bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Routine Activity Theory-Based Framework for Combating Cybercrime
Authors: Glasser Dillon , Taneja Aakash
Published: September 2014

Since the government began tackling the problems of cybercrime, many laws have been enacted. A lack of a comprehensive definition and taxonomy of cybercrime makes it difficult to accurately identify report and monitor cybercrime trends. There is not just a lack of international agreement on what cybercrime is; there are different laws in every state within the United States, reflecting the inconsistency of dealing with cybercrime. There is also concern that many times lawyers and information technology professions are unable to understand each other well. The deficiency of cyber laws is an obvious problem and development of effective laws is emerging as an important issue to deal with cybercrime. This research uses the routine activity theory to develop a unified framework by including the motivation of the offender to use a computer as a tool/target, suitability of the target, and the presence (or absence) of guardian. It could help states that want to update their existing laws and cover areas that were previously uncovered.
Sticks and Stones Will Break My Euros
Authors: Bishop Jonathan
Published: September 2014

“Sticks and Stones” is a well-known adage that means that whatever nasty things people say, they will not physically harm one. This is not often the case, as bullying, especially via the Internet, can be quite harmful. There are few anti-bullying laws emanating from the European Union, which is a trading block of 28 member states that have pooled their sovereignty in order to have common laws and practices to boost trade and peace. However, the common legal rules that exist in the EU have implications for those who run websites, including relating to cyber-bullying. These people, known as systems operators, or sysops, can be limited in the powers they have and rules they make through “sysop prerogative.” Sysop prerogative means that a systems operator can do anything which has been permitted or not taken away by statute, or which they have not given away by contract. This chapter reviews how the different legal systems in Europe impact on sysops and change the way in which sysop prerogative can be exercised. This includes not just from the EU legal structure, but equally the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which also has implications for sysops in the way they conduct their activities.
Analysis of the Cybercrime with Spatial Econometrics in the European Union Countries
Authors: Martinho Vítor João Pereira Domingues
Published: September 2014

The main objective of this chapter is to analyze the crimes related to the new information technologies in the European Union using the data provided by the European Commission and the spatial econometrics approaches. The data were analyzed with several tests, namely the Moran´s I, to verify the existence of global (for all countries of the European Union) and local spatial autocorrelation. The presence of spatial autocorrelation in the data means that the variable analyzed in a determined country is auto correlated with the same variable in the neighboring countries. The data analysis was complemented with some cross-section estimations, considering namely the Lagrange Multiplier tests, to examine the spatial lag and the spatial error autocorrelation. The spatial autocorrelation is a statistical infraction, so the consideration of these subjects prevents result bias and on the other hand allows some conclusions important to help in the definition of adjusted policies.
Information Disclosure on Social Networking Sites
Authors: Doherty Clare , Lang Michael , Deane James , Connor Regina
Published: September 2014

This chapter explores how six constructs—control, trust, perceived risk, risk propensity, perceived legal protection, and privacy disposition—affect information disclosure on the Social Networking Site (SNS) Facebook. Building upon previous related work, an extended causal model of disclosure behaviour is proposed. The hypothesised relationships in this model were tested using survey data collected from 278 social networking site users in Ireland. The results of the analysis provide strong support for the proposed model.
Towards an Integrated Research Framework in Public Policy-Focused Investigations
Authors: Aslani Alireza
Published: September 2014

Today researchers help governments to make rational and evidence informed decisions in their public policies. Thereby, practices and studies of public policies should be guided by high quality investigations especially in healthcare and energy sectors. Due to the importance of public policy-focused research and existing research gaps, this article aims to introduce a new framework with special focus on system identification and conceptualization. The framework seeks to integrate advantages of the action, systematic, quantitative, and qualitative research in an innovative structure.
Understanding the Importance of the Integrity Factor in Trust between Subordinates and Supervisors
Authors: Freire Carla
Published: September 2014

The main aim of this study is to explore the underlying factors of the subordinate-supervisor trust relationship and to analyze its impact on the three components of organizational commitment. Data was collected from 192 R&D professionals working at 10 different ICT Portuguese industrial companies. The study confirms the three factors of integrity, benevolence and ability as the basis for the perceived trustworthiness of supervisors by subordinates. In addition, results show that the trust a team member places on his/her leader depends predominantly on his/her perception of integrity. The authors conclude that even in the technological field, where the prevalence of a technical competence-based trust relationship was expected, integrity emerged as important element in the subordinate's trust of his/her supervisor. Integrity was found to correlate significantly with affective, normative and calculative commitment. The authors' findings suggest that organizations can “manage” commitment in ICT industrial enterprises through fostering the perception of integrity by subordinates.
Design and Development of Post Knee Arthroscopy Assist Device
Authors: Rengarajan Rajeshwari
Published: September 2014

Designing and developing a device which provides a solution for knee spasms for the people who underwent surgery in the knee due to injury by enhancing the ability of motion in the knee joint and also strengthening the weak muscles. After operative procedures the patient remains in bed rest which results in passiveness in the lower limb and Range of Motion (ROM) will be reduced due to the impact of the injury. Thus, the Continuous Passive Motion (CPM) device is designed to lessen edema and swelling of the knee followed by injuries or surgeries. This device replaces the all time presence of physiotherapist and can accomplish such routine physical movements without the guidance and assistance of physiotherapist. The key feature in constructing a CPM is in the establishment of an accurate alignment with the human knee joint enabling the device to deliver similar movements as the actual body. Emergency switch is employed to the patients and they can stop the system in case of emergency or discomfort. This system comprises of Mechanical and Electronic components to full fill the necessity of the device requirements.
A Measure to Detect Sleep Onset Using Statistical Analysis of Spike Rhythmicity
Authors: Purnima B.R. , Sriraam N. , Krishnaswamy U. , Radhika K.
Published: September 2014

Electroencephalogram (EEG) signals derived from polysomnography recordings play an important role in assessing the physiological and behavioral changes during onset of sleep. This paper suggests a spike rhythmicity based feature for discriminating the wake and sleep state. The polysomnography recordings are segmented into 1 second EEG patterns to ensure stationarity of the signal and four windowing scheme overlaps (0%, 50%, 60% and 75%)of EEG pattern are introduced to study the influence of the pre-processing procedure. The application of spike rhythmicity feature helps to estimate the number of spikes from the given pattern with a threshold of 25%.Then non parametric statistical analysis using Wilcoxon signed rank test is introduced to evaluate the impact of statistical measures such as mean, standard deviation, p-value and box-plot analysis under various conditions .The statistical test shows significant difference between wake and sleep with p<0.005 for the applied feature, thus demonstrating the efficiency of simple thresholding in distinguishing sleep and wake stage .
A Novel Approach of Restoration of Digital Images Degraded by Impulse Noise
Authors: Kumari Rashmi , Asthana Anupriya , Kumar Vikas
Published: September 2014

Restoration of digital images degraded by impulse noise is still a challenge for researchers. Various methods proposed in the literature suffer from common drawbacks: such as introduction of artifacts and blurring of the images. A novel idea is proposed in this paper where presence of impulsive pixels are detected by ANFIS (Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System) and mean of the median of suitable window size of noisy image is taken for the removal of the detected corrupted pixels. Experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed restoration method both by qualitative and quantitative analysis.
A Framework for Interactive 3D Rendering on Mobile Devices
Authors: Walia Ekta , Verma Vishal
Published: September 2014

Although mobile devices have now become an important computing platform, however most of them still lack hardware accelerated graphics. Therefore, interactive 3D rendering on these devices is a difficult task. This paper describes different approaches for 3D rendering on mobile devices and the associated challenges. It then investigates different solutions to resolve these problems and proposes a framework that uses Image Based Rendering (IBR) technique to render interactive 3D graphics on mobile devices. Further, the performance of proposed framework is compared with Geometry Based Rendering (GBR). The experimental results show that the proposed framework performs better than the geometry-based techniques in terms of rendering time, visual quality and memory requirements. The results also show that the rendering time of the proposed framework is independent of the scene complexity. The experiments are performed in Java Platform Micro Edition (JavaME) environment with Sun JavaME Phone emulator.
Overview of Texture Analysis
Authors: Hamouchene Izem , Aouat Saliha
Published: September 2014

Image analysis is emerging as an important research area. The study of certain methods of image processing by the texture characteristic has been made in this paper. Existing texture analysis algorithms are studied and classified into four categories: statistical methods, structural methods, model based methods and Transform based methods. Each approach is reviewed according to its classification. Many methods have been developed to extract textural features from an image, the authors will talk about the most famous methods and used of texture features extraction with examples and they will give their critics about them. A discussion of these texture methods concludes this study.
Key Frame Extraction from Video
Authors: Mashtalir Sergii , Mikhnova Olena
Published: September 2014

A complete overview of key frame extraction techniques has been provided. It has been found out that such techniques usually have three phases, namely shot boundary detection as a pre-processing phase, main phase of key frame detection, where visual, structural, audio and textual features are extracted from each frame, then processed and analyzed with artificial intelligence methods, and the last post-processing phase lies in removal of duplicates if they occur in the resulting sequence of key frames. Estimation techniques and available test video collections have been also observed. At the end, conclusions concerning drawbacks of the examined procedure and basic tendencies of its development have been marked.
Use and Perception of Wikipedia among Medical Students in a Nigerian University
Authors: Adomi Esharenana E. , Adigwe Samuel Emeka
Published: September 2014

This study explored the use and perception of Wikipedia among medical students in a Nigerian university. Descriptive survey design was adopted using questionnaire as instrument to collect data from 60 medical students who were in their fourth year at Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria. Data obtained were analysed with frequency counts and percentages. The study revealed that 91.7% of the medical students have used Wikipedia; 76.4% of them could not indicate precisely the number of times they have used it; 50.9% of the students use Wikipedia to complement lecture notes, 43.6% for research project as well as to complete class assignment, 14% of them use it to modify content of articles; a majority have good knowledge of the structure and content of the site; the challenges faced by the students are scantiness of information of some articles, unavailability of/inability to obtain articles on some topics from the site, and inaccuracy/unreliability of content of articles.
Encouraging Society Participation Through Conversations About Public Service Processes
Authors: Diirr Bruna , Araujo Renata , Cappelli Claudia
Published: September 2014

This paper posits the idea that conversations about public services encourage society participation in public issues and establish closer ties between society and government service providers. It is argued that by making society aware of how a service is provided – its process - citizens (clients) may develop a better attitude for interacting with government and other service users, by discussing problems, correcting previously-available information, increasing their knowledge about the processes. This paper presents a tool designed to support conversations about public service processes and the results obtained with a case study of its use. The results suggest that conversations have stimulated interaction among citizens and government services providers as well as allowed identification of service improvement opportunities.
A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Electronic Government Adoption in Spain and the USA
Authors: Rufín Ramón , Bélanger France , Molina Cayetano Medina , Carter Lemuria , Figueroa Juan Carlos Sánchez
Published: September 2014

Electronic Government (e-government) is growing in popularity across the globe. Given the increasing relevance of electronic services in the public sector, there is a need for a global agreement on a consistent framework for assessing e-government. This study uses a cross-cultural comparison to assess the fundamentals of e-government adoption in the United States (USA) and Spain. In particular, the authors explore the effects of perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, compatibility and trust on intentions to use e-government services. A survey was administered to citizens in both countries to test the hypotheses derived from adoption literature and Hofstede's dimensions of culture. Results indicate that there are differences in the relationship between compatibility and use intention, with stronger effects in the USA sample. Furthermore, while perceived ease of use significantly impacts intentions for the USA sample, it does not for the Spain sample; and, while trust is not significant in the USA sample, it is for the Spain sample. The implications of these results, mostly consistent with the hypotheses as suggested by the dimensions of culture, are discussed for both research and practice.
Software Testing Strategy
Authors: Molu Fatma
Published: September 2014

Complex financial conversion projects with large budgets have many different challenges. For companies that want to survive in conditions of tough competition, legacy (old) systems must continue to provide the required service throughout the project life cycle and in some circumstances even after project completion partly. In this case, the term coexistence comes into prominence. During this period, testing phase takes more critical role while integration systems' complexity and risk amount increase. Determining testing approach to use is essential to make sure both transformed and legacy systems provide service synchronously. In this paper, testing practices applied in the long conversion processes are discussed. Primarily, the basic features of the critical financial systems are addressed and then the main adoption methods in the literature are summarized. Then a variety of testing methodologies are presented depending on those adoption methods. These samples based on real-life experiences of transformation project. The most extensive example of real-time online financial systems is core banking systems. This paper covers the testing life cycle process of the large scale project of core banking system transformation project of a bank in Turkey.
Combining Flexibility and Data Handling in Business Process Models
Authors: Bruno Giorgio
Published: September 2014

Flexibility and data handling are two hot topics in current research on business process models. However, these issues are tackled separately through declarative languages and artifact-centric approaches, respectively. It follows that the situations in which the choice of the task to perform is a human decision affected by the presence of suitable input entities are not adequately handled; unfortunately, these situations are common in several industrial processes such as build-to-order ones. An integrated approach able to combine flexibility and data handling is needed and to this end this paper presents a notation named ENTA (ENtities and TAsks): it makes both business entities and tasks first-class citizens in process models and it provides high-level descriptions of the tasks in terms of intended effects and constraints to be met. Some examples of order handling processes are used to explain the issues of entity selection and task selection: deciding which customer orders can be associated with the same supplier order is a case of entity selection while deciding whether to generate a new supplier order for the customer orders selected or to add them to an existing supplier order is a case of task selection.
‘Talking Tools'
Authors: Wiklund-Engblom Annika , Hiltunen Kasper , Hartvik Juha , Porko-Hudd Mia , Johansson Marléne
Published: September 2014

The study presented is part of a work-in-progress project of developing a mobile application for smartphones, Talking Tools (TT). The first context TT is developed for and tested in is sloyd education [Swedish: slöjd], a compulsory subject taught in Finnish schools. In sloyd learners design and manufacture unique artifacts in various materials (textiles, wood, metal, and electronics). The process-based work flow of sloyd lends itself well to this kind of educational tool, which aids multimodal documentation, communication, and instruction. The empirical study targets what student teachers (N=11) microblogged about and the character of the blog posts during a sloyd project. A sociocultural perspective of appropriating new tools for learning is used as a theoretical frame, as well as views on multimodality and transmedia. Their sloyd process is discussed in terms of transmedia storybuilding, as learners build their own story as a flow of content through their documentation and interactions.
LingoBee
Authors: Petersen Sobah Abbas , Procter-Legg Emma , Cacchione Annamaria
Published: September 2014

This paper describes three case studies, where language learners were invited to use “LingoBee” as a means of supporting their language learning. LingoBee is a mobile app that provides user-generated language content in a cloud-based shared repository. Assuming that today's students are mobile savvy and “Digital Natives” able to engage in language learning autonomously using technology, initial studies were conducted with little or no intervention by the language teachers. However, the support and guidance provided within a teacher-led context can impact positively on learner engagement and use of LingoBee. The authors discuss this hypothesis using three case studies conducted in three European countries, within the EU LLP project SIMOLA, Situated Mobile Language Learning. This paper answers the research question: Does the level of the support and guidance, pedagogical approach and prior learning impact on learners' engagement and use of LingoBee? An earlier version of this paper was presented at the IADIS Mobile Learning 2013 conference.
Hybrid Line Search and Simulated Annealing For Production Planning System in Industrial Engineering
Authors: Vasant P.
Published: September 2014

In this paper, the details on the optimization methods such as line search and simulated annealing for the local and global optimization have been highlighted. The hybrid line search and simulated annealing technique has been extensively explored in this research work. In this research the hybridization of line search and simulated annealing method provides satisfactory outcomes for the production planning problem in an uncertain environment. The major advantages and disadvantages of line search and simulated annealing also provided in this paper. The results for industrial production problem have been obtained successfully in the form of 2D and 3D plots.
Investigation on Residual Stress and Flank Wear of Tool Insert in Hard Turning of Chrome Plated EN24 Substrate
Authors: Mohandas K.N. , Ramesh C.S. , Koorapati Eshwara Prasad , Balashanmugam N.
Published: September 2014

In the present investigation the hard chrome plated surfaces were hard turned using PcBN cutting inserts. The results of the experiment showed that the hard turning can be applied for the finish machining of chrome plated surfaces. The influence of hard turning was observed when it was tested for residual stress distribution. The results disclosed that the chrome plating technhique has induced the compressive residual stress of -355.9MPa in the workpieces. These compressive residual stresses increased to a value of -723.3MPa after hard turning the chrome plated surfaces. But with worn out insert a tensile residual stress of 228.1MPa was observed in the workpiece. The results also revealed the variation of flank wear on the tool with different cutting inserts. The conclusions was drawn on the hard turning of hard chrome plated by adopting proper cutting conditions to replace the grinding operation by hard turning operation.
Multi-Objective Optimization of EDM Process Parameters using Taguchi Method, Principal Component Analysis and Grey Relational Analysis
Authors: Balraj U. Shrinivas , Krishna A. Gopala
Published: September 2014

This paper investigates multi-objective optimization of electrical discharge machining process parameters using a new combination of Taguchi method and principal component analysis based grey relational analysis. In this study, three conflicting performance characteristics related to surface integrity such as surface roughness, white layer thickness and surface crack density are considered in electrical discharge machining of RENE80 nickel super alloy. The process parameters considered are peak current, pulse on time and pulse off time. The experiments are conducted based on Taguchi method and these experimental results are used in grey relational analysis and weights of the corresponding performance characteristics are determined by principal component analysis. The weighted grey relational grade is used as a performance index to determine optimum process parameters and results of the confirmation experiments indicate that the combined approach is effective in determining optimum process parameters.
Perceptions and Framing of Risk, Uncertainty, Loss, and Failure in Entrepreneurship
Authors: Green Kimberly M.
Published: September 2014

Research indicates that perceptions of risk and loss affect decision-making. Entrepreneurship presents a context in which risk, failure, and loss frequently frame decisions. This paper presents a review of the entrepreneurship literature that is grounded in Kahneman and Tversky's 1979 article on prospect theory. The theory's contribution to the understanding of how the framing of losses affects decisions offers a useful foundation for considering streams of research in entrepreneurship and small business, given that the prospects for loss and failure are high in these endeavors. This review identifies 79 articles and organizes them into four broad themes: risk-taking perspectives of the entrepreneur and stakeholders, aspirations and reference points, organizational innovation and change, and learning from failure. The review concludes by considering the future research potential in the topics of regret, mental accounting, and an understanding of competitors.
Impact of Financial Risk Ratios on Profitability of Multinational vs. Domestic Pharmaceuticals in India
Authors: Chakraborty Kaushik
Published: September 2014

The impact of financial leverage on the profitability position of the business firms under different financing alternatives and with varying levels of overall profitability is one of the most crucial issues in modern finance to sustain continuous improvement in financial performance. In fact, framing an appropriate capital structure with flexible equity and disciplined debt financing is an integral part of the entire corporate strategy to gain shareholder confidence and stakeholder support to achieve long run sustainability. No firm can ignore this aspect in the context of today's high-tech competitive business environment. Unfortunately this issue has not been addressed with due importance in India and in particular, no significant study exists on the pharmaceutical sector comparing the linkage between financial leverage and profitability of multinational companies with that of the domestic companies. The pharmaceutical industry is acknowledged as one of the most promising industries in India; therefore this study should make a significant contribution to the practice. This paper examines the relationship between financial leverage and profitability of the Indian pharmaceutical industry during the period of March 2002 to December 2011 (N=20). The researcher compared the relationship between financial leverage and profitability of multinational companies with that of the domestic companies in the Indian pharmaceutical industry. The research found strong evidence of the negative contribution of financial leverage towards improving profitability for multinational and domestic firms. Hence, these results provide strong evidence of positive contribution of financial leverage towards improving profitability in a substantial portion of the sample companies during the study period.
Modelling Research on Consumer Attitude Toward Car Brands
Authors: Steluta Vlad (Uta) Daniela
Published: September 2014

A quantitative research of consumer behaviour usually takes under consideration the following processes: perception, information/ learning, motivation, attitude and actual behaviour. From all this dynamic processes that define consumer behaviour, attitude is the one process relatively stable in time, with a very strong affective and cognitive component. In attempt to model attitude research one need to take under consideration external factors that influence attitude formation as well as this attitude influences the consumers buying decision. In order to particularize the research it was chosen a durable good – cars and the most known brands of cars in Romania. In the research conducted on a representative sample at Ploiesti city level, results validates the model proposed by author.
Wine Tourism in Romania
Authors: Nedelcu Adrian
Published: September 2014

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the Romanian wine growing heritage, with an impressive historical past and the rich cultural heritage and traditions related to wine, to highlight the considerable potential in terms of development of wine tourism in Romania, factors that attract and motivate this new form of tourism, respectively planning a network of traditional themed routes in the region of Dealu Mare, emphasizing the significant parameters needed for a successful organization of this network. The analysis of the wine tourism situation in Romania and identification of factors with important role in attracting and motivating the wine tourists represents an important step in the field of wine research, through knowledge of the economic efficiency of production in wine-growing farms, finding the possibility to increase the effectiveness of investment in this area, which will allow everyone to realize the possible recommendations for the future.
The Expansion of the Main EU Competitors' Supply Chains
Authors: Alboiu Cornelia-Florentina , Voicilas Dan-Marius , Ionel Iuliana
Published: September 2014

The objective of the article is to make an in-depth analysis of the main Brazilian agri-food supply chains, including a country overview, having given the fact that in recent years Brazil has become one of the most important competitors of the European Union (EU). The subject is challenging due to the fact that EU must take into consideration the evolution of the most important competitors in order to adapt its policies and to create the economic framework for a stable and long run growing main supply chains. The article presents a brief country overview including its infrastructure, the importance of agri-food chain in Brazil, the evolution of the main supply chains (beef, poultry and pork), and makes a brief analysis of the governance structures and discuss the economic relationships. The analysis is accompanied by some facts regarding the country's specific political, social and cultural influences on the chain's performance. The article concludes that Brazil has become one of the most important competitors of the EU ranking with its supply chains as a major competitor for the EU supply chains. The analysis will help in the formulation of adequate public policies regarding the EU regulations and to increase EU competitiveness.
Cultural Differentials Modify Change
Authors: Mupepi Mambo G. , Taruwinga Patience
Published: September 2014

A mixed research methodology was deployed to show that cultural differences and perceived risk-taking must be considered in charting competences in advancing household enterprises in the Southern African Development Communities and the USA. The consequences were that triumphant households were those that took cognizance of multiculturalism in assessing and measuring performance. Multiple Linear Regression analysis demonstrated that capacity must be customized to suit organizational vision and that the vital predictor of perceived success in the USA was performance orientation while uncertainty avoidance topped the list in the SADC. Results indicate that diversity was understood in all successful enterprises.
Value of Adaptation of Methodologies between Different Knowledge Areas in the Context of Project Based Learning
Authors: Manchado-Perez Eduardo , Berges-Muro Luis , López-Forniés Ignacio
Published: September 2014

Project Based Learning (PBL) is a powerful tool for teaching that helps students to get the best out of their effort in terms of the learning results obtained, even more in studies like university degree studies in engineering. A way of getting even more of this is by means of the adaptation of methodologies from different knowledge areas, because this allows the launch of innovative ways of working with certain guarantees of success from the very first moment, and at the same time to integrate skills from different fields within a shared context. Besides, it helps to put to practice some transversal competences. Here a case is shown of the successful adaptation of the methodology of Systems of Layouts, as used in Graphic Design, to a University Degree of Engineering in Industrial Design and Product Development.
Improving Mathematical Competencies of Students Accessing to Higher Education from Vocational Training Modules
Authors: Isidro Susana Nieto , Calle Higinio Ramos
Published: September 2014

This article describes the behavior and results obtained by two groups of engineering students from Vocational Training Modules who were recruited to use an on-line tool designed to improve their mathematical performance. Its effectiveness is evaluated using examinations results and an anonymous satisfaction questionnaire. The main difference between both groups is the presence or absence of deadlines for the recommended tasks. The results show that these initiatives are very welcome, and are also effective and capable of improving basic mathematical skills. The pattern of use shows strong persistence along the time, a significant use during non-working hours and a good correspondence between course participation and good performance in the final examinations. However, results, especially self-confidence and dropout rate, depend strongly on assigning due dates for doing the tasks. The use of deadlines arises as an important factor contributing to success.
An audit of lidocaine spray and its use in endoscopy with particular attention to its ethanol content
Authors: Farrukh Affifa , Stewart James
Published: September 2014

Objective: The aim was to investigate the attitude of patients about to undergo upper gastrointestinal endoscopy toward the use of an oral lidocaine spray which contained alcohol.

Materials and Method: It is customary to offer patients about to undergo a gastroscopy intravenous sedation, an oral local anesthetic spray or a combination of both. However, the presence of alcohol within the oral spray is seldom discussed with patients. There are some religious groups, such as fundamentalist Christians and Muslims, who will only consider the use of alcohol in exceptional circumstances. There are also others who are reluctant to use it for a range of reasons. One hundred patients undergoing a diagnostic gastroscopy because of dyspeptic symptoms at the University Hospitals of Leicester were provided with an information sheet about sedation. Of the 100 patients asked to take part in the audit 25 were South Asian. Eleven of these patients were Muslim and 11 Hindu. Results: Fifteen patients declined to use the spray (13 Europeans and 2 South Asians). The reasons varied with only two doing so for religious reasons. One of the patients was a Muslim and the other a Christian. However, almost 90% of people believed all patients should be told of the alcohol content of the oral spray so as to allow them to make an informed choice. Conclusion: All patients who are to undergo an endoscopy should be told of the alcohol content of any oral anesthetic spray, so that they can make an informed choice as to whether they wish to receive it.
A case of severe multifocal enteritis caused by unusual pattern of Henoch-Schönlein purpura
Authors: Kim Sung Bum , Kim Tae Nyeun , Kim Kook Hyun
Published: September 2014

A 58-year-old male visited our hospital with a complaint of epigastric pain for 2 days. Physical examination showed no purpuric skin lesion. Abdominal computed tomography scan showed concentric segmental wall thickening of the duodenum. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy showed diffuse erythematous mucosa with exudates at the duodenum. On 4th hospital day, he developed hematochezia. colonoscopy showed circumferential erythematous mucosa with ulcerative hemorrhage at terminal ileum. The microscopic examination identified lots of neutrophil infiltration and deposition of immunoglobulin A (IgA) on vascular endothelium. Treatment with oral prednisone 40 mg was initiated. On 19th day, the patient developed hematuria and proteinuria. Histologic examination on renal biopsy showed focal proliferative glomerulonephritis and strongly positive IgA staining in the glomerular mesangium. Severe hemorrhagic mucosa on endoscopy, deposition of IgA on kidney and intestinal vascular endothelium suggests the diagnosis of Henoch–Schönlein purpura (HSP). We report severe multifocal enteritis caused by unusual pattern of HSP.
An unusual case of hematemesis: Spontaneous reno-duodenal fistula
Authors: Francesco Vincenzo De , Castellucci Franca , Balzano Silverio , Zullo Angelo
Published: September 2014

Different diseases may cause gastrointestinal bleeding. A fistula infrequently manifest with severe intestinal bleeding, when excluding those directly involving vascular structures. We described a case of upper digestive bleeding by a spontaneous renal-duodenal fistula in the patient with kidney cancer. Bleeding was successfully stopped by transarterial embolization.
Malignant Phyllodes Tumor with Chondrosarcomatous Differentiation: Radiological-Pathological Correlation
Authors: Murthy Kathyayini Paidipati Gopalkishna , Chakravarthy Ranjani Padmanabhan
Published: September 2014

We present a case of a 63-year-old woman with malignant phyllodes tumor in her left breast. On imaging, a large, dumbbell-shaped, predominantly cystic mass with thin peripheral enhancement was noted. The lesion was causing rib destruction, chest wall invasion, and intrathoracic extension. These aggressive imaging features were considered highly suspicious of a malignant chest wall tumor. Subsequent chest wall resection of the tumor showed breast tissue with a biphasic lesion composed of proliferated spindle cells in loose sheets with extensive islands of atypical cartilage and a scanty epithelial component, including compressed ducts in the periphery of the lesion. A diagnosis of a malignant phyllodes tumor with stromal overgrowth and chondrosarcomatous differentiation was made in view of the presence of a benign epithelial component and negative reaction of the stromal component with a pancytokeratin. To the best of our knowledge, a phyllodes tumor with the radiological features of chest wall invasion and intrathoracic extension has not been described in the literature until now. Malignant phyllodes should be included in the list of differentials along with sarcomas on encountering lesions with such aggressive imaging features.
Orthogonal Bundles and Skew-Hamiltonian Matrices
Authors: Abuaf Roland , Boralevi Ada
Published: September 2014

Using properties of skew-Hamiltonian matrices and classic connectedness results, we prove that themoduli space M0ort (r, n) of stable rank r orthogonal vector bundles on ℙ2, with Chern classes (c1, c2) = (0, n) and trivial splitting on the general line, is smooth irreducible of dimension We speculate that the result holds in greater generality.
Impacts of updated spectroscopy on thermal infrared retrievals of methane evaluated with HIPPO data
Authors: Alvarado M. J. , Payne V. H. , Cady-Pereira K. E. , Hegarty J. D. , Kulawik S. S. , Wecht K. J. , Worden J. R. , Pittman J. V. , Wofsy S. C.
Published: September 2014

Abstract. Errors in the spectroscopic parameters used in the forward radiative transfer model can introduce altitude-, spatially-, and temporally-dependent biases in trace gas retrievals. For well-mixed trace gases such as methane, where the variability of tropospheric mixing ratios is relatively small, reducing such biases is particularly important. We use aircraft observations from all five missions of the HIAPER Pole-to-Pole Observations (HIPPO) of the Carbon Cycle and Greenhouse Gases Study to evaluate the impact of updates to spectroscopic parameters for methane (CH4), water vapor (H2O), and nitrous oxide (N2O) on thermal infrared retrievals of methane from the NASA Aura Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES). We find that updates to the spectroscopic parameters for CH4 result in a substantially smaller mean bias in the retrieved CH4 when compared with HIPPO observations. After an N2O-based correction, the bias in TES methane upper tropospheric representative values for measurements between 50° S and 50° N decreases from 56.9 to 25.7 ppbv, while the bias in the lower tropospheric representative value increases only slightly (from 27.3 to 28.4 ppbv). For retrievals with less than 1.6 DOFS, the bias is reduced from 26.8 to 4.8 ppbv. We also find that updates to the spectroscopic parameters for N2O reduce the errors in the retrieved N2O profile.
Exploring objective climate classification for the Himalayan arc and adjacent regions using gridded data sources
Authors: Forsythe N. , Blenkinsop S. , Fowler H. J.
Published: September 2014

Abstract. A three-step climate classification was applied to a spatial domain covering the Himalayan arc and adjacent plains regions using input data from four global meteorological reanalyses. Input variables were selected based on an understanding of the climatic drivers of regional water resource variability and crop yields. Principal components analysis (PCA) of those variables and k means clustering on the PCA outputs revealed a reanalysis ensemble consensus for eight sub-regional climate zones. Spatial statistics of input variables for each zone revealed consistent, distinct climatologies. This climate classification approach has potential both for enhancing assessment of climatic influences on water resources and food security as well as for characterising the skill and bias of gridded datasets, both meteorological reanalyses and climate models, for reproducing sub-regional climatologies. Through their spatial descriptors (area, geographic centroid, elevation mean range), climate classifications also provide metrics, beyond simple changes in individual variables, with which to assess the magnitude of projected climate change. Such sophisticated metrics are of particular interest for regions, including mountainous areas, where natural and anthropogenic systems are expected to be sensitive to incremental climate shifts.
Apresentação do dossiê
Authors: Rodrigues Barbosa Jefferson
Published: September 2014

Pensamento de direita e chauvinismo na América Latina: apontamentos sobre manifestações pretéritas e contemporâneas.
Miguel Reale e seus relatos autobiográficos (1986-1987)
Authors: Patschiki Lucas
Published: September 2014

Neste artigo analisaremos os dois volumes autobiográficos de Miguel Reale (1910- 2006), Memórias. Destinos cruzados e Memórias. A balança e a espada, lançados em 1986 e 1987 pela Editora Saraiva, buscando compreender as táticas e as estratégias discursivas utilizadas por ele nesta (re)construção de uma biografia pública. Reale, além de articulador e teórico civil do Golpe de 1964, foi constante colaborador da Ditadura. Durante o processo de reorganização democrática do Estado autocrático-burguês foi assessor jurídico de João Figueiredo, lutando por uma abertura política conservadora, que fosse pautada e compreendida pelo povo como um “presente”. Esta proximidade trouxe uma série de questões, pois se Reale não podia renegar os antigos compromissos, não poderia, do mesmo modo, assumir publicamente a defesa do regime. Buscando garantir sua posição de intelectual desenvolveu várias ações articuladas, sendo a principal as edições de suas memórias.
O nacional-socialismo do grupo Valhalla 88: a construção de um movimento nazista no Brasil
Authors: Andrade Guilherme Ignácio Franco de
Published: September 2014

Pretende-se investigar neste artigo as questões raciais presentes na ideologia nacionalsocialista professada pelo grupo Valhalla 88. O nazismo, em sua ideologia, tem como elemento principal o arianismo (eugenia), ou seja, a “purificação da raça”, pois apenas o “povo escolhido” teria “direito” a governar o mundo por sua “superioridade racial”, assim entendida por Adolf Hitler. O grupo Valhalla 88 procura disseminar a ideologia nacional-socialista, sua leitura visa manipular e adaptar tais ideias, para que elas se apresentem como alternativa política.
Avaliação de impacto do bônus sociorracial da UFMG no desempenho acadêmico dos estudantes
Authors: Golgher André Braz , Amaral Ernesto Friedrich de Lima , Neves Alan Vítor Coelho
Published: September 2014

O objetivo deste artigo é avaliar se o desempenho acadêmico na Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG) é diferenciado entre estudantes que receberam e que não receberam o bônus sociorracial no vestibular da instituição. O estudo analisa o impacto de diferentes categorias desta política de inclusão social. O banco de dados possui informações socioeconômicas e de desempenho acadêmico sobre alunos que estavam cursando os 1ºs, 2ºs, 3ºs e 4ºs semestres na UFMG nos anos de 2009 e 2010. Uma série de modelos foram estimados para analisar diferenças no Rendimento Semestral Global (RSG). Os resultados sugerem que o RSG é similar entre bonistas e não bonistas, controlando por variáveis sociais, demográficas e econômicas. Este estudo sugere que a política de bônus sociorracial da UFMG ocasionou o efeito desejado de inclusão de grupos menos favorecidos na universidade, sem diminuir a qualidade de ensino.
Operação Odessa: a fuga dos criminosos de guerra nazistas para a América Latina após a segunda guerra mundial e os caçadores de nazistas
Authors: Meinerz Marcos Eduardo
Published: September 2014

O presente artigo visa analisar o porquê da América Latina, principalmente a Argentina, ter sido a região do mundo que mais abrigou nazistas criminosos de guerra, como Josef Mengele, Adolf Eichmann e Klaus Barbie após a Segunda Guerra Mundial. E como esse fato deu o mote para aparição de obras literárias sobre fantásticas aventuras de “caçadores de nazistas” em busca do paradeiro dessas pessoas. Para tanto, na primeira parte do artigo abordaremos a fuga desses nazistas para a América Latina, para em seguida analisarmos algumas obras literárias de autores que se autointitularam como caçadores de nazistas.
El nacionalismo populista de derecha en Argentina: la Alianza Libertadora Nacionalista, 1937-1975
Authors: Besoky Juan Luis
Published: September 2014

Neste artigo analiso o desenvolvimento da Aliança Libertadora Nacionalista (ALN), uma organização nacionalista criada nos anos 1930, que explicitamente busco vincular à classe trabalhadora e discutir o peso que a esquerda tinha sobre ela. A nível ideológico a ALN atacava o liberalismo, o sistema político corrupto da democracia e a oligarquia conservadora que governou o país na década de 1930. O grupo era notoriamente antissemita e rejeitava igualmente o comunismo e o capitalismo liberal, promovendo o estabelecimento de um Estado corporativo autoritário. Foi uma das primeiras organizações que apoiou o peronismo até sua queda em 1955, sendo parte inorgânica da resistência peronista. Em 1973, com o retorno de Perón a Argentina, a ALN reaparece vinculando-se à direita peronista.
O fascismo como modelo: incorporação da "carta del lavoro" na via brasileira para o corporativismo autoritário da década de 1930
Authors: Gentile Fabio
Published: September 2014

O debate sobre a influência do corporativismo fascista na “Era Vargas” polariza-se em torno do confronto entre aqueles que apoiam a tese de que a legislação trabalhista dos anos 1930 seria apenas uma cópia da “Carta del lavoro”, e aqueles que querem libertá-la do modelo italiano. Neste trabalho pretendemos seguir um percurso metodológico e conceitual diferente. O objetivo é abrir um dialogo entre o debate sobre o fascismo como “fenômeno em andamento” e aquele processo de “circulaçãocompartilhada” de ideias em nível global entre as duas guerras mundiais, de forma a analisar como a “Carta del lavoro” foi recebida e reelaborada na via brasileira para o corporativismo autoritário da década de 1930.