bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Localized Quaternary uplift of south–central England
Authors: Watts A.B. , McKerrow W.S. , Richards K.
Published: April 2005

The Early Quaternary of south–central England is characterized by uplift, as is indicated by the river gravels that extend intermittently from Oxfordshire, through Northamptonshire, to Lincolnshire. The earliest of these gravels contain abundant quartz and quartzite clasts derived from Lower Triassic conglomerates in the West Midlands, but later deposits contain progressively larger amounts of locally derived Jurassic sediments. This compositional change is associated with the incision of the rivers that flowed eastwards from the West Midlands. Subsequently, the headwaters of some of these rivers were diverted towards the Bristol Channel and their suspended material was deposited on the outer parts of the UK continental shelf and slope. The area of incised drainage (Gloucestershire to Lincolnshire) did not extend to East Anglia (in the east) or to Somerset (in the west). Both these coastal regions contain several marine horizons showing that the area of uplift did not include the whole of southern England. The uplift cannot therefore be attributed to eustatic changes in sea level. The area of uplift is centred on the broad topographic depression of the English Midlands and corresponds approximately to the outcrop of thick (
c
. 1 km) Upper Triassic and Lower Jurassic mudrocks. We have used an Ordnance Survey 50 m × 50 m topographic ‘grid’ to estimate the amount of mudrocks that has been removed from the depression and 2D flexural unloading models to calculate the tectonic uplift that resulted, for various assumptions of the effective elastic thickness (which is determined by the flexural rigidity) of the lithosphere. The amount of material removed is in accord with what is known of the volume of Quaternary deposits offshore, and the uplift accounts for the incised plateau surfaces of the flanking Cotswold Hills and the high ground of Northamptonshire to the east, and the Forest of Dean and the hills of Herefordshire to the west.
Subglacial meltwater channels and glaciofluvial deposits in the Kimberley Basin, Western Australia: 1.8 Ga low-latitude glaciation coeval with continental assembly
Authors: Williams George E.
Published: April 2005

A late Palaeoproterozoic unconformity surface developed on low-dipping sandstone in the Kimberley region, northwestern Australia, exhibits numerous linear, parallel grooves 10–50 mm deep, 40–80 mm wide and tens of metres long, and other erosional forms including sichelwannen. These features are interpreted as Nye channels and sculpted forms eroded by subglacial meltwaters. Sandstone-filled cracks exposed at the unconformity are viewed as periglacial frost fissures. An overlying conglomerate facies 1–15 m thick at the base of the
c
. 1800 Ma King Leopold Sandstone, Kimberley Basin succession, contains poorly sorted, pebble to boulder conglomerate and is interpreted as glaciofluvial in origin. The orientation of the Nye channels and sculpted forms and the palaeocurrent direction for the glaciofluvial deposits indicate westward ice flow. The conformably following, locally glauconitic quartzarenite of the King Leopold Sandstone probably accumulated in an epeiric sea, implying that glaciation reached close to sea level. Transgression in northwestern and central Australia at
c
. 1800 Ma may have been partly glacio-eustatic. Glaciation was initiated to the east of the Kimberley Basin, evidently in the Halls Creek Orogen, during a major phase of continental collision in Australia and worldwide supercontinental assembly. Recognition of the King Leopold glaciation, which occurred in low palaeolatitudes (<20°), shortens by 400 million years the claimed non-glacial interval between
c
. 2200 and 800 Ma.
Subsidence history of the north Indian continental margin, Zanskar–Ladakh Himalaya, NW India
Authors: Corfield R.I. , Watts A.B. , Searle M.P.
Published: April 2005

Detailed geological field mapping has allowed the restoration of two full stratigraphic sections through the highly deformed Mesozoic and Early Tertiary fold and thrust belt of the north Indian continental margin. The two sections, which are representative of a proximal and a distal facies on the margin, have been backstripped using standard techniques. Profiles of the tectonic subsidence and uplift through the pre-collisional history of the margin have been constructed and compared with the predictions of simple thermal and mechanical models. The pre-collisional history can be explained by a thermal model with an initial age of rifting of 270 Ma and a stretching factor,
β
, of
c
. 1.2. This model accounts for the general exponential decrease in the backstripped tectonic subsidence. The model fails, however, to completely explain the subsidence and uplift history of the margin since the late Cretaceous. The history during this time is characterized by uplift at the most proximal location and an increase in subsidence at the most distal location. We attribute these differential vertical movements to flexural loading of the north Indian margin by obduction of the Spontang ophiolite. The best fit model is one in which a 70 km wide wedge-shaped load, tapering from 10 to 0 km thick, is emplaced on rifted lithosphere with an elastic thickness,
T
e
, of 5–10 km. These results, which are in accord with the late Cretaceous timing of obduction and the structure of the Spontang ophiolite, provide new constraints on the
T
e
structure of extended continental lithosphere 120–150 Ma after a rifting event.
Neoproterozoic palaeogeography of the Cadomia and Avalon terranes: constraints from detrital zircon U–Pb ages
Authors: Samson Scott D. , D'Lemos Richard S. , Miller Brent V. , Hamilton Michael A.
Published: April 2005

Detrital zircons from three Neoproterozoic sandstone units from the Cadomia terrane of northern France and the Channel Islands yield ages in three broad groups: late Neoproterozoic (650–600 Ma), early Palaeoproterozoic (2.4–2.0 Ga) and Archaean (>2.5 Ga). The lack of Mesoproterozoic zircon crystals, combined with the high abundance of grains between 2.20 and 2.00 Ga, corresponds closely to the ages of exposed rocks in the West Africa Craton, and thus it is suggested that Cadomia was in close proximity to West Africa by
c
. 580 Ma. In contrast, the main age groups of detrital zircon from the Neoproterozoic Avalon terrane are Mesoproterozoic and there is a distinct gap of ages between 2.40 and 2.05 Ga. These significant differences suggest that the two terranes were in different locations relative to major Gondwanan cratons in latest Neoproterozoic time.
Present-day stress orientation in Brunei: a snapshot of ‘prograding tectonics’ in a Tertiary delta
Authors: Tingay Mark R.P. , Hillis Richard R. , Morley Chris K. , Swarbrick Richard E. , Drake Steve J.
Published: April 2005

The Baram Delta province of NW Borneo is unusual when compared with most other Tertiary deltas, as it has built up upon an active margin. Hence, structures observed in the Baram Delta province are the result of both margin-parallel gravity-driven deltaic tectonics and approximately margin-normal transpressive tectonics associated with the active margin. Image and dipmeter logs have been examined for breakouts and drilling-induced tensile fractures (DITFs) in 47 wells throughout Brunei. Breakouts and DITFs observed in 19 wells suggest that the maximum horizontal stress is oriented margin-normal (NW–SE) in the proximal parts of the basin and margin-parallel (NE–SW) in the outer shelf region. The margin-parallel outer shelf stress field is interpreted as a local ‘deltaic’ stress field caused by the shape of the clastic wedge. The margin-normal maximum horizontal stress in the inner shelf is interpreted to reflect basement stresses associated with the active margin. However, the maximum horizontal stress in the inner shelf is approximately perpendicular to the strike of Miocene–Pliocene normal growth faults, suggesting that maximum horizontal stress in the inner shelf has rotated from margin-parallel (‘deltaic’) to margin-normal (‘basement-associated’) over time. Hence, approximately the same stress rotation has occurred over time in the inner shelf as is currently observed spatially from the outer to inner shelf. The spatial and temporal stress rotations in Brunei are thus interpreted to be the result of ‘deltaic’ and ‘basement-associated’ tectonic regimes that are ‘prograding’ basin-wards. The proximity of the active margin has resulted in progressive uplift and inversion of the hinterland that has ‘forced’ the delta system to prograde rapidly. The zone of active deltaic growth faulting (and margin-parallel maximum horizontal stress) has shifted basin-wards (‘prograded’) as the delta system has rapidly prograded across the shelf. After uplift and delta progradation, the old growth faults of the inner shelf ceased being active and have then been successively reactivated by a similarly ‘prograding’ margin-normal inversion front.
Inversion and exhumation of the St. George's Channel basin, offshore Wales, UK
Authors: Williams Gareth A. , Turner Jonathan P. , Holford Simon P.
Published: April 2005

The western UK basins of the Irish Sea have provided one of the best natural laboratories for investigating the causes and consequences of intracratonic uplift and erosion (exhumation). To date, the emphasis has been on igneous underplating as the chief process driving their exhumation. In this paper, we demonstrate that tectonic inversion (the shortening of formerly extensional basins and reactivation of their constituent faults) dominated the exhumation of the St. George's Channel basin, offshore Wales. Based on mapping of an extensive 2D seismic grid, evidence is presented for at least two major inversion episodes in the Late Cretaceous and the Neogene, plus minor shortening during the Eocene. Inversion was distinctly noncoaxial, especially during the Neogene when coeval transpression and transtension was focused at discrete bends and stepovers on the basin-bounding St. George's, Bala and Northwest Flank faults. That the principal mechanism driving these uplift episodes was inversion (as opposed to igneous underplating) is corroborated by analysis of thermal history data (apatite fission track and vitrinite reflectance). They reveal late Cretaceous and Neogene geothermal gradients that were comparable with that at the present day, i.e. no significant increase in basal heat flow. Sonic velocity profiles logged in hydrocarbon boreholes constrain the minimum thickness of the eroded section, which varies between
c
. 1000 m in the centre and
c
. 2240 m at the margins of the basin. Given the strength of evidence for tectonic inversion in the St. George's Channel basin, our favoured model invokes superimposition of the effects of inversion and igneous underplating to account for the complex exhumation history of the St. George's Channel basin in particular, and the western UK basins in general.
Evolution of Neoproterozoic–Lower Palaeozoic Lufilian arc, Central Africa: a new model based on syntectonic conglomerates
Authors: WENDORFF MAREK
Published: April 2005

The Lufilian arc, a segment of the Neoproterozoic–Lower Palaeozoic Pan-African orogenic network within southern and central Africa, deforms the sedimentary succession of the Katanga Supergroup and contains large bodies of fragmental rocks previously considered as tectonic friction breccias. These are re-interpreted as syntectonic conglomerate complexes, which reveal the existence of two previously unrecognized basins and shed new light on the Katangan stratigraphy and tectonics. A prominent uplift in the southern part of the Roan rift at
c.
760 Ma resulted in conglomerates/olistostromes underlying the succeeding Guba rift sequence. During post-735 Ma orogenesis, north-advancing nappes supplied coarse detritus into the Fungurume foreland.
Events at the Host-Microbial Interface of the Gastrointestinal Tract II. Role of the intestinal epithelium in pathogen-induced inflammation
Authors: Mumy Karen L. , McCormick Beth A.
Published: April 2005

An immense number of bacteria reside within the intestinal lumen. The task of appropriately identifying and responding to microbial threats lies primarily with the single layer of cells that line the intestinal tract. Intestinal epithelial cells have developed a number of strategies aimed at identifying microorganisms and eliciting the appropriate inflammatory response. The pathogen recognition mechanisms and the signaling and inflammatory events that ensue within the intestine are the focus of this review.
Pivotal Role for Endothelial Tetrahydrobiopterin in Pulmonary Hypertension
Authors: Khoo Jeffrey P. , Zhao Lan , Alp Nicholas J. , Bendall Jennifer K. , Nicoli Taija , Rockett Kirk , Wilkins Martin R. , Channon Keith M.
Published: April 2005

Background—

Pulmonary hypertension is a fatal disease characterized by vasoconstriction and vascular remodeling. Loss of endothelial nitric oxide bioavailability is implicated in pulmonary hypertension pathogenesis. Recent evidence suggests that the cofactor tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4) is an important regulator of nitric oxide synthase enzymatic function.

Methods and Results—

In the hph-1 mouse with deficient BH4 biosynthesis, BH4 deficiency caused pulmonary hypertension, even in normoxic conditions, and greatly increased susceptibility to hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension. In contrast, augmented BH4 synthesis in the endothelium, by targeted transgenic overexpression of GTP-cyclohydrolase I (GCH), prevented hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension. Furthermore, specific augmentation of endothelial BH4 in hph-1 mice by crossing with GCH transgenic mice rescued pulmonary hypertension induced by systemic BH4 deficiency. Lung BH4 availability controlled pulmonary vascular tone, right ventricular hypertrophy, and vascular structural remodeling in a dose-dependent manner in both normoxia and hypoxia. Furthermore, BH4 availability had striking effects on the immediate vasoconstriction response to acute hypoxia. These effects of BH4 were mediated through the regulation of nitric oxide compared with superoxide synthesis by endothelial nitric oxide synthase.

Conclusions—

Endothelial BH4 availability is essential for maintaining pulmonary vascular homeostasis, is a critical mediator in the pathogenesis of pulmonary hypertension, and is a novel therapeutic target.
Association of Hemoglobin Levels With Clinical Outcomes in Acute Coronary Syndromes
Authors: Sabatine Marc S. , Morrow David A. , Giugliano Robert P. , Burton Paul B.J. , Murphy Sabina A. , McCabe Carolyn H. , Gibson C. Michael , Braunwald Eugene
Published: April 2005

Background—

In the setting of an acute coronary syndrome (ACS), anemia has the potential to worsen myocardial ischemia; however, data relating anemia to clinical outcomes in ACS remain limited.

Methods and Results—

We examined the association between baseline hemoglobin values and major adverse cardiovascular events through 30 days in 39 922 patients enrolled in clinical trials of ACS. After adjustment for differences in baseline characteristics and index hospitalization treatments, a reverse J-shaped relationship between baseline hemoglobin values and major adverse cardiovascular events was observed. In patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction, when those with hemoglobin values between 14 and 15 g/dL were used as the reference, cardiovascular mortality increased as hemoglobin levels fell below 14 g/dL, with an adjusted OR of 1.21 (95% CI 1.12 to 1.30,
P
<0.001) for each 1-g/dL decrement in hemoglobin. At the other end of the range of hemoglobin, patients with hemoglobin values >17 g/dL also had excess mortality (OR 1.79, 95% CI 1.18 to 2.71,
P
=0.007). In patients with non–ST-elevation ACS, with those with hemoglobin 15 to 16 g/dL used as the reference, the likelihood of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or recurrent ischemia increased as the hemoglobin fell below 11 g/dL, with an adjusted OR of 1.45 (95% CI 1.33 to 1.58,
P
<0.001) for each 1 g/dL decrement in hemoglobin. Patients with hemoglobin values >16 g/dL also had an increased rate of death or ischemic events (OR 1.31, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.66,
P
=0.027).

Conclusions—

Anemia is a powerful and independent predictor of major adverse cardiovascular events in patients across the spectrum of ACS.
Fructose-Induced Fatty Liver Disease
Authors: Ackerman Zvi , Oron-Herman Mor , Grozovski Maria , Rosenthal Talma , Pappo Orit , Link Gabriela , Sela Ben-Ami
Published: April 2005

The most known risk factor for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the metabolic syndrome. In this study, we characterized changes in liver pathology, hepatic lipid composition, and hepatic iron concentration (HIC) occurring in rats given fructose-enriched diet (FED), with and without therapeutic maneuvers to reduce blood pressure and plasma triglycerides. Rats were given FED or standard rat chow for 5 weeks. Rats on FED were divided into 4 groups: receiving amlodipine (15 mg/kg per day), captopril (90 mg/kg per day), bezafibrate (10 mg/kg per day) in the last 2 weeks, or a control group that received FED only. FED rats had hepatic macrovesicular and microvesicular fat deposits develop, with increase in hepatic triglycerides (+198%) and hepatic cholesterol (+89%), but a decrease in hepatic phospholipids (−36%), hypertriglyceridemia (+223%), and hypertension (+15%), without increase in HIC. Amlodipine reduced blood pressure (−18%), plasma triglycerides (−12%), but there was no change in hepatic triglycerides and phospholipids concentrations. Captopril reduced blood pressure (−24%), plasma triglycerides (−36%), hepatic triglycerides (−51%), and hepatic macrovesicular fat (−51%), but increased HIC (+23%), with a borderline increase in hepatic fibrosis. Bezafibrate reduced plasma triglycerides (−49%), hepatic triglycerides (−78%), hepatic macrovesicular fat (−90%), and blood pressure (−11%). We conclude that FED rats can be a suitable model for human NAFLD. Drugs administered to treat various aspects of the metabolic syndrome could have hepatic effects. An increase in HIC in rats with NAFLD could be associated with increased hepatic fibrosis.
The Role of Boundary Conditions in AMIP-2 Simulations of the NAO
Authors: Cohen Judah , Frei Allan , Rosen Richard D.
Published: April 2005

The simulated North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) teleconnection patterns and their interannual variability are evaluated from a suite of atmospheric models participating in the second phase of the Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project (AMIP-2). In general the models simulate the observed spatial pattern well, although there are important differences among models. The NAO response to interannual variations in sea surface temperature (SST) and snow-cover boundary forcings are also evaluated. The simulated NAO indices are not correlated with the observed NAO index, despite being forced with observed SSTs, indicating that SSTs are not driving NAO variability in the models. Similarly, although a number of studies have identified a link between Eurasian snow extent and the phase of the NAO, no such link is apparent in the AMIP-2 results. It appears that, within the framework of the AMIP-2 experiments, the NAO is an internal mode of atmospheric variability and that impacts of SSTs and Eurasian snow cover on the phase of the NAO are not discernable. However, these conclusions do not necessarily apply to decadal-scale and longer variability or to coupled atmosphere–ocean models.
Ocean Dynamics and the Nature of Air–Sea Interactions over the North Atlantic at Decadal Time Scales
Authors: Park W. , Latif M.
Published: April 2005

The dependence of the air–sea interactions over the North Atlantic on the ocean dynamics is explored by analyzing multicentury integrations with two different coupled ocean–atmosphere models. One is a coupled general circulation model (CGCM), in which both the atmospheric and the oceanic components are represented by general circulation models (GCMs). The second coupled model employs the same atmospheric GCM, but the oceanic GCM is replaced by a fixed-depth mixed layer model, so that variations of the ocean dynamics are excluded. The coupled model including active ocean dynamics simulates strong multidecadal variability in the sea surface temperature (SST) of the North Atlantic, with a monopolar spatial structure. In contrast, the coupled model that employs an oceanic mixed layer model and thus does not carry active ocean dynamics simulates a tripolar SST anomaly pattern at decadal time scales. The tripolar SST anomaly pattern is characterized by strong horizontal gradients and is by definition the result of the action of surface heat flux anomalies on the oceanic mixed layer.

The differences in the spatial structures of the dominant decadal SST anomaly patterns yield rather different atmospheric responses. While the response to the monopolar SST anomaly pattern is shallow and thermal, the response to the tripolar SST anomaly pattern involves changes in the transient eddy statistics. The latter can be explained by the strong horizontal SST gradients that affect the surface baroclinicity, which in turn affects the growth rate of the transient eddies. The differences in the atmospheric response characteristics yield completely different response patterns. In the coupled run with active ocean dynamics, the sea level pressure (SLP) anomalies exhibit a rather homogeneous pattern that resembles somewhat the East Atlantic Pattern (EAP), while a dipolar (North Atlantic Oscillation) NAO-like SLP anomaly pattern is simulated in the coupled run without active ocean dynamics.
A Large Ensemble Analysis of the Influence of Tropical SSTs on Seasonal Atmospheric Variability
Authors: Peng Peitao , Kumar Arun
Published: April 2005

Based on a 40-member ensemble for the January–March (JFM) seasonal mean for the 1980–2000 period using an atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM), interannual variability in the first and second moments of probability density function (PDF) of atmospheric seasonal means with sea surface temperatures (SSTs) is analyzed. Based on the strength of the SST anomaly in the Niño-3.4 index region, the years between 1980 and 2000 were additionally categorized into five separate bins extending from strong cold to strong warm El Niño events. This procedure further enhances the size of the ensemble for each SST category. All the AGCM simulations were forced with the observed SSTs, and different ensemble members for specified SST boundary forcing were initiated from different atmospheric initial conditions.

The main focus of this analysis is on the changes in the seasonal mean and the internal variability of tropical rainfall and extratropical 200-mb heights with SSTs. For the tropical rainfall, results indicate that in the equatorial tropical Pacific, internal variability of the tropical rainfall anomaly decreases (increases) for the La Niña (El Niño) events. On the other hand, seasonal mean variability of extratropical 200-mb height decreases for the El Niño events. Although there is increase in the seasonal mean variability of 200-mb heights for the La Niña events, results are rather inclusive. Analysis also indicates that for the variables studied, the influence of the interannual variability in SSTs is much stronger on the first moment of seasonal means compared to their influence on the internal variability. As a consequence, seasonal predictability due to changes in SSTs can be attributed primarily to the shift in the PDFs of the seasonal atmospheric means and less to changes in their spread.

Modes of internal variability for 200-mb extratropical seasonal mean heights for different SST categories are also analyzed. The dominant mode of internal variability has little dependence on the tropical SST forcing, while larger influence on the second mode of internal variability is found. For SST forcing changing from a La Niña to El Niño state, the spatial pattern of the second mode shifts eastward. For the cold events, the spatial patterns bear more resemblance to the Pacific–North American (PNA) pattern, while for the warm events, it more resembles the tropical–North Hemispheric (TNH) pattern. Change in the spatial pattern of this mode from strong cold to a strong warm event resembles the change in the spatial pattern of response in the mean state.
Atlantic Atmosphere–Ocean Interaction: A Stochastic Climate Model–Based Diagnosis
Authors: Mosedale Timothy J. , Stephenson David B. , Collins Matthew
Published: April 2005

A simple linear stochastic climate model of extratropical wintertime ocean–atmosphere coupling is used to diagnose the daily interactions between the ocean and the atmosphere in a fully coupled general circulation model. Monte Carlo simulations with the simple model show that the influence of the ocean on the atmosphere can be difficult to estimate, being biased low even with multiple decades of daily data. Despite this, fitting the simple model to the surface air temperature and sea surface temperature data from the complex general circulation model reveals an ocean-to-atmosphere influence in the northeastern Atlantic. Furthermore, the simple model is used to demonstrate that the ocean in this region greatly enhances the autocorrelation in overlying lower-tropospheric temperatures at lags from a few days to many months.
Trends in Total Precipitation and Frequency of Daily Precipitation Extremes over China
Authors: Zhai Panmao , Zhang Xuebin , Wan Hui , Pan Xiaohua
Published: April 2005

Based on a newly developed daily precipitation dataset of 740 stations in China and more robust trend detection techniques, trends in annual and seasonal total precipitation and in extreme daily precipitation, defined as those larger than its 95th percentile for the year, summer, and winter half years, have been assessed for the period 1951–2000. Possible links between changes in total precipitation and frequency of extremes have also been explored. The results indicate that there is little trend in total precipitation for China as a whole, but there are distinctive regional and seasonal patterns of trends. Annual total precipitation has significantly decreased over southern northeast China, north China, and over the Sichuan Basin but significantly increased in western China, the Yangtze River valley, and the southeastern coast. In western China, precipitation increase has been observed for both cold and warm seasons. However, trends differ from one season to another in eastern China. Spring precipitation has increased in southern northeast China and north China but decreased significantly in the midreach of the Yangzte River. The summer precipitation trend is very similar to that of annual totals. Autumn precipitation has generally decreased throughout eastern China. In winter, precipitation has significantly decreased over the northern part of eastern China but increased in the south. The number of rain days has significantly decreased throughout most parts of China with northwest China being an exception. Meanwhile, precipitation intensity has significantly increased. This suggests that the precipitation increase in western China is due to the increase in both precipitation frequency and intensity. In eastern China, the impact of reduced number of rain days seems to be more dominant in the north while the influence of enhanced intensity prevails in the south. Over regions with increasing precipitation trends, there have been much higher than normal frequency of precipitation extreme events. For example, significant increases in extreme precipitation have been found in western China, in the mid–lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and in parts of the southwest and south China coastal area. A significant decrease in extremes is observed in north China and the Sichuan Basin. Trends in the number of extremes and total precipitation from nonextreme events are generally in phase. An exception is southwest China where an increase of extreme events is associated with a decrease in total nonextreme precipitation.
Mechanism of the Northward-Propagating Intraseasonal Oscillation: Insights from a Zonally Symmetric Model*
Authors: Drbohlav Hae-Kyung Lee , Wang Bin
Published: April 2005

The propagation and initiation mechanisms of the boreal summer intraseasonal oscillation (BSISO) in the south Asian summer monsoon are examined with a zonally symmetric atmospheric model. In the axially symmetric model the effects of zonally propagating atmospheric waves are intentionally excluded. The model specifies mean flows and depicts the lowest baroclinic mode and a barotropic mode in the free troposphere. The two vertical modes are coupled by the time-mean vertical wind shear. The model atmosphere produces a 15–20-day oscillation, which is characterized by northward propagation of convection from south of the equator to the Indian monsoon trough region and a reinitiation of convection in the region between 10°S and the equator.

The northward propagation in the model is produced by the free troposphere barotropic divergence, which leads convection by about a quarter of a cycle. The vertical advection of summer-mean easterly vertical wind shear by perturbation vertical motion inside the convective region induces barotropic divergence (convergence) to the north (south) of convection. This barotropic divergence triggers the moisture convergence in the boundary layer to the north of convection, causing the northward propagation of precipitation.

The development of convection in the Southern Hemisphere near the equator is also produced by the development of the barotropic divergence in the free troposphere. When the BSISO convection is located in the Indian monsoon trough region, it creates Hadley-type anomalous circulation. This Hadley-type circulation interacts with the monsoon flow through the meridional and vertical advections creating anomalous barotropic divergence and boundary layer convergence.
Political Challenge in Latin America: Rebellion and Collective Protest in an Era of Democratization
Authors: Schatzman Christina
Published: April 2005

Democratization is expected to quell violent political challenge while opening channels for nonviolent opposition. By offering the opportunity for revolutionary groups to promote their interests and seek change without recourse to violence, democracies are expected to stifle violent opposition with inclusion. Yet, revolutionary groups have continued to threaten governments throughout the 1980s and 1990s, a period marked by extensive democratic opening. Meanwhile, democracy is tied to the mobilization of civil society, opening channels for nonviolent challenge to government, arguably increasing instability, especially in the short term. Using a negative binomial event-count model on a pooled cross-sectional sample of 18 Latin American countries for the period 1980-93, this article examines the effects of an array of theoretical determinants on occurrences of violent rebellion and nonviolent collective protest. For rebellion, some traditional expectations are supported, including the role of state capacity and repression, although social development is also identified as an important determinant. For collective protest, repression exerts a demobilizing influence, as expected. Of primary interest, democracy significantly impacts both rebellion and collective protest, although its effect is surprising: increasing democracy promotes violent rebellion while quelling protest overall in the time period under analysis, supporting work suggesting a continuation of political challenge despite recent democratization.
Book Review: A Shared Understanding: Gadamer and International Conflict Resolution
Authors: Väyrynen Tarja
Published: April 2005

Negotiation and conflict resolution theories do little to shed light on the role of understanding in resolving violent political conflicts. A useful complement is Hans-Georg Gadamer’s hermeneutics. The question addressed in the essay is this: How is a shared understanding reached in a negotiation process aimed at resolving conflicting issues? In Gadamer’s view, understanding is important, because conflict resolution engages the parties to a conflict in a dialogue of interpreting meaning and values. Any mediators involved will also take part in the interpretation of meaning: theirs is a job of a translator; that is, they will interpret and transfer meaning between the language games the parties in conflict play. The Gadamerian model is, however, limited because it does not tackle the issue of asymmetry and power in international conflict resolution. Despite its limitations, the theoretical model can be translated into practical policy implications, which suggest that an outside party cannot force the parties into a dialogue. Attempts at conflict settlement that rely on force are unlikely to be successful.
Mate selection in Jordan: Effects of sex, socio-economic status, and culture
Authors: Khallad Yacoub
Published: April 2005

The present study replicated Buss et al.’s (2001) international survey of mate preferences for long-term relationships within an Arab Jordanian context. As predicted, the findings confirmed the existence of commonly reported sex differences, in that our sample of Jordanian male college students showed greater interest in potential mates’ good looks and youth compared to female students, who displayed greater preference for mates exhibiting economic ability and commitment. The findings further indicated that women’s differential preferences for resource- and commitment-related attributes were mainly determined by sex rather than by socioeconomic status. The study also found that Jordanians value the same attributes that have been universally considered important to have in a mate, namely love, kindness, and a pleasing disposition. Belonging to a developing traditional society, this sample of Jordanian students, as anticipated, included religiosity and refinement/neatness among their top preferences. Also, the study corroborated the casually observed social phenomenon of aversion to marrying divorcees among Jordanians, with men in this sample being particularly disinclined to seek this type of mate. The findings are discussed in the context of some evolutionary and socio-cultural notions posited in explanations of mating behavior.
An Improved Algorithm for the Simulation of Injection-molding Filling Process
Authors: Shen Changyu , Zhai Ming , Gu Yuanxian
Published: April 2005

A new numerical scheme for simulating the filling stage of injection molding has been presented in this paper. The algorithm is based on isothermal, incompressible, generalized Hele-Shaw flow of a viscous fluid. The governing equation involving the pressure field and fill factor which tracks the location of the front surface is developed and solved in an iterative manner. The present methodology has no time step restrictions based on the Courant conditions that exist in the traditional finite element/control volume (FE/CV) type formulations. As a result, the efficiency of the filling simulation is significantly improved. Examples provided verify the proposed methodology.
Characterization of Delamination by Using Damage Indices
Authors: Swann Cynthia , Chattopadhyay Aditi , Ghoshal Anindya
Published: April 2005

A damage index based on in-plane modal strain is developed to characterize the dynamic behavior of laminated composite plates of arbitrary thickness with discrete multiple delaminations. A recently developed improved layerwise laminate theory is used to accurately describe the displacement field and capture the transverse shear effects for the moderately thick plates. The multiple seeded delaminations are modeled using Heaviside step functions. The performance of the damage index is compared to previously developed damage indices. Numerical results indicate that the newly developed damage index is able to identify the location and the extent of delamination more accurately and more consistently, compared to other indices, in plates with small discrete multiple delaminations. Experiments using a Scanning Laser Doppler Vibrometer (SLDV) and strain gauges are conducted and the results obtained agree well with the numerical results.
Quasi-static Simulation of Composite-laminated Shells Subjected to Low-velocity Impact
Authors: Huang Chien-Hua , Lee Ya-Jung
Published: April 2005

This work investigates the impact behavior of carbon-epoxy composite-laminated shells with three different curvatures. For the low-velocity impact cases, a quasi-static method is introduced to reduce the need for dynamic approaches. The static crushing information (force-displacement data) of the shell is critical to the quasi-static simulation. Based on the crushing data extracted from experiments or numerical simulations, numerous dynamic impact results for distinct impactor masses and velocities can be obtained immediately from a single static result, as long as these impacts are classified as low-velocity conditions. Static experiments and simulations are always more effective than dynamic ones. This investigation concludes that the quasi-static method delivers excellent exactitude, provided the static force-displacement data, the dominator, are accurately acquired.
The Changing Global Agri-trade Regime and Indian Agri-exports
Authors: R. Thakur Rajiv
Published: April 2005

Global agri-trade in the post-WTO regime is full of challenges for developing nations like India. While the new regime promises opportunities out of the expected reduction in subsidies and decrease in quantitative restrictions (QRs), developing nations face threats from developed markets in form of non-trade barriers like Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). Addressing these challenges with the intention of harnessing the competitive advantage of its agriculture sector, India has initiated strategic plans which involve farmers, the private sector, and governmental and non-governmental agencies. All put together, these plans have shaped up in the form of Agri-export Processing Zones (AEZs). This article attempts to understand the various challenges which developing nations, including India, face in agri-trade and how initiatives like AEZs are addressing such challenges. The ultimate goal is to take Indian agri-exports to newer heights.
A reading community in 19th-century Brazil
Authors: DeNipoti Cláudio
Published: April 2005

This article tries to understand the processes of forging identity through cultural practices, particularly those related to reading experiences. In order to do so, it focuses on a 19th-century Brazilian community of readers and their practices regarding the formation and use of libraries, the publication of literary reviews, books and newspapers, and the definition of reading canons. Then, in comparison with the larger Brazilian society, it tries to establish patterns of cultural definitions of local identity.
Media life among Gen Zeds
Authors: Walters Timothy , Quinn Stephen R. , Walters Lynne Masel
Published: April 2005

The ‘Gen Zeds’ of the title are female Emirati students in their early 20s at Zayed University who oscillate between the traditional Islamic culture of their families and the high technology world they experience through the media. This article looks at when, where and how these students use media and what they are looking for when they use it. The research found that these women live a highly-mediated existence, spending more than 9.9 hours on average a day with the media - more time than they do sleeping. They spend as much time on the internet as they do in the combined activities of reading magazines, newspapers and books. They spend twice as much time on the internet as they do watching television. They use different media during different parts of the day and for different reasons. The internet and the telephone were the two most preferred media. The article concludes by looking at what these women’s highly mediated lives might mean for their future.
Transformations in Academic Production
Authors: May Tim
Published: April 2005

Universities are subject to considerable changes as environmental pressures increasingly place their futures in question. As core sites of social scientific activity, it is important to understand not only why these changes are occurring, but their consequences for practices within universities. Without this and a concern with the future, their distinction and value as sites of activity are left to those whose instrumental practices are short-term and act according to apparent economic necessities. Frequently, explanations for this state of affairs focus upon the problems of increasing management and bureaucracy, but remain relatively silent concerning the activities of academics. This article argues that there is an affinity between forms of academic professionalism and the managerialism we find in universities as an answer to the changing pressures to which they are subject. Both exhibit an individualism and separate knowledge from knowing. Overall, this detracts from the cultures of universities and how these contexts relate to the content of the work that is produced within them.
Accuracy and consistency of responses from persons with cognitive impairment
Authors: Whitlatch Carol J. , Feinberg Lynn Friss , Tucke Shandra
Published: April 2005

This study examines the ability of persons with cognitive impairment ( n = 111) to provide consistent and accurate responses to questions about demographic characteristics and basic preferences. Persons with cognitive impairment were interviewed twice within a week using a parallel interview to determine stability and accuracy of responses. Family caregivers were interviewed once within the same time period. In general persons with mild to moderate cognitive impairment (i.e. MMSE scores from 13-26) were accurate and reliable in their ability to respond to questions about demographics and basic preferences. These results add further support to past findings that persons with cognitive impairment can be active participants in both research and practice.
Analysis of sequence variability in the CART gene in relation to obesity in a Caucasian population
Authors: Guérardel Audrey , Barat-Houari Mouna , Vasseur Francis , Dina Christian , Vatin Vincent , Clément Karine , Eberlé Delphine , Vasseur-Delannoy Valérie , Bell Christopher G , Galan Pilar , Hercberg Serge , Helbecque Nicole , Potoczna Natascha , Horber Fritz F , Boutin Philippe , Froguel Philippe
Published: April 2005

Background

Cocaine and amphetamine regulated transcript (CART) is an anorectic neuropeptide located principally in hypothalamus. CART has been shown to be involved in control of feeding behavior, but a direct relationship with obesity has not been established. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of polymorphisms within the CART gene with regards to a possible association with obesity in a Caucasian population.

Results

Screening of the entire gene as well as a 3.7 kb region of 5' upstream sequence revealed 31 SNPs and 3 rare variants ; 14 of which were subsequently genotyped in 292 French morbidly obese subjects and 368 controls. Haplotype analysis suggested an association with obesity which was found to be mainly due to SNP-3608T>C (rs7379701) (p = 0.009). Genotyping additional cases and controls also of European Caucasian origin supported further this possible association between the CART SNP -3608T>C T allele and obesity (global p-value = 0.0005). Functional studies also suggested that the SNP -3608T>C could modulate nuclear protein binding.

Conclusion

CART SNP -3608T>C may possibly contribute to the genetic risk for obesity in the Caucasian population. However confirmation of the importance of the role of the CART gene in energy homeostasis and obesity will require investigation and replication in further populations.
The establishment of the Chiropractic & Osteopathic College of Australasia in Queensland (1996–2002)
Authors: Walker Bruce F
Published: April 2005

Introduction

For chiropractors and osteopaths after graduation, the learning process continues by way of experience and continuing education (CE). The provision of CE and other vocational services in Queensland between 1996 and 2002 is the subject of this paper.

Methods

The Chiropractic & Osteopathic College of Australasia (COCA) implemented a plan, which involved continuing education, with speakers from a broad variety of health provider areas; and the introduction of the concepts of evidence-based practice. The plan also involved building membership.

Results

Membership of COCA in Queensland grew from 3 in June 1996 to 167 in 2002. There were a total of 25 COCA symposia in the same period. Evidence-based health care was introduced and attendees were generally satisfied with the conferences.

Discussion

The development of a vocational body (COCA) for chiropractors and osteopaths in Queensland was achieved. Registrants in the field have supported an organisation that concentrates on the vocational aspects of their practice.
Synthetic lethal analysis of Caenorhabditis elegans posterior embryonic patterning genes identifies conserved genetic interactions
Authors: Baugh L Ryan , Wen Joanne C , Hill Andrew A , Slonim Donna K , Brown Eugene L , Hunter Craig P
Published: April 2005

Phenotypic robustness is evidenced when single-gene mutations do not result in an obvious phenotype. It has been suggested that such phenotypic stability results from 'buffering' activities of homologous genes as well as non-homologous genes acting in parallel pathways. One approach to characterizing mechanisms of phenotypic robustness is to identify genetic interactions, specifically, double mutants where buffering is compromised. To identify interactions among genes implicated in posterior patterning of the Caenorhabditis elegans embryo, we measured synthetic lethality following RNA interference of 22 genes in 15 mutant strains. A pair of homologous T-box transcription factors (tbx-8 and tbx-9) is found to interact in both C. elegans and C. briggsae, indicating that their compensatory function is conserved. Furthermore, a muscle module is defined by transitive interactions between the MyoD homolog hlh-1, another basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor, hnd-1, and the MADS-box transcription factor unc-120. Genetic interactions within a homologous set of genes involved in vertebrate myogenesis indicate broad conservation of the muscle module and suggest that other genetic modules identified in C. elegans will be conserved.
Human Angular Vestibulo‐Ocular Reflex Initiation: Relationship to Listing's Law
Authors: CRANE BENJAMIN T. , TIAN JUN‐RU , DEMER JOSEPH L.
Published: April 2005

Abstract: An ideal vestibulo‐ocular reflex (VOR) generates ocular rotations compensatory for head motion. During visually guided movements, Listing's law (LL) constrains eye rotation to axes in Listing's plane (LP). Recently, it has been reported that the VOR axis is not collinear with the rotation axis of the head, but is influenced by eye position in the orbit. Elaborate models have been proposed suggesting dynamic neural control of the VOR axis. By examining the variability and time course of changes in VOR axis orientation, we sought to test plausibility of these models. Binocular LPs were defined in eight humans. The VOR was evoked by a highly repeatable, transient, whole‐body yaw rotation in darkness at peak acceleration 2800 deg/s2. Immediately prior to rotation, subjects regarded targets at eye level, 20° up, or 20° down. Eye and head positions were expressed in LP coordinates for comparison with LL. Eye position generally followed head position and departed LP when the head axis tilted out of LP. In the velocity domain the VOR axis tilted 28 ± 9% of the change in vertical eye position, but there was significant intrasubject variation (14% to 41%). This roughly “quarter‐angle” behavior began with the earliest detectable VOR. Given the brief latency and marked interindividual variability of the eye position dependence of the VOR rotational axis, and the small deviation of the VOR from LL in the position domain, it is speculated that this behavior is largely due to orbital mechanics interacting with the basic neural commands that initiate the VOR.