bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Tourism activity among university students: a survey from universities in Łódź
Authors: Latosińska Jolanta , Ludwicka Dorota
Published: July 2010

The article presents conclusions on the tourism activity of university students in Łódź. It is based on a survey conducted in October and November 2008 among final year students at six state-run universities in Łódź. The article presents the socio-demographic structure of the respondents, their tourism trips and the factors influencing them, while the conclusions offer a functional model of recreation for the groups investigated.
Determinants of the tourism activity of school pupils (aged 15-19) from Słupsk and Częstochowa
Authors: Parzych Krzysztof
Published: July 2010

The purpose of this article is to describe the different types of tourism undertaken by school pupils (aged 15–19) through the example of their tourism trips. Two cities were used: Słupsk and Częstochowa. Analyses of the differing forms of tourism have been made in the context of geographical, socio-economic and demographic determinants for both cities.
Efficacy of intrauterine lignocaine plus vaginal misoprostol for pain relief in premenopausal women undergoing endometrial aspiration and ambulatory hysteroscopy
Authors: GUPTA NUPUR , GUPTA BINDIYA , DADHWAL VATSLA , MITTAL SUNEETA
Published: July 2010

Objective. To compare the effectiveness of a combination of intrauterine lignocaine and vaginal misoprostol in reducing pain at hysteroscopy and endometrial aspiration (EA). Design. Prospective randomized trial (Canadian Task Force Classification I). Setting. Tertiary care referral hospital. Population. Forty‐nine premenopausal women undergoing hysteroscopy plus EA. Methods. Patients were randomized into misoprostol plus intrauterine lignocaine group (Group I) and only misoprostol group (Group II). Main outcome measures. Pain scores at hysteroscope insertion (T (time) 1), during and after hysteroscopy (T2, T3), during EA (T4), 15 minutes after the procedure (T5) and at discharge (T6). Satisfaction and procedure acceptability was assessed by a questionnaire. Results. The mean age of patients in Group I and Group II was 35.4 ± 8.6 years and 38.9 ± 13.2 years, respectively. The mean pain scores in Group I were 23.6% lower at T2 and 27% lower at T4 when compared with Group II; the difference of latter being significant. Conclusion. A combination of intrauterine lignocaine plus vaginal misoprostol reduced the pain score in premenopausal women undergoing hysteroscopy and EA.
Pathophysiology of adult tethered cord syndrome: review of the literature
Authors: Stetler William R. , Park Paul , Sullivan Stephen
Published: July 2010

Object

Tethering of the spinal cord has been a recognized cause of neurological symptoms in pediatric patients and is increasingly being recognized as a cause of symptoms in adults as well. The pathophysiology surrounding spinal cord tethering has begun to be understood in the pediatric population but is still unclear in adult patients.

Methods

Using a PubMed database literature search, the authors reviewed the pathology and pathophysiology surrounding the tethered spinal cord, focusing particularly on the pathophysiology of adult tethered cord syndrome (TCS).

Results

Experimental data obtained in pediatric patients at surgery and in animal models indicate that spinal cord tethering causes a reduction in spinal cord blood flow and dysfunction of neuronal mitochondrial terminal oxidase. Retrospective analyses of patients undergoing surgery for adult TCS show that many adults developed symptoms following an event that could stretch the spinal cord, while others did not. Many patients also were found to have structural lesions in addition to a tethered spinal cord at diagnosis.

Conclusions

Both adult and pediatric TCSs are likely the result of a relative lack of blood flow to the spinal cord, causing dysfunction in mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. The likely reason the syndrome present later and differently in adults is that a secondary threshold of tension or a cumulative effect of repetitive, transient tension is placed on the cord before symptoms are recognized.
Biomechanics of the toddler head during low-height falls: an anthropomorphic dummy analysis
Authors: Ibrahim Nicole G. , Margulies Susan S.
Published: July 2010

Object

Falls are the most common environmental setting for closed head injuries in children between 2 and 4 years of age. The authors previously found that toddlers had fewer skull fractures and scalp/facial soft-tissue injuries, and more frequent altered mental status than infants for the same low-height falls (≤3 ft).

Methods

To identify potential age-dependent mechanical load factors that may be responsible for these clinical findings, the authors created an instrumented dummy representing an 18-month-old child using published toddler anthropometry and mechanical properties of the skull and neck, and they measured peak angular acceleration during low-height falls (1, 2, and 3 ft) onto carpet pad and concrete. They compared these results from occiput-first impacts to previously obtained values measured in a 6-week-old infant dummy.

Results

Peak angular acceleration of the toddler dummy head was largest in the sagittal and horizontal directions and increased significantly (around 2-fold) with fall height between 1 and 2 ft. Impacts onto concrete produced larger peak angular accelerations and smaller impact durations than those onto carpet pad. When compared with previously measured infant drops, toddler head accelerations were more than double those of the infant from the same height onto the same surface, likely contributing to the higher incidence of loss of consciousness reported in toddlers. Furthermore, the toddler impact forces were larger than those in the infant, but because of the thicker toddler skull, the risk of skull fracture from low-height falls is likely lower in toddlers compared with infants.

Conclusions

If similar fracture limits and brain tissue injury thresholds between infants and toddlers are assumed, it is expected that for impact events, the toddler is likely less vulnerable to skull fracture but more vulnerable to neurological impairment compared with the infant.
Quality of life after endoscopic third ventriculostomy and cerebrospinal fluid shunting: an adjusted multivariable analysis in a large cohort
Authors: Kulkarni Abhaya V. , Shams Iffat , Cochrane D. Douglas , McNeely P. Daniel
Published: July 2010

Object

Quality of life (QOL) studies comparing treatment with endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV) and CSF shunting are very limited. The authors compared QOL outcomes following these 2 treatments in a large cohort of children with hydrocephalus by using multivariable statistical techniques to adjust for possible confounder variables.

Methods

The families of children between 5 and 18 years of age with previously treated hydrocephalus at 3 Canadian pediatric neurosurgery centers completed measures of QOL: the Hydrocephalus Outcome Questionnaire (HOQ) and the Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI3). Medical records and recent brain imaging studies were reviewed. A linear regression analysis was performed with the QOL measures as the dependent variable. In multivariable analyses, the authors assessed the independent effect of initial hydrocephalus treatment (ETV vs shunting) while adjusting for the treatment center, current patient age, age at initial treatment, etiology of hydrocephalus, total number of days spent in the hospital for initial treatment, total number of days spent in the hospital for subsequent hydrocephalus complications, functioning ETV at follow-up assessment, frequency of seizures, and current ventricle size.

Results

Data from 603 patients were available for analysis. Fifty-eight patients had undergone ETV as their primary treatment and 545 had undergone CSF shunting. Endoscopic third ventriculostomy patients were slightly younger at the follow-up assessment, were older at the first surgery, and spent fewer days in the hospital for hydrocephalus complications. Without adjustment for any confounders, treatment with ETV was associated with significantly higher HOQ physical scores and HUI3 scores. After multivariable adjustment, however, there was no significant difference in any outcome measure. A functioning ETV at the time of the follow-up assessment was not significant in any model.

Conclusions

Treatment with either ETV or CSF shunting does not appear to be associated with any substantial difference in QOL outcome after adjusting for prognostic factors. Further study is needed to definitively determine the relative QOL benefit of either procedure, if any.
Establishment of a human glioblastoma stemlike brainstem rodent tumor model
Authors: Siu I-Mei , Tyler Betty M. , Chen James X. , Eberhart Charles G. , Thomale Ulrich-Wilhelm , Olivi Alessandro , Jallo George I. , Riggins Gregory J. , Gallia Gary L.
Published: July 2010

Object

Diffuse brainstem tumors are the most difficult type of pediatric CNS malignancy to treat. These inoperable lesions are treated with radiation alone or in combination with chemotherapy, and the survival rate is less than 10%. It is therefore essential to develop a reliable animal model to screen new therapeutic agents for the treatment of this type of tumor.

Methods

A multipotent human glioblastoma stemlike neurosphere line, 060919, was established from a surgically resected glioblastoma specimen; when cells were implanted intracranially into athymic nude mice, they formed invasive, vascular tumors that exhibited the features of glioblastoma. Ten female Fischer 344 rats received an injection of 75,000 F98 rat glioma cells and 10 female athymic nude rats received an injection of 75,000 060919 human glioblastoma stemlike cells in the pontine tegmentum of the brainstem. A control group of 5 female Fischer rats received an injection of saline in the same location as the animals in the tumor groups. Kaplan-Meier curves were generated for survival, and brains were processed postmortem for histopathological investigation.

Results

Both F98 cells and 060919 cells grew in 100% of the animals injected. Median survival of animals injected with F98 was 15 days, consistent with the authors' previous reports on the establishment of the brainstem tumor model using the F98 rat glioma line. Median survival of animals injected with 060919 was 31 days. Histopathological analysis of the tumors confirmed the presence of brainstem lesions in animals that received brainstem injections of F98 and in animals that received brainstem injections of 060919. The 060919 brainstem tumors histologically resembled glioblastoma.

Conclusions

Tumor take and median survival were consistent for animals injected in the brainstem with either the established F98 rat glioma cell line or the 060919 human glioblastoma stemlike neurosphere line. Histopathological features of the 060919 brainstem tumors resembled glioblastoma. Establishment of this human glioblastoma stemlike brainstem animal model will improve the evaluation and identification of more efficacious agents for the treatment of high-grade brainstem tumors.
Intracranial hypertension caused by a depressed skull fracture resulting in superior sagittal sinus thrombosis in a pediatric patient: treatment with ventriculoperitoneal shunt insertion
Authors: Forbes Jonathan A. , Reig Adam S. , Tomycz Luke D. , Tulipan Noel
Published: July 2010

Object

Intracranial hypertension resulting from compression of the superior sagittal sinus (SSS) by an overlying depressed calvarial fracture is a rare condition. Primary surgical treatment for the symptomatic patient in this setting traditionally involves elevation of the fracture, which often carries significant associated morbidity.

Methods

The authors report a case involving a 6-year-old boy who suffered a closed, depressed, parietooccipital fracture as the result of an unhelmeted all-terrain vehicle accident. This fracture caused compression and subsequent thrombosis of the SSS, which resulted in CSF malabsorption and progressive intracranial hypertension. Initially headache free following the injury, he had developed severe and unremitting headaches by postinjury Day 7. A CT angiography study of the head obtained at this time exhibited thrombosis of the SSS underlying the depressed calvarial fracture. Subsequent lumbar puncture demonstrated markedly elevated intrathecal pressures. Large volumes of CSF were removed, with temporary improvement in symptoms. After medical management with anticoagulation failed, the decision was made to proceed with image-guided ventriculoperitoneal shunt insertion.

Results

The patient's headaches resolved immediately following the procedure, and anticoagulation therapy was reinstituted. Follow-up images obtained 4 months after the injury demonstrated evidence of resolution of the depressed fracture, with recanalization of the SSS. The anticoagulation therapy was then discontinued. To the authors' knowledge, this report is the first description of ventriculoperitoneal shunt insertion as the primary treatment of this infrequent condition.

Conclusions

This report demonstrates that select patients with this presentation can undergo CSF diversion in lieu of elevation of the depressed skull fracture—a surgical procedure shown to be associated with increased risks when the depressed fracture overlies the posterior SSS. The literature on this topic is reviewed and management of this condition is discussed.
Longitudinal analyses of the surgical outcomes of pediatric epilepsy patients with focal cortical dysplasia
Authors: Phi Ji Hoon , Cho Byung-Kyu , Wang Kyu-Chang , Lee Ji Yeoun , Hwang Yong Seung , Kim Ki Joong , Chae Jong-Hee , Kim In-One , Park Sung-Hye , Kim Seung-Ki
Published: July 2010

Object

The long-term surgical outcome of pediatric patients with epilepsy accompanied by focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) is not clear. The authors report on the long-term surgical outcomes of children with FCD, based on longitudinal analyses.

Methods

The authors retrospectively analyzed the records of 41 children who underwent epilepsy surgery for pathologically proven FCD. Twenty of these patients were male and 21 were female. The median age at surgery was 9 years (range 1–17 years).

Results

The actuarial seizure-free rates were 49, 44, and 33% in the 1st, 2nd, and 5th years after surgery, respectively. There was no seizure recurrence after 3 years. Three patients with initial failure of seizure control experienced late remission of seizures (the so-called running-down phenomenon). Eventually, 19 patients (46%) were seizure free at their last follow-up visit. Absence of a lesion on MR imaging and incomplete resection were significantly associated with seizure-control failure. Concordance of presurgical evaluation data was a marginally significant variable for seizure control in patients with lesional epilepsy. Three patients with seizure-control failure became seizure free as a result of the running-down phenomenon. The actuarial rate of antiepileptic drug discontinuation was 91% in the 5th year in the seizure-free patients.

Conclusions

The seizure-free rate after surgery in children with FCD was 49% in the 1st year; however, it declined thereafter. The running-down phenomenon could be an important mechanism of seizure alleviation for patients with FCD during long-term follow-up. Because a complete resection of FCD has a strong prognostic implication for seizure control, a better method to define the extent of FCD is required to assist with resection, especially in nonlesional epilepsy.
Aurora kinase A as a rational target for therapy in glioblastoma
Authors: Barton Valerie N. , Foreman Nicholas K. , Donson Andrew M. , Birks Diane K. , Handler Michael H. , Vibhakar Rajeev
Published: July 2010

Object

Despite advances in the knowledge of tumor biology, the outcome of glioblastoma tumors remains poor. The design of many molecularly targeted therapies in glioblastoma has focused on inhibiting molecular abnormalities present in tumor cells compared with normal tissue rather than patient outcome-associated factors. As an alternative approach, the present study identified genes associated with shorter survival as potential therapeutic targets. It was hypothesized that inhibition of a molecular target associated with poor outcome would impact glioblastoma cell proliferation.

Methods

The present study correlated patient survival data with tumor gene expression profiling and gene ontology analysis. Genes associated with shorter survival were identified and one of these was selected for therapeutic targeting in an in vitro system. Glioblastoma cell growth suppression was measured by H3-thymidine uptake, colony formation, and flow cytometry.

Results

The gene expression microarray and ontology analysis revealed that genes involved in mitotic processes, including AURKA, were associated with poor prognosis in glioblastoma. Inhibition of AURKA suppressed glioblastoma cell growth. Moreover, inhibition of AURKA was synergistic with radiation in glioblastoma cells at high radiation doses.

Conclusions

Relative expression of AURKA may be of prognostic value and warrants further investigation with larger, prospective studies. Pharmacological inhibition of AURKA is a potentially promising therapy for glioblastoma.
Neurocutaneous melanosis: surgical pathological features of an apparently hamartomatous lesion in the amygdala
Authors: Fu Yong-Juan , Morota Nobuhito , Nakagawa Atsuko , Takahashi Hitoshi , Kakita Akiyoshi
Published: July 2010

Neurocutaneous melanosis (NCM) is a rare, congenital phakomatosis characterized by the presence of congenital melanocytic nevi and a benign or malignant pigmented cell tumor of the leptomeninges of the CNS. Here the authors report the surgical pathological features of a lesion in the left amygdala in a 10-year-old girl with giant congenital pigmented nevi and mesial temporal lobe epilepsy. The lesion exhibited high intensity on T1-weighted MR images and low intensity to isointensity on T2-weighted images. A left anterior temporal lobectomy and hippocampectomy were performed. Histologically, the lesion was composed of melanin-containing polygonal cells arranged in solid alveolar or multiple lobular patterns. Immunohistochemically, the cells were immunoreactive for HMB45, S100 protein, and vimentin, the profiles being consistent with those of melanocytes. Bundles of astrocytic processes surrounded the nests of melanocytes. Melanin-containing and dysmorphic neurons were also scattered near the nests. In the temporal neocortex adjacent to the amygdaloid melanocytic lesion, cortical dysplasia with cortical laminar disorganization was evident. Based on the histopathological features, the parenchymal lesion appeared to be hamartomatous in nature rather than a neoplasm, involving aberrant migration of melanocytes into the developing neuroepithelial tissue. This case appears to represent an unusual CNS manifestation of NCM.
Diagnosis and management of metastatic spine disease
Authors: Sciubba Daniel M. , Petteys Rory J. , Dekutoski Mark B. , Fisher Charles G. , Fehlings Michael G. , Ondra Stephen L. , Rhines Laurence D. , Gokaslan Ziya L.
Published: July 2010

With continued growth of the elderly population and improvements in cancer therapies, the number of patients with symptomatic spinal metastases is likely to increase, and this is a condition that commonly leads to debilitating neurological dysfunction and pain. Advancements in surgical techniques of resection and spinal reconstruction, improvements in clinical outcomes following various treatment modalities, generally increased overall survival in patients with metastatic spine disease, and a recent randomized trial by Patchell and colleagues demonstrating the superiority of a combined surgical/radiotherapeutic approach over a radiotherapy-only strategy have led many to suggest increasingly aggressive interventions for patients with such lesions. Optimal management of spinal metastases encompasses numerous medical specialties, including neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery, medical and radiation oncology, radiology, and rehabilitation medicine. In this review, the clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management of spinal metastatic disease are discussed. Ultimately, the goal of treatment in patients with spinal metastases remains palliative, and clinical judgment is required to select the appropriate patients for surgical intervention.
Extramedullary hematopoietic tumor mimicking a thoracic nerve root schwannoma
Authors: Oermann Eric K. , Coppa Nicholas D. , Margolis Marc , Sandhu Faheem A.
Published: July 2010

Extramedullary hematopoiesis secondary to chronic anemia is well reported throughout the literature. A rare presentation of this condition is in the central nervous tissue reported most frequently as an epidural mass causing spinal cord compression. The authors report the case of a 51-year-old man with β-thalassemia and chronic anemia who was found to have a 4-cm paravertebral mass suggestive of a schwannoma. The patient underwent transthoracic resection of the mass. Histological examination confirmed an extramedullary hematopoietic tumor. In this article the authors propose a method to distinguish extramedullary hematopoietic tumors from schwannomas. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first reported case in the neurosurgical literature of this phenomenon.
Local disease control after decompressive surgery and adjuvant high-dose single-fraction radiosurgery for spine metastases
Authors: Moulding Hugh D. , Elder James B. , Lis Eric , Lovelock Dale M. , Zhang Zhigang , Yamada Yoshiya , Bilsky Mark H.
Published: July 2010

Object

Adjuvant radiation following epidural spinal cord decompression for tumor is a powerful tool used to achieve local disease control and preserve neurological function. To the authors' knowledge, only 1 published report addresses adjuvant stereotactic radiosurgery after this procedure, but that study used significantly lower doses than are currently prescribed. The authors review their experience using high-dose single-fraction radiosurgery as a postoperative adjuvant following surgical decompression and instrumentation to assess long-term local tumor control, morbidity, and survival.

Methods

A retrospective chart review identified 21 patients treated with surgical decompression and instrumentation for high-grade, epidural, spinal cord compression from tumor, followed by single-fraction high-dose spinal radiosurgery (dose range 18–24 Gy, median 24 Gy). Spinal cord dose was limited to a cord maximal dose of 14 Gy. Tumor histologies, time between surgery and radiosurgery, time to local recurrence after radiosurgery as assessed by serial MR imaging, and time to death were determined. Competing risk analysis was used to evaluate these end points.

Results

In this series, 20 tumors treated (95%) were considered highly radioresistant to conventional external beam radiation. The planning target volume received a high dose (24 Gy) in 16 patients (76.2%), and a low dose (18 or 21 Gy) in 5 patients (23.8%). During the study, 15 (72%) of 21 patients died, and in all cases death was due to systemic progression as opposed to local failure. The median overall survival after radiosurgery was 310 days (range 37 days to not reached). One patient (4.8%) underwent repeat surgery for local failure and 2 patients (9.5%) underwent spine surgery for other reasons. Local control was maintained after radiosurgery in 17 (81%) of 21 patients until death or most recent follow-up, with an estimated 1-year local failure risk of 9.5%. Of the failures, 3 of 4 were noted in patients receiving low-dose radiosurgery, equaling an overall failure rate of 60% (3 of 5 patients) and a 1-year local failure estimated risk of 20%. Those patients receiving adjuvant stereotactic radiosurgery with a high dose had a 93.8% overall local control rate (15 of 16 patients), with a 1-year estimated failure risk of 6.3%. Competing risk analysis showed this to be a significant difference between radiosurgical doses. One patient experienced a significant radiation-related complication; there were no wound-related issues after radiosurgery.

Conclusions

Spine radiosurgery after surgical decompression and instrumentation for tumor is a safe and effective technique that can achieve local tumor control until death in the vast majority of patients. In this series, those patients who received a higher radiosurgical dose had a significantly better local control rate.
Intraoperative ultrasonographic evaluation of posterior decompression via laminoplasty in patients with cervical ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament: correlation with 2-year follow-up results
Authors: Seichi Atsushi , Chikuda Hirotaka , Kimura Atsushi , Takeshita Katsushi , Sugita Shurei , Hoshino Yuichi , Nakamura Kozo
Published: July 2010

Object

The aim in this prospective study was to determine the morphological limitations of laminoplasty for cervical ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) by using intraoperative ultrasonography and to investigate correlations between ultrasonographic findings and 2-year follow-up results.

Methods

Included in this study were 40 patients who underwent double-door laminoplasty for cervical myelopathy due to OPLL. Intraoperative ultrasonography was used to evaluate posterior shift of the spinal cord after the posterior decompression procedure. To determine the decompression status of the cord, the authors classified ultrasonographic findings into 3 types on the basis of the presence or absence of spinal cord contact with OPLL after decompression: Type 1, noncontact; Type 2, contact and apart; and Type 3, contact. Patients were divided accordingly into Group 1, showing Type 1 or 2 findings, representing sufficient decompression; and Group 2, showing Type 3 findings with insufficient decompression. Preoperative sagittal alignment of the cervical spine (C2–7 angle) and preoperative maximal thickness of OPLL were compared between groups. The authors also investigated the morphological limitations of laminoplasty and 2-year follow-up results by using the Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) scoring system.

Results

According to receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, an OPLL maximal thickness > 7.2 mm was a cutoff value for insufficient decompression. However, sufficient or insufficient decompression did not correlate with 2-year results, as determined by JOA scores. The C2–7 angle had no impact on ultrasonographic findings.

Conclusions

Laminoplasty has a morphological limitation for thick OPLLs, and a thickness > 7.2 mm represents a theoretical cutoff for residual cord compression after laminoplasty. According to 2-year results, however, laminoplasty can remain the first choice for any type of multiple-level OPLL.
Cranial magnetic resonance imaging findings of leptomeningeal contrast enhancement after pediatric posterior fossa tumor resection and its significance
Authors: Loree Jonathan , Mehta Vivek , Bhargava Ravi
Published: July 2010

In this report, the authors illustrate the potential shortfalls of early postoperative MR imaging following resection of a posterior fossa tumor. The authors present the cases of a 10-month-old boy and a 14-year-old boy with posterior fossa tumors that were surgically resected and monitored immediately postoperatively with MR imaging. The MR imaging study obtained immediately postresection while the children were still anesthetized revealed enhancing elements in both patients, which were suggestive of leptomeningeal metastases. When this signal was followed on subsequent MR images, it was no longer visible. The patients are both recurrence free at the time of this publication. These cases demonstrate that early postoperative MR imaging findings for leptomeningeal metastases may be unreliable after excision of posterior fossa tumors and may have potential implications for intraoperative MR imaging techniques currently under development.
Angiosperm diversity of Lawachara National Park (Bangladesh): a preliminary assessment
Authors: Uddin Mohammad Zashim , Hassan Md. Abul
Published: July 2010

The present article focuses on an inventory of angiosperm diversity of Lawachara National Park. Using traditional taxonomic techniques data have been collected from the park during January to October 2008. In this preliminary assessment, a total of 374 angiosperm species including cultivated ones have been catalogued under 84 families. Nineteen threatened plant species have also been recognized in the park. Keywords:  Preliminary assessment; angiosperm diversity; Lawachara National Park.DOI: 10.3329/bjpt.v17i1.5387Bangladesh J. Plant Taxon. 17(1): 9-22, 2010 (June)
Airborne pollen flora of a deciduous mesic forest in Turkey
Authors: Kutluk Hatice , Aytug Burhan
Published: July 2010

Airborne pollen composition of a deciduous mesic forest in northwestern Turkey is compared with the flora of the forest and a wider area. The airborne assemblage is constituted by 641.553 pollen belonging to 32 orders, 54 families and 96 genera. Of these, 380.000 (59.2%) belong to native and 257.180 (40.1%) to non-native plants. Among the native taxa arboreal pollen (AP) is represented by 55.7% and non-arboreal (NAP) by 44.3%. All of the arboreal elements of the forest are Quercus, Castanea, Carpinus, Ulmus, Alnus, Populus, Salix, Fagus, Tilia, Acer, Corylus, Prunus, Rubus, Ligustrum, Phillyrea which represented in the airborne assemblage. Incorporation of NAP to airborne composition is less than AP and they more likely provide an indication of the composition of local plant communities and hence represent vegetation of immediate vicinity. The most common NAP taxa are Poaceae, Plantaginaceae, Asteraceae, Urticaceae, Apiaceae, Cannabaceae, Polygonaceae and Cyperaceae. Pollen of climbers are less represented than AP but more than NAP taxa. Platanus orientalis (30.7%) and Pinus and Cupressus (20.2%) constitute half of the non-native flora; the rest is the pollen of exotic, alien and horticultural taxa from numerous parks and gardens in İstanbul.
Algorithmic Solution of Stochastic Differential Equations
Authors: Schurz Henri
Published: July 2010

This brief note presents an algorithm to solve ordinary stochastic differential equations (SDEs). The algorithm is based on the joint solution of a system of two partial differential equations and provides strong solutions for finite-dimensional systems of SDEs driven by standard Wiener processes and with adapted initial data. Several examples illustrate its use.
Planning for Community Based Tourism in a Remote Location
Authors: Harwood Sharon
Published: July 2010

Remote areas are difficult to access, tend to lack critical infrastructure, are highly susceptible to shocks in the marketplace, and are perceived by industry to possess limited development opportunities. Accordingly a community orientated and territorial approach to development planning in a remote area will be more successful than a top down industry based approach [1]. Given the limitations of being remote, the case study community examined in this research manages and sustains a bird watching tourism product within a global market place. This paper examines how a remotely located community in the Arfak Mountains of West Papua overcomes these difficulties and plans for community based tourism (CBT) in their locale.
L'Art du Toxaristan à l'époque du Haut Moyen Âge (monuments non bouddhiques)
Authors: Litvinskij Boris A. , Solov'ev Viktor
Published: July 2010

The article of B.A. Litvinskij and V.S. Solovyev is devoted to interesting monuments of art- ceramic reliefs, cornelian gemseal, wooden carved board - which were found during the excavation at the sites of Kafirkala and Kalai Kafirnigan in Southern Tajikistan. All of them are dated within the second half of the VIIth - the first half of the VIIIth centuries.

The two ceramic reliefs have the wild ram and lion hunt scenes. Both of them vary the subjects that are well known in Sasanid toreutics. The third relief bears a deer decorated with ribbons and framed by vegetable ornament. The image of the deer is adapted from Iranian art, the ornament, from Gupta art. The scene of the victory of the horseman over the lion and a bird (probably farn) flying towards the horseman is carved on the obverse of the gem-seal . The seal was brought from Iran ; the subject of its picture is unique. There is a relief picture of two peacocks moving towards each other on the board from Kalai Kafirnigan. The article gives a detailed study of the pictures of this king in oriental art.

All these finds are very important for the characterisation of secular non-monumental art of Tokharistan which is still insufficiently known. They also widen our knowledge of the cultural links of this state with neighbouring countries, primarily with India and Iran.
Essai pour une typologie de la cloche tibétaine dril-bu
Authors: Helffer Mireille
Published: July 2010

The ritual sceptre rdo-rje and the handbell dril-bu — with an internal clapper and a handle in the shape of half a rdo-rje — are indispensable accessories for the ritual celebration of Tibetan Buddhism. They appear among the attributes which iconography gives to a number of Buddhas, bodhisattvas, protective deities and spiritual teachers. Since the beginning of the XIth century, numerous canonical and extra -canonical texts have described precisely the characteristics of the rdo-rje and dril-bu, and simultaneously explained the symbolical value which could be attributed to each part of the two objects.

A comparison between the textual prescriptions and a sample of some fifty bells kept in various museums and monasteries has showed how faithful was the treatment of the ritual bells till the contemporary period. This allows to put forward a typology of the Tibetan dril-bu which takes into consideration the criteria offered by the Tibetan tradition itself. Two tables — one concerning the handle of the bell, the other the various symbolical decorations of the skirt of the bell - show the various correlations which have laid to the available types of bells.
The ruins of Pâhârpur
Authors: Ahmed Nazimuddin , Sanday John
Published: July 2010

Les ruines du vihâra de Pahârpur sont situées dans le district de Rajshahi, au Bangladesh, non loin de la limite avec le district de Bogra. Le nom de Pahârpur ou " ville colline " évoque peut-être la silhouette du lieu avant que le monastère n'y ait été découvert ; le lieu se nommait jadis Somapura, comme il en ressort de la lecture de sceaux qui y localisent le "grand monastère de Dharmapâladeva ", souverain qui régna des environs de 775 aux environs de 812. Pour des raisons encore peu connues, le monastère a été abandonné au XIIe siècle. Francis Buchanan (Hamilton) visita les lieux entre 1807 et 1812 pour le compte de l'East India Company, E. Vesey Westmacott s'y rendit vers 1875 avant Alexander Cunningham au cours de l'hiver 1879-1880. Les fouilles commencèrent dès 1923 : quelques cellules et une partie de la cour dans l'angle sud-ouest sont alors dégagées. Dans la campagne de 1925-26, l'escalier principal, le chemin processionnel au nord et la base du temple central sont mis au jour. Les fouilles continueront jusqu'en 1934 sous la direction de K.N. Dikshit.

Le monument, comme ceux du Salban vihâra à Mainamati, distria de Comilla, ou d'Antichak, dans le district de Bhagalpur au Bihar, présente une structure évoquant de similaires constructions en Birmanie ou à Java.

Les ruines couvrent une superficie de près de neuf hectares ; elles forment une cour presque carrée et symétriquement disposée, de 280 mètres de côté au centre de laquelle se dresse le sanctuaire. Cette cour est cernée par un mur de 4,8 mètres d'épaisseur dans lequel sont ménagées les 177 cellules monacales. L'unique accès à la cour est situé au nord. La structure à terrasses du sanctuaire est bâtie sur un plan cruciforme. Le sanctuaire central, d'une superficie de près de 27 mètres carrés, s'élève sur les trois terrasses en retrait à une hauteur d'environ 20 mètres. La seconde terrasse correspond au chemin circu- mambulatoire qui donne accès aux niches ménagées dans les branches de la croix ; les murs intérieurs sont, à cette élévation, ornés de terres cuites. Le niveau actuel du sol est surélevé d'un mètre par rapport au niveau originel du pradaksinatha de la base qui contient une série de 63 panneaux en pierre, aujourd'hui recouverts. A l'époque de la mousson, les eaux inondent la cour, interdisant qu'un chantier de fouilles y soit et demeure ouvert et rendant difficile la restauration et l'entretien du site. Un plan pour la conservation du site a été préparé, résultat de plusieurs missions de l'UNESCO, et dans le cadre du programme de préservation et conservation des monuments du Bangladesh. Des propositions ont été faites pour assécher le site et y entreprendre des fouilles, conserver et entretenir le monument et protéger son environnement. Le développement du musée du site est également prévu, ainsi que celui de l'accueil des visiteurs.
La tombe à linceul de jade du roi de Nanyue à Canton
Authors: Girard-Geslan Maud
Published: July 2010

In 1983, the tomb of the second king of Nanyue was brought to light on a small granitic hillock, mount Xianggang, in Canton. Well preserved and unviolated, the sepulture was deeply dug into the top of the hill and its chambers were entirely built of sandstone blocks. It provides important clues on the evolution of kingly burial practices as well as on the organization of feudal royalty during the Western Han dynasty.

Chinese ruler of an independent kingdom, populated mostly by Yue Barbarians (related to the Dôngsonian people of protohistoric Vietnam), Zhao Mei (who died between 128 and 117 BC), identified by his seals, was dressed in a jade suit and rested in a set of lacquered woodcaskets. Accompanied by fourteen human victims, he was surrounded with numerous exquisitely crafted goods.

The burial objects (among which a few situlae (bronze buckets) were the only Yue objects) give information on the process of diffusion of the Han culture, that little by little replaced the Yue one, as well as on the technical and economic level of a kingdom, where metallurgy was locally practiced and where sea trade was flourishing.
Le monastère de bSam-yas : essai de restitution
Authors: Mémet Sébastien
Published: July 2010

bSam-yas Monastery : an attempt at reconstruction.

When he built a model of the bSam-yas monastery, S. Mémet, being an architect but not a specialist of Tibetan architecture, insisted on the proportions and volumes of the buildings. From the existing documents, photographs and very succinct plans, he drew a scale and placed accordingly the buildings, using resections of perspectives. The main figure of the plan was found to be the square, and the main element of composition the number three. The elevation of the central building is based on

rectangles composed of three half-squares; its pyramidal organization expresses a hierarchy between the parts of the temple, the inner one being considered as a space regulator. But though the centre of the more or less circular enclosure is the vertical axis of the main temple, it is still difficult, owing to the lack of metrical survey, to state positively that the whole area is geometrically organized.
La Vie de l'enfant Padma 'od-'bar : du texte à l'image
Authors: Blondeau Anne-Marie
Published: July 2010

The Life of the Child Padma 'od-'bar : from the text to the painted image.

The play, the Life of the Child Padma 'od-'bar is very popular amongst the Tibetan people. Apart from the " libretti ", proper to each theatrical company, several written versions have been published, though these come down to two main ones, the first published in Kalimpong in 1959, and the second in Lhasa in 1982.

Furthermore, the same narrative is related by the itinerant storytellers, the mani-pas, who illustrate their story by showing details from the scenes of a thangka. A comparison between four of these paintings shows that, beyond stylistic differences, a large homogeneity exists in their composition. One may wonder whether this homogeneity is the result of a common geographical origin, which may link them to a school from Khams.

Putting the texts and paintings side by side, it becomes clear that — apart from a few details — all the scenes in the paintings faithfully follow the texts. Nevertheless, it is necessary to

combine both written versions in order to get a complete " reading " of the thangkas. This fact suggests that the two modern versions are incomplete, and that it would be useful to find a more ancient text.

Thus we have a further example of « narrative » painting very precisely linked to a text. Yet, contrary to other such paintings, previously studied, those illustrating the life of Padma 'od-'bar lack strictness in their composition, since the progress of the story sometimes requires the reader to jump in disorder from one place to another. If one adds the naive technique used in three out of four of these thangkas, one may ask whether this might not be considered as a criterion for identifying the paintings used by the mani-pas.

Finally, this example, following others, prompts one to look to literary sources as the probable origin of the so-called " narrative " paintings.
Sarazm et les débuts du peuplement agricole dans la région de Samarkand
Authors: Besenval Roland , Isakov Abdullah Isakovič
Published: July 2010

Discovered in 1976, Sarazm is the first evidence of chalcolithic settlement in the north-eastern part of southern Central Asia during 4th and 3rd millennium B.C.

This site, isolated in this area, is similar to the agricultural communities well known during this period in South Turkmenia, on the Iranian Plateau and in Baluchistan.

Archaeological excavations at Sarazm have shown striking links, through pottery/ with these distant regions. The question raised is the "raison d'être" of these closed connexions: the hypothesis of a specific interest in the Zerafshan mountaneous aera is considered.
Social Organisation at Khok Phanom Di, Central Thailand (2000-1500 B.C.)
Authors: Higham Charles Franklin Wandesforde
Published: July 2010

Khok Phanom Di, situé sur une étendue plate à 80 km à l'est de Bangkok, est constitué d'un grand tertre de cinq hectares qui s'élève à douze mètres de hauteur dans la vallée de Bang Pakong. Depuis 1984, nos recherches se sont concentrées sur ce tertre, avec, en particulier, une fouille plus étendue pour étudier la disposition des sépultures.

La richesse du matériel a dépassé nos espérances. Les préhistoriques ont occupé une région située au bord d'un estuaire dominé par les mangroves côtières. La mer était toute proche. Le riz a été cultivé depuis l'occupation du site.

Cette occupation se trouve comprise entre 2000 et 1500 de notre ère. La durée d'utilisation du cimetière est de l'ordre de 400 à 500 ans, ce qui correspond à environ vingt générations.

Hommes, femmes et enfants ont tous été enterrés de la même façon, accompagnés de magnifiques poteries et de parures de coquillages et de parures en os. Les morts étaient inhumés en groupes dans des tombes collectives. Dans une même lignée familiale, nous avons dénombré dix-sept générations. Nous pensons que cette communauté était matrilinéaire parce que les femmes ont fabriqué les récipients en terre cuite.

A la quatorzième génération, une femme a été enterrée avec des offrandes d'une richesse considérable. La possession de parures marquait le statut social. Les individus étaient en compétition pour l'acquisition de ces biens : les uns réussissaient, les autres non. Mais lorsque le niveau de la mer baissa, le site fut abandonné.
Niuzhong Chime-Bells of Eastern Zhou China
Authors: Falkenhausen Lothar
Published: July 2010

Les niuzhong (" cloches à anse ") sont dérivées des cloches à battant ling qui comptent parmi les objets en bronze les plus anciens de la Chine. N'étant en effet que des ling élargies sans battant, les niuzhong furent dès l'origine fabriquées en carillons. A l'époque Zhou, leur fonction était complémentaire par rapport à d'autres types de cloches musicales, principalement lesyongzhong et les bo. La forme particulière de ces cloches (section en forme d'amande) leur permettait d'émettre deux sons distincts, selon qu'on les frappait au milieu ou sur le côté de la face.

La plupart des niuzhong datent de la période des Zhou Orientaux. Cet article retrace leur évolution typologique et le développement stylistique de leur décoration. Il semble possible que des " ling en carillon " de la période tardive des Zhou Occidentaux soient les plus anciennes niuzhong. Dans les premières pièces des Zhou Orientaux, la décoration ressemble encore à celle des ling; mais ensuite, elle va se conformer au schéma classique du décor des cloches musicales utilisé d'abord sur lesyongzhong. L'adoption de ce décor standardisé semble indiquer la transformation des niuzhong en des cloches musicales placées sur le même plan que les autres. Depuis, on voit assez souvent des ensembles de cloches de types différents mais décorées de façon uniforme.

L'évolution stylistique des niuzhong a suivi des orientations assez diverses dans le sud et dans le nord de la Chine. L'apparition vers la fin de l'époque des Royaumes Combattants de niuzhong ayant un profil bombé et une section presque ronde indique que la " possibilité d'émettre deux tons " a été abandonnée. Les niuzhong furent les seules parmi les cloches musicales de la période Zhou a être encore fondues au cours des époques Qin et Han. Les pièces tardives sont ornées de façon exubérante, mais donnent l'impression d'avoir une fonction moindre.
Les Palais européens du Yuanmingyuan à travers la photographie : 1860-1940
Authors: Thiriez Régine
Published: July 2010

Started in 1987, the search for old photographs of the European Palaces of the Yuanmingyuan has yielded close to a hundred and fifty samples, which have been for the most part attributed, identified and dated. At first meant as a support to the architectural and stylistic study of the site by the Mission Palais d'Été, the collection has also provided valuable information. The consequences of the 1860 torching on the buildings, and their progressive disappearance through neglect and pilfering are two examples. The process of destruction is specially well documented for the Haiyantang, an impressive combination of palace and reservoir, essential part of an architecture conceived around and in function of Western-style fountains and waterworks.