bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Laboratory Evaluation and Control of Slocum Glider C–T Sensors
Authors: Medeot Nevio , Nair Rajesh , Gerin Riccardo
Published: April 2011

Unaccounted transient or permanent changes in sensor performances can compromise the overall quality of datasets obtained with a glider. From the specific perspective of the principal physical variables (temperature and conductivity), the main short-term risk is the deterioration of the quality of salinity data that is primarily due to the fouling of the glider’s conductivity sensor, especially when the glider approaches the sea surface and is deployed in coastal waters. Another potential short-term risk is a sudden shift in the glider’s temperature response caused by the blanketing of the temperature sensor by extraneous material. The long-term risks are the intrinsic drifts of the two sensors as specified by the sensor manufacturer. Given the way a glider operates, it is practically impossible to obtain sufficiently representative temperature and salinity samples in the field for effective comparisons with sensor data. Hence, laboratory testing of the temperature and conductivity sensors is one approach used to estimate the qualitative changes in pre- and postdeployment sensor performance in order to mitigate measurable drift effects on the collected data. This paper presents a systematic procedure that can be used to conduct reproducible laboratory evaluations of the temperature and conductivity sensors on a Teledyne Webb Research (TWR) Slocum glider. It is shown that the data from such tests can give useful information regarding the data quality as a result of fouling of the sensors during missions. Obviously, this kind of information is valuable when the reliability of mission-generated temperature and conductivity data, which are used to determine salinity, have to be assessed.
A Method for Data Processing to Obtain High-Quality XCTD Data
Authors: Uchida Hiroshi , Shimada Koji , Kawano Takeshi
Published: April 2011

A data processing method to obtain high-quality data from an expendable conductivity–temperature–depth (XCTD) profiler is proposed. By adjusting the mismatch of the response time of the temperature and conductivity sensors, systematic error (on the order of −0.05) in XCTD salinity data can be eliminated from regions having a strong vertical temperature gradient (>0.2°C m−1), such as the main thermocline of the nearshore side of the Kuroshio axis and the seasonal thermocline of the subarctic North Pacific. The systematic errors in XCTD depth and temperature data from two cruises were evaluated by comparing the CTD and XCTD data taken simultaneously during each cruise. The XCTD depths were in good agreement with the CTD depths from one cruise, but depth-dependent depth errors from the other cruise were found. The cause of the depth error is unknown but may have occurred because the terminal velocity for the XCTD probes was much less (−0.0428 m s−1) than that provided by the manufacturer for the later cruise. The results suggest that XCTD and expendable bathythermograph (XBT) observations may have a similar depth error because XBT and XCTD do not have pressure sensors, and therefore depth is inferred from the fall rate of the probe. Systematic positive biases (0.018°C on average) were found in XCTD temperature data. The viscous heating effect may contribute to the thermal bias because flow past the XCTD temperature probe is relatively fast (>3 m s−1). Evaluation of XBT/XCTD data by using simultaneous CTD observations data is valuable for validation of statistical corrections of the global XBT/XCTD dataset.
Cycles and Propagation of Deep Convection over Equatorial Africa
Authors: Laing Arlene G. , Carbone Richard E. , Levizzani Vincenzo
Published: April 2011

Long-term statistics of organized convection are vital to improved understanding of the hydrologic cycle at various scales. Satellite observations are used to understand the timing, duration, and frequency of deep convection in equatorial Africa, a region with some of the most intense thunderstorms. Yet little has been published about the propagation characteristics of mesoscale convection in that region. Diurnal, subseasonal, and seasonal cycles of cold cloud (proxy for convective precipitation) are examined on a continental scale. Organized deep convection consists of coherent structures that are characteristic of systems propagating under a broad range of atmospheric conditions. Convection is triggered by heating of elevated terrain, sea/land breezes, and lake breezes. Coherent episodes of convection result from regeneration of convection through multiple diurnal cycles while propagating westward. They have an average 17.6-h duration and 673-km span; most have zonal phase speeds of 8–16 m s−1.

Propagating convection occurs in the presence of moderate low-level shear that is associated with the southwesterly monsoonal flow and midlevel easterly jets. Convection is also modulated by eastward-moving equatorially trapped Kelvin waves, which have phase speeds of 12–22 m s−1 over equatorial Africa. Westward propagation of mesoscale convection is interrupted by the dry phase of convectively coupled Kelvin waves. During the wet phase, daily initiation and westward propagation continues within the Kelvin wave and the cold cloud shields are larger. Mesoscale convection is more widespread during the active phase of the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) but with limited westward propagation. The study highlights multiscale interaction as a major source of variability in convective precipitation during the critical rainy seasons in equatorial Africa.
Comments on “Conditional Exceedance Probabilities”
Authors: Bröcker Jochen , Siegert Stefan , Kantz Holger
Published: April 2011

In a recent paper, Mason et al. propose a reliability test of ensemble forecasts for a continuous, scalar verification. As noted in the paper, the test relies on a very specific interpretation of ensembles, namely, that the ensemble members represent quantiles of some underlying distribution. This quantile interpretation is not the only interpretation of ensembles, another popular one being the Monte Carlo interpretation. Mason et al. suggest estimating the quantiles in this situation; however, this approach is fundamentally flawed. Errors in the quantile estimates are not independent of the exceedance events, and consequently the conditional exceedance probabilities (CEP) curves are not constant, which is a fundamental assumption of the test. The test would reject reliable forecasts with probability much higher than the test size.
Prisoner futures: Sensing the signs of generativity
Authors: Halsey Mark , Harris Vandra
Published: April 2011

In recent years, a small but critically informed literature has emerged which points to the link between opportunities to engage in generative acts and desistance from crime. This paper outlines the nature and limits of generative moments (conceived as the philosophy or practice of caring in non-violent and durable ways for self, other and future) with regard to the incarceration of a group of young males interviewed since 2003. Specifically, it poses the question of who or what it has been possible for these young men to care about within and beyond custody and highlights some of the factors which undermine generative concerns and actions. In concluding, the paper offers several ideas for enhancing generative opportunities within custodial environments.
Ned Kelly, John Barry and the role of social activism in criminal justice reform: Excerpts from the 2010 John Barry Memorial Lecture
Authors: Norden Peter
Published: April 2011

This public lecture, presented on the 130th Anniversary of the execution of Ned Kelly, each year commemorates the contribution made to the field of criminology by the late Mr Justice Barry, of the Supreme Court of Victoria. Using the heuristic method of social research, it examines the place of social activism in the field of criminal justice reform. The paper was presented on the eve of a Victorian State election, where debate about law and order issues predominated, as has occurred in many States and Territories around Australia in recent years. The author calls for a substantial review of the operation and effectiveness of the Australian criminal justice system.
Sixty Years of the PRC
Authors: Yahuda Michael
Published: April 2011

Anniversaries are occasions for celebration and for taking stock of past problems as well as successes as a basis for looking ahead. But it is important to acknowledge first the enormity of the achievements of the People’s Republic. The sixtieth anniversary has been marked in Beijing by a display of China’s military strength and its wealth. The “sick man” of Asia of a century ago has been transformed into one of the world’s economic power-houses. Hundreds of millions of people have been lifted out of poverty. The Chinese economy ranks as the largest in the world. It has become one of the world’s greatest trading nations and its influence is growing in every continent. However, in assessing the significance of these sixty years this paper will focus on three themes: history; foreign relations and future prospects.
Roosevelt Island: Exception to a City in Crisis
Authors: Freemark Yonah
Published: April 2011

Today, New York City’s Roosevelt Island stands as living proof that the public sector can produce a mixed-income and mixed-race neighborhood from scratch. Its successes contrast with typical perceptions of government housing failure and indicate that with determined leadership, stable funding, and a good location, the public sector can create healthy, heterogeneous neighborhoods. This article examines the process of designing and constructing Roosevelt Island to illustrate how and why local actors took advantage of favorable conditions and made important political choices to achieve their commitments, even as political and financial support for such developments deteriorated. In light of the often dismal reputation of government housing policy in the United States, Roosevelt Island’s success—unique in its mixed-income legacy—offers lessons about effective city governance in the face of dwindling national support.
Conquering the Suburbs: Politics and Work in Early Modern Edinburgh
Authors: Allen Aaron M.
Published: April 2011

The focus of this study is on the challenges faced by the municipal government of early modern Edinburgh in attempting to regulate suburban work. It has been demonstrated that as taxation became more common in the Scottish capital, certain occupational groups attempted to avoid the monetary burdens by settling outside the town walls, beyond the reach of burgh jurisdiction. Over the course of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the town council struggled to gain legal “superiority” over these constantly growing suburbs. This in turn led the Edinburgh craft guilds to seek superiority over their suburban counterparts. The effects of this process are highlighted by evidence from the surviving minute books of the metalworkers’ guilds, in both the capital and its suburbs, illuminating the struggle of a European capital to control the urban expansion beyond its jurisdiction.
A Linear Variable-θ Model for Measuring Individual Differences in Response Precision
Authors: Ferrando Pere J.
Published: April 2011

Models for measuring individual response precision have been proposed for binary and graded responses. However, more continuous formats are quite common in personality measurement and are usually analyzed with the linear factor analysis model. This study extends the general Gaussian person-fluctuation model to the continuous-response case and develops a linear model: the Pseudo-Congeneric model. Two experimentally indistinguishable variants of the model are differentiated and discussed from a substantive point of view. At the applied level, the model is very simple and can be calibrated using standard factor analysis software. Estimation of person estimates (particularly individual fluctuation) is also very simple, and this allows for further developments that were quite difficult with previous models. All the proposals are illustrated using two empirical examples.
My Probation Career
Authors: Gregory Marilyn
Published: April 2011

This article charts one woman’s journey from unqualified care worker to Probation Officer and later to academic. It outlines the social, political and theoretical influences she encounters along the way from anti-psychiatry to behaviourism, feminism and the politics of Black power, as well as Marxism, reflective practice and the rise of punitive managerialism. It concludes with a brief outline of recent research which demonstrates that experienced practitioners use their abilities as reflective practitioners to enable them to practise in a way which is suffused with judgement and reflection upon the unique and particular circumstances of the person to be helped, and is not readily reduced to the straightforward application of technique.
Re-education or recovery? Re-thinking some aspects of domestic violence perpetrator programmes
Authors: Morran David
Published: April 2011

There has been a substantial development of domestic violence perpetrator programmes within the probation service in recent years. Pressures to ensure that approaches are ‘evidence-based’ and thereafter formally ‘accredited’ have led to the proliferation of somewhat standardized models of intervention in both probation, and increasingly, in the voluntary sector. This does not fit either with the experience of practitioners nor from emerging research in this field. This article suggests that too much might be expected from current interventions. Consideration is then given to what individualized approaches might require in this context and specifically examines how desistance-focused approaches might apply with this type of ‘offender’.
Probation, Credibility and Justice
Authors: McNeill Fergus
Published: April 2011

This article explores the difficulties that arise for probation agencies or those that deliver community sanctions in developing and maintaining their credibility in prevailing ‘late-modern’ social conditions. It begins by questioning the limits of the pursuit and promise of ‘public protection’ as a source of credibility, and then proceeds to examine the emergence of an alternative strategy — based principally on reparation and ‘payback’ — in Scotland, arguing that these Scottish developments have much to say to the emerging debates in England and Wales (and elsewhere) about the ‘rehabilitation revolution’ and the proper use of imprisonment. The article provides a critical account of the development and meaning of the Scottish version of ‘payback’, linking it to some important philosophical and empirical studies that may help to steer the development of payback away from a ‘merely punitive’ drift. In the conclusion, I argue that probation agencies and services need to engage much more deeply and urgently with their roles as justice services, rather than as ‘mere’ crime reduction agencies.
Inferior Vena Cava Variation Compared to Pulse Contour Analysis as Predictors of Fluid Responsiveness: A Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Machare-Delgado Enrique , Decaro Matthew , Marik Paul E.
Published: April 2011

Background: Both occult hypoperfusion and volume overload are associated with increased morbidity and mortality in critically ill patients. Accurately predicting fluid responsiveness (FRes) allows for optimization of cardiac performance while avoiding fluid overload and prolonged mechanical ventilation. Objective: To simultaneously assess the ability to predict FRes using the stroke volume variation (SVV) obtained with the Vigileo/Flotrac monitor and inferior vena cava respiratory variation (ΔIVC) measured by standard echocardiography ([ECHO) during mechanical ventilation. Methods: We included medical intensive care unit (ICU) patients undergoing mechanical ventilation that required vasopressors, had worsening organ function, and that were well adapted to the ventilator. We excluded patients requiring escalating doses of vasopressors, hemodialysis, with ascites and patients with atrial fibrillation or a heart rate >120/min. Stroke volume index (SVI) and SVV were obtained from the Vigileo monitor whereas ΔIVC was obtained with ECHO (M-mode). Doppler ECHO was used to measure SVI and used to determine FRes (defined by SVI increase ≥10%). A data set was obtained before and 30 minutes after a 10-minute fluid challenge (FC) with 500 mL of saline. Results: In all, 25 patients were prospectively enrolled over an 8-month period. A total of 12 patients had acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), 3 had a cardiac arrest, and 10 had sepsis. The patients’ mean age was 61.36 years (±13.7), study enrollment since ICU admission was 3.4 days (±3.39), the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score was 12.44 (±2.59), and the tidal volume 8.6 mL/kg (±1.68). Of the 25 patients, 8 (32%) were FRes. The correlation coefficient between the baseline ΔIVC and percentage increase in SVI (by ECHO) after an FC was R2 = .51 with a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of 0.81 while that for the baseline SVV by Vigileo was R2 = .12 with an ROC curve of 0.57. The mean SVI bias between ECHO and Vigileo was -2 mL/m2, the precision was -18 to 14 and the mean error was 46%. Conclusions: ECHO assessment of the IVC variation during mechanical ventilation may prove to be a useful technique to predict FRes and guide fluid resuscitation in the ICU. The SVV obtained with the Vigileo monitor failed to predict FRes likely due to lack of calibration and the use of a complex algorithm that may be unreliable in patients with sepsis.
Analytic Reviews: Propofol Infusion Syndrome in the ICU
Authors: Diedrich Daniel A. , Brown Daniel R.
Published: April 2011

Propofol is an alkylphenol derivative named 2, 6, diisopropylphenol and is a potent intravenous short-acting hypnotic agent. It is commonly used as sedation, as well as an anesthetic agent in both pediatric and adult patient populations. There have been numerous case reports describing a constellation of findings including metabolic derangements and organ system failures known collectively as propofol infusion syndrome (PRIS). Although there is a high mortality associated with PRIS, the precise mechanism of action has yet to be determined. The best preventive measure for this syndrome is awareness and avoidance of clinical scenarios associated with development of PRIS. There is no established treatment for PRIS; care is primarily supportive in nature and may include the full array of advanced cardiopulmonary support, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). This article reviews the reported cases of PRIS and describes the current understanding of the underlying pathophysiology and treatment options.
Mortality in Patients With Septic Shock Correlates With Anti-Inflammatory But not Proinflammatory Immunomodulatory Molecules
Authors: de Pablo Raúl , Monserrat Jorge , Reyes Eduardo , Diaz-Martin David , Rodriguez Zapata Manuel , Carballo Fernando , de la Hera Antonio , Prieto Alfredo , Alvarez-Mon Melchor
Published: April 2011

Background: Mortality in patients with septic shock remains unacceptably high and the attempts to antagonize certain proinflammatory cytokines based on the results of animal model studies have failed to improve survival rates. The objective of this article is to examine the pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokine balance in patients with septic shock and its connection with mortality. Methods: Serum levels of proinflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-α [TNF-α], interleukin 1β [IL-1β], interferonγ [IFN-γ], and IL-6) and soluble cytokine antagonists (soluble TNF receptor I [sTNF-RI], sTNF-RII, and IL-1Ra) were determined on admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) and 3, 7, 14, and 28 days later in 52 patients with septic shock and in 36 healthy controls. Specific sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used for all determinations. Results: Serum levels of most of the pro- and anti-inflammatory molecules examined (TNF-α, IL-6, sTNF-RI, sTNF-RII, and IL-1 receptor agonist [IL-1Ra]) were significantly elevated on admission and during the 28-day observation period in patients when compared to controls. Notably, the anti-inflammatory mediators sTNF-RI, sTNF-RII, and IL-1Ra were better predictors of mortality. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) analysis revealed that sTNF-RI or sTNF-RII concentrations over 2767 or 4619 pg/mL, respectively, determined a high risk of death (sensitivity: 100%-100%, specificity: 57.1%-71.4%, area under the curve [AUC] 0.759-0.841, respectively), whereas IL-1Ra concentrations below 7033 pg/mL determined a high probability of survival (sensitivity: 60%, specificity: 100%, AUC 0.724). In addition, IFN-γ levels were significantly higher in survivors than in controls during the initial 2 weeks of observation. Conclusions: Our data show that serum cytokine disturbance patterns have prognostic significance in patients with septic shock admitted to the ICU. The pattern, defined by an early response to continuously elevated anti-inflammatory cytokine serum levels, is associated with an enhanced risk of a fatal outcome for patients.
Missed Opportunities for Health Education on Pap Smears in Peru
Authors: Bayer Angela M. , Nussbaum Lauren , Cabrera Lilia , Paz-Soldan Valerie A.
Published: April 2011

Despite cervical cancer being one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths among women in Peru, cervical Pap smear coverage is low. This article uses findings from 185 direct clinician observations in four cities of Peru (representing the capital and each of the three main geographic regions of the country) to assess missed opportunities for health education on Pap smears and other preventive women’s health behaviors during women’s visits to a health care provider. Various types of health establishments, provider settings, and provider types were observed. Opportunities for patient education on the importance of prevention were rarely exploited. In fact, health education provided was minimal. Policy and programmatic implications are discussed.
Conquering Cancer in the 21st Century: Leading a Movement to Save More Lives Worldwide
Authors: Seffrin John R.
Published: April 2011

This article examines the current state of the global fight against cancer and of noncommunicable disease in general, the progress to date against cancer, and postulates that there has never been a more challenging—nor more ideal—time to succeed in making significant headway against the disease worldwide. Based on progress made particularly in the past two decades, and with proven interventions and scientific knowledge, it is possible to bring cancer as a major health problem worldwide under control in this century.The article also discusses what the American Cancer Society, the nation’s largest voluntary health organization dedicated to saving lives from cancer, is doing to lead a global movement in support of achieving this goal.
Institutional work amidst the financial crisis: emerging positions of elite actors
Authors: Riaz Suhaib , Buchanan Sean , Bapuji Hari
Published: April 2011

We draw on the institutional work literature to analyse the rhetoric in mainstream media spawned by the global financial crisis. We identify the emerging positions (status quo, neutral and change) of actors on major themes (policy, practices, recovery and regulation) related to the crisis and the rhetorical processes used (appeals to expert authority, finding someone to blame, use of scenarios, and avoidance of critical discussion) to communicate these positions. We find that academics lead the charge for change in policy, relying mostly on rhetorical processes that involve the use of past scenarios and blame, but also often avoid critical discussion through over-generalization. In contrast, banks focus on changes in practices, mostly using future scenarios, finding specific others to blame, and also appealing to expert authority. The US Federal Reserve takes the lead on maintaining the status quo on regulation-related issues, largely through using various scenarios and appeals to expert authority. We also find a large number of neutral positions and interpret this as tacit support for existing institutions. We conclude by charting out a broader research agenda for further investigation of the actors-institutions interplay, particularly within the context of the financial crisis.
From long-term savings to instant mortgages: financial demonstration and the role of interaction in markets
Authors: Vargha Zsuzsanna
Published: April 2011

Accounts of the crisis have privileged ‘high finance’ innovations whereas retail banks constantly experimented with how they sell (new) products to consumers. I examine the case of product innovation at a home savings bank in Hungary during the pre-crisis credit boom. Turned from offering state-subsidized long-term savings-and-loans to promoting instant mortgages. Based on ethnographic observations of the bank’s Direct Selling Organization, I trace the bank’s shift from state-subsidized long-term savings-and-loans to instant mortgages, to problems with demonstrating the qualities of financial products, even ostensibly prudent ones. Drawing on concepts of scientific demonstration and proof, I compare how financial advisors explained the plan to consumers before and after it was combined with mortgages: first they drew the funds by hand, later they adopted software-generated scenarios. I suggest that as sellers perform products interactively with clients, consumers’ needs appear. Thus, when organized differently, financial demonstrations yield different consumers-with-preferences. Based on this interactional perspective, I find that consumer finance is an ‘economy of qualities’ where preferences and product properties stabilize through consultation, and where “social” embedding can enable “economic” calculations. Based on this interactional perspective, I examine US and UK proposals for consumer financial protection.
The semiosis of family conflict: A case study of home-based psychotherapy
Authors: Musaeus Peter , Brinkmann Svend
Published: April 2011

This is a case study of a blended family undergoing home-based psychotherapy. The study uses sociocultural theory (Vygotsky) and semiotic cultural psychology (Valsiner) in order to understand the appropriation and usage of signs as regulators of behavior. Furthermore, the article draws upon Foucault’s genealogical approach and Rose’s notion of Psydiscourse. It is argued that this approach is fruitful for understanding psychotherapy as a governing discourse that influences contemporary families. Technologies of the self, such as psychotherapy and signs like ‘time-out’ and ‘stop,’ are used by family members in attempts to break a cycle of conflict—violence but they also exacerbate negative emotions, which we see in the case of conflict. The article develops a critique of the practice of punishment and reward. By analyzing psychotherapy as signs and technologies of the self impacting family life, we start understanding the barriers to well-being in families and individual lives.
The self-control ethos and the ‘chav’: Unpacking cultural representations of the white working class
Authors: Adams Matthew , Raisborough Jayne
Published: April 2011

This paper applies Joffe and Staerklé’s self-control ethos to cultural representations of the white working class. We initially follow their identification of three aspects of the self-control ethos — mind, body, and destiny — to show the explanatory value of the concept, before considering four possible avenues through which the self-control ethos may be developed: the extent to which it is the interrelationship between the separate aspects of the self-control ethos which lends them their visceral, emotional, and symbolic power; that gender differentiation is an important element in the specific content of stereotypes; that some stereotype content relates to issues of containment; and that a tighter contextualization is afforded to the self-control ethos by considering self and other relations in the terms of a consumer culture. These are offered as possible directions for the future development of a social representational approach sensitive to the contemporary cultural context.
Where are we going beyond the archive metaphor?
Authors: Mori Naohisa
Published: April 2011

Brockmeier integrates perspectives of several fields and shows that the use of the archive metaphor is reaching its expiration date. What he offers as an alternative to the metaphor is a new model based on the socio-cultural approach. Although the present author agrees with Brockmeier on the limitations of the archive metaphor and acknowledges the significance of the socio-cultural approach or narrative turn, yet a new view on body—environment relations and time is needed for a new theory of memory. We have found it to be a necessity when working on issues of examination of confession and testimony in legal settings. Our research team has accumulated practical and empirical evidence to propose an ecological approach to remembering and memory. It is also an alternative to the archive metaphor. An ecological approach to remembering and memory in constructing our scholarly autobiography is outlined.
The pervasiveness of memory
Authors: Echterhoff Gerald
Published: April 2011

The article by Jens Brockmeier (2010) provides a multifaceted, well-written, and thought-provoking synopsis of challenges faced by the study of memory. There are several critical issues and unwarranted conclusions associated with key claims of the article. First of all, the author’s criticism of the archival notion of memory is well made but falls short of taking into account long-standing debates and conceptual developments in the psychology of memory. Second, contrary to the author’s claim, memory for past events and experiences, however accurate or biased, serves important psychological functions. Third, ignoring fundamental differences between types or systems of memory poses the risk of overgeneralized and eventually unwarranted claims about memory. Differentiation can be an important step in research progress, if it goes along with an adequate level of integration. Fourth, I argue that something like ‘memory’ must exist that produces learning behavior, which is ubiquitous in humans and animals. I conclude by drawing attention to the pervasiveness of memory in psychological phenomena. From this perspective, the challenges outlined in the target article are not so much due to the elusiveness or lack of substance, but rather the very pervasiveness of memory.
Engaging with Islam to promote women’s rights
Authors: Kirmani Nida , Phillips Isabel
Published: April 2011

Although the promotion of women’s rights is often seen as a ‘secular enterprise’, efforts to incorporate religion within gender-related advocacy are growing. Muslim faith-based organisations (FBOs) are also being encouraged to engage in gender-related projects because of their supposed ‘comparative advantage’ in Muslim communities. This article critically analyses the efforts made by development agencies and women’s organisations to promote women’s rights within an Islamic framework or with the involvement of religious leaders. It then explores the possibilities and dangers of such approaches with a particular reference to Muslim FBOs.
Livelihoods, capitals and livelihood trajectories
Authors: Dijk Tara van
Published: April 2011

To move urban livelihoods approaches beyond description to strategic action, its core concepts of livelihoods, capitals and livelihood outcomes (termed here as trajectories) need a more comprehensive and sociological conceptualisation. First, social structures are unpacked to show how livelihoods need to be thought of in terms of livelihood arrangements. Then, the problems with the present use of capitals, assets and resources (CARs) are discussed and their substantive, relational–contingent and embodied aspects outlined. Lastly, the article sketches a Sayer–Bourdieuian inspired approach.
Defacing memory: (Un)tying Peru’s memory knots
Authors: Milton Cynthia E.
Published: April 2011

This article parses opposing currents in Peru’s collective memory of their bloody internal war (1980—2000) through an analysis of acts of vandalism perpetrated against one of the country’s few sites of memory, the Ojo que llora, in Lima. ‘Vandalism’ in this article is understood as a form of writing (though a violent one) of an alternative vision of the past. Originally intended as a space for remembering and paying homage to the victims of the armed conflict, the site has become a space for contesting disputed memories. As a site of performance of memory and human rights claims, and especially as the target of continued defacement, the Ojo que llora has become a stage on which the perduring presence of the past — in its still-conflictual strains — is made visible for national and international publics. It thus refuses the very closure that government narratives would impose, and thereby keeps open public engagement with the past. The ongoing conflicts over the past made visible at this site point to the struggles to define an over-arching memory, and in the process the very meaning of ‘victim’ is constrained.
Targeting epidermal growth factor receptor in head and neck cancer: lessons learned from cetuximab
Authors: Moon Chulso , Chae Young Kwang , Lee Juna
Published: April 2011

As early detection strategies have not been successful, most patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) present with advanced (stages III and IV) disease. Oral cavity tumors are treated primarily with surgical resection and advanced tumors of the pharynx and larynx are generally treated with combined modality therapy (chemoradiation). The major advances in the management of HNC have evolved from the integration of targeted therapeutics into treatment regimens. Presently, the most important target for new therapeutic strategies in HNC is the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and so far only cetuximab, a monoclonal antibody targeting EGFR, has been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration in the HNC population as a radiation-sensitizing agent for patients undergoing primary radiation-based treatment and for patients with recurrent or metastatic disease. Other receptor and non-receptor kinase targeting strategies are under active clinical investigation as well. The increasing number of molecular targeting strategies in clinical development underscores the need to identify which HNC patients will respond to specific therapies. This article focuses on the current preclinical and clinical evidence of monoclonal antibodies targeting EGFR in HNC. We will first review the mechanisms of action of cetuximab, its clinical trials and side-effect profiles, and its present clinical application. Then, the current development status of other molecular antibodies and two molecular inhibitors, gefitinib and erlotinib, will be examined. Finally, by focusing on cetuximab, the current issues in EGFR targeting will be reviewed and we propose future directions of EGFR targeting. We hope that this review will provide further insight into the future directions of targeted therapy in the management of advanced HNC.
Neuropeptide Y is a mediator of chronic vascular and metabolic maladaptations to stress and hypernutrition
Authors: Abe Ken , Kuo Lydia , Zukowska Zofia
Published: April 2011

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is a central neuromodulator and peripheral sympathetic neurotransmitter that also has important regulatory roles in cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, immune and metabolic functions during stress. Focusing on the peripheral actions of the peptide in rodent models, we summarize recent studies from our laboratory demonstrating that stress-induced release of NPY mediates accelerated atherosclerosis/restenosis, obesity and metabolic-like syndrome, particularly when combined with a high fat, high sugar diet. In this review, we propose mechanisms of NPY's actions, its receptors and cellular substrates that increase the risk for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases when chronic stress is associated with pre-existing vascular injury and/or states of hypernutrition.
Synthetic dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine liposomes assimilating into high-density lipoprotein promote regression of atherosclerotic lesions in cholesterol-fed rabbits
Authors: Cho Byung H Simon , Park Jeong-Ro , Nakamura Manabu T , Odintsov Boris M , Wallig Matthew A , Chung Byung-Hong
Published: April 2011

We have reported recently that enrichment of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) with phosphatidylcholine (PC) liposomes is effective in solubilizing cholesterol from isolated human atherosclerotic plaques. In the present study, we investigated the in vivo effect of enrichment of HDL with PC on regression of diet-induced atherosclerosis in rabbits. As part of the study, a preliminary in vitro study on blood collected from the cholesterol-fed rabbits was performed to assess the capacity of the HDL density ( d > 1.063 g/mL) plasma fraction from cholesterol-fed rabbits to assimilate multilamellar liposomes of synthetic dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC). This was compared with the capacities of egg- and soy-PC liposomes to be assimilated into the HDL density plasma fraction. The capacity of the HDL density fraction to absorb PC from DMPC liposomes (11.5 mg/mL) was more than 10 times greater than egg or soy liposomes. Therefore, DMPC liposomes were chosen to infuse into cholesterol-fed rabbits. Cholesterol-fed rabbits infused weekly with DMPC liposomes (300 mg/kg body weight) for five weeks had significantly decreased aortic cholesterol contents ( P < 0.05) compared with saline-infused cholesterol-fed controls. Atherosclerotic plaque volume, as measured by a type of new magnetic resonance imaging analysis, also decreased significantly ( P < 0.05) after DMPC treatment. The present findings suggest that the enrichment of HDL with PC via intravenous infusion of synthetic DMPC liposomes could be a potential therapeutic approach for atherosclerotic plaque regression.
Cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in TP53 subtypes of bladder carcinoma cell lines treated with cisplatin and gemcitabine
Authors: da Silva Glenda Nicioli , de Castro Marcondes João Paulo , de Camargo Elaine Aparecida , da Silva Passos Júnior Geraldo Aleixo , Sakamoto-Hojo Elza Tiemi , Salvadori Daisy Maria Fávero
Published: April 2011

Currently, the combination of cisplatin and gemcitabine is considered a standard chemotherapeutic protocol for bladder cancer. However, the mechanism by which these drugs act on tumor cells is not completely understood. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of these two antineoplastic drugs on the apoptotic index and cell cycle kinetics of urinary bladder transitional carcinoma cell lines with wild-type or mutant TP53 (RT4: wild type for TP53; 5637 and T24: mutated TP53). Cytotoxicity, cell survival assays, clonogenic survival assays and flow cytometric analyses for cell cycle kinetics and apoptosis detection were performed with three cell lines treated with different concentrations of cisplatin and gemcitabine. G1 cell cycle arrest was observed in the three cell lines after treatment with gemcitabine and gemcitabine plus cisplatin. A significant increase in cell death was also detected in all cell lines treated with cisplatin or gemcitabine. Lower survival rates occurred with the combined drug protocol independent of TP53 status. TP53-wild type cells (RT4) were more sensitive to apoptosis than were mutated TP53 cells when treated with cisplatin or gemcitabine. Concurrent treatment with cisplatin and gemcitabine was more effective on transitional carcinoma cell lines than either drug alone; the drug combination led to a decreased cell survival that was independent of TP53 status. Therefore, the synergy between low concentrations of cisplatin and gemcitabine may have clinical relevance, as high concentrations of each individual drug are toxic to whole organisms.
Corticotropin-releasing factor signaling and visceral response to stress
Authors: Stengel Andreas , Taché Yvette
Published: April 2011

Stress may cause behavioral and/or psychiatric manifestations such as anxiety and depression and also impact on the function of different visceral organs, namely the gastrointestinal and cardiovascular systems. During the past years substantial progress has been made in the understanding of the underlying mechanisms recruited by stressors. Activation of the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) signaling system is recognized to be involved in a large number of stress-related behavioral and somatic disorders. This review will outline the present knowledge on the distribution of the CRF system (ligands and receptors) expressed in the brain and peripheral viscera and its relevance in stress-induced alterations of gastrointestinal and cardiovascular functions and the therapeutic potential of CRF1 receptor antagonists.
Chronic placental ischemia alters amniotic fluid milieu and results in impaired glucose tolerance, insulin resistance and hyperleptinemia in young rats
Authors: Heltemes Alaina , Gingery Anne , Soldner Emma L B , Bozadjieva Nadejda , Jahr Kristen N , Johnson Britt K , Gilbert Jeffrey S
Published: April 2011

Although small size at birth is associated with hypertension and associated co-morbidities such as insulin resistance and type II diabetes mellitus, many of the animal models employed to simulate this phenomenon do not closely mimic the ontogeny of growth restriction observed clinically. While intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is often detected near mid-pregnancy in women and persists until term, most rodent models of IUGR employ ligation of uterine arteries for a brief period during late gestation (days 19–21 of pregnancy). We hypothesized that IUGR associated with chronic reduction in uteroplacental perfusion (RUPP) and placental ischemia during the third trimester of pregnancy in the rat alters the amniotic fluid (AF) environment and results in hypertensive offspring presenting with metabolic abnormalities such as glucose intolerance and insulin resistance. Insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), IGF-2, Na+concentration and oxidative stress in the AF were increased, while K+concentration was decreased in the RUPP compared with normal pregnant (NP) fetuses. RUPP-offspring (RUPP-O) were smaller (6.1 ± 0.2 versus 6.7 ± 0.2 g; P < 0.05) at birth compared with NP-offspring (NP-O) groups. At nine weeks of age, mean arterial pressure (121 ± 3 versus 107 ± 5 mmHg; P < 0.05), fasting insulin (0.71 ± 0.014 versus 0.30 ± 0.08 ng/mL; P < 0.05), glucose (4.4 ± 0.2 versus 3.1 ± 0.3 mmol/L; P < 0.05), leptin (3.8 ± 0.5 versus 2.3 ± 0.3 ng/mL; P < 0.05) and the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance index was greater (2.9 ± 0.6 versus 1.0 ± 0.3; P < 0.05) in the RUPP-O compared with the NP-O rats. These data indicate that chronic placental ischemia results in numerous alterations to the fetal environment that contributes to the development of impaired glucose metabolism, insulin resistance and hyperleptinemia in young offspring.
Comparison of single high-dose streptozotocin with partial pancreatectomy combined with low-dose streptozotocin for diabetes induction in rhesus monkeys
Authors: Jin Xi , Zeng Li , He Sirong , Chen Younan , Tian Bole , Mai Gang , Yang Guang , Wei Lingling , Zhang Yi , Li Hongxia , Wang Li , Qiao Chaofeng , Cheng Jingqiu , Lu Yanrong
Published: April 2011

Monkeys with insulin-dependent diabetes are important experimental models for islet xenotransplantation. However, with regard to diabetes induction, total pancreatectomy is a difficult operation with a high complication rate, while streptozotocin (STZ) administration may cause serious toxic effects and individual difference in metabolism. We compared two strategies involving pancreatectomy and STZ to successfully and safely induce diabetes in rhesus monkeys. Thirteen rhesus monkeys were divided into two groups: single high-dose STZ administration (80, 100 and 120 mg/kg, n = 3 for each dose) (group 1) and partial pancreatectomy (70–75%) combined with low-dose STZ (15 mg/kg, n = 4) (group 2). Induction of diabetes was evaluated by blood glucose, insulin, C-peptide, intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT) and arginine stimulation test (AST). Detection of hematological and serum biochemical parameters and biopsies of pancreas, liver and kidney were periodically performed. In our study, animals in both groups developed diabetes. Serum C-peptide levels in groups 1 and 2 decreased to 0.08 ± 0.07 and 0.35 ± 0.06 nmol/L, respectively. IVGTT and AST indicated severely impaired glucose tolerance. Immunohistochemistry demonstrated that rare insulin-positive cells remained in the pancreas. In terms of STZ toxicity, four monkeys died 8–14 days after STZ administration (3 with 120 mg/kg STZ and 1 with 100 mg/kg STZ). Group 1 animals developed liver and kidney injury evidenced by increased alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, total cholesterol, LDL, triglyceride and blood urea nitrogen for one month, and histological abnormality including hepatic steatosis, renal glomerulus and tubular injury. Nevertheless, moderate histological injuries were seen in animals with 80 mg/kg STZ, with subsequent recovery. In contrast, group 2 animals displayed normal biochemical parameters and histology, with generally less risk of postoperative complications. We conclude that injection of 80 mg/kg STZ could induce diabetes with moderate injuries. Partial pancreatectomy with low-dose STZ is a safer and more reproducible method for inducing diabetes in rhesus monkeys.
The acute effects of smokeless tobacco on central aortic blood pressure and wave reflection characteristics
Authors: Martin Jeffrey S , Beck Darren T , Gurovich Alvaro N , Braith Randy W
Published: April 2011

The main objectives of this study were to examine the acute effect of a single dose of smokeless tobacco (ST) on central aortic blood pressure and wave reflection characteristics. Fifteen apparently healthy male subjects (aged 30.6 ± 6.2 y) were given a 2.5 g oral dose of ST after baseline measurements were recorded. Pulse wave analysis using radial artery applanation tonometry was performed in triplicate at baseline (0 min) and at 10-min intervals during (10, 20 and 30 min) and after (40, 50 and 60 min) ST use. An acute dose of ST was associated with a significant increase in heart rate (HR), central aortic systolic and diastolic blood pressure, peripheral brachial systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and aortic augmentation index normalized to a fixed heart rate of 75 bpm (AIx@75). Furthermore, ejection duration and round trip travel time of the reflected pressure wave (Δ tp) were significantly decreased as a result of one time ST use. As a result of changes in aortic pressure wave reflection characteristics, there was a significant increase in wasted left ventricular pressure energy (LVEw) and the tension–time index (TTI) as a result of ST use.

In conclusion, one time use of ST elicits significant transient increases in HR, central aortic pressures, AIx@75, the TTI and LVEw. Chronic users subjected to decades of elevated central pressures and left ventricular work may have an increased cardiovascular risk as central aortic pressures are even more strongly related to cardiovascular outcomes than peripheral blood pressures.