bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Late Quaternary vegetation and climate history of the central Bering land bridge from St. Michael Island, western Alaska
Authors: Ager Thomas A.
Published: July 2003

Pollen analysis of a sediment core from Zagoskin Lake on St. Michael Island, northeast Bering Sea, provides a history of vegetation and climate for the central Bering land bridge and adjacent western Alaska for the past ≥30,000 14C yr B.P. During the late middle Wisconsin interstadial (≥30,000–26,000 14C yr B.P.) vegetation was dominated by graminoid-herb tundra with willows (Salix) and minor dwarf birch (Betula nana) and Ericales. During the late Wisconsin glacial interval (26,000–15,000 14C yr B.P.) vegetation was graminoid-herb tundra with willows, but with fewer dwarf birch and Ericales, and more herb types associated with dry habitats and disturbed soils. Grasses (Poaceae) dominated during the peak of this glacial interval. Graminoid-herb tundra suggests that central Beringia had a cold, arid climate from ≥30,000 to 15,000 14C yr B.P. Between 15,000 and 13,000 14C yr B.P., birch shrub-Ericales-sedge-moss tundra began to spread rapidly across the land bridge and Alaska. This major vegetation change suggests moister, warmer summer climates and deeper winter snows. A brief invasion of Populus (poplar, aspen) occurred ca.11,000–9500 14C yr B.P., overlapping with the Younger Dryas interval of dry, cooler(?) climate. During the latest Wisconsin to middle Holocene the Bering land bridge was flooded by rising seas. Alder shrubs (Alnus crispa) colonized the St. Michael Island area ca. 8000 14C yr B.P. Boreal forests dominated by spruce (Picea) spread from interior Alaska into the eastern Norton Sound area in middle Holocene time, but have not spread as far west as St. Michael Island.
Paleoecology of two marine oxygen isotope stage 7 sites correlated by the Sheep Creek tephra, northwestern North America
Authors: Schweger Charles E.
Published: July 2003

Pollen analysis at two sites, correlated by the presence of the 190,000 yr-old Sheep Creek tephra, documents fluctuations in vegetation and climate consistent with this date and indicates that the records span marine oxygen isotope stage 7 and the stage 6/7 transition. Dawson Cut, near Fairbanks, Alaska, provides a 5.2-m-long pollen record of interglacial boreal forest succeeded by shrub tundra and then forest/tundra. Ash Bend, Stewart River, central Yukon, provides a 9.5-m-long record of interglacial boreal forest succeeded by forest/tundra, shrub tundra, and herbaceous tundra. The replacement of forest at both sites by more open or tundra vegetation indicates warm interglacial conditions giving way to cold and arid climate. It is not clear whether stage 7 was warmer than the present. The warm–cool–warm climate oscillation evident at both sites may correlate to Lake Baikal substages 7a, 7b, and 7c. Sheep Creek tephra fell on forest/tundra vegetation.
Recurring middle Pleistocene outburst floods in east-central Alaska
Authors: Froese Duane G. , Smith Derald G. , Westgate John A. , Ager Thomas A. , Preece Shari J. , Sandhu Amanjit , Enkin Randolph J. , Weber Florence
Published: July 2003

Recurring glacial outburst floods from the Yukon-Tanana Upland are inferred from sediments exposed along the Yukon River near the mouth of Charley River in east-central Alaska. Deposits range from imbricate gravel and granules indicating flow locally extending up the Yukon valley, to more distal sediments consisting of at least 10 couplets of planar sands, granules, and climbing ripples with up-valley paleocurrent indicators overlain by massive silt. An interglacial organic silt, occurring within the sequence, indicates at least two flood events are associated with an earlier glaciation, and at least three flood events are associated with a later glaciation which postdates the organic silt. A minimum age for the floods is provided by a glass fission track age of 560,000 ± 80,000 yr on the GI tephra, which occurs 8 m above the flood beds. A maximum age of 780,000 yr for the floods is based on normal magnetic polarity of the sediments. These age constraints allow us to correlate the flood events to the early-middle Pleistocene. And further, the outburst floods indicate extensive glaciation of the Yukon-Tanana Upland during the early-middle Pleistocene, likely representing the most extensive Pleistocene glaciation of the area.
Late Pliocene to late Pleistocene environments preserved at the Palisades Site, central Yukon River, Alaska
Authors: Matheus Paul , Begét James , Mason Owen , Gelvin-Reymiller Carol
Published: July 2003

The Palisades Site is an extensive silt-loam bluff complex on the central Yukon River preserving a nearly continuous record of the last 2 myr. Volcanic ash deposits present include the Old Crow (OCt; 140,000 yr), Sheep Creek (SCt; 190,000 yr), PA (2.02 myr), EC (ca. 2 myr), and Mining Camp (ca. 2 myr) tephras. Two new tephras, PAL and PAU, are geochemically similar to the PA and EC tephras and appear to be comagmatic. The PA tephra occurs in ice-wedge casts and solifluction deposits, marking the oldest occurrence of permafrost in central Alaska. Three buried forest horizons are present in association with dated tephras. The uppermost forest bed occurs immediately above the OCt; the middle forest horizon occurs below the SCt. The lowest forest bed occurs between the EC and the PA tephras, and correlates with the Dawson Cut Forest Bed. Plant taxa in all three peats are common elements of moist taiga forest found in lowlands of central Alaska today. Large mammal fossils are all from common late Pleistocene taxa. Those recovered in situ came from a single horizon radiocarbon dated to ca. 27,000 14C yr B.P. The incongruous small mammal assemblage in that horizon reflects a diverse landscape with both wet and mesic environments.
Trace-element geochemistry of individual glass shards of the Old Crow tephra and the age of the Delta glaciation, central Alaska
Authors: Begét James E. , Keskinen Mary J.
Published: July 2003

Two widespread tephra deposits constrain the age of the Delta Glaciation in central Alaska. The Old Crow tephra (ca. 140,000 ± 10,000 yr), identified by electron microprobe and ion microprobe analyses of individual glass shards, overlies an outwash terrace coeval with the Delta glaciation. The Sheep Creek tephra (ca. 190,000 yr) is reworked in alluvium of Delta age. The upper and lower limiting tephra dates indicate that the Delta glaciation occurred during marine oxygen isotope stage 6. We hypothesize that glaciers in the Delta River Valley reached their maximum Pleistocene extent during this cold interval because of significant mid-Pleistocene tectonic uplift of the east-central Alaska Range.
Use of a tropical bay in southeastern Brazil by juvenile and subadult Micropogonias furnieri (Perciformes, Sciaenidae)
Authors: da Costa Marcus R , Araújo Francisco G
Published: July 2003

The white croaker Micropogonias furnieri is a commercially important marine fish that uses bays and other semi-closed coastal areas early in its life. A sampling programme, using beach-seine and otter trawl, was carried out in Sepetiba Bay (22°54′–23°04′S, 43°34′–44°10′W), southern Brazil, from October 1998 to September 1999, with the objective of assessing the patterns of temporal and spatial usage of the bay by white croaker during its early life. Early recruits (total length, TL, 10–50 mm) appear off beaches of the inner bay between October and December, move away from them during late summer and early autumn (January–April), and are caught by trawl offshore from May to September at a TL of 70–150 mm. From May to August, new recruits (10–50 mm) are again found inshore. Fish grow from 10–40 to 70–150 mm during the first year of life in the shallows of the bay, before moving offshore. They cross the deeper waters of the bay as they migrate towards the open ocean. Juveniles (TL 70–150 mm) are most abundant in the inner bay, and subadults (TL 150–200 mm) in the outer and central bay. M. furnieri use semi-closed coastal areas as nursery grounds, before moving out over the continental shelf, where they spawn.
Phytoplankton trends in the Baltic Sea
Authors: Wasmund N. , Uhlig S.
Published: July 2003

Monitoring data of phytoplankton abundance and biomass (1979–1999) and Chl. a (1979–2000) from surface samples (0–10 m) of the Kattegat, Belt Sea and Baltic proper were investigated for long-term trends. The Mann–Kendall test as well as the LOESS smoother was applied for three taxonomic groups in spring, summer and autumn separately. Chl. a trends were analysed by linear regression. Downward trends were found for diatoms in spring and summer whereas dinoflagellates generally increased in the Baltic proper but decreased in the Kattegat. In autumn, diatoms increased at some stations. For cyanobacteria, downward trends were detected mainly in the Kattegat/Belt Sea area. Chl. a concentrations showed a general decrease in the Kattegat/Belt Sea area but an increase in the Baltic proper. Observed changes in trends during the two decades might indicate shifts in the ecosystem.
Variability of demographic parameters and population dynamics of Atlantic salmon Salmo salar L. in a south-west French river
Authors: Dumas J. , Prouzet P.
Published: July 2003

The abundance of the salmon population in the Nivelle River was assessed for 11 cohorts during all the stages of their life cycle, from eggs to spawners. A stochastic life history model was used to simulate the changes in numbers at each stage over several years and to evaluate the parameters of a Ricker-type Stock and Recruitment (S–R) relationship. Parameters necessary for managing the exploitation of the species were also estimated. The results indicated that an average deposition of 611 700 eggs (values varying in a proportion of 1 to 3, depending on the year) produced 4870 0+ parr in autumn (variation from 1 to 5.6); 71.8% of which belonged to the group of future 1-year old smolts. The age 1+ parr were eight times less numerous. Survival from egg to 0+ parr was on average 0.97%, but highly variable (varying from 1 to 15). It was density-dependent and followed Ricker S–R model with an optimum of 7800 parr for a survival rate of 3%. During their second year, the survival of 1+ parr reached 53.4% and varied little. The adult runs of complete cohorts amounted to 196 maiden salmon (range, 88 to 382) and previous spawners comprised only 0.9% of adults. Grilse (1 year in the sea) constituted the majority (88.7%). The overall survival rates from 0+ parr to adult returns (6.2% on average) varied three-fold. The majority was females among the grilse (56.2%) and 2-sea-year salmon (88.6%); all 3-sea-year adults were female. Eggs deposited per female averaged 4200, 8500 and 12 750 eggs in each age group, respectively. Simulations of population abundances at various life stages were in good agreement with the observed data. The S–R relationship revealed the low productivity and the vulnerability of this stock, mainly due to the low survival rate of the young during their first year of life. The maximum yield of 12.2% of recruits could be obtained from a deposition of 1 424 000 eggs, which is twice the present average level.
A requiem for the use of 20 log10 Length for acoustic target strength with special reference to deep-sea fishes
Authors: McClatchie S , Macaulay G.J , Coombs R.F
Published: July 2003

Although it is well known that the slopes of target strength (TS) and length relationships vary widely, it is common in fisheries acoustics to force the TS–length regression through a slope of 20. Is it time to abandon this practice? The theoretical justification was that TS should be proportional to cross-sectional area, and that area should scale as the square of the linear dimension (fish length). There are now many species other than gadoids that are the subject of acoustic surveys, and many of them do not have the same morphology as the gadoid fishes. The slope of the TS–length regressions deviates significantly from 20. The empirical slope should be used wherever it can be shown to be more appropriate than the 20 log10 L model. Using the data from swimbladder models, it is shown that Macrourids, a merluccid hake and Oreosomatidae have a different relationship should between swimbladder size and fish size compared with that of gadoids. It is demonstrated that the 20 log10 L model is not appropriate for these deep-water fish and that deviations from the model arise, to a considerable degree, from variation in fish morphotypes. The TS of deep-water Macrourids, a merluccid hake and Oreosomatidae are lower than that of gadoids. This is related to the swimbladder size–fish size relationship in different morphotypes, although not much evidence can be found to support the concept that swimbladder sizes are generally smaller in deep-sea fishes.
The dynamics of the summer-spawning population of the loliginid squid Sepioteuthis australis in Tasmania, Australia—a conveyor belt of recruits
Authors: Jackson George D , Pecl Gretta
Published: July 2003

The population dynamics of the loliginid squid Sepioteuthis australis was examined on a fine temporal scale during a 2-month period of rising sea-surface temperatures on the summer inshore spawning grounds of Coles Bay, Tasmania, Australia. Samples were taken regularly (generally weekly) to discern any short-term population changes in age, growth or reproductive parameters. There was no change in the mean age, mantle length or weight of males or females through the study period (November and December 1996). This indicated that instead of following one or a few discrete cohorts of spawning individuals, there were continuous waves of new individuals moving onto the spawning beds, which may be best described by a conveyer belt of new recruits. There was an abrupt and significant difference in the mean oviduct egg size in females caught between November and December but the factors responsible for this remain unknown. Few squid showed evidence of recent feeding, suggesting that they move off the spawning grounds to feed.
The impacts of scallop dredging on sponge assemblages in the Gulf of Kalloni (Aegean Sea, northeastern Mediterranean)
Authors: Kefalas E , Castritsi-Catharios J , Miliou H
Published: July 2003

Concerns have been raised on the impact of bottom-fishing activities in the shallow Gulf of Kalloni (Lesvos Island, Aegean Sea). Fishing with demersal gears was banned in 1995, but the Gulf was reopened in 1998 only for scallop dredging using the “lagamna” gear. Two series of samplings were done with this gear in 1998 and 1999 (October) before the beginning of scallop-fishing period (from November up to March), aiming to investigate possible changes in sponge assemblages. Sponges (Porifera) were the most abundant meso-megafaunal benthic organisms in the Gulf, besides scallops and other bivalves. Total abundance, number of species, species diversity, species richness and evenness of sponge assemblages reduced significantly from the year 1998 to 1999. The population of the excavating Cliona celata, the only infaunal sponge species found in the Gulf, decreased. Multivariate analysis on the abundance data of epibenthic sponge species revealed a clear separation of samples collected during the 2 years, indicating changes in the structure of sponge assemblages. The distinguishing species included a variety of growth forms: massive (Mycale massa, Suberites domuncula and Tethya citrina), lobose (Suberites massa, Tedania anhelans and Halichondria panicea), erect branching (Raspailia viminalis), encrusting (Crambe crambe) and cushion-shaped (Mycale contarenii and Chondrilla nuculla) sponges. Among these species, only S. massa increased its abundance in 1999. All others decreased. No significant loss of information occurred when multivariate analysis was applied to abundance data of genera or families. This comparative study demonstrated that the time interval between two consecutive scallop-fishing periods was insufficient for the recovery of sponge assemblages. It is concluded that scallop dredging causes long-term changes in the structure and biodiversity of sponge assemblages in the Gulf of Kalloni. An improved strategy of fishery management is required in future for the conservation of living resources in this Gulf.
Habitat value of a developing estuarine brackish marsh for fish and macrocrustaceans
Authors: Hampel H , Cattrijsse A , Vincx M
Published: July 2003

Marsh creation receives worldwide attention in mitigating loss of coastal wetlands and in management retreat of estuaries. In the Westerschelde, the former Selena Polder, south from the marsh of Saeftinghe, developed into the Sieperda marsh after several dyke breaches. Soon after the tides regained access to the polder, a tidal creek was formed. After 10 years, a developing marsh system was found adjacent to a mature marsh system. This situation offered the opportunity to compare the utilization by nekton species of a natural mature marsh with a recently created developing marsh under similar circumstances.

Between April and October 1999, both the mature Saeftinghe marsh and the developing Sieperda marsh were sampled every 6 weeks on 2 consecutive days. Each sampling occasion covered the whole tidal cycle. The most important environmental parameters (water height, temperature, salinity, turbidity and dissolved oxygen) were similar in both marsh creeks. A distinct difference in nekton community structure between the two marshes was observed. The total biomass and densities of nekton species were higher in Saeftinghe.

In Saeftinghe, a density peak occurred in July and was mainly due to large numbers of the mysid, Neomysis integer. In Sieperda, maximum abundance of the mysid, Mesopodopsis slabberi, caused the peak density in September. This difference in species dominance was observed in all samples.

Biomass peaked in July in the mature marsh and in October in the developing marsh. Mysid shrimp (N. integer) and fish (mainly Pomatoschistus microps) were the main contributors to the biomass Saeftinghe. Herring, sprat (Clupeidae) and shore crab (Carcinus maenas) were more important in Sieperda. For P. microps, distinct differences in length–frequency distributions were noted between the marshes.

While creek morphology influences the abundance and species composition of visiting nekton, the age of a marsh and its maturity are believed to be the prime factors in determining the habitat function of creek systems of developing and mature marshes.
Biology of Ethmalosa fimbriata (Bowdich) and fish diversity in the Ebrie Lagoon (Ivory Coast), a multipolluted environment
Authors: Guyonnet B , Aliaume C , Albaret J.-J , Casellas C , Zerbi A , Lasserre G , Do Chi T
Published: July 2003

The biology of the clupeid Ethmalosa fimbriata (Bowdich) was studied as a potential bio-indicator of pollution in three bays of the Ebrie Lagoon, an inter-tropical lagoon in the Ivory Coast (western Africa). Bietri Bay was the most impacted by Abidjan's industrial and urban waste, Cocody Bay was characterized by the presence of eutrophic water, and Sud Boulay Bay, located in a rural zone, was least impacted. Sizes at first maturity (fork length) of E. fimbriata were lowest in the most polluted bay (Bietri: 80.8 and 83.5 mm for males and females, respectively), higher in the intermediately polluted bay (Cocody: 125 and 137.5 mm, respectively), and highest in the unpolluted bay (Sud Boulay: 135 and 145 mm, respectively). Owing to its hardiness, E. fimbriata is the dominant species in polluted water, constituting more than 75% of the total number of fish caught. As a consequence, fish diversity decreased and the community was less structured in the polluted environment than in the unpolluted one.
Expression of hematopoietic inhibitory factors in mouse fibroblasts, macrophages and endothelial cells
Authors: Cheng La Mei , Yan Yan , Wang Qi Ru
Published: July 2003

Pure bone marrow fibroblasts, macrophages and endothelial cells were cultured in Iscove‐modified Dulbecco's medium. RT—PCR was used to determine the expression of inhibitory cytokine mRNAs in these cell types. Serum‐free conditioned medium was collected from each cell type and ultrafiltration was performed with a centriprep 10. The retentate contained substances whose molecular weights were >10 kD, whilst the filtrate contained substances with molecular weights <10 kD. The effect of conditioned media and their components on colony forming unit‐granulocyte‐macrophage (CFU‐GM) were investigated.

The results showed: (1) six cytokines, MIP‐1α, MIP‐2, TGF‐β, TNF‐α, IFN‐γ and Tβ4, inhibited the growth of CFU‐GM when murine WEHI‐3 conditioned medium was added to the culture system as a source of colony stimulation. (2) The original endothelial cell conditioned medium (E‐CM) did not affect the production of CFU‐GM, but the >10 kD component of E‐CM increased its production, and the <10 kD component decreased it. Both fibroblast conditioned medium (F‐CM) and the >10 kD component of F‐CM stimulated proliferation of CFU‐GM, but the <10 kD component suppressed it. All three components of macrophage conditioned medium (M‐CM) inhibited the growth of CFU‐GM. (3) Expression of four of the mRNAs, namely MIP‐2, TNF‐α, INF‐γ and Tβ4, was seen in all three types of stromal cells, while TGF‐β mRNA was only seen in endothelial cells and macrophages, and MIP‐1α mRNA in endothelial cells and fibroblasts. The inhibitors TGF‐β, MIP‐1α, and Tβ4have an inhibitory effect on the growth of CFU‐GM, but TNF‐α, INF‐γ and MIP‐2 do not.
Simulations of observed interannual variability of tropical cyclone formation east of Australia
Authors: Walsh Kevin J.E. , Syktus Jozef
Published: July 2003

A modelling system comprising a regional climate model nested within a GCM is used to simulate the observed interannual variability of tropical cyclone formation off the east coast of Australia. The model's interannual variability of cyclone formation is weaker than that observed, with shortcomings in the model's simulation of vertical wind shear the likely cause. Copyright © 2003 Royal Meteorological Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Religion in China Today: Introduction
Authors: Overmyer Daniel L.
Published: July 2003

In the last 20 years religious traditions in many parts of China have revived their activities and organizations and rebuilt their temples, mosques and churches, despite decades of strict regulation and repression by the government. This revival is an aspect of the greater social freedom that has accompanied the economic development and diversification of that period.
Local Communal Religion in Contemporary South-east China
Authors: Dean Kenneth
Published: July 2003

This article demonstrates that the local communal religion of the villages of China, sometimes referred to as “popular religion,” has revived with great force in contemporary South-east China. In some areas, the networks of village temples have formed a second tier of local government, providing services, raising funds, and mobilizing entire communities to participate in collective rituals. The article is based on fieldwork in 600 villages of Putian, Fujian, but also discusses developments elsewhere in South-east China. The article concludes that local communal religious rituals are significant arenas for the negotiation of modernity in contemporary China.
Daoism in China Today, 1980–2002
Authors: Chi-Tim Lai
Published: July 2003

Drawing on Daoist Association sources, fieldwork and interviews, this article analyses some major aspects of Daoism in China today. It first presents the revival of destroyed Daoist temples, the return of liturgical activities in Daoist temples and the establishment of training classes for young Daoists. It also discusses the restoration of ordinations of Daoists at the Quanzhen monastery Baiyun guan and the Halls of Zhengyi Tianshi at Longhu shan. Based upon the National Daoist Association's statistics from 1996, there were about 20,000 “Daoist priests who live at home,” called sanju daoshi, who perform Daoist ritual outside monasteries in local communities across China. Despite the state's policy of controlling sanju daoshi, the revival of Daoist ritual tradition in village temples in China today reveals that Daoism is still very much alive in Chinese communities.
Buddhist China at the Century's Turn
Authors: Birnbaum Raoul
Published: July 2003

Based on fieldwork and studies of historical and contemporary materials, this article investigates several issues key to Buddhist life in the present-day PRC, focusing on Han Buddhists, especially the monastic tradition. It argues that many current practices take their shape from the innovations that transformed Chinese Buddhist life in the late Qing and Republican periods. While profound political, economic and social changes have occurred in the past few decades, some of the most pressing issues are extensions of questions raised at that time. The most significant question of the earlier period – what is the Buddhist monastic vocation, and what training and leadership are required to safeguard that ideal? – remains central to present-day activities and conceptions. To consider how to answer this question, or indeed how it is posed within present circumstances, three interconnected matters are investigated: current training methods, the economics of monasteries and the issue of leadership. In this context, Han–Tibetan interchange in the Buddhist field and the influence of overseas Chinese Buddhists on the mainland are also considered.
Islam in China: Accommodation or Separatism?
Authors: Gladney Dru C.
Published: July 2003

Many of the challenges China's Muslims confront remain the same as they have for the last 1,400 years of continuous interaction with Chinese society, but some are new as a result of China's transformed and increasingly globalized society, and especially since the watershed events of the 11 September terrorist attacks and the subsequent “war on terrorism.” Muslims in China live as minority communities, but many such communities have survived in rather inhospitable circumstances for over a millennium. This article examines Islam and Muslim minority identity in China, not only because it is where this author has conducted most of his research, but also because with the largest Muslim minority in East Asia, China's Muslims are clearly the most threatened in terms of self-preservation and Islamic identity. I argue that successful Muslim accommodation to minority status in China can be seen to be a measure of the extent to which Muslim groups allow the reconciliation of the dictates of Islamic culture to their host culture. This goes against the opposite view that can be found in the writings of some analysts, that Islam in the region is almost unavoidably rebellious and that Muslims as minorities are inherently problematic to a non-Muslim state. The history of Islam in China suggests that both within each Muslim community, as well as between Muslim nationalities, there are many alternatives to either complete accommodation or separatism.
Catholic Revival During the Reform Era
Authors: Madsen Richard
Published: July 2003

This article focuses on three distinctive features of the revival of Catholicism in China: its relatively slow rate of increase, compared with other forms of Chinese religiosity; its relatively intense internal and external conflicts; and its peculiar mix of antagonism and co-operation with the government. These are explained in terms of three interpenetrating layers of the Chinese Catholic community: its priestly, sacramental religious vision, its social embodiment in rural society, and the legacy of political conflict between the Vatican and the PRC government. Though intimately interconnected, these layers of the Catholic Church have each developed at different paces and in somewhat different directions. The effects of this are seen most clearly in the problems faced by Chinese priests.
Chinese Protestant Christianity Today
Authors: Bays Daniel H.
Published: July 2003

Protestant Christianity has been a prominent part of the general religious resurgence in China in the past two decades. In many ways it is the most striking example of that resurgence. Along with Roman Catholics, as of the 1950s Chinese Protestants carried the heavy historical liability of association with Western domination or imperialism in China, yet they have not only overcome that inheritance but have achieved remarkable growth. Popular media and human rights organizations in the West, as well as various Christian groups, publish a wide variety of information and commentary on Chinese Protestants. This article first traces the gradual extension of interest in Chinese Protestants from Christian circles to the scholarly world during the last two decades, and then discusses salient characteristics of the Protestant movement today. These include its size and rate of growth, the role of Church–state relations, the continuing foreign legacy in some parts of the Church, the strong flavour of popular religion which suffuses Protestantism today, the discourse of Chinese intellectuals on Christianity, and Protestantism in the context of the rapid economic changes occurring in China, concluding with a perspective from world Christianity.
China Since Tiananmen: The Politics of Transition. By Joseph Fewsmith. [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001. xvii+313 pp. Hard cover £40.00, ISBN 0-521-80634-8; paperback £14.95, ISBN 0-521-00105-6.]
Authors: Tsang Steve
Published: July 2003

This is a well-researched and thoughtfully-presented work which seeks to combine an analysis of elite politics with developments in intellectual trends in the decade following the Tiananmen massacre in China. In so doing, Joseph Fewsmith examines several important strands of development in how this communist state, which was in crisis in 1989, avoided the fate of its East-European and Soviet fraternal states and turned itself into a developmental state that is also emerging as an economic powerhouse a decade later.
The Nature of Chinese Politics: From Mao to Jiang. Edited by Jonathan Unger. [Armonk, NY and London: M. E. Sharpe, 2002. xvi+333 pp. Hard cover $69.95, ISBN 0-7656-0847-2; paperback $25.95, ISBN 0-7656-0848-0.]
Authors: Schoenhals Michael
Published: July 2003

This latest addition to publisher M. E. Sharpe's Australian National University contemporary China books series comes with a blurb that sends a powerful message of intimidation to the weary reviewer. In it, Richard Baum insists that the book's contents amount to “the distilled wisdom and insight of three generations of distinguished China specialists.” Now, who would want to risk stepping on the toes of one's daughter's, one's own and one's mother's generations in ‘the field’ by saying no?
The United States and China: Into the Twenty-First Century (Third Edition). By Michael Schaller. [New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002. 242 pp. Hard cover $45.00, ISBN 0-19-513758-2; paperback $23.95, ISBN 0-19-513759-0.]
Authors: Dickson Bruce J.
Published: July 2003

This useful textbook provides an overview of US–China relations between the late 19th century and the beginning of the 21st. It gives a clear chronology of events and covers the main events and issues in the relationship. It also embeds the description of these events and issues in the larger international and domestic contexts, allowing it to mesh easily with other textbooks that focus either on China's foreign relations in general or on its domestic developments.
China's Economic Challenge: Smashing the Iron Rice Bowl. By Neil C. Hughes. [Armonk, NY and London: M. E. Sharpe, 2002. 256 pp. $58.95. ISBN 0-7656-0808-1.]
Authors: Kwan Fung
Published: July 2003

This book about Chinese economic reform is written by an industrial and financial specialist. It examines the argument of China's moving from a centrally-planned economy to one with more market components, asking, in the author's words, “whether the iron rice bowl has already been broken.” There are seven chapters in total.
Finanzausgleichspolitik in der Volksrepublik China: Eine empirische Analyse der Haushaltsreformpolitik von 1994 im Spannungsfeld zwischen Zentrale und Peripherie. By Dagmar Hauff. [Frankfurt: Peter Lang, 2002. xxii+253 pp. ISBN 3-631-37437-2.]
Authors: Krug Barbara
Published: July 2003

This book attempts to analyse one aspect of the 1994 fiscal reforms in China, namely the effects of fiscal decentralization on the fiscal relations of and between subnational government units, in particular the provinces. Unlike most other books on fiscal reforms or the fiscal side of state–local relations, Finanzausgleichspolitik in der Volksrepublik China makes use of the toolkit of economics to cut through the different forms and stages of fiscal reforms and to offer an analytical form by which the effects can be assessed.
Democratization and Welfare State Development in Taiwan. By Christian Aspalter. [Aldershot, Hampshire: Ashgate, 2002. xii+171 pp. ISBN 0-7546-1603-7.]
Authors: Fell Dafydd
Published: July 2003

Taiwan studies suffer from an overemphasis on cross-straits relations and national identity, making Christian Aspalter's Democratization and Welfare State Development in Taiwan a refreshing change. After his previous comparative publication, Conservative Welfare States in East Asia, Aspalter offers readers the first English language book-length publication explaining the development of Taiwan's welfare state.
Digital Dragon: High-Technology Enterprises in China. By Adam Segal. [Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 2003. xiii+184pp. $35.00. ISBN 0-8014-3985-X.]
Authors: Cao Cong
Published: July 2003

Digital Dragon claims to be “the first detailed look at a major Chinese institutional experiment and at high-tech endeavors in China” (inside book jacket). In fact, the book is more about the Chinese government's policies towards high-tech enterprises than about high-tech enterprises themselves. In particular it examines how four Chinese cities – Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Xi'an – have differed in implementing such policies, and how policy variations have impacted on the nation's high-tech development trajectories in different localities.
The First Tung Chee-hwa Administration: The First Five Years of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Edited by Lau Siu-kai. [Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 2002. xxxiv+430 pp. ISBN 962-996-015-X.]
Authors: Goodstadt Leo F.
Published: July 2003

Why has Hong Kong's experience as a Special Administrative Region proved so disappointing? Since 1997, the government has become more unpopular than at any time since regular opinion polls began two decades ago. The public has responded with disquiet to changes in long-established housing, educational, hospital and welfare programmes because the new policies are perceived as very often ill-conceived and poorly co-ordinated.
The Cinema of Hong Kong: History, Arts, Identity. Edited by Poshek Fu and David Desser. [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. 333 pp. ISBN 0-521-77602-3.]
Authors: Goldstein Joshua
Published: July 2003

This edited volume of 14 essays is an aptly titled and useful resource, particularly for anyone interested in the first of its three themes, the history of Hong Kong film from the 1920s up to the present. Like most such volumes, the essays are of uneven quality and the editors could have done a bit more to fix some awkward writing and iron out some grammatical wrinkles and typos.
Consuming Hong Kong. Edited by Gordon Mathews and Tai-lok Lui. [Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2001. 340 pp. ISBN 962-209-536-4.]
Authors: Baker Hugh D. R.
Published: July 2003

In 1997 James Watson edited and published Golden Arches East, a labour of love on manifestations of McDonald's in East Asia, which by focusing on differences of usage and acceptance in various countries threw some light on nuances of consumerism.
Essential Outsiders: Chinese and Jews in the Modern Transformation of Southeast Asia and Central Europe. Edited by Daniel Chirot and Anthony Reid. [Seattle and London: University of Washington Press, 1997. 335 pp. ISBN 0-295-97613-6.]
Authors: Xun Zhou
Published: July 2003

Xenophobic nationalism and ethnic conflict have been major features of modern times. As Daniel Chirot rightly points out about Jews in Europe and Chinese in South-East Asia in his introduction, “information about these two successful but often persecuted minorities offers insights about the very formation of ethnic and nationalist identities, and clues about when such a process is more or less likely to lead to either violent social separation and conflict or peaceful accommodation” (p. 3).
Innovation in Chinese Medicine. Edited by Elisabeth Hsu. [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001. 426 pp. $90.00. ISBN 0-521-80068-4.]
Authors: Ping-chen Hsiung
Published: July 2003

Innovation can be of crucial concern to the development of any medical tradition. It is of particular importance for a proper understanding of Chinese medical developments, in part because of the long-held misgivings about traditional therapies as an unchanging heritage, which has led to an insistent differentiation between medicine and Chinese medicine, especially at the time when Lu Gwei-Djen (1904–1991) lived.
Commentary: Europe, America and the Middle East
Authors: BOLKESTEIN FRITS
Published: July 2003

Let me begin by quoting the headings of a few articles. ‘Americans feel lonely in an angry world’, ‘Alliance in a troubled mood’, or ‘I wonder whether cool heads still prevail’. The first and the third articles were published in 1980, the second in 1981. So we have been here before.
How historians play God
Authors: DARNTON ROBERT
Published: July 2003

This essay recounts the career of Jacques-Pierre Brissot, the leader of the Girondists during the French Revolution, in a manner designed to pose questions about the nature of historical research in general. How, in piecing together information taken from scraps of paper, do historians come to an understanding of other lives? Put in the abstract, the problem belongs to epistemology or ethics. Confronted in practice, it is more like the puzzles uncovered by archaeologists. The historian digs out a shard of evidence from the archives and asks: was Brissot, the ultimate idealist, a spy for the police? By stepping in and out of layers of time, the historian is actually playing a deeper game, one that he or she may be reluctant to admit.
Neither history nor praxis
Authors: GEUSS RAYMOND
Published: July 2003

John Rawls construed the Theory of Justice as central to political philosophy, and defended a series of purportedly egalitarian versions of such a theory. This essay points out that Rawls' philosophy became increasingly influential during precisely that period in recent history – the last quarter of the 20th century – in which global inequality increased most dramatically, and explores some possible explanations of this peculiar fact. It concludes by arguing that methodological defects make his approach fundamentally misguided: early versions of his theory are too abstract to be of relevance to understanding politics or as guides to action, and later ones too parochial.
‘Lesser-used’ languages in historic Europe: models of change from the 16th to the 19th centuries
Authors: HOUSTON R. A.
Published: July 2003

This article charts and tries to explain the changing use of ‘minority’ languages in Europe between the end of the Middle Ages and the 19th century. This period saw the beginnings of a decline in the use of certain dialects and separate languages, notably Irish and Scottish Gaelic, although some tongues such as Catalan and Welsh remained widely used. The article develops some models of the relationship between language and its social, economic and political context. That relationship was mediated through the availability of printed literature; the political (including military) relations between areas where different languages or dialects were spoken; the nature and relative level of economic development (including urbanization); the policy of the providers of formal education and that of the church on religious instruction and worship; and, finally, local social structures and power relationships. The focus is principally on western Europe, but material is also drawn from Scandinavia and from eastern and central Europe.
Deterrence and tax morale in the European Union
Authors: FREY BRUNO S.
Published: July 2003

Deterrence has been the prevalent strategy to enforce tax revenue both throughout history and in economic theory. This approach is, however, problematic because it is inconsistent with empirical reality. I wish to consider a new way of thinking about taxation, following psychological economics. I submit that individuals have a substantial amount of civic virtue and tax morale. Taxation is ‘quasi-voluntary’ and cannot reasonably be enforced by deterrence. Tax morale is lowered when the citizens have little trust in their state, and feel badly treated by the tax office. According to official surveys, the European Union is faced with a ‘democracy deficit’ and dwindling support from the citizens. At the EU-level, civic virtue and tax morale can be improved by offering more (direct) political participation rights and raising taxes in a decentralized way.
Science between freedom and responsibility
Authors: FENSTAD JENS ERIK
Published: July 2003

The post Second World War period was a good time for modern science-driven technology; it had played a decisive part in the allied victory and now it was to be harnessed to the task of postwar reconstruction, promoting increased welfare, better health and improved security. But there were also misgivings related to the freedom in the conduct of science. Could science be freely pursued under the terms of a social contract so inextricably intertwined with national security concerns? After the end of the Cold War, new concerns emerged. The security element in the old contract had acquired a new meaning and was now understood in the sense of a protected environment, safe living conditions and future sustainability. Previously, science was the problem solver. Now science came to be seen as a major source of the problems. We have seen a shift from issues of freedom and trust to questions of responsibility and accountability. How should science respond?
Risk communication: pitfalls and promises
Authors: LOFSTEDT RAGNAR
Published: July 2003

Over the past 30 years, researchers and practitioners have discussed the importance of risk communication in solving disputes ranging from the public outcry regarding importing GMO foods from the United States to Europe, the siting of waste incinerators in many parts of Europe to the building a permanent high level nuclear waste facility in the United States. In this paper the history of risk communication is discussed, focusing particularly on the importance of the social amplification of risk and trust. This is followed by a detailed discussion on trust as it relates to public perception of risk, where it is argued that trust is composed of three variables. The third section covers the theoretical debate of how to best deal with the decline in public trust. This is followed by a short analysis in which it is concluded that there is no simple solution to increasing public trust (and thereby assuring greater risk communication successes).
Germinating pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan) seeds secrete factor(s) having antiethylene‐like effects
Authors: Prakash Shiva , Koul Sunita , Bhalla‐Sarin Neera
Published: July 2003

Germinating pigeonpea seeds were found to release factor(s), which dramatically altered the growth pattern of rice seedlings. This included an increased sensitivity of roots to gravity, an increase in seminal root length, and increased density of branch roots on the seminal root and suppression of root hair formation. Furthermore, the known characteristic responses of rice to ethylene (namely, coleoptile growth promotion and induction of senescence) were inhibited by the presence of these factor(s). This altered growth pattern of rice seedlings was similar to that brought about by the ethylene‐antagonist, silver nitrate. Further, the change in growth pattern in rice was specifically reversed by ethrel. In addition, in wild‐type Arabidopsis thaliana these factors suppressed formation of root hair, the development of which is known to be promoted by ethylene. In contrast, in a mutant A. thaliana which shows constitutive ethylene response (ctr1‐1), the factors failed to inhibit root hair formation. These observations indicated that germinating pigeonpea seeds secrete factor(s), which have antiethylene‐like effects.
Exogenously applied melatonin (N‐acetyl‐5‐methoxytryptamine) affects flowering of the short‐day plant Chenopodium rubrum
Authors: Kolář Jan , Johnson Carl Hirschie , Macháčková Ivana
Published: July 2003

Melatonin (N‐acetyl‐5‐methoxytryptamine) is an animal hormone synthesized predominantly at night. It often serves as a signal of darkness that regulates circadian rhythmicity and photoperiodism. Melatonin has also been found in algae and higher plants, including the short‐day flowering plant Chenopodium rubrum. To test its involvement in plant photoperiodism, melatonin solutions were applied to the cotyledons and plumules of 5‐day‐old‐seedlings of Chenopodium rubrum L., ecotype 374. 3H‐labelled melatonin was readily taken up by the plants and was very stable for a period of 37 h from application. Treatment with 100 and 500 µM melatonin significantly reduced flowering of plants exposed to a single inductive 12‐h darkness. Melatonin was efficient only when applied before lights off or during the first half of the dark period. This indicates that melatonin affects some early steps of the transition to flowering. However, it had no effect on the period or phase of a circadian rhythm in photoperiodic time measurement. Melatonin agonists (2‐I‐melatonin, 6‐Cl‐melatonin, CGP 52608) and 5‐hydroxytryptamine also reduced flowering, whereas 5‐methoxytryptamine did not. The results demonstrate that exogenous melatonin is able to influence the early stages of photoperiodic flower induction and/or flower development in a higher plant. Possible mechanisms for this effect are discussed.
Two subfamilies of plant purple acid phosphatases
Authors: Olczak Mariusz , Wątorek Wiesław
Published: July 2003

The cDNA sequences of two purple acid phosphatases (previously purified AcPase1 and putative AcPase2) from yellow lupin (Lupinus luteus L) have been determined. AcPase1 mRNA is 1755 nt in length, including a single open reading frame of 1434 nt that encodes 477 amino acid residues (EMBL accession number AJ458943). The AcPase2 mRNA is a 170‐nt molecule, including a single open reading frame of 1392 nt that encodes 463 amino acid residues (EMBL accession number AJ505579). Both sequences were compared with known purple acid phosphatases (PAPs). The analysis of all known PAP sequences showed that they are divided into two subfamilies. The characteristic feature of the first subfamily containing AcPase1 is the lack of cysteine residues in the C‐terminal region of the polypeptide around position 350. AcPase2 belongs to the second subfamily which contains a disulphide bridge formed of cysteines present around position 350. A possible relationship between structure and substrate specificity in these two PAP subfamilies is presented. Expression of AcPase1 and AcPase2 shows that the first enzyme is produced in the early stage of germination (its mRNA in polyadenylated form is present already in dry seeds), whereas the second phosphatase is produced mainly in the roots of mature plants. The early expression of AcPase1 was confirmed by a comparative analysis of a cotranslational N‐glycosylation of AcPase1 and diphosphonucleotide phosphatase/phosphodiesterase (PPD1) known to be expressed in the final stage of germination.