bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Socio-demographic, Clinical Characteristics and Status of Hypertension Control among Rural Hypertensive Patients
Authors: Ahmed NU , Rahman M , Islam MDU , Ali SY , Hossain AM , Fatema K , Islam MR , Sadhya G
Published: April 2011

Hypertension is an important independent predictor of cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular accidents and death. The prevalence of cardiovascular diseases and hypertension is rapidly increasing in developing countries. A cross sectional study was conducted among 103 hypertensive patients during December 2009 to June 2010 in Goshair Hat Upazilla of Shariatpur District to determine the socio-demographic, clinical characteristics and status of control of hypertension in rural population. Respondents were distributed more or less equally among males and females. The mean ± SD and median age of the respondents were calculated as 59.97 ± 11.12 years, with 64% of them were included in the age group of 51 to 70 years. More than half of the respondents were housewives (51.5%), which were followed by businessmen (21.4%). Every three of five patients were over weight, while 22.3% respondents were obese. One third of the respondents were also diabetic (33%). None of the 103 patients had achieved the target for SBP (Systolic blood pressure) control (<140mm of Hg) and only 21.4% of the patients had achieved the target for DBP (Diastolic blood pressure) control (<90 mm of Hg). Again none of the diabetic hypertensive patients had achieved the target for SBP control (<130mm of Hg) and only one patient had achieved the target for DBP control (<80 mm of Hg). Overall five patients were found to have uncontrolled and severe hypertension (BP >180/110 mm of Hg), all of whom were female. From this study control of hypertension was found poor among rural hypertensive population. For effectively combating the burden of hypertension in this population, education and awareness about hypertension needs to be given priority. Key words: Hypertension; socio-demographic characteristics; rural area; control of blood pressure DOI: 10.3329/fmcj.v6i1.7402 Faridpur Med. Coll. J. 2011;6(1): 05-09
Prevalence of Bacterial Vaginosis among the PID Patients in Bangladesh
Authors: Begum N , Muazzam N , Shamsuzzaman SM , Islam MDU , Chowdhury AK , Begum SA
Published: April 2011

A cross sectional study was conducted on patients attending at the outpatient department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Dhaka during the period of July, 2007 to December, 2007. Two hundred sexually active female in the age group of 15-45 years, with vaginal discharge and itching, were selected for the study. Among them 143 having only vaginal discharge and itching without PID (Pelvic inflammatory disease) and 57 patients having vaginal discharge and itching with PID. A detailed history and a thorough clinical examination of all the cases were done. After making the clinical diagnosis of BV (Bacterial vaginosis) by Amsels criteria, diagnosis also carried out with Acridine orange staining, Gram stain Nugent criteria. Out of 200 women, 48 (24%) cases were diagnosed as having bacterial vaginosis by applying Amsel's clinical criteria. The rate of detection of bacterial vaginosis was 23% by Gram stain Nugent criteria and 24.5% by acridine orange staining. In this study BV was diagnosed in 31(54.39) cases among the PID patients and 17(11.89) among the women having only vaginal discharge and itching. This study shows the increased association of BV in PID patients of Bangladesh. Key words: Bacterial vaginosis; Sexually Transmitted Diseases DOI: 10.3329/fmcj.v6i1.7403 Faridpur Med. Coll. J. 2011;6(1): 10-13
Recent Advance in Biosensors for microRNAs Detection in Cancer
Authors: Catuogno Silvia , Esposito Carla L. , Quintavalle Cristina , Cerchia Laura , Condorelli Gerolama , De Franciscis Vittorio
Published: April 2011

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-protein-coding RNA molecules that regulate the expression of a wide variety of genes. They act by sequence-specific base pairing in the 3’ untranslated region (3’UTR) of the target mRNA leading to mRNA degradation or translation inhibition. Recent studies have implicated miRNAs in a wide range of biological processes and diseases including development, metabolism and cancer, and revealed that expression levels of individual miRNAs may serve as reliable molecular biomarkers for cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Therefore, a major challenge is to develop innovative tools able to couple high sensitivity and specificity for rapid detection of miRNAs in a given cell or tissue. In this review, we focus on the latest innovative approaches proposed for miRNA profiling in cancer and discuss their advantages and disadvantages.
Neuropilins: A New Target for Cancer Therapy
Authors: Grandclement Camille , Borg Christophe
Published: April 2011

Recent investigations highlighted strong similarities between neural crest migration during embryogenesis and metastatic processes. Indeed, some families of axon guidance molecules were also reported to participate in cancer invasion: plexins/semaphorins/neuropilins, ephrins/Eph receptors, netrin/DCC/UNC5. Neuropilins (NRPs) are transmembrane non tyrosine-kinase glycoproteins first identified as receptors for class-3 semaphorins. They are particularly involved in neural crest migration and axonal growth during development of the nervous system. Since many types of tumor and endothelial cells express NRP receptors, various soluble molecules were also found to interact with these receptors to modulate cancer progression. Among them, angiogenic factors belonging to the Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) family seem to be responsible for NRP-related angiogenesis. Because NRPs expression is often upregulated in cancer tissues and correlated with poor prognosis, NRPs expression might be considered as a prognostic factor. While NRP1 was intensively studied for many years and identified as an attractive angiogenesis target for cancer therapy, the NRP2 signaling pathway has just recently been studied. Although NRP genes share 44% homology, differences in their expression patterns, ligands specificities and signaling pathways were observed. Indeed, NRP2 may regulate tumor progression by several concurrent mechanisms, not only angiogenesis but lymphangiogenesis, epithelial-mesenchymal transition and metastasis. In view of their multiples functions in cancer promotion, NRPs fulfill all the criteria of a therapeutic target for innovative anti-tumor therapies. This review focuses on NRP-specific roles in tumor progression.
Factors Associated with American Indian Cigarette Smoking in Rural Settings
Authors: Hodge Felicia , Nandy Karabi
Published: April 2011

Introduction: This paper reports on the prevalence, factors and patterns of cigarette smoking among rural California American Indian (AI) adults. Methods: Thirteen Indian health clinic registries formed the random household survey sampling frame (N = 457). Measures included socio-demographics, age at smoking initiation, intention to quit, smoking usage, smoking during pregnancy, health effects of smoking, suicide attempts or ideation, history of physical abuse, neglect and the role of the environment (smoking at home and at work). Statistical tests included Chi Square and Fisher’s Exact test, as well as multiple logistic regression analysis among never, former, and current smokers. Results: Findings confirm high smoking prevalence among male and female participants (44% and 37% respectively). American Indians begin smoking in early adolescence (age 14.7). Also, 65% of current smokers are less than 50% Indian blood and 76% of current smokers have no intention to quit smoking. Current and former smokers are statistically more likely to report having suicidal ideation than those who never smoked. Current smokers also report being neglected and physically abused in childhood and adolescence, are statistically more likely to smoke ½ pack or less (39% vs. 10% who smoke 1+ pack), smoke during pregnancy, and have others who smoke in the house compared with former and never smokers. Conclusion: Understanding the factors associated with smoking will help to bring about policy changes and more effective programs to address the problem of high smoking rates among American Indians.
Applying Factor Analysis Combined with Kriging and Information Entropy Theory for Mapping and Evaluating the Stability of Groundwater Quality Variation in Taiwan
Authors: Shyu Guey-Shin , Cheng Bai-You , Chiang Chi-Ting , Yao Pei-Hsuan , Chang Tsun-Kuo
Published: April 2011

In Taiwan many factors, whether geological parent materials, human activities, and climate change, can affect the groundwater quality and its stability. This work combines factor analysis and kriging with information entropy theory to interpret the stability of groundwater quality variation in Taiwan between 2005 and 2007. Groundwater quality demonstrated apparent differences between the northern and southern areas of Taiwan when divided by the Wu River. Approximately 52% of the monitoring wells in southern Taiwan suffered from progressing seawater intrusion, causing unstable groundwater quality. Industrial and livestock wastewaters also polluted 59.6% of the monitoring wells, resulting in elevated EC and TOC concentrations in the groundwater. In northern Taiwan, domestic wastewaters polluted city groundwater, resulting in higher NH3-N concentration and groundwater quality instability was apparent among 10.3% of the monitoring wells. The method proposed in this study for analyzing groundwater quality inspects common stability factors, identifies potential areas influenced by common factors, and assists in elevating and reinforcing information in support of an overall groundwater management strategy.
Preparation and Characterization of Chitin Benzoic Acid Esters
Authors: Bhatt Lok Ranjan , Kim Bo Mi , Hyun Kim , Kwak Geu Beum , Lee Chai Ho , Chai Kyu Yun
Published: April 2011

Chitin benzoic acid esters were prepared using a phosphoryl mixed anhydride method. The products were characterized by 1H-NMR and FT-IR spectroscopy. FT-IR analysis revealed that the degree of O-acyl substitution of the products was in a range of 1.17–1.83. Morphological surface changes in the parent molecule due to the introduction of benzoic acid moieties were observed by scanning electron microscopy. The surface of the products was porous, in contrast to the sheet-shape of the parent molecules. The solubility of the products, which improved with increased degree of acid substitution, was tested in various organic solvents.
Spatial and Temporal Land Cover Changes in the Simen Mountains National Park, a World Heritage Site in Northwestern Ethiopia
Authors: Wondie Menale , Schneider Werner , Melesse Assefa M. , Teketay Demel
Published: April 2011

The trend of land cover (LC) and land cover change (LCC), both in time and space, was investigated at the Simen Mountains National Park (SMNP), a World Heritage Site located in northern Ethiopia, between 1984 and 2003 using Geographical Information System (GIS) and remote sensing (RS). The objective of the study was to generate spatially and temporally quantified information on land cover dynamics, providing the basis for policy/decision makers and resource managers to facilitate biodiversity conservation, including wild animals. Two satellite images (Landsat TM of 1984 and Landsat ETM+ of 2003) were acquired and supervised classification was used to categorize LC types. Ground Control Points were obtained in field condition for georeferencing and accuracy assessment. The results showed an increase in the areas of pure forest (Erica species dominated) and shrubland but a decrease in the area of agricultural land over the 20 years. The overall accuracy and the Kappa value of classification results were 88 and 85%, respectively. The spatial setting of the LC classes was heterogeneous and resulted from the biophysical nature of SMNP and anthropogenic activities. Further studies are suggested to evaluate the existing LC and LCC in connection with wildlife habitat, conservation and management of SMNP.
La localisation de la recherche-développement en France
Authors: Guieysse J.-A.
Published: April 2011

La période 1960-1990 est favorable à la recherche-développement (R.-D.), dans l'industrie, en France.

D'après les localisations actuelles et la croissance de la R.-D. dans les régions, il est possible de distinguer plusieurs types régionaux contrastés, qui nuancent les idées générales sur l'organisation de l'espace français par les industries « à haute technologie ».

On examine particulièrement le cas de l'Ile-de-France. La R.-D. est le reflet des structures industrielles. Cependant, ces structures perdent de leur variété ; le rôle de métropole internationale joué par Paris renforce surtout le secteur tertiaire.
La montée en puissance du Hamas depuis la fin des années 1990
Authors: Napolitano Valentina
Published: April 2011

Depuis la fin des années 90, le camp de réfugiés de Yarmouk a connu d’importantes recompositions politiques. Dans un contexte marqué par le détachement des réfugiés vis-à-vis des factions nationalistes et de gauche, le Hamas est parvenu à gagner un rôle politique et social croissant au sein du camp, notamment suite à l’établissement d’un bureau politique dans la capitale syrienne en 1993. Au cours de ce travail, je propose donc d’analyser le discours et les stratégies de mobilisation adoptées par le Hamas pour gagner le soutien des réfugiés. Cet article cherche à comprendre comment ce mouvement est parvenu à ajuster son action au contexte particulier du camp et du pays d’accueil, et comment il a bouleversé la vie sociale des réfugiés, leurs représentations et leurs modes de participation à la cause nationale.
Corpus littéraires : quelle place pour le nouveau ?
Authors: Ducos Dominique
Published: April 2011

De manière récurrente, les professeurs examinateurs de l’oral de l’EAF évoquent avec regret le piètre renouvèlement des corpus littéraires présentés dans les descriptifs des candidats à cette épreuve. Une enquête portant sur un panel de trente descriptifs de l’EAF 2010 permet de pointer l’urgence d’une réflexion sur une problématique éludée depuis plusieurs années. Une analyse détaillée des lectures proposées permettra de vérifier la validité des plaintes des professeurs en charge des oraux de l’EAF, et donc la réalité d’une offre littéraire restreinte en classe de première. L’article analyse ensuite les arguments invoqués par les acteurs eux-mêmes pour justifier ce phénomène et met ainsi à jour les raisons et les canons implicites qui structurent les pratiques des enseignants de français en classe de première. Il envisage enfin des perspectives de renouveau des dits corpus qui s’appuient sur le paradoxe existant ainsi que sur la responsabilité de l’institution.
Poésies à l'école : pêche miraculeuse ?
Authors: Defrance Zorka
Published: April 2011

Le pari de rendre la poésie accessible en tentant de la réduire à une forme et à des thématiques reconnaissables sclérose la représentation des élèves ou la confine tout au plus dans la représentation que se fait l’adulte d’une « poésie enfantine ». Peut-on faire le pari inverse en ouvrant le corpus à la diversité des textes et des auteurs aussi contemporains soient-ils pour que l’enfant y fasse le choix qui lui est réellement accessible ? La constitution d’une anthologie personnelle peut-elle engager la subjectivité du jeune lecteur et créer une correspondance entre l’intégrité du texte et l’intimité du lecteur ? À partir de quelles ressources bibliographiques créer le corpus ? Les manuels ? Les anthologies ? Les recueils ? Des exemples de création d’une anthologie personnelle au cycle 2 et 3 illustrent les tentatives d’une démarche.
Idéalisme et matérialisme. Hermann Cohen, sur Friedrich Albert Lange
Authors: Holzhey Helmut
Published: April 2011

Résumé Confronté à l’orientation tendanciellement matérialiste des sciences de la nature dans le dernier tiers du xix e  siècle, Hermann Cohen s’efforça d’offrir une fondation idéaliste de ces sciences en recourant à la philosophie transcendantale kantienne. Il fut en accord avec Friedrich Albert Lange dans le refus de toute métaphysique dogmatique, mais il ne partagea pas son naturalisme, et l’idéalisme poético-fictif qui le complétait. Alors que Lange, dans son Histoire du matérialisme , avait eu pour but de décrire l’autodissolution de la métaphysique matérialiste, Cohen voulut montrer comment le matérialisme débouchait dans un idéalisme méthodique, de provenance kantienne. En fin de compte, la distance dans le temps par rapport à Lange s’accroissant, il en vint à prêter un tel idéalisme à Lange lui-même ; ce qui est problématique.
Problem Management within Corrective Maintenance
Authors: Kajko-Mattsson Mira
Published: April 2011

Problem management is the dominating process within corrective maintenance. It not only handles software problems but also provides quantitative feedback important for assessing product quality, crucial for continuous process analysis and improvement and essential for defect prevention. Chapter 2 gives a detailed description of the problem management process and its constituent phases, activities, and roles involved. It also provides (1) general definitions on the basic terminology utilized within corrective maintenance, (2) roadmaps visualizing the corrective maintenance from different perspectives, (3) general descriptions of the most important issues within support (upfront maintenance) process – the process tightly collaborating with the problem management process, and finally, (4) it gives a glimpse into Corrective Maintenance Maturity Model (CM3): Problem Management – a process model specialized to only problem management process within corrective maintenance.
Inquiry into Definitions of Culture in IT Studies
Authors: Srite Mark , Straub Detmar , Loch Karen , Evaristo Roberto , Karahanna Elena
Published: April 2011

In reviewing the history of the conceptualization and measurement of “culture,” one quickly realizes that there is wide-ranging and contradictory scholarly opinion about which values, norms, and beliefs should be measured to represent the concept of “culture.” We explore an alternate theory-based view of culture via social identity theory (SIT), which suggests that each individual is influenced by a plethora of cultures and sub-cultures – some ethnic, some national, and some organizational. In information system (IS) research, the culture of subjects and respondents is problematic because it is typically an overly simplistic categorization. IS research nearly always assumes that an individual living in a particular place and time belongs to a single “culture,” e.g., someone living in Egypt is automatically classified as being a member of the Egyptian culture, or, more broadly, the Arab culture. This dearth of clear concepts and measures for “culture” may explain why cross-cultural research has been so exceedingly difficult to conduct. It may also explain why it has been hard to develop and refine theories. Moreover, it may give insight into why reasonable, explained variance in predictive models has not been higher. Finally, it is very possible that much cross-cultural business research could be rightly accused of advancing an “ecological fallacy” by not recognizing the individual makeup of persons with respect to culture.Using SIT (or other theory bases) as grounding for cultural research programs implies the use of certain methodological approaches. Each study would have to establish the salient “cultures” in each individual’s background and include these different “cultures” as independent variables in positivist research. In qualitative research, there would need to be an equally rigorous assessment of the cultural identifiers of each individual.
Critical Strategies for Information Systems Development Projects
Authors: Kim Chung S. , Peterson Dane K.
Published: April 2011

This study investigated the perceptions of information systems (IS) developers from the United States and Japan with regards to the relative importance of 18 strategies that prior research has indicated are important for the successful implementation of an IS. The results of a principal components analysis revealed that the 18 IS strategies could be reduced to five components: (1) Organizational Integration, (2) Communications, (3) Characteristics of the Project Leader, (4) Characteristics of the Project Team Members, and (5) Project Development Techniques. The analysis also indicated that there were a significant difference in the perceptions of developers from the U.S. and Japan with respect to the importance of the five components. The developers from the U.S. viewed Communications as the most critical component and Project Leader Characteristics as the least important component. Conversely, developers from Japan perceived the Project Leader as the most crucial component for determining the success of an IS project. Team Member Characteristics was viewed as the least important component by developers from Japan. The results were discussed in terms of cultural differences.
Effectiveness of Systems Analysis and Design Education
Authors: Kohli Rajiv , Gupta Jatinder N.D.
Published: April 2011

This paper reports the results of an exploratory study of student perceptions of the education and experiences of the Systems Analysis and Design (SA&D) course taught in the IS programs at academic institutions. An ex-ante and post hoc empirical study of student perceptions in the SA&D courses was conducted. The results indicate that after taking the SA&D course and working with a real-life project, students’ perceptions improved for the applicability of structured methodologies across industries, the importance of computer programming in systems analysis and design process, and the role of advanced technologies in SA&D. Respondents also perceived that when working as groups, SA&D team members did not do their fair share of the work. However, the importance of user involvement was recognized.
Metrics for Workflow Design
Authors: Reijers Hajo A.
Published: April 2011

On the way to process automation, an important issue is the definition of the various activities or work tasks within the respective business process. Design decisions on this issue considerably affect business performance. Several guidelines known in the area of workflow management exist, but do not give the inexperienced workflow designer much to hold on to. This chapter introduces a cohesion metric that can be used for the identification of weakly cohesive activities in a workflow design. Also, a heuristic is presented that is based on this cohesion metric to decide between various workflow design alternatives. A theoretical and an empirical evaluation are included in this chapter, both positively supporting the soundness of the metric. The inspiration for the introduced notion is derived from similar cohesion metrics in software engineering.
FRIL++ and Its Applications
Authors: Rossiter Jonathan Michael , Cao Tru Hoang
Published: April 2011

We introduce a deductive probabilistic and fuzzy object-oriented database language, called FRIL++, which can deal with both probability and fuzziness. Its foundation is a logic-based probabilistic and fuzzy object-oriented model where a class property (i.e., an attribute or a method) can contain fuzzy set values, and uncertain class membership and property applicability are measured by lower and upper bounds on probability. Each uncertainly applicable property is interpreted as a default probabilistic logic rule, which is defeasible, and probabilistic default reasoning on fuzzy events is proposed for uncertain property inheritance and class recognition. The design, implementation, and basic features of FRIL++ are presented. FRIL++ can be used as both a modeling and a programming language, as demonstrated by its applications to machine learning, user modeling, and modeling with words herein.
A Framework to Build Fuzzy Object-Oriented Capabilities Over an Existing Database System
Authors: Berzal Fernando , Marin Nicolás , Pons Olga
Published: April 2011

Fuzzy object-oriented database models allow the representation, storage, and retrieval of complex imperfect information according to the object-oriented data paradigm. This chapter describes both a framework and an architecture that can be used to develop fuzzy object-oriented capabilities using the conventional features of the object-oriented data paradigm. We present a framework composed of a set of classical classes, which gives support to fuzzily described complex objects. We also explain how to deal with fuzzy extensions of object-oriented features using as a basis, the conventional object-oriented features. This proposal can be used to build a fuzzy object-oriented database system, by taking as a base an existing database system and minimizing the development effort.
Organizational Knowledge Sharing in ERP Implementation
Authors: Jones Mary C. , Price R. Leon
Published: April 2011

This study examines organizational knowledge sharing in enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation. Knowledge sharing in ERP implementation is somewhat unique, because ERP requires end users to have more divergent knowledge than is required in the use of traditional systems. Because of the length of time and commitment that ERP implementation requires, end users also are often more involved in ERP implementations than they are in more traditional ERP implementations. They must understand how their tasks fit into the overall process, and they must understand how their process fits with other organizational processes. Knowledge sharing among organizational members is one critical piece of ERP implementation, yet it is challenging to achieve. There is often a large gap in knowledge among ERP implementation personnel, and people do not easily share what they know. This study presents findings about organizational knowledge sharing during ERP implementation in three firms. Data were collected through interviews using a multi-site case study methodology. Findings are analyzed in an effort to provide a basis on which practitioners can facilitate knowledge sharing more effectively during ERP implementation.
Formal Specifications of Software Model Evolution Using Contracts
Authors: Pons Claudia , Baum Gabriel
Published: April 2011

During the object-oriented software development process, a variety of models of the system is built. All these models are semantically overlapping and together represent the system as a whole. In this chapter, we present a classification of relationships between models along three different dimensions, proposing a formal description of them in terms of mathematical contracts, where the software development process is seen as involving a number of agents (the development team and the software artifacts) carrying out actions with the goal of building a software system that meets the user requirements. In this way, contracts can be used to reason about correctness of the development process, and to compare the capabilities of various groupings of agents in order to accomplish a particular contract. The goal of the proposed formalization is to provide formal foundations for tools that perform intelligent analysis on models assisting software engineers through the software life cycle.
Access Control for Web Service Applications
Authors: Du Timon C. , Hwang Richard , Chou Charles Ling-yu
Published: April 2011

Given the rapid changes in the information technologies, the issue of information securities and company’s internal controls has become very critical to both internal and external auditors. Recently, external auditors are under pressure to provide real-time assurance. Movement of this kind has complicated as to when and how to grant the access privileges to external auditors. In addition, when there is a high degree of collaborative relationship among organizations, the collaborators need to establish policies of auditors’ access controls and set up conditions and constraints for security and confidentiality reasons. Since auditors among the collaborators have different seniority, the access privileges should be granted based on the seniority of the auditors in the collaborative team members. In contrast, the growth of Web service becomes a new paradigm to provide collaborative auditing service via Web. The access control issue is a crucial issue for the future collaboration. In this study, we propose a role-based Chinese Wall model, which organizes the corporate data into four different types of control groups with different access control policies, for the auditors to access the data among collaborating enterprises. Using the vendor-managed inventories (VMI) example, the study discusses how auditing tasks can be performed under the proposed access control environment. To ensure the functionality of the proposed framework, the study uses Oracle software to demonstrate the feasibility of the model.
E-Government and Social Exclusion
Authors: Lee-Kelley Liz , James Thomas
Published: April 2011

In the U.K., central government’s vision is to deploy all local government services electronically by 2005. Yet recent government and commercial statistics have indicated a widening gap between those who are e-literate and those who are not. This study examines the possibility of social exclusion from e-government implementation. Anchored on two questions: (1) What are the factors influencing the adoption of e-government initiatives? and (2) Is the implementation of e-government likely to result in the social exclusion of certain groups in the community? The study sampled members of the public from two local authorities in the U.K. to investigate their dispositions towards the new offering of online government services. The results found that unlike previous research, basic demographic characteristics do not appear to be related to Internet (or e-government) use. This could be a consequence of new and improved technologies reducing access barriers. However, there were clear indications that language, ethnicity, cognitive computer skills and a positive personal attitude towards online transactions are the key drivers for e-government adoption. Of concern is the existence of a hard core of non-users, which will require a proactive policy to provide the relevant facilitating conditions to promote use and experience. This study contributes to a better understanding of the factors required for effective online public services delivery and the ways to direct resources into increasing Internet literacy and use.
Objectification of Relationships
Authors: Halpin Terry
Published: April 2011

Some popular information-modeling approaches allow instances of relationships or associations to be treated as entities in their own right. Object-role modeling (ORM) calls this process “objectification” or “nesting.” In the unified modeling language (UML), this modeling technique is called “reification,” and is mediated by means of association classes. While this modeling option is rarely supported by industrial versions of entity-relationship modeling (ER), it is allowed in several academic versions of ER. Objectification is related to the linguistic activity of nominalization, of which two flavors may be distinguished: situational and propositional. In practice, objectification needs to be used judiciously, as its misuse can lead to implementation anomalies, and those modeling approaches that permit objectification often provide incomplete or flawed support for it. This chapter provides an in-depth analysis of objectification, shedding new light on its fundamental nature, and providing practical guidelines on using objectification to model information systems. Because of its richer semantics, the main graphic notation used is that of ORM 2 (the latest generation of ORM); however, the main ideas are relevant to UML and ER as well.
Toward Autonomic DBMSs
Authors: Martin Patrick , Powley Wendy , Zheng Min
Published: April 2011

This chapter introduces autonomic computing as a means to automate the complex tuning, configuration, and optimization tasks that are currently the responsibility of the database administrator. We describe an algorithm called the dynamic reconfiguration algorithm (DRF) that can be implemented as part of an autonomic database management system (DBMS) to manage the DBMS buffer pools, which are a key resource in a DBMS. DRF is an iterative algorithm that uses greedy heuristics to find a reallocation that benefits a target transaction class. DRF uses the principle of goal-oriented resource management. We define and motivate the cost- estimate equations used in the algorithm and present the results of a set of experiments to investigate the performance of the algorithm.
Evaluating the Performance of Dynamic Database Applications
Authors: He Zhen , Darmont Jerome
Published: April 2011

This chapter explores the effect that changing access patterns has on the performance of database management systems. Changes in access patterns play an important role in determining the efficiency of key performance optimization techniques, such as dynamic clustering, prefetching, and buffer replacement. However, all existing benchmarks or evaluation frameworks produce static access patterns in which objects are always accessed in the same order repeatedly. Hence, we have proposed the dynamic evaluation framework (DEF) that simulates access pattern changes using configurable styles of change. DEF has been designed to be open and fully extensible (e.g., new access pattern change models can also be added easily). In this chapter, we instantiate DEF into the dynamic object evaluation framework (DoEF), which is designed for object databases, that is, object-oriented or object-relational databases such as multimedia databases or most eXtensible Mark-up Language (XML) databases.
Government Enterprise Architectures
Authors: Martin Nigel
Published: April 2011

This chapter describes the development and use of government enterprise architectures for the framing and alignment of the core business processes and enabling information systems at the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and the Centrelink Social Services agency. The chapter focuses on the construction and ongoing maintenance of public enterprise architectures that enable the alignment condition. An established research model has been used to guide the analysis and explication of the government business processes, enabling systems and architectures, and the resulting agency alignment. While the discussion acknowledges the existence of other formal and informal enablers of alignment (such as strategic planning or management support), this chapter concentrates on the enterprise architecture enabler. The functionally integrated government business processes and information systems that are established within the instantiated enterprise architecture are examined. The agencies’ performance data reflects two public organizations that are closely aligned and have achieved upper benchmarked outcomes and recognition awards. The agencies’ business processes and architectural practices conform to established theoretical frameworks.
Studies of propane flame soot acting as heterogeneous ice nuclei in conjunction with single particle soot photometer measurements
Authors: Crawford I. , Möhler O. , Schnaiter M. , Saathoff H. , Liu D. , McMeeking G. , Flynn M. , Bower K. N. , Connolly P. J. , Gallagher M. W. , Coe H.
Published: April 2011

Abstract. The ice nucleation efficiency of propane flame soot particles with and without a sulphuric acid coating was investigated using the aerosol and cloud chamber facility AIDA (Aerosol Interaction and Dynamics in the Atmosphere). The test soot for cloud formation simulations was produced using a propane flame Combustion Aerosol Standard generator (CAST, Jing-CAST Technologies). The organic carbon content (OC) of the test soot was altered in a reproducible fashion by changing the fuel/air mixture of the generator. The soot content of ice nuclei was subsequently investigated using a combination of a pumped counterflow virtual impactor (PCVI) to separate and evaporate the ice crystals, and a DMT single particle soot photometer (SP2) to examine the mixing state of the BC containing ice residuals. Ice nucleation was found to be most efficient for uncoated soot of low organic carbon content (~5% organic carbon content) where deposition freezing occurred at an ice saturation ratio Sice~1.22 at a temperature T = 226.6 K with 25% of the test soot becoming active as ice nuclei. Propane flame soot of higher organic carbon content (~30% and ~70% organic carbon content) showed significantly lower ice nucleation efficiency (an activated fraction of the order of a few percent in the experiments) than the low organic carbon content soot, with water saturation being required for freezing to occur. Ice nucleation occurred over the range Sice = 1.22–1.70, and T = 223.2–226.6 K. Analysis of the SP2 data showed that the 5% organic carbon content soot had an undetectable OC coating whereas the 30% organic carbon content soot had a thicker or less volatile OC coating. The application of a sulphuric acid coating to the flame soot shifted the threshold of the onset of freezing towards that of the homogeneous freezing of sulphuric acid; for the minimum OC flame soot this inhibited nucleation since the onset of freezing occurred at colder temperatures and required a greater ice saturation ratio; for the medium and maximum OC flame soot, the addition of a sulphuric acid significantly reduced the freezing threshold.
Isoprene suppression of new particle formation in mixed deciduous forest
Authors: Kanawade V. P. , Tom Jobson B. , Guenther A. B. , Erupe M. E. , Pressely S. N. , Tripathi S. N. , Lee S.-H.
Published: April 2011

Abstract. Production of new particles over forests is an important source of cloud condensation nuclei that can affect climate. While such particle formation events have been widely observed, their formation mechanisms over forests are poorly understood. Our observations made in a mixed deciduous Michigan forest with large isoprene emissions during the summer show surprisingly rare occurrence of new particle formation (NPF). No NPF events were observed during the 5 weeks of measurements, except two evening ultrafine particle events as opposed to the typically observed noontime NPF elsewhere. Sulfuric acid concentrations were in the 106 cm−3 ranges with very low preexisting aerosol particles, a favorable condition for NPF to occur even during the summer. The ratio of emitted isoprene carbon to monoterpene carbon at this site was similar to that in Amazon rainforests (ratio >10), where NPF is also very rare, compared with a ratio <0.5 in Finland boreal forests, where NPF events are frequent. Our results showed that large isoprene emissions can suppress NPF formation in forests although the underlying mechanism for the suppression is unclear and future studies are needed to reveal the likely mechanism. The two evening ultrafine particle events were associated with the transported anthropogenic sulfur plumes and the ultrafine particles likely formed via ion induced nucleation. Changes in landcover and environmental conditions could modify the isoprene suppression of NPF in some forest regions resulting in a radiative forcing that could influence climate.
A refined TALDICE-1a age scale from 55 to 112 ka before present for the Talos Dome ice core based on high-resolution methane measurements
Authors: Schüpbach S. , Federer U. , Bigler M. , Fischer H. , Stocker T. F.
Published: April 2011

Abstract. A precise synchronization of different climate records is indispensable for a correct dynamical interpretation of paleoclimatic data. A chronology for the TALDICE ice core from the Ross Sea sector of East Antarctica has recently been presented based on methane synchronization with Greenland and the EDC ice cores and δ18Oice synchronization with EDC in the bottom part (TALDICE-1). By the use of new high-resolution methane data, obtained with a continuous flow analysis technique, we present a refined age scale for the age interval from 55–112 ka before present where TALDICE is synchronized with EDC. New and more precise tie points reduce the uncertainties of the age scale from up to 2000 yr in TALDICE-1 to below 1000 yr over most of the refined interval. Thus, discussions of climate dynamics at sub-millennial time scales are now possible back to 110 ka, in particular during the inception of the last ice age. Calcium data of EDC and TALDICE are compared to show the impact of the refinement to the synchronization of the two ice cores not only for the gas but also for the ice age scale.
Sensitivity of Red Sea circulation to sea level and insolation forcing during the last interglacial
Authors: Trommer G. , Siccha M. , Rohling E. J. , Grant K. , van der Meer M. T. J. , Schouten S. , Baranowski U. , Kucera M.
Published: April 2011

Abstract. This study investigates the response of Red Sea circulation to sea level and insolation changes during termination II and across the last interglacial, in comparison with termination I and the Holocene. Sediment cores from the central and northern part of the Red Sea were investigated by micropaleontological and geochemical proxies. The recovery of the planktonic foraminiferal fauna following high salinities during MIS 6 took place at similar sea-level stand (~50 m below present day), and with a similar species succession, as during termination I. This indicates a consistent sensitivity of the basin oceanography and the plankton ecology to sea-level forcing. Based on planktonic foraminifera, we find that increased water exchange with the Gulf of Aden especially occurred during the sea-level highstand of interglacial MIS 5e. From MIS 6 to the peak of MIS 5e, northern Red Sea SST increased from 21 °C to 25 °C, with about 3 °C of this increase taking place during termination II. Changes in planktonic foraminiferal assemblages indicate that the development of the Red Sea oceanography during MIS 5 was strongly determined by insolation and monsoon strength. The SW Monsoon summer circulation mode was enhanced during the termination, causing low productivity in northern central Red Sea core KL9, marked by high abundance of G. sacculifer, which – as in the Holocene – followed summer insolation. Core KL11 records the northern tip of the intruding intermediate water layer from the Gulf of Aden and its planktonic foraminifera fauna shows evidence for elevated productivity during the sea-level highstand in the southern central Red Sea. By the time of MIS 5 sea-level regression, elevated organic biomarker BIT values suggest denudation of soil organic matter into the Red Sea and high abundances of G. glutinata, and high reconstructed chlorophyll-a values, indicate an intensified NE Monsoon winter circulation mode. Our results imply that the amplitude of insolation fluctuations, and the resulting monsoon strength, strongly influence the Red Sea oceanography during sea-level highstands by regulating the intensity of water exchange with the Gulf of Aden. These processes are responsible for the observation that MIS 5e/d is characterized by higher primary productivity than the Holocene.
Assessment of satellite rainfall products for streamflow simulation in medium watersheds of the Ethiopian highlands
Authors: Bitew M. M. , Gebremichael M.
Published: April 2011

Abstract. The objective is to assess the suitability of commonly used high-resolution satellite rainfall products (CMORPH, TMPA 3B42RT, TMPA 3B42 and PERSIANN) as input to the semi-distributed hydrological model SWAT for daily streamflow simulation in two watersheds (Koga at 299 km2 and Gilgel Abay at 1656 km2) of the Ethiopian highlands. First, the model is calibrated for each watershed with respect to each rainfall product input for the period 2003–2004. Then daily streamflow simulations for the validation period 2006–2007 are made from SWAT using rainfall input from each source and corresponding model parameters; comparison of the simulations to the observed streamflow at the outlet of each watershed forms the basis for the conclusions of this study. Results reveal that the utility of satellite rainfall products as input to SWAT for daily streamflow simulation strongly depends on the product type. The 3B42RT and CMORPH simulations show consistent and modest skills in their simulations but underestimate the large flood peaks, while the 3B42 and PERSIANN simulations have inconsistent performance with poor or no skills. Not only are the microwave-based algorithms (3B42RT, CMORPH) better than the infrared-based algorithm (PERSIANN), but the infrared-based algorithm PERSIANN also has poor or no skills for streamflow simulations. The satellite-only product (3B42RT) performs much better than the satellite-gauge product (3B42), indicating that the algorithm used to incorporate rain gauge information with the goal of improving the accuracy of the satellite rainfall products is actually making the products worse, pointing to problems in the algorithm. The effect of watershed area on the suitability of satellite rainfall products for streamflow simulation also depends on the rainfall product. Increasing the watershed area from 299 km2 to 1656 km2 improves the simulations obtained from the 3B42RT and CMORPH (i.e. products that are more reliable and consistent) rainfall inputs while it deteriorates the simulations obtained from the 3B42 and PERSIANN (i.e. products that are unstable and inconsistent) rainfall inputs.
Robust assessment of future changes in extreme precipitation over the Rhine basin using a GCM
Authors: Kew S. F. , Selten F. M. , Lenderink G. , Hazeleger W.
Published: April 2011

Abstract. Estimates of future changes in extremes of multiday precipitation sums are critical for estimates of future discharge extremes of large river basins. Here we use a large ensemble of global climate model SRES A1b scenario simulations to estimate changes in extremes of 1–20 day precipitation sums over the Rhine basin, projected for the period 2071–2100 with reference to 1961–1990. We find that in winter, an increase of order 10%, for the 99th percentile precipitation sum, is approximately fixed across the selected range of multiday sums, whereas in summer, the changes become increasingly negative as the summation time lengthens. Explanations for these results are presented that have implications for simple scaling methods for creating time series of a future climate. We show that the dependence of quantile changes on summation time is sensitive to the ensemble size and indicate that currently available discharge estimates from previous studies are based on insufficiently long time series.