bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Middle Thyroid Vein: Anatomical and Surgical Aspects
Authors: Dionigi Gianlorenzo , Congiu Terenzio , Rovera Francesca , Boni Luigi
Published: December 2009

Background

An issue that has been overlooked in medical literature concerns the prevalence and topographic relationships of the middle thyroid vein (MTV), which have been studied, with a prospective approach, in patients with various thyroid diseases.

Methods

MTV prevalence has been investigated in 394 consecutive lobes and a number of different variables (age, gender, thyroid pathology, gland weight) have been considered. Moreover, in cooperation with our Human Morphology Department, we brought to completion a dedicated anatomy report, with the clear objective of providing a detailed anatomic description of MTV.

Results

The prevalence of MTV was 38% of the dissected lobes and 62% of operated patients. Most veins arise from the mid region of the thyroid lobe (80%): B, 3, and 2 positions in accordance with our scheme. As far as thyroid pathology is concerned, we found that the presence of MTV was more frequent in hyperthyroidism and large goiters (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

A better understanding of the anatomic variability in MTV may be useful not only to minimize the risk of bleeding, but it also can help to perform a more accurate dissection with the goal of preserving the laryngeal nerves and parathyroid glands, especially because of its location and relationships with other adjacent structures.
Abnormal nonstoring capillary endothelium: a novel feature of Gaucher disease. Ultrastructural study of dermal capillaries
Authors: Hůlková Helena , Poupětová Helena , Harzer Klaus , Mistry Pramod , Aerts Johannes M. F. G. , Elleder Milan
Published: January 2010

Ultrastructural study of skin biopsies in two cases of Gaucher disease (GD) patients (types II and III) revealed hitherto unknown alteration of the blood capillary endothelial cells (ECs) featured by hypertrophy and numerous subplasmalemmal microvesicles underneath both the apical and basal membranes. There was also prominent apical membrane folding with formation of filiform and large cytoplasmic projections, with occasional transcapillary cytoplasmic bridges. Similar, though less frequently expressed, changes were manifested at the basal membrane by numerous cytoplasmic projections into the subendothelial space. Regressive changes with EC breakdown were rare. Lysosomal storage was always absent. Besides EC hypertrophy, there was also increased EC density in the capillary lumen, leading to pronounced changes in capillary architecture with loose or incomplete EC anchoring. There were also signs of EC sprouting. Some pericytes displayed an increase in size and number of cytoplasmic processes, which often extended into distant pericapillary regions. The spectrum of changes suggests that a significant positive growth effect on EC occurs in GD. The putative mechanisms triggered by GBA1 deficiency leading to EC involvement are discussed. The authors are well aware of the fact the results, based on a nontraditional type of bioptic samples, are preliminary, but they are worth following, as further ultrastructural and functional studies of blood endothelium in GD may open a novel field in molecular cell pathophysiology of the disorder: endothelial dysfunction.
The effect of pollination on resource allocation among sexual reproduction, clonal reproduction, and vegetative growth in Sagittaria potamogetifolia (Alismataceae)
Authors: Liu Fan , Liao Yi‐Ying , Li Wei , Chen Jin‐Ming , Wang Qing‐Feng , Motley Timothy J.
Published: January 2010

In order to evaluate the effects of pollination on resource allocation in the marsh herb Sagittaria potamogetifolia, experimental manipulation of pollination efficiency on the pattern of resource allocation was accessed by the proportion of dry weight measurements of sexual, vegetative, and clonal organs. In trials where half of the flowers were pollinated, a significant increase of resource allocated to sexual production and decrease to vegetative production resulted compared to plants that received no pollination. In trials where pollination was 100%, these two reproductive components showed the same trend, but less dramatically. This may support the idea that the trade‐offs would be more pronounced when the resource was scarce. Besides, a higher inflorescence production with a lower fruit reproduction occurred as a consequence of decreased pollination level. This increased inflorescence production may be a mechanism to promote outcrossing by enhancing floral attraction or by synchronizing reproductive activity with insect pollinators. Examination for possible trade‐offs in resource allocation revealed that there was also a trade‐off caused by pollination between fruits plus flowers and bulbils production, which might have detrimental effects on the survival of individuals and populations, but promotes outcrossing and genetic variability.
Enzymatic Production of Monoacylglycerols with Camellia Oil by the Glycerolysis Reaction
Authors: Zeng Fan‐kui , Yang Bo , Wang Yong‐hua , Wang Wei‐fei , Ning Zheng‐xiang , Li Lin
Published: January 2010

Three commercial immobilized lipases, Lipozyme RM IM, Lipozyme TL IM and Novozym 435, were screened for the production of monoacylglycerols (MAG) by glycerolysis of camellia oil in a solvent medium of tert‐butyl alcohol. Novozym 435 showed the best performance and was selected to catalyze the glycerolysis reaction. Different reaction conditions for the batch reaction, substrate mole ratio, substrate concentration and temperature, were investigated. The optimal reaction conditions were determined as 6:1 mole ratio of glycerol to camellia oil at 40% (w/v) of substrate concentration in tert‐butyl alcohol at a reaction temperature of 50 °C. Under these optimal conditions, the conversion rate of camellia oil was 98.7% (10 h), and the mixture of acylglycerols contained 82.0% of MAG. A packed‐bed reactor (PBR) system with 4.5 g Novozym 435 was employed in continuous production. The resulting product mixture of acylglycerols contained 80.74% of MAG and was obtained at a flow rate of 0.25 mL/min of substrates. The long‐term operation of the PBR system gave an average productivity of 0.698 kg MAG/(kg enzyme h) after 38 days of operation.
L’insémination artificielle avec donneur: les enfants donnent leur avis
Authors: Clément J. -L.
Published: January 2010

En France, une étude menée auprès d’enfants conçus par insémination artificielle avec donneur (IAD) apporte des éléments de réflexion sur une partie de cette génération d’hommes et de femmes devenus adultes.

Méthode

Vingt et un sujets ont été interviewés par un psychologue d’un Centre d’étude et de conservation des œufs et du sperme humains (CECOS) autour de thèmes communs concernant leur parcours individuel.

Résultats

L’étude montre que les histoires personnelles s’entrecroisent, tout en restant singulières, en fonction de l’histoire intime et privée des parents dans la relation avec leur(s) enfant(s).

Conclusion

La majorité des enfants estiment que leurs parents ont eu raison de choisir cette méthode, mais avec des nuances, et la plupart retiennent que l’anonymat du don leur est favorable.
Does Size Matter? An Examination of Small and Large Web-Based Brand Communities
Authors: Scarpi Daniele
Published: December 2009

We investigate the causal relationship between brand community identification, brand affect, community loyalty, brand loyalty, brand evangelism, and community evangelism, developing a structural equation model set within the context of online brand communities for newly hybridized roses. The analysis considers size as a moderator for the relationships between constructs, comparing small and large web-based brand communities. Findings highlight that small communities operate differently from larger ones with regard to numerous aspects, and possess specific strengths and weaknesses. Members of small communities develop higher community loyalty; brand loyalty in small community stems more from community loyalty than from brand affect; small communities engage in word of mouth for the community more than in word of mouth for the brand. Managerial implications are addressed.
When consensus counts: Exploring the impact of consensus claims in advertising
Authors: Freling Traci H. , Dacin Peter A.
Published: December 2009

Consensus claims are broad declarative statements used in an advertisement purporting that a majority of a certain group of consumers prefer or use the sponsor's product or service. While consensus claims are frequently used by advertisers, little is known about how they operate or their effectiveness. We utilize attribution theory to provide insight about how consensus claims operate, and to investigate the impact of consensus claims on attributions and brand attitudes. Results suggest consensus claims are an effective advertising strategy, but their persuasive impact varies according to the featured social information and the processing motivation of audience members.
Mineral resources and development in the Russian Arctic
Authors: Dobretsov N.L. , Pokhilenko N.P.
Published: December 2009

The paper concerns issues of geology and metallogeny of the Russian Arctic, namely, (i) limits of the Russian oceanic Arctic in the context of the continental origin of territories under jurisdictional dispute; (ii) geology and tectonic history of the region; (iii) distribution of mineral deposits; (iv) outlook for diamond, PGE, Ni, rare metals, gold, and bauxite resources development.

Advanced diamond exploration and development can be expected proceeding from geology of new potentially diamondiferous areas, the Phanerozoic history and composition of lithospheric mantle beneath the Siberian craton which were controlled by the Siberian superplume at the Permian–Triassic boundary, and from new exploration approaches adapted to the prospecting conditions of Arctic Siberia.

According to the available knowledge of Ni and PGE mineralization in the Noril’sk region, it is reasonable to develop depleted ores and tailings (mining dumps at the Noril’sk and Talnakh deposits). However, the key solution consists in new large discoveries within the Dzheltula and Kharaelakh volcanic and plutonic complexes.

Gold production enhancement may be associated with black shale-hosted Au-As mineralization in the northeastern Russian Arctic, but the problem is in the lack of efficient and environmentally safe dressing technologies for these ores.

Most of rare metals in the area (Nb, Sc, Y, and other elements) are stored in the giant Tomtor field, which has a complex structure and history. A special technology designed for the Tomtor ores ensures more than 60% extraction of ore components.

Good prospects for the bauxite potential are expected from the Timan district where bauxite may occur in Vendian and Early Carboniferous formations.

It is suggested to include the development of the Russian Arctic as a priority target in the national economic strategy.
Seismic studies of frozen ground in Arctic areas
Authors: Melnikov V.P. , Skvortsov A.G. , Malkova G.V. , Drozdov D.S. , Ponomareva O.E. , Sadurtdinov M.R. , Tsarev A.M. , Dubrovin V.A.
Published: December 2009

Seismiv surveys have been applied to investigate the structure of frozen ground, to identify and contour natural and man-caused unfrozen layers in permafrost (taliks), to constrain the position of the permafrost table in the Arctic inner shelf, and to study the related coastal stability. They are the classic methods common in shallow seismic exploration and new techniques specially designed at the Institute of Earth’s Cryosphere (Tyumen’) for different wave components. The joint use of compressional and shear waves provides a higher-quality interpretation of seismic data in permafrost applications. In the case of a single wave component, shear waves are advantageous over P waves.
Rhaetian diamond placers in Siberia
Authors: Grakhanov S.A. , Malanin Yu.A. , Pavlov V.I. , Afanas’ev V.P. , Pokhilenko N.P. , Gerasimchuk A.V. , Lipashova A.N.
Published: December 2009

Large diamond placers have been discovered in a Rhaetian basal horizon (Upper Triassic) in the north of the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) in the drainage areas of the Eekit, Nikabyt, Kelimyar, and Bur Rivers. In typomorphic features the found diamonds and indicator minerals of kimberlites are completely similar to those from Carnian basal horizons but, in contrast to them, are well sorted, and pyropes show features of mechanical wear. Analysis of the geologic evolution of the study area, morphology of diamonds and indicator minerals, and composition of the latter showed that the Rhaetian productive sediments resulted from the erosion of Carnian placers.
THE RIGHT TO PRIVATE PROPERTY: A JUSTIFICATION
Authors: Kekes John
Published: January 2010

The proposed justification avoids problems that invalidate the familiar entitlement, utility, and interest-based justifications; interprets private property as necessary for controlling resources we need for our well-being; recognizes that the possession, uses, and limits of private property must be justified differently; and combines the defensible portions of the familiar but unsuccessful attempts at justification with a more complex account that combines the defensible portions of previous justificatory attempts with a new pluralistic approach that treats the right to private property as a conventional, defeasible, but indispensable right.
THE UNEASY RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEMOCRACY AND CAPITAL
Authors: Christiano Thomas
Published: January 2010

The basic question I want to ask is: can the exercise of private property rights abridge fundamental norms of democratic decision-making? And, under what conditions can it do so? To the extent that we view democratic decision making as required by justice, the issue is whether there is a deep tension between certain ways of exercising the rights of private property and that part of social justice that is characterized by democracy. To the extent that this tension holds, I will argue that commitment to democratic norms implies that private capitalist firms must cooperate with a democratic assembly and government in the pursuit of the aims of a democratic assembly even when this implies some diminution of the profits of the firms. The cooperation I have in mind goes beyond the norm of faithful compliance with the law. To be sure, there are limits to this requirement as we will see in the later part of the paper. To the extent that private capitalist firms fail to do this and partially undermine the pursuit of the aims of a democratic assembly, they act in a way that is incompatible with fundamental norms of democratic governance.
Particle trapping by an external body force in the limit of large Peclet number: applications to magnetic targeting in the blood flow
Authors: RICHARDSON G. , KAOURI K. , BYRNE H. M.
Published: January 2010

Motivated by the technology of magnetically targeted drug and gene delivery, in which a magnetic field is used to direct magnetic carrier particles from the circulation to a target site, we develop a continuum model for the motion of particles (magnetic carriers) subject to an external body force (magnetic field) in a flow of a concentrated suspension of a species of neutrally buoyant particles (blood). An advection–diffusion equation describes the evolution of the carrier particles as they advect in the flow under the action of an external body force, and diffuse as a result of random interactions with the suspension of neutrally buoyant particles (shear-induced diffusion). The model is analysed for the case in which there is steady Poiseuille flow in a cylindrical vessel, the diffusive effects are weak and there is weak carrier uptake along the walls of the vessel. The method of matched asymptotic expansions is used to show that carriers are concentrated in a boundary layer along the vessel wall and, further, that there is a carrier flux along this layer which results in a sub-layer, along one side of the vessel, in which carriers are even more highly concentrated. Three distinguished limits are identified: they correspond to cases for which (i) the force is sufficiently weak that most particles move through the vessel without entering the boundary layers along the walls of the vessel and (ii) and (iii) to a force which is sufficiently strong that a significant fraction of the particles enter the boundary layers and, depending upon the carrier absorption from the vessel walls, there is insignificant/significant axial carrier flux in these layers.
Groundfish overfishing, diatom decline, and the marine silica cycle: Lessons from Saanich Inlet, Canada, and the Baltic Sea cod crash
Authors: Katz Timor , Yahel Gitai , Yahel Ruthy , Tunnicliffe Verena , Herut Barak , Snelgrove Paul , Crusius John , Lazar Boaz
Published: December 2009

In this study, we link groundfish activity to the marine silica cycle and suggest that the drastic mid‐1980s crash of the Baltic Sea cod (Gadus morhua) population triggered a cascade of events leading to decrease in dissolved silica (DSi) and diatom abundance in the water. We suggest that this seemingly unrelated sequence of events was caused by a marked decline in sediment resuspension associated with reduced groundfish activity resulting from the cod crash. In a study in Saanich Inlet, British Columbia, Canada, we discovered that, by resuspending bottom sediments, groundfish triple DSi fluxes from the sediments and reduce silica accumulation therein. Using these findings and the available oceanographic and environmental data from the Baltic Sea, we estimate that overfishing and recruitment failure of Baltic cod reduced by 20% the DSi supply from bottom sediments to the surface water leading to a decline in the diatom population in the Baltic Sea. The major importance of the marginal ocean in the marine silica cycle and the associated high population density of groundfish suggest that groundfish play a major role in the silica cycle. We postulate that dwindling groundfish populations caused by anthropogenic perturbations, e.g., overfishing and bottom water anoxia, may cause shifts in marine phytoplankton communities.
Physical properties of hydrate‐bearing sediments
Authors: Waite W. F. , Santamarina J. C. , Cortes D. D. , Dugan B. , Espinoza D. N. , Germaine J. , Jang J. , Jung J. W. , Kneafsey T. J. , Shin H. , Soga K. , Winters W. J. , Yun T.‐S.
Published: December 2009

Methane gas hydrates, crystalline inclusion compounds formed from methane and water, are found in marine continental margin and permafrost sediments worldwide. This article reviews the current understanding of phenomena involved in gas hydrate formation and the physical properties of hydrate‐bearing sediments. Formation phenomena include pore‐scale habit, solubility, spatial variability, and host sediment aggregate properties. Physical properties include thermal properties, permeability, electrical conductivity and permittivity, small‐strain elastic P and S wave velocities, shear strength, and volume changes resulting from hydrate dissociation. The magnitudes and interdependencies of these properties are critically important for predicting and quantifying macroscale responses of hydrate‐bearing sediments to changes in mechanical, thermal, or chemical boundary conditions. These predictions are vital for mitigating borehole, local, and regional slope stability hazards; optimizing recovery techniques for extracting methane from hydrate‐bearing sediments or sequestering carbon dioxide in gas hydrate; and evaluating the role of gas hydrate in the global carbon cycle.
Using knowledge discovery with data mining from the Australian Soil Resource Information System database to inform soil carbon mapping in Australia
Authors: Bui Elisabeth , Henderson Brent , Viergever Karin
Published: December 2009

We present a piecewise linear decision tree model for predicting percent of soil organic C (SOC) in the agricultural zones of Australia generated using a machine learning approach. The inputs for the model are a national database of soil data, national digital surfaces of climate, elevation, and terrain variables, Landsat multispectral scanner data, lithology, land use, and soil maps. The model and resulting map are evaluated, and insights into biogeological surficial processes are discussed. The decision tree splits the overall data set into more homogenous subsets, thus in this case, it identifies areas where SOC responds closely to climatic and other environmental variables. The spatial pattern of SOC corresponds well to maps of estimated primary productivity and bioclimatic zones. Topsoil organic C levels are highest in the high rainfall, temperate regions of Tasmania, Victoria, and Western Australia, along the coast of New South Wales and in the wet tropics of Queensland; and lowest in arid and semiarid inland regions. While this pattern broadly follows continental vegetation, soil moisture, and temperature patterns, it is governed by a spatially variable hierarchy of different climatic and other variables across bioregions of Australia. At the continental scale, soil moisture level, rather than temperature, seems most important in controlling SOC.
Images of internal tides near the Norwegian continental slope
Authors: Holbrook W. Steven , Fer Ilker , Schmitt Raymond W.
Published: December 2009

Internal tides, or internal gravity waves propagating at tidal frequencies, play an important role in ocean mixing but are challenging to detect and map over large spatial sections in the ocean's interior. We present seismic images of oceanic finestructure in the Norwegian Sea that demonstrate that semidiurnal (M2) internal tidal beams can be seismically imaged. We observe bands of seismic reflections that cross isotherms and closely mimic the expected internal tide ray characteristic over hundreds of meters vertically and tens of km laterally, in an area where critical seafloor slopes are common. Coincident temperature and density profiles show that the reflections come from reversible finestructure caused by internal wave strains. Where the beams intersect the seafloor, indications of enhanced mixing are present, including finestructure disruption and enhanced internal wave energy. These results suggest that seismic oceanography can be an effective tool in studies of ocean mixing by internal tides.
Analysis of the spatial distribution of the unusual NO2 enhancements in the Arctic polar upper stratosphere and mesosphere observed by GOMOS‐Envisat in January–March 2004
Authors: Renard Jean‐Baptiste , Bekki Slimane , Blelly Pierre‐Louis , Bourgeois Quentin , Berthet Gwenaël , Hauchecorne Alain
Published: December 2009

Anomalously enhanced NO2 concentrations are sometimes observed in the polar winter upper atmosphere. The enhancements over Antarctica from May to August 2003 were probably due to auroral electron precipitation, producing high amounts of NO in the upper mesosphere that were converted to NO2 during downward transport to the stratosphere. Another enhancement was detected in the Arctic middle stratosphere in October–November 2003, due this time to energetic solar proton precipitation. This enhancement was quickly followed by a new Arctic NO2 enhancement produced by auroral electrons in November 2003. Finally, a last enhancement was detected in the lower mesosphere from January to April 2004. Although it was proposed that this enhancement could also be due to auroral electrons, uncertainties remained concerning the absolute value of the NO2 enhancement and its spatial coverage. We propose here a new analysis of the Global Ozone Monitoring by Occultation of Stars (GOMOS) nighttime measurements of the NO2 enhancements. Instead of using daily zonally averaged data as done previously, we consider only the profiles containing the maximum values of the NO2 enhancement. Unlike all the previous enhancements, the NO2 content of the January 2004 appears to be longitudinally and latitudinally dependent inside the polar circle. The enhancement starts on 17 January 2004, with mixing ratios of up to a ppmv at altitudes above 60 km on 21 January. The enhancement looks like a “hot spot” above the polar cap. Then the enhancement spreads while it propagates downward into the stratosphere. It is accompanied by perfectly coincident strong ozone depletion; in particular, ozone is almost totally destroyed in mid‐February at about 50 km. The vertical extent and horizontal spread of this NO2 enhancement strongly differ from the November 2003 enhancement attributed to auroral electron precipitation. The possible origins of this unusual pattern are discussed.
Intermodel variability of future changes in the Baiu rainband estimated by the pseudo global warming downscaling method
Authors: Kawase Hiroaki , Yoshikane Takao , Hara Masayuki , Kimura Fujio , Yasunari Tetsuzo , Ailikun Borjiginte , Ueda Hiroaki , Inoue Tomoshige
Published: December 2009

Changes in the Baiu rainband owing to global warming are assessed by the pseudo global warming downscaling method (PGW‐DS). The PGW‐DS is similar to the conventional dynamical downscaling method using a regional climate model (RCM), but the boundary conditions of the RCM are obtained by adding the difference between the future and present climates simulated by coupled general circulation models (CGCMs) into the 6‐hourly reanalysis data in a control period. We conducted the multiple PGW‐DS runs using the selected Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 3 (CMIP3) multimodel data set, giving better performance around East Asia in June, and the PGW‐DS run using the multiselected CGCM model ensemble mean (PGW‐MME run). The PGW‐MME and PGW‐DS runs show an increase in precipitation over the Baiu rainband and the southward shift of the Baiu rainband. The PGW‐MME run has good similarity to the average of all PGW‐DS runs. This fact indicates that an average of the multiple PGW‐DS runs can be replaced by a single PGW‐DS run using the multiselected CGCM ensemble mean, reducing the significant computational expense. In comparison with the GCM projections, the PGW‐DS runs reduce the intermodel variability in the Baiu rainband caused by the CGCMs themselves.
Toward snowfall retrieval over land by combining satellite and in situ measurements
Authors: Noh Yoo‐Jeong , Liu Guosheng , Jones Andrew S. , Vonder Haar Thomas H.
Published: December 2009

Although snowfall is an important component of global precipitation in extratropical regions, satellite snowfall estimate is still in an early developmental stage, and existing satellite remote sensing techniques do not yet provide reliable estimates of snowfall over higher latitudes. Toward the goal of developing a global snowfall algorithm, in this study, a Bayesian technique has been tested for snowfall retrieval over land using high‐frequency microwave satellite data. In this algorithm, observational data from satellite‐ and surface‐based radars and in situ aircraft measurements are used to build the a priori database consisting of snowfall profiles and corresponding brightness temperatures. The retrieval algorithm is applied to the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit‐B data for snowfall cases that occurred over the Great Lakes region, and the results are compared with the surface radar data and daily snowfall data collected from National Weather Service stations. Although the algorithm is still at an ad hoc stage, the results show that the satellite retrievals compare well with surface measurements in the early winter season, when there is no accumulated snow on ground. However, for the late winter season, when snow constantly covers the ground, the snowfall retrievals become very noisy and show overestimation. Therefore, it is concluded that developing methods to efficiently remove surface snow cover contamination will be the major task in the future to improve the accuracy of satellite snowfall retrieval over land.
Morphology of the dayside ionosphere of Mars: Implications for ion outflows
Authors: Fox Jane L.
Published: December 2009

Significant fluxes of tailward streaming ions have been detected in the Martian wake by instruments on spacecraft. Imposing outward fluxes at the top of a model will produce dayside ion density profiles that are characterized by smaller scale heights than those of diffusive equilibrium. We determine the maximum outward fluxes of ions, and those implied by radio occultation data, by constructing ∼180 models, with upward velocity boundary conditions in the range from 0 to (7–8) × 105 cm s−1 in small increments. As the upward velocity is increased, the topside ion or electron densities decrease until eventually the computed ion fluxes cease to increase, implying that this is the maximum outward flux that the ionosphere can sustain. By comparison to data, we derive a low solar activity upward flux of O2+ of ∼5 × 107 cm−2 s−1, and a maximum of ∼8 × 107 cm−2 s−1. For O+, the analogous fluxes are ∼4 × 106 cm−2 s−1 and ∼1.1 × 107 cm−2 s−1. We derive high solar activity upward fluxes of O2+ in the range ∼(1.2–1.6) × 108 cm−2 s−1, and a maximum of 2.4 × 108 cm−2 s−1. The O+ derived and maximum fluxes at high solar activity are ∼(1.5–2) × 107 and 5 × 107 cm−2 s−1, respectively. If these fluxes are averages over the dayside, we estimate total loss rates of O+ and O2+ of (2.8–11) × 1024 and (3.6–8.7) × 1025 s−1, respectively. Our computed escape rates of O+ are in substantial agreement with the models and data, but our O2+ escape rates are an order of magnitude larger. We discuss various mechanisms that would bring our O2+ escape rates or the O+/O2+ ratio into agreement with the measurements and models.
Biogeophysics: A new frontier in Earth science research
Authors: Atekwana Estella A. , Slater Lee D.
Published: December 2009

“Biogeophysics” is a rapidly evolving Earth science discipline concerned with the geophysical signatures of microbial interactions with geologic media. It spans the established disciplines of geomicrobiology, biogeoscience, and geophysics. Biogeophysics research in the last decade has confirmed the potential for geophysical techniques to measure not simply the physical and chemical properties of the subsurface, as already well established, but also to detect microbes, microbial growth, and microbe‐mineral interactions, thus representing a major paradigm shift in geophysical thinking. In this review we begin by defining biogeophysics and provide a historical perspective. We then consider microbial alterations of petrophysical properties as such alteration is the source of most biogeophysical signals. Our review then focuses on geophysical interrogation of microbial processes, including the direct detection of microbial cells and biofilm formation, microbial metabolic by‐products, microbe‐mediated redox processes, and biogeochemical and microbe‐mineral transformations. We conclude by discussing challenges, opportunities, and potential new applications of biogeophysics to the exploration of life in extreme environments, e.g., the deep biosphere, the cryosphere, and other planets. We find that published biogeophysics studies to date are mostly observation based, presenting only empirical relationships between microbial and geophysical variables. Future research endeavors must focus on developing theoretical and/or numerical models for predicting geophysical signals arising from microbial activity.
On the calibration of hydrological models in ungauged basins: A framework for integrating hard and soft hydrological information
Authors: Winsemius H. C. , Schaefli B. , Montanari A. , Savenije H. H. G.
Published: December 2009

This paper presents a calibration framework based on the generalized likelihood uncertainty estimation (GLUE) that can be used to condition hydrological model parameter distributions in scarcely gauged river basins, where data is uncertain, intermittent or nonconcomitant. At the heart of this framework is the conditioning of the model parameters such as to reproduce key signatures of the observed data within some limits of acceptability. These signatures are either based on hard or on soft information. Hard information signatures are defined as signatures for which the limits of acceptability may be objectively derived from the distribution of long series of observed values, and which effectively constrain the model parameters. Soft signatures are less effective in parameter conditioning or their limits of acceptability cannot be objectively derived. During random parameter sampling, parameter sets are accepted as equally likely if they meet all the hard limits of acceptability. This results in an intermediate parameter distribution, which can be used to reduce the sampling limits. Then, the soft information may be introduced in a second constraining step to reach a final parameter distribution. The modeler can use the final results as a guideline for a further search for information, possibly from new observations yet to collect. In an application of the framework to the Luangwa catchment in Zambia, three information signatures are retrieved from a data set of old discharge time series and used to condition the parameters of a daily conceptual rainfall‐runoff model. We performed two independent calibration experiments with two significantly different satellite rainfall estimates as model input. The results show consistent parameter distributions and considerable reduction of the prior parameter space and corresponding output realizations. These results illustrate the potential of the proposed calibration framework for predictions in scarcely gauged catchments.
Coach Talk: Linguistic Demands Inherent in Youth Sports
Authors: Masterson Julie J. , Davies Lisa K. , Masterson Gerald L.
Published: December 2009

Purpose

This investigation expands the notion of academic language to extracurricular activities and provides preliminary data regarding linguistic expectations that are placed on students who are participating in youth sports.

Method

Five coaches of young girls' basketball teams (2 competitive; 3 recreational) were observed during practice sessions divided into individual versus group and stationary versus active contexts. Communication was characterized with various measures of content, form, and use.

Results

Coaches rarely used pauses or communicative repetitions. Recreational coaches' utterances contained more mazes than competitive coaches' utterances. Utterances used during stationary activities tended to be longer and contain more than one verb compared to utterances used during active activities; sentence fragments were more frequent during active contexts. All coaches used jargon quite frequently.

Clinical Implications

The system reported here can be used to document linguistic demands in other extracurricular activities, such as music programs and scouting. Speech-language pathologists might include clinical activities to help students deal successfully with the linguistic requirements that are inherent in sporting activities.
Family Members' Perceptions of Augmentative and Alternative Communication Device Use
Authors: Bailey Rita L. , Parette Howard P. , Stoner Julia B. , Angell Maureen E. , Carroll Kathleen
Published: December 2009

Purpose

Although advancements in technology have expanded the use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices for children with disabilities, the use of AAC devices in school and home settings is often inconsistent. The purpose of this study was to examine family members' perceptions regarding the use of AAC devices. Factors that were perceived to affect student’s use of AAC devices, family expectations, and benefits of AAC device use were explored.

Method

Semistructured interviews were conducted with 6 family members (primary caregivers) of 7 youth who primarily use AAC devices to communicate in the school environment. The interviews were analyzed using cross-case analysis.

Results

A variety of common perspectives emerged from the data, including four thematic categories: expectations, facilitators, barriers, and benefits of AAC device use.

Implications

Information gained in this investigation may be used to improve professional-family and teaming relationships and serve to benefit AAC users in school and home settings.
Alveolar Bias in the Final Consonant Deletion Patterns of African American Children
Authors: Stockman Ida J.
Published: December 2009

Purpose

The variable deletion of word-final consonants is a well-known feature of African American English (AAE). This study aimed to show whether African American children exhibit an alveolar bias in their deletion of final voiceless stops as has been observed for their production of final nasals.

Method

The data were extracted from more than 5,000 spontaneous utterances in the speech samples of 7 African American children at 32 to 36 months of age.

Results

The final alveolar voiceless stop /-t/ was deleted significantly more often in word-final position than were /-p/ and /-k/ in both singleton and clustered contexts. The deletion of /-t/ in final clusters preceding other consonants at word boundaries contributed significantly to this bias. No significant differences were observed among the stops in their relative frequencies of deletion when a vowel sound followed or when the final stop was prepausal at word boundaries.

Conclusion

African American children’s deletion of final consonants is patterned even at an early age. It varies with whether the voiceless stop consonant is an alveolar sound or not and with the type of phonetic context in which the alveolar stop is embedded. This alveolar stop bias was attributed to phonetic and grammatic constraints on articulating final /-t/ relative to final /-p/ and /-k/.

Clinical Implication

All final consonant deletion patterns should not be regarded as typical of African American children when assessing their speech even as early as age 3;0 (years;months).
Effects of Prolonged Loud Reading on Normal Adolescent Male Voices
Authors: Kelchner Lisa N. , Toner Margaret M. , Lee Linda
Published: December 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this article was to test the effects of vocal loading in healthy, peripubescent teenage boys. It was hypothesized that select acoustic measures, ratings of physical appearance of the larynx, and self-ratings of physical effort and vocal quality in the experimental group would significantly change in response to 2 hr of prolonged loud reading.

Method

In this prospective, repeated measures study, 25 boys aged 13–16 years were randomly assigned to either an experimental group (2 hr of continuous loud reading) or a control group (silent reading with brief periods of conversation). Pre–post acoustic, videoendoscopic, and perceptual data including self-ratings were collected. Postreading recovery changes were tracked by monitoring average reading fundamental frequency (F0) and intensity for 20 min following cessation of the reading task.

Results

The experimental group demonstrated statistically significant differences before and after prolonged loud reading for three variables: F0 (p< .01), self-ratings of vocal quality (p< .01), and physical effort (p< .01). No pre–post changes were evident in the control group. In the experimental group, posttest return of F0 to pretest levels occurred within 20 min. Self-ratings revealed that the boys felt that their voice quality worsened and physical effort increased during the experimental task. Expert ratings did not detect any significant differences in either the perceptual quality of the experimental group’s voices or their videoendoscopic images.

Implications

These findings demonstrate that prolonged loud reading can induce temporary but measurable changes in F0 and in self-perception of vocal function in adolescent males who are experiencing a period of rapid laryngeal growth. The underlying mechanism for these changes remains unclear and warrants continued investigation. Furthermore, the results suggest that in the pubescent male population, comparable vocal loading tasks encountered in daily use should not result in long-term negative effects.
Treating Preschool Children Who Stutter: Description and Preliminary Evaluation of a Family-Focused Treatment Approach
Authors: Yaruss J. Scott , Coleman Craig , Hammer David
Published: December 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to present a detailed description of a family-focused treatment for preschool children who stutter that addresses communication behaviors and attitudinal reactions that children and their parents may exhibit in reaction to stuttering, as well as a preliminary evaluation of the outcomes of that treatment.

Method

The study involved assessment of the children’s speech fluency and a client satisfaction questionnaire that sought parents' opinions about which aspects of the treatment were beneficial. Participants were 17 children who stutter, ages 31 to 62 months, and their families.

Results

Responses to the questionnaire indicated that treatment helped families learn about stuttering and about strategies that facilitate children’s fluency. Evaluation of the children’s fluency revealed that all participants achieved improved fluency at the conclusion of treatment and at long-term follow-up.

Implications

Findings suggest that this treatment approach may be useful for helping children achieve improved speech fluency, effective communication skills, and healthy communication attitudes.
Performance of African American Preschool and Kindergarten Students on the Expressive Vocabulary Test
Authors: Thomas-Tate Shurita , Washington Julie , Craig Holly , Packard Mary
Published: December 2009

Purpose

To examine the validity of the Expressive Vocabulary Test (EVT; K. Williams, 1997) for assessing the expressive vocabulary skills of African American students.

Method/Results

One hundred sixty-five African American preschool and kindergarten students were administered the EVT. The mean EVT score for these African American students was 96.44 (
SD
= 11.42), which is not appreciably lower than the standardized mean of 100 (
SD
= 15).

Clinical Implications

Scores were normally distributed, indicating that the EVT is culturally fair and appropriate for use with some African American preschool and kindergarten children as part of an early screening battery. The importance of culturally fair vocabulary measures is discussed relative to this population.
School-Aged Children’s Phonological Production of Derived English Words
Authors: Jarmulowicz Linda
Published: December 2009

Purpose

Little is known about the phonological aspects of derivational processes. Neutral suffixes (e.g., -
ness
) that do not change stress and rhythmic or nonneutral suffixes (e.g., -
ity
) that alter stem stress were used in a production task that explored developmental changes in phonological accuracy of derived English words.

Method

Three groups of typically achieving children, aged 7 (
n
= 19), 8 (
n
= 18), and 9 (
n
= 15) years, produced derived words in isolation (12 words with rhythmic suffixes and 10 with neutral suffixes). Productions were transcribed from audio-recordings.

Results

Stress accuracy was at ceiling levels for neutral derived words but steadily improved in words with rhythmic suffixes. The predominant stress error was maintaining stem stress in the derived form. Children also made syllabification and consonant errors (in isolation and overlapping with stem stress errors). More errors occurred on derived words with vowel changes than without.

Conclusions

Morphophonological knowledge for words with rhythmic suffixes undergoes development in early school-aged children. The number or degree of phonological changes between the stem and derived word appears to be an important variable in accurate production.
Children’s Naming and Word-Finding Difficulties: Descriptions and Explanations
Authors: Messer David , Dockrell Julie E.
Published: December 2009

Purpose

There is a substantial minority of children for whom lexical retrieval problems impede the normal pattern of language development and use. These problems include accurately producing the correct word even when the word’s meaning is understood. Such problems are often referred to asword-finding difficulties(WFDs). This article examines the nature of naming and lexical retrieval difficulties in these and other groups of children.

Method

A review of the relevant literature on lexical access difficulties in children with word-finding difficulties was conducted. Studies were examined in the terms of population parameters and comparison groups included in the study.

Results and Conclusions

Most discussions of the cognitive processes causing lexical retrieval difficulties refer to semantics, phonology, and processing speed. The authors propose that understanding of these topics will be further advanced by the use of appropriate methodology to test developmental models. In this way it will be possible to identify the processes that contribute to successful lexical retrieval and the processes that result in retrieval difficulties.
Sampling Context Affects MLU in the Language of Adolescents With Down Syndrome
Authors: Miles Sally , Chapman Robin , Sindberg Heidi
Published: December 2009

Purpose

The authors describe the procedures used to explain an unexpected finding that adolescents with Down syndrome (DS) had a lower mean length of utterance (MLU) than typically developing (TD) children in interviews without picture support, but not in narratives supported by wordless picture books. They hypothesize that the picture support of the narrative context increased the MLU for the group with DS alone.

Method

Adolescents with DS (n= 14) and TD children (n= 14) matched for receptive syntax narrated picture storybooks and participated in interviews. Transcription reliability, intelligibility/fluency, grammatical errors, discourse and sampling contexts, and discourse characteristics were examined for their effects on MLU.

Results

The DS group showed a greater responsiveness to adult questions than the TD group; an alternate MLU without yes/no responses showed the same interaction of group and context as the original finding. An additional comparison of MLUs, obtained from narratives present in the interview and narratives elicited using picture books, showed that picture support in narrative increased MLUs only for the group with DS.

Conclusion

Picture support, rather than narrative context alone, increased MLUs for the group with DS. Clinical use of narratives and picture support in assessment and intervention with individuals with DS is discussed.
Using Preference-Based Measures to Assess Quality of Life in Stuttering
Authors: Bramlett Robin E. , Bothe Anne K. , Franic Duska M.
Published: December 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to determine whether standard pharmaco-economic preference methods can be used to assess perceived quality of life in stuttering.

Method

Seventy-five nonstuttering adults completed a standardized face-to-face interview that included a rating scale, standard gamble, and time trade-off preference measures for 4 health states (your health and mild, moderate, and severe stuttering) in the context of 2 anchor states (perfect health and death).

Results

Results showed mean utility values between .443 for severe stuttering estimated using the rating scale technique and .982 for respondents' own current health estimated using a standard gamble technique. A two-way repeated measures analysis of variance and post hoc tests showed significant effects for method, health state, and the interaction.

Conclusions

These results confirm that utility estimates can differentiate between stuttering severity levels and that utility scores for stuttering conform to the known properties of data obtained using these standard measurement techniques. These techniques, therefore, can and should be further investigated as potential contributors to complete measurement protocols for the study and treatment of stuttering.