bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Haplotype Effects on Matrix Metalloproteinase-1 Gene Promoter Activity in Cancer Cells
Authors: Pearce Eve G. , Laxton Ross C. , Pereira Andresa C. , Ye Shu
Published: March 2007

Increased expression of matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP1) is associated with poor prognosis in cancers. Several single nucleotide polymorphisms (−1607GG>G, −839G>A, −755G>T, −519A>G, −422T>A, −340C>T, and 320C>T) in the MMP1 gene promoter have recently been identified. In this study, we assessed the functional effects of these polymorphisms on MMP1 gene promoter activity in cell lines of melanoma (A2058 and A375), breast cancer (MCF7 and MDA-MB-231), lung cancer (A549 and H69), and colorectal cancer (HT-29, SW-620) by comparing the promoter strengths of 10 most common haplotypes deriving from these polymorphisms. In A2058 cells, the GG-G-G-A-T-T-T and GG-G-G-A-C-T haplotypes had 2-fold higher promoter activity than the GG-G-T-A-T-T-C, GG-G-G-A-A-T-T, GG-G-G-A-T-T-C, and GG-G-G-A-A-C-T haplotypes, which in turn, had 3-fold higher promoter activity than the G-G-T-A-A-C-T, G-A-T-G-T-T-T, G-A-T-G-A-C-T, and G-A-T-G-A-T-G haplotypes. In A375 and MDA-MB-231 cells, high expression haplotypes include not only the −1607GG-bearing haplotypes but also the G-A-T-G-A-T-T haplotype containing the −1607G allele. A similar trend was detected in A549 cells. In addition, in A549 cells, the GG-G-G-A-T-T-T haplotype had >2-fold higher promoter activity than several other −1607GG-bearing haplotypes. In MCF7 cells, the GG-G-G-A-T-T-T and G-G-T-A-A-C-T haplotypes had 1.5- to 4-fold higher promoter activity than the other haplotypes. These results suggest that the polymorphisms exert haplotype effects on the transcriptional regulation of the MMP1 gene in cancer cells, and indicate a need to examine haplotypes rather than any single polymorphism in genetic epidemiologic studies of the MMP1 gene in cancers. (Mol Cancer Res 2007;5(3):221–7)
IFI16 in Human Prostate Cancer
Authors: Alimirah Fatouma , Chen Jianming , Davis Francesca J. , Choubey Divaker
Published: March 2007

Increased expression of IFI16 protein (encoded by the IFI16 gene) in normal human prostate epithelial cells is associated with cellular senescence-associated cell growth arrest. Consistent with a role for IFI16 protein in cellular senescence, the expression of IFI16 protein is either very low or not detectable in human prostate cancer cell lines. We now report that treatment of DU-145 and LNCaP prostate cancer cell lines with histone deacetylase inhibitor trichostatin A (TSA) or CGK1026 resulted in transcriptional activation of the IFI16 gene. The induction of IFI16 protein in LNCaP cells was dependent on the duration of TSA treatment. Furthermore, TSA treatment of LNCaP cells up-regulated the expression of Janus-activated kinase 1 protein kinase and modulated the transcription of certain IFN-activatable genes. However, overexpression of exogenous Janus-activated kinase 1 protein in LNCaP cells and treatment of cells with IFNs (α and γ) did not increase the expression of IFI16. Instead, the transcriptional activation of IFI16 gene by TSA treatment of LNCaP cells was dependent on transcriptional activation by c-Jun/activator protein-1 transcription factor. Importantly, increased expression of IFI16 in LNCaP cells was associated with decreases in the expression of androgen receptor and apoptosis of cells. Conversely, knockdown of IFI16 expression in TSA-treated LNCaP cells increased androgen receptor protein levels with concomitant decreases in apoptosis. Together, our observations provide support for the idea that histone deacetylase–dependent transcriptional silencing of the IFI16 gene in prostate epithelial cells contributes to the development of prostate cancer. (Mol Cancer Res 2007;5(3):251–9)
Association of Plasma Natriuretic Peptide Levels With Metabolic Risk Factors in Ambulatory Individuals
Authors: Wang Thomas J. , Larson Martin G. , Keyes Michelle J. , Levy Daniel , Benjamin Emelia J. , Vasan Ramachandran S.
Published: March 2007

Background—

Experimental studies suggest that the natriuretic peptides influence lipid and fatty acid metabolism. Although it has been shown that obese individuals have reduced natriuretic peptide levels, conflicting data exist on the relation of natriuretic peptide levels to other metabolic risk factors.

Methods and Results—

We examined the association of plasma levels of B-type natriuretic peptide and N-terminal pro-atrial natriuretic peptide with metabolic risk factors, the metabolic syndrome, and insulin resistance in 3333 Framingham study participants free of heart failure (mean age, 58 years; 54% women). Regression analyses were performed, with adjustment for clinical and echocardiographic variables. Plasma natriuretic peptide levels were inversely associated with all components of the metabolic syndrome except for elevated blood pressure. Adjusted natriuretic peptide levels were lower in persons with the metabolic syndrome compared with those without the metabolic syndrome: In men, B-type natriuretic peptide was 24% lower (
P
<0.001) and N-terminal pro-atrial natriuretic peptide was 16% lower (
P
<0.001); in women, B-type natriuretic peptide was 29% lower (
P
<0.001) and N-terminal pro-atrial natriuretic peptide was 18% lower (
P
<0.001). Individuals with insulin resistance, as indicated by an elevated homeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR) index, had lower levels of B-type natriuretic peptide (
P
=0.009 in men,
P
<0.001 in women) and N-terminal pro-atrial natriuretic peptide (
P
<0.001 in men,
P
=0.001 in women).

Conclusions—

Having several metabolic risk factors is associated with low circulating natriuretic peptide levels, even after adjustment for body mass index. These findings raise the possibility that reduced natriuretic peptide activity is a manifestation of the metabolic syndrome, which may have important clinical and pathophysiological implications.
Global Diastolic Strain Rate for the Assessment of Left Ventricular Relaxation and Filling Pressures
Authors: Wang Jianwen , Khoury Dirar S. , Thohan Vinay , Torre-Amione Guillermo , Nagueh Sherif F.
Published: March 2007

Background—

Diastolic strain rate (SR) measurements that comprise all left ventricular (LV) segments are advantageous over myocardial velocity for assessment of diastolic function. Mitral early diastolic velocity (E)/SR ratio during the isovolumetric relaxation (IVR) period can be used to estimate LV filling pressures.

Methods and Results—

Simultaneous echocardiographic imaging and LV pressure measurements (7F catheters) were performed in 7 adult dogs. Loading conditions were altered by saline infusion and caval occlusion, and lusitropic state was changed by dobutamine and esmolol infusion. A curve depicting global SR was derived from each of the 3 apical views, and SR was measured during IVR (SR
IVR
) and early LV filling (SR
E
). SR
IVR
had a strong correlation with time constant of LV pressure decay during the IVR period (τ) (
r
=−0.83,
P
<0.001), whereas SR
E
was significantly related to LV end-diastolic pressure (
r
=0.52,
P
=0.005) in the experimental stages where τ was <40 ms. In 50 patients with simultaneous right heart catheterization and echocardiographic imaging, mitral E/SR
IVR
ratio had the best correlation with mean wedge pressure (
r
=0.79,
P
<0.001), as well as in 24 prospective patients (
r
=0.84,
P
=0.001). E/SR
IVR
was most useful in patients with ratio of E to mitral annulus early diastolic velocity (E/Ea ratio) 8 to 15 and was more accurate than E/Ea in patients with normal ejection fraction and regional dysfunction (both
P
<0.01).

Conclusions—

Global SR
IVR
by 2-dimensional speckle tracking is strongly dependent on LV relaxation. E/SR
IVR
can predict LV filling pressures with reasonable accuracy, particularly in patients with normal ejection fraction and in those with regional dysfunction.
Fos-Related Antigen Immunoreactivity After Acute and Chronic Angiotensin II–Induced Hypertension in the Rabbit Brain
Authors: Davern Pamela J. , Head Geoffrey A.
Published: March 2007

Several brain regions are proposed as contributing to chronic sympatho-excitatory effects of elevated circulating angiotensin II. However, earlier c-Fos studies have been limited to acute angiotensin II exposure. This study aims to determine brain regions responding with chronic elevated angiotensin II. Rabbits were administered angiotensin II (50 ng/kg per minute) or saline for 3 hours, 3 days, or 14 days. Basal mean arterial pressure was 71±2 mm Hg and increased 23±2 mm Hg, 32±4 mm Hg, and 22±2 mm Hg for 3 hours, 3 days, and 14 days, respectively, with angiotensin II infusion. Neuronal activation was detected using Fos-related antigens, which recognizes all of the known members of the Fos family. Neurons located in the amygdala and area postrema were activated transiently after acute infusion of angiotensin II but were not responsive by days 3 or 14. Neurons located in the nucleus of the solitary tract, caudal ventrolateral medulla, and lateral parabrachial nucleus were activated for ≤3 days after infusion of angiotensin II but were not responsive by day 14, which is consistent with their role in response to baroreceptor pathways that reset with sustained hypertension. The vascular organ of the lamina terminalis and subfornical organ showed sustained but diminishing activation over the 14-day period. However, the downstream hypothalamic nuclei that receive inputs from these nuclei, the paraventricular, supraoptic, and arcuate nuclei, showed marked sustained activation. These findings suggest that there is desensitization of circumventricular organs but sensitization of neurons in hypothalamic regions to long-term angiotensin II infusion.
Estimates of Uncertainty in Predictions of Global Mean Surface Temperature
Authors: Kettleborough J. A. , Booth B. B. B. , Stott P. A. , Allen M. R.
Published: March 2007

A method for estimating uncertainty in future climate change is discussed in detail and applied to predictions of global mean temperature change. The method uses optimal fingerprinting to make estimates of uncertainty in model simulations of twentieth-century warming. These estimates are then projected forward in time using a linear, compact relationship between twentieth-century warming and twenty-first-century warming. This relationship is established from a large ensemble of energy balance models.

By varying the energy balance model parameters an estimate is made of the error associated with using the linear relationship in forecasts of twentieth-century global mean temperature. Including this error has very little impact on the forecasts. There is a 50% chance that the global mean temperature change between 1995 and 2035 will be greater than 1.5 K for the Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (SRES) A1FI scenario. Under SRES B2 the same threshold is not exceeded until 2055. These results should be relatively robust to model developments for a given radiative forcing history.
Intraseasonal Atmospheric Variability in the Extratropics and Its Relation to the Onset of Tropical Pacific Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies
Authors: Anderson Bruce T.
Published: March 2007

Previous research has shown that seasonal-mean boreal winter variations in the subtropical/extratropical sea level pressure and wind stress fields over the central North Pacific are significantly related to the state of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) 12–15 months later. Results presented in this note indicate that boreal winter ENSO events are also preceded by increased intraseasonal variance in the antecedent boreal winter atmospheric circulation patterns over the extratropical central North Pacific as well. Low (high) surface pressure anomalies associated with intraseasonal variability in this region are related to intraseasonal wind stress anomalies that represent a weakening (strengthening) of the trade winds over both the north and south subtropical/tropical Pacific. There is also a concurrent increase (decrease) in the central and eastern subtropical North Pacific sea surface temperatures that projects onto the seasonal-mean SST anomalies that precede mature ENSO events by 9–12 months. Overall these results suggest that similar to seasonal-mean subtropical surface pressure and wind stress fields, enhanced transient variability in the midlatitudes can subsequently induce changes in the atmospheric and oceanic structure of the tropical Pacific that may serve as a precursor to ENSO variability.
Addressing the Issue of Systematic Errors in a Regional Climate Model
Authors: Misra Vasubandhu
Published: March 2007

A methodology is proposed in which a few prognostic variables of a regional climate model (RCM) are strongly constrained at certain wavelengths to what is prescribed from the bias-corrected atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM; driver model) integrations. The goal of this strategy is to reduce the systematic errors in a RCM that mainly arise from two sources: the lateral boundary conditions and the RCM errors. Bias correction (which essentially corrects the climatology) of the forcing from the driving model addresses the former source while constraining the solution of the RCM beyond certain relatively large wavelengths in the regional domain [also termed as scale-selective bias correction (SSBC)] addresses the latter source of systematic errors in RCM. This methodology is applied to experiments over the South American monsoon region. It is found that the combination of bias correction and SSBC on the nested variables of divergence, vorticity, and the log of surface pressure of an RCM yields a major improvement in the simulation of the regional climate variability over South America from interannual to intraseasonal time scales. The basis for such a strategy is derived from a systematic empirical approach that involved over 100 regional seasonal climate integrations.
Climate Response to Basin-Scale Warming and Cooling of the North Atlantic Ocean
Authors: Sutton Rowan T. , Hodson Daniel L. R.
Published: March 2007

Using experiments with an atmospheric general circulation model, the climate impacts of a basin-scale warming or cooling of the North Atlantic Ocean are investigated. Multidecadal fluctuations with this pattern were observed during the twentieth century, and similar variations—but with larger amplitude—are believed to have occurred in the more distant past. It is found that in all seasons the response to warming the North Atlantic is strongest, in the sense of highest signal-to-noise ratio, in the Tropics. However there is a large seasonal cycle in the climate impacts. The strongest response is found in boreal summer and is associated with suppressed precipitation and elevated temperatures over the lower-latitude parts of North and South America. In August–September–October there is a significant reduction in the vertical shear in the main development region for Atlantic hurricanes. In winter and spring, temperature anomalies over land in the extratropics are governed by dynamical changes in circulation rather than simply reflecting a thermodynamic response to the warming or cooling of the ocean.

The tropical climate response is primarily forced by the tropical SST anomalies, and the major features are in line with simple models of the tropical circulation response to diabatic heating anomalies. The extratropical climate response is influenced both by tropical and higher-latitude SST anomalies and exhibits nonlinear sensitivity to the sign of the SST forcing. Comparisons with multidecadal changes in sea level pressure observed in the twentieth century support the conclusion that the impact of North Atlantic SST change is most important in summer, but also suggest a significant influence in lower latitudes in autumn and winter.

Significant climate impacts are not restricted to the Atlantic basin, implying that the Atlantic Ocean could be an important driver of global decadal variability. The strongest remote impacts are found to occur in the tropical Pacific region in June–August and September–November. Surface anomalies in this region have the potential to excite coupled ocean–atmosphere feedbacks, which are likely to play an important role in shaping the ultimate climate response.
Extratropical Influences on the El Niño–Southern Oscillation through the Late Quaternary
Authors: Bush Andrew B. G.
Published: March 2007

A sequence of numerical simulations with a coupled atmosphere–ocean general circulation model configured for particular times during the late Quaternary shows that simulated El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events decrease in frequency from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) to today, in accord with linear stability theory, but increase in amplitude. Diagnostic analyses indicate that altered momentum fluxes from midlatitude eddy activity caused by changes in orbital forcing (in the Holocene) and topographic forcing (at the LGM) regulate the strength of climatological easterlies and therefore affect both the tropical mean state and the characteristics of interannual variability. The fact that climatic teleconnections associated with paleo-ENSO are fundamentally different during these times suggests a way in which to reconcile some of the existing discrepancies amongst interpretations of proxy records and numerical paleoclimate simulations.
Le croire et le cru: Les appartenances religieuses au sein du christianisme européen revisitées à partir des travaux de Michel de Certeau
Authors: Bastenier Albert
Published: March 2007

English

In order to better understand the developments taking place within European Christianity, it seems worth our while to take another look at the notion of religious belonging, one which turns out to be more complex than it seemed at first glance. The flow of affiliations and disaffiliations it sets in motion might well be reinterpreted as the ambivalent expression of the engagements and disengagements associated with the construction of a common world. In this connection, the works of the historian, M. de Certeau, leading to an anthropology of belief, offer a significant contribution to the development of a theory of belonging.

French

En vue de mieux comprendre les évolutions en cours au sein du christianisme européen, il y à avantage a revisiter la notion d'appartenance religieuse qui s'avère plus complexe qu'il n'y paraît. Le mouvement dles affiliations et désafflliations qu'elle met en jeu doit être relu comme l'expression ambivalente des engagements et cles dégagements associés ci la construction d'un monde commun. À cet égard, les travaux d'historien de M. de Certeau, qui débouchent dans une anthropologie du croire, apportent un appui significatif dlans l'élaboration d'une théorie de l'appartenance.
Belonging and Institution in Islam
Authors: Dialmy Abdessamad
Published: March 2007

English

The notion of fitra (state of nature) makes membership in Islam an innate belonging. According to this notion, the Moslem faith is an innate natural order, a quasi-biological given inherent in the individual, from birth. How is this fitra implemented? What rites of passage socialize it? As we see, this different vision of belonging does not involve two actors, the inclividual and the (religious) institution. Thus, it seems sociologically legitimate to ask ourselves whether the notions of individual and institution are neutral sociological tools capable of conceptualizing membership in Islam. It seems that the institutionalization of Islamic belonging may be a multifunctional problematic which arises principally within multiconfessional European lay states. In this context, belonging to Islam by birth does not seem enough and needs to be affirmed by membership of a modern type of an Islamic association. But these types of lay organizations succeed neither in the mission of religious accompaniment nor in that of representing Moslems. As a context of belonging, Islamic associations oscillate between a particularist ethnic-national orientation (where Islam is lost/rediscovered in the weight of traditions without belief) and a universalist orientation (where Islam is lost/rediscovered in the utopia of belief without traditions).

French

La notion de fitra (état de nature) fait de l'appartenance a l'islam une appartenance innée. Selon cette notion, lafoi musulmane est un ordre naturel inné, une donnée quasi-biologique inhérente à l'individlu, dès sa naissance. Comment la fitra est-elle mise en wuvre? À travers quels rites dle passage est-elle socialisée? Cette vision différente de l'appartenance n'implique pas, comme on le constate, deux acteurs, l'incdividu et l'institution (religieuse). Aussi est-il sociologiquement légitime de se demander si les notions d'individlu et d'institution sont des outils sociologiques neutres susceptibles de conceptualiser l'appartenance a l'islam. II semble que l'institutionnalisation de l'appartenance islamique soit une problamatique polyfonctionnelle qui se pose principalement au sein dles États laïcs européens pluriconfessionnels. C'est dlans ce contexte que l'appartenance dle naissance à l'islam semble ne pas suffire et a besoin de s'affirmer comme appartenance à une association islamique dle type mocderne. Mais ce type d'organisation laïque ne réussit ni clans la mission d'encacdrement religieux ni dlans celle de représentation cles musulmans. L'association islamique comme cadre d'appartenance oscille entre une orientation ethnico-nationale particulariste (ou l'islam se perd/se retrouve clans le poidls dle traditions sans croyance) et une orientation universaliste (oli l'islam se perdlse retrouve dans l'utopie d'une croyance sans traditions).
“Not Us, but You Have Changed!” Discourses of Difference and Belonging among Haredi Women
Authors: Longman Chia
Published: March 2007

English

Feminist research into the position and participation of women in contemporary fundamentalist and traditionalist identity movements shows how essentialist ideologies of sexual difference are often deployed in critique of western secular liberal feminism. In this article the author draws a comparison between discourses of belonging according to studies of ba'alot teshuvahin the USA (female “returnees” to an Orthodox Jewish lifestyle), and her own interviews with “frumfrom birth” women (raised as haredi) in the strictly Orthodox Jewish community of Antwerp, Belgium. Whereas for the former, a rhetoric of choice, essentialism, and religious ideologies of female superiority appeared important, for the frum-born women, gender is more a question of orthopraxis and religious role equivalence. Nevertheless, the author argues that for the strictly Orthodox Jewish diasporic community in question, an increase in gender conservatism, with particular notions of female sexuality and modesty, goes hand in hand with isolationism vis-à-vis the surrounding secular society.

French

La recherche féministe concernant la position et la participation dles femmes dtans les mouvements d'identité foncdamentalistes et traditionalistes contemporains montre combien les idéologiés essentialistes de la difference sexuelle sont souvent soumises aux critiques du féminisme libéral et séculier occidental. Dans cet article, l'auteure établit une comparaison entre les discours d'appartenance en se référant à des études portant sur les ba'alot teshuvah aux États- Unis (desfemmes "revenant" à un style de viejuiforthodoxe) .par comparaison a ses propres interviews avec clesfemmes "frum de naissance" (connues comme haredi) dans la stricte communauté juive orthodoxe d'Anvers en Belgique. Alors que pour lespremières, un dliscours dle choix, d'essentialisme et d'idéologie religieuse dle supériorité féminine parait important, le genre est davantage une question d'orthopraxie et d'equivalence de rc$les religieux pour les femmes "nées frum'". Cepencdant, I'auteure avance que pour la communauté diasporique strictement juive orthodoxe en question, une augmentation du conservatisme dle genre, avec des notions particulières en termes de sexualité et dle modlestie féminine, va dle pair avec (le l'isolement par rapport a la société seculière environnante.
Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease Is Associated With Greater Pathologic Burden
Authors: Marshall Gad A. , Fairbanks Lynn A. , Tekin Sibel , Vinters Harry V. , Cummings Jeffrey L.
Published: March 2007

Two subtypes of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) have been commonly identified: early- and late-onset forms. Previous studies suggest that early-onset AD patients have more neuritic plaques (NPs) and neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs). In the current study, NP and NFT counts were performed for 8 brain regions in 25 subjects with definite AD. A repeated-measures analysis of variance of mean regional NP and NFT counts for early- and late-onset groups was performed. A significant between-subject effect indicating greater overall NP and NFT burden in the early-onset group was observed (NP: F = 6.8, df = 1, P = .015; NFT: F = 7.5, df = 1, P = .012). This analysis supports the hypothesis that early-onset AD is associated with greater pathologic burden than late-onset AD. This suggests that late-onset AD patients have less cognitive reserve than early-onset patients and require fewer pathologic changes to exhibit cognitive deterioration.
MR Spectroscopy, Functional MRI, and Diffusion-Tensor Imaging in the Aging Brain: A Conceptual Review
Authors: Minati L. , Grisoli M. , Bruzzone M. G.
Published: March 2007

In vivo magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI) have recently opened new possibilities for noninvasively assessing the metabolic, functional, and connectivity correlates of aging in research and clinical settings. The purpose of this article is to provide a conceptual review intended for a multidisciplinary audience, covering physical principles and main findings related to normal aging and senile cognitive impairment. This article is divided into 3 sections, dedicated to MRS, to fMRI, and to DTI. The spectroscopy section surveys physiological function of the observable metabolites, concentration changes in normal aging and their interpretation, and correlation with cognitive performance. The functional MRI section surveys the hemispheric asymmetry reduction model from compensation and de-differentiation viewpoints, memory encoding, retrieval and consolidation, inhibitory control, perception and action, resting-state networks, and functional deactivations. The DTI section surveys age-related changes, correlation with behavioral scores, and transition to cognitive impairment.
Validity of the Cambridge Cognitive Examination-Revised New Executive Function Scores in the Diagnosis of Dementia: Some Early Findings
Authors: Heinik Jeremia , Solomesh Isaac
Published: March 2007

The Cambridge Cognitive Examination-Revised introduces 2 new executive items (Ideational Fluency and Visual Reasoning), which separately or combined with 2 executive items in the former version (word list generation and similarities) might constitute an Executive Function Score (EFS). The authors studied the validity of these new EFSs in 51 demented (dementia of the Alzheimer’s type, vascular dementia) and nondemented individuals (depressives and normals). The new EFSs were found valid to accurately differentiate between demented and nondemented subjects; however, they were considerably less so when specific diagnoses were considered. Correlations between the variously combined executive scores and the cognitive scales and subscales studied were prevalently low to moderate, and ranged from high and significant to low and nonsignificant when the 4 executive items were correlated to each other. The ability of the executive scores to discriminate demented from nondemented individuals was lower compared with the Cambridge Cognitive Examination-Revised scores. EFS was found internally consistent.
Geochemistry of Holocene cryptotephras from the North Iceland Shelf (MD99-2269): intercalibration with radiocarbon and palaeomagnetic chronostratigraphies
Authors: Kristjánsdóttir Gréta Björk , Stoner Joseph S. , Jennings Anne E. , Andrews John T. , Grönvold Karl
Published: March 2007

Tephra-grain counting, morphology and geochemistry in the 150–1000 μm size fraction were used to identify 22 individual tephra horizons and one visible tephra layer (Saksunarvatn) from postglacial sediment of the north Iceland shelf. Core MD99-2269 (66°37.53‘N, 20°51.16‘W, water depth 365 m, length 2533 cm) from the Reykjafjardaráll basin is constrained at the base by the Vedde tephra (c. 12 000 cal. yr BP). Geochemical analyses and stratigraphical position of the 22 tephra horizons were used to identify the following cryptotephras: KOL-1372 (AD 1372), Hekla 1104 (AD 1104), Snæfellsnes 1 (c. 1790 cal. yr BP), Hekla 3 (c. 2970 cal. yr BP), Hekla 4 (c. 4230 cal. yr BP), TV 5 (c. 6860 cal. yr BP) and Suduroy (c. 8070 cal. yr BP). A tephra of the same geochemistry as KOL-1372 was found near the base of the core and is here named KOL3-2269 (>11 000 cal. yr BP). Eleven additional cryptotephras were geochemically typed to their respective Icelandic volcanic centres of origin and their ages constrained. Four tephra horizons had a very heterogeneous geochemical signal and may reflect secondary rather than primary deposition although we speculate whether the heterogeneity may be due to mixing of distinct cryptotephras within our sample. The cryptotephras and one visible tephra layer (Saksunarvatn) were intercalibrated with the combined MD99-2269 and MD99-2322 (67°08.18‘N, 30°49.67‘W, 714 m water depth, length 2617 cm) palaeomagnetic secular variation record, in depth and on a calibrated radiocarbon chronology, providing a fundamental chronological and stratigraphic template for future studies of environmental and volcanic variability for the Icelandic region, eastern North Atlantic and NW Europe.
Response of the South Indian runoff-harvesting civilization to northeast monsoon rainfall variability during the last 2000 years: instrumental records and indirect evidence
Authors: Gunnell Yanni , Anupama Krishnamurthy , Sultan Benjamin
Published: March 2007

Compared with the southwest monsoon, the mechanisms and history of northeast monsoon (NEM) variability over South Asia are poorly known. The NEM nevertheless contributes >50% of rainfall to semi-arid southeast India, and has underpinned the success, over the last 2000 years, of a widespread indigenous water resource management system based on rainwater harvesting and storage in man-made lakes. Based on a power spectrum analysis of 60- to 100-yr instrumental rainfall records, we show that NEM rainfall is both chaotic in the high-frequency time domain and spatially unpredictable, but that the sustainability of the agricultural water-harvesting infrastructure is tied to excess rain from NEM cyclones. Cyclonic activity has declined sharply since 1977. Based on twentieth-century analogues, we propose a qualitative model in which storminess decreases when NEM wind intensities increase and Eurasian winter temperatures are anomalously low. Extrapolating to the Holocene time frame, model expectations for the palaeorainfall record correlate with the independently established chronologies of Indian runoff-irrigation development and the ‘Mediaeval Warm Period’–‘Little Ice Age’ oscillations, and further suggest that NEM and SWM rainfall anomalies have covaried with the same sign from seasonal to millennial timescales. The fortunes of the reservoir system are therefore tangibly climate-driven.
Summer water deficit variability controls on peatland water-table changes: implications for Holocene palaeoclimate reconstructions
Authors: Charman Dan J.
Published: March 2007

Interpretation of proxy-climate records depends on a thorough understanding of the proxy-climate relationship. Peatland surface wetness records have been interpreted as reflecting changes between cool and/or wet conditions and warm and/or dry conditions. This paper analyses a high-resolution record of reconstructed water-table changes based on testate amoebae analysis in relation to instrumental weather records since AD 1775. Replicate peat records are reconciled by multiple chronological techniques and tuning, and demonstrate that the reconstructions preserve many replicable high-frequency changes. Water-table variability is highly correlated with the total seasonal moisture deficit (precipitation—evapotranspiration, P-E) expressed as the sum of all months with negative P-E. The reconstructed water-table record reflects antecedent periods of 5 or 10 years (maximum r2 = 52.4%) and proxy bog surface wetness records can therefore be interpreted as reflecting the length and intensity of the summer water deficit period. Response surfaces of the summer deficit in relation to temperature and precipitation variability support the hypothesis that the summer deficit is determined by summer precipitation in midlatitude oceanic peatlands and that summer temperature plays a greater but still subsidiary role in higher latitude, continental settings. These relationships apply for all plausible past Holocene climate changes and future twenty-first century climate scenarios. Non-linear responses to longer-term climate states prevent the direct application of a calibration of the reconstructed water-table records to infer quantitative estimates of climate variables. Models that combine peat accumulation, mire growth and hydrological processes are required to undertake this task.
Theory of quantitative reconstruction of vegetation II: all you need is LOVE
Authors: Sugita Shinya
Published: March 2007

This paper describes the LOVE (LOcal Vegetation Estimates) model for estimating local vegetation composition within the relevant source area of pollen. This model quantifies and then subtracts background pollen (ie, pollen coming from beyond the relevant source area) in order to arrive at a quantitative reconstruction of local vegetation. Parameters required for LOVE applications are pollen counts from target sites, the relevant source area of pollen of these sites, pollen productivity estimates and regional vegetation composition within 104 -105 km2. Regional vegetation composition is obtained using fossil pollen from large sites (≥102 ha) with the REVEALS (Regional Estimates of VEgetation Abundance from Large Sites) model, the first step of the Landscape Reconstruction Algorithm (LRA) specifically designed for LOVE applications. POLLSCAPE simulations demonstrate that (1) regional vegetation composition can be used to predict background pollen at and beyond the relevant source area of pollen for given-sized basins, (2) LOVE with the LRA framework provides a robust and accurate estimate of local vegetation composition much better than vegetation reconstruction using pollen percentages alone and (3) although the relevant source area of pollen is difficult to estimate particularly in past landscapes, a proposed method using backward modelling of LOVE is effective to estimate the relevant source area in landscapes of unknown vegetation patchiness and heterogeneity. Thus, the LRA will also be useful to estimate indirectly changes in spatial structure of past vegetation and landscape caused by natural and anthropogenic forcing.
A continuous, high-resolution 8500-yr snow-avalanche record from western Norway
Authors: Nesje Atle , Bakke Jostein , Dahl Svein Olaf , Lie Øyvind , Bøe Anne-Grete
Published: March 2007

A record of Holocene snow-avalanche activity has been reconstructed from the presence of coarse (>1 mm) minerogenic particles in lake sediment cores retrieved from Vanndalsvatnet in western Norway. At this site, snow avalanches bring minerogenic debris and macroscopic plant remains from the adjacent valley side south of the lake onto the lake ice. When the lake ice melts during late spring, the debris sinks to the lake bottom. A flux record of the number of minerogenic particles >1mm per unit time, obtained by combining two sediment cores from the lake, shows a significant increase in snow-avalanche activity after ~2000 cal. BP. Prior to that, periods with enhanced snow-avalanche activity around the lake occurred ~8500-8300, 8200-7900, 7300-6300, 5900-5400, 5000-4600, 3700-3400, 3100-2800, 2700-2600 and 2500-2300 cal. BP. The snow-avalanche record from western Norway has been compared with a record of Holocene snow-avalanche activity in the Møre area in western Norway, a record of Holocene river floods in eastern Norway, and Holocene debris-flow events in southern Norway. Knowledge of the past magnitude and frequency of extreme weather events, such as snow avalanches, may help making climate model simulations and scenarios of extreme weather events more reliable.
Education for Ecology
Authors: Reason Peter
Published: March 2007

The crisis of sustainability is seen as a crisis of mind and thus a challenge for management education. Traditional educational methods are seen as inadequate even when they include radically different content. Gregory Bateson's critique of rational conscious purpose is explored to suggest that an appropriate form of education for ecological understanding will draw on aesthetics, grace and ceremony. An account of such education is offered.
Pedagogy and the ‘Linguistic Turn’
Authors: Musson Gill , Cohen Laurie , Tietze Susanne
Published: March 2007

The appropriation of the ‘linguistic’ turn and the application of social constructionist ideas for research projects situated in organizational contexts and concerned with managerial work has enriched the field's understanding of the complexities of such settings and drawn attention to their processual nature. Using the unifying theory of a semiotic framework, this article argues for a similar appropriation of the ‘linguistic turn’ in teaching projects, to give students of management a theoretically informed access to, and understanding of, this growing literature. Employing the understanding and vocabulary of semiotics as applied to metaphor, discourse and stories, it is demonstrated how semiotic principles can be used to explore the mechanics of meaning making and expose the taken for granted assumptions inherent in this process.
Evaluating the Peace-Building Impact of Structural Funds Programmes
Authors: Lynch Catherine
Published: March 2007

The ‘distinctiveness criteria’ are an instrument of peace and conflict impact assessment (PCIA) applied to the EU Programme for Peace and Reconciliation in Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland (Peace II). This article evaluates the capacity of the ‘distinctiveness criteria’ tool, as applied, to generate a peace-building impact for the fund. While the criteria are found to have influenced project design, their potential impact is weakened by a relatively narrow and quantitative application at assessment, monitoring and evaluation stages, and by the absence of independent conflict analysis. A stronger monitoring and evaluation culture at the project level could increase the impact of the criteria and, therefore, the peace-building impact of the programme, and could help the framework to avoid some of the weaknesses generally associated with PCIA.
Situated Learning in Communities of Practice
Authors: Abma Tineke A.
Published: March 2007

A common model for learning from evaluation assumes that learning occurs when evaluators transmit findings and conclusions to programme participants and stakeholders. Learning is then understood as a cognitive act, happening in the mind of an individual and separated from the rest of our activities. In recent years, this common model has been challenged by scholars who argue for ‘situated learning’ in ‘communities of practice’. This alternative conception emphasizes the context-bound nature of learning (versus learning from material abstracted from context) in relationships between people and implies an intimate connection between knowledge and action. Using as an example an evaluation of a coercion project in Dutch psychiatry, this article illustrates and highlights some of the implications of this conception in terms of the learning that occurs and the roles of the evaluator in developing communities of practice.
Chinese students: Holiday behaviours in New Zealand
Authors: Ryan Chris , Zhang Zhidan
Published: March 2007

This article reports findings from a sample of 158 students from the People's Republic of China studying in New Zealand. The purpose of the study was to assess the extent to which this market segment undertook travel within their country of studies; and the degree to which they are motivated by features usually regarded as motivators for holidaying by visitors to New Zealand. It found that while relaxation needs motivate holiday patterns, travel was also strongly motivated for 16 per cent of the sample by a search for career and study opportunities. It was also found that trip expenditure per person was low, and a number of possible reasons are suggested. Additionally it appeared that many of the traditional outdoor-adventure attractions of New Zealand have limited appeal to many of these students. The study identifies a number of issues that constrain this market and reference is made to restricted budgets and the need for academic success as inhibiting travel.
A nice vacation: Variations in experience aspirations and travel careers
Authors: Blichfeldt Bodil Stilling
Published: March 2007

This article focuses on tourists' vacation experiences - both in the form of their experience aspirations and in terms of actual ‘lived’ experiences. The qualitative study upon which the article draws suggests a series of ways in which everyday life contexts (and especially stages in the family life cycle) profoundly impact the experiences that people aspire for during their vacations. Even more importantly, informants' accounts for their travel careers suggest that informants are very conscious about the type of experiences they wish(ed) for at different times during their lives. Thus, informants seem to be very aware that the broad spectrum of vacations one can take qualifies as a ‘repertoire of experiencescapes’. The article introduces and discusses the ways in which stages in the family life cycle (and other aspects of everyday life) influence which types of vacations people prefer and which experiences they seek. Finally, implications hereof for vacation marketers are discussed.
How students react to the power and responsibility of being decision makers in their own learning
Authors: Po-ying Chu
Published: March 2007

Students are rarely given the opportunity of being decisionmakers in class, and when they are, they may feel unsure of how to organize their own learning. However, over time they come to appreciate the benefits of a more active engagement in learning English. In this paper, I describe a procedure based on Exploratory Practice (EP) for guiding students in the investigation of their own learning, and use students' journals, worksheets and course feedback to show their reactions to the experience. Discussion focuses on two main areas. The first is the importance of seeking understanding, rather than trying to find solutions to problems that may disappear once they are understood. The second is the advantage of building on students' strengths rather than limiting attention to their weaknesses. Some concerns about using EP with learners are discussed, for the benefit of teachers who would like to experience practitioner research in the future.
From jukebox boys to revolting students
Authors: Fowler David
Published: March 2007

Richard Hoggart’s career coincided with the emergence of youth cultures, from the teddy boys of the 1950s to the student protest movement of the 1960s. Using historical and published records, this article investigates what Hoggart had to say about British youth culture, and the influences that informed his thought.
Cowboys, Outlaws and Artists
Authors: Botterill Jacqueline
Published: March 2007

Advertising’s contribution to the deterioration of meaning in consumer culture has been well established, yet advertising also offers a therapeutic resource to audiences. Early advertisers humanized the modern marketplace with nostalgic appeals to home, hearth and village, yet, against the rising tide of 1960s identity politics, designers made increasing appeals to authenticity. By the 21st century, the modern heroes of authentic individuality - the cowboy, the genius artist, the outlaw - had been fully parodied and debunked, yet an interpretive study of two totemic youth commodities, jeans and sneakers, suggests that the underlying values of freedom, autonomy and individuality are not. Contemporary jeans advertisers rewrite the quest for authenticity within contemporary promotional culture, yet this appeal is not universal.Athletic shoe brands achieved popularity by reflecting the ideology of athleticism rooted in the modernist ethos celebrating achievement, deferral of gratification, discipline and teamwork. The research suggests autonomy and self-authentication are taken most seriously by those most immersed in the quest for anti-modern identity. Even if the marketplace is not a site of absolute personal freedom, to the degree it quells anxieties that the quest for freedom is disappearing in a hyper- commercialized market culture, it may prove therapeutic.
Culture and Ethics Management
Authors: MacNab Brent , Brislin Richard , Worthley Reg , Galperin Bella L. , Jenner Steve , Lituchy Terri R. , MacLean Joan , Aguilera Gustavo Munoz , Ravlin Elizabeth , Tiessen James H. , Bess Dave , Turcotte Marie-France
Published: March 2007

This article examines the relation of culture to the propensity for, and potential effectiveness of, both internal reporting and whistle-blowing as ethics management tools within a North American context. Samples from a total of 10 regions in the US, Canada and Mexico increased the accuracy and meaningfulness of the findings. Hofstede's cultural dimensions uncertainty avoidance and power distance had the most consistent and significant relationship to propensity for both whistle-blowing and internal reporting, while collectivism was not found to be significantly related to either ethics management tool. Managers who better understand the cultural links to ethics management are more likely to craft the most effective organizational ethics strategies. Researchers can gain from increased insight, allowing departure from assumptions to an empirically based examination of how cultural dimensions might influence ethics management instruments.
Chinese Conflict Management Styles and Negotiation Behaviours
Authors: Ma Zhenzhong
Published: March 2007

China has been one of the most important markets for western firms, but negotiating with the Chinese is quite a challenging task. Researchers have been investigating the distinctness in Chinese negotiation and conflict management styles, but have yet to provide solid evidence for it. An attempt is made in this study to illustrate how Chinese people approach conflicts, and thus how this affects their negotiation behaviours during business negotiation, which provides an empirical test of Chinese conflict management styles and their impact on negotiation outcomes. Results show that compromising and avoiding are the most preferred methods of conflict management in China, while accommodating and competing lead to more satisfaction during business negotiation. Managerial implications and future studies are then discussed.
The Dilemma of Regress
Authors: Toens Katrin
Published: March 2007

Workfare reforms under conditions of fiscal and democratic constraints are the starting point for a reflection on the relationship between social justice and democracy. The focus is on a dilemma of regress or circularity, defined as a situation in which these principles mutually presuppose each other. The main section picks up on the theoretical challenge to escape this dilemma. By examining the critical theory of Nancy Fraser, Jürgen Habermas and Axel Honneth, it argues that the concepts of Fraser and Honneth seem particularly promising because they integrate discourse ethics with a more systematic reflection about social justice and recognition. Yet they tend to suffer from the tendency to replicate the dilemma of regress on a higher level of reflection by treating social justice and democracy in a sequential manner as primary or secondary issues. In search for a solution the concluding section suggests a balanced intervention into the problem of regressive presupposition.