bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The principle of homeostasis in the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal system: new insight from positive feedback
Authors: Peters A. , Conrad M. , Hubold C. , Schweiger U. , Fischer B. , Fehm H. L.
Published: April 2007

Feedback control, both negative and positive, is a fundamental feature of biological systems. Some of these systems strive to achieve a state of equilibrium or “homeostasis”. The major endocrine systems are regulated by negative feedback, a process believed to maintain hormonal levels within a relatively narrow range. Positive feedback is often thought to have a destabilizing effect. Here, we present a “principle of homeostasis,” which makes use of both positive and negative feedback loops. To test the hypothesis that this homeostatic concept is valid for the regulation of cortisol, we assessed experimental data in humans with different conditions (gender, obesity, endocrine disorders, medication) and analyzed these data by a novel computational approach. We showed that all obtained data sets were in agreement with the presented concept of homeostasis in the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis. According to this concept, a homeostatic system can stabilize itself with the help of a positive feedback loop. The brain mineralocorticoid and glucocorticoid receptors—with their known characteristics—fulfill the key functions in the homeostatic concept: binding cortisol with high and low affinities, acting in opposing manners, and mediating feedback effects on cortisol. This study supports the interaction between positive and negative feedback loops in the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal system and in this way sheds new light on the function of dual receptor regulation. Current knowledge suggests that this principle of homeostasis could also apply to other biological systems.
Reduced 5-HT1A- and GABABReceptor Function in Dorsal Raphé Neurons Upon Chronic Fluoxetine Treatment of Socially Stressed Rats
Authors: Cornelisse L. N. , Van der Harst J. E. , Lodder J. C. , Baarendse P.J.J. , Timmerman A. J. , Mansvelder H. D. , Spruijt B. M. , Brussaard A. B.
Published: April 2007

Autoinhibitory serotonin 1A receptors (5-HT1A) in dorsal raphé nucleus (DRN) have been implicated in chronic depression and in actions of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). Due to experimental limitations, it was never studied at single-cell level whether changes in 5-HT1Areceptor functionality occur in depression and during SSRI treatment. Here we address this question in a social stress paradigm in rats that mimics anhedonia, a core symptom of depression. We used whole cell patch-clamp recordings of 5-HT- and baclophen-induced G-protein-coupled inwardly rectifying potassium (GIRK) currents as a measure of 5-HT1A- and GABABreceptor functionality. 5-HT1A- and GABABreceptor-mediated GIRK-currents were not affected in socially stressed rats, suggesting that there was no abnormal (auto)inhibition in the DRN on social stress. However, chronic fluoxetine treatment of socially stressed rats restored anticipatory behavior and reduced the responsiveness of 5-HT1Areceptor-mediated GIRK currents. Because GABABreceptor-induced GIRK responses were also suppressed, fluoxetine does not appear to desensitize 5-HT1Areceptors but rather one of the downstream components shared with GABABreceptors. This fluoxetine effect on GIRK currents was also present in healthy animals and was independent of the animal's “depressed” state. Thus our data show that symptoms of depression after social stress are not paralleled by changes in 5-HT1Areceptor signaling in DRN neurons, but SSRI treatment can alleviate these behavioral symptoms while acting strongly on the 5-HT1Areceptor signaling pathway.
Divided Attention Impairs Human Motor Adaptation But Not Feedback Control
Authors: Taylor Jordan A. , Thoroughman Kurt A.
Published: April 2007

When humans experience externally induced errors in a movement, the motor system's feedback control compensates for those errors within the movement. The motor system's predictive control then uses information about those errors to inform future movements. The role of attention in these two distinct motor processes is unclear. Previous experiments have revealed a role for attention in motor learning over the course of many movements; however, these experimental paradigms do not determine how attention influences within-movement feedback control versus across-movement adaptation. Here we develop a dual-task paradigm, consisting of movement and audio tasks, which can differentiate and expose attention's role in these two processes of motor control. Over the course of several days, subjects performed horizontal reaching movements, with and without the audio task; movements were occasionally subjected to transient force perturbations. On movements with a force perturbation, subjects compensated for the force-induced movement errors, and on movements immediately after the force perturbation subjects exhibited adaptation. On every movement trial, subjects performed a two-tone frequency-discrimination task. The temporal specificity of the frequency-discrimination task allowed us to divide attention within and across movements. We find that divided attention did not impair the within-movement feedback control of the arm, but did reduce subsequent movement adaptation. We suggest that the secondary task interfered with the encoding and transformation of errors into changes in predictive control.
Functional Circuitry for Peripheral Suppression in Mammalian Y-Type Retinal Ganglion Cells
Authors: Zaghloul Kareem A. , Manookin Michael B. , Borghuis Bart G. , Boahen Kwabena , Demb Jonathan B.
Published: April 2007

A retinal ganglion cell receptive field is made up of an excitatory center and an inhibitory surround. The surround has two components: one driven by horizontal cells at the first synaptic layer and one driven by amacrine cells at the second synaptic layer. Here we characterized how amacrine cells inhibit the center response of on- and off-center Y-type ganglion cells in the in vitro guinea pig retina. A high spatial frequency grating (4–5 cyc/mm), beyond the spatial resolution of horizontal cells, drifted in the ganglion cell receptive field periphery to stimulate amacrine cells. The peripheral grating suppressed the ganglion cell spiking response to a central spot. Suppression of spiking was strongest and observed most consistently in off cells. In intracellular recordings, the grating suppressed the subthreshold membrane potential in two ways: a reduced slope (gain) of the stimulus-response curve by ∼20–30% and, in off cells, a tonic ∼1-mV hyperpolarization. In voltage clamp, the grating increased an inhibitory conductance in all cells and simultaneously decreased an excitatory conductance in off cells. To determine whether center response inhibition was presynaptic or postsynaptic (shunting), we measured center response gain under voltage-clamp and current-clamp conditions. Under both conditions, the peripheral grating reduced center response gain similarly. This result suggests that reduced gain in the ganglion cell subthreshold center response reflects inhibition of presynaptic bipolar terminals. Thus amacrine cells suppressed ganglion cell center response gain primarily by inhibiting bipolar cell glutamate release.
A fixed point theorem for a pair of maps satisfying a general contractive condition of integral type
Authors: Vijayaraju P. , Rhoades B. E. , Mohanraj R.
Published: April 2007

We give a general condition which enables one to easily establish fixed point theorems for a pair of maps satisfying a contractive inequality of integral type.
Connection space approach to ambiguities of gauge theories
Authors: Aldrovandi R. , Barbosa A. L.
Published: April 2007

Two distinct gauge potentials can have the same field strength, in which case they are said to be “copies” of each other. The consequences of this ambiguity for the general affine space 𝒜 of gauge potentials are examined. Any two potentials are connected by a straight line in 𝒜, but a straight line going through two copies either contains no other copy or is entirely formed by copies.
Higher derivations on rings and modules
Authors: Bland Paul E.
Published: April 2007

Let τ be a hereditary torsion theory on ModR and suppose that Qτ:ModR → ModR is the localization functor. It is shown that for all R‐modules M, every higher derivation defined on M can be extended uniquely to a higher derivation defined on Qτ(M) if and only if τ is a higher differential torsion theory. It is also shown that if τ is a TTF theory and Cτ : M → M is the colocalization functor, then a higher derivation defined on M can be lifted uniquely to a higher derivation defined on Cτ(M).
Regularities and subspectra for commutative Banach algebras
Authors: Orozco José Saúl Campos , Wawrzyńczyk Antoni
Published: April 2007

We introduce regularities in commutative Banach algebras in such a way that each regularity defines a joint spectrum on the algebra that satisfies the spectral mapping formula.
On existence of a solution for the system of generalized vector quasi‐equilibrium problems with upper semicontinuous set‐valued maps
Authors: Peng Jianwen , Yang Xinmin
Published: April 2007

We introduce a new model of the system of generalized vector quasi‐equilibrium problems with upper semicontinuous set‐valued maps and present several existence results of a solution for this system of generalized vector quasi‐equilibrium problems and its special cases. The results in this paper extend and improve some results in the literature.
Two classes of locally compact sober spaces
Authors: Belaid Karim , Echi Othman , Gargouri Riyadh
Published: April 2007

We deal with two classes of locally compact sober spaces, namely, the class of locally spectral coherent spaces and the class of spaces in which every point has a closed spectral neighborhood (CSN‐spaces, for short). We prove that locally spectral coherent spaces are precisely the coherent sober spaces with a basis of compact open sets. We also prove that CSN‐spaces are exactly the locally spectral coherent spaces in which every compact open set has a compact closure.
Layered circle packings
Authors: Dennis David , Williams G. Brock
Published: April 2007

Given a bounded sequence of integers {d0, d1, d2, …}, 6 ≤ dn ≤ M, there is an associated abstract triangulation created by building up layers of vertices so that vertices on the nth layer have degree dn. This triangulation can be realized via a circle packing which fills either the Euclidean or the hyperbolic plane. We give necessary and sufficient conditions to determine the type of the packing given the defining sequence {dn}.
Capacity of fully correlated MIMO system using character expansion of groups
Authors: Khan Ejaz , Heneghan Conor
Published: April 2007

It is well known that the use of antenna arrays at both sides of communication link can result in high channel capacities provided that the propagation medium is rich scattering. In most previous works presented on MIMO wireless structures, Rayleigh fading conditions were considered. In this work, the capacity of MIMO systems under fully correlated (i.e., correlations between rows and columns of channel matrix) fading is considered. We use replica method and character expansions to calculate the capacity of correlated MIMO channel in closed form. In our calculations, it is assumed that the receiver has perfect channel state information (CSI) but no such information is available at the transmitter.
On a theorem of W. Meyer‐König and H. Tietz
Authors: Çanak İBrahım , Dık Mehmet , Dık Fılız
Published: April 2007

Let (un) be a sequence of real numbers and let L be an additive limitable method with some property. We prove that if the classical control modulo of the oscillatory behavior of (un) belonging to some class of sequences is a Tauberian condition for L, then convergence or subsequential convergence of (un) out of L is recovered depending on the conditions on the general control modulo of the oscillatory behavior of different order.
On heat transfer to pulsatile flow of a two‐phase fluid
Authors: Ghosh A. K. , Chakraborty S. P.
Published: April 2007

The problem of heat transfer to pulsatile flow of a two‐phase fluid‐particle system contained in a channel bounded by two infinitely long rigid impervious parallel walls has been studied in this paper. The solutions for the steady and the fluctuating temperature distributions are obtained. The rates of heat transfer at the walls are also calculated. The results are discussed numerically with graphical presentations. It is shown that the presence of the particles not only diminishes the steady and unsteady temperature fields but also decreases the reversal of heat flux at the hotter wall irrespective of the influences of other flow parameters.
Another simple proof of the quintuple product identity
Authors: Chan Hei-Chi
Published: April 2007

We give a simple proof of the well‐known quintuple product identity. The strategy of our proof is similar to a proof of Jacobi (ascribed to him by Enneper) for the triple product identity.
On the product and ratio of Bessel random variables
Authors: Nadarajah Saralees , Gupta Arjun K.
Published: April 2007

The distributions of products and ratios of random variables are of interest in many areas of the sciences. In this paper, the exact distributions of the product |XY| and the ratio |X/Y| are derived when X and Y are independent Bessel function random variables. An application of the results is provided by tabulating the associated percentage points.
On the fine spectrum of the generalized difference operator B(r, s) over the sequence spaces c0 and c
Authors: Altay Bilâl , Başar Feyzı
Published: April 2007

We determine the fine spectrum of the generalized difference operator B(r, s) defined by a band matrix over the sequence spaces c0 and c, and derive a Mercerian theorem. This generalizes our earlier work (2004) for the difference operator Δ, and includes as other special cases the right shift and the Zweier matrices.
On the uniqueness of the (2, 2)‐dimensional supertorus associated to a nontrivial representation of its underlying 2‐torus, and having nontrivial odd brackets
Authors: Peniche R. , Sánchez-Valenzuela O. A. , Thompson F.
Published: April 2007

It is proved that up to isomorphism there is only one (2, 2)‐dimensional supertorus associated to a nontrivial representation of its underlying 2‐torus, and that it has nontrivial odd brackets. This supertorus is obtained by finding out first a canonical form for its Lie superalgebra, and then using Lie′s technique to represent it faithfully as supervector fields on a supermanifold. Those supervector fields can be integrated, and through their various integral flows the composition law for the supergroup is straightforwardly deduced. It turns out that this supertorus is precisely the supergroup described by Guhr (1993) following a formal analogy with the classical unitary group U(2) but with no further intrinsic characterization.
On simultaneous approximation for some modified Bernstein‐type operators
Authors: Gupta Vijay , Ispir Nurhayat
Published: April 2007

We study the simultaneous approximation for a certain variant of Bernstein‐type operators.
Essential norm of weighted composition operator between α‐Bloch space and β‐Bloch space in polydiscs
Authors: Songxiao Li , Xiangling Zhu
Published: April 2007

Let φ(z) = (φ1(z), …, φn(z)) be a holomorphic self‐map of 𝔻n and ψ(z) a holomorphic function on 𝔻n, where 𝔻n is the unit polydiscs of ℂn. Let 0 < α, β < 1, we compute the essential norm of a weighted composition operator ψCφ between α‐Bloch space ℬα(𝔻n) and β‐Bloch space ℬβ(𝔻n).
Precise lim sup behavior of probabilities of large deviations forsums of i.i.d. random variables
Authors: Li Deli , Rosalsky Andrew
Published: April 2007

Let {X, Xn; n ≥ 1} be a sequence of real‐valued i.i.d. random variables and
let , n ≥ 1. In this paper, we study the probabilities of large deviations of
the form P(Sn > tn1/p), P(Sn < −tn1/p), and P(|Sn| > tn1/p), where t > 0 and 0 < p < 2. We obtain precise asymptotic estimates for these
probabilities under mild and easily
verifiable conditions. For example, we show that if
and if there exists a nonincreasing positive
function ϕ(x) on
[0, ∞) which is regularly varying with index
α ≤ −1 such that
limsupx→∞P(|X| > x1/p)/ϕ(x) = 1, then for every t > 0, limsupn→∞P(|Sn| > tn1/p)/(nϕ(n)) = tpα.
Oscillation properties of nonlinear neutral differential equations of nth order
Authors: Candan T. , Dahiya R. S.
Published: April 2007

We consider the nonlinear neutral functional differential equation with continuous arguments. We will develop oscillatory and asymptotic properties of the solutions.
Projective structure and integrable geodesic flows on the extension of Bott‐Virasoro group
Authors: Guha Partha
Published: April 2007

This is a sequel to our paper (Lett. Math. Phys. (2000)), triggered from a question posed by Marcel, Ovsienko, and Roger in their paper (1997). In this paper, we show that the multicomponent (or vector) Ito equation, modified dispersive water wave equation, and modified dispersionless long wave equation are the geodesic flows with respect to an L2 metric on the semidirect product space , where Diffs(S1) is the group of orientation preserving Sobolev Hs diffeomorphisms of the circle. We also study the projective structure associated with the matrix Sturm‐Liouville operators on the circle.
Numerical solution of Stokes problem for free convection effects in dissipative dusty medium
Authors: Venkataraman V. , Kannan K.
Published: April 2007

The flow past an infinite vertical isothermal plate started impulsively in its own plane in a viscous incompressible two‐phase fluid has been considered by taking into account the viscous dissipative heat. The coupled nonlinear equations governing the flow are solved for fluid and particle phases by finite difference method. The velocity and temperature fields have been shown graphically for G being positive for dusty air and it was observed that the same results hold for water. (G denotes the Grashof number and G > 0 corresponds to cooling of the plate by free convection currents.) The results for G < 0
(heating of the plate) have been verified and discussed. The numerical values of skin friction and the rate of heat transfer of dusty fluid are shown in tables. The effects of G and E (the Eckert number) on the flow field are discussed. It is observed that dusty fluid causes an increase in skin friction. The increase in mass concentration of dust particles decreases the heat transfer rate. The presence of inert particles does not admit the reverse type of flow even for large values of t.
Proliferative Activity (Ki‐67 Expression) and Outcome in High GradeOsteosarcoma: A Study of 27 Cases
Authors: Jong Roland , Davis Aileen M. , Mendes Maria G. , Wunder Jay S. , Bell Robert S. , Kandel Rita
Published: April 2007

Purpose. Although pre‐operative chemotherapy has improved the
prognosis for individuals with osteosarcoma, approximately 40% of patients will die of their
disease.The aim of this study was to quantitate proliferative activity in high grade
osteosarcomas and to determine whether proliferation is a prognostic factor.

Patients. The study consisted of 27 patients with high grade
non‐metastatic osteosarcoma at various sites for whom pre‐operative biopsies and
resection specimens were available for review. All patients were treated similarly and
had at least 24 months′ follow‐up from the date of diagnosis.

Methods. Proliferative activity (Ki‐67 expression) was examined in the
diagnostic biopsies immunohistochemically using the MIB‐1 antibody. Proliferation was
quantitated in two ways; (1) the number of immunopositive cells was counted manually
using an ocular grid; or (2) the percentage of immunopositive nuclear area was assessed
using morphometric image analysis. Proliferative index was evaluated in relation to
patient outcome.

Results. Proliferative activity was seen in all biopsies.The median
proliferative index as determined by counting cells was 24% (mean of 27%, range of 7–61%)
and by image analysis was 2% (mean 3%, range 0.32–8.4).The correlation between
MIB‐1 proliferation indices determined either by image analysis methodology or manual cell
counting was high (Spearman′s rho=0.79). Proliferative index did not appear to predict either
disease‐free or overall survival.

Discussion. Tumor proliferation does not appear to be prognostic for
high grade osteosarcomas.Whether assessment of this feature in conjunction with other
tumor characteristics might be prognostic requires further study.
Diagnosing Musculoskeletal Tumours
Authors: Grimer Robert J. , Carter Simon R. , Spooner David , Sneath Rodney S.
Published: April 2007

In 1993 we became aware of a worrying increase in apparent errors in the histopathological diagnosis of musculoskeletal
tumours in our Unit. As a result all cases seen over the past 8 years were reviewed by an independent panel. Of the 1996
cases reviewed there was an error in 87. In 54 cases (2.7%) this had led to some significant change in the active management
of the patient. The main areas where errors arose were in those very cases where clinical and radiological features were not
helpful in confirming or refuting the diagnosis. The incidence of errors rose with the passage of time, possibly related to a
deterioration in the pathologist’s health. The error rate in diagnosing bone tumours in previously published series ranges
from 9 to 40%. To ensure as accurate a rate of diagnosis as possible multidisciplinary working and regular audit are essential.
Which Soft Tissue Sarcoma Patients with Lung Metastases Shouldnot Undergo Pulmonary Resection?
Authors: van Geel Albertus N. , Rm van Der Sijp Joost , Schmitz Paul Im
Published: April 2007

Using the second best method of meta‐analysis it is significantly shown that patients with an interval of less than 7 months
between diagnosis of soft tissue sarcoma and lung surgery for metastases do not benefit.
Causation, Obligation, and Argument Structure: On the Nature of Little v
Authors: Folli Raffaella , Harley Heidi
Published: April 2007

As shown by Kayne (1975), Romance causatives with faire fall into two classes, faire infinitif (FI) and faire par (FP). We argue from Italian data that the properties of the two classes depend on the nature of the complement of fare:FI embeds a vP, FP a nominalized VP. The syntactic and semantic characteristics of these complements account straightforwardly for well-known differences between FI and FP, including the previously untreated “obligation” requirement in FI, absent in FP. Our analysis also accounts for another subtle restriction on the formation of FP: the existence of an animacy requirement on the subject of fare, absent in FI. Finally, we argue that only FP can undergo passivization; this accounts for a previously unobserved asymmetry in passivizability of causatives of unergative and unaccusative intransitive verbs.
Issues in Banawá Prosody: Onset Sensitivity, Minimal Words, and Syllable Integrity
Authors: Hyde Brett
Published: April 2007

Three aspects of Banawá prosody (Buller, Buller, and Everett 1993, Everett 1996a,b) have been argued to present significant difficulties for metrical stress theory. First, Banawá stress is sensitive to the presence or absence of syllable onsets; second, Banawá tolerates monomoraic feet yet requires a bimoraic minimal word; and, third, it seems to employ mora-based footing that is free to ignore syllable boundaries. In this article, I argue that these issues are not nearly as problematic as they might first appear. The article demonstrates that Banawá's onset sensitivity can be produced by a constraint aligning the head syllables of feet with onsets, that its minimal word restriction can be produced with Nonfinality constraints, and that it can maintain syllable integrity simply by giving clash and lapse avoidance priority over other footing considerations.
Wakasa Bay: An AMSR Precipitation Validation Campaign
Authors: Lobl Elena S. , Aonashi Kazumasa , Griffith Brian , Kummerow Christian , Liu Guosheng , Murakami Masataka , Wilheit Thomas
Published: April 2007

The “ Wakasa Bay Experiment” was conducted in order to refine error models for oceanic precipitation from the Advanced Microwave Sounding Radiometer-Earth Observing System (AMSR-E) measurements and to develop algorithms for snowfall. The NASA P-3 aircraft was equipped with microwave radiometers, covering a frequency range of 10.7–340 GHz, and radars at 13.4, 35.6, and 94 GHz, and was deployed to Yokota Air Base in Japan for flights from 14 January to 3 February 2003. For four flight days (27–30 January) a Gulfstream II aircraft provided by Core Research for Environmental Science and Technology (CREST), carrying an extensive cloud physics payload and a two-frequency (23.8 and 31.4 GHz) microwave radiometer, joined the P-3 for coordinated flights. The Gulfstream II aircraft was part of the “Winter Mesoscale Convective Systems Observations over the Sea of Japan in 2003” (“WMO-03”) field campaign sponsored by Japan Science and Technology Corporation (JST). Extensive data were taken, which addressed all of the experimental objectives. The data obtained with the NASA P-3 are available at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), and they are available free of charge to all interested researchers.
A Scale-Dependent Quality Index of Areal Rainfall Prediction
Authors: Yates Eddy , Creutin Jean-Dominique , Anquetin Sandrine , Rivoirard Jacques
Published: April 2007

Many performance indexes have been proposed to assess the quality of predicted rainfall fields. Each new index is generally tested on schematic cases or on case studies. A quality index of predicted rainfall fields is proposed based on the evolution versus scale of the correlation between observed and predicted areal rainfalls, for different scales of integrating surfaces. The authors examine this quality index with both an analytical and a numerical approach. The geostatistical structure of the rainfall field is assumed known. The index generally shows a fast increase around a scale, which is called “critical scale.”

The effect on this index of a bad localization of the predicted field is to change the critical scale, and there is a simple link between the shift and this critical scale. This link depends on the short-range structure of the rainfall field for small shifts.

The effect of having a reference known only by point measures and interpolation is a decrease of the index. An even repartition of the rain gauges improves the index. The critical scale for a perfectly localized simulation corresponds to a surface containing one rain gauge. If the simulation is badly localized, the index cannot see the bad localization if the shift is smaller than the distance between two rain gauges.
Introduction
Authors: Kaid Lynda Lee , McKinney Mitchell S. , Tedesco John C.
Published: April 2007

With young voters reporting lower levels of political knowledge and information than older voters, and with young citizens often attributing their abstention from voting to their lack of political knowledge, this study focuses on the role that specific campaign messages play in enhancing young voters' political information. We first advance a theory of political information efficacy, positing that different levels of information processing occur from different sources of political information. Our findings reveal that specific types of political messages affect young and older citizens' political information efficacy differently and that political information efficacy plays a significant role in voting or nonvoting for young citizens.
Wha'd'ya Know?
Authors: Wells Scott D. , Dudash Elizabeth A.
Published: April 2007

The problem of youth participation in elections remains largely a mystery and solutions to reengage the disengaged seem elusive. Yet an examination of young citizens' political talk may help illuminate their civic attitudes and behaviors. This study reports findings from a national focus group investigation that sought to understand young voters' information-seeking habits. Analysis identifies where young voters get their political information, what they do with this information, and whether greater knowledge leads to increased feelings of political efficacy and participation. Understanding young citizens' information-seeking habits might point to specific ways for promoting more informed, and engaged, young voters.
The Parameters of the Risk Society
Authors: Ekberg Merryn
Published: April 2007

This article offers a review and exploration of the parameters of the risk society. The primary focus is on the theoretical works of German sociologist Ulrich Beck and British sociologist Anthony Giddens, and in particular, their claim that we are living in a second, reflexive age of modernity, or risk society, characterized by an omnipresence of low probability—high consequence technological risks. The article concludes that the theorists of the risk society succeed in their goal of raising important questions for reflection and for future research. The risk society thesis succeeds in describing the emergence of a risk ethos, the development of a collective risk identity and the formation of communities united by an increasing vulnerability to risk. It draws attention to how the essentialist nature of risk has been transformed and how the origins and impact of risk have been reassessed. The theory points to a reconfiguration in the way risk is identified, evaluated, communicated and governed. The risk society expands the traditional concept of risk understood as the sum of the probability of an adverse event and the magnitude of the consequences, to include the subjective perception of risk, the inter-subjective communication of risk and the social experience of living in a risk environment. Finally, the theorists of the risk society succeed in iterating that it is not just health and the environment that are at risk, but in addition, the fundamental sociopolitical values of liberty, equality, justice, rights and democracy are now at risk.
How Individualized are the Dutch?
Authors: de Beer Paul
Published: April 2007

Individualization is often considered to be one of the most important social-cultural trends of the last decades. According to authors such as Ulrich Beck, Scott Lash and Anthony Giddens, it is one of the defining characteristics of late or `reflexive' modernity. However, there is not much empirical research on the phenomenon of individualization. This article examines the empirical evidence for a trend of individualization in the Netherlands. Three alleged consequences of the individualization process, namely detraditionalization, emancipation and heterogenization, are analysed using Dutch data. Only the hypothesis of detraditionalization is confirmed by the data. The emancipation hypothesis is, however, unambiguously refuted by the available data, while the data are not conclusive with respect to heterogenization. Hence, the empirical support for the individualization trend is much weaker than is often supposed.
Retrieving Meaning in Teacher Education
Authors: Hostetler Karl , Macintyre Latta Margaret A. , Sarroub Loukia K.
Published: April 2007

In this article we examine “meaning” and “action” within the “good” work of teaching and learning. One premise of our argument is that teachers and students deserve to experience this good. The second premise is that meaning is part and parcel of Being; the debate about meaning must include attention to meaning as a question/project of Being. We offer our experiences as an educational anthropologist, educational philosopher, and teacher educator who strive to retrieve and pursue meaning and Being as common resources and aspirations.
Associations between parents' marital functioning, maternal parenting quality, maternal emotion and child cortisol levels
Authors: Pendry Patricia , Adam Emma K.
Published: April 2007

Associations between family functioning and children's stress hormone levels are explored, by examining how aspects of the interparental relationship (parents' marital satisfaction and parent conflict styles), the mother—child relationship (maternal involvement and warmth) and maternal emotional functioning (depression, anxiety and self-esteem) relate to children's cortisol levels. Parents of 63 children (32 kindergarten-aged children, 31 adolescents) completed questionnaires regarding family and individual functioning, and children's salivary cortisol samples were collected on two consecutive weekdays at home immediately upon waking and at bedtime, such that wakeup, bedtime and average levels and the slope of their diurnal cortisol rhythms could be estimated. Higher marital functioning was significantly and independently associated with lower child cortisol levels (average levels and wakeup levels), while maternal parenting quality and emotional functioning were not significant when included in the same regression model. Associations between parents' marital functioning and children's bedtime cortisol levels and diurnal slopes were moderated by child age, with higher parent marital functioning being associated with a significantly greater lowering of bedtime levels and steeper diurnal slopes for kindergarten-aged children as compared to adolescents. Higher maternal parenting quality was found to be significantly related to steeper diurnal cortisol rhythms.
A longitudinal study of service use in families of children adopted from Romanian orphanages
Authors: Le Mare Lucy , Audet Karyn , Kurytnik Karen
Published: April 2007

Post-adoption service use and unmet service needs were examined longitudinally in three matched groups of children: children adopted from Romanian orphanages following a minimum of eight months' institutional experience (RO: n = 36); children from Romania who were destined for orphanages but were adopted early in infancy (EA: n = 25); and Canadian born non-adopted children (CB: n = 42). Data were collected when the adoptees had been in their adoptive homes for 11 months, at age 4.5 years and 10.5 years. Results indicated higher rates of service use and unmet service needs across time in the RO group. Unmet service needs in the RO group may be due in part to the unique challenges faced by post-institutionalized adoptees. Service use in the EA group jumped significantly at Phase 3, suggesting that the impact of their lesser degree of early deprivation was seen later in development under the additional challenge and stress of the demands of school. Findings, particularly from the EA group, supported the suggestion that adoptive parents have a lower threshold for referring their children for clinical services than do non-adoptive parents. Service needs of adoptees changed over time and those with unmet needs experienced greater challenges than those whose service needs were met.
Power after Hegemony
Authors: Lash Scott
Published: April 2007

The treatment in what follows of the politics of hegemony is not per se one of Gramsci, or Laclau or of Stuart Hall's earlier work. At stake is something that encompasses a more general regime of power that will be developed throughout the length of this: what might be called 'extensive politics'. What I will try to show is that such extensive power or such an extensive politics is being progressively displaced by a politics of intensity. I will trace the shift from hegemony or extensive politics to such an intensive politics in terms of: 1) a transition to an ontological regime of power, from a regime that in important respects is 'epistemological', 2) a shift in power from the hegemonic mode of 'power over' to an intensive notion of power from within (including domination from within) and power as generative force, 3) a shift from power and politics in terms of normativity to a regime of power much more based in what can be understood as a 'facticity'. This points to a general transition from norm to fact in politics. From hegemonic norm to what we will see are intensive facts. The fourth section will look at this shift through a change from an extensive (and hegemonic) regime of representation to an intensive regime of communications.
Heating and Cryogenic Cooling Stress Analysis of Curved Sandwich Panels
Authors: Yeh Hsien-Yang , Chang Kevin , Yeh Hsien-Liang
Published: April 2007

The honeycomb sandwich panel can experience open-mode debonding failure due to temperature difference and curvature variation. In order to better understand the thermostuctural behavior and these debonding failures, the thermal stress analysis is performed for the honeycomb core sandwiches, with different radii of curvature. The panels are simply supported or clamped and are subjected to uniform heating on the convex side and cryogenic cooling on the concave portion. The panels are subjected to varied temperature distribution through the thickness and therefore developed the open-mode stress. Nonlinear finite element analysis code ABAQUS was used to analyze the effects of panel curvature and the boundary conditions on the open-mode stress in the curved sandwich panel with the designated temperatures. Based on analysis results, the critical stress points are found at the tangential centerline of the sandwich segment. The chance of open-mode debonding failure increases with the increase in curvature variation and large difference in temperature applied to each panel. The open-mode stress is also greater in the panels with simply supported edges rather than the clamped ends.
Microstructure and Strength of Injection Molded Natural Fiber Composites
Authors: Nyström B. , Joffe R. , Långström R.
Published: April 2007

Injection molded short natural fiber composites (NFC) are studied in this article. Micromechanical models are employed to investigate effects of fiber length distribution, fiber orientation, and fiber/matrix adhesion on mechanical performance of NFCs.

A parametric study showed that length/diameter ratio strongly affects the composite strength, whereas fiber strength has very little influence on strength of the composites when fiber/matrix adhesion is poor. In order to verify conclusions based on theoretical predictions, modeling results are compared with experimental results of wood powder-, flax-, pulp-, and glass fiber composites.

Recommendations on improvement of strength of NFC through change of the internal structure of the materials are formulated based on results of this investigation.
Tracing foregrounding in responses to film
Authors: Hakemulder Jèmeljan
Published: April 2007

Though foregrounding theory was developed to understand responses to both literature and film, empirical research concentrated exclusively on reader response, until now. The present article examines whether `literariness' in film causes the same effects as those established for literature. In two experiments participants were shown one scene from Shakespeare film adaptations, either low or high in foregrounded elements. It was expected that showing these materials twice would reveal differences in levels of foregrounding effects. It was found that seeing high-foregrounding scenes twice was more enjoyable and made spectators perceive more significant aspects than the low-foregrounding versions of the same scenes did. A third experiment examined the extent to which a foregrounding effect requires spectators' awareness of a `background'. Participants in the experimental group were shown a conventional dinner scene (background) before they saw an unconventional one. The control group saw the same unconventional scene but first a (conventional) shootout scene. Results showed that the unconventional scene was considered more interesting and drew participants' attention more in the experimental group than in the control group. Also, the first group concentrated more on form aspects of the scene than the control group. These results present strong evidence that deviation leaves clear traces of foregrounding effects in spectators' responses.
`Creation from nothing': a foregrounding study of James Joyce's drafts for Ulysses
Authors: Sopčák Paul
Published: April 2007

In May 2002, previously unknown early drafts of what was to become the third chapter of James Joyce's Ulysses surfaced. Joyce worked these drafts into the manuscript that is now known as the `V.A.3-Buffalo' manuscript, in its turn the antecedent of the fair copy forming part of the so-called Rosenbach manuscript on which the published Gabler edition of Ulysses is based. In the study presented in this article, I chose three passages from the earliest drafts and found their corresponding passages in the V.A.3-Buffalo manuscript, and the published text (amounting to a total of nine text passages). In both manuscripts the first layer (before revisions) was chosen, to have the greatest possible difference between versions. After dividing the texts into roughly sentence-length segments, I conducted a foregrounding analysis on all segments of the nine texts and quantified the foregrounding devices. The objective of the presented study was to investigate whether results of past empirical studies of foregrounding, which have concentrated on poems or fairly straightforward narratives would hold true for such complex texts as James Joyce's Ulysses. To measure reader responses to the foregrounding of the texts, ratings on strikingness and affect, as well as reading times per segment were recorded. These responses proved to correlate significantly with the numerical foregrounding index per segment. Additionally, a salient framework is proposed for the study of manuscript materials.
The Incomplete Revolution
Authors: Campbell Lori D. , Carroll Michael P.
Published: April 2007

In a 1985 article, Judith Stacey and Barrie Thorne argued that the tendency to treat “gender” as an unproblematized dichotomous variable functioned to contain feminist influence in sociology. Although there has clearly been a revolution in gender studies since that time, there are still whole areas of sociological investigation where this revolution is at best incomplete. One such area involves the literature on the care that adult children provide to aging parents. Using arguments relating to gender-as-performance and hegemonic masculinity, the authors investigate conceptualizations of gender and masculinity in a sample of fifty-eight adult sons who provide care to an aging parent. What emerges from the interviews with these male caregivers is a vision of masculinity that is in some ways quite different from the hegemonic ideal. And yet, like earlier investigators who have studied hegemonic masculinity, the authors also find that the existence of a nonhegemonic vision of masculinity does not threaten the hegemonic ideal.
Mass sport policy development in the Olympic City: the case of Qingdao — host to the 2008 sailing regatta
Authors: Wang Weiming , Theodoraki Eleni
Published: April 2007

The Olympic Games have emerged as a significant catalyst of urban change and leave numerous legacies to the cities and countries that host them. This article will address the impacts of the preparations for the 2008 Olympic sailing regatta on mass sport development in the host municipal city of Qingdao, China, and examine the government's mass sport policy and development interventions that are linked to the 2008 Olympic Bid and subsequent preparations. The research draws on policy-making theory to unravel the nature of change and development of mass sport in Qingdao, especially how national and local governments create new policies to promote mass sport development in Qingdao and persuade people to take regular physical activity and practise sports to improve health. The article indicates that the preparations for the event generate significant improvements in mass sport in Qingdao, such as the development of mass sport policies, increase in sports participation rates, creation of new sporting facilities, and consequent improvement of public health. Nevertheless, negative effects are also evidenced in the greater imbalance between rural and urban sports development, and the high fees for using the new water sports facilities.
Managing to Lead in Private Enterprises in China: Work Values, Demography and the Development of Trust
Authors: Wang Karen Yuan , Clegg Stewart
Published: April 2007

Previous work on trust has focused on employee trust in management. However, issues of how leaders develop trust in their followers in leader—member exchange (LMX) are under-explored. Based on theories of leader—member exchange, attribution and industrial convergence, this study investigates how the work values of leaders influence the development of their trust in followers and how this is moderated by demographic factors. A survey of 219 leaders was conducted in privately owned enterprises in China. The findings suggest that the work value of centralization is negatively related to leader trust in follower predictability. Group orientation and formalization are positively related to the development of trust in follower good faith. Moreover, age and level of formal education are found to moderate significantly the relationships between leader work values and development of their trust in followers within the context of China.
Trade Union Leadership: Biography and the Role of Historical Context
Authors: Knowles Harry
Published: April 2007

The leadership of trade unions is a much neglected aspect in the field of contemporary leadership studies despite the growing importance of the role as these organizations struggle to survive in the current political and economic climate extant in most Western countries. By employing a methodology which uses a series of biographical case studies of leaders to examine the leadership in a single trade union, this article evaluates the significance of union leadership and demonstrates the importance of historical context in leadership study. It also shows how leadership and the organization's environment inter-connect to shape the way unions develop over time together and discusses some of the implications of the study for theory.
Uterine Contractility
Authors: OCZERETKO EDWARD , KITLAS AGNIESZKA , BOROWSKA MARTA , ŚWIATECKA JOLANTA , LAUDAŃSKI TADEUSZ
Published: April 2007

Abstract:  The analysis of the uterine contraction signals in nonpregnant states gives information about physiological changes during the menstrual cycle. Spontaneous uterine activity was recorded directly by a dual microtip catheter. The device consisted of two ultra‐miniature pressure sensors. One sensor was placed in the fundus, the other in the cervix. It was important to identify time delays between contractions in two topographic locations, which may be of potential diagnostic significance in various pathologies: dysmenorrhea, endometriosis, and fecundity disorders. In this study the following synchronization measures—the cross‐correlation, the semblance, the mutual information—were used to visualize the time delay changes over time. These measures were computed in a moving window with a width corresponding to approximately two or three contractions. As a result, the running synchronization functions were obtained. The running synchronization functions visualize changes in the propagation of the two simultaneously recorded signals. The propagation% parameter assessed from these functions allows for quantitative description of synchronization. Finally, we illustrate the use of running synchronization functions to investigate the effect of treatment with tamoxifen on primary dysmenorrhea.