bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
MRI-Guided Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation
Authors: Dickfeld Timm , Tian Jing , Ahmad Ghada , Jimenez Alejandro , Turgeman Aharon , Kuk Richard , Peters Matthew , Saliaris Anastasios , Saba Magdi , Shorofsky Stephen , Jeudy Jean
Published: January 2011

Background—

Substrate-guided ablation of ventricular tachycardia (VT) in patients with implanted cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) relies on voltage mapping to define the scar and border zone. An integrated 3D scar reconstruction from late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) MRI could facilitate VT ablations.

Methods and Results—

Twenty-two patients with ICD underwent contrast-enhanced cardiac MRI with a specific absorption rate of <2.0 W/kg before VT ablation. Device interrogation demonstrated unchanged ICD parameters immediately before, after, or at 68±21 days follow-up (
P
>0.05). ICD imaging artifacts were most prominent in the anterior wall and allowed full and partial assessment of LGE in 9±4 and 12±3 of 17 segments, respectively. In 14 patients with LGE, a 3D scar model was reconstructed and successfully registered with the clinical mapping system (accuracy, 3.9±1.8 mm). Using receiver operating characteristic curves, bipolar and unipolar voltages of 1.49 and 4.46 mV correlated best with endocardial MRI scar. Scar visualization allowed the elimination of falsely low voltage recordings (suboptimal catheter contact) in 4.1±1.9% of <1.5-mV mapping points. Display of scar border zone allowed identification of excellent pace mapping sites, with only limited voltage mapping in 64% of patients. Viable endocardium of >2 mm resulted in >1.5-mV voltage recordings despite up to 63% transmural midmyocardial scar successfully ablated with MRI guidance. All successful ablation sites demonstrated LGE (transmurality, 68±26%) and were located within 10 mm of transition zones to 0% to 25% scar in 71%.

Conclusions—

Contrast-enhanced cardiac MRI can be safely performed in selected patients with ICDs and allows the integration of detailed 3D scar maps into clinical mapping systems, providing supplementary anatomic guidance to facilitate substrate-guided VT ablations.
Changing Temperature Inversion Characteristics in the U.S. Southwest and Relationships to Large-Scale Atmospheric Circulation
Authors: Bailey Adriana , Chase Thomas N. , Cassano John J. , Noone David
Published: January 2011

Continental temperature inversions significantly influence air quality, yet little is known about their variability in frequency and intensity with time or sensitivity to dynamical changes with climate. Inversion statistics for six upper-air stations in the American Southwest are derived for the period 1994–2008 from radiosonde data reported by the Global Telecommunication System (GTS) and National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), which use different significant level standards. GTS data indicate that low-level elevated inversions have increased in frequency at four of six sites, consistent with enhanced regional stagnation projected by models. NCDC data, in contrast, show remarkable declines in weak, near-surface inversions through 2001, indicating local surface conditions may counteract atmospheric dynamics in regulating inversion activity and air quality. To further test the sensitivity of inversion activity to climate, associations between wintertime inversion frequency and large-scale circulation are quantified using the self-organizing map technique. Twenty-four representative circulation patterns are derived from North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) 500-hPa geopotential height fields, and these patterns are correlated with inversion frequency at each site. Inversion activity in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Albuquerque and Santa Teresa, New Mexico, is found to correspond well with large-scale anticyclonic ridging; however, sensitivities to large-scale circulation in Denver, Colorado, and Flagstaff and Tucson, Arizona, are weak. Denver stands out in exhibiting a higher percentage of near-surface inversions in winter than the other southwestern sites. These findings indicate that dynamical changes with climate will not uniformly influence inversions and hence urban air quality conditions in the American Southwest.
A TRMM-Based Tropical Cyclone Cloud and Precipitation Feature Database
Authors: Jiang Haiyan , Liu Chuntao , Zipser Edward J.
Published: January 2011

The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite has provided invaluable data for tropical cyclone (TC) research since December 1997. The challenge, however, is how to analyze and efficiently utilize all of the information from several instruments on TRMM that observe the same target. In this study, a tropical cyclone precipitation, cloud, and convective cell feature (TCPF) database has been developed by using observations of the TRMM precipitation radar (PR), Microwave Imager (TMI), Visible and Infrared Scanner (VIRS), Lightning Imaging System (LIS), and the TRMM 3B42 rainfall product. The database is based on an event-based method that analyzes the measurements from multiple sensors. This method condenses the original information of pixel-level measurements into the properties of events, which can significantly increase the efficiency of searching and sorting the observed historical TCs. With both convective and rainfall properties included, the database offers the potential to aid the research aiming to improve both TC intensification and rainfall forecasts. Using the TRMM TCPF database, regional variations of TC convection and diurnal variations of TC rainfall are examined. In terms of absolute number, the northwest Pacific Ocean basin has the deepest and most intense TCPFs according to IR, radar, and 85-GHz microwave measurements. However, the North Atlantic TCPFs appear to have the highest lightning production. Globally, TC rainfall has a maximum at 0430–0730 local solar time (LST) and a minimum around 1930–2230 LST. However, after separating ocean from land, a distinct difference is seen. Over land, the diurnal variation of TC rainfall shows double peaks: one around 0130–0730 LST and the other at 1630–1930 LST. The minimum is at 1030–1330 LST.
Moist versus Dry Barotropic Instability in a Shallow-Water Model of the Atmosphere with Moist Convection
Authors: Lambaerts Julien , Lapeyre Guillaume , Zeitlin Vladimir
Published: January 2011

Dynamical influence of moist convection upon development of the barotropic instability is studied in the rotating shallow-water model. First, an exhaustive linear “dry” stability analysis of the Bickley jet is performed, and the most unstable mode identified in this way is used to initialize simulations to compare the development and the saturation of the instability in dry and moist configurations. High-resolution numerical simulations with a well-balanced finite-volume scheme reveal substantial qualitative and quantitative differences in the evolution of dry and moist-convective instabilities. The moist effects affect both balanced and unbalanced components of the flow. The most important differences between dry and moist evolution are 1) the enhanced efficiency of the moist-convective instability, which manifests itself by the increase of the growth rate at the onset of precipitation, and by a stronger deviation of the end state from the initial one, measured with a number of different norms; 2) a pronounced cyclone–anticyclone asymmetry during the nonlinear evolution of the moist-convective instability, which leads to an additional, with respect to the dry case, geostrophic adjustment, and the modification of the end state; and 3) an enhanced ageostrophic activity in the precipitation zones but also in the nonprecipitating areas because of the secondary geostrophic adjustment.
Soil Moisture Drought in China, 1950–2006
Authors: Wang Aihui , Lettenmaier Dennis P. , Sheffield Justin
Published: January 2011

Four physically based land surface hydrology models driven by a common observation-based 3-hourly meteorological dataset were used to simulate soil moisture over China for the period 1950–2006. Monthly values of total column soil moisture from the simulations were converted to percentiles and an ensemble method was applied to combine all model simulations into a multimodel ensemble from which agricultural drought severities and durations were estimated. A cluster analysis method and severity–area–duration (SAD) algorithm were applied to the soil moisture data to characterize drought spatial and temporal variability. For drought areas greater than 150 000 km2 and durations longer than 3 months, a total of 76 droughts were identified during the 1950–2006 period. The duration of 50 of these droughts was less than 6 months. The five most prominent droughts, in terms of spatial extent and then duration, were identified. Of these, the drought of 1997–2003 was the most severe, accounting for the majority of the severity–area–duration envelope of events with areas smaller than 5 million km2. The 1997–2003 drought was also pervasive in terms of both severity and spatial extent. It was also found that soil moisture in north central and northeastern China had significant downward trends, whereas most of Xinjiang, the Tibetan Plateau, and small areas of Yunnan province had significant upward trends. Regions with downward trends were larger than those with upward trends (37% versus 26% of the land area), implying that over the period of analysis, the country has become slightly drier in terms of soil moisture. Trends in drought severity, duration, and frequency suggest that soil moisture droughts have become more severe, prolonged, and frequent during the past 57 yr, especially for northeastern and central China, suggesting an increasing susceptibility to agricultural drought.
Effect of Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation on Tropical Atlantic Variability: A Regional Coupled Model Study
Authors: Wen Caihong , Chang Ping , Saravanan Ramalingam
Published: January 2011

A simplified coupled ocean–atmosphere model, where an atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM) is fully coupled to a 2½-layer reduced-gravity ocean model (RGO) over the tropical Atlantic basin, is presented in the context of studying the role of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) in tropical Atlantic variability (TAV). In the ocean model, the strength of the AMOC is controlled by specifying mass transport at open boundaries. The fidelity of the reduced-physics model in capturing major features of tropical Atlantic variability, as well as its response to the AMOC changes, is demonstrated in a series of model experiments. The results of the experiments reveal the relative importance of oceanic processes and atmospheric processes in AMOC-induced tropical Atlantic variability–change. It is found that the oceanic processes are a primary factor contributing to the warming at and south of the equator and the precipitation increase over the Gulf of Guinea, while atmospheric processes are responsible for the surface cooling of the tropical North Atlantic and southward displacement of ITCZ.

A systematic investigation of the coupled system response to changes in AMOC strength indicates that the SST over the cold-tongue region responds nonlinearly to AMOC changes. The sensitivity of the SST response increases rapidly when AMOC strength decreases below a threshold value. Such nonlinear behavior is also found in precipitation response over the Gulf of Guinea. These results suggest that complex and competing atmosphere–ocean processes are involved in TAV response to AMOC changes and the nature of the response can vary from one region to another. This complexity should be taken into consideration in Atlantic abrupt climate studies.
The Impact of Climate Change on Air Quality–Related Meteorological Conditions in California. Part I: Present Time Simulation Analysis
Authors: Zhao Zhan , Chen Shu-Hua , Kleeman Michael J. , Tyree Mary , Cayan Dan
Published: January 2011

This study investigates the impacts of climate change on meteorology and air quality conditions in California by dynamically downscaling Parallel Climate Model (PCM) data to high resolution (4 km) using the Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) model. This paper evaluates the present years’ (2000–06) downscaling results driven by either PCM or National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Global Forecasting System (GFS) reanalysis data. The analyses focused on the air quality–related meteorological variables, such as planetary boundary layer height (PBLH), surface temperature, and wind. The differences of the climatology from the two sets of downscaling simulations and the driving global datasets were compared, which illustrated that most of the biases of the downscaling results were inherited from the driving global climate model (GCM). The downscaling process added mesoscale features but also introduced extra biases into the driving global data. The main source of bias in the PCM data is an imprecise prediction of the location and strength of the Pacific subtropical high (PSH). The analysis implied that using simulation results driven by PCM data as the input for air quality models will likely underestimate air pollution problems in California. Regional-averaged statistics of the downscaling results were estimated for two highly polluted areas, the South Coast Air Basin (SoCAB) and the San Joaquin Valley (SJV), by comparing to observations. The simulations driven by GFS data overestimated surface temperature and wind speed for most of the year, indicating that WRF has systematic errors in these two regions. The simulation matched the observations better during summer than winter in terms of bias. WRF has difficulty reproducing weak surface wind, which normally happens during stagnation events in these two regions. The shallow summer PBLH in the Central Valley is caused by the dominance of high pressure systems over the valley and the strong valley wind during summer. The change of meteorology and air quality in California due to climate change will be explored in Part II of this study, which compares the future (2047–53) and present (2000–06) simulation results driven by PCM data and is presented in a separate paper.
Decadal-Scale SST and Salinity Variations in the Central Tropical Pacific: Signatures of Natural and Anthropogenic Climate Change
Authors: Nurhati Intan S. , Cobb Kim M. , Di Lorenzo Emanuele
Published: January 2011

Accurate projections of future temperature and precipitation patterns in many regions of the world depend on quantifying anthropogenic signatures in tropical Pacific climate against its rich background of natural variability. However, the detection of anthropogenic signatures in the region is hampered by the lack of continuous, century-long instrumental climate records. This study presents coral-based sea surface temperature (SST) and salinity proxy records from Palmyra Island in the central tropical Pacific over the twentieth century, based on coral strontium/calcium and the oxygen isotopic composition of seawater (δ18OSW), respectively. On interannual time scales, the Sr/Ca-based SST record captures both eastern and central Pacific warming “flavors” of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) variability (R = 0.65 and 0.67, respectively). On decadal time scales, the SST proxy record is highly correlated to the North Pacific gyre oscillation (NPGO) (R = −0.85), reflecting strong dynamical links between the central Pacific warming mode and extratropical decadal climate variability. Decadal-scale salinity variations implied by the coral-based δ18OSW record are significantly correlated with the Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO) (R = 0.54). The salinity proxy record is dominated by an unprecedented trend toward lighter δ18OSW values since the mid–twentieth century, implying that a significant freshening has taken place in the region, in line with climate model projections showing enhanced hydrological patterns under greenhouse forcing. Taken together, the new coral records suggest that low-frequency SST and salinity variations in the central tropical Pacific are controlled by different sets of dynamics and that recent hydrological trends in this region may be related to anthropogenic climate change.
Estimation of the Terrestrial Water Budget over Northern Eurasia through the Use of Multiple Data Sources
Authors: Troy Tara J. , Sheffield Justin , Wood Eric F.
Published: January 2011

Northern Eurasia has experienced significant change in its hydrology during the past century. Much of the literature has focused on documenting and understanding the trends rather than documenting the uncertainty that exists in current estimates of the mean hydroclimatology. This study quantifies the terrestrial water budget with reanalysis, hydrologic modeling, remote sensing, and in situ observations and shows there is significant uncertainty in the estimates of precipitation, evapotranspiration, runoff, and terrestrial water storage changes. The spread among the various datasets highlights the scientific community's inability to accurately characterize the hydroclimatology of this region, which is problematic because much attention has focused on hydrologic trends using these datasets. The largest relative differences among estimates exist in the terrestrial storage change, which also is the least studied variable. Seasonally, the spread in estimates relative to the mean is largest in winter, when uncertainty in cold-season processes and measurements causes large differences in the estimates. A methodology is developed that takes advantage of multiple sources of data and observed discharge to improve estimates of precipitation, evapotranspiration, and storage changes. The method also provides a framework to evaluate the errors in datasets for variables that have no large-scale in situ measurements, such as evapotranspiration.
Experimental Study on Wind-Wave Momentum Flux in Strongly Forced Conditions
Authors: Savelyev Ivan B. , Haus Brian K. , Donelan Mark A.
Published: January 2011

A quantitative description of wind-wave momentum transfer in high wind conditions is necessary for accurate wave models, storm and hurricane forecasting, and models that require atmosphere–ocean coupling such as circulation and mixed layer models. In this work, a static pressure probe mounted on a vertical wave follower to investigate relatively strong winds (U10 up to 26.9 m s−1 and U10/Cp up to 16.6) above waves in laboratory conditions. The main goal of the paper is to quantify the effect of wave shape and airflow sheltering on the momentum transfer and wave growth. Primary results are formulated in terms of wind forcing and wave steepness ak, where a is wave amplitude and k is wave number. It is suggested that, within the studied range (ak up to 0.19), the airflow is best described by the nonseparated sheltering theory. Notably, a small amount of spray and breaking waves was present at the highest wind speeds; however, their effect on the momentum flux was not found to be significant within studied conditions.
Effects of Positive Practices on Organizational Effectiveness
Authors: Cameron Kim , Mora Carlos , Leutscher Trevor , Calarco Margaret
Published: January 2011

Emphasis on positivity in organizations in increasing, but the importance and credibility of a positive approach to change—exemplified by positive organizational scholarship—remains controversial. More empirical evidence is needed showing that positive practices in organizations produce desirable changes in organizational effectiveness. Two studies—one in financial services and one in the health care industry—are reported, which investigate the link between positive practices and indicators of organizational effectiveness. A positive practices instrument is developed, and evidence is found that positive practices do, in fact, predict organizational performance. More important, improvement in positive practices predicts improvements in certain indicators of effectiveness over time. The results are explained by the inherent amplifying, buffering, and heliotropic effects of positivity in human systems.
Recontextualizing New Employee Induction
Authors: Daskalaki Maria
Published: January 2011

The article contributes to the literature on organizational discourse, metaphors, and change, by providing an empirical account of how the discursive translation of imposed metaphors that takes place during organizational entry shapes organization realities for new employees and redefines the concept of organizational entry. A recontextualized organizational entry can potentially provide the discursive space necessary for organizational change to occur. New employee induction is a process, the article proposes, during which situated discourses construct an environment that surfaces current organizational assumptions and invites new interpretations to emerge. This environment or space can become a reflexive, interventionist arena for jointly effecting proactive change initiatives and dialogical organizational development.
LPS Promotes Pre-osteoclast Activity by Up-regulating CXCR4 via TLR-4
Authors: Xing Q. , de Vos P. , Faas M.M. , Ye Q. , Ren Y.
Published: January 2011

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) has been shown to be a prominent pathogenic factor in inflammatory bone loss. However, knowledge of the mechanisms involved is limited. The role of the SDF-1/CXCR4 (Stromal-derived factor-1 and its unique chemokine receptor) axis in LPS-induced bone loss has not been studied. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of the SDF-1/CXCR4 axis in LPS-stimulated inflammatory bone loss. The results show that LPS does not influence the expression of SDF-1/CXCR4 in osteoblasts, but up-regulates the expression of CXCR4 in pre-osteoclasts via Toll-like receptor 4, which subsequently enhances pre-osteoclast migration. Moreover, LPS promoted RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation partially through CXCR4 up-regulation. In conclusion, the present study demonstrated, for the first time, that the up-regulated expression of CXCR4 in pre-osteoclasts by LPS stimulation is involved in LPS-induced bone resorption.
Five-Year Incidence of Periodontal Disease Is Related to Body Mass Index
Authors: Morita I. , Okamoto Y. , Yoshii S. , Nakagaki H. , Mizuno K. , Sheiham A. , Sabbah W.
Published: January 2011

Numerous cross-sectional epidemiological studies suggest that obesity is associated with periodontal disease. This longitudinal study tested whether body mass index (BMI) was related to the development of periodontal disease in a sample of employed Japanese participants. Data are from the statutory medical checkups routinely collected for employees in and around Nagoya, Japan. The authors tested the relationship between BMI at baseline and the 5-year incidence of periodontal disease in a sample of 2787 males and 803 females. The hazard ratios for developing periodontal disease after 5 years were 1.30 ( P < .001) and 1.44 ( P = .072) in men and 1.70 ( P < .01) and 3.24 ( P < .05) in women for those with BMIs of 25-30 and ≥ 30, respectively, compared to those with BMI < 22, after adjusting for age, smoking status, and clinical history of diabetes mellitus. These findings demonstrate a dose-response relationship between BMI and the development of periodontal disease in a population of Japanese individuals.
Biomarkers of Fluoride in Children Exposed to Different Sources of Systemic Fluoride
Authors: Buzalaf M.A.R. , Rodrigues M.H.C. , Pessan J.P. , Leite A.L. , Arana A. , Villena R.S. , Forte F.D.S. , Sampaio F.C.
Published: January 2011

There has been no comparison between fluoride concentrations in urine and nails of children exposed to different sources of systemic fluoride. The aim of this study was to compare the relationship between fluoride intake with urinary fluoride excretion and fluoride concentrations in fingernails and toenails of children receiving fluoride from artificially fluoridated water (0.6-0.8 mg F/L, n = 25), naturally fluoridated water (0.6-0.9 mg F/L, n = 21), fluoridated salt (180-200 mg F/Kg, n = 26), and fluoridated milk (0.25 mg F, n = 25). A control population was included (no systemic fluoride, n = 24). Fluoride intake from diet and dentifrice, urinary fluoride excretion, and fluoride concentrations in fingernails/toenails were evaluated. Fluoride was analyzed with an ion-selective electrode. Urinary fluoride excretion in the control community was significantly lower when compared with that in the fluoridated cities, except for the naturally fluoridated community. However, the same pattern was not as evident for nails. Both urinary fluoride output and fluoride concentrations in fingernails/toenails were significantly correlated to total fluoride intake. However, the correlation coefficients for fluoride intake and urinary fluoride output were lower (r = 0.28, p < 0.01) than those observed for fingernails/toenails (r = 0.36, p < 0.001), suggesting that nails might be slightly better indicators of fluoride intake at the individual level.
An upgraded CottonscanTM instrument for measuring the average fiber linear density (fineness) of cotton lint samples
Authors: Abbott Andrew M , Higgerson Graham J , Lucas Stuart R , Naylor Geoffrey RS
Published: January 2011

We have previously described CottonscanTM and its performance in determining the average fiber linear density of cotton lint samples in detail. The previous work was focused on demonstrating that a reliable and sufficiently precise measurement was technically feasible. However, the measurement cycle time was 6 min. Thus the focus has now shifted to reducing the measurement cycle time in order to increase the sample throughput and demonstrate that the instrument is likely to be useful to the industry. Here we describe the engineering improvements made to bring the cycle time down to 1 min and provide results to show that the measurement is unaffected.
An application of queuing theory to modelling of melange yarns. Part II: A method of estimating the fibre migration probabilities and a yarn structure simulation algorithm
Authors: Grishanov Sergei , Siewe Francois , Cassidy Tom
Published: January 2011

A queuing model of staple yarn structure was presented in Part I of this work, where the migration behaviours of fibres were simulated by the movement of customers in a Markovian network of queuing systems. Part II of the series proposes (i) a multi-dimensional minimization method for estimating the migration probabilities of fibres based on the analysis of the distribution of number of fibres in yarn cross-sections; (ii) a yarn structure simulation algorithm which uses the migration probabilities of fibres, yarn technical specifications (e.g. linear density and twist) and colour composition to produce a realistic three-dimensional image of a melange yarn. The result is a high quality three-dimensional image of a melange yarn showing its fibrous structure as well as the formation of hairiness. Due to the generic nature of the model and the simulation algorithm, this approach can be applied to a wide range of yarns including ring-spun or open-end spun yarns of solid shade or produced from melange blends. Further improvements to the proposed model are discussed including the application of inhomogeneous Poisson process and the analysis of energy relationships which govern the migration behaviour of fibres.
Categorization of lower body shapes for adult females based on multiple view analysis
Authors: Hwa Kyung Song  , Ashdown Susan P
Published: January 2011

Body shapes are generally identified by subjective comparisons of body silhouettes or by calculating ratios of girths. In this study, we developed a reliable and objective categorization method for the lower body shapes of women using principal component (PC) analysis and cluster analysis. A total of 2,488 women aged 18—35 within the 90th percentile of body mass index (34.14) were selected from SizeUSA body scan data. Body measurements chosen for the analysis include buttocks angle and 14 proportional measures of widths, depths, front/back depths, girths, and front/back arcs of key lower body locations. Five PCs were extracted, but only the first three components made a strong contribution to explained variance (PC1: waist to top hip silhouette, PC2: top hip to full hip silhouette, and PC3: buttocks prominence). However, PC4 (abdomen prominence) and PC5 (slope from abdomen point to front hip point) were also critical for representing a distinctive shape. They had a single variable, and therefore each variable was retained as z-score. Three body shape groups were categorized by K-means cluster analysis using three PC scores and two z-scores. In order to provide a simple and intuitive application method for defining a new person’s body shape group, we developed two discriminant functions using raw measurements. Body shape can be classified within our system from body measurements by calculating function scores and comparing them with a bivariate plot of function scores of the body shape groups.
Moisture management properties of wool/ polyester and wool/bamboo knitted fabrics for the sportswear base layer
Authors: Troynikov Olga , Wardiningsih Wiah
Published: January 2011

This research seeks to investigate liquid moisture management properties of knitted fabrics of different wool/polyester and wool/bamboo blends of different ratios suitable for the base layer of sportswear. The fabrics were knitted in single jersey construction and their moisture management properties were assessed by using the Moisture Management Tester. Blending wool with polyester or wool with bamboo has improved moisture management properties of the fabrics in comparison to 100% wool and 100% bamboo fabrics. Out of nine fabrics studied, five fabrics were classified as moisture management fabrics that are suitable for the base layer of active sportswear.
Stretching of the steady jet in electrospinning: theoretical analysis and experimental verification
Authors: Xiaohong Qin  , Lin Jia  , Wenyun Lu  , Dahua Shou  , Jintu Fan
Published: January 2011

With the rapid development of electrospinning, how to control the spinning drawing process is becoming increasingly important. It is significant to establish a complete formula for the fiber drafting process. This paper presents a complete theoretical equation r = c1nkn/Qe0bi.z-0.5 + c2 between radius r of the jet and the axial distance z in the steady stage in electrospinning. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) aqueous solution with different PVA concentrations and with various LiCl contents was used to validate the theoretical predicted equation. The relationship between radius r of the jet and the axial distance z in steady stage was in the form r ∼ z-0.5. Moreover, two important equations r ∼ k-0.11 (the relationship between conductivity and jet radius) and η ∼ C 3.79053 (the relationship between the solution viscosity and concentration) were obtained during the experiments. The results agreed well with our predicted equation.
Low stress mechanical properties of plasma-treated cotton fabric subjected to titanium dioxide coating
Authors: Yin Ling Lam  , Chi Wai Kan  , Chun Wah Yuen  , Chui Ha Au
Published: January 2011

The titanium dioxide coating together with plasma pre-treatment improved the wrinkle recovery property of cotton fabrics, but, at the same time, may worsen the fabric handle which is an important factor when designing the end uses of fabric, as handle of fabric is also a critical factor for purchasing decisions. In this study, the Kawabata Evaluation System for Fabrics measures the sensory properties of plasma- and/or titanium dioxide-treated cotton fabrics. The low stress fabric surface correlates closely with mechanical properties; the change in fabric stiffness, thickness, extensibility, appearance retention, surface smoothness or bulkiness may affect each other. The results found that the titanium dioxide treatment had a negative effect on tensile properties, compressional properties and surface friction and variation, while shearing and bending properties were improved by the treatment. In addition, plasma treatment improves all sensory properties except surface friction and variation.
Forbidden fruit or conventional apple pie? A look at Sex and the City’s reversal of the female gender
Authors: Lorié Áine F.
Published: January 2011

HBO’s Sex and the City is a programme known for its controversial portrayal of gender issues. Yet one should question whether its polemical stylings in relation to gender ascription are deserved or perhaps inflated. Employing aspects of both media- and gender-based theory, this article analyses character, dialogue and cinematographic imagery in regard to the show’s gender messaging in efforts to discover whether the series symbolically parades a ‘new’, empowered female role. Alternatively the series could undermine its aspirations by simultaneously reinforcing traditional standards of the female gender. We explore this argument by concentrating on the show’s portrayal of fashion and female alliance, alongside an incongruous depiction of hetero-socialization and female sexuality.
Telenovelas and representations of national identity in Brazil
Authors: Porto Mauro
Published: January 2011

The article analyses the representations of national identity in the fictional programming of TV Globo, Brazil’s dominant media conglomerate. A textual analysis of telenovelas (soap operas) broadcast in the last four decades of Brazil’s political history shows that they build compelling visions of the nation through ‘microcosms’, the imagined locations in which the stories take place. Based on the concepts of hegemony and mediation, the article identifies a dialectic in which broader processes of political, economic and social change have been reflected in television fiction’s localized representations of the nation even as telenovelas shape these same processes and endow them with new meanings. The article then traces the evolution of these complex mediations through four main phases of Brazil’s recent political history, highlighting the linkages between television fiction and the dilemmas of the new democracy.
Who moved my conversation? Instant messaging, intertextuality and new regimes of intimacy and truth
Authors: Schwarz Ori
Published: January 2011

The article investigates the shift of much interpersonal communication from phone or face-to-face interaction to instant messaging, especially among teenagers. This objectification of conversation enabled changes in myriad social practices, as well as in regimes of intimacy and truth: new, invisible audiences are introduced to hitherto intimate situations for real-time consultations; intimacy, traditionally based on exclusivity in access to events and information, has to be reshaped under the new conditions as ‘network intimacy‘; formerly separate events collapse into new frames, challenging traditional temporal sequencing of sociability; conversations are imbued with performativities of different sorts; and proof and evidence are introduced into interpersonal spheres where they weren‘t common before.
Reporting and the transformations of the journalistic field: US news media, 1890-2000
Authors: Krause Monika
Published: January 2011

How have journalistic ideals of public service arisen? To what extent do journalists live up to these ideals? Can we make any claims as to the social conditions that this performance depends on? Using Bourdieu’s theory of fields of cultural production, this article addresses these questions with evidence from the history of journalism in the United States. What is most distinctive about modern journalism is a specific practice: active news-gathering or reporting. This practice became common in the 1860s and 1870s with the emergence of journalism as a field with its own stakes, relatively independent from political advantage or literary merit. The power of field-specific capital to organize practices in the media has varied since then. The field consolidated in the era from 1890 to 1914, with the newspaper industry expanding. In the interwar years, the boundary between PR and journalism became blurry and the institutional basis for active news-gathering declined. Under favorable economic and political conditions reporting practices, including local and investigative reporting, flourished between 1945 and1970 across media forms. In the past 40 years the importance of active news-gathering has declined.
Independent Allocation of Attention to Eye and Hand Targets in Coordinated Eye-Hand Movements
Authors: Jonikaitis Donatas , Deubel Heiner
Published: January 2011

When reaching for objects, people frequently look where they reach. This raises the question of whether the targets for the eye and hand in concurrent eye and hand movements are selected by a unitary attentional system or by independent mechanisms. We used the deployment of visual attention as an index of the selection of movement targets and asked observers to reach and look to either the same location or separate locations. Results show that during the preparation of coordinated movements, attention is allocated in parallel to the targets of a saccade and a reaching movement. Attentional allocations for the two movements interact synergistically when both are directed to a common goal. Delaying the eye movement delays the attentional shift to the saccade target while leaving attentional deployment to the reach target unaffected. Our findings demonstrate that attentional resources are allocated independently to the targets of eye and hand movements and suggest that the goals for these effectors are selected by separate attentional mechanisms.
A Conceptually Based Scale to Measure Consumers’ Treatment Motivation
Authors: Ferron Joelle C. , Elbogen Eric B. , Swanson Jeffrey W. , Swartz Marvin S. , McHugo Gregory J.
Published: January 2011

Objectives: The objective of this work was to assess the reliability and validity of the Treatment Motivation Questionnaire— Revised (TMQ-R) in people with serious mental illness (SMI). Method: A large sample of consumers of mental health services (n = 469) were administered the TMQ-R. Results: The factor structure specified in previous research did not fit the data well. However, a five-factor model with the two subtypes of introjected (i.e., feeling guilty about not attending treatment) and external motivation (i.e., pressure to attend treatment) fit the data well. Conclusions: The current analyses partially confirm the TMQ-R structure and reflect the need for future work to evaluate the complexities of motivational measurement within people with SMI.
Texture analysis differentiates persistent and transient T1 black holes at acute onset in multiple sclerosis: A preliminary study
Authors: Zhang Yunyan , Traboulsee Anthony , Zhao Yinshan , Metz Luanne M , Li David K
Published: January 2011

Background and Objective: The persistence of new enhancing T1 hypointense lesions (acute black holes, ABHs) in multiple sclerosis (MS) cannot be predicted visually at lesion onset. Texture analysis using the polar Stockwell transform (PST) applied to conventional MR images however shows promise in quantifying tissue injury early. The objective of this study was to explore whether ABHs that persist (pABHs) differ from those that are transient (tABHs) using PST texture analysis.

Methods: Fifteen ABHs (8 pABHs; 7 tABHs) from 9 patients were analyzed on 3T images obtained during a clinical trial. Persistence was defined as remaining T1 hypointense 5–8 months later. NAWM regions were examined to control for changes unrelated to ABHs.

Results: At first appearance, there was higher coarse texture indicating greater tissue damage in the pABHs than in the tABHs ( p < 0.01). Both had greater coarse texture than the contralateral and general NAWM ( p ≤ 0.01). No difference was identified in normalized signal intensity between pABHs and tABHs and neither demonstrated location preference. While tABHs tended to be smaller than pABHs there was no correlation between lesion size and texture (r = 0.44, p > 0.05). Furthermore, coarse texture content appeared to predict persistence of individual lesions.

Conclusions: This preliminary study suggests that PST texture could predict persistence of tissue injury based on the severity of structural disorganization within acute lesions. While confirmation of this data is required texture analysis may prove to be a valuable tool to quantify tissue damage and predict recovery in proof-of-concept neuroprotection and repair trials.
Trend for decreasing Multiple Sclerosis Severity Scores (MSSS) with increasing calendar year of enrollment into the New York State Multiple Sclerosis Consortium
Authors: Kister Ilya , Chamot Eric , Bacon Joshua H , Cutter Gary , Herbert Joseph
Published: January 2011

Background: Although the natural history of multiple sclerosis has been charted extensively, it is still not known whether the trajectory of disability accumulation has changed in the era of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs).

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine trends in Multiple Sclerosis Severity Score (MSSS) with regard to calendar year of enrollment into the New York State MS Consortium (NYSMSC).

Methods: Distributions of MSSS were calculated for each year of enrollment, from 1996 to 2007. Quantile regression was used in a multivariable analysis to model for conditional distribution of MSSS quantiles as functions of potential confounders.

Results: The cohort consisted of 6238 patients. Mean age at enrollment was 38 years (SD = 10) and mean disease duration was 10.1 years (SD = 7.3); 57% were on DMTs. The quantile regression model of trends in MSSS between 1996 and 2007 controlled for age, sex, ethnicity, diagnostic delay, and disease duration and demonstrated a robust trend toward lower MSSS with increasing year of enrollment. The model-predicted median MSSS at enrollment in 1996 was 5.04 (95% CI, 4.86–5.21), and in 2007 was 3.78 (95%CI, 3.36–4.20; p < 0.001). The downward trend in MSSS during the enrollment period was confirmed by analysis of Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) distributions, adjusted for disease duration, in successive years of enrollment.

Conclusions: The recent enrollees into the NYSMSC had lower MSSSs compared to the earlier enrollees. The apparent slowing in disability accumulation is likely due to a complex combination of factors: advent of DMTs and improvements in MS care, as well as selection, migration, and recall biases.
Who selects the party leader?
Authors: Cross William , Blais André
Published: January 2011

We study the degree of formal influence that rank-and-file members have on the selection of party leaders in the five English-speaking Westminster countries: Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. We find that in recent years there has been a general, though not universal, trend towards granting party members greater influence in the choice of their leader. We observe that the decision to broaden the selectorate has been made by most parties in the UK, Canada and Ireland, while parties in Australia and New Zealand have generally resisted reform. We set out a series of four hypotheses explaining the decisions made by parties in the first three countries. We show that this organizational reform is adopted by parties in opposition, in the aftermath of an electoral setback and by new parties. We also find a strong contagion effect within party systems. Finally, we offer an explanation for why the Australian and New Zealand cases have resulted in less change.
Obesity in a life-course perspective: An exploration of lay explanations of weight gain
Authors: Smith Louise H. , Holm Lotte
Published: January 2011

Aim: The present study investigated the way in which people who had experienced medically defined obesity understood and explained the causes of the weight gains they had experienced during their life course and related such explanations to gender and social background. Method: The study was a qualitative in-depth interview study of 20 Danish middle-aged women and men with high and low levels of education who had experienced obesity. Results: Women mainly related weight gain to life-course transitions associated with the female biological lifecycle; to changes in social relations; or to personal problems connected with close social relationships and to side-effects of psycho-pharmaceuticals. Women with high levels of education tended more often to explain weight gain within a depth-psychological framework. Men related weight gain mainly to life-course transitions involving changing obligations connected with education, work, and family life; to periods of injury (sports or other) involving reduced levels of physical activity; and to personal problems connected with their work situation or financial troubles. Men with low levels of education tended to link weight gain directly to work environments, which were considered especially likely to lead to weight gain. Conclusions: The study highlights marked differences in the way individuals explain their own weight gain. These differences relate to gender and, to some degree, social background. The findings may both inform and challenge public health promotion.
Useful tests of usefulness of new risk factors: Tools for assessing reclassification and discrimination
Authors: Sundström Johan , Byberg Liisa , Gedeborg Rolf , Michaëlsson Karl , Berglund Lars
Published: January 2011

New risk factors for various diseases are suggested at an increasing pace, with promise of clinical usefulness for risk prediction, but almost unvaryingly without formal testing of that property. We propose that a risk factor clinically relevant for risk prediction can be defined as one that correctly alters predicted risk to a clinically relevant extent in persons with a relevant absolute risk, such that it affects clinical decision making. We recommend that investigators who suggest a new risk factor for clinical use investigate if the new risk factor adds capacity to discriminate between persons who will subsequently experience the outcome from those who will not. For that purpose, we provide tools for calculating the net reclassification improvement, NRI, and the integrated discrimination improvement, IDI, using major statistical packages.
Neighborhood context of attitudes toward crime and reentry
Authors: Leverentz Andrea
Published: January 2011

While much recent attention has been focused on the impact of incarceration on ex-prisoners, less has been paid to the general public’s informal attitudes and responses to crime and offenders. This article begins to fill this void by exploring the impact of individual and neighborhood characteristics on attitudes toward crime and prisoner reentry. The article is based on two phases of data collection. During phase one, residents of four Massachusetts communities were surveyed about their attitudes and experiences with crime and prisoner reentry. During phase two, qualitative interviews and participant observation were used to explore how crime and reentry issues are framed across community context. The survey data suggest both that individual-level predictors (e.g. political affiliation, sex, parenthood, and several crime-related factors) of punitiveness are significant, and that there is a neighborhood context to these beliefs. The focus in analyzing the qualitative data is on two contrasting communities. These data suggest varying ways of framing ‘the crime problem’ that help explain the neighborhood context of these attitudes. Specifically, a localized framing shapes less punitive attitudes, while a focus on a general crime problem contributes to greater punitiveness.