bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The role of frugivory in the diversification of bats in the Neotropics
Authors: Rojas Danny , Vale Ángel , Ferrero Victoria , Navarro Luis
Published: April 2012

Aim Ecological interactions are among the most important biotic factors influencing the processes of speciation and extinction. Our aim was to test whether diversification rates of New World Noctilionoidea bats are associated with specialization for frugivory, and how this pattern differs between the mainland and the West Indies.

Location The New World.

Methods We reconstructed a time‐calibrated molecular phylogenetic hypothesis for the New World genera of the superfamily Noctilionoidea. We compiled data on diet, morphology, geographical distribution and number of ecoregions in which each genus occurs. Then, using the phylogenetic tree constructed, we tested whether diversification was driven by diet (animalivorous and sanguinivorous versus nectarivorous and frugivorous) and specialization for frugivory. Afterwards, we conducted phylogenetic comparative analyses to identify correlates of species richness and net diversification rates.

Results The diversification rate was higher in mutualistic than in antagonistic clades in mainland and Antillean biogeographical scenarios, but only strictly frugivorous clades showed a markedly higher diversification rate than the rest of the genera. Geographical range and number of ecoregions were positively associated with species richness and diversification rate in continental and insular lineages. Lower body mass, lower forearm length and specialization for frugivory were significantly positively correlated with higher diversification rates in continental lineages, whereas these parameters were negatively correlated in Antillean lineages.

Main conclusions The direction of the relationship of intrinsic factors (specialization for frugivory and body size) with diversification of noctilionoid bats depends on the biogeographical context, whereas the direction of the relationship of extrinsic factors (geographical range and number of ecoregions) with diversification is consistent in both mainland and the West Indian lineages.
Early muscle and brain ultrastructural changes in polymerase gamma 1‐related encephalomyopathy
Authors: Nolte Kay W. , Trepels‐Kottek Sonja , Honnef Dagmar , Weis Joachim , Bien Christian G. , van Baalen Andreas , Ritter Klaus , Czermin Birgit , Rudnik‐Schöneborn Sabine , Wagner Norbert , Häusler Martin
Published: April 2012

Mutations affecting the mitochondrial DNA‐polymerase gamma 1 (POLG1) gene have been shown to cause Alpers‐Huttenlocher disease. Ultrastructural data on brain and muscle tissue are rare. We report on ultrastructural changes in brain and muscle tissue of two sisters who were compound heterozygous for the c.2243G>C and c.1879C>TPOLG1mutations. Patient 1 (16 years) presented with epilepsia partialis continua that did not respond to antiepileptic treatment. Neuroimaging showed right occipital and bithalamic changes. Light microscopy from a brain biopsy performed after 3 weeks suggested chronic encephalitis showing astro‐ and microgliosis as well as perivascular CD8‐positive T‐cells. However, immunosuppressive therapy failed to improve her condition. When her 17‐year‐old sister (patient 2) also developed epilepsy, an intensified search for metabolic diseases led to the diagnosis. On electron microscopy mitochondrial abnormalities mainly affecting neurons were detected in the brain biopsy of patient 1, including an increase in number and size, structural changes and globoid inclusions. In patient 2, light and electron microscopy on a muscle biopsy confirmed a mitochondrial myopathy, also revealing an increase in mitochondrial size and number, as well as globoid inclusions. Neurons may be the primary target of mitochondrial dysfunction in brains of patients with Alpers disease related toPOLG1mutations. During early disease stages, brain histopathology may be misleading, showing reactive inflammatory changes.
Histological assessment of impact of ovarian endometrioma and laparoscopic cystectomy on ovarian reserve
Authors: Kuroda Masako , Kuroda Keiji , Arakawa Atsushi , Fukumura Yuki , Kitade Mari , Kikuchi Iwaho , Kumakiri Jun , Matsuoka Shozo , Brosens Ivo A. , Brosens Jan J. , Takeda Satoru , Yao Takashi
Published: April 2012

Aim:  The rate of oocyte decline follows a biphasic pattern, characterized by acceleration between 32 and 38 years old. Ovarian reserve is also affected by external factors, including ovarian disease and iatrogenic damage. The aim of this study was to histologically evaluate the impact of ovarian endometriomas, laparoscopic cystectomy, and age on follicle reserve in healthy ovarian tissues and in surgically resected cyst walls.

Material and Methods:  Sixty‐one patients were found to have ovarian endometriomas and 42 patients non‐endometriotic cysts. A small amount of normal ovarian tissue was obtained during ovarian cystectomy. The follicles in normal ovarian tissue and resected cyst walls were histologically evaluated.

Results:  The density of follicles in ovarian tissues correlated with the age of the patients in both groups. In women aged <35 years, the relative density of follicles in healthy ovarian tissues was consistently lower in the endometriotic cyst group compared to the non‐endometriotic cyst group, with the relative ratio at age 20, 30 and 35 years calculated to be 35.4%, 46.8% and 62.7%, respectively. There was no significant difference between the groups in patients over the age of 35. The resection rate of normal ovarian tissue in cystectomy specimen of the endometriosis group was significantly higher than in the non‐endometriotic cyst group (P < 0.001).

Conclusions:  Our data suggest that ovarian endometriomas have a detrimental impact on follicle reserve in younger patients. Further, laparoscopic cystectomy for endometriomas may accelerate the rate of oocyte loss associated with aging.
Mechanical behaviour and microstructural characterization of 3D four‐directional braided SiO2f/SiO2 composites
Authors: LIU Y. , ZHU J. , CHEN Z. , LI C. , BOAFO F. E.
Published: April 2012

In this paper, SiO2f/SiO2 composites reinforced by 3D four‐directional braided quartz preform were prepared by the silica sol‐infiltration‐sintering method in a relatively low sintering temperature (450 °C). To characterize the mechanical properties of the composites, mechanical testing was carried out under various loading conditions, including tensile, flexural and shear loading. The microstructure and the fracture behaviour of the 3D four‐directional braided SiO2f/SiO2 composites were studied. The tensile strength, flexural strength and the in‐plane shear strength were 30.8 MPa, 64.0 MPa and 22.0 MPa, respectively. The as‐fabricated composite exhibited highly nonlinear stress–strain behaviour under all the three types of loading. The tensile and flexural fracture mechanisms were fully discussed. The fracture mode of the 3D four‐directional braided SiO2f/SiO2 composite in the Iosipescu shear testing was based on a mixed mechanism because of the multi‐directivity of the composite. Owing to low sintered temperature, the fibre/matrix interfacial strength was weak. The SiO2f/SiO2 composites showed non‐catastrophic behaviour resulting from extensive fibre pull‐out during the failure process.
Investigation of rolling contact crack initiation in bainitic and pearlitic rail steels
Authors: ONAL O. , CANADINC D. , SEHITOGLU H. , VERZAL K. , JIANG Y.
Published: April 2012

The stress–strain history and the crack initiation lives of bainitic and head‐hardened pearlitic rail steels were determined under rolling contact loading by implementing the semi‐analytical Jiang–Sehitoglu rolling contact model that incorporates both ratchetting and multiaxial fatigue damage. The calculations revealed that the bainitic steel withstands higher loads than the pearlitic steel at low shear tractions, however; both materials behave in an increasingly similar manner as the shear tractions increase. Furthermore, maximum damage occurs in both steels when ratchetting and fatigue damage coincide on the surface. In addition to shedding light on the rolling contact fatigue (RCF) performance of bainitic and pearlitic rail steels, the current work also establishes a methodology for the realistic prediction of crack initiation under RCF.
High Task/High Ego Oriented Students' Reasons for Endorsing Task and Ego Goals in the Context of Physical Education
Authors: Carr Sam
Published: April 2012

This paper explores the deeper reasons that students identify to account for their endorsement of high task/high ego goals in the context of physical education (PE). Data from in‐depth interviews suggest that although such individuals are thought to reflect a statistically homogenous subgroup, they outline remarkably different qualitative reasons to account for their endorsement of task and ego oriented items. Findings are discussed in terms of their relevance to Nicholls's achievement goal theory in the context of PE.
Rethinking Motivation Goals for Adolescents: Beyond Achievement Goals
Authors: Mansfield Caroline
Published: April 2012

For the past two decades the prime focus of motivation research in adolescence has been concerned with achievement goals, namely mastery and performance goals. In the real life learning contexts in which students participate, however, such goals are inextricably linked to other goals such as social goals and broader life and future goals. Moreover, goals are not pursued in isolation but as components of complex and dynamic motivational systems which individuals shape to suit context and purpose. Using a multiple goals perspective, and focusing on both why students want to achieve at school (achievement goals) and what goals students are trying to achieve at school (goal content), this paper presents findings from a study investigating the goals of 29 secondary school students (juniors, ages 12–13, and seniors ages 16–17). With data gathered during focus group interviews, the study shows that students pursue multiple goals and that those goals are related to four main goal domains, those being future goals, achievement goals, social goals, and personal well‐being goals. Furthermore, the study reveals relationships between goals in particular domains and highlights the important role played by future goals in adolescents' motivation at school. Methodological challenges in investigating multiple goals for adolescents are discussed. The findings suggest that to further understanding about multiple goals for adolescents, future research should consider multiple goals across the four domains and more closely examine the role of future goals in influencing other goals and adolescents' motivation at school.
Examining the ‘gold standard’: a comparative critical analysis of three consecutive decades of monopolar transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) outcomes
Authors: Mayer Erik K. , Kroeze Stephanie G.C. , Chopra Samarth , Bottle Alex , Patel Anup
Published: April 2012

What's known on the subject? and What does the study add?

Transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) remains the dominant and definitive treatment for lower urinary tract symptoms due to benign prostatic hyperplasia (LUTS‐BPH), but the widespread use of medical therapies (particularly monotherapies) for rapid symptom improvement has meant that the most common indication for TURP has shifted to moderate–severe medical therapy refractory LUTS to, coupled with abnormal objective parameters, or when complications arise.

Patients undergoing TURP as part of contemporary randomised controlled trials are not older but have a larger preoperative prostate volume and reduced major morbidity compared with large cohort studies from successive past eras. Delayed surgery because of prolonged medical monotherapy may explain a higher reported failure to void rate, possibly because of negative impact on detrusor function from unrelieved obstruction.

This study examined contemporary TURP for significant changes, specifically regarding prostate size, operative parameters, and outcomes, compared with two preceding decades. Electronic databases PubMed, EMBASE & Cochrane collaboration were searched for English literature on prospective randomized controlled trials, published between 1997 and 2007 using keywords “transurethral resection” and “prostate”. Monopolar TURP (M‐TURP) cohort data of each study were selectively pooled for analysis, weighting studies according to patient numbers. Where possible, pooled post‐operative outcomes data were compared with two large cohort landmark studies of successive preceding decades. A total of 3470 patients from 67 studies were included. Mean patient age (67 years) was unchanged, while mean pre‐operative prostate volume of 47.6 g was greater than previously reported. Mean resected prostate tissue (25.8 g) with a resection time of 38.5 minutes suggested improved resection efficiency. A statistically significantly reduced transfusion rate and increased urinary tract infection (UTI) rate were reported. Hospital stay (3.6 days) and initial catheterisation duration (2.5 days) were similar, but post‐operative urinary retention rate was slightly higher (6.8%). Contemporary RCTs of M‐TURP showed larger prostate volume, and reduced major morbidity, compared with large cohort studies from successive past eras. The higher reported failure to void rate, may possibly reflect worse detrusor function at time of TURP. Delaying surgery by prolonged medical monotherapy may compound this. Trials methodology in this area requires quality improvement and standardisation in future.
Patient factors and glycaemic control – associations and explanatory power
Authors: Rogvi S. , Tapager I. , Almdal T. P. , Schiøtz M. L. , Willaing I.
Published: April 2012

Diabet. Med. 29, e382–e389 (2012)

Aims  To investigate the association between glycaemic control and patient socio‐demographics, activation level, diabetes‐related distress, assessment of care, knowledge of target HbA1c, and self‐management behaviours, and to determine to what extent these factors explain the variance in HbA1c in a large Danish population of patients with Type 2 diabetes.

Methods  Cross‐sectional survey and record review of 2045 patients from a specialist diabetes clinic. Validated scales measured patient activation, self‐management behaviours, diabetes‐related emotional distress, and perceived care. The electronic patient record provided information about HbA1c, medication, body mass index, and duration of diabetes. Data were analysed using multiple linear regression models with stepwise addition of covariates.

Results  The response rate was 54% (n = 1081). Good glycaemic control was significantly associated with older age, higher education, higher patient activation, lower diabetes‐related emotional distress, better diet and exercise behaviours, lower body mass index, shorter duration of disease and knowledge of HbA1c targets (P < 0.05 for all). Patient socio‐demographics, behaviour; perceptions of care and diabetes distress accounted for 14% of the total variance in HbA1c levels (P = 0.0134), but the variance explained was higher for respondents treated with medications other than insulin.

Conclusions  Our study emphasizes the complex relationships between patient activation, distress and behaviour, specific treatment modalities and glycaemic control. Knowledge of treatment goals, achieving patient activation in coping with diabetes, and lowering disease‐related emotional stress are important patient education goals. However, the large unexplained component of HbA1c variance highlights the need for more research to understand the mechanisms of glycaemic control.
COMBINING INDIVIDUAL PARTICIPANT DATA AND SUMMARY STATISTICS FROM BOTH CONTINUOUSLY VALUED AND BINARY VARIABLES TO ESTIMATE REGRESSION PARAMETERS
Authors: Gurrin Lyle C. , Turkovic Lidija
Published: April 2012

Recent research has extended standard methods for meta‐analysis to more general forms of evidence synthesis, where the aim is to combine different data types or data summaries that contain information about functions of multiple parameters to make inferences about the parameters of interest. We consider one such scenario in which the goal is to make inferences about the association between a primary binary exposure and continuously valued outcome in the context of several confounding exposures, and where the data are available in various different forms: individual participant data (IPD) with repeated measures, sample means that have been aggregated over strata, and binary data generated by thresholding the underlying continuously valued outcome measure. We show that an estimator of the population mean of a continuously valued outcome can be constructed using binary threshold data provided that a separate estimate of the outcome standard deviation is available. The results of a simulation study show that this estimator has negligible bias but is less efficient than the sample mean – the minimum variance ratio is based on a Taylor series expansion. Combining this estimator with sample means and IPD from different sources (such as a series of published studies) using both linear and probit regression does, however, improve the precision of estimation considerably by incorporating data that would otherwise have been excluded for being in the wrong format. We apply these methods to investigate the association between the G277S mutation in the transferrin gene and serum ferritin (iron) levels separately in pre‐ and post‐menopausal women based on data from three published studies.
The use of digital technologies across the adult life span in distance education
Authors: Jelfs Anne , Richardson John T. E.
Published: April 2012

In June 2010, a survey was carried out to explore access to digital technology, attitudes to digital technology and approaches to studying across the adult life span in students taking courses with the UK Open University. In total, 7000 people were surveyed, of whom more than 4000 responded. Nearly all these students had access to a computer and the Internet, but younger students were more likely than older students to have access to other technologies, to spend longer time using those technologies and to have more positive attitudes to digital technology. However, there was no evidence for any discontinuity around the age of 30, as would be predicted by the “Net Generation” and “Digital Natives” hypotheses. Older students were more likely than younger students to adopt deep and strategic approaches to studying and less likely to adopt a surface approach to studying. In addition, regardless of their ages, students who had more positive attitudes to technology were more likely to adopt deep and strategic approaches to studying and were less likely to adopt a surface approach to studying.

Practitioner Notes

What is already known about this topic

Younger students have more access to digital technology and more positive attitudes to such technology than older students.

Students who have more positive attitudes to technology are more likely to adopt deep and strategic approaches to studying and are less likely to adopt a surface approach.

Nevertheless, older students are more likely to adopt deep and strategic approaches to studying and are less likely to adopt a surface approach than are younger students.

What this paper adds

Students' use of, and attitudes to, digital technology vary monotonically across the adult lifespan, and there is no evidence for any discontinuity around the age of 30.

Students' age and their attitudes to digital technology are distinct predictors of their approaches to studying.

When they have similar access to relevant forms of technology, older students may be more likely than younger students to respond to online surveys.

Implications for practice and/or policy

Policy‐makers and practitioners should reject stereotypes regarding younger and older learners, such as those reflected in the Net Generation and Digital Natives hypotheses.

Both younger and older students hold broadly positive attitudes to digital technology.

Whatever their age, today's students regard the use of digital technology as an integral part of their experience of higher education.
Backdated Stock Options and Boards of Directors: An Examination of Committees, Structure, and Process
Authors: Frankforter Steven A. , Becton J. Bret , Stanwick Peter A. , Coleman Clarence
Published: April 2012

Manuscript Type: Empirical

Research Question/Issue: In this study, we investigated the effects of several factors related to nominating and compensation committee structure and process on the likelihood of employing backdated stock options.

Research Findings/Insights: To test our hypotheses, we selected a sample of US firms that had been investigated for backdating stock options and a control group of similar sized US firms from the same industry that had not been investigated for backdating. Using an agency perspective, we found that when compared to companies within the same industries, firms using backdated stock options did not tend to utilize nominating committees, and structured their compensation committees so that they are smaller, and meet less frequently. We also found that their CEOs are more generously compensated. Consistent with agency theory, these findings indicate that companies using backdated stock option may possess compromised monitoring and incentive alignment mechanisms.

Theoretical/Academic Implications: Despite being one of the most dominant management theories in recent history, little empirical evidence supports the validity of agency theory. In contrast to studies producing results calling into question the value of agency theory, we found significant results with regard to understanding the conditions under which agency problems might be promulgated. Also, our study contributes to the understanding of corporate governance by examining a variety of possible antecedents to the practice of backdated stock options and how boards and committees may be constructed to more effectively reduce the agency problem.

Practitioner/Policy Implications: Our results provide important evidence concerning factors or situations associated with backdating, which will be instructive in designing remedies to curb such practices in the future. In particular, to reduce the likelihood of dating schemes such as backdated stock options, firms should consider utilizing nominating committees, and constructing committees with more members and requiring frequent meetings so that directors can be better positioned for the effective execution of their monitoring responsibilities of management.
The powerful pre‐treatment effect: placebo responses in restless legs syndrome trials
Authors: de la Fuente‐Fernández R.
Published: April 2012

Objective

To investigate whether dopaminergic pre‐treatment alters placebo and dopamine agonist responses in restless legs syndrome (RLS).

Methods

Two large, multi‐centre trials (SP790 and SP792; registration numbers NCT00136045 and NCT00135993) on the efficacy of rotigotine in RLS reported supplemental International RLS (IRLS) sum score data for pre‐treated and drug‐naïve patients, allowing for the estimation of the regression slope of the clinical response (change in the IRLS sum score) on baseline IRLS sum score.

Results

In both trials, patients pre‐treated with dopaminergic medications tended to have blunted responses after placebo administration compared with drug‐naïve patients. In the SP790 study, the pre‐treated group had a negative slope (i.e. the response observed after placebo administration decreased as the baseline IRLS sum score increased), whereas the slope was positive in drug‐naïve patients (slope, −0.43 vs. 0.28; P = 0.027). In the SP792 study, the two slopes were parallel (P = 0.84), but the magnitude of the response after placebo administration was smaller in the pre‐treated group (6.31 vs. 10.49; P = 0.0089). Pre‐treatment had no significant effect on rotigotine‐group responses in either of the two studies.

Conclusions

In RLS trials, dopaminergic pre‐treatment tends to increase the apparent effect of new dopaminergic drugs by decreasing the placebo effect in the placebo arm without substantially modifying the placebo effect in the active treatment arm. This observation highlights that placebo‐controlled trials are not necessarily placebo‐effect controlled trials.
Carotid artery plaque progression and cognitive decline: the Tromsø Study 1994–2008
Authors: Arntzen K. A. , Schirmer H. , Johnsen S. H. , Wilsgaard T. , Mathiesen E. B.
Published: April 2012

Background

Carotid atherosclerosis is a risk factor for stroke and cognitive decline, but knowledge on how progression of carotid atherosclerosis affects cognitive function in stroke‐free individuals is scarce.

Methods

In the population‐based Tromsø study, we calculated the change in ultrasound‐assessed carotid plaque number and total plaque area from baseline (survey 4) to follow‐up 7 years later (survey 5) in 4274 middle‐aged stroke‐free subjects. Cognitive function was assessed at follow‐up by the verbal memory test, the digit‐symbol coding test, and the tapping test and repeated after an additional 6 years in a subgroup of 2042 subjects (survey 6). Associations between the average of survey 4 and survey 5 plaque scores and the progression of plaque scores and cognitive test scores were assessed in regression analyses adjusted for baseline age, sex, education, depression, and cardiovascular risk factors.

Results

Progression of total plaque area was associated with lower scores in the digit‐symbol coding test (multivariable adjusted standardized β, −0.03; 95% CI, −0.05 to −0.00; P = 0.04) and the tapping test (β, −0.03; 95% CI, −0.06 to −0.00; P = 0.03). Similar results were seen for progression of plaque number. The average plaque scores were associated with lower scores in all cognitive tests (P‐values ≤ 0.01). No association was found between plaque scores and cognitive decline.

Conclusions

The average plaque scores were associated with lower scores in all cognitive tests. Progression of plaque scores was associated with lower scores in the digit‐symbol coding test and the tapping test, but not with the verbal memory test or with cognitive decline.
The co‐occurrence of autism spectrum disorder and attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms in parents of children with ASD or ASD with ADHD
Authors: van Steijn Daphne J. , Richards Jennifer S. , Oerlemans Anoek M. , de Ruiter Saskia W. , van Aken Marcel A.G. , Franke Barbara , Buitelaar Jan. K. , Rommelse Nanda N.J.
Published: April 2012

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) share about 50–72% of their genetic factors, which is the most likely explanation for their frequent co‐occurrence within the same patient or family. An additional or alternative explanation for the co‐occurrence may be (cross‐)assortative mating, e.g., the tendency to choose a partner that is similar or dissimilar to oneself. Another issue is that of parent‐of‐origin effect which refers to the possibility of parents differing in the relative quantity of risk factors they transmit to the offspring. The current study sets out to examine (cross‐)assortative mating and (cross‐)parent‐of‐origin effects of ASD and ADHD in parents of children with either ASD or ASD with ADHD diagnosis.

Methods: In total, 121 families were recruited in an ongoing autism‐ADHD family genetics project. Participating families consisted of parents and at least one child aged between 2 and 20 years, with either autistic disorder, Asperger disorder or PDD‐NOS, and one or more biological siblings. All children and parents were carefully screened for the presence of ASD and ADHD.

Results: No correlations were found between maternal and paternal ASD and ADHD symptoms. Parental ASD and ADHD symptoms were predictive for similar symptoms in the offspring, but with maternal hyperactive‐impulsive symptoms, but not paternal symptoms, predicting similar symptoms in daughters. ASD pathology in the parents was not predictive for ADHD pathology in the offspring, but mother’s ADHD pathology was predictive for offspring ASD pathology even when corrected for maternal ASD pathology.

Conclusions: Cross‐assortative mating for ASD and ADHD does not form an explanation for the frequent co‐occurrence of these disorders within families. Given that parental ADHD is predictive of offspring’ ASD but not vice versa, risk factors underlying ASD may overlap to a larger degree with risk factors underlying ADHD than vice versa. However, future research is needed to clarify this issue.
‘We, the Youth, Need to Be Effusive’: Pentecostal Youth Culture in Contemporary Chile
Authors: LINDHARDT MARTIN
Published: April 2012

This paper explores the recasting of Pentecostalism as a youth religion in contemporary Chile. I focus in particular on how young native Pentecostals, whose life experiences and social status differ from those of ex‐Catholic converts, address the dilemma of being exposed to the religious culture of their parents, and their congregation, and to the secular youth culture beyond the religious community. I argue that, although faced with many challenges, young Pentecostals are able to define vital roles and positions for themselves within their church and in wider society, as they engage in a creative bricolage, embracing certain aspects of globalised youth ideologies as fundamental features of their Pentecostal self‐identities.
Detection of cheese packaging containment failures using reversible optical oxygen sensors
Authors: HEMPEL ANDREAS W , GILLANDERS ROSS N , PAPKOVSKY DMITRI B , KERRY JOSEPH P
Published: April 2012

This study investigated the capacity of optical oxygen sensors to nondestructively detect containment packaging failures in commercial vacuum packed cheddar cheese. Unacceptable oxygen levels in packs lead to product deterioration and can significantly reduce shelf life. Vacuum packed cheddar cheese was monitored for oxygen levels over time at 4 °C with optical sensors prefitted to packaging laminates polyethyleneterephthalate/polypropylene. Oxygen levels present in packs immediately after packaging were 3% on average. Further ingress of oxygen into all packs occurred over storage time and levels ranged from 3.6% to 8.2% after 6 days. Information obtained using oxygen sensors led to further assessments and identification of the causes of packaging containment failure.
Guilt and shame – a semantic concept analysis of two concepts related to palliative care
Authors: Werkander Harstäde Carina , Roxberg Åsa , Andershed Birgitta , Brunt David
Published: April 2012

Background:  The theoretical viewpoint of the study was based on the fundamental motive in caring science, the suffering person and his/her health and life situation, which according to the philosophy of palliative care also includes the next of kin. The latter often wish to participate in the care of their loved ones and it is thus important for them to be able to make decisions that can generate a meaningful participation. Unfulfilled obligations or wrong decisions, concerning their dying relative, can result in experiences of guilt and shame in relation to the care of the loved one. A semantic concept analysis can provide a deeper understanding of these concepts and create a deeper insight into what the concepts mean for the individual.

Aim:  The aim of the study was to elucidate the meaning of and the distinction between the concepts of guilt and shame.

Methods:  Semantic concept analysis based on Koort and Eriksson.

Findings:  The findings show that guilt and shame are two separate concepts. Guilt contains meaning dimensions of being the cause of and sin. Shame contains meaning dimensions of something that gives rise to shame and ability to experience shame. The synonyms for each concept do not overlap each other.

Conclusion:  The semantic analysis creates an understanding of the concepts ontologically and provides a basis for theoretical, contextual and clinical understanding and development.
Dominance of flow‐mediated constriction over flow‐mediated dilatation in the rat carotid artery
Authors: Craig John , Martin William
Published: April 2012

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The shearing forces generated by flow generally evoke dilatation in systemic vessels but constriction in the cerebral circulation. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of flow on the conduit artery delivering blood to the brain in the rat, that is, the carotid artery.

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Carotid artery segments were mounted in a pressure myograph and pressurized to 100 mmHg. Changes in vessel diameter to flow (0.5–10 mL·min−1 for 2–10 min) at constant pressure were then measured using a video dimension analyser.

KEY RESULTS Following the induction of tone, the onset of flow evoked a transient dilatation followed by a powerful constriction that was sustained until the termination of flow. Endothelial denudation or treatment with indomethacin, NG‐nitro‐L‐arginine methyl ester, or the combination of apamin and TRAM−34 showed that the initial flow‐mediated dilatation arose from the combined actions of endothelium‐derived NO and endothelium‐derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF). The flow‐mediated constriction, which increased in magnitude with increasing flow rate and duration of flow, was also endothelium dependent, but was unaffected by treatment with superoxide dismutase, BQ‐123, indomethacin, HET0016 or carbenoxolone. Flow‐mediated constriction therefore appeared not to involve superoxide anion, endothelin‐1, a COX product, 20‐HETE or gap‐junctional communication.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Although a weak, transient flow‐mediated dilatation is observed in the rat carotid artery, the dominant response to flow is a powerful and sustained constriction. Whether this flow‐mediated constriction in the carotid artery serves as an extracranial mechanism to regulate cerebral blood flow remains to be determined.
The exaggerated radiocarbon age of deposit‐feeding molluscs in calcareous environments
Authors: England John , Dyke Arthur S. , Coulthard Roy D. , Mcneely Roger , Aitken Alec
Published: April 2012

Throughout northernCanada, live‐collected, pre‐bomb, deposit‐feeding marine molluscs from calcareous sediments yield greater apparent radiocarbon ages than do suspension feeders. We explore the size of this effect in a set of 57 paired datings of deposit feeders, mainlyPortlandia arctica, and suspension feeders, mainlyHiatella arcticaandMya truncata, collected from both calcareous and non‐calcareousHolocene sediments. Deposit feeders from calcareous sediments are older than their suspension‐feeding counterparts by as much as 2240±13014Cyears. This is attributed to the uptake of ‘old’ bicarbonate derived from calcareous bedrock. The age discrepancy between suspension and deposit feeders in calcareous terrain is non‐systematic in space and time, thereby invalidating the application of a correction. In contrast, the age comparisons are concordant at sites located on thePrecambrian Shield. In terrestrial environments underlain by carbonate, previous acceptance of dates on deposit feeders led to erroneous interpretations of deglaciation and relative sea‐level history, in both theNorthAmerican and theEurasianArctic. This has prompted several researchers to exclude deposit feeders from their lateQuaternary reconstructions. The same chronological problem of deposit‐feeding molluscs now needs to be more widely acknowledged by the marine community.
Sports‐Related Concussion: The Role of the Headache Specialist
Authors: Conidi Francis X.
Published: April 2012

Over the past few years, sports‐related concussion has received significant media attention making it one of the most, if not highest profile neurological disorder. Thirty‐one states now have passed sports concussion laws, with 14 states pending legislation. Most concussions are managed by primary care physicians, ie, family practice trained sports medicine physicians and pediatricians. Symptoms are usually short lived and do not require treatment. The one exception is headache, which is usually present from onset and is often the last symptom to resolve. Headache is the most common reason for referral to a specialist, and therefore it is imperative that the headache specialist have at least a basic understanding of all aspects of sports concussion as they are likely going to be called upon to evaluate these athletes, especially the more refractory cases.
Session Topic: Individual Investors and Mutual Funds
Authors: Treynor Jack L. , Black Fischer , Scholes Myron
Published: April 2012

Summary. The modern theory of finance suggests that most investors should put part or all of their money into a “market portfolio” mixed with borrowing or lending. Empirical evidence generally supports the theory, but there are some unanswered questions about the composition of the best market portfolio, about the apparent attractiveness of low risk stocks relative to high risk stocks, and about ways of minimizing transaction costs. Attempts to create a fund based on these principles and to make it available to a large number of investors have uncovered some important problems. Legal costs due to government regulation, the costs of managing a fund, and especially the costs of selling it are all much higher than one might expect. Despite these problems, efforts to create such funds seem destined for eventual success.
A Catastrophe Model of Bank Failure
Authors: HO THOMAS , SAUNDERS ANTHONY
Published: April 2012

Most models of bank failure have assumed that the path towards bankruptcy or insolvency is smooth and continuous. As a consequence a number of early‐warning systems have been suggested in the banking and financial literature to aid regulators in the identification of potential problem banks. However, these systems may be of little use when the path towards failure is explosive, involving a sudden crash or catastrophe. This paper seeks to examine such cases by applying the theory of catastrophes to bank failure. A model is developed to show how the interaction between bank management, regulators and depositors can induce catastrophic failure. It is argued that there is a crucial relationship between the power of regulatory intervention and depositors confidence levels which is both necessary and sufficient for catastrophe to occur. It is also argued that catastrophe appears to be more likely for large money market banks rather than small banks. Finally, some suggestions are made for regulatory policy and for further research in the area.
Debt, Taxes and Leasing A Note
Authors: BREALEY R. A. , YOUNG C. M.
Published: April 2012

This paper discusses the implications of Miller's paper “Debt and Taxes” for the valuation of leases. It shows that if Miller's equilibrium holds, leasing is only likely to dominate debt and equity for companies in temporary nontaxpaying positions.
Affiliated Bank Performance and the Simultaneity of Financial Decision‐Making
Authors: GRADDY DUANE B. , KYLE REUBEN
Published: April 2012

The remarkable growth of bank holding companies (BHCs) during the last decade has aroused a great deal of interest and controversy among academic economists and bank regulators. One of the important issues discussed has been the impact of holding company affiliation on the operating performance of the acquired banks. Subsequent empirical testing of the question has produced a wide array of results. Nevertheless, a recent survey of the literature by the staff of the Federal Reserve Board [18] concluded that while not entirely unambiguous, the findings are “relatively consistent and conclusive.” Such a sweeping generalization seems premature at best.

In a recent issue of this Journal [4], we proposed an empirical model designed to test the interdependency between financial decision‐making and bank performance. The purpose of this note is to examine the implications of that investigation for the BHC performance issue. The impact of affiliation on bank performance has been analyzed in several different ways; however, no study has considered the important theoretical and statistical implications of the simultaneity question.
The Effects of Mission‐Oriented Public R & D Spending on Private Industry
Authors: CARMICHAEL JEFFREY
Published: April 2012

This paper addresses the question of how government mission‐oriented R & D spending affects private R & D spending and thereby the total investment in technology. The problem is approached within the context of the capital asset pricing model in which the firm views investment projects in terms of their risk and return characteristics. The firm is assumed to produce jointly an established product and an R & D‐intensive product, where the latter generates an additional output of technology, or spillover, that is used as an input into the former. By investing in R & D the firm alters its risk and return characteristics in two ways: through the expected profits from the sale of the R & D‐intensive good; and through the expected profits from the spillover. In this model, government mission‐oriented R & D contracting affects the firm by enabling it to separate to some extent these two sources of risk and return. The main implication of the analysis is that while some public crowding out of private R & D is likely, this is almost certain to be incomplete. The empirical evidence from the U.S. transport industry supports the model and suggests that each dollar of government funding adds around 92 cents to total R & D spending; crowding out private investment by as little as eight percent.
Resolving the Agency Problems of External Capital through Options
Authors: HAUGEN ROBERT A. , SENBET LEMMA W.
Published: April 2012

This paper investigates the role of stock options in resolving the agency problems of external capital as originally identified by Jensen and Meckling (1976). These problems are precipitated by managerial incentives a) to consume excessive non‐pecuniary benefits or perquisites beyond the optimal level for sole ownership and b) to engage in risk shifting in productive decisions so as to transfer wealth from external capital contributors. These incentive problems can be resolved through a strategy that judiciously combines call and put options retained by the owner‐manager and external financiers, respectively. The resolution of the agency problems through this mechanism provides an economic rationale for the existence of managerial stock options and convertible debt.
The Weekend Eurodollar Game
Authors: COATS WARREN L.
Published: April 2012

A growing number of large U.S. banks have used artificial Eurodollar transactions in connection with the heavier weighting of Fridays in the calculation of required reserves to significantly reduce the impact on them of that requirement. This reserve avoidance behavior bestows an unintended and inequitable benefit on those banks engaging in it, unnecessarily increases risks from credit exposures and potentially distorts money stock measures. The incentive for this activity and hence its practice can best be removed by paying interest on required reserves or weighting Fridays equally with all other business days in the reserve requirement calculations.
Time Dominance Efficiency Analysis
Authors: EKERN STEINAR
Published: April 2012

Building on the stochastic dominance framework, time dominance efficiency analysis provides similar rules for a partial ordering of temporal prospects. Time dominance does not require any quantitative information about temporal preferences for screening decision alternatives according to their net present values. A binary time dominance proposition extends recent sufficient conditions and adds necessity. The paper's main contribution is the development of set time dominance. By eliminating binary undominated projects which no one would choose, set time dominance minimizes time efficient sets without imposing further preference assumptions.
Estimating the Information Value of Immediate Disclosure of the FOMC Policy Directive
Authors: O'BRIEN JAMES M.
Published: April 2012

This paper studies the information value of immediate disclosure of the FOMC policy directive. The value of disclosure is measured by its ability to reduce investors' expected uncertainty about futures interest rates where uncertainty is defined as the conditional variance of forecast errors. Analytical relationships between new information and the conditional variance of forecast errors are developed and the relation of the “uncertainty‐reducing” value of information to its social value, as defined in recent literature, is indicated. In the empirical work, forward interest rates are treated as reflecting market expectations conditioned on existing information. The empirical tests indicate that information in the undisclosed, prevailing policy directives (1974–79) were able to make only a very marginal improvement in the predictive accuracy of forecasts relying only on the forward rates. Thus, the hypothesis that immediate disclosure has a significant information value to market participants is not supported.
Bank Reserves and Financial Stability
Authors: SIEGEL JEREMY J.
Published: April 2012

A stochastic financial model is developed which derives the reserve levels on financial assets which minimize price level fluctuations. It is shown that these levels of reserves are a function of the structure of unanticipated shocks to asset demands and are, in general, quite different from the levels which minimize the fluctuations of either the nominal or real value of these assets. Application of the model to currency and demand deposits in the U.S.A. suggest that the price‐Stablizing reserve ratio on demand deposits is approximately one‐half of the 12% currently mandated by the Monetary Control Act of 1980.
The Effect of Taxation on Immunization Rules and Duration Estimation
Authors: HESSEL CHRISTOPHER A. , HUFFMAN LUCY
Published: April 2012

Investments in default‐free bonds can be insulated from financial loss due to interest rate changes (via additive shock) by a process known as immunization. The literature on this process ignores taxes. This manuscript focuses on three issues. The first is the development of the tax‐adjusted immunization process with a comparison to the existing literature. The second issue is the microeconomic effect of a shift in only the individual's tax rates on immunization and investment behavior. The third issue is the macroeconomic effect of an across‐the‐board shift in tax rates on immunization and investment behavior.
Variable Rate Debt Instruments and Corporate Debt Policy
Authors: AGMON T. , OFER A. R. , TAMIR A.
Published: April 2012

Sustained high rate of inflation has led to the creation of debt instruments with variable interest rate. The availability of these debt instruments presents management with the problem of the choice of the optimal debt portfolio. This paper deals with this problem assuming a given, and optimal, debt to equity ratio. Given expected monetary value maximization, an efficient frontier is derived in terms of the expected net income and probability of bankruptcy, where net income is defined as operating income minus debt repayment. This efficient frontier is shown to be also mean‐variance efficient. It is also shown that in most cases the optimal debt portfolio includes more than one debt instrument. In other words, the firm will avoid the policy of minimizing the expected cost of its debt repayments or the policy of minimizing the costs of bankruptcy. The optimal solution itself is affected by market variables like the relative expected cost of different debt instruments and by firm specific variables like the variability of its operating income stream, and the covariance between the operating income and the debt repayments.
A Possible Explanation of the Small Firm Effect
Authors: ROLL RICHARD
Published: April 2012

Recent empirical studies have found that small listed firms yield higher average returns than large firms even when their riskiness is equal. The riskiness of small firms, however, has been improperly measured. Apparently, the error is due to auto‐correlation in portfolio returns caused by infrequent trading. Other anomalous predictors of riskadjusted returns, such as price/earnings ratios and dividend yields, may also derive some of their apparent power from this spurious source.