bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Evolution of Severe and Nonsevere Convection Inferred from GOES-Derived Cloud Properties
Authors: Cintineo John L. , Pavolonis Michael J. , Sieglaff Justin M. , Heidinger Andrew K.
Published: June 2013

Geostationary satellites [e.g., the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)] provide high temporal resolution of cloud development and motion, which is essential to the study of many mesoscale phenomena, including thunderstorms. Initial research on thunderstorm growth with geostationary imagery focused on the mature stages of storm evolution, whereas more recent research on satellite-observed storm growth has concentrated on convective initiation, often defined arbitrarily as the presence of a given radar echo threshold. This paper seeks to link the temporal trends in robust GOES-derived cloud properties with the future occurrence of severe-weather radar signatures during the development phase of thunderstorm evolution, which includes convective initiation. Two classes of storms (severe and nonsevere) are identified and tracked over time in satellite imagery, providing distributions of satellite growth rates for each class. The relationship between the temporal trends in satellite-derived cloud properties and Next Generation Weather Radar (NEXRAD)-derived storm attributes is used to show that this satellite-based approach can potentially be used to extend severe-weather-warning lead times (with respect to radar-derived signatures), without a substantial increase in false alarms. In addition, the effect of varying temporal sampling is investigated on several storms during a period of GOES super-rapid-scan operations (SRSOR). It is found that, from a satellite perspective, storms evolve significantly on time scales shorter than the current GOES operational scan strategies.
The Statistical Predictability of Surface Winds over Western and Central Canada
Authors: Culver Aaron M. R. , Monahan Adam H.
Published: June 2013

Multivariate linear regression is used to downscale reanalysis-based midtropospheric predictors (wind components and speed, temperature, and geopotential height) to historical wind observations at 44 surface weather stations during the four calendar seasons. The model performance is assessed as a function of statistical feature of the wind, averaging time scale of the wind statistics, and wind regime (as defined by how variable the vector wind is relative to its mean amplitude).

Despite large differences in predictability characteristics between sites, several systematic results are observed: consistent with recent studies, a strong anisotropy of predictability for vector quantities is often observed, although no obvious relation is found between large-scale topographic features and the anisotropy orientation or magnitude. The predictability of time-averaged quantities increases with decreasing averaging time scale. In general, the predictability of mean vector wind components is superior to that of mean wind speeds or subaveraging time scale vector wind variability.

These results are interpreted through empirically and theoretically based analyses of the sensitivity of mean wind speed to changes in the vector wind statistics. On longer averaging time scales, the statistical features of the wind speed are found to be highly sensitive to subaveraging time-scale vector wind variability, which is poorly predicted. On shorter averaging time scales, the mean wind speed is found to be highly sensitive to the magnitude of the mean vector wind, a quantity whose predictability can be much lower than the individual mean vector wind components. These results demonstrate limitations to the statistical downscaling of wind speed and suggest that deterministic models that resolve the short-time-scale variability may be necessary for successful predictions.
An Intercomparison of Drought Indicators Based on Thermal Remote Sensing and NLDAS-2 Simulations with U.S. Drought Monitor Classifications
Authors: Anderson Martha C. , Hain Christopher , Otkin Jason , Zhan Xiwu , Mo Kingtse , Svoboda Mark , Wardlow Brian , Pimstein Agustin
Published: June 2013

Comparison of multiple hydrologic indicators, derived from independent data sources and modeling approaches, may improve confidence in signals of emerging drought, particularly during periods of rapid onset. This paper compares the evaporative stress index (ESI)—a diagnostic fast-response indicator describing evapotranspiration (ET) deficits derived within a thermal remote sensing energy balance framework—with prognostic estimates of soil moisture (SM), ET, and runoff anomalies generated with the North American Land Data Assimilation System (NLDAS). Widely used empirical indices based on thermal remote sensing [vegetation health index (VHI)] and precipitation percentiles [standardized precipitation index (SPI)] were also included to assess relative performance. Spatial and temporal correlations computed between indices over the contiguous United States were compared with historical drought classifications recorded in the U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM). Based on correlation results, improved forms for the ESI were identified, incorporating a Penman–Monteith reference ET scaling flux and implementing a temporal smoothing algorithm at the pixel level. Of all indices evaluated, anomalies in the NLDAS ensemble-averaged SM provided the highest correlations with USDM drought classes, while the ESI yielded the best performance of the remote sensing indices. The VHI provided reasonable correlations, except under conditions of energy-limited vegetation growth during the cold season and at high latitudes. Change indices computed from ESI and SM time series agree well, and in combination offer a good indicator of change in drought severity class in the USDM, often preceding USDM class deterioration by several weeks. Results suggest that a merged ESI–SM change indicator may provide valuable early warning of rapidly evolving “flash drought” conditions.
Comparison of Precipitation Derived from the ECMWF Operational Forecast Model and Satellite Precipitation Datasets
Authors: Kidd Chris , Dawkins Erin , Huffman George
Published: June 2013

Precipitation is an important component of the climate system, and the accurate representation of the diurnal rainfall cycle is a key test of model performance. Although the modeling of precipitation in the cooler midlatitudes has improved, in the tropics substantial errors still occur. Precipitation from the operational ECMWF forecast model is compared with satellite-derived products from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Multisatellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) and TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR) to assess the mean annual and seasonal diurnal rainfall cycles. The analysis encompasses the global tropics and subtropics (40°N–40°S) over a 7-yr period from 2004 to 2011. The primary aim of the paper is to evaluate the ability of an operational numerical model and satellite products to retrieve subdaily rainfall. It was found that during the first half of the analysis period the ECMWF model overestimated precipitation by up to 15% in the tropics, although after the implementation of a new convective parameterization in November 2007 this bias fell to about 4%. The ECMWF model poorly represented the diurnal cycle, simulating rainfall too early compared to the TMPA and TRMM PR products; the model simulation of precipitation was particularly poor over Indonesia. In addition, the model did not appear to simulate mountain-slope breezes well or adequately capture many of the characteristics of mesoscale convective systems. The work highlights areas for further study to improve the representation of subgrid-scale processes in parameterization schemes and improvements in model resolution. In particular, the proper representation of subdaily precipitation in models is critical for hydrological modeling and flow forecasting.
Track and Intensity Forecasting of Hurricanes: Impact of Convection-Permitting Resolution and Global Ensemble Kalman Filter Analysis on 2010 Atlantic Season Forecasts
Authors: Xue Ming , Schleif Jordan , Kong Fanyou , Thomas Kevin W. , Wang Yunheng , Zhu Kefeng
Published: June 2013

Twice-daily 48-h tropical cyclone (TC) forecasts were produced for the fall 2010 Atlantic hurricane season using the Advanced Research core of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF-ARW) model on a large 4-km grid covering much of the northern Atlantic. WRF forecasts initialized from operational Global Forecast System (GFS) analyses based on the gridpoint statistical interpolation (GSI) three-dimensional variational data assimilation (3DVAR) system and from experimental global ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) analyses, and corresponding global GFS forecasts were intercompared. For the track, WRF forecasts show improvement over GFS forecasts using either set of initial conditions (ICs). The EnKF-initialized GFS and WRF are also better than the corresponding GSI-initialized forecasts, but the difference is not always statistically significant. At all lead times, the WRF track errors are comparable to or smaller than the National Hurricane Center (NHC) official track forecast error, with those of the EnKF WRF being smallest. For weaker TCs, more improvement comes from the model (resolution) than from the ICs. For hurricane intensity TCs, EnKF ICs produce better track forecasts than GSI ICs, with the best forecast coming from WRF at most lead times. For intensity, EnKF ICs consistently outperform GSI ICs in both models for weaker TCs. For hurricane-strength TCs, EnKF ICs produce forecasts statistically indistinguishable from GSI ICs in either model. For all TCs combined, WRF produces about half the error of the corresponding GFS simulation beyond 24 h, and at 36 and 48 h, the errors are smaller than those from NHC official forecasts. The improvement is even greater for hurricane-strength TCs. Overall, the WRF forecasts initialized with EnKF ICs have the smallest intensity error, and the difference is statistically significant compared to the GFS forecasts.
Racism and Health II
Authors: Williams David R. , Mohammed Selina A.
Published: June 2013

This article reviews the empirical evidence that suggests that there is a solid foundation for more systematic research attention to the ways in which interventions that seek to reduce the multiple dimensions of racism can improve health and reduce disparities in health. First, research reveals that policies and procedures that seek to reduce institutional racism by improving neighborhood and educational quality and enhancing access to additional income, employment opportunities, and other desirable resources can improve health. Second, research is reviewed that shows that there is the potential to improve health through interventions that can reduce cultural racism at the societal and individual level. Finally, research is presented that suggests that the adverse consequences of racism on health can be reduced through policies that maximize the health-enhancing capacities of medical care, address the social factors that initiate and sustain risk behaviors, and empower individuals and communities to take control of their lives and health. Directions for future research are outlined.
The Association of Social Class and Lifestyles
Authors: Petev Ivaylo D.
Published: June 2013

Despite the burgeoning research on lifestyles, we have surprisingly little evidence to answer one of the literature’s founding questions: Is the association between social class and lifestyles disappearing? I explore this inquiry with data from the past four decades. In analyzing the class-lifestyle association, I examine changes in the variability of lifestyles within and between social classes. Using data from the General Social Survey on informal social ties and formal membership ties to voluntary associations, I derive proxies for lifestyles and examine their relation to social class with latent class models. Results show that social classes’ contemporary sociability patterns are substantively similar to traditional descriptions from empirical studies on analogous data from as early as the mid-twentieth century. The association between social classes and sociability patterns shows no sign of having weakened over the past four decades. In fact, recent trends of civic disengagement and social isolation in contemporary U.S. society, which these data corroborate, reinforce class differences in sociability.
Mean Platelet Volume in Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis and Behçet Disease
Authors: Ekiz Ozlem , Balta Ilknur , Sen Bilge Bulbul , Rifaioglu Emine Nur , Ergin Can , Balta Sevket , Demirkol Sait
Published: June 2013

Behcet disease (BD) and recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) are systemic inflammatory diseases, but the exact pathogenesis of both the diseases is unknown. Mean platelet volume (MPV) is an indicator of platelet activation. The aim of this study was to investigate the MPV levels in patients with BD, RAS, and healthy participants. A total of 61 patients with BD, 60 patients with RAS, and 60 healthy controls were included in this study. The MPV levels and erythrocyte sedimentation rate in patients with BD and RAS groups were significantly higher than the control groups ( P < .001). In the BD group as well as in the RAS group, the disease activity does not affect the levels of MPV. The MPV levels may be used as a cheap and feasible diagnostic marker in patients with BD and RAS. Nevertheless, the MPV does not have a predictive value in differentiating the diagnosis of BD and RAS.
The Big Oil Change
Authors: Andersen Jørgen J. , Ross Michael L.
Published: June 2013

The claim that oil wealth tends to block democratic transitions has recently been challenged by Haber and Menaldo, who use historical data going back to 1800 and conclude there is no “resource curse.” We revisit their data and models, and show they might be correct for the period before the 1970s, but since about 1980, there has been a pronounced resource curse. We argue that oil wealth only became a hindrance to democratic transitions after the transformative events of the 1970s, which enabled developing country governments to capture the oil rents that were previously siphoned off by foreign-owned firms. We also explain why the Haber–Menaldo study failed to identify this: partly because the authors draw invalid inferences from their data and partly because they assume that the relationship between oil wealth and democracy has not changed for the past 200 years.
The Malleability of Bicultural Identity Integration (BII)
Authors: Cheng Chi-Ying , Lee Fiona
Published: June 2013

Bicultural Identity Integration (BII), or biculturals’ perceived compatibility between their two cultural identities, has been found to predict a variety of psychological processes and behavioral outcomes. However, it is not clear why biculturals differ in their levels of BII. We suggest that the valence of bicultural experiences influences BII. Furthermore, we predict that biculturals’ level of BII can be changed momentarily by recalling valenced bicultural experiences. An experimental study manipulating recall of positive or negative bicultural experiences found that recalling positive bicultural experiences increased BII, whereas recalling negative bicultural experiences decreased BII. However, recalling experiences irrelevant to bicultural experiences did not change BII. Theoretical and practical implications of the malleability of BII are discussed.
Determination of cotton fiber maturity and linear density (fineness) by examination of fiber cross-sections. Part 1: Comparison of two image analysis systems used in conjunction with optical microscopy
Authors: Higgerson Graham J , Pate Margaret , Naylor Geoffrey RS
Published: June 2013

Researchers from the United States Department of Agriculture and Texas Tech University have published the establishment of a set of reference cottons with known fiber maturity and linear density (fineness) values. Their work was based on careful analysis of the dimensions of a large number of individual transverse fiber cross-sections viewed under the optical microscope to obtain representative values for a particular cotton. Since this set of reference cottons has a high potential value for instrument developments and the world’s cotton industry in general, it was considered useful to independently test both the processes used and the assigned values for this set of reference cottons. Using independently developed software, a careful cross-section by cross-section comparison with the original data identified that the measured fiber perimeter values were in good agreement. However, cell wall area values and, consequently, the fiber maturity (theta) and fineness values were consistently smaller. The difference ranged from up to 40% for the small cell wall area values down to 15% for the larger cell wall area values, with the average difference being approximately 20%. These differences stem from a different interpretation of the outside boundary of the fiber cross-section by the two image analysis systems due to the limited optical resolution of the captured images. This implies that while the ranking of fineness and maturity values originally assigned to the reference cottons is likely to be correct, there may be a significant systematic error in the assigned values of the cell wall area and hence fiber maturity and linear density values.
Effects of Self-Control, Social Control, and Social Learning on Sexting Behavior Among South Korean Youths
Authors: Lee Chang-Hun , Moak Stacy , Walker Jeffery T.
Published: June 2013

Despite the emerging phenomenon of sexting, scientific investigation with criminological perspectives has been limited. Utilizing data collected from 1,612 randomly selected youth in South Korea, this study begins the investigation into which criminological theory best explains sexting behaviors. Theories considered include self-control, social control, and social learning theories. Some variables of each of those theories were tested. Findings showed that peer pressure was the most important factor for two types of sexting behaviors (sexting own picture/video and sexting others’ picture/video), and that prior delinquency and positive attitude toward sexting were also significantly and positively related to both types of sexting behaviors. But social control was negatively related to only the second type of sexting behavior, and self-control was not related to both types of behaviors. As sexting has only recently begun to be studied, we recommend that future research studies examine the phenomena within the framework of social learning theory.
Comparative Analysis of Attitudes and Emotions Among Inmates
Authors: Wolff Nancy , Morgan Robert D. , Shi Jing
Published: June 2013

This study examines the relationship between behavioral health problems and criminogenic thinking, aggression, self-control, and hopelessness, controlling for other demographic and criminal behavior characteristics among incarcerated persons. Male ( n = 3,986) and female ( n = 218) inmates expected to be released within 24 months from prisons affiliated with a northeastern state department of corrections completed the Criminal Sentiments Scale–Modified, Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire Short-Form, Brief Self-Control Scale, and Beck Hopelessness Scale. Results indicated that behavioral health variables were significantly and substantially correlated with antisocial thinking, aggression, self-control, and hopelessness. For male inmates, serious mental illness and substance abuse problems significantly increased antisocial attitudes, aggression, and hopelessness scores and decreased self-control scores. In preparing incarcerated persons with and without mental illnesses for reentry to the community, it is critical to develop and implement evidence-based interventions that respond to attitudinal and emotional risk factors that predict relapse and recidivism.
Protecting a Woman’s Honor or Protecting Her Sexual Freedom?
Authors: England Sarah
Published: June 2013

The coming of peace in Central America after several decades of civil war and military dictatorships has not resulted in an end to violence. Murder rates have risen to such a degree that these countries are among the most violent in the world. One form of violence that has received a great deal of attention is the murder of women, but many argue that this is only one of many forms of violence that women face on a daily basis. The women’s organizations that have emerged in Guatemala since the end of the civil war have focused on demanding greater political and economic rights for women and laws that recognize violence against women as a crime and improve the mechanisms for investigating and prosecuting it. Two recent laws redefine sex crimes in such a way as to suggest that they should be seen as heinous acts regardless of the woman’s sexual history, character, or age. Though these discursive changes are a triumph, problems with the legal system and the persistence of sexist ideologies have so far limited the effectiveness of these new laws.

La llegada de la paz a Centroamérica tras varias décadas de guerra civil y dictaduras militares no ha puesto fin a la violencia. El índice de asesinatos ha aumentado a tal grado que estos países se encuentran entre los más violentos del mundo. Una forma de violencia que ha recibido mucha atención es el femicidio, pero muchos argumentan que esta es sólo una entre muchas formas de violencia que las mujeres enfrentan a diario. Las organizaciones de mujeres que han surgido en Guatemala desde el fin de la guerra civil se han centrado en demandar mayores derechos políticos y económicos para las mujeres y leyes que reconozcan como delito la violencia contra la mujer, mejorando los mecanismos de investigación y justicia. Dos leyes recientes redefinen los delitos sexuales de tal forma que sugieren que pueden considerarse actos atroces sin importar la edad, carácter o historia sexual de la mujer. Aunque estos cambios discursivos representan un triunfo, los problemas con el sistema legal y la persistencia de ideologías machistas han limitado, hasta ahora, la eficacia de estas nuevas leyes.
“Together We Have Power”
Authors: Talcott Molly
Published: June 2013

Activist Oaxacan women’s lived experiences of trauma and violence have shaped their participation in indigenous-led anti-neoliberal organizing. The multifaceted dimensions of violence they experience–which are at once deeply structural and personal—have produced an intimate, embodied form of oppositional consciousness among them. The traumas of daily life are simultaneously racialized, gendered, and classed, and these embodied experiences can, and sometimes do, produce political responses among women. As they engage in activism that challenges capitalist incursions in the countryside, they are able to link the various traumas they face and, in so doing, become more effective protagonists in their interconnected journeys toward personal and structural emancipation.

Experiencias vividas por mujeres militantes de Oaxaca del trauma y la violencia han dado forma a su participación en la organización anti-neoliberal liderada por las indígenas. Las dimensiones multifacéticas de violencia que sufren, que son a la vez estructurales y profundamente personal, han producido una forma íntima y encarnada de conciencia de oposición entre ellas. Los traumas de la vida cotidiana son al mismo tiempo racializados, de género, y de clase, y estas experiencias encarnadas pueden, y a veces lo hacen, producir respuestas políticas entre las mujeres. Al participar en el activismo que desafía las incursiones capitalistas en el campo, ellas son capaces de vincular los diversos traumas que enfrentan y, al hacerlo, se convierten en protagonistas más efectivas en sus pasos interconectados hacia la emancipación personal y estructural.
Raising Retail
Authors: Coulter Kendra
Published: June 2013

Retail workers are a significant but largely unorganized group in Canada and the United States. However, in recent years, there has been a marked increase in efforts to organize retail workers, including pursuit of innovative structures and strategies. The author focuses on the dominant threads of contemporary retail organizing work in Canada and the United States, outlining three current organizing vehicles: unionization, store-based networks, and occupation or sector-based associations. The author then reflects on the strengths, weaknesses, and possibilities of these approaches, independently and collectively, and emphasizes the need to confront the social and cultural as well as the economic devaluation of retail workers.
The Generation of Public Intellectuals
Authors: Gilbert Daniel A.
Published: June 2013

Observers from a variety of quarters have remarked in recent years that contemporary civic life lacks the great public minds that helped to shape the public discourse of earlier generations. The most pressing crisis facing intellectual life in the United States in the age of the corporate university, however, is not a lack of great public thinkers but rather a quickly eroding public sphere, of which university teachers and researchers are key members. Examining struggles over and emerging from the conditions of contemporary academic work, this article recasts the public intellectual debate. It argues that the academic labor movement, in responding to the conditions of the corporate university and broader challenges to the public sphere, contains powerful models of public intellectual practice. In particular, the article highlights graduate employee unionism as critical public intellectual work.
Community Workforce Agreements
Authors: Figueroa Maria , Grabelsky Jeff , Lamare J. Ryan
Published: June 2013

This paper profiles and explores variations in the nature and extent to which community workforce provisions have been effectively negotiated into Project Labor Agreements (PLAs). Community Workforce Agreements broadly aim to advance employment and career models for demographic groups underrepresented in the construction industry but have implications for coalition building and may facilitate a broader role for labor in long-term economic development. These arrangements are the focus of intense policy and research debate, where the issue of using PLAs on publicly funded projects has long been considered. However, the types of provisions regularly included in these PLAs, and the manner in which these provisions vary by geography, time, and size of the Building and Construction Trades Council, are not well understood. This paper profiles the most common provisions and their variability and briefly touches on outcome effects of these agreements to communities, using a content analysis of 185 negotiated agreements over fourteen years, a survey of over 300 building trades councils, and three case studies from projects in Washington, D.C., Cleveland, and New York.
Endoscopic Endonasal Nasopharyngectomy in Selected Cancers
Authors: Castelnuovo Paolo , Nicolai Piero , Turri‐Zanoni Mario , Battaglia Paolo , Bolzoni Villaret Andrea , Gallo Stefania , Bignami Maurizio , Dallan Iacopo
Published: June 2013

Objective

To describe the different surgical techniques for nasopharyngeal endoscopic resection (NER) and to support the efficacy of the endoscopic endonasal approach in the management of selected primary and locally recurrent nasopharyngeal tumors (NPTs).

Study Design

Case series with chart review.

Setting

Patients affected by NPTs who underwent NER from 1997 to 2011 at two Italian referral centers.

Subjects and Methods

NER was tailored to the NPT extension and classified as follows: type 1 NER, resection of the posterior nasopharyngeal wall; type 2 NER, resection superiorly extended to the sphenoid; type 3 NER, trans‐pterygoid approach to the postero‐lateral nasopharynx with removal of pterygoid plates and Eustachian tube, under control of parapharyngeal‐petrous‐cavernous segments of the internal carotid artery.

Results

Thirty‐six consecutive patients with primary (9 cases) or locally recurrent (27 cases) NPTs were enrolled. The lesions were staged as follows: stage I, 16 (44.4%); stage II, 3 (8.4%); stage III, 15 (41.6%); and stage IVA, 2 (5.6%). Type 1 NER was performed in 6 cases, type 2 NER in 12, type 3 NER in 16, and bilateral‐extended type 3 NER in 2. No perioperative mortality or major complications were observed. Postoperatively, 11 patients received intensity‐modulated radiotherapy, with or without chemotherapy. Follow‐up ranged from 2 to 173 months (mean: 38 months). Five years overall, disease‐specific, and disease‐free survivals were 75.1% ± 9.13%, 80.9% ± 7.79%, and 58.1% ± 14.8%, respectively.

Conclusion

NER is a feasible and minimally invasive surgical approach for the management of selected primary and locally recurrent NPTs. Our preliminary outcomes are promising, with local control rates comparable to those of conventional procedures. Larger case series and longer follow‐up are needed to validate the reproducibility and efficacy of the technique.
Metis
Authors: Newswander Chad B. , Newswander Lynita K.
Published: June 2013

When seeking to accomplish public ends in a prudent manner, administrators are occasionally put in precarious situations that require a degree of metis. Metis is a distinct form of knowledge characterized by a mixture of wile and wisdom and is valuable because it can offer viable alternatives for solving complex problems in contingent situations. Individualized problems often require administrators to forego routinized recommendations and pursue a path to prudence through shrewd thinking and action. However, if metis is not properly contained, it runs the risk of sinking under the weight of unscrupulous motivation and of negatively affecting the legitimacy of administrative action. What is important is that a crafty ethos is bound within a proper sphere. This is why a bounded metis informed by a modified version of intermediate scrutiny may provide a meaningful guide that legitimizes the ability of administrators to handle ambiguous situations in a prudent manner.
MicroRNA-22 expression in hepatocellular carcinoma and its correlation with ezrin protein
Authors: Zhou Lin , He Jiantai , Zhang Yangde
Published: June 2013

Objective

Expression of microRNA-22 (miR-22) and ezrin protein (a membrane–cytoskeleton linking protein) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) was investigated.

Methods

Specimens of HCC and paracancerous tissue (control; ∼5 cm away from tumour tissue) were collected from 192 patients. miR-22 expression was detected by real-time polymerase chain reaction; ezrin protein expression in tumour tissue was assessed immunohistochemically. Associations between miR-22 expression and clinicopathological features of HCC and ezrin expression were analysed.

Results

miR-22 expression was lower in HCC tissue than in paracancerous tissue samples (median relative expression 0.676 versus 1.000 for control tissue). Expression of miR-22 was significantly associated with histological differentiation (relative expression 0.431 for lower grades of differentiation versus 0.918 for higher grades), and was associated with lymphatic metastasis (relative expression 0.518 if metastasis was present, 0.919 if absent). Survival time was shorter in patients with low miR-22 expression than in those with high expression (31.0 ± 2.6 versus 52.2 ± 5.1 months). There was a significant negative correlation between the expression of miR-22 and that of ezrin.

Conclusions

miR-22 is downregulated in HCC and its expression is associated with the differentiation, metastasis and prognosis of the carcinoma. Ezrin is a potential regulatory protein of miR-22.
All Political Participation Is Socially Networked?
Authors: Towner Terri L.
Published: June 2013

This research examined the influence of attention to specific forms of traditional and online media on young adults’ online and offline political participation as well as voter turnout during the fall 2012 presidential campaign. A three-wave panel survey demonstrated that attention to traditional media did not increase offline and online political participation in September; instead, participation was heightened by attention to online sources, particularly presidential candidate websites, Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. In the following months, individual-level change in participation was attributable to attention to several online media sources as well as change in media attention. In the case of voter turnout, results suggest that television attention was positively linked to voter likelihood in September but was negatively linked to individual-level change in voter turnout in November.
Numerical investigation of the combustion characteristics and wall impingement with dependence on split-injection strategies from a gasoline direct-injection spark ignition engine
Authors: Seo Juhyeong , Lee Jae Seong , Choi Kwan Hee , Kim Ho Young , Yoon Sam S.
Published: June 2013

Highly pressurized direct injection applied to automotive vehicles was developed for better power and fuel efficiency, but it causes fuel impingement, which generates more soot emissions. In the present study, analyses of the combustion characteristics and fuel impingement were conducted with a direct-injection spark ignition engine using split-injection strategies. Full three-dimensional unsteady Eulerian–Lagrangian two-phase numerical simulations were carried out to predict the flow field and the combustion characteristics as functions of the injection duration ratio and the weight of the second pulse injection. Experimental data were coupled for verification, providing the boundary and initial conditions for the benchmark case. The results showed that the weight of injection became maximally 35% less as the weight of the second pulse injection decreased. The amount of liquid fuel film, which was influenced by the injection duration ratio, had a varying range from approximately 1% to 4%. When a greater amount of the liquid fuel film impinged on the piston surface, this induced more soot formation. However, the fuel–air mixture was the most prominent factor for determining the overall combustion characteristics. A split injection can increase the thermal efficiency and the fuel consumption rate; however, without optimization, poor combustion characteristics such as knocking, incomplete combustion and soot emissions can result.
Subway diaries: How people experience and practice riding the train
Authors: Ocejo Richard E. , Tonnelat Stéphane
Published: June 2013

This article examines the diverse ways in which people experience being strangers in public space. Based primarily on the journal entries of teenagers in New York City on their trips, we show the different ways in which riders experience being a rider amid diversity and norm violations. Some teenagers see being a rider as an engaging role, some as a detached role, and others as a precarious role. All the teenagers use folk theories to navigate the social world, but how they use them varies depending on how they experience being a rider. Finally, riding in groups shifts their experiences and interpretations in complex ways that make riding more enjoyable, but filled with additional emotional tensions. Building from previous theories and studies on strangers and public spaces, this article contributes to longstanding debates in sociology over how people interact with others in urban environments.
Multi-scalar ethnography: An approach for critical engagement with migration and social change
Authors: Xiang Biao
Published: June 2013

‘Multi-sited ethnography’ is now a common method for anthropological studies on migration. But how multi-sited is multi-sited enough? Don’t we have to stand somewhere in order to confront problems and engage with changes? Based on my research experiences on migration in and from China since the early 1990s, this article explores ‘multi-scalar ethnography’ as a method of fieldwork, analysis, and writing. Multi-scalar ethnography delineates how movements are constituted at different scales (smooth flows at one level can be disruptions or encapsulations at another), how migrants’ scale-making projects intersect with states’ scale management, and how we can locate multiple sites analytically. In doing so, multi-scalar ethnography enables an explanation of why some mobility is more consequential than others, and identifies strategic sites where critical engagement can be grounded.
The influence of coloured light in the aircraft cabin on passenger thermal comfort
Authors: Winzen J , Albers F , Marggraf-Micheel C
Published: June 2013

Coloured light is one aspect of modern aircraft cabin design. It could be used intentionally to influence thermal sensations: Coloured light may convey the impression that the environmental temperature is warmer or cooler than it actually is while still providing thermal comfort. A study was conducted in a light laboratory to test these assumptions. Subjects were exposed to different lighting situations, which were evaluated in terms of light and comfort. It was found that room temperature was perceived as being different depending on the colour of the lighting: In yellow light, room temperature was felt to be warmer than in blue light. Conversely, air quality was perceived as being higher and subjects felt more alert in blue light. All the coloured lighting situations tested were comfortable.
Involvement of advanced glycation end product-induced asymmetric dimethylarginine generation in endothelial dysfunction
Authors: Ando Ryotaro , Ueda Seiji , Yamagishi Sho-ichi , Miyazaki Hiroshi , Kaida Yusuke , Kaifu Kumiko , Yokoro Miyuki , Nakayama Yosuke , Obara Nana , Fukami Kei , Takeuchi Masayoshi , Okuda Seiya
Published: June 2013

Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), an endogenous nitric oxide synthase inhibitor, plays a role in endothelial dysfunction, an initial step of atherosclerosis. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) also contribute to accelerated atherosclerosis. However, a pathophysiological crosstalk between ADMA and AGEs remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the relationship between ADMA and AGE level in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) due to diabetic nephropathy. We also examined whether and how AGEs increased ADMA generation by cultured endothelial cells (ECs). Plasma ADMA levels were positively associated with serum AGE level and were inversely correlated with endothelial function determined by flow-mediated vasodilatation. AGEs dose dependently increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in ECs, which was blocked by antisense DNA raised against receptor for AGEs (RAGE). Furthermore, AGEs decreased messenger RNA (mRNA) level of dimethylarginine dimethylaminohydrolase (DDAH)-II, an enzyme for ADMA degradation, reduced its total enzymatic activity and resultantly increased ADMA, all of which were completely blocked by an antioxidant, N-acetylcysteine. These results suggest that the AGE-RAGE-mediated ROS generation could be involved in endothelial dysfunction in diabetic ESRD patients partly by increasing the ADMA generation via suppression of DDAH activity in ECs.
The Technical Properties of Science Content Maze Passages for Middle School Students
Authors: Johnson Evelyn S. , Semmelroth Carrie , Allison Jennifer , Fritsch Teresa
Published: June 2013

The use of Curriculum-Based Measures is rapidly expanding to the middle school level, where maze passages are frequently used to monitor progress in reading. At secondary grade levels, the focus of reading is on reading to learn, especially in the content areas. Therefore, we were interested in developing maze passages based on grade-level science texts to determine whether maze passages constructed from expository texts would have sufficient reliability and validity to serve as reading and science benchmarking tools. Participants included 367 seventh-grade students from three states. Students completed eight maze passages over three testing periods, a reading measure at two testing periods, and 182 students completed a science state assessment. Alternate form reliability of the science maze passages ranged from .56 to .80. Concurrent and predictive correlation coefficients with other measures ranged from .63 to .67. Implications for practice and research are discussed.
Claudins and gastric carcinogenesis
Authors: Iravani Omid , Tay Benjamin Wei-Rong , Chua Pei-Jou , Yip George Wai-Cheong , Bay Boon-Huat
Published: June 2013

Gastric carcinoma arises from aberrant growth of normal gastric mucosa. There is increasing evidence that claudins (CLDNs) may play a critical role in the significant steps of gastric tumorigenesis, from metaplasia to metastasis. The CLDN family which consists of at least 27 member proteins is known to mediate selective permeability in cellular tight junctions. It is now established that CLDNs are differentially altered in gastric cancer and CLDN proteins are believed to play different roles in the growth and progression of gastric cancer.
Neuroprotective effects of resveratrol in an MPTP mouse model of Parkinson's-like disease: Possible role of SOCS-1 in reducing pro-inflammatory responses
Authors: Lofrumento Dario D , Nicolardi Giuseppe , Cianciulli Antonia , Nuccio Francesco De , Pesa Velia La , Carofiglio Vito , Dragone Teresa , Calvello Rosa , Panaro Maria A
Published: June 2013

In the present study we used a 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-induced Parkinson's disease (PD) mouse model to analyze resveratrol neuroprotective effects. The MPTP-induced PD model is characterized by chronic inflammation, oxidative stress and loss of the dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc). We observed that resveratrol treatment significantly reduced glial activation, decreasing the levels of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α, as well as their respective receptors in the SNpc of MPTP-treated mice, as demonstrated by Western blotting, RT-PCR and quantitative PCR analysis. This reduction is related to possible neuroprotection as we also observed that resveratrol administration limited the decline of tyrosine hydroxylase-immunoreactivity induced in the striatum and SNpc by MPTP injection. Consistent with these data, resveratrol treatment up-regulated the expression of the suppressor of cytokine signaling-1 (SOCS-1), supporting the hypothesis that resveratrol protects DA neurons of the SNpc against MPTP-induced cell loss by regulating inflammatory reactions, possibly through SOCS-1 induction.
Notch signalling in adult neurons: a potential target for microtubule stabilization
Authors: Bonini Sara Anna , Ferrari-Toninelli Giulia , Montinaro Mery , Memo Maurizio
Published: June 2013

Cytoskeletal dysfunction has been proposed during the last decade as one of the main mechanisms involved in the aetiology of several neurodegenerative diseases. Microtubules are basic elements of the cytoskeleton and the dysregulation of microtubule stability has been demonstrated to be causative for axonal transport impairment, synaptic contact degeneration, impaired neuronal function leading finally to neuronal loss. Several pathways are implicated in the microtubule assembly/disassembly process. Emerging evidence is focusing on Notch as a microtubule dynamics regulator. We demonstrated that activation of Notch signalling results in increased microtubule stability and changes in axonal morphology and branching. By contrast, Notch inhibition leads to an increase in cytoskeleton plasticity with intense neurite remodelling. Until now, several microtubule-binding compounds have been tested and the results have provided proof of concept that microtubule-binding agents or compounds with the ability to stabilize microtubules may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases. In this review, based on its key role in cytoskeletal dynamics modulation, we propose Notch as a new potential target for microtubule stabilization.
Targeted therapies in non-small cell lung carcinoma: what have we achieved so far?
Authors: Farhat Fadi S. , Houhou Wissam
Published: June 2013

The search for innovative therapeutic agents in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has witnessed a swift evolution. The number of targeted drugs that can improve patient outcomes with an acceptable safety profile is steadily increasing. In this review, we highlight current drugs that have already been approved or are under evaluation for the treatment of patients with NSCLC, either in monotherapy or combined therapy for both the first- and second-line settings. Experience with drugs targeting the vascular endothelial growth factor and its receptor, as well as the epidermal growth factor receptor is summarized. Moreover, we provide an overview of more novel targets in NSCLC and initial experience with the respective therapeutic agents.
Discussions of Fatherhood in Male Batterer Treatment Group
Authors: Veteläinen Anu , Grönholm Heidi , Holma Juha
Published: June 2013

The aim of this study was to examine how men who have perpetrated violence toward their partners and participated in batterer group talked about being a father and how they perceived their own fatherhood. The discussion in the group was analyzed qualitatively by using the methods of content analysis. In traditional fatherhood, they talked about avoidant, passiveness, distant, indifference, and authoritative controlling ways of acting. These men also created an image of themselves as active and caring fathers, thus including empathy and nurture in the concept of fatherhood. This new fatherhood was considered an achieved goal and an objective for the men as being a father. Talking about fatherhood in these groups is important as fatherhood and relations to children are both an important motivator toward nonviolence.
High expression of wee1 is associated with malignancy in vulvar squamous cell carcinoma patients
Authors: Magnussen Gry Irene , Hellesylt Ellen , Nesland Jahn M , Trope Claes G , Flørenes Vivi Ann , Holm Ruth
Published: June 2013

Background

Vulvar squamous cell carcinoma is a cancer form with increasing incidence rate and few treatment options. Wee1 is a central regulator of the G2/M DNA-damage checkpoint, and has in previous studies been described as a prognostic biomarker and a potential target for therapy in other cancer forms.

Methods

In the present study we analyzed the expression of Wee1 in a panel of 297 vulvar tumors by immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, siRNA transfections were carried out in two vulvar cancer cell lines (SW-954 and CAL-39) in order to study the effect on cell cycle distribution (flow cytometry) and proteins (western blot) involved in DNA damage response and apoptosis.

Results

Wee1 kinase is increased in vulvar squamous cell carcinomas, as compared to expression in normal epithelium, and a high Wee1 expression is associated with markers of malignancy, such as lymph node metastasis and poor differentiation. Our in vitro results showed that siRNA mediated Wee1 silencing only led to a modest reduction in viability, when examined in vulvar cancer cell lines. Nonetheless, a marked increase in DNA damages, as assessed by augmented levels of γ-H2AX, was observed in both cell lines in the absence of Wee1.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that Wee1 may be involved in the progression of vulvar carcinomas. Based on our in vitro results, Wee1 is unlikely to function as a target for mono-treatment of these patients.