bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Coevolution of male and female reproductive traits in a simultaneously hermaphroditic land snail
Authors: Beese K. , Beier K. , Baur B.
Published: October 2005

Inter- and intraspecific studies in gonochoristic animals reveal a covariation between sperm characteristics and the size of the female reproductive tract, indicating a rapid evolutionary divergence, which is consistent with the theory of post-copulatory sexual selection. Simultaneous hermaphrodites differ from species with separate sexes (gonochorists) in that they possess both functional male and female reproductive organs at the same time. We investigated whether in hermaphroditic animals intraspecific variation in reproductive traits results from divergent coevolution, by quantifying the variation in male and female traits among six natural populations of the snail Arianta arbustorum and examining the covariation in interacting traits. There was a significant among-population variation in spermatophore volume, number of sperm transferred and sperm length, as well as in volume of the sperm storage organ (spermatheca) and number of tubules, but not in spermatheca length. We found a positive association between sperm number transferred and spermatheca volume. This result suggests that the same post-copulatory mechanisms as in gonochorists drive the correlated evolution of reproductive characters in hermaphrodites.
Cardiac tamponade associated with a peripheral vein central venous catheter
Authors: COLOMINA MARÍA J. , GODET CARMEN , PELLISÉ FERRAN , GONZÁLEZ‐P MIGUEL ÁNGEL , BAGÓ JOAN , VILLANUEVA CARLOS
Published: October 2005

We present a case of cardiac tamponade associated with placement of a central venous catheter (CVC) via a peripheral vein in a 14‐year‐old girl with idiopathic scoliosis undergoing corrective surgery. A number of complications have been described in association with CVC misplacement. Sporadic cases of cardiac tamponade from this have been reported, but the actual incidence is unknown. Death from cardiac tamponade attributed to CVCs ranges from 65 to 100%. In our patient, cannulation of the pericardiophrenic vein was probably the cause of cardiac tamponade, based on radiological evidence that the initial location of the catheter was near the right atrium and possibly at the outlet of the pericardiophrenic vein. The catheter could have advanced into the vein and then to the pericardial sac with postural changes. The acute clinical course of cardiac tamponade in our patient had potentially lethal hemodynamic repercussions. The main diagnostic test for this condition is echocardiography and the only effective treatment is drainage of the pericardial effusion. Echocardiography should be performed before pericardiocentesis except in life‐threatening situations or high clinical suspicion. Although they are rare, it is important to be aware of the potential for CVC complications.
Anesthesia in a patient with chromosome 11;22 translocation: a case report and literature review
Authors: DRUM ELIZABETH T. , HERLICH ANDREW , LEVINE BRUCE , MAYHEW JAMES F.
Published: October 2005

Chromosome 11;22 translocation is a rare genetic condition, which results in characteristic features some of which may present problems when these children require surgery and anesthesia. We describe a child with this chromosomal variant who presented for surgery and anesthesia. The case report and review of the literature is presented here.
The safe use of intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography in the management of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection in newborns and infants: a case series
Authors: CHANG YA‐YING , CHANG CHUNG‐I , WANG MING‐JIH , LIN SU‐MAN , CHEN YIH‐SHARNG , TSAI SHEN‐KOU , LUE HONG‐CHI
Published: October 2005

Background : Intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is useful in evaluating the repair of lesions in patients with congenital heart disease. But the use of TEE in infants with total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC) remains unclear. We reviewed the safety and efficacy of intraoperative TEE during TAPVC repair.

Methods : Twenty‐eight consecutive 1 day to 7 month‐old infants with TAPVC (14 supracardiac, six intracardiac and eight infracardiac type) had surgical repair with intraoperative TEE monitoring.

Results : Four patients received immediate surgical revision after primary surgery for residual anastomotic stenosis diagnosed by TEE. In addition, two unsuspected ventricular septal defects and three persistent ductus arteriosus were detected before surgery. Eight infants (29%) had hypotension and hypoxemia associated with TEE probe insertion before surgery, but this hemodynamic disturbance returned to baseline value after withdrawing the TEE probe from the esophagus. However, these eight patients had uneventful TEE probe insertion following sternotomy. The mechanism was probably because of the reduction of intrathoracic pressure when the chest was opened.

Conclusions : TEE probe insertion in TAPVC patients may pose a potential risk of compression of pulmonary venous confluence resulting in hemodynamic instability. Therefore, we suggest that the use of TEE in such TAPVC patients appears to be safer after sternotomy.
Submental intubation for cancrum oris: a case report
Authors: EIPE NAVEEN , NEUHOEFER EVA‐SABINE , ROSEE GABRIELE LA , CHOUDHRIE RAJIV , SAMMAN NABIL , KREUSCH THOMAS
Published: October 2005

Cancrum oris (Noma) is a devastating gangrenous disease that leads to severe tissue destruction in the face. We describe the anesthetic management of a 12‐year‐old girl with cancrum oris sequelae in a Rural Secondary level Hospital in Central India (Padhar Hospital). She presented with a large defect in her upper lip on the left side that extended into the columella and the floor of the left nostril. She was scheduled to undergo reconstructive surgery and the surgeons planned to use an Abbé flap based on the lower lip. For this, access to both the mouth and the nose was required. We considered a tracheostomy but decided to attempt the submental route for orotracheal intubation. Following intravenous induction the patient's trachea was intubated with a cuffed oral tracheal tube. This was passed through the submental incision and then reconnected. The surgery proceeded uneventfully and the patient was extubated before transfer. She made a satisfactory recovery and the submental scar healed without complication or scarring. We describe briefly the features of cancrum oris and review the technique of submental intubation (described in adults with midfacial trauma). The use of submental intubation in children and for cancrum oris sequelae has not been previously reported.
Protracted pain following partial splenic embolization in an adolescent female with hypersplenism
Authors: GANESH ARJUNAN , ROSE JOHN B. , MAXWELL LYNNE G.
Published: October 2005

A 17‐year‐old female with massive splenomegaly underwent partial splenic embolization (PSE) for hypersplenism. The postoperative course was characterized by recurrent painful splenic infarctions requiring hydromorphone PCA for an extended period resulting in an unanticipated, prolonged hospital stay. Massive splenomegaly treated with PSE may require an extended hospital stay to achieve pain control. Such patients may subsequently require transition to enteral opioids and weaning.
Arrhythmias associated with respiratory syncytial virus infection
Authors: PLAYFOR STEPHEN D. , KHADER ABDUL
Published: October 2005

A 7‐week‐old infant with respiratory syncytial virus infection abruptly developed complex cardiac arrhythmias in association with a low serum magnesium level. The arrhythmias were successfully treated with a single intravenous infusion of magnesium sulfate. The child was subsequently found to have a significant atrial septal defect.
Utility of ultrasound‐guided central venous cannulation in pediatric surgical patients: a clinical series
Authors: LEYVI GALINA , TAYLOR DAVID G , REITH ELIZABETH , WASNICK JOHN D.
Published: October 2005

Background:  Central venous cannulation can be particularly difficult in pediatric patients. Central line placement is associated with many well‐known complications. While ultrasound‐guided techniques are well established, the majority of central venous catheters are placed using landmark guidance. This retrospective study compares the safety and efficacy of ultrasound guidance vs landmark guidance in central venous cannulation of pediatric cardiac surgery patients.

Methods:  The medical records of 149 pediatric patients undergoing cardiac surgery over 3‐year period were reviewed. Patients were classified into two cohorts based on whether central venous cannulation of the internal jugular vein was performed by ultrasound or landmark guidance. Overall success and traumatic complication rates were compared between the two groups. Additionally, comparisons between the groups were made to determine if patient size or age affected the success rate of either approach in different manner.

Results:  Patients in the ultrasound‐guided (n = 47) and the landmark‐guided (n = 102) groups were similar with respect to age, weight, and surgical procedure for which central venous access was indicated. The overall success rate for cannulation of the internal jugular vein was 91.5% in the ultrasound‐guided group and 72.5% in the landmark‐guided group (P = 0.010). But in the subgroup of children under 1 year of age, success rate was 77.8% in ultrasound group and 60.9% in landmark group (P = 0.44); in children under 10 kg in weight, success rate was 80% in ultrasound group and 56.7% in landmark group (P = 0.19). There were no significant differences in the rate of traumatic complications between the two methods.

Conclusions:  The overall success of internal jugular vein cannulation for pediatric cardiac surgery is significantly improved with the use of ultrasound guidance, without a significant difference in traumatic complications. However, mostly children above 1 year of age or 10 kg of weight experience advantages of ultrasound technique.
Can continuous low current electrical stimulation distinguish insulated needle position in the epidural and intrathecal spaces in pediatric patients?
Authors: TSUI BAN C.H. , WAGNER ALESE M. , CUNNINGHAM KIRSTEN , PERRY SHIRLEY , DESAI SUNIL , SEAL ROBERT
Published: October 2005

Background : Muscle twitches elicited with electrical stimulation (6–17 mA) during epidural insertion indicate correct epidural needle placement while muscle twitches at a lower current (<1 mA) may indicate intrathecal needle placement. This study examined whether applying continuous electrical stimulation at 6 mA could indicate needle entry into the epidural space without inadvertently penetrating the intrathecal space.

Methods : After institutional review board (IRB) approval, 10 pediatric patients scheduled for lumbar puncture were studied. Following sedation with propofol, an insulated 24‐gauge Pajunck unipolar needle was inserted through an 18‐gauge introducer needle placed at the L4‐5 interspace. The needle was first connected to a nerve stimulator (6 mA) and advanced. At the first sign of muscle twitching, needle advancement was stopped and the threshold current for motor activity was determined. The current was then turned off, the stylet was removed and the needle checked for cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). If CSF was not present, the needle was advanced into the intrathecal space (as confirmed by the presence of CSF). Ten pediatric patients (ASA II or III) aged 7.8 ± 4.3 years (2.8–16.0 years) were studied.

Results : All patients had two distinguishable threshold currents as the needle advanced. The mean threshold current to elicit muscle twitch in the presumed epidural space was 3.84 ± 0.99 mA. CSF was not present in any of the patients at this location. The mean threshold current in the intrathecal space was 0.77 ± 0.32 mA. The average estimated distance from the first threshold location to the intrathecal space was 3 mm. All muscle twitches were at the L3‐5 myotomes. Nine muscle twitches were unilateral and one was bilateral.

Conclusions : Monitoring with an insulated needle with electrical stimulation at 6 mA may prevent unintentional placement of epidural needles into the intrathecal space.
Predator diversity and the functioning of ecosystems: the role of intraguild predation in dampening trophic cascades
Authors: Finke Deborah L. , Denno Robert F.
Published: October 2005

Single trophic‐level studies of the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning highlight the importance of mechanisms such as resource partitioning, facilitation, and sampling effect. In a multi‐trophic context, trophic interactions such as intraguild predation may also be an important mediator of this relationship. Using a salt‐marsh food web, we investigated the interactive effects of predator species richness (one to three species) and trophic composition (strict predators, intraguild predators, or a mixture of the two) on ecosystem functions such as prey suppression and primary production via trophic cascades. We found that the trophic composition of the predator assemblage determined the impact of increasing predator species richness on the occurrence of trophic cascades. In addition, increasing the proportion of intraguild predator species present diminished herbivore suppression and reduced primary productivity. Therefore, trophic composition of the predator assemblage can play an important role in determining the nature of the relationship between predator diversity and ecosystem function.
The tri‐trophic niche concept and adaptive radiation of phytophagous insects
Authors: Singer Michael S. , Stireman John O.
Published: October 2005

A conceptual divide exists between ecological and evolutionary approaches to understanding adaptive radiation, although the phenomenon is inherently both ecological and evolutionary. This divide is evident in studies of phytophagous insects, a highly diverse group that has been frequently investigated with the implicit or explicit goal of understanding its diversity. Whereas ecological studies of phytophagous insects increasingly recognize the importance of tri‐trophic interactions as determinants of niche dimensions such as host‐plant associations, evolutionary studies typically neglect the third trophic level. Here we attempt to reconcile ecological and evolutionary approaches through the concept of the ecological niche. We specifically present a tri‐trophic niche concept as a foil to the traditional bi‐trophic niche concept for phytophagous insects. We argue that these niche concepts have different implications for understanding herbivore community structure, population divergence, and evolutionary diversification. To this end, we offer contrasting empirical predictions of bi‐ and tri‐trophic niche concepts for patterns of community structure, the process of population divergence, and patterns of evolutionary diversification of phytophagous insects.
Non‐neutral patterns of species abundance in grassland communities
Authors: Stanley Harpole W. , Tilman David
Published: October 2005

Although the distribution of plant species abundance in a Minnesota grassland was consistent with neutral theory, niche but not neutral mechanisms were supported by the ability of species traits to predict species abundances in three experimental grassland communities. In particular, data from 27 species grown in monoculture showed that species differed in a trait,R*, which is the level to which each species reduced the concentration of soil nitrate, the limiting soil nutrient and which is predicted to be inversely associated with competitive ability for nitrogen (N). In these N‐limited habitats, species abundance ranks correlated with their predicted competitive ranks: lowR* species, on average dominated. These correlations were significantly different than expected for neutral theory, which assumes the exchangeability of species traits. Additionally, we found that changes in relative abundance after environmental change (N‐addition or disturbance) were not neutral but also were significantly associated withR*.
How well do rapid‐acting insulins work in obese individuals?
Authors: Barnett A. H.
Published: October 2005

Diabetes has reached epidemic proportions worldwide and most individuals with type 2 diabetes are obese. Therefore, there is a pressing need to carefully evaluate the impact of obesity on the efficacy of all diabetes therapies. Previously, obesity has been shown to adversely affect the efficacy of oral antidiabetic drugs; however, less is known about the impact of obesity on the properties of insulin and its analogues. As patients near target HbA1c, the more postprandial hyperglycaemia contributes to overall glycaemic control; thus, mealtime insulin, often supplied by a rapid‐acting insulin analogue (RAI), becomes of increasing importance. As glycaemic targets set by professional bodies become lower and poor glycaemic control becomes increasingly less acceptable, earlier addition of RAIs to patients’ treatment regimens may be required to meet these targets. However, in clinical practice, multiple barriers have challenged the acceptance and effective use of insulin therapy, including concern that it may cause weight gain. RAIs should ideally maintain their rapid‐acting pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) profiles, irrespective of subcutaneous body fat, skin thickness and body mass index, in order to effectively meet intensive treatment goals. For example, initial PK/PD data with insulin glulisine in obese individuals suggest that this RAI may maintain its rapid‐acting profile better than insulin lispro in the first 2 hours post‐injection. However, data are preliminary and a thorough analysis of the impact of obesity on all RAIs in type 2 diabetes is warranted. This review focuses on the potential impact of obesity on RAIs and presents an overview of investigations in this area.
Effect of early addition of rosiglitazone to sulphonylurea therapy in older type 2 diabetes patients (>60 years): the Rosiglitazone Early vs. SULphonylurea Titration (RESULT) study
Authors: Rosenstock J. , Goldstein B. J. , Vinik A. I. , O'Neill M. Colleen , Porter L. E. , Heise M. A. , Kravitz B. , Dirani R. G. , Freed M. I. ,   and the RESULT Study Group
Published: October 2005

Aim:  To compare the efficacy, safety and tolerability of adding rosiglitazone (RSG) vs. sulphonylurea (SU) dose escalation in older type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients inadequately controlled on SU therapy.

Methods:  A total of 227 T2DM patients from 48 centres in the USA and Canada, aged ≥60 years, were randomized to receive RSG (4 mg) or placebo once daily in combination with glipizide 10 mg twice daily for 2 years in a double‐blind, parallel‐group study. Previous SU monotherapy was ¼ to ½ maximum recommended dose for ≥2 months prior to screening with fasting plasma glucose (FPG) ≥7.0 and ≤13.9 mmol/l. Treatment options were individualized, and escalation of study medication was specifically defined.

Results:  Disease progression (time to reach confirmed FPG ≥10 mmol/l while on maximum doses of both glipizide and study medication or placebo) was reported in 28.7% of patients uptitrating SU plus placebo compared with only 2.0% taking RSG and SU combination (p < 0.0001). RSG + SU significantly decreased HbA1c, FPG, insulin resistance, plasma free fatty acids and medical care utilization and improved treatment satisfaction compared with uptitrated SU.

Conclusions:  Addition of RSG to SU in older T2DM patients significantly improved glycaemic control and reduced disease progression compared with uptitrated SU alone but without increasing hypoglycaemia. These benefits were associated with increased patient treatment satisfaction and reduced medical care utilization with regards to emergency room visits and length of hospitalization. Early addition of RSG is an effective treatment option for older T2DM patients inadequately controlled on submaximal SU monotherapy.
Binomial basis for linear information dynamics: real options, dividends and the valuation of equity
Authors: Ashton David , Lim Chen , Tippett Mark , Wright Brian
Published: October 2005

Analytical research has confirmed that real options give rise to the kind of nonlinearities observed in practice between equity prices and the figures appearing on corporate financial statements. We develop these real option values in terms of a quasi ‘supply‐side’ model of linear information dynamics based on simple discrete time binomial filtration processes. Our analysis shows that the linear models that pervade the empirical (and analytical) work of the area, will almost certainly suffer from an omitted variables problem. Parameter estimation will then be inconsistent and inefficient.
Undergraduate performance in accounting and business‐based information technology
Authors: Heales Jon
Published: October 2005

The pervasiveness of information systems (IS) in organizations mandates the need for high levels of IS skills. In recognition, professional bodies impose IS course requirements for accreditation. For both students and employers, performance in IS courses has become important. The tertiary entrance overall performance score accounted for 19.7 per cent of the variance in students' passing grades. Thereafter, proficiency in office automation software and programming accounted for 1.5 and 0.8 per cent of the variance, respectively. Students living in a stable, family home‐based environment performed better and it is likely that this environment underpinned other factors affecting performance.
High‐lysine corn produced by the combination of enhanced lysine biosynthesis and reduced zein accumulation
Authors: Huang Shihshieh , Kruger Diane E. , Frizzi Alessandra , D’Ordine Robert L. , Florida Cheryl A. , Adams Whitney R. , Brown Wayne E. , Luethy Michael H.
Published: October 2005

Corn is one of the major crops in the world, but its low lysine content is often problematic for animal consumption. While exogenous lysine supplementation is still the most common solution for today's feed corn, high‐lysine corn has been developed through genetic research and biotechnology. Reducing the lysine‐poor seed storage proteins, zeins, or expressing a deregulated lysine biosynthetic enzyme, CordapA, has shown increased total lysine or free lysine content in the grains of modified corn plants, respectively. Here, by combining these two approaches through genetic crosses, the total lysine content has more than doubled in F1 progeny. We also observe a synergy between the transgenic zein reduction and the enhanced lysine biosynthesis by CordapA expression. The zein reduction plants are found to accumulate higher levels of aspartate, asparagine and glutamate, and therefore, provide excess precursors for the enhanced lysine biosynthesis.
Expression of Concern: The efficacy of a novel insecticidal protein, Allium sativum leaf lectin (ASAL), against homopteran insects monitored in transgenic tobacco
Authors: Dutta Indrajit , Saha Prasenjit , Majumder Pralay , Sarkar Anindya , Chakraborti Dipankar , Banerjee Santanu , Das Sampa
Published: October 2005

The homopteran group of polyphagous sucking insect pests causes severe damage to many economically important plants including tobacco. Allium sativum leaf lectin (ASAL), a mannose‐binding 25‐kDa homodimeric protein, has recently been found to be antagonistic to various sucking insects in the homopteran group through artificial diet bioassay experiments. The present study describes, for the first time, the expression of the ASAL coding sequence under the control of the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoter in tobacco by Agrobacterium‐mediated transformation technology. Molecular analyses demonstrated the integration of the chimeric ASAL gene in tobacco and its inheritance in the progeny plants. Western blot analysis followed by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) determined the level of ASAL expression in different lines to be in the range of approximately 0.68%−2% of total soluble plant protein. An in planta bioassay conducted with Myzus persicae, peach potato aphid (a devastating pest of tobacco and many other important plants), revealed that the percentage of insect survival decreased significantly to 16%−20% in T0 plants and T1 progeny, whilst approximately 75% of insects survived on untransformed tobacco plants after 144 h of incubation. Ligand analyses of insect brush border membrane vesicle receptors and expressed ASAL in transgenic tobacco showed that the expressed ASAL binds to the aphid gut receptor in the same manner as native ASAL, pointing to the fact that ASAL maintains the biochemical characteristics even in the transgenic situation. These findings in a model plant open up the possibility of expressing the novel ASAL gene in a wide range of crop plants susceptible to various sap‐sucking insects.
Ownership and Control in Closely‐held Family‐owned Firms: An Exploration of Strategic and Operational Control
Authors: Harris Lloyd C. , Ogbonna Emmanuel
Published: October 2005

Much of the existing research into the divorce of ownership and control either focuses on the propensity for the separation of decision functions or upon scrutinizing conceptions, gauges or the practicalities of organizational control in large corporations. Although far from equivocal, such research appears broadly to concur that where ownership is dispersed, de facto control is likely to be exerted by management and that where ownership is closely‐held, de facto as well as legal control is exerted by owners. This study examines this assumption through exploring the nature of control in a closely‐held family firm. In this regard, the focus of this study is not on consequences of divorced ownership and control but rather on exploring the contingencies where ownership and control diverge. This research reveals a case wherein a closely‐held family firm is strategically and operationally controlled by its managers. Case research leads to the development of a range of insights regarding the owner/family and the management characteristics that contribute to this scenario. The paper concludes with a series of implications and conclusions.
On the association between serial naming speed for letters and digits and word‐reading skill: towards a developmental account
Authors: Bowey Judith A. , McGuigan Michaela , Ruschena Annette
Published: October 2005

The current study examined several alternative explanations of the association between serial naming speed within fourth‐grade children by determining the extent to which the association between word reading and naming speed for letters and numbers is mediated by global processing speed, alphanumeric symbol processing efficiency and phonological processing ability. Children were given multiple measures of key constructs, i.e. word‐level reading, serial naming of both alphanumeric and non‐alphanumeric items, phonological processing ability, articulation rate and global processing speed. The robust association between alphanumeric naming speed and reading within fourth‐grade children was largely mediated by phonological processing ability. Markedly different patterns of results were observed for naming speed for letters and digits and naming speed for colours and pictures in children of this age. Relative to the latter, alphanumeric naming speed better assesses an underlying phonological processing ability that is common to word‐reading ability. We argue that item identification processes contribute little to individual differences in alphanumeric naming speed within relatively proficient readers and that the extent to which alphanumeric naming speed primarily reflects phonological processing is likely to vary with the level of overlearning of letters and numbers and their names.
A validation of the Dyslexia Adult Screening Test (DAST) in a post‐secondary population
Authors: Harrison Allyson G. , Nichols Eva
Published: October 2005

In Ontario, Canada, there is a demand for psychometrically robust screening tools capable of efficiently identifying students with specific learning disabilities (SLD), such as dyslexia. The present study investigated the ability of the Dyslexia Adult Screening Test (DAST) to discriminate between 117 post‐secondary students with carefully diagnosed SLDs and 121 comparison students. Results indicated that the DAST correctly identified only 74% of the students with SLDs as ‘highly at risk’ for dyslexia. Although employing the cutoff for ‘mildly at risk’ correctly identified 85% of the students with SLDs, this also increased the percentage of students with no major history of learning problems identified as ‘at risk’ for dyslexia from 16% to 26%. These findings suggest that the DAST in its present form is limited in its ability to screen for SLDs. Implications for future research are discussed.
Beginning readers' reading performance and reading habits
Authors: Leppänen Ulla , Aunola Kaisa , Nurmi Jari‐Erik
Published: October 2005

This study investigated the prospective relationships between reading performance and reading habits among Finnish children during the first and second grades of primary school. One hundred and ninety‐five children were examined twice during their first primary school year and once during the spring term of Grade 2. The results showed, first, that children's reading skills predicted their reading habits: the more competent in reading children were at the end of Grade 1, the more likely they were to engage in out‐of‐school reading one year later. Second, reading habits also predicted reading skills: the amount of out‐of‐school reading at the end of Grade 1 contributed to the development of word recognition skills.
Reading for academic purposes: the literacy practices of British, French and Spanish Law and Economics students as background for study abroad
Authors: Taillefer Gail
Published: October 2005

Study‐abroad students, products of their own particular academic literacy culture, face the challenge of rapidly integrating into a foreign academic literacy community. This study identifies possible culturally dependent sources of literacy problems in Law and Economics students in Great Britain, France and Spain. Nearly 600 potential European study‐abroad candidates (ERASMUS programme) and 169 of their university teachers from 17 universities in the three countries completed a questionnaire on first language (L1) reading practices. Results revealed distinct academic literacy profiles within disciplines across national cultures. Academic reading practices are seen to be more important overall in Britain, significantly less so in Spain, while France shows some characteristics of both British and Spanish approaches. Summarised results of a concurrent investigation into ERASMUS students' foreign language reading skills suggest the influence of L1 literacy traditions on foreign language reading, which points to pedagogical implications and directions for further study.
The Gendered Machine: Concept Car Development at Volvo Car Corporation
Authors: Styhre Alexander , Backman Maria , Börjesson Sofia
Published: October 2005

This article examines the treatment in the media of the first concept car development project managed by female engineers and designers. The study is based on a critical discourse analysis methodology in which the production of social institutions and beliefs are conceived of as being based on written and spoken statements and utterances. The discursive production of statements not only has intangible effects but also implies material  consequences.  The  study  shows  that  although  the  project  aimed at highlighting and using competencies among the female co‐workers and to position Volvo as a progressive company, the media coverage in many cases draws on gendered stereotypes and commonsense beliefs. As a consequence, it demonstrates that stepping outside gendered forms of expression is a complicated matter and therefore a more elaborated vocabulary remains to be developed in both the media and industry.
Public Sector Reform and Women's Work in Poland: ‘Working for Juice, Coffee and Cheap Cosmetics!’
Authors: Stenning Alison , Hardy Jane
Published: October 2005

The debate on the transformation of work in east central Europe has concentrated on the restructuring of employment in manufacturing to the detriment of any discussion of the transformation of work in the service and public sectors, where the majority of women are employed. Moreover, while it is frequently recognized that women have been hit hard by job loss and unemployment, less attention has been paid the changing experiences of women in work. This article looks at the profound impact of market‐driven reforms in the Polish health and education sectors implemented in the late 1990s, and considers their implications for women and their work. It reports on interviews with a cross‐section of women workers in schools and hospitals and with trade union leaders at both the national and branch level. The impacts of the reforms and the experiences of women workers are discussed through the themes of changing employment levels, the restructuring of working conditions, job security, wages, training, and the double burden of balancing domestic and work lives. The general findings are that although the impact has been highly uneven between workplaces and regions, in general women have experienced an intensification of work and deteriorating working conditions. Their personal lives are not only more stressful due to the pressure at work, but also the double burden of paid and domestic work has increased due to the marketization of public provision. In both sectors, the response to reform has been widespread and militant industrial action, which has gained considerable political attention. We therefore also focus on how women have contested change, both passively and actively, through trade unionism and other political practice.
Outre‐Manche/Across the Channel: Ongoing Training and Gender in France and Britain
Authors: Fletcher Catherine
Published: October 2005

The French state‐levy system of ongoing training at work has not provided greater access for women than the laissez‐faire British system. While headlines figures suggest that women receive more training than men in Britain and that the gap has also closed for well‐qualified women in France, qualitative analysis shows that this does not indicate greater gender equity. The societal effect approach is useful for cross‐national comparison within the sphere of economic organization but must be combined with analysis of the gender order to account for differences and similarities in social reproduction. The case of the insurance industry provides detailed empirical evidence of the issues underlying this, particularly women's availability for ongoing training at work. The situation of women in each country  is inextricably linked to a complex interdependence of a multitude of variables, some of which are similar, such as the workings of patriarchy, and some of which are different, such as state configurations of childcare infrastructure.
Women in politics in Indonesia in the decade post‐Beijing*
Authors: Graham Davies Sharyn
Published: October 2005

When 189 member states of the United Nations unanimously agreed to the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995, they committed themselves to ensuring women's equal access to, and full participation in, power structures and decision‐making. At the time of signing, women constituted fewer than 12% of parliamentary members worldwide, a percentage mirrored in Indonesia. What has happened in the intervening years in terms of women's political participation in Indonesia? To what extent have Indonesian women been able to enforce the sentiments of the Beijing Women's Conference and institute political gains, both quantitative (e.g., increasing political representation) and qualitative (e.g., ensuring women's issues are prioritised)? What obstacles continue to hinder women's entry into politics and what needs to be achieved in order to further facilitate women's political participation? In addressing these and other questions, this paper argues that while there have been substantial developments in terms of public recognition of women's right to participate in politics, women continue to be effectively invisible in Indonesian politics; indeed, the last decade has actually witnessed a decline in the number of women in politics in Indonesia.
Gender, empowerment, and communication: looking backwards and forwards*
Authors: Sreberny Annabelle
Published: October 2005

This paper explores the interrelations of globalisation, communication, and democratisation, particularly in relation to gender equality and empowerment. It provides a historical analysis of the development of global women's networks, especially in the substantive areas of media and communications technologies, and the politics of their process and their achievements. It examines the convergences in media and communications technologies, and hence the continuities and changes in analytic foci, between the 1995 Beijing Summit on Women and the 2005 World Summit on the Information Society. Also explored are the gender politics and the range of gender‐related issues that emerged through the WSIS process, especially the growing centrality of ICTS for development but also the limits of a solely technologistic approach. The paper argues that a gender lens can provide a holistic analysis of global issues, which include the democratisation of communication, the communication of democracy, and the emancipation of the world's women.
Measuring women's empowerment: participation and rights in civil, political, social, economic, and cultural domains
Authors: Moghadam Valentine M. , Senftova Lucie
Published: October 2005

The Beijing Platform for Action represented a conceptual shift from a focus on “the status of women” and “gender inequality” to the objectives of “gender equality” and “women's empowerment”. Among other things, it called for gender‐disaggregated data for planning and evaluation. In this paper we define women's empowerment as a multi‐dimensional process of achieving basic capabilities, legal rights, and participation in key social, economic, political, and cultural domains, and we offer a set of indicators for its measurement. Although “cultural participation and rights” is difficult to measure, we argue that gender indicators should include the important area of women's access to and participation in cultural institutions and decision‐making.
Gender violence and development discourse in Bangladesh
Authors: Khan Farida C.
Published: October 2005

During the last 30 years, rapid social change has dramatically altered the conditions and meanings of women's lives in Bangladesh. After generations of public neglect and exclusion, women are now widely exposed to a globalised world of foreign aid, migration, trafficking, factory work, and urbanisation. The sharp rise in women's participation in the labour force, involvement in governmental and non‐governmental programmes, and migration to urban centres as well as other countries augment their greater social and political visibility. The presence of women in the marketplace and public space has improved opportunities for greater access to resources and the capacity to act, but exposed large segments of the population as highly vulnerable targets of sexual violence, repression in workplaces, and religious persecution. This paper frames the realities of escalating violence against women within the contemporary discourses of gender empowerment and development. It argues that current development policy in Bangladesh assumes increased welfare for women in the process of economic development when, in fact, women are subjected to new and intensified forms of violence during these changes in the economy and society.
A review of women, poverty and informal trade issues in East and Southern Africa
Authors: Akinboade Oludele Akinloye
Published: October 2005

The paper conducts a review of various issues of women's poverty and participation in informal sector trade in Eastern and Southern Africa. Poverty is endemic in the region, where an estimated half of the population lives on less than one dollar per day. This situation is more pronounced for women and has added significance in the subregion where nearly half of the households are headed by women. Women's deprivation is manifold and ranges across the economic, social and political arenas.

Women are heavily involved in the informal sector and cross‐border trade. These activities are generally low‐paying, tedious and erratic. They also tend to be survivalist in nature and unsophisticated, involving the sale of cheap perishable commodities. These have now expanded to involve trade in biological and forest resources in a region that is being devastated by HIV‐AIDS.
Women, War, Peace‐building and Reconstruction
Authors: Onyejekwe Chineze J.
Published: October 2005

Gender‐based violence, especially sexual violence, has become a weapon of warfare and one of the defining characteristics of contemporary armed conflict. This paper focuses on women's protection in armed conflict and their centrality to conflict resolution and peace building. The experiences of women and girls in war and conflict situations are described. Constraints women face in participating in post‐conflict peace building are also analysed. The role of the United Nations in engendering peace through Security Council Resolution 1325 is analyzed as well.
Transnationalism: the face of feminist politics post‐Beijing*
Authors: Desai Manisha
Published: October 2005

In this paper, I argue that transnational feminist practices have become the dominant modality of feminist movements around the world, since the Fourth Women's World Conference in Beijing. By transnationalism I mean both organising across national borders as well as framing local, national, regional, and global activism in “transnational” discourses. I review two sites of transnational feminism, the UN and the World Social Forum, especially the emergence of the Feminist Dialogues from the Forum. I argue that the changed socio‐political context following Beijing – in particular the continuing hegemony of the neo‐liberal economic agenda, the entrenchment of religious fundamentalisms, and the post 9/11 wars and focus on terrorism in the US and around the world – has highlighted the limitations of transnational activism, for both internal movement politics and social transformation. Transnational feminism fragments movement politics as tensions emerge between movement organisations that can actually cross borders versus those that cannot and reproduces inequalities among activists within and between countries in the North and South. More importantly, however, given the spaces within which transnational feminists operate and the modalities of transnational activism, the strategic focus of movements' shifts from outcome to process and from redistribution to policy and discursive changes. Thus, the ironic state of the feminist movements post Beijing, I argue, is that (some) women's agency is visible everywhere even as (most) women's lives remain mired in multiple inequalities. What is needed in this neo‐liberal moment is a neo‐radical feminist politics that is based on intersectional analysis and democratic practices but devises strategies with other mass movements that can redistribute resources and emancipate women.
Physical Intervention with People with Intellectual Disabilities: The Influence of Cognitive and Emotional Variables
Authors: Dagnan Dave , Weston Clive
Published: October 2005

Background:  This study examines the relationship between the topography of challenging behaviour, subsequent attributions and emotional responses, with whether carers use physical intervention and their satisfaction with their intervention.

Method:  Thirty‐seven carers described incidents where a person with an intellectual disability had exhibited verbal or physical aggression. The carer rated attributions of controllability, internality, globality and stability, global evaluations of the person's behaviour and of the persons themselves, emotions of anger and sympathy, and satisfaction with their intervention. The topography of the aggressive behaviour (verbal or physical) and the topography of the intervention (physical intervention or non‐physical intervention) were coded from accounts of the incident given by carers in the interview.

Results:  Attributions of control and internality were significantly associated with less satisfaction with intervention. People who presented with physical aggression were evaluated more negatively. However, only the topography of the behaviour (whether the incident was verbal or physical aggression) was associated with the use of physical intervention.

Conclusions:  This study did not find a relationship between cognitive‐emotional variables and the topography of intervention. However, relationships between cognitive variables and satisfaction with intervention were observed. Implications for research and clinical work are discussed.
A randomised controlled trial of a CBT intervention for anxiety in children with Asperger syndrome
Authors: Sofronoff Kate , Attwood Tony , Hinton Sharon
Published: October 2005

Background:  The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a brief CBT intervention for anxiety with children diagnosed with Asperger syndrome (AS). A second interest was to evaluate whether more intensive parent involvement would increase the child's ability to manage anxiety outside of the clinic setting.

Methods:  Seventy‐one children aged ten to twelve years were recruited to participate in the anxiety programme. All children were diagnosed with AS and the presence of anxiety symptoms was accepted on parent report via brief interview. Children were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: intervention for child only, intervention for child and parent, wait‐list control.

Results:  The two intervention groups demonstrated significant decreases in parent‐reported anxiety symptoms at follow‐up and a significant increase in the child's ability to generate positive strategies in an anxiety‐provoking situation. There were a number of significant differences between the two interventions to suggest parent involvement as beneficial.

Conclusions:  The sample of children with AS in this study presented with a profile of anxiety similar to a sample of clinically diagnosed anxious children. The intervention was endorsed by parents as a useful programme for children diagnosed with Asperger syndrome and exhibiting anxiety symptoms, and active parent involvement enhanced the usefulness of the programme. Limitations of the study and future research are discussed.