bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mitral and Aortic Annular Calcification Are Highly Associated With Systemic Calcified Atherosclerosis
Authors: Allison Matthew A. , Cheung Philip , Criqui Michael H. , Langer Robert D. , Wright C. Michael
Published: February 2006

Background—

Atherosclerosis has been implicated as a cause of valvular calcification. The aim of this study was to determine whether atherosclerotic calcification in multiple vascular areas is significantly associated with aortic or mitral annular calcification independent of traditional risk factors.

Methods and Results—

A total of 1242 consecutive asymptomatic patients free of clinical coronary heart disease were studied by electron-beam computed tomography for the extent of calcium due to atherosclerosis in 5 distinct vascular beds and calcium in the aortic and mitral annuli. Nearly 24% had calcium in the aortic annulus, whereas 8% were found to have mitral annular calcification. Age and a history of hypertension were the only traditional cardiovascular risk factors that were independently associated with prevalent calcification in the aortic and mitral annuli. After adjustment for age, gender, and cardiovascular disease risk factors, subjects with calcium in the thoracic aorta had the highest odds for the presence of aortic annular calcium (OR=3.9,
P
<0.01), whereas those with calcium in the abdominal aorta had the highest odds for mitral annular calcification (OR=5.1,
P
=0.01). Standardized increases in calcium in the abdominal aorta (OR=2.0,
P
<0.01) and iliacs (OR=1.8,
P
=0.01) were significantly associated with calcium in the aortic annulus after adjustment for the extent of calcium in the other vascular beds, whereas the thoracic aorta was significantly associated (OR=1.4,
P
=0.02) with calcium in the mitral annulus.

Conclusions—

This study supports the hypothesis that calcification of the mitral and aortic annuli is related to atherosclerosis in other vascular beds.
Are Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator Shocks a Surrogate for Sudden Cardiac Death in Patients With Nonischemic Cardiomyopathy?
Authors: Ellenbogen Kenneth A. , Levine Joseph H. , Berger Ronald D. , Daubert James P. , Winters Stephen L. , Greenstein Eugene , Shalaby Alaa , Schaechter Andi , Subacius Haris , Kadish Alan
Published: February 2006

Background—

Ventricular tachyarrhythmias long enough to cause implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) shocks are generally thought to progress to cardiac arrest. In previous ICD trials, shocks have been considered an appropriate surrogate for sudden cardiac death (SCD) because the number of shocks has been thought to be equivalent to the mortality excess in patients without ICDs. The practice of equating ICD shocks with mortality is controversial and has not been validated critically.

Methods and Results—

The Defibrillators in Non-Ischemic Cardiomyopathy Treatment Evaluation (DEFINITE) trial was a prospective, randomized, multicenter trial of ICD therapy in 458 patients with nonischemic cardiomyopathy. Patients were randomized to receive standard medical therapy (STD) or STD plus an ICD. Shock electrograms were reviewed, and the cause of death was evaluated by a separate blinded events committee. There were 15 SCD or cardiac arrests in the STD group and only 3 in the ICD arm. In contrast, of the 229 patients randomized to an ICD, 33 received 70 appropriate ICD shocks. Patients in the ICD arm were more likely to have an arrhythmic event (ICD shock plus SCD) than patients in the STD arm (hazard ratio 2.12, 95% CI 1.153 to 3.893,
P
=0.013). The number of arrhythmic events when one includes syncope as a potential arrhythmic event was similar in both groups (hazard ratio 1.20, 95% CI 0.774 to 1.865,
P
=0.414). Approximately the same number of total events was noted in each arm when we compared syncope plus SCD/cardiac arrest in the STD arm with SCD plus ICD shocks plus syncope in the ICD arm.

Conclusions—

Appropriate ICD shocks occur more frequently than SCD in patients with nonischemic cardiomyopathy. This suggests that episodes of nonsustained ventricular tachycardia frequently terminate spontaneously in such patients.
Larger Cell Size in Rabbits With Heart Failure Increases Myocardial Conduction Velocity and QRS Duration
Authors: Wiegerinck Rob F. , Verkerk Arie O. , Belterman Charly N. , van Veen Toon A.B. , Baartscheer Antonius , Opthof Tobias , Wilders Ronald , de Bakker Jacques M.T. , Coronel Ruben
Published: February 2006

Background—

Patients with heart failure (HF) have an increased QRS duration, usually attributed to decreased conduction velocity (CV) due to ionic remodeling but which may alternatively result from increased heart size or cellular uncoupling. We investigated the relationship between QRS width, heart size, intercellular coupling, and CV in a rabbit model of moderate HF and in computer simulations.

Methods and Results—

HF was induced by pressure-volume overload. Heart weight (21.1±0.5 versus 10.2±0.4 g, mean±SEM;
P
<0.01) and QRS duration (58±1 versus 50±1 ms;
P
<0.01) were increased in HF versus control. Longitudinal CV (θ
L
; 79±2 versus 67±4 cm/s;
P
<0.01) and transversal subepicardial CV (θ
T
; 43±2 versus 37±2 cm/s;
P
<0.05) were higher in HF than in controls. Transmural CV (θ
TM
) was unchanged (25±2 versus 24±1 cm/s;
P
=NS). Patch-clamp experiments demonstrated that sodium current was unchanged in HF versus control. Immunohistochemical experiments revealed that connexin43 content was reduced in midmyocardium but unchanged in subepicardium. Myocyte dimensions were increased in HF by ≈30%. Simulated strands of mammalian ventricular cells (Luo-Rudy dynamic model) revealed increased θ
L
and θ
T
with increased myocyte size; however, increased CV could not compensate for increased strand size of longitudinally coupled cells, and consequently, total activation time was longer.

Conclusions—

Increased myocyte size combined with the observed expression pattern of connexin43 yields increased θ
L
and θ
T
and unchanged θ
TM
in our nonischemic model of HF. A hypertrophied left ventricle together with insufficiently increased θ
L
and unaltered θ
TM
results in a prolonged QRS duration.
Percutaneous Aortic Valve Implantation Retrograde From the Femoral Artery
Authors: Webb John G. , Chandavimol Mann , Thompson Christopher R. , Ricci Donald R. , Carere Ronald G. , Munt Brad I. , Buller Christopher E. , Pasupati Sanjeevan , Lichtenstein Samuel
Published: February 2006

Background—

Percutaneous aortic valve implantation by an antegrade transvenous approach has been described but is problematic. Retrograde prosthetic aortic valve implantation via the femoral artery has potential advantages. Percutaneous prosthetic aortic valve implantation via the femoral arterial approach is described and the initial experience reported.

Methods and Results—

The valve prosthesis is constructed from a stainless steel stent with an attached trileaflet equine pericardial valve and a fabric cuff. After routine aortic balloon valvuloplasty, a 22F or 24F sheath is advanced from the femoral artery to the aorta. A steerable, deflectable catheter facilitates manipulation of the prosthesis around the aortic arch and through the stenotic valve. Rapid ventricular pacing is used to reduce cardiac output while the delivery balloon is inflated to deploy the prosthesis within the annulus. Percutaneous aortic prosthetic valve implantation was attempted in 18 patients (aged 81±6 years) in whom surgical risk was deemed excessive because of comorbidities. Iliac arterial injury, seen in the first 2 patients, did not recur after improvement in screening and access site management. Implantation was successful in 14 patients. After successful implantation, the aortic valve area increased from 0.6±0.2 to 1.6±0.4 cm
2
. There were no intraprocedural deaths. At follow-up of 75±55 days, 16 patients (89%) remained alive.

Conclusions—

This initial experience suggests that percutaneous transarterial aortic valve implantation is feasible in selected high-risk patients with satisfactory short-term outcomes.
Percutaneous Transvenous Mitral Annuloplasty
Authors: Webb John G. , Harnek Jan , Munt Brad I. , Kimblad Per Ola , Chandavimol Mann , Thompson Christopher R. , Mayo John R. , Solem Jan O.
Published: February 2006

Background—

Mitral annuloplasty is the most common surgical procedure performed for ischemic mitral regurgitation (MR). Surgical mitral annuloplasty is limited by morbidity, mortality, and MR recurrence. We evaluated the safety and feasibility of a transvenous catheter-delivered implantable device to provide a percutaneous alternative to surgical mitral annuloplasty.

Methods and Results—

Five patients with chronic ischemic MR underwent percutaneous transvenous implantation of an annuloplasty device in the coronary sinus. Implantation was successful in 4 patients. Baseline MR in the entire group was grade 3.0±0.7 and was reduced to grade 1.6±1.1 at the last postimplantation visit when the device was intact or the last postprocedural visit in the patient in whom the device was not successfully implanted. Separation of the bridge section of the device occurred in 3 of 4 implanted devices and was detected at 28 to 81 days after implantation. There were no postprocedural device-related complications.

Conclusions—

Percutaneous implantation of a device intended to remodel the mitral annulus is feasible. Initial experience suggests a possible favorable effect on MR. Percutaneous transvenous mitral annuloplasty warrants further evaluation as a less invasive alternative to surgical annuloplasty.
The Jervell and Lange-Nielsen Syndrome
Authors: Schwartz Peter J. , Spazzolini Carla , Crotti Lia , Bathen Jørn , Amlie Jan P. , Timothy Katherine , Shkolnikova Maria , Berul Charles I. , Bitner-Glindzicz Maria , Toivonen Lauri , Horie Minoru , Schulze-Bahr Eric , Denjoy Isabelle
Published: February 2006

Background—

Data on the Jervell and Lange-Nielsen syndrome (J-LN), the long-QT syndrome (LQTS) variant associated with deafness and caused by homozygous or compound heterozygous mutations on the
KCNQ1
or on the
KCNE1
genes encoding the
I
Ks
current, are still based largely on case reports.

Methods and Results—

We analyzed data from 186 J-LN patients obtained from the literature (31%) and from individual physicians (69%). Most patients (86%) had cardiac events, and 50% were already symptomatic by age 3. Their QTc was markedly prolonged (557±65 ms). Most of the arrhythmic events (95%) were triggered by emotions or exercise. Females are at lower risk for cardiac arrest and sudden death (CA/SD) (hazard ratio, 0.54; 95% CI, 0.34 to 0.88;
P
=0.01). A QTc >550 ms and history of syncope during the first year of life are independent predictors of subsequent CA/SD. Most mutations (90.5%) are on the
KCNQ1
gene; mutations on the
KCNE1
gene are associated with a more benign course. β-Blockers have only partial efficacy; 51% of the patients had events despite therapy and 27% had CA/SD.

Conclusions—

J-LN syndrome is a most severe variant of LQTS, with a very early onset and major QTc prolongation, and in which β-blockers have limited efficacy. Subgroups at relatively lower risk for CA/SD are identifiable and include females, patients with a QTc ≤550 ms, those without events in the first year of life, and those with mutations on
KCNE1
. Early therapy with implanted cardioverter/defibrillators must be considered.
I Clement: An Introduction
Authors: Gregory Andrew
Published: February 2006

This article offers a critical introduction to the early Christian letter known as 1 Clement. It focuses on its text, influence, authorship, occasion, purpose and genre, date, and the authorities and sources on which its author drew.
Questioning and Disputing Authority: Medieval Methods for Modern Preaching
Authors: Adams Marilyn McCord
Published: February 2006

If explication de textes needs to be part of the Christian's syllabus, we modern preachers should also teach our congregations how to question and dispute authority to win through to better understanding. Not only should we model how to raise and process puzzled questions about the text. We should also imitate Job in pressing accusatory questions, to demonstrate how to be friends of God in troubled times.
God's Frozen Word: Canonicity and the Dilemmas of Biblical Studies Today
Authors: Alexander Loveday
Published: February 2006

Both in the academy and in the church, students and teachers find it increasingly difficult to cope with the Bible. We have lost - and need to rediscover - a once-universal ability to read canonic texts in a creative way as a framework for engaging with ultimate questions of God and morality.
The Effects of Self-Management in General Education Classrooms on the Organizational Skills of Adolescents With ADHD
Authors: Gureasko-Moore Sammi , Dupaul George J. , White George P.
Published: February 2006

Self-management procedures have been used in school settings to successfully reduce problem behaviors, as well as to reinforce appropriate behavior. A multiple-baseline across participants design was applied in this study to evaluate the effects of using a self-management procedure to enhance the classroom preparation skills of secondary school students with attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Three male students enrolled in a public secondary school were selected for this study because teacher reports suggested that these students were insufficiently prepared for class and inconsistently completed assignments. The intervention involved training in self-management procedures focusing on the improvement of classroom preparation skills. Following the intervention, the training process was systematically faded. Results were consistent across the 3 participants in enhancing classroom preparation behaviors. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.
Behavioral Strategies for Constructing Nonviolent Cultures With Youth
Authors: Mattaini Mark A. , McGuire Melissa S.
Published: February 2006

Youth violence is widely recognized as a critical social issue in the United States, and many approaches to prevention have been developed in recent years. Emerging research suggests that only approaches that are deeply embedded in cultural, community, and organizational contexts are likely to be powerful enough to have a meaningful collective impact. No programs of this kind that are also truly practical and socially valid have yet reached a level where they can be regarded as well established, but data are beginning to appear that can guide community efforts. In this review, two classes of behavioral programming that appear promising as partial solutions to this need are identified: universal skills training and ecological strategies that focus on interlocking cultural practices. Progressive refinements in both are appearing through programs of developmental research. This paper reviews the state of the science in these efforts.
The Good Behavior Game: 1969-2002
Authors: Tingstrom Daniel H. , Sterling-Turner Heather E. , Wilczynski Susan M.
Published: February 2006

The Good Behavior Game (GBG), a type of interdependent group-oriented contingency management procedure, was first introduced in 1969 and has been used with overwhelming success in classrooms and other settings. Since its inception, the “game” has utilized team competition and peer influence combined with reinforcement procedures. It has been found to be popular, easy-to-use, time-efficient, and widely applicable and versatile. This review describes the game and its numerous variations and adaptations, as well as empirical findings specific to the variety of target behaviors and participants to which it has been applied. In addition, different types of reinforcers used, information on consumer acceptance, and issues related to implementation are considered.
Reducing Pica by Teaching Children to Exchange Inedible Items for Edibles
Authors: Kern Lee , Starosta Kristin , Adelman Barry Eshkol
Published: February 2006

Assessment results indicated that pica exhibited by two boys with developmental disabilitieswas not associated with environmental contingencies. Consistent with previous research, an oral stimulation function was hypothesized. A related intervention that taught participants to exchange inedible items for edibles was developed. Findings showed that the intervention resulted in reductions in pica for both participants. When the interventionwas introduced across settings, reductions in pica were observed for one participant. However, additional training with alternative pica itemswas necessary to produce reductions in pica across settings with the second participant. Reductions in pica were maintained as the intervention was systematically thinned.
Business information service delivery within a regional context – the role of public libraries
Authors: Wilson Kerry , Train Briony
Published: February 2006

Discusses the future of public business information service provision from a regional perspective, based on two research projects recently undertaken by the Centre for the Public Library and Information in Society (CPLIS) at the University of Sheffield. The first investigates public libraries’ role and contribution in terms of the Regional Economic Strategy to business communities in Yorkshire; the second explores consortium and collaborative approaches to business information service delivery in the North West region. The two projects, both undertaken on behalf of the respective regional Museum, Library & Archive Councils, involved a review of the literature to provide theoretical context, and quantitative and qualitative research methods using a sample of key regional stakeholders. The research is summarized collectively in terms of the regional economic and political influence upon public business information service identity, purpose, advocacy and delivery.
A New Thermodynamical Approach for the Simulation of Thermoforming Process using the Quasi-static Finite Element Method
Authors: Erchiqui F.
Published: February 2006

The problem of modeling and the quasi-static finite element simulation of thermoforming processes for viscoelastic sheet is considered. To take account of the enclosed gas volume, responsible for inflation of the thermoplastic membrane, which contributes significantly to the strength and stiffness of a thermoplastic structure, the expression of external virtual work is expressed by a closed volume integral. The pressure load used in modeling is thus deduced from the thermodynamic law of ideal gases. The viscoelastic behavior of the Lodge model is considered. The Lagrangian formulation together with the assumption of the membrane theory is used in the finite element implementation. The numerical validation is performed by comparing the theoretical solution for the uniaxial and equibiaxial hencky deformation and free inflation with numerical results. Moreover, the influence of the Lodge constitutive model on the thickness and stress distribution in the thermoforming of containers made of HIPS is presented.
Constitutive Laws of Composite Materials via Multiaxial Testing and Numerical Optimization
Authors: Huang Dongfang , Cairns Douglas S.
Published: February 2006

A multiaxial loading on a laminate, combined with numerical optimization is utilized to determine the five elastic constants for a transversely isotropic composite material in this study. A special in-plane loader, capable of any combination of in-plane displacements plus a rotation is utilized for the testing portion. A corresponding finite element analysis model is created and numerical optimization is utilized to obtain the optimum engineering elastic constants. By utilizing only one test specimen geometry, the resources for determining the constitutive properties can be significantly reduced in terms of time and money, and more precise properties over a wider loading range are gained with this procedure.
Nonlinear Vibration of Orthotropic Plates with Initial Stresses on a Two-parameter Elastic Foundation
Authors: Chen Chun-sheng , Fung Chin-ping , Chien Rean-der
Published: February 2006

Nonlinear partial differential equations for vibration of an orthotropic thick plate on a two-parameter (Pasternak type) elastic foundation subjected to a nonuniform initial stress are derived. Both rotary inertia and transverse stress are considered in the derivation. The Galerkin method is used to transform the governing nonlinear partial differential equations to ordinary nonlinear differential equations and the Runge–Kutta method is used to obtain the ratio of nonlinear to linear frequency. Numerical examples are presented for the combination of pure bending stresses and extensional stresses are taken to be the initial stresses in the plane of the plate. These equations are then applied to a simply supported orthotropic plate on a Pasternak foundation to solve its motion of nonlinear vibration. The effects of the material properties, initial stress, amplitude of vibration, and foundation stiffness on frequency ratio are discussed.
Experimental Studies on the Loss Factor of Alternately Laminated Anisotropic Damped Thin Plates
Authors: Li Mingjun , Cao Yihua , Xu Yongwen
Published: February 2006

Optimization designs on the parameters of seven-layers of alternately laminated thin plate structures have been carried out through two orthogonal experiments and a dynamic mechanical analysis apparatus (DMA Q800), including the variations of damping material species, the fiber orientation angle in constrained layers and the thickness of the damping layer. The effects of these parameters on the loss factor of the structures have been investigated. It may provide some experimental basis for new anisotropic design system of the alternately laminated damped structures. Firstly, the experimental results show that the second and the sixth damping layers are respectively the best-influencing layers on the frequency range and the temperature range of the loss factor. As for the second damping layer, the greater the thickness, the better the frequency characteristics of internal friction. Secondly, the effects of the second outer constrained layer on the loss factor are the highest, and the structural damping characteristics are best when the orientation angle is close to 90. Finally, temperature and frequency characteristics of the loss factor can be optimized with different damped materials in different damping layers.
Hemp Strands: PP Composites by Injection Molding: Effect of Low Cost Physico-chemical Treatments
Authors: Mutjé P. , Gironès J. , Lòpez A. , Llop M. F. , Vilaseca F.
Published: February 2006

Hemp strands as natural lignocellulosic fibers are used to reinforce polypropylene composites obtained by injection molding. The aim of this work is to improve the final mechanical properties using simple and cheap treatments. Therefore, a refining process is applied to increase the specific surface and the fibrillation of hemp strands resulting in a better mechanical anchoring and adhesion with the matrix. The hydrophilic nature of the hemp strands is diminished by surface chemical treatment with alkyl ketene dimmer (AKD) in aqueous media. Final mechanical properties of hemp composites are studied and compared to those of glass fiber reinforced polypropylene composites. The fiber length and diameter of fiber reinforcement during processing are also analyzed. The results thus obtained show that the specific mechanical properties at yield of hemp composites may increase 80% of the mechanical properties of glass fiber composites.
Effects of Food Deprivation on Locomotor Activity, Plasma Glucose, and Circadian Clock Resetting in Syrian Hamsters
Authors: Mistlberger Ralph E. , Webb Ian C. , Simon Melissa M. , Tse Dierdre , Su Cathy
Published: February 2006

Circadian rhythms in Syrian hamsters can be phase advanced by activity or arousal stimulated during the daily rest phase (“subjective day”). A widely used method for stimulating activity is confinement to a novel wheel. Some hamsters decline to run, and some procedures may reduce the probability of running. The authors evaluated food deprivation (FD) as a method to promote running. Given evidence that perturbations of cell metabolism or glucose availability may affect circadian clock function in some tissues or species, they also assessed the effects of FD on free-running circadian phase, resetting responses to photic and nonphotic stimuli and plasma glucose. In constant light, a 27-h fast significantly increased running in a novel wheel and marginally increased the average size of resulting phase shifts. FD, without novel wheel confinement, was associated with some very large phase shifts or disruption of rhythmicity in hamsters that spontaneously ran in their home wheels during the subjective day. Hamsters that ran only during the usual active phase (subjective night) or that were prevented from running did not exhibit phase shifts, despite refeeding in the mid-subjective day. Using an Aschoff Type II design for measuring shifts, a 27-h fast significantly increased the number of hamsters that ran continuously when confined to a novel wheel but did not affect the dose-response relation between the amount of running and the size of the resulting shift. A day of fasting also did not affect the size of phase delay or advance shifts to 30-min light pulses in the subjective night. Plasma glucose was markedly reduced by wheel running in combination with fasting but was increased by running in nonfasted hamsters. These results establish FD as a useful tool for stimulating activity in home cage or novel wheels and indicate that in Syrian hamsters, significant alterations in glucose availability, associated with running, fasting, and refeeding, have surprisingly little effect on circadian pacemaker function.
Thinking About Sodomy
Authors: Lugg Catherine A.
Published: February 2006

This article explores the status of U.S. public school educators both queer and non-queer who have historically resided at the intersection of sodomy laws and professional norms including licensure, morality clauses, and professional socialization. Employing Foucault’s notion of panopticism, the author examines how sodomy laws and professional norms—which are social norms—have historically shaped the work environment of public school educators. Furthermore, this article explores how both queer and non-queer public school administrators have functioned as sexuality and gender police. It also briefly examines the current state of civil rights law at both the state and federal levels regarding queer people. It concludes with a discussion of the recent U.S. Supreme Court case Lawrence v. Texas and the larger issues of the politics of state-sponsored stigma and the politics of social justice for U.S. public schools.
Evaluating Equity
Authors: Opfer V. Darleen
Published: February 2006

This article relies on a case study of a policy evaluation to illustrate how issues of social justice arise for action or inaction in a political environment. The article uses the case study to show that social justice issue formation is shaped by the personal beliefs of the actors, the prevailing political culture, the evolutionary path of the issue, and the larger context of the social environment. These multiple, overlapping, and sometimes contradictory systems interact in ways that make action on injustice and inequity by political actors more or less likely.
Constructing Accountability Performance for English Language Learner Students
Authors: Black William R.
Published: February 2006

In this article, I examine the assimilationist assumptions embedded in the development and implementation of the Texas Reading Proficiency Test in English (RPTE). The RPTE was designed as a developmental bridge for English language learner (ELL) students to perform on the English Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). These assumptions are revealed in the policy language and modification process. They are also negotiated and reconstructed in a school site, Márquez Elementary. I draw from a prior ethnographic study of Márquez to portray local practices and discourses of ELLs and accountability. As these accountability performance policies targeting ELLs circulate through a particular school, the space available for bilingual education is subsumed to performance-oriented mandates, symbols, and ideology. Consequently, the RPTE to TAKS accountability policy design privileges assimilationist discourse and subtly promotes the imposition of earlier transition models of bilingual and ELL education at the local level.
Introduction: Harmony or Dissonance? Copyright Concepts and Musical Practice
Authors: Barron Anne
Published: February 2006

The institution of copyright has frequently been criticized by scholars of popular music for systematically misrepresenting and under-privileging popular music as a field of creative practice. In this respect, it is sometimes suggested, copyright law harbours a bias in favour of Western art music that is remarkably similar to that embedded in musicology, the discipline in opposition to which popular music studies chiefly defines itself. Setting the scene for this special section of Social & Legal Studies on (copyright) law and music, this introduction reviews the literature in which these concerns have been expressed, and traces them to the fact that copyright law - not unlike musicology - operates with a conception of the musical artefact as a bounded expressive form originating in the compositional efforts of some individual: a fixed, reified work of authorship. It explores the origins and significance of the workconcept as a musicological category, and critically analyses the claim that the legal concept of the musical work is identical to this category and has been determined by it. It concludes with the suggestion that the legal and aesthetic musical work-concepts are at once distinct and overlapping: both reify a temporal experience (a musical event), but for very different reasons. Whereas the musicological category facilitates a certain kind of musical appreciation and certain kinds of listening practice, the legal category facilitates the drawing of proprietary boundaries around ‘objects’ that will figure in commercial transactions and be the focus of commercial expectations.
Digital Sampling and Cultural Inequality
Authors: Hesmondhalgh David
Published: February 2006

This article brings together insights from legal studies with methods of analysis and areas of concern characteristic of media, cultural and music studies. My particular interest here is in how the uses of digital sampling by musicians, and legal practices surrounding these uses, affect how we might think about the issue of cultural ‘borrowing’, especially when white musicians borrow from black ones. This in turn throws light on the relationship between, on the one hand, music and copyright law and practice, and on the other, systemic forms of social and cultural inequality. While I agree that copyright law, in constructing digital sampling as unlawful without the permission of the originator of the sample, has tended not to encourage forms of creativity associated with African-Americans and other disempowered social groups (notably sample-based rap and hip hop music), I suggest that arguments for a generous fair use provision for sampling may not always favour the interests of musicians from less powerful social groups either. I do so by reviewing public debates and academic work about borrowing and appropriation in music, and by presenting a case study of one particularly notable recent example of digital sampling and cultural borrowing: the use by the international dance-pop superstar, Moby, of samples of African-American musicians on his album Play. Because these samples were drawn from recordings made by the archivist and collector Alan Lomax, this also raises issues germane to recent debates about the role of ethnomusicology and other scholarly activities in providing materials for cultural production.
Copyright Law's Musical Work
Authors: Barron Anne
Published: February 2006

This article addresses and contests a particular narrative about the history of copyright law's engagement with music, an exemplary version of which is to be found in Lydia Goehr's highly influential The Imaginary Museum of Musical Works(1992). According to this narrative, copyright law's conception of the musical object that it protects by means of a property right derives from an aesthetic conception of the musical ‘work’ that itself emerged from the field of musical practice, theory and criticism around 1800. Yet an analysis of the case law arising under the first modern copyright legislation of 1710 shows that copyright was recognized as vested in the composer of a musical ‘writing’ as early as 1777 in England, and that an embryonic legal ‘work-concept’ had already taken shape a decade or more earlier than that. This concept developed through a complex set of articulations between the doctrinal logic of property law and, especially, economic and aesthetic understandings of what a musical artefact was and where its value resided. However, far from simply absorbing aesthetic ideas about musical or other cultural practices, it is argued here that copyright's categories have developed relatively autonomously of these and other ‘external’ influences. Further, being only relatively autonomous, they have also actively helped to shape what is assumed – by Goehr and other historians of culture – to have shaped them. In short, the central claim of this article is that the work done by intellectual property discourse in forging conceptions of cultural form has been significant and important, and that copyright doctrine has accordingly played a major role in producing that plural construct which is known as ‘the’ musical work-concept.
Media, Racism and Public Health Psychology
Authors: Nairn Raymond , Pega Frank , McCreanor Tim , Rankine Jenny , Barnes Angela
Published: February 2006

International literature has established that racism contributes to ill-health of migrants, ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples. Racism generally negates wellbeing, adversely affecting physical and psychological health. Numerous studies have shown that media contribute marginalizing particular ethnic and cultural groups depicting them primarily as problems for and threats to the dominant. This articles frames media representations of, and their effect on, the indigenous Maori of Aotearoa, New Zealand within the ongoing processes of colonization. We argue that reflects the media contribution to maintenance and naturalisation of colonial relationships and seek to include critical media scholarship in a critical public health psychology.
Relocating Alcohol Advertising Research
Authors: Cherrington Jane , Chamberlain Kerry , Grixti Joe
Published: February 2006

This article reviews, critiques and politicises the positivist approaches that presently dominate alcohol advertising health research, and considers the benefits of a culturalist alternative. Positivist research in this area is identified as: (1) atheoretical and methods-driven; (2) restricted in focus, leaving critical issues unconsidered; and (3) inappropriately conceptualizing the ‘normal’ drinking person as rational and safe. The culturist alternative proposed is argued to present a more adequate framework, which can include and address problematic issues that are presently excluded, including: the pleasures associated with alcohol use, the involvements of ‘normal’ people in problem drinking, the inadequacy of present risk categories and the complexities of wider mediatory processes about alcohol in society. We argue for the adoption of more informed, culturalist approaches to alcohol advertising research.
Addressing Media Stigma for People Experiencing Mental Illness Using an Entertainment-Education Strategy
Authors: Ritterfeld Ute , Jin Seung-A
Published: February 2006

This study examines the effects of Entertainment-Education strategy on knowledge acquisition about schizophrenia and stigma reduction, using pretest posttest control group and 2 X 3 (advocate's perspective X message style) between-subjects factorial design. Participants watched an accurate and empathetic movie portrayal of schizophrenia, followed by an educational trailer. Participants ( N= 165) were randomly assigned to one of eight conditions (six manipulated conditions, control, a group who watched a trailer prior to the movie). Results showed that viewing an accurate and empathetic movie portrayal increased knowledge. The educational trailer increased not only knowledge acquisition but influenced stigma reduction. Structural equation modeling analysis revealed that entertainment and educational value of the movie mediated stigma reduction. Implications of this study to the mental health research and the design of Entertainment-Education contents are discussed.
Informed Patients and the Internet
Authors: Kivits Joëlle
Published: February 2006

This article investigates how individuals’ use of the Internet for finding health information may affect the relationship between health professionals and patients. It explores people's rationales for searching for information online, the information selection process and the implications for doctor–patient interactions. Qualitative interviews were conducted by email with 31 health information seekers. Study findings show the importance of the ‘everyday’ in orientating health information searches and of personal experience in navigating a multiplicity of online sources. Interviewees emphasize the primary role of the doctor–patient relationship for delivering health and medical information, their Internet searches complementing rather than opposing professional expertise.
Health and Digital Gaming
Authors: Schott Gareth , Hodgetts Darrin
Published: February 2006

Psychologists have a tendency to focus on the negative side of life. Our discipline has become preoccupied with illness rather than health. Where the media are concerned we explore the consequences of unhealthy messages for the population in general or young people in particular. This commentary breaks with tradition by outlining ways in which digital games can enhance health. Positive health consequences of gaming are explored in relation to surgical training and therapeutic interventions, physical exercise, health education and community participation.
Developing a Critical Media Research Agenda for Health Psychology
Authors: Hodgetts Darrin , Chamberlain Kerry
Published: February 2006

This article outlines reasons why psychologists should concern themselves with media processes, noting how media are central to contemporary life and heavily implicated in the construction of shared understandings of health. We contend that the present research focus is substantially medicalized, privileging the investigation and framing of certain topics, such as the portrayal of health professionals, medical practices, specific diseases and lifestyle-orientated interventions, and restricting attention to social determinants of health as appropriate topics for investigation. We propose an extended agenda for media health research to include structural health concerns, such as crime, poverty, homelessness and housing and social capital.
Consumer satisfaction and child behaviour problems in child and adolescent mental health services
Authors: Barber Andrew J. , Tischler Victoria A. , Healy Elaine
Published: February 2006

Consumer satisfaction with health care is one of the goals of health care delivery. Information on what affects satisfaction helps health care providers to deliver patient-centred care. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between young persons' symptoms and satisfaction with Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). It also examined differences in satisfaction of the parent/carer and their child. Self-report questionnaires were used to gather information from respondents. High levels of satisfaction were reported, although children and adolescents were less satisfied than parents/carers. Young people with self-reported conduct problems were least satisfied with CAMHS, as were those who rated their problems as having a significant impact on their lives. There was no relationship between carer-reported ‘caseness’ and carer satisfaction with services. Further exploration of the needs and expectations of young people who have behavioural difficulties is necessary so that their needs are better understood and expectations met.
The Europeanization of Public Discourse in Italy
Authors: della Porta Donatella , Caiani Manuela
Published: February 2006

European integration has raised hopes and concerns about its effect on the distribution of power among different actors, and in particular on the role of the civil society. Focusing on the Europeanization of public discourse in Italy as a case study, this article addresses the specific problem of the formation of supranational public spheres. On the basis of content analyses of daily press and interviews, we argue that various forms of Europeanization of the public discourse are indeed on the rise, with a growing presence not only of purely European actors but also of European targets and frames. Europeanization appears to have been traditionally a ‘top-down’ process: in fact the more Europeanized is a policy, actor, target or issue scope, the less civil society actors seem to have access to the public sphere. However, some changes across time emerge, with the development of (conflictual) forms of ‘Europeanization from below’.
Political Parties, Public Opinion and European Integration in Post-Communist Countries
Authors: Rohrschneider Robert , Whitefield Stephen
Published: February 2006

The accession of post-Communist states to the European Union has important implications for EU governance and for our understanding of the political dynamics of integration processes. Existing literature, we argue, may be inadequate, primarily because it has assumed basic value consensus at mass and elite levels over market structures and the predominance of instrumental reasoning about integration. Neither of these assumptions, however, is tenable for post-Communist states. We seek, therefore, to develop an alternative theoretical framework for understanding the integration of post-Communist societies and point to promising avenues for future empirical research.
The Place of Lester Ward among the Sociological Classics
Authors: Chriss James J.
Published: February 2006

Although there is a thriving industry of classical sociology within the discipline of sociology, not much attention has been focused on the early American sociologists. This paper offers a six-fold typology of the uses of the classics within sociology, and argues that the neglect of early American sociology among contemporary sociologists requires correction. For reasons delineated, Lester F. Ward is the overlooked early American sociologist most deserving of renewed attention and study.
The Human Drama Behind the Study of People as Potato Bugs
Authors: Deegan Mary Jo
Published: February 2006

Robert E. Park played a central part in defining sociology as a natural science. He imagined sociologists as unbiased and unaffected by the human behavior they studied. He particularly criticized the work of female sociologists who applied their sociological knowledge with the help of hundreds of thousands of clubwomen. He mocked these clubwomen and their ‘do-goodism’. Clara Cahill Park, his wife, was one of these clubwomen who engaged in all the work he mocked and she was allied with female sociologists. This resulted in a curious situation where Park supported his wife and engaged in social reform while simultaneously he criticized clubwomen and the work of applied sociologists.
Giddings and the Social Mind
Authors: Chriss James J.
Published: February 2006

The idea of a social (or general) mind was prevalent in early American sociology from the 1880s through about the 1910s. As a concept, the social mind served as a proxy for what would later be defined and understood as culture and other collective phenomena such as social movements, crowd behavior, organizational behavior (e.g. ‘corporate actors’), and so forth. In the early stages of the development of sociology in America, sociologists such as Lester F. Ward and Franklin H. Giddings (1855–1931) were struggling to establish sociology as a legitimate science, and they needed to ground this new science of society in an object or reality that existed above the level of the individual members of society (for not doing so would bring the charge that sociology was nothing more than a watered-down version of psychology). In this paper I examine specifically Giddings’ writings on the social mind, for they illustrate how subjectivist or idealist elements can be incorporated into an overtly positivistic or naturalistic theoretical framework.
The ‘Millionaire’ method for encouraging participation
Authors: Beekes Wendy
Published: February 2006

Encouraging students to participate during class time is important to facilitate the learning process and encourage deep learning to take place. However, students with certain cultural and education backgrounds are often reluctant to participate in class discussion. This article provides some initial insight into the use of the Personal Response System (PRS) to encourage class participation at the postgraduate level. I found that students' participation levels were increased when using the PRS, and further class discussion and debate was stimulated as a result.
Evaluating an electronic plagiarism detection service
Authors: Evans Robert
Published: February 2006

Plagiarism by students is seen as an increasing problem. The fear is that students will use the internet to obtain analysis, interpretation or even complete assignments and then submit these as their own work. Electronic plagiarism detection services may help to prevent such unfair practice but, in doing so, they create a new problem: certifying the absence of plagiarism. This article reports the results of an evaluation of one such service within an interdisciplinary school of social sciences. The article describes how the system works and the experiences of staff and students in using the service, together with an evaluation of the data generated. The key findings are that the service did identify examples of poor scholarship and unfair practice that had been missed under the usual marking system but that rigorously checking every script for plagiarism was impractical. Trust and student honesty thus remain central to a successful academic system.
Integrating personal development and career planning
Authors: Monks Kathy , Conway Edel , Dhuigneain Muireann Ni
Published: February 2006

This article describes the way in which colleagues from the Business faculty, the Careers Service and the Library at Dublin City University collaborated to design and deliver an integrated approach to personal development planning (PDP) with the aim of motivating first year undergraduate students to take greater responsibility for their own learning, development and career planning. The article describes the approach adopted in the introduction of the PDP module and the measures used to evaluate its outcomes. There are indications from the research that undertaking PDP benefits students in several ways. In particular, it appears to impact on student retention by clarifying career goals and increasing motivation towards the chosen degree programme.