bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Causes of cost overruns in transport infrastructure projects in Asia
Authors: Park Young‐Ill , Papadopoulou Theopisti C. 
Published: November 2012

PurposeOne of the world's largest construction markets is in Asia where construction activity is boosted by investment on transport infrastructure. This paper aims to identify and analyse causes of cost overruns in transport infrastructure projects in Asia and assess their importance and statistical relationship with project size.Design/methodology/approachThe paper pursues the following objectives. First, it identifies factors contributing to cost overruns. Second, using case data and regression analysis, it establishes the statistical relationship between project size and cost overruns. Third, it analyses questionnaire data to rank causes of cost overruns according to their frequency, severity and significance. Last, the paper identifies contract types mostly associated with cost escalation.FindingsThe findings confirm a moderate correlation between cost overruns and one indicator of project size. Awarding contracts to the lowest bidder is identified as the most significant cause of cost overruns. Lump‐sum contracts were found to have the greatest influence on the occurrence of cost overruns.Research limitations/implicationsStratified sampling would allow the evaluation of how cost overruns are perceived by different professional groups. Further research can focus on measures for the prevention of cost overruns.Originality/valueThe causes of cost overruns have been at the focal point of research however, most studies consider cost overruns in specific Asian countries. Moreover, transport infrastructure projects have received little attention or been underrepresented in datasets comprising general construction projects. The paper seeks to fill this gap by carrying out in‐depth investigation of cost overruns in transport infrastructure in the broader context of Asia.
Helping to keep safe
Authors: Cronin Peter , Peyton Liam 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to consider risk from the perspective of people with learning disabilities.Design/methodology/approachThe paper explores the thoughts and experiences of two people with learning disabilities around two different areas of potential risk and their participation in a mental health promotion group which has helped.FindingsPeople with learning disabilities encounter many risks in their lives but with the right support these risks can be managed.Originality/valueThe paper adds valuable insight into the life of people with learning disabilities and the risks they face.
Beyond diversity: how nested predator effects control ecosystem functions
Authors: Schneider Florian Dirk , Brose Ulrich 
Published: November 2012

Summary

The global decline in biodiversity is especially evident in higher trophic levels as predators display higher sensitivity to environmental change than organisms from lower trophic levels. This is even more alarming given the paucity of knowledge about the role of individual predator species in sustaining ecosystem functioning.
The effect of predator diversity on lower trophic level prey is often driven by the increasing chance of including the most influential species. Furthermore, intraguild predation can cause trophic cascades with net positive effects on basal prey. As a consequence, the effects of losing a predator species appear to be idiosyncratic and it becomes unpredictable how the community's net effect on lower trophic levels changes when species number is declining.
We performed a full factorial microcosm experiment with litter layer arthropods to measure the effects of predator diversity and context‐dependent identity effects on a detritivore population and microbial biomass.
We show that major parts of the observed diversity effect can be assigned to the increasing likelihood of including the most influential predator. Further, the presence of a second predator feeding on the first predator dampens this dominant effect. Including this intraguild predator on top of the first predator is more likely with increasing predator diversity as well. Thus, the overall pattern can be explained by a second identity effect, which is nested into the first.
When losing a predator from the community, the response of the lower trophic level is highly dependent on the remaining predator species. We mechanistically explain the net effects of the predator community on lower trophic levels by nested effects of predator identities. These identity effects become predictable when taking the species' body masses into account. This provides a new mechanistic perspective describing ecosystem functioning as a consequence of species composition and yields an understanding beyond simple effects of biodiversity.
Iterated modal marking and polarity focus in ancient greek
Authors: Goldstein David 
Published: November 2012

AbstractThe Ancient Greek particle an, which encodes modal and irrealis semantics, canonically occurs once per clause. In the fifth century bce, however, we find cases where two tokens (or, more rarely, three) co‐occur with the same verb. While this phenomenon has long been recognized in the handbooks, it has received only sporadic attention otherwise, and there is currently no adequate description or analysis of the phenomenon. In this paper, I provide the first detailed overview of the construction in the Attic dramatists (Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes) and Herodotos, and argue that it marks polarity focus. I tentatively identify a diachronic source construction as well.
The influence of temperature on life history traits in the Iberian slug, Arion lusitanicus
Authors: Slotsbo S. , Damgaard C. , Hansen L.M. , Holmstrup M. 
Published: November 2012

AbstractThe slug Arion lusitanicus is an invasive species which has recently become established in many European countries and is considered a serious pest, both in agriculture and private gardens. The effect of temperature on growth rate, survival, egg developmental time and hatchability of the slug are reported. The growth rate was positively correlated with temperatures up to 20°C and A. lusitanicus continued (on average) to grow until they die. A model describing how growth depends on temperature was developed, and a field survey found that the predicted growth matched the observed with reasonable accuracy. This study confirms the assumption that A. lusitanicus die after egg laying. Free‐ranging A. lusitanicus has an annual life cycle, but our data show that slugs also possess the ability to live for up to 3 years. The egg developmental time was, like growth, positively correlated with temperature and was shortest at 20°C, but the optimum temperature for egg development, when regarded as the temperature with highest hatchability was found to be 10°C. In conclusion, this study has shown that growth and the life‐history traits, egg developmental time and hatchability, of A. lusitanicus are highly influenced by temperature. However, data also show that temperatures within the range 2–20°C did not influence survival rates to any large degree, and that A. lusitanicus can quickly adjust to changes in temperature. The study provides a number of basic parameters which contribute to the understanding of the population dynamics of A. lusitanicus.
Alterations in ventricular KATP channel properties during aging
Authors: Bao Li , Taskin Eylem , Foster Monique , Ray Beevash , Rosario Rosa , Ananthakrishnan Radha , Howlett Susan E. , Schmidt Ann M. , Ramasamy Ravichandran , Coetzee William A. 
Published: November 2012

SummaryCoronary heart disease remains the principle cause of mortality in the United States. During aging, the efficiency of the cardiovascular system is decreased and the aged heart is less tolerant to ischemic injury. ATP‐sensitive K+ (KATP) channels protect the myocardium against ischemic damage. We investigated how aging affects cardiac KATP channels in the Fischer 344 rat model. Expression of KATP channel subunit mRNA and protein levels was unchanged in hearts from 26‐month‐old vs. 4‐month‐old rats. Interestingly, the mRNA expression of several other ion channels (> 80) was also largely unchanged, suggesting that posttranscriptional regulatory mechanisms occur during aging. The whole‐cell KATP channel current density was strongly diminished in ventricular myocytes from aged male rat hearts (also observed in aged C57BL/6 mouse myocytes). Experiments with isolated patches (inside‐out configuration) demonstrated that the KATP channel unitary conductance was unchanged, but that the inhibitory effect of cytosolic ATP on channel activity was enhanced in the aged heart. The mean patch current was diminished, consistent with the whole‐cell data. We incorporated these findings into an empirical model of the KATP channel and numerically simulated the effects of decreased cytosolic ATP levels on the human action potential. This analysis predicts lesser activation of KATP channels by metabolic impairment in the aged heart and a diminished action potential shortening. This study provides insights into the changes in KATP channels during aging and suggests that the protective role of these channels during ischemia is significantly compromised in the aged individual.
Quantitative autistic traits ascertained in a national survey of 22 529 Japanese schoolchildren
Authors: Kamio Y. , Inada N. , Moriwaki A. , Kuroda M. , Koyama T. , Tsujii H. , Kawakubo Y. , Kuwabara H. , Tsuchiya K. J. , Uno Y. , Constantino J. N. 
Published: November 2012

ObjectiveRecent epidemiologic studies worldwide have documented a rise in prevalence rates for autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Broadening of diagnostic criteria for ASD may be a major contributor to the rise in prevalence, particularly if superimposed on an underlying continuous distribution of autistic traits. This study sought to determine the nature of the population distribution of autistic traits using a quantitative trait measure in a large national population sample of children.MethodThe Japanese version of the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) was completed by parents on a nationally representative sample of 22 529 children, age 6–15.ResultsSocial Responsiveness Scale scores exhibited a skewed normal distribution in the Japanese population with a single‐factor structure and no significant relation to IQ within the normal intellectual range. There was no evidence of a natural ‘cutoff’ that would differentiate populations of categorically affected children from unaffected children.ConclusionThis study provides evidence of the continuous nature of autistic symptoms measured by the SRS, a validated quantitative trait measure. The findings reveal how paradigms for diagnosis that rest on arbitrarily imposed categorical cutoffs can result in substantial variation in prevalence estimation, especially when measurements used for case assignment are not standardized for a given population.
Variation of cats under domestication: genetic assignment of domestic cats to breeds and worldwide random‐bred populations
Authors: Kurushima J. D. , Lipinski M. J. , Gandolfi B. , Froenicke L. , Grahn J. C. , Grahn R. A. , Lyons L. A. 
Published: November 2012

SummaryBoth cat breeders and the lay public have interests in the origins of their pets, not only in the genetic identity of the purebred individuals, but also in the historical origins of common household cats. The cat fancy is a relatively new institution with over 85% of its 40–50 breeds arising only in the past 75 years, primarily through selection on single‐gene aesthetic traits. The short, yet intense cat breed history poses a significant challenge to the development of a genetic marker–based breed identification strategy. Using different breed assignment strategies and methods, 477 cats representing 29 fancy breeds were analysed with 38 short tandem repeats, 148 intergenic and five phenotypic single nucleotide polymorphisms. Results suggest the frequentist method of Paetkau (single nucleotide polymorphisms = 0.78, short tandem repeats = 0.88) surpasses the Bayesian method of Rannala and Mountain (single nucleotide polymorphisms = 0.56, short tandem repeats = 0.83) for accurate assignment of individuals to the correct breed. Additionally, a post‐assignment verification step with the five phenotypic single nucleotide polymorphisms accurately identified between 0.31 and 0.58 of the misassigned individuals raising the sensitivity of assignment with the frequentist method to 0.89 and 0.92 for single nucleotide polymorphisms and short tandem repeats respectively. This study provides a novel multistep assignment strategy and suggests that, despite their short breed history and breed family groupings, a majority of cats can be assigned to their proper breed or population of origin, that is, race.
Laparoscopic splenectomy with or without devascularization of the stomach for liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension: a systematic review
Authors: Chen Xiao‐Dong , He Fu‐Qian , Yang Lie , Yu Yong‐Yang , Zhou Zong‐Guang 
Published: November 2012

AbstractBackgroundOpen splenectomy and devascularization are effective treatments for cirrhotic patients with severe thrombocytopenia and variceal bleeding. However, it remains controversial whether laparoscopic splenectomy (LS) and devascularization (LSD) can be indicated and beneficial in these patients.ObjectivesA systematic review of the efficacy and safety of LS and LSD for patients with liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension was undertaken to clarify controversy about their utilization in such patients.MethodsA systematic search strategy was performed to retrieve relevant studies from PubMed and Embase.com. The literature search and data extraction were independently performed by two reviewers.ResultsSixteen articles met the inclusion criteria. The methodology of the identified articles was poor. Six hundred and fifty‐one patients, including 478 LS patients and 173 LSD patients, were involved in efficacy and safety evaluations. There was wide variability in the outcome measures between studies. There was only one death in the patients underwent LSD. Reported major complications included post‐operative bleeding requiring re‐surgery, pancreatic leakage and gastric perforation. Seven studies were identified with comparisons between laparoscopic and open procedures. No meta‐analysis was possible because of heterogeneity between studies and lack of randomization.ConclusionsThe publications reviewed revealed LS and LSD to be safe and effective in the setting of liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension. From the comparison articles, laparoscopic procedures appear to be superior to open procedures regarding blood loss, hospital stay, complication rate and liver function impairment. However, it is difficult to draw firm statistical conclusions due to lack of high‐quality evidence.
Competition on productivity gradients – what do we expect?
Authors: Rees Mark 
Published: November 2012

AbstractMany experimental studies have quantified how the effects of competition vary with habitat productivity, with the results often interpreted in terms of the ideas of Grime and Tilman. Unfortunately, these ideas are not relevant to many experiments, and so we develop an appropriate resource competition model and use this to explore the effects of habitat productivity on the intensity of competition. Several mechanisms influencing the productivity–competition intensity relationship are identified, and these mechanisms explored using two classic data sets. In both cases, there is good agreement between the model predictions and empirical patterns. Quantification of the mechanisms identified by the models will allow the development of a simple predictive theory linking measures of the intensity of competition with ecosystem‐level properties.
Bridging the Widening Gap between the EU Treaties and the Agreement on the European Economic Area
Authors: Haukeland Fredriksen Halvard 
Published: November 2012

Abstract:For almost 20 years now, the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) States Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway have been included in the EU's internal market through the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA). The continuing success of the EEA is threatened, however, by an ever widening gap between EU primary law and the still unchanged main part of the EEA Agreement. Unwilling to begin the strenuous work of updating the Agreement, the Contracting Parties place their trust in the ability of the courts to bridge the gap. While it is shown in this article that both the EFTA Court and the Court of Justice of the EU are indeed willing to go far in order to preserve homogeneity between EU law and EEA law, it is argued that there are limits to the courts' ability to remedy the failed updating of the Agreement.
The Question Concerning the Common Frame of Reference
Authors: Niglia Leone 
Published: November 2012

AbstractThe many directives on private consumer law enacted in the last three decades have met with considerable neglect and resistance amongst domestic judges, legislatures and scholars, bringing about less legal unity and more ‘legal fragmentation'—to say it in the words of the Commission. The Draft Common Frame of Reference is one more attempt, on the part of certain strands of European private law scholarship, at imposing a formal break on, and at overcoming, such fragmentation. Presented as a ‘comprehensive and self‐standing’ document, its ambition is to definitively implement the Commission‐generated, market‐orientated agenda of private law reform, so much resisted at the national level. The article argues that the EU legislative institutions should not go ahead with the plan of incorporating the Draft's content in EU law, by adopting a CFR. A CFR would confer an unprecedented degree of authority on a range of contested directive‐generated rules, from the test of fairness to the risk development defence in product liability. In creating a climate in which CFR‐based legalistic arguments promote unity over fragmentation, a CFR would emasculate public debate by implementing, under the spell of legal necessity, exactly those partisan, Commission‐initiated policies that have been, and still are, openly opposed in domestic legal circles. The Draft embodies a grammar of imposition that should be questioned.
The Reuse of Public Sector Information in Europe and Its Impact on Transparency
Authors: Cerrillo‐i‐Martínez Agustí 
Published: November 2012

Abstract: The dissemination of public sector information is not carried out exclusively by public administration. A significant proportion of public sector information constitutes the raw material used by the content industry to offer goods and services and by citizens to provide richer information. In the European Union, Directive 2003/98/EC on the reuse of public sector information establishes a set of rules governing the reuse of public sector information. Although this rule is not intended to provide greater transparency, the re‐use of public sector information could have this effect.This article sets out the European policy on public sector information reuse and it looks in depth at the content of Spanish Act 37/2007, of 16 November, about the reuse of public sector information, as a case study, outlining some of the instruments that have been used in Spain as well as in other Member States to promote the reuse of public sector information.
Principles of European Private or Civil Law?
Authors: Purnhagen Kai 
Published: November 2012

AbstractThe aim of this piece is to draw the attention of the debate on principles in European private law to an institutional question. As the question of who detects these principles is crucial to understand the values and intentions behind the provisions on principles, I turn to the significance of the authority question of who detects principles of European Private law with regard to the two players ECJ and the academic circle ‘Joint Network on European law'. After analysing the role of these players I will ask whether private law principles (which are principles derived from the analysis of contractual relationships by academics) or principles of civil law (derived from conflict solution by judges) govern the principles debate in European Private law. I will argue for a pluralistic understanding of European Private law, where neither academia nor the ECJ enjoy a monopoly on the detection of principles in European Private law. Instead, they form a symbiotic relationship in several respects. Understood in this way, the DCFR's role as a toolbox for the legislator is supplemented with its maybe even stronger significance as a toolbox for judges.
From forest and agro‐ecosystems to the microecosystems of the human body: what can landscape ecology tell us about tumor growth, metastasis, and treatment options?
Authors: Daoust Simon P. , Fahrig Lenore , Martin Amanda E. , Thomas Frédéric 
Published: November 2012

AbstractCancer is now understood to be a process that follows Darwinian evolution. Heterogeneous populations of cancerous cells that make up the tumor inhabit the tissue ‘microenvironment’, where ecological interactions analogous to predation and competition for resources drive the somatic evolution of cancer. The tumor microenvironment plays a crucial role in the tumor genesis, development, and metastasis processes, as it creates the microenvironmental selection forces that ultimately determine the cellular characteristics that result in the greatest fitness. Here, we explore and offer new insights into the spatial aspects of tumor–microenvironment interactions through the application of landscape ecology theory to tumor growth and metastasis within the tissue microhabitat. We argue that small tissue microhabitats in combination with the spatial distribution of resources within these habitats could be important selective forces driving tumor invasiveness. We also contend that the compositional and configurational heterogeneity of components in the tissue microhabitat do not only influence resource availability and functional connectivity but also play a crucial role in facilitating metastasis and may serve to explain, at least in part, tissue tropism in certain cancers. This novel work provides a compelling argument for the necessity of taking into account the structure of the tissue microhabitat when investigating tumor progression.
Long‐term outcomes in haemophilic synovitis after radiosynovectomy using rhenium‐186: a single‐centre experience
Authors: Zulfikar B. , Turkmen C. , Kilicoglu O. , Dikici F. , Bezgal F. , Gorgun O. , Taser O. 
Published: November 2012

SummaryRadiosynovectomy has been performed successfully for more than 10 years in our hospital. This study investigated the long‐term outcome in the context of time to progression (TTP) analysis and the factors influencing TTP following radiosynovectomy with Re‐186 in patients with haemophilic synovitis. Radiosynovectomy performed in 165 joints (81 elbows, 74 ankles, 8 shoulder and 2 hip joints) of 106 patients (median age was 18.0 ± 7.5 years; 91 haemophilia A, 13 haemophilia B and 2 von Willebrand's disease between June 2001 and July 2011. The mean follow‐up was 48 months (range: 9–120 months). This study revealed that patients' mean TTP after primary radiosynovectomy was satisfactory for both the ankle and elbow joints. There was no TTP differences between the ankle and elbow joint groups (67 vs. 72 months respectively; P = 0.22). We did not find a relationship between the TTP and the following variables: age, type and severity of haemophilia, the presence or absence of inhibitor, the radiological score, range of motion (ROM) status of joints and the pretreatment bleeding frequency. In this study, 18–20% of the treated joints had improved ROM and 82–79% of the treated joints had unchanged ROM after treatment both the ankle and elbow joints respectively. In this report including TTP analysis in the largest series with long‐term follow‐up, we demonstrated long‐term effectiveness of Re‐186 radiosynovectomy in haemophilic synovitis. In our experience, the main predictor of outcome following radiosynovectomy is the number of joint bleeding within 6 months after therapy.