bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Diffusion Tensor MRI and Fiber Tractography of Cerebellar Atrophy in Phenytoin Users
Authors: Lee Seung‐Koo , Mori Susumu , Kim Dong Joon , Kim Sei Young , Kim Si Yeon , Chu Minkyung , Heo Kyoung , Lee Byung In , Kim Dong Ik
Published: November 2003

Summary:  Purpose: The usefulness of diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DT‐MRI) is still in debate, and the development of clinically feasible scan protocol is encouraged. The purpose of this study was to investigate the afferent fiber system to the cerebellum in patients with phenytoin (PHT)‐induced cerebellar atrophy in comparison with cerebellar atrophy of other etiologies by using DT‐MRI.

Methods: Thirteen patients (M/F ratio, 7:6; mean age, 42.5 years) and age‐matched normal controls (n = 8) participated in this study. The patient group consisted of epilepsy patients who had received PHT therapy (n = 9) and clinically diagnosed as having olivopontocerebellar atrophy (OPCA; n = 4). DT‐MRI was performed by using diffusion weighting of b = 600 s/mm2, and fractional anisotropy (FA) and color‐coded vector maps were generated. FA of the middle cerebellar peduncle (MCP), the cerebellum, and transverse pontine fibers (TPF) was measured and compared between PHT and OPCA patients.

Results: Normal subjects showed FA values of 0.81 ± 0.07 in MCP, 0.69 ± 0.04 in TPF, and PHT users showed FA values of 0.84 ± 0.09 in MCP, 0.72 ± 0.08 in TPF, and 0.21 ± 0.04 in cerebellum. OPCA patients showed FA values of 0.39 ± 0.11 in MCP, 0.46 ± 0.12 in TPF, and 0.22 ± 0.07 in cerebellum. PHT users showed a statistically significant reduction of FA only in cerebellum, whereas OPCA demonstrated significant decrease of FA in MCP, TPF, and cerebellum (one‐way analysis of variance, p < 0.01). Three‐dimensional reconstruction of fiber tracts demonstrated decreased volume and altered fiber integrity within the peduncles and transverse pontine fibers in the OPCA group, whereas fiber course patterns in PHT users were similar to those in controls.

Conclusions: PHT users showed normal orientation and anisotropy of MCP and TPF, whereas OPCA demonstrated impaired values, suggesting that PHT directly affects the cerebellum. DT‐MRI can demonstrate detailed fiber configurations in degenerative diseases of brainstem and cerebellum and provides insight into the pathomechanisms of cerebellar atrophy.
An Xp; Yq Translocation Causing a Novel Contiguous Gene Syndrome in Brothers with Generalized Epilepsy, Ichthyosis, and Attention Deficits
Authors: Doherty Michael J. , Glass Ian A. , Bennett Craig L. , Cotter Phil D. , Watson Nate F. , Mitchell Anna L. , Bird Tom D. , Farrell Don F.
Published: November 2003

Summary:  Purpose: We describe two brothers with generalized epilepsy, attention deficits, congenital ichthyosis, and Leri–Weill dyschondrosteosis who harbor an unusual Xp; Yq translocation chromosome, resulting in a novel contiguous gene syndrome because of deletion of genes from the distal short arm of the X chromosome.

Methods: Physical examination, neuropsychologic testing, EEG, and neuroimaging studies were performed. Because of their unusual phenotype, karyotyping, fluorescence in situ hybridization, and further molecular analyses were carried out to refine the break points of the underlying unbalanced sex chromosome rearrangement.

Results: The subjects had generalized epilepsy, X‐linked ichthyosis, Madelung deformities, mesomelia, normal intelligence, and attention deficits. The brothers' karyotype was unbalanced; they inherited a maternal derivative X chromosome. Deleted distal Xp genes included short‐stature homeobox on the X chromosome (SHOX), aryl sulfatase E (ARSE), variably charged X‐chromosome mRNA gene A (VCX‐A), and steroid sulfatase (STS). The final karyotype was 46,Y,der(X)t(X; Y)(p22.3; q11.2).ish der(X) (DXZ1+, KAL+, STS‐, SHOX‐) mat.

Conclusions: Loss of distal contiguous Xp genes resulted in a syndrome comprising bony deformities, ichthyosis, attention problems, and generalized epilepsy. Candidate epilepsy genes within the deleted segment, such as ASMT, a gene involved in the final synthesis of melatonin, are discussed. Cytogenetic analyses should be included in the clinical evaluation of patients with generalized epilepsy and complex phenotypes.
Educating the national citizen in neoliberal times: from the multicultural self to the strategic cosmopolitan
Authors: Mitchell Katharyne
Published: November 2003

The paper is a broad, comparative investigation of shifts in the educational rhetoric and policy of three countries over the past two decades. Using England, Canada and the United States as case studies, I argue that the spirit of multiculturalism in education has shifted from a concern with the formation of tolerant and democratic national citizens who can work with and through difference, to a more strategic use of diversity for competitive advantage in the global marketplace. This shift is directly linked with and helps to facilitate the entrenchment of neoliberalism as it supports a privatization agenda, reduces the costs of social reproduction for the government, and aids in the constitution of subjects oriented to individual survival and/or success in the global economy.
White natures: Sydney's Royal Agricultural Show in post‐humanist perspective
Authors: Anderson Kay
Published: November 2003

Few events perform so ritualistically the triumphal narrative of human ingenuity and agency over the natural world, as the metropolitan displays of produce and machinery known as agricultural shows. The Royal Agricultural Show held in Sydney (Australia) is a case in point. Since the 1890s those liminal forms, of Herefords, hay, harvesters and the like that spill over the categories we think of as culture and nature, have been annually assembled. In the showground, they were made to stand as testimony to the successful march of ‘civilization’ to the colony of New South Wales – with civilization conceived, in European and humanist terms, as a spatialized progression out of an animal‐baseline in nature, through an agrarian garden, to the evolved space of the City. This was the trajectory that had long since been presumed to mark out the life of humanity from all other life‐forms that simply lived. Rather than reinscribe the privilege of that partial perspective, I use the New South Wales agricultural society and its Sydney show's ‘white natures’ to think across the referential categories of humanity and nature. By critically juxtaposing the Show's hybrid things with its dramatizations of human invention and ingenuity, the article opens cracks in the normativities of civilization that shaped the conviction of ‘the human’ as the being who transcends the merely natural. In so doing, the article also offers a fresh line of critique of those pernicious hierarchies that have, and continue to assign, premodern people and livelihoods to an anterior developmental space.
Suicide: the spatial and social components of despair in Britain 1980–2000
Authors: Dorling Danny , Gunnell David
Published: November 2003

In this paper we show that, by accounting for the varying influence of just three area indicators of social isolation, it is possible to predict the number of deaths due to suicide and undetermined injuries (most of which are suicides) across a great many areas remarkably closely. The exceptions to this model suggest that in a few unique areas of the country other local, often historical and cultural or intrinsically geographical factors matter also. These findings of the general predictability of suicide matter because suicide is such a common cause of death, particularly for the young. Between 1 January 1981 and 31 December 2000, the underlying cause of the deaths of 130 000 people in Britain were recorded as being directly due to suicide, or in all probability being due to suicide. Collectively, these thousands of personal stories are brought together here to show how a pattern of despair in Britain over this period was spread across the country, affecting different places and different groups in society to differing extents over changing times. The changing geography of despair can be shown to be largely the product of changing economic, social and demographic geographies. This paper is concerned with determining the extent to which the stories of suicide in Britain were more than the sum of thousands of individual acts of misery and the extent to which they reflected the changing social structure of the country. Quantitative analysis is used to identify possible key trends with a more qualitative set of interpretations placed on the possible meanings of these findings. The paper concludes by speculating on how current social trends may influence the future map of the extremes of despair in Britain.
Relational spaces and the geopolitics of community participation in two Tasmanian local governments: a case for agonistic pluralism?
Authors: Stratford Elaine , Armstrong Denbeigh , Jaskolski Martina
Published: November 2003

The ‘success’ of sustainability is often premised on public participation and consensus among members of diverse communities. An analysis of two experiments in participatory governance in Tasmania underpinned by explicit commitments to sustainability and by tacit investments in deliberative democracy allows detailed reflection on claims about the efficacy of deliberative democracy, and encourages speculation about whether and to what extent an alternative model of agonistic pluralism may better accommodate conflicts in communities wrestling with resource use and distribution.
‘National’ identities and the politics of ancient heritage: continuity and change at ancient monuments in Britain and Ireland,c.1675–1850
Authors: Harvey David C
Published: November 2003

This paper explores the complex and ambiguous development of a concept of nationhood during the early modern period (c.1675–1850). It does this through examining how aspects of identity politics were reflected in, and worked through, contemporary descriptions of the ancient sites of Avebury in Britain and Newgrange in Ireland. A relationship between these descriptions and the development of national identity is put forward and then problematized, with the apparent ‘nationalism’ of ancient heritage being seen as a far more complex phenomenon than first sight would suggest. Though primarily focusing on the construction and development of an idea of nationhood therefore, this paper works through drawing together and critically evaluating related strands of archaeology, heritage studies and historical‐political geography.
An event of geographical ethics in spaces of affect
Authors: McCormack Derek P
Published: November 2003

This paper contributes to a rethinking of the ethical sensibilities of geographical research in the context of an emerging interest amongst geographers in non‐representational registers of thinking and moving. Rather than undermining geographical engagements with questions of the ethical, the paper argues that this emerging interest in questions of the non‐representational actually extends the range and repertoire of empirical contexts and conceptual vehicles within and with which such an engagement can take place. The paper argues that attending to and through the relation between affect and ethics is particularly important to this effort. The importance of affect in this regard is illustrated through a series of examples drawn from an 18‐month participatory encounter with a specific therapeutic practice, Dance Movement Therapy. Drawing upon such examples, the paper offers some lines of ethical potential that might provide orientation to further geographical research. In doing this, the paper concentrates in particular on the necessity of cultivating a fidelity to the affective event of geographical ethics as much as remaining faithful to the subject or object of an ethical code.
Leisure at Work, who can Resist? An Investigation into Workplace Resistance by Leisure Service Employees
Authors: Townsend Keith
Published: November 2003

This article compares and contrasts the findings of two case studies examining the prevalence and manifestations of resistance within the leisure industry. This study was based on workplace experience over a number of years and supported by thirty-six semi-structured interviews with employees at all levels of the two organisations studied. The author predicted that there would be a number of factors contributing to the employees resisting managerial controls. It was expected that the size of the organisation would, in part, determine managerial style. Managerial style would, in turn, influence employee perceptions of what were appropriate behaviours while in the workplace. However, the employment history and expectations of key managerial staff prove to be interesting complications in one case. It was found that in one organisation where middle-management culture was one of resistance to upper-managerial approaches, so-called deviant behaviours became more covert and damaging.
Supply-Side and Demand-Side Explanations of Declining Apprentice Training Rates: A Critical Overview
Authors: Toner Phillip
Published: November 2003

Over the last decade numerous academic, industry and government studies have suggested that Australia has experienced a sustained decline in apprentice training rates and that this is contributing to shortages in core vocational occupations. This article redresses significant deficiencies in these studies by providing new data on long-run apprentice training rates by broad occupational group. This data confirms the existence of a sustained break in the long-run apprentice training rate from the early 1990s to the present. The article also provides an overview and critical assessment of the key explanations of this decline and policy recommendations to redress the decline. It is argued that these explanations may be classified into supply-side and demand-side approaches. The article concludes firstly, that, in general, demand-side explanations provide a superior understanding of declining training rates. Secondly, given the potential importance of trade skill shortages additional research is required both to quantify the effect of the various demand-side contributions to reduced training rates and to reorient current policies to better address these demand-side causes.
Putting the Group Back into Unions: A Social Psychological Contribution to Understanding Union Support
Authors: Blackwood Leda , Lafferty George , Duck Julie , Terry Deborah
Published: November 2003

Industrial relations research that attempts to grapple with individuals’ union-related sentiments and activities often draws on one of two traditions of psychological research—the individual-level factors tradition (for example, personality and attitude-behaviour relations) and the social context tradition (for example, frustration-aggression and relative deprivation). This paper provides an overview of research conducted from within these traditions to explain union-related phenomena and identifies some of the limitations that arise as a consequence of a shared tendency to treat people in an atomistic fashion. The paper argues for an understanding of the psychological processes that underpin group-based action. To this end, it elaborates a theoretical framework based on social identity theory and self-categorisation theory that would allow us to examine the dynamic interplay between the individual, their cognitions and their environment. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of a specific case of union mobilisation, to indicate how this theoretical framework might aid empirical analysis.
Australian Workplace Agreements and High Performance Workplaces: A Critique of Mitchell and Fetter
Authors: Gollan Paul J. , Hamberger Jonathan
Published: November 2003

In the September 2003 edition of the Journal of Industrial Relations, Mitchell and Fetter considered the extent to which the introduction of Australian workplace agreements (AWAs) has helped promote a ‘high performance’ HRM agenda in Australia. The authors observe that the ‘high performance’ workplace, as defined by Mitchell and Fetter, has never been sought by the proponents of individualisation, and that employment contracts are not the vehicle through which such practices would normally be formally enshrined. In addition, the authors contend that Mitchell and Fetter are unable validly to draw the conclusions they do from their analysis of the texts of two samples of AWAs, and that they have ignored significant evidence which points to directly contradicting conclusions. In particular, the results of a survey of AWA employees is drawn on to suggest that, at least in larger, private sector workplaces, AWAs are associated with a number of positive outcomes that would be consistent with AWAs being used in conjunction with a ‘high trust’ HRM agenda.
Labour Market Re-Regulation and Its Effects on Free-Riding in New Zealand
Authors: Wilkinson David , Harbridge Raymond , Walsh Pat
Published: November 2003

Free-riding occurs where an employee gains a benefit without joining the union that negotiated that benefit. New Zealand unions endured a decade of high levels of free-riding under the Employment Contracts Act. This paper establishes that, in New Zealand, collective bargaining coverage has a positive relationship with free-riding whereas union membership levels have a negative relationship. Free-riding in New Zealand has fallen to pre-1991 levels with the re-regulation of employment relations, indicating environment too may be an important factor. These findings have implications for Australia where unions have sought to coerce membership through applying a fee for service to non-members, while the Commonwealth Government recently passed legislation preventing such coercion.
Consultative Employment Relations in Human Resource Management Environments with a Union Presence
Authors: Bartram Timothy , Cregan Christina
Published: November 2003

This paper investigates consultative management-union relations in organisations that are characterised by human resource management practices. It presents the findings of a preliminary analysis of the data. Two large organisations are examined, one the subsidiary of a multinational, and the other a public hospital. The findings demonstrate that there are two criteria for the possibility of mutual gain. These consist of, first, an appreciation by management of the collective loyalties of workers and, second, the achievement of real gains for employees arising from their constraint in the use of collectively bargained procedures and industrial action.
The first named Ediacaran body fossil, Aspidella Terranovica
Authors: Gehling James G. , Narbonne Guy M. , Anderson Michael M.
Published: November 2003

Aspidella terranovica Billings, 1872 was first described from the late Neoproterozoic Fermeuse Formation (St. John's Group) on the Avalon Peninsula of eastern Newfoundland, approximately 1km stratigraphically above the famous Ediacaran biota at Mistaken Point, and several kilometres below the base of the Cambrian. Aspidella has been reinterpreted perhaps more than any other Precambrian taxon, and has variously been regarded as a fossil mollusc or ‘medusoid’, a gas escape structure, a concretion, or a mechanical suction mark. Our studies indicate that Aspidella includes a wide variety of preservational morphs varying from negative hyporeliefs with a raised rim and ridges radiating from a slit (Aspidella‐type preservation), to flat discs with a central boss and sharp outer ring (Spriggia preservation), to positive hyporeliefs with concentric ornamentation (Ediacaria preservation). Specimens occur in a continuum of sizes, with preservational styles dependent on the size of the specimen and the grain size of the host lithology; the elongation of specimens is tectonic. Aspidella is confirmed as a body fossil from observations of complex radial and concentric ornamentation, mutually deformed borders in clusters of specimens, and occurrence on the same bedding planes as certain distinctive Ediacaran taxa. Aspidella is indistinguishable from, and has priority over, several of the most common genera of late Neoproterozoic discoidal body fossils worldwide. Similar fossils from Australia are interpreted as holdfasts of frond‐like organisms. The density of specimens in the Aspidella beds suggests levels of benthic biomass in the Neoproterozoic that could rival those of modern marine communities. The serial growth forms, PalaeopascichnusIntrites, Neonereites renariusYelovichnus, associated with Aspidella, are interpreted as body fossils of unknown affinities rather than trace fossils. A new, trilobed, Ediacaran body fossil, Triforillonia costellae gen. et sp. nov., is described from the Aspidella beds of the Fermeuse Formation.
The Civil Servant as Legislator: Law Making in British Administration
Authors: Page Edward C.
Published: November 2003

How are government policy commitments converted into legislation and what happens in the conversion? The role of civil servants in preparing legislation is far more important than is generally assumed. By looking at the work of four recent bill  teams in Britain – teams of civil servants given the task of developing Acts of Parliament – their crucial roles in initiating policies, placing them on the political agenda (even helping secure their place in a party manifesto), developing them, making sure they pass through parliament and enacting them once they have reached the statute books are assessed. The article explores the composition and working methods of bill teams. These teams work with considerable autonomy in developing legislation, but it cannot be assumed that they operate outside ministerial control. Teams see themselves as reflecting the priorities of the government in general and their ministers in particular. Yet ministers typically know relatively little about the law they are bringing in until they receive the submissions and briefings from their officials. Perhaps the biggest danger for democracy is not a civil service putting forward proposals which a minister feels forced to accept, but rather that ministers do not notice or fully appreciate what is being proposed in their name despite having the political authority to change it and a civil service which bends over backwards to consult and accommodate them.
Talking Cop: Discourses of Change and Policing Identities
Authors: Davies Annette , Thomas Robyn
Published: November 2003

This paper presents empirical and theoretical analysis of the enactment of New Public Management (NPM) within the UK police service. It draws on empirical material gathered in a two‐year study that explores the ways in which individual policing professionals have responded to, and received, the NPM discourse. Theoretically informed by a discursive approach to organizational analysis, the paper focuses on the new subject positions promoted within NPM that serve to challenge traditional understandings of policing organization and identities. The paper examines the implications of this for policies that promote community orientated policing (COP) and increased inter‐agency partnership. The paper argues that the promotion of a more progressive form of policing, based on community orientation and equality principles, may struggle to gain legitimacy within the current performance regime that legitimizes a competitive masculine subjectivity, with its emphasis on crime fighting.
Public Administration Education and Europeanization: Prospects for the Emancipation of a Discipline?
Authors: Verheijen Tony , Connaughton Bernadette
Published: November 2003

The twin processes of Europeanization and Transition provide significant opportunities for the development of Public Administration education in Europe and provide a possibility to further the ‘emancipation’ of the discipline. In terms of Europeanization, the increasing challenges of politico‐administrative interaction between national administrations and the institutions of the European Union illustrate that it is essential for Public Administration graduates to acquire an informed understanding of both the European context of policy‐making and of the administrative organization and culture of other member states and countries associated with the EU. As a second element, the transition process in Central and Eastern European states could provide the discipline with further impetus to search for its own identity and approach in a European context. This article reviews the key findings of the results of the comprehensive inventories undertaken by the SOCRATES Thematic Network in Public Administration with regard to the current direction in which Public Administration education in Europe is moving. It addresses whether attention to European issues is reflected in the curriculum as well as links with the profession and whether cross‐fertilization between the development of new programmes in the transition states and PA academic programmes in the EU member states has actually occurred.
An Inquiry into Balanced Scorecards within Best Value Implementation in UK Local Government
Authors: Mcadam Rodney , Walker Timothy
Published: November 2003

The aim is of this paper is to conduct an exploratory study into the use of Balanced Scorecards as an approach to implementing Best Value in UK local government. Furthermore, a participant‐observation method is used to study the development into a Balanced Scorecard within local government.

There is a need to critically evaluate approaches to implementing Best Value so that local government can determine how to achieve the service performance levels laid down in the framework. There is a paucity of systematic studies exploring and critiquing the effectiveness of using the Balanced Scorecard in Best Value implementation. The paper describes an exploratory multiple case research study followed by longitudinal participant‐observer research on Balanced Scorecard development in a Best Value context. The findings show that the Balanced Scorecard can play a key role in Best Value implementation. Moreover it is also useful in linking other improvement initiatives. However, the Balanced Scorecard process must be informed by organizational and environmental information that is both accurate and adequate. The audit functions of the Business Excellence Model go some way to providing this information.
Friedman's Money Supply Rule vs. Optimal Interest Rate Policy
Authors: Evans George W. , Honkapohja Seppo
Published: November 2003

Using New Keynesian models, we compare Friedman's k‐percent money supply rule to optimal interest rate setting, with respect to determinacy, stability under learning and optimality. First we review the recent literature: open‐loop interest rate rules are subject to indeterminacy and instability problems, but a properly chosen expectations‐based rule yields determinacy and stability under learning, and implements optimal policy. We show that Friedman's rule also can generate equilibria that are determinate and stable under learning. However, computing the mean quadratic welfare loss, we find for calibrated models that Friedman's rule performs poorly when compared to the optimal interest rate rule.
Optimal monetary policy: is price‐level targeting the next step?
Authors: Minford Patrick , Peel David
Published: November 2003

We examine whether inflation targeting should be regarded as optimal. Targeting inflation implies (undesirably) that price level variance tends to infinity: we produce some evidence from both a representative agent model and a long‐used forecasting model that, once an endogenous indexation response is allowed for, price level targeting imposes no extra costs of macro variability, indeed gives significant gains.
Climbing the Staircase: science education for the knowledge economy
Authors: Geddes Roy , Stonyer Heather
Published: November 2003

Science and technology are widely regarded as the dominant drivers of transformation to a ‘knowledge’ economy and society — a transition in which higher education has a critical role. This paper reviews the influence of successive NZ governments intention to ‘proactively steer’ the tertiary education system towards the achievement of this critical role, and describes an initiative at the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) specifically designed to meet New Zealand's needs for a well trained, articulate and flexible workforce of scientists, engineers, technicians and support staff. The ‘staircasing’ model is the culmination of an effort to adapt, modify and extend traditional models of professional science and technology education to provide a mechanism for ‘life‐long learning’ through a flexible and responsive network of purpose‐built courses.
Reading Literacy Performance in Norway: current practice and critical factors
Authors: Rasmussen Jay Beck
Published: November 2003

This qualitative study explored reading literacy performance of Norwegian students (Grades 1–10). Semistandardised interviews were conducted with 36 academics, school administrators, and teachers to investigate reading literacy development, factors associated with literacy performance, and recommendations for improvement. Reading literacy lessons were also observed in 10 classrooms to determine how reading literacy is developed. Data from the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement study (Elley, 1994) and the Programme for International Student Achievement study (OECD, 2001) were analysed to enrich understanding of the Norwegian literacy situation. Recommendations include greater reading education for teachers, communication and collaboration between stakeholders, engagement and interest in reading, balanced reading instruction, development of linguistic awareness, use of early intervention programmes, explicit strategy instruction, and use of bilingual education.
Social Background and Education of Swedish and Finnish Speakers in Finland
Authors: Saarela Jan , Finnäs Fjalar
Published: November 2003

This article analyses how social background affects completed upper secondary education and completed tertiary level education of Swedish speakers and Finnish speakers in Finland. Longitudinal register data are utilised. The results of logistic regression models indicate that the impact of socio‐economic and family background is strong and declines with education level. For upper secondary education, the impact of social background seems to have decreased over cohorts, which could be attributed to the education reform in the 1970s. The effects of background factors are very similar among Swedish speakers and Finnish speakers. In the Helsinki and Turku areas Swedish speakers have a higher upper secondary education propensity, whereas no such differences between language groups can be found in the other urban, nor in the rural, areas. Swedish speakers are more likely than Finnish speakers to have tertiary level education, which may be attributed to the relatively higher number of student places for Swedish speakers.
Long‐term dynamics in rock pool Daphnia metapopulations
Authors: Ilmari Pajunen V. , Pajunen Irmeli
Published: November 2003

Metapopulations of Daphnia longispina, D. magna and D. pulex on 16 islands containing 507 rock pools were studied over 17 yr (autumns 1982–1998). Two yearly samples were taken representing early and late summer conditions. A local extinction was assumed when a species was absent from a pool for more than one year. Average yearly extinction rates, calculated from probability of survival in age grouped data, were close to 20%, and number of extinctions was on average balanced by the number of colonizations. Extinction rates during the first year following colonization were 45–50% in all species, but later decreased to low values. In first‐year data, single species populations of D. magna had lower extinction rates than in multi‐species pools. In later years all species combinations had similar extinction rates. The average proportion of rock pools occupied by D. longispina in any given year was 0.178, by D. magna 0.169 and by D. pulex 0.056. In 22% of cases, coexistence was observed. 71% of the pools were colonized at least once. The distribution of shortest colonization distances was left‐skewed, and median distances (7–8 m) were same in all species. The distribution of colonizations mostly corresponded to the expected frequencies calculated as the product of frequencies of source and target pools. Both D. longispina and D. magna colonized pools already occupied with a somewhat higher probability than empty pools. Probably owing to variation of habitat quality, Daphnia populations in some rock pools appear to be less prone to extinction, providing sources of dispersal to patches with higher extinction risk. The system appears to be at an approximate equilibrium, with several characteristics close to classical metapopulation system.
The influence of behaviour and season on habitat selection by a small mammal
Authors: G. Bos Darren , M. Carthew Susan
Published: November 2003

This study examined the selection of habitat by Ningaui yvonneae, a small, nocturnal insectivorous marsupial of semi‐arid regions of southern Australia. In addition to idengifying habitat preferences, the study was concerned with idengifying how habitats were used, and for what purpose they were valued. Triodiairritans (hummock grass) was the most preferred habitat component overall. However, other habitat components were found to be of equal or greater preference during certain seasons and for certain behaviours. The importance of considering behaviour in studies of habitat selection was discussed. Habitat selection by N. yvonneae appeared to be influenced by predation risk and energetic reward. The selection for Triodia is thought to be due to its provision of protection and foraging opportunities. However, leaf litter was preferred over Triodia for foraging, possibly because it offered greater energetic returns. To minimise predation risk while in leaf litter, ningauis remained close to Triodia and moved larger prey items to the edge of Triodia for consumption.
Facilitation by herbivore‐mediated nurse plants in a threatened tree, Taxus baccata: local effects and landscape level consistency
Authors: García Daniel , Ramón Obeso José
Published: November 2003

We investigated the regeneration of a threatened tree, the yew Taxus baccata, in relation to the presence of fleshy‐fruited woody plants acting as seed dispersal foci as well as protecting yew recruits against ungulate herbivores. We seek to determine if local facilitative effects are consistent across landscape in the Cantabrian range (NW Spain). Yew seed rain by birds mostly concentrated under yew trees and beneath hollies Ilex aquifolium. Seedling emergence distributed similarly to seed rain, but first‐year seedling survival was higher beneath hollies. In one site where woody vegetation was structured as nucleation centres (multispecific patches of fleshy‐fruited plants acting as foci for seed rain) yew recruits mostly occurred in yew‐dominated centres, suggesting dispersers‐mediated facilitation. However, holly was the main nurse plant for most of these recruits, considering the nurse as the species whose canopy covered directly the yew recruit. Living beneath nurse plants reduced herbivore damage on saplings and enhanced seedling survival. A planting experiment with yew rooted‐cuttings beneath different spiny shrubs corroborated this effect. Additional evidence on yew recruitment limitation by herbivory emerged from one population where ungulates were fence‐excluded. Our results suggest that nurse plants mitigate the negative effect of herbivores on yew regeneration, by providing defence against browsing and trampling. Shelter ability related to nurse structure, cone‐shaped shrubs with branches at their bases acting better as a barrier. Paradoxically, this structure resulted from heavy browsing on nurse plants. The study of yew regeneration and habitat structure in seven sites provided evidence for the consistency of facilitation by holly at the landscape level, since local values of yew recruitment positively related to nurse ground cover. Range‐scale yew management must consider the local functioning of the interaction among avian seed‐dispersers, nurse fleshy‐fruited plants and ungulate herbivores, in combination with regional measures, targeting the habitats where facilitation emerges.
Moult, flight performance and wingbeat kinematics during take‐off in European starlings Sturnus vulgaris
Authors: Williams Emma V. , Swaddle John P.
Published: November 2003

The effects of natural moult on avian flight performance have received relatively little attention, yet moult is an important part of the annual cycle. Quantification of flight costs will help to explain the diversity of moult patterns observed in avian taxa. Take‐off from the ground requires a high power output from the flight muscles compared to other modes of flight, and is an important feature of foraging and predation escape. The present study was designed to quantify the effect of natural moult and new plumage on the take‐off strategy, kinematics, and flight performance of European starlings Sturnus vulgaris. A high‐speed (185 Hz) cine camera was used to film seven European starlings on three occasions: session 1, two weeks prior to the onset of moult; session 2, during mid‐moult; and session 3, two weeks after full plumage had re‐grown. From subsequent film analysis, we assessed take‐off speed and angle, the energy gained per wingbeat, and wingtip kinematics. Take‐off strategy (measured by angle and speed) altered through the course of the three experimental sessions, i.e. ascent angle decreased and take‐off speed increased. Energy gained per wingbeat did not vary, suggesting there was no significant decrease in flight performance due to moult, but there was a significant improvement in take‐off performance due to renewal of flight plumage. Wingbeat amplitude increased in association with moult and after flight plumage had been completely renewed. The European starlings incurred relatively minor flight costs due to moult, when comparing before‐moult with during‐moult take‐off performance. The apparent absence of additional flight costs associated with moult may reflect a decreased mechanical performance of year‐old feathers (which are replaced during the moult) and may also help to explain the relatively long duration of the moult in this species. This study also provides evidence of the benefits of plumage renewal, as take‐off performance is improved after moult has been completed.
Male‐male mountings in polyandrous bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus: an unusual behaviour in raptors
Authors: Bertran Joan , Margalida Antoni
Published: November 2003

Male‐male mountings appear to be very common in polyandrous bearded vulture Gypaetus barbatus trios. We observed sexual activity in two trios that occupied the same territory in different years. We recorded a total of 167 copulation attempts. The percentage of male‐male mountings recorded was 26.1 and 11.4%, in the period of 1991–1992 and 2000–2001, respectively, with respect to total, homo‐ and heterosexual matings. We conclude that homosexual interactions do not appear to be directly associated with intrasexual competition (i.e. hierarchical dominance, sperm competition). Rather, our results are more consistent with the idea that this behaviour can regulate the aggression of the males in these groups.
Female colour polymorphism covaries with reproductive strategies in the tawny owlStrix aluco
Authors: Roulin Alexandre , Ducret Bertrand , Ravussin Pierre‐Alain , Altwegg Res
Published: November 2003

Variation in coloration with a strong underlying genetic basis is frequently found in birds, insects, anurans, molluscs and plants. Although such a variation can be large, little is known about its functional value. Correlative data, however, can help suggest testable hypotheses about potential covariation between reproductive parameters and a colour polymorphism displayed by individuals belonging to a single population. In this context, we studied two Swiss populations of tawny owlsStrix aluco, a polymorphic species that varies in coloration from reddish‐brown to grey. Observations in the first population showed that although greyer females had shorter tarsi, they produced heavier offspring in two of three years. Pairing with respect to plumage coloration was not significantly disassortative, indicating that these correlations were probably not inflated by plumage coloration of the mate. In the second population, where breeding females had been monitored for 14 years, the proportion of all breeding females that were reddish‐brown was greater in years when the breeding density was lower. Capture‐recapture analyses show that the latter result is explained by the fact that greyish females bred less often than reddish‐brown females, although their survival probability was similar. The number of greyer breeding females was greater when spring/summer temperatures were lower. When combined, the results from the two populations lend support to the hypothesis that grey females do not breed every year, but produce offspring of higher quality. Whatever the mechanism underlying the correlations reported in this study, colour polymorphism in female tawny owls appears to reflect some components of individual quality.
Laying order and offspring sex in blue tits Parus caeruleus
Authors: Cichoń Mariusz , Dubiec Anna , Stoczko Magdalena
Published: November 2003

According to sex allocation theory, females may benefit from a differential investment in sons and daughters, where fitness returns from male and female offspring vary. One way in which investment may be differentiated is by assigning male and female offspring to eggs of different sizes, and/or eggs laid early or late in the laying order. Here, we investigate whether such sex‐specific adjustments occur in blue tits Parus caeruleus. We found that the proportion of males changed non‐linearly with laying order showing the increase in early‐laid eggs. Egg size increased with laying order, but this pattern differed between female and male eggs. Female eggs increased initially in size and became smaller later in the laying sequence, while male eggs exhibited constant increase in mass. However, egg size did not differ between genders. Egg size and laying order was found to interact in moulding sex of the embryo. Thus, females seem to simultaneously adjust the sex of the offspring in relation to their investments into eggs and the position of the egg in the laying sequence.
Revisiting the Impact of Union Structures on Wages: Integrating Different Dimensions of Centralization
Authors: Gürtzgen Nicole
Published: November 2003

Abstract.  In a framework of a unionized oligopoly, this paper reconsiders the impact of the bargaining structure on union wages. In particular, two dimensions along which centralization may occur, namely the professional and firm line, are integrated into one modelling framework. It will be shown that, when taking into account different centralization dimensions, wage outcomes of different bargaining regimes cannot simply be ranked according to the degree of bargaining centralization. The argument will be that negotiated wages rather depend on the technical relationship between different groups of labour and goods as well as upon the dimension along which centralization takes place.
Employment of Older People in the European Union
Authors: Morris David , Mallier Tony
Published: November 2003

Abstract.  This article identifies the alternative employment modes of older workers in the European Union. Against a background of changing levels of labour force participation and declining employment opportunities the paper describes and discusses the relative significance for older workers of alternative employment modes. Two atypical modes, part‐time and self‐employment, are discussed in detail. The paper concludes that atypical employment modes offer ageing employees the opportunity to gradually retire by providing a bridge between full‐time employment and final retirement.
Chronic fatigue syndrome: an endocrine disease off limits for endocrinologists?
Authors: Baschetti R.
Published: November 2003

Endocrinologists were not included in the multidisciplinary working groups that prepared two recent reports on chronic fatigue syndrome, despite its unequalled clinical overlap with Addison's disease, which is a classic endocrine disorder. The failure to include at least one endocrinologist in those panels may explain why in their extensive reports there is not a single word about the 42 clinical features that chronic fatigue syndrome shares with Addison's disease, including all the signs and symptoms listed in the case definition of this syndrome.
Lipoprotein (a) and acute‐phase response in patients with vestibular neuronitis
Authors: Milionis H. J. , Mittari V. , Exarchakos G. , Kalaitzidis R. , Skevas A. T. , Elisaf M. S.
Published: November 2003

Background  Vestibular neuronitis (VN) is a relatively common condition characterized by the acute onset of vertigo, nausea and vomiting, in the absence of auditory or central nervous system involvement. The exact aetiology (inflammatory, viral or vascular?) remains obscure. Lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] is an atherogenic particle. Its serum levels are mainly genetically determined and vary widely between individuals. Whether Lp(a) is consistently a positive acute‐phase reactant is controversial.

Purpose  We evaluated the alterations in lipidaemic parameters and serum biological markers (including acute‐phase reactants) in adult patients presenting acutely with VN.

Subjects and methods  A total of 34 consecutive VN patients (24 men and 11 women) and 37 apparently healthy controls (25 men and 12 women) were studied. Laboratory evaluation was performed during the acute episode and 6 months later (stable state).

Results  Serum Lp(a) concentrations were significantly lower at the time of presentation (median value 6·4 vs. 16·4 mg dL−1 in the stable state, P < 0·001), whereas fibrinogen levels were significantly higher during the acute episode than in the stable state (median value 293·0 vs. 202·0 mg dL−1, respectively, P < 0·0001). During the acute episode, plasma fibrinogen correlated with CRP levels (Spearman r = 0·84, P < 0·0001). By contrast, inverse correlations were noted between Lp(a) levels and CRP (Spearman r = −0·47, P = 0·007) as well as between Lp(a) and fibrinogen levels (Spearman r = −0·35, P = 0·05).

Conclusion  Vestibular neuronitis episodes are associated with evidence of an acute inflammatory response as reflected by significant elevations in plasma fibrinogen and CRP concentrations, whereas Lp(a) behaves as a negative acute‐phase reactant.
Genome‐wide screen in obese pedigrees with type 2 diabetes mellitus from a defined Dutch population
Authors: Van Tilburg J. H. , Sandkuijl L. A. , Franke L. , Strengman E. , Pearson P. L. , Van Haeften T. W. , Wijmenga C.
Published: November 2003

A genome scan was performed in obese type 2 diabetes mellitus pedigrees to identify susceptibility loci involved in obesity‐driven type 2 diabetes mellitus. We studied the 20% most obese diabetes pedigrees from a confined Dutch population from around the town of Breda.

 Previously we, and others, have already shown that a susceptibility locus influencing obesity in diabetes may reside on chromosome 18p11. We now report evidence to also suggest linkage for type 2 diabetes in these obese pedigrees on chromosome regions 11p (genome‐wide P‐value ≤ 0·061) and 12q (genome‐wide P‐value ≤ 0·029), thereby confirming previous findings from corresponding regions. The linkage found in the Breda Cohort of type 2 diabetes patients is influenced by obesity. This supports the notion that a genetic predisposition to obesity is probably intertwined with a genetic predisposition to type 2 diabetes. Further efforts should address the question of how, on a genetic level, these two factors interact.