bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ocular anomalies and holoprosencephaly in a lamb
Authors: Zeiss Caroline J. , Zarfoss Mitzi K. , Johnson Elizabeth E. , Dubielzig Richard R.
Published: September 2010

The brain and eyes from a 1‐day‐old, male mixed‐breed lamb with bilateral microphthalmia were examined. Bilateral ventral colobomata of choroid, sclera, retina and optic nerve were accompanied by agenesis of the optic nerve, and dilated lateral and third ventricular cavities that communicated with the subarachnoid space. Abundant neuroretinal tissue extending through the colobomatous defect to retro‐orbital connective tissue, the meningeal surface and ventricular system were identified by histologic examination. Positive immunolabeling of these structures for recoverin (a photoreceptor marker) established the retinal origin of ectopic structures. The optic nerve was replaced by a short fibrous stalk containing glial nests. Sections of brainstem revealed extensive architectural disorganization. A developmental abnormality resulting from defective optic nerve and retina compartmentalization, accompanied by abnormalities of midline development consistent with the holoprosencephaly syndrome, was diagnosed. These lesions are consistent with signaling defects in the sonic hedgehog signaling pathway. Genetic and toxic causes of sonic hedgehog signaling defects are discussed.
A modifiedab externoapproach for suture fixation of an intraocular lens implant in the dog
Authors: Wilkie D. A. , Gemensky‐Metzler A. J. , Stone S. G. , Basham C. R. , Norris K. N.
Published: September 2010

The goals of canine cataract and lens instability surgery should be to ensure a small incision, minimal tissue trauma, shortened surgical time, maintenance of the anterior chamber, and restoration of emmetropia through the use of a stable intraocular lens specifically designed for the canine eye. While this is usually the case with routine phacoemulsification and in‐the‐bag intraocular lens implantation, it is often not the case with lens instability, lens luxation or large posterior capsular ruptures. In such cases the incisions are often larger, surgical time and tissue trauma are excessive, and the patient is often left aphakic. The goal of this paper is to present a modifiedab externotechnique designed to allow removal of the lens and placement of a ciliary sulcus sutured IOL through a small incision, with minimal trauma and shortened surgical time. Use of this technique may allow more canine patients to be emmetropic postoperatively. In addition, the ease of this procedure may encourage earlier removal of an unstable lens and decrease the risk of secondary glaucoma and retinal detachment that occur in association with lens luxation.
Producing the Prurient through the Pedagogy of Purity: Childhood Sexuality and the Social Purity Movement
Authors: EGAN R. DANIELLE , HAWKES GAIL
Published: September 2010

Abstract  Drawing on primary materials from the United States, England and Australia, we explore the complex and contradictory manner in which the sexual child and innocence was constructed and made intelligible within social purity discourses in the mid 19th to early 20th century. The sexuality of the child was paradoxically conceptualized as a ubiquitous and boundless erotic force and as a pliable site for pedagogical intervention. We contend that the discursive production of the corrupt sexual companion, within purity literature, was an attempt to disentangle purity reformers' ambivalent construction of childhood sexuality as well as larger cultural anxieties about modern urban living. The sexual child validated social purity narratives because it was the category against which innocence was defined and made possible.1
Deconstructing National Myths, Reconstituting Morality: Modernity, Hegemony and the Israeli National Past1
Authors: DALSHEIM JOYCE
Published: September 2010

Abstract  Since the late 1980s there has been a growing scholarly concern with speaking silences of the past and recognizing the voices and perspectives of those “others” who have been written out of hegemonic historical narratives, especially in areas of intense conflict like Israel/Palestine. This study is concerned with the ways in which hegemonic national history can be re‐inscribed even as attempts are made to tell an alternative narrative. This article is based on three years of ethnographic research in an Israeli Jewish high school at the height of debates among historians about the Israeli national past. It examines the motivation to teach an alternative narrative that would recognize Palestinian perspectives and reveals the micro‐processes involved that ultimately undermine such recognition.
OPTIMAL CORPORATE LENIENCY PROGRAMS*
Authors: HARRINGTON JOSEPH E.
Published: September 2010

This study characterizes the corporate leniency policy that minimizes the frequency with which collusion occurs. Though it can be optimal to provide only partial leniency, plausible sufficient conditions are provided whereby the antitrust authority should waive all penalties for the first firm to come forward. It is also shown that restrictions should be placed on when amnesty is awarded, though it can be optimal to award amnesty even when the antitrust authority is very likely to win the case without insider testimony.
INEFFICIENCIES AND MARKET POWER IN FINANCIAL ARBITRAGE: A STUDY OF CALIFORNIA'S ELECTRICITY MARKETS*
Authors: BORENSTEIN SEVERIN , BUSHNELL JAMES , KNITTEL CHRISTOPHER R. , WOLFRAM CATHERINE
Published: September 2010

For two years prior to the collapse of California's restructured electricity market, power traded in both a forward and a spot market for delivery at the same times and locations. Nonetheless, prices in the two markets often differed in significant and predictable ways. This apparent inefficiency persisted, we argue, because most firms believed that trading on inter‐market price differences would yield regulatory penalties. For the few firms that did make such trades, it was not profit‐maximizing to eliminate the price differences entirely. Skyrocketing prices in 2000 changed the major buyers' (utilities') incentives and exacerbated the price differentials between the markets.
ASYMMETRIC DYNAMIC PRICING IN A LOCAL GASOLINE RETAIL MARKET*
Authors: BALMACEDA FELIPE , SORUCO PAULA
Published: September 2010

Asymmetric‐price adjustment is a common phenomenon in many markets around the world, particularly in retail gasoline markets. This paper studies the existence of this phenomenon in the retail gasoline market in the city of Santiago, Chile, using a data set of weekly gas station prices that covers a period of almost four years. We found that prices adjust asymmetrically, and the asymmetry is different for branded gas stations and unbranded stations. In addition, we found that the asymmetry for high‐margin stations is statistically equivalent to that for low‐margin stations. This evidence is suggestive of collusion as a rationale for the asymmetric pricing policy observed.
RETAIL GASOLINE PRICE DYNAMICS AND LOCAL MARKET POWER*
Authors: DELTAS GEORGE
Published: September 2010

Using monthly data from the 48 contiguous states (except Nevada) for the 1988–2002 period, it is shown that retail gasoline prices respond faster to wholesale price increases than to equivalent wholesale price decreases. Moreover, markets with high average retail‐wholesale margins experience a slower adjustment and a more asymmetric response. Since gasoline is the only variable input, average margins in a state likely reflect the degree of retail market power. This suggests that sticky prices and response asymmetries in the gasoline market are, at least partially, a consequence of retail market power.
PRODUCT VARIETY AND DEMAND UNCERTAINTY: WHY MARKUPS VARY WITH QUALITY*
Authors: CARLTON DENNIS W. , DANA JAMES D.
Published: September 2010

We demonstrate that demand uncertainty can explain equilibrium product variety in the presence of sunk costs. Product variety is an efficient response to uncertainty because it reduces the expected costs associated with excess capacity. We find that within the firm's product line, the highest quality product has the highest profit margin but the lowest percentage margin, while the lowest quality product has the highest percentage margin but the lowest absolute margin. Both of these relationships are consistent with evidence available from marketing studies.
EFFECTS OF TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION ON PRODUCTIVITY AND INDUSTRY GROWTH: A STUDY OF STEEL REFINING FURNACES*
Authors: NAKAMURA TSUYOSHI , OHASHI HIROSHI
Published: September 2010

This paper examines the impact of new technology on plant‐level productivity in the Japanese steel industry during the 1950's and 1960's. We estimate the production function, considering the differences in technology between the refining furnaces owned by a plant. We find that a more productive plant was likely to adopt the new technology and that the adoption would be expected to occur immediately following the peak of the productivity level achieved with the old technology. The adoption of the new technology primarily accounted not only for the industry's productivity slowdown but also for the industry's remarkable growth.
SPLINTERING AND INERTIA IN NETWORK INDUSTRIES*
Authors: KRETSCHMER TOBIAS
Published: September 2010

We analyse a stylised game of technology adoption with network effects and two new technologies. Potential adopters can adopt early, late or not at all. We show that one of the reasons for the failure of new technologies can be the presence of multiple incompatible variants of that technology. An adopter's individual incentives to adopt are lower with two technologies than with one. Turning to aggregate expected welfare, we find that two active technologies may be welfare‐improving.
QUANTIFYING THE SCOPE FOR EFFICIENCY DEFENSE IN MERGER CONTROL: THE WERDEN‐FROEB‐INDEX*
Authors: GOPPELSROEDER MARIE , SCHINKEL MAARTEN PIETER , TUINSTRA JAN
Published: September 2010

This paper introduces the Werden‐Froeb Index (WFI) to assist in evaluating merger‐specific efficiencies in horizontal mergers. The index measures the weighted average reduction in marginal costs required to restore pre‐merger equilibrium prices and quantities after the (full or partial) merger is consummated. The WFI is well defined, objective and robust, and it has relatively low information requirements. We propose to use the index as a natural complement to concentration measures such as the Hirschmann‐Herfindahl Index in the assessment of horizontal mergers.
DYNAMIC PRICE DISCRIMINATION WITH ASYMMETRIC FIRMS*
Authors: CHEN YONGMIN
Published: September 2010

This paper considers variants of a dynamic duopoly model where one firm has a stronger market position than its competitor. Consumers' past purchases may reveal their different valuations for the two firms' products. Price discrimination based on purchase histories tends to benefit consumers if it does not cause the weaker firm to exit; otherwise it can harm consumers. The effect of price discrimination also depends on firms' cost differences, market competitiveness, and consumers' time horizon. The stronger firm may price below cost in the presence of consumer switching costs, with the purpose and effect of eliminating competition.
INFORMATIVE ADVERTISING: COMPETITION OR COOPERATION?*
Authors: SIMBANEGAVI WITNESS
Published: September 2010

In a duopoly version of the Grossman and Shapiro [1984] model of informative advertising, I examine firms' incentives to semicollude on advertising and the welfare implications thereof. I find that, relative to the noncooperative outcome, semicollusion on advertising is more profitable but is detrimental to welfare. I also find that when the advertising cost is ‘low,’ advertising semicollusion is more harmful to welfare than price semicollusion. These findings are important for competition policy since traditionally, cooperative advertising is not treated in the same light as price collusion.
COMPETITION AND DISCLOSURE*
Authors: BOARD OLIVER
Published: September 2010

There are many laws that require sellers to disclose private information about the quality of their products. But the theoretical justification for these laws is not obvious: economic theory predicts that a seller will voluntarily disclose such quality information, however unfavorable, as long as it is costless to do so. Here we show that competitive pressures between firms can undermine this full disclosure result, and explain why it may be the case that only high‐quality firms choose to disclose. In this setting, mandatory disclosure laws can promote competition and raise consumer surplus at the expense of firm profits, potentially increasing the efficiency of the market.
TARGETED ADVERTISING: THE ROLE OF SUBSCRIBER CHARACTERISTICS IN MEDIA MARKETS*
Authors: CHANDRA AMBARISH
Published: September 2010

This paper seeks to establish the importance of targeted advertising in media markets. Using zip‐code level circulation for U.S. newspapers, I show that newspapers facing more competition have lower circulation prices but higher advertising prices than similar newspapers facing little or no competition. I explain this by showing that newspapers in more competitive markets are better able to segment readers according to their location and demographics. This leads to greater homogeneity in the characteristics of subscribers and raises advertisers' willingness to pay for such readers. The results imply a substantial benefit to advertisers and media firms from targeted advertising.
CUSTOMER POACHING AND ADVERTISING*
Authors: ESTEVES ROSA BRANCA
Published: September 2010

This paper is a first look at the dynamic effects of customer poaching in homogeneous product markets, where firms need to invest in advertising to generate awareness. When a firm is able to recognize customers with different purchasing histories, it may send them targeted advertisements with different prices. It is shown that only the firm which advertises the highest price in the first period will engage in price discrimination, a practice that clearly benefits the discriminating firm. This poaching gives rise to ‘the race for discrimination effect,’ through which price discrimination may act actually to soften price competition rather than intensify it. As a result, all firms may become better off, even when only one of them can engage in price discrimination. This paper offers a first attempt to evaluate the effects of price discrimination on the efficiency properties of advertising. In markets with low or no advertising costs, allowing firms to price discriminate leads them to provide too little advertising, which is not good for consumers and overall welfare. Only in markets with high advertising costs, might firms overadvertise. Regarding the welfare effects, price discrimination is generally bad for welfare and consumer surplus, though good for firms.
PRODUCT VARIETY AND COMPETITION IN THE RETAIL MARKET FOR EYEGLASSES*
Authors: WATSON RANDAL
Published: September 2010

I use original data on eyewear retailers in a cross‐section of U.S. markets to study how firms' product range choices vary with the degree of local competition. Market level regressions show average per firm variety declining in the number of rivals. In regressions at the firm level, taking account of spatial differentiation within each market, a non‐monotonic relationship between product ranges and competition is apparent. As the number of nearby rivals increases, per firm variety may first rise before eventually declining. Explanations for this pattern are offered, in terms of a tradeoff between business stealing and clustering effects.
Pioneering New Politics or Rearranging the Deckchairs? The 2007 National Assembly for Wales Election and Results
Authors: McALLISTER LAURA , COLE MICHAEL
Published: September 2010

This article analyses the campaign, results and outcome of the 2007 elections to the National Assembly for Wales. It discusses the constitutional and legislative framework of devolution in Wales, the election campaign and opinion polls. There is extensive analysis of the election results, the performance of each of the main and some of the smaller parties. Shifts in representation of women and ethnic minority AMs and departures and new arrivals are covered. There is discussion of changes in electoral turnout and the proportionality of the outcome, which is low and has declined since 2003. The final substantive section deals with the complexities of the post‐election coalition negotiations, while events in Wales are placed in the context of international experiences around the formation of coalition governments
The Future of Conservatism*
Authors: NORTON PHILIP
Published: September 2010

British Conservatism embodies certain basic, though not always compatible, tenets of belief. They have underpinned the Conservative Party, which has been the most successful political party in the history of western Europe. The party was the ‘in’ party in British politics in the 20th Century; the reasons for that success shifted in the 21st century to it principal opponent party. Attempts by Conservative leaders in the first two parliaments of opposition constituted quick‐fix and ultimately doomed approaches to restoring electoral dominance. The party under David Cameron has shifted to a long‐term, grounded approach, learning the lessons of earlier periods of opposition. Though the process remains incomplete, the Conservative Party is placed for the first time in the 21st century to return to being a party of governance.
Do Policies of Multiculturalism Change National Identities?
Authors: UBEROI VARUN
Published: September 2010

‘Policies of multiculturalism are often criticised for undermining national identities in one of three ways and in this article I suggest why this is questionable and then point to a more plausible relationship between the two. More specifically, I offer a hypothesis which is that policies of multiculturalism change national identities and I argue that this hypothesis is both theoretically plausible and empirically plausible in at least one instance. This argument is made in three stages and in the first of them I explain what I think policies of multiculturalism and national identities are. In the second stage I present my hypothesis and explain why it is theoretically plausible. In the third stage I use new evidence to suggest why my hypothesis is also empirically plausible in at least one instance. In the final stage I show why a sceptic who might doubt whether my hypothesis is plausible in other instances need not do so.’
Politicians and Civil Servants: Unfinished Business—The Next Steps Report, Fulton and the Future*
Authors: JENKINS KATE
Published: September 2010

This article discusses the origins of the Efficiency Unit's ‘Next Steps’ Report, published 20 years ago which recommended the executive agency as an organisation for much of the British government. Within five years more than half the civil service had been transferred to work in agencies but the other major recommendation of the report – improving the management skills of the senior civil service received far less enthusiastic attention. From the Fulton Report, the Next Steps report to the Capability Reviews of current Whitehall the same problem is highlighted: there is still too little management competence within the public service despite the endorsement of the need for improvement by successive governments.
The Split Personality of Prudence in the Unfolding Political Economy of New Labour
Authors: WATSON MATTHEW
Published: September 2010

This article focuses on the economic ideas which underpin New Labour's two very different appeals to the notion of prudence. The first treats prudence as a macroeconomic phenomenon, drawing upon the work of the ‘time consistency’ theorists of the 1970s. It dominated the Party's economic policy‐making until the end of the first term in Government, emphasising the need for extreme vigilance on matters of public spending. The second treats prudence as a microeconomic phenomenon, drawing upon the eighteenth‐century work of Adam Smith. It has become dominant since the start of the second term, emphasising the need to encourage the savings habit more widely within society. The shift in priority from the macroeconomic to the microeconomic understanding comes on the back of New Labour's own growing imprudence in time consistency terms. The Government has incentivised private savings at the same time as it has become increasingly reluctant to be a saver itself.
English Councillors and Mayoral Governance: Developing a New Dynamic for Political Accountability
Authors: COPUS COLIN
Published: September 2010

Much has been written about the arrival of directly elected mayors into the English political landscape. The responses of the councillors serving on those councils to the arrival of elected mayors, has by comparison, been neglected. Yet, the construction, by councillors of a new role as the guarantor of local political accountability within mayoral councils, requires councillors to develop new patterns of political behaviour which challenge long‐held assumptions about the role of the councillor as a political representative. The paper reports the findings of research conducted amongst councillors on England's mayoral authorities, which explored how councillors have responded to the arrival of an elected mayor and what mayoral government means for our understanding of the role of the councillor within English local government.
China's Recovery: Why the Writing Was Always on the Wall
Authors: TURNER OLIVER
Published: September 2010

China has been a major power for far longer than is typically acknowledged in the West. This paper seeks to redress established discourse of China as a ‘rising’ power which now enjoys common usage within Western policy‐making, academic and popular circles, particularly within the United States; China can more accurately be conceived of as a ‘recovering power’. A tendency by successive Washington administrations to view the world in realist terms has forced the label of ‘rising’ power onto China along with the negative connotations that inevitably follow. We should acknowledge the folly in utilising a theoretical approach largely devoid of any appreciation for the social and human dimensions of international relations as well as the importance of social discourse in the field. Finally, policy‐makers in Washington must reconsider their realist stance and, with a fuller appreciation of world history, recognise that American hegemony was always destined to be short‐lived.
The United Kingdom National Security Strategy: the Need for New Bearings in Security Policy
Authors: GOW JAMES
Published: September 2010

The first ever UK National Security Strategy statement reflect shifts in perspective on the nature of security concerns and the character of risks and threats in an era of globalisation. However, the UK National Security Strategy itself is a major disappointment. It fails as an attempt to conceive of a genuine strategy. It also fails to engage explicitly and fully with key imperatives for UK security policy, such as Islamist terrorism and the emerging power of China. However, the UK National Security Strategy, despite being weak and disappointing, offers important new bearings on where the National Security Strategy and the government's means to security policy should go from here, identifying areas to strengthen and develop national security structures.
Choice in Public Services: Crying ‘Wolf’ in the School Choice Debate
Authors: GOODWIN MARK
Published: September 2010

Choice, diversity and personalisation have been key to the New Labour project in public services. With the emergence of a reinvigorated Conservative party as a credible electoral threat, and the end of the Blair era, it seems appropriate to consider the continuing viability and longevity of the New Labour public service project. In this article, I approach the issue of choice in public services through an examination of the long‐running controversy over choice in the English secondary school system. I argue that the opponents of choice have been reluctant to engage with the notion of choice in public services due to concerns over the supposed negative effect that consumer choice has on the equity and quality of service provision. This paper aims to challenge the claim that any element of choice in education necessarily has deleterious effects on social justice. I argue that the case against school choice has not been decisively made and that school choice can, in principle, form part of a socially progressive educational project by redistributing power to service users and helping to maintain popular support for public provision of education.
The Conservatives' Grassroots ‘Revival’
Authors: PATTIE CHARLES , JOHNSTON RON
Published: September 2010

Healthy party grassroots constituency organisations play an important part in modern electoral campaigning, especially in marginal seats, and political parties try to concentrate their efforts on those closely contested constituencies. Recent evidence on party fund‐raising at a local level shows that the Conservatives have taken considerable strides in supporting their campaign organisations in marginals, and have done so in a way which enhances their long‐term campaigning potential there. The party's grassroots organisations are increasingly well‐resourced, especially in the seats the Conservatives need to win back if they are to win the next General Election. However, while fund‐raising suggests a healthy grassroots where it is needed, party membership data highlights continued problems for the party.
The Feminisation of the Conservative Parliamentary Party: Party Members' Attitudes
Authors: CHILDS SARAH , WEBB PAUL , MARTHALER SALLY
Published: September 2010

Under David Cameron's leadership reforms have been made to the Conservative party's parliamentary selection procedures and distinct women's policy initiatives have been developed. This article, based on focus group data with party members, explores attitudes towards measures designed to recruit more women Conservative MPs. Broadly, we find that, despite widespread support for the principle of greater social diversity among PPCs, members are uncomfortable with the specific measures that have been introduced. This is largely on the grounds that anything approaching ‘positive discrimination’ should be eschewed in favour of the ‘meritocratic’ selection of candidates. Further, the members tend to resent central party ‘interference’ in what has traditionally been the domain of local Constituency Associations.
From Broken Families to the Broken Society
Authors: KIRBY JILL
Published: September 2010

This article traces the development of the Conservative party's ‘broken society’ narrative, from its roots in William Hague's early invocations of ‘social justice’ to the evidence‐based approach adopted by David Cameron. It considers relevant social trends over the period since 1970; summarises the Conservative party's attitude to family policy in government between 1979 and 1997; and shows how the Conservatives in opposition from 1997 onwards have become more focused on support for the marriage‐based family, now a central tenet of Conservative social policy under David Cameron's leadership.
‘Sharing the Proceeds of Growth’: Conservative Economic Policy under David Cameron
Authors: DOREY PETER
Published: September 2010

Upon becoming Conservative leader, David Cameron, and his Shadow Chancellor, George Osborne, initially sought to compete with Labour by pledging increased expenditure on education and the NHS, and thereby insisting that tax cuts would have to wait. Rather than cutting taxation overall, the emphasis was on restructuring and simplifying Britain's tax system, and shifting the burden towards the better off, mainly thorough promoting environmental taxes. However, the economic collapse at the end of 2008 has prompted the Conservatives to modify this new economic stance, by insisting that they will no longer match Labour's planned increases in public expenditure, but, instead, will increase it at a lower rate. This is intended to reduce the need to increase government borrowing during the recession, and thereby ensure that when the economy recovers, the proceeds of economic growth can be shared between higher public expenditure and lower taxation, rather than being spent on repaying government debt for many years ahead.
Between Two Stools? The Government's ‘Preventing Violent Extremism’ Agenda
Authors: THOMAS PAUL
Published: September 2010

The 7/7 London suicide bombings of July 2005 and numerous subsequent Islamist terror plots have highlighted the reality of an ‘internal’ threat to Britain. One governmental response has been the ‘Preventing Violent Extremism’ (PVE) programme. Whilst the educational aspect of its focus on Muslim young people is to be welcomed, there are serious concerns as to whether PVE policy, as currently designed, is falling between two stools. To date, the programme focuses exclusively on Muslim communities in flat contradiction to the integration policy priority of community cohesion, so risking further defensiveness from Muslim communities and resentment from white working class communities. Whilst ignoring the right‐wing extremism growing in some of those white communities, PVE work with young people is actually failing to engage openly and robustly with the real political issues driving Muslim anger and minority extremist support. The confidence, understanding and skills of educational practitioners are vital here.
The Parliamentary Party
Authors: COWLEY PHILIP
Published: September 2010

The Conservative parliamentary party will fulfill three important functions for any incoming Conservative government: it will be the focus of attention for the national media; it will be the bulk vote that will deliver its legislative programme; it will form the talent pool from which members of any incoming government will be recruited. A majority Conservative government could see a majority of its MPs newly elected, with more Conservative women and ethnic minority MPs than ever before (although there will be little change in the socio‐economic background of their MPs). These new MPs will present problems in terms of party management, although they will be less likely to rebel than longer‐serving MPs. There are also relatively few signs of discontent among incumbent Conservative MPs (the article identifies the most rebellious Conservative MPs). Any new Conservative government will also have to deal with a reformed House of Lords, in which it will no longer have a majority.
IS THERE A BASIS FOR TELEOLOGY IN PHYSICS?
Authors: Helrich Carl S.
Published: September 2010

The basic laws of physics for particles and fields can be formulated in terms of variational principles. The initial development of a variational principle had distinct teleological implications. The formulation of physical laws in terms of variational principles is outlined with specific reference to classical and quantum mechanics and field theory. Because of time irreversibility no variational principle exists for thermodynamics. In order to obtain time irreversibility molecular trajectories must be abandoned in the lowest‐level description of complex multicomponent systems. A more open set of possibilities results. I suggest that this may be more consistent with a modern teleology.
GENETIC AND REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN THE LIGHT OF RELIGIOUS DIALOGUE
Authors: Modell Stephen M.
Published: September 2010

Since the gene splicing debates of the 1980s, the public has been exposed to an ongoing sequence of genetic and reproductive technologies. Many issue areas have outcomes that lose track of people's inner values or engender opposing religious viewpoints defying final resolution. This essay relocates the discussion of what is an acceptable application from the individual to the societal level, examining technologies that stand to address large numbers of people and thus call for policy resolution, rather than individual fiat, in their application. A major source of guidance is the “Genetic Frontiers” series of professional dialogues and conferences held by the National Conference for Community and Justice from 2002 to 2004. Genetic testing, human gene therapy, genetic engineering of plants and animals, and stem cell technology are examined. While differences in perspective on the beginning of life persist, a stepwise approach to the examination of genetic testing reveals areas of general agreement. Stewardship of life, human co‐creativity with the divine, and social justice help define the bounds of application of genetic engineering and therapy; compassionate care plays a major role in establishing stem cell policy. Active, sustained dialogue is a useful resource for enabling sharing of religious values and crystallization of policies.
COLLECTIVE SELF‐ORGANIZATION IN GENERAL BIOLOGY: GILLES DELEUZE, CHARLES S. PEIRCE, AND STUART KAUFFMAN
Authors: Gangle Rocco
Published: September 2010

Stuart Kauffman's proposal in Investigations to ground a “general biology” in the laws of self‐organization governing systems of autonomous agents runs up against the methodological problem of how to integrate formal mathematical with semantic and semiotic approaches to the study of evolutionary development. Gilles Deleuze's concept of the virtual and C. S. Peirce's system of existential graphs provide a theoretical framework and practical art for answering this problem of method by modeling the creative event of collective self‐organization as both represented and practiced in the scientific community.
RELIGIOUS NATURALISM AND THE FUTURE OF CHRISTIANITY
Authors: Braxton Donald M.
Published: September 2010

Loyal Rue suggests that religion is not about God as such but about the cultivation of personal and social well‐being. Religion may employ cultural resources that include concepts of supernatural agencies, but religion's essential functionalities are not dependent on that particular resource. I largely endorse Rue's view of religion and employ Rue as a guide to thinking through its consequences for the future of Christianity. For Rue, two challenges face Christianity: the erosion of confidence in personal‐god concepts and the ecological crisis engulfing the planet. In the face of these twin momentous changes, I suggest ways in which certain cultural tropes in the Christian matrix will rise to the fore and others will erode.
RELIGIOUS NATURALISM OR THEOLOGICAL HUMANISM?
Authors: Klemm David E.
Published: September 2010

Loyal Rue's book Religion Is Not About God (2005) is a polemic for religious naturalism. In it Rue sets up a general model of religion based on principles of scientific materialism, tests his model against five historical religions, and speculates on the future of religion. He claims that in the West, modern science and pluralism threaten the moral authority of Christianity in facing the environmental crisis, which is fueled by a rival metareligion, consumerism. He concludes that an ecological Doomsday is likely, following which a new religion will arise: religious naturalism. I challenge Rue's account at three levels, from the standpoint of theological humanism. First, as a philosopher of religion, Rue cannot carry through his scientific materialist explanation of religion. The first‐person experience of consciousness escapes such an account. Second, as a myth maker, Rue unifies the evolutionary epic retrospectively, where the evidence is thin, and projects the future overconfidently. Third, as a theologian, Rue is wrong to equate God and Nature.
On Chimeras
Authors: Rollin Bernard E.
Published: September 2010

This essay is a critical response to Neville Cobbe's article “Cross‐Species Chimeras: Exploring a Possible Christian Perspective.” New technologies, particularly biotechnologies, raise major concerns in society. In the absence of good ethical thinking on these issues, bad ethical thinking becomes regnant. Two common types of bad ethical thinking are (1) confusing whatever disturbs people with genuine ethical issues and (2) confusing religious issues with ethical ones. Cobbe's article commits the former type of error with regard to the possibility of a mouse created with human brain neurons. I analyze and discuss that error and also raise questions about Cobbe's attempt to analyze the creation of chimeras from a Christian perspective.
STRUCTURAL ESTIMATION OF RESIDENTIAL MOBILITY AND HOUSING TENURE CHOICE*
Authors: Ioannides Yannis M. , Kan Kamhon
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT. This study is devoted to studying households'decisions to move and whether to rent or own after moving. It employs dynamic discrete choice models which condition households'decisions on their circumstances at every point in time during the length of the observation while accounting for individual heterogeneity. The results show that key dynamic elements, captured by means of lagged dependent variables, as well as household heterogeneity, are significant determinants of the tenure choice and mobility decisions. Moreover, homeowners are found to be responsive to housing market conditions when adjusting their housing stock. Housing‐price appreciation is found to discourage renters from becoming homeowners. Finally, our results reject the proportional monetary transaction costs specification suggesting that monetary transaction costs might be fixed.
DELINEATING METROPOLITAN AREAS USING LAND PRICES*
Authors: Bode Eckhardt
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT This paper proposes an approach to delineating metropolitan areas that is more general than the standard approaches in three respects: First, it uses the fraction of land prices attributable to economies of urban agglomeration instead of using commuting intensities as an indicator of economic integration between metropolitan centers and their hinterlands. Second, it identifies metropolitan centers endogenously instead of determining them exogenously. And third, it takes metropolitan subcenters explicitly into account. An empirical illustration is used to show that the approach tends to delineate fewer but larger metropolitan areas in densely populated regions, and smaller metropolitan areas in sparsely populated regions.
A SEARCH FOR MULTIPLE EQUILIBRIA IN URBAN INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURE*
Authors: Davis Donald R. , Weinstein David E.
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT Theories featuring multiple equilibria are widespread across economics. Yet little empirical work has asked if multiple equilibria are features of real economies. We examine this in the context of the Allied bombing of Japanese cities and industries in World War II. We develop a new empirical test for multiple equilibria and apply it to data for 114 Japanese cities in eight manufacturing industries. The data provide no support for the existence of multiple equilibria. In the aftermath even of immense shocks, a city typically recovers not only its population and its share of aggregate manufacturing, but even the industries it had before.
OPENNESS TO TRADE AND INDUSTRY COST DISPERSION: EVIDENCE FROM A PANEL OF ITALIAN FIRMS*
Authors: Del Gatto Massimo , Ottaviano Gianmarco I. P. , Pagnini Marcello
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT We use Italian firm‐level data to investigate the impact of trade openness on the distribution of firms across marginal cost levels. In so doing, we implement a procedure that allows us to control not only for the standard transmission bias identified in firm‐level TFP regressions but also for the omitted price bias due to imperfect competition. We find that more open industries are characterized by a smaller dispersion of costs across active firms. Moreover, in those industries the average cost is also smaller.
THE NUMBER‐AVERAGE SIZE RULE: A NEW EMPIRICAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INDUSTRIAL LOCATION AND CITY SIZE*
Authors: Mori Tomoya , Nishikimi Koji , Smith Tony E.
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT The spatial intensities of both industries and population are highly uneven across space. Moreover, these intensities differ not only across industries, but also change through time. Nevertheless, we show using Japanese data for metropolitan areas in two time periods that the location intensities of both industries and population are linked by surprisingly simple and persistent patterns. In particular, we identify a strong negative log‐linear relation between the number and the average (population) size of metro areas in which a given industry is found. This relation, which we designate as the Number‐Average Size (NAS) Rule, is also shown to be intimately connected to both the Rank‐Size Rule and Christaller's (1966) Hierarchy Principle applied to metropolitan areas. In particular, we show mathematically that in the presence of the Hierarchy Principle (which holds quite well in Japan) this NAS Rule is essentially equivalent to the Rank Size Rule.
“To Prostitute Morality, Libel Religion, and Undermine Government”: Blasphemy and the Strange Persistence of Providence in Britain since the Seventeenth Century
Authors: NASH DAVID
Published: September 2010

This article looks at the long term history of blasphemy in Britain and its relationship to the phenomenon of providence from the seventeenth century through to the twentieth. This, it is suggested, has substantially dominated the appearance of blasphemy accusation and public concern linked to the moral security of the realm. Using sermons and didactic writing from the seventeenth century, the article demonstrates how conceptions of providence and blasphemy were linked to produce a forceful culture which protected rulers against challenges to the community. Using demonstrations of public opinion the article shows how in the twentieth century the providential fear of misfortune as a result of blasphemy became linked with issues of national safety and prosperity. The article concludes by suggesting that the link between blasphemy and providence enabled both to remain credible into the twentieth century and beyond, undermining many of the linear models of both secularization and the growth of rationality.
Blasphemy in Early Modern Sweden — An Untold Story
Authors: OLLI SOILI‐MARIA
Published: September 2010

In early modern Sweden, blasphemy was regarded as one of the most serious crimes one could commit. It was subject to the death penalty and was termed Crimen Laesae Majestatis Diviniae– a “crime against the heavenly majesty.” In the period 1680–1789, 110 cases of blasphemy came before the Judiciary Inspectorate; these cases can be divided into the following categories: blasphemy against God, basphemy against the sacraments, deliberate assignations to the Devil, and other blasphemies. Of the 117 accused, only nine were women and a significant number were soldiers. Blasphemy could be regarded a common subgenre within an already oral military culture.
Principles of high‐frequency ultrasonography for investigation of skin pathology
Authors: Jasaitiene D , Valiukeviciene S , Linkeviciute G , Raisutis R , Jasiuniene E , Kazys R
Published: September 2010

Ultrasonography is a valuable diagnostic tool widely used in medicine. During the last three decades, this non‐invasive skin imaging method has been extended to dermatology. High‐frequency ultrasonography with higher than 20 MHz scanners is well‐established for measuring tumour thickness and skin thickness when treating inflammatory skin diseases such as scleroderma or psoriasis. High‐frequency ultrasonography has become extremely helpful for the preoperative assessment of skin melanoma. The correlation between ultrasonic and histological measurements of melanomas thickness is significantly similarly good using transducers of 20, 75 or 100 MHz frequency (r range from 0.895 to 0.99) and better compared with transducers of 7.5 MHz frequency (r = 0.76). The preoperative sonographically estimated thickness of skin melanoma is sometimes overestimated, because of an underlying inflammatory infiltrate and other reasons. Assessment of skin melanoma thickness using transducers of 100 MHz frequency has better agreement with histology, compared with ultrasonography with 20 MHz transducers. However, the ultrasonic penetration depth is limited to 1.5 mm in case of 100 MHz. The newer ultrasonic techniques such as high‐frequency ultrasonography and colour Doppler sonography could be used for assessment of the tumour vascularization and its metastatic potential. The wide variety of diagnostic information provided by high‐frequency ultrasonography undoubtedly improves the management of oncological and inflammatory skin conditions and underlines its essential position in dermatological practice.
Evaluation of disease activity and damage in different subtypes of cutaneous lupus erythematosus using the CLASI
Authors: Bein D , Kuehn E , Meuth AM , Amler S , Haust M , Nyberg F , Sauerland C , Luger TA , Bonsmann G , Kuhn A
Published: September 2010

Background  The Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus Disease Area and Severity Index (CLASI) is a scoring system for patients with cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE) to assess disease activity and damage.

Objective  The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the CLASI is a useful instrument which reflects the different subtypes of CLE comparably well in each parameter.

Methods  A total of 50 patients (42 female, 8 male) with different subtypes of CLE, including acute CLE (ACLE), subacute CLE (SCLE), chronic CLE (CCLE) and LE tumidus (LET), from the Departments of Dermatology, University of Düsseldorf, Germany, and Danderyd Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden, were evaluated using the CLASI at one time point.

Results  The total CLASI activity score was significantly lower in patients with LET compared with ACLE (P < 0.05) and CCLE (P < 0.001), and the total CLASI damage score was significantly lower in patients with LET than with ACLE (P < 0.05), SCLE (P < 0.001) and CCLE (P < 0.001). The erythema score and the scale/hypertrophy score were significantly lower in LET than in ACLE (P < 0.05, both) and CCLE (P < 0.05 and P < 0.001, respectively). The dyspigmentation score was lowest in patients with LET, differing significantly from ACLE (P < 0.05), SCLE (P < 0.05) and CCLE (P < 0.001). The scarring/atrophy/panniculitis score was significantly higher in patients with CCLE in contrast to SCLE and LET (P < 0.05 and P < 0.001, respectively).

Conclusion  These data characterize the CLASI as an overall useful instrument to analyse disease activity and damage in CLE. However, the CLASI does not give an accurate assessment of all disease subtypes; therefore, a revision of the CLASI with critical analysis of all parameters is recommended.
Nodular basal cell carcinoma is associated with increased hyaluronan homeostasis
Authors: Tzellos TG , Kyrgidis A , Vahtsevanos K , Triaridis S , Printza A , Klagas I , Zvintzou E , Kritis A , Karakiulakis G , Papakonstantinou E
Published: September 2010

Background  Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is one of the most frequent forms of malignancy in humans. Although BCC is a tumour of low degree of malignancy, if left untreated, it can be locally aggressive, eat away at tissues and cause ulceration. Nodular is the most common subtype of BCC (>50%). Although apparently non‐invasive, micronodular, a certain subgroup of nodular, is likely to recur. Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), such as hyaluronic acid (HA), are extracellular matrix molecules of high importance in malignant transformation, metastasis and other complex remodelling processes.

Objectives  To investigate the expression of GAGs and their metabolizing enzymes in nodular BCC, when compared with adjacent healthy human skin tissue specimens.

Methods  Total GAGs were isolated and purified from nodular BCC and normal adjacent human skin tissue specimens. GAGs were subsequently fractionated by electrophoresis on cellulose acetate membranes and characterized using specific GAG‐degrading enzymes. The content of HA in total GAGs was measured using ELISA and the expression of HA synthases (HAS), hyaluronidases (HYAL) and HA receptors (CD44 and receptor hyaluronic acid‐mediated motility (RHAMM) was assessed using RT‐PCR.

Results  Nodular BCC is associated with increased levels of HA concomitant with upregulation of gene expression of HAS3, HYAL3 and RHAMM, when compared with normal adjacent skin.

Conclusion  These results indicate that HA homeostasis in nodular BCC shows distinct features which may be helpful in understanding the complex behaviour of nodular subtype of BCC, thus eventually leading to new treatment strategies.