bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Delaminated zeolite‐catalysed synthesis of high‐molecular weight polycarbosilane as a low shrinkage SiC precursor
Authors: Nguyen Chi Thanh , Kim Dong Pyo , Hong Suk Bong
Published: December 2007

A polycarbosilane (PCS) with a higher number–average molecular weight (2710 vs. 1570), and hence with a higher ceramic yield (74 vs. 68%), compared to a commercial Nipusi type S PCS has been synthesized via the catalytic decomposition of polydimethylsilane at 400 °C using H‐ITQ‐2, a delaminated zeolite with a very high external surface area, as a solid acid. The silicon carbide film fabricated using this PCS was found to show a much lower level (16 vs. 39%) of shrinkage than the commercial PCS‐derived film, together with better mechanical properties, suggesting the potential of its preceramic polymer to produce robust ceramic coatings. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 725–732, 2008
High‐Dose‐Rate Remote Afterloaders for Intraoperative Radiation Therapy
Authors: Gao Song , Delclos Marc E. , Tomas Lyvia C. , Crane Christopher H. , Beddar Sam
Published: December 2007

INTRAOPERATIVE RADIATION THERAPY (IORT) is a treatment option that directly irradiates a surgically exposed tumor or tumor bed while preventing radiation exposure of normal tissues.

THIS ARTICLE DISCUSSES the high‐dose‐rate intraoperative radiation therapy (HDR‐IORT) technique by reviewing the roles of IORT team members, discussing needed equipment and supplies, describing quality assurance processes, explaining the HDR‐IORT treatment delivery procedure, and reviewing the post‐treatment phase. AORN J 86 (November 2007) 827–836.
Supply chain risk identification with value‐focused process engineering
Authors: Neiger Dina , Rotaru Kristian , Churilov Leonid
Published: December 2007

Together with numerous benefits that were brought about by the transition from the silo enterprise perspective towards the process‐based supply chain view of contemporary business, new sources of risk appeared due to the complex systemic nature of the supply chains. The need to reduce the increased level of supply chain vulnerability has been identified as a key research issue in the domain of supply chain management. In this paper, a novel value‐focused process engineering methodology for process‐based supply chain risk identification is proposed with the aim to increase value to supply chain members and supply chain as a whole. The proposed methodology is illustrated with a generic supply chain scenario example.
Characterisation of 6MV and 10MV superficial build up dosimetry in tangential beam radiography
Authors: Lacey Craig , Gordon Kirsti , Nalder Colin
Published: December 2007

Introduction: Although tangential radiotherapy is one of the major treatments for breast cancer, little has been done to address the skin toxicity and general dose inhomogeneity experienced in patients with larger breasts that are treated with 6MV photons. From our understanding of radiation in tissue at depth, it is proposed that 10MV photons could have a clear role in such patients through improved dose distribution. However, a greater build up depth with 10MV could mean that this energy is unacceptable.

Aims: To quantify and characterise superficial build up dosimetry in tangential breast irradiation for 6MV and 10MV photons.

Methods: Using Thermoluminescent Dosimeters (TLD’S), a comparative study was carried out investigating dose at a range of superficial depths in a phantom irradiated by tangential fields. Each delivering 2Gy for 6MV and 10MV photons.

Results: There was a 0.10Gy difference in maximum dose over a depth of 10.8 mm between 6MV and 10MV photons, along with an average difference of dose at depth of 0.09Gy.

Conclusion: Evidence has been obtained that eliminates comprise to superficial tissue if 10MV photons are used. Furthermore, reinforcement towards a more homogenous dose distribution with 10MV photons has been established.
Breakout Lahar from New Zealand's Crater Lake
Authors: Manville Vern , Cronin Shane J.
Published: December 2007

Lahars, an Indonesian word referring to a volcanic mudflow carrying up to 80 percent solid material by weight, are highly lethal, having caused more than 30,000 deaths since the late 1700s. Although they are a major hazard, particularly in the developing world where population growth and settlement of river terraces in volcanic areas are increasing societal vulnerability, their study is hindered by their unpredictable timing, capricious travel paths, dramatic changes in flow behavior as they erode and deposit sediment [Pierson and Scott, 1985], and the fact that these high‐energy flows are dangerous to observers and measuring equipment.

A unique opportunity to capture a complete data set on a single, discrete lahar event was presented following the 1995–1996 eruptions of Mount Ruapehu in the central North Island of New Zealand (Figure 1). This activity expelled the water in the summit Crater Lake, generating a series of eruption‐ and later rain‐triggered lahars [Cronin et al., 1997], and deposited about 8 meters of tephra (volcanic ash and rock fragments ranging from pebbles to carsized blocks) over its former overflow channel. On 18 March 2007, this fragile tephra dam, which had been impounding extra water in the refilling lake basin, failed, releasing 1.3 million cubic meters of water in less than 90 minutes and generating the largest lahar at Ruapehu in 100 years.
On the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation: Might they be related?
Authors: d'Orgeville Marc , Peltier W. Richard
Published: December 2007

The nature of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) is investigated based upon analyses of sea surface temperature observations over the last century. The PDO is suggested to be comprised of a 20 year quasi‐periodic oscillation and a lower frequency component with a characteristic timescale of 60 years. The 20 year quasi‐periodic oscillation is clearly identified as a phase locked signal at the eastern boundary of the Pacific basin, which could be interpreted as the signature of an ocean basin mode. We demonstrate that the 60 year component of the PDO is strongly time‐lag correlated with the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO). On this timescale the AMO is shown to lead the PDO by approximately 13 years or to lag the PDO by 17 years. This relation suggests that the AMO and the 60 year component of the PDO are signatures of the same oscillation cycle.
Study of current intensification by compression in the Earth magnetotail
Authors: Lapenta Giovanni , King Joshua
Published: December 2007

Current sheet formation and intensification can be studied by compressing an initially uniform or weakly stratified plasma. Recently, the community has been challenged to conduct a common test, the so‐called Newton challenge, where a current sheet is slowly compressed by a localized boundary push, eventually leading to magnetic reconnection in the sheet. We revisit the effect of a compression in a kinetic framework, considering also stronger and more sudden pushes leading to shock compression. We consider specifically the additional physics brought about by a full kinetic model. The primary conclusion is that two competing effects are present during compression. First, the heating due to shock compression is not isotropic and tends instead to create strongly anisotropic and nongyrotropic distributions responsible for bifurcating the current channel. Second, current‐aligned instabilities, developing in the dawn‐dusk direction (often neglected in previous compression studies) create small‐scale ripples on the shock front, leading to a more isotropic heating and creating a nonmonotonic final current profile with a centrally peaked structure but with significant side currents at the edges.
A differential double-coil inductive transducer for measuring electrical conductivity
Authors: Kusmierz Jozef
Published: December 2007

A differential system of two double-coil inductive transducers for the contactless measurement of the electrical conductivity of conducting materials has been presented. The differential system can be employed in applications that require smaller measurement uncertainty than that provided by the single-transducer system. A mathematical model of the differential system is based on the model of a single double-coil inductive transducer; in this case, a so-called processing function is defined as a ratio of voltages at the measurement coil terminals with and without the test sample. The relative differential voltage of the differential system is derived as a difference of processing functions of two single transducers and depends on a relative difference between conductivities of the test and reference samples. The conductivity of the test sample is obtained either using precalculated graphs or by numerically processing the equation of the differential voltage. In order to verify the obtained theoretical results, experimental investigations have been carried out using a computer-controlled measurement system with the differential system of the transducers. The conductivity measurements have been carried out using samples made of aluminum rods. During the measurements, the temperature of the reference sample was equal to room temperature (20°C), whereas the temperature of the test sample was changed in the range of 0–20°C to obtain the conductivity variation. The obtained experimental results confirmed the accuracy of the theoretical model of the differential transducer.
Directional electromigration-enhanced interdiffususion in the Cu–Ni system
Authors: Zhao Jinfeng , Garay Javier E. , Anselmi-Tamburini Umberto , Munir Zuhair A.
Published: December 2007

The effect of a dc on the interdiffusivity D̃ in the Cu–Ni system was investigated over the temperature range of 650–850°C and at current densities in the range of 0–1000Acm−2. Interdiffusivities were calculated using the Sauer–Freise–den Broeder method and the values calculated in the absence of a current were in agreement with previously published results. The influence of the current on D̃ depended on its direction relative to the two interfaces in the trilayered Cu–Ni–Cu samples. When the electronic flow was from Ni to Cu (cocurrent interface), the interdiffusivity showed a marked increase relative to copper content but was unchanged when the electronic flow was from Cu to Ni (countercurrent interface). The increase of D̃ in the cocurrent interface depended on concentration and temperature. At lower temperatures, the increase becomes significant at higher copper concentrations but for the same value of current density, the increase is apparent at lower concentrations. The effective activation energy of interdiffusivity depended on concentration and decreased with the application of a current. The decrease was largest for higher copper concentrations. The results are interpreted in terms of a proposed vacancy-atom interaction for copper with the implication that the electron wind effect on Cu is counteracted by the effect of vacancies.
Epitaxial aluminum nitride tunnel barriers grown by nitridation with a plasma source
Authors: Zijlstra T. , Lodewijk C. F. J. , Vercruyssen N. , Tichelaar F. D. , Loudkov D. N. , Klapwijk T. M.
Published: December 2007

High critical current-density (10to420kA∕cm2) superconductor-insulator-superconductor tunnel junctions with aluminum nitride barriers have been realized using a remote nitrogen plasma from an inductively coupled plasma source operated in a pressure range of 10−3–10−1mbar. We find a much better reproducibility and control compared to previous work. From the current-voltage characteristics and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy images it is inferred that, compared to the commonly used AlOx barriers, the polycrystalline AlN barriers are much more uniform in transmissivity, leading to a better quality at high critical current densities.
Origin of the excitonic recombinations in hexagonal boron nitride by spatially resolved cathodoluminescence spectroscopy
Authors: Jaffrennou P. , Barjon J. , Lauret J.-S. , Attal-Trétout B. , Ducastelle F. , Loiseau A.
Published: December 2007

The excitonic recombinations in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) are investigated with spatially resolved cathodoluminescence spectroscopy in the ultraviolet range. Cathodoluminescence images of an individual hBN crystallite reveals that the 215 nm free excitonic line is quite homogeneously emitted along the crystallite, whereas the 220 and 227 nm excitonic emissions are located in specific regions of the crystallite. Transmission electron microscopy images show that these regions contain a high density of crystalline defects. This suggests that the 220 and 227 nm emissions are both produced by the recombination of excitons trapped at structural defects.
Sodium reconstruction on surface of silicate glasses in transmission electron microscope
Authors: Jiang Nan , Su Dong , Spence John C. H.
Published: December 2007

We find that irradiated Na ions in silicate glasses undergo reconstruction on the surfaces before being repelled from the irradiated area by electron excitations. These results are based on evidence from time-dependent electron energy-loss spectroscopy. The process of reconstruction involves an irreversible change of the Na+→Na0→Na+, in which the initial and final Na+ ions have different bonding environments. The phenomenon is the result of the elimination of nonbridging oxygen associated with Na.
Object Files Can Be Purely Episodic
Authors: Mitroff Stephen R , Scholl Brian J , Noles Nicholaus S
Published: December 2007

Our ability to track an object as the same persisting entity over time and motion may primarily rely on spatiotemporal representations which encode some, but not all, of an object's features. Previous researchers using the ‘object reviewing’ paradigm have demonstrated that such representations can store featural information of well-learned stimuli such as letters and words at a highly abstract level. However, it is unknown whether these representations can also store purely episodic information (ie information obtained from a single, novel encounter) that does not correspond to pre-existing type-representations in long-term memory. Here, in an object-reviewing experiment with novel face images as stimuli, observers still produced reliable object-specific preview benefits in dynamic displays: a preview of a novel face on a specific object speeded the recognition of that particular face at a later point when it appeared again on the same object compared to when it reappeared on a different object (beyond display-wide priming), even when all objects moved to new positions in the intervening delay. This case study demonstrates that the mid-level visual representations which keep track of persisting identity over time—eg ‘object files’, in one popular framework—can store not only abstract types from long-term memory, but also specific tokens from online visual experience.
A developmental cycle masks output from the circadian oscillator under conditions of choline deficiency in
Neurospora
Authors: Shi Mi , Larrondo Luis F. , Loros Jennifer J. , Dunlap Jay C.
Published: December 2007

In
Neurospora
, metabolic oscillators coexist with the circadian transcriptional/translational feedback loop governed by the FRQ (Frequency) and WC (White Collar) proteins. One of these, a choline deficiency oscillator (CDO) observed in
chol-1
mutants grown under choline starvation, drives an uncompensated long-period developmental cycle (≈60–120 h). To assess possible contributions of this metabolic oscillator to the circadian system, molecular and physiological rhythms were followed in liquid culture under choline starvation, but these only confirmed that an oscillator with a normal circadian period length can run under choline starvation. This finding suggested that long-period developmental cycles elicited by nutritional stress could be masking output from the circadian system, although a caveat was that the CDO sometimes requires several days to become consolidated. To circumvent this and observe both oscillators simultaneously, we used an assay using a codon-optimized luciferase to follow the circadian oscillator. Under conditions where the long-period, uncompensated, CDO-driven developmental rhythm was expressed for weeks in growth tubes, the luciferase rhythm in the same cultures continued in a typical compensated manner with a circadian period length dependent on the allelic state of
frq
. Periodograms revealed no influence of the CDO on the circadian oscillator. Instead, the CDO appears as a cryptic metabolic oscillator that can, under appropriate conditions, assume control of growth and development, thereby masking output from the circadian system.
frq
-driven luciferase as a reporter of the circadian oscillator may in this way provide a means for assessing prospective role(s) of metabolic and/or ancillary oscillators within cellular circadian systems.
Does Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection Increase Mortality in Critically Ill Patients?
Authors: Clec'h Christophe , Schwebel Carole , Français Adrien , Toledano Dany , Fosse Jean-Philippe , Garrouste-Orgeas Maïté , Azoulay Elie , Adrie Christophe , Jamali Samir , Descorps-Declere Adrien , Nakache Didier , Timsit Jean-François , Cohen Yves ,   OutcomeRea Study Group
Published: December 2007

Objective.

To produce an accurate estimate of the association between catheter-associated urinary tract infection (UTI) and intensive care unit (ICU) and hospital mortality, controlling for major confounding factors.

Design.

Nested case-control study in a multicenter cohort (the OutcomeRea database).

Setting.

Twelve French medical or surgical ICUs.

Methods.

All patients admitted between January 1997 and August 2005 who required the insertion of an indwelling urinary catheter. Patients who developed catheter-associated UTI (ie, case patients) were matched to control patients on the basis of the following criteria: sex, age ( ± 10 years), SAPS (Simplified Acute Physiology Score) II score ( ± 10 points), duration of urinary tract catheterization, and presence or absence of diabetes mellitus. The association of catheter-associated UTI with ICU and hospital mortality was assessed by use of conditional logistic regression.

Results.

Of the 3,281 patients who had an indwelling urinary catheter, 298 (9%) developed at least 1 episode of catheter-associated UTI. The incidence density of catheter-associated UTI was 12.9 infections per 1,000 catheterization-days. Crude ICU mortality rates were higher among patients with catheter-associated UTI, compared with those without catheter-associated UTI (32% vs 25%, P = .02); the same was true for crude hospital mortality rates (43% vs 30%, P>.01). After matching and adjustment, catheter-associated UTI was no longer associated with increased mortality (ICU mortality: odds ratio [OR], 0.846 [95% confidence interval {CI}, 0.659-1.086]; P = .19 and hospital mortality: OR, 0.949 [95% CI, 0.763-1.181]; P = .64).

Conclusion.

After carefully controlling for confounding factors, catheter-associated UTI was not found to be associated with excess mortality among our population of critically ill patients in either the ICU or the hospital.
Transformation-Mediated Complementation of a FUM Gene Cluster Deletion in Fusarium verticillioides Restores both Fumonisin Production and Pathogenicity on Maize Seedlings
Authors: Glenn Anthony E. , Zitomer Nicholas C. , Zimeri Anne Marie , Williams Lonnie D. , Riley Ronald T. , Proctor Robert H.
Published: December 2007

The filamentous ascomycete Fusarium verticillioides is a pathogen of maize and produces the fumonisin mycotoxins. However, a distinct population of F. verticillioides is pathogenic on banana and does not produce fumonisins. Fumonisin-producing strains from maize cause leaf lesions, developmental abnormalities, stunting, and sometimes death of maize seedlings, whereas fumonisin-nonproducing banana strains do not. A Southern analysis of banana strains did not detect genes in the fumonisin biosynthetic gene (FUM) cluster but did detect genes flanking the cluster. Nucleotide sequence analysis of the genomic region carrying the flanking genes revealed that the FUM cluster was absent in banana strains except for portions of FUM21 and FUM19, which are the terminal genes at each end of the cluster. Polymerase chain reaction analysis confirmed the absence of the cluster in all banana strains examined. Cotransformation of a banana strain with two overlapping cosmids, which together contain the entire FUM cluster, yielded fumonisin-producing transformants that were pathogenic on maize seedlings. Conversely, maize strains that possess the FUM cluster but do not produce fumonisins because of mutations in FUM1, a polyketide synthase gene, were not pathogenic on maize seedlings. Together, the data indicate that fumonisin production may have been lost by deletion of the FUM cluster in the banana population of F. verticillioides but that fumonisin production could be restored by molecular genetic complementation. The results also indicate that fumonisin production by F. verticillioides is required for development of foliar disease symptoms on maize seedlings.
Measuring Polysaccharide Mechanics by Atomic Force Microscopy
Authors: Rabbi Mahir , Marszalek Piotr E.
Published: December 2007

INTRODUCTION

Polysaccharides are frequently subjected to mechanical forces in vivo. Because these forces affect a wide range of biological activities, it is important to develop methods that directly investigate the mechanical properties of these molecules. Recent progress in techniques that allow the mechanical manipulation of biopolymers at a single-molecule level has revealed the complex nature of the elasticity of polysaccharides. The atomic force microscope (AFM) is an excellent force spectrometer for probing the mechanical properties (e.g., length and tension) of individual polysaccharides. The following protocol describes the use of AFM for stretch-release measurements of polysaccharide chains.
The dynamics of top‐down and bottom‐up effects in food webs of varying prey diversity, composition, and productivity
Authors: W. Fox Jeremy
Published: December 2007

Prey diversity is thought to mediate the strength of top‐down and bottom‐up effects, but few experiments directly test this hypothesis. I assembled food webs of bacteria and bacterivorous protist prey in laboratory microcosms with all combinations of five productivity levels, two top predator treatments (present or absent), and three prey compositions. Depauperate food chains contained one of two edible prey species, while more diverse food webs contained both edible prey species plus two additional less‐edible/inedible prey. Equilibrium theory predicts that prey diversity should weaken the top‐down and bottom‐up effects on trophic level biomasses, due to density compensation among prey species. Top‐down effects should increase with productivity in food chains, but decrease with productivity in food webs. Results revealed highly dynamic top‐down effects, the strength of which varied more over time than among treatments. Further, top‐down effects did not merely vary in absolute strength over time, but also in relative strength across different prey compositions and productivity levels. It might be expected that equilibrium models would qualitatively reproduce time‐averaged results. However, time‐averaged data largely failed to support equilibrium predictions. This failure may reflect strong temporal variability in treatment effects combined with nonlinear density dependence of species’ per‐capita growth rates. Strong temporal variability in the strength of top‐down effects has not previously been demonstrated, but likely is common in nature as well.
Non‐lethal predator effects on the feeding rate and prey selection of the exotic zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha
Authors: Naddafi Rahmat , Eklöv Peter , Pettersson Kurt
Published: December 2007

Predators may induce changes in prey feeding that indirectly influence both the impact of prey on resource abundances and their interactions with other species in their community. We evaluated whether clearance and excretion (faeces plus pseudofaeces) of phytoplankton by zebra mussels were affected by the presence of predatory cues from roach, Rutilus rutilus, and signal crayfish, Pasifastacus leniusculus. We found that non‐lethal effects of predators can alter zebra mussel clearance rate and thus the impact of zebra mussels on phytoplankton. Risk cues released by both predators had similar negative effects on clearance rate of zebra mussels and cascading positive indirect effects on phytoplankton resources. Predation risk had a stronger effect on zebra mussels’ clearance rate of cyanobacteria and diatoms than cryptophytes and chrysophytes. The presence of predators did not significantly affect the rate at which zebra mussels expelled and excreted phytoplankton, although there was a tendency for more chlorophyll to be expelled and excreted in the presence of predators. Our results contribute to the growing evidence that predators indirectly affect resource dynamics and food web structure through their non‐lethal effects on consumers. Our results suggest that exotic species such as zebra mussels can show behavioural responses to both native (e.g. roach) and exotic (e.g. crayfish) predators.
New Nabataean inscriptions from Umm al‐Jimāl
Authors: Said Salah , Al‐Ghul Omar
Published: December 2007

Three previously unpublished Nabataean inscriptions from Umm al‐Jimāl (Jordan), as well as one published by Enno Littmann, are presented here. Emphasis is placed on the personal names attested in the inscriptions.
Thermal Management of a High Packing Density Array of Power Amplifiers Using Liquid Cooling
Authors: Williams Z. A. , Roux J. A.
Published: December 2007

The increasing demand for smaller more compact electronic systems as well as the need to handle higher levels of power dissipation has lead to an increase in necessity for more innovative cooling designs. In recent years, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software has been used extensively in the design of thermal control systems for electronics. In many cases, there remains a need for experimental evaluation of cooling systems in order to validate the results of the CFD simulations. The present work investigates several variations of a liquid cooled base plate channel design for an array of generic power amplifier units. Several different channel insert configurations are investigated as miniheat exchangers using both copper fins and graphite foam. Experiments were conducted measuring the chip temperatures as well as the inlet liquid temperature. CFD simulations were also conducted to guide the experimental program. Effective heat transfer coefficients were also reverse-engineered using CFD software and the experimental results.
Short-term associations between fine and coarse particles and hospital admissions for cardiorespiratory diseases in six French cities
Authors: Host S , Larrieu S , Pascal L , Blanchard M , Declercq C , Fabre P , Jusot J-F , Chardon B , Le Tertre A , Wagner V , Prouvost H , Lefranc A
Published: December 2007

Objectives:

Little is known about the potential health effects of the coarse fraction of ambient particles. The aim of this study is to estimate the links between fine (PM2.5) and coarse particle (PM2.5−10) levels and cardiorespiratory hospitalisations in six French cities during 2000–2003.

Methods:

Data on the daily numbers of hospitalisations for respiratory, cardiovascular, cardiac and ischaemic heart diseases were collected. Associations between exposure indicators and hospitalisations were estimated in each city using a Poisson regression model, controlling for confounding factors (seasons, days of the week, holidays, influenza epidemics, pollen counts, temperature) and temporal trends. City-specific findings were combined to obtain excess relative risks (ERRs) associated with a 10 μg/m3increase in PM2.5and PM2.5−10levels.

Results:

We found positive associations between indicators of particulate pollution and hospitalisations for respiratory infection, with an ERR of 4.4% (95% CI 0.9 to 8.0) for PM2.5−10and 2.5% (95% CI 0.1 to 4.8) for PM2.5. Concerning respiratory diseases, no association was observed with PM2.5, whereas positive trends were found with PM2.5−10, with a significant association for the 0–14-year-old age group (ERR 6.2%, 95% CI 0.4 to 12.3). Concerning cardiovascular diseases, positive associations were observed between PM2.5levels and each indicator, although some did not reach significance; trends with PM2.5−10were weaker and non-significant except for ischaemic heart disease in the elderly (ERR 6.4%, 95% CI 1.6 to 11.4).

Conclusions:

In accordance with other studies, our results indicate that the coarse fraction may have a stronger effect than the fine fraction on some morbidity endpoints, especially respiratory diseases.
Polymorbidity in diabetes in older people: consequences for care and vocational training
Authors: van Bussel B , Pijpers E , Ferreira I , Castermans P , Kruseman A Nieuwenhuijzen
Published: December 2007

Objective

To investigate the prevalence of complicating and concurrent morbidities in older diabetic patients and to evaluate to what extent their occurrence affects the burden of disease and use of medical healthcare.

Study design

Cross-sectional analysis of retrospectively obtained data on comorbidities and use of medical healthcare. Healthcare registration systems were used to retrieve data on 300 patients with diabetes aged ⩾60 years who, according to the severity of their disease and intensity of care required, were treated in a regional general practitioner (GP), diabetes nurse specialist (DNS) or medical specialist (MS) practice.

Results

Complicating and concurrent morbidities were often found irrespective of the type of practice involved. After adjustments for differences in sex, age and glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c), the extent of complicating comorbidities showed sequential increases in patients managed by GP, DNS and MS (mean number of 3.6, 4.7 and 6.7, respectively; ptrend<0.001). However, the mean number of concurrent comorbidities was similar across all three settings (2.1, 1.8 and 2.0, respectively). Both complicating and concurrent comorbidities were similarly associated with the extent of drug use (β = 0.49 (95% CI 0.40 to 0.58) and β = 0.57 (95% CI 0.52 to 0.72), respectively) and the number of consultations with specialists other than the main care giver (β = 1.19 (95% CI 1.15 to 1.24) and β = 1.21 (95% CI 1.14 to 1.28), respectively). However, the mean number of different specialists involved in a patient's care per additional concurrent comorbidity was twice as high as per any additional complicating comorbidity (β = 0.60 (95% CI 0.48 to 0.71) vs β = 0.31 (95% CI 0.24 to 0.39)).

Conclusions

The use of healthcare facilities by older patients with diabetes is substantial, irrespective of the complexity of the disease and the kind of practice involved. The common manifestation of complicating and concurrent comorbidities and their varying complexity in individual patients requires a patient-oriented rather than a disease-oriented approach and vocational training programmes for care givers that are tailored to the complexity of multiple chronic diseases.
Effects of Neonatal Handling on Central Noradrenergic and Nitric Oxidergic Systems and Reproductive Parameters in Female Rats
Authors: Raineki Charlis , Szawka Raphael Escorsim , Gomes Cármen Marilei , Lucion Marta Knijnik , Barp Jaqueline , Belló-Klein Adriane , Franci Celso Rodrigues , Anselmo-Franci Janete Aparecida , Sanvitto Gilberto Luiz , Lucion Aldo Bolten
Published: December 2007

Early-life environmental events that disrupt the mother-pup relationship may induce profound long-lasting changes on several behavioral and neuroendocrine systems. The neonatal handling procedure, which involves repeated brief maternal separations followed by experimental manipulations, reduces sexual behavior and induces anovulatory estrous cycles in female rats. On the afternoon of proestrus, neonatally handled females show a reduced surge of luteinizing hormone (LH) and an increased content of gonadotropin-releasing hormone in the medial preoptic area (MPOA). In order to detect the possible causes for the reduced ovulation and sexual behavior, the present study aimed to analyze the effects of neonatal handling on noradrenaline (NA) and nitric oxide (NO) levels in the MPOA on the afternoon of proestrus. Neonatal handling reduced MHPG (NA metabolite) levels and MHPG/NA ratio in the MPOA, indicating decreased NAergic activity. Additionally, neonatal handling decreased NO levels, as measured by the metabolites (NOx), nitrite and nitrate in the same period. We may conclude that the neonatal handling procedure decreased activity of the NAergic and NOergic systems in the MPOA during proestrus, which is involved in the control of LH and FSH secretion, and this may possibly explain the anovulatory estrous cycles and reduced sexual behavior of the neonatally handled female rats.
H2 Uptake and Synthesis of the Li-dispersed Manganese Oxide Nanotubes
Authors: Lee Jin Bae , Lee Soon Chang , Kim Hae Jin
Published: December 2007

Well aligned Li-dispersed manganese oxide nanotubes were prepared using LiNO3, Mn(NO3)2 · xH2O and an anodic aluminum oxide template by solvent-free method for potential applications in H2 storage. The obtained nanotubes
were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The analyses revealed the Mn2O3 nanotubes to have a cubic structure with a uniform length, 40–50 nm in wall thickness and 250 ±
10 nm in the outer diameter. The level of H2 adsorption was determined using the gravimetric method. The Li-dispersed manganese oxide nanotubes showed a 0.26 wt% for the amount of hydrogen adsorption at 77 K under 4.5 MPa.
Use of Polymer Nanoparticles as Functional Nano-Absorbents for Low-Molecular Weight Hydrophobic Pollutants
Authors: Kim Ju-Young , Wainaina James , Kim Jung-Hun , Shim Jin-Kie
Published: December 2007

To use amphiphilic polymer nanoparticles as a new nano-absorbent for improving environmental process, urethane acrylate nonionomer (UAN) chain having hydrophobic polypropylene oxide-based segment and hydrophilic polyethylene oxide-based segment at the same backbone was synthesized and
dispersed as nanoparticles at water phase without using a surfactant or dispersion agent. These UAN nanoparticles were converted to crosslinked amphiphilic polymer (CAP) nanoparticles through soap-free emulsion polymerization and suspension agent-free suspension polymerization process. Emulsion
polymerization process exhibited higher conversion of polymerization compared to suspension polymerization process. CAP nanoparticles showed interfacial activity and solubilize hydrophobic pollutants (phenanthrene and toluene) like surfactant micelles. This result indicates possible application
of CAP nanoparticles as nano-absorbent for improving efficiency of soil washing and micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration (MEUF) process.
Preparation of Liposomes Containing Oleanolic Acid via Micelle-to-Vesicle Transition
Authors: Kang Hyung Seok , Park Ji-Eun , Lee Young-Jin , Chang Ih-Seop , Chung Yong-Il , Tae Giyoong
Published: December 2007

Micelle-to-vesicle transition method was used to make liposomes containing oleanolic acid. First, the solubilization of potassium salt of oleanolic acid at basic condition by micelle formation was confirmed. Using the soluble state of oleanolic acid at basic condition, liposomes containing
oleanolic acid was prepared by adjusting pH. After making homogeneous aqueous mixture of potassium salt of oleanolic acid and lecithin in basic condition, the solution was neutralized to produce the lecithinbased liposomes that contain oleanolic acid inside the lipid bilayers. The optimal
loading of oleanolic acid to lecithin (about 25 mole%) was found to exist to produce liposomal suspension of small size without homogenization step. Electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering studies showed that the narrowly distributed, reconstituted oleanolic acid-containing liposomes
were prepared without severe mechanical treatment.
The Impact of High-Resolution SALLJEX Data on Global NCEP Analyses
Authors: Herdies Dirceu L. , Kousky Vernon E. , Ebisuzaki Wesley
Published: December 2007

A data assimilation study was performed to assess the impact of observations from the South American Low-Level Jet Experiment (SALLJEX) on analyses in the region east of the Andes Mountains from western Brazil to central Argentina. The Climate Data Assimilation Systems (CDAS)-1 and -2 and the Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS) were run with and without the additional SALLJEX rawinsondes and pilot balloon observations. The experiments for each data assimilation system revealed similar features, with a stronger low-level flow east of the Andes when SALLJEX data were included. GDAS had the strongest low-level jet (LLJ) when compared with observations. In the experiments that used additional rawinsonde and pilot balloon data, the LLJ was displaced westward in comparison to the analyses run without the SALLJEX data. The vertical structure of the meridional wind in the analyses was much closer to observed rawinsonde profiles in the experiments that included SALLJEX data than in the control experiments, and the results show that, although there are more pilot balloon observations than rawinsonde observations in the SALLJEX dataset, most of the improvements in the analyses can be obtained by only including rawinsonde observations. This was especially true for GDAS. The results of this study can serve as a benchmark for similar data impact studies using higher-resolution data assimilation systems.
Re-considering Chronologies of Nationalism and Communalism
Authors: Tejani Shabnum
Published: December 2007

In 1920, M.K. Gandhi launched the Non-cooperation campaign, his first attempt at mass anti-colonial mobilisation. It quickly became aligned with the Khilafat movement—a mobilisation among Indian Muslims to protect the position of the Khalifa after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire. Scholars have seen this moment as the high point of cooperation between India's Hindus and Muslims, with a real possibility for unity in the nationalist movement. However, the campaigns ended within two years and, after 1922, differences among the leadership intersected with violent conflicts between Hindu and Muslim communities in a number of different regions; the promise of the preceding years appeared shattered, some argue for ever. Scholarship on the Khilafat movement has been teleological, tending to read it either as part of the story of ‘Muslim separatism’ or subsuming it into the forward march of Indian nationalism.

Arguing that the picture drawn by the existing scholarship is misleading, this article asks if the Khilafat movement can really have a story of its own. Through examining the campaign in Sind, it shows that at the grassroots it was made up of a complex set of alliances, often little related with religious difference or Indian nationalism, made and broken right from its inception. Rather, it argues that political developments in the post-Khilafat period proved crucial to the way that nationalism and communalism would come to be defined.
‘Power Smashes into Private Lives’
Authors: Siddiqi Yumna
Published: December 2007

In Shalimar the Clown, Salman Rushdie fashions a novel of global proportions, tracing the interlacing fortunes of characters from a small Kashmiri village and from the metropolises of North America and Europe. Against the backdrop of international networks of diplomacy, capital and Islamic terrorism, and the repressive forces of the Indian state, Rushdie explores both vernacular and global articulations of cosmopolitanism. The essay argues mainly that Rushdie draws in this novel on the ideal of Kashmiriyat to imagine possibilities of conviviality across religious differences. Ultimately, he projects this ideal of a reconstituted Kashmiriyat, characterized as a vernacular form of cosmopolitanism, onto a global screen. Appealing as such a projected ideal might be, it is problematic in that it advances an elite vision of cosmopolitanism.
Interpretations of surface movements of a landfill built on steeply sloping ground. A cautionary case history
Authors: Blight G.E.
Published: December 2007

The surface of a municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill cell, built on steeply sloping ground, was discovered to be moving downhill. The movements were measured and considered by the owners to be alarming. In an attempt to stop the movement, the compacted soil stability berm at the toe of the cell was raised by 5 m in two stages. The rate of movement declined, but the waste surface continued to move. Eventually, the cell was not filled to its designed full level. The paper describes the design of the landfill cell and its underliner, as well as three independent investigations into the causes of the surface movement. The first two investigators assumed that the surface movements represented shear displacements at the interface of the geomembrane and its protective geo-fabric, and therefore that the cell was failing in shear. The third investigation, undertaken in preparation of evidence in a civil court case, 7 years later, concluded that the movements resulted from down-slope shear straining of the land-filled MSW. The later investigation concluded that the MSW cell had been, and is still shear-stable, and it points to differences in behaviour between MSW landfill slopes and comparable slopes in mine waste or natural soils.
Fighting Hyperreality With Hyperreality
Authors: Kingsepp Eva
Published: December 2007

To describe the virtual worlds of digital games as hyperreal and simulacra has become almost a cliché. The perfect copy without an original, complete and even flowing over with signs adding to its real appearance but simultaneously disguising a basic loss of referentials—many of the games can be looked on as substitutes for the real world (if there is such a thing). In this article, I use World War II digital games as examples of hyperrealities, using some of Baudrillard's thoughts on hyperreality and simulacra, on our relation to history and on what he considers to be a fundamental longing for reality that has been lost to us in (post)modern Western society.
Bullet-induced synovitis as a cause of secondary osteoarthritis of the hip joint: A case report and review of literature
Authors: Rehman Muhammad A , Umer Masood , Sepah Yasir J , Wajid Muhammad A
Published: December 2007

Background

With increasing prevalence of gunshot injuries we are seeing more patients with retained bullet fragments lodged in their bodies. Embedded lead bullets are usually considered inert after their kinetic energy has dissipated hence these are not removed routinely. However, exposure of any foreign body to synovial fluid may lead to rapid degradation and hence result in systemic absorption, causing local and systemic symptoms. We present the case of a thirty year old man who came to our out patient department with a history of progressive, severe hip pain ten years after a gun shot injury to his right hip.

Conclusion

The common belief that intraarticular bullets should not be removed has no benefit and may result in unwanted long term complications.
Morphological Changes Associated with Aging
Authors: GOYARTS EARL , MUIZZUDDIN NEELAM , MAES DANIEL , GIACOMONI PAOLO U.
Published: December 2007

Abstract:  Affymetrix gene‐expression analysis was performed on mRNAs from involved and noninvolved skin biopsies from three volunteers with Lentigo senilis.
Of the 42,000 transcripts scanned, 17 were downregulated (<1.4 times below the control level) and 23 were upregulated (>1.9 times above the control level). A serine peptidase gene was downregulated in keeping with the suggestion that age spots are associated with impaired melanin degradation. Three genes involved in the keratinization and synthesis and the organization of fibers in the basement membrane were downregulated, two metalloproteinase genes were upregulated, as were six genes associated with the inflammatory response, in keeping with the postulate that the visible aspects of aged skin are causally linked with a microinflammatory response.
The regulation of five genes associated with the Wnt family was altered. Antiapoptotic genes were downregulated, and six genes associated with transmembrane transport were upregulated.
Acquisition of Oxidative DNA Damage during Senescence
Authors: MARTIEN SÉBASTIEN , ABBADIE CORINNE
Published: December 2007

Abstract:  As a result of time and cumulative divisions in vitro and in vivo, normal cells enter an irreversible nonproliferative state termed replicative or cellular senescence that is thought to contribute to organism aging. Both telomere shortening and cumulative oxidative damage were shown to contribute to senescence, probably acting at different degrees according to proliferation index, cell type, or environment. Because of its associated cohort of damages and irreversible cell‐cycle arrest induced by shortened telomeres, senescence is commonly considered as a tumor‐suppressor mechanism that stops the proliferation of genetically altered cells (i.e., potentially cancerous). However, the incidence of the most frequent cancers in humans, carcinomas, exponentially increases with age; the phenotypes of progeroid syndromes are often associated with an increase in tumor incidence, and inversely when aging is delayed by caloric restriction, the cancer incidence decreases. How can this positive link between aging and tumorigenesis be explained if senescence is a tumor‐suppressor mechanism? The present article considers data and arguments supporting a protumoral role of senescence. We focus on the importance of the oxidative damage that targets DNA during senescence. Indeed, because of its mutagenic effects, oxidative damage could affect oncogenes and/or tumor‐suppressor genes in some senescent cells, hence promoting their evolution toward initiated cancer cells. This mechanism could be particularly relevant for age‐associated carcinomas because senescence in epithelial cells is driven more by oxidative stress than by telomere shortening.
Treating cardiovascular disease in women
Authors: Taggu Wasing , Lloyd Guy
Published: December 2007

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the most common cause of death in women but some of the challenges of management differ from those in men. This article addresses the gender-specific issues of cardiovascular management, with emphasis on ischaemic heart disease and modification of coronary risk factors. Women with ischaemic heart disease present later than men, and are therefore older and more likely to suffer from co-morbidities such as diabetes and hypertension. Proven CVD risk factors in women can be divided into those that are modifiable and those that are non-modifiable. The former include diabetes, dyslipidaemia, hypertension, smoking, obesity, sedentary lifestyle and poor nutrition; the latter include family history of heart disease and older age at presentation. It is this difference in age and general health that explains much of the variability in response to treatment. Pharmacotherapy, percutaneous intervention, surgical revascularization, and cardiac rehabilitation and disease prevention are discussed.