bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Damping Analysis of Orthotropic Composites with Interleaved Viscoelastic Layers: Modeling
Authors: Berthelot Jean-Marie
Published: June 2006

The damping of orthotropic laminates with a single or two interleaved viscoelastic layers is analyzed in the case of rectangular plates. The natural frequencies and modes are first derived using the Ritz method. Next, the transverse shear stresses are deduced from the fundamental equations of motion and then the transverse shear energies can be obtained in each layer. Lastly, the laminate damping is evaluated from the different energies dissipated in orthotropic and viscoelastic layers. Angle-ply laminates with interleaved viscoelastic layers and laminates with external viscoelastic layers are also considered. The modeling developed in this study shows how it is possible to describe the damping effect of interleaved viscoelastic layers considering an energy approach. The process is applied to the case of rectangular plates using the Ritz method. In the case of complex structures, the damping modeling considered in this study can be easily implemented using a finite element procedure.
Preparing Reading Specialists to Become Competent Travelers in Urban Settings
Authors: Johnson MaryAnn
Published: June 2006

This article poses an alternative to traditional teacher education methods of preparing reading specialists in university programs focused solely on outcomes. An equally important issue to explore is that of process and how candidates are prepared. Studying outputs with limited attention to process factors leaves teacher educators with incomplete action steps and ambiguous mandates for change. Using qualitative applications, this case study of one university’s preparation program for reading specialists reflects a phenomenological stance centered on the nature of the preparation process. Through methods of naturalistic inquiry-including field observations, interview data, written evaluations and use of applied research-the course instructor participates as the researcher, embracing the notion that “we can only know what we experience by attending to perceptions and meanings that awaken our conscious awareness.” Because of that awakening, the author hopes that useful modifications to programs are made, which in turn lead to increased readiness of those who are prepared to teach in urban settings.
Preservice Teachers’ Learning about Cultural and Racial Diversity
Authors: Milner H. Richard
Published: June 2006

Several essential interactions or experiences that had an influence on preservice teachers’ learning and understanding about urban education and diversity are described and discussed. In particular, the author introduces a developmental typology that was used to analyze the preservice teachers’ learning and understanding as a result of a course designed to help preservice teachers develop the knowledge, skills, dispositions, and attitudes necessary to teach in highly diverse and urban school contexts. These developmental interactions that made a critical difference in the preservice teachers’ learning included cultural and racial awareness and insight, critical reflection, and a bridge between theory and practice. Understanding the influence of courses in teacher education that endeavor to provide learning spaces for preservice teachers is especially important as we document the most salient ways to provide all prospective teachers with what they need to make meaningful and significant differences in P-12 urban classrooms.
The effects of stereotype threat on cognitive function in ecstasy users
Authors: Cole J. C. , Michailidou K. , Jerome L. , Sumnall H. R.
Published: June 2006

Stereotype threat occurs when individuals, believed to be intellectually inferior, perform badly on cognitive tests they perceive to confirm stereotypes about them. Due to the wide media coverage of studies purporting to show cognitive deficits in ecstasy users it is possible that they experience stereotype threat. This study tested ecstasy and nonecstasy using polysubstance misusers on a variety of cognitive tests after they had been exposed to stereotype threat. This priming consisted of exposing them to information about the long-term effects of ecstasy which either stated that ecstasy caused memory loss or that it did not. Ecstasy users that had been primed that ecstasy did not cause cognitive deficits performed better than the other three groups on the delayed portion of the prose recall task from the Rivermead Behavioural Memory Test battery. There were no other statistically significant differences between any of the groups on any of the other cognitive tests used. This suggests that stereotype threat exists in ecstasy users and may be influencing their performance in experiments designed to identify cognitive deficits. In order to prevent this occurring in future studies, experimenters must be careful how they conduct their experiments and discuss their results with the media.
Cardiomyopathy after long-term treatment with lithium – more than a coincidence?
Authors: Aichhorn W. , Huber R. , Stuppaeck C. , Whitworth A. B.
Published: June 2006

We describe a patient suffering from dilative cardiomyopathy after 16 years of treatment with lithium carbonate. The literature concerning lithium and cardiac adverse reactions is briefly reviewed. There is good evidence for acute cardiac reactions, especially cardiac arrhythmia but a rather speculative association with long-term reactions such as cardiomyopathy. Nevertheless clinicians should be aware of this rare but life threatening conjunction of cardiac disease and lithium treatment.
A case of Aripiprazole and extra pyramidal side effects
Authors: Salmoiraghi Alberto , Odiyoor Mahesh
Published: June 2006

This is a case report of a 56-year-old lady who was admitted to a psychiatric ward because she was showing a plethora of positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia. She has a positive history of mental illness; her mother had a diagnosis of schizophrenia. The patient did not have any medical history of relevance and was not taking any medication. She was commenced on Aripiprazole and after 5 weeks developed disabling extra-pyramidal side effects. On discontinuation of Aripiprazole, the side effects subsided and disappeared quickly. According to the authors’ knowledge, this is the first case of a patient developing extra-pyramidal side effects following treatment with Aripiprazole, not previously exposed to other antipsychotic, and with no co-morbid medical conditions. The authors suggest titrating Aripiprazole slowly.
Photovoice as a Social Process of Critical Consciousness
Authors: Carlson Elizabeth D. , Engebretson Joan , Chamberlain Robert M.
Published: June 2006

The reluctance of some communities to participate in research and researchers' lack of penetration into the community are major stumbling blocks to successful community-based approaches. The authors'purpose is to determine how a photovoice project in a lower income, African American, urban community was able to generate a social process that resulted in active grassroots participation in a community-campus partnership. Through this partnership initiative, the authors asked neighborhood residents to take photographs of things in the community of which they were proud and the things they wanted to change, and to tell the story of why these were important. The authors used strategies from visual anthropology to analyze the 54 photographs, stories, and dialogue produced. Their analysis identified three distinct levels of cognitive-emotional interpretations that moved participants out of helplessness toward authentic engagement and participation. The authors discuss implications and lessons learned for community-based participatory research.
The Measurement Equivalence of Web-Based and Paper-and-Pencil Measures of Transformational Leadership
Authors: Cole Michael S. , Bedeian Arthur G. , Feild Hubert S.
Published: June 2006

Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was applied to the responses of 4, 909 employees of a multinational organization with locations in 50 countries to examine the measurement equivalence of otherwise identical Web-based and paper-and-pencil versions of 20 items comprising the transformational leadership component of Bass and Avolio's Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. The results supported configural, metric, scalar, measurement error, and relational equivalence across administration modes, indicating that the psychometric properties of the 20 items were similar whether administered as a paper-and-pencil or Web-based measure. Although caution is always advised when considering multiple modes of administration, the results suggest that there are minimal measurement differences for well-developed, psychometrically sound instruments applied using either a paper-and-pencil or an online format. Thus, the results open a methodological door for survey researchers wishing to (a) assess transformational leadership with a Web-based platform and (b) compare or combine responses collected with paper-and-pencil and Web-based applications.
Rapamycin improves lymphoproliferative disease in murine autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS)
Authors: Teachey David T. , Obzut Dana A. , Axsom Kelly , Choi John K. , Goldsmith Kelly C. , Hall Junior , Hulitt Jessica , Manno Catherine S. , Maris John M. , Rhodin Nicholas , Sullivan Kathleen E. , Brown Valerie I. , Grupp Stephan A.
Published: June 2006

Autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) is a disorder of abnormal lymphocyte survival caused by defective Fas-mediated apoptosis, leading to lymphadenopathy, hepatosplenomegaly, and an increased number of double-negative T cells (DNTs). Treatment options for patients with ALPS are limited. Rapamycin has been shown to induce apoptosis in normal and malignant lymphocytes. Since ALPS is caused by defective lymphocyte apoptosis, we hypothesized that rapamycin would be effective in treating ALPS. We tested this hypothesis using rapamycin in murine models of ALPS. We followed treatment response with serial assessment of DNTs by flow cytometry in blood and lymphoid tissue, by serial monitoring of lymph node and spleen size with ultrasonography, and by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for anti–double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) antibodies. Three-dimensional ultrasound measurements in the mice correlated to actual tissue measurements at death (r = .9648). We found a dramatic and statistically significant decrease in DNTs, lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, and autoantibodies after only 4 weeks when comparing rapamycin-treated mice with controls. Rapamycin induced apoptosis through the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway. We compared rapamycin to mycophenolate mofetil, a second-line agent used to treat ALPS, and found rapamycin's control of lymphoproliferation was superior. We conclude that rapamycin is an effective treatment for murine ALPS and should be explored as treatment for affected humans.
Leukosialin (CD43) defines hematopoietic progenitors in human embryonic stem cell differentiation cultures
Authors: Vodyanik Maxim A. , Thomson James A. , Slukvin Igor I.
Published: June 2006

During hematopoietic differentiation of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs), early hematopoietic progenitors arise along with endothelial cells within the CD34+ population. Although hESC-derived hematopoietic progenitors have been previously identified by functional assays, their phenotype has not been defined. Here, using hESC differentiation in coculture with OP9 stromal cells, we demonstrate that early progenitors committed to hematopoietic development could be identified by surface expression of leukosialin (CD43). CD43 was detected on all types of emerging clonogenic progenitors before expression of CD45, persisted on differentiating hematopoietic cells, and reliably separated the hematopoietic CD34+ population from CD34+CD43–CD31+KDR+ endothelial and CD34+CD43–CD31–KDR– mesenchymal cells. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the first-appearing CD34+CD43+CD235a+CD41a+/–CD45– cells represent precommitted erythro-megakaryocytic progenitors. Multipotent lymphohematopoietic progenitors were generated later as CD34+CD43+CD41a–CD235a–CD45– cells. These cells were negative for lineage-specific markers (Lin–), expressed KDR, VE-cadherin, and CD105 endothelial proteins, and expressed GATA-2, GATA-3, RUNX1, C-MYB transcription factors that typify initial stages of definitive hematopoiesis originating from endothelial-like precursors. Acquisition of CD45 expression by CD34+CD43+CD45–Lin– cells was associated with progressive myeloid commitment and a decrease of B-lymphoid potential. CD34+CD43+CD45+Lin– cells were largely devoid of VE-cadherin and KDR expression and had a distinct FLT3highGATA3lowRUNX1lowPU1highMPOhighIL7RAhigh gene expression profile.
Formulaic sequences and perceived oral proficiency: putting a Lexical Approach to the test
Authors: Boers Frank , Eyckmans June , Kappel Jenny , Stengers Hélène , Demecheleer Murielle
Published: June 2006

This study reports a small-scale experiment that was set up to estimate the extent to which (i) the use of formulaic sequences (standardized phrases such as collocations and idiomatic expressions) can help learners come across as proficient L2 speakers and (ii) an instructional method that emphasizes ‘noticing’of L2 formulaic sequences can help language learners add such phrases to their linguistic repertoire. Participants were 32 college students majoring in English. Over the course of 22 teaching hours they were exposed to considerable quantities of authentic listening and reading materials. During exploration of those materials, the experimental students (N = 17) were made aware of standardized word combinations, while in the control group (N = 15) the traditional grammar-lexis dichotomy was upheld. Afterwards, the participants’ oral proficiency was gauged in an interview by two blind judges. Both perceived the experimental group as more proficient than the control group. Two other blind judges counted the number of word combinations in the interviews that they considered to be formulaic sequences. Their counts correlated well with the oral proficiency ratings, which suggests that helping learners build a repertoire of formulaic sequences can be a useful contribution to improving their oral proficiency.
Testimonial Objects: Memory, Gender, and Transmission
Authors: Hirsch Marianne , Spitzer Leo
Published: June 2006

Focusing on a book of recipes and a miniature artists' book from the Terezín and Vapniarka concentration camps, this essay argues that such material remnants can serve as testimonial objects that carry memory traces from the past and embody the process of its transmission. Inspired by Roland Barthes's notion of the punctum, we read such testimonial objects as points of memory—points of intersection between past and present, memory and postmemory, personal and cultural recollection. They call for an expanded approach to testimony, one in which a consideration of gender can play an important interpretive role. Testimonial objects enable us to consider crucial questions about the past, about how the past comes down to us in the present, and about how gender figures in acts of memory and transmission.
Testimony without Intimacy
Authors: Yaeger Patricia
Published: June 2006

When we dress Holocaust texts in too much sanctity, we miss how badly they behave. We may also miss the odd ways a testimony's figures of speech invite readers or listeners to misbehave: to try too hard to recover a sacred sense of witnessing. How do ordinary techniques of literary or conversational speech change shape in the context of testimony? What happens when Charlotte Delbo uses metaphor, simile, or personification to convey her experiences in Auschwitz? What happens to oral testimony when Holocaust survivors bear witness while the camera records parasemantic body language that swerves away from this witnessing? This essay explores the ways that testimonies handle the ethical question of community, entanglement, or proximity by inventing figures of speech or body language that deflect an audience's rapport even as they summon us.
TRIM Modeling of Displacement Damage in SiC for Monoenergetic Neutrons
Authors: Khorsandi B , Blue TE , Windl W , Kulisek J
Published: June 2006

Although silicon carbide is a very good semiconductor material for the fabrication of diode detectors for use as neutron power monitors in nuclear reactors, the electrical properties of the diodes may be altered because of interactions between energetic neutrons and SiC atoms. If the energy that is transferred from a neutron to an atom in a collision exceeds some threshold value, the atom will be moved from its original position, creating displacement damage. Accurately modeling displacement damage is a first step to finding ways to eliminate or decrease the amount of damage the displacements induce. The methodology that we have used to estimate the number of displacements per atom per fluence, using two codes (mcnp and trim) is presented in this paper, along with examples of the results of our calculations.
Developing ASTM E 2283: Standard Practice for Extreme Value Analysis of Nonmetallic Inclusions in Steel and Other Microstructural Features
Authors: Hetzner DW
Published: June 2006

The statistical nature of bearing failures has been studied using Weibull probability statistics for over 50 years. Historically it has been demonstrated that the origin of many bearing failures is the presence of large nondeformable nonmetallic inclusions in the bearing steel. Methods for predicting the presence of large inclusions in bearing steels using extreme value statistics were presented in the late 1980s. Several papers presented in the ASTM A 01.28 Bearing Steel Technology Symposium in 1996 discussed this method of analysis. Unfortunately in these and other investigations, standardized methodologies for performing the analysis were not utilized. This paper discusses how ASTM E 2283 was developed. The results of a recently completed interlaboratory round robin testing program are discussed. The application of the standard to microstructural features other than inclusions will be illustrated.
Quantification of Differential Thermal Movement in Insulating Glass Edge Seals Using Finite Element Analysis
Authors: Stewart JE , O'Brien WR , Wolf AT
Published: June 2006

Differential thermal movement between the spacer frame and the glass panes is a key contributor to the aging of insulating glass edge seal and of the insulating glass unit (IGU) itself. Using finite element analysis (FEA) the authors modeled the thermal movements occurring in the edge seal of a large IGU (1.5×2.1 m2) as a result of temperature variations (−30°C to +60°C) for three commercially available spacer bars of different material and design. The model was based on nylon corner keys for the aluminum and galvanized steel spacers and bent corners for the stainless steel spacers. The nylon corner keys were assumed to be solid and firmly bonded to the spacers; whereas the bent corners were modeled as solid, bent metal corner keys, also firmly bonded to the spacers. Since actual bent corners are hollow, the model tends to overestimate the stresses for this corner design. As expected, at the low temperature, the corners are pulled inward, resulting in a bending angle >90°; while at the high temperature, the corners are pushed outwards, resulting in a bending angle <90°. Monitoring the changes occurring in the thickness of the polyisobutylene primary seal along the circumference of the IGU, the authors found that the stainless steel spacer had, by far, the least effect on the change in the cross-sectional area, while the aluminum spacer had the most substantial effect. This finding is in keeping with the expected performance based on the difference in thermal expansion coefficients between spacer material and float glass. Thus, changes in the effective cross-sectional area of the primary seal available for diffusion that arise from differential thermal movements, are likely to account for the observed performance differences of IGUs having different spacer materials.
Identifying reliable, valid markers of authorship: a response to Chaski
Authors: Grant Tim , Baker Kevin
Published: June 2006

In response to Chaski’s article (published in this volume) an examination is made of the methodological understanding necessary to identify dependable markers for forensic (and general) authorship attribution work. This examination concentrates on three methodological areas of concern which researchers intending to identify markers of authorship must address. These areas are sampling linguistic data, establishing the reliability of authorship markers and establishing the validity of authorship markers. It is suggested that the complexity of sampling problems in linguistic data is often underestimated and that theoretical issues in this area are both difficult and unresolved. It is further argued that the concepts of reliability and validity must be well understood and accounted for in any attempts to identify authorship markers and that largely this is not done. Finally, Principal Component Analysis is identified as an alternative approach which avoids some of the methodological problems inherent in identifying reliable, valid markers of authorship.
A recent voice parade
Authors: Nolan Francis
Published: June 2006

An account is given of a case in which a voice parade contributed significantly to prosecution evidence. A witness had overhead his landlord arranging for another younger man to set fire to a house (where a fire later that night resulted in a woman’s death), and claimed to know the voice. A voice parade was constructed using composite samples from this suspect’s interview tapes, and, as foils, composite samples from police interviews with similar young men from the London Asian community. The witness identified the man from the voice parade, and also recognized him in a visual parade. This, together with other evidence, resulted in both men being convicted. The paper outlines the problems involved in picking foils from the interview tapes supplied by the police, discusses the format and conduct of the resulting parade including the question asked of the witness, and summarizes challenges in court to the fairness of the parade. In conclusion ways are suggested in which the procedure might be streamlined and its reliability improved.
Predictors of Hearing Protection Use for Hispanic and Non-Hispanic White Factory Workers
Authors: Raymond Delbert M. , Hong Oisaeng , Lusk Sally L. , Ronis David L.
Published: June 2006

The 2000 United States Census reported significant growth in the number of Hispanic workers. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH, 1996) has identified noise-induced hearing loss as a significant occupational threat. Current theoretical models need to be evaluated for their utility with Hispanic workers. The Predictors for Use of Hearing Protection Model (PUHPM) is a framework for increasing workers’ use of hearing protection devices (HPDs). Using regression analysis, the explained variance in HPD use by the model predictors was examined in a sample of 208 Hispanic factory workers. Explained variance was lower for Hispanics (R2 = .20) than for non-Hispanic Whites (R2 = .37). Further research with Hispanic workers is needed to improve the PUHPM fit.
Efficient Synthesis of Valsartan, a Nonpeptide Angiotensin II Receptor Antagonist.
Authors: Zhang Chen , Zheng Guojun , Fang Lijing , Li Yulin
Published: June 2006

ChemInform is a weekly Abstracting Service, delivering concise information at a glance that was extracted from about 200 leading journals. To access a ChemInform Abstract, please click on HTML or PDF.
Two Unusual Nitro‐substituted Hasubanan‐type Alkaloids from Stephania longa
Authors: Zhang Hua , Wang Fang‐Dao , Yue Jian‐Min
Published: June 2006

Two unusual nitro‐substituted hasubanan‐type alkaloids, stephalonines J (1) and K (2), together with ten known alkaloids, protostephanine, dehydrostephanine, (−)‐stephanine, (−)‐isolaureline, R‐roemeroline, (+)‐pronuciferine, (+)‐stepharine, (+)‐N‐acetylstepharine, (+)‐lirioferine, and (+)‐norlirioferine, were isolated from the whole plant of Stephania longa. Their structures were characterized mainly by spectroscopic methods including IR, MS, and NMR experiments, and the structures of 1 and 2 were further confirmed through chemical correlations with the known alkaloids stephalonines A (1a) and B (2a), respectively.
Schrödinger flow near harmonic maps
Authors: Gustafson Stephen , Kang Kyungkeun , Tsai Tai‐Peng
Published: June 2006

For the Schrödinger flow from ℝ2 × ℝ+ to the 2‐sphere 𝕊2, it is not known if finite energy solutions can blow up in finite time. We study equivariant solutions whose energy is near the energy of the family of equivariant harmonic maps. We prove that such solutions remain close to the harmonic maps until the blowup time (if any), and that they blow up if and only if the length scale of the nearest harmonic map goes to 0. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Effects of tuber storage protein of yam (Dioscorea alata cv. Tainong No. 1) and its peptic hydrolyzates on spontaneously hypertensive rats
Authors: Lin Chien‐Liang , Lin Shyr‐Yi , Lin Yaw‐Huei , Hou Wen‐Chi
Published: June 2006

Yam storage protein (YSP) was purified from tubers of Dioscorea alata L. Tainong No. 1 (TN1) to homogeneity by DE‐52 ion‐exchange chromatography. The short‐term (24 h) and long‐term (25 days) antihypertensive effects of YSP‐TN1 and its peptic hydrolyzates (PH‐TN1) were measured in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs). For 24‐h antihypertensive measurements, SHRs (age 10 weeks, body weight from 240 to 250 g) were administered orally once (YSP‐TN1 and PH‐TN1, 40 mg kg−1 SHR) to measure the mean blood pressure (MBP), systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). For a long‐term antihypertensive measurement, SHRs (age 12 weeks, body weight from 250 to 270 g) were administered orally once a day for 25 days (YSP‐TN1, 40 mg kg−1 SHR) to measure SBP, DBP and MBP. Captopril (10 or 15 mg kg−1 SHR) was used as a positive control. It was found that short‐term administration of 40 mg kg−1 SHR of YSP‐TN1 and PH‐TN1 effectively lowered SHRs' MBP, SBP and DBP (For YSP‐TN1, the lowest blood pressure was reached in the fourth hour and for PH‐TN1 in the eighth hour). The lasting effects of PH‐TN1 on reduced SHRs' BP were better than those of YSP‐TN1 for one oral administration. For oral administration of 40 mg YSP‐TN1 kg−1 SHR, the reduced MBP was 21.5 mmHg, which was comparable to 25.2 mmHg (the fourth hour) of 10 mg captopril kg−1 SHR oral administration. For oral administration of 40 mg PH‐TN1 kg−1 SHR, the reduced MBP was 33.7 mmHg, comparable to 38.4 mmHg (the fourth hour) of 15 mg captopril kg−1 SHR. For long‐term 25‐day oral administration of 40 mg YSP‐TN1 kg−1 SHR once a day, it was found that a feeding trial of YSP‐TN1 effectively lowered SHRs' SBP, DBP and MBP. The greatest reduction in SHRs' blood pressure was reached on the ninth day, for the reduced SBP, 27.7 mmHg; for the reduced DBP, 28.3 mmHg; and for the reduced MBP, 27.5 mmHg. Copyright © 2006 Society of Chemical Industry
Anisotropic Franklin bases on polygonal domains
Authors: Kyriazis George , Park Kyungwon , Petrushev Pencho
Published: June 2006

Franklin systems induced by Courant elements over multilevel nested triangulations of polygonal domains in ℝ2 are explored. Mild conditions are imposed on the triangulations which prevent them from deterioration and at the same time allow for a lot of flexibility and, in particular, arbitrarily sharp angles. It is shown that such anisotropic Franklin systems are Schauder bases for C and L 1, and unconditional bases for Lp (1 < p < ∞) and the corresponding Hardy spaces H 1. It is also proved that the anisotropic H 1 is exactly the space of all functions in L 1 for which the corresponding Franklin system expansions converge unconditionally in L 1. Finally, it is shown that the Franklin bases characterize the corresponding anisotropic BMO spaces. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Electrically Conductive Poly(DL‐lactide)/Chitosan/Polypyrrole Complexes
Authors: Wan Ying , Fang Ya , Hu Zhilin , Wu Quan
Published: June 2006

Summary: The fabrication of novel conductive poly(DL‐lactide)/chitosan/polypyrrole complex membranes is reported. Using poly(DL‐lactide)/chitosan blends as matrices and polypyrrole as a conductive component, several kinds of membranes with various compositions are prepared. A percolation threshold of polypyrrole as low as 1.8 wt.‐% is achieved for some membranes by controlling the chitosan proportion between 40 and 50 wt.‐%. SEM images exhibit that the membranes with a low percolation threshold show a two‐phase structure which consists of poly(DL‐lactide) and chitosan phases. Dielectric measurements indicate that there is limited miscibility between the poly(DL‐lactide) and chitosan but polypyrrole is nearly immiscible with the other two components. Based on the structural characteristics of the membranes, the polypyrrole particles are suggested to be localized at the interface between two phases.

Dependence of conductivity of complex membranes on the PPy content. (○) PDLLA/PPy, (▪) PDLLA/ch(10)/PPy, (▵) PDLLA/ch(20)/PPy, (•) PDLLA/ch(30)/PPy, (□) PDLLA/ch(40)/PPy, and (▴) PDLLA/ch(50)‐PPy.

magnified image

Dependence of conductivity of complex membranes on the PPy content. (○) PDLLA/PPy, (▪) PDLLA/ch(10)/PPy, (▵) PDLLA/ch(20)/PPy, (•) PDLLA/ch(30)/PPy, (□) PDLLA/ch(40)/PPy, and (▴) PDLLA/ch(50)‐PPy.
Versatility of vertical rectus abdominis musculocutaneous flaps
Authors: Küntscher Markus V. , Mansouri Shirin , Noack Nicklas , Hartmann Bernd
Published: June 2006

The purpose of the study was to demonstrate a variety of indications for the vertical rectus abdominis musculocutaneous (VRAM) flap with respect to donor‐site morbidity and alternative procedures. Fifteen VRAM flaps were performed in 15 patients during a 4‐year period. The average age of patients was 58 years (range, 34–76 years). Inferiorly based VRAM flaps were used for defect coverage after tumor resection and for penile reconstruction in 7 cases. Superiorly based VRAM flaps were performed in 7 cases for reconstruction of osteocutaneous defects following sternal osteomyelitis and tumor resection. Arterial and venous “supercharging” was necessary in one case. One free VRAM flap was performed in a patient suffering from an osteocutaneous defect after resection of a malignant melanoma metastasis with infiltration of the brain and skull. The reconstructive goals were achieved in all cases using VRAM flap procedures. No total flap loss occurred. Minor complications as well as abdominal wall bulging and hernias were observed in four cases. The pedicled VRAM flap provides a reliable tool for coverage of large soft‐tissue defects of the chest wall, groin, hip, and perineum even in a high‐risk population, in which a safe and fast forward flap procedure is the primary reconstructive goal. Arterial and/or venous supercharging may be necessary, particularly in superiorly based VRAM flaps. An inferiorly based VRAM flap is a reliable tool for phalloplasty under special circumstances. The indication for free VRAM flaps is given in rare clinical situations. Stabilization of the donor site using artificial mesh is highly recommended. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc. Microsurgery, 2006.
Heterotopic Ossification Causing Proximal Radioulnar Synostosis after Insertion of a Radial Head Prosthesis
Authors: BIMMEL R. , VAN RIET R. P. , SYS J.
Published: June 2006

A rare case of radioulnar synostosis following placement of a metal radial head replacement is described and a review of treatment options for heterotopic ossification in the vicinity of the elbow is presented.
Presidential address Experts and publishers: writing popular science in early twentieth-century Britain, writing popular history of science now
Authors: Bowler PETER J.
Published: June 2006

The bulk of this address concerns itself with the extent to which professional scientists were involved in popular science writing in early twentieth-century Britain. Contrary to a widespread assumption, it is argued that a significant proportion of the scientific community engaged in writing the more educational type of popular science. Some high-profile figures acquired enough skill in popular writing to exert considerable influence over the public's perception of science and its significance. The address also shows how publishers actively sought ‘expert’ authors for popular material, but at the same time controlled what was published in accordance with their perception of what would sell. At a more popular level of writing there were many semi-professional authors who, while not active scientists, exploited close contacts with the scientific community. Here there was a strong emphasis on the practical applications of science.

The address concludes by suggesting parallels between popular science writing in this period and the present state of popular writing about the history of science.
THOMAS WENTWORTH AND MONARCHICAL RITUAL IN EARLY MODERN IRELAND
Authors: SHAW DOUGAL
Published: June 2006

Historians have long argued about the political career in Ireland of Thomas Wentworth, earl of Strafford. Analysing the extent of his viceregal power in the 1630s and his relationship to political factions, this writing has focused on ‘high politics’, as captured in state papers, pamphlets, and private letters. This article focuses on less conventional sources like paintings and accounts of court ceremonies to try and clarify a vital question. In a fragmented colonial territory that the Stuarts were determined to turn into a kingdom, to what extent did Wentworth cast himself as a king? The article examines the sophisticated way that Wentworth elaborated on ritual forms already connected with the viceroyalty to associate his political persona with that of the monarch, with particular reference to his extraordinary inauguration in 1633. Wentworth's interest in painting is well known because of his celebrated patronage of Van Dyck. Less well known is the way that he extended the conventions of portrait painting into the third dimension through court ritual, particularly the practice of allusion to recognizable models, with all the implications for prestige that this entailed. Through ‘political aesthetics’ Wentworth made the allusion to kingship, to the point that enemies detected monarchical pretensions.
CROSSING THE ROAD IN BRITAIN, 1931–1976
Authors: MORAN JOE
Published: June 2006

This article explores the history of crossing the road in Britain from the traffic acts of the early 1930s to the introduction of the Green Cross Code in the early 1970s. It reconstructs this history through the examination of government documents, press releases, newspaper articles, newsreels, public information films, and other road safety materials. Since the interwar period, British governments have become progressively more involved in policing the activity of crossing the road, and there have been two main planks of policy. The first has been to design progressively more sophisticated crossings; the second has been road safety education, including advice about how to use the crossings, disseminated through school crossing patrols, children's clubs, and public information films. Governments have generally relied on appeals to good sense and civic duty rather than legally enforceable rules about crossing the road, and have sought to follow as well as lead public opinion in determining how much to coerce both pedestrians and motorists. The formulation of policy in relation to public attitudes and media responses means that crossing the road during this period has interesting implications for both political and cultural history.
Utopia in Performance
Authors: DOLAN JILL
Published: June 2006

The essay describes ‘utopian performatives’, which are moments of performance in which utopia is ‘done’ in the intensity of exchange between performers and spectators and among the audience. As an example, the essay discusses the performance Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry Jam on Broadway, an evening of slam poetry presented by a multiracial cast for a young, unusually multiethnic audience. It describes a process of feeling together over obvious differences, inspired by an intensely present moment of theatre.
A Florentine Tragedy, or woman as mirror
Authors: LEE SHERRY D.
Published: June 2006

Alexander Zemlinsky's one-act opera A Florentine Tragedy (1917), based on Oscar Wilde's play of the same title, features an erotic triangle – a woman, her husband and her lover – that erupts into violence, murder and a shocking dramatic reversal at the end. Throughout the drama, the character of the woman is a passive mirror in whose eyes the male characters see their own idealised images. The marginalised subject-position of the woman, however, reveals the pivotal role of the feminine in the narcissistic constructions of male desire and the male self. At the same time, however, this reading enables an interpretation of the drama as a project for conceptualising another marginal subjectivity: that of the homosexual male. Drawing on Eve Sedgwick's and Kaja Silverman's theories, the article explores first the complex dynamics of the triangle at the centre of the drama, and then the implications of a Freudian triangular model of male homosexual subjectivity as constituted through narcissistic object-choice. The homoerotic subtext of Wilde's play is revealed partly through the ambiguities of the woman's position in her connections with each of the men, a role that is seen more clearly in terms of their bonds with each other. This subtext is also implicit in the typically Wildean eroticisation of commerce and commercialisation of eros, through which the men engage in relations highly nuanced by erotically inflected language. Most intriguing is the way the male homosocial reading of the drama is supported by the motivic-dramatic structure of Zemlinsky's opera, as suggested by a new interpretation of the ambiguous musical motifs of ‘love’ and ‘death’ that permeate the opera's most crucial scenes.
Staging Stalinism: The search for Soviet opera in the 1930s
Authors: BULLOCK PHILIP ROSS
Published: June 2006

With the exception of Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, Soviet opera in the 1930s has been relatively little studied. Yet this was an era in which opera was vigorously promoted as an ideal Soviet form after more than a decade of criticism from radical proletarian groups. This article considers three main aspects of Soviet operatic culture in the 1930s. First, opera's emotional power was valued as a way to mobilise mass opinion and the opera house was increasingly seen as a highly ideological site. Second, whilst most of the work in founding a Soviet repertory was carried out at Leningrad's Malyi Opera Theatre, Moscow became increasingly involved as the decade continued. Third, Soviet opera was highly dependent on adaptations of socialist realist novels. This phenomenon of ‘transposition’ is seen here as an attempt to invest scores with an unimpeachable political message. Moreover, transposition was an ideal method of regulating ambiguous literary texts by condensing their cardinal features in dramatic form. Although the story of Soviet opera was largely one of failure, its study sheds important light not only on the development of the Russian operatic tradition, but also on the dynamics of Stalinist culture.
Complex interactions among mammalian carnivores in Australia, and their implications for wildlife management
Authors: Glen Alistair S. , Dickman Chris R.
Published: June 2006

Mammalian carnivore populations are often intensively managed, either because the carnivore in question is endangered, or because it is viewed as a pest and is subjected to control measures, or both. Most management programmes treat carnivore species in isolation. However, there is a large and emerging body of evidence to demonstrate that populations of different carnivores interact with each other in a variety of complex ways. Thus, the removal or introduction of predators to or from a system can often affect other species in ways that are difficult to predict. Wildlife managers must consider such interactions when planning predator control programmes. Integrated predator control will require a greater understanding of the complex relationships between species.

In many parts of the world, sympatric species of carnivores have coexisted over an evolutionary time scale so that niche differentiation has occurred, and competition is difficult to observe. Australia has experienced numerous introductions during the past 200 years, including those of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and the feral cat (Felis catus). These species now exist in sympatry with native mammalian predators, providing ecologists with the opportunity to study their interactions without the confounding effects of coevolution.

Despite an increasing body of observational evidence for complex interactions among native and introduced predators in Australia, few studies have attempted to clarify these relationships experimentally, and the interactions remain largely unacknowledged. A greater understanding of these interactions would provide ecologists and wildlife managers world‐wide with the ability to construct robust predictive models of carnivore communities, and to identify their broader effects on ecosystem functioning. We suggest that future research should focus on controlled and replicated predator removal or addition experiments. The dingo (Canis lupus dingo), as a likely keystone species, should be a particular focus of attention.
Precipitation variability and changes in the greater Alpine region over the 1800–2003 period
Authors: Brunetti Michele , Maugeri Maurizio , Nanni Teresa , Auer Ingeborg , Böhm Reinhard , Schöner Wolfgang
Published: June 2006

The paper investigates precipitation variability in the greater Alpine region (GAR) (4–19°E, 43–49°N) based on 192 instrumental series of homogenized and outlier checked monthly precipitation and on the 1° gridded version of the same data set. Compared to the previous data sets, the one used in this paper adds a full century of data (earliest series starting in 1800) by exploiting the early instrumental period as much as possible in terms of series length and spatial density. The records were clustered into climatically homogeneous subregions, by means of a principal component analysis, and average subregional series were calculated. The principal component analysis was applied also in T‐mode to investigate the most recursive precipitation patterns that characterize the examined area. Yearly and seasonal trend analysis was performed both on subregional average series and on the mean GAR series. It was also applied to moving windows, of variable width ranging from 2 decades to 2 centuries, in order to investigate any trends over decadal to secular timescales. Beside trends in total precipitation, precipitation seasonality was also analyzed as an important indicator of climate changes. Links between precipitation variability in the Alpine region and atmospheric circulation, and the North Atlantic Oscillation in particular, were also studied.
Enhanced multidecadal climate variability in the seventeenth century from coral isotope records in the western Indian Ocean
Authors: Damassa Thomas D. , Cole Julia E. , Barnett Heidi R. , Ault Toby R. , McClanahan Timothy R.
Published: June 2006

The slowly growing coral Diploastreaheliopora affords a novel opportunity to obtain multicentury records of paleoclimate, including details of the interannual rhythms associated with the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) system. We examine climate variability in an ENSO‐teleconnected region using new oxygen isotope records from D. heliopora, spanning most of the twentieth (1896–1998) and seventeenth (1622–1722) centuries, from the Mafia archipelago, Tanzania. The modern record demonstrates coherency with relevant instrumental and proxy time series, documents twentieth century warming, and displays significant power at ENSO periodicities. The seventeenth century record lacks any trend, exhibits interannual variance comparable to the modern record, and displays a pronounced interdecadal signal not evident in the twentieth century that correlates with other tropical and hemispheric climate records. We find no clear evidence of solar irradiance influence on interannual variability in the western Indian Ocean during these intervals, although the mean sea surface temperature appears to vary inversely with insolation.
Temporal fluctuations of microseismic noise in Yellowstone's Upper Geyser Basin from a continuous gravity observation
Authors: Tikku A. A. , McAdoo D. C. , Schenewerk M. S. , Willoughby E. C.
Published: June 2006

We find geodetically detectable events of significantly elevated microseismic noise in an eight day Scintrex CG‐3M continuous relative gravity occupation in the southern Upper Geyser Basin of the Yellowstone caldera. The noise is recorded as large excursions in the gravity data, with frequencies between 0.033 and 0.5 Hz, and durations of up to one hour. These microseismic excursions, with gravity root mean square [RMS] amplitudes of ∼50 to 350 μGal, are up to an order of magnitude larger than the observed background levels of noise. The noise is also recorded as elevated variability in the gravity RMS time‐series, with frequencies >0.033 Hz. We suggest that these periods of elevated and variable microseismicity reflect active hydrothermal processes in the geyser basin not captured previously.
The antiarrhythmic effects of ischaemic preconditioning in anaesthetized dogs are prevented by atropine; role of changes in baroreceptor reflex sensitivity
Authors: Babai László , Papp Julius Gy , Parratt James R , Végh Ágnes
Published: June 2006

Dogs, anaesthetized with chloralose and urethane, were subjected to a 25 min occlusion of the left anterior descending coronary artery. This resulted in ventricular ectopic activity, a reduction in baroreflex sensitivity (BRS, measured following the intravenous administration of phenylephrine), elevations in the epicardial ST‐segment and increases in the degree of inhomogeneity of electrical activation, both measured from the ischaemic region of the left ventricular wall.

These changes were markedly reduced when the 25 min occlusion was preceded, 20 min earlier, by a 5 min (preconditioning) occlusion of the same coronary artery (e.g. VF during ischaemia reduced from 40% in the controls to 0%; P<0.05; BRS increased from 1.22±0.23 pre‐occlusion to 1.61±0.25 mmHg ms−1 post‐occlusion in preconditioned dogs; cf. 1.28±0.29 to 0.45±0.12 mmHg ms−1 respectively in the controls, P<0.05).

These beneficial effects of preconditioning were prevented by the administration, 10 min prior to the 25 min coronary artery occlusion, of atropine (1 mg kg−1 i.v. followed by a continuous infusion of 0.04 mg kg−1 h−1). For example, VF during occlusion was increased from 0% in the preconditioned dogs to 40% (P<0.05) in the presence of atropine and BRS was again reduced during occlusion (from 1.75±0.29 to 0.30±0.08 mmHg ms−1; P<0.05).

We conclude that preconditioning reduces arrhythmia severity during ischaemia by favourably modifying cardiac autonomic receptor mechanism through enhancing vagal influences.

British Journal of Pharmacology (2002) 135, 55–64; doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0704445