bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
APPLICATIONS OF COMPUTER‐BASED INSTRUCTION: USING SPECIALIZED SOFTWARE TO AID LETTER‐NAME AND LETTER‐SOUND RECOGNITION
Authors: Connell James E. , Witt Joseph C.
Published: March 2006

We evaluated computerized training and testing programs with children who were having difficulties learning prereading skills. The programs were derived from equivalence research and were written in authoring software designed for educators. After learning to match uppercase and lowercase printed letters to the corresponding letter names (Tasks 1 and 2), the children matched the letters to one another (Tasks 4 and 5). Then, after learning to match uppercase letters to sounds (Task 3), they also matched lowercase letters to sounds (Task 6) and matched printed to spoken words (Tasks 7 and 8). The results recommend equivalence‐based protocols and user‐friendly software in further development of prereading instruction.
TRAINING EDUCATORS TO IMPLEMENT FUNCTIONAL ANALYSES
Authors: Wallace Michele D. , Doney Janice K. , Mintz‐Resudek Charna M. , Tarbox Rachel S. F.
Published: March 2006

The present study examined the use of an instructional workshop for training educators to conduct functional analyses. Results indicated that 2 of 3 participants met the accuracy criterion following group training, whereas 1 participant required direct verbal feedback. During generalization probes, one participant accurately conducted sessions with a student in her classroom.
THE EFFECTS OF ESTABLISHING OPERATIONS ON PREFERENCES FOR TANGIBLE ITEMS
Authors: McAdam David B. , Klatt Kevin P. , Koffarnus Mikhail , Dicesare Anthony , Solberg Katherine , Welch Cassie , Murphy Sean
Published: March 2006

Researchers have demonstrated that both deprivation and satiation can affect the outcome of preference assessments for food. In the current study, paired‐stimulus preference assessments for tangible items were conducted under three conditions: control, deprivation, and satiation. Three persons with developmental disabilities and 3 typically developing preschool children served as participants. The results demonstrated that deprivation and satiation influenced the outcome of preference assessments of leisure items or toys.
EFFECTS OF THE CONTINGENCY FOR HOMEWORK SUBMISSION ON HOMEWORK SUBMISSION AND QUIZ PERFORMANCE IN A COLLEGE COURSE
Authors: Ryan Carolyn S. , Hemmes Nancy S.
Published: March 2006

Effects of the contingency for submission of homework assignments on the probability of assignment submission and on quiz grades were assessed in an undergraduate psychology course. Under an alternating treatments design, each student was assigned to a points condition for 5 of 10 quiz‐related homework assignments corresponding to textbook chapters. Points were available for homework submission under this condition; points were not available under the no‐points condition. The group‐mean percentage of homework assignments submitted and quiz grades were higher for all chapters under the points condition than in the no‐points condition. These findings, which were replicated in Experiment 2, demonstrate that homework submission was not maintained when the only consequences were instructor‐provided feedback and expectation of improved quiz performance.
BEHAVIORAL ASSESSMENT OF IMPULSIVITY: A COMPARISON OF CHILDREN WITH AND WITHOUT ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER
Authors: Neef Nancy A. , Marckel Julie , Ferreri Summer J. , Bicard David F. , Endo Sayaka , Aman Michael G. , Miller Kelly M. , Jung Sunhwa , Nist Lindsay , Armstrong Nancy
Published: March 2006

We conducted a brief computer‐based assessment involving choices of concurrently presented arithmetic problems associated with competing reinforcer dimensions to assess impulsivity (choices controlled primarily by reinforcer immediacy) as well as the relative influence of other dimensions (reinforcer rate, quality, and response effort), with 58 children. Results were compared for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) who were and were not receiving medication, and with typically developing children without ADHD. Within‐subject and between‐groups analyses of the ordinal influence of each of the reinforcer dimensions were conducted using both time‐ and response‐allocation measures. In general, the choices of children with ADHD were most influenced by reinforcer immediacy and quality and least by rate and effort, suggesting impulsivity. The choices of children in the non‐ADHD group were most influenced by reinforcer quality, and the influence of immediacy relative to the other dimensions was not statistically significant. Results are discussed with respect to the implications for assessment and treatment of ADHD.
THE EFFECTS OF METHYLPHENIDATE ON A FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR: A REPLICATION AND EXTENSION
Authors: Dicesare Anthony , McAdam David B. , Toner Amy , Varrell James
Published: March 2006

In the present investigation, a functional analysis of the disruptive behavior of a 18‐year‐old man who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and moderate mental retardation was conducted, both when he was taking methylphenidate and when he was not taking the medication. The results of this functional analysis demonstrated that the participant's disruptive behaviors were reinforced by access to attention only when he was not taking methylphenidate.
EVALUATION OF BEHAVIORAL SKILLS TRAINING FOR TEACHING ABDUCTION‐PREVENTION SKILLS TO YOUNG CHILDREN
Authors: Johnson Brigitte M. , Miltenberger Raymond G. , Egemo‐Helm Kristin , Jostad Candice M. , Flessner Christopher , Gatheridge Brian
Published: March 2006

This study examined the effectiveness of individual behavioral skills training in conjunction with in situ training in teaching 13 preschool children abduction prevention skills. Children's performance was measured during baseline, training, and at 2‐week, 1‐month, and 3‐month follow‐ups using in situ assessments in which abduction prevention skills were measured in naturalistic settings. Results revealed that all the children learned the skills and all the children available at the 2‐week and 1‐month follow‐ups maintained the skills at criterion level. All but 3 children's criterion‐level performances were maintained at the 3‐month follow‐up as well.
Efficacy of the North American Guidelines for Children’s Agricultural Tasks in Reducing Childhood Agricultural Injuries
Authors: Gadomski Anne , Ackerman Susan , Burdick Patrick , Jenkins Paul
Published: March 2006

Objectives. We assessed whether active dissemination of the North American Guidelines for Children’s Agricultural Tasks (NAGCAT) reduced childhood agricultural injuries.

Methods. In this randomized controlled trial, lay educators visited intervention farms to review NAGCAT. New York State farms with resident or working children were randomized. Control farms were visited only to collect baseline data. Data on childhood injuries, tasks, and hours worked were obtained quarterly for 21 months. Injury rates per farm were compared between the treatment and control groups, along with time span to occurrence of an injury and to violation of NAGCAT age guidelines.

Results. Intervention farms were less likely than control farms to violate NAGCAT age guidelines in the areas of all-terrain-vehicle use and tractor and haying operations. Cox proportional hazards regression models showed a significant protective effect of the intervention on preventable injuries after adjustment for important covariates.

Conclusions. Our results showed that dissemination of NAGCAT reduced rates of work-related childhood agricultural injuries. A comprehensive public health approach is needed to reduce non–work-related childhood injuries.
An Ecological Study of Tuberculosis Transmission in California
Authors: Myers Ward P. , Westenhouse Janice L. , Flood Jennifer , Riley Lee W.
Published: March 2006

Objectives. We evaluated the association between ecological factors and rates of tuberculosis within California, using pediatric tuberculosis as an indicator of new transmission.

Methods. Ecological variables such as racial/ethnic distribution, immigration level, education, employment, poverty, and crowding were obtained from the United States Census for each census tract in California. These data were incorporated into a negative binomial regression model with the rate of pediatric tuberculosis disease in each census tract as an outcome variable. Disease rates were obtained by geocoding reported cases. Subsections of the state (San Francisco and Los Angeles) were examined independently.

Results. Census tracts with lower median incomes, more racial/ethnic minorities, and more immigrants had higher rates of pediatric tuberculosis. Other frequently cited risk factors such as overcrowding and unemployment were not associated with increased disease after adjusting for other measures. Risks were comparable across regions, but subtle differences were noted.

Conclusions. The techniques used in this work provide a way to examine a disease within its social context. The results confirmed that tuberculosis in California continues to be a disease of poverty and racial/ethnic minorities.
Health Status and Health Service Access and Use Among Children in U.S. Immigrant Families
Authors: Huang Zhihuan Jennifer , Yu Stella M. , Ledsky Rebecca
Published: March 2006

Objectives. We examined the health status and patterns of health care use of children in US immigrant families.

Methods. Data from the 1999 National Survey of America’s Families were used to create 3 subgroups of immigrant children: US-born children with noncitizen parents, foreign-born children who were naturalized US citizens, and foreign-born children with noncitizen parents. Chi-square and logistic regression analyses were used to examine relationships between immigrant status and health access variables. Subgroup analyses were conducted with low-income families.

Results. Foreign-born noncitizen children were 4 times more likely than children from native families to lack health insurance coverage and to have not visited a mental health specialist in the preceding year. They were 40% and 80% more likely to have not visited a doctor or dentist in the previous year and twice as likely to lack a usual source of care. US-born children with noncitizen parents were also at a disadvantage in many of these aspects of care.

Conclusions. We found that, overall, children from immigrant families were in worse physical health than children from non-immigrant families and used health care services at a significantly lower frequency.
Slippery Road Conditions and Fatal Motor Vehicle Crashes in the Northeastern United States, 1998–2002
Authors: Marmor Michael , Marmor Nicholas E.
Published: March 2006

Objectives. We investigated risk factors for fatal motor vehicle crashes on slippery roads in the Northeastern United States, 1998–2002.

Methods. We analyzed data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Results. Rates of crashes on slippery roads, and ratios of crashes on slippery roads to crashes on dry roads, were greatest among the youngest drivers. Among those aged 16 to 19 years, logistic regression analysis showed significant, independent risks associated with excessive speed for conditions (odds ratio [OR]=1.38), time of day (OR=1.80 for 5:00 to 9:00 am vs 10:00 am to 2:00 pm), time of year (OR=6.17 for January vs July), type of road (OR=1.27 for rural vs urban roads ), and age (OR=1.19 for those aged 16 to 17 years vs those aged 18 to 19 years). Licensure from states with graduated licensing programs was protective against crashes attributed to swerving on slippery roads (adjusted OR = 0.63). Risk factors among drivers older than 19 years were similar but peaked at different times of day and included increased risks for women compared with men.

Conclusions. Driver training programs need to better address hazards presented by slippery roads.
Differential Effects of the DTaP and MMR Vaccine Shortages on Timeliness of Childhood Vaccination Coverage
Authors: Santibanez Tammy A. , Santoli Jeanne M. , Barker Lawrence E.
Published: March 2006

Objectives. We determined the effect of diphtheria and tetanus toxoids and acellular pertussis vaccine (DTaP) and measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine shortages on timeliness of the third dose of DTaP (DTaP3), the fourth dose of DTaP (DTaP4), and the first dose of MMR (MMR1) among subgroups of preschool children.

Methods. Data from the 2001 and 2002 National Immunization Surveys were analyzed. Children age-eligible to receive DTaP3, DTaP4, or MMR1 during the shortages were considered subject to the shortage, and those not age-eligible were not subject to the shortage; timeliness of vaccinations was compared.

Results. Among children vaccinated only at public clinics, children residing outside metropolitan statistical areas, and children in the Southern Census Region, those age-eligible to receive DTaP4 during the shortage were less likely to be vaccinated by 19 months of age than children not subject to the shortage.

Conclusions. There was notable disparity in the effects of the recent vaccine shortages; children vaccinated only in public clinics, in rural areas, or in the Southern United States were differentially affected by the shortages.
Effect of a National Vaccine Shortage on Vaccine Coverage for American Indian/Alaska Native Children
Authors: Groom Amy V. , Cheek James E. , Bryan Ralph T.
Published: March 2006

Objectives. We determined the effect of national vaccine shortages on coverage with 4 doses of diphtheria and tetanus toxoids and acellular pertussis (DTaP) vaccine for American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN) children.

Methods. Data on DTaP coverage for children aged 19 to 27 months were abstracted from Indian Health Service (IHS) immunization reports. Coverage with the fourth DTaP dose (DTaP4) was compared for different periods to determine coverage levels before, during, and after the shortage. Data were stratified geographically to determine regional variation.

Results. AIAN children experienced a significant decline (14.8%) in DTaP4 coverage during the shortage. Considerable variation was seen among IHS regions (declines ranged from 4.5% to 26.5%).

Conclusions. AIAN children included in IHS immunization reports experienced a greater decline in DTaP4 coverage during the shortage than the decline reported nationally for children receiving vaccine at public clinics (14.8% vs 6%). Variations in the decline in coverage highlight possible inequities in vaccine supply and distribution and in implementation of vaccine shortage recommendations. We must identify ways to ensure more equitable vaccine distribution and consistent implementation of vaccine recommendations to protect all children from vaccine-preventable diseases.
The Effects of Cost-Shifting in the State Children’s Heath Insurance Program
Authors: Johnson Tricia J. , Rimsza Mary , Johnson William G.
Published: March 2006

Objectives. Many states are increasing the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) cost-sharing requirements to induce reductions in enrollment. We examined the effect of increasing SCHIP premiums on both health care use and cost to the public.

Methods. The net cost to the public of increased cost sharing for SCHIP-insured children in a border community was estimated with multivariate methods. The majority (88%) of children were of Mexican origin.

Results. We estimated that a $10 increase in monthly premiums would induce 10% of SCHIP children to disenroll, resulting in a 6% increase in public expenditures.

Conclusions. Families that disenroll from SCHIP and become uninsured typically turn to emergency departments for primary care, which increases total health care expenditures through the use of more expensive services.
Social Support as a Buffer for Perceived Unfair Treatment Among Filipino Americans: Differences Between San Francisco and Honolulu
Authors: Gee Gilbert C. , Chen Juan , Spencer Michael S. , See Sarita , Kuester Oliva A. , Tran Diem , Takeuchi David
Published: March 2006

Objectives. We examined whether perceived unfair treatment is associated with health conditions, whether social support moderates this association, and whether such relationships differ by location.

Methods. Data were derived from the 1998–1999 Filipino American Community Epidemiological Study, a cross-sectional investigation of 2241 Filipino Americans living in San Francisco and Honolulu. Negative binomial regression was used to examine potential 2-way and 3-way interactions between support, unfair treatment, and city (San Francisco vs Honolulu).

Results. Reports of unfair treatment were associated with increased illness after control for education, employment, acculturation, ethnic identity, negative life events, gender, and age. Furthermore, 2-way interactions were found between instrumental support and city, emotional support and city, and unfair treatment and city, and a 3-way interaction was shown between instrumental support, unfair treatment, and city.

Conclusions. Local contexts may influence the types of treatment encountered by members of ethnic minority groups, as well as their resources. These factors in turn may have implications for health disparities and well-being
Improving Access to Health Care Among New Zealand’s Maori Population
Authors: Ellison-Loschmann Lis , Pearce Neil
Published: March 2006

The health status of indigenous peoples worldwide varies according to their unique historical, political, and social circumstances. Disparities in health between Maoris and non-Maoris have been evident for all of the colonial history of New Zealand. Explanations for these differences involve a complex mix of components associated with socioeconomic and lifestyle factors, availability of health care, and discrimination.

Improving access to care is critical to addressing health disparities, and increasing evidence suggests that Maoris and non-Maoris differ in terms of access to primary and secondary health care services. We use 2 approaches to health service development to demonstrate how Maori-led initiatives are seeking to improve access to and quality of health care for Maoris.
Understanding Associations of Control Beliefs, Social Relations, and Well-Being in Older Adults with Osteoarthritis
Authors: Ferreira Vanessa M. , Sherman Aurora M.
Published: March 2006

Control beliefs and social relationships have been individually assessed in relation to adaptation to chronic illness, although only rarely together. Further, some control scales show psychometric limitations in older adult samples. To address these concerns, a scale assessing external control was created by factor analyzing the items from Levenson's (1974) control subscales. We tested the association of external control beliefs, measured with the new formulation of items, and two social relations variables (support and strain) to well-being measures in a sample of older adults reporting osteoarthritis (OA; N = 95, 72% female). We also compared the new formulation of items to the original subscales. The Levenson measures were significantly related to life satisfaction after controlling for social relations. However, the new externality scale was a stronger correlate than the chance subscale (though not different from powerful others). Only the new scale was related to depressive symptoms once social relations were controlled. In addition, social support was significantly associated with both outcomes.
Physiological Reactivity to Cognitive Stressors: Variations by Age and Socioeconomic Status
Authors: Neupert Shevaun D. , Miller Lisa M. Soederberg , Lachman Margie E.
Published: March 2006

The present study focused on age and SES differences in stress reactivity in response to cognitively challenging tasks. Specifically, we assessed within-person trajectories of cortisol, a steroid hormone released by the adrenal gland in response to stressors, before, during, and after exposure to cognitively challenging tasks. We extend the current literature by simultaneously examining age and SES differences in physiological reactivity. Findings suggest that age and SES both play an important role in reactivity, such that it was the older adults with higher SES who were the most physiologically reactive to cognitive stressors. Implications of these findings for cognitive aging research are discussed.
An Evaluation of on-Line Assignment Submission, Marking, and Return
Authors: Palmer Stuart
Published: March 2006

Technology has made a significant impact on assessment, including its use to automate assignment submission. On-line assignment submission, marking, and return were introduced into a fourth-year engineering management unit for the first time, and a formal evaluation was undertaken to assess student perceptions of this new development. Nearly all respondents understood how to submit their assignments on-line. More than 80% of respondents understood how to retrieve their assignment marks on-line, but only just over half that proportion understood how to get their assignment comments/ feedback. More than 80% of respondents felt that their assignments were returned faster on-line. Respondents rated the ease of use of the on-line assignment submission system highly. Speed, timeliness, and convenience of operation were reported as positive aspects. The most commonly reported negative aspects related to an arbitrary assignment submission file size limitation that forced some students to reconsider their use of large graphic images.
Childhood Trauma and Employment Disability
Authors: Sansone Randy A. , Dakroub Hassan , Pole Michele , Butler Melissa
Published: March 2006

Introduction:

While the relationship between childhood trauma and employment disability has undergone very limited study, existing data suggest a possible correlation.

Method:

In this study of 91 outpatients in an internal medicine setting, we surveyed participants and inquired about their childhood histories of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, of physical neglect, and of witnessing violence. We also asked whether participants had ever been on employment disability, either psychiatric or non-psychiatric, and the length of that disability.

Results:

Being or having been on disability was significantly related to childhood histories of emotional abuse, physical neglect, and witnessing violence. Being or having been on psychiatric disability was significantly related to childhood emotional abuse and physical neglect while being on non-psychiatric medical disability was significantly related to witnessing violence. The percent of one's lifetime on disability was significantly related to physical and emotional abuse as well as witnessing violence.

Conclusions:

Maltreatment in childhood appears to have a relationship to employment disability in adulthood. The authors discuss the implications of these findings.
Bringing the Law to the Gerontological Stage: A Different Look at Movies and Old Age
Authors: Doron Israel
Published: March 2006

Films often portray the complexities of real-life aging issues, showing how they are apparently handled outside of and around the law or legal issues. Furthermore, films considering the aged and the social issues associated with aging also reveal how the law actually functions as a framework around and within which people develop customs, habits, and behaviors related to the issue of old age. Exposing these hidden socio-legal boundaries allows us to better understand both the films concerned and the place of law within our aging society. In an attempt to better understand these issues, this article deconstructs five relatively modern and well-known films. All feature aged protagonists, and all tell their stories against a background of legal issues that are only alluded to, and remain hidden “behind the scenes.” Two main questions are addressed by this analysis: First, to what extent does the reality of old age as described in the films considered here reflect familiar social phenomena identified by empirical studies? And, second, to what extent does the legal infrastructure embedded in the narrative of these films reflect the legal regulations that govern the aged in today's society. The conclusions that arose from the analysis of the cinematic and the legal reality expressed in the films demonstrate that the current level of discourse on major issues in social gerontology ignores the importance and relevance of law. Therefore, it behooves us to “bring the Law to the gerontological stage,” where the current situation as it actually exists can be analyzed and perhaps even changed.
Blended Learning: Understanding the Middle Ground between Traditional Classroom and Fully Online Instruction
Authors: Welker Jan , Berardino Lisa
Published: March 2006

Blended learning is any combined use of electronic learning tools that supplement but do not replace face-to-face learning. This article is about how two researchers are trying to comfortably and logically place blended learning somewhere in the middle of two extremes—traditional classroom at one end and fully online distance learning at the other end. Twenty-two faculty and 38 students at the State University of New York Institute of Technology (SUNYIT) responded to a survey on perceptions held about blended learning. Responses from faculty revealed enrollment as a major factor in the increased use of this course design; quality of assignments and course grades that are as good or better; and courses that are producing improved writing and discussions. While the design is easy to use, faculty reported more work on their part and some loss of traditional classroom dynamics. Students reported flexibility, convenience, and independence as advantages, along with confusion, reduced social interaction, and more work as disadvantages. However, there appears to be a net economic gain for students as tuition and financial aid remain unchanged while expenditure in time and travel are reduced. Course management technology and course design recommendations are provided for faculty consideration. The boundaries between traditional classroom instruction and fully online distance learning are blurring. As course design moves more toward a fully online look-alike, expectations for a smoothly operating course will be higher for both faculty and students.
Neomillennial User Experience Design Strategies: Utilizing Social Networking Media to Support “Always on” Learning Styles
Authors: Baird Derek E. , Fisher Mercedes
Published: March 2006

Raised in the “always on” world of interactive media, the Internet, and digital messaging technologies, today's student has different expectations and learning styles than previous generations. This net-centric generation values their ability to use the Web to create a self-paced, customized, on-demand learning path that includes multiple forms of interactive, social, and self-publishing media tools. First, we investigate the formation of a burgeoning digital pedagogy that roots itself in current adult and social learning theories, while integrating social networking, user experience design strategies, and other emerging technologies into the curriculum to support student learning. Next, we explore how current and emerging social networking media (such as Weblogs, iPod, RSS/XML, podcasting/audioblogs, wiki, Flickr, and other self-publishing media) can support neomillennial learning styles, facilitate the formation of learning communities, foster student engagement and reflection, and enhance the overall user experience for students in synchronous and asynchronous learning environments. The data included in this article are intended as directional means to help instructors and course designers identify social networking resources and other emerging technologies that will enhance the delivery of instruction while meeting the needs of today's neomillennial learning styles.
Identifying Measures of Student Behavior from Interaction with a Course Management System
Authors: Nickles George M.
Published: March 2006

The purpose of this work is to identify process measures of student interaction with a course management system (CMS). Logs maintained by Web servers capture aggregate user interactions with a Website. When combined with a login system and context from the course recorded in the CMS, more detailed measures of individual student interaction can be extracted electronically. Measures of student interaction with one CMS, ITWeb, were identified at the scopes of the entire course and individual homework assignments. Measures at the level of the entire course were collected through ITWeb for two different semesters of the same undergraduate course, while measures for individual assignments were collected for one of the courses. Correlation analysis was performed between the proposed measures and student grades with inconsistent results between courses and assignments. Though not consistently related to performance, this work demonstrates collecting objective measures of student interaction with a CMS.
Neighborhood Deterioration, Social Skills, and Social Relationships in Late Life
Authors: Krause Neal
Published: March 2006

This study is designed to test two hypotheses. The first specifies that older adults who live in dilapidated neighborhoods will receive less social support and encounter more negative interaction with family and friends. The second hypothesis proposes that the relationship between deteriorated neighborhood conditions and social relationships will depend upon whether older study participants have strong social skills. Data from a recent nationwide survey of older adults suggest that living in run-down neighborhoods is associated with more negative interaction; however, residing in disadvantaged neighborhoods is not related to the amount of support older people receive from significant others. But perhaps more important, the findings further reveal that the effects of living in run-down neighborhoods on social support and negative interaction are completely offset for older individuals who possess strong social skills.
Comparison of Current U.S. and Canadian Cigarette Pack Warnings
Authors: Nimbarte Ashish , Aghazadeh Fereydoun , Harvey Craig
Published: March 2006

Cigarette smoking is the single most preventable cause of death in the United States. From 1985 to date, one of four mandatory cigarette warnings proposed by the Comprehensive Smoking Education Act of 1984 has been displayed on cigarette packages. In addition to cigarette warnings, states like California, Massachusetts, Arizona, Oregon and Maine have implemented “Tobacco Control Programs” (TCP) to reduce the overall number of smokers. However, the decline in the rate of smoking is not occurring fast enough to meet the national health objective by 2010. The present U.S. cigarette warnings are verbal in form and provide information, which is inadequate but appropriate to make it legally adequate. On the other hand, warnings in other countries such as Canada and Brazil are more descriptive and specific and are accompanied by vivid and sometimes gruesome pictures. In the present study, six pictorial Canadian labels and four U.S. verbal labels were analyzed for potential effectiveness among eighty subjects using a survey questionnaire. The survey findings are compared with recent Canadian smoking data. It is concluded that placing pictorial labels on cigarette packages in the U.S. will allow the product to carry warnings that potentially provide better results than current verbal messages and less TCP funds will need to be used.
Changes in Depressive Symptoms and Metabolic Control over 3 Years among African Americans with Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Gary Tiffany L. , Baptiste-Roberts Kesha , Crum Rosa M. , Cooper Lisa A. , Ford Daniel E. , Brancati Frederick L.
Published: March 2006

Objective:

It is established that individuals with diabetes have high rates of depression, but the longitudinal relationship between depression and glycemic control has not been well examined, particularly among African Americans. The objective of this study was to evaluate the longitudinal relationship between depressive symptoms and metabolic control.

Method:

We conducted an earlier cross-sectional study that demonstrated marginal and significant associations between depressive symptoms (using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale [CES-D]) and metabolic control (HbA1c, lipids, blood pressure) among 183 African Americans with type 2 diabetes. In this report, we present data on these individuals, followed for three years, and examine the relationship between change in depressive symptoms and change in metabolic control over that time period.

Results:

Results showed that that there were no statistically significant associations between baseline or change in depressive symptoms and metabolic control over three years. Limited statistical power may explain this negative finding.

Conclusions:

This study provides insight into the relationship between depression and metabolic control. Prospective observational studies are needed to further evaluate this relationship.
Neo-Liberalism and Marketisation: The Implications for Higher Education
Authors: Lynch Kathleen
Published: March 2006

This article is based on a keynote paper presented to the European Conference on Educational Research (ECER), University College Dublin, 5–9 September 2005. The massification of education in European countries over the last 100 years has produced cultures and societies that have benefited greatly from state investment in education. To maintain this level of social and economic development that derives from high quality education requires continual state investment. With the rise of the New Right, neo-liberal agenda, there is an attempt to offload the cost of education, and indeed other public services such as housing, transport, care services etc., on to the individual. There is an increasing attempt to privatise public services, including education, so that citizens will have to buy them at market value rather than have them provided by the state. Europe is no exception to this trend of neo-liberalisation. Recent Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) reports, including one on higher education in Ireland, (2004), concentrate strongly on the role of education in servicing the economy to the neglect of its social and developmental responsibilities. The view that education is simply another market commodity has become normalised in policy and public discourses. Schools run purely as businesses are a growing phenomenon within and without Europe, and there is an increasing expectation in several countries that schools will supplement their income from private sources, even though they are within the state sector. In this article, the writer presents both a critique of the neo-liberal model of marketised education and a challenge to academics to work as public intellectuals both individually and with civil society organisations to develop a counter-hegemonic discourse to neo-liberalism for higher education.
Globalisation and Europeification of Education Policies: Routes, Processes and Metamorphoses
Authors: Antunes Fátima
Published: March 2006

The focus of this article concerns the supranational level, which, in the past few decades, has become increasingly important in the configuration of the field of education. The article examines the way education has been regarded and defined in the context of the European Union and the implications such processes have on the education systems of the member states. The dynamics of Europeification and the setting up of a global European reference for education policies currently possess an intensity, range and depth of intervention which are clearly distant from what was the case a mere decade ago. In this perspective, the European Union and other regional intergovernmental platforms, such as the Bologna Process, constitute settings for mediation that create, filter and convey the globalisation processes.
Evidence and Policy Research
Authors: Schuller Tom , Jochems Wim , Moos Lejf , Van Zanten Agnes
Published: March 2006

The EERJ roundtable took as its point of departure the experience of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI) in carrying out policy research. CERI has conducted four reviews of national educational research and development (in New Zealand, England, Mexico and Denmark), and has run a number of meetings specifically on the use of evidence-based policy research (in the USA, Sweden and the Netherlands). Tom Schuller, Head of CERI, presented some conclusions from these and other CERI activities. Responses were made by Wim Jochems, Open University of the Netherlands, Lejf Moos, Danish University of Education, and Agnes van Zanten, Observatoire Sociologique du Changement, CNRS, Paris. The EERJ Roundtable was an opportunity to return to the issues raised in the European Conference on Educational Research (ECER) 2003 Hamburg Roundtable on the ‘OECD Examiners' Report on Educational Research and Development in England’ ( European Educational Research Journal, 3(2), 2004, pp. 510–526) in a wider context and as part of a trend to evaluate the quality and organisation of educational research, and its contribution to educational policy.
Reconfiguring Interactivity, Agency and Pleasure in the Education and Computer Games Debate — Using Žižek's Concept of Interpassivity to Analyse Educational Play
Authors: Pelletier Caroline
Published: March 2006

Digital or computer games have recently attracted the interest of education researchers and policy-makers for two main reasons: their interactivity, which is said to allow greater agency, and their inherent pleasures, which are linked to increased motivation to learn. However, the relationship between pleasure, agency and motivation in educational technologies is undertheorised. This article aims to situate these concepts within a framework that might identify more precisely how games can be considered to be educational. The framework is based on Žižek's theory of subjectivity in cyberspace, and in particular on his notion of interpassivity, which is defined in relation to interactivity. The usefulness of this concept is explored first by examining three approaches to theorising cyberspace and their respective manifestations in key texts on educational game play. Žižek's analysis of cyberspace in terms of socio-symbolic relations is then outlined to suggest how games might be considered educational in so far as they provide opportunities to manipulate and experiment with the rules underpinning our sense of reality and identity. This resembles Brecht's notion of the educational value of theatre. The conclusion emphasises that the terms on which games are understood to be educational relate to the social interests which education is understood to serve.
‘Only Connect’? Complexities in International Student Communication
Authors: Bell Frances , Zaitseva Elena
Published: March 2006

This article explores the potential and limitations of international educational collaboration using the concept of connection, a term with different meanings that are sometimes conflated to produce unrealistic expectations of computer-mediated communication (CMC). The authors explore the use on the Internet of the ‘only connect’ quote from Howard's End, in order to critique technological determinism and advocate an alternative approach that recognises the interpretive flexibility inherent in CMC. In a communication-rich experience such as education, the limitations of CMC are evident, particularly for non-native speakers, but the medium does offer some advantages over face-to-face communication. The authors introduce the notion of ‘cool webs’ to understand some responses to the challenges presented by international student collaboration online, illustrated by examples from the Collaboration Across Borders project.
No Pain, No Game: Use of an Online Game to Explore Issues of Online Identity and the Implications for Collaborative E-Learning
Authors: Hughes Gwyneth , Scott Catherine
Published: March 2006

As computer-mediated communication (CMC) is becoming more mainstream in higher education (HE), the issue of social interaction online and its impact on learning has been raised. CMC theorists have argued that shared group identity produces the online social presence necessary for successful interaction but that other identities may be inhibiting. Meanwhile, advocates of the liberating potential of online communication have drawn on postmodern interpretations of identity to argue that the online world offers freedom from the constraints of social identities such as gender and class, but critics argue that social behaviours and stereotypes are not transcended but are reproduced through language and style. Salmon's five-step model promotes social interaction as a basis for collaborative e-learning, but it does not encourage such a critical exploration of online identity. To address these issues, this article explores the development and use of an online identity creation game to examine how participants respond to making online identity more visible, and to review the implications for e-learning. Discourse analysis was used to study the game from a researcher-participant perspective. Nearly all players pursued a low-risk strategy of concentrating on their own identity rather than on those of peers and were anxious about applying social conventions online. While many understood how online identity is constructed though descriptive text, only a minority was aware that style and language can also create identity, thus exhibiting what we term online ‘listening’ skills. The game made transparent some of the difficulties in developing the online presence required for collaborative e-learning and suggests a more general need for learners to acquire familiarity with the processes of online identity construction.
Optimizing control of an experimental simulated moving bed unit
Authors: Erdem Gültekin , Morari Manfred , Amanullah Mohammad , Mazzotti Marco , Morbidelli Massimo
Published: March 2006

Simulated moving bed (SMB) chromatography has become a key separation technology in the areas of pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry thanks to its high productivity and short process development times. Today, modeling, design, and optimization of the SMB process are regarded to be well established. On the other hand, long term robust/optimized operation of the process is still an open issue. The common practice is to operate the SMB units under suboptimal operating conditions in order to gain the necessary robustness. The operating parameters are tuned manually by experienced operators in order to maintain the product specifications in the long term. Therefore, as SMB applications spread, the SMB process control problem becomes increasingly important. Recently, we have proposed an on‐line optimization based SMB control scheme that allows exploiting the full economic potential of the SMB technology on the basis of minimal information. This work addresses the experimental implementation of the developed control concept on an eight‐column four‐section laboratory SMB unit that is used to separate the binary mixture of nucleosides uridine and guanosine. The performance of the SMB control scheme is demonstrated via several experimental controlled SMB runs that are designed to challenge the robust performance of the controller. The reported results aim to demonstrate that the controller is able to deliver the products with the specified purities and to optimize the process performance despite uncertainties in the system behavior and disturbances taking place during the operation. © 2006 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2006
Titelbild: Syntheses, Structures, and Reactivity of Radial Oligocyclopentadienyl Metal Complexes: Penta(ferrocenyl)cyclopentadienyl and Congeners (Angew. Chem. 11/2006)
Authors: Yu Yong , Bond Andrew D. , Leonard Philip W. , Vollhardt K. Peter C. , Whitener Glenn D.
Published: March 2006

Wahre Kunstfertigkeit ist nicht auf die schönen Künste beschränkt: Penta(ferrocenyl)cyclopentadienylkomplexe wie der gezeigte verblüffen durch ihre Struktur und Reaktivität. In ihrer Zuschrift auf S. 1826 ff. beschreiben K. P. C. Vollhardt et al. Penta(ferrocenyl)cyclopentadienyl‐Verbindungen, die für Materialwissenschaften, Katalyse und chemische Grundlagenforschung gleichermaßen interessant sind. (Das Titelbild wurde von P. W. Leonard gestaltet. Als Hintergrund dient das Gemälde “Untitled” der französischen Künstlerin Marie Sat.)
Persulfurated Aromatic Compounds
Authors: Gingras Marc , Raimundo Jean‐Manuel , Chabre Yoann M.
Published: March 2006

Persulfurated arenes have been known for about 50 years but they were underexploited in chemistry in spite of facile, mild, and high‐yielding syntheses. Their properties (redox potentials, UV/Vis absorption, conductivity, nonlinear optical properties, etc.) are mainly due to the aromaticity of the ring with sp2‐hybridized carbon atoms and to the electronic contribution from numerous divalent sulfur ligands, which also stabilize negative or positive charges. The characteristic conformational patterns of the sulfur ligands often facilitate preorganization in supramolecular assemblies, with or without thiophilic metal cations, for designing redox sensors, ion‐selective membranes, clathrates, organic conductors, nonlinear optical materials, liquid crystals, coordination polymers, and bioinorganic systems. A new class of supramolecules with various molecular shapes such as asterisks, chains, wheels, and windmills were reported.
Further Evaluation of a Series of Anti‐Inflammatory N‐Pyrrolylcarboxylic Acids: Effects on the Nociception in Rats
Authors: Bocheva Adriana , Bijev Atanas , Nankov Atanas
Published: March 2006

The analgesic activity of nine substituted N‐pyrrolylcarboxylic acids, previously reported as anti‐inflammatory agents, has been evaluated. The effects on nociception were examined in male Wistar rats by the Randall‐Selitto paw‐pressure test. The compounds were administrated in doses 10, 20, and 40 mg/kg both i.p. and p.o. As a whole, the activities of 3‐(N‐pyrrolyl)propanoic acids 3e–3h and 2‐[3‐(ethoxycarbonyl)‐2‐methyl‐5‐phenyl‐1H‐1‐pyrrolyl]‐3‐methylpentanoic acid 3i were comparable with or superior to that of metamizole used as a reference (200 mg/kg, i.p.), whereas only 3a from among the N‐pyrrolyl‐acetic acids 3a–3d showed analgesic activity on the inflamed paw. The compounds found most promising to increase the pain threshold significantly were the same ones with the higher anti‐inflammatory activity registered in our previous study: 3‐[3‐(ethoxycarbonyl)‐2‐methyl‐5‐(3‐nitrophenyl)‐1H‐1‐pyrrolyl]propanoic acid 3e, together with its 5‐(4‐nitrophenyl)‐ 3f, 5‐phenyl‐ 3g, and 5‐(4‐methylphenyl)‐ 3h analogs. Certain parallels between the analgesic activities and some physicochemical properties were observed.