bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Some Estimates of Rough Bilinear Fractional Integral
Authors: Fan Yun , Gao Guilian
Published: November 2012

We study the boundedness of rough bilinear fractional integralBΩ,αon Morrey spacesLp,λ(ℝn)and modified Morrey spacesL~p,λ(ℝn)and obtain some sufficient and necessary conditions on the parameters. Furthermore, we consider the boundedness ofBΩ,αon generalized central Morrey spaceB˙p,φ(ℝn). These extend some known results.
Elbow Arthroscopy: Review of the Literature and Case Reports
Authors: Khanchandani Prakash
Published: November 2012

Elbow arthroscopy, though described first in 1930s, gained popularity only in the last 3 decades. There has been a steady expansion in the clinical applications of elbow arthroscopy owing to the significant improvements in instrumentation and arthroscopic skills. The procedure which was mainly used for diagnostic purpose, loose body removals, and synovial biopsy has now become an important tool for managing elbow arthritis, stiff elbow, and trauma. However, this procedure has a higher incidence of neurological complications and hence case selection and surgeon’s expertise are of utmost importance.
A Review of Radiotherapy for Merkel Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck
Authors: Lee Justin , Poon Ian , Balogh Judith , Tsao May , Barnes Elizabeth
Published: November 2012

Merkel cell carcinoma of the head and neck (MCCHN) presents a clinical challenge due to its aggressive natural history, unpredictable lymphatic drainage, and high degree of treatment related morbidity. Histological examination of the regional lymph nodes is very important in determining the optimal treatment and is usually achieved by sentinel lymph node biopsy. Radiotherapy plays a critical role in the treatment of most patients with MCCHN. Surgery with adjuvant radiotherapy to the primary tumour site is associated with high local control rates. If lymph nodes are clinically or microscopically positive, adjuvant radiotherapy is indicated to decrease the risk of regional recurrence. The majority of locoregional recurrences occur at the edge or just outside of the radiation field, reflecting both the inherent radiosensitivity of MCC and the importance of relatively large volumes to include “in-transit” dermal lymphatic pathways. When surgical excision of the primary or nodal disease is not feasible, primary radiotherapy alone should be considered as a potentially curative modality and confers good loco-regional control. Concurrent chemoradiotherapy is well tolerated and may further improve outcomes.
Lenalidomide in Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma
Authors: Thieblemont Catherine , Delfau-Larue Marie-Hélène , Coiffier Bertrand
Published: November 2012

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common form of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) in adults. Even if the natural history of DLBCL has been improved with the advent of immunochemotherapy, the survival results obtained with current treatment options clearly indicate that new agents or novel approaches are needed. Lenalidomide (Revlimid, Celgene Corporation, Summit, NJ, USA), an analogue of thalidomide, is an immunomodulatory drug with pleiotropic mechanisms of action potentially adding to immunochemotherapy. We present here the biological rational for the use of lenalidomide in DLBCL in light of recent advances in the pathophysiology of the disease and the therapeutic results of the most recent trials published in literature or reported in meetings in relapsed/refractory situations as well as in first-line treatment.
Inhibition of MMP-9 Activity following Hypoxic Ischemia in the Developing Brain Using a Highly Specific Inhibitor
Authors: Ranasinghe Himani S. , Scheepens Arjan , Sirimanne Ernest , Mitchell Murray D. , Williams Christopher E. , Fraser Mhoyra
Published: November 2012

Perinatal hypoxic ischemic (HI) brain injury is a leading cause of long-term neurological handicap in newborn babies. Recently, excessive activity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), and in particular MMP-9, has been implicated in the aetiology of HI injuries to the immature brain. Our previous study suggested that MMP-9 may be involved in the development of the delayed injury processes following HI injury to the developing brain. Given this, we therefore propose that MMP-9 may be a useful target for rescue therapies in the injured developing brain. To address this, we chose to use SB-3CT, a highly selective inhibitor that is known to target only MMP-2 and MMP-9, to attenuate the elevated MMP-9 activity seen following HI injury to the developing brain. Twenty-one-day-old postnatal Wistar rats were subjected to unilateral carotid artery occlusion followed by exposure to hypoxia (8% oxygen for 1 h). SB-3CT (50 mg/kg body weight in 25% dimethyl sulphoxide/75% polyethylene glycol) or an equal volume of vehicle or saline diluent was then administered intraperitoneally at 2, 5 and 14 h following the insult. Gelatin zymography revealed that pro-MMP-9 levels were significantly reduced at 6 h following hypoxic ischaemia (p ≤ 0.05). However, our results showed that despite significantly inhibiting brain pro-MMP-9 activity after hypoxic ischaemia, SB-3CT failed to confer significant neuroprotection in postnatal day 21 rats 3 days after an HI insult. Further investigations are warranted using a recently reported selective water-soluble version of SB-3CT or another MMP-9 selective inhibitor to resolve the role of MMP-9 in the aetiology of HI injury in the developing brain.
Longitudinal Study of Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators
Authors: Masoudi Frederick A. , Go Alan S. , Magid David J. , Cassidy-Bushrow Andrea E. , Doris Jonathan M. , Fiocchi Frances , Garcia-Montilla Romel , Glenn Karen A. , Goldberg Robert J. , Gupta Nigel , Gurwitz Jerry H. , Hammill Stephen C. , Hayes John J. , Jackson Nathaniel , Kadish Alan , Lauer Michael , Miller Aaron W. , Multerer Deborah , Peterson Pamela N. , Reifler Liza M. , Reynolds Kristi , Saczynski Jane S. , Schuger Claudio , Sharma Param P. , Smith David H. , Suits Mary , Sung Sue Hee , Varosy Paul D. , Vidaillet Humberto J. , Greenlee Robert T.
Published: November 2012

Background—

Implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) are increasingly used for primary prevention after randomized, controlled trials demonstrating that they reduce the risk of death in patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction. The extent to which the clinical characteristics and long-term outcomes of unselected, community-based patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction undergoing primary prevention ICD implantation in a real-world setting compare with those enrolled in the randomized, controlled trials is not well characterized. This study is being conducted to address these questions.

Methods and Results—

The study cohort includes consecutive patients undergoing primary prevention ICD placement between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2009 in 7 health plans. Baseline clinical characteristics were acquired from the National Cardiovascular Data Registry ICD Registry. Longitudinal data collection is underway, and will include hospitalization, mortality, and resource use from standardized health plan data archives. Data regarding ICD therapies will be obtained through chart abstraction and adjudicated by a panel of experts in device therapy. Compared with the populations of primary prevention ICD therapy randomized, controlled trials, the cohort (n=2621) is on average significantly older (by 2.5–6.5 years), more often female, more often from racial and ethnic minority groups, and has a higher burden of coexisting conditions. The cohort is similar, however, to a national population undergoing primary prevention ICD placement.

Conclusions—

Patients undergoing primary prevention ICD implantation in this study differ from those enrolled in the randomized, controlled trials that established the efficacy of ICDs. Understanding a broad range of health outcomes, including ICD therapies, will provide patients, clinicians, and policy makers with contemporary data to inform decision-making.
Home Blood Pressure Variability as Cardiovascular Risk Factor in the Population of Ohasama
Authors: Asayama Kei , Kikuya Masahiro , Schutte Rudolph , Thijs Lutgarde , Hosaka Miki , Satoh Michihiro , Hara Azusa , Obara Taku , Inoue Ryusuke , Metoki Hirohito , Hirose Takuo , Ohkubo Takayoshi , Staessen Jan A. , Imai Yutaka
Published: November 2012

Blood pressure variability based on office measurement predicts outcome in selected patients. We explored whether novel indices of blood pressure variability derived from the self-measured home blood pressure predicted outcome in a general population. We monitored mortality and stroke in 2421 Ohasama residents (Iwate Prefecture, Japan). At enrollment (1988–1995), participants (mean age, 58.6 years; 60.9% women; 27.1% treated) measured their blood pressure at home, using an oscillometric device. In multivariable-adjusted Cox models, we assessed the independent predictive value of the within-subject mean systolic blood pressure (SBP) and corresponding variability as estimated by variability independent of the mean, difference between maximum and minimum blood pressure, and average real variability. Over 12.0 years (median), 412 participants died, 139 of cardiovascular causes, and 223 had a stroke. In models including morning SBP, variability independent of the mean and average real variability (median, 26 readings) predicted total and cardiovascular mortality in all of the participants (
P
≤0.044); variability independent of the mean predicted cardiovascular mortality in treated (
P
=0.014) but not in untreated (
P
=0.23) participants; and morning maximum and minimum blood pressure did not predict any end point (
P
≥0.085). In models already including evening SBP, only variability independent of the mean predicted cardiovascular mortality in all and in untreated participants (
P
≤0.046). The
R
2
statistics, a measure for the incremental risk explained by adding blood pressure variability to models already including SBP and covariables, ranged from <0.01% to 0.88%. In a general population, new indices of blood pressure variability derived from home blood pressure did not incrementally predict outcome over and beyond mean SBP.
Does White Coat Hypertension Require Treatment Over Age 80?
Authors: Bulpitt Christopher J. , Beckett Nigel , Peters Ruth , Staessen Jan A. , Wang Ji-Guang , Comsa Marius , Fagard Robert H. , Dumitrascu Dan , Gergova Vesselka , Antikainen Riitta L. , Cheek Elizabeth , Rajkumar Chakravarthi
Published: November 2012

White coat hypertension is considered to be a benign condition that does not require antihypertensive treatment. Ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) was measured in 284 participants in the Hypertension in the Very Elderly Trial (HYVET), a double-blind randomized trial of indapamide sustained release 1.5 mg±perindopril 2 to 4 mg versus matching placebo in hypertensive subjects (systolic blood pressure 160–199 mm Hg) aged >80 years. ABP recordings (Diasys Integra II) were obtained in 112 participants at baseline and 186 after an average follow-up of 13 months. At baseline, clinic blood pressure (CBP) exceeded the morning ABP by 32/10 mm Hg. Fifty percent of participants fulfilled the established criteria for white coat hypertension. The highest ABP readings were in the morning (average 140/80 mm Hg), the average night-time pressure was low at 124/72 mm Hg, and the average 24-hour blood pressure was 133/77 mm Hg. During follow-up, the systolic/diastolic blood pressure placebo-active differences averaged 6/5 mm Hg for morning ABP, 8/5 mm Hg for 24-hour ABP, and 13/5 mm Hg for CBP. The lowering of blood pressure over 24 hours supports the reduction in blood pressure with indapamide sustained release±perindopril as the explanation for the reduction in total mortality and cardiovascular events observed in the main HYVET study. Because we estimate that 50% had white coat hypertension in the main study, this condition may benefit from treatment in the very elderly.
Bolivian Neocorynura (Hymenoptera: Halictidae): A new species and preliminary key to the fauna
Authors: Engel Michael S. , Smith-Pardo Allan H.
Published: November 2012

A new species of the diverse and complicated augochlorine bee genusNeocorynuraSchrottky (Augochlorini: Augochlorina) is described and figured.Neocorynura facetasp. n. is described and figured from the Andes of Bolivia and is most similar to the more northern Andean species,N. papallactensisEngel from Ecuador andN. iguaquensisSmith-Pardo & Gonzalez from Colombia, but can be distinguished on the basis of integumental sculpturing and coloration. A preliminary key to the species ofNeocorynuraknown to occur in Bolivia is provided.
EU Asylum Law and Human Rights Protection: Revisiting the Principle of Non-refoulement and the Prohibition of Torture and Other Forms of Ill-treatment
Authors: Mink Júlia
Published: November 2012

Abstract

The principal objective of the article is to examine the EU legal framework and international law parameters of legal harmonisation processes in a specific field of human rights protection: asylum legislation. In particular, it is to provide an in-depth analysis of the compatibility of EU asylum legislation with existing international norms in relation to the principle of non-refoulement and the prohibition of torture and other forms of ill-treatment. It also aims at exploring the correspondence and controversies of relevant legal principles and norms under international law. Similarly, it attempts to provide an analysis of the incomplete and inefficient implementation of these international norms and principles by EU asylum law as well.
Le cadi et le sauf-conduit (amān) : les enjeux juridiques de la diplomatie dans l'Orient abbasside
Authors: Tillier Mathieu
Published: November 2012

The employment of jurists or qādī-s for diplomatic missions, in the first centuries of Islam, is still little understood. The case of the qādī Ibrāhī;m b. al-Jarrāh, who took a part in the surrender of the Egyptian governor 'Ubayd Allāh b. al-Sarī b. al-Hakam in 211/826, sheds light on the diplomatic use of qādī-s. With their special knowledge of legal books and formulas, qādī-s were increasingly seen by rulers as important experts who could use law to constrain the power of political rivals.
Traditional Healers and Western Medicine: The Challenge of Addressing Malaysia’s Cancer Burden through Collaboration
Authors: Merriam Sharan B. , Muhamad Mazanah
Published: November 2012

Abstract

Developing countries share a disproportionate burden of late-stage cancer presentation and cancer-related deaths. This burden is often a function of an inadequately resourced healthcare system along with easier access to and preference for traditional healers. In Malaysia, traditional healers are so embedded in the culture that they are often the first and sometimes only source of cancer information and treatment. The purpose of this qualitative study was to assess the willingness and the means by which Malay traditional healers and Western cancer specialists might work collaboratively in addressing the country’s cancer burden. Interviews were conducted in urban and rural areas of Peninsular Malaysia with 14 Malay traditional healers known for treating cancer and with 12 cancer specialists. Findings from traditional healers suggest that there is a range of receptiveness for working with the Western medical system, with Islamic healers being the most receptive. Medical doctors readily acknowledged the presence of traditional healers and their personal willingness to cooperate; however, cooperation was conditional depending on the nature of the healer’s practice, the timing of the healer’s intervention, and the instituting of government oversight/regulation. Suggestions for fostering interaction and implications for healthcare policy are discussed.
Oracles, Myth, and Luke’s Nativity Story
Authors: Derrett J. Duncan M.
Published: November 2012

Abstract

Luke 1:31; 2:8-20, 46-49 are illuminated by the myth of Ion as dramatised by Euripides. Apollo begot Ion on Creusa, who married Xuthus, a supernumerary parent for Ion, providing him with a kingdom. The shepherds recall the “royal foundling” myth; the manger recalls reproaches of the Old Israel—at once signs of birth and burial.
Sustainable yield of the red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) through understanding its population structure and dynamics in Poyang Lake
Authors: Huang Yu , Wang Shu Jun , Dai Yin Gen , Fang Chun Lin , Xiao Ming He , Wang Jian Ming , Hu Cheng Yu
Published: November 2012

With increasing commercial demand for its delicacy, Procambarus clarkii has become an important fishery resource of Poyang Lake in recent years. However, habitat loss, overfishing, and the crayfish plague have diminished P. clarkii populations throughout their area of distribution. In consequence, this study systemically analyses the population structure and dynamics of P. clarkii in the wetland of Poyang Lake using the analytical methods of Bhattacharya and Von Bertalanffy. The main purpose was to collect biological data necessary for the management of this species. The present study showed that the population structure consisted of a maximum of 5.58 age classes for females and 3.25 for males, which indicated that P. clarkii is a relatively short-lived species. The Y′/R analysis showed that Epresent > E0.5, which exceeded the optimization (Eopt) criterion of 0.5 for sustainable exploitation of fisheries, so this species was overexploited in Poyang Lake. The Lc (mean length at first capture) equals 67.5 mm. The estimated mesh size for catching the red swamp crayfish is 13.5 cm. The virtual population analysis model (VPA) showed that the largest annual catch of P. clarkii is 3.43 × 104 t. The Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) is 1.18 × 104 t. The low natural mortality rate range of 0.68-1.11 year−1 suggested that it is ecologically worthwhile to allow the individuals of P. clarkii to grow to larger sizes in order to contribute to the biomass for biologically optimal exploitation. This could be facilitated by the adoption of measures involving a closed season, which would help to conserve the fishery.
Temporal variation in the shore amphipod community in the supralittoral zone of Bizerte Lagoon (northern Tunisia)
Authors: Jelassi R. , Nasri-Ammar K.
Published: November 2012

Seasonal variation in the structure of the amphipod community on the banks of Bizerte Lagoon was studied at Menzel Jmil (37°13′8″N 09°55′1″E) from July 2006 to June 2007. The distance between the actual sites of collection (sampling points) and the shoreline varied from 70 cm in September to 6.8 m in December. Specimens were mainly collected from under roots ofCymodocea nodosaandSuaeda maritima. In the laboratory, the specimens of Amphipoda (N = 10 645) were preserved in ethanol 70%, identified, sexed, and counted under a binocular microscope. Monthly counts varied between 553 (November) and 1240 individuals (April). Eight species of talitrids were identified, based on the specific characters of their gnathopods and pereiopods. Furthermore, the results show that the amphipod community of Bizerte Lagoon is primarily composed of 3 species,Orchestia mediterranea,Orchestia gammarellusandOrchestia montagui. The species last-mentioned represented the most frequent form in summer, whereas the other two,Orchestia mediterraneaandOrchestia gammarellus, dominated in autumn.Orchestia stephenseni,Platorchestia platensis,Talorchestia deshayesii,Talitrus saltator, andOrchestia cavimana, were also found.

A subsequent analysis of various diversity parameters of the amphipod community indicated a seasonal variation in abundance, species richness, and diversity.
Cultural Borders
Authors: Scott Charles E.
Published: November 2012

Abstract

This essay is motivated by the question, how might we describe the occurrences of cultural borders? It is organized in three sections with these titles: A. Borders of Concealment and Translation; B. Attunement with Fragmented, Differential Borders; C. Metaphors, Relations of Power, Borderlands. I limit these topics by focusing primarily on cultural borders and transformations within the United States. My aims within the context of these situated accounts are to encourage greater awareness of borders as events that often have shared and describable characteristics, to make evident a group of issues that need further philosophical attention, to develop an enlarged philosophical vocabulary for such thought in comparison to that in standard use, and to bring to the fore questions of cultural sensibility and their transformations. In this process I address and utilize specific works by Martin Heidegger, Jacques Derrida, Michel Foucault, and Gloria Anzaldúa.
Contextualising Organised Labour in Expansion and Crisis: The Case of the US
Authors: Moody Kim
Published: November 2012

Abstract

While, as Marx argued, periods of expanded accumulation present the best conditions for increasing working-class living standards, the expansion that began in 1982 was based in large part on the rapidfallin the value of labour-power in the US. This recovery and rapid rise in the rate of surplus-value in the US was enabled by the collapse of union-resistance beginning in 1979 and the strategic choices made by union-leaders across the economy from that time on. The expansion was sustained in the 1980s by dramatic work-reorganisation, enabled by the embrace of labour-management cooperation-schemes by much of the trade-union leadership, and the restructuring of several major industries that undermined the industry-wide bargaining on which rising postwar incomes had been based. Productivity, boosted by lean production-methods, would continue to outstrip real wages up until the ‘Great Recession’ of 2008 and resume again in the wake of a weak recovery in the US. The rapid geographic expansion of capital after 1990 provided new investment-possibilities, as did the explosion of financial instruments. What stands out, however, is that rising productivity, far from providing the basis for increases in working-class income, had become coupled with flat or declining real wages and a fall in the value of labour-power as the necessary condition to sustain almost any level of growth in the real economy. The link between productivity and wage-increases, central to Keynesian and institutional collective-bargaining theory, had been broken and Marx’s idea of the most favourable conditions stood on its head. The breaking of this link had, in the final analysis, been an outcome of class-struggle in which capital had the upper hand. All of this underlines the failed strategies and practices of most of the trade-union leadership in the US since 1979. New approaches to the workplace and broader forms of mobilisation will be needed. Signs of worker-resistance to the latest neoliberal clampdowns in Latin America, Europe, China, and even the US, however, may point to a renewed era of intensified class-struggle.
Imperialist Canada, Todd Gordon, Winnipeg: Arbeiter Ring Publishing, 2011
Authors: Heller Henry
Published: November 2012

Abstract

In the immediate postwar period, liberal internationalism was the hallmark of Canadian foreign policy. In part this position was intended to protect Canadian sovereignty from the too-close embrace of US Cold-War imperialism. But this multilateral and peacekeeping approach was partly a veneer meant to disguise the fact that Canada was of necessity a close American ally in the fight against communism. This strategy was abandoned by the Canadian state in the late 1990s in favour of a more militaristic and aggressive approach. The dependency-school of Canadian Marxist political economy that flourished from the 1970s argued that Canadian conformity with American foreign policy resulted from the fact that American economic dominance over Canada and lack of a strong national bourgeoisie made it a willing instrument of American foreign policy. Reflecting a challenge by a new school of Marxist political economy, Todd Gordon argues convincingly that Canada is an imperialist entity with its historic roots lying in the dispossession of the indigenous peoples. It is based on its strong national bourgeoisie which is flourishing under neoliberalism. But whether imperialist Canada is independent of the United States is more contestable.
Enacting their Business Environments: Asian Entrepreneurs in East Africa
Authors: KRISTIANSEN STEIN , RYEN ANNE
Published: November 2012

The main objective of this paper is to contribute to explaining the outstanding business success among the Asian diaspora in East Africa as compared to the native African population. Taking an actor's point of view, the business context is analysed against a theoretical background of alien entrepreneurship and a presentation of the history of Asians in the region. A main argument is that the alien entrepreneurs are in a better position to enact their business context in a manner favourable for success, based on ethnic resources such as kinship, education and pride, mobility and communication and social networking. The main policy recommendations include mechanisms to improve information flows and networking capabilities of indigenous business people.
On Links between the Ancient Nomads in the Southern Foothills of the Urals and Central Asia
Authors: Gutsalov Sergeï
Published: November 2012

Abstract

This article publishes interesting burials of ancient nomads dating from the end of the 3rd, 2nd or 1st centuries BC from the Dongulyuk II and Volodarka I tumuli necropoleis in the West of Kazakhstan. Materials from these funerary sites include some quite rare finds: phalerae, belt plates bearing depictions of confronting winged dragons, two-handled infantry swords used by warriors on foot and other objects relating to the life of nomads. The funerary rite – including such elements as burials in pits with ledges or in catacombs, the laying out of horses’ skulls on ledges, the arrangement of the deceased with their heads pointing to the north or south – indicates that the cultural links of the nomads from the southern foothills of the Urals at the end of the 1st millennium BC were orientated towards Central Asia. If it is borne in mind that many objects among the accompanying grave goods can also be associated with the eastern half of the Eurasian steppes, then it would seem highly likely that the nomads had originally come from northern China, moving west and migrating into eastern Europe including the southern Urals.
New Thamudic Inscriptions from Al-Jafr Region in the Southeast of Jordan
Authors: Al-Qudrah Hussein , Alzouʿbi Mahdi , Al-Maʿani Sultan
Published: November 2012

Abstract

This paper is an analytical study of ten new Thamudic inscriptions written in the so-called Thamudic E script, collected by the authors during a survey in the region of al-Jafr (southeast Jordan). The study aims at analyzing the inscriptions, meanings and structure of the words and the proper nouns contained therein. This group of inscriptions emphasizes some new personal names mentioned in Thamudic inscriptions.
What Might the Muslim Brotherhood Do with al-Azhar? Religious Authority in Egypt
Authors: Scott Rachel M.
Published: November 2012

Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party gained an electoral victory in the 2011-2012 Egyptian Parliamentary elections. It has often been argued that among the likely outcomes of Muslim Brotherhood control of the People's Assembly would be the establishment of a tyrannical theocratic regime akin to that of Iran. However, what an Islamic state means and what the application of sharī'a would entail in the context of the modern Egyptian state remains an open question, and calls for the enforcement of sharī'a are often unclear about the institutional framework that would regulate its interpretation. This article analyzes Muslim Brotherhood statements about the public role which the organization sees for the 'ulamā' of al-Azhar and their function in the legislative process. It also analyzes the statements of Azharite and other'ulamā' and Islamic intellectuals concerning the construction and defense of their religious authority. Contrary to the mentioned assumptions, the Muslim Brotherhood tends toward preserving existing institutions. This includes retaining al-Azhar as the representative body of religious authority, at the same time as keeping the Supreme Constitutional Court as final interpreter of the sharī'a provision of the Egyptian Constitution (in Article 2). On the other hand, there are also controversies within the Brotherhood about the role of the 'ulamā' of al-Azhar vis-à-vis the Supreme Constitutional Court, a question that also occupies the Azharites themselves. This article outlines the complex and varied positions on these issues both within the Muslim Brotherhood and among the 'ulamā' of al-Azhar.
Freedom and Dissidence in the Arabic Prison Novels of 'Abd al-Ramān Munīf
Authors: Elimelekh Geula
Published: November 2012

'Abd al-Rahmān Munīf 's novels East of the Mediterranean and Here and Now or East of the Mediterranean Revisited belong to the genre of prison literature, which describes the life and the suffering of prisoners. The suffering of the heroes in these novels, who are political prisoners, stems less from their physical torment than from the denial of freedom, which is a central theme in Munīf 's works. These protagonists' political activity is anchored in their desire to establish a state founded upon liberty, justice and honesty. They are authentic heroes, whose authenticity is manifest in their ceaseless struggle to preserve their identity and to become fully aware of the meaning of their existence as human beings, as well as in their willingness to take responsibility, to risk themselves and even to sacrifice their lives for their cause of attaining liberty, and in their complete dedication to this type of existence, which reflects an inner strength and a readiness to confront fate. The novels address the issue of freedom from both the existential perspective and the moral-political one. The dictatorial regime creates an absurd reality whereby the individual who struggles for freedom is sent to jail, where he experiences a yearning for both personal and collective freedom.
The Bektashi Institutions in Southeastern Europe: Alternative Muslim Official Structures and their Limits
Authors: Clayer Nathalie
Published: November 2012

There has always been a plurality of trends within Islam, to which Sufism also belonged. Within the Ottoman Empire, mystical groups remained among the uncentralized forms of Islam until the end of the 19 th century and the creation of an association of the dervish orders, which, however, provided only a very partial structure for them. In 20 th -century Balkans, the Bektashis, one of the major Sufi orders present in the region, secured an official and institutionalized structure in Albania from the beginning of the 1920s. After the collapse of the Communist regimes in Albania and Yugoslavia, which had put strong obstacles against the free development of religion (especially in Albania where it was banned in 1967), a Bektashi organization was reestablished in Tirana. The paper discusses the main normative features of this organization, called Komuniteti Bektashian. Kryegjyshata Botërore Bektashiane (“Bektashi Community. World Bektashi Grandfather”). Special reference is given to the changing power relations within the community caused by this novel structure (its members being often linked to other Albanian or foreign actors—Albanian politicians, Iranian Shi'i networks, Turkish Alevi networks, etc.). The article also examines the complex and disputed relationship of the Bektashi organization with the official Islamic religious institutions, its international, or rather pan-Albanian, dimension, and also its inner functioning which is not as centralized as it is supposed to be.
“Graia migrabit ab urbe:” A Textual and Literary Note on Petronius’ frg. 37 Ernout
Authors: Castelli Silvia
Published: November 2012

Abstract

According to the text of the Petronian fragment reported by Stern (GLAJJ 1,1976, no. 195) as frg. 37 Ernout, the Iudaeus unwilling to circumcise was forced to migrate “to the Greek cities” (“graias . . . ad urbes.”) Several proposals have been made to emend the text of v. 5, and more or less popular conjectures have been advanced from the 16th to the 20th century to emend the unclear received reading “graia . . . urbe.” This note defends the reading “graia” of codex Bellovacensis on textual grounds, and suggests that graia urbs, through a Virgilian allusion, might indicate the city of Rome.
‘Their Backs toward the Temple, and Their Faces toward the East:’ The Temple and Toilet Practices in Rabbinic Palestine and Babylonia
Authors: Neis Rachel
Published: November 2012

Abstract

This article treats the cultural meaning of rabbinic toilet rules from their Tannaitic instantiation through to later developments in Palestine and Mesopotamia. It argues that these rules draw their corporeal and mental bearings from the Jerusalem temple, in inverse and opposite directions to prayer deportment. It shows how the juxtaposition of the sacred (temple) and profane (toilet) triggered the temple in unlikely instances under the guise of prohibition. As such, toilet rules are the underside of a rabbinic mapping project, similar to rules of bodily orientation in prayer. This map, effectively drawn by corporeal direction and orientation, with the (absent) temple at its center, traversed Palestine and the Diaspora, and ignored contemporary religious and imperials maps and limes. Thus developing toilet practices can tell us something about how a minority religious and social formation shaped bodily functions not necessarily in the more predictable terms of disgust and expulsion but rather as devices through which to uphold a lost center.
,,Wir bitten euch, dieses Geld anzunehmen“ Jüdische Hilfe für die Salzburger und Berchtesgadener Emigranten 1732/33
Authors: Splitter Wolfgang
Published: November 2012

The expulsion of the Lutherans from the Catholic Archbishopric of Salzburg and adjacent Berchtesgaden is a prominent example of early modern confessional migration. Until now, however, the liberal support these emigrants enjoyed from Jewish individuals and entire Jewish communities on their way to Brandenburg-Prussia and other Protestant territories has not yet received any scholarly attention of note. Based on contemporary sources, this article analyzes all known cases of Jews aiding these expellees. While anti-Jewish sentiments widely persisted among German Lutherans, pietist theologians cultivated a mission-oriented philo-Judaism, interpreting the Jews' help for the emigrants as a harbinger of a lasting Jewish-Christian rapprochement. The Jews' support challenged classical anti-Jewish stereotypes by turning the traditional roles of Jews and Christians in pre-modern society upside down.
Differences in population dynamics of Bradybaena fruticum (O.F. Müller, 1774) (Gastropoda: Pulmonata: Bradybaenidae) in a submontane and lowland area of Poland
Authors: Proćków Małgorzata , Kuźnik-Kowalska Elżbieta , Lewandowska Małgorzata
Published: November 2012

Population dynamics of a meso-hygrophilous helicoid Bradybaena fruticum was studied in SW Poland at two localities with similar habitat but different climatic conditions. Unexpectedly, at the submontane site in Szczytna the growth appeared to be significantly faster than in the lowland site (Wrocław), where the weather conditions varied widely during the whole growing season. In Szczytna the average growth rate was 0.26 whorl/month; 0.36 whorl/month in the fast phase (juveniles from hatching till 5.0 whorls), and 0.07 whorl/month in the slow phase (snails with 5.1 whorls till lip formation). During the whole growing season, the average increment was 4.5 whorls, whereas the maximum was 5.45 whorls. In Wrocław the average growth rate was 0.05 whorl/month; 0.1 whorl/month in the fast phase, and only 0.01 whorl/month in the slow phase. The average growth of juveniles, estimated during two growing seasons, equalled 3.8 whorls; the maximum recorded value was 4.75 whorls. In the winter there was hardly any growth. In earlier studies it was found that at higher altitude the growth rate seems to decrease and therefore appears to be correlated with the thermal regime of the locality. In this study it was established that the weather patterns, like months with drought or occasional flooding, are likely to influence the population dynamics in the lowland population.
Toward an Understanding of State Behavior in Prolonged International Negotiations
Authors: Downie Christian
Published: November 2012

Abstract

Many of the most significant international treaty negotiations take years, and sometimes decades, to conclude. The international climate negotiations, trade negotiations, and law of the sea negotiations are all examples. Yet, notwithstanding their common occurrence and importance, prolonged international negotiations are not well understood. In these negotiations, state preferences are not fixed, but fluid, as negotiating positions change. This temporal dimension of prolonged negotiations is insufficiently captured by existing theories of international negotiations, which, by virtue of their focus on individual negotiation outcomes at one point in time, tend to be static in their analysis. This article combines an analysis of existing theories of international negotiations with the findings of an empirical study of the climate change negotiations. It reveals a series of internal and external factors distinct to prolonged international negotiations, emphasizes the importance of the temporal dimension, and explains how and why the negotiating positions and the type of agreements states are prepared to sign change over time. Building on these variables, state behavior in prolonged international negotiations can be usefully conceived of as (at different points in time) either an immature or mature game, in which strategic opportunities arise at different phases of the game for networked actors to constructively influence state behavior. Eight strategies are suggested that traditionally weak actors can employ to steer prolonged international negotiations toward their preferred outcome.
The Choice of Child Delivery Is a European Human Right
Authors: Eggermont M.
Published: November 2012

Abstract

In a judgment of 14 December 2010, in the case of Madam Ternovszky v. Hungary, the European Court of Human Rights has considered that a State should provide an adequate regulatory scheme concerning the right to choose in matters of child delivery (at home or in a hospital). In the context of homebirth, regarded as a matter of personal choice of the mother, this implies that the mother is entitled to a legal and institutional environment that enables her choice. This contribution stresses in which sense the regulatory schemes in the Member States Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, France and the UK concerning the choice of child delivery are in accordance with Article 8 ECHR, the right to respect for the private life. Do the Member States provide the legal certainty to a mother that the midwife can legally assist a homebirth? Or are restrictions made in interests of public health?
Twelve Years of Poverty in Denmark – A Human Rights Perspective
Authors: Elisabeth Koch Ida
Published: November 2012

The article concerns the situation of refugees and immigrants from countries outside the European Union /European Economic Area with regard to social cash benefits in Denmark. At present these immigrants are treated different than inhabitants of Danish origin since their social cash benefits are reduced to a considerable extent. The conditions of these immigrants are discussed from an international human rights perspective and the article applies two approaches: a poverty threshold approach and a non-discrimination approach. The author concludes that the reduced social cash benefits are in violation of Denmark’s human rights obligation under socio-economic as well as civil-political treaties. In this way the article confirms that human rights are indivisible, interrelated and interdependent. The circumstances in Denmark during the last 12–14 years with regard to immigrants’ rights to social cash benefits has made it natural and even necessary to consider the situation from a legal as well as a political perspective. Thus it seems that the problems in Denmark for immigrants with regard to social cash benefits will be solved by politicians in Parliament in a foreseeable future whereas the human rights machinery because of its sluggishness has only to a limited extent been able to demonstrate its effectiveness.
Transforming the Moldovan Prosecution Service: Can the Eyes of the State Become the Voice of the People?
Authors: Pearson John
Published: November 2012

The Republic of Moldova yearns for the embrace of the European Union. But before this can happen, Moldova must first transform its legal institutions to approximate European standards. This article focuses on one of Moldova’s most powerful legal institutions, the Office of the Prosecutor General. It asks whether this office can be transformed from a militarized relic of the Soviet past to a modern prosecution service. Many daunting challenges will have to be overcome, including the spectre of political interference; an overly broad mandate; deep seated public mistrust; the corruption entrenched in Moldova’s legal institutions; and the absence of cross-sector justice reform initiatives.
Urban Youth’s Views of Children’s Nurturance and Self-determination Rights: An Exploratory Study
Authors: Elisha Isabelle M. , Ruck Martin D.
Published: November 2012

The present qualitative study examined low-income urban adolescents’ understanding of children’s rights. Using a written instrument, sixteen 11–15 year olds responded to hypothetical vignettes in which a child story character expresses the desire to exercise a nurturance or self-determination right. Participants were asked whether they, their parents, and their peers would support the story characters’ rights and to provide justifications for their responses. Results indicated that in general participants were in favour of supporting children’s nurtur­ance and self-determination rights. However, participants believed that while their parents would support children’s nurturance rights they would show less support for children’s self-determination rights. In contrast, participants suggested that their peers would likely reject children’s nurturance rights but support the story-character’s self-determination rights. The types of explanations young people used to explain their thinking showed clear differences for nurturance and self-determination rights. Findings are discussed in relation to the available theory and research on young people’s views and understanding of children’s rights.
The Challenge of a Theologically Fruitful Method for Studying African Christian Ethics: The Role of the Human Sciences
Authors: Appiah Simon Kofi
Published: November 2012

Abstract

There are attempts from different theological circles to keep the debate on inculturation ethics alive. Such attempts seek to contribute towards the development of inculturation ethics as an important area of study and its acceptance as a valuable source of Christian moral sensibility and practice. This essay joins the discourse by focusing on the methodological challenges involved in the study of inculturation ethics and proposes that a ‘critical appropriation’ of knowledge from the social sciences could yield a fruitful theological method for the study of African Christian ethics. Inculturation itself presupposes certain social scientific questions which cannot be ignored. The essay therefore suggests that the challenges and suspicions associated with attempts to adapt knowledge from the social sciences for the study of philosophical and theological questions dwindle in the face of the theological fruitful method that such an approach can generate.
ABOUT THE FLORENTINE STROZZI MANUSCRIPTS
Authors: MINIATI MARA
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title The Archivio di Stato of Florence preserves an incredible amount of manuscripts. The Strozzi series constitute a large group which includes correspondences and private and public documents from the Middle Ages to the 19th century. Trying to find additional information on the mathematical instruments from the Strozzi family collections sold in 1911 in Amsterdam, this paper introduces this enormous archive, its history and that of this very important Florentine family.
L'OMOLOGIA RIVISITATA
Authors: MINELLI ALESSANDRO
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title Many different and even contrasting notions of homology have been proposed over two centuries of comparative biology, beginning with the initial reference to idealised archetypes, down to the current concepts based on derivation from a common ancestor, or on shared developmental pathways or genetic (more extensively, informational) background. Select anatomical features such as the patterns of innervation, or the expression patterns of genes putatively involved in key developmental events, e.g. the Hox genes, have been repeatedly suggested as the most reliable cues to homology. This confidence, however, rests on shaky ground and results are never certain. Recent work in comparative morphology and evolutionary developmental biology increasingly suggests the need to abandon the traditional all-or-nothing notion of homology, in favour of a more flexible, factorial or combinatorial approach. In this way it will be possible to accommodate within one broad comparative view, respectful of phylogeny and developmental biology alike, many disparate notions such as positional and special homology, serial homology and temporal serial homology. All statements of homology, however, will thus require adequate qualification of the context specifically taken in consideration and the criteria used to address the comparison. It remains to be seen, in the near future, how far the old concept of homology, now under the burden of so many and so different notions, will still be of use to comparative biology.
SCIENCES AT WAR AND THE CYBERNETIC DREAM*
Authors: POGLIANO CLAUDIO
Published: November 2012

title RIASSUNTO /title Si analizzano qui storicamente retroterra, contesto e conseguenze dell'articolo sui meccanismi teleologici e la causalit circolare pubblicato nel 1943 da Rosenblueth, Wiener e Bigelow. La prima parte mostra come lo 'spirito marziale' del XX secolo - dalla Prima guerra mondiale alla Guerra fredda - abbia permeato sviluppi e contenuti di molti studi sul controllo del comportamento. L'articolo del 1943 acquista particolare rilievo nella storia della scienza grazie al ruolo giocato dalla Macy Foundation, che finanzi per sette anni (1946-1953) una celebre serie di conferenze. Delle quali la seconda parte esamina finalit ideali ed effettive realizzazioni, retorica e stile di lavoro. Si offrono inoltre alcuni esempi delle opinioni divergenti e dei conflitti che accompagnarono la lunga recita del gruppo di scienziati fondatori della cibernetica.
LA BIBLIOTECA DI PIETRO OMODEO
Authors: CASATI STEFANO
Published: November 2012

title SUMMARY /title The library of the Institute and Museum of the History of Science has recently acquired the library of Pietro Omodeo, an important collection composed of approximately three thousand works, largely devoted to the natural sciences. The collection enriches the library's book holding, traditionally oriented towards the disciplines of experimental physics.
COMMENT A-T-ON PU TRE NO-LAMARCKIEN EN FRANCE (1843-1930)?
Authors: CONRY YVETTE
Published: November 2012

title RIASSUNTO /title Vengono qui studiate le diverse fasi e condizioni di possibilit del neolamarckismo in Francia nel periodo che va dal 1843 (data di pubblicazione dell'Essai de physiologie gnrale di Jules Gurin) al 1930 (data di pubblicazione di The genetical theory of natural selection di Ronald Fisher) e la filosofia generale che ispir le sue varie forme. Queste vengono caratterizzate come tentativi di convertire una storia della natura in una scienza unitaria della natura basata su una concezione meccanica dell'universo e su una fisiologia generale dell'adattamento. Tale scienza era unitaria quanto agli scopi ed alla visione globale della natura, ma non nei diversi modi in cui si tent di realizzarla. Per analizzare questo rapporto fra istanze comuni e procedure particolari l'attenzione si concentrata su un confronto fra l'opera di Edmond Perrier e quella di Alfred Giard.