bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prevalence, correlates, and risk perception of HIV infection among heroin users in Central Taiwan
Authors: Lin Tsang‐Yaw , Chen Vincent C.H. , Lee Chao‐Hui , Chen Chung‐Ying , Shao Wen‐Chuan , Chang Sheng‐Huang , Chou Jen‐Yu , Lai Te‐Jen , Ferri Cleusa P. , Gossop Michael , Lee Charles T.C.
Published: August 2013

We investigated the prevalence and correlated factors of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) among heroin users attending methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) programs in Central Taiwan, and explored the degree of risk perception of HIV infection among the participants. Our study participants were 781 heroin users seeking treatment at the MMT program at Tsaotun Psychiatric Center in Taiwan. The presence of HIV antibodies was identified by microparticle enzyme immunoassay and confirmed by western blot. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify the independent correlates of HIV infection. The mean age of the sample was 36.1 years [standard deviation (SD) = 7.6]; of the patients, 710 (90.9%) were men. The prevalence of HIV infection among our study population was 20.7%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that HIV infection was independently associated with the age of the patients of initial heroin use, heroin injection use, nondrug‐related criminal convictions, needle‐sharing behaviors, and sharing injection paraphernalia. A strong agreement existed between self‐reported HIV serostatus and the results of laboratory analyses, with 88.8% of patients reporting their condition correctly. We found a high rate of HIV infection among patients in the MMT program. Factors associated with HIV infection were mostly related to drug‐use behaviors. These findings stress the importance of education regarding drug‐risk behaviors.
Meanings of Homosexuality, Same-Sex Sexuality, and Africanness in Two South African Townships: An Evidence-Based Approach for Rethinking Same-Sex Prejudice
Authors: Sigamoney Veronica , Epprecht Marc
Published: August 2013

The assertion “homosexuality is un-African” is widely viewed as an expression of homophobia. However, without knowledge of what homosexuality and “Africanness” mean in a given context, any understanding of how to shift the prejudices associated with this assertion remains limited. Research conducted in 2010 with police, high school learners (students), and a sample of more than one thousand residents from two urban townships in South Africa contributes to this understanding. This article draws on data from the research to explore the significance of cultural translation when considering what constitutes same-sex prejudice and how it may relate to notions of authenticity or “real Africanness.” While the research provides evidence of same-sex prejudice, there is also evidence of qualified acceptance of same-sex sexuality and of efforts to combat prejudice. Opportunities for change are discussed with reference to the data.
Origin of Magnetar-Scale Crustal Field in PSR J1852+0040 and ‘Frozen’ Magnetars
Authors: Popov S. B.
Published: August 2013

We discuss the origin of strong crustal magnetic field in one of central compact objects (CCOs)—a neutron star PSR J1852+0040 in the supernova remnant Kes 79. Taking into account its relatively long present day spin period we conclude that the field could not be generated via a dynamo mechanism. If this neutron star indeed is a magnetar with field submerged during a strong fall-back episode, then it argues against the dynamo field origin in magnetars. Otherwise, Kes 79 is not a close relative of normal magnetars. A discovery of an anti-magnetar with a millisecond period and strong crustal field identifiable, for example, due to large pulse fraction, would be the proof of the dynamo field origin. Existence of such sources is in correspondence with the present standard picture of neutron star unification. However, the fraction of magnetars with submerged fields can be small—few percent of the total number of CCOs.
TEST MAPS AND DISCRETE GROUPS IN SL(2, ℂ) II
Authors: YANG SHIHAI , ZHAO TIEHONG
Published: August 2013

In this paper we present a new discreteness criterion for a non-elementary subgroup G of SL(2, ℂ) containing elliptic elements by using a loxodromic (resp. an elliptic) transformation as a test map that need not be in G.
ORE EXTENSIONS AND POISSON ALGEBRAS
Authors: JORDAN DAVID A.
Published: August 2013

For a derivation δ of a commutative Noetherian ${\mathbb C}$-algebra A, a homeomorphism is established between the prime spectrum of the Ore extension A[z;δ] and the Poisson prime spectrum of the polynomial algebra A[z] endowed with the Poisson bracket such that {A,A}=0 and {z,a}=δ(a) for all a ∈ A.
ALMOST ISOMETRIC IDEALS IN BANACH SPACES
Authors: ABRAHAMSEN TROND A. , LIMA VEGARD , NYGAARD OLAV
Published: August 2013

A natural class of ideals, almost isometric ideals, of Banach spaces is defined and studied. The motivation for working with this class of subspaces is our observation that they inherit diameter 2 properties and the Daugavet property. Lindenstrauss spaces are known to be the class of Banach spaces that are ideals in every superspace; we show that being an almost isometric ideal in every superspace characterizes the class of Gurariy spaces.
The Quantitative Study of Government Activity
Authors: Fabricant Solomon
Published: August 2013

When it is the custom of the day to put its questions in terms of dimension and proportion, it is hardly necessary to argue that measurement can contribute to their solution. With that granted, our attention can be devoted to the problems that arise when attempting measurement. We could list these formally, but it may be more instructive to let the problems crop up in the course of a brief review of some recent work on trends in government activity during the past half century, and also to note possible applications to this field of some ideas developing in other work in economic statistics.
Public Railroad Construction and the Development of Private Enterprise in the South Before 1861
Authors: Heath Milton S.
Published: August 2013

The paper is based upon research over a rather long period into the public activities in railroad construction in the southern states. Table I-A presents a quantitative summary of public contributions in cash, bonds, and other securities; government-endorsed bonds; remission of Federal import duties; and estimated realized values of Federal land grants prior to 1861. It represents an attempt to give a preliminary summary of the public effort. The estimates on public land grants are tentative, and other items are subject to further refinements through additional studies. It does not represent the total of the public effort, since no account is taken in this summary of the investment values of the many important public and quasi-public contributions in services, the uses of public streets and other properties, tax exemptions, and banking privileges. An adequate appraisal of these must await further research. The summary does reflect, however, some of the outstanding features of the public railroad-building effort, which will supply a useful background for the consideration of the main problem of this paper.
Sir John Howard Clapham and the Empirical Reaction in Economic History
Authors: Usher Abbott Payson
Published: August 2013

When Clapham began to teach economic history at Leeds in 1902 Schmoller had just finished his Foundations of Political Economy, and the first edition of Sombart's Modern Capitalism had just appeared. In the early editions of J. A. Hobson's Evolution of Modern Capitalism many aspects of the Marxian interpretation of history were effectively expressed and afforded a clear measure of the stimulus that economic history was to receive from this general approach. But these influences were not the dominant factor in Clapham's thought at the beginning of his career or at any later period. His interests in history came from Lord Acton and from Alfred Marshall. Marshall was anxious to draw him into the field of economic history, “he was eager to get historical work done.” Clapham says in the Inaugural Lecture, “… he pointed out to me tracts of economic history which needed someone's work. Then he pointed at me and said—‘Thou art the man.’ I hesitated then, for Acton's power was on me, as I hope it still is. But Marshall has prevailed.”
Britain and American Railway Development
Authors: Jenks Leland H.
Published: August 2013

Our task here is to inquire into the relations between two familiar sets of phenomena—the economic development of the Western Hemisphere and the involvement of British investors, financiers, engineers, contractors, and financial groups in railways in that area. As a matter of convenience we shall look chiefly at the United States and Argentina, and at the time span of three quarters of a century preceding the First World War. It is no secret that during that period both countries underwent rapid development, whose contours included such matters as the effective occupation of new areas of vast extent; the growth of population, partly fed by immigration; the effective application of technological improvements to the exploitation of natural resources; an increasing complexity of the division of labor; and a rise in productivity and real income per capita, participated in by large segments of the population. During the same period, the Western Hemisphere was normally the outlet for from 40 to 60 per cent of British foreign investment, the United States and the Argentine being two of the countries chiefly affected. We are familiar with estimates that British investments in the United States, on the eve of the First World War, amounted to over 4 billion dollars, approximately 3 billion of which were in railway securities, and that something like half as much was invested in Argentina, with a somewhat smaller percentage directly in rails.
The World Metropolis and the History of American Agriculture
Authors: Schlebecker John T.
Published: August 2013

Since agricultural history first acquired independent status it has been carried forward without much theoretical direction. So much research has been done in the field, however, that possibly a tentative general theory for further work may now be advanced. To be useful, an historical hypothesis should probably center on some common denominator of human experience. One possible common denominator is that all men are located within, or are a certain definite distance from metropolitan unit. All those who live within a certain given zone around the metropolis have at least one common experience: they are all some specific distance from the metropolis. Furthermore, for any given group of people this one common experience may have shaped many of their ideas and actions. Since human events take place in time and space, a theory based primarily on these dimensions might be at least roughly applicable to most history.
Indolent mucormycosis of the paranasal sinus in immunocompetent patients: are antifungal drugs needed?
Authors: Jung H , Park S K
Published: August 2013

Objective:

To report the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of indolent paranasal mucormycosis in immunocompetent individuals.

Materials and methods:

A retrospective review of four immunocompetent patients with indolent mucormycosis of the paranasal sinus managed by endoscopic sinus surgery only was performed. One year of regular follow up comprised angled endoscopy and repeated paranasal sinus computed tomography three months after surgery.

Results:

Clinical symptoms were non-specific. Pre-operative paranasal sinus computed tomography showed opacification of the unilateral maxillary sinus with focal calcification but without bony destruction or extension to the orbit or cranium. All patients underwent endoscopic sinus surgery without administration of antifungal agents. There was no recurrence on regular clinical and radiological follow up.

Conclusion:

For indolent paranasal mucormycosis in immunocompetent patients, endoscopic sinus surgery can be the treatment of choice, and the administration of antifungal drugs may not be necessary.
New records and redescription of Halcurias pilatus and Halcurias mcmurrichi (Actiniaria, Endocoelantheae)
Authors: Rodríguez Estefanía , Mendoza Marisol , Häussermann Verena
Published: August 2013

We redescribe and illustrate Halcurias pilatus McMurrich, 1893 and H. mcmurrichi Uchida, 2004 (Endocoelantheae, Halcuriidae) from newly collected specimens from Southern Chile and deep-water reefs off Florida, respectively. Halcurias pilatus was previously considered to have a disjunct distribution until Uchida (2004) described a new species for the material from the Bahamas. However, the description of H. mcmurrichi does not meet modern taxonomic standards. We provide new anatomical and cnidae data for H. pilatus and H. mcmurrichi. Both species differ in the distribution and cnidom of nematocyst batteries in the column, development of microcnemes mesenteries, cnidae and geographical distribution. We find that H. pilatus can have a weak mesogleal marginal sphincter and amend accordingly the diagnoses of the genus Halcurias, family Halcuriidae, and suborder Endocoelantheae. These new records represent the first time both species have been collected since their original descriptions.
Deep sequencing-based identification of pathogen-specific microRNAs in the plasma of rabbits infected withSchistosoma japonicum
Authors: CHENG GUOFENG , LUO RONG , HU CHAO , CAO JIE , JIN YOUXIN
Published: August 2013

Circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) have received considerable attention as a novel class of biomarkers for the diagnosis of cancer and as signalling molecules in mediating intercellular communication. Schistosomes, the causative agents of schistosomiasis, live in the blood vessels of a mammalian host in the adult stage. In the present study, we characterized schistosome-specific small RNA populations in the plasma of rabbits infected withSchistosoma japonicum(S. japonicum) using a deep sequencing method and then identified five schistosome-specific miRNAs, including four known miRNAs (Bantam, miR-3479, miR-10 and miR-3096), and one novel miRNA (miR-0001, miRBase ID: sja-miR-8185). Four of the five schistosome-specific miRNAs were also detected by real-time RT–PCR in the plasma ofS. japonicum-infected mice. In addition, our study indicated that schistosome Argonaute 2/3 may be an excretory-secretory (ES) protein. In summary, our findings are expected to provide useful information for further development of novel biomarkers for the diagnosis of schistosomiasis and also for deeper understanding of the mechanism of host–parasite interaction.
The Arctic Council after Kiruna
Authors: Steinberg Philip E. , Dodds Klaus
Published: August 2013

This note considers the latest iterations to the Arctic Council following the May 2013 ministerial meeting in Kiruna, Sweden. While new state observers including China and Japan were admitted, the European Union's application was deferred and the entire list of non-governmental and intergovernmental organisation applicants was rejected without consideration. Although time-based pressures may have been a factor, the failure to consider the non-state entities’ applications has the effect of reinforcing the impression that the Arctic Council is and will remain a state-centric body.
COMMENTS ON THE SURVEY BY BALAKRISHNAN AND ZHAO
Authors: Burkschat Marco
Published: August 2013

At first, I would like to thank the authors for giving the detailed survey on the current state of stochastic orderings of order statistics from heterogeneous populations. Their review illustrates the fast development of research in this area during the recent years, in particular including many important contributions by the authors themselves. Besides the concrete open problems given in the different sections of the review, the following general topics may be also of interest for further studies.
ASYMPTOTIC BEHAVIOR OF EXTREMAL EVENTS FOR AGGREGATE DEPENDENT RANDOM VARIABLES
Authors: Chen Die , Mao Tiantian , Hu Taizhong
Published: August 2013

Consider a portfolio of n identically distributed risks X1, …, Xn with dependence structure modelled by an Archimedean survival copula. It is known that the probability of a large aggregate loss of $\sum\nolimits_{i=1}^{n} X_{i}$ is in proportion to the probability of a large individual loss of X1. The proportionality factor depends on the dependence strength and the tail behavior of the individual risk. In this paper, we establish analogous results for an aggregate loss of the form g(X1, …, Xn) under the more general model in which the Xi's have different but tail-equivalent distributions and the copula remains unchanged, where g is a homogeneous function of order 1. Properties of these factors are studied, and asymptotic Value-at-Risk behaviors of functions of dependent risks are also given. The main results generalize those in Wüthrich [16], Alink, Löwe, and Wüthrich [2], Barbe, Fougères, and Genest [4], and Embrechts, Nešlehová, and Wüthrich [9].
Relative risk of irritable bowel syndrome following acute gastroenteritis and associated risk factors
Authors: KOWALCYK B. K. , SMEETS H. M. , SUCCOP P. A. , DE WIT N. J. , HAVELAAR A. H.
Published: August 2013

A prospective cohort study using electronic medical records was undertaken to estimate the relative risk (RR) of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) following acute gastroenteritis (GE) in primary-care patients in The Netherlands and explore risk factors. Patients aged 18–70 years who consulted for GE symptoms from 1998 to 2009, met inclusion/exclusion criteria and had at least 1 year of follow-up data were included. Patients with non-GE consultations, matched by age, gender, consulting practice and time of visit, served as the reference group. At 1 year, 1·2% of GE patients (N = 2428) had been diagnosed with IBS compared to 0·3% of the reference group (N = 2354). GE patients had increased risk of IBS [RR 4·85, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2·02–11·63]. For GE patients, concomitant cramps and history of psycho-social consultations were significantly associated with increased risk. GE patients had increased risk of IBS up to 5 years post-exposure (RR 5·40, 95% CI 2·60–11·24), suggesting there may be other contributing factors.
Sedimentology of lower Pliocene to Upper Pleistocene diamictons from IODP Site U1358, Wilkes Land margin, and implications for East Antarctic Ice Sheet dynamics
Authors: Orejola Nadine , Passchier Sandra ,   IODP Expedition 318 SCIENTISTS
Published: August 2013

During the early Pliocene a dynamic marine-based ice sheet retreated from the Wilkes Land margin with periodic ice advances beyond Last Glacial Maximum position. A change in sand provenance is indicative of a more stable Mertz Glacier system during the Late Pleistocene. East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) dynamics were evaluated through the analysis of marine diamictons from Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) site U1358 on the Adélie Land continental shelf. The warmer than present conditions of the early Pliocene coupled with the site's proximity to the landward sloping Wilkes Subglacial Basin provided the rationale for the investigations at this site. Based on visual core descriptions, particle size distributions, and major and trace element ratios, we interpret the origin of lower Pliocene strata by intermittent glaciomarine sedimentation with open-marine conditions and extensive glacial advances to the outer shelf. Heavy mineral analyses show that sand-sized detritus in the lower Pliocene strata was sourced from local intermediate to high-grade metamorphic rocks near Mertz Glacier. In contrast, Pleistocene diamictons exhibit a larger contribution from a prehnite-pumpellyite greenschist facies suggesting supply via iceberg rafting from northern Victoria Land. From this sedimentological evidence, we postulate a shift from a dynamic EAIS margin in the early Pliocene to possible stabilization in the Pleistocene.
Some Notes on Syncretism in the Christian Theology of the Second and Third Centuries
Authors: Scott Hugh McDonald
Published: August 2013

Every student of Church History is familiar with the great difficulty that attends the investigation of the progress of doctrine in the period between the Apostolic Age and the Nicene Controversy. Confused visions of Ebionites, Gnostics, Monarchians, Medalists, Montanists, etc., rise before the mind, and the bewildered student heaves many a sigh as he longs for some principle of faith or organization or theology which might serve as a guiding thread through this labyrinth.
The Historical Geography of the Christian Church
Authors: Hulbert Henry Woodward
Published: August 2013

Fruitful historical research to-day is, first and last, a study of original documents and other contemporary monuments. The successful historian must abandon the time-beaten track of artistic development and take the sterner path of exact science—inductive science. If he have any genius, it must hereafter be a genius for labor. He must leave behind him the allurements of the sunny plains, and must plunge into the great forest belt with its confusing paths, its almost insurmountable barriers, patiently struggling on, happy if some pioneer going before has blazed a road, and led on by the hope that although he himself may leave his bones in the wilderness some other toiler will break through at last to the bright uplands beyond.
Report on a Proposed Series of Denominational Histories to be Published under the Auspices of the American Society of Church History
Authors: Newman Albert Henry
Published: August 2013

It seems unfortunate that a matter of so great importance as the enterprise before us should run the risk of receiving less attention than it deserves from wanting a worthier advocate. It may not be out of place if I relate some of the circumstances that have led to my occupying the present position.

Early in 1887, in a conversation with Dr. Schaff, I learned with regret that it was not his intention to continue his admirable “History of the Christian Church” beyond the middle of the seventeenth century. His determination to close his work at this date was due, as I remember, to two considerations—advancing age and fulness of occupation, and the complexity of more recent Church history that makes it more suitable for monographic treatment than for treatment in general works. This conversation suggested to me the desirability of a uniform series of denominational histories, written, as far as possible, in the spirit of Dr. Schaff's general history, and, in a sense, forming a continuation of that work. My thought was that each monograph should be prepared by one of the best qualified Church historians of the denomination of which it should treat, and that the series should be prepared under a general editorship.
The Absolution Formula of the Templars
Authors: Lea Henry Charles
Published: August 2013

Among the accusations brought against the Templars by Pope Clement V. in 1308, there was one to the effect that the officers of the Order—the Master, the Visitors, and the Preceptors—absolved the brethren from their sins. It is further asserted that de Molay admitted this in the presence of high personages before his arrest. That the accusation was an after-thought is shown by the fact that it is not contained in the preliminary list of charges sent in September, 1307, by the Inquisitor Guillaume de Paris to his subordinates as a guide for them in the expected trials of the Templars. Yet Clement was not the first to take note of this assumption of sacerdotal prerogatives, which, in fact, was well known to all who busied themselves with canon law, and public attention had already been called to it. In a diatribe on the disorders of the Church, written by a mendicant friar apparently towards the end of the thirteenth century, all the three great Military Orders—the Hospital, the Temple, and the Teutonic Knights—are reproved for this usurpation of the power of the keys, although it is ascribed rather to ignorance than to wilful intrusion on priestly functions. The truth or the falsity of the accusation has never, I believe, been investigated, and though the question is a subordinate one, yet everything connected with the catastrophe of the Temple possesses interest, and this derives adventitious importance from its relation to the development of Catholic doctrine in the thirteenth century.
The Labadist Colony in Maryland
Authors: James Bartlett Burleigh
Published: August 2013

Labadism was a late product of that spirit of reform which inaugurated the Protestant systems. Theologically it belonged to the school of Calvin. In its spirit it was conformable to that sentiment of ideal brotherhood, which has ever been a favorite mode of representing the fellowship of Christian believers.
The Attitude of the Western Church towards the Study of the Latin Classics in the Early Middle Ages
Authors: Munro Dana Carleton
Published: August 2013

In this paper I propose to discuss only the period before 1100 A.D., only the Latin classics, and only the western part of Christian Europe. The later centuries would need a special discussion, as early in the twelfth century new factors were at work which modified materially the study and influence of the classics. I mention the Latin classics, although what is said will in general hold true of the Greek classics as far as they found any students. But in the case of the latter, there was during these centuries an additional reason for neglecting them. In the tenth and eleventh centuries a knowledge of the Greek classics might have given rise to the suspicion of schism, as the knowledge of Hebrew caused a suspicion of Judaistic principles. The limitation to the west of Europe calls for no comment, and is made only to avoid any possible misconceptions.
The Attitude of the Society of Friends toward Slavery in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, Particularly in Relation to its Own Members
Authors: Thomas Allen Clapp
Published: August 2013

The Society of Friends took its origin in England, and it is therefore natural that slavery did not attract much attention from its members until some of them emigrated to countries where slavery was an established institution. Like the members of other denominations, these seem to have taken slavery as a matter of course, and some fell into the habit of owning slaves themselves, and when slaveholders joined the society they retained their slaves.
Institutions, Democracy and ‘Corruption’ in India: Examining Potency and Performance
Authors: CHATTERJEE SHIBASHIS , ROYCHOUDHURY SREYA MAITRA
Published: August 2013

The success of India's democracy hinges on the pivotal role played by its auxiliary institutions in negotiating major challenges through slow and persistent transformation. However, an objective audit of the performance of these institutions in the recent past would indicate a decline in operations and an acute crisis of corruption. Key institutions responsible for governance – Parliament, civil services, judiciary, the Election Commission, the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Central Vigilance Commission, and the Comptroller and Auditor General – have been put under the spotlight by an alert and mobilized civil society, urging immediate measures for ensuring their operational efficiency and integrity. This essay undertakes a critical examination of the present performance and efficiency of major democratic institutions in India, in the light of their prescribed roles and the malaise of corruption that plagues them. It argues that in order to articulate a comprehensive institutional response to the problem, relevant measures of political reform and constant vigil by civil society would prove crucial. The article is divided into six sections; first, a brief outline of the structure and changing nature of the institutional political set-up in India is provided; the second section examines the existing literature on ‘corruption’, and the third section highlights the increasing incidence of corruption in India at various politico-administrative tiers. The fourth section delineates the inception and role of anti-corruption institutions in India, signifying the early response to corruption. The fifth section critically reviews the theoretical and statistical evidence of performance-decline in the major institutions at present and gauges the potency of corruption; the sixth section explores the existing and prospective institutional responses for tackling corruption and the final section presents concluding observations.
A pan-Canadian web-based education program to support screening for distress: Evaluation of outcomes
Authors: McLeod Deborah L. , Morck Angela C. , Curran Janet A.
Published: August 2013

Objective:

Cancer-related distress has been endorsed as the sixth vital sign by many international cancer organizations, and some countries such as Canada have implemented national screening for distress programs. The completion of a screening tool is an important first step in improving responsiveness to cancer-related distress, but screening must be followed with skilled supportive care to make a difference in patient-reported outcomes. Our objective was to create a web-based education program to support nurses and other frontline staff in providing an initial response to screening results.

Method:

To address screening and supportive care learning needs, the Canadian Association of Psychosocial Oncology (CAPO), with support from the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, created a web-based education program as one component of the national screening for distress agenda. The program provides clinically grounded and interactive learning through the use of PowerPoint presentations, video clips of clinical interactions with patients and family members, and test questions. Presentation topics include, for example, strategies for dealing with screening results, managing referrals, and supportive counseling. We employed a matched pairs, pre-post survey design to assess the effect of the education program on confidence in screening and in providing initial supportive care.

Results:

Our analysis of the first 147 matched pairs to complete the course suggests that satisfaction with the course was high. Statistically significant increases in confidence in relation to screening for distress and assessing distress, and in providing initial supportive care, were evident.

Significance of results:

Our ongoing experience with CAPO's Interprofessional Psychosocial Oncology Distance Education (IPODE) project (www.ipode.ca) project suggests that healthcare professionals value web-based learning for its accessibility and convenience. Such programs appear to offer excellent opportunities for cost-effective education that supports practice change.
Productivity differences between organic and other vegetable farming systems in northern Thailand
Authors: Kramol Pranthanthip , Villano Renato , Kristiansen Paul , Fleming Euan
Published: August 2013

We analyzed the productivity levels of smallholder farms in northern Thailand practicing different ‘clean and safe’ vegetable farming systems or conventional vegetable (CV) production. ‘Clean and safe’ farmers are categorized into three groups based on their use of synthetic chemicals: organic, pesticide-free and safe-use. Farm-level data on vegetable production were collected from random samples of farms operating these farming systems. A standard stochastic production frontier model and a metafrontier model were estimated for each system to obtain estimates of technical efficiency (TE) with respect to their cohorts, metatechnology ratios (MTRs, showing the extent of technology gaps between farming systems) and overall productivity measures. Productivity levels were found to vary moderately between farming systems. ‘Clean and safe’ farms achieved a higher mean TE score than conventional farms, indicating a more efficient use of inputs in producing a certain level of output within their system. However, their MTRs were significantly lower than those of conventional farmers, indicating greater production technology constraints because of the need to conform to strict guidelines. All four farming systems had at least one farmer who could overcome the technological constraints to achieve the highest possible output regardless of the technology used. Effective assistance providers were found to be crucial for farmers to achieve high productivity in the organic farming system. Improvements are needed to raise low productivity levels through technology transfer, value chain improvement and farmer capacity in production and marketing. The required improvement strategies differ among farming systems.
Socially Responsible Investing for Sustainability: Overcoming Its Incomplete and Conflicting Rationales
Authors: Richardson Benjamin J.
Published: August 2013

In the wake of the Global Financial Crisis and worsening collateral social and environmental problems, socially responsible investing (SRI) has garnered more interest internationally as a potential civilizing influence on the financial economy. In particular, SRI is increasingly conceptualized as a means to promote environmentally sustainable development by disciplining financial markets to be more attentive to their ecological impacts. In this sense, SRI emerges as a putative form of transnational governance that utilizes non-state actors and mechanisms to promote sustainability in an economic sector that traditionally has had little accountability for its environmental performance. But as a largely voluntary movement, with rudimentary legal support, SRI so far has wielded limited clout.

A hindrance to the aspirations of SRI is deficiencies in its rationales. This article critiques the main theories advanced to justify SRI from the perspective of their contribution to promoting environmental sustainability: the complicity-based doctrine, leverage-based responsibility, and the universal owner thesis. Apart from gaps or limitations shown in each rationale, the article demonstrates that they conflict with the existing parameters of fiduciary law responsibility of financial institutions. An alternative rationale that emphasizes the temporal perspective to invest over the long term is suggested as a better approach for SRI if it is to be relevant to the pressing challenges of promoting sustainability and governing global financial markets.
Auswirkungen der Persönlichkeitsstruktur des Tanztherapeuten auf den tanztherapeutischen Prozess
Authors: Schaak Birgit
Published: August 2013

Jeder Mensch hat eine Charakterstruktur. Unsere Charakterstruktur beeinflusst unsere Beziehungsaufnahme, den Umgang mit anderen Menschen und unsere Handlungen insgesamt. Welche Auswirkungen haben die Charakterstrukturen von Therapeuten auf deren Arbeit? Wie sich die Charakterstrukturen von Tanztherapeuten auf den tanztherapeutischen Prozess auswirken wird, im Folgenden dargestellt. Darüber hinaus werden vorbeugende Maßnahmen näher betrachtet, die negative Auswirkungen auf den tanztherapeutischen Prozess verhindern können.
Indikationen und Kontraindikationen in der Tanz- und Bewegungstherapie
Authors: Koch Sabine C. , Kolter Astrid , Kunz Teresa
Published: August 2013

Indikationen und Kontraindikationen in der Tanz- und Bewegungstherapie sind national und international wenig untersucht, sind jedoch für Forschung und Praxis von zentraler Bedeutung. In dieser weltweiten Fragebogenstudie wurden induktiv Indikationen und Kontraindikationen in der Tanz- und Bewegungstherapie auf Basis der Angaben von 54 TanztherapeutInnen aus zehn unterschiedlichen Nationen untersucht. Die TherapeutInnen nannten die „Do’s und Don’ts” bezüglich der von ihnen eingesetzten Interventionsmethoden für ihre jeweilige Population, insgesamt 22 spezifische Störungsbilder. Die Befunde zeigen, dass gruppentherapeutische Angebote wie z. B. Chace-Kreis und Körperbildarbeit sowie die Verwendung von aktivierenden (z. B. Kreistänze) und beruhigenden Bewegungsritualen (z. B. angeleitete Entspannung) für klinische Populationen favorisiert werden, und geben differentielle Hinweise für den Einsatz von Entspannungsverfahren und innerem Fokus. Methoden wie z. B. Authentic Movement und Freie Improvisation wurden einschränkend nur für den Gebrauch bei hochfunktionalen Patienten als indiziert angesehen, und vielfach explizit als Kontraindikation für stark eingeschränkte klinische Populationen genannt. Die Studie beleuchtet Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der induktiven Vorgehensweise und diskutiert deren Stellenwert im Rahmen des erforderlichen Forschungsbedarfs. Sie erweitert damit das Wissen zu störungsspezifischen differentiellen Indikationen systematisch. Das Thema sollte in zukünftigen Studien stärker berücksichtigt werden, um Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der Tanz- und Bewegungstherapie zunehmend zu explizieren.
Evaluations of One’s Own and Others’ Financial Rewards
Authors: Brosi Prisca , Spörrle Matthias , Welpe Isabell M. , Shaw Jason D.
Published: August 2013

Previous research indicates that trait positive affectivity (PA) directly and indirectly influences individuals’ evaluations of reward sizes. However, research shows conflicting results on the direction of PA’s moderating influence. Furthermore, past studies fail to differentiate evaluations of one’s own rewards versus rewards for others, which is particularly important as reward systems are designed from a third-person perspective. Our experimental design confirms PA’s direct and moderating effects on the evaluation of one’s own rewards, finding stronger positive relationship for small-to-moderate rewards but weaker positive relationship for moderate-to-large rewards. These evaluation processes further show that individuals high (low) in PA perceive their own rewards as being larger (smaller) than rewards for others. The discussion addresses the implications for designing reward systems in organizations.
Measuring Faking on Five-Factor Personality Questionnaires
Authors: Galić Zvonimir , Jerneić Željko
Published: August 2013

The aim of the study was to test whether the Agentic Management (AM) and Communal Management (CM) scales ( Paulhus, 2006 ) represent valid indicators of faking on a Five-Factor personality questionnaire. These scales represent recent advances in measurement of desirable responding. In a within-subject design study, 210 participants completed a Big Five personality questionnaire and social desirability inventory, both in honest and simulated selection conditions. Although the AM and CM scales were sensitive to situational demands and substantially correlated with the level of faking on some personality traits, our analyses revealed that they cannot be used to correct personality scales nor to eliminate participants from selection procedures.
Is It So Bad or Am I So Tired?
Authors: Hornung Severin , Weigl Matthias , Glaser Jürgen , Angerer Peter
Published: August 2013

This study contributes to an evolving dynamic perspective on the stress process as a loss cycle of resource depletion. We investigated reciprocal relationships between perceived job stressors (work overload, patient demands, and work-family conflict) and emotional exhaustion, the core strain dimension of burnout, in a 1-year cross-lagged panel study of hospital physicians (N = 95). Contrary to the causal stressor-strain hypothesis, job stressors at T1 had no significant lagged effects on emotional exhaustion at T2. However, we found a consistent pattern of reverse strain-stressor relationships, such that emotional exhaustion at T1 predicted perceived stressors at T2. Theoretical and methodological implications as well as the practical significance of our findings are discussed.
Social Networking Websites in Personnel Selection
Authors: Roulin Nicolas , Bangerter Adrian
Published: August 2013

Industry surveys and media reports suggest that recruiters increasingly use social networking websites (SNWs) in the selection process, but corresponding scientific research is still limited. Using signaling theory, we examine SNWs as a new way for applicants to signal their qualities to recruiters. Results suggest that recruiters and potential applicants (students and graduates) both perceive professional SNWs (e.g., LinkedIn) as a potential antecedent of Person-Job fit information and personal SNWs (e.g., Facebook) as a potential antecedent of Person-Organization fit information. When evaluating the same SNW profile, recruiters and potential applicants focus on different sections of the profile (e.g., recruiters focus more on job-related information), but they tend to infer similar personality traits. Implications for using SNWs in selection are discussed.
What Pharmacometricians (Should) Do
Authors: van der Graaf PH
Published: August 2013

CPT: Pharmacometrics & Systems Pharmacology (2013) 2, e41; doi:10.1038/psp.2013.21; advance online publication 1 May 2013
Thiol‐X Chemistries in Polymer and Materials Science
Authors:   Royal Society of Chemistry
Published: August 2013

Thiol-X chemistries are already well established techniques, but it is only recently that they have been exploited for the functionalization and synthesis of polymers and other materials. As such, information on these techniques is scattered across the literature and Thiol-X Chemistries in Polymer and Materials Science is the first book to compile work specifically focussing on the application of thiol-based chemistries in materials design and synthesis.

The book introduces the various thiol-X chemistries currently available and applications where they have been successfully used, including examples of 'click' processes, in polymerizations, polymer synthesis, and polymer modification. Short 'how to' sections within the chapters also provide general experimental techniques to employ the various chemistries described.

Written by leading experts in the field, this book is a comprehensive resource for postgraduates, academics and industrial practitioners interested in polymer and materials applications.
The Application of Thiol‐Ene/Yne Radical Click Chemistry in Surface Modification and Functionalization
Authors: Liang Xinmiao , Shen Aijin , Guo Zhimou
Published: August 2013

Thiol‐ene/yne radical addition reactions, which possess the classical characteristics of click chemistry, have been emerging as facile and efficient coupling procedures in various fields. Different from the typical Huisgen azide‐yne 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition, thiol radical click chemistry can be performed without the use of metal catalysts, which is superior in biological application. Additionally, the utilization of metal‐free thiol radical click reactions in the synthesis of chromatographic stationary phases can avoid having residual metal ions in the materials which is detrimental in chromatographic separation, especially for analytes that can form chelates with metal ions. In this chapter, the application of the radical‐mediated thiol‐ene/yne click reaction in surface modification and functionalization iss introduced. Thiol click chemistry has been successfully utilized in surface engineering and patterning, the modification of solid surface with alternative properties, the immobilization of macromolecules, etc. In addition, thiol radical click chemistry has been efficiently used in the preparation of chromatographic stationary phases, including chiral (ion‐exchange) materials, reversed‐phase stationary phases, mixed‐mode stationary phases and hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) stationary phases.
Chemically recyclable alternating copolymers with low polydispersity from conjugated/aromatic aldehydes and vinyl ethers: selective degradation to another monomer at ambient temperature
Authors: Ishido Yasushi , Kanazawa Arihiro , Kanaoka Shokyoku , Aoshima Sadahito
Published: August 2013

A novel chemical recycling system based on controlled cationic alternating copolymerization of conjugated/aromatic aldehydes with vinyl ethers and selective hydrolysis of product copolymers was developed.
Measuring fast electron spectra and laser absorption in relativistic laser-solid interactions using differential bremsstrahlung photon detectors
Authors: Scott R. H. H. , Clark E. L. , Pérez F. , Streeter M. J. V. , Davies J. R. , Schlenvoigt H.-P. , Santos J. J. , Hulin S. , Lancaster K. L. , Baton S. D. , Rose S. J. , Norreys P. A.
Published: August 2013

A photon detector suitable for the measurement of bremsstrahlung spectra generated in relativistically intense laser-solid interactions is described. The Monte Carlo techniques used to extract the fast electron spectrum and laser energy absorbed into forward-going fast electrons are detailed. A relativistically intense laser-solid experiment using frequency doubled laser light is used to demonstrate the effective operation of the detector. The experimental data were interpreted using the 3-spatial-dimension Monte Carlo code MCNPX [D. Pelowitz, MCNPX User's Manual Version 2.6.0, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 2008], and the fast electron temperature found to be 125 keV.
Nematode locomotion in unconfined and confined fluids
Authors: Bilbao Alejandro , Wajnryb Eligiusz , Vanapalli Siva A. , Blawzdziewicz Jerzy
Published: August 2013

The millimeter-long soil-dwelling nematode Caenorhabditis elegans propels itself by producing undulations that propagate along its body and turns by assuming highly curved shapes. According to our recent study [V. Padmanabhan et al., PLoS ONE 7, e40121 (2012)10.1371/journal.pone.0040121] all these postures can be accurately described by a piecewise-harmonic-curvature model. We combine this curvature-based description with highly accurate hydrodynamic bead models to evaluate the normalized velocity and turning angles for a worm swimming in an unconfined fluid and in a parallel-wall cell. We find that the worm moves twice as fast and navigates more effectively under a strong confinement, due to the large transverse-to-longitudinal resistance-coefficient ratio resulting from the wall-mediated far-field hydrodynamic coupling between body segments. We also note that the optimal swimming gait is similar to the gait observed for nematodes swimming in high-viscosity fluids. Our bead models allow us to determine the effects of confinement and finite thickness of the body of the nematode on its locomotion. These effects are not accounted for by the classical resistive-force and slender-body theories.
Atomic-scale simulation of the thermodiffusion of hydrogen in palladium
Authors: Tucker William C. , Shokeen Lalit , Schelling Patrick K.
Published: August 2013

We report molecular-dynamics simulations of Pd:H to elucidate transport properties, with special focus placed on determining the temperature dependence of the heat of transport Q*. Simulation results are analyzed using the Green-Kubo approach. It is found that Q* describing the thermodiffusion of hydrogen increases linearly with temperature. By contrast, the reduced heat of transport Q*′=Q*−h2, with h2 the partial enthalpy of hydrogen, is approximately temperature independent. By computing separately the potential, kinetic, and virial contributions to Q*, it is possible to understand key features of the thermodiffusion process. In particular, the sum of the kinetic and potential energy of hydrogen atoms is increased above that of an average hydrogen atom by an amount comparable to the migration energy during a successful hop. However, the virial term in the energy flux is less than what would be expected based on the average local stress contribution due to the hydrogen atoms. Detailed calculations show that the relevant component of the stress tensor due to a hopping hydrogen atom exhibits a minimum at the transition state. Hence, while Q* has significant positive contributions due to the excited nature of the hopping hydrogen atom, the reduced heat of transport Q*′ can still be negative. The results here present important insight into the failure of simple kinetic theories of thermodiffusion, and provide a new perspective that can be tested on other systems.