bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effects of a Computer-Based Training Module on Drivers’ Willingness to Engage in Distracting Activities
Authors: Horrey William J. , Lesch Mary F. , Kramer Arthur F. , Melton David F.
Published: August 2009

Objective: This study examines the effect of a computer-based training module on drivers’ attitudes and behaviors with respect to in-vehicle distraction. Background: Research findings on the negative performance implications of distraction call for the need to mitigate these adverse effects. Method: Forty drivers (ages 18 to 20 yrs) were divided into two groups: a training group that completed the module and a control group that viewed an unrelated video. The training promoted enhanced metacognitive skills (e.g., planning, monitoring) and strategies to deal with distraction. Measures of willingness to perform in-vehicle activities while driving (involving the use of short videos) were assessed before and after the intervention. Drivers also performed in-vehicle tasks while driving an instrumented vehicle on a closed test track. Results: Following the training, drivers in the training group showed a decline in their ratings of willingness to engage in distracting activities along with a corresponding increase in perceived risk. In contrast, ratings from drivers in the control group did not change on any measures. Drivers in the training group were also more likely to perform in-vehicle tasks while the vehicle was parked compared with the control group—an obvious safety benefit. However, there was no observable benefit of training for drivers who performed the distracting tasks while the vehicle was in motion. Conclusion: There may be some promise to such a training approach. The implications for distraction and training are discussed. Application: Training general skills in dealing with potentially distracting in-vehicle tasks may help offset some of the negative outcomes associated with their use.
Effect of Interlayer Delamination on Mechanical Behavior of Carbon/Epoxy Laminates
Authors: Reis P.N.B. , Ferreira J.A.M. , Antunes F.V. , Richardson M.O.W.
Published: August 2009

This article presents the results of a current study on the influence of interlayer delaminations on the static and fatigue behavior of composite laminates. The composite was manufactured by a vacuum molding method using 12 balanced bi-directional carbon fiber layers and epoxy resin. Delaminations with different length were artificially introduced. The specimens with dog bone shape were cut from the original plates having 3 mm thickness and fiber weight fraction of 0.66. Static tests were performed in order to study the influence of delamination size on the laminate stiffness and strength. Complementary finite element analysis was carried out showing the influence of angular misalignments of fiber/matrix delaminations on the laminate stiffness. Fatigue tests were performed in load control for R = 0.05 and R = —1, with a loading frequency of 10 Hz, at room temperature. The artificial interlayer delaminations have a negligible influence on the fatigue strength for tensile cycle loadings, but produce significant decreases in strength for R = —1 fatigue loadings.
Strength and Damage of Elementary Flax Fibers Extracted from Tow and Long Line Flax
Authors: Andersons J. , Spārniņš E. , Poriķe E.
Published: August 2009

Flax fibers possess high specific strength and stiffness, and thus are competitive in terms of mechanical properties with traditional reinforcing fibers used in polymer-matrix composite materials. For environmental and economical benefit, it would be preferable to apply nontextile grade fibers in composites provided their mechanical characteristics are acceptable. Elementary fibers have been extracted from long line flax, used as high-quality raw material for textile industry, and flax tow, and their strength distribution and damage level determined. It is shown that the elementary flax fibers coming from short flax fiber are not inferior to those of textile-quality flax in terms of strength and damage.
Mechanical Performance of Low Shrinkage Engineered Cementitious Composite in Tension and Compression
Authors: Zhang Jun , Gong Chengxu , Guo Zili , Ju Xianchun
Published: August 2009

An experimental study was carried out to assess the mechanical performance of engineered fiber-reinforced composites (ECC) with characteristic of low drying shrinkage. Research emphasis is placed on the influence of water to binder ratio (w/c) on tensile and compressive properties, such as stress-strain curves, strength, and strain values as well as elastic modulus. Four mixtures with w/c of 0.55, 0.45, 0.35, and 0.25 were designed in the experimental program. Experimental results show that composite with compressive strength ranging from 20 to 60 MPa can be obtained by varying w/c from 0.55 to 0.25, while retaining the tensile strain hardening and multiple cracking performances. A significant plasticity, like yielding of metal, is found under compressive load after peak stress, except for the similar behavior under tensile load.
Characterization of Quasi-static Mechanical Properties of Polymer Nanocomposites Using a New Combinatorial Approach
Authors: Gershon Alan L. , Kota Arun K. , Bruck Hugh A.
Published: August 2009

Recently, it has become very important to rapidly characterize the processing-structure-property relationships in polymer nanocomposites using minimal quantities of expensive nanoscale fillers. To address this issue, we present a new combinatorial approach developed for characterizing the variation in mechanical properties as a function of filler composition in polymer nanocomposites. The fundamental basis for the combinatorial approach is the generation of compositional gradients through transient operation of a twin-screw extruder (TSE). The compositional variation in the specimens could be rapidly predicted a priori using a convolution process model and was verified a posteriori using pycnometry measurements and thermogravimetric analysis. To characterize the quasi-static mechanical properties along the compositional gradient, sub-scale specimens that are proportional in size to ASTM type I specimens but with a gage section that is a factor of 10 smaller, were tested using a microtensile tester. The properties of the sub-scale specimens processed in the combinatorial approach correlated well with those of sub-scale specimens of similar composition processed in steady-state, thereby indicating that the properties were unaffected by the transient operation of the TSE. Furthermore, the quasi-static mechanical properties of the steady-state ASTM type I standard specimens were compared with those of the sub-scale specimens to determine the effect of specimen size. The results were nearly identical, except the increased size of the ASTM type I standard specimens resulted in substantial reductions in ductility that are most likely due to an increase in the number of processing-related defects.
Merchant Model Applied to Precision Orthogonal Cutting of Pa66 Polyamide with and without Glass Fiber Reinforcing
Authors: Silva Leonardo R. , Davim J. Paulo , Abrão A.M. , Faria P.E.
Published: August 2009

Polyamide composites are widely employed in various fields of engineering, such as aircraft, automotive, robots, and machinery owing to their remarkable properties. Precision machining aims the production of advanced components with high-dimensional accuracy and acceptable surface integrity. This work presents a preliminary experimental study based on Merchant theory applied to precision radial turning of PA 66 polyamide with and without 30% glass fiber reinforcing. Distinct feed rate values were tested using uncoated carbide tool (grade K15) without chip breaker. The aim of this study is to evaluate the chip compression ratio (Rc), chip deformation (ε), friction angle (ρ), shear angle (Φ), normal stress (σ), and shear stress (τ). In general, similar results were obtained when comparing the results obtained using Merchant model with the experimental findings.
Strength Enhancement of Advanced Grid Stiffened FRP Tube Confined Concrete Cylinders under Fire
Authors: Ji Gefu , Li Guoqiang , Pang Su-Seng , Alaywan Walid
Published: August 2009

Recently, a new confining device - a lattice of interlaced fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) ribs that were wrapped by an FRP skin, has been developed to provide better confinement to a concrete core through interfacial mechanical interlocking [1,2]. A systematic study has validated the enhanced structural capacities over traditional FRP tube encased concrete counterparts. However, like traditional FRPs, advanced grid stiffened FRP tube confined concrete cylinders (AGS-FRPC) are vulnerable to fire hazards. The purpose of this study was to investigate the enhancement of fire tolerance as a result of incorporating organically modified montmorillonite (MMT) and a traditional fire retardant additive (TSWB®) into a vinyl ester (VE) matrix. Two series of samples were prepared. The first series consisted of groups A, B, C, and D, in which A was regular AGS-FRPC, B was enhanced with MMT, C was enhanced with TSWB® fire retardant additive, and D was enhanced with both MMT and TSWB®. The second series of samples was identical to the first series as a control, and it consisted of groups of E, F, G, and H, respectively. The only difference was that the first series was exposed to a jet fire of 982°C for 5 min while the second series was not. It was found that fire exposure had a significant impact on reducing the residual strength of the confined concrete cylinders. The introduction of MMT increased both the fire tolerance and compressive strength of AGS-FRPC. The TSWB additive was effective in minimizing the effect of the fire hazard, but it reduced the compressive strength.
Study on the Mechanical Properties of Different Silkworm Silk Fibers
Authors: Cheung Hoi-Yan , Lau Kin-Tak , Ho Mei-Po , Mosallam Ayman
Published: August 2009

Mechanical properties of Bombyx mori, twisted B. mori, and Tussah silk fibers were investigated. Their ultimate tensile strength, elongation at break, and Young’s modulus were examined by performing a uniaxial tensile test on a single fiber. Scanning electron microscopy was used to observe the morphology of two different types of silk fiber, and to measure their apparent diameters from which the cross-sectional area of the silk fiber for stress-strain analysis can be determined. Based on experimental results obtained, it was found that Tussah silk fiber has a relatively high extensibility as compared to B. mori silk fiber and other natural fibers. Weibull analysis was also used to quantify tensile strength reproducibility of the silk fiber. Both single and twisted B. mori silk fibers have a better reproducibility of tensile properties than Tussah silk fiber.
Mechanical Behavior and Failure Mode of Unidirectional Fiber Composites at Low Strain Rate Level
Authors: Sun Lili , Jia Yuxi , Ma Fengde , Sun Sheng , Han Charles C.
Published: August 2009

The rate responses of unidirectional fiber composites at low strain rate level (range from 2E-5 to 2E-2 s-1), including tensile mechanical and stress relaxation behaviors, were investigated in this article. The results obtained showed that the ultimate tensile stress increases as strain rate increases, and the stress relaxation time decreases as pre-tensile strain rate increases. And besides, the macro-failure modes of fiber composites changed from ductile fracture feature to brittle fracture feature as strain rate increasing. Furthermore, the micro-failure modes of multi-fiber composite were investigated originally, with the results indicating that fiber-fiber interactions decreased while increasing tensile strain rate.
Assessing Transfer from Track Two Diplomacy: The Cases of Water and Jerusalem
Authors: Cuhadar Esra
Published: August 2009

This article focuses on the evaluation of transfer from Track Two diplomacy to negotiations and policymaking by examining four Track Two initiatives between Israelis and Palestinians over the issues of water and Jerusalem. The article first discusses the transfer process for the water and Jerusalem cases and then presents lessons drawn from the comparative study. The comparative assessment reveals similarities concerning transfer in terms of what the contributions of Track Two are to the process of negotiations, which transfer strategies are used, and what conditions are necessary to make a contribution to the outcome. Initiatives in both cases employ primarily the strategy of working with influential people and they are more successful in impacting the process of negotiations rather than the outcome. Their contribution to the process of negotiations shows regularities in the types of learning acquired and used. Successful transfer to outcome is observed in one occasion when transfer strategies were implemented effectively, the negotiators were open to outside information, and there was political willingness. Asymmetrical transfer of people, and of ideas, from Track Two initiatives to negotiations was a barrier to effective transfer.
Military Intervention by Powerful States, 1945—2003
Authors: Sullivan Patricia L. , Koch Michael T.
Published: August 2009

The Military Intervention by Powerful States (MIPS) project develops a rigorous, generalizable measure of the effectiveness of military force as a policy instrument and applies the measure to code the outcomes of all military interventions conducted by five major powers since the termination of World War II. The MIPS dataset provides detailed data on US, British, Chinese, French, and Russian uses of military force against both state and non-state targets between 1946 and 2003. In particular, this project focuses on the political objectives strong states pursue through the use of force, the human and material cost of their military operations, and measures of intervention outcomes relative to the intervening states’ objectives. The dataset also includes extensive data on factors commonly hypothesized to be associated with war outcomes, such as the nature of the target, the type of force used by the intervening state, and military aid and assistance provided to each side.
Politics of Formalized River Cooperation
Authors: Tir Jaroslav , Ackerman John T.
Published: August 2009

While much of the extant literature has focused on the potential of international rivers to generate militarized conflict, this study builds on more recent works that examine the politics of river cooperation. The article focuses on the efforts to regulate the use of international rivers formally by the means of treaties. The theoretical framework incorporates prominent variables from the (neo)realist and neo-liberal schools of thought as well as the need for potable water and river-related geographic factors. The framework is used to generate expectations about whether riparian countries will enter into the treaties dealing in particular with the issues of water quantity and quality. Systematic empirical evaluations covering the entire world in the 1948—2000 time period confirm some while challenging much of the conventional wisdom on the topic. Specifically, preponderant power distribution, economic interdependence, democratic governance, and water scarcity all increase the chances for formalized river cooperation between contiguous riparian states. In contrast, the findings suggest that the roles of allegedly important and problematic factors such as the upstream/downstream relationship and recent militarized conflict have been exaggerated in earlier research. Cumulatively, the findings sound a cautiously optimistic note for the prospects of the spread of formal river cooperation in the less developed parts of the world.
A New Moral Hazard? Military Intervention, Peacekeeping and Ratification of the International Criminal Court
Authors: Neumayer Eric
Published: August 2009

The newly established International Criminal Court (ICC) promises justice to the victims of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Past offenders can be punished, while future potential offenders may be deterred by the prospect of punishment. Yet, justice is no substitute for intervention for the benefit of people at acute risk of being victimized. The Court may create a new moral hazard problem if the promise of ex post justice makes it easier for states to shy away from incurring the costs of intervention. This article indirectly tests for the relevance of this potential problem by estimating the determinants of ratification delay to the Rome Statute of the ICC. If the Court represents an excuse for inaction, then countries that are unwilling or unable to intervene in foreign conflicts should be among its prime supporters. Results show instead that countries that in the past have been more willing to intervene in foreign civil wars and more willing to contribute troops to multinational peacekeeping missions are more likely to have ratified the Statute (early on). This suggests that the Court is a complement to, not a substitute for intervention.
Firm Heterogeneity and Location Choices: Evidence from Foreign Manufacturing Investments in China
Authors: Junjie Hong
Published: August 2009

This paper develops a model which indicates that foreign firms’ location choices are determined jointly by site attributes and firm heterogeneity. The model is estimated using data on 2565 foreign manufacturing investments in China. The conditional logit estimates and simulation results provide supportive evidence. An increase in a firm’s labour intensity magnifies the impact of labour cost, while a location’s local communications infrastructure has a stronger influence on foreign firms that have adopted modern information technology. It is also found that agglomeration effects decrease with firm size and labour quality. Implications for researchers and policy-makers are discussed in the conclusion.
The Gap between Free Market and Social Optimum in the Location Decision of Economic Activity
Authors: Malul Miki , Bar-El Raphael
Published: August 2009

This article presents a simplified model for comparison of the spatial distribution (core—periphery) of economic activity resulting from free market conditions, with the distribution that would lead to a social optimum. It further examines the public policy measures required to lead the economy towards the optimal distribution. Simulations are conducted to illustrate the mechanism of intervention of public policy and to test the feasibility of various measures. An important conclusion is that public investment in the creation of competitive ability in the periphery may provide the solution to market failure and therefore lead to the achievement of a social optimum greater than the free market optimum. Another preliminary conclusion is that public policy should consider a combination of measures (such as improving both regional infrastructure and the quality of the labour force), since focusing on a single measure may not be sufficient to achieve a social optimum.
Neighbourhood Change... Reason to Leave?
Authors: Feijten Peteke , van Ham Maarten
Published: August 2009

Little attention has been paid to date to the role of a changing neighbourhood as a factor influencing the residential choice process. Processes of neighbourhood change are often beyond residents’ sphere of influence and if a changing neighbourhood causes residential stress, the only way to improve one’s neighbourhood is to move to a better one. This study aims to get more insight into the effect of neighbourhood change on residential stress by studying residents’ wish to leave their neighbourhood. Using data from The Netherlands, we show that there is no effect of a change in the socioeconomic status of the neighbourhood on moving wishes. A high level of population turnover and an increase in the proportion of non-Western ethnic minorities in the neighbourhood increase the probability that residents want to leave their neighbourhood. The latter effect disappears when controlled for residents’ subjective opinion about neighbourhood change.
Urban Locations of Eminent Black Entrepreneurs in the United States
Authors: Boyd Robert L.
Published: August 2009

Extraordinarily successful Black entrepreneurs have received relatively little attention in the literature on Black socioeconomic progress in the US. The present study fills this gap by identifying the urban centres that have been the main locations of Black entrepreneurs who have been classified by scholars as ‘eminent’. Biographical data from highly regarded encyclopaedic sources show that these entrepreneurs have concentrated in a small number of urban centres and have a skewed spatial distribution that resembles the famous ‘Pareto curve’. These data also indicate that, over most of the 20th century, Black communities in the urban South produced a disproportionate share of the Black Americans whose business successes have been nationally recognised. However, the data suggest that, by the end of the century, the largest metropolitan areas outside the South—Chicago, New York and Los Angeles—were becoming the primary locations of eminent Black entrepreneurs in the US.
Analyzing Longitudinal Data With the Linear Mixed Models Procedure in SPSS
Authors: West Brady T.
Published: August 2009

Many applied researchers analyzing longitudinal data share a common misconception: that specialized statistical software is necessary to fit hierarchical linear models (also known as linear mixed models [LMMs], or multilevel models) to longitudinal data sets. Although several specialized statistical software programs of high quality are available that allow researchers to fit these models to longitudinal data sets (e.g., HLM), rapid advances in general purpose statistical software packages have recently enabled analysts to fit these same models when using preferred packages that also enable other more common analyses. One of these general purpose statistical packages is SPSS, which includes a very flexible and powerful procedure for fitting LMMs to longitudinal data sets with continuous outcomes. This article aims to present readers with a practical discussion of how to analyze longitudinal data using the LMMs procedure in the SPSS statistical software package.
Methods and Measures: The Network of Relationships Inventory: Behavioral Systems Version
Authors: Furman Wyndol , Buhrmester Duane
Published: August 2009

This paper describes an alternative version of the Network of Relationships Inventory, which was designed to assess how frequently different relationships were used to fulfill the functions of three behavioral systems: attachment, caregiving, and affiliation. Psychometric and validational evidence is presented including: (a) high internal consistency for all scales and composites; (b) a second order factor structure of support and negative interactions for each relationship; (c) moderately high stability over a one year period; (d) moderate convergence among different reporters; (e) theoretically meaningful differences among different relationships; (f) moderate associations among different relationships; (g) associations with the original Network of Relationships Inventory; and (h) relations with observed interactions with mothers and friends.
Enhancing Development Through International Collaboration by Schools of Librarianship and Information Studies
Authors: Johnson Ian M.
Published: August 2009

This paper explores how international collaboration by Schools of Librarianship and Information Studies (SLIS) with other SLIS, other disciplines and the practitioner communities could make a significant contribution to the development of library and information services. Collaboration to date has had a limited impact. Based on a review of not only the literature of Librarianship and Information Studies, but also some of the literature on internationalization of higher education, and on collaboration in research and in business, the paper indicates the barriers to collaboration and actions that may contribute to successful collaboration. The support necessary to sustain international collaboration is more likely to be attracted by comparative research studies focused on the role of library and information services in facilitating developments that are widely perceived to be economically or socially important. An international context would facilitate a more rigorous comparison of the resources allocated to library and information services and the benefits derived. This would reveal more clearly the impact that variations in provision make on the achievement of government or organizational goals, and help make a stronger case for enhanced support. A UNESCO/UNITWIN Chair is proposed as a potential formal mechanism to provide strategic leadership for developing appropriate activities.
E-Learning and E-Library Services at the University of Ghana: prospects and challenges
Authors: Dadzie Perpetua S.
Published: August 2009

This paper investigates the prospects and challenges of using an e-learning platform, Knowledge Environment for Web-based Learning, (KEWL) by the teaching staff of the Faculty of Social Studies, University of Ghana. It also highlights the need for interoperability of e-library services within the e-learning platform. Data collected through survey questionnaires and in-depth interviews were used to examine faculty awareness and opinions, expectations and capabilities in using KEWL for teaching and learning. The analysis of the data suggests that infrastructure, technology and training should be considered by the university administrators to increase the rate of adoption of e-learning within the community. Implications for the development of strategies for e-learning and interoperability of e-library services within that platform are proposed for university administrators not only in Ghana but also for other African countries. This paper presents a modest contribution to the discourse on the integration of e-library services within the e-learning platform from a developing country’s perspective. It offers important insights into how e-library services and e-learning in developing countries can be better managed to enhance its rapid adoption.
The Role of Mailing Groups in the Development of the Library Profession in Pakistan: the case of plagpk
Authors: Siddique Nadeem , Mahmood Khalid
Published: August 2009

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have made it possible for members of any profession to contact other professionals or communicate on a group level that was not possible in the past. It is due to the availability of ICT-based social networking software. LIS professionals in Pakistan are not behind in adopting modern technologies. They have been using mailing groups since December 2000. Pakistan Library Automation Group (PakLAG), a group of volunteer LIS professionals, launched the first ever mailing group in Pakistan known as plagpk. The impact of the plagpk mailing group is very positive. It provides a useful forum to professionals to share their experiences and solve their problems. It is helping in the placement of fresh graduates by posting jobs. It helped a lot in the revival of a dead national library association. The group has created awareness among Pakistani LIS professionals in using new ICT-based social networking software. Following its example, many other mailing groups have also been launched by LIS professionals. This paper presents the results of content analysis of 5216 e-mail messages posted on plagpk till December 2008. The results of a survey of users about the usefulness of this group are also presented.
Performance Evaluation of the INNOPAC Library System in Southern Africa: perspectives from systems librarians
Authors: Taole Nthabiseng
Published: August 2009

There is a growing interest in the INNOPAC library automation system, which has been implemented by several libraries in the Southern African region over the past 10 years. The majority of these libraries have installed this library system through consortia membership, and others have done it individually. This article evaluates the performance of the INNOPAC library system in five libraries in the Southern African region using the performance criteria of Functionality, Usability, Support and Training, and Vendor. The article identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the system, and makes recommendations for implementation in other similar libraries in the region. It also outlines a proposal for an INNOPAC-based consortium for the Southern African region.
Scaffolding in the Writing Center
Authors: Thompson Isabelle
Published: August 2009

In this microanalysis, a university writing center conference with an experienced tutor and a student he has never met before is analyzed for the tutor’s use of direct instruction, cognitive scaffolding, and motivational scaffolding. Along with verbal expressions of scaffolding, this analysis also considers the tutor’s hand gestures—topic gestures, which operationalize instruction and cognitive scaffolding, and interactive gestures, which operationalize motivational scaffolding. As defined in this analysis, instruction is the most directive of the three strategies and includes telling. Also directive, cognitive scaffolding leads and supports the student in making correct and useful responses, while motivational scaffolding provides feedback and helps maintain focus on the task and motivation. The microanalysis points to the importance of the student’s cognitive and motivational readiness to learn and the need for the student to control the agenda throughout the conference. It also contextualizes admonitions against tutor directiveness.
Playing, Shopping, and Working as Rock Musicians
Authors: Sargent Carey
Published: August 2009

Masculinities vary by organizational context, demonstrating that organizational culture shapes the gendering of work even within the same occupation. The author draws on comparative and ethnographic data collected in two retail environments (large and small musical instrument stores) to understand how a common organizational culture is differently gendered by the organization of work. In these music stores, organizational culture is driven by masculinist fantasies of the rock musician lifestyle. As the products and knowledge of the rock musician lifestyle are made popularly accessible and retail work is deskilled, a style of masculinity based on fraternization and competition takes the place of formal knowledge and experience—reaffirming rock musician as a populist, but exclusively male identity. The article concludes with a consideration of how the de-skilling of retail work reproduces gendered interactions that affirm men’s control over work and its products, even as retail work is presumed to be feminizing.
A multistory gigantic subaerial debris flow in an active fault scarp in NW Anatolia, Turkey: anatomy, mechanism and timing
Authors: Ocakoglu F. , Acikalin S. , Gokceoglu C. , Karabacak V. , Cherkinsky A.
Published: August 2009

Mass instability in the uplifting footwall blocks of normal faults involves a range of regional and local factors including, among others, climatic setting, topography, lithology and particularly ground shaking during earthquakes. Morphological and sedimentological investigations backed by 14C dating on a huge debris flow and its zone of depreciation provided favorable insights for dynamics and causative factors of this mass wasting. Our observations showed that İsmetpaşa Debris Flow with a volume of 96 km 3 involves three individual flows of decreasing significance in the late Pleistocene—Holocene period. The primary flow occurred in relation to a huge landslide developed on highly fractured and altered basaltic lavas near the crest of fault scarp c. 18.7 ka BP and probably conditioned by high precipitation rates in the early Interglacial. Although, most of the blocky debris flow transferred into the neighboring graben to form a 2 km wide debris fan, some remnant blocks and flow-induced valley-side slickensides can still be observed in the zone of depreciation. One km long secondary flow was sourced from the remnants of primary flow and was realized at 7.9 ka BP in another humid period of the Holocene. The third, though minor (less than 100 m long), mobilization of the flow occurred on one of the steep faces of secondary flow in 1960s when the mean precipitation was higher than that of today. Good coincidence of timing of individual debris flows with the humid phases of the late Pleistocene—Holocene period showed that long-term antecedent precipitation is the dominant causative factor.
Multiproxy lake sediment records at the northern and southern boundaries of the Aspen Parkland region of Manitoba, Canada
Authors: Teed Rebecca , Umbanhower Charles , Camill Philip
Published: August 2009

Aspen parkland in central Canada may change substantially with increased warming and aridity as prairies replace forests, fire return intervals decrease and lake levels decline. We examined the relationships among vegetation, climate, fire and lake-ecosystem properties using lake sediment cores from the current northern and southern boundaries of the aspen parkland in southwestern Manitoba. We analyzed pollen, charcoal, sediment magnetics, biogenic silica, phosphorus, grain size and LOI, and dated the cores using 210Pb and 14C (AMS, calibrated). The Jones Lake record, from the southern edge of the parkland, began considerably earlier (~11 000 cal. BP) than the Mallard Pond record at the northern edge (~8600 cal. BP). These sites were characterized as prairie communities with low fire severity and relatively low lake productivity during the warm, dry period from 9000 to 6000 cal. BP. Beginning around 6500 cal. BP at Jones Lake and 3400 cal. BP at Mallard Pond, conditions appeared to get wetter as indicated by arboreal pollen percentage increases from ~30% to 40— 60%, concurrent with a rise in charcoal and proxies for lake productivity (biogenic silica and percent organic phosphorus). Similar to previous studies along the prairie—forest border, we found that charcoal increased during warmer, wetter periods with increased forest cover and fuel loading rather than during warmer, drier periods of prairie dominance. Our results underscore the importance of regional changes in moisture, and its effects on lake levels and forest biomass, as a dominant control of the aspen parkland dynamics.
Librarians, librarianship and The Uses of Literacy
Authors: Usherwood Bob
Published: August 2009

First published in 1957, following a battle with nervous lawyers, The Uses of Literacy is recognized as one of the founding texts of cultural studies. Its critique of mass culture reverberated far beyond that discipline. It influenced the librarians of the day who were beginning to think about issues of class and consider their services in a social context. This review considers its current relevance and discusses the views of library professionals who support and oppose Hoggart’s thesis. Library educators and practitioners also consulted other writers who examined culture and class but the author suggests that Hoggart is closest to the library world. Libraries were part of his development and he contributed to professional journals and activities. The Uses of Literacy remains relevant to the concerns of the working class and reminds librarians of their responsibilities. It is pertinent to current professional debates about literacy, commercialized culture and the need for excellence. As we enter a more serious age there are signs that Hoggart’s arguments might be heeded and that members of the profession will use them as a compass to help them counter the abuse of literacy.
Women and Their Partners’ Perceptions of the Key Roles of the Labor and Delivery Nurse
Authors: Brown Judith Belle , Beckhoff Christy , Bickford Julia , Stewart Moira , Freeman Thomas R. , Kasperski M. Janet
Published: August 2009

This descriptive qualitative study examined the perspectives of women and their partners regarding the key roles of the labor and delivery nurse during labor and birth.Ten couples were interviewed separately.The data analysis, conducted through independent and team analysis, was both iterative and interpretive. Participants identified four key roles of the labor and delivery nurse: support person, educator, patient advocate, and provider of continuity. Nurses provided both physical and emotional support.As an educator, they normalized the birth experience and served as a coach for the couple. Nurses advocated on behalf of the woman in labor, particularly when there was an adverse event. The continuity of care provided by the nurses wove the above roles into a cohesive whole. Findings provide important information for nursing educators, supervisors, and hospital administrators to reinforce the meaningful roles nurses serve in the labor and birth experiences of women and their partners.
Dabigatran Etexilate: Future Directions in Anticoagulant Treatment
Authors: Schulman Sam , Reilly Paul A.
Published: August 2009

Dabigatran etexilate is a novel, oral reversible direct thrombin inhibitor in the clinical development for the treatment and prevention of thromboembolic diseases. Clinical data indicate that dabigatran etexilate has immediate onset of effect, no need for monitoring, predictable and consistent pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics—all features that differentiate it from oral vitamin K antagonists (VKAs). Completed phase III studies demonstrated a comparable efficacy and safety profile to enoxaparin in the prevention of venous thromboembolism (VTE) after orthopedic surgery. Ongoing phase III trials are now evaluating the long-term use of dabigatran etexilate for the treatment and secondary prevention of VTE and for prevention of stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation, as a replacement for VKAs. With an immediate, reliable, and predictable anticoagulant effect without the need for coagulation monitoring and the lack of long-term safety concerns, dabigatran etexilate may be a prospective candidate that offers additional benefit over VKAs and parenteral anticoagulants in these settings.
Fiscal Decentralization and Public Sector Employment
Authors: Martinez-Vazquez Jorge , Yao Ming-Hung
Published: August 2009

This paper investigates the relationship between public sector employment and fiscal decentralization. We develop a theoretical framework modeling the interactions between the central and subnational executives regarding the level of public employment at the central and subnational government levels. In our empirical work, based on a large cross-country dataset, we find that, ceteris paribus, the level of total public sector employees in a country increases with its level of fiscal decentralization. Even though central government employment decreases with decentralization, this is more than fully offset by the increase in employment at the subnational level accompanying decentralization. Our empirical results also indicate that the relationship between GDP per capita and public sector employment is not monotonic but quadratic, that total public sector employment is higher in unitary countries vis-à-vis federal countries, and that public employment increases with the country’s international economic openness.
Empathetic identification and punitiveness
Authors: Unnever James D. , Cullen Francis T.
Published: August 2009

Studies reveal that some Americans are more willing than others to endorse harsh measures to control crime. We advance this literature by presenting a model that offers an integrated explanation of why some Americans are more punitive than others. Scholars have found that people construct images of offenders that reflect those disseminated by elites, the media, and popular culture. These images can vary across types of crime and can change over time. We posit that individual differences in punitiveness are related to whether people empathize with the images they construct of ‘typical’ stereotyped offenders. We conclude by offering a systematic model that summarizes the proposed theoretical perspective and helps to illuminate both implications for macro-level theories and future avenues of investigation.
Beyond ‘so what?’ criminology
Authors: Matthews Roger
Published: August 2009

There has been a growing concern about the lack of policy relevance of criminology in recent years. Two influential responses to this dilemma have been presented. On one hand, it has been argued that academic criminologists should become more active in mobilizing points of consensus about what works, while on the other hand it has been suggested that there should be a division of labour among academics and that the subject be broken down into public, professional, policy and critical criminologies. This article argues that neither of these responses are tenable and instead calls for an approach that links theory, method and intervention with the aim of developing a coherent critical realist approach that is able to go beyond the existing forms of ‘so what?’ criminology.
The relevance of inmate race/ethnicity versus population composition for understanding prison rule violations
Authors: Steiner Benjamin , Wooldredge John
Published: August 2009

The importance of order maintenance in prisons has generated numerous studies of the correlates to inmate misconduct. Very few of these studies, however, have focused specifically on the correlations between inmates’ race/ethnicity and prison rule breaking. Race and ethnicity could be relevant to an understanding of prison rule breaking if inmates bring their ecologically structured beliefs regarding legal authority, crime and deviance into the institutional environment. Using data from two nationally representative samples of males incarcerated in state facilities, we examined the individual-level effects of an inmate’s race and ethnicity on his likelihood of engaging in various forms of misconduct during incarceration, as well as the contextual effects of the racial/ethnic composition of inmate and correctional staff populations on levels of rule breaking. Findings reveal that the effects of an inmate’s race and ethnicity differ by offense type, and the racial/ethnic composition of inmates and correctional staff have both main and conditioning effects on levels of misconduct. Implications of these results are discussed within a social control framework.
Piloting Data Collection via Cell Phones: Results, Experiences, and Lessons Learned
Authors: Zuwallack Randal
Published: August 2009

From October 2006 through February 2007, Macro and six partnering state departments of health conducted over 1,900 interviews via cell phone in Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, Montana, New Jersey, and Texas. The survey collected about 10 minutes of general health data for adults in each state. Despite a high number of hang-ups, many cell users are willing to conduct a survey on their cell phones. The cell phone sample had a higher percentage of young adults and minorities than a comparative landline sample. A high percentage of respondents live in households without a landline or cell only, a population that cannot be reached through landline random digit dialing samples. A high percentage of respondents keep their phones on all day, suggesting that we are reaching a population segment that regularly use their cell phones rather than those who use cell phones sporadically. This cell phone survey experience has provided invaluable information about conducting cell phone interviews and has helped shape methodological directions for future surveys.
Interdependence, Density Dependence, and Networks in Politics
Authors: Huckfeldt Robert
Published: August 2009

This article addresses the theoretical and methodological challenges that arise due to the interdependence of actors within political processes. Networks of communication and association provide a resolution to the micro—macro problem in political analysis—they provide a vehicle through which individual behavior is reciprocally connected to behavior in the aggregate. A central argument of the article is that these networks are endogenous not only to individual choice and preference, but also to the environmentally imposed supply of associates, giving rise to patterns of density dependence in politics. Density dependence, in turn, produces its own complex consequences for political processes, and hence interdependence frequently becomes a theoretical as well as a methodological imperative in political analysis.
Governing U.S. Metropolitan Areas
Authors: Shrestha Manoj K. , Feiock Richard C.
Published: August 2009

How are fragmented metropolitan areas characterized by multiple actors and multiple relationships governed? This has been a question of enduring interest in the study of local politics and policy. Recent works have made progress in understanding the emergence of self-organizing networks for individual service relationships. However, in the context of multiple service relationships, patterns of service networks that evolve as a consequence of local governments’ actions to address transaction problems have been long overlooked. This article begins to fill this gap in the literature by analyzing pay-for-service contracts across multiple municipal services in one metropolitan county in Florida. The results obtained from matrix correlation and matrix regression based on a quadratic assignment procedure reveal that local jurisdictions develop cross-service reciprocity networks in a multiple services contract environment to resolve credibility of commitment problems they encounter in entering and maintaining interlocal service contracts.
The Implications of Class, Race, and Ethnicity for Political Networks
Authors: Leighley Jan E. , Matsubayashi Tetsuya
Published: August 2009

Previous research demonstrates the importance of citizens’ communication networks as an influence on their political behavior. Yet most findings are limited to samples of Whites or the interaction of Whites with their discussants. This article extends our attention to the social networks of Blacks, Latinos, Asians, and noncitizens, and explores how communication processes differ across them. Using data from the Multi-City Study of Urban Inequality, we first compare various characteristics of social networks across racial and ethnic groups. Second, we test whether the network-based advantages of Whites, compared with other groups, result from differences in individual socioeconomic status or from group-based social resources. Third, we investigate whether interracial interaction affects race-related attitudes. In conclusion, we urge scholars who study social networks to recognize the important consequences of racial diversity for more fully understanding the political behavior of all Americans, whether Anglo, Black, Latino, or Asian.
Neighborhood Disadvantage, Alcohol Use, and Violent Victimization
Authors: Browning Sarah , Erickson Patricia
Published: August 2009

This study examines the impact of neighborhood and individual level factors as predictors of violent victimization in a sample of high-school students in Toronto, Canada. Individual factors include school and family effects, alcohol use, and a variety of demographic measures. The neighborhood elements in this study include neighborhood disadvantage (Wilson, 1996) and collective efficacy (Sampson, Raudenbush, & Earls, 1997) concepts in the forefront of research on crime. The research not only examines the direct effect of these variables but also the interaction of the macro- and micro-level variables as correlates of victimization. The results indicate that the neighborhood disadvantage is critical in the explanation of violent victimization. Moreover, the relationship between alcohol use and victimization varies by neighborhood disadvantage.