bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Meningococcal purpura fulminans in children. II: Late orthopedic sequelae management
Authors: Nectoux E. , Mezel A. , Raux S. , Fron D. , Klein C. , Herbaux B.
Published: August 2010

Background

Purpura fulminans is a rare and extremely severe infection, mostly due to Neisseria meningitidis. Nineteen patients were followed up immediately after the initial multivisceral failure in order to diagnose late-onset orthopedic sequelae. We report our experience with these 19 patients, in light of our medical follow-up protocol and surgical management.

Materials and methods

Nineteen patients were referred for acute purpura fulminans between 1987 and 2005 to our institution and followed up prospectively until the present. We collected information on all diagnosed orthopedic sequelae, all surgical procedures performed, and the actual orthopedic outcome.

Results

Fourteen patients developed at least one orthopedic sequel after a mean of 2 years delay, with a mean of 8.65 years follow-up (range 3–22 years). The most common presentation was lower limb physeal growth plate arrest in eight patients involving 18 growth plates, leading to five limb length discrepancies and 12 significant knee and/or ankle deviations. Patients were treated by completing epiphysiodesis in addition to limb lengthening and/or reaxation osteotomies, except for two patients, in which epiphysiolysis was performed. All outcomes are, to date, satisfactory, with both knee and ankle axes within the physiological range. Among the seven patients who underwent below-knee amputation, six needed stump revision because of skin conflict (4) or prosthetics misadaptation due to upper tibial varus (2). Regarding the upper limb, three patients presented with four cicatricial scar bands, one located on a ring finger, two at the first commissure, and one at the wrist (all were successfully treated by enlargement Z-plasties). Two patients developed hip avascular necrosis.

Conclusion

It is important for children diagnosed with meningococcal purpura fulminans to be followed up closely starting from the very beginning by a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. It ensures that late-onset orthopedic sequelae will be diagnosed early. In accordance to the literature, this study highlights the high rate of lower limb epiphysiodesis, above all other types of sequelae. This study reports a possible link between purpura fulminans and avascular necrosis of the hip.
Kommunales Klimaschutzmanagement
Authors: Kreft Holger , Sinning Heidi , Steil Christiane
Published: August 2010

Since the publication of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report and the Stern report climate mitigation has become a main topic on all levels. In national efforts concerning CO2-reduction cities play a crucial role. But in local praxis various deficits preventing a successful implementation show up. Against this background the article discusses the frame of action as well as approaches of a Local Climate Protection Management, which refers to the well implemented concept of Local Sustainability Management. The research project supported by the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt explores how a strategic management could upgrade processes concerning climate protection.
The Influence of Failure Severity and Employee Effort on Service Recovery in a Service Guarantee Context
Authors: McQuilken Lisa
Published: August 2010

This experimental study utilised a sample of 131 online panel members to examine how service failure severity and perceived employee effort influence consumers’ postrecovery negative WOM and trust evaluations in the context of a 100% satisfaction guarantee. In this study, while the promised guarantee compensation is forthcoming, the failure remains uncorrected. Findings indicate that while the level of effort does not influence negative WOM when a major problem eventuates, high versus low levels of effort are appreciated for a minor failure. Evaluations of trust are enhanced when employees display a high versus a low level of effort across both minor and severe failure conditions. Overall, findings suggest that it would be unwise for organisations offering a “100% satisfaction or your money back” guarantee to rely too heavily on economic compensation to recover from service failures; the failure itself must also be rectified.
Webportale für Gesundheit
Authors: Jähn Karl H.
Published: August 2010

Einleitung

Die Inanspruchnahme von Informations- oder Kommunikationsangeboten zum Thema Gesundheit gehört seit der Verbreitung des World Wide Web zu den vorrangigen Interessen der Internetnutzer. Vor der Jahrtausendwende wurden von verschiedensten Anbietern erhebliche Investitionen getätigt, um eine günstige Position in dem seinerzeit viel versprechenden Zukunftsmarkt der Gesundheitsportale zu erzielen. Während sich die Situation der Refinanzierung – bis heute anhaltend – deutlich relativiert hat, bleiben vielerlei interessante Perspektiven bestehen.
Short Paper: A signal-to-noise index to quantify the potential for peak detection in sediment–charcoal records
Authors: Kelly Ryan F. , Higuera Philip E. , Barrett Carolyn M. , Hu Feng Sheng
Published: August 2010

Charcoal peaks in lake-sediment records are commonly used to reconstruct fire histories spanning thousands of years, but quantitative methods for evaluating the suitability of records for peak detection are largely lacking. We present a signal-to-noise index (SNI) that quantifies the separation of charcoal peaks (signal) from other variability in a record (noise). We validate the SNI with simulated and empirical charcoal records and show that an SNI > 3 consistently identifies records appropriate for peak detection. The SNI thus offers a means to evaluate the suitability of sediment–charcoal records for reconstructing local fires. MATLAB and R functions for calculating SNI are provided.
THE IMPACT OF URBANIZATION ON MURDER RATES AND ON THE GEOGRAPHY OF HOMICIDE IN ENGLAND AND WALES, 1780–1850
Authors: KING PETER
Published: August 2010

Although higher murder rates have traditionally been associated with large cities, this view has recently been challenged by several historians who have argued that ‘homicide rates were negatively correlated with urbanisation and industrialisation’, and this is rapidly becoming the new consensus. By exploring the geography of homicide rates for one area undergoing rapid urbanization and industrialization – England and Wales, 1780–1850 – this article challenges this new view and re-assesses the relationship between recorded homicide rates and both modernization and urbanization. After discussing the methodological problems involved in using homicide statistics, it focuses mainly on the first fifteen years for which detailed county-based data is available – 1834–48 – as well as looking at the more limited late eighteenth-century and early nineteenth-century evidence. This data raises fundamental questions about the links historians have recently made between urbanization and low homicide rates, since the remote rural parts of England and Wales generally had very low recorded murder rates while industrializing and rapidly urbanizing areas such as Lancashire had very high ones. Potential explanations for these systematic and large variations between urban and rural areas – including the impact of age structures and migration patterns – are then explored.
Debt Capacity and Tests of Capital Structure Theories
Authors: Lemmon Michael L. , Zender Jaime F.
Published: August 2010

We examine the impact of explicitly incorporating a measure of debt capacity in recent tests of competing theories of capital structure. Our main results are that if external funds are required, in the absence of debt capacity concerns, debt appears to be preferred to equity. Concerns over debt capacity largely explain the use of new external equity financing by publicly traded firms. Finally, we present evidence that reconciles the frequent equity issues by small, high-growth firms with the pecking order. After accounting for debt capacity, the pecking order theory appears to give a good description of financing behavior for a large sample of firms examined over an extended time period.
Vortex-induced vibration of a rising and falling cylinder
Authors: HOROWITZ M. , WILLIAMSON C. H. K.
Published: August 2010

In this study, we investigate the dynamics of a freely rising and falling cylinder. This is, in essence, a vortex-induced vibration (VIV) system comprising both transverse (Y) and streamwise (X) degrees-of-freedom (d.o.f.), but with zero spring stiffness and zero damping. This problem represents a limiting case among studies in VIV, and is an extension of recent research of elastically mounted bodies having very low spring stiffness, as well as bodies with very low mass and damping. We find that if the mass ratio (where m* = cylinder mass/displaced fluid mass) is greater than a critical value, m*crit = 0.545, the body falls or rises with a rectilinear trajectory. As the mass ratio is reduced below m*crit = 0.545, the cylinder suddenly begins to vibrate vigorously and periodically, with a 2P mode of vortex formation, as reported in the preliminary study of Horowitz & Williamson (J. Fluids Struct. vol. 22, 2006, pp. 837–843). The similarity in critical mass between freely rising and elastically mounted bodies is unexpected, as it is known that the addition of streamwise vibration can markedly affect the response and vortex formation in elastically mounted systems, which would be expected to modify the critical mass. However, we show in this paper that the similarity in vortex formation mode (2P) between the freely rising body and the elastically mounted counterpart is consistent with a comparable phase of vortex dynamics, strength of vortices, amplitudes and frequencies of motion and effective added mass (CEA). All of these similarities result in comparable values of critical mass. The principal fact that the 2P mode is observed for the freely rising body is an interesting and consistent result; based on the previous VIV measurements, this is the only mode out of the known set {2S, 2P, 2T} to yield negative effective added mass (CEA < 0), which is a condition for vibration of a freely rising body. In this paper, we deduce that there exists only one possible two degree-of-freedom elastically mounted cylinder system, which can be used to predict the dynamics of freely rising bodies. Because of the symmetry of the vortex wake, this system is one for which the natural frequencies are fNX = 2fNY. Although this seems clear in retrospect, previous attempts to predict critical mass did not take this into account. Implementing such an elastic system, we are able to predict vibration amplitudes and critical mass (m*crit = 0.57) for a freely rising cylinder in reasonable agreement with direct measurements for such a rising body, and even to predict the Lissajous figures representing the streamwise–transverse vibrations for a rising body with very small mass ratios (down to m* = 0.06), unobtainable from our direct measurements.
Shedding new light on a burning question
Authors: PITSCH H.
Published: August 2010

Only recently, three-dimensional direct numerical simulations (DNS) with detailed chemistry have become possible. These types of simulations will have an important impact on combustion science because of the data they provide. Obtaining similar data sets through experimental characterization is very challenging and requires joint measurements of a multitude of chemical species concentrations in addition to temperature and velocity fields. Gruber et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 658, 2010, pp. 5–32) have performed a detailed chemistry DNS to understand the physics of flame/wall interactions. They found that flames interact with streamwise vortical structures close to the wall, and that these structures can push the flame towards or away from the wall. The flames get extinguish when they are too close to the wall. Interestingly, the extinction process actually causes an order-of-magnitude increase in heat release, and therefore, strongly amplifies wall heat transfer.
Applications of the wave kinetic approach: from laser wakefields to drift wave turbulence
Authors: TRINES R. M. G. M. , BINGHAM R. , SILVA L. O. , MENDONÇA J. T. , SHUKLA P. K. , MURPHY C. D. , DUNLOP M. W. , DAVIES J. A. , BAMFORD R. , VAIVADS A. , NORREYS P. A.
Published: August 2010

Nonlinear wave-driven processes in plasmas are normally described by either a monochromatic pump wave that couples to other monochromatic waves, or as a random phase wave coupling to other random phase waves. An alternative approach involves a random or broadband pump coupling to monochromatic and/or coherent structures in the plasma. This approach can be implemented through the wave-kinetic model. In this model, the incoming pump wave is described by either a bunch (for coherent waves) or a sea (for random phase waves) of quasi-particles. This approach has been applied to both photon acceleration in laser wakefields and drift wave turbulence in magnetized plasma edge configurations. Numerical simulations have been compared to experiments, varying from photon acceleration to drift mode-zonal flow turbulence, and good qualitative correspondences have been found in all cases.
Nonlinear propagation of intense electromagnetic waves in a hot electron–positron plasma
Authors: CHAUDHARY ROZINA , TSINTSADZE NODAR L. , SHUKLA P. K.
Published: August 2010

The creation and annihilation of relativistically hot electron–positron (EP) pair plasmas in the presence of intense electromagnetic (EM) waves, which are not in thermal equilibrium, are studied by formulating a new plasma particle distribution functions, which are valid for both relativistic temperatures and relativistic amplitudes of the EM waves. It is found that intense EM waves in a collisionless EP plasma damp via nonlinear Landau damping. Accounting for the latter, we have obtained relativistic kinetic nonlinear Schrödinger equation (NLSE) with local and non-local nonlinearities. The NLSE depicts nonlinear Landau damping rates for intense EM waves. The damping rates are examined for dense and tenuous pair plasmas. Furthermore, we have studied the modulational instabilities of intense EM waves in the presence of nonlinear Landau damping. Our results reveal a new class of the modulational instability that is triggered by the inverse Landau damping in a relativistically hot EP plasma. Finally, we discuss localization of intense EM waves due to relativistic electron and positron mass increase in a hot pair plasma.
Stimulated Brillouin scattering of electromagnetic waves in magnetized plasmas
Authors: SHUKLA P. K. , STENFLO L.
Published: August 2010

A previous theoretical result on stimulated Brillouin scattering is corrected.
Workspace formulation of planar wire-actuated parallel manipulators
Authors: McColl Derek , Notash Leila
Published: August 2010

In this paper, a generalized form of the antipodal method from multi-finger grasping is presented and implemented for investigating the workspace of a wide range of planar wire-actuated parallel manipulators. Manipulators with distinct wire attachment points on the base and mobile platform are considered, in the absence and presence of external force. The examined workspaces are verified with the corresponding workspaces developed using static force analysis. By applying an external force, modeled as a wire for the antipodal method, the characteristics of the manipulator could be altered by enlarging its workspace in the direction of the applied force.
Mental Health Among Adolescents from Returned Portuguese Immigrant Families
Authors: Neto Félix
Published: August 2010

This study investigated mental health problems and their predictors among adolescents from returned immigrant families. The sample consisted of 360 returned adolescents (mean age = 16.8 years; SD = 1.9). The mean duration of a sojourn in Portugal for the sample was 8.2 years (SD = 4.5). A control group of 217 Portuguese youths were also included in the study. Adolescents from immigrant families reported mental health levels similar to those of Portuguese adolescents who have never migrated. Girls showed more mental health problems than boys. Younger adolescents showed fewer mental health problems than older adolescents. Adaptation variables contributed to mental health outcomes even after acculturation variables were accounted for. Implications of the study for counselors are discussed.
Impact of the Locus of Causality and Internal Control on the Social Utility of Causal Explanations
Authors: Perrin Samantha , Testé Benoît
Published: August 2010

Research into the norm of internality ( Beauvois & Dubois, 1988 ) has shown that the expression of internal causal explanations is socially valued in social judgment. However, the value attributed to different types of internal explanations (e.g., efforts vs. traits) is far from homogeneous. This study used the Weiner (1979 ) tridimensional model to clarify the factors explaining the social utility attached to internal versus external explanations. Three dimensions were manipulated: locus of causality, controllability, and stability. Participants (N = 180 students) read the explanations expressed by appliants during a job interview. They then described the applicants on the French version of the revised causal dimension scale and rated their future professional success. Results indicated that internal-controllable explanations were the most valued. In addition, perceived internal and external control of explanations were significant predictors of judgments.
Daten rund um das Körpergewicht: Schweizerische Gesundheitsbefragung 2007
Authors: Eichholzer  , Bovey  , Jordan  , Schmid  , Stoffel-Kurt
Published: August 2010

Die Schweizerische Gesundheitsbefragung 2007 (SGB07) ist die vierte vergleichbare Erhebung, die an einer repräsentativen Stichprobe von fast 19000 in der Schweiz lebenden Erwachsenen durchgeführt wurde. 37% der Befragten sind übergewichtig oder adipös, aber seit 2002 sind keine signifikanten Zunahmen mehr zu verzeichnen. Eine Reihe von soziodemographischen und Lebensstilfaktoren sind mit zu hohem Körpergewicht verbunden. 9% der 15- bis 34-jährigen Frauen sind untergewichtig. Von den 15- bis 49-jährigen Männern und Frauen möchten 52% ihr Körpergewicht verändern (87% abnehmen, 13% zunehmen). 20% von ihnen essen sehr unregelmässig und bei 22% aller Befragten passiert es, dass sie enorm viel essen und fast nicht mehr aufhören können. Zusammenfassend besteht Handlungsbedarf bezüglich Lebensstil rund um das Körpergewicht.
Unübliche Massnahme zur Behandlung eines venösen Ulcus cruris
Authors: Hofer
Published: August 2010

Die Behandlung von Wunden ist heute zunehmend die Domäne von speziell aus- und weitergebildeten medizinischen Fachkräften. Die Flut von unterschiedlichen Wundpflegemassnahmen und Verbandtechniken wächst kontinuierlich. Studien vergleichen deren Wirksamkeit und selbst die Medizinalperson droht in der Vielfalt von Resultaten den Halt im Bewährten zu verlieren. Die vorgestellte Kasuistik zeigt, dass auch eine nichtmedizinische Massnahme, nämlich ein Wechsel der behandelnden Personen – mit anderen Worten zwischenmenschliche Aspekte – wesentlich zur Wundheilung beitragen kann.
Mass discrimination monitoring and intercalibration of dual collectors in noble gas mass spectrometer systems
Authors: Turrin Brent D. , Swisher Carl C. , Deino Alan L.
Published: August 2010

Accurate high‐precision 40Ar/39Ar ages are limited, in part, by the degree of accuracy and precision of the measurement of the 36Ar atmospheric Ar contamination correction and the mass spectrometer mass fractionation bias (mass discrimination) correction. To improve the measurements of the low‐level 36Ar signals, we have implemented digital ion‐counting and multicollector data acquisition methods. The switch to the digital ion pulse counting method results in a tenfold improvement in the signal‐to‐noise ratio relative to analog electron multiplier measurements that are in general use in most 40Ar/39Ar laboratories. The use of ion pulse counting significantly improves low‐level signal (36Ar) measurements. The improvement in low‐level 36Ar measurements, however, comes at the cost of a reduced dynamic range of the electron multiplier detector, thus requiring the use of an alternate detector at times, such as a Faraday cup or analog multiplier for large signals. In turn, this requires accurate intercalibration of the detectors. Here we present a protocol that addresses these issues, one that closely tracks changes in the mass spectrometer mass discrimination and the detector intercalibration (IC) factor(s) during the time frame of an experiment, thereby improving measurement accuracy. A major advantage of our protocol is that the procedure uses the same aliquots of atmospheric Ar to monitor mass discrimination and detector IC factors, saving a significant amount of measurement time. In addition, this IC protocol may address the cause of reported inaccuracies in the measured isotopic ratio data on the “new” generation multicollector mass spectrometers. Further, we present a “time series protocol” that monitors any temporal drift in the mass spectrometer mass fractionation bias that can occur due to laboratory environmental changes.
Anomalous occurrence features of the preliminary impulse of geomagnetic sudden commencement in the South Atlantic Anomaly region
Authors: Shinbori Atsuki , Nishimura Yukitoshi , Tsuji Yuji , Kikuchi Takashi , Araki Tohru , Ikeda Akihiro , Uozumi Teiji , Otadoy Roland E. S. , Utada Hisashi , Ishitsuka Jose , Trivedi Nalin Baual , Dutra Severino L. G. , Schuch Nelson Jorge , Watari Shinichi , Nagatsuma Tsutomu , Yumoto Kiyohumi
Published: August 2010

Occurrence features of the preliminary impulse (PI) of geomagnetic sudden commencement (SC) both in the Pacific Ocean and South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA) regions were investigated using the long‐term magnetic field data obtained from the Circum‐pan Pacific Magnetometer Network (CPMN) and NICT Space Weather Monitoring (NSWM) magnetometer networks. The low‐latitude preliminary reverse impulse (PRI) at Okinawa (OKI: dip latitude = 37.97°) in the Pacific Ocean region appeared in all the magnetic local time (MLT) sectors with the peak occurrence rate of 40% around noon. On the other hand, the PRI occurrence rate at Santa Maria (SMA: dip latitude = −34.35°) near the center of the SAA region showed a significant enhancement in the daytime sector (0800–1600 h, MLT) with the peak value of 80%, which resembles the occurrence feature of the equatorial PRI. Moreover, the PRI amplitude around noon at SMA was about 3.0 times larger than that at OKI. From the calculation of the ionospheric conductivity derived from the IRI‐2007 and NRLMSISE‐00 models, it is shown that the height‐integrated conductivity was more enhanced in the SAA region (SMA), where the ambient magnetic field intensity is weak, compared with that in the Pacific Ocean region (OKI). Therefore, the anomalous increase of the PRI occurrence and amplitude is caused by the significant enhancement of the ionospheric conductivity due to the weakness of the ambient magnetic field intensity in the SAA region.
Upwelling and associated heat flux in the equatorial Atlantic inferred from helium isotope disequilibrium
Authors: Rhein Monika , Dengler Marcus , Sültenfuß Jürgen , Hummels Rebecca , Hüttl‐Kabus Sabine , Bourles Bernard
Published: August 2010

Upwelling velocities w in the equatorial band are too small to be directly observed. Here, we apply a recently proposed indirect method, using the observed helium isotope (3He or 4He) disequilibria in the mixed layer. The helium data were sampled from three cruises in the eastern tropical Atlantic in September 2005 and June/July 2006. A one‐dimensional two‐box model was applied, where the helium air‐sea gas exchange is balanced by upwelling from 3He‐rich water below the mixed layer and by vertical mixing. The mixing coefficients Kv were estimated from microstructure measurements, and on two of the cruises, Kv exceeded 1 × 10−4 m2/s, making the vertical mixing term of the same order of magnitude as the gas exchange and the upwelling term. In total, helium disequilibrium was observed on 54 stations. Of the calculated upwelling velocities, 48% were smaller than 1.0 × 10−5 m/s, 19% were between 1.0 and 2.0 × 10−5 m/s, 22% were between 2.0 and 4.0 × 10−5 m/s, and on 11% of upwelling velocities exceeded this limit. The highest upwelling velocities were found in late June 2006. Meridional upwelling distribution indicated an equatorial asymmetry with higher vertical velocities between the equator and 1° to 2° south compared to north of the equator, particularly at 10°W. Associated heat flux into the mixed layer could be as high as 138 W/m2, but this depends strongly on the chosen depths where the upwelled water comes from. By combining upwelling velocities with sea surface temperature and productivity distributions, a mean monthly equatorial upwelling rate of 19 Sv was estimated for June 2006 and a biweekly mean of 24 Sv was estimated for September 2005.
Source apportioning of primary and secondary organic carbon in summer PM2.5 in Hong Kong using positive matrix factorization of secondary and primary organic tracer data
Authors: Hu Di , Bian Qijing , Lau Alexis K. H. , Yu Jian Zhen
Published: August 2010

The major inorganic constituents and organic tracer compounds in PM2.5 were used in positive matrix factorization (PMF) and chemical mass balance (CMB) models to apportion the primary and secondary source contributions to organic carbon (OC) in Hong Kong during the summer of 2006. Secondary organic aerosol (SOA) tracers of several biogenic and anthropogenic hydrocarbons were included in the PMF analysis. Their inclusion allowed the identification of two components of SOA among seven factors resolved by PMF. One SOA component was mainly associated with secondary sulfate and nitrate. The other SOA component, characterized by biogenic SOA tracers and mixed with biomass burning and vegetative detritus particles, was biomass burning‐induced SOA. Secondary OC (SOC) apportioned by PMF (SOCPMF) was on average 6.84 μgC m−3 (65% of PM2.5 OC) on high pollution days under influence of significant regional transport (i.e., regional days) and 0.70 μgC m−3 (25% of PM2.5 OC) on days under the influence of mainly local emissions (i.e., local days). The biomass burning‐induced SOA accounted for 20% of the total SOA on the regional days, underlining the importance of biomass burning aerosol source in this region. The average uncertainty for the SOCPMF estimates was ∼20% on the regional days and ∼120% on the local days. SOCPMF was compared with SOC determined by CMB (SOCCMB, i.e., unapportioned OC by CMB analysis) and a tracer‐based method (SOCTBM) that apportioned SOC contributions by four hydrocarbon precursors including isoprene, monoterpenes, β‐caryophyllene, and toluene. The three estimates of SOC closely tracked with each other among individual samples. The SOCCMB and SOCPMF estimates on the majority of the regional days differed from each other by less than 25%. Good correlations between contributions of SOC and individual primary OC sources apportioned by PMF and CMB further added to the credence to the PMF‐derived estimation of secondary and primary OC source contributions by using secondary and primary aerosol organic tracers as the fitting species.
Reactions of formic acid with protonated water clusters: Implications of cluster growth in the atmosphere
Authors: Goken E. G. , Castleman A. W.
Published: August 2010

Obtaining direct and detailed chemical information about the initial stages of nucleation continues to be a challenging task, but it is necessary for improved understanding of the growth process of particles in the atmosphere. To elucidate the role of organic molecules, specifically formic acid, in nucleation and particle growth, the present work uses a flow tube reactor to study formic acid‐water interactions using water cluster distributions of 2–30 water molecules. The reactions studied herein are compared to methanol‐water interactions to provide evidence of a change to the stable clathrate‐like structure of the H+(H2O)21 “magic” cluster. Intensity ratios of the form R = I[H+(H2O)n]/I[H+(H2O)n+1] are used to identify prominent clusters in spectra containing pure water, methanol‐water mixed clusters, and formic acid‐water mixed clusters. Relative concentration flow rates of 12.5, 25, 50, and 125.5 standard cubic centimeters per minute (sccm) of formic acid were added to a pure water distribution, and the resultant spectra were compared to those from methanol relative concentrations of 25, 50, and 100 sccm. The formic acid‐water mixed cluster distributions observed in these reactions do not contain a prominent peak in the intensity ratio graphs, indicating a disruption in the clathrate structure of the 21‐molecule cluster while a prominent peak for 21‐molecule cluster is observed in the methanol system. Also observed was an increase in intensity with increased cluster size, which indicates that formic acid‐water mixed clusters could serve as a prenucleation embryo for the nucleation of water molecules and a possible particle growth pathway.
An air relative‐humidity‐based evapotranspiration model from eddy covariance data
Authors: Yan Hao , Shugart Herman H.
Published: August 2010

We present an air relative‐humidity‐based model of evapotranspiration (ARM‐ET) using relative humidity (RH) as a water stress factor to modify the Priestley and Taylor (1972) model potential evapotranspiration (PET) to actual evapotranspiration (ET). This model estimates ET using RH, air temperature (Ta), surface net radiation (Rn), and ground heat flux (G). The ARM‐ET model was calibrated with 8 day averaged ET observations at a flux site and validated with independent ET observations at 14 flux sites from a wide range of climates and vegetation types. Estimates of ET(Rn−G) with available energy defined as (Rn − G) had an R2 = 0.71 with a root mean square error = 23.62 W m−2 and a bias = 8.02 W m−2. As the eddy covariance method for ET measurements can suffer from an energy imbalance problem, we quantitatively analyzed the impact of such energy imbalance by replacing the available energy of Rn‐G with the sum of latent heat flux (λE) and sensible heat flux (H) in the modified ARM‐ET model, denoted ARM‐ET(λE+H). Further validation at 16 flux sites indicates that ARM‐ET(λE+H) had a more accurate estimate (R2 = 0.83, RMSE = 16.98 W m−2, and bias = 5.42 W m−2) compared with ARM‐ET(Rn−G), which shows that the energy imbalance problem did affect model accuracy. This evaluation also showed RH was more closely related to the evaporation fraction than to the vapor pressure deficit (VPD), soil water content, and RHVPD indicating that RH was superior to other water stress metrics in ET estimation. As a pure meteorological model with a simple parameterization, the ARM‐ET model is applicable over large spatial scales under a variety of climates and land cover types.
Midperiod Rayleigh wave attenuation model for Asia
Authors: Levshin Anatoli L. , Yang Xiaoning , Barmin Mikhail P. , Ritzwoller Michael H.
Published: August 2010

We present an attenuation model for midperiod Rayleigh waves in Central Asia and surrounding regions. This model is defined by maps of attenuation coefficient across the region of study in the period band 14–24 s. The model is constructed to characterize the regional variations in attenuation of seismic waves in the crust, which are related to the tectonic history of the studied territory, to calibrate the regional surface‐wave magnitude scale, and to extend the teleseismic 'surface‐wave magnitude – body wave magnitude' (Ms‐mb) discriminant to regional distances. The construction of the model proceeds in three stages. The first stage in model construction is the measurement of Rayleigh wave spectral amplitudes. We collected and processed waveform data for 200 earthquakes occurring from 2003 to 2006 inside and around Eurasia, and used records of about 135 broadband permanent and temporary stations. This data set provided a sufficient number of spectral amplitude measurements between 14 and 24 s periods for the construction of two–dimensional tomographic maps of attenuation coefficients. At the second stage of the work, the integral of attenuation coefficients along given paths is estimated using both inter‐station measurements and single‐station measurements corrected for source and receiver terms. The third stage includes the refining of source parameters, recalculation of attenuation coefficient integrals after this refinement, grooming of resulting coefficients, and multistage tomographic inversion of the data. Tomographic maps for the set of periods from 14 to 24 s, which exhibit clear correlation with geology and tectonics of the territory under study, were obtained. Validation of these maps using the inter‐station measurements confirms their accuracy in predicting the observations.
High initial‐time sensitivity of medium‐range forecasting observed for a stratospheric sudden warming
Authors: Kuroda Yuhji
Published: August 2010

High initial‐time sensitivity for the predictable period of the tropospheric Northern Annular Mode (NAM) around the stratospheric sudden warming (SSW) in the winter of 2003–4 is examined using ensemble simulations of a general circulation model. It is found that the predictable period tends to become very long and reaches to a few months when a forecast is performed before the occurrence of the SSW. When the initial time is set after the SSW, however, the predictable period turns out to be very short. As a result, the predictable limit of time tends to become far longer when forecasts are performed before the occurrence of the SSW compared with those performed after. Comparison is made with winter of 2005–6 with a major SSW and prominent stratospheric variability. The reason for the appearance of such high initial‐time sensitivity is discussed.
Evidence for a flux transfer event generated by multiple X‐line reconnection at the magnetopause
Authors: Hasegawa H. , Wang J. , Dunlop M. W. , Pu Z. Y. , Zhang Q.‐H. , Lavraud B. , Taylor M. G. G. T. , Constantinescu O. D. , Berchem J. , Angelopoulos V. , McFadden J. P. , Frey H. U. , Panov E. V. , Volwerk M. , Bogdanova Y. V.
Published: August 2010

Magnetic flux transfer events (FTEs) are signatures of unsteady magnetic reconnection, often observed at planetary magnetopauses. Their generation mechanism, a key ingredient determining how they regulate the transfer of solar wind energy into magnetospheres, is still largely unknown. We report THEMIS spacecraft observations on 2007‐06‐14 of an FTE generated by multiple X‐line reconnection at the dayside magnetopause. The evidence consists of (1) two oppositely‐directed ion jets converging toward the FTE that was slowly moving southward, (2) the cross‐section of the FTE core being elongated along the magnetopause normal, probably squeezed by the oppositely‐directed jets, and (3) bidirectional field‐aligned fluxes of energetic electrons in the magnetosheath, indicating reconnection on both sides of the FTE. The observations agree well with a global magnetohydrodynamic model of the FTE generation under large geomagnetic dipole tilt, which implies the efficiency of magnetic flux transport into the magnetotail being lower for larger dipole tilt.
Endofungal bacterium controls its host by an hrp type III secretion system
Authors: Lackner Gerald , Moebius Nadine , Hertweck Christian
Published: August 2010

Burkholderia rhizoxinica and Rhizopus microsporus form a unique symbiosis in which intracellular bacteria produce the virulence factor of the phytopathogenic fungus. Notably, the host strictly requires endobacteria to sporulate. In this study, we show that the endofungal bacteria possess a type III secretion system (T3SS), which has a crucial role in the maintenance of the alliance. Mutants defective in type III secretion show reduced intracellular survival and fail to elicit sporulation of the host. Furthermore, genes coding for T3SS components are upregulated during cocultivation of the bacterial symbiont with their host. This is the first report on a T3SS involved in bacterial–fungal symbiosis. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the T3SS represents a prototype of a clade of yet uncharacterized T3SSs within the hrp superfamily of T3SSs from plant pathogenic microorganisms. In a control experiment, we demonstrate that under laboratory conditions, rhizoxin production was not required for establishment of the symbiotic interaction.
Influence of Short‐Term Consumption of the Caffeine‐Free, Epigallocatechin‐3‐Gallate Supplement, Teavigo, on Resting Metabolism and the Thermic Effect of Feeding
Authors: Lonac Mark C. , Richards Jennifer C. , Schweder Melani M. , Johnson Tyler K. , Bell Christopher
Published: August 2010

Green tea is purported to promote weight loss. Resting metabolic rate (RMR) and the thermic effect of feeding (TEF) are significant components of total daily energy expenditure and are partially determined by the sympathetic nervous system via catecholamine‐mediated stimulation of β‐adrenergic receptors. Epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate (EGCG: the most bioactive catechin in green tea) inhibits catechol‐O‐methyltransferase, an enzyme contributing to the degradation of catecholamines. Accordingly, we hypothesized that short‐term consumption of a commercially available EGCG supplement (Teavigo) augments RMR and TEF. On two separate occasions, seven placebo or seven EGCG capsules (135 mg/capsule) were administered to 16 adults (9 males, 7 females, age 25 ± 2 years, BMI 24.6 ± 1.2 kg/m2 (mean ± s.e.)). Capsules (three/day) were consumed over 48 h; the final capsule was consumed 2 h prior to visiting the laboratory. Energy expenditure (ventilated hood technique) was determined at rest and for 5 h following ingestion of a liquid meal (caloric content: 40% RMR). Contrary to our hypothesis, RMR was not greater (P = 0.10) following consumption of EGCG (6,740 ± 373 kJ/day) compared with placebo (6,971 ± 352). Similarly, the area under the TEF response curve (Δ energy expenditure) was also unaffected by EGCG (246,808 ± 23,748 vs. 243,270 ± 22,177 kJ; P = 0.88). EGCG had no effect on respiratory exchange ratio at rest (P = 0.29) or throughout the TEF measurement (P = 0.56). In summary, together RMR and TEF may account for up to 85% of total daily energy expenditure; we report that short‐term consumption of a commercially available EGCG supplement did not increase RMR or TEF.
Applications of QM/MM in inorganic chemistry
Authors: Tuttle Tell
Published: August 2010

Quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical (QM/MM) methods play an increasingly important role in the study of inorganic systems. From the early application of QM/MM methods, to organometallic catalysts, to the present day use of QM/MM methods in studying bioinorganic systems, the development and uptake of the methodology has been startling. In this review, an outline of the theories for the two major QM/MM schemes (additive and subtractive) is provided. Two case studies, within inorganic chemistry, highlight the strengths of the different approaches. The use of the subtractive QM/MM scheme to decompose a system in terms of specific contributions of chemical moieties and energetic factors provides insight into the nature of how a reaction occurs. While the use of an additive QM/MM methodology in computational spectroscopy has shown the important role of the environment in influencing these parameters. Through the careful callibration of the computational and experimental results, new details about the mechanistic and structural details of inorganic systems are revealed.
Nuclear quadrupole resonance spectroscopy
Authors: Dillon K.B.
Published: August 2010

This report takes a critical view of new publications in pure nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) spectroscopy for inorganic and organometallic species up to the end of 2008, including reviews, results for main group elements, and those for transition metals and lanthanides. One new nucleus, 47Ti, is featured this year.
Psycholinguistic Profiling Differentiates Specific Language Impairment From Typical Development and From Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Authors: Redmond Sean M. , Thompson Heather L. , Goldstein Sam
Published: August 2010

Purpose

Practitioners must have confidence in the capacity of their language measures to discriminate developmental language disorders from typical development and from other common disorders. In this study, psycholinguistic profiles were collected from 3 groups: children with specific language impairment (SLI), children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and children with typical development (TD). The capacity of different language indices to successfully discriminate SLI cases from TD and ADHD cases was examined through response operating characteristics curves, likelihood ratios, and binary logistic regression.

Method

The Test of Early Grammatical Impairment (Rice & Wexler, 2001a), Dollaghan and Campbell’s (1998) nonword repetition task, Redmond’s (2005) sentence recall task, and the Test of Narrative Language (Gillam & Pearson, 2004) were administered to 60 children (7–8 years of age).

Results

Diagnostic accuracy was high for all 4 psycholinguistic measures, although modest reductions were observed with the SLI versus ADHD discriminations. Classification accuracy associated with using the Test of Early Grammatical Impairment and the Sentence Recall task was equivalent to using all 4 measures.

Implications

Outcomes confirmed and extended previous investigations, documenting high levels of diagnostic integrity for these particular indices and supporting their incorporation into eligibility decisions, differential diagnosis, and the identification of comorbidity.
An Employment Interview Desensitization Program Addressing the Speech, Attitudes, and Avoidance Behaviors of People Who Stutter
Authors: Hohulin Amy C. , Sawyer Jean
Published: August 2010

Previous research suggests that people who stutter experience limitations when seeking employment due to their stuttering and/or subsequent avoidance behaviors. The current case study examined the efficacy of a therapy program designed to address the disfluent speech, negative attitudes, and avoidance behaviors displayed by people who stutter when preparing for and participating in an employment selection interview. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used in the investigation. Results indicated that the participant made some positive gains in all three target areas. The significance of these findings is discussed.
Higher-accuracy schemes for approximating the Hessian from electronic structure calculations in chemical dynamics simulations
Authors: Wu H. , Rahman M. , Wang J. , Louderaj U. , Hase W. L. , Zhuang Y.
Published: August 2010

In this paper, we present a family of generally applicable schemes for updating the Hessian from electronic structure calculations based on an equation derived with compact finite difference (CFD). The CFD-based equation is of higher accuracy than the quasi-Newton equation on which existing generally applicable Hessian update schemes are based. Direct tests of Hessian update schemes, as well as dynamics simulations using an integrator incorporating Hessian update schemes, have shown four of the new schemes produce reliably higher accuracy than existing Hessian update schemes.
An Ar threesome: Matrix models, 2d conformal field theories, and 4d N=2 gauge theories
Authors: Schiappa Ricardo , Wyllard Niclas
Published: August 2010

We explore the connections between three classes of theories: Ar quiver matrix models, d=2 conformal Ar Toda field theories, and d=4 N=2 supersymmetric conformal Ar quiver gauge theories. In particular, we analyze the quiver matrix models recently introduced by Dijkgraaf and Vafa (unpublished) and make detailed comparisons with the corresponding quantities in the Toda field theories and the N=2 quiver gauge theories. We also make a speculative proposal for how the matrix models should be modified in order for them to reproduce the instanton partition functions in quiver gauge theories in five dimensions.
Subgap modulated photocurrent spectroscopy and its application to the study of the solar cell absorber defect distributions
Authors: Djebbour Z. , Serhan J. , Migan-Dubois A. , Mencaraglia D.
Published: August 2010

In this paper, a theoretical background of subgap modulated photocurrent experiment is presented. It allows the investigation of the density of states (DOS) distribution, directly from the active region of a semiconductor heterojunction device. The junction is illuminated with a modulated subgap light excitation (i.e., light with photon energy lower than the band gap of the active layer). Under specific considerations for the applied reverse bias voltage and the bias-light level, a simple theoretical relation of the imaginary part of the photocurrent versus the modulation angular frequency allows the determination of the energy profile of the gap states. This technique has been successfully applied to a Ga free Cu(In,Ga)Se2 based solar cell to investigate the DOS distribution in the band gap of the absorber. Two distinct defect distributions have been exhibited in the absorber layer of the studied solar cell.
Thermoreflectance of metal transducers for time-domain thermoreflectance
Authors: Wang Yuxin , Park Ji Yong , Koh Yee Kan , Cahill David G.
Published: August 2010

We report measurements of the temperature dependence of the optical reflectivity, i.e., the thermoreflectance dR/dT, of 18 metallic elements at two laser wavelengths commonly used in ultrafast pump-probe experiments, 1.55 μm and 785 nm. The thermoreflectance is determined using time-domain thermoreflectance combined with measurements of the laser power and spot size and comparisons between the data and quantitative modeling of the temperature evolution at the surface of the sample. At a laser wavelength of 1.55 μm, four elements within this set of samples, Nb, Re, Ta, and V, have dR/dT comparable to or larger than 0.6×10−4 K−1. At a laser wavelength of 785 nm, the highest thermoreflectance is found in Al and Ta, dR/dT≈2.1×10−4 K−1 and 2.2×10−4 K−1, respectively. Alloying Au with 5% Pd increases the optical absorption by a factor of 3 and the thermoreflectance by a factor of 2.
Impact of solid-phase crystallization of amorphous silicon on the chemical structure of the buried Si/ZnO thin film solar cell interface
Authors: Bär M. , Wimmer M. , Wilks R. G. , Roczen M. , Gerlach D. , Ruske F. , Lips K. , Rech B. , Weinhardt L. , Blum M. , Pookpanratana S. , Krause S. , Zhang Y. , Heske C. , Yang W. , Denlinger J. D.
Published: August 2010

The chemical interface structure between phosphorus-doped hydrogenated amorphous silicon and aluminum-doped zinc oxide thin films is investigated with soft x-ray emission spectroscopy (XES) before and after solid-phase crystallization (SPC) at 600 °C. In addition to the expected SPC-induced phase transition from amorphous to polycrystalline silicon, our XES data indicates a pronounced chemical interaction at the buried Si/ZnO interface. In particular, we find an SPC-enhanced formation of Si–O bonds and the accumulation of Zn in close proximity to the interface. For an assumed closed and homogeneous SiO2 interlayer, an effective thickness of (5±2) nm after SPC could be estimated.