples of Paleoindian artistic expression or evidence of symbolic behavior. Given the limited published sample of Paleoindian artwork, it is important to report all intentionally engraved items that might contribute to our collective understanding of this class of artifacts. In this article, I describe an engraved stone from the Clovis level at Shawnee-Minisink and briefly summarize other examples of possible Paleoindian art from the Early and Middle Paleoindian period.
Artificial Neural Network Modelling of Heat Transfer to Canned Particulate Fluids under Axial Rotation Processing
Authors: Dwivedi Mritunjay , Ramaswamy Hosahalli S.
Published: May 2010

Artificial neural network models were developed for the overall heat transfer coefficient (U) and the fluid to particle heat transfer coefficient hfp in canned Newtonian fluids with and without particles, and the model performances were compared with the dimensionless correlations for both free and fixed axial modes of agitation. Part of the experimental data were used for training and testing, and a portion was used for cross validation. The average errors (RMS), associated with predicted hfp and U values in fixed and free axial mode were a function of the ANN variables: number of hidden layers, number of neurons in each hidden layer, learning rule, transfer function and number of learning runs. RMS values not significantly different with number of hidden layers between one and three, and the associated RMS was minimal with a high R2 value with one hidden layer and 8 neurons. The combination of the Delta-rule and TanH transfer function also gave the lowest RMS and the highest R2. The highest R2 was achieved for the data set with 85% used for training and testing and 15 % for the cross validation in both modes of rotation, and therefore this combination was used for the development of neural network models. Mean relative errors (MRE) for ANN models were much lower compared with MRE associated with dimensionless correlations; 75-78% lower for hfp and 66% lower for U in fixed and free axial mode with particulate in liquid. Without particulates, in comparison with dimensionless correlations, the MRE for ANN models were 37% lower in end-over-end mode and 76% lower for free axial mode. Overall, ANN models yielded much higher R2 values than dimensionless correlations. The ANN coefficient matrix is included so that the models can be implemented in a spreadsheet.
`Uphold' or `Revoke'? A Study of Question Wording in Twelve Municipal Plebiscites in Flanders
Authors: Beckers Mieke , Billiet Jaak
Published: May 2010

Direct democratic participation through referenda is often contested because one faces the problem of determining referendum questions which avoid confusion or subjectivity. However, detailed knowledge concerning so-called question wording effects' is available within the domain of survey research. In this body of literature, several wording effects such as the use of suggestive wordings, the ambiguity of yes/no questions etc., have been well documented. Yet, despite the similarities between referendum and survey questions, knowledge from survey methodology is rarely employed within the literature on referenda. The present study discusses a number of question wording effects studied in survey research and shows their relevance in referendum settings. Moreover, this article explores these effects in twelve local referenda in Flanders. Building on this empirical evidence, we conclude with a number of precise guidelines regarding the quality of referendum questions.
Mathematical Modeling of Plant Allelopathic Hormesis Based on Ecological-Limiting-Factor Models
Authors: Liu Yinghu , Chen Xiaoqiu , Duan Shunshan , Feng Yuanjiao , An Min
Published: May 2010

Allelopathy arises from the release of chemicals by one plant species that affect other species in its vicinity, usually to their detriment. Allelopathic effects have been demonstrated to be limiting factors for species distributions and ecological processes in some natural or agricultural communities. Based on the biphasic hormetic responses of plants to allelochemicals, ecological-limiting-factor models were introduced into the An-Johnson-Lovett hormesis model to improve modelling the phenomenon of allelopathic hormesis and to better reflect the nature of allelopathy as a limiting factor in ecological processes. Outcomes of the models have been compared for several sets of experimental data from the literature and good agreement between the models and data was observed, which indicates that the new models give some insight into the ecological mechanisms involved and may provide more options for modelling the allelopathic phenomenon as well as platforms for further research on plant allelopathic hormesis.
Fourier-Feynman transforms of unbounded functionals on abstract Wiener space
Authors: Kim Byoung , Yoo Il , Cho Dong
Published: May 2010

Huffman, Park and Skoug established several results involving Fourier-Feynman transform and convolution for functionals in a Banach algebra S on the classical Wiener space. Chang, Kim and Yoo extended these results to abstract Wiener space for a more generalized Fresnel class $$
\mathcal{F}_{\mathcal{A}_1 ,\mathcal{A}_2 }
$$
A1,A2 than the Fresnel class $$
\mathcal{F}
$$(B)which corresponds to the Banach algebra S. In this paper we study Fourier-Feynman transform, convolution and first variation of unbounded functionals on abstract Wiener space having the form $$
F\left( x \right) = G\left( x \right)\psi \left( {\left( {\vec e,x} \right)^ \sim } \right)
$$, where G∈$$
\mathcal{F}
$$(B)and Ψ = ψ + ϕ with ψ ∈ L
1(ℝn) and ϕ is the Fourier transform of a complex Borel measure of bounded variation on ℝn. We also prove a translation theorem for the analytic Feynman integral of the above functionals.