bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
On the Filling in of the Visual Blind Spot: Some Rules of Thumb
Authors: Durgin Frank H , Tripathy Srimant P , Levi Dennis M
Published: January 2007

In monocular viewing there is a region in the peripheral visual field that is blind owing to the absence of photoreceptors at the site where the optic nerve exits the eye. This region, like certain other blind spots, nonetheless appears filled in. Several novel demonstrations of filling in at the blind spot have recently been reported. Here the implications of many of these effects are critically reevaluated. Specifically, it is argued that many blind-spot phenomena taken to support early filling in (eg pop out and alteration in apparent motion) are actually consistent with the thesis that the visual blind spot is treated by early perceptual processing as a region of reduced or absent information. In support of this, it is shown that many perceptual effects observed in blind-spot completion are similar in detail to the amodally perceived completion of partly occluded objects viewed somewhat peripherally. The goals were to point out striking similarities between blind-spot completion and the amodal completion of occluded parts of surfaces, and to provide a common theoretical framework for understanding these phenomena in the context of surface segregation and perceptual interpolation.
The Perceptual Flattening of Three-Dimensional Scenes Enclosed by a Frame
Authors: Eby David W , Braunstein Myron L
Published: January 2007

The effects of a visible frame around a three-dimensional scene on perceived depth within the scene was investigated in three experiments. In experiment 1 subjects judged the slant of an object that had been rotated about a vertical axis. Judged slant was reduced when the frame was illuminated. In experiments 2 and 3 subjects judged the shape (width-to-height ratio) of the object. The object was judged to be narrower when the frame was illuminated (experiment 2) or when a frame was added to the scene in an illuminated room (experiment 3). These results demonstrate that the presence of a frame around a three-dimensional scene serves as a flatness cue, reducing perceived depth within the scene.
Young Children's Judgments of Relative Mass of Two Objects in a Head-On-Collision Event
Authors: Nakamura Kou
Published: January 2007

The purpose in this study was to investigate the ability of young children to judge the relative mass of two objects depicted on a CRT monitor as colliding head-on with each other, and to determine which feature of a collision event they depend on for their judgments. In the first experiment it was shown that half of the 4-year-olds and most of the 5-year-olds and 6-year-olds consistently judged the slower object to be heavier when the velocities of the two objects before collision were the same and those after collision were different. In the second experiment young children's judgments of relative mass in noncollision events in which two objects only moved in opposite directions at different speeds were examined. Results showed that half of the 5-year-olds and most of the 6-year-olds tended to assume consistently that the slower object was heavier. However, the 4-year-olds did not show any clear tendency. The third experiment was planned to examine young children's judgments of relative mass in different collision events in which only the precollision velocities of two colliding objects were different: half of the 6-year-old children judged the slower object to be heavier, but the rest of them and half of the 5-year-old children consistently gave the opposite responses. These were based upon the delay between the starts of motion of the two objects. The 4-year-olds did not show any tendency, as in experiment 2. The results indicate that young children can specify the kinetic information about relative mass from the kinematics of collision events when viewing an appropriate collision event, and that both the precollision phase and the postcollision phase contribute to the judgment of relative mass.
Temporal-Discontinuity Detection with Contrast-Modulated Gratings
Authors: Ichihara Shigeru , Susami Kenji
Published: January 2007

Three experiments on temporal-discontinuity detection were carried out. In experiment 1, temporal-discontinuity thresholds were measured for sinusoidal gratings by the use of the double-staircase method. A sinusoidal grating was presented twice successively. The subject judged whether or not an interval was present. The temporal-discontinuity threshold increased as the spatial frequency of the grating increased, but decreased as the contrast of the grating increased. In experiment 2, contrast-modulated gratings were used instead of the sinusoidal grating. The temporal-discontinuity threshold increased as the carrier frequency increased, and the threshold for each contrast-modulated grating was similar to that for the no-modulation (sinusoidal) grating whose contrast was the same as the maximum local contrast of the contrast-modulated grating. In experiment 3, temporal-discontinuity thresholds were measured for low-contrast (3%) sinusoidal gratings. The thresholds were very low, even for such low-contrast gratings. These results suggest that the low-spatial-frequency channels are not involved in detecting the modulation frequency of the contrast-modulated grating. Rather, the local contrast seems to be the determinant of the detection of the contrast-modulated grating itself.
‘Reversed’ Illusion with Three-Dimensional Müller-Lyer Shapes
Authors: Nijhawan Romi
Published: January 2007

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the Müller-Lyer illusion is produced by a mechanism which uses information defined in the retinal coordinates, or by a mechanism taking into account the three-dimensional (3-D) shape of the illusion figure. The classical Müller-Lyer figure could not be used to address this question since it is two-dimensional. Three-dimensional Müller-Lyer figures were created to see if the illusion they produce is correlated with the shape of the projected retinal image, or with the shape of these figures defined in a 3-D coordinate frame. In the experiments retinal image shape was juxtaposed against the 3-D shape of the illusion displays. For some displays the direction in which the fins pointed, relative to the shafts, in the 3-D frame was the ‘opposite’ of the direction in which they pointed in the retinal images. For such displays, the illusion predicted on the basis of the 3-D structure was the opposite of that predicted on the basis of retinal image shapes. For another 3-D display the fins were oriented such that each projected a single straight line in the retinal image, thus the typical retinal image (< >, > <) was replaced by straight lines (‖, ‖). For all the displays the observed illusion was consistent with how the fins were oriented relative to the shaft in the 3-D coordinate frame, ie with the 3-D shape of the illusion displays. The retinal image shape appeared to play little, if any, role. One conclusion that emerges is that the specific retinal image shape projected by the classical line-drawn pattern is neither necessary nor sufficient for producing the illusion. The present findings are inconsistent with two well known theories of the Müller-Lyer illusion: inappropriate constancy scaling and selective filtering.
Regularity Vs Genericity in the Perception of Collinearity
Authors: Feldman Jacob
Published: January 2007

The perception of collinearity is investigated, with the focus on the minimal case of three dots. As suggested previously, from the standpoint of probabilistic inference, the observer must classify each dot triplet as having arisen either from a one-dimensional curvilinear process or from a two-dimensional patch. The normative distributions of triplets arising from these two classes are unavailable to the observer, and are in fact somewhat counterintuitive. Hence in order to classify triplets, the observer invents distributions for each of the two opposed types, ‘regular’ (collinear) triplets and ‘generic’ (ie not regular) triplets. The collinear prototype is centered at 0° (ie perfectly straight), whereas the generic prototype, contrary to the normative statistics, is centered at 120° away from straight—apparently because this is the point most distant in triplet space from straight and thus creates the maximum possible contrast between the two prototypes. By default, these two processes are assumed to be equiprobable in the environment. An experiment designed to investigate how subjects' judgments are affected by conspicuous environmental deviations from this assumption is reported. The results suggest that observers react by elevating or depressing the expected probability of the generic prototype relative to the regular one, leaving the prototype structure otherwise intact.
Is There Dissociation of Perceptual and Motor Responses to Figural Illusions?
Authors: Post Robert B , Welch Robert B
Published: January 2007

Open-loop reaching for locations within figural illusions was measured in three experiments. The experiments differed with respect to whether subjects were provided a visible target toward which to direct their reaching or were required to form a mental representation of the intended target. In the first experiment, subjects' reaching errors for vertices of a Müller-Lyer figure were similar to those for a nonillusory control stimulus. In experiment 2, subjects' errors while reaching to the imaginary bisector of the Judd illusion were consistent with the presence of an illusion of bisector location. However, when a bisector line was added to the Judd figure, reaching errors were similar to those obtained with a control figure. In experiment 3, subjects' open-loop reaching at the perceived midpoint of a triangle was biased toward its illusory perceptual midpoint. When a mark was placed at the midpoint between a vertex and the opposite side, reaching errors were similar to those obtained with a control figure. The results of the experiments indicate that hand–eye coordination is biased in the direction of illusions of bisector location only when no target is present at the intended goal of the reaching response and subjects are required instead to form a mental image of the target. Under these conditions, reaching responses appear to utilize the spatial map of the visual system, and are influenced by figural illusions of bisector location. The present data can be understood without invoking the notion of visual–motor dissociation.
Synaesthesia: Prevalence and Familiality
Authors: Baron-Cohen Simon , Burt Lucy , Smith-Laittan Fiona , Harrison John , Bolton Patrick
Published: January 2007

Synaesthesia is a condition in which a mixing of the senses occurs; for example, sounds trigger the experience of colour. Previous reports suggest this may be familial, but no systematic studies exist. In addition, there are no reliable prevalence or sex-ratio figures for the condition, which is essential for establishing if the reported sex ratio (female bias) is reliable, and if this implicates a sex-linked genetic mechanism. Two independent population studies were conducted in the city of Cambridge, England (studies 1 and 2 here), as necessary background to the family genetic study of synaesthesia (study 3). Studies 1 and 2 arrived at an almost identical prevalence rate for synaesthesia: approximately 1 case in 2000. The sex ratio found was 6:1 (female:male). A third of cases also reported familial aggregation. In study 3 six families were examined, and first-degree relatives were tested for genuineness of the condition. All six families were indeed multiplex for synaesthesia. Alternative modes of inheritance are discussed.
Autistic Artists Give Clues to Cognition
Authors: Snyder Allan W , Thomas Mandy
Published: January 2007

Certain autistic children whose linguistic ability is virtually nonexistent can draw natural scenes from memory with astonishing accuracy. In particular their drawings display convincing perspective. In contrast, normal children of the same preschool age group and even untrained adults draw primitive schematics or symbols of objects which they can verbally identify. These are usually conceptual outlines devoid of detail. It is argued that the difference between autistic child artists and normal individuals is that autistic artists make no assumptions about what is to be seen in their environment. They have not formed mental representations of what is significant and consequently perceive all details as equally important. Equivalently, they do not impose visual or linguistic schema—a process necessary for rapid conceptualisation in a dynamic existence, especially when the information presented to the eye is incomplete.
Lightness and Junctions
Authors: Todorović Dejan
Published: January 2007

The lightness of a test patch completely surrounded by an inducing field can be predicted by variants of Wallach's ratio rule. When a patch is surrounded by two or more regions with different luminances, a plausible extension of the ratio rule would predict that the effect of the surrounding regions should correlate with the length of the border they share with the test patch. However, as shown by the Wertheimer–Benary and White effects, lightness of such patches can depart appreciably from these predictions. It is argued that a fruitful approach toward the explanation of such effects is based on the analysis of junctions (such as T-junctions and X-junctions) between regions. Several new displays and variations of old displays involving such junctions are used to illustrate this approach. An alternative analysis of a lightness effect introduced by Adelson is provided, and the role of depth effects in achromatic perception is discussed. A number of limitations of the approach and possible ways to overcome them are noted.
Perception of Visible Speech: Influence of Spatial Quantization
Authors: Campbell Christopher S , Massaro Dominic W
Published: January 2007

Visible speech reading was studied to determine which features are functional and to test several models of pattern recognition. Nine test syllables differing in their initial consonant were presented in intact form or under various levels of spatial quantization. Performance decreased in increasing quantization but remained relatively good at moderate levels of degradation. Different models were tested against the confusion matrices. Six features were identified as functional in distinguishing among the nine consonant – vowel syllables. These features were used as sources of information in a fuzzy-logical model of perception and an additive model. The fuzzy-logical model provided a significantly better description of the confusion matrices, showing that speech reading is analogous to other domains of pattern recognition such as face recognition and facial-affect perception.
The Effect of Depth Rotation on Object Identification
Authors: Newell Fiona N , Findlay John M
Published: January 2007

Five experiments are reported in which the time to verify the name of different three-dimensional common objects shown rotated in depth was investigated. Views of computer-generated images of elongated objects rotated in steps of 30° along six axes of rotation were used as stimuli. A significant main effect of view was found in all experiments. This effect was initially attributed to the relatively slower verification times to the end-on views of objects but further analysis revealed that views 30° off the end-on views were significantly slower to verify than other views. Objects with gravitational uprights yielded the same effects as objects without gravitational uprights. The results were not dependent on practice with the stimuli prior to the experiment or on repeated exposure of the views during the experiment. Also, there was no benefit found for the identification of shaded over silhouetted images of objects when shown in more-conventional views but unconventional views were more recognisable when shaded than when silhouetted. Last, initial verification times for familiar views of a set of novel objects were faster than for unfamiliar views even when the views were unconventional. With practice on unfamiliar views, however, the same function relating view to verification time found for familiar objects was found for the novel objects. The results suggest that for recognition purposes visual memory stores discrete views of objects but it characteristically favours a canonical range of views of elongated objects that are based on the salient geometry of the objects so that more unconventional or foreshortened views are less readily recognised.
Manual and Verbal Responses to Completely Masked (Unreportable) Stimuli: Exploring Some Conditions for the Metacontrast Dissociation
Authors: Ansorge Ulrich , Klotz Werner , Neumann Odmar
Published: January 2007

As reported by Neumann and Klotz [1994, in Attention and Performance XV: Conscious and Nonconscious Information Processing Eds C Umiltà, M Moscovitch (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press) pp 123–150], a geometric shape masked by metacontrast can affect response latency (RT) even if it is not visible, ie if it yields a d' value of zero in a signal-detection (SD) task (metacontrast dissociation). In the initial study as well as in most subsequent experiments, the RT task was manual and the SD task was verbal. Hence tasks and output modes were confounded. In the present study, two experiments were conducted to find out which of these factors is responsible for the metacontrast dissociation. In experiment 1, participants performed an RT task in either a manual or a verbal output mode. In experiment 2, these output modes were compared in an SD task. Independently of output modes, the masked primes affected RT but could not be detected in the SD task. It is concluded that tasks, but not output modes, are crucial for the metacontrast dissociation. Implications for the mechanisms underlying the metacontrast dissociation and for the functional difference between judgments and responses are discussed.
Mapping the Zone of Eye-Height Utility for Seated and Standing Observers
Authors: Wraga Maryjane , Proffitt Dennis R
Published: January 2007

In a series of experiments, we delimited a region within the vertical axis of space in which eye height (EH) information is used maximally to scale object heights, referred to as the “zone of eye height utility” (Wraga, 1999b Journal of Experimental Psychology, Human Perception and Performance25 518–530). To test the lower limit of the zone, linear perspective (on the floor) was varied via introduction of a false perspective (FP) gradient while all sources of EH information except linear perspective were held constant. For seated (experiment 1a) observers, the FP gradient produced overestimations of height for rectangular objects up to 0.15 EH tall. This value was taken to be just outside the lower limit of the zone. This finding was replicated in a virtual environment, for both seated (experiment 1b) and standing (experiment 2) observers. For the upper limit of the zone, EH information itself was manipulated by lowering observers' center of projection in a virtual scene. Lowering the effective EH of standing (experiment 3) and seated (experiment 4) observers produced corresponding overestimations of height for objects up to about 2.5 EH. This zone of approximately 0.20–2.5 EH suggests that the human visual system weights size information differentially, depending on its efficacy.
Lysine 58‐cleaved β2‐microglobulin is not detectable by 2D electrophoresis in ex vivo amyloid fibrils of two patients affected by dialysis‐related amyloidosis
Authors: Giorgetti Sofia , Stoppini Monica , Tennent Glenys A. , Relini Annalisa , Marchese Loredana , Raimondi Sara , Monti Maria , Marini Sara , Østergaard Ole , Heegaard Niels H.H. , Pucci Piero , Esposito Gennaro , Merlini Giampaolo , Bellotti Vittorio
Published: January 2007

The lysine 58 cleaved and truncated variant of β2‐microglobulin (ΔK58‐β2m) is conformationally unstable and present in the circulation of a large percentage of patients on chronic hemodialysis, suggesting that it could play a role in the β2‐microglobulin (β2m) amyloid fibrillogenesis associated with dialysis‐related amyloidosis (DRA). However, it has yet to be detected in the amyloid deposits of such patients. Here, we extracted amyloid fibrils, without denaturation or additional purification, from different amyloidotic tissues of two unrelated individuals suffering from DRA, and characterized them by high‐sensitivity bidimensional gel electrophoresis (2D‐PAGE), immunoblotting, MALDI time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry, and protein sequencing. To confirm whether or not this species could be identified by our proteomic approaches, we mapped its location in 2D‐PAGE, in mixtures of pure ΔK58‐β2m, and extracts of amyloid fibrils from patients, to a discrete region of the gel distinct from other isoforms of β2m. Using this approach, the two known principal isoforms found in β2m amyloid were identified, namely, the full‐length protein and the truncated species lacking six N‐terminal amino acid residues (ΔN6‐β2m). In contrast, we found no evidence for the presence of ΔK58‐β2m.
Identification of a plane pollen lipid transfer protein (Pla a 3) and its immunological relation to the peach lipid‐transfer protein, Pru p 3
Authors: Lauer I. , Miguel‐Moncin M. S. , Abel T. , Foetisch K. , Hartz C. , Fortunato D. , Cistero‐Bahima A. , Vieths S. , Scheurer S.
Published: January 2007

Background
An association between plane tree pollen allergy and plant food allergy has been described, but the cross‐reacting allergens have not yet been identified. The aim of this study was the identification of homologous non‐specific lipid‐transfer proteins (nsLTPs) in plane pollen, and to investigate its immunological relationship with the peach LTP, Pru p 3.

Methods
Three different patient groups were recruited in Spain: 22 plane pollen‐allergic patients without food allergy (A), 36 plane pollen‐allergic patients with peach allergy (B) and 10 peach‐allergic patients without plane pollen allergy (C). Proteins from plane pollen extract were fractionated by ion‐exchange and reversed‐phase chromatography. Further methods applied were N‐terminal amino acid sequence analysis, immunoblotting, enzyme allergosorbent test, CAP and basophil histamine release assays.

Results
A 10 kDa IgE‐reactive protein was purified from plane pollen and identified as nsLTP. Pla a 3 was characterized as a minor allergen (27.3%) in plane pollen‐allergic patients without food allergy (A) and as a major allergen in plane pollen‐allergic patients with peach allergy (B) showing a prevalence of IgE‐reactivity of 63.8%. Group B contained patients sensitized to Pru p 3 without IgE‐reactivity to plane‐LTP (16.6%). By contrast, Pla a 3 IgE‐reactive patients without sensitization to Pru p 3 could be found (16.6%). The sera of patients sensitized to both LTPs (50%), Pla a 3 and Pru p 3, showed different biological activity in histamine release assay: depending on individual patient's sera tested, Pla a 3 showed a similar, a stronger or a weaker allergenic potency in comparison with Pru p 3.

Conclusions
Plane LTP is a major allergen in plane pollen‐allergic patients with peach allergy recruited in the Mediterranean area. The results of histamine release tests and different IgE‐binding profiles pointed towards the existence of species‐specific IgE epitopes. Likewise, no general conclusion on the sensitizer could be made.
A comparison of community, clinician, and patient preferences for naming a cancer‐related mutation
Authors: Wakefield CE , Meiser B , Homewood J , Barlow‐Stewart K , Tucker K
Published: January 2007

This study compared language preferences to describe a cancer‐related mutation in three groups: 253 members of the general community, 20 clinicians working in cancer genetics, and 269 individuals at increased risk of carrying a cancer‐related mutation (including 198 women with a strong family history of breast and/or ovarian cancer, and 71 individuals with a family history of hereditary non‐polyposis colorectal cancer). In the community sample, ‘faulty gene’ was the preferred term to describe a cancer‐related mutation, although females, those affected by cancer and those who felt cancer had a large impact on their lives were more likely to prefer the terms ‘gene change’ or ‘altered gene’. In contrast, the clinicians’ preference ratings for ‘faulty gene’ and ‘gene change’ were equal. When forced to choose between ‘faulty gene’ and ‘altered gene’, the high‐risk patient group reported preferring ‘faulty gene’, although over 40% were happy with either term. Further research investigating individuals’ understanding of the different terms that can be used to describe a cancer‐related mutation, and the functional impact of these terms on patients’ thoughts and feelings about their condition and on their health‐related behavior after genetic counseling would be worthwhile.
Description of HLA‐DRB1*1371 allele, which has the 3′ intron 1 sequence and HLA‐DQB1 association normally seen with a DRB1*0301 allele†
Authors: McWhinnie A. J. M. , Shah A. , Peat J. , Tavarozzi F. , Little A.‐M.
Published: January 2007

Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) typing of a newly recruited, potential volunteer haematopoietic stem cell donor (ALSM4092AN) indicated the presence of a variant DRB1*13 allele, which has now been named DRB1*1371.
Sedation of neurologically impaired children undergoing MRI: a sequential approach
Authors: CORTELLAZZI PAOLO , LAMPERTI MASSIMO , MINATI LUDOVICO , FALCONE CHIARA , PANTALEONI CHIARA , CALDIROLI DARIO
Published: January 2007

Background:  The purpose of this retrospective study was to determine the efficacy of a sequential approach meant to rescue failed chloral hydrate sedation and to obtain a low rate of adverse events along with predictable timings in neurologically impaired children undergoing magnetic resonance imaging.

Methods:  We retrospectively evaluated 1104 chloral hydrate sedations performed between 2002 and 2004 on 862 children weighing <26 kg. If the desired sedation score (3 on the Skeie Scale) was not reached within 30 min after oral administration of chloral hydrate, sedation was considered as potentially failed, and supplementation with sevoflurane, i.m. or i.v. ketamine, and i.v. pentobarbital and midazolam was started.

Results:  Twenty‐seven sessions failed because of excessive movement. Mean induction time was significantly higher for patients who received supplementation (52.2 min vs 39.1 min), while no differences in recovery and total sedation times were found. Supplementation significantly increased the incidence of respiratory obstruction (4.6% vs 2.4%), although the incidence of other adverse events was unaffected.

Conclusions:  Administering up to 1.5 g of chloral hydrate without supplementation was associated with a failure rate of approximately 20%, but the proposed sequential approach enabled us to rescue the majority of failed sedations while maintaining an acceptably low incidence of adverse events.
Is a fall in baseline heart rate a reliable predictor of a successful single shot caudal epidural in children?
Authors: GHAI BABITA , MAKKAR JEETINDER KAUR , BEHRA BIKRAM KISHORE , RAO KRISHNA PRASAD
Published: January 2007

Background:  This study was designed to investigate whether a fall in heart rate (HR) with injection of local anesthetic into the caudal space can be used as a predictor of correct needle placement.

Methods:  Two hundred and twenty pediatric patients undergoing infraumbilical surgery were recruited to the study. After induction of general anesthesia, baseline HR was recorded and caudal block was performed using 0.75–1 ml·kg−1 0.25% bupivacaine, which was injected at a rate of 1 ml·3 s−1. The change in HR while injecting an initial 0.2 ml·kg−1 of drug and during total drug injection was recorded. HR reduction of ≥3 b·min−1 was considered a positive test for correct needle placement. The success of block was judged by HR response to skin incision, endtidal halothane concentration required for maintenance of anesthesia and postoperative pain scores.

Results:  Caudal block was successful in 209/220 (95%) patients. Mean HR following the initial drug injection (111 ± 17.7, P < 0.01) and entire drug injection (108.8 ± 17.2, P < 0.01) was significantly lower than baseline (116.2 ± 17.5). HR reduction of ≥3 b·min−1 was present in 190/209 and 199/209 successful block following initial drug injection and total drug injection respectively. The analysis of study data showed that a fall in HR is a predictor of successful caudal block, with a sensitivity of 90.9%, specificity of 100% and a positive predictive value of 100% after initial injection of local anesthetic.

Conclusions:  We conclude that decrease in HR with drug injection is a simple, objective and reliable test to predict success of caudal block.
Effects of preanesthetic administration of midazolam, clonidine, or dexmedetomidine on postoperative pain and anxiety in children
Authors: SCHMIDT ANDRÉ P. , VALINETTI EMILIA A. , BANDEIRA DENISE , BERTACCHI MARIA F. , SIMÕES CLÁUDIA M. , AULER JOSÉ OTÁVIO C.
Published: January 2007

Background:  A growing interest in the possible influences of pre‐ and postoperative anxiety and pain scores as outcomes of surgical treatment and benefits of anxiety or pain‐reducing interventions has emerged. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of three different premedication regimens on postoperative pain and anxiety in children.

Methods:  A prospective, randomized, open‐label clinical trial enrolled 60 schoolchildren. They were randomized for premedication with oral midazolam 0.5 mg·kg−1, oral clonidine 4 μg·kg−1, or transmucosal dexmedetomidine (DEX) 1 μg·kg−1, submitted to a pre‐ and postoperative evaluation of anxiety with the State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children and asked to report any pain in verbal and visual analog scales. We also evaluated secondary outcomes such as parents’ anxiety, sedation, separation from parents, adverse effects and hemodynamic status.

Results:  Dexmedetomidine and clonidine were related to lower scores of pain than midazolam. α2‐agonists produced lower scores of peroperative mean arterial pressure and heart rate than midazolam. Both groups had similar levels of postoperative state‐anxiety in children. There was no difference in preanesthesia levels of sedation and response to separation from parents between groups.

Conclusions:  These findings indicate that children receiving clonidine or DEX preoperatively have similar levels of anxiety and sedation postoperatively as those receiving midazolam. However, children given α2‐agonists had less perioperative sympathetic stimulation and less postoperative pain than those given midazolam.
What's Unique About the Federal Funds Rate? Evidence from a Spectral Perspective*
Authors: Sarno Lucio , Thornton Daniel L. , Wen Yi
Published: January 2007

This paper compares the behaviour of the effective federal funds rate to 10 US interest rates with maturities ranging from overnight to 10 years. Using spectral estimation methods, we identified idiosyncratic shocks to the funds rate and provided evidence on their impact on other rates at various frequencies. Our results suggest that, while all of the interest rates examined have common shocks at low frequencies, the federal funds rate contains some unique information at high frequency, although this information appears to be relevant only at the short end of the term structure. In turn, these results are open to various alternative interpretations.
Nuclear localization of functional metabotropic glutamate receptor mGlu1 in HEK293 cells and cortical neurons: role in nuclear calcium mobilization and development
Authors: Jong Yuh‐Jiin I. , Schwetye Katherine E. , O’Malley Karen L.
Published: January 2007

The Group I metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGlu1) plays an important role in neuromodulation, development, and synaptic plasticity. Using immunocytochemistry, subcellular fractionation, and western blot analysis, the present study shows that mGlu1a receptors are present on nuclear membranes in stably transfected human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells as well as being endogenously expressed on rat cortical nuclei. Both glutamate and the group I agonist, quisqualate, directly activate nuclear mGlu1 receptors leading to a characteristic oscillatory pattern of calcium flux in isolated HEK nuclei and a slow rise to plateau in isolated cortical nuclei. In either case calcium responses could be terminated upon application of the mGlu1‐selective antagonist, 7‐(hydroxyamino)cyclopropa[b]chromen‐1a‐carboxylate ethyl ester. Responses could also be blocked by ryanodine and inositol 1,4,5‐triphosphate receptor inhibitors, demonstrating the involvement of these calcium channels. Agonist activation of intracellular receptors was driven by Na+‐dependent and ‐independent processes in nuclei isolated from either HEK or cortical neurons. Finally, mGlu1 nuclear receptors were dramatically up‐regulated in the course of post‐natal development. Therefore, like the other Group I receptor, mGlu5, mGlu1 can function as an intracellular receptor, suggesting a more encompassing role for nuclear G protein‐coupled receptors and downstream signaling elements in the regulation of nuclear events.
Characterization of microsatellite markers in the rosewood (Dalbergia monticola Bosser & R. Rabev.)
Authors: FAVREAU BENEDICTE , ANDRIANOELINA OLIVARIMBOLA , NUNEZ PHILIPPE , VAILLANT ALEXANDRE , RAMAMONJISOA LOLONA , DANTHU PASCAL , BOUVET JEAN‐MARC
Published: January 2007

Dalbergia monticola is one of the major components of the oriental forest of Madagascar. This economically and ecologically important tree is threatened because of the dramatic decrease of the Madagascar forest. We have estimated the genetic diversity and structure of the species by studying nuclear microsatellites. We have developed eight pairs of primers to analyse 215 individuals distributed from the north to the south of the island. These markers will be useful for genetic and ecological studies of this species.
Control of hydrogen partial pressures on the rates of syntrophic microbial metabolisms: a kinetic model for butyrate fermentation
Authors: JIN Q.
Published: January 2007

A new model describing the rate of syntrophic butyrate fermentation is constructed based on a thermodynamically consistent rate law and the metabolic pathway. This model takes into account the mechanism of reverse electron transfer and proposes that the net amount of energy saved by microorganisms as ATP depends on hydrogen partial pressures in the environment. Hydrogen partial pressures thus control not only the energy available in the environment but also the energy conserved by microorganisms. This new model predicts the rates of butyrate fermentation as a product of a kinetic factor and a thermodynamic potential factor: the kinetic factor describes how butyrate concentration controls the rates; the thermodynamic factor accounts for how the thermodynamic driving force controls the rates. Increases in hydrogen partial pressures decrease the energy available, lowering the driving force and fermentation rates. To maintain butyrate fermentation at significant rates, microorganisms decrease the amount of energy conserved, maximizing the driving force. Application of the new model demonstrates that the thermodynamic driving force is a dominant factor in controlling the rates of butyrate fermentation.
The effects of pentoxifylline on liver regeneration after portal vein ligation in rats
Authors: Kucuktulu Uzer , Alhan Etem , Tekelioglu Yavuz , Ozekin Aysel
Published: January 2007

Aim: To determine the effects of pentoxifylline, a methyl xanthine derivative on hepatic cell production of uninterferred lobe after portal vein branch ligation.

Methods: Sixty‐six rats were randomly allocated into 9 groups with 8 rats in PVL groups and 6 rats in sham operation groups. The portal branches of the median and the lateral liver lobes, corresponding to approximately 70% of the liver voluma were ligated in the PVL groups. The control group received 0.9% NaCl solution. The rats in the treatment groups received pentoxypilline at the dose of 50 mg/kg/dy. After 1,2,4 days of portal vein ligation in both PVL and PVNL lobes the levels of adenine nucleotides were determined and flowcytometric analysis of cell cycles were performed.

Results: On the first day of portal branch ligation energy charge was significantly lower, in pentoxifylline treated group comparing to pentoxfylline untreated group, both in PVL and PVNL lobes (P<0.05). Proliferative indexes were 0.38 and 0.29 in pentoxifylline treated and pentoxifylline untreated PVNL lobes respectively (P<0.05).

Conclusion: Pentoxifylline treatment resulted in an increase of percentage of calls entering mitosis phase on the first day after PVL, somehow accelerating the regenaration process.
Sensitivity Analysis for m‐Estimates, Tests, and Confidence Intervals in Matched Observational Studies
Authors: Rosenbaum Paul R.
Published: January 2007

Summary Huber's m‐estimates use an estimating equation in which observations are permitted a controlled level of influence. The family of m‐estimates includes least squares and maximum likelihood, but typical applications give extreme observations limited weight. Maritz proposed methods of exact and approximate permutation inference for m‐tests, confidence intervals, and estimators, which can be derived from random assignment of paired subjects to treatment or control. In contrast, in observational studies, where treatments are not randomly assigned, subjects matched for observed covariates may differ in terms of unobserved covariates, so differing outcomes may not be treatment effects. In observational studies, a method of sensitivity analysis is developed for m‐tests, m‐intervals, and m‐estimates: it shows the extent to which inferences would be altered by biases of various magnitudes due to nonrandom treatment assignment. The method is developed for both matched pairs, with one treated subject matched to one control, and for matched sets, with one treated subject matched to one or more controls. The method is illustrated using two studies: (i) a paired study of damage to DNA from exposure to chromium and nickel and (ii) a study with one or two matched controls comparing side effects of two drug regimes to treat tuberculosis. The approach yields sensitivity analyses for: (i) m‐tests with Huber's weight function and other robust weight functions, (ii) the permutational t‐test which uses the observations directly, and (iii) various other procedures such as the sign test, Noether's test, and the permutation distribution of the efficient score test for a location family of distributions. Permutation inference with covariance adjustment is briefly discussed.
Bayesian Inference for the Lead Time in Periodic Cancer Screening
Authors: Wu Dongfeng , Rosner Gary L. , Broemeling Lyle D.
Published: January 2007

Summary This article develops a probability distribution for the lead time in periodic cancer screening examinations. The general aim is to allow statistical inference for a screening program's lead time, the length of time the diagnosis is advanced by screening. The program's lead time is distributed as a mixture of a point mass and a piecewise continuous distribution. Simulation studies using the HIP (Health Insurance Plan for Greater New York) study's data provide estimates of different characteristics of a screening program under different screening frequencies. The components of this mixture represent two aspects of screening's benefit, namely, a reduction in the number of interval cases and the extent by which screening advanced the age of diagnosis. We present estimates of these two measures for participants in a breast cancer screening program. We also provide the mean, mode, variance, and density curve of the program's lead time. The model can provide policy makers with important information regarding the screening period, frequency, and the endpoints that may serve as surrogates for the benefit to women who take part in a periodic screening program. Though the study focuses on breast cancer screening, it is also applicable to other kinds of chronic disease.
Internodal function in normal and regenerated mammalian axons
Authors: Moldovan M. , Krarup C.
Published: January 2007

Aim:  Following Wallerian degeneration, peripheral myelinated axons have the ability to regenerate and, given a proper pathway, establish functional connections with targets. In spite of this capacity, the clinical outcome of nerve regeneration remains unsatisfactory. Early studies have found that regenerated internodes remain persistently short though this abnormality did not seem to influence recovery in conduction. It remains unclear to which extent abnormalities in axonal function itself may contribute to the poor outcome of nerve regeneration.

Methods:  We review experimental evidence indicating that internodes play an active role in axonal function.

Results:  By investigating internodal contribution to axonal excitability we have found evidence that axonal function may be permanently compromised in regenerated nerves. Furthermore, we illustrate that internodal function is also abnormal in regenerated human nerves.

Conclusion:  The data suggest that persistently shorter regenerated internodes lead to increased Na+/K+‐pump activity in response to increased Na+ entry during conduction. This may impair axonal function during prolonged repetitive activity and drain the energy reserves of the axons.
Courting the Woman Teacher: The National Education Association, 1917–1970
Authors: Urban Wayne J.
Published: January 2007

The National Education Association (NEA) has not been a topic of choice for many educational historians. Perhaps a major reason for this it that the NEA as a site for historical work seems fraught with pitfalls. Consider first the problem of the NEA as a setting for an institutional history. The major example of this kind of work yielded a decidedly unsatisfactory result. Edgar B. Wesley's centennial history of the NEA, published in 1957, is an almost completely uncritical description and an unabashed celebration of the organization.
The Making of the Victorian Campus: Teacher and Student at Amherst College, 1850-1880
Authors: Opal J.M.
Published: January 2007

In the mid nineteenth century Amherst, Massachusetts, amounted to a cluster of farm houses and a collection of public buildings. Its 3,000 inhabitants remained agricultural by trade and localist in orientation. Overlooking the town stood Amherst College, founded in 1821. Its three humble dormitories and decrepit chapel provided a fitting tribute to the evangelical asceticism of its founders. The clothing of its 200 students betrayed their disparate backgrounds. Freshmen stood out. A cringing, submissive manner distinguished them as they scurried to recitation. In contrast, sophomores exuded a haughty demeanor. Others boasted a genteel look, while Amherst's seven professors imparted an air of gravity to the campus. Bearded and dignified, they nodded warmly to pupils who stood aside in deference. Silence typically prevailed at sundown, but attacks by upperclassmen on the freshmen sometimes shattered the quiet. On select evenings, murmured prayers also broke the silence. Kneeling on the chapel floor, students might be found with their hands clasped and eyes shut in meditation. Some broke into tears under the intensity of the prayer meeting, weeping and holding one another with temporary abandon. Professors often knelt beside them. During such revivals, the walls that stood between teacher and pupil crumbled, if only for a moment, in a cathartic surrender.
State of the Nation or Community of Spirit? Schooling for Civic and Ethnic-Religious Nationalism in Insurrectionary Canada
Authors: Curtis Bruce
Published: January 2007

This article focuses on the two leading projects in the educational “struggle for the hearts and minds” of the people in the British North American colony of Lower Canada (currently the southern portion of the Canadian Province of Quebec) in the wake of the insurrectionary struggles and armed border incursions of 1837–38. (See Figure 1.) English Radicals and Whigs, with some Canadian allies, promoted a broad-ranging reconstruction of colonial government and legal and cultural institutions. The educational component of their project centered on the “nationalization” of the French- and English-speaking populations through the attendance of young people in common schools, where they would be instructed in a nonsectarian civil religion later known as “our Common Christianity.” The cooperative management of such schools by adult male property holders would train men in the operations of local representative self-government. Most of those involved in promoting this project for a new form of community understood it to be aimed at the assimilation of French Canadians to a broadly “British” nationality.
“He lives as a Master”: Seventeenth-Century Masculinity, Gendered Teaching, and Careers of New England Schoolmasters
Authors: Preston Jo Anne
Published: January 2007

You that are men and thoughts of manhood know,Be Just now to the Man who made you so.Martyr'd by Scholars the stabbed Cassian dies,And falls to cursed Lads a Sacrafice.Not so my Cheever; Not by Scholars slain,But Praised and Lov'd, and wished to Life again.Cotton Mather, 1708

In New England, as in the country as a whole, teaching began as a male occupation. The earliest schoolmasters taught in small settlements of religious dissenters who had migrated to the wilderness of New England in the seventeenth century. The gendered meaning of teaching accompanied the social practice of hiring male teachers. Puritan minister Cotton Mather, in his passionate elegy for seventeenth-century New England schoolmaster Ezekiel Cheever, attests to the settlers' belief in the manliness of teachers. To Mather and other English settlers, the very term schoolmaster denoted masculine qualities. In Mather's own words: “He lives as a Master, the Term, which has been for above three thousand years, assign'd to the Life of a Man.” For Mather, teachers were not only male but embodied a particular vision of the masculine as well. Mather's vision of the ideal teacher, as having a specific kind of masculinity, was not unique to him. Drawing on English and Puritan traditions, the early New England colonists embraced an image of the ideal teacher that incorporated masculine virtues.
Energy and Change
Authors: Hecht Eugene
Published: January 2007

When Feynman wrote, “It is important to realize that in physics today, we have no knowledge of what energy is,”1 he was recognizing that although we have expressions for various forms of energy from kinetic to elastic, we seem to have no idea of what the all-encompassing notion of “energy” is: This paper addresses that issue offering a definition of energy in terms of the more accessible concept of “change.” The various forms of energy (½mv2, mgh, ½kx2, qV, mcΔT, ½Iω2, ½CV2, etc.) are abstractions not directly observable. We see a cannonball rise in the air; we do not see potential energy (PE). We see physical change, not energy.