bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mechanisms of Poleward Propagating, Intraseasonal Convective Anomalies in Cloud System–Resolving Models
Authors: Boos William R. , Kuang Zhiming
Published: November 2010

An envelope of convection that propagates both poleward and eastward accounts for the largest fraction of intraseasonal variance of the tropical atmosphere during boreal summer. Here the mechanisms of poleward propagating convective anomalies are examined in a nonhydrostatic model with zonally symmetric boundary conditions, integrated on a beta plane at resolutions high enough to explicitly represent moist convection. When the domain has a narrow zonal dimension of 100 km or less, the model produces a quasisteady intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ). Meridionally propagating transients are produced for some prescribed sea surface temperature distributions, but these transients are shallow, vanish at finer resolutions, and have a structure that bears little resemblance to that of observed poleward propagating anomalies. This is in sharp contrast to previous studies that obtained robust poleward propagating anomalies in axisymmetric models using parameterized moist convection, and it suggests that the anomalies seen in those models may be caused by deficient representations of dynamics or subgrid-scale physics.

Robust poleward propagating anomalies are obtained when the high-resolution, nonhydrostatic model is integrated in a wider domain with a zonal dimension near 1000 km. Diagnostics suggest that poleward propagation in this wide domain results from the convectively coupled beta drift of low-level vorticity anomalies. Deep near-equatorial ascent produces low-level cyclones that migrate poleward through the process of beta drift; Ekman pumping in these drifting cyclones then humidifies the free troposphere ahead of the initial deep ascent, shifting the convection poleward. The moist static energy budget and model sensitivity tests suggest that these anomalies can be viewed as moisture modes destabilized through a moisture–radiation feedback. Wind–evaporation feedback also seems to contribute to the instability of these anomalies, but because it enhances surface fluxes on the equatorward side of the anomalies, it also reduces their propagation speed. These results suggest a novel mechanism for the poleward propagation of intraseasonal convective anomalies and illustrate the need to evaluate theoretical models that use parameterized convection against cloud system–resolving models.
Understanding Contradictory Data in Contraction Stress Tests
Authors: Meira J.B.C. , Braga R.R. , Ballester R.Y. , Tanaka C.B. , Versluis A.
Published: November 2010

The literature shows contradictory results regarding the role of composite shrinkage and elastic modulus as determinants of polymerization stress. The present study aimed at a better understanding of the test mechanics that could explain such divergences among studies. The hypothesis was that the effects of composite shrinkage and elastic modulus on stress depend upon the compliance of the testing system. A commonly used test apparatus was simulated by finite element analysis, with different compliance levels defined by the bonding substrate (steel, glass, composite, or acrylic). Composites with moduli between 1 and 12 GPa and shrinkage values between 0.5% and 6% were modeled. Shrinkage was simulated by thermal analogy. The hypothesis was confirmed. When shrinkage and modulus increased simultaneously, stress increased regardless of the substrate. However, if shrinkage and modulus were inversely related, their magnitudes and interaction with rod material determined the stress response.
Flexicurity from the Individual’s Work-Life Balance Perspective: Coping with the Flaws in European Child- and Eldercare Provision
Authors: Larsen Trine P.
Published: November 2010

Based on a comparative analysis of work and care situations of employees with caring responsibilities in Finland, Portugal and the UK, this article argues that workers with eldercare responsibilities seem more likely to face difficulties than working parents, although many working parents also struggle to combine work and childrearing. The constraints such employees face in their daily lives due to caring responsibilities have significant implications for their flexibility and employability in the labour market — mainly because of inadequate care services and inflexible employers. However, such work—life balance constraints are rarely examined in most flexicurity studies and their effects on other forms of flexibility and security are therefore often overlooked. This article calls for a more nuanced concept of flexicurity, which takes the individual’s work—life balance perspective into consideration.
Institutional Change, Continuity and Decoupling in the Indonesian Industrial Relations System
Authors: Rupidara Neil Semuel , McGraw Peter
Published: November 2010

This article analyzes long run change and continuity within the Indonesian industrial relations (IR) system. Although focused more on labour reform in the post-Soeharto era, the analysis also extends the time line backwards to review key aspects of the Old and New Order periods so as to provide perspective for more recent developments. The article employs institutional theory in the analysis and highlights the roles of different actors during different periods of change. Data was collected through narrative interviews with relevant IR actors and taken from a range of secondary sources. While acknowledging profound changes in the logics and structures of Indonesian IR, the analysis also reveals evidence of institutional continuity across time. The article concludes that recent reforms have produced several negative outcomes for both workers and the labour movement, and have focused more on overt structural elements but less on cultural-cognitive and normative elements that determine behaviour within the new structures.
Searching for Security: Case Studies of the Impact of Work Restructuring on Households in South Korea, South Africa and Australia
Authors: Lambert Rob , Webster Edward
Published: November 2010

The reconfiguration of the employment relationship — through the growing intensification, informalization and casualization of work, downsizing and retrenchments — impacts directly on workers’ households and the communities within which they are embedded. To understand these responses, we need to rethink the way we study the changing employment relationship. Employment relations should not only analyse the workplace: we need to research workers in the totality of their lives. To comprehend these processes we surveyed and interviewed workers in the workplace and in their households and communities. Through following workers into their homes and communities in South Africa, Australia and South Korea, the differential impact of the global restructuring of one industry, the white goods industry, on the non-working life of working people emerged. Two types of responses were identified: on the one hand, a retreat from, or an adaptation to, rapid market liberalization; on the other, mobilization to challenge the market. All three research sites evidenced innovative attempts at the local level to search for security. However, these responses lacked an overall vision of alternative possibilities to the realities of the free market paradigm of globalization.
Is Inequality Good for Innovation?
Authors: Tselios Vassilis
Published: November 2010

Is inequality good for innovation? This article addresses this question, using aggregated microeconomic data for 102 regions over the period 1995—2000 from the European Community Household Panel (ECHP) data set, complemented with Eurostat’s Regio data. Static and dynamic panel data specifications and Granger causality tests for panel data are used to assess the relationship between patents, included as a proxy for innovation and income inequality. The results indicate that, given existing levels of income inequality in European Union (EU), an increase in a region’s inequality favors innovation. In addition, geographic space is a key factor in explaining the heterogeneous association between innovation and inequality, and innovation is characterized by circular, cumulative, and intraregional spillover effects. The above findings are robust to changes in the definition of income distribution and across inequality measurements.
A Baseline Input—Output Model with Environmental Accounts (IOEA) Applied to E-Waste Recycling
Authors: Choi Taelim , Jackson Randall W. , Green Leigh Nancey , Jensen Christa D.
Published: November 2010

This article reports the authors’ efforts to construct a baseline input—output (IO) model with environmental accounts for use in modeling geographically specific e-waste recycling systems. The authors address conceptual and practical issues that arise when recyclable end-of-life (EOL) commodities and related activities are incorporated into the traditional IO model including: (1) shortcomings of existing industry and commodity accounts that do not explicitly represent recycling activities and recyclable EOL products; (2) accounting challenges related to flows of EOL products observed mainly in physical volumes; and (3) valuing EOL products whose transactions prices vary widely. These three issues complicate the incorporation of EOL commodities within the conventional IO framework. The authors present a way to record the transactions of EOL products in both physical and monetary terms in an IO model with environmental accounts. Specifically, the authors present the case of e-waste recycling for the Atlanta metropolitan area (AMA) with an empirically based hypothetical scenario.
British and Indian Scientists Moving to the United States
Authors: Harvey William S.
Published: November 2010

This article analyses why British and Indian scientists working in Boston’s pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector moved to the United States. Based on more than 200 structured interviews, the author examines two aspects of their migration. First, whether both groups differed in their reasons for migration and, second, how important economic and social network factors were in influencing their migration. He shows that there were distinct differences between both groups. British scientists were driven mainly by professional opportunities, whereas Indian scientists were mainly driven by educational opportunities. Both groups used social contacts to varying degrees when making the final decision to move to the United States.
Memory, space and time: Researching children’s lives
Authors: Moss Dorothy
Published: November 2010

This article discusses the research approach in ‘Pathways through Childhood’, a small qualitative study drawing on memories of childhood. The research explores how wider social arrangements and social change influence children’s everyday lives.The article discusses the way that the concepts of social memory, space and time have been drawn on to access and analyse children’s experiences, arguing that attention to the temporal and spatial complexity of childhood reveals less visible yet formative influences and connections. Children’s everyday engagements involve connections between past and present time, between children, families, communities and nations, and between different places. Children carve out space and time for themselves from these complex relations.
The care of corporal punishment: Conceptions of early childhood discipline strategies among parents and grandparents in a poor and urban area in Tanzania
Authors: Frankenberg Sofia Johnson , Holmqvist Rolf , Rubenson Birgitta
Published: November 2010

This study investigates conceptions of early childhood discipline strategies discussed in focus groups with parents and grandparents in a poor urban area in Tanzania. A grounded theory analysis suggested a model that included four discipline strategies related to corporal punishment: to beat with care, to treat like an egg, as if beating a snake and the non-care of non-beating. In order to develop strategies to prevent corporal punishment in the home in accordance with the UN recommendation and article 19 in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the power of caregiving needs further investigation.
Competition or integration? The next step in childhood studies?
Authors: James Adrian L.
Published: November 2010

This article argues that childhood studies has reached a crossroads in its development because of the growing diversity of the interests and agendas that are now being pursued under the interdisciplinary umbrella of childhood studies. As a consequence, fault-lines are beginning to emerge in what was once a unified project, reflecting tensions between key areas and theoretical positions. It goes on to outline a model for reconceptualizing childhood studies that weaves these different positions together, making them necessary and interdependent components of the same field rather than competing and potentially exclusionary perspectives.
Toying with the world: Children, virtual pets and the value of mobility
Authors: Ruckenstein Minna
Published: November 2010

This article approaches childhood as an emergent condition in which children, their caregivers and toys all take an active part and argues that the focus on toys opens important insights for studying processes of social reproduction and change. This is demonstrated by describing children’s interactions with virtual pets that encourage children to become mobile in a manner that is only possible through digital technologies. This mobility is at heart of local orientations of how to be part of the world, but by subscribing to it children are not simply mimicking the adult world: when children make the pursuit of mobility their own project, they also make it distinctively theirs.
An Exploratory Study of the Utilisation of the UK’s Prudential Borrowing Framework
Authors: Bailey Stephen J. , Asenova Darinka , Hood John , Manochin Melina Maria
Published: November 2010

This article considers the utilisation of the UK’s Prudential Borrowing Framework (PBF) and the associated Prudential Code for local government capital finance. It finds that the increased flexibility and local freedom are at the cost of less financial certainty in terms of the risks borne by local authorities and local tax payers. The PBF seems to encourage a less formal approach to risk, being considered inevitable and handled if and when adverse risk outcomes occur. Consequently capital projects may lack affordability, sustainability and prudence. The Prudential Indicators required by the Code are not easily understood by non-specialists and their calculation cannot be used to replace sound judgement or to identify the best financing option.
The Evaluation of Partnership Working in the Delivery of Health and Social Care
Authors: Ball Rob , Forbes Tom , Parris Maxine , Forsyth Lynn
Published: November 2010

Recent Government policy in the UK has resulted in a rapid growth of partnership working. This has lead to a need for the evaluation of partnership performance, particularly in the area of health and social care partnerships. Methodologies were developed to evaluate progress on both ‘process’ and ‘outcome’ aspects of partnership working and this was applied to evaluating the performance of three Community Health Partnerships in Central Scotland. Results obtained demonstrate that the methodology is capable of discriminating between the performance of different partnerships and also between different aspects of partnership working.
Liberating sex, knowing desire: scientia sexualis and epistemic turning points in the history of sexuality
Authors: Chiang Howard H.
Published: November 2010

This study considers the role of epistemic turning points in the historiography of sexuality. Disentangling the historical complexity of scientia sexualis, I argue that the late 19th century and the mid-20th century constitute two critical epistemic junctures in the genealogy of sexual liberation, as the notion of free love slowly gave way to the idea of sexual freedom in modern western society. I also explore the value of the Foucauldian approach for the study of the history of sexuality in non-western contexts. Drawing on examples from Republican China (1912—49), I propose that the Foucauldian insight concerning the emergence of a ‘homosexual identity’ in the West can serve as a useful guide for thinking about similar issues in the history of sexuality and the historical epistemology of sexology in modern East Asia.
The interACT model: Considering rape prevention from a performance activism and social justice perspective
Authors: Rich Marc D
Published: November 2010

Although a number of rape prevention programs exist, the interACT Troupe is distinguished by their commitment to social justice pedagogy and proactive performance. Influenced by critical pedagogy and Theatre of the Oppressed, interACT uses embodied techniques aligned with feminist pedagogies to raise awareness, promote empathic responses, challenge (hyper)masculinity and encourage bystander interventions.
The performativity of “media logic” in the mass mediation of science
Authors: Plesner Ursula
Published: November 2010

Studies of the use of research-based expertise in the mass media often demonstrate how experts are used to confirm journalists’ angles on particular stories or how research-based knowledge claims are twisted. Both among practitioners and science communication scholars, such practices are often explained with reference to a pervasive “media logic.” “Media logic” is constructed as governing choices and interactions of researchers and journalists. This article critically examines the extensive use of the term “media logic” to explain choices, changes or content in media production, and presents Actor-Network-Theory as an approach that invites us to ask what takes place in practice without resorting to such generalizing explanatory devices. The article argues that a quick jump to “media logic” as an explanation may imply that we forget its contingency and ignore what actually takes place in journalists’ and researchers’ negotiations about texts and facts in the mass mediation of science.
Conflicting stories about public scientific controversies: Effects of news convergence and divergence on scientists’ credibility
Authors: Jensen Jakob D. , Hurley Ryan J.
Published: November 2010

Surveys suggest that approximately one third of news consumers have encountered conflicting reports of the same information. News coverage of science is especially prone to conflict, but how news consumers perceive this situation is currently unknown. College students ( N = 242) participated in a lab experiment where they were exposed to news coverage about one of two scientific controversies in the United States: dioxin in sewage sludge or the reintroduction of gray wolves to populated areas. Participants received (a) one news article (control), (b) two news articles that were consistent (convergent), or (c) two news articles that conflicted (divergent). The effects of divergence induced uncertainty differed by news story. Greater uncertainty was associated with increased scientists’ credibility ratings for those reading dioxin regulation articles and decreased scientists’ credibility ratings for those reading wolf reintroduction articles. Unlike other manifestations of uncertainty in scientific discourse, conflicting stories seem to generate effects that vary significantly by topic. Consistent with uncertainty management theory, uncertainty is embraced or rejected by situation.
Nurse-focused ethical solutions to problems in organ transplantation
Authors: Ertin Hakan , Harmanci Arzu Kader , Mahmutoglu Fatih Selami , Basagaoglu Ibrahim
Published: November 2010

Technological developments in recent years have brought about a rapid increase in the number and variety of organ transplants, leading to problems in finding enough organs to meet the need. Organ transplantation has also become a particularly significant issue in medical ethics, especially regarding the question of how and from whom organs are procured. Many methods have been tried in order to solve these problems and discussed from an ethical perspective. This study investigates the Spanish, Belgian and Iranian approaches to solving the organ procurement problem. The Spanish model, which is based on persuading patients and their relatives, is ethically less problematic and is also an improved version of the model applied in Turkey. This study argues that an ideal solution can be found without disregarding ethical rules. In particular, nurses can contribute by helping to run the system more efficiently. The principal aim of this article is to demonstrate the contribution of nurses to solving the current organ procurement problem in Turkey and offer some reflections on what can be done to improve the efficiency of the system.
The ethical community consultation model as preparation for nursing research: A case study
Authors: Freysteinson Wyona M
Published: November 2010

This article describes a case study in which community consultation was used to assist in the preparation of a research project on viewing self in the mirror after mastectomy. Breast cancer survivors, nurses, and other health care professionals were consulted using a variety of interactive modalities. Over a period of three months, pre-research planning information was obtained from participants. A descriptive qualitative design was used to analyze the data. The ethical goals of community consultation provided the framework for dialogue and the synthesis of information. During this project, the potential benefits of the proposed research study were explored. Possible risks to future participants were discussed, and recommendations for participant protection suggested. Community members provided insight into the legitimacy of the study. Community consultation is a tool that researchers may consider when designing studies.
Ethical concerns of nursing reviewers: An international survey
Authors: Broome Marion , Dougherty Molly C , Freda Margaret C , Kearney Margaret H , Baggs Judith G
Published: November 2010

Editors of scientific literature rely heavily on peer reviewers to evaluate the integrity of research conduct and validity of findings in manuscript submissions. The purpose of this study was to describe the ethical concerns of reviewers of nursing journals. This descriptive cross-sectional study was an anonymous online survey. The findings reported here were part of a larger investigation of experiences of reviewers. Fifty-two editors of nursing journals (six outside the USA) agreed to invite their review panels to participate. A 69-item forced-choice and open-ended survey developed by the authors based on the literature was pilot tested with 18 reviewers before being entered into SurveyMonkeyTM. A total of 1675 reviewers responded with useable surveys. Six questions elicited responses about ethical issues, such as conflict of interest, protection of human research participants, plagiarism, duplicate publication, misrepresentation of data and ‘other’. The reviewers indicated whether they had experienced such a concern and notified the editor, and how satisfied they were with the outcome. They provided specific examples. Approximately 20% of the reviewers had experienced various ethical dilemmas. Although the majority reported their concerns to the editor, not all did so, and not all were satisfied with the outcomes. The most commonly reported concern perceived was inadequate protection of human participants. The least common was plagiarism, but this was most often reported to the editor and least often led to a satisfactory outcome. Qualitative responses at the end of the survey indicate this lack of satisfaction was most commonly related to feedback provided on resolution by the editor. The findings from this study suggest several areas that editors should note, including follow up with reviewers when they identify ethical concerns about a manuscript.
Nurses’ ethical reflections on caring for people with malodorous exuding ulcers
Authors: Lindahl Elisabeth , Gilje Fredricka , Norberg Astrid , Söderberg Anna
Published: November 2010

The aim of this study was to illuminate nurses’ reflections on obstacles to and possibilities for providing care as desired by people with malodorous exuding ulcers. Six nurses who took part in a previous study were interviewed. The participants were shown an illustration with findings from a study that elucidated the meaning of living with malodorous exuding ulcers. They were asked to reflect on the obstacles to and possibilities of providing the care desired by the patients. Twelve audio-recorded transcribed interviews were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Our interpretations of participants’ reflections on the obstacles and possibilities while caring for such patients revealed one theme: striving to ‘do good’ and ‘be good’. The obstacles were formulated as subthemes: experiencing clinical competence constraints, experiencing organizational constraints, experiencing ineffective communication, fearing failure, and experiencing powerlessness. The possibilities were formulated by the subthemes: spreading knowledge about ulcer treatments, considering wholeness, and creating clear channels of communication. A multiprofessional team could overcome the identified obstacles and provide structure, competencies, commitment and support to ‘do good’ for patients and ‘be good’ nurses.
Validation of the Evidence-Based Practice Process Assessment Scale-Short Version
Authors: Parrish Danielle E. , Rubin Allen
Published: November 2010

Objective: This report describes the reliability and validity of the Evidence-Based Practice Process Assessment Scale (EBPPAS)— Short Version, validated with three disciplines (Social Work, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFTs), and Psychologists), that assesses practitioners’ perceived familiarity with, attitudes about, and implementation of the evidence-based practice (EBP) process. Method: Social work practitioners, psychologists and LMFTs (N = 1001) were surveyed to assess the scale’s internal consistency reliability and criterion and factorial validity. Results: Findings support the scale’s internal consistency reliability, criterion and factorial validity. Conclusion: These findings support the use of the shorter version of the EBPPAS scale in surveys or to evaluate efforts to educate a wide range of behavioral health practitioners in EBP.
Your Basket and My Basket: Teaching and Learning About Māori-Pākehā Bicultural Organizing
Authors: Jones Deborah , Creed Douglas
Published: November 2010

A commitment to partnership between indigenous Māori and the nonindigenous Pākehā provides a process for bicultural organizing in Aotearoa New Zealand. The authors introduce this partnership process to provide perspectives for teaching and learning about “closer encounters” between indigenous and nonindigenous people. The bicultural model the authors present derives from a specific response to a history of colonization, in which the Treaty of Waitangi (1840) is central. Forms of biculturalism derived from this treaty seek to share governance and to include both indigenous and nonindigenous cultural practices and knowledges. It is shown how material about indigenous peoples and their relationships with others can be written into the management curriculum by presenting examples of bicultural organizing. A theoretical framework is proposed, which analyses organizations in terms of “race relations played out in power struggles” and which uses the concept of “whiteness” to show how all organizational members are involved in these struggles. The authors introduce the “power struggles” of bicultural organizing through a discussion of two nursing organizations as examples of a commitment to a bicultural partnership model. They suggest further pedagogical resources for studying bicultural organizing in terms of two themes: governance and interview practices. These resources encourage educators to explore the new perspectives that a bicultural model can bring to familiar organizational behavior topics.
Rurality and African American Perspectives on Children’s Mental Health Services
Authors: Mukolo Abraham , Heflinger Craig Anne
Published: November 2010

The combined effect of race and place of residence on caregivers’ perceptions of children’s mental health services is underresearched. Differences in caregiver strain, barriers-to-care endorsement, and provider satisfaction are examined among 175 rural and urban African American caregivers from one Southern state whose children received Medicaid sponsored mental health services. Children exhibited clinical levels of externalizing and internalizing mental health symptoms and high levels of co-occurring physical health problems. Almost one quarter were cared for by someone other than biological parents. Almost all caregivers reported strain associated with children’s mental health problems, compromised personal health status, and high levels of depression. Family perception barriers (such as concern about potential negative reactions of significant others) were most endorsed. Most caregivers were satisfied with their children’s mental health services, with lowest levels on the provider sensitivity subscale. Initial rural—urban differences in caregiver strain did not remain significant in multiple regression analyses after other covariates were included.
Moderation of P-E Fit - Job Satisfaction Relations
Authors: Dik Bryan J. , Hansen Jo-Ida C.
Published: November 2010

Research investigating Holland’s congruence hypothesis (e.g., that the degree of fit between persons and work environments predicts outcomes such as job satisfaction) has revealed a mixture of significant and nonsignificant results. The current study tested the possibility that congruence-job satisfaction relations are moderated by work centrality variables (job involvement, career salience, and intrinsic motivation) and psychological participation in one’s work environment. Using a sample of 352 young adults employed in diverse occupations, significant moderating effects indicated that congruence-satisfaction relations were stronger at low levels of job involvement, intrinsic motivation, and psychological participation than at high levels. Contrary to what often is assumed, results suggest counselors may consider placing more emphasis on interest congruence for clients who report relatively little investment in their jobs.
Experimental identification of beams with localized nonlinearities
Authors: Demarie Giacomo Vincenzo , Ceravolo Rosario , Sabia Donato , Argoul Pierre
Published: November 2010

The idea underlying time-frequency identification techniques is that, for certain classes of structural response signals, the availability of a limited number of experimental data can be partially mitigated by taking into account the localization in time of the frequency components of the signals. This paper aims to assess the efficacy of time-frequency and time-scale estimators in the identification of weakly nonlinear systems. The example described refers to a beam characterized by a concentrated nonlinearity, whose first mode and related super-harmonics were seen to simulate a Duffing oscillator. A parametric time-frequency identification was conducted under the assumption that the beam’s input/output relationship could be approximated by a certain number of terms of the Volterra series representation, this resulting in a set of diagrams of instantaneous estimators. Though a substantial stability over time was observed only for the estimates associated with linear parameters, the identified model showed a good predictive capacity. Experimental data used in this research come from tests performed on a steel beam tested within the framework of the European research project COST Action F3 on Structural Dynamics.
Excusable Deficiency: Staff Perceptions of Mothering at Shelters for Abused Women
Authors: Peled Einat , Dekel Rachel
Published: November 2010

This study examined how staff members in shelters for abused women perceive the women’s mothering and the challenges when working with these mothers. Data were collected through focus group interviews with 30 workers at Israeli shelters for abused women. Findings revealed that workers typically held a “deficit perspective” when describing the residents’ mothering skills. Most seemed committed to the notion of empowerment as a guiding framework for intervention with the women and made an effort to facilitate the women’s choices and autonomy in spite of the obstacles. The study examined workers’ perceptions from personal, professional, and sociocultural perspectives.
Recent Research (N = 9,305) Underscores the Importance of Using Age-Stratified Actuarial Tables in Sex Offender Risk Assessments
Authors: Wollert Richard , Cramer Elliot , Waggoner Jacqueline , Skelton Alex , Vess James
Published: November 2010

A useful understanding of the relationship between age, actuarial scores, and sexual recidivism can be obtained by comparing the entries in equivalent cells from “agestratified” actuarial tables. This article reports the compilation of the first multisample age-stratified table of sexual recidivism rates, referred to as the “multisample age-stratified table of sexual recidivism rates (MATS-1),” from recent research on Static-99 and another actuarial known as the Automated Sexual Recidivism Scale. The MATS-1 validates the “age invariance effect” that the risk of sexual recidivism declines with advancing age and shows that age-restricted tables underestimate risk for younger offenders and overestimate risk for older offenders. Based on data from more than 9,000 sex offenders, our conclusion is that evaluators should report recidivism estimates from age-stratified tables when they are assessing sexual recidivism risk, particularly when evaluating the aging sex offender.
Large-Scale 3D Phase Field Dislocation Dynamics Simulations On High-Performance Architectures
Authors: Hunter Abigail , Saied Faisal , Le Chinh , Koslowski Marisol
Published: November 2010

In this paper we present the development and performance of a three-dimensional phase field dislocation dynamics (3D PFDD) model for large-scale dislocation-mediated plastic deformation on high-performance architectures. Through the parallelization of this algorithm, efficient run times can be achieved for large-scale simulations. The algorithm’s performance is analyzed over several computing platforms including Infiniband, GigE, and proprietary (SiCortex) interconnects. Scalability is considered on data sets up to 2,0483, along with the efficiency on up to 2,048 processors. Results show that scalability improves as the size of the data set increases and that the overall performance is best on the Infiniband interconnect. In addition, a performance model has been developed to predict run times and efficiency on large sets of data running on multiple processors. This performance analysis shows that this parallel code is capable of harnessing the greater computer power available from petascale systems.
Parallel Low-Storage Runge—Kutta Solvers for ODE Systems with Limited Access Distance
Authors: Korch Matthias , Rauber Thomas
Published: November 2010

We consider the solution of initial value problems (IVPs) of large systems of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) for which memory space requirements determine the choice of the integration method. In particular, we discuss the space-efficient sequential and parallel implementation of embedded Runge—Kutta (RK) methods. Our focus is on the exploitation of a special structure of commonly appearing ODE systems, referred to as ‘‘limited access distance,’’ to improve scalability and memory usage. Such systems may arise, for example, from the semi-discretization of partial differential equations (PDEs).

The storage space required by classical RK methods is directly proportional to the dimension n of the ODE system and the number of stages s of the method. We propose an implementation strategy based on a pipelined processing of the stages of the RK method and show how the memory usage of this computation scheme can be reduced to less than three storage registers by an overlapping of vectors without compromising the choice of method coefficients or the potential for efficient stepsize control. We analyze and compare the scalability of different parallel implementation strategies in detailed runtime experiments on different modern parallel architectures.
From Television to Multi-Platform
Authors: Doyle Gillian
Published: November 2010

/ This article examines economic aspects of convergence and of multi-platform expansion in the media sector. Focusing on television broadcasters in the UK, it analyses the recent migration of conventional media towards multi-platform strategies and asks whether digitization is making content delivery more resource—intensive than before or whether it is facilitating greater efficiency. Findings suggest that adaptation to a multi-platform outlook on the part of conventional media requires investment in staffing and re-versioning of content. Funding this, especially in a period of economic downturn, has encouraged a more selective approach towards content, with concomitant implications for diversity. Notwithstanding generally low commercial returns from online activities so far, the potential economic advantages to be had from multi-platform are significant. The experience of UK broadcasters suggests a well-executed ‘360-degree’ approach to commissioning and distribution will increase the value that can be realized from any given universe of content, partly because of extended opportunities for consumption of that content, but also because modes of engagement in a digital multi-platform context allow for an improved audience experience and for better signalling of audience preferences back to suppliers.
‘‘It Is Time Computers Do Clever Things!’’: The Impact of Dependent Interviewing on Interviewer Burden
Authors: Sala Emanuela , Uhrig S.C. Noah , Lynn Peter
Published: November 2010

Despite the increased interest in assessing the effects of dependent interviewing (DI) on data quality, the impact of DI on interviewer burden and interviewer—respondent interaction remains currently unexplored and undocumented. Drawing on Japec’s work, this article attempts to evaluate the impact of DI on interviewer burden and describes the mechanisms by which DI affects perceived interviewer burden and ultimately data quality. We use a diverse set of data including qualitative data collected from a survey carried out in 2006 on the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) interviewers. Three main findings stand out: DI is usually welcomed by interviewers; under condition of no change in respondent circumstances, DI eases interviewer burden; the mechanisms by which DI eases interviewer burden are complex as interviewer burden factors are often strictly related to respondent burden; and there are strong interrelationships among the different factors that constitute interviewer burden.
Achievement of VGPR to induction therapy is an important prognostic factor for longer PFS in the IFM 2005-01 trial
Authors: Moreau Philippe , Attal Michel , Pégourié Brigitte , Planche Lucie , Hulin Cyrille , Facon Thierry , Stoppa Anne-Marie , Fuzibet Jean-Gabriel , Grosbois Bernard , Doyen Chantal , Ketterer Nicolas , Sebban Catherine , Kolb Brigitte , Chaleteix Carine , Dib Mamoun , Voillat Laurent , Fontan Jean , Garderet Laurent , Jaubert Jérôme , Mathiot Claire , Esseltine Dixie , Avet-Loiseau Hervé , Harousseau Jean-Luc ,   for the IFM 2005-01 study investigators*
Published: November 2010

In the 2005-01 trial, we have demonstrated that bortezomib-dexamethasone as induction therapy before autologous stem cell transplantation was superior to vincristine-adriamycin-dexamethasone. We conducted a post-hoc analysis to assess the prognostic impact of initial characteristics as well as response to therapy in patients enrolled in this study. Multivariate analysis showed that ISS stages 2 and 3 and achievement of response less than very good partial response (VGPR) both after induction therapy and after autologous stem cell transplantation were adverse prognostic factors for progression-free survival, the most important one being achievement of response less than VGPR after induction. Progression-free survival was significantly improved with bortezomib-dexamethasone induction therapy in patients with poor-risk cytogenetics and ISS stages 2 and 3 compared with vincristine-adriamycin-dexamethasone. In these 2 groups of patients, achievement of at least VGPR after induction was of major importance. This study is registered with EudraCT (https://eudract.ema.europa.eu; EUDRACT 2005-000537-38) and http://clinicaltrials.gov (NCT00200681).
Bovine proteins containing poly-glutamine repeats are often polymorphic and enriched for components of transcriptional regulatory complexes
Authors: Whan Vicki , Hobbs Matthew , McWilliam Sean , Lynn David J , Lutzow Ylva Strandberg , Khatkar Mehar , Barendse William , Raadsma Herman , Tellam Ross L
Published: November 2010

Background

About forty human diseases are caused by repeat instability mutations. A distinct subset of these diseases is the result of extreme expansions of polymorphic trinucleotide repeats; typically CAG repeats encoding poly-glutamine (poly-Q) tracts in proteins. Polymorphic repeat length variation is also apparent in human poly-Q encoding genes from normal individuals. As these coding sequence repeats are subject to selection in mammals, it has been suggested that normal variations in some of these typically highly conserved genes are implicated in morphological differences between species and phenotypic variations within species. At present, poly-Q encoding genes in non-human mammalian species are poorly documented, as are their functions and propensities for polymorphic variation.

Results

The current investigation identified 178 bovine poly-Q encoding genes (Q ≥ 5) and within this group, 26 genes with orthologs in both human and mouse that did not contain poly-Q repeats. The bovine poly-Q encoding genes typically had ubiquitous expression patterns although there was bias towards expression in epithelia, brain and testes. They were also characterised by unusually large sizes. Analysis of gene ontology terms revealed that the encoded proteins were strongly enriched for functions associated with transcriptional regulation and many contributed to physical interaction networks in the nucleus where they presumably act cooperatively in transcriptional regulatory complexes. In addition, the coding sequence CAG repeats in some bovine genes impacted mRNA splicing thereby generating unusual transcriptional diversity, which in at least one instance was tissue-specific. The poly-Q encoding genes were prioritised using multiple criteria for their likelihood of being polymorphic and then the highest ranking group was experimentally tested for polymorphic variation within a cattle diversity panel. Extensive and meiotically stable variation was identified.

Conclusions

Transcriptional diversity can potentially be generated in poly-Q encoding genes by the impact of CAG repeat tracts on mRNA alternative splicing. This effect, combined with the physical interactions of the encoded proteins in large transcriptional regulatory complexes suggests that polymorphic variations of proteins in these complexes have strong potential to affect phenotype.
Developing high throughput genotyped chromosome segment substitution lines based on population whole-genome re-sequencing in rice (Oryza sativa L.)
Authors: Xu Jianjun , Zhao Qiang , Du Peina , Xu Chenwu , Wang Baohe , Feng Qi , Liu Qiaoquan , Tang Shuzhu , Gu Minghong , Han Bin , Liang Guohua
Published: November 2010

Background

Genetic populations provide the basis for a wide range of genetic and genomic studies and have been widely used in genetic mapping, gene discovery and genomics-assisted breeding. Chromosome segment substitution lines (CSSLs) are the most powerful tools for the detection and precise mapping of quantitative trait loci (QTLs), for the analysis of complex traits in plant molecular genetics.

Results

In this study, a wide population consisting of 128 CSSLs was developed, derived from the crossing and back-crossing of two sequenced rice cultivars: 9311, an elite indica cultivar as the recipient and Nipponbare, a japonica cultivar as the donor. First, a physical map of the 128 CSSLs was constructed on the basis of estimates of the lengths and locations of the substituted chromosome segments using 254 PCR-based molecular markers. From this map, the total size of the 142 substituted segments in the population was 882.2 Mb, was 2.37 times that of the rice genome. Second, every CSSL underwent high-throughput genotyping by whole-genome re-sequencing with a 0.13× genome sequence, and an ultrahigh-quality physical map was constructed. This sequencing-based physical map indicated that 117 new segments were detected; almost all were shorter than 3 Mb and were not apparent in the molecular marker map. Furthermore, relative to the molecular marker-based map, the sequencing-based map yielded more precise recombination breakpoint determination and greater accuracy of the lengths of the substituted segments, and provided more accurate background information. Third, using the 128 CSSLs combined with the bin-map converted from the sequencing-based physical map, a multiple linear regression QTL analysis mapped nine QTLs, which explained 89.50% of the phenotypic variance for culm length. A large-effect QTL was located in a 791,655 bp region that contained the rice 'green revolution' gene.

Conclusions

The present results demonstrated that high throughput genotyped CSSLs combine the advantages of an ultrahigh-quality physical map with high mapping accuracy, thus being of great potential value for gene discovery and genetic mapping. These CSSLs may provide powerful tools for future whole genome large-scale gene discovery in rice and offer foundations enabling the development of superior rice varieties.
Common and distinct organ and stress responsive transcriptomic patterns in Oryza sativa and Arabidopsis thaliana
Authors: Narsai Reena , Castleden Ian , Whelan James
Published: November 2010

Background

Arabidopsis thalianais clearly established as the model plant species. Given the ever-growing demand for food, there is a need to translate the knowledge learned in Arabidopsis to agronomically important species, such as rice (Oryza sativa). To gain a comparative insight into the similarities and differences into how organs are built and how plants respond to stress, the transcriptomes of Arabidopsis and rice were compared at the level of gene orthology and functional categorisation.

Results

Organ specific transcripts in rice and Arabidopsis display less overlap in terms of gene orthology compared to the orthology observed between both genomes. Although greater overlap in terms of functional classification was observed between root specific transcripts in rice and Arabidopsis, this did not extend to flower, leaf or seed specific transcripts. In contrast, the overall abiotic stress response transcriptome displayed a significantly greater overlap in terms of gene orthology compared to the orthology observed between both genomes. However, ~50% or less of these orthologues responded in a similar manner in both species. In fact, under cold and heat treatments as many or more orthologous genes responded in an opposite manner or were unchanged in one species compared to the other. Examples of transcripts that responded oppositely include several genes encoding proteins involved in stress and redox responses and non-symbiotic hemoglobins that play central roles in stress signalling pathways. The differences observed in the abiotic transcriptomes were mirrored in the presence ofcis-acting regulatory elements in the promoter regions of stress responsive genes and the transcription factors that potentially bind these regulatory elements. Thus, both the abiotic transcriptome and its regulation differ between rice and Arabidopsis.

Conclusions

These results reveal significant divergence between Arabidopsis and rice, in terms of the abiotic stress response and its regulation. Both plants are shown to employ unique combinations of genes to achieve growth and stress responses. Comparison of these networks provides a more rational approach to translational studies that is based on the response observed in these two diverse plant models.