bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Color harmonization
Authors: Cohen-Or Daniel , Sorkine Olga , Gal Ran , Leyvand Tommer , Xu Ying-Qing
Published: July 2006

Harmonic colors are sets of colors that are aesthetically pleasing in terms of human visual perception. In this paper, we present a method that enhances the harmony among the colors of a given photograph or of a general image, while remaining faithful, as much as possible, to the original colors. Given a color image, our method finds the best harmonic scheme for the image colors. It then allows a graceful shifting of hue values so as to fit the harmonic scheme while considering spatial coherence among colors of neighboring pixels using an optimization technique. The results demonstrate that our method is capable of automatically enhancing the color "look-and-feel" of an ordinary image. In particular, we show the results of harmonizing the background image to accommodate the colors of a foreground image, or the foreground with respect to the background, in a cut-and-paste setting. Our color harmonization technique proves to be useful in adjusting the colors of an image composed of several parts taken from different sources.
Drag-and-drop pasting
Authors: Jia Jiaya , Sun Jian , Tang Chi-Keung , Shum Heung-Yeung
Published: July 2006

In this paper, we present a user-friendly system for seamless image composition, which we call drag-and-drop pasting. We observe that for Poisson image editing [Perez et al. 2003] to work well, the user must carefully draw a boundary on the source image to indicate the region of interest, such that salient structures in source and target images do not conflict with each other along the boundary. To make Poisson image editing more practical and easy to use, we propose a new objective function to compute an optimized boundary condition. A shortest closed-path algorithm is designed to search for the location of the boundary. Moreover, to faithfully preserve the object's fractional boundary, we construct a blended guidance field to incorporate the object's alpha matte. To use our system, the user needs only to simply outline a region of interest in the source image, and then drag and drop it onto the target image. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our "drag-and-drop pasting" system.
Image-based material editing
Authors: Khan Erum Arif , Reinhard Erik , Fleming Roland W. , Bülthoff Heinrich H.
Published: July 2006

Photo editing software allows digital images to be blurred, warped or re-colored at the touch of a button. However, it is not currently possible to change the material appearance of an object except by painstakingly painting over the appropriate pixels. Here we present a method for automatically replacing one material with another, completely different material, starting with only a single high dynamic range image as input. Our approach exploits the fact that human vision is surprisingly tolerant of certain (sometimes enormous) physical inaccuracies, while being sensitive to others. By adjusting our simulations to be careful about those aspects to which the human visual system is sensitive, we are for the first time able to demonstrate significant material changes on the basis of a single photograph as input.
The Direct3D 10 system
Authors: Blythe David
Published: July 2006

We present a system architecture for the 4
th
generation of PC-class programmable graphics processing units (GPUs). The new pipeline features significant additions and changes to the prior generation pipeline including a new programmable stage capable of generating additional primitives and streaming primitive data to memory, an expanded, common feature set for all of the programmable stages, generalizations to vertex and image memory resources, and new storage formats. We also describe structural modifications to the API, runtime, and shading language to complement the new pipeline. We motivate the design with descriptions of frequently encountered obstacles in current systems. Throughout the paper we present rationale behind prominent design choices and alternatives that were ultimately rejected, drawing on insights collected during a multi-year collaboration with application developers and hardware designers.
Inverse shade trees for non-parametric material representation and editing
Authors: Lawrence Jason , Ben-Artzi Aner , DeCoro Christopher , Matusik Wojciech , Pfister Hanspeter , Ramamoorthi Ravi , Rusinkiewicz Szymon
Published: July 2006

Recent progress in the measurement of surface reflectance has created a demand for non-parametric appearance representations that are accurate, compact, and easy to use for rendering. Another crucial goal, which has so far received little attention, is
editability:
for practical use, we must be able to change both the directional and spatial behavior of surface reflectance (e.g., making one material shinier, another more anisotropic, and changing the spatial "texture maps" indicating where each material appears). We introduce an Inverse
Shade Tree
framework that provides a general approach to estimating the "leaves" of a user-specified shade tree from high-dimensional measured datasets of appearance. These leaves are sampled 1- and 2-dimensional functions that capture both the directional behavior of individual materials and their spatial mixing patterns. In order to compute these shade trees automatically, we map the problem to matrix factorization and introduce a flexible new algorithm that allows for constraints such as non-negativity, sparsity, and energy conservation. Although we cannot infer every type of shade tree, we demonstrate the ability to reduce multi-gigabyte measured datasets of the Spatially-Varying Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (SVBRDF) into a compact representation that may be edited in real time.
Model reduction for real-time fluids
Authors: Treuille Adrien , Lewis Andrew , Popović Zoran
Published: July 2006

We present a new model reduction approach to fluid simulation, enabling large, real-time, detailed flows with continuous user interaction. Our reduced model can also handle moving obstacles immersed in the flow. We create separate models for the velocity field and for each moving boundary, and show that the coupling forces may be reduced as well. Our results indicate that surprisingly few basis functions are needed to resolve small but visually important features such as spinning vortices.
Schematic storyboarding for video visualization and editing
Authors: Goldman Dan B , Curless Brian , Salesin David , Seitz Steven M.
Published: July 2006

We present a method for visualizing short video clips in a single static image, using the visual language of storyboards. These
schematic storyboards
are composed from multiple input frames and annotated using outlines, arrows, and text describing the motion in the scene. The principal advantage of this storyboard representation over standard representations of video -- generally either a static thumbnail image or a playback of the video clip in its entirety -- is that it requires only a moment to observe and comprehend but at the same time retains much of the detail of the source video. Our system renders a schematic storyboard layout based on a small amount of user interaction. We also demonstrate an interaction technique to scrub through time using the natural spatial dimensions of the storyboard. Potential applications include video editing, surveillance summarization, assembly instructions, composition of graphic novels, and illustration of camera technique for film studies.
Capturing and animating skin deformation in human motion
Authors: Park Sang Il , Hodgins Jessica K.
Published: July 2006

During dynamic activities, the surface of the human body moves in many subtle but visually significant ways: bending, bulging, jiggling, and stretching. We present a technique for capturing and animating those motions using a commercial motion capture system and approximately 350 markers. Although the number of markers is significantly larger than that used in conventional motion capture, it is only a sparse representation of the true shape of the body. We supplement this sparse sample with a detailed, actor-specific surface model. The motion of the skin can then be computed by segmenting the markers into the motion of a set of rigid parts and a residual deformation (approximated first as a quadratic transformation and then with radial basis functions). We demonstrate the power of this approach by capturing flexing muscles, high frequency motions, and abrupt decelerations on several actors. We compare these results both to conventional motion capture and skinning and to synchronized video of the actors.
All-frequency precomputed radiance transfer using spherical radial basis functions and clustered tensor approximation
Authors: Tsai Yu-Ting , Shih Zen-Chung
Published: July 2006

This paper introduces a new data representation and compression technique forprecomputed radiance transfer(PRT). The light transfer functions and light sources are modeled withspherical radial basis functions(SRBFs). A SRBF is a rotation-invariant function that depends on the geodesic distance between two points on the unit sphere. Rotating functions in SRBF representation is as straightforward as rotating the centers of SRBFs. Moreover, high-frequency signals are handled by adjusting the bandwidth parameters of SRBFs. To exploit inter-vertex coherence, the light transfer functions are further classified iteratively into disjoint clusters, and tensor approximation is applied within each cluster. Compared with previous methods, the proposed approach enables real-time rendering with comparable quality under high-frequency lighting environments. The data storage is also more compact than previous all-frequency PRT algorithms.
A statistical model for synthesis of detailed facial geometry
Authors: Golovinskiy Aleksey , Matusik Wojciech , Pfister Hanspeter , Rusinkiewicz Szymon , Funkhouser Thomas
Published: July 2006

Detailed surface geometry contributes greatly to the visual realism of 3D face models. However, acquiring high-resolution face geometry is often tedious and expensive. Consequently, most face models used in games, virtual reality, or computer vision look unrealistically smooth. In this paper, we introduce a new statistical technique for the analysis and synthesis of small three-dimensional facial features, such as wrinkles and pores. We acquire high-resolution face geometry for people across a wide range of ages, genders, and races. For each scan, we separate the skin surface details from a smooth base mesh using displaced subdivision surfaces. Then, we analyze the resulting displacement maps using the texture analysis/synthesis framework of Heeger and Bergen, adapted to capture statistics that vary spatially across a face. Finally, we use the extracted statistics to synthesize plausible detail on face meshes of arbitrary subjects. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this method in several applications, including analysis of facial texture in subjects with different ages and genders, interpolation between high-resolution face scans, adding detail to low-resolution face scans, and adjusting the apparent age of faces. In all cases, we are able to re-produce fine geometric details consistent with those observed in high resolution scans.
Statistical acceleration for animated global illumination
Authors: Meyer Mark , Anderson John
Published: July 2006

Global illumination provides important visual cues to an animation, however its computational expense limits its use in practice. In this paper, we present an easy to implement technique for accelerating the computation of indirect illumination for an animated sequence using stochastic ray tracing. We begin by computing a quick but noisy solution using a small number of sample rays at each sample location. The variation of these noisy solutions over time is then used to create a smooth basis. Finally, the noisy solutions are projected onto the smooth basis to produce the final solution. The resulting animation has greatly reduced spatial and temporal noise, and a computational cost roughly equivalent to the noisy, low sample computation.
Subspace gradient domain mesh deformation
Authors: Huang Jin , Shi Xiaohan , Liu Xinguo , Zhou Kun , Wei Li-Yi , Teng Shang-Hua , Bao Hujun , Guo Baining , Shum Heung-Yeung
Published: July 2006

In this paper we present a general framework for performing constrained mesh deformation tasks with gradient domain techniques. We present a gradient domain technique that works well with a wide variety of linear and nonlinear constraints. The constraints we introduce include the nonlinear volume constraint for volume preservation, the nonlinear skeleton constraint for maintaining the rigidity of limb segments of articulated figures, and the projection constraint for easy manipulation of the mesh without having to frequently switch between multiple viewpoints. To handle nonlinear constraints, we cast mesh deformation as a nonlinear energy minimization problem and solve the problem using an iterative algorithm. The main challenges in solving this nonlinear problem are the slow convergence and numerical instability of the iterative solver. To address these issues, we develop a subspace technique that builds a coarse control mesh around the original mesh and projects the deformation energy and constraints onto the control mesh vertices using the mean value interpolation. The energy minimization is then carried out in the subspace formed by the control mesh vertices. Running in this subspace, our energy minimization solver is both fast and stable and it provides interactive responses. We demonstrate our deformation constraints and subspace deformation technique with a variety of constrained deformation examples.
Inverse kinematics for reduced deformable models
Authors: Der Kevin G. , Sumner Robert W. , Popović Jovan
Published: July 2006

Articulated shapes are aptly described by reduced deformable models that express required shape deformations using a compact set of control parameters. Although sufficient to describe most shape deformations, these control parameters can be ill-suited for animation tasks, particularly when reduced deformable models are inferred automatically from example shapes. Our algorithm provides intuitive and direct control of reduced deformable models similar to a conventional inverse-kinematics algorithm for jointed rigid structures. We present a fully automated pipeline that transforms a set of unarticulated example shapes into a controllable, articulated model. With only a few manipulations, an animator can automatically and interactively pose detailed shapes at rates independent of their geometric complexity.
From COM to Common
Authors: Olsen Greg
Published: July 2006

Ten years ago, the term component software meant something relatively specific and concrete. A small number of software component frameworks more or less defined the concept for most people. Today, few terms in the software industry are less precise than component software. There are now many different forms of software componentry for many different purposes. The technologies and methodologies of 10 years ago have evolved in fundamental ways and have been joined by an explosion of new technologies and approaches that have redefined our previously held notions of component software.
Search Considered Integral
Authors: Barrows Ryan , Traverso Jim
Published: July 2006

Most corporations must leverage their data for competitive advantage. The volume of data available to a knowledge worker has grown dramatically over the past few years, and, while a good amount lives in large databases, an important subset exists only as unstructured or semi-structured data. Without the right systems, this leads to a continuously deteriorating signal-to-noise ratio, creating an obstacle for busy users trying to locate information quickly. Three flavors of enterprise search solutions help improve knowledge discovery.
Efficient thermal-oriented 3D floorplanning and thermal via planning for two-stacked-die integration
Authors: Li Zuoyuan , Hong Xianlong , Zhou Qiang , Bian Jinian , Yang Hannah H. , Pitchumani Vijay
Published: July 2006

New three-dimensional (3D) floorplanning and thermal via planning algorithms are proposed for thermal optimization in two-stacked die integration. Our contributions include (1) a two-stage design flow for 3D floorplanning, which scales down the enlarged solution space due to multidevice layer structure; (2) an efficient thermal-driven 3D floorplanning algorithm with power distribution constraints; (3) a thermal via planning algorithm considering congestion minimization. Experiments results show that our approach is nine times faster with better solution quality compared to a recent published result. In addition, the thermal via planning approach is proven to be very efficient to eliminate localized hot spots directly.
System level design paradigms
Authors: Pinto Alessandro , Bonivento Alvise , Sangiovanni-Vincentelli Allberto L. , Passerone Roberto , Sgroi Marco
Published: July 2006

Embedded system level design must be based on paradigms that make formal foundations and unification a cornerstone of their construction. Platform-Based designs and communication synthesis are important components of the paradigm shift we advocate.Communication synthesis is a fundamental productivity tool in a design methodology where reuse is enforced. Communication design in a reuse methodology starts with a set of functional requirements and constraints on the interaction among components and then proceeds to build protocols, topology, and physical implementations that satisfy requirements and constraints while optimizing appropriate measures of efficiency of the implementation. Maximum efficiency can be reached when the communication specifications are entered at high levels of abstraction and the design process optimizes the implementation from this specification. Unfortunately, this process is very difficult if it is not cast in a rigorous framework. Platform-Based design helps define a successive refinement process where each step can be carried out automatically and optimized appropriately. We present two cases, an on-chip and a wireless sensor network design, where the resulting methodology gave encouraging results.
Analysis and optimization of distributed real-time embedded systems
Authors: Pop Paul , Eles Petru , Peng Zebo , Pop Traian
Published: July 2006

An increasing number of real-time applications are today implemented using distributed heterogeneous architectures composed of interconnected networks of processors. The systems are heterogeneous not only in terms of hardware and software components, but also in terms of communication protocols and scheduling policies. In this context, the task of designing such systems is becoming increasingly difficult. The success of new adequate design methods depends on the availability of efficient analysis as well as optimization techniques. In this article, we present both analysis and optimization approaches for such heterogeneous distributed real-time embedded systems. More specifically, we discuss the schedulability analysis of hard real-time systems, highlighting particular aspects related to the heterogeneous and distributed nature of the applications. We also introduce several design optimization problems characteristic of this class of systems: mapping of functionality, the optimization of access to communication channel, and the assignment of scheduling policies to processes. Optimization heuristics aiming at producing a schedulable system with a given amount of resources are presented.
A game-theoretic framework for multimetric optimization of interconnect delay, power, and crosstalk noise during wire sizing
Authors: Hanchate Narender , Ranganathan Nagarajan
Published: July 2006

The continuous scaling of interconnect wires in deep submicron (DSM) circuits results in increased interconnect delay, power, and crosstalk noise. In this work, we develop a game-theoretic framework and multimetric optimization algorithms for the simultaneous optimization during wire sizing of (i) interconnect delay and crosstalk noise, and (ii) interconnect delay, power, and crosstalk noise. We formulate the wire sizing optimization problem as a normal form-game model and solve it using Nash equilibrium theory. Game theory allows the optimization of multiple metrics with conflicting objectives. This property is exploited in modeling the wire sizing problem while simultaneously optimizing various design parameters like interconnect delay, power, and crosstalk noise, which are conflicting in nature. The nets connecting the driving cell and the driven cell are divided into net segments. The net segments within a channel are modeled as players and the range of possible wire sizes forms the set of strategies. The payoff function is modeled (i) as the geometric mean of interconnect delay and crosstalk noise in the case of first formulation, and (ii) as the weighted sum of interconnect delay, power, and crosstalk noise in the second formulation. The net segments are optimized from the ones closest to the driven cell towards the ones at the driving cell. Complete information about the coupling effects among the nets is extracted after the detailed routing phase. The time and space complexities of the proposed wire sizing formulations are linear in terms of the number of net segments. Experimental results on several medium and large open-core designs indicate that the proposed algorithm for simultaneous optimization of interconnect delay and crosstalk noise yields an average reduction of 21.48% in interconnect delay and a 26.25% reduction in crosstalk noise without any area overhead, over and above the optimization from the Cadence place and route tools. It is shown through experimental results that the algorithm performs significantly better than simulated annealing and genetic search. Further, new simple but accurate models are developed for three parallel interconnect net segments. It is shown that these models yield the same level of accuracy with significantly better run times compared to the models reported in Chen et al. [2004]. A mathematical proof of existence for the Nash equilibrium solution for the proposed wire sizing formulation is also provided.
Pair programming improves student retention, confidence, and program quality
Authors: McDowell Charlie , Werner Linda , Bullock Heather E. , Fernald Julian
Published: July 2006

Pair programming produces more proficient, confident programmers---and may help increase female representation in the field.
Variations2
Authors: Dunn Jon W. , Byrd Donald , Notess Mark , Riley Jenn , Scherle Ryan
Published: July 2006

University music students, teachers, and researchers discover and retrieve musical works and navigate within them, then create annotations and share them with other users.
PPARα activation elevates blood pressure and does not correct glucocorticoid-induced insulin resistance in humans
Authors: Subramanian Savitha , DeRosa Michael A. , Bernal-Mizrachi Carlos , Laffely Nicholas , Cade William T. , Yarasheski Kevin E. , Cryer Philip E. , Semenkovich Clay F.
Published: July 2006

Fibrates, activators of the nuclear receptor PPARα, improve dyslipidemia, but their effects on insulin resistance and vascular disease are unresolved. To test the hypothesis that PPARα activation improves insulin resistance and vascular function, we determined the effects of fenofibrate in healthy adults with insulin resistance induced by short-term glucocorticoid administration. Eighteen normal-weight subjects were studied in four stages: at baseline, after 21 days of fenofibrate (160 mg/day) alone, after 3 days of dexamethasone (8 mg/day) added to fenofibrate, and after 3 days of dexamethasone added to placebo (dexamethasone alone). Dexamethasone alone caused hyperinsulinemia, increased glucose, decreased glucose disposal, and reduced insulin-induced suppression of hepatic glucose production as determined by hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp and increased systolic blood pressure as determined by ambulatory monitoring, features associated with an insulin-resistant state. Fenofibrate improved fasting LDL and total cholesterol in the setting of dexamethasone treatment but had no significant effect on levels of insulin or glucose, insulin-stimulated glucose disposal, or insulin suppression of glucose production during clamps, or ambulatory monitored blood pressure. In the absence of dexamethasone, fenofibrate lowered fasting triglycerides and cholesterol but unexpectedly increased systolic blood pressure by ambulatory monitoring. These data suggest that PPARα activation in humans does not correct insulin resistance induced by glucocorticoids and may adversely affect blood pressure.
The Interaction Between Pathogens and the Host Coagulation System
Authors: Sun Hongmin
Published: July 2006

There is mounting evidence that the hemostatic system is critical in host responses to bacterial infection. Invasive bacteria have evolved virulence strategies to interact with host hemostatic factors such as plasminogen and fibrinogen for infection. Furthermore, genetic variations in host hemostatic factors also influence host response to bacterial infection.
Percutaneous Mitral Annuloplasty
Authors: Maselli Daniele , Guarracino Fabio , Chiaramonti Francesca , Mangia Federica , Borelli Gabriele , Minzioni Gaetano
Published: July 2006

Background—

To allow performance of “stand-alone” mitral annuloplasty with minimal invasiveness, percutaneous techniques consisting of delivery into the coronary sinus (CS) of devices intended to shrink the mitral valve annulus have recently been tested in animal models. These techniques exploit the anatomic proximity of the CS and mitral valve annulus in ovine or dogs. Knowledge of a detailed anatomic relationship between the CS, coronary arteries, and mitral valve annulus in humans is essential to define the safety and efficacy of percutaneous techniques in clinical practice. We sought to determine the qualitative and quantitative anatomic relationships between CS and surrounding structures in human hearts.

Methods and Results—

The distance from the CS to the mitral valve annulus and the relationship between the CS and surrounding structures were studied in 61 excised cadaveric human hearts. Maximal distance from the CS to the mitral valve annulus was found to be up to 19 mm (mean, 9.7±3.2 mm). A diagonal or ramus branch, main circumflex artery, or its branches were located between anterior interventricular vein/CS and the mitral valve annulus in 16.4% and 63.9% of cases, respectively.

Conclusions—

Surgical anatomy suggests that in humans the CS is located behind the left atrial wall at a significant distance from the mitral valve annulus. Percutaneous mitral annuloplasty devices probably shrink the mitral valve annulus only by an indirect traction mediated by the left atrial wall; a theoretical risk of compressing coronary artery branches exists. Chronic studies are needed to address this problem and to determine long-term efficacy of such methods.
Social structures, agent personality and workers' mental health:A longitudinal analysis of the specific role of occupation and of workplace constraints-resources on psychological distress in the Canadian workforce
Authors: Marchand Alain , Demers Andrée , Durand Pierre
Published: July 2006

This study examines the role of occupations and work conditions in psychological distress with a model of social action in which psychological distress results from stress created by the constraintsresources of structures of daily life, macrosocial structures, and agent personality. Using longitudinal data from 6611 workers nested in 471 occupations, multilevel regression analyses confirm the model. Occupations account for 1.6 percent of the variation. Social support and job insecurity contribute to distress, but greater decision authority increases distress. Skill utilization follows a J curve. Family structure, social network outside the workplace, and the personality of the agent do not moderate the influence of the workplace, with the sole exception of strained marital relations. The findings support the hypothesis that occupations and certain workplace constraintsresources contribute independently to psychological distress. Researchers in workplace mental health must expand their theoretical perspectives to avoid erroneous conclusions about the specific role of the workplace.
Guess who's coming to dinner? Structures and uses of liminality in strategic management consultancy
Authors: Sturdy Andrew , Schwarz Mirela , Spicer Andre
Published: July 2006

Organizational studies have recently drawn our attention to the importance of liminality in our working lives. This transitional timespace is characteristic of precarious or mobile employment such as temporary, project and consulting work especially. It is understood as a fluid and largely unstructured space where normal order is suspended and which is experienced as both unsettling and creative. This article critically explores liminality through a detailed study of the neglected activities of business dinners and back-stage management consultancy. We argue that liminality can in fact be a highly and multi-structured, comfortable and strategic or tactical space. We find that the use of wider norms and routines of eating and socializing as well as of hierarchical patterns of working and of exclusion and inclusion shape the experience and outcomes of liminality. Moreover, we highlight how the context of liminality is sustained by highly structured organizational activities in the production of domestic and public meals. We conclude that business meals mark a traditional, rather than modern, practice where ‘official secrets’ continue to grease the wheels of commerce. At the most senior levels especially, the liminality between work and private spheres can be far from unsettling and fluid.
The third sector in a devolved Scotland: From policy to evidence
Authors: Fyfe Nicholas , Timbrell Helen , Smith Fiona M.
Published: July 2006

Scotland's post-devolution government has implemented a number of policies engaging with the third sector. These sit within the UK context of New Labour's welfare reform with its twin emphases on neoliberalism and neo-communitarianism. Moves by the Scottish Executive to translate these themes into the Scottish context are illustrated by policies on the relation between the state and third sector organizations, on the social economy, and on volunteering. However, as a case study of the sector in Glasgow demonstrates, significant challenges emerge for the realization of policy claims for the development of social capital and citizenship in practice.
Reflecting on Life
Authors: Pasupathi Monisha , Weeks Trisha , Rice Cora
Published: July 2006

In this article, the authors present a view of remembering as a major process through which adult development takes place. They begin by reviewing functional and conversational approaches to remembering. They then introduce their model briefly and apply it to two contexts of central developmental interest: developmental tasks specific to later life and transitions that may apply across adulthood. Although existing empirical evidence is limited, it is also consistent in supporting a role for remembering as an important developmental process. The authors close with a review of how this model could inform future research attempting to understand social and communicative aspects of adult development more broadly.
The Principle of Cultural Grounding in School-Based Substance Abuse Prevention
Authors: Hecht Michael L. , Krieger Janice L. Raup
Published: July 2006

Culture plays an important role in all health message design, and school-based substance abuse prevention is no exception. Because most adolescent substance abuse prevention programs in the United States are delivered in schools, this is particularly important given the diversity of the students. Unfortunately, there is little theory to guide these programs and fewer programs that successfully achieve cultural competence. Using communication accommodation theory as a framework, this article articulates the principle of cultural grounding using the Drug Resistance Strategies Project as an exemplar. The article then describes a line of research describing youth, ethnic, and gender cultures leading to the development and evaluation of the keepin’ it REAL curriculum. Results demonstrate the efficacy of a multicultural approach to prevention in controlling the onset of adolescent drug use.
Evolution of the Pudong Government
Authors: Chan Che-po , Poon Wai-kit
Published: July 2006

While the Chinese local administrative reforms so far have aimed at adapting to a market economy, in Pudong administrative reform has focused on setting up a local government that conforms to WTO rules and managing a market economy that integrates domestic and foreign investments. This article evaluates the results of the Pudong administrative reform and argues that the reform was part of building up an infrastructure conducive to investments. The reform obviously achieved the objective of attracting large capital investments, but there is still much room for improvement in the setting up of a fair economic market for all competitors.
Do Business Investment Incentives Promote Employment in Declining Areas? Evidence from EU Objective-2 Regions
Authors: Bondonio Daniele , Greenbaum Robert T.
Published: July 2006

To help address the large regional disparities in income that stubbornly persist across Europe, billions of euros have been invested in business investment incentives cofunded through the European Regional Development Fund. Since 1989, these incentives have been spatially targeted through various Structural Funds aimed at promoting economic and social cohesion among all European Union countries. ‘Objective 2’ of the Structural Funds aims to help revitalize those areas with persistently high unemployment and declining industrial production. Despite the continued popularity of these initiatives, no reliable ex-post empirical evidence of their impact is yet available to help EU policymakers refine future geographicallytargeted economic development policies. To begin to address the void, this article uses unique firm-specific data available for northern and central Italy to estimate a parametric difference in difference model that calculates the employment impact of the ‘Objective 2’ area business incentives net of all changes due to economic trends that are exogenous to the programme intervention. Mean impact results show that the incentives did promote positive employment growth in the target areas that would not have otherwise occurred. The analysis further finds that the incentives were most effective when targeting production in province–industry pairs that had the least severe declines during the years prior to the programme intervention.
Race, beauty, and the tangled knot of a guilty pleasure
Authors: Craig Maxine Leeds
Published: July 2006

Recent feminist theory has attempted to bring considerations of women’s agency into analyses of the meaning and consequence of beauty norms in women’s lives. This article argues that these works have often been limited by their use of individualist frameworks or by their neglect of considerations of race and class. In this article I draw upon examples of African-American utilization of beauty discourse and practices in collective efforts to resist racism. I argue that there is no singular beauty standard enforced by a unified male gaze. Instead, we should conceive of fields in which differently located individuals and groups invest in and promote particular ways of seeing beauty, producing both penalties and pleasures in women’s lives.
Improved alignment quality by combining evolutionary information, predicted secondary structure and self-organizing maps
Authors: Ohlson Tomas , Aggarwal Varun , Elofsson Arne , MacCallum Robert M
Published: July 2006

Background

Protein sequence alignment is one of the basic tools in bioinformatics. Correct alignments are required for a range of tasks including the derivation of phylogenetic trees and protein structure prediction. Numerous studies have shown that the incorporation of predicted secondary structure information into alignment algorithms improves their performance. Secondary structure predictors have to be trained on a set of somewhat arbitrarily defined states (e.g. helix, strand, coil), and it has been shown that the choice of these states has some effect on alignment quality. However, it is not unlikely that prediction of other structural features also could provide an improvement. In this study we use an unsupervised clustering method, the self-organizing map, to assign sequence profile windows to "structural states" and assess their use in sequence alignment.

Results

The addition of self-organizing map locations as inputs to a profile-profile scoring function improves the alignment quality of distantly related proteins slightly. The improvement is slightly smaller than that gained from the inclusion of predicted secondary structure. However, the information seems to be complementary as the two prediction schemes can be combined to improve the alignment quality by a further small but significant amount.

Conclusion

It has been observed in many studies that predicted secondary structure significantly improves the alignments. Here we have shown that the addition of self-organizing map locations can further improve the alignments as the self-organizing map locations seem to contain some information that is not captured by the predicted secondary structure.
Alterations in gene expression in T1α null lung: a model of deficient alveolar sac development
Authors: Millien Guetchyn , Spira Avrum , Hinds Anne , Wang Junling , Williams Mary C , Ramirez Maria I
Published: July 2006

Background

Development of lung alveolar sacs of normal structure and size at late gestation is necessary for the gas exchange process that sustains respiration at birth. Mice lacking the lung differentiation gene T1α [T1α(-/-)] fail to form expanded alveolar sacs, resulting in respiratory failure at birth. Since little is known about the molecular pathways driving alveolar sacculation, we used expression microarrays to identify genes altered in the abnormal lungs and, by inference, may play roles in normal lung morphogenesis.

Results

Altered expression of genes related to cell-cell interaction, such as ephrinA3, are observed in T1α(-/-) at E18.5. At term, FosB, Egr1, MPK-1 and Nur77, which can function as negative regulators of the cell-cycle, are down-regulated. This is consistent with the hyperproliferation of peripheral lung cells in term T1α (-/-) lungs reported earlier. Biochemical assays show that neither PCNA nor p21 are altered at E18.5. At term in contrast, PCNA is increased, and p21 is decreased.

Conclusion

This global analysis has identified a number of candidate genes that are significantly altered in lungs in which sacculation is abnormal. Many genes identified were not previously associated with lung development and may participate in formation of alveolar sacs prenatally.
Maldives Field Survey after the December 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
Authors: Fritz Hermann M. , Synolakis Costas E. , McAdoo Brian G.
Published: July 2006

The tsunami of 26 December 2004 severely affected the Maldives at a distance of 2,500 km from the epicenter of the magnitude 9.0 earthquake. The Maldives provide an opportunity to assess the impact of a tsunami on coral atolls. Two international tsunami survey teams (ITSTs) surveyed a total of 13 heavily damaged islands. The islands were visited by seaplane on 14–15 and 18–19 January 2005. We recorded tsunami heights of up to 4 m on Vilufushi on the basis of the location of debris in trees and watermarks on buildings. Each watermark was localized by means of a global positioning system (GPS) and was photographed. Numerous eyewitness interviews were recorded on video. The significantly lower tsunami impact on the Maldives as compared with Sri Lanka is largely due to the topography and bathymetry of the atoll chain.
Geotechnical and Structural Damage in Tamil Nadu, India, from the December 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
Authors: Maheshwari B. K. , Sharma M. L. , Narayan J. P.
Published: July 2006

A reconnaissance team surveyed the geotechnical and structural engineering aspects of tsunami damage on the coast of Tamil Nadu in India. The area surveyed was from Chennai on the east coast to Thiruvananthapuram on the west coast. There was practically no major evidence of damage from direct ground shaking, although damage from the tsunami was extensive. The geotechnical engineering damage observed was mostly due to erosion of soil, settlement of soil, damage to port and harbor facilities, and damage to lifelines. The structural engineering damage involved damage to compound walls, collapse of rural houses, failure of columns, and toppling of roofs; some of the damage occurred because reinforcement details were lacking. Analyses of damage and its causes were performed, and the level of damage correlated well with the tsunami runup for the localities visited.
Multicenter Phase II Trial of Immunotherapy With the Humanized Anti-CD22 Antibody, Epratuzumab, in Combination With Rituximab, in Refractory or Recurrent Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma
Authors: Strauss Sandra J. , Morschhauser Frank , Rech Juergen , Repp Roland , Solal-Celigny Philippe , Zinzani Pier L. , Engert Andreas , Coiffier Bernard , Hoelzer Dieter F. , Wegener William A. , Teoh Nick K.W. , Goldenberg David M. , Lister T. Andrew
Published: July 2006

Purpose

A multicenter, single-arm study examining efficacy and toxicity of epratuzumab combined with rituximab was conducted in patients with recurrent or refractory non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Patients and Methods

Sixty-five patients were enrolled; 34 patients with follicular lymphoma (FL), 15 patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), and 16 patients with other lymphomas. The patients had received a median of two prior therapies (range, 1 to 4); 23% had received rituximab. Epratuzumab was given at 360 mg/m2intravenously over 60 minutes followed by infusion of 375 mg/m2rituximab, weekly for 4 consecutive weeks.

Results

Combination therapy was well tolerated without greater toxicity than rituximab alone. The objective response (OR) rate was 47% (30 of 64) in assessable patients (46%; 30 of 65 in all patients), being highest in FL (64%; 21 of 33) and DLBCL (47%; seven of 15), and with 24% (eight of 33) and 33% (five of 15) achieving complete response (CR) or complete response unconfirmed (CRu) in these two groups, respectively. Two of six patients with marginal zone lymphoma responded to treatment (one CR). There was a trend for the response rates to be higher in patients with low prognostic index scores (statistically significant with respect to the Follicular Lymphoma International Prognostic Index score in FL patients), with 12 FL patients and three DLBCL patients in groups 0 to 1 having OR (CR/CRu) rates of 83% (33%) and 100% (100%), respectively. The median duration of response was 16 months for FL, with five patients currently progression free for 18 months to 30 months, and 6 months for DLBCL, with two patients currently progression free for 12 months and 18 months.

Conclusion

Epratuzumab combined with rituximab was well tolerated, demonstrating promising antilymphoma activity that warrants additional study.
Contribution of microtubule growth polarity and flux to spindle assembly and functioning in plant cells
Authors: Dhonukshe Pankaj , Vischer Norbert , Gadella Theodorus W. J.
Published: July 2006

The spindle occupies a central position in cell division as it builds up the chromosome-separating machine. Here we analysed the dynamics of spindle formation in acentrosomal plant cells by visualizing microtubules labelled with GFP-EB1, GFP-MAP4 and GFP-α-tubulin and chromosomes marked by the vital dye SYTO82. During prophase, few microtubules penetrate the nuclear area, followed by nuclear envelope disintegration. During prometaphase, microtubules invading the nuclear space develop a spindle axis from few bipolar microtubule bundles, which is followed by spindle assembly. Using a novel quantitative kymograph analysis based on Fourier transformation, we measured the microtubule growth trajectories of the entire dynamic metaphase spindle. Microtubules initiating from spindle poles either pass through the metaphase plate to form interpolar microtubule bundles or grow until they reach chromosomes. We also noticed a minor fraction of microtubules growing away from the chromosomes. Microtubules grow at 10 μm/minute both at the spindle equator and at the spindle poles. Photobleached marks created on metaphase and anaphase spindles revealed a poleward tubulin flux. During anaphase, the velocity of tubulin flux (2 μm/minute) equals the speed of chromatid-separation. With these findings we identified spatially coordinated microtubule growth dynamics and microtubule flux-based chromosome-separation as important facets of plant spindle operation.
MBD family proteins: reading the epigenetic code
Authors: Fatemi Mehrnaz , Wade Paul A.
Published: July 2006

Methylation of DNA in mammalian cells serves to demarcate functionally specialized regions of the genome and is strongly associated with transcriptional repression. A highly conserved family of DNA-binding proteins characterized by a common sequence motif is widely believed to convert the information represented by methylation patterns into the appropriate functional state. This family, the MBD family, has been characterized at both the biochemical and genetic levels. A key issue, given their highly similar DNA-binding surfaces, is whether the individual MBD proteins bind differentially to distinct regions within the genome and, if so, by what mechanism. Somewhat surprisingly, some MBD family members, such as MeCP2, have considerable selectivity for specific sequences. Other family members, such as MBD2, appear to bind with somewhat relaxed specificity to methylated DNA. Recent genetic and molecular experiments have shed considerable light on these and other issues relevant to the chromosomal biology of this interesting protein family.
Vapor Phase Carbonylation of Alkyl Chloroacetates
Authors: Shinoda Kiyonori , Yasuda Kensei
Published: July 2006

The vapor-phase carbonylation of alkyl chloroacetates with rhodium trichloride supported on active carbon was carried out under various conditions. The reaction equation for the preparation of dialkyl malonate from alkyl chloroacetate in the presence of alcohol with carbon monoxide is given as:

CH2ClCOOR+ROH+CO=CH2(COOR)2+HCl

The carbonylation proceeded smoothly at 175 °C with an inert solvent as well as with an alkoxide anion donor, such as alcohol, ether, and an ester. The mechanism of the rhodium trichloride-catalyzed carbonylation is probably similar to that of methanol to acetic acid.
Tungstic Acid–Tributyltin Chloride on a Charcoal Catalyst in the Epoxidation of Alkenes with Hydrogen Peroxide
Authors: Itoi Yasushi , Inoue Masami , Enomoto Saburo
Published: July 2006

Several alkenes, such as cyclopentene, cyclohexene, 1-octene, 2-octene, 1-decene, styrene, and 1-methyl-1-cyclohexene, were epoxidized with aqueous (30%) hydrogen peroxide. n-Bu3SuCl was a good co-catalyst of H2WO4 for the selective epoxidation. The conversion was improved by modifying charcoal as the carrier with such alkylating or alkylsilylating agents as N,N-dimethylformamide dibutyl acetal (DMFBA) or N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)acetamide. Cyclopentene oxide, cyclohexene oxide, and 2-octene oxide were obtained from the corresponding olefins in the good yields of 74, 64, and 76% respectively by using DMFBA-modified charcoal as the support. The epoxidation was first-order with respect to both cyclohexene and H2O2. The apparent activation energy of the epoxidation of cyclohexene was 11.2 kcal/mol.