bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of unsymmetrical spiro dianhydride structure on properties of fully aliphatic polyimides
Authors: Yu Hwan-Chul , Kumar S. Vijay , Choi Jiyoung , Kudo Kazuaki , Jang Yong-Hoon , Chung Chan-Moon
Published: May 2012

Structure-property relationship was studied for fully aliphatic polyimides containing alicyclic dianhydride and diamine units. Rel-(1′R,3S,5′S)-spiro[furan-3(2H),6′-[3]oxabicyclo[3.2.1]octane]-2,2′,4′,5(4H)-tetrone (DAn) was used as an unsymmetrical spiro dianhydride, and 1,2,3,4-cyclopentanetetracarboxylic dianhydride (CPDA) and bicyclo[2.2.2]oct-7-ene-2,3,5,6-tetracarboxylic dianhydride (BOCA) were used as symmetrical non-spiro dianhydrides. 4,4′-Methylenebis(2-methylcyclohexylamine) (MMCA) and 5-amino-1,3,3-trimethylcyclohexanemethylamine (AMCH) were N-silylated, and reacted with the dianhydrides to prepare the fully alicyclic polyimides. The formation of the polyimides was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. DAn-based polyimides showed higher solubility than the polyimides derived from CPDA or BOCA. This was explained based on the results of wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) analysis of the polyimides. The WAXD study showed that DAn-based polyimides have greater full width at half maximum (FWHM) and d-spacing values than the other polyimides. This indicates that DAn-containing polyimides have lower intermolecular order, decreased intermolecular interaction, and less close chain packing compared to the other polyimides. It is considered that the morphology of DAn polyimides is attributable to the unsymmetrical spiro structure of DAn that leads to bulkiness, irregularity, and non-linearity of the polyimide chains. Decomposition temperatures of the polyimides were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and UV-visible spectroscopy was performed to evaluate the optical transparency of the polyimides.
Musikalische und soziale Bedingungen des Singens: Eine Studie unter deutschsprachigen Chorsängern
Authors: Kreutz Gunter , Brünger Peter
Published: May 2012

Choral singing is a common leisure activity in many countries. Amateur choirs are characterized by a high degree of social coherence. Obviously, common musical motivations and goals lead to long-term commitments between choirs and their individual members. In this study, amateur singers ( N = 3145) filled out a questionnaire (online or on paper) which included demographic and musical background information. The results reveal a long-term musical socialization of choral singers, about half of whom had experienced choral singing at school and have been members of one or more choral societies for 19.5 years on average. High levels of both general and musical education were observed. About 40 % of respondents had received formal vocal training at some point. Catalysts of later choral activities appeared to be other family members, especially parents, in addition to choral singing in school. Thus choral singing activates strong forces of social coherence, which foster long-term commitments. At the same time, the landscape of choral societies is subject to dynamic changes in response to individual musical needs and lifestyles. To what extent so-called project choirs, which often exist only for a few months for the purpose of specific productions or concerts, and choirs dedicated to particular musical genres (e.g. Popular/Jazz or Gospel) or lifestyles (e.g. sexual orientation) complement or instead replace traditional choral societies could be the subject of future research.
Grandparents’ Experiences of Childhood Cancer, Part 1
Authors: Moules Nancy J. , Laing Catherine M. , McCaffrey Graham , Tapp Dianne M. , Strother Douglas
Published: May 2012

In this study, the authors examined the experiences of grandparents who have had, or have, a grandchild with childhood cancer. Sixteen grandparents were interviewed using unstructured interviews, and the data were analyzed according to hermeneutic–phenomenological tradition, as guided by the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer. Interpretive findings indicate that grandparents suffer and worry in many complex ways that include a doubled worry for their own children as well as their grandchildren. According to the grandparents in this study, this worry was, at times, silenced in efforts to protect the parents of the grandchild from the burden of concern for the grandparent. Other interpretations include the nature of having one’s universe shaken, of having lives put on hold, and a sense of helplessness. The grandparents in this study offer advice to other grandparents as well as to the health care system regarding what kinds of things might have been more helpful to them as one level of the family system, who, like other subsystems of the family, are also profoundly affected by the event of childhood cancer.
Grandparents’ Experiences of Childhood Cancer, Part 2
Authors: Moules Nancy J. , McCaffrey Graham , Laing Catherine M. , Tapp Dianne M. , Strother Douglas
Published: May 2012

In this study, the authors examined the experiences of grandparents who have had, or have, a grandchild with childhood cancer. Sixteen grandparents were interviewed using unstructured interviews, and the data were analyzed according to a hermeneutic–phenomenological tradition, as guided by the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer. In Part 1 of this report, interpretive findings around worry, burden, silence, the nature of having one’s universe shaken, of having lives put on hold, and a sense of helplessness were addressed. In Part 2, the authors discuss interpretations related to the notions of support, burden, protection, energy, standing by, buffering, financial shouldering, and relationship. The study concludes with implications that the grandparents in the study bring to pediatric nurses in their practices with families in pediatric oncology.
Palliative Care Afterhours
Authors: Bradford Natalie , Irving Helen , Smith Anthony C. , Pedersen Lee-Anne , Herbert Anthony
Published: May 2012

Families caring for a child with incurable cancer require access to support and advice round the clock. In Brisbane, Australia, an after-hours phone service was established to support these families. This service is operated by oncology clinical nurse consultants (CNCs) experienced in pediatric palliative care. This is the first review of 8 years of activity, totaling 106 patients and 1954 calls. The majority of calls were between parents and CNCs (51%). Updating of the patient’s condition (18%) was the primary reason for calls, with support and reassurance (16%), and symptom management of pain (10%) being the other frequent reasons. The majority of calls occurred over the weekends in the morning, with only 11% (n = 209) of calls occurring between 10:00 pm and 7:00 am. Of all the calls made, 43% (n = 814) were calls managed by the CNC without requiring further intervention. Calls were received from throughout Queensland, indicating the value of the service in supporting families throughout the state. The after-hours phone service has proven to be a simple, effective, and valuable service, which is consistently accessed by families, regardless of distance from the hospital.
The Family Impacts of Proton Radiation Therapy for Children With Brain Tumors
Authors: Houtrow Amy J. , Yock Torunn I. , Delahaye Jennifer , Kuhlthau Karen
Published: May 2012

Children with brain tumors experience significant alterations to their health and well-being due to the tumors themselves and oncologic treatment. Caring for children with brain tumors can have significant impacts on families, especially during and shortly after treatment. In this study of the impacts on families caring for children undergoing proton radiation therapy for brain tumors, the authors found that families experienced a broad array of negative impacts. Families reported feeling like they were living on a roller coaster, feeling that others treated them differently, and having to give up things as a family. In the multivariable linear regression model, older age of the child and higher reported child health–related quality of life were associated with less family impact. The presence of concurrent chemotherapy was associated with increased family impact. This is the first study to specifically evaluate the families of children being treated with proton radiation therapy. The findings in this study are consistent with the findings in other studies of children treated with standard therapy that show that families experience a variety of stressors and negative impacts while their children are receiving treatment. Health care providers should be aware of the potential impacts on families of children with brain tumors and their treatment to provide robust services to meet the health, psychological, and social needs of such children and their families.
Inner Contradictions Among Men Who Bareback
Authors: Frasca Timothy , Ventuneac Ana , Balan Ivan , Carballo-Diéguez Alex
Published: May 2012

Barebacking, or intentional unprotected anal intercourse when HIV transmission can occur, emerged as a descriptive term in the 1990s, and marked greater acceptance by gay and bisexual men of dispensing with condom use under certain circumstances. In an exploratory study of men who used Internet sites to meet partners and reported recent episodes of barebacking, respondents outlined numerous strategies they deployed to avoid HIV infection instead of universal condom use. However, in interviews many participants acknowledged uneasiness with the flaws in their chosen strategies, and the contradiction between their urgent desire to remain HIV-free and their sexual practices. For some, the dissonance between the conflicting cognitions could be resolved through self-justification, mental compartmentalization, or invincibility beliefs so that barebacking could continue. For this subpopulation, continued reiteration of cognitive-based prevention messages has the potential to reinforce rather than undermine their attachment to inadequate strategies for disease avoidance.
“It’s Like We’re Grasping at Anything”
Authors: Mastel-Smith Beth , Stanley-Hermanns Melinda
Published: May 2012

In this qualitative descriptive study, we explored caregivers’ educational needs and preferred methods of information delivery. Descriptions are based on five focus groups ( N = 29) conducted with ethnically diverse, current and past family caregivers, including those who had previously attended a structured educational program. Themes arose from verbatim data transcriptions and coded themes. Four categories of educational needs were identified: (a) respite, (b) caregiving essentials, (c) self-care, and (d) the emotional aspects of caregiving. Advantages and disadvantages of learning methods are discussed, along with reasons for and outcomes of attending caregiver workshops. An informed caregiver model is proposed. Health care providers must assess educational needs and strive to provide appropriate information as dictated by the care recipient’s condition and caregiver’s expressed desires. Innovative methods of delivering information that are congruent with different caregiving circumstances and learning preferences must be developed and tested.
Adaptive pole placement control for vibration control of a smart cantilevered beam in thermal environment
Authors: Zhang Ting , Li Hong Guang
Published: May 2012

Piezoelectric actuators used in vibration control and high precision control have been widely used in recent years. In aeronautics and MEMS systems especially, their applications are spread from vibration suppression to position control. In this paper, a finite element model (FEM) of a piezoelectric actuator and cantilever in a thermal environment is presented to suppress vibration effectively. In other words, the FEM is namely a thermal-electrical-mechanical coupled FEM. Based on an eight-node plane finite element, the harmonic analysis and the free vibration analysis have been obtained in the current work. Therefore a transfer function model will be attained through the harmonic analysis by an identification method. In addition, a controller is designed with the adaptive pole placement control (APPC). Finally, through simulation, the thermal influence is considerable for natural frequencies, harmonic response and free vibration. Moreover, the APPC is a significant plan to vibration control in the paper.
Shear stresses in honeycomb sandwich plates: Analytical solution, finite element method and experimental verification
Authors: Wahl Laurent , Maas Stefan , Waldmann Danièle , Zürbes Arno , Frères Patrick
Published: May 2012

Honeycomb composite structures are used in airplanes, railway cars and vehicles. The sandwich panels consist of two stiff face sheets of aluminium, which are bonded to a very lightweight honeycomb core of aluminium. Compared to normal plates, sandwich panels have a very high stiffness and simultaneously a low weight. The core of these structures is mainly subjected to shear stresses. The shear stresses depend strongly on the angle of the load application. The distribution and the level of the shear stresses are investigated using analytical calculations. The load direction which induces highest stresses in the honeycomb core is derived. This direction is not the W-direction, which is the most compliant one. When doing finite element simulations of honeycomb cores, often the core is homogenized in order to reduce the calculation time. In this article, some equations are derived in order to calculate the real shear stresses from the shear stresses of the homogeneous core. The equations are validated by finite element simulations and partially by tests. Three-point bending tests and additionally some Food Cart Roller Tests were conducted in order to test the panels in different angles.
Crashworthiness optimization design of honeycomb sandwich panel based on factor screening
Authors: Hou Shujuan , Ren Lili , Dong Duo , Han Xu
Published: May 2012

This paper presents a crashworthiness robust optimization design of aluminum honeycomb sandwich panel with regular hexagonal core cell based on explicit finite element analysis. First, the crashworthiness of honeycomb sandwich panel and the bare honeycomb core are compared with each other in the aspects of specific energy absorption and peak crushing force. The comparative results show that honeycomb sandwich panel can absorb more energy than the bare honeycomb core, though the peak crushing force of honeycomb sandwich panel is larger. Then the factor screening experiments are carried out to find out variables that have significant effects on the crashworthiness of honeycomb sandwich panel. The ultimate purpose of factor screening experiments is to decrease the computational expense by reducing the number of design variables. Finally, the dual response surface method and the crossed array design are employed to formulate the complex robust optimization design problem. The regression expressions of specific energy absorption and peak crushing force are defined as the objective and constraint function respectively in the robust design of crashworthiness optimization.
Materialist theology and anti-capitalist resistance, or, ‘What would Jesus buy?
Authors: Murtola Anna-Maria
Published: May 2012

Analysis of resistance in critical organization and management studies today tends to focus on expressions of micro resistance in the workplace. Meanwhile, much broader struggles are taking place on the global arena in response to the ongoing violence of neoliberal capitalism. Capitalism, which has always had a fraught relationship to religion, appears today in many ways as a religion in its own right. Furthermore, its ongoing expansion is explicitly secured through the support of particular theological ideas and proponents, primarily from American conservative Christianity. It should thus come as no surprise that anti-capitalist resistance today turns to theology for an effective counter-politics. This article draws on the materialist theology of Slavoj Žižek in order to analyse the resistance of anti-capitalist activist Reverend Billy. In doing so, it shows how theology is today mobilized in anti-capitalist resistance. If contemporary ideology operates on a logic of distancing, as Žižek claims, then an effective strategy of resistance may reside in the opposite, a logic of overidentification. The overidentification that we see in both Žižek’s own work and in the activism of Reverend Billy, however, takes the form of parodic overidentification, which embraces in an exaggerated form a part rather than the whole. The analysis points to the need in studies of resistance to recognize the broader social and ideational context in which resistance operates, and emphasizes in particular the importance of resistance to confront both the postmodern cynicism and the rising absolutism that are part and parcel of contemporary capitalism.
The market order as metaphysical loot: Theology and the contested legitimacy of consumer capitalism
Authors: Schwarzkopf Stefan
Published: May 2012

The mechanism through which the ideology of market capitalism emerged has mostly been interpreted as part of an incremental, inevitable, and thus legitimate ousting of theological concepts from a public sphere that became organized around the principles of the Enlightenment as a secular project. This article stresses the illegitimate aspects of this process, that is the expropriation and re-appropriation of theological devices and ideas for what was merely an alternative political-theological project. This project, namely the establishment of the priesthood of the individualized ‘common man’, allowed for the mobilization of individual choice as a principle of social organization. The same process was responsible for underpinning the often unjust and illiberal market order with the vision of the world as an ordered and benign kosmos that emerged spontaneously from chaos.
7 Tesla MRI demonstrates vascular pathology in Baló’s concentric sclerosis
Authors: Berghoff M , Schlamann MU , Maderwald S , Grams AE , Kaps M , Ladd ME , Gizewski ER
Published: May 2012

Baló’s concentric sclerosis (BCS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disease related to multiple sclerosis; its underlying pathology remains unclear. At 7 T MRI in a 19-year-old female BCS patient, microhaemorrhages and ectatic veins were found in T2 hyperintense regions, features which have not been previously reported in conjunction with BCS, and these findings may support the view that vascular pathology plays a role in BCS. MRS data suggest that neuron loss and lipid turnover still took place months after a remission. Plasma exchange was effective in treating a relapse with severe motor deficits, and the off-label use of natalizumab was successful in maintaining remission in this patient.
Non-lesional white matter changes in pediatric multiple sclerosis and monophasic demyelinating disorders
Authors: Tillema JM , Leach J , Pirko I
Published: May 2012

Objective:

To analyze diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) derived metrics between patients with childhood onset multiple sclerosis (MS), monophasic demyelinating illnesses, and healthy controls.

Background:

Monophasic demyelinating illnesses can be indistinguishable clinically and radiologically, utilizing standard MRI studies. DTI studies in adults implicate the involvement of normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) in MS.

Methods:

Subjects with DTI studies (15 directions, 1.5 Tesla (GE), 3x3x3 mm, interpolated to 1.5x1.5x3 mm) were retrospectively identified. We studied three groups: childhood onset MS ( n=18), monophasic illness (eight with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM), seven with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS)) and age-matched controls. DTI had been obtained within one month of symptom onset for patients with ADEM and within a median of 20 months for the MS group. DTI measures were determined using a semi-automated method from standardized regions of interest (ROI) containing central fibers of the corpus callosum genu and internal capsule.

Results:

The MS group had significantly lower fractional anisotropy (FA) values compared to controls ( p<0.001), with increased radial diffusivity (RD) and decreased axial diffusivity (AD). In the monophasic group FA was smaller than the controls ( p=0.01) with increased RD and no difference in AD.

Conclusions:

This retrospective analysis provides evidence that NAWM is affected in pediatric MS and monophasic demyelinating disease, with a potentially novel pattern demonstrating reduced AD in pediatric MS. Further larger scale confirmatory studies are needed to address whether the demonstrated DTI changes could be used as a biomarker in pediatric patients presenting with an initial demyelinating event.
A serial in vivo 7T magnetic resonance phase imaging study of white matter lesions in multiple sclerosis
Authors: Bian Wei , Harter Kristin , Hammond-Rosenbluth Kathryn E , Lupo Janine M , Xu Duan , Kelley Douglas AC , Vigneron Daniel B , Nelson Sarah J , Pelletier Daniel
Published: May 2012

Background:

Magnetic resonance (MR) phase imaging using high field MR scanners has demonstrated excellent contrast in multiple sclerosis (MS) lesions that is thought to be closely correlated to the local iron content. This pilot study acquired serial in vivo MR scans at 7T to track the evolution of phase contrast as MS lesions progress.

Methods:

Five MS patients with relapsing–remitting MS were serially scanned for about 2.5 years at 7T using a high resolution T2*-weighted gradient-echo sequence. Magnitude and phase images were reconstructed for each scan and co-registered to their baseline study.

Results:

Five non-enhancing ring and 70 nodular phase lesions were found in the five patients at baseline. None of the baseline phase lesions (including all five ring phase lesions) showed obvious qualitative variation on phase images during the study. Of note, we observed that three magnitude lesions, not initially read as abnormal signal, were either better appreciated using phase contrast imaging (two lesions) or preceded (one lesion) by phase changes.

Conclusion:

The observation that ring phase lesions remained unchanged over 2.5 years of follow-up challenges the notion that such lesions reveal the presence of acute activated iron-rich macrophages. It suggests that either different phenotypes of macrophages persist longer than previously expected or other mechanisms related to tissue injury contribute to the phase contrast.
Caffeine and alcohol intakes have no association with risk of multiple sclerosis
Authors: Massa J , O’Reilly EJ , Munger KL , Ascherio A
Published: May 2012

Background:

The association between alcohol and caffeine intakes and risk of multiple sclerosis (MS) is unclear; no prospective studies have examined this relationship.

Objective:

We examined intakes of alcohol and caffeine in relation to risk of multiple sclerosis.

Methods:

Intakes of alcohol and caffeine were examined in relation to the risk of MS in two large cohorts of women, the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS; 92,275 women followed from 1980 to 2004) and Nurses’ Health Study II (NHS II; 95,051 women followed from 1991 to 2005). Their diet was assessed at baseline and every four years thereafter. During the follow-up, 282 cases of MS were confirmed with onset of symptoms after baseline. Twenty-four cases were missing information on alcohol intake, leaving a total of 258 cases for the alcohol analyses.

Results:

Neither total alcohol consumption, nor consumption of beer, wine, or liquor was related to MS risk. The multivariable-adjusted pooled relative risk (RR) found by comparing categories of alcohol intake to 0 gm/day was 1.07 (95% CI: 0.32–1.99) for 0.1–4.9 gm/day, 1.01 (0.32–1.99) for 5.0–14.9 gm/day, 1.21 (0.69–2.15) for 15.0–29.9 gm/day, and 0.80 (0.32–1.99) for 30+ gm/day; ( p for trend=0.89). Caffeine intake was also not significantly associated with MS risk. The multivariable adjusted pooled RR comparing highest to lowest quintile of caffeine intake was 1.14; 95% CI: 0.79–1.66; p for trend=0.71. Consideration of caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee separately also yielded null results.

Conclusion:

These results do not support an association between alcohol and caffeine intakes and MS risk.
Dramatic lives and relevant becomings: Toward a Deleuze- and Guattari-inspired cartography of young women’s violent conflicts
Authors: Henriksen Ann-Karina , Miller Jody
Published: May 2012

The article explores how violence works to produce young women’s precarious positions in social milieus characterized by multiple marginalization. By paying attention to the micropolitics of violent engagements we argue that violent conflicts can be viewed as strategies for escaping positions of marginality into positions of relevance. The analysis builds on empirical data from Copenhagen, Denmark, gained through ethnographic fieldwork with the participation of 20 female informants aged 13–22. The theoretical contribution proposes viewing conflicts as multi-linear, multi-causal and non-chronological to account for the emotional tension and lived experience of violent conflicts. Finally we identify the need for further studies on how technosocial forms of communication play into violent conflicts among youth.
Overt subjects in early Basque and other null subject languages
Authors: Ezeizabarrena Maria-José
Published: May 2012

This study focuses on person marking in early Basque and other null subject languages. From very early on, person marking on the verb and quite regular, adult-like, null subject rates are attested across early acquisition studies on genetically related and unrelated pro-drop languages. We survey several studies on bilingual children simultaneously acquiring two languages with the opposite value for the pro-drop parameter. The conclusion drawn is that children display a monolingual-like pattern in the production of person marking, overt subjects, and personal pronouns in the null subject language, whereas, in the non-null subject language, bilinguals evidence delayed target person marking and overt subject production. These data are compatible with the view that children correctly set the default parametric value at early stages and separate the languages being acquired. However, it is argued that accounts based on the lexical learning of features in the functional category T(ense) may better account for the crosslinguistic data. Moreover, the accuracy observed in overt person inflection production leads to the proposal that (the spelling out of) the [person] or [D] feature in T(ense) is the first subject feature available to the language acquirer, previous to other candidates such as number or case.
Material selection using multi-criteria decision-making methods: a comparative study
Authors: Athawale Vijay Manikrao , Chakraborty Shankar
Published: May 2012

There is a vast array of materials with diverse mechanical, physical and chemical properties from which the design engineer has to choose the most suitable material satisfying different design requirements. The design engineer has to take into account also a large number of material selection criteria before arriving at the final decision, otherwise, there may be premature failure of the product during its operation. As the material selection decision for a specific product involves multiple conflicting criteria and a finite set of candidate alternatives, it is an example of multi-criteria decision-making problem. In this article, 10 most commonly used multi-criteria decision-making methods are considered and their relative performance are compared with respect to the rankings of the alternatives while selecting suitable materials for (a) a sailing boat mast, (b) a flywheel, and (c) a cryogenic storage tank. It is observed that for these three examples, all the 10 methods give almost the same rankings of the alternative materials, although VIKOR method has a relatively better performance than the others due to its computational simplicity. On the other hand, analytic hierarchy process has a comparatively poor performance which may be due to the decision maker’s involvement in making the pairwise comparisons between the criteria and alternatives introducing a chance of biasness and inconsistency in the decision-making process. It can be concluded that for a given material selection problem, more attention is to be paid on the proper selection of the relevant criteria and alternatives, not on choosing the most appropriate multi-criteria decision-making method to be adopted.
‘Open Marxism’ against and beyond the ‘Great Enclosure’? Reflections on how (not) to crack capitalism
Authors: Susen Simon
Published: May 2012

The main purpose of this article is to provide an in-depth discussion of John Holloway’s recent book, Crack Capitalism. To this end, the paper offers a detailed account of the key strengths and weaknesses of Holloway’s version of ‘open Marxism’. The analysis is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on six significant strengths of Crack Capitalism: (1) its insistence upon the importance of autonomous forms of agenda-setting for both individual and collective emancipation; (2) its emphasis on the ordinary constitution of social struggles; (3) its fine-grained interpretation of the socio-ontological conditions underlying human agency; (4) its processual conception of radical social transformation; (5) its recognition of the elastic, adaptable, and integrative power of capitalism; and (6) its proposal for an alternative critical theory, commonly known as ‘open Marxism’ or ‘autonomous Marxism’. The second part of the study examines the principal weaknesses of Crack Capitalism: (1) the counterproductive implications of the preponderance of negativity, owing to a one-sided concern with critique, cracks, and crises; (2) conceptual vagueness; (3) an overuse of poetic and metaphorical language; (4) the absence of a serious engagement with the question of normativity; (5) a lack of substantive evidence; (6) a residual economic reductionism; (7) a simplistic notion of gender; (8) the continuing presence of various problematic ‘isms’; (9) the misleading distinction between ‘doing’ and ‘labour’; (10) a reductive understanding of capitalism; (11) an unrealistic view of society; and (12) socio-ontological idealism.
Flirting with value critique: Remarks on John Holloway’s Crack Capitalism
Authors: Reitter Karl
Published: May 2012

While acknowledging John Holloway’s important contributions to a critical understanding of human liberation, this article questions the validity of his sharp distinction between ‘labour’ and ‘doing’, which lies at the heart of Crack Capitalism. In this book, ‘doing’ takes the form of labour’s Absolute Other. Marx, however, rightly insisted on the transcendental significance of labour. Undoubtedly, capitalist relations determine the labour process in many ways. Nevertheless, labour contains an emancipatory potential which is essential to both individual and collective forms of liberation. In giving up this insight, developed by Marx, Holloway risks losing the capacity to analyse social conflicts and contradictions arising from and within the labour process.
Variations on different themes: A response
Authors: Holloway John
Published: May 2012

The article responds to the criticisms made by the other contributions to the discussion of Crack Capitalism. It explores diverse themes such as freedom and mutual recognition, fascism, identitarian thought and intersectionality, the state, justice and dignity, value critique, the immediacy of communization, the antagonism inherent in everyday life, the meaning of science and the importance of Munchausen’s pigtail.
An Ear-Worn Sensor for the Detection of Gait Impairment After Abdominal Surgery
Authors: Atallah Louis , Aziz Omer , Gray Edward , Lo Benny , Yang Guang-Zhong
Published: May 2012

Surgery to the trunk often results in a change of gait, most pronounced during walking. This change is usually transient, often as a result of wound pain, and returns to normal as the patient recovers. Quantifying and monitoring gait impairment therefore represents a novel means of functional postoperative home recovery follow-up. Until now, this type of assessment could only be made in a gait lab, which is both expensive and labor intensive to administer on a large scale. The objective of this work is to validate the use of an ear-worn activity recognition (e-AR) sensor for quantification of gait impairment after abdominal wall and perianal surgery. The e-AR sensor was used on 2 comparative simulated data sets (N = 32) of truncal impairment to observe walking patterns. The sensor was also used to observe the walking patterns of preoperative and postoperative surgical patients who had undergone abdominal wall (n = 5) and perianal surgery (n = 5). Methods for multiresolution feature extraction, selection, and classification are investigated using the raw ear-sensor data. Results show that the method demonstrates a good separation between impaired and nonimpaired classes for both simulated and real patient data sets. This indicates that the e-AR sensor may be used as a tool for the pervasive assessment of postoperative gait impairment, as part of functional recovery monitoring, in patients at their own homes.
Effects of different shaped gold nanoparticles on the photoelectrode of dye-sensitized solar cells
Authors: Meen Teen-Hang , Lin Yu-Chien , Chao Shi-Mian , Tsai Jenn-Kai , Wu Tien-Chuan , Wu Kuen-Hsien , Chen Wen-Ray , Water Walter , Ji Liang-Wen , Huang Chien-Jung
Published: May 2012

In this study, we prepared different shapes of gold nanoparticles by the seed-mediated growth method to apply on the photoelectrode of dye-sensitized solar cells. Analyses of field emission scanning electron microscopy and ultraviolet–visible absorption spectra show that the average diameter of spherical gold nanoparticles is 66 nm and gold nanorods in aspect ratio is 2. The best conversion efficiencies of dye-sensitized solar cell with spherical gold nanoparticles and gold nanorods added in are 6.77 and 7.08%, and are higher than that without gold nanoparticles. These results indicate that the effect of gold nanoparticles on the photoelectrode can increase the conductivity and reduce the recombination of charges in the photoelectrode, resulting in the increase of conversion efficiency for dye-sensitized solar cells. Futhermore, gold nanorods have stronger surface plasmon resonance intensity than spherical gold nanoparticles at long wavelength. This may be the reason why conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells with gold nanorods is higher than that of spherical gold nanoparticles.
Doctors' voices in patients' narratives: coping with emotions in storytelling
Authors: Lucius-Hoene Gabriele , Thiele Ulrike , Breuning Martina , Haug Stephanie
Published: May 2012

Objectives: To understand doctors’ impacts on the emotional coping of patients, their stories about encounters with doctors are used. These accounts reflect meaning-making processes and biographically contextualized experiences. We investigate how patients characterize their doctors by voicing them in their stories, thus assigning them functions in their coping process.

Methods: 394 narrated scenes with reported speech of doctors were extracted from interviews with 26 patients with type 2 diabetes and 30 with chronic pain. Constructed speech acts were investigated by means of positioning and narrative analysis, and assigned into thematic categories by a bottom-up coding procedure.

Results: Patients use narratives as coping strategies when confronted with illness and their encounters with doctors by constructing them in a supportive and face-saving way. In correspondence with the variance of illness conditions, differing moral problems in dealing with doctors arise. Different evaluative stances towards the same events within interviews show that positionings are not fixed, but vary according to contexts and purposes.

Discussion: Our narrative approach deepens the standardized and predominantly cognitive statements of questionnaires in research on doctor–patient relations by individualized emotional and biographical aspects of patients’ perspective. Doctors should be trained to become aware of their impact in patients’ coping processes.
We are surprised; wasn’t Iran disgraced there? A functional analysis of hedges and boosters in televised Iranian and American presidential debates
Authors: Jalilifar Alireza , Alavi-Nia Maryam
Published: May 2012

By the slant of their aims, presidential candidates rely on their own rhetorical arsenal to win the acquiescence of the public. Hedges and boosters, two subcategories of metadiscourse markers, are among the rhetorical tropes which assist politicians to increase or decrease commitment, blur or sharpen the boundaries between good and evil, and bolster or emasculate solidarity. Despite the many functions hedges and boosters can play in political discourse, studies that address these devices in relation to their persuasive effect in televised presidential debates cross-linguistically are tremendously scant. To this aim, the current study examined the hedging and boosting strategies used by the winners of American and Iranian presidential elections during one of their latest televised debates. A bottom–up method of analysis was adopted to analyze the debates in terms of hedges and boosters, and a functional model in light of what surfaced in the analysis along with awareness of the existing literature (e.g. Fraser, 2010a; Holmes, 1984) was proposed. The study showed that not only were the frequencies significantly different, but the functions these devices fulfilled were also varied cross-linguistically as the winners of both groups (Obama and Ahmadinejad) demonstrated diverse tendencies towards using hedges and boosters.
The right measure of guilt: Moral reasoning, transgression and the social construction of moral meanings
Authors: Tileagă Cristian
Published: May 2012

Using a discursive and ethnomethodological analytic framework, this article explores the social construction of moral transgression and moral meanings in the context of coming to terms with the recent communist past in Eastern Europe. This article illustrates some significant aspects of everyday uses of morality and the socio-communicative organization of public judgements on moral transgression. The article considers the range of public reactions and commentaries to a public confession of having been an informer for the former Romanian secret police. Moral reasoning around transgression takes several forms: a) invoking everyday psychological categories and morally implicative descriptions associated with identities of persons and actions; b) drawing upon culturally available metaphors and images with roots in Judaeo-Christian ethics and morality; c) using the wider political context of coming to terms with the past as foundation and criterion for moral judgement. This article argues that rather than attempting to analyse moral (public) judgement in abstract, one must focus on the everyday constructions and uses of morality found in social interaction and social responses to moral transgression.
Cartoons can talk? Visual analysis of cartoons on the 2007/2008 post-election violence in Kenya: A visual argumentation approach
Authors: Wekesa Nyongesa Ben
Published: May 2012

The growing influence of the visual media in contemporary society is quite alarming; hence, learning to explicate them is inevitable. This is a paradigm shift from verbal argumentation to visual argumentation. The aim of this article is to contribute to the understanding of visual analysis and visual literacy, a part of discourse analysis. Visuals employ a number of rhetorical devices; however, understanding the effectiveness of these devices is still a challenge. Adopting Visual Argumentation Theory, the article analyzes argumentation in cartoons on the post-election violence that rocked Kenya in 2007/2008. From the analyses, it is concluded that visuals can argue as simply and forcefully as their verbal counterparts. The blending of caricature and portraiture makes them even more explicit as portraiture denotes the characters so that we can recognize who they are; caricature ridicules them, analogy attributes actions to them in a satirical or sarcastic way, and cultural memory is needed to access the reference to the analogies. Visuals are designed to make the reader think not only about the event or the people being portrayed but also about the message being communicated. This means visuals have the ability to stretch the truth beyond caricature or mere amusement.
Current and future medical treatment in primary dystonia
Authors: Delnooz Cathérine C.S. , van de Warrenburg Bart P.C.
Published: May 2012

Dystonia is a hyperkinetic movement disorder, characterized by involuntary and sustained contractions of opposing muscles causing twisting movements and abnormal postures. It is often a disabling disorder that has a significant impact on physical and psychosocial wellbeing. The medical therapeutic armamentarium used in practice is quite extensive, but for many of these interventions formal proof of efficacy is lacking. Exceptions are the use of botulinum toxin in patients with cervical dystonia, some forms of cranial dystonia (in particular, blepharospasm) and writer’s cramp; deep brain stimulation of the pallidum in generalized and segmental dystonia; and high-dose trihexyphenidyl in young patients with segmental and generalized dystonia. In order to move this field forward, we not only need better trials that examine the effect of current treatment interventions, but also a further understanding of the pathophysiology of dystonia as a first step to design and test new therapies that are targeted at the underlying biologic and neurophysiologic mechanisms.
FGF-2 expands murine hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells via proliferation of stromal cells, c-Kit activation, and CXCL12 down-regulation
Authors: Itkin Tomer , Ludin Aya , Gradus Ben , Gur-Cohen Shiri , Kalinkovich Alexander , Schajnovitz Amir , Ovadya Yossi , Kollet Orit , Canaani Jonathan , Shezen Elias , Coffin Douglas J. , Enikolopov Grigori N. , Berg Thorsten , Piacibello Wanda , Hornstein Eran , Lapidot Tsvee
Published: May 2012

Cytokine-induced expansion of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) is not fully understood. In the present study, we show that whereas steady-state hematopoiesis is normal in basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF-2)–knockout mice, parathyroid hormone stimulation and myeloablative treatments failed to induce normal HSPC proliferation and recovery. In vivo FGF-2 treatment expanded stromal cells, including perivascular Nestin+ supportive stromal cells, which may facilitate HSPC expansion by increasing SCF and reducing CXCL12 via mir-31 up-regulation. FGF-2 predominantly expanded a heterogeneous population of undifferentiated HSPCs, preserving and increasing durable short- and long-term repopulation potential. Mechanistically, these effects were mediated by c-Kit receptor activation, STAT5 phosphorylation, and reduction of reactive oxygen species levels. Mice harboring defective c-Kit signaling exhibited abrogated HSPC expansion in response to FGF-2 treatment, which was accompanied by elevated reactive oxygen species levels. The results of the present study reveal a novel mechanism underlying FGF-2–mediated in vivo expansion of both HSPCs and their supportive stromal cells, which may be used to improve stem cell engraftment after clinical transplantation.
CONS-COCOMAPS: a novel tool to measure and visualize the conservation of inter-residue contacts in multiple docking solutions
Authors: Vangone Anna , Oliva Romina , Cavallo Luigi
Published: May 2012

Background

The development of accurate protein-protein docking programs is making this kind of simulations an effective tool to predict the 3D structure and the surface of interaction between the molecular partners in macromolecular complexes. However, correctly scoring multiple docking solutions is still an open problem. As a consequence, the accurate and tedious screening of many docking models is usually required in the analysis step.

Methods

All the programs under CONS-COCOMAPS have been written in python, taking advantage of python libraries such as SciPy and Matplotlib. CONS-COCOMAPS is freely available as a web tool at the URL:

http://www.molnac.unisa.it/BioTools/conscocomaps/.

Results

Here we presented CONS-COCOMAPS, a novel tool to easily measure and visualize the consensus in multiple docking solutions. CONS-COCOMAPS uses the conservation of inter-residue contacts as an estimate of the similarity between different docking solutions. To visualize the conservation, CONS-COCOMAPS uses intermolecular contact maps.

Conclusions

The application of CONS-COCOMAPS to test-cases taken from recent CAPRI rounds has shown that it is very efficient in highlighting even a very weak consensus that often is biologically meaningful.
Characterization of the emergent properties of a synthetic quasi-cellular system
Authors: Lazzerini-Ospri Lorenzo , Stano Pasquale , Luisi PierLuigi , Marangoni Roberto
Published: May 2012

Background

The process of solutes entrapment during liposomes formation is interesting for the investigation of the relationship between the formation of compartments and the distribution of molecules inside them; a relevant issue in the studies of the origin of life. Theoretically, when no interactions are supposed among the chemical species to be entrapped, the entrapment is described by a standard Poisson process. But very recent experimental findings show that, for small liposomes (100 nm diameter), the distribution of entrapped molecules is best described by a power-law function. This is of a great importance, as the two random processes give rise to two completely different scenarios. Here we present an in silico stochastic simulation of the encapsulation of a cell-free molecular translation system (the PURE system), obtained following two different entrapment models: a pure Poisson process, and a power-law. The protein synthesis inside the liposomes has been studied in both cases, with the aim to highlight experimental observables that could be measured to assess which model gives a better representation of the real process.

Results

Firstly, a minimal model for in vitro protein synthesis, based on the PURE system molecular composition, has been formalized. Then, we have designed a reliable experimental simulation where stochastic factors affect the reaction course inside the compartment. To this end, 24 solutes, which represent the PURE system components, have been stochastically distributed among vesicles by following either a Poisson or a power-law distribution. The course of the protein synthesis within each vesicle has been consequently calculated, as a function of vesicle size. Our study can predict translation yield in a population of small liposomes down to the attoliter (10-18 L) range. Our results show that the efficiency of protein synthesis peaks at approximately 3·10-16 L (840 nm diam.) with a Poisson distribution of solutes, while a relative optimum is found at around 10-17 L (275 nm diam.) for the power-law statistics.

Conclusions

Our simulation clearly shows that the wet-lab measurement of an effective protein synthesis at smaller volumes than 10-17 L would rule out, according to our models, a Poisson distribution of solutes.