bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Engine fault diagnosis based on a morphological neural network using a morphological filter as a preprocessor
Authors: Li Bing , Hu Ren-Xi , Ren Guo-Quan , Fu Jian-Ping
Published: November 2012

Feature extraction and faults classification are the two most significant issues involved in the field of mechanical fault diagnosis problems. In this work, we address these two problems using mathematical morphology and non-negative matrix factorization. In particular, we present a novel engine fault diagnosis scheme utilizing the averaged multi-scale morphological filter to enhance the vibration signals, non-negative matrix factorization to characterize the signals, and a constructive morphological neural network to classify the engine operating states. Eight engine running states including the healthy state and seven defective states are tested in an engine experiment rig to evaluate the presented fault diagnosis scheme. Conventional feature extraction methods as well as classifiers popularly used in the literature are also employed as a comparison. The experimental results indicate the proposed approach to be an effective and efficient scheme for detection of the intelligent faults of engines.
Lake highstands in the Pensacola Mountains and Shackleton Range 4300–2250 cal. yr BP: Evidence of a warm climate anomaly in the interior of Antarctica
Authors: Hodgson Dominic A , Bentley Michael J
Published: November 2012

We surveyed and dated the former shorelines of one lake in the Shackleton Range and two lakes in the Pensacola Mountains, situated inland of the Weddell Sea embayment Antarctica between 80° and 85°S. These are amongst the highest latitude lakes in the Antarctic and are located in areas where there is little or no Holocene climate and hydrological information. Surveys of the lake shorelines show that past water levels have been up to 15.7, 17.7 and 69.5 m higher than present in the three study lakes. AMS radiocarbon dating of lake-derived macrofossils showed that there was a sustained period of higher water levels from approximately 4300 and until sometime after 2250 cal. yr BP. This is interpreted as being the result of an increased number of meltwater events and/or degree-days above freezing, relative to the present. The closest comparable ice cores from the Dominion Range in the Transantarctic Mountains (85°S, 166°E) and the Plateau Remote ice core on the continental East Antarctic Ice Sheet (84°S, 43°E) also provide some evidence of a warmer period beginning at c. 4000–3500 yr BP and ending after 2000–1500 yr BP, as does a synthesis of oxygen isotope data from five Antarctic ice cores. This suggests that the well-documented mid- to late-Holocene warm period, measured in many lake and marine sediments around the coast of Antarctica, extended into these regions of the continental interior.
Successful Cross-border Acquisitions of Latin American Financial Institutions: Identifying Success Factors
Authors: Aybar C. Bülent , Jeffus Wendy M. , Edmunds John C.
Published: November 2012

This article examines the shareholder wealth effects for foreign companies that announce acquisitions of financial institutions in Latin America. We examine data for 636 transactions for the period 1985–2009. We employ event study methodology coupled with a cross-sectional regression to determine if shareholders of the acquiring firm receive positive returns. The results indicate that acquirers receive positive returns when the acquisition involves a target bank in a market with low market access, high market risk, and greater control post acquisition. These findings offer improvements on previously examined variables and provide insight into a market not sufficiently examined in prior research.
Achievements and Challenges in Agricultural Extension in India
Authors: Ferroni Marco , Zhou Yuan
Published: November 2012

The purpose of extension is to disseminate advice to farmers. Knowledge gaps contribute to yield gaps. Services and quality inputs are essential productivity-enhancing tools. However, their optimum use requires knowledge. Farmers also need information on prices and markets, post-harvest management, produce quality determinants, and safety standards. Some farmers marshal knowledge themselves. The “resource-poor” majority, growers of much of India’s food, need external, science-based, extension to complement local knowledge. Much debate focuses on how best to achieve the desired outcomes that extension can convey. Many countries have neglected extension and indeed agriculture as a whole. But interest appears to be returning globally, and India is no exception. In 2009, a National Seminar on Agriculture Extension discussed knowledge management, convergence of extension systems, the role of information and communication technology and mass media, private sector initiatives including public–private partnerships, and farmer- and market-led extension systems. This article builds on that discussion. It looks at extension in relation to both primary production and market links, and acknowledges the contributions of all providers of extension, public and private.
Community treatment orders in Australia: rates and patterns of use
Authors: Light Edwina , Kerridge Ian , Ryan Christopher , Robertson Michael
Published: November 2012

Objectives:

Community treatment orders (CTOs) allow clinicians to provide unconsented outpatient treatment to people living with mental illness. Though controversial and of uncertain efficacy, CTOs are used throughout Australia and internationally. We sought to determine the prevalence of CTO use in Australian states and territories, and to examine changes in the pattern of use over time.

Method:

Australian state and territory mental health review tribunals and health departments were surveyed for the most recent annual data on the total number of CTOs made and the total number of individual people placed on a CTO.

Results:

Rates of CTO use range from 30.2 per 100,000 population (in Tasmania) to 98.8 per 100,000 population (in Victoria). Use of CTOs in Australia is high by world standards, appears to be increasing over time, and varies significantly across jurisdictions.

Conclusions:

The high (by world standards), increasing and variable use of CTOs in Australia is concerning and raises important implications for mental health policymakers and legislators. Current mental health policy activity, particularly the new National Mental Health Commission, provides a unique opportunity to enhance transparency and accountability if regular and nationally uniform CTO data are collected and publically reported.
Secondary Transition Evidence-Based Practices and Predictors
Authors: Mazzotti Valerie L. , Test David W. , Mustian April L.
Published: November 2012

The No Child Left Behind Act (2001) and Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) had implications for teachers and students at all levels (i.e., elementary, middle, high school). Specifically, IDEA had implications for secondary students with disabilities because it required students with disabilities exit high school prepared for postschool education, employment, and independent living. When considering federal mandates and reform initiatives, state and local education agencies have to consider how students with disabilities and secondary transition will be affected. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of secondary transition evidence-based practices and predictors of postschool success for student with disabilities. Implications for policymakers related to improving secondary transition programs and practices at federal, state, and local levels are discussed.
Challenges in Interpreting Accountability Results for Schools’ Facilitation of Parent Involvement Under IDEA
Authors: Elbaum Batya
Published: November 2012

Parents’ involvement in their child’s education has been an important tenet of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Under the special education accountability system that went into effect in 2005, states have been required to report annually to the federal government on the percentage of parents with a child receiving special education services who report that schools facilitated parent involvement. This study investigated the variability of states’ reported results owing to states’ different choices with regard to items, metrics, and standards used to calculate their percentage on the indicator. Findings indicated that the application of different methodologies could result in reported percentages that vary by as much as 40 percentage points. It is argued that when reported results do not mean the same thing across states, the accountability system may fail in its mission to provide stakeholders with clear information to evaluate program performance and guide improvement efforts.
The Mission and Development Processes of the Disability Movement in Israel and the United States
Authors: Gilad Dvorit , Rimmerman Arie
Published: November 2012

This article provides a comparison between the mission and development processes of the disability movement in Israel and the United States. It examines whether the organizations that were supposed to construct the movement have succeeded in their mission through the adoption of the disability rights legislations or have been able to introduce a new agenda. The review and analysis are based on Israeli and foreign sources, in-depth interviews with prominent Israeli activists, and observations of protests and conferences held in Israel in recent years. Findings indicate that in comparison with the United States, the Israeli organizations’ activities are defensive in nature, operating in a fairly young civic society, and have, therefore, failed to create an overall disability movement. The enactment of disability rights legislation left disability activists, in both countries, at a crossroads regarding their future mission. The conclusion reached is that if they wish to survive, they will need to cooperate with other civic organizations and probably renew their social contracts with their constituencies.
Self-organizing agent communities for autonomic resource management
Authors: Jacyno Mariusz , Bullock Seth , Geard Nicholas , Payne Terry R , Luck Michael
Published: November 2012

The autonomic computing paradigm addresses the operational challenges presented by increasingly complex software systems by proposing that they be composed of many autonomous components, each responsible for the runtime reconfiguration of its own dedicated hardware and software components. Consequently, regulation of the whole software system becomes an emergent property of local adaptation and learning carried out by these autonomous system elements. Designing appropriate local adaptation policies for the components of such systems remains a major challenge. This is particularly true where the system’s scale and dynamism compromise the efficiency of a central executive and/or prevent components from pooling information to achieve a shared, accurate evidence base for their negotiations and decisions. In this paper, we investigate how a self-regulatory system response may arise spontaneously from local interactions between autonomic system elements tasked with adaptively consuming/providing computational resources or services when the demand for such resources is continually changing. We demonstrate that system performance is not maximized when all system components are able to freely share information with one another. Rather, maximum efficiency is achieved when individual components have only limited knowledge of their peers. Under these conditions, the system self-organizes into appropriate community structures. By maintaining information flow at the level of communities, the system is able to remain stable enough to efficiently satisfy service demand in resource-limited environments, and thus minimize any unnecessary reconfiguration whilst remaining sufficiently adaptive to be able to reconfigure when service demand changes.
Linear reactive control for efficient 2D and 3D bipedal walking over rough terrain
Authors: Solomon Joseph H , Locascio Mark A , Hartmann Mitra JZ
Published: November 2012

The kinematics of human walking are largely driven by passive dynamics, but adaptation to varying terrain conditions and responses to perturbations require some form of active control. The basis for this control is often thought to take the form of entrainment between a neural oscillator (i.e., a central pattern generator and/or distributed counterparts) and the mechanical system. Here we use techniques in evolutionary robotics to explore the potential of a purely reactive, linear controller to control bipedal locomotion over rough terrain. In these simulation studies, joint torques are computed as weighted linear sums of sensor states, and the weights are optimized using an evolutionary algorithm. We show that linear reactive control can enable a seven-link 2D biped and a nine-link 3D biped to walk over rough terrain (steps of ∼5% leg length or more in the 2D case). In other words, the simulated walker gradually learns the appropriate weights to achieve stable locomotion. The results indicate that oscillatory neural structures are not necessarily a requirement for robust bipedal walking. The study of purely reactive control through linear feedback may help to reveal some basic control principles of stable walking.
Fostering Partnerships With Media Organizations to Improve Climate Change Coverage in Africa
Authors: Kakonge John O.
Published: November 2012

The media coverage of climate change issues is in decline in both the developed and developing countries. This situation calls for innovative ways by which the costs associated with climate change coverage can be shared and defrayed; it needs to attract true partners within the media sector and beyond in addressing climate change issues; and it must develop practical solutions to overcoming the systemic public apathy toward climate science and climate science journalism in developing countries.
Child Neglect and the Development of Externalizing Behavior Problems
Authors: Manly Jody Todd , Oshri Assaf , Lynch Michael , Herzog Margaret , Wortel Sanne
Published: November 2012

Given the high prevalence of child neglect among maltreatment subtypes, and its association with exposure to additional environmental adversity, understanding the processes that potentiate child neglect and link neglect to subsequent child externalizing psychopathology may shed light on key targets for preventive intervention. Among 170 urban low-income children (ages 4–9) and their mothers, this 5-year prospective study examined the effects of early neglect severity and maternal substance abuse, as well as neighborhood crime, on children’s later externalizing behavior problems. Severity of child neglect (up to age 6 years) mediated the relation between maternal drug dependence diagnosis (MDDD), determined at children’s age of 4 years, and children’s externalizing behavior problems at age 9. Rates of neighborhood crime mediated the link between presence of child neglect and children’s externalizing behavior problems. The roles of MDDD, child neglect, and community violence in the development of child psychopathology are discussed in terms of their implications for intervention.
Ifosfamide-induced neurotoxicity reversal with continuous veno-venous hemodialysis. A case report
Authors: Cherry Mohamad A , Bhardwaj Himanshu , Hopps Sarah , Srour Samer , Pant Shubham
Published: November 2012

Ifosfamide is an alkylating agent used to treat different types of malignancies including lymphomas, sarcomas and germinal cell tumors. Symptoms of ifosfamide neurotoxicity can range from mild confusion, dizziness and hallucination to overt encephalopathy. Various treatment options like methylene blue, albumin infusion and rarely hemodialysis have been used to treat ifosfamide neurotoxicity. We hereby report a case of a patient with relapsed diffuse large B cell lymphoma who received methylene blue after experiencing acute renal failure and encephalopathy due to ifosfamide with no improvement. The prompt use of hemodialysis in this case has led to reversal of both renal failure and neurotoxicity.
Cetuximab hypersensitivity infusion reactions: Incidence and risk factors
Authors: Hopps Sarah , Medina Patrick , Pant Shubham , Webb Ryan , Moorman Meredith , Borders Emily
Published: November 2012

Introduction:

Cetuximab is a chimeric mouse-human (30:70) IgG1 monoclonal antibody that competitively inhibits the binding of epidermal growth factor. Cetuximab is generally well tolerated; however, hypersensitivity infusion reactions have been reported. The incidence at the University of Oklahoma was currently unknown, though anecdotally high. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of severe HIRs and secondarily to determine risk factors for cetuximab-induced hypersensitivity infusion reactions.

Methods and results:

A retrospective chart review was conducted and included all patients that received cetuximab from 2005 to 2010 at the outpatient clinics of the Oklahoma University Health Sciences Center. A total of 153 patients were included in the analysis. The overall incidence proportion of severe hypersensitivity infusion reactions was 12.4%. Male patients had an increased incidence of severe hypersensitivity infusion reactions compared to female patients (20.6% vs. 5%, p = 0.0036). Current smokers had an increased incidence of severe hypersensitivity infusion reactions of 23.6% when compared to never smokers or former smokers, p = 0.0012. Cervical cancer had a significantly decreased risk of severe hypersensitivity infusion reactions when compared to other tumor types (5.3% vs. 16.7%, p = 0.0387). Multivariate analysis identified risk factors associated with severe HIRs to be: male gender, RR = 3.9, p = 0.01 and current smokers, RR = 3.98, p = 0.0048.

Conclusion:

Patients at the University of Oklahoma had an increased incidence of severe hypersensitivity infusion reactions when compared to the national average. Male patients and current smokers were found to be at increased risk for severe hypersensitivity infusion reactions in our study. Further investigation is warranted.
Identifying Individuals With Autism in a State Facility for Adolescents Adjudicated as Sexual Offenders
Authors: Sutton Lawrence R. , Hughes Tammy L. , Huang Ann , Lehman Cathryn , Paserba David , Talkington Vanessa , Taormina Rochelle , Walters Jessie B. , Fenclau Eric , Marshall Stephanie
Published: November 2012

Using the criteria established by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the assessment procedures for establishing an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in a previously undiagnosed adjudicated group is detailed. We examined 37 male adolescents adjudicated delinquent for sexual offenses who were sentenced to treatment. Ultimately, 22 (60%) were found to meet the diagnostic criteria for an ASD. All had intelligence quotients in the average range. For the offenders with ASD, we recommend modifying traditional treatment protocols (i.e., relying on individual and group talk therapy) to match their learning styles (e.g., visual learning, modeling with practice, and feedback) and restricting contact with neurotypical sexual offenders to improve therapeutic outcomes. Deterrent programming aimed at bridging the gap between social deficits, Theory of Mind deficits, and sexual knowledge acquisition is discussed.
The Use of Self-Modeling to Promote Social Interactions Among Young Children
Authors: Buggey Tom , Ogle Lindsey
Published: November 2012

Video self-modeling (VSM) has been used to teach social skills to children with autism older than 4 years of age. Attempts to use VSM with younger children with disabilities have produced less than favorable results; however, it is unclear whether VSM could be used to promote social initiations by typically developing children. Thirty minutes of staged filming, in which the four typically developing participants were prompted to interact with a peer with autism on the playground and inside during center time, was edited into 2.5- to 3-min clips. Each clip took less than 2 hr to edit. Data were collected on frequency of solitary play, initiations, parallel play, and engaged play and were then analyzed in a multiple-baseline-across-participants single-case design. Visual analysis led to the conclusion that VSM did not affect the typically developing children’s behavior. Limitations of the study and cautions for using VSM with very young children are discussed.
Prevalence and Assessment of Malingering in Homicide Defendants Using the Mini-Mental State Examination and the Rey 15-Item Memory Test
Authors: Myers Wade C. , Hall Ryan C.W. , Tolou-Shams Marina
Published: November 2012

This study surveyed malingering prevalence in pretrial homicide defendants and assessed the usefulness of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Rey 15-Item Memory Test (FIT) in detecting malingering among them. Malingering prevalence was 17%. MMSE and FIT scores were positively correlated. The MMSE and FIT had modest positive predictive value (67% and 43%), but reasonably good negative predictive value (93% and 89%), for malingering. Overall, the MMSE outperformed the FIT, with no advantage to combined use of the MMSE and FIT over the MMSE. The widely used MMSE, traditionally a bedside test of cognition, may have a role in malingering assessment.
Health Behavior in Ecological Context
Authors: Simons-Morton Bruce
Published: November 2012

Health is best understood within an ecological context. Accordingly, health promotion involves processes that foster supportive environments and healthful behavior. Thus, effective health promotion programs are typically multilevel, focusing not only on the population at risk but also on the environmental conditions that contribute so importantly to health and health behavior. Health behavior is important at each societal level. Arguably, accomplishment of health promotion goals at each societal level requires changes in the behavior of those who control or influence the health outcomes of interest. Recognition of three distinct types of health behavior can guide multilevel health promotion program planning. Personal-health behavior affects the health of the person who engages in that behavior. Health-related behavior includes actions taken by proximal others that directly affect the health of others, although usually not purposefully. Health-protective behavior is undertaken purposefully to foster the health of others. Regardless of the outcome of interest or societal level, similar health promotion processes can be employed to alter health behavior.
Three-body abrasive wear behaviour of aluminium alloys
Authors: Kumar Saurabh , Harsha AP , Goyal HS , Hussain A Aazad , Wesley SB
Published: November 2012

Investigations were carried out on three-body abrasive wear behaviour on six aluminium alloys (AA1050, AA2014-T6, AA3003, AA5052, AA6061-T6 and AA6351-T6). Evaluation and comparison of the abrasion resistance of the aluminium alloys were carried out using silica sand of size 150-250 µm by dry sand rubber wheel (DSRW) test rig at room temperature. The tests were performed at constant rubber wheel sliding velocity ( V = 2.4 m/s) at different loads (5-20 N). Abrasion studies reveal that abrasive wear increases with increase in load. The wear volume was found to be in linear relationship with sliding distance and the steady state behaviour of the materials was attained around a sliding distance of 5760 m. Correlation of abrasive wear rate with hardness, ultimate strength and percentage elongation at break are reported. Wear mechanisms involved in material removal process were studied with the aid of optical microscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM).
Contact modelling of human skin: What value to use for the modulus of elasticity?
Authors: van Kuilenburg Julien , Masen Marc A , van der Heide Emile
Published: November 2012

In modelling and understanding the contact and friction behaviour of human skin, the elastic modulus of the skin is an important input parameter. For the development of design rules for the engineering of surfaces in contact with the skin an expression that describes the relation between the elastic modulus of the skin and the size of the contact is essential.

Although an exact description of the mechanical behaviour of the skin requires an anisotropic, nonlinear, viscoelastic model, in this study it was found that for contact modelling involving relatively small deformations, the mechanical behaviour seems to be accurately described by a single parameter: the effective elastic modulus. The effective elastic modulus is shown to decrease several orders of magnitude when the length scale increases, which is the consequence of the rather complex anatomy of the skin. At an indentation depth of 10 µm, the effective elastic modulus was shown to decrease from 0.15 to 0.015 MPa when the radius of curvature of the indenter increases from 10 µm to 10 mm. The variation of the elasticity is explained by the variation in the composition and properties of the different skin layers. This study shows that for the contact modelling of human skin, a closed-form expression based on the anatomy of the skin exists, which yields the magnitude of the effective elastic modulus of the skin as a function of the length scale of the contact depending on variables such as age, gender and environmental conditions.
Association between degrees of social defeat and themes of delusion in patients with schizophrenia from immigrant and ethnic minority backgrounds
Authors: Li Danni , Law Samuel , Andermann Lisa
Published: November 2012

Immigrants have a heightened risk of developing schizophrenia, suggesting that social factors play an important role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. This study aimed to examine the relationship between degrees of social defeat and themes of delusion in patients with schizophrenia from immigrant and ethnic minority backgrounds. Retrospective chart review was conducted. Patients’ psychosocial history, particularly employment history, level of education, and subjective feelings of societal integration before and after immigration, were compared to determine the degree of social defeat. It was found that delusional themes of psychological persecution, such as control and reference, were more common in those with either moderate or severe degrees of social defeat.
Children’s rights and children’s welfare after the Convention on the Rights of the Child
Authors: Grugel Jean
Published: November 2012

This article addresses how far international rights charters and the rights claims they give rise to act as levers for development through a discussion of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the most widely ratified rights Convention of recent times. It recognizes the seminal importance of rights charters but also argues that the Convention is a relatively weak instrument when it comes to changing the material realities of vulnerable children’s lives, especially in the Global South. The difficulties of attaching welfare agendas to rights claims are discussed in the article.
Residents’ perceptions following retrofitting of residential area outdoor lighting with LEDs
Authors: Kuhn L , Johansson M , Laike T , Govén T
Published: November 2012

The use of light emitting diodes (LEDs) in outdoor lighting has energy-saving potential, but users’ responses to this light source are largely unknown. An intervention study in two residential areas compared conventional lighting installations (high pressure sodium in Area 1 and high pressure mercury in Area 2) to a retrofitted LED-alternative regarding residents’ perceptions of quality of light, visual accessibility and danger. Moreover, energy use was calculated. Residents’ ( N = 60) visual accessibility improved and perceived danger remained low in both areas after retrofitting. In Area 2 the perceived quality of light increased, whereas in Area 1 the results were mixed. The retrofitted application reduced energy use by 41–76% and might be a feasible alternative to conventional outdoor lighting in relatively safe areas.
Gender equality and girls’ education: Investigating frameworks, disjunctures and meanings of quality education
Authors: Aikman Sheila , Rao Nitya
Published: November 2012

The article draws on qualitative educational research across a diversity of low-income countries to examine the gendered inequalities in education as complex, multi-faceted and situated rather than a series of barriers to be overcome through linear input–output processes focused on isolated dimensions of quality. It argues that frameworks for thinking about educational quality often result in analyses of gender inequalities that are fragmented and incomplete. However, by considering education quality more broadly as a terrain of quality it investigates questions of educational transitions, teacher supply and community participation, and develops understandings of how education is experienced by learners and teachers in their gendered lives and their teaching practices. By taking an approach based on theories of human development the article identifies dynamics of power underpinning gender inequalities in the literature and played out in diverse contexts and influenced by social, cultural and historical contexts. The review and discussion indicate that attaining gender equitable quality education requires recognition and understanding of the ways in which inequalities intersect and interrelate in order to seek out multi-faceted strategies that address not only different dimensions of girls’ and women’s lives, but understand gendered relationships and structurally entrenched inequalities between women and men, girls and boys.
Poverty, education, gender and the Millennium Development Goals: Reflections on boundaries and intersectionality
Authors: Unterhalter Elaine
Published: November 2012

The article considers the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) concerned with poverty, education and gender (MDG 1, MDG 2 and MDG 3). Despite considerable achievements associated with the MDG approach, which entails international and national target setting and monitoring, a sharp distinction between areas of social policy is entailed. In addition the approach suggests sufficiency, for example providing a minimum level of education or gender parity, rather than a fuller notion of equality, is good enough. These processes of classification, which entail horizontal and vertical boundaries, are examined, partly drawing on Bernsteinian ideas, and partly through reflections on the concept of intersectionality. Data collected from discussions in Kenya and South Africa with administrators in national and provincial government and teachers implementing the poverty, education and gender MDGs are explored. These show a tendency to work primarily with ideas based on lines, associated with the MDG targets rather than to think more complexly about structure, agency and context in addressing inequality. Thus professionals who confront problems of poverty, gender inequality and inadequate education in day-to-day work lack appropriate resources or processes for gathering information or reflexively engaging with it. The missing resources are partly financial, in that there are not budgets of time or money to attend to making connections. But in addition they are conceptual. Ideas which take a direction to social justice. In the place of a reasoned and reflexive professional language of practice, everyday ideas that connect poverty with gender and schooling are expressed. These tend to reproduce social distance and blame. Putting intersectional ideas to work in ways that consciously and creatively challenge existing sites of exclusionary power appeal key in success or frameworks to the MDGs.
A Communication Approach to Campus Bottled Water Campaigns
Authors: O’Donnell Cecilia , Rice Ronald E.
Published: November 2012

This article applies a communication/persuasion model to examine what characteristics of students on a United States university campus are associated with drinking bottled water. Survey results show that those who drank more bottled water included non-Whites, those who trusted traditional organizations more and environmental organizations and scientists less, those who read the campus newspaper, and those who valued water safety, taste, and convenience more. Significant bivariate influences on more frequent bottled water drinking that did not persist in the hierarchical regression included conservatism, religiosity, Christian religion, nonindividualism, less interpersonal communication about environmental issues, less civic involvement, younger age, and fewer environmental behaviors. Groups working to reduce bottled water consumption on campuses should provide access to filtered water and emphasize the connection between bottled water and environmental issues, rather than health issues.
Biomechanical assessment of a novel tendon junction
Authors: Crook T. , Tawfik J. , Bertollo N. , Wheen D. J. , Scougall P. J. , Walsh W. R.
Published: November 2012

The Pulvertaft weave has been the standard tendon junction technique used both in tendon transfers and tendon grafts. A limitation of this repair is the sequential failure of stabilizing sutures, rather than the tendon. A novel loop weave is described and compared with the Pulvertaft weave in biomechanical performance. Ovine deep flexor and extensor tendons were used to simulate Pulvertaft or loop weaves ( n = 11) for tensile testing. The Pulvertaft weaves failed at the stabilizing sutures, whereas the loop weaves repairs failed by longitudinal splitting of the motor tendon. The loop weave demonstrated significantly higher mean initial failure and ultimate strengths. Tensile loads required to elongate the loop weave by 4, 6, and 8 mm were significantly higher, while more displacement was associated with the Pulvertaft repair under the application of 50, 75, and 100 N tensile loads. This study demonstrates favourable biomechanical characteristics of the new loop weave technique.
Mindfulness and De-Automatization
Authors: Kang Yoona , Gruber June , Gray Jeremy R.
Published: November 2012

Some maladaptive thought processes are characterized by reflexive and habitual patterns of cognitive and emotional reactivity. We review theoretical and empirical work suggesting that mindfulness—a state of nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment—can facilitate the discontinuation of such automatic mental operations. We propose a framework that suggests a series of more specific mechanisms supporting the de-automatizing function of mindfulness. Four related but distinct elements of mindfulness (awareness, attention, focus on the present, and acceptance) can each contribute to de-automatization through subsequent processes, including discontinuing automatic inference, enhancing cognitive control capacity, facilitating metacognitive insight, and preventing suppression or thought distortion. De-automatizing can, in turn, allow enhancement of adaptive self-control ability and increased well-being.
Diagnosis and treatment of failed back surgery syndrome in the UK: mapping of practice using a cross-sectional survey
Authors: Tharmanathan Puvan , Adamson Joy , Ashby Rebecca , Eldabe Sam
Published: November 2012

Background:

Chronic back pain is a serious public health issue, associated with poor quality of life and disability. There is a specific group of chronic back pain sufferers whose pain persists despite their having undergone anatomically successful lumbosacral spine surgery. These patients are known as having failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS) and are frequently seen in pain clinics. It is currently unclear what constitutes routine practice in terms of diagnosis and treatment of FBSS in the UK.

Aim:

To map the diagnosis of and provision of care for patients with FBSS.

Methods:

A cross-sectional survey of specialist pain clinics in the UK.

Results:

This first attempt to survey 241 pain clinics in the UK achieved a response rate of 52%. The results of this survey suggest that patients at UK pain clinics were often diagnosed with FBSS between 6 and 12 months after surgery. Treatment is often initiated when patients report a level of pain between 3 and 5 cm (on a 10-cm visual analogue scale) and a range of therapeutic options are pursued in the hope of addressing the range of presenting symptoms.

Conclusions:

It is evident from the findings of this survey that, though there is some variation, pain specialists in the UK identify and handle patients with FBSS as a separate clinical entity. Direct, randomised comparisons of interventions should be the focus of research into appropriate treatment regimens going forward. Also, evidence of clinical effectiveness will need to incorporate elements of patient acceptance of interventions.
Capitalism and the Common Man: Peasants and Petty Production in Africa and South Asia
Authors: Harriss-White Barbara
Published: November 2012

In 1976, the political sociologist of Africa, Gavin Williams, controversially ‘took the part of peasants’ in an essay, the critique of which had far-reaching impacts. Africa’s common man was then a peasant. In this article, the method of his essay is used to structure a review of petty commodity production (PCP) in India four decades later. India’s ‘common man’ is a petty producer. In neo-liberalizing India, PCP is numerically the commonest form of production and contributes roughly as much to GDP as the corporate sector. Reproducing by multiplication rather than accumulation, it drives growth in Indian livelihoods. Without pretence to being exhaustive, the article uses eclectic micro-level literatures to explore the internal logics of PCP (found to be varied), the circuits and relations of exchange in which PCP fails to accumulate (also very varied), the state’s economic project for PCP (incoherent), and the politics of PCP (mediated, marginalized and divisive).
Migrant Workers in Sugarcane Mills: A Study of Social Networks and Recruitment Intermediaries in Brazil
Authors: de Menezes Marilda Aparecida , da Silva Marcelo Saturnino , Cover Maciel
Published: November 2012

The growing demand for ethanol has resulted in an expansion of the production of sugarcane in Brazil. Several studies have reported the degrading conditions and labour that have resulted in negative physical and psychological impacts, leaving workers with signs of illness. This has helped to demystify the image of ethanol as a ‘clean’ energy source. In spite of the increasing use of mechanized processes, the harvesting of sugarcane is still predominantly a manual process. This paper analyzes the manner in which the mills use kinship and friendship networks among workers to recruit and select migrants, who originate from peasant farming areas mainly located in the North-eastern region of Brazil. These social networks have a double face: on the one hand, they make possible the strategies of domination by mills over migrant workers; on the other, they establish worker support and mutual assistance practices during the periods they are far from their families.
Imperialism and Primitive Accumulation: Notes on the New Scramble for Africa
Authors: Moyo Sam , Yeros Paris , Jha Praveen
Published: November 2012

This article recuperates the links between imperialism and primitive accumulation, arguing that the two are inherently connected. It undertakes a review of the literature to show that the links are deeper than is often recognized, as in the work of David Harvey. It also maps the stages of imperialism, their logics and characteristics, from the initial expansion of merchant capitalism, through monopoly capitalism and its financialization, which is now leading a ‘new scramble’. The article shows how the various scrambles for Africa have evolved, including past and present land grabs, as well as the nature of resistance.
Transformation of adrenal medullary chromaffin cells increases asthmatic susceptibility in pups from allergen-sensitized rats
Authors: Feng Jun-Tao , Wu Xiu-Ming , Li Xiao-Zhao , Zou Ye-Qiang , Qin Ling , Hu Cheng-Ping
Published: November 2012

Background

Studies have shown that epinephrine release is impaired in patients with asthma. The pregnancy of female rats (dams) with asthma promotes in their pups the differentiation of adrenal medulla chromaffin cells (AMCCs) into sympathetic neurons, mediated by nerve growth factor, which leads to a reduction in epinephrine secretion. However, the relatedness between the alteration of AMCCs and increased asthma susceptibility in such offspring has not been established.

Methods

In this study, we observed the effects of allergization via ovalbumin on rat pups born of asthmatic dams.

Results

Compared to the offspring of untreated controls, bronchial hyperreactivity and airway inflammation were more severe in the pups from sensitized (asthmatic) dams. In pups exposed to nerve growth factor (NGF) in utero these effects were aggravated further, but the effects were blocked in pups whose dams had been treated with anti-NGF. Furthermore, alterations in AMCC phenotype corresponded to the degree of bronchial hyperreactivity and lung lesions of the different treatment groups. Such AMCC alterations included degranulation of chromaffin granules, reduction of epinephrine and phenylethanolamine-n-methyl transferase, and elevation of NGF and peripherin levels.

Conclusions

Our results present evidence that asthma during the pregnancy of rat dams promotes asthma susceptibility in their offspring, and that the transformation of AMCCs to neurons induced by NGF plays an important role in this process.
Expansion of the gamma-gliadin gene family in Aegilops and Triticum
Authors: Goryunova Svetlana V , Salentijn Elma MJ , Chikida Nadejda N , Kochieva Elena Z , van der Meer Ingrid M , Gilissen Luud JWJ , Smulders Marinus JM
Published: November 2012

Background

The gamma-gliadins are considered to be the oldest of the gliadin family of storage proteins in Aegilops/Triticum. However, the expansion of this multigene family has not been studied in an evolutionary perspective.

Results

We have cloned 59 gamma-gliadin genes from Aegilops and Triticum species (Aegilops caudata L., Aegilops comosa Sm. in Sibth. & Sm., Aegilops mutica Boiss., Aegilops speltoides Tausch, Aegilops tauschii Coss., Aegilops umbellulata Zhuk., Aegilops uniaristata Vis., and Triticum monococcum L.) representing eight different genomes: Am, B/S, C, D, M, N, T and U. Overall, 15% of the sequences contained internal stop codons resulting in pseudogenes, but this percentage was variable among genomes, up to over 50% in Ae. umbellulata. The most common length of the deduced protein, including the signal peptide, was 302 amino acids, but the length varied from 215 to 362 amino acids, both obtained from Ae. speltoides. Most genes encoded proteins with eight cysteines. However, all Aegilops species had genes that encoded a gamma-gliadin protein of 302 amino acids with an additional cysteine. These conserved nine-cysteine gamma-gliadins may perform a specific function, possibly as chain terminators in gluten network formation in protein bodies during endosperm development. A phylogenetic analysis of gamma-gliadins derived from Aegilops and Triticum species and the related genera Lophopyrum, Crithopsis, and Dasypyrum showed six groups of genes. Most Aegilops species contained gamma-gliadin genes from several of these groups, which also included sequences from the genera Lophopyrum, Crithopsis, and Dasypyrum. Hordein and secalin sequences formed separate groups.

Conclusions

We present a model for the evolution of the gamma-gliadins from which we deduce that the most recent common ancestor (MRCA) of Aegilops/Triticum-Dasypyrum-Lophopyrum-Crithopsis already had four groups of gamma-gliadin sequences, presumably the result of two rounds of duplication of the locus.
Quantitative Trait Locus (QTL) meta-analysis and comparative genomics for candidate gene prediction in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.)
Authors: Shinozuka Hiroshi , Cogan Noel OI , Spangenberg German C , Forster John W
Published: November 2012

Background

In crop species, QTL analysis is commonly used for identification of factors contributing to variation of agronomically important traits. As an important pasture species, a large number of QTLs have been reported for perennial ryegrass based on analysis of biparental mapping populations. Further characterisation of those QTLs is, however, essential for utilisation in varietal improvement programs.

Results

A bibliographic survey of perennial ryegrass trait-dissection studies identified a total of 560 QTLs from previously published papers, of which 189, 270 and 101 were classified as morphology-, physiology- and resistance/tolerance-related loci, respectively. The collected dataset permitted a subsequent meta-QTL study and implementation of a cross-species candidate gene identification approach. A meta-QTL analysis based on use of the BioMercator software was performed to identify two consensus regions for pathogen resistance traits. Genes that are candidates for causal polymorphism underpinning perennial ryegrass QTLs were identified through in silico comparative mapping using rice databases, and 7 genes were assigned to the p150/112 reference map. Markers linked to the Lp DGL1, Lp Ph1 and Lp PIPK1 genes were located close to plant size, leaf extension time and heading date-related QTLs, respectively, suggesting that these genes may be functionally associated with important agronomic traits in perennial ryegrass.

Conclusions

Functional markers are valuable for QTL meta-analysis and comparative genomics. Enrichment of such genetic markers may permit further detailed characterisation of QTLs. The outcomes of QTL meta-analysis and comparative genomics studies may be useful for accelerated development of novel perennial ryegrass cultivars with desirable traits.
Longitudinal diffusion tensor imaging in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Authors: Keil Carsten , Prell Tino , Peschel Thomas , Hartung Viktor , Dengler Reinhard , Grosskreutz Julian
Published: November 2012

Background

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder, caused by progressive loss of motor neurons. Changes are widespread in the subcortical white matter in ALS. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) detects pathological changes in white matter fibres in vivo, based on alterations in the degree (diffusivity, ADC) and directedness (fractional anisotropy, FA) of proton movement.

Methods

24 patients with ALS and 24 age-matched controls received 1.5T DTI. FA and ADC were analyzed using statistical parametric mapping. In 15 of the 24 ALS patients, a second DTI was obtained after 6 months.

Results

Decreased FA in the corticospinal tract (CST) and frontal areas confirm existing results. With a direct comparison of baseline and follow-up dataset, the progression of upper motor neuron degeneration, reflected in FA decrease, could be captured along the CST and in frontal areas. The involvement of cerebellum in the pathology of ALS, as suspected from functional MRI studies, could be confirmed by a reduced FA (culmen, declive). These structural changes correlated well with disease duration, ALSFRS-R, and physical and executive functions.

Conclusion

DTI detects changes that are regarded as prominent features of ALS and thus, shows promise in its function as a biomarker. Using the technique herein, we could demonstrate DTI changes at follow-up which correlated well with clinical progression.