bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
‘Becoming Angry When Another is Treated Fairly’: On Understanding When Own and Other's Fair Treatment Influences Negative Reactions
Authors: De Cremer David , Van Hiel Alain
Published: June 2009

The present research examined across two experimental studies the impact of how fairly one's partner was treated on the experience of one's own negative emotions and intentions to display antisocial behaviours.Experiment 1revealed that one's own feelings of anger and frustration were significantly higher when one's partner was treated fairly (i.e. receiving voice in the decision‐making procedure) relative to when one's partner was treated unfairly (i.e. receiving no voice), but only so when the interaction between oneself and the other was characterized by competitive interdependence (i.e. a zero‐sum gain in which a good performance by the other is negative for oneself and vice versa). The opposite pattern of results emerged in the cooperative interdependence condition (i.e. a good performance by the other is positive for oneself and vice versa).Experiment 2(in which also the fairness of one's own treatment was manipulated) further showed that in the competitive interdependence condition own anger and frustration were higher when one's partner received voice and oneself did not relative to when the partner did not receive voice and oneself did. A similar effect was also obtained for intentions to display antisocial behaviour, which was mediated by negative emotions. These findings thus reveal that the other's procedurally fair treatment affects own responses differently as a function of the given goal interdependence and own treatment.
The Safeguarding Effect of Governance Mechanisms in Inter‐firm Exchange: The Decisive Role of Mutual Opportunism
Authors: Caniëls Marjolein C. J. , Gelderman Cees J.
Published: June 2009

This study empirically investigates the safeguarding effect of (1) administrative control, (2) a dominant power position and (3) relational norms, on opportunistic behaviour of suppliers, by means of a survey among 624 information and communication technology professionals in Dutch municipalities. The findings indicate that individual effectiveness of relational norms, particularly in terms of flexibility and solidarity, was most prominent. Administrative control and power did not show a significant impact on supplier opportunism in our sample. Research into the simultaneous use of several safeguards against opportunism generated the finding that different relational norms fortify each other's safeguarding effect. Furthermore, we demonstrate that supplier opportunism is only mitigated by a dominant power position when the buyer does not exploit its favourable position and the buyer does not behave opportunistically. Hence, power seems to have a safeguarding effect only when it is not used.
Social Regulation of Human Gene Expression
Authors: Cole Steve W.
Published: June 2009

The relationship between genes and social behavior has historically been construed as a one-way street, with genes in control. Recent analyses have challenged this view, by discovering broad alterations in the expression of human genes as a function of differing socio-environmental conditions. The emerging field of social genomics has begun to identity the types of genes subject to social regulation, the biological signaling pathways mediating those effects, and the genetic polymorphisms that moderate socioenvironmental influences on human gene expression.
Emotional Attention
Authors: Vuilleumier Patrik , Huang Yang-Ming
Published: June 2009

The emotional significance of sensory events may influence attention in a reflexive manner, but these effects vary across paradigms and participants. Recent research indicates that specific circuits in the brain may serve to amplify neural responses to emotional stimuli, a modulation similar to attentional effects usually driven by endogenous goals. However, this modulation involves distinct sources in emotional systems such as the amygdala, and may thus operate partly independent of top-down control by attentional systems in frontoparietal cortices. It remains to be clarified to what degree these emotional effects are influenced by specific perceptual and emotional dimensions, automaticity and attentional resources, task goals or expectations, and individual personality traits.
Cognitive Plasticity and Cortical Modules
Authors: Mercado Eduardo
Published: June 2009

Some organisms learn to calculate, accumulate knowledge, and communicate in ways that others do not. What factors determine which intellectual abilities a particular species or individual can easily acquire? I propose that cognitive-skill learning capacity reflects (a) the availability of specialized cortical circuits, (b) the flexibility with which cortical activity is coordinated, and (c) the customizability of cortical networks. This framework can potentially account for differences in learning capacity across species, individuals, and developmental stages. Understanding the mechanisms that constrain cognitive plasticity is fundamental to developing new technologies and educational practices that maximize intellectual advancements.
What Can Experiments Reveal About the Origins of Music?
Authors: McDermott Josh H.
Published: June 2009

The origins of music have intrigued scholars for thousands of years. In this article I discuss the role of experiments in discussions of these issues. I argue that potentially useful kinds of evidence are those that address the innateness and the specificity of different components of musical behavior. At present there is some evidence for innate influences on music, but little evidence for capacities that are clearly specific to music. Although future experiments could potentially alter this picture, there is currently little unambiguous support for the notion that music is an adaptation.
Strauss and ‘Straussianism’: From the Ancients to the Moderns?
Authors: Devigne Robert
Published: June 2009

Do scholars inspired by Leo Strauss adhere to, or diverge from, his teachings as they contribute to turn of the twenty-first-century American conservative thought and new conceptions of the American political executive and constitutional order? Analyzing Strauss' view of the twofold task of political philosophy, as well as his position that modern political philosophy inexorably leads to philosophic and moral crises, the scaffolding of Strauss' political outlook – and the dimensions of its contemporary relevance – will begin to take shape. Turning to the writings on America by many of Strauss' most notable students, we discover that most of them point back to the admittedly liberal theories of John Locke and the American founders as the starting point for defining a new conservative outlook that will address the problems of modernity. We are thus confronted by a quandary. How can an important current of Strauss-inspired scholarship put forth that the theories of Locke and the American founders provide the foundation for addressing a crisis that Strauss states is rooted in that very modernity? We will discover that the thought of Strauss and an important strand of Straussianism are not the same, because Strauss-inspired scholarship on America adheres to only a facet of Strauss' two-pronged political philosophy. Strauss, however, cannot disavow responsibility for these students and followers, who embrace an important current of his thinking.
GIS and Intelligent Agents for Multiobjective Natural Resource Allocation: A Reinforcement Learning Approach
Authors: Bone Christopher , Dragićević Suzana
Published: June 2009

An important component of natural resource management is determining how to allocate resources within a landscape to different stakeholders in a manner that satisfies multiple objectives. Developing decision making tools for assisting natural resource allocation is a challenging endeavor as stakeholders' objectives typically exist at varying spatial scales, their actions are defined by the spatial constraints in which they operate, and the spatial distribution of resources can be altered due to system disturbances. The nature of such challenges suggests the need for a geographic approach that can investigate these spatial complexities in order to generate a suitable set of solutions. The objective of this study is to develop and evaluate an Intelligent Agent Model for multiobjective natural resource allocation. The model integrates agent‐based modeling in a GIS environment with reinforcement learning – a heuristic method for generating, evaluating, and improving multiobjective decision making solutions. The model is implemented by simulating a forest management scenario in which agents that represent forest companies learn how to harvest trees in a manner that maximizes economic return while minimizing the adverse ecological impact to the surrounding landscape. In addition, the model simulates forest disturbances of varying frequencies and intensities to determine how disturbance events affect the decision‐making ability of agents. The model is validated to demonstrate that it can provide practical solutions to natural resource decision making.
Venice, City of Canals: Characterizing Regions through Content Classification
Authors: Tomko Martin , Purves Ross S
Published: June 2009

Information retrieval tasks in the geographic domain rely on textual annotation of georeferenced information objects. These information objects can be annotated with references to spatial objects contained within the corresponding geographical footprint. Not all the spatial objects, however, describe the essential attributes characterizing the region. In this article, we present a method to calculate the descriptive prominence of categories of spatial objects in a given region and select a subset for the characteristic description of the region. The method is demonstrated on three datasets of points of interest and an artificial dataset is used as a benchmark. The method reduces the number of categories describing regions significantly (p<0.001). We further illustrate the results qualitatively for three regions characterized in text.
First‐order rounded integer‐valued autoregressive (RINAR(1)) process
Authors: Kachour M. , Yao J. F.
Published: June 2009

Abstract.  We introduce a new class of autoregressive models for integer‐valued time series using the rounding operator. Compared with classical INAR models based on the thinning operator, the new models have several advantages: simple innovation structure, autoregressive coefficients with arbitrary signs, possible negative values for time series and possible negative values for the autocorrelation function. Focused on the first‐order RINAR(1) model, we give conditions for its ergodicity and stationarity. For parameter estimation, a least squares estimator is introduced and we prove its consistency under suitable identifiability condition. Simulation experiments as well as analysis of real data sets are carried out to attest the model performance.
Multivariate Business Cycle Synchronization in Small Samples*
Authors: Candelon Bertrand , Piplack Jan , Straetmans Stefan
Published: June 2009

In this paper, we study the degree of business cycle synchronization by means of a small sample version of the Harding and Pagan's [Journal of Econometrics (2006) Vol. 132, pp. 59–79] Generalized Method of Moment test. We show that the asymptotic version of the test gets increasingly distorted in small samples when the number of countries grows large. However, a block bootstrapped version of the test can remedy the size distortion when the time series length divided by the number of countries T/n is sufficiently large. Applying the technique to a number of business cycle proxies of developed economies, we are unable to reject the null hypothesis of a non‐zero common multivariate synchronization index for certain economically meaningful subsets of these countries.
Periodic Unobserved Cycles in Seasonal Time Series with an Application to US Unemployment*
Authors: Koopman Siem Jan , Ooms Marius , Hindrayanto Irma
Published: June 2009

We introduce a general class of periodic unobserved component (UC) time series models with stochastic trend and seasonal components and with a novel periodic stochastic cycle component. The general state space formulation of the periodic model allows for exact maximum likelihood estimation, signal extraction and forecasting. The consequences for model‐based seasonal adjustment are discussed. The new periodic model is applied to postwar monthly US unemployment series from which we identify a significant periodic stochastic cycle. A detailed periodic analysis is presented including a comparison between the performances of periodic and non‐periodic UC models.
Waiting for her ship to come in? The female investor in nineteenth‐century sailing vessels
Authors: DOE HELEN
Published: June 2009

The contribution of women to the economy as investors has an increasing profile, but sources of information on women's economic activity in the nineteenth century are limited. However, shipping registers provide new avenues for exploring this largely hidden perspective. Women investors in shipping are revealed here to be more consistently active across the century with a close involvement with their investment. They were a significant factor in enabling smaller port communities to remain self‐sufficient in their industry funding until the dominance of steam in the 1880s caused the sailing vessel to become increasingly obsolete.
Security Choice and Corporate Governance
Authors: Howe John S. , Olsen Brett C.
Published: June 2009

The most efficient corporate governance structure will vary by firm depending on the costs and benefits of different governance mechanisms. For IPO firms, warrants might act as a substitute for other governance mechanisms (Schultz, 1993). Alternatively, warrants might serve as a signal of high quality, and thus effectively governed, firms (Chemmanur and Fulghieri, 1997), in which case they would act as a complement to other governance mechanisms. We test these competing hypotheses by examining a sample of unit IPO firms (firms issuing warrants with shares) matched to a comparable sample of shares‐only firms and show that warrants act as a substitute for other governance mechanisms. The research is also of interest because it shows an interaction between the financing decisions of firms and their corporate governance that has not been documented previously.
Diversity in Work: The Heterogeneity of Women's Employment Patterns
Authors: Yerkes Mara
Published: June 2009

Employment patterns are gender‐driven, yet analyses of women's employment have yet to explain this diversity across time. This article examines the variation in women's employment patterns across time and across countries. It focuses on the effects of individual differences in educational level, marital status and motherhood in The Netherlands, Germany and the UK across four birth cohorts for the period 1992–2002. The results from a quantitative study using panel data confirm the diversity in women's employment. At the same time, cross‐country variation is evident. While the results of this study confirm the diversity evident in women's employment patterns, they also attempt to explain the nature of this diversity. The analyses presented in this article demonstrate that the diversity in women's employment is persistent, yet dynamic. Furthermore, the diversity in employment is clearly marked by the division between parental and non‐parental employment, which has important implications for our theoretical understanding of women's employment.
Work–family Conflicts and the Organizational Work Culture as Barriers to Women Educational Managers
Authors: Coronel José M. , Moreno E. , Carrasco María J.
Published: June 2009

This article examines perceived barriers and the influence they play in the professional and personal lives of women educational managers in Spain. A survey of 206 female school heads from pre‐primary and primary schools shows that the women administrators face several perceived barriers: a lack of support from the governing educational authority; insufficient preparation and in‐service training and an absence of equity‐based support policies from the government and reconciliation policies to make the dual roles of mother–professional compatible. The study further found that role conflict and certain features of the organizational work culture, particularly the management culture, which was generally perceived as strongly masculine, and the scant appreciation of administrative work compared with teaching, were the factors that contributed to delaying or avoiding accession to the post of headship in schools.
Identification of new sensitive biomarkers for the in vivo response to interferon‐β treatment in multiple sclerosis using DNA‐array evaluation
Authors: Sellebjerg F. , Krakauer M. , Hesse D. , Ryder L. P. , Alsing I. , Jensen P. E. H. , Koch‐Henriksen N. , Svejgaard A. , Soelberg Sørensen P.
Published: June 2009

Objective:  Neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) occur in a proportion of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients treated with interferon (IFN)‐β. NAbs impair the effect of treatment. The biological effect of IFN‐β can be measured as the induction of the myxovirus resistance protein A (MxA) molecule. However, other markers could be more sensitive for evaluating the response to IFN‐β. We used DNA array analysis to identify genes that are strongly induced in blood cells by IFN‐β, and measured their expression in MS patients with different NAb levels.

Methods:  Gene expression was studied on DNA arrays in untreated patients, in NAb negative patients, and in MS patients with varying NAb levels 9–12 h and 36–48 h after IFN‐β administration. The expression of selected genes was measured by real‐time PCR. NAb levels were assessed by a cytopathic effect assay.

Results:  Several hundred genes were induced 9–12 h after an injection of IFN‐β. The molecules CXCL10, CCL2 and IFI27 were among the most strongly induced. Gene induction was generally much less pronounced after 36–48 h, but IFI27 remained strongly induced. The strong induction of these molecules and MxA was confirmed by real‐time PCR. Induction of MxA, CCL2, CXCL10 and IFI27 was reduced in patients with low NAb levels and lost in patients with intermediate/high NAb levels.

Conclusion:  We identify IFI27, CCL2 and CXCL10 as sensitive biomarkers for the response to IFN‐β. The expression of these markers adequately reflects bioactivity of IFN‐ß as documented by the decreased induction in low NAb‐positive patients and the lost induction in patients with moderate/high NAb levels.
The immunocompromised district: a unifying concept for lymphoedematous, herpes‐infected and otherwise damaged sites
Authors: Ruocco V , Brunetti G , Puca RV , Ruocco E
Published: June 2009

Systemic immunodeficiency is known to facilitate the onset of opportunistic infections, tumours and immune disorders in any district of the body. There are clinical events, such as chronic lymphoedema, herpetic infections, vaccinations and heterogeneous physical injuries which can selectively damage and immunologically mark the cutaneous district they act upon. After the causing event has disappeared, the affected district may appear clinically normal, but its immune behaviour is often compromised forever. An immunocompromised district becomes a site which is particularly susceptible to subsequent outbreaks of opportunistic infections, tumours and immune disorders confined to the district itself.

In this review, there is an ample case‐report collection of opportunistic disorders (infectious, neoplastic, immune) which appeared in immunocompromised districts. The cases have been grouped according to the clinical settings responsible for the local immune imbalance: regional chronic lymphoedema; herpes‐infected sites, which feature the well‐known Wolf's isotopic response; and otherwise damaged areas, comprising sites of vaccination, ionizing or UV radiation, thermal burns and traumas.

Whatever the immunocompromising factor, a common denominator which facilitates the occurrence of tumours, infections and dysimmune reactions in an immunocompromised district may reside in locally hampered lymph drainage and/or locally altered neuromediator signalling. In fact, any obstacle to the normal trafficking of immunocompetent cells through lymphatic channels or any interference with the signals that the neuropeptides and neurotransmitters released by peripheral nerves send to cell membrane receptors of immunocompetent cells, can significantly alter the local immune response, thus paving the way for heterogeneous opportunistic disorders in the immunocompromised district.
The influence of treatment on quality of life in systemic lupus erythematosus patients
Authors: Kulczycka L , Sysa‐Jedrzejowska A , Robak E
Published: June 2009

Objective  Systemic lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune disease with uncertain prognosis as to the course. The patients need pharmacotherapy all their life. The main aim of this study was to determinate the impact of therapeutic schedules on patients’ quality of life.

Methods  The study was performed on 83 patients who were divided into five groups according to methods of treatment used. Quality of life was measured using MOS SF‐36.

Results  Obtained results revealed that therapeutic schedules have the highest influence on patients’ social functioning. The more medicaments the patients use, the lower their quality of life.

Conclusions  The type of medicaments and therapeutic schemes adopted affect the patients’ quality of life. Nevertheless, quality of life and the patients’ attitude to it are very subjective and are also influenced by the clinical state of the patients as well as many other factors such as socioeconomic and demographic.
Low‐dose methotrexate treatment for moderate‐to‐severe atopic dermatitis in adults
Authors: Lyakhovitsky A , Barzilai A , Heyman R , Baum S , Amichai B , Solomon M , Shpiro D , Trau H
Published: June 2009

Background  Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin disease. Methotrexate (MTX) was suggested as an effective treatment option in cases of moderate‐to‐severe atopic dermatitis. This study assessed the efficacy and safety of treatment with low weekly doses of methotrexate for moderate‐to‐severe AD in adults.

Methods  Twenty adult patients with moderate‐to‐severe AD were included in this retrospective study. Those patients were unresponsive to topical treatments, antihistamines and at least one of the second‐line treatments. MTX in low weekly doses of 10–25 mg was administered orally or intramuscularly with folic acid supplementation 5 mg per week for at least 8–12 weeks. The response to treatment was evaluated by change in SCORAD (SCORing Atopic Dermatitis), DLQI (Dermatology Quality of Life Index) and the global assessment of the clinical response score.

Results  After 8–12 weeks of treatment, we observed an objective response in most patients. There were 16 responders and 4 non‐responders. The mean SCORAD and DLQI decreased by 28.65 units (44.3%) and 10.15 units (43.5%), respectively. The first improvement was observed after a period ranging from 2 weeks to 3 months (mean 9.95 w ± 3.17). Treatment was more effective in adult onset AD than in childhood onset. Tolerance of treatment was good. However, nausea and an increase of liver enzymes were observed in 5 patients and 3 of them required a transient discontinuation of MTX. One patient developed peripheral neuropathy, which was resolved several weeks after the discontinuation of MTX.

Conclusion  MTX seems to be an effective and safe second‐line treatment for patients with moderate‐to‐severe atopic dermatitis. A randomized, controlled study is warranted.
Evidence That Management Earnings Forecasts Do Not Fully Incorporate Information in Prior Forecast Errors
Authors: Xu Weihong
Published: June 2009

Abstract:  This paper investigates whether managers fully incorporate the implications of their prior earnings forecast errors into their future earnings forecasts and, if not, whether this behavior is related to the post‐earnings announcement drift. I find a positive association in consecutive management forecast errors, suggesting that managers underestimate the future implications of past earnings information when forecasting earnings. I also find that managers underestimate the information in their prior forecast errors to a greater extent when they make earnings forecasts with a longer horizon. Finally, I find that, similar to managers, the market also underreacts to earnings information in management forecast errors, which leads to predictable stock returns following earnings announcements.
Domestic dogs as an edge effect in the Brasília National Park, Brazil: interactions with native mammals
Authors: Lacerda A. C. R. , Tomas W. M. , Marinho‐Filho J.
Published: June 2009

Edge effects are a well‐known result of habitat fragmentation. However, little has been published on fragmentation, isolation and the intrusive influence from the surrounding matrix at the landscape level. The objectives of the present study are to evaluate the presence of dogs in the Brasília National Park (BNP) in relation to habitat type and the influence from the surrounding matrix. In addition, this study examines the response of the native mammal fauna to the presence of dogs. Track stations were built along dirt roads in the BNP and subsequently examined for the presence or absence of tracks. We used a stepwise logistic regression to model the occurrence of five mammal species relative to habitat variables, with an α=0.05 to determine whether to enter and retain a variable in the model. A simulation of each species occurrence probability was conducted using a combination of selected habitat variables in a resource selection probability function. Results indicate a negative relationship between distance from the BNP edge and the probability of dog occurrences. From an ecological perspective, the presence of dogs inside the BNP indicates an edge effect. The occurrence of the maned wolf was positively associated with distance from a garbage dump site and negatively associated with the presence of dog tracks. The maned wolf and giant anteater seem to avoid areas near the garbage dump as well as areas with dog tracks. There is no support for the possible existence of a feral dog population inside the BNP, but the effects of free‐ranging dogs on the wildlife population in such an isolated protected area must not be neglected. Domestic dog Canis familiaris populations and disease control programs should be established in the urban, sub‐urban and rural areas surrounding the BNP, along with the complete removal of the garbage dump from the BNP surroundings.
Effective size of harvested ungulate populations
Authors: Sæther B.‐E. , Engen S. , Solberg E. J.
Published: June 2009

The harvest of ungulate populations is often directed against certain sex or age classes to maximize the yield in terms of biomass, number of shot animals or number of trophies. Here we examine how such directional harvest affects the effective size of the population. We parameterize an age‐specific model assumed to describe the dynamics of Fennoscandian moose. Based on expressions for the demographic variancefor a small subpopulation of heterozygotesAabearing a rare neutral allelea, we use this model to calculate how different harvest strategies influence the effective size of the population, given that the population remains stable after harvest. We show that the annual genetic drift, determined by, increases with decreasing harvest rate of calves and increasing sex bias in the harvest towards bulls 1 year or older. The effective population size per generation decreased with reduced harvest of calves and increased harvest of bulls 1 year or older. The magnitude of these effects depends on the age‐specific pattern of variation in reproductive success, which influences the demographic variance. This shows that the choice of harvest strategy strongly affects the genetic dynamics of harvested ungulate populations.
Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide immunoreactivity in the human cerebellum: qualitative and quantitative analyses
Authors: Benagiano Vincenzo , Flace Paolo , Lorusso Loredana , Rizzi Anna , Bosco Lorenzo , Cagiano Raffaele , Ambrosi Glauco
Published: June 2009

Although autoradiographic, reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemical studies have demonstrated receptors for vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) in the cerebellum of various species, immunohistochemistry has never shown immunoreactivity for VIP within cerebellar neuronal bodies and processes. The present study aimed to ascertain whether VIP immunoreactivity really does exist in the human cerebellum by making a systematic analysis of samples removed post‐mortem from all of the cerebellar lobes. The study was carried out using light microscopy immunohistochemical techniques based on a set of four different antibodies (three polyclonal and one monoclonal) against VIP, carefully selected on the basis of control tests performed on human colon. All of the antibodies used showed VIP‐immunoreactive neuronal bodies and processes distributed in the cerebellar cortex and subjacent white matter of all of the cerebellum lobes, having similar qualitative patterns of distribution. Immunoreactive neurons included subpopulations of the main neuron types of the cortex. Statistical analysis of the quantitative data on the VIP immunoreactivity revealed by the different antibodies in the different cerebellar lobes did not demonstrate any significant differences. In conclusion, using four different anti‐VIP antibodies, the first evidence of VIP immunoreactivity is herein supplied in the human post‐mortem cerebellum, with similar qualitative/quantitative patterns of distribution among the different cerebellum lobes. Owing to the function performed by VIP as a neurotransmitter/neuromodulator, it is a candidate for a role in intrinsic and extrinsic (projective) circuits of the cerebellum, in agreement with previous demonstrations of receptors for VIP in the cerebellar cortex and nuclei. As VIP signalling pathways are implicated in the regulation of cognitive and psychic functions, cerebral blood flow and metabolism, processes of histomorphogenesis, differentiation and outgrowth of nervous tissues, the results of this study could be applied to clinical neurology and psychiatry, opening new perspectives for the interpretation of neurodevelopment disorders and development of new therapeutic strategies in cerebellar diseases.
Iliac cortical thickness in the neonate – the gradient effect
Authors: Cunningham Craig A. , Black Sue M.
Published: June 2009

Recent studies of the neonatal ilium are beginning to reveal that a recognizable structural patterning of trabecular bone is present in the absence of any direct stance‐related weight transfer. However, little is known about the organization of compact bone in the ilium and the way in which it is laid down during the earliest stages of development. This study investigates cortical bone thickness across both gluteal and pelvic iliac shells in the human neonatal ilium. Measurements of specific regions of interest on the iliac cortices were recorded using reconstructed micro‐computed tomography scans from 30 neonatal ilia. Analysis of gluteal and pelvic cortical thicknesses revealed a distinctive patterning consistent with the expected bone distribution achieved through early bone modelling and remodelling. The analysis of this pattern is important for understanding the relationship between trabecular bone patterning and cortical bone structure in the earliest stages of pelvic development prior to locomotive influences and its response to the specific functional forces acting during this period.
Hunting patterns and geographic profiling of white shark predation
Authors: Martin R. A. , Rossmo D. K. , Hammerschlag N.
Published: June 2009

Predators can play important roles in structuring their communities through top‐down effects on the distribution and abundance of their prey. Sharks are top predators in many marine communities, yet few studies have quantified those factors influencing their distribution and hunting behaviour. Here, we use location data from 340 predatory interactions between white sharks Carcharodon carcharias (Linnaeus), and Cape fur seals Arctocephalus pusillus pusillus (Schreber), data on associated environmental factors, and spatial analysis, including a novel application of geographic profiling – a tool originally developed to analyse serial crime – to investigate spatial patterns of shark attack and search behaviour at Seal Island in False Bay, South Africa. We found that spatial patterns of shark predation at this site are nonrandom. Sharks appear to possess a well‐defined search base or anchor point, located 100 m seaward of the seal's primary island entry–exit point. This location is not where chances of intercepting seals are greatest and we propose it may represent a balance among prey detection, capture rates, and competition. Smaller sharks exhibit more dispersed prey search patterns and have lower predatory success rates than larger conspecifics, suggesting possible refinement of hunting strategy with experience or competitive exclusion of smaller sharks from the most profitable hunting locations. As many of the features of this system will be common to other instances of foraging, our conclusions and approach employed may have implications and applications for understanding how large predators hunt and for studying other predator–prey systems.
Allometric equations for predicting body mass of dinosaurs
Authors: Packard G. C. , Boardman T. J. , Birchard G. F.
Published: June 2009

We use data from the literature to compare two statistical procedures for estimating mass (or size) of quadrupedal dinosaurs and other extraordinarily large animals in extinct lineages. Both methods entail extrapolation from allometric equations fitted to data for a reference group of contemporary animals having a body form similar to that of the dinosaurs. The first method is the familiar one of fitting a straight line to logarithmic transformations, followed by back‐transformation of the resulting equation to a two‐parameter power function in the arithmetic scale. The second procedure entails fitting a two‐parameter power function directly to arithmetic data for the extant forms by nonlinear regression. In the example presented here, the summed circumferences for humerus plus femur for 33 species of quadrupedal mammals was the predictor variable in the reference sample and body mass was the response variable. The allometric equation obtained by back‐transformation from logarithms was not a good fit to the largest species in the reference sample and presumably led to grossly inaccurate estimates for body mass of several large dinosaurs. In contrast, the allometric equation obtained by nonlinear regression described data in the reference sample quite well, and it presumably resulted in better estimates for body mass of the dinosaurs. The problem with the traditional analysis can be traced to change in the relationship between predictor and response variables attending transformation, thereby causing measurements for large animals not to be weighted appropriately in fitting models by least squares regression. Extrapolations from statistical models obtained by back‐transformation from lines fitted to logarithms are unlikely to yield reliable predictions for body size in extinct animals. Numerous reports on the biology of dinosaurs, including recent studies of growth, may need to be reconsidered in light of our findings.
Phylogeny and species composition of five European species of Branchiobdella (Annelida: Clitellata: Branchiobdellida) reflect the biogeographic history of three endangered crayfish species
Authors: Füreder L. , Summerer M. , Brandstätter A.
Published: June 2009

Branchiobdellid annelids are usually found as commensal symbionts associated with crayfish populations, but knowledge of their dispersion and ecology in Europe is generally scarce. We hypothesized that their geographic extension of species and populations may mirror the distribution history of their hosts. We analysed potential host specificities and the geographic distribution of species from the Italian and Austrian Tyrol and Carinthia by characterizing the morphological and genetic features. On the three indigenous crayfish species Astacus astacus, Austropotamobius pallipes and Austropotamobius torrentium, we identified four branchiobdellid species based on morphological characteristics: Branchiobdella hexodonta, Branchiobdella pentodonta, Branchiobdella balcanica and Branchiobdella parasita. In contrast to the morphological classification, phylogenetic analysis using mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (CO‐I) sequences identified five main lineages: B. balcanica, B. hexodonta, Branchiobdella italica, B. parasita and B. pentodonta. The arrangement of branchiobdellid species corresponded generally to the geographical distribution of their crayfish hosts' locations but also confirmed previous assumptions of crayfish translocations. Our study provides the first application of ideas on the association of freshwater crayfish and their ectosymbionts to be used for discussing the biogeography of crayfish populations. The phenotypical and genotypical analysis also demonstrated so far ignored effects of human activities at both macro‐ecological and micro‐ecological levels.
Prey classification by an araneophagic ant‐like jumping spider (Araneae: Salticidae)
Authors: Nelson X. J. , Jackson R. R.
Published: June 2009

What to attack is one of the most basic decisions predators must make, and these decisions are reliant upon the predator's sensory and cognitive capacity. Active choice of spiders as preferred prey, or araneophagy, has evolved in several distantly related spider families, including jumping spiders (Salticidae), but has never been demonstrated in ant‐like jumping spiders. We used prey‐choice tests with motionless lures to investigate prey‐choice behaviour inMyrmarachne melanotarsa, an East African ant‐like salticid that normally lives in aggregations and often associates with other spider species. We show thatM.melanotarsachooses spiders as prey in preference to insects and, furthermore, discriminates between different types of spiders.Myrmarachne melanotarsa's preferred prey were juvenile hersiliids and its second most preferred were other salticids. To date, all documented examples of araneophagic salticids have been from the basal subfamily Spartaeinae.Myrmarachne melanotarsais the first non‐spartaeine and also the first ant‐like salticid for which araneophagy has been demonstrated.
Countering the hegemony of the Irish national canon: the modernist rhetoric of Seán O'Faoláin (1938–50)1
Authors: MCNALLY MARK
Published: June 2009

ABSTRACT. The telling and re‐telling of national history has long been recognised in studies of nationalism as one of its key legitimising and mobilising strategies. In this article I illustrate how a rhetorical approach can effectively explore this dynamic and emotive dimension of nationalist ideology by examining the rhetorical strategies in the Irish liberal intellectual, Seán O'Faoláin's, attempts to reconstitute the popular canon of Irish history in the 1930s and 1940s. More specifically, I show that contrary to depictions of O'Faoláin as a European liberal who employed rational argument to undermine and encourage the rejection of Irish nationalism and its emphasis on rhetorical narratives of the past, O'Faoláin's challenge to the Irish national canon reveals that he himself mobilised historical narrative to promote his own modernist version of Irish liberal nationalism and demonstrated in the process that he was one of the most skilful rhetors of his day.
Darwin's beautiful contrivances: evolutionary and functional evidence for floral adaptation
Authors: Harder Lawrence D. , Johnson Steven D.
Published: June 2009

Although not ‘a professed botanist’, Charles Darwin made seminal contributions to understanding of floral and inflorescence function while seeking evidence of adaptation by natural selection. This review considers the legacy of Darwin's ideas from three perspectives. First, we examine the process of floral and inflorescence adaptation by surveying studies of phenotypic selection, heritability and selection responses. Despite widespread phenotypic and genetic capacity for natural selection, only one‐third of estimates indicate phenotypic selection. Second, we evaluate experimental studies of floral and inflorescence function and find that they usually demonstrate that reproductive traits represent adaptations. Finally, we consider the role of adaptation in floral diversification. Despite different diversification modes (coevolution, divergent use of the same pollen vector, pollinator shifts), evidence of pollination ecotypes and phylogenetic patterns suggests that adaptation commonly contributes to floral diversity. Thus, this review reveals a contrast between the inconsistent occurrence of phenotypic selection and convincing experimental and comparative evidence that floral traits are adaptations. Rather than rejecting Darwin's hypotheses about floral evolution, this contrast suggests that the tempo of creative selection varies, with strong, consistent selection during episodes of diversification, but relatively weak and inconsistent selection during longer, ‘normal’ periods of relative phenotypic stasis.ContentsSummary530I.Introduction530II.The process of floral and inflorescence adaptation532III.Experimental studies of flowers as adaptations538IV.Floral diversification: microevolution writ large?539V.Concluding comments541Acknowledgements542References542
Head–torso–hand coordination in children with and without developmental coordination disorder
Authors: ELDERS VERA , SHEEHAN SINÉAD , WILSON ANDREW D , LEVESLEY MARTIN , BHAKTA BIPIN , MON‐WILLIAMS MARK
Published: June 2009

Aim  This study investigated the nature of coordination and control problems in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD).

Method  Seven adults (two males, five females, age range 20–28y; mean 23y, SD 2y 8mo) and eight children with DCD (six males, two females, age range 7–9y; mean 8y, SD 8mo), and 10 without DCD (seven males, three females, age range 7–9y; mean 8y, SD 7mo) sat in a swivel chair and looked at or pointed to targets. Optoelectronic apparatus recorded head, torso, and hand movements, and the spatial and temporal characteristics of the movements were computed.

Results  Head movement times were longer (p<0.05) in children with DCD than in the comparison group, even in the looking task, suggesting that these children experience problems at the lowest level of coordination (the coupling of synergistic muscle groups within a single degree of freedom). Increasing the task demands with the pointing condition affected the performance of children with DCD to a much greater extent than the other groups, most noticeably in key feedforward kinematic landmarks. Temporal coordination data indicated that all three groups attempted to produce similar movement patterns to each other, but that the children with DCD were much less successful than age‐matched children in the comparison group.

Interpretation  Children with DCD have difficulty coordinating and controlling single degree‐of‐freedom movements; this problem makes more complex tasks disproportionately difficult for them. Quantitative analysis of kinematics provides key insights into the nature of the problems faced by children with DCD.
Degos disease: a new simulator of non‐accidental injury
Authors: MOSS CELIA , WASSMER EVANGELINE , DEBELLE GEOFF , HACKETT SCOTT , GOODYEAR HELEN , MALCOMSON ROGER , RYDER CLIVE , SGOUROS SPYROS , SHAHIDULLAH HOSSAIN
Published: June 2009

Recent high‐profile cases have made paediatricians very aware of the serious implications of either missing or wrongly diagnosing non‐accidental injury. Subdural fluid collections in non‐mobile infants usually represent haemorrhage caused by non‐accidental injury. We report a 6‐month‐old male who presented to the Accident and Emergency Department of Birmingham Heartlands Hospital with bilateral subdural fluid collections and skin ulcers resembling cigarette burns. Non‐accidental injury was considered to be the most likely diagnosis. However, while under observation in hospital, the child’s neurological condition deteriorated with progressive cerebral infarctions, and serial photographs of the skin lesions showed failure to heal. The revised diagnosis, confirmed histologically, was Degos disease, an extremely rare and often fatal occlusive vasculopathy. The child was treated palliatively and died 8 weeks after presentation. This report informs doctors of a new simulator of non‐accidental injury to be considered in infants with otherwise unexplained subdural fluid collections.
Does parent report measure performance? A study of the construct validity of the Functional Mobility Scale
Authors: HARVEY ADRIENNE , BAKER RICHARD , MORRIS MEG E , HOUGH JANET , HUGHES MARTY , GRAHAM H KERR
Published: June 2009

Aim Parental report is often relied on to measure performance of activities in children with cerebral palsy (CP). This study examined whether the Functional Mobility Scale (FMS) accurately reflects performance of mobility in children with CP.

Method Eighteen children with spastic CP (11 males, seven females; mean age 12y 8mo, SD 2y 8mo, range 8–17y) were recruited from a special development school. Children were in Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) levels II (n=5), III (n=4), or IV (n=9), and had quadriplegia (n=9), diplegia (n=7), or hemiplegia (n=2). The children’s mobility was observed directly around and outside the home and at school and their mobility methods were recorded. The parent’s FMS rating was obtained on the telephone by a physiotherapist. Agreement between direct observation and the FMS rating was examined using quadratic weighted kappa (κ) statistics.

Results Agreement between direct observation and the FMS was as follows: FMS 5m κ=0.71, 45%; FMS 50m κ=0.76, 94%; FMS 500m κ=0.74, 95%. Differences in the range and number of mobility methods were observed by GMFCS level across environmental settings.

Interpretation Substantial agreement was found between FMS ratings and direct observation, particularly over longer distances, providing evidence of the validity of the FMS as a measure of performance in children with CP.
Participation in home, extracurricular, and community activities among children and young people with cerebral palsy
Authors: ORLIN MARGO N , PALISANO ROBERT J , CHIARELLO LISA A , KANG LIN‐JU , POLANSKY MARCIA , ALMASRI NIHAD , MAGGS JILL
Published: June 2009

Aim  Participation in home, extracurricular, and community activities is a desired outcome of rehabilitation services for children and young people with cerebral palsy (CP). The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of age and gross motor function on participation among children and young people with CP.

Method  Five hundred participants (277 males, 223 females) were grouped by age and Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) level. There were 291 children aged 6 to 12 years and 209 young people aged 13 to 21 years. There were 128 participants in GMFCS level I, 220 in levels II/III, and 152 in levels IV/V. Participants completed the Children’s Assessment of Participation and Enjoyment to measure number of activities (diversity) and how often they were performed (intensity) in the past 4 months.

Results  Children had higher overall participation diversity and intensity than young people (p<0.001). Children and young people in GMFCS level I had the highest overall participation, followed by children and young people in levels II/III and IV/V. Children had higher participation in recreational (p<0.001) but not formal (such as team sports or clubs) or physical activities. Children (p<0.01) and young people (p<0.001) in level I had the highest participation in physical activities; diversity and intensity were generally low.

Interpretation  The findings provide evidence of the effect of age and gross motor function on participation of children and young people with CP. Low participation in physical activities may have implications for fitness and health, especially for children and young people in GMFCS levels IV and V.