bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Chondrocalcinosis of the Wrist
Authors: SAFFAR P.
Published: May 2004

Calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate deposition (CPDD) disease has characteristic radiographic features including soft tissue calcification, joint space narrowing, bone sclerosis, subchondral cyst formation without osteophyte formation, and large intraosseous geodes. Triangular fibrocartilage calcification is frequently found and isolated scapho-trapezio-trapezoid (STT) arthritis is specific for CPDD. Distal radio-ulnar (DRUJ), isolated midcarpal joint and piso-triquetral joint involvement also occur. 127 patients were reviewed. Seventy-eight had symptomatic STT joint arthritis, for which 36 underwent surgery. Twenty-two patients had a SLAC wrist deformity for which ten underwent surgery. Eight patients had isolated midcarpal arthritis for which three midcarpal arthrodeses, two four-bone arthrodeses and two carpal tunnel releases were performed. Nineteen patients had a generalized arthritis and seven of the patients underwent surgery: fourcorner arthrodesis+scaphoidectomy (one case), carpal tunnel relaease (two cases) extensor synovectomy (two cases) and trigger finger release (two cases).
Island Flap Reconstruction of the Web Space in Congenital Incomplete Syndactyly
Authors: BRENNEN M. D. , FOGARTY B. J.
Published: May 2004

A number of techniques have been described for the correction of incomplete syndactyly, some of which may produce obvious dorsal scarring of the fingers or hand while others rely on the use of skin grafts. Many of the methods require complex planning. We present our experience of a new technique which simplifies the operative planning, allows a natural looking web space to be reconstructed with minimal dorsal scarring and should minimize the need for skin grafts. Seven patients (nine webs) who underwent correction of incomplete syndactyly were reviewed (follow-up range, 6–32 months). Only one patient early on in the series required a small skin graft to cover a residual defect, following which modifications to the flap design were made. All the web spaces healed without complication and at review there were good functional and aesthetic results.
Metrics and performance measurement in operations management: dealing with the metrics maze
Authors: Melnyk Steven A , Stewart Douglas M , Swink Morgan
Published: May 2004

Metrics provide essential links between strategy, execution, and ultimate value creation. Changing competitive dynamics are placing heavy demands on conventional metrics systems, and creating stresses throughout firms and their supply chains. Research has not kept pace with these new demands in an environment where it is no longer sufficient to simply let metrics evolve over time—we must learn how to proactively design and manage them. The intent of this paper is to convey the importance and need for metrics‐related research. An outline of the important characteristics of the metrics research topic is provided. Specifically, we address the functions of metrics; their focus and tense; their operational and strategic contexts; as well as discuss the distinction between metrics, metrics sets and metrics systems. Some initial theoretical grounding for the research topic is provided through agency theory. We conclude with a discussion of the intent and process of the special issue, and introduction of the associated articles.
Mesenchymal stem cells used for rabbit tendon repair can form ectopic bone and express alkaline phosphatase activity in constructs
Authors: Harris M. T. , Butler D. L. , Boivin G. P. , Florer J. B. , Schantz E. J. , Wenstrup R. J.
Published: May 2004

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been used to repair connective tissue defects in several animal models. Compared to “natural healing” controls (no added cells), MSC–collagen gel constructs in rabbit tendon defects significantly improve repair biomechanics. However, ectopic bone forms in 28% of MSC‐treated rabbit tendons. To understand the source of bone formation, three studies were performed. In the first study, the hypothesis was tested that MSCs delivered during surgery contribute to bone formation in the in vivo repair site. Adjacent histological sections in the MSC‐treated repair tissue were examined for pre‐labeled MSCs and for cells showing positive alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity. Both cells were observed in serial sections in regions of ectopic bone. Contralateral “natural healing” tendons lacked both markers. In the other two studies, the effects of osteogenic supplements and construct geometry (monolayer vs. 3‐D) on ALP activity were studied to test three hypotheses: that rabbit MSCs increase ALP activity over time in monolayer culture conditions; that adding osteogenic inducing supplements to the culture medium increases cellular protein in monolayer culture; and that rabbit MSCs increase ALP activity both in monolayer and in 3‐D constructs, with and without media supplements. Culture in monolayer under similar conditions to in vivo (as in the first study) did not increase ALP at 2 or 4 weeks. Medium designed to increase osteogenic activity significantly increased cell numbers (cellular protein increased by 260%) but did not affect ALP activity either in monolayer or 3‐D constructs (p > 0.12). However, MSCs in 3‐D constructs exhibited higher ALP activity than cells in monolayer, both in the presence (p < 0.005) and absence of supplement (p < 0.045). These results suggest that in vitro conditions may critically influence cell differentiation and protein expression. Mechanisms responsible for these effects are currently under investigation. © 2004 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Experimental ischemia of porcine growth cartilage produces lesions of osteochondrosis
Authors: Ytrehus Bjørnar , Haga H. Andreas , Mellum Cato N. , Mathisen Lene , Carlson Cathy S. , Ekman Stina , Teige Jon , Reinholt Finn P.
Published: May 2004

Osteochondrosis is a disorder of growth cartilage in which a focal failure of blood supply has been proposed as an important initiating factor. In the present study we investigated the effect on epiphyseal growth cartilage of experimentally interrupting the blood supply to a limited area of the distal femur of growing pigs.

In 12 pigs, a thin full‐thickness cartilage slab was removed from the abaxial margin of the medial condyle, thereby transecting a limited number of cartilage canals. The pigs were culled 1, 2, 3, 7, 14, 21 and 29 days post‐surgery. The condylar cartilage was studied histologically, immunohistologically and by use of the TUNEL method.

The transection induced cellular death of cartilage canal elements followed by cellular death of chondrocytes within the deep layers of the resting zone of the epiphyseal growth cartilage. However, in the superficial layers of the resting zone, chondrocytes appeared to proliferate into and subsequently chondrify some of the necrotic cartilage canals. The dying and dead cells were TUNEL‐positive, but active caspase 3‐negative. The loss of vascular supply induced increased VEGF‐immunostaining in chondrocytes surrounding the affected area.

We conclude that transection of cartilage canals produces chondronecrosis in the deep resting zone of the epiphyseal growth cartilage similar to that observed in spontaneously occurring osteochondrosis. © 2004 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
From Research to Policy: Targeting the Primary Prevention of Childhood Lead Poisoning
Authors: Rabito Felicia A. , White LuAnn E. , Shorter Charles
Published: May 2004

Public policy can be an effective method of promoting public health and preventing disease in a population. The proposing and passing of a municipal ordinance regulating power-sanding of leaded paint in New Orleans is a policy-level intervention that implements a primary prevention measure to address a community-wide risk. The process of achieving policy change involves defining the problem and the proposed intervention, integrating the resources of the individuals and groups with a stake in the situation, and disseminating information to the general public and to legislators. The implementation of the ordinance regulating power-sanding in New Orleans is a community-level lead poisoning prevention strategy.
Enabling the Nation's Schools to Help Prevent Heart Disease, Stroke, Cancer, COPD, Diabetes, and other Serious Health Problems
Authors: Kolbe Lloyd , Kann Laura , Patterson Beth , Wechsler Howell , Osorio Jenny , Collins Janet
Published: May 2004

In the United States, more than 53 million young people attend nearly 120,000 schools, usually for 13 of their most formative years. Modern school health programs—if appropriately designed and implemented—could become one of the most efficient means the nation might employ to reduce the establishment of four main chronic disease risks: tobacco use, unhealthy eating patterns, inadequate physical activity, and obesity. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its partners have developed four integrated strategies to help the nation's schools reduce these risks. Participating national, state, and local agencies (1) monitor critical health risks among students, and monitor school policies and programs to reduce those risks; (2) synthesize and apply research to identify, and to provide information about, effective school policies and programs; (3) enable state, large city, and national education and health agencies to jointly help local schools implement effective policies and programs; and (4) evaluate implemented policies and programs to iteratively assess and improve their effectiveness.
The National Tobacco Control Program: Focusing on Policy to Broaden Impact
Authors: Wisotzky Myra , Albuquerque Melissa , Pechacek Terry F. , Park Barbara Z.
Published: May 2004

Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of death and disease in the United States, causing more than 440,000 premature deaths annually. We can dramatically reduce the health and economic burden of tobacco use by employing proven tobacco control and prevention strategies. Policy interventions offer the greatest opportunity to influence decisions regarding tobacco use at the societal level. Tobacco control policy can drive social, environmental, and systems changes, and has a substantially greater impact than interventions that target individuals. A policy approach engages the larger community and empowers it to establish healthy social norms. Health departments, the primary governmental institutions charged with protecting the health of the public, play many different roles in advancing policy. The National Tobacco Control Program funds state health departments to educate the public and decision makers regarding evidence-based policy strategies. This article outlines those strategies, critical success factors, and challenges associated with policy-based interventions.
Using the Essential Public Health Services as Strategic Leverage to Strengthen the Public Health Response to Diabetes
Authors: Satterfield Dawn W. , Murphy Dara , Essien Joyce D.K. , Hosey Gwen , Stankus Melissa , Hoffman Pete , Beartusk Kaetz , Mitchell Patricia L. , Alfaro-Correa Ana
Published: May 2004

If current trends continue, health systems will soon be overwhelmed by type 2 diabetes mellitus. Successful population-based diabetes prevention and control efforts require a sound and continually improving infrastructure. In states and U.S. territories, the Diabetes Prevention and Control Programs supported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division of Diabetes Translation serve as a fulcrum for building and refining the infrastructure that links diverse and dynamic partners dedicated to increasing the years and quality of life and achieving health equity among people with and at risk for diabetes. The National Public Health Performance Standards offer a conceptual framework that articulates the requisite infrastructure and services provided by an interconnected network of intersectoral partners to strengthen the public health response to diabetes. These standards associated with the Essential Public Health Services are valuable tools to assess the status of the performance of the health system's infrastructure to guide improvement. The process of engaging system partners in a system-wide assessment informs and leverages cross-sectoral assets to improve health outcomes for citizens in communities shouldering the growing burden of diabetes.
Reducing Disparities for African Americans with Diabetes: Progress Made by the REACH 2010 Charleston and Georgetown Diabetes Coalition
Authors: Jenkins Carolyn , McNary Sara , Carlson Barbara A. , King Marilyn Givens , Hossler Charles L. , Magwood Gayenell , Zheng Deyi , Hendrix Katharine , Beck Lorna Shelton , Linnen Florene , Thomas Virginia , Powell Sheila , Ma'at Imani
Published: May 2004

Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH 2010) is a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention demonstration program that responds to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' goal to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health status by the year 2010. As part of REACH 2010, community projects were funded to develop, implement, and evaluate community action plans to improve health care and outcomes for racial and ethnic populations. This article describes the program and details the progress of the REACH 2010: Charleston and Georgetown Diabetes Coalition in reducing disparities in care. Approaches employed by the Coalition included community development, empowerment, and education related to diabetes; health systems change associated with access, care, and education; and coalition advocacy. Racial disparities were identified for 12,000 African Americans with diabetes in this urban/rural South Carolina community. After 24 months, significant differences that initially ranged from 11% to 28% in African Americans (when compared with whites/others) were not observed on 270 chart audits for A1C, lipid and kidney testing, eye examinations, and blood pressure control. Future efforts will focus on maintaining progress, eliminating other disparities, and identifying the contributions of each intervention in eliminating racial disparities.
Physical Activity Policy and Program Development: The Experience in Finland
Authors: Vuori Ilkka , Lankenau Becky , Pratt Michael
Published: May 2004

This article describes the development of sports and physical activity policies and programs in Finland during the past 30 years. The past two decades have been marked by a shift in emphasis from competitive and elite sports to health-enhancing physical activity for all, as seen most clearly in two successive sports acts and a government resolution. The new, increasingly multisectoral policies have led to substantial changes in the public funding of sports organizations, services, and construction of sports sites. Furthermore, three successive five-year national physical activity promotion programs have been launched. As a result, increased and new types of opportunities to participate in physical activity have become available, and the infrastructure and networks for provision of services have been strengthened. Until the mid 1990s, leisure time physical activity increased in Finland, but during the last seven to eight years, both leisure time and commuting physical activity have been stable. This finding may be an indication of the difficulty to increase physical activity in an industrialized country with already relatively high levels of physical activity even when systematic, long-term policies and measures are applied.
Physical Activity Policy Development: A Synopsis of the WHO/CDC Consultation, September 29 through October 2, 2002, Atlanta, Georgia
Authors: Shephard Roy J. , Lankenau Becky , Pratt Michael , Neiman Andrea , Puska Pekka , Benaziza Hamadi , Bauman Adrian
Published: May 2004

Physical activity is an important part of the World Health Organization's integrated approach to the prevention and control of noncommunicable disease and the promotion of health, and, in particular, to the evolving World Health Organization Global Strategy on Diet and Physical Activity. To assist in these efforts, a joint World Health Organization/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Consultation on Physical Activity Policy Development took place in Atlanta, Georgia, from September 29 through October 2, 2002. This article summarizes the context and outcomes of the consultation. It also includes elaboration of a Comprehensive Physical Activity Policy Framework developed as a product of the meeting.
International Physical Activity Policy Development: A Commentary
Authors: Lankenau Becky , Solari Alfredo , Pratt Michael
Published: May 2004

Scientific evidence demonstrates, in different degrees for developing and developed countries, that physical activity is associated with substantial health, economic, and societal benefits. However, for varying environmental, social, and individual reasons, people do not tend to engage in the levels of physical activity that would be beneficial to them. Environmental and policy interventions hold particular promise for promoting physical activity because both are designed to influence large groups. Recent multisectoral actions have increased the visibility of physical activity promotion and its synergism with other important community and national issues. Together, these efforts have created an unprecedented opportunity to advance the development of international physical activity policy.
Changes in Health Behaviors among Older Americans, 1990 to 2000
Authors: Mokdad Ali H. , Giles Wayne H. , Bowman Barbara A. , Mensah George A. , Ford Earl S. , Smith Suzanne M. , Marks James S.
Published: May 2004

Objectives.

The authors used a large population-based survey to examine changes from 1990 to 2000 in age distribution by sex and race or ethnicity, to estimate both state-specific and national trends in the proportion of older Americans, and to examine changes in risk factors and quality-of-life indicators among those Americans.

Methods.

The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), a cross-sectional telephone survey of adults aged ≥18 years. BRFSS data were analyzed for the District of Columbia and all states that participated from 1990 to 2000. SAS and SUDAAN were used in the analyses to account for the complex sampling design.

Results.

The percentage of Americans aged ≥75 years increased 23.0% from 1990 to 2000, with the magnitude of the increase varying by state. In 2000, Florida had the highest percentage of persons aged ≥75 (10.27%) and Alaska the lowest (3.49%). Compared with 1990, older Americans in 2000 were more likely to be obese (16.3% vs. 13.5%) or diabetic (14.3% vs. 11.0%). Older Americans in 2000 were also more likely to exercise, consume more fruits and vegetables daily, and to have recently obtained a routine medical checkup. In addition, they were less likely to smoke tobacco or drink any alcohol.

Conclusions.

Increases in the population of older people will have a tremendous impact on health care in the states and will affect their future plans for serving the elderly. Although older Americans are living more healthfully than previously, there is an enormous need for targeted health promotion programs to prevent chronic diseases in this age group.
Living doll paper doll
Authors: Taylor David C
Published: May 2004

‘I returned and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.’ Ecclesiastes 9.11.
Sleep patterns and sleep disorders in children with autistic spectrum disorders: insights using parent report and actigraphy
Authors: Wiggs Luci , Stores Gregory
Published: May 2004

The present study sought to describe the profile of sleep disturbance reported in children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs) and to document any sleep disorders underlying reports of sleeplessness. Sixty‐nine children aged 5 to 16 years (mean 9 years 4 months, SD 2 years 7 months; 14 females) with an ASD were assessed by detailed sleep histories taken from parents, the Simonds and Parraga Sleep Questionnaire, a 2‐week sleep diary, and actigraphs worn by the child for five nights. Parent‐reported sleeplessness featured prominently (64%). Sleep disorders underlying the sleeplessness were most commonly behavioural (i.e. to do with inappropriate sleep‐related behaviours), although sleep‐wake cycle disorders and anxiety‐related problems were also seen. In addition, the sleeplessness patterns of a large minority of children could not be classified by conventional diagnostic criteria. Sleep patterns measured objectively did not differ between those children with or without reported sleeplessness, but the sleep quality of all children seemed to be compromised compared with normal values.
Prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls and breastfeeding: opposing effects on auditory P300 latencies in 9‐year‐old Dutch children
Authors: Vreugdenhil H J I , Zanten G A Van , Brocaar M P , Mulder Paul G H , Weisglas‐Kuperus Nynke
Published: May 2004

Effects of perinatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on auditory P300 latencies and amplitudes were evaluated in children from a Rotterdam cohort. From this cohort of healthy, term babies, the 26 lowest and 26 highest prenatally PCB‐exposed children from the breastfed and the formula‐fed groups (n=104) were invited for P300 assessment when they were 9 years of age. For P300 assessment an auditory simple odd‐ball paradigm was used. In the 83 participating children, 60 assessments (32 males, 28 females) satisfied the measurement criteria and were included in the data analyses. After adjusting for confounding variables, children with high prenatal exposure were found to have longer P300 latencies than children with low prenatal exposure. Lactational exposure to PCBs through breastfeeding milk was not related to P300 latencies. P300 latencies were shorter in children breast‐fed for at least 16 weeks than in children breastfed for 6 to 16 weeks and formula‐fed children. P300 amplitudes were not related to perinatal PCB exposure nor breastfeeding. Results of this exploratory study suggest that prenatal exposure to environmental levels of PCBs and related compounds delays mechanisms in the central nervous system that evaluate and process relevant stimuli, whereas breastfeeding accelerates these mechanisms.
Predicting low bone density in children and young adults with quadriplegic cerebral palsy
Authors: Henderson Richard C , Kairalla John , Abbas Almas , Stevenson Richard D
Published: May 2004

Many children and young adults with cerebral palsy (CP) have diminished bone mineral density (BMD) and a propensity to fracture with minimal trauma. The aim of this study was to identify variables which are routinely assessed as part of standard clinical care and that might be used to identify those individuals with CP who are most likely to have low BMD. One hundred and seven participants (ages 2 years 1 month to 21 years 1 month; mean age 10 years 11 months, SD 4 years 2 months) with moderate to severe spastic CP were assessed in detail. This included gathering clinical data, taking anthropometric measures of growth and nutrition, as well as dual energy X‐ray absorptiometry measures of BMD. Seventeen participants were ambulatory with assistance (Gross Motor Function Classification System [GMFCS] level III), and 90 were capable of little or no ambulation even with assistance (26 GMFCS level IV and 64 GMFCS level V). Weight z score proved to be the best predictor of BMD z score. Declining BMD z scores also correlated with increasing age and greater severity of involvement. It can be predicted, with reasonable reliability, that a 10‐year‐old non‐ambulatory child with quadriplegic CP and a ‘typical’ weight z score of ‐2 will have a BMD z score that is at best ‐2. Prior fractures, use of anticonvulsants, and feeding difficulties further reduce predicted BMD.
UNBOUNDEDNESS OF THE BERGMAN PROJECTIONS ON $L^{p}$ SPACES WITH EXPONENTIAL WEIGHTS
Authors: Dostanić Milutin R.
Published: May 2004

We prove that the Bergman projection on $L^p(w)$ $(p\neq 2)$, where $w(r)=(1-r^2)^A\textrm{e}^{-B/(1-r^2)^{\alpha}}$, is not bounded.

AMS 2000 Mathematics subject classification: Primary 47B10
THE EMBEDDING OF A CYCLIC PERMUTABLE SUBGROUP IN A FINITE GROUP. II
Authors: Cossey J. , Stonehewer S. E.
Published: May 2004

In two previous papers we established the structure of the normal closure of a cyclic permutable subgroup $A$ of a finite group, first when $A$ has odd order and second when $A$ has even order, but with an extra hypothesis that was unnecessary in the odd case. Here we describe the most general situation without any restrictions on $A$.

AMS 2000 Mathematics subject classification: Primary 20D35; 20D40
AN ANALOGUE OF CIRCULAR UNITS FOR PRODUCTS OF ELLIPTIC CURVES
Authors: Baba Srinath , Sreekantan Ramesh
Published: May 2004

We construct certain elements in the motivic cohomology group $H^3_{\mathcal{M}}(E\times E',\mathbb{Q}(2))$, where $E$ and $E'$ are elliptic curves over $\mathbb{Q}$. When $E$ is not isogenous to $E'$ these elements are analogous to circular units in real quadratic fields, as they come from modular parametrizations of the elliptic curves. We then find an analogue of the class-number formula for real quadratic fields, which specializes to the usual quadratic class-number formula when $E$ and $E'$ are quadratic twists.

AMS 2000 Mathematics subject classification: Primary 11F67; 14G35. Secondary 11F11; 11E45; 14G10
THE CONTACT NUMBER OF A EUCLIDEAN SUBMANIFOLD
Authors: Chen Bang-Yen , Li Shi-Jie
Published: May 2004

We introduce an invariant, called the contact number, associated with each Euclidean submanifold. We show that this invariant is, surprisingly, closely related to the notions of isotropic submanifolds and holomorphic curves. We are able to establish a simple criterion for a submanifold to have any given contact number. Moreover, we completely classify codimension-$2$ submanifolds with contact number ${\geq}3$. We also study surfaces in $\mathbb{E}^6$ with contact number ${\geq}4$. As an immediate consequence, we obtain the first explicit examples of non-spherical pseudo-umbilical surfaces in Euclidean spaces.

AMS 2000 Mathematics subject classification: Primary 53C40; 53A10. Secondary 53B25; 53C42
SINGULARITIES OF EVOLUTES OF HYPERSURFACES IN HYPERBOLIC SPACE
Authors: Izumiya Shyuichi , Pei Donghe , Takahashi Masatomo
Published: May 2004

We study the differential geometry of hypersurfaces in hyperbolic space. As an application of the theory of Lagrangian singularities, we investigate the contact of hypersurfaces with families of hyperspheres or equidistant hyperplanes.

AMS 2000 Mathematics subject classification: Primary 53A35. Secondary 58C27
LOWER ESTIMATES FOR THE GROWTH OF THE FOURTH AND THE SECOND PAINLEVÉ TRANSCENDENTS
Authors: Shimomura Shun
Published: May 2004

Let $w(z)$ be an arbitrary transcendental solution of the fourth (respectively, second) Painlevé equation. Concerning the frequency of poles in $|z|\le r$, it is shown that $n(r,w)\gg r^2$ (respectively, $n(r,w)\gg r^{3/2}$), from which the growth estimate $T(r,w)\gg r^2$ (respectively, $T(r,w)\gg r^{3/2}$) immediately follows.

AMS 2000 Mathematics subject classification: Primary 34M55; 34M10
Neural-net tuned PID control of a parallel type mechanism with
force feedback for virtual reality applications
Authors: Karkoub M. , Her M.-G. , Hsu K.-S. , Chen C.-Y.
Published: May 2004

This paper explores a new type of a parallel platform human interface manipulator based on virtual reality (VR) for mechanism design applications. A motion control of a six-link robot manipulator actuated by three active joints is presented here. The main components of the system include a user interface, a software simulating the environment, and a VR control system. The model of the VR system is built based on a force feedback behavior that enables the operator to feel the actual force feedback from the virtual environment just as he/she would from the real environment. A primary stabilizing controller is used to develop a haptic interface device where realistic simulations of the dynamic interaction forces between a human operator and the simulated virtual object/mechanism is required. The stability and performance of the system are studied
and analyzed based on the Nyquist stability criterion. Experiments on cutting virtual clay are used to validate the theoretical developments. It was shown that the experimental and theoretical results are in good agreement.
Robot positioning of flexible-link manipulator using vision
Authors: Küçük Halûk , Parker Gordon , Baumgartner Eric T.
Published: May 2004

Vision-aided flexible link robot positoning using the Camera Space Manipulation (CSM) method is developed. The primary motivation for this work is to use an
autonomous vision-aided robotic system to pick-up and accurately move a flexible object that it encounters. The work consists of analytical and experimental investigation of the performance of CSM for a kinematic model of the PUMA manipulator with a flexible structure
at the wrist which accounts for the gravitation. Trade-offs between camera view parameters and axial deflection model parameters were investigated. View parameter reestimation and maneuvering resulted a very accurate placement of the end-effector at the target.
Realization of a ball passing strategy for a robot soccer
game: a case study of integrated planning and control
Authors: Liu Jing-Sin , Liang Tzu-Chen , Lin Yi-An
Published: May 2004

Ball passing is an elementary and frequently employed human soccer skill. This paper examines the realization and visualization of ball passing, a low level move-to-ball behavior of a soccer robot, in a robot soccer game. A case study of three mechanically identical mobile robots with a formation ready to pass a ball cyclically in a zigzag pattern is examined. We build a control command driven mobile robot motion simulator with a controller and dynamics of mobile robots, not only nonholonomic kinematic constraints to simulate the motion of a soccer robot driven by wheels torques to generate wheels accelerations, to update the robot position and orientation at successive time instants. Kick motion follows a physical law, and a simplified collision check and response model is utilized for the efficient detection of the hitting a robot with the ball or other robots. The realization of specific ball passing strategy to drive each soccer robot in a position to receive a pass includes three levels of organization, coordination, and execution: careful integrated design of a dynamic formation and role change scheme, ball position estimation, and coordinated trajectory (i.e. path and velocity) planning and tracking control. Simulations are performed to illustrate the feasibility of the realization of ball passing among three robots, implemented by a software program for coordinated trajectory planning and tracking control in the developed simulator.
A method to learn hand grasping posture from noisy sensing information
Authors: Gorce P. , Rezzoug N.
Published: May 2004

In this paper, we propose a new method to learn a multi-fingered hand grasping posture with little knowledge about the task and few sensing capabilities. The developed model is composed of two stages. The first is dedicated to the finger inverse kinematics learning in order to provide the fingertip-desired position. This function is fulfilled by modular neural network architecture. Following the concept of reinforcement learning, a second neural model dealing with noisy sensing information is used to search the space of hand configuration. Simulation results show a good learning of grasping postures with five fingers and different noise levels.
MetaKlaim: a type safe multi-stage language for global computing
Authors: FERRARI GIANLUIGI , MOGGI EUGENIO , PUGLIESE ROSARIO
Published: May 2004

This paper describes the design and semantics of METAKLAIM, which is a higher order distributed process calculus equipped with staging mechanisms. METAKLAIM integrates METAML (an extension of SML for multi-stage programming) and KLAIM (a Kernel Language for Agents Interaction and Mobility), to permit interleaving of meta-programming activities (such as assembly and linking of code fragments), dynamic checking of security policies at administrative boundaries and ‘traditional’ computational activities on a wide area network (such as remote communication and code mobility). METAKLAIM exploits a powerful type system (including polymorphic types á la system F) to deal with highly parameterised mobile components and to enforce security policies dynamically: types are metadata that are extracted from code at run-time and are used to express trustiness guarantees. The dynamic type checking ensures that the trustiness guarantees of wide area network applications are maintained whenever computations interoperate with potentially untrusted components.
Coordination and mobility in CoreLime
Authors: CARBUNAR BOGDAN , VALENTE MARCO TULIO , VITEK JAN
Published: May 2004

The choice of suitable high-level communication primitives for wide area network programming languages remains an open problem. This paper is driven by the practical consideration of providing an efficient and secure communication infrastructure for mobile agent systems. This has led us to formalise the Lime coordination middleware and propose a simplified model, which we call CoreLime, that addresses some of the main shortcomings of Lime while retaining its distinguishing feature, namely transient sharing of tuple spaces. We further discuss a prototype implementation along with security extensions. Our contribution is thus an exploration of the language design space rather than a theoretical investigation of properties of these models.
Concurrent models for Linda with transactions
Authors: BRUNI ROBERTO , MONTANARI UGO
Published: May 2004

Nowadays concepts, languages and models for coordination cannot leave aside the needs of the increasing number of commercial applications based on global computing over the (inter)net. For example, platforms like Microsoft .NET and Sun Microsystems Java come equipped with packages for supporting ad hoc transactional features, which are essential for most business applications. We show how to extend the coordination language par excellence (viz. Linda) with basic primitives for transactions, while retaining a formal model for its concurrent computations. This is achieved by exploiting a variation of Petri nets, called zero-safe nets, where transactions can be suitably modelled by distinguishing between stable places (ordinary ones) and zero places (where tokens can only be temporarily allocated, defining hidden states). The relevance of the transaction mechanism is illustrated in terms of expressive power. Finally, it is shown that stable places and transactions viewed as atomic steps define an abstract semantics that is apt for a fully algebraic treatment, as demonstrated via categorical adjunctions between suitable categories of nets.
Acquisition by processing: A modular perspective on language development
Authors: TRUSCOTT JOHN , SMITH MIKE SHARWOOD
Published: May 2004

The paper offers a model of language development, first and second, within a processing perspective. We first sketch a modular view of language, in which competence is embodied in the processing mechanisms. We then propose a novel approach to language acquisition (Acquisition by Processing Theory, or APT), in which development of the module occurs as a natural product of processing activity, without any acquisition mechanisms as such. The approach is illustrated and explicated through examples of the development of content words, derivational morphology, the functional category I with its variable features, and Case and thematic roles, as well as apparent cross-linguistic variation in processing strategies and the status of bootstrapping in the model. We then examine some possible applications to issues in second language acquisition – noticing the gap, the initial state, transfer, and the apparent limits of SLA – and finally offer a broader perspective on the model: its scope, its relations to other approaches, and its possible limits.
Acquisition by Processing Theory: A theory of everything?
Authors: CARROLL SUSANNE E.
Published: May 2004

Truscott and Sharwood Smith (henceforth T&SS) propose a novel theory of language acquisition, ACQUISITION BY PROCESSING THEORY (APT), designed to account for both first and second language acquisition, monolingual and bilingual speech perception and parsing, and speech production. This is a tall order. Like any theoretically ambitious enterprise, the APT shares certain properties with much that has gone before. Like the Competition Model (CM; MacWhinney, 1987, 1997; MacWhinney and Bates, 1989, inter alia) and other associative network connectionist learning models, the APT eschews a Language Acquisition Device (LAD) by treating acquisition as the strengthening of levels of representation activation. A parser can produce multiple representations of a parse string in parallel, which then ‘compete’ as analyses for an input string. Unlike the CM, however, the APT is not motivated by a solid program of empirical studies in language acquisition or cross-language processing. Nor does it strike me as theoretically coherent, for the APT, unlike the CM, assumes that knowledge of language involves knowledge of grammatical structure and that the parser makes deterministic use of Universal Grammar in the form of a Minimalist grammar. The determinism is important here; the claim to eliminate LAD hinges on it.
APT: Costs and benefits of a hybrid model
Authors: DIJKSTRA TON , HAVERKORT MARCO
Published: May 2004

In their keynote contribution, Truscott and Sharwood Smith offer a general model of language development from a processing perspective. As they state, their model is very ambitious: Their ‘acquisition by processing’ theory (APT) aims not only at explaining both first and second language acquisition but also real-time processing in language comprehension and production. APT takes a cross-disciplinary approach that intends to bring together research on linguistic structure and on general cognition. However, the joint contribution of linguistic and psycholinguistic approaches is mainly evident in terms of theoretical concepts (e.g. UG, syntactic rules, modules, activation) because the presented empirical evidence is limited in scope.
Parameters or cues?
Authors: MACWHINNEY BRIAN
Published: May 2004

Truscott and Sharwood Smith (henceforth T&SS) attempt to show how second language acquisition can occur without any learning. In their APT model, change depends only on the tuning of innate principles through the normal course of processing of L2. There are some features of their model that I find attractive. Specifically, their acceptance of the concepts of competition and activation strength brings them in line with standard processing accounts like the Competition Model (Bates and MacWhinney, 1982; MacWhinney, 1987, in press). At the same time, their reliance on parameters as the core constructs guiding learning leaves this model squarely within the framework of Chomsky's theory of Principles and Parameters (P&P). As such, it stipulates that the specific functional categories of Universal Grammar serve as the fundamental guide to both first and second language acquisition. Like other accounts in the P&P framework, this model attempts to view second language acquisition as involving no real learning beyond the deductive process of parameter-setting based on the detection of certain triggers. The specific innovation of the APT model is that changes in activation strength during processing function as the trigger to the setting of parameters. Unlike other P&P models, APT does not set parameters in an absolute fashion, allowing their activation weight to change by the processing of new input over time. The use of the concept of activation in APT is far more restricted than its use in connectionist models that allow for Hebbian learning, self-organizing features maps, or back-propagation.
How APT is your theory: Present status and future prospects
Authors: TRUSCOTT JOHN , SMITH MIKE SHARWOOD
Published: May 2004

To begin with, we thank the commentators for their remarks, which both intrigued and challenged us in various ways. Time and space limits prevent us from doing justice to all the points they raised, so we will focus on those we consider most significant and are best prepared to deal with. One of these points, of course, is the overall character and status of our proposal. Pienemann terms Acquisition by Processing (APT) ‘an interesting point of departure’ (p. 38) for the development of a theory of acquisition and processing. Harrington and Carroll say in effect that it can't be done; others seem more open to the possibility. In any case, we quickly accept Roeper's suggestion that what we have presented is more a ‘prole-gomena’ (p. 21) to a theory than a full-fledged theory in itself.
Research note and erratum
Authors: MYERS-SCOTTON CAROL
Published: May 2004

This note points out an incorrect quotation of the theory of codeswitching outlined in various publications of Carol Myers-Scotton as cited by Boussofara-Omar (2003). In addition, the issue is raised whether the type of multi-lectal situation encountered in the varieties of Arabic spoken in Tunisia should be analyzed with a model designed to deal with ‘classic’ codeswitching.
STAGING AND ITS DRAMATIC EFFECT IN FRENCH BAROQUE OPERA: EVIDENCE FROM PROMPT NOTES
Authors: BANDUCCI ANTONIA L.
Published: May 2004

The staging of tragédies en musique and related genres remains an elusive aspect of French baroque opera. Although scores and librettos supply some information (through scene rubrics and the sung text), several rare sets of prompt notes provide us with many more specific details. The prompt notes fall into two categories: those that illustrate a dramatic convention and those that illustrate individual artistic choices. Both make notable differences in dramatic effect. Choristers and dancers are almost exclusively blocked as a single, collective body while the entrance of soloists to instrumental music often determines the dramatic function of préludes and ritournelles, sometimes accompanying mute acting or conveying meaning when the stage is empty. The prompt notes show that the genre, generally thought of as tradition-bound, also elicited dramatic interpretations from those responsible for staging. An appendix provides a glossed list of the more than fifty prompt notes for a 1778 proposed production of Lully’s Armide.
THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY AS A MUSIC-HISTORICAL PERIOD?
Authors: WEBSTER JAMES
Published: May 2004

Period concepts and periodizations are constructions, or readings, and hence always subject to reinterpretation. Many recent scholars have privileged institutional and reception history over style and compositional history, and periodized European music according to the ‘centuries’; but these constructions are no less partial or tendentious than older ones. Recent historiographical writings addressing these issues are evaluated.

If we wish to construe the eighteenth century as a music-historical period, we must abandon the traditional notion that it was bifurcated in the middle. Not only did the musical Baroque not last beyond 1720 in most areas, but the years c1720–c1780 constituted a period in their own right, dominated by the international ‘system’ of Italian opera, Enlightenment ideals, neoclassicism, the galant and (after c1760) the cult of sensibility. We may call this the ‘central’ eighteenth century. Furthermore, this period can be clearly distinguished from preceding and following ones. The late Baroque (c1670–c1720) was marked by the rationalization of Italian opera, tragédie lyrique, the standardization of instrumental genres and the rise of ‘strong’ tonality. The period c1780–c1830 witnessed the rise of the ‘regulative work-concept’ (Goehr) and ‘pre-Romanticism’ (Dahlhaus), and the Europe-wide triumph of ‘Viennese modernism’, including the first autonomous instrumental music and a central role in the rise of the modern (post-revolutionary) world, symbolized by Haydn’s sublime in The Creation.

A tripartite reading of a ‘long’ eighteenth-century in music history along these lines seems more nearly adequate than either baroque/classical or 1700–1800 as a single, undifferentiated period.
RECOVERING VIVALDI’S LOST PSALM
Authors: TALBOT MICHAEL
Published: May 2004

In 1739, two years before his death, Vivaldi sold a group of five psalms to the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice. All but one of these psalms had been identified and located prior to May 2003, when the missing work, a Nisi Dominus in A major for three solo singers, five obbligato instruments and strings, turned up in Dresden as the unexpected by-product of a routine inspection. Like one of the other psalms belonging to the same group, the Beatus vir rv795, this new discovery, rv803, is attributed in its Dresden source to Baldassarre Galuppi. The misattribution appears to have been an act of deliberate falsification by the Venetian copyist Iseppo Baldan, who slipped the two Vivaldi compositions in to a large consignment of sacred vocal works, mainly by Galuppi, dispatched to the Saxon Hofkapelle in the late 1750s. The new Nisi Dominus is noteworthy for the high level of vocal virtuosity that all eight movements demand and for its use of rare instruments (viola d’amore, tenor chalumeau and violino in tromba marina) to lend added colour in individual movements. It is also a striking example of Vivaldi’s ‘late’ manner, which, although influenced by the galant style of younger composers, remains true to his personal idiom. At the same time, it rivals the oratorio Juditha triumphans as a showcase for the diverse talents of the Pietà’s female musicians.
THE CASE OF THE CIRCUMSTANTIAL MEETING: WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART AND JOSEPH MARTIN KRAUS IN VIENNA
Authors: VAN BOER BERTIL
Published: May 2004

One of the joys of compiling a thematic catalogue is that a number of small mysteries crop up as one evaluates biographical and source material for the composer concerned. The journey often requires delving into the private life and works in intimate detail, and brings to light important information that in turn raises questions about the various influences or connections affecting the composer or style. But when this information is lacunar or based primarily upon circumstantial evidence, it provides only plausible suppositions that, while not entirely provable as incontrovertible fact, nonetheless dare the scholar to prove otherwise. Such is the circumstantial case for the meeting of two of the more remarkable composers of the second half of the eighteenth century, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Joseph Martin Kraus, who share nearly identical life spans and dates.
Computergestütztes Training von Einkaufsfertigkeiten bei einem Jugendlichen mit frühkindlichem Autismus: Eine Einzelfallstudie
Authors: Probst Paul , Hillig Stephan
Published: May 2004

Zusammenfassung. Ziel der vorliegenden explorativen Einzelfallstudie ist, zu überprüfen, ob die Einkaufsfertigkeiten eines 15-jährigen autistischen Jugendlichen mit einem computergestützten Training verbessert werden können. Das Einkaufsverhalten wurde systematisch unter Baseline-, Trainings- und Post-Trainings-Bedingung beobachtet. Der Trainingsprozess wurde durch Merkmale des Lern- und Lehrverhaltens erfasst. Die videographierten Verhaltensbeobachtungen wurden nach partieller Time-sampling- und Event-sampling-Methode analysiert. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass sich die Einkaufsfertigkeiten des autistischen Jugendlichen im Verlauf des Trainings deutlich verbesserten und nach dem Training auf die reale Einkaufssituation im Supermarkt übertragen werden konnten. Der Trainingsprozess lässt sich durch häufigen Wechsel von aufmerksamem und abgelenktem Lernverhalten und einer ausgeprägten Lehr-Aktivität des Tutors charakterisieren. Die Ergebnisse stützen die Annahme, dass computerbasierte Interventionsmethoden, die von einem Trainingstutor begleitet werden, lebenspraktische Fertigkeiten wie Einkaufsverhalten bei autistischen Personen wesentlich verbessern können.