bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
NATIONAL IDENTITY IN THE VANQUISHED STATE: GERMAN AND JAPANESE POSTWAR HISTORIOGRAPHY FROM A TRANSNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE
Authors: Grimmer‐Solem Erik
Published: May 2012

The defeat of Germany and Japan in 1945 required historians in both countries to reevaluate the past to make sense of national catastrophe. Sebastian Conrad's The Quest for the Lost Nation analyzes this process comparatively in the context of allied military occupation and the Cold War to reveal how historians in both countries coped with a discredited national history and gradually salvaged a national identity. He pays special attention to the role of social, discursive, and transnational contexts that shaped this process to highlight the different courses that the politics of the past took in postwar Germany and Japan. The picture that emerges of German and Japanese historiography and the respective attempts to come to terms with the past is at odds with the conventional narrative that usually praises West German historians and society for having come to terms with their dark past, as opposed to postwar Japan, which is usually regarded as having fallen short by comparison. There was in fact far more critical historiographical engagement with the past in Japan than in West Germany in the 1950s. Reasons for the divergent evolution of the politics of the past in Germany and Japan should not be sought in the peculiarities of postwar national history but rather in an entangled transnational context of defeat, occupation, and the Cold War, whose effects played out differently in each country. These conclusions and others reveal some of the opportunities and special challenges of comparative transnational history.
Fostering enterprise architecture education and training with the enterprise architecture competence framework
Authors: Tambouris Efthimios , Zotou Maria , Kalampokis Evangelos , Tarabanis Konstantinos
Published: May 2012

Enterprise architecture (EA) implementation refers to a set of activities ultimately aiming to align business objectives with information technology infrastructure in an organization. EA implementation is a multidisciplinary, complicated and endless process, hence, calls for adequate education and training programs that will build highly skilled personnel (called enterprise architects) with diverse competencies. This development of domain‐specific competencies is also supported by European policies on education and vocational training. To this end, the authors present training uses of the Enterprise Architecture Competence Framework (EA‐CF). EA‐CF is a proposed conceptual model that describes EA competencies in compliance to the European e‐Competence Framework (e‐CF). The authors argue that EA stakeholders can consult the framework regarding competencies they want to underpin and thus identify the corresponding skills, knowledge and attitudes that result as learning outcomes in EA courses and training programs.
Neonatal hemifacial spasm and fourth ventricle mass
Authors: SPECCHIO NICOLA , TRIVISANO MARINA , BERNARDI BRUNO , MARRAS CARLO EFISIO , FAGGIOLI RAFFAELLA , FIUMANA ELISA , CAPPELLETTI SIMONA , DELALANDE OLIVIER , VIGEVANO FEDERICO , FUSCO LUCIA
Published: May 2012

Congential hemifacial spasm is a rare condition that is characterized by the occurrence of paroxysmal hemifacial contractions in neonates. We review the clinical, neurophysiological, neuroimaging, and histopathological findings, as well as the differential diagnosis, therapeutic approach, and outcome of all the described cases. Moreover, we report two new cases including the ictal video‐electroencephalography recordings. Hemifacial spasm starts early in life, and is characterized by unilateral, involuntary, irregular tonic or clonic contractions of muscles innervated by the seventh cranial nerve. Hemifacial spasm is associated with eyelid blinking, and sometimes with breathing irregularities, hyperventilation, and/or other neurological manifestations (dystonic movements, nystagmus). Interictal and ictal video‐electroencephalography did not reveal epileptiform abnormalities. In all cases, brain magnetic resonance imaging showed a mass involving the cerebellar peduncle, the cerebellar hemisphere, or the floor of the fourth ventricle. The semiology of the paroxysmal attacks is probably due to the activation of cranial nerve nuclei through intralesional hypersynchronous discharges, as shown by the intraoperative recordings and functional brain imaging described in the literature. We point out the importance of identifying such seizures in order to make an early diagnosis of the underlying cerebral lesion.
Simulation and Validation of Welding Residual Stresses Based on Non‐Linear Mixed Hardening Model
Authors: Xu J. J. , Gilles P. , Duan Y. G.
Published: May 2012

Abstract:  This study contributes to Phase 2 of the Task Group 1 round robin in the NeT European Network. To obtain better prediction results, in the thermal analysis, two significant changes are used. The welding efficiency, η, is fixed at 75%, and the weld bead fusion boundary profiles are based upon macrographs taken from welded specimens, which have been destructively examined. In the subsequent mechanical simulation, a non‐linear kinematic or mixed isotropic–kinematic hardening model should be employed, and a progressive annealing scheme or explicit consideration of visco‐plastic or creep effects should be implemented to handle high‐temperature inelastic strains and reduce stress discontinuities. In this study, an uncoupled 3D thermal and mechanical analysis was carried out using the software code SYSWELD. In the thermal simulation, a two‐offset‐double‐ellipsoid heat source model was developed, and the parameters were fitted using the heat source fitting tool. Power intensity was applied to simulate 1‐s dwelling time at the weld start end. Offset distances between two double ellipsoids were adjusted to obtain the weld bead transverse fusion boundary profiles at different positions. Predicted temperatures were compared with the measured data by thermocouples on the test pieces. In the mechanical analysis, a new material constitutive model, non‐linear mixed hardening model, was developed. Tension–compression cyclic tests were simulated at different temperatures using three different material hardening models (isotropic hardening model, kinematic hardening model and non‐linear mixed isotropic–kinematic hardening model), and the predicted cyclic stress–strain curves were compared with the measured data. Effects of three different hardening models on the welding residual stresses were studied. Compared with the measured data, the optimum material hardening model was confirmed.
Experimental Study on Shear Localisation in Granular Materials Within Combined Strain and Stress Field
Authors: Leśniewska D. , Niedostatkiewicz M. , Tejchman J.
Published: May 2012

Abstract:  The characteristic features of the shear zones formation in deforming granular materials were investigated using particle image velocimetry (PIV), which was combined with a photo‐elastic study of the stress field. Laboratory tests were performed for an active translation of rigid retaining wall. PIV is an optical technique for measuring displacement fields from successive digital images and was employed to analyse experiments on two different granular materials, composed of (1) sand grains and (2) glass granules. The tests on glass granules were supplemented by taking photo‐elastic images in circularly polarised light to gather information on changes in the average stress field, accompanying the specimen deformation. Attention was focused on the effect of the initial density, grain coarseness and magnitude of wall displacement on shear localisation within a strain field and its geometrical relation to some structures found in the stress field.
TRENDS IN AMERICAN LIVING STANDARDS AND INEQUALITY, 1959–2007
Authors: WOLFF EDWARD N. , ZACHARIAS AJIT , MASTERSON THOMAS
Published: May 2012

We analyze the trends from 1959 to 2007 using an expanded measure of income called the Levy Institute Measure of Economic Well‐Being (LIMEW). LIMEW is different in scope from the official U.S. Census Bureau measure of gross money income (MI) in that our measure includes non‐cash transfers, public consumption, imputed income from wealth, and household production and nets out personal taxes. While the annual growth rates of median LIMEW and MI are very close over the whole period (0.67 and 0.63 percent), median LIMEW grew much faster than median MI after 1982 and much slower before. The Gini coefficient of MI is uniformly higher than that of LIMEW but both show about the same change from 1959 to 2007. Decomposition analysis shows that changes in inequality are driven to a large extent by non‐home wealth in LIMEW and earnings in MI. While the racial gap in MI declined somewhat over the 1990s and 2000s, the racial gap in LIMEW actually widened a bit. Over the same years, while there was little change in the gap in MI between the elderly and non‐elderly, the LIMEW of the elderly actually overtook that of the non‐elderly.
Nurse workload in implementing a tight glycaemic control protocol in a UK hospital: a pilot time‐in‐motion study
Authors: Gartemann Juliane , Caffrey Elizabeth , Hadker Nandini , Crean Sheila , Creed Gary M. , Rausch Carsten
Published: May 2012

Aims and objectives: The cumulative time that critical care nurses spend implementing a tight glycaemic control (TGC) protocol was estimated in a time‐in‐motion (TiM) study conducted in a hospital in the UK.

Background: TGC protocols were introduced to the critical care setting to reduce hyperglycaemic events in high‐risk patients. The time burden to critical care nurses of implementing such protocols has not yet been studied in the UK.

Design: A prospective TiM pilot study was conducted in an eligible UK intensive care unit by four protocol‐trained observers over five consecutive weekdays from 3 to 7 November 2008. Three nurses were also interviewed on site to gather their attitudes and perceptions about the benefits of and time associated with administering a TGC protocol.

Methods: Independent observers shadowed nurses, observing when a blood glucose measurement was taken, when each predefined subtask was completed and the duration of each task. Semistructured interviews with nurses were conducted in‐person and one‐on‐one by a trained study member.

Results: Considered together, the episodic median duration of all TGC activities was 6·65 min. Across a total shift, nurses devoted approximately 7% of their time to administering a TGC protocol. Nurses perceived that a TGC protocol is beneficial to patient safety and outcomes in a critical care setting but acknowledged that the tasks can be mildly to moderately tedious.

Conclusions: This TiM analysis indicated that the additional responsibility of implementing a TGC protocol represents a substantive commitment of nursing time in a critical care setting.

Relevance to clinical practice: The episodic data of our pilot study in the UK contributes further evidence that TGC protocols may be arduous to maintain and constitute a substantial investment of nursing time.
Transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (t‐VNS) in pharmacoresistant epilepsies: A proof of concept trial
Authors: Stefan Hermann , Kreiselmeyer Gernot , Kerling Frank , Kurzbuch Katrin , Rauch Christophe , Heers Marcel , Kasper Burkhard S. , Hammen Thilo , Rzonsa Martina , Pauli Elisabeth , Ellrich Jens , Graf Wolfgang , Hopfengärtner Rüdiger
Published: May 2012

To elucidate, in a pilot‐study, whether noninvasive transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (t‐VNS) is a safe and tolerable alternative treatment option in pharmacoresistant epilepsy. t‐VNS was applied to 10 patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsies. Stimulation via the auricular branch of the vagus nerve of the left tragus was delivered three times per day for 9 months. Subjective documentation of stimulation effects was obtained from patients’ seizure diaries. For a more reliable assessment of seizure frequency, we carried out prolonged outpatient video–electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring. In addition, computerized testing of cognitive, affective, and emotional functions was performed. Three patients aborted the study. Of the remaining seven patients, an overall reduction of seizure frequency was observed in five patients after 9 months of t‐VNS. The noninvasive t‐VNS stimulation is a safe and well‐tolerated method for relatively long periods, and might be an alternative treatment option for patients with epilepsy.
Symptomatic generalized epilepsy after HHV6 posttransplant acute limbic encephalitis in children
Authors: Howell Katherine B. , Tiedemann Karin , Haeusler Gabrielle , Mackay Mark T. , Kornberg Andrew J. , Freeman Jeremy L. , Harvey A. Simon
Published: May 2012

Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV6) is the major cause of posttransplant acute limbic encephalitis (PALE) in immunosuppressed patients following hematopoietic stem cell transplant. Memory impairment and temporal lobe epilepsy following PALE are reported in adults, but sequelae in young children are unknown. We report three children with HHV6‐associated PALE 20–23 days after cord blood transplantation for leukemias who developed symptomatic generalized epilepsy. Patients were followed for 2–8 years and underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and video–electroencephalography (EEG). Two patients underwent viral and autoimmune testing and immunotherapies. Generalized seizures, including tonic seizures, developed 11–18 months after HHV6‐associated PALE. Seizures were frequent and resistant to multiple antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). Generalized slow spike‐wave and low‐voltage fast activity were recorded on interictal and ictal EEGs. The two younger patients regressed in their general abilities, synchronous with seizure evolution, whereas the older patient developed a severe amnestic syndrome that halted intellectual development. Serial MRI studies revealed bilateral signal change and atrophy in the medial temporal structures of all patients. In the two investigated patients, there was no evidence of chronic HHV6 infection, minimal evidence of cerebral inflammation, and no significant improvement with pulse with intravenous methylprednisolone and immunoglobulin. The severe and generalized seizure, cognitive, and EEG sequelae of HHV6‐related PALE in these children may be due to a chronic, viral, or immune‐mediated inflammatory process or developmental epileptogenesis resulting from bilateral hippocampal injury at an early age, although there was a paucity of evidence for either.
Bioenergetics in diabetic neuropathy: what we need to know
Authors: Hinder Lucy M. , Vincent Andrea M. , Burant Charles F. , Pennathur Subramaniam , Feldman Eva L.
Published: May 2012

Progress in developing treatments for diabetic neuropathy is slowed by our limited understanding of how disturbances in metabolic substrates – glucose and fatty acids – produce nerve injury. In this review, we present the current oxidative stress hypothesis and experimental data that support it. We identify weaknesses in our understanding of diabetes‐disordered metabolism in the neurovascular unit, that is, in critical cell types of the microvascular endothelium, peripheral sensory neurons, and supporting Schwann cells. Greater understanding of peripheral nervous system bioenergetics may provide insight into new drug therapies or improvements in dietary interventions in diabetes or even pre‐diabetes.
Callosal White Matter Microstructural Recovery in Abstinent Alcoholics: A Longitudinal Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study
Authors: Alhassoon Omar M. , Sorg Scott F. , Taylor Michael J. , Stephan Rick A. , Schweinsburg Brian C. , Stricker Nikki H. , Gongvatana Assawin , Grant Igor
Published: May 2012

Background

Previous neuroimaging studies of recently detoxified alcohol‐dependent patients (RDA) have found significant loss of white matter integrity associated with the shrinkage of the frontal lobes and thinning of the corpus callosum, especially the genu. The current study hypothesized that, in addition to exhibiting the most microstructural white matter disruption inRDA, the genu will also evidence the most recovery after abstinence. This microstructural recovery will be associated with improvements in executive functioning measures.

Methods

FifteenRDAwere examined approximately 2 weeks after abstinence and again after 1 year of abstinence and compared to 15 age‐ and education‐matched nonalcoholic controls using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). The effects of group, time, and their interactions on fractional anisotropy, radial diffusivity, and axial diffusivity were evaluated with repeated measuresMANOVA; in addition, 2 × 2ANOVAwas used to test changes in measures of executive functioning in the 2 groups.

Results

At 2 weeks of abstinence,DTIofRDAshowed significantly lower fractional anisotropy and greater radial diffusivity compared to controls in the genu and body of the corpus callosum. Reexamination after 1 year showed significant time by group interaction with fractional anisotropy increasing and radial diffusivity decreasing inRDAbut not controls in these 2 regions. A smaller relapsed group did not show improvements between the 2 time points. AbstinentRDAalso showed improvement on Digit Span Backward, a measure of working memory, but did not benefit from practice effects on the Halstead Category Test compared to controls.

Conclusions

The results suggest susceptibility of the genu and body of the corpus callosum to the effects of alcohol, and the potential for recovery of both these regions after abstinence, perhaps via mechanisms involving myelin reconstitution.
Ethanol and Hepatitis C Virus Suppress Peptide–MHC Class I Presentation in Hepatocytes by Altering Proteasome Function
Authors: Osna Natalia A. , Bardag‐Gorce Fawzia , White Ronda L. , Weinman Steven A. , Donohue Terrence M. , Kharbanda Kusum K.
Published: May 2012

Background

Previously, we reported that exposure of hepatitis C virus (HCV) core‐expressing ethanol (EtOH)‐metabolizing cells to EtOH significantly suppresses proteasome activity which exists as 26S (20S and 19S) and as an unassociated 20S particle. The replacement of the constitutive proteasomal subunits with immunoproteasome (IPR) favors antigen processing. Here, we examined the effects of EtOH consumption by HCV core transgenic mice on proteasome activity in hepatocytic lysates and in partially purified 26S proteasome and the impact of these changes on antigen presentation.

Methods

HCV
− and HCV
+ core transgenic mice were fed chow diet with or without 20% (v/v) EtOH in water for 4 weeks. Following the feeding regimen, hepatocytes were isolated and examined for chymotrypsin‐like proteasome activity, oxidative stress, and the presentation of SIINFEKL–H2Kb complex. Additionally, the constitutive proteasome and IPR were purified for further analysis and identification of proteasome‐interacting proteins (PIPs).

Results

EtOH significantly decreased proteasome activity in hepatocytes of HCV
+ mice, and this finding correlated with oxidative stress and dysregulated methylation reactions. In isolated 26S proteasome, EtOH suppressed proteasome activity equally in HCV
+ and HCV
− mice. EtOH feeding caused proteasome instability and lowered the content of both constitutive and IPR subunits in the 20S proteasome. In addition, the level of other PIPs, PA28 and UCHL5, were also suppressed after EtOH exposure. Furthermore, in EtOH‐fed mice and, especially, in HCV
+ mice, the presentation of SIINFEKL–H2Kb complex in hepatocytes was also decreased.

Conclusions

Proteasomal dysfunction induced by EtOH feeding and exacerbated by the presence of HCV structural proteins led to suppression of SIINFEKL–H2Kb presentation in hepatocytes.
Ethanol Preference in Drosophila melanogaster is Driven by Its Caloric Value
Authors: Pohl Jascha B. , Baldwin Brett A. , Dinh Boingoc L. , Rahman Pinkey , Smerek Dustin , Prado Francisco J. , Sherazee Nyssa , Atkinson Nigel S.
Published: May 2012

Background

Perhaps the most difficult thing to ascertain concerning the behavior of another animal is its motivation. The motivation underlying the preference of Drosophila melanogaster for ethanol (EtOH)‐rich food has long been ascribed to its value as a food. A recently introduced idea is that, as in humans, the pharmacological effects of EtOH also motivate the fly to choose EtOH‐rich food over nonalcoholic food.

Methods

Flies are given a choice between pipets that contain liquid food and liquid food supplemented with EtOH. In some experiments, carbohydrates are added to the non‐EtOH‐containing food to balance the calories for EtOH.

Results

We confirm that D. melanogaster indeed prefer food that is supplemented with EtOH. However, if the alternative food choice is isocaloric, D. melanogaster usually do not show any preference for a 10% EtOH solution. Even after EtOH preference has been established, it can be completely reversed if the alternative food is calorically supplemented. This occurs even when the carbohydrate solution used to balance calories is not gustatorily attractive. Furthermore, if the alternative food contains more calories than the EtOH food, the flies will prefer the non‐EtOH food. We go on to show that during the preference assay that EtOH in the fly does not exceed 4 mM, which in mammals is a nonintoxicating dose.

Conclusions

We conclude that preference for EtOH in this assay arises not from the pharmacological effects of EtOH but rather because of its nutritive value.
Simultaneous Modeling of the Impact of Treatments on Alcohol Consumption and Quality of Life in the COMBINE Study: A Coupled Hidden Markov Analysis
Authors: Prisciandaro James J. , DeSantis Stacia M. , Bandyopadhyay Dipankar
Published: May 2012

Background

Clinical trials for alcoholism have historically regarded alcohol consumption as the primary outcome. In a subset of trials, quality of life (QOL) has been considered as a secondary outcome. Joint latent‐variable modeling techniques may provide a more accurate and powerful simultaneous analysis of primary and secondary outcomes in clinical trials. The goal of this study was to evaluate longitudinal associations between treatment status, alcohol consumption, and QOL in the Combined Pharmacotherapies and Behavioral Interventions for Alcohol Dependence (COMBINE) study.

Methods

A total of 1,383 alcohol‐dependent patients were randomized to 9 treatment groups. Percent heavy drinking days (PHDD) and health‐related QOL from the 30 days preceding baseline, week 16, and week 52 were calculated using the Form 90 and the Medical Outcomes Study Health Survey Short Form‐12 (SF‐12), respectively. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was conducted to determine an appropriate number of latent states to represent PHDD and QOL. Subsequently, univariate and coupled hidden Markov models (for PHDD and SF‐12 mental health, and PHDD and SF‐12 physical) were fit to the data.

Results

LPA suggested that PHDD should be represented by 3 latent states and that each SF‐12 scale should be represented by 2 states. Joint modeling results suggested that (i) naltrexone significantly predicted decreased PHDD (p < 0.05), and marginally predicted improved mental health QOL via decreased PHDD (p < 0.10), and (ii) that the combinations of naltrexone and combined behavioral intervention (CBI), and acamprosate and CBI, each predicted significantly improved physical QOL (p < 0.05), and marginally predicted decreased PHDD via improved physical QOL (p < 0.10).

Conclusions

This study illustrates a powerful and novel statistical approach for simultaneously evaluating the impact of treatments on primary and secondary outcomes in clinical trials. This study also suggests that behavioral interventions may impact drinking behavior through their ameliorative effects on QOL.
Ethanol (EtOH)‐Induced TGF‐β1 and Reactive Oxygen Species Production Are Necessary for EtOH‐Induced Alveolar Macrophage Dysfunction and Induction of Alternative Activation
Authors: Brown Sheena D. , Brown Lou Ann S.
Published: May 2012

Background

Previous studies have shown that chronic ethanol (EtOH) ingestion results in impaired alveolar macrophage function, increased TGF‐β1 production, and decreased antioxidant availability. Similarly, alternative activation (M2 activation) of alveolar macrophages also induces TGF‐β1 production and impairs macrophage function. However, the potential links between EtOH‐induced alveolar macrophage derangements, M2 activation, TGF‐β1 production signaling, and oxidant stress have yet to be examined. We hypothesized that EtOH‐induced oxidant stress and induction of TGF‐β1 signaling result in alternative activation which subsequently impairs the phagocytic capacity of alveolar macrophages.

Methods

Primary rat alveolar macrophages and the alveolar macrophages cell line NR8383 were treated with 0.08% EtOH ± the antioxidant glutathione (GSH) or a TGF‐β1 neutralizing antibody for 5 days. Outcome measures included TGF‐β1 production, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, phagocytic capacity, and expression of markers of M2 activation.

Results

Chronic EtOH treatment greatly decreased alveolar macrophage phagocytic function, increased ROS production, increased TGF‐β1, and increased expression of markers of M2 activation. GSH supplementation and inhibition of TGF‐β1 signaling during EtOH treatment prevented these alterations.

Conclusions

EtOH treatment increased oxidant stress, TGF‐β1 production, and alternative activation in NR8383 cells. However, GSH supplementation and ablation of TGF‐β1 signaling prevented these effects. This suggested that the EtOH‐induced switch to an M2 phenotype was a result of decreased antioxidant availability and increased TGF‐β1 signaling. Preventing EtOH‐induced induction of alternative activation may improve alveolar macrophage function in alcoholic subjects and decrease the risk of respiratory infections.
Defining (Urban) Producer and Consumer Sinks
Authors: Wiedmann Thomas O.
Published: May 2012

This contribution was prompted by the article “Gross Direct and Embodied Carbon Sinks for Urban Inventories” by Mohareb and Kennedy published in this issue. The authors define two types of urban carbon sinks—direct and embodied—and discuss their relation to producer and consumer emissions (and sinks) accounting. This commentary continues that discussion by clarifying boundary considerations and definitions between producer and consumer sinks, and between direct and indirect sinks.

Extending the notion of production‐ versus consumption‐based emissions accounting, a corollary for producer and consumer sinks can be drawn. Producer sinks would include direct sequestration through industrial and private activities occurring within a defined territory. Consumer sinks would refer to direct and indirect sequestration activities associated with the consumption of goods and services within the same territory, wherever that sequestration may occur.

As with emissions accounting, in carbon sinks accounting I propose that the exact categorization depends on the perspective taken. Clear boundaries and well‐defined terminology—historically present in emissions accounting—are critical to this novel approach to sinks accounting.
Response to Wiedmann
Authors: Mohareb Eugene , Kennedy Christopher
Published: May 2012

This commentary is prompted by Thomas Wiedmann's “Defining (Urban) Producer and Consumer Sinks” published in this issue. In his article, Wiedmann presents a new framework for categorizing carbon sinks by borrowing practices from carbon emissions accounting and, essentially, proposing a “carbon sink footprint” model for urban inventories.

While this is a valuable new concept, we argue that it is difficult to apply accurately given current knowledge and practices in urban life cycle assessment. Instead, a direct versus embodied classification based on where the sequestration service exists, not where the sink is located, is more useful from the perspective of municipal control and influence over creating and managing carbon sinks. This is ultimately important for the development of urban climate change mitigation measures.
Estimating Material and Energy Flows in Life Cycle Inventory with Statistical Models
Authors: Moreau Vincent , Bage Gontran , Marcotte Denis , Samson Réjean
Published: May 2012

Data (un)availability and uncertainty are recurring problems in life cycle assessment, and particularly inventory analysis. Advances in life cycle inventory have focused on the propagation and management of uncertainty, but this article addresses the question of how to account for unavailable data and corresponding uncertainty. Large and complicated systems often lack complete data due to confidential practices or the efforts required in the data collection process. Electricity production with multiple processes generating a single product is a classic example. Instead of the conventional process‐based models to estimate missing data, the approach developed in this article divides systems based on functionally equivalent objects. Each one of these objects is then described in terms of characteristic variables, such as power capacity. Kriging, a flexible statistical estimator, allows for the estimation of unknown material and energy flows based on the objects’ characteristic variables. Both univariate and multivariate kriging are tested and compared to regression analysis. It is found that kriging performs better than linear regression, according to the mean absolute error criterion. Multivariate kriging provides an even more accurate joint estimation method to bridge data gaps scattered across inventories and when observable values of material and energy flows differ from one object to the next. Parameters of the underlying models are interpreted in terms of data uncertainty.
Safety of Autologous Bone Marrow Stromal Cell Transplantation in Dogs with Acute Spinal Cord Injury
Authors: Nishida Hidetaka , Nakayama Masanari , Tanaka Hiroshi , Kitamura Masahiko , Hatoya Shingo , Sugiura Kikuya , Harada Yasuji , Suzuki Yoshihisa , Ide Chizuka , Inaba Toshio
Published: May 2012

Objective

To assess the feasibility and safety of transplantation of autologous bone marrow stromal cell (BMSC) in dogs with acute spinal cord injury (SCI).

Study Design

An open‐label single‐arm trial.

Animals

Dogs (n = 7) with severe SCI from T6 to L5, caused by vertebral fracture and luxation.

Methods

Decompressive and stabilization surgery was performed on dogs with severe SCI caused by vertebral fracture and luxation. Autologous BMSCs were obtained from each dog's femur, cultured, and then injected into the lesion in the acute stage. Adverse events and motor and sensory function were observed for >1 year after SCI.

Results

Follow‐up was 29–62 months after SCI. No complications (eg, infection, neuropathic pain, worsening of neurologic function) were observed. Two dogs walked without support, but none of the 7 dogs had any change in sensory function.

Conclusions

Autologous BMSC transplantation is feasible and safe in dogs with acute SCI. Further studies are needed to determine the efficacy of this therapy.
Arthroscopic Approach to the Subextensorius Recess of the Lateral Femorotibial Joint of the Foal
Authors: Hennessy Simon E. , Cudmore Lucy , Jackson L. Paige , Vasey James R. , Russell Thomas
Published: May 2012

Objective

To (1) develop an arthroscopic approach to the subextensorius recess of the lateral femorotibial (LFT) joint in foals and (2) report its use in foals withLFTjoint sepsis.

Study Design

(1) Anatomic study and (2) retrospective case series.

Sample Population

(1) Cadaveric hind limbs (n = 32 foals) to delineate the anatomy of the subextensorius recess; 13 foal limbs for cadaver surgery to assess the approach to the subextensorius recess; and (2) foals (n = 8) withLFTjoint sepsis.

Methods

(1) TheLFTjoint was distended and examined ultrasonographically. Dissection was used to document periarticular landmarks, potential distal arthroscopic portals, and assess iatrogenic damage after cadaveric surgery. (2) Retrieval of data from 8 foals withLFTjoint sepsis treated using the arthroscopic approach.

Results

(1) The optimal arthroscopic approach to the distal subextensorius recess is craniolaterally, 8–10 cm distal to the tibial plateau, immediately caudal to the peroneus tertius muscle, through the long digital extensor muscle belly, entering the distal extent of the subextensorius recess. Thirteen limbs dissected after cadaver surgery had no iatrogenic damage to the peroneus tertius muscle or peroneal nerve. (2) Two foals were euthanized. Resolution of sepsis occurred in 6 foals, and all were sound at follow‐up >9 months after surgery.

Conclusion

The subextensorius recess may be safely accessed arthroscopically in foals.
Evaluation of a Laryngotomy Approach for Near‐Total Resection of the Nasal Septum in the Horse
Authors: Loinaz Ricardo J. , Boutros Christopher P. , Rakestraw Peter C. , Taylor Tex S.
Published: May 2012

Objective

To report a laryngotomy approach for the removal of the nasal septum in adult horses.

Study Design

Descriptive study.

Animals

Horses (n = 10).

Methods

Near‐total resection of the nasal septum was made using a modification of a previously reported 3‐wire technique using a trephination approach and a 2‐wire technique using a laryngotomy approach. Surgical time, ease of technique, complications, and outcome were recorded. At 45 days, horses were euthanatized and septal measurements made.

Results

Near‐total resection of the nasal septum was accomplished with both techniques without complications. Incisional complications occurred in the trephination group and transient granulation tissue formation near the rostral stump occurred in the laryngotomy group. The laryngotomy technique was technically easier and resulted in a more cosmetic outcome.

Conclusions

A laryngotomy approach is safe and expedient for near‐total resection of the nasal septum with minimal complications.
Siting Samplers to Minimize Expected Time to Detection
Authors: Walter Travis , Lorenzetti David M. , Sohn Michael D.
Published: May 2012

We present a probabilistic approach to designing an indoor sampler network for detecting an accidental or intentional chemical or biological release, and demonstrate it for a real building. In an earlier article, Sohn and Lorenzetti developed a proof of concept algorithm that assumed samplers could return measurements only slowly (on the order of hours). This led to optimal “detect to treat” architectures that maximize the probability of detecting a release. This article develops a more general approach and applies it to samplers that can return measurements relatively quickly (in minutes). This leads to optimal “detect to warn” architectures that minimize the expected time to detection. Using a model of a real, large, commercial building, we demonstrate the approach by optimizing networks against uncertain release locations, source terms, and sampler characteristics. Finally, we speculate on rules of thumb for general sampler placement.
Democracy and the Smart Mob
Authors:   THE PALO ALTO GROUP
Published: May 2012

The new element in governance is social media. Inexorably, its fertile networks of shared information shift power from authorities to citizens and amateurs, including to the “unknown” experts in the “dorm rooms and edges of society” who drive innovation.

Tweets may bust trust and undermine authority, but can social media also be a tool for building consensus through deliberation and negotiation among interests? When it comes to governance, is crowd‐sourcing any better than populism at generating collective intelligence instead of disruptive “dumb mobs?” Can networks aid the self‐administration of society, or does that take institutions with governing authority?

In this section, leading Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, technologists and network theorists from Google, Microsoft and the MIT Media Lab join with political scientist Francis Fukuyama and top thinkers from Asia to address these issues.
The Right to Connect and Internet Censorship
Authors: CERF VINT
Published: May 2012

The new element in governance is social media. Inexorably, its fertile networks of shared information shift power from authorities to citizens and amateurs, including to the “unknown” experts in the “dorm rooms and edges of society” who drive innovation.

Tweets may bust trust and undermine authority, but can social media also be a tool for building consensus through deliberation and negotiation among interests? When it comes to governance, is crowd‐sourcing any better than populism at generating collective intelligence instead of disruptive “dumb mobs?” Can networks aid the self‐administration of society, or does that take institutions with governing authority?

In this section, leading Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, technologists and network theorists from Google, Microsoft and the MIT Media Lab join with political scientist Francis Fukuyama and top thinkers from Asia to address these issues.
Detecting Spillover Effects: Design and Analysis of Multilevel Experiments
Authors: Sinclair Betsy , McConnell Margaret , Green Donald P.
Published: May 2012

Interpersonal communication presents a methodological challenge and a research opportunity for researchers involved in field experiments. The challenge is that communication among subjects blurs the line between treatment and control conditions. When treatment effects are transmitted from subject to subject, the stable unit treatment value assumption (SUTVA) is violated, and comparison of treatment and control outcomes may provide a biased assessment of the treatment’s causal influence. Social scientists are increasingly interested in the substantive phenomena that lead to SUTVA violations, such as communication in advance of an election. Experimental designs that gauge SUTVA violations provide useful insights into the extent and influence of interpersonal communication. This article illustrates the value of one such design, a multilevel experiment in which treatments are randomly assigned to individuals and varying proportions of their neighbors. After describing the theoretical and statistical underpinnings of this design, we apply it to a large‐scale voter‐mobilization experiment conducted in Chicago during a special election in 2009 using social‐pressure mailings that highlight individual electoral participation. We find some evidence of within‐household spillovers but no evidence of spillovers across households. We conclude by discussing how multilevel designs might be employed in other substantive domains, such as the study of deterrence and policy diffusion.
International risk sharing during the globalization era
Authors: Flood Robert P. , Marion Nancy P. , Matsumoto Akito
Published: May 2012

Abstract.  Though financial globalization should improve international risk sharing, empirical support is lacking. We develop a simple welfare‐based measure that captures how far countries are from the ideal of perfect risk sharing. Applying it to data, we find some evidence that international risk sharing has improved during globalization. Improved risk sharing comes mostly from the convergence in rates of consumption growth among countries rather than from synchronization of consumption at the business cycle frequency.
Risk sharing through capital gains
Authors: Balli Faruk , Kalemli‐Ozcan Sebnem , Sørensen Bent E.
Published: May 2012

Abstract We estimate channels of international risk sharing between European Monetary Union (EMU), European Union, and other OECD countries, 1992–2007. We focus on risk sharing through savings, factor income flows, and capital gains. Risk sharing through factor income and capital gains was close to zero before 1999 but has increased since then. Risk sharing from capital gains, at about 6%, is higher than risk sharing from factor income flows for European Union countries and OECD countries. Risk sharing from factor income flows is higher for euro zone countries, at 14%, reflecting increased international asset and liability holdings in the euro area.
The international risk sharing puzzle is at business cycle and lower frequency
Authors: Corsetti Giancarlo , Dedola Luca , Viani Francesca
Published: May 2012

Abstract We decompose the correlation between relative consumption and the real exchange rate in its dynamic components at different frequencies. Using multivariate spectral analysis techniques, we show that, at odds with a high degree of risk sharing, in most OECD countries the dynamic correlation tends to be quite negative, and significantly so, at frequencies lower than two years – the appropriate frequencies for assessing the performance of international business cycle models. Theoretically, we show that the dynamic correlation over different frequencies predicted by standard open economy models is the sum of two terms: a term constant across frequencies, which can be negative when uninsurable risk is large; a term variable across frequencies, which in bond economies is necessarily positive, reflecting the insurance intertemporal trade provides against forecastable contingencies. Numerical analysis suggests that leading mechanisms proposed by the literature to account for the puzzle are consistent with the evidence across the spectrum.
Investment abroad and labour adjustment at home: evidence from UK multinational firms
Authors: Simpson Helen
Published: May 2012

Abstract.  This paper provides new evidence on the effects of overseas FDI on the skill‐mix of multinational firms’ home‐country operations. The analysis exploits China's WTO accession to identify the impact of outward investment into a low‐wage economy and uses plant‐level data to investigate changes in industrial structure within firms driven by plant closures. As predicted by models of vertical FDI, the paper demonstrates that overseas investment in low‐wage economies is associated with asymmetric effects on workers in low‐ and high‐skill industries in the home economy and, in particular, with firms closing down plants in low‐skill industries. JEL classification: F2
International migration with capital constraints: interpreting migration from the Netherlands to Canada in the 1920s
Authors: Armstrong Alex , Lewis Frank D.
Published: May 2012

Abstract An inability to borrow affected migration from Europe to North America. This capital constraint is formalized with a life‐cycle model, where agents jointly choose how much to save, the optimal period to finance migration, and whether to migrate. Using a life‐cycle model we show that preference for the home country, the period of adjustment after arrival, and the direct cost of migration affect the savings of migrants, age at migration, and who migrates. These results are discussed in light of wages in Canada and the Netherlands, and the characteristics of Dutch immigrants drawn from ship passenger manifests. Capital constraints delayed migration and help explain the large wage gap between the Netherlands and Canada. JEL classification: J61, N32, N34
Debt and Deception: How States Avoid Making Hard Fiscal Decisions
Authors: Bifulco Robert , Bunch Beverly , Duncombe William , Robbins Mark , Simonsen William
Published: May 2012

Government borrowing occurs whenever the government forgoes control over some future flow of resources or benefits in order to acquire resources for current use. Based on this definition, the authors identify several ways that state governments borrow, which include widely recognized forms of debt as well as types of actions that are less transparent. Case studies for Connecticut, Illinois, and New York document the large amounts of future commitments that these states have taken on to cover operating deficits over the last decade. The authors conclude by evaluating the usefulness of current financial statements for assessing the amount of borrowing that states have done to support current services and suggest areas for which additional information is needed.
Selection of Patient for Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy: Role of QT Corrected Dispersion
Authors: TIMINERI SALVATORE , MULÈ MASSIMILIANO , PUZZANGARA EUGLENA , SANTANGELO GLORIA , DUGO DANIELA , SCHILLACI VINCENZO , DI GRAZIA ANGELO , LIOTTA CAUDIO , SCANDURA SALVATORE , TEMPIO DONATELLA , TAMBURINO CORRADO , CALVI VALERIA
Published: May 2012

Aims
: About 30 to 50% of patients undergoing cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) may not show clinical or echocardiographic improvement, despite fulfilling guidelines recommendations for CRT. For this reason, we need a more accurate method to assess CRT eligibility. The aims of this study were to verify, on a 12‐month follow‐up, the usefulness of QT corrected dispersion (QTcD) in a patient's selection for CRT.

Methods
: We stratified 53 patients who underwent CRT, into two groups based on the estimation of QTcD, that is, QTcD > 60 ms and QTcD ≤ 60 ms. In all patients were performed New York Heart Association (NYHA) class determination, six‐minute walking test, QtcD, and QRS measurements, and complete echocardiographic assessment at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after implantation.

Results
: At baseline, there were no significant differences in clinical, echocardiographic, and electrocardiographic parameters duration between two groups. At 12‐month follow‐up between the two groups, there were significant differences in NYHA (1.2 ± 0.4 vs 2 ± 0.6; P < 0.01), six‐minute walking distance (422 ± 68 vs 364 ± 68; P < 0.01), left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (34 ± 7% vs 28 ± 6%; P < 0.01), LV end‐diastolic diameter (57 ± 7 vs 63 ± 8; P < 0.01), and LV intraventricular dyssynchrony (24 ± 14 vs 39 ± 23; P < 0.01).

Conclusion:

This study suggests that QTc dispersion in addition to QRS duration could improve the sensitivity of electrocardiogram in a patient's selection for CRT. (PACE 2012;1–6)
Comparison of Epicardial Cryoablation and Irrigated Radiofrequency Ablation in a Swine Infarct Model
Authors: JAUREGUI‐ABULARACH MIGUEL E. , CAMPOS BIEITO , BETENSKY BRIAN P. , MICHELE JOHN , GERSTENFELD EDWARD P.
Published: May 2012

Epicardial Cryoablation in Swine. Introduction: Cryoablation is an alternative to radiofrequency (RF) energy used in some ablation procedures. Its role and effectiveness compared to irrigated RF in epicardial tissue and epicardial substrates is not yet fully established.

Methods and Results: Using a swine chronic infarct model, we compared RF lesions produced by an open‐irrigated 3.5 mm tip catheter with those produced by an 8 mm tip cryocatheter in epicardial infarct border zone, epicardial normal tissue, and normal endocardium. In the infarct border zone, cryolesions were larger than RF lesions in maximum diameter (9.3 ± 2.9 mm vs 6.2 ± 2 mm, P < 0.001) and volume (171.7 ± 173.1 mm3 vs 77 ± 53.5 mm3, P = 0.021). In normal epicardial tissue, cryolesions were larger in maximum diameter (11.2 ± 4.3 mm vs 7.7 ± 3.1 mm, P = 0.012), depth (5.8 ± 1.6 mm vs 4.7 ± 1.4 mm, P = 0.034), and volume (274.7 ± 242.2 mm3 vs 112 ± 102.9 mm3, P = 0.002). In normal endocardium, no significant differences were found.

Conclusions: Epicardial cryoablation with an 8 mm tip cryocatheter led to larger lesion volume in infarcted myocardium compared to a 3.5 mm irrigated RF catheter. This is likely related to a combination of cryoadherence, more efficient energy delivery with horizontal orientation, and lack of warming by circulating blood. Cryoablation merits further investigation as a modality for treating ventricular tachycardia of epicardial origin in humans. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 23, pp. 1016‐1023, September 2012)