bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Provenance analysis as a key to orogenic exhumation: a case study from the East Carpathians (Romania)
Authors: Panaiotu Cristina E. , Vasiliev Iuliana , Panaiotu Cristian G. , Krijgsman Wout , Langereis Cor G.
Published: March 2007

Provenance analysis of the sediments from foredeep basins is crucial in understanding the contemporaneous orogenic exhumation processes. We report in this paper complex sediment provenance analysis using sandstone petrography and mudstone geochemistry, combined with magnetic susceptibility of the Upper Miocene to Pliocene deposits from Focşani foredeep basin (Romania). Data show a change of source area between 5 and 6 Ma, from an active volcanic arc towards a recycled orogenic belt, concurrent with an important increase of accumulation rate. This change was triggered by exhumation and erosion of the outer nappes from East Carpathians.
Oligocene uplift of the Western Greater Caucasus: an effect of initial Arabia–Eurasia collision
Authors: Vincent Stephen J. , Morton Andrew C. , Carter Andrew , Gibbs Samantha , Barabadze Teimuraz G.
Published: March 2007

The Greater Caucasus is Europe's largest mountain belt. Significant uncertainties remain over the evolution of the range, largely due to a lack of primary field data. This work demonstrates that depositional systems within the Oligocene–Early Miocene Maykop Series on either side of the Western Greater Caucasus (WGC) display a similar provenance and divergent palaeocurrents away from the range, constraining a minimum age for the subaerial uplift of the range as early Early Oligocene. An Eocene–Oligocene hiatus, basal Oligocene olistostromes and a marked increase in nannofossil reworking also point to initial deformation in the earliest Oligocene. The initial uplift of the WGC occurred during the final assembly of the Tethysides to its south. Uplift commenced after the Late Eocene final suturing of northern Neotethys and during the initial collision of Arabia with the southern accreted margin of Eurasia. This suggests that compressional deformation was rapidly transferred across the collision zone from the indenting Arabian plate to its northern margin.
Post‐mortem Examination of Sows Genital Organs Culled for Reproductive Disturbances and Immunohistochemical Studies on ERα and PR A Receptors in the Anoestral Sows Uterus
Authors: Karveliene B , Zilinskas H , Riskevicience V
Published: March 2007

Contents

The aim of present study was post‐mortem examination of ovaries, uterus and plasma oestradiol‐17β (E2) and progesterone (P4) concentrations in the blood of sows with reproductive disturbances and the distribution of oestradiol receptor (ERα), as well as progesterone (PR‐A) in the anoestrous sows uteri. Reproductive organs of 150 crossbred sows (Lithuanian White × Danish Landrace) culled for the reasons of reproductive disturbances, were collected in local abattoir over a period of 3 months (September–November). Organs were assessed to determine the stage of the oestrous cycle or anoestrus and their development. Blood samples were collected for E2 and P4 analysis from the jugular vein 1 h prior to slaughter. For this study uterine samples only from pathological anoestrous sows were subjected to immunohistochemical staining to assess the distribution of ERα and PR‐A in surface epithelium, subepithelial connective tissue, glandular epithelium and myometrium. Macroscopic examination of the ovaries showed that 68.7% sows had active cycling ovaries, 26.6% sows were anoestrus, ovaries were small without CL, and 4.7% of sows had multiple follicular cysts. In anoestrous sows (n = 27) the number and intensity of the nuclear staining of ERα varied between different uterine tissue compartments. The highest number (>80%) and the strongest intensity (+++) of positively stained cells for ERα was seen in myometrium and glandular epithelium. In other uterine wall compartments the number and intensity of positively stained for ERα nuclei was lower (+/++). The PR‐A was absent from all tissue compartments. The intensity of the nuclear staining for ERα varied not only between the different uterine compartments but also between the sows. The 11.1% of the sows presented ERα in surface epithelium, 74.1% of the sows in glandular epithelium and 63.0% of sows in the myometrium.
Follicle Development during Luteal Phase and Altrenogest Treatment in Pigs
Authors: Soede NM , Bouwman EG , Langendijk P , Van Der Laan I , Kanora A , Kemp B
Published: March 2007

Contents

Synchronization of the oestrous cycle of gilts using altrenogest treatment has been found to increase ovulation rate. The current experiment investigated if the increase in ovulation rate after altrenogest treatment is related to increased follicle size at the end of altrenogest treatment compared with late luteal phase follicles. Crossbred gilts (n = 15) received altrenogest during 18 days [20 mg Regumate (Janssen Animal Health, Beerse, Belgium)], starting 5–7 days after onset of first oestrus. Control gilts (n = 15) did not receive altrenogest. At days 10–12 of the oestrous cycle [i.e. in the presence of corpora lutea (CL)], average follicle development was 2.51 ± 0.20 mm (assessed with ultrasound) in altrenogest‐treated gilts and 2.58 ± 0.16 mm in control gilts (p > 0.10). During the last days of altrenogest treatment (i.e. when CL had gone into regression), average follicle size had increased to 3.01 ± 0.31 mm (p < 0.05). Subsequent ovulation rate was 16.6 ± 1.7 in altrenogest treated gilts and 15.1 ± 1.2 in control gilts (p < 0.05). Altrenogest treatment resulted in increased follicle size after regression of the CL, showing that suppression of follicle growth by altrenogest alone is less severe than suppression by endogenous progesterone (either with or without altrenogest). Altrenogest treatment also resulted in a higher ovulation rate. However, it is unclear if the increased follicle size and higher ovulation rate after altrenogest treatment are causally related, as the relation between the two on an animal level was not significant.
Post‐thaw Survival and Longevity of Bull Spermatozoa Frozen with an Egg Yolk‐based or Two Egg Yolk‐free Extenders after an Equilibration Period of 18 h
Authors: Muiño R , Fernández M , Peña AI
Published: March 2007

Contents

The aim of the present study was to determine the suitability of using two egg yolk‐free commercial extenders, Andromed® and Biociphos Plus®, as compared with the Tris‐egg yolk based diluent Biladyl®, for the cryopreservation of bull spermatozoa when the freezing protocol involved holding the extended semen at 4°C for 18 h before the freezing. Six ejaculates from each of 10 Holstein bulls were collected by using artificial vagina. The ejaculates were evaluated for volume, sperm concentration and motility, divided in to three equal volumes, and diluted, respectively, with the three extenders as specified above. Extended semen was equilibrated for 18 h at 4°C and frozen in 0.25‐ml straws. After thawing, 100‐μl aliquots of semen were labelled with SYBR‐14, PI and PE‐PNA (Phycoerythrin‐conjugated Peanut agglutinin) and analysed by flow cytometry at 0, 3, 6 and 9 h after incubation at 37°C. A General Lineal Model procedure for repeated measures was used to determine the effects of extender, bull, replicate and the interaction between them, on sperm viability and acrosomal integrity. Semen samples frozen with Biladyl® showed higher (p < 0.001) sperm survival after 0 h (47.9%) and 9 h (30.3%) of incubation than those frozen with Andromed® (38.5% and 17.3%, after 0 and 9 h respectively) or Biociphos Plus® (34.9% and 21.6%, after 0 and 9 h respectively). The bull and replicate had significant effects (p < 0.001) on both sperm viability and acrosomal integrity, but the interactions between bull and extender and between replicate and extender were not significant. It was concluded that, when holding the semen overnight before freezing, the use of Biladyl® results in higher sperm survival and longevity than the use of Andromed® or Biociphos Plus®.
Depressive realism: Evidence from false interpersonal perception
Authors: YEH ZAI‐TING , LIU SHEN‐ING
Published: March 2007

Abstract  The present study examined the depressive realism hypothesis, which posits that depressed people are often more accurate in their perceptions and judgments than non‐depressed people are. Each subject initially generated descriptions of others important to them, both positive and negative important others, in the pretest section, and 3 or 4 weeks later, some subjects were invited into the formal experiment to measure the accuracy of their perceptions in a pseudo–social interaction situation. A total of 52 patients diagnosed with clinical depression and 62 normal matched subjects participated in the experimental procedure. The results indicate that clinically depressed patients provided more accurate, less distorted descriptions of their positive important others than did those in the normal group. However, when information involved the negative important others, the results exhibited a trend, but these results did not provide significant support for the depressive realism hypothesis. The results support the depressive realism hypothesis when tasks involve subjects' own positive important others.
Multicomponent attention deficits in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
Authors: KILIÇ BİRİM GÜNAY , ŞENER ŞAHNUR , İLDEN KOÇKAR AYLİN , KARAKAŞ SİREL
Published: March 2007

Abstract  The aim of this study was to examine the specific aspects of attention, such as selective attention, sustained attention, and short‐term memory in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, combined subtype (ADHD‐C). A total of 40 children with a diagnosis of ADHD from the 4th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, aged 6–11 years old were compared with 40 controls matched for age and gender on a battery of tests. Short‐term memory span and attention was measured by Visual Aural Digit Span Test–Revised. Stroop test and the Turkish version of Cancellation Test were used to assess selective and sustained attention, respectively. In order to check for factor structure in two groups on the test scores, principal component analysis was conducted for both groups separately. Relative to the comparison children, children with ADHD showed significant deficits on tests that are related to different aspects of attention. The results are consistent with the theories explaining the biological basis of ADHD by scattered attention networks in the brain, which have reciprocal dynamic interactions. Further comparative studies are needed to elucidate whether the cognitive processes that are known to be assessed by these tests are specific to ADHD.
Persistent generalized anxiety after brief exposure to the dopamine antagonist metoclopramide
Authors: KLUGE MICHAEL , SCHÜSSLER PETRA , STEIGER AXEL
Published: March 2007

Abstract  The authors describe a 31‐year‐old woman who developed persistent generalized anxiety after brief exposure to the dopamine antagonist metoclopramide. Independently of that, she had experienced a panic attack followed by dystonias, shortly after a single dose of that drug, 17 years before. Both temporal association and recurrence of anxiety symptoms after re‐challenge with metoclopramide suggest a causal relationship. The case might provide an initial piece of evidence that dopaminergic neurotransmission can be involved in the pathogenesis of generalized anxiety disorder.
Parental ages at birth of children with pervasive developmental disorders are higher than those of children in the general population
Authors: KOYAMA TOMONORI , MIYAKE YUKO , KURITA HIROSHI
Published: March 2007

Abstract  To examine whether parental ages at birth of children with pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) are elevated, maternal/paternal ages at birth of 309 PDD children born in 1993–2003 (mean age, 8.4 years) were compared with those of children in the Japanese national statistics (general population). The mean maternal/paternal ages (years) at birth of PDD children of 31.7/34.6 were significantly higher even than the highest mean maternal/paternal ages at birth of children of 31.2/33.6 in the national statistics in 2003. This first Japanese study to report elevated parental ages at birth of PDD children underscores the need of further extensive studies.
Aspidistras, amphipods and Oz: Niche opportunism between strangers in a strange land
Authors: CONRAN JOHN G. , BRADBURY JOHN H.
Published: March 2007

The subterranean flowers of Aspidistra in their natural habitat of moist temperate East Asian forests are reportedly pollinated by terrestrial amphipods. Seed set by cultivated plants growing in Adelaide, South Australia, suggests that a pollinator shift has occurred and the results show that despite their different origins, the apparently highly specialized pollination system of the Asian Aspidistra can be accomplished by an introduced eastern Australian amphipod, Arcitalitrus sylvaticus. Pollination is possibly also achieved by cosmopolitan collembolans that feed on pollen inside the floral chambers. It appears that by providing subterranean floral chambers, Aspidistra potentially exploits the cryptic, fugitive behavior of soil or litter‐dwelling invertebrates. This supports the theory of asymmetrical pollination where an apparently specialized flower is pollinated successfully through the generalized behavior of its pollinators.
8: Polygonatum odoratum (Miller) Druce var. pluriflorum (Miq.) Ohwi (Convallariaceae)
Authors: OHARA MASASHI , TAMURA MINORU , HIROSE TOMOYUKI , HIEI KAYAKO , KAWANO SHOICHI
Published: March 2007

The life‐history characteristics of Polygonatum odoratum (Miller) Druce var. pluriflorum (Miq.) Ohwi (Convallariaceae) are described. This is a polycarpic perennial that occurs in Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu in Japan, extending further to the Korean Peninsula and China. Polygonatum odoratum var. pluriflorum is a late starter in spring, its shoots sprouting in late April to early May, while the upper canopy layer is gradually expanding its foliage leaves and casting shade on the forest floor. Flowering starts in mid‐May right after the aerial shoots sprout; flowers are axillary, with 0.8 to 2 cm pedicels; 1 to 2 flowers, white, greenish near the tip and 17–19 mm long, hang from several portions of the inflorescences of the angled stems, which attain 30–60 cm in height. This is a typical insect‐pollinated plant, and white tubular flowers with a large nectary hang down from the inflorescence. Flowering occurs sequentially from bottom to top. The numbers of ovules and pollen grains per flower were 14–18 and 42 000–90 000, respectively, and pollen/ovule (P/O) ratios of 3000/5300 indicate that this is an outbreeding species. There is a tendency for the P/O ratios to decrease gradually in later flowering upper flowers within an inflorescence. The fruit set within an inflorescence also showed a similar tendency, that is, approximately 55.2% in lower flowers, 35.8% in middle flowers and 17.3% in upper flowers. As was reported in var. odoratum, there may be resource competition among flowers within an inflorescence.
Changes in eye care utilization following an eye health promotion campaign
Authors: Müller Andreas , Keeffe Jill E , Taylor Hugh R
Published: March 2007

Abstract

Background: The Vision Initiative is a public health campaign that promotes the early detection of the main causes of vision loss through regular eye examinations. Target groups are people over 50 years, with diabetes, a family history of glaucoma or age‐related macular degeneration and those who have noted a change in vision.

Methods: In 2005, a range of initiatives promoted the main campaign messages using metropolitan and regional television, radio and newspapers. Campaign outcomes such as last visits to an eye specialist were evaluated comparing pre‐ and post‐campaign data. Participation was volunteer based from randomly selected Melbourne suburbs. Recruitment was by mail. Participants were between 70 and 79 years of age. A questionnaire collected information about demographics, utilization of eye care services, general health and lifestyle. Key features of the five main eye diseases that cause vision loss in Australia were assessed.

Results: The percentage of people that reported to have visited an eye specialist within the last year increased significantly from 61% to 70% (P < 0.001). Also the percentage of people with diabetes that reported to have a dilated fundus examination within the last 2 years increased significantly from 52% to 70% (P < 0.001) and the percentage of people reporting to always wear sunglasses when going out in the sun increased significantly from 33% to 39% (P < 0.001).

Conclusions: Following the campaign, there was an improvement in the utilization of eye care services, especially by people with diabetes. However, other Australian public campaigns may contribute to the increased awareness of the effect of diabetes on eye health.
Recruiters’ Perceptions and Use of Applicant Résumé Information: Screening the Recent Graduate
Authors: Cole Michael S. , Rubin Robert S. , Feild Hubert S. , Giles William F.
Published: March 2007

Despite résumés being evaluated as an initial step in most employment decisions for professional‐level job openings, researchers have not adequately examined the influence that applicants’ résumé qualifications may have on recruiters’ initial impressions of applicants’ employability. Based on prior research, we hypothesised that recruiters’ perceptions of job applicant employability will be associated with varying levels of job applicants’ academic qualifications, work experience, and extracurricular activities as reported on applicants’ résumés. Experienced recruiters (N= 244) evaluated 122 actual applicant résumés of recent or soon‐to‐be college graduates. Results supported our hypotheses, indicating that recruiters’ perceptions of applicants’ academic qualifications, work experience, and extracurricular activities interacted to predict recruiters’ perceptions of applicants’ employability.

Alors que les curriculum vitae sont évalués lors de l’étape initiale de la plupart des procédures de recrutement pour pourvoir des nouveaux emplois d’un niveau professionnel élevé, les chercheurs n’ont pas suffisamment étudié l’influence des qualifications inscrites dans le curriculum vitae sur les premières impressions des recruteurs quant à l’employabilité des candidats. Basée sur une recherche antérieure, notre hypothèse pose que les perceptions des recruteurs de l’employabilité des candidats à un emploi varieraient selon les qualifications académiques du candidat, l’expérience professionnelle et les activités extra‐professionnelles telles qu’elles sont présentées dans le curriculum vitae. Des recruteurs expérimentés (N= 244) ont évalué 122 curriculum vitae de candidats réels récemment ou sur le point d’être diplômés de l’université. Les résultats confirment nos hypothèses. Les perceptions des recruteurs quant aux qualifications universitaires des candidats, leur expérience professionnelle et leurs autres activités interagissent et permettent de prédire les perceptions que les recruteurs ont de l’employabilité des candidats.
Rapid humanitarian assessments and rationality: a value‐of‐information study from Iraq, 2003‐04
Authors: Benini Aldo , Conley Charles
Published: March 2007

Rapid assessments are one of the standard informational tools in humanitarian response and are supposed to contribute to rational decision‐making.1 The extent to which the assessment organisation itself behaves rationally, however, is an open question. This can be evaluated against multiple criteria, such as the cost and value of the information it collects and its ability to adapt flexibly design or samples when the survey environment changes unforeseeably. An unusual data constellation from two concurrent recent (2003–04) rapid assessments in northern Iraq permits us to model part of the actual assessment behaviour in terms of geographical, community and prior substantive information attributes. The model correctly predicts the decisions, in 79 per cent of the 2,425 local communities in focus, that data collector teams in the Emergency Mine Action Survey made to visit or not to visit. The analysis demonstrates variably rational behaviour under conditions of insecurity, repeated regrouping and incomplete sampling frames. A pronounced bias towards very small rural settlements is irrational for the overall results, but may be a rational strategy of individual survey workers seeking to prolong their employment. Implications for future assessments are sketched in the areas of tools for urban surveys, greater adaptability, including early feedback from users, and sensibility to value‐of‐information concepts.
Children and the Sphere standard on mental and social aspects of health
Authors: Morris Jodi , Van Ommeren Mark , Belfer Myron , Saxena Shekhar , Saraceno Benedetto
Published: March 2007

Most of the world's children live in resource‐poor countries where people are at a relatively high risk of exposure to catastrophic situations arising from conflict and natural disasters.6Given the potential social, psychological and psychiatric consequences of exposure to disaster, mental health and psychosocial support programmes are increasingly part of humanitarian aid. A minimum standard on mental and social aspects of health is included in the recently revisedHumanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response (Sphere Handbook)(Sphere Project, 2004). Most recommendations for mental health and psychosocial interventions in guidance documents are based on expert opinion rather than research. Consequently, interventions are being implemented without full understanding of their potential benefit or harm. This paper offers a child‐focused review of the evidence for each of the interventions described as indicators for the Sphere standard on mental and social aspects of health. It suggests some, but limited, support for each of them. However, the evidence base needs substantial strengthening.
Impact of psychological risk factors on disaster rescue operations: the case of Italian volunteers
Authors: Dolce Alberto , Ricciardi Melita
Published: March 2007

This paper reports on research into the characteristics of emergency rescue workers, with a focus on psychological distress. We present the results of a study of volunteers from the Italian national civil protection programme. A questionnaire was administered to 2,576 subjects from all over Italy. Most respondents were men, mostly unemployed, whose average level of education was higher than that among most Italian volunteers. Many were poorly endowed with basic skills, with large differences according to geography. Many expected to convert their volunteer activities into permanent jobs. Using this data, we employed a logistical regression model to analyse the risk of low, moderate and severe psychological distress symptoms, including anxiety and panic attacks, during rescue operations. The results indicate that some rescuers are particularly vulnerable to distress. The highest risk factors pertained to volunteers from southern Italy whose training is inadequate, who have little experience of emergency work and who play subordinate roles in small teams that lack psychological support services.
Mass casualty incident after the Taba terrorist attack: an organisational and medical challenge
Authors: Karp Erez , Sebbag Gilbert , Peiser Jochanan , Dukhno Oleg , Ovnat Amnon , Levy Isaac , Hyam Eytan , Amir Blumenfeld Lieutenant Colonel , Kluger Yoram , Simon Daniel , Shaked Gad
Published: March 2007

Two suicide bombings in and around Taba, Egypt, on 7 October 2004 created a complex medical and organisational situation. Since most victims were Israeli tourists, the National Emergency and Disaster Management Division handled their evacuation and treatment. This paper describes the event chronologically, as well as the organisational and management challenges confronted and applied solutions. Forty‐nine emergency personnel and physicians were flown early to the disaster area to reinforce scarce local medical resources. Two hundred casualties were recorded: 32 dead and 168 injured. Eilat hospital was transformed into a triage facility. Thirty‐two seriously injured patients were flown to two remote trauma centres in central Israel. Management of mass casualty incidents is difficult when local resources are inadequate. An effective response should include: rapid transportation of experienced trauma teams to the disaster zone; conversion of local medical amenities into a triage centre; and rapid evacuation of the seriously injured to higher level medical facilities.
PARENTAL VIRTUE: A NEW WAY OF THINKING ABOUT THE MORALITY OF REPRODUCTIVE ACTIONS
Authors: MCDOUGALL ROSALIND
Published: March 2007

In this paper I explore the potential of virtue ethical ideas to generate a new way of thinking about the ethical questions surrounding the creation of children. Applying ideas from neo‐Aristotelian virtue ethics to the parental sphere specifically, I develop a framework for the moral assessment of reproductive actions that centres on the concept of parental virtue. I suggest that the character traits of the good parent can be used as a basis for determining the moral permissibility of a particular reproductive action. I posit three parental virtues and argue that we can see the moral status of a reproductive action as determined by the relationship between such an action and (at least) these virtues. Using a case involving selection for deafness, I argue that thinking in terms of the question ‘would a virtuous parent do this?’ when morally assessing reproductive action is a viable and useful way of thinking about issues in reproductive ethics.
THE PARENTAL OBLIGATION TO EXPAND A CHILD'S RANGE OF OPEN FUTURES WHEN MAKING GENETIC TRAIT SELECTIONS FOR THEIR CHILD
Authors: SCHMIDT ERIC B.
Published: March 2007

As parents become increasingly able to make genetic trait selections on behalf of their children, they will need ethical guidance in deciding what genetic traits to select. Dena Davis has argued that parents act unethically if they make selections that constrain their child's range of futures. But some selections may expand the child's range of futures. And other selections may shift the child's range of futures, without either constraining or expanding that range. I contend that not only would parents act unethically if they make selections that constrain the range of their child's futures, they would act unethically if they make selections that shift the range of their child's futures, because selections that shift the range of the child's futures would allow parents to over‐determine their child's futures. Thus, I contend that parents would act ethically only if they make selections that expand their child's range of futures.
‘YOU DON'T MAKE GENETIC TEST DECISIONS FROM ONE DAY TO THE NEXT’– USING TIME TO PRESERVE MORAL SPACE
Authors: SCULLY JACKIE LEACH , PORZ ROUVEN , REHMANN‐SUTTER CHRISTOPH
Published: March 2007

The part played by time in ethics is often taken for granted, yet time is essential to moral decision making. This paper looks at time in ethical decisions about having a genetic test.

We use a patient‐centred approach, combining empirical research methods with normative ethical analysis to investigate the patients' experience of time in (i) prenatal testing of a foetus for a genetic condition, (ii) predictive or diagnostic testing for breast and colon cancer, or (iii) testing for Huntington's disease (HD). We found that participants often manipulated their experience of time, either using a stepwise process of microdecisions to extend it or, under the time pressure of pregnancy, changing their temporal ‘depth of field’. We discuss the implications of these strategies for normative concepts of moral agency, and for clinical ethics.
HEALTH, JUSTICE, AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Authors: RESNIK DAVID B. , ROMAN GERARD
Published: March 2007

In this article, we argue that the scope of bioethical debate concerning justice in health should expand beyond the topic of access to health care and cover such issues as occupational hazards, safe housing, air pollution, water quality, food and drug safety, pest control, public health, childhood nutrition, disaster preparedness, literacy, and many other environmental factors that can cause differences in health. Since society does not have sufficient resources to address all of these environmental factors at one time, it is important to set priorities for bioethical theorizing and policy formation. Two considerations should be used to set these priorities: (1) the impact of the environmental factor on health inequality, and (2) the practicality of addressing the factor.
What Do Shareholders’ Coalitions Really Want? Evidence from Italian voting trusts
Authors: Gianfrate Gianfranco
Published: March 2007

This paper studies the effects of having multiple large shareholders who share the control of firms, by analysing a unique dataset of Italian shareholders’ agreements (voting trusts). We investigate the separation between ownership and control granted by such agreements, showing that, on average, a voting trust owning 52 per cent of the total company’s cash‐flow rights is able to exercise up to 87 per cent of the total board rights; the wedge is particularly beneficial to the largest shareholder within the voting trust who is able to get the majority of board rights despite owning only a minority fraction of the company’s cash‐flow rights. Then, an event‐study analysis of a sample of voting trusts’ announcements is performed. The results support the “entrenchment effects” hypothesis (Stulz, 1988) linking the ownership structure and the firm value, and are consistent with the view that, in Italy, voting trust agreements are mainly aimed at both protecting controlling shareholders from hostile takeovers and entrenching incumbent management.
Outside Directors, Ownership Structure and Firm Profitability in Korea
Authors: Cho Dong‐Sung , Kim Jootae
Published: March 2007

The contribution of outside directors to firm performance has been shown to be inconsistent. Korean companies first began in 1998 to introduce outside directors to carry out governance reform. This paper analyses the impact of outside directors on corporate performance during the governance reform movement undertaken in Korea in 1999 as well as the moderating effect of the large shareholder and managerial ownership rate. We hypothesised a positive relationship between outside director effectiveness (outside director participation rate) and firm profitability, a negative moderating effect in terms of large shareholder ownership and managerial ownership, and a positive moderating effect when it comes to blockholder ownership. This moderating relationship is considered in order to investigate the role of large shareholders under the Korean governance structure. Our empirical analysis showed that outside directors had a weak positive impact, and that a large shareholder ownership rate and a block shareholder ownership rate moderated this relationship in a negative fashion. The managerial ownership rate did not show any significant moderating effects. We thus conclude that it is too early to assess the impact of outside directors on corporate performance, and that Korean companies exhibit an “owner‐controlled” governance structure; that is, they are governed by large shareholders who have demonstrated a resistance to attempts to bring about governance reform through such means as the introduction of outside directors. Outside shareholders were found to possess insufficient power to monitor large controlling shareholders. This paper seeks to make a contribution to the field by conducting an analysis of governance structure in Korea in the aftermath of the currency crisis, as well as of outside directors in emerging economies, a subject rarely dealt with in governance studies.
Directional Bias of Limb Tremor Prior to Voluntary Movement
Authors: Cohen Rajal G. , Rosenbaum David A.
Published: March 2007

Taking a cue from recent discoveries of directional bias in microsaccades during visual fixation, we investigated directional bias in tremor during manual pointing. Subjects memorized and then performed patterns of alternating postures and voluntary movements. The directions of the tiny movements occurring during periods of intended stillness were predictive of subsequent target-directed movements such that in the horizontal axis, relative to baseline, the frequency of tremor decreased and the amplitude of tremor increased before horizontal movements, but not before vertical movements. This effect was less pronounced in the finger than in the arm, forearm, and hand. Possible explanations of the effect are based on eye-limb coupling, decreasing stiffness in the axis of forthcoming movement, and release of inhibition. The discovery of directionally specific preparatory activity suggests that the simple task of holding still before moving may provide a new window into the processes that allow for the translation of intentions into actions.
Implicit Stereotypes, Gender Identification, and Math-Related Outcomes
Authors: Kiefer Amy K. , Sekaquaptewa Denise
Published: March 2007

This study examined the effects of gender identification and implicit and explicit gender stereotyping among undergraduate women enrolled in college-level calculus courses. Women's gender identification and gender stereotyping regarding math aptitude were assessed after the course's first midterm exam. Implicit, but not explicit, stereotyping interacted with gender identification to affect women's performance on their final exams and their desire to pursue math-related careers. Women who showed low gender identification and low implicit gender stereotyping performed best on the final exam, and women with high scores on both factors were the least inclined to pursue math-based careers. Implications for the under-representation of women in math and the hard sciences are discussed.
Gender Differences in Cooperation and Competition
Authors: Vugt Mark Van , Cremer David De , Janssen Dirk P.
Published: March 2007

Evolutionary scientists argue that human cooperation is the product of a long history of competition among rival groups. There are various reasons to believe that this logic applies particularly to men. In three experiments, using a step-level public-goods task, we found that men contributed more to their group if their group was competing with other groups than if there was no intergroup competition. Female cooperation was relatively unaffected by intergroup competition. These findings suggest that men respond more strongly than women to intergroup threats. We speculate about the evolutionary origins of this gender difference and note some implications.
Modeling Experimentally Induced Strategy Shifts
Authors: Brown Scott , Steyvers Mark , Hemmer Pernille
Published: March 2007

In dynamic decision-making environments, observers must continuously adjust their decision-making strategies. Previous research has focused on internal fluctuations in decision mechanisms, without regard to how these changes are induced by environmental changes. We developed a simple paradigm in which we manipulated task difficulty, thereby inducing changes in decision processes. We applied this paradigm to recognition memory, manipulating task difficulty by changing the similarity of lures to targets. More difficult decision environments caused participants to make more careful decisions, but these changes did not appear immediately. We propose a simple theoretical account for these data, using a dynamic version of signal detection theory fitted to individual subjects. Our model represents a significant departure from existing models because it incorporates subject-controlled parameters that may adjust over time in response to environmental changes.
Embodied Preference Judgments
Authors: Beilock Sian L. , Holt Lauren E.
Published: March 2007

Can covert sensorimotor simulation of stimulus-relevant actions influence affective judgments, even when there is no intention to act? Skilled and novice typists picked which of two letter dyads they preferred. In each pair, one dyad, if typed using standard typing methods, would involve the same fingers (e.g., FV); the other would be typed with different fingers (e.g., FJ). Thus, if typed, dyads of the former kind should create more motor interference than dyads of the latter kind. Although individuals could not explain how the dyads differed, skilled typists preferred those typed with different fingers. Novices showed no preference. Moreover, a motor task performed while making dyad preference judgments attenuated skilled typists' preference—but only when the motor task involved the specific fingers that would be used to type the dyads. These findings suggest that in skilled typists, perceiving letters prompts covert sensorimotor simulation of typing them, which in turn influences affective judgments about this information.
No Inhibitory Deficit in Older Adults' Episodic Memory
Authors: Aslan Alp , Bäuml Karl-Heinz , Pastötter Bernhard
Published: March 2007

Selectively retrieving a subset of previously studied material can cause forgetting of the unpracticed material. Such retrieval-induced forgetting is attributed to an inhibitory mechanism recruited to resolve interference among competing items. According to the inhibition-deficit hypothesis, older people experience a specific decline in inhibitory function and thus should show reduced retrieval-induced forgetting. However, the results of the two experiments reported here show the same amount of retrieval-induced forgetting in younger and older adults. These results indicate that retrieval inhibition is intact in older adults' episodic recall. The findings suggest that the common view of a general inhibitory deficit in older adults needs to be updated and that older adults show intact inhibition in some cognitive tasks and deficient inhibition in others.
On Logic in the Law: “Something, but not All”
Authors: HAACK SUSAN
Published: March 2007

Abstract. In 1880, when Oliver Wendell Holmes (later to be a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court) criticized the “logical theology” of law articulated by Christopher Columbus Langdell (the first Dean of Harvard Law School), neither Holmes nor Langdell was aware of the revolution in logic that had begun, the year before, with Frege'sBegriffsschrift. But there is an important element of truth in Holmes's insistence that a legal system cannot be adequately understood as a system of “axioms and corollaries”; and this element of truth is not obviated by the more powerful logical techniques that are now available.
Form and Formalism: The View from Legal Theory
Authors: BIX BRIAN
Published: March 2007

Abstract.  The article considers Robert Summers' new book (Summers 2006), in the context of Summers' earlier work and the role of form and formalism in other jurisprudential discussions. While accepting the value of a form‐centered approach to studying law, the article questions Summers' claim that his approach is clearly superior to (and not merely complementary with) traditional analytic theories, like those of Hart and Kelsen. The article also suggests that the book's discussion of form in contract and commercial law is somewhat disappointing, given Summers' expertise in this area, and the many difficult form‐related questions that area raises.
On the Relation between Form and Substance in Law
Authors: SOPER PHILIP
Published: March 2007

Abstract.  In this paper the author deals with some theoretical aspects of Robert Summers' last book (Summers 2006). In particular, he concentrates on the hazy relationship between form and substance in Summers' theory. In order to analyze some major difficulties entailed in the thesis that form and substance are different and independent things, the author discusses three specific questions: (1) the difference between form and substance; (2) the possibility of a form meant to be value‐neutral; (3) how to distinguish a form‐centered approach from a formalistic approach when one has to interpret a statute. This last question is dealt with through examples taken from two legal decisions.*
Comments on the Comments
Authors: SUMMERS ROBERT S.
Published: March 2007

Abstract.  The paper replies to Bix and Soper (Bix 2007; Soper 2007). Bix's paper raises methodological questions, especially whether a form‐theorist merely needs to reflect on form from the arm‐chair so to speak. A variety of methods is called for, including conceptual analysis, study of usage, “education in the obvious,” general reflection on the nature of specific functional legal units, empirical research on their operation and effects, and still more. Further methodological remarks are made in response to Soper's paper. Soper suggests the possibility of substituting “form v. substance” of a unit as the central contrast here rather than form v. complementary material or other components of a unit. Various reasons are given here for not doing this. Among other things, it is also argued here that form does not, contrary to Soper's suggestion, always follow substance.
Subjectivity and Law's Fields of Enquiry*
Authors: DONNELLY BEBHINN
Published: March 2007

Abstract.  Despite some appearances to the contrary, a popular view in jurisprudence is that there is a limited domain which either constitutes the field of enquiry of law or at least delineates the arena from which a particular field of enquiry ought to be selected. This article argues that “law” is comprised of a number of fields of enquiry that may be and are selected subjectively. It is claimed that theories of law may be freed from the perceived need to provide authoritative justification for their field of enquiry, if the role of subjectivity is acknowledged appropriately.
Attitudes of primary initial teacher training students to special educational needs and inclusion
Authors: MINTZ JOSEPH
Published: March 2007

In this article Joseph Mintz explores the importance of developing positive attitudes to SEN and Inclusion among primary teacher trainees. The research reported indicates that student attitudes towards SEN/Inclusion were generally positive, but that such views are fluid and subject to change during a course of training. The article reinforces the importance of Initial Teacher Training in developing a workforce that is attuned to the individual pupils in schools.
Strategies to promote adaptive competence for students on the autism spectrum
Authors: PREIS JANET
Published: March 2007

This article considers a range of effective interventions for children with autism. It focuses on communication and socialization issues, both of which inform improvements in behaviour. The article emphasizes the ongoing importance of these in any intervention programme, and their ultimate goal of promoting greater independence.
A teaching elixir, learning chimera or just fool's gold? Do learning styles matter?
Authors: RAYNER STEVE
Published: March 2007

The idea of a personal style in learning has grown during the past decade to dominate teacher discourse in the UK. The theory supporting this idea is work in understanding cognitive and learning style. A recent review of learning styles for the Learning and Skills Development Agency in the UK has been widely publicised and is deeply critical of the validity or utility of learning styles as an idea or theory for education (Coffield, Moseley, Hall and Ecclestone, 2004a, b). This article is a response to this review and proposes a model of learning performance aimed at contributing to an understanding of personalised education, differential pedagogy and learning differences in the classroom. This approach to learning styles is presented as part of a continuing development of an inclusive provision grounded in assessment for learning.
Natural gas in India's energy management
Authors: Azhar Muhammad
Published: March 2007

Thanks to the continuous implementation of liberalisation and reforms, the Indian economy has become a significant energy consumer. Further, the fast growing economy is expected to result in massive and unprecedented growth in energy consumption in India. This is sure to have important ramifications for the domestic energy sector, as well as global energy market. At the domestic level, this resulted in new discoveries of hydrocarbon resources. However, the growth in energy consumption is so high that the old, as well as newly discovered hydrocarbon resources would not be able to fulfil the growing demand for energy in the Indian economy. Hence, Indian economy would remain dependent on the global market for the supply of hydrocarbon resources. India has been adopting various strategies to manage her energy requirement and Natural gas is slated to play an important role in India's energy management. This paper therefore, attempts to study the importance of natural gas in this context.
Testing Conditional Asset Pricing Models Using a Markov Chain Monte Carlo Approach
Authors: Ammann Manuel , Verhofen Michael
Published: March 2007

We use Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods for the parameter estimation and the testing of conditional asset pricing models. In contrast to traditional approaches, it is truly conditional because the assumption that time variation in betas is driven by a set of conditioning variables is not necessary. Moreover, the approach has exact finite sample properties and accounts for errors‐in‐variables. Using S&P 500 panel data, we analyse the empirical performance of the CAPM and theFama and French (1993)three‐factor model. We find that time‐variation of betas in the CAPM and the time variation of the coefficients for the size factor (SMB) and the distress factor (HML) in the three‐factor model improve the empirical performance. Therefore, our findings are consistent with time variation of firm‐specific exposure to market risk, systematic credit risk and systematic size effects. However, a Bayesian model comparison trading off goodness of fit and model complexity indicates that the conditional CAPM performs best, followed by the conditional three‐factor model, the unconditional CAPM, and the unconditional three‐factor model.
Timeliness of Spread Implied Ratings
Authors: Kou Jianming , Varotto Simone
Published: March 2007

Rating agencies are known to be prudent in their approach to rating revisions, which results in delayed rating adjustments. For a large set of eurobonds we derive credit spread implied ratings and compare them with agency ratings. Our results indicate that spread implied ratings often anticipate the future movement of agency ratings and hence can help track credit risk in a more timely manner. This finding has important implications for risk managers in banks who, under the new Basel 2 regulations, have to rely more on credit ratings for capital allocation purposes, and for portfolio managers who face rating‐related investment restrictions.
Referrals to an Intellectual Disability Psychotherapy Service in an Inner City Catchment Area – A Retrospective Case Notes Study
Authors: Parkes Geosrgina , Mukherjee Raja A. S. , Karagianni Efthalia , Attavar Rajnish , Sinason Valerie , Hollins Sheila
Published: March 2007

Background  The aims were to identify referral characteristics and outcomes for people with intellectual disabilities referred to a psychodynamic psychotherapy service.

Materials and Methods  A retrospective case notes review of anonymized data relating to 100 sequential patient episodes.

Results  A total of 81 people out of 100 with a range of intellectual disabilities from mild to severe were assessed as suitable for therapy; 66 were eligible for individual, art, or group therapy.

Common reasons for referral were: trauma/abuse, bereavement, depression and challenging behaviour. Many people had more than one cause for referral and/or co‐morbid psychiatric diagnoses. Indicators of success included: increased daily living skills, improved confidence, self‐esteem and behaviour, and finding employment.

Conclusions  This study confirms findings from other studies that psychotherapy is possible in people with mild to severe intellectual disability with clinically recorded outcomes ranging from reductions in problem behaviours to getting a job.