bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Spatial correlation of rainfall over Europe investigated through statistical dependence index
Authors: Luini L. , Capsoni C. 
Published: February 2013

The spatial correlation of rainfall over Europe is investigated. A full year of 1 km × 1 km composite rain maps, collected by the British NIMROD weather radar network over an area as wide as 1000 km × 600 km, is used to calculate the rain rate statistical dependence index χ for separation distances D up to 1000 km. The average trend of χ with distance derived from NIMROD rain maps is compared with the findings obtained from rainfall data collected in Italy and Spain in previous work, with the aim of extending the assessment of the rainfall spatial correlation to continental scale. Results indicate that the average decorrelation trend of χ tends to be similar throughout Europe.
A search for muon-to-electron conversion at J-PARC: the COMET experiment
Authors: Kuno Yoshitaka 
Published: February 2013

Abstract
A new experimental search for the charged-lepton-flavor-violating process of neutrinoless muon-to-electron conversion by J-PARC E21 (the COMET experiment), which aims at a factor of 10 000 improvement over the current limit, is described, together with the physics motivation of charged lepton flavor violation. The first-stage approach of the COMET experiment (COMET Phase-I), which has recently been taken for earlier realization of the measurement, is also mentioned.
Retrospective audit to determine the diagnostic accuracy of Primovist‐enhanced MRI in the detection of hepatocellular carcinoma in cirrhosis with explant histopathology correlation
Authors: Baird Andrew J , Amos Gregory J , Saad Nivene F , Benson Mark D 
Published: February 2013

AbstractIntroductionThis study aims to determine the diagnostic accuracy of Primovist‐enhanced MRI in the detection of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in cirrhosis, using liver explant histopathology correlation.MethodsThirty patients underwent a Primovist‐enhanced MRI prior to liver transplantation for cirrhosis at the Princess Alexandra Hospital from 2006 to June 2012. Pre‐contrast T1, T2 and post‐Primovist arterial, portal venous and delayed hepatobiliary phase sequences were routinely obtained. A retrospective audit of MRI reports determined whether HCCs was identified on pre‐transplantation imaging. Results were correlated to the explant liver histopathology. Specificity and sensitivity of Primovist in HCC identification in cirrhosis was determined.ResultsThe time interval between preoperative MRI and transplantation ranged from the day of transplantation to 112 weeks pre‐transplantation. Thirty‐nine HCCs were identified histologically in explants. Fifteen HCCs were identified on pre‐transplant MRI in 11 patients, ranging from 11 to 43 mm, all confirmed on histopathology. Fourteen MRI studies identified no lesion, concordant on histology. Twenty‐four either well or moderately differentiated HCCs were identified on histopathology, all of which were less than 17 mm, were not depicted on MRI. No poorly differentiated HCCs were present in the explants. Two regenerative nodules were correctly identified on MRI. This correlated to a sensitivity of 42.5%, specificity of 100% and a positive predictive value of 100% and negative predictive value of 39.5%.ConclusionPrimovist‐enhanced MRI is very accurate in the identification of HCC in cirrhosis, especially if the tumour is greater than 17 mm and undifferentiated. However, sensitivity is reduced for well‐ and moderately differentiated HCC less than 17 mm.
“To put men in a bottle”: Eroticism, kinship, female power, and transactional sex in Maputo, Mozambique
Authors: GROES‐GREEN CHRISTIAN 
Published: February 2013

ABSTRACTEroticism, kinship, and gender all intersect in transactional sexual relationships between young women known ascurtidorasand older white men in Maputo, Mozambique. I draw on postcolonial feminism to argue that curtidoras’ erotic powers are a central part of sexual–economic exchanges with men and that senior female kin are deeply involved in processes of seduction and extraction of money. I conceptualize relationships between curtidoras, female kin, and male partners as “gendered triads of reciprocity” to unsettle Western stereotypes of female victims and patriarchal structures in Africa. Transactional sex often makes the partners mutually dependent and emotionally vulnerable, and, although moralities of exchange collide, young women tend to redistribute accumulated money from men among female seniors and kin.
The bodily threat of miracles: Security, sacramentality, and the Egyptian politics of public order
Authors: HEO ANGIE 
Published: February 2013

ABSTRACTThis article examines the political and public culture of Coptic Christian miracles through the circulation and reproduction of images and the mimetic entanglements of artifacts and objects. To understand the threat posed by one case of a woman's oil‐exuding hand, this study points to how semiotic orders of security and sacramentality intersect in the regulation of bodily miracles. It explores Coptic Orthodox Church and Egyptian state efforts to contain the activity of images and transform the public nature of truthful witness and divine testimony. In doing so, it suggests how the material structure of saintly imagination introduces bodily and visual challenges to an authoritarian politics of public order.
Confessional pluralism and the civil society effect: Liberal mediations of Islam and secularism in contemporary Turkey
Authors: WALTON JEREMY F. 
Published: February 2013

ABSTRACTPractices and ideals of confessional pluralism and liberal interpretations of Islam have achieved new prominence in Turkish civil society in recent years. In this article, I marshal fieldwork conducted among a variety of Turkish Islamic civil society institutions to argue that confessional pluralism and liberal Islam have reoriented practices of politics and secularism in Turkey. As I demonstrate, liberal discourse about religious difference emerges within civil society as a foil to hegemonic, homogeneous visions of Islam on the part of the state. My principal theoretical contribution is the civil society effect: how the institutions and discourses of civil society are idealized and rendered distinct from state power. Ethnographically, I focus on two religious groups that have achieved organization within civil society: Turkish Alevis and supporters of the Sunni Hizmet Movement.
Thrombin inhibitors: surgical considerations and pharmacology
Authors: Breik Omar , Tadros Rami , Devitt Peter 
Published: February 2013

AbstractThe new thrombin inhibitors have provided an exciting opportunity for effective thromboprophylaxis without some of the disadvantages of the current anticoagulants. These drugs are orally administered, have predictable pharmacokinetics and dose–response, do not require monitoring and have an acceptable safety profile when used appropriately. However, inappropriate prescribing of these drugs may lead to catastrophic consequences. Clinicians need to be aware of some of the drawbacks associated with the use of dabigatran and, in particular, its reduced clearance in the setting of renal failure and the lack of an effective reversing agent when bleeding does occur. In this review, the evidence for efficacy and safety of dabigatran is discussed. We also aim to provide practical clinical advice on the pre‐ and post‐operative management of the elective and emergency surgical patient on dabigatran and provide guidelines for the management of acute haemorrhage in the context of dabigatran therapy.
EQUIVALENT OPTION PRICE WITH SUPPLY UNCERTAINTY
Authors: Shafran Aric P. 
Published: February 2013

ABSTRACTThis paper compares two ex ante measures of the benefits of a project with supply uncertainty: compensating option price, the willingness to pay for a project, and equivalent option price, the willingness to accept to forego a project. The paper shows that compensating option price does not generally rank three or more projects correctly, even when the projects only impose a change in a single good. Equivalent option price, like equivalent variation with certain outcomes, always ranks three or more projects correctly. This paper also presents a method to empirically estimate equivalent option price using estimates of the benefits of certain changes. This approach is practically important so that the same study results can be used to estimate equivalent option price even as new projects are developed or as changes occur in the scientific information regarding the probabilities of various project outcomes. An application of the empirical method estimates the benefits of a policy to improve air and water quality when there is uncertainty about the effectiveness of the policy.
INVESTMENT BEHAVIOUR, CORPORATE CONTROL, AND PRIVATE BENEFITS OF CONTROL: EVIDENCE FROM A SURVEY OF UKRAINIAN FIRMS
Authors: Mykhayliv Dariya , Zauner Klaus G. 
Published: February 2013

ABSTRACTWe analyse the impact of ownership and corporate control on firms’ investment using the 2001 survey of Yacoub et al. on Ukrainian firms. The model explains investment by output, financial and soft budget constraints, and corporate control (and ownership) categories potentially enjoying private benefits of control. We find that the corporate control model fits better than the ownership model, a negative relationship between state and employee control and firms’ investment, and evidence for the presence of soft budget constraints. A negative relationship between firms’ investment and the relative size of non‐monetary transactions strengthens the conclusion of private benefits of control impacting investment.
The silence of Good Samaritan kidney donation in Australia: a survey of hospital websites
Authors: Bramstedt Katrina A. , Dave Sameer 
Published: February 2013

AbstractIt is common for living donor candidates to use the Internet as a tool to enhance their decision‐making process. Specifically, the websites of transplant hospitals can potentially be a vital source of information for those contemplating living donation. In an effort to explore the low incidence of Good Samaritan kidney donation (donations to strangers) in Australia, two raters conducted a nine‐attribute website content analysis for all hospitals which participate in these transplants (n = 15). Overall, the concept of living donation is relatively silent on Australian hospital websites. Only four hospitals mention their living donor program, and only one mentions their Good Samaritan program. No site linked directly to Australia's AKX Paired Kidney Exchange Program – the only program which facilitates pair and chain transplants in Australia. Further, information about deceased donation is nearly absent as well. An individual with the altruistic desire to donate will generally find scant or absent information about donation at the website of their local transplant hospital, although this information could easily be present as an educational tool which supports the consent process. Using a hospital website to educate the public about a clinical service should not be viewed as ethically problematic (solicitation), but rather an ethical essential.
Invasion genetics of American cherry fruit fly in Europe and signals of hybridization with the European cherry fruit fly
Authors: Johannesen Jes , Keyghobadi Nusha , Schuler Hannes , Stauffer Christian , Vogt Heidrun 
Published: February 2013

AbstractThe American cherry fruit fly is an invasive pest species in Europe, of serious concern in tart cherry production as well as for the potential to hybridize with the European cherry fruit fly, Rhagoletis cerasi L. (Diptera: Tephritidae), which might induce new pest dynamics. In the first European reports, the question arose whether only the eastern American cherry fruit fly, Rhagoletis cingulata (Loew) (Diptera: Tephritidae), is present, or also the closely related western American cherry fruit fly, Rhagoletis indifferens Curran. In this study, we investigate the species status of European populations by comparing these with populations of both American species from their native ranges, the invasion dynamics in German (first report in 1993) and Hungarian (first report in 2006) populations, and we test for signals of hybridization with the European cherry fruit fly. Although mtDNA sequence genealogy could not separate the two American species, cross‐species amplification of 14 microsatellite loci separated them with high probabilities (0.99–1.0) and provided evidence for R. cingulata in Europe. German and Hungarian R. cingulata populations differed significantly in microsatellite allele frequencies, mtDNA haplotype and wing pattern distributions, and both were genetically depauperate relative to North American populations. The diversity suggests independent founding events in Germany and Hungary. Within each country, R. cingulata displayed little or no structure in any trait, which agrees with rapid local range expansions. In cross‐species amplifications, signals of hybridization between R. cerasi and R. cingulata were found in 2% of R. cingulata individuals and in 3% of R. cerasi. All putative hybrids had R. cerasi mtDNA indicating that the original between‐species mating involved R. cerasi females and R. cingulata males.
The salicylate 1,2‐dioxygenase as a model for a conventional gentisate 1,2‐dioxygenase: crystal structures of the G106A mutant and its adducts with gentisate and salicylate
Authors: Ferraroni Marta , Matera Irene , Bürger Sibylle , Reichert Sabrina , Steimer Lenz , Scozzafava Andrea , Stolz Andreas , Briganti Fabrizio 
Published: February 2013

The salicylate 1,2‐dioxygenase (SDO) from the bacterium Pseudaminobacter salicylatoxidans BN12 is a versatile gentisate 1,2‐dioxygenase (GDO) that converts both gentisate (2,5‐dihydroxybenzoate) and various monohydroxylated substrates. Several variants of this enzyme were rationally designed based on the previously determined enzyme structure and sequence differences between the SDO and the ‘conventional’ GDO from Corynebacterium glutamicum. This was undertaken in order to define the structural elements that give the SDO its unique ability to dioxygenolytically cleave (substituted) salicylates. SDO variants M103L, G106A, G111A, R113G, S147R and F159Y were constructed and it was found that G106A oxidized only gentisate; 1‐hydroxy‐2‐naphthoate and salicylate were not converted. This indicated that this enzyme variant behaves like previously known ‘conventional’ GDOs. Crystals of the G106A SDO variant and its complexes with salicylate and gentisate were obtained under anaerobic conditions, and the structures were solved and analyzed. The amino acid residue Gly106 is located inside the SDO active site cavity but does not directly interact with the substrates. Crystal structures of G106A SDO complexes with gentisate and salicylate showed a different binding mode for salicylate when compared with the wild‐type enzyme. Thus, salicylate coordinated in the G106A variant with the catalytically active Fe(II) ion in an unusual and unproductive manner because of the inability of salicylate to displace a hydrogen bond that was formed between Trp104 and Asp174 in the G106A variant. It is proposed that this type of unproductive substrate binding might generally limit the substrate spectrum of ‘conventional’ GDOs.DatabaseStructural data are available in the Protein Data Bank databases under the accession numbers 3NST, 3NWA, 3NVC
Mouse models of PIK3CA mutations: one mutation initiates heterogeneous mammary tumors
Authors: Koren Shany , Bentires‐Alj Mohamed 
Published: February 2013

The phosphoinositide 3‐kinase (PI3K) signaling pathway is crucial for cell growth, proliferation, metabolism, and survival, and is frequently deregulated in human cancer, including ~ 70% of breast tumors. PIK3CA, the gene encoding the catalytic subunit p110α of PI3K, is mutated in ~ 30% of breast cancers. However, the exact mechanism of PIK3CA‐evoked breast tumorigenesis has not yet been defined. Genetically engineered mouse models are valuable for examining the initiation, development and progression of cancer. Transgenic mice harboring hotspot mutations in p110α have helped to elucidate breast cancer pathogenesis and increase our knowledge about molecular and cellular alterations in vivo. They are also useful for the development of therapeutic strategies. Here, we describe current mouse models of mutant PIK3CA in the mammary gland, and discuss differences in tumor latency and pathogenesis.
Do non‐native fish as prey favour the conservation of the threatened indigenous Eurasian otter?
Authors: BALESTRIERI ALESSANDRO , REMONTI LUIGI , VEZZA PAOLO , PRIGIONI CLAUDIO , COPP GORDON H. 
Published: February 2013

Summary1. Biological invasions are considered a major threat to biodiversity. Most research has focused on the distribution, biology and impacts of non‐native species on native fauna and flora. However, few studies have explored their role as prey for native predators of conservation concern.2. To assess the incidence and intensity of predation by the Eurasian otter Lutra lutra on established non‐native fish species, data were collated from the published literature. To be selected, studies had to cover at least 1 year, analyse more than 100 spraints and report the study period and percentage relative frequency (%RF) of all prey fish species.3. To permit reliable, time‐related comparisons with %RF of non‐native fishes in otter diet, we also reviewed available information about both the distribution of non‐native fishes and history of their introductions to European countries, revealing a decrease with longitude in the number of naturalised non‐native fishes taken (ranging between 5 and 34) and their percentage in each fish assemblage.4. Our selective criteria were met by 30 dietary studies from 44 study areas in 15 European countries during 1970–2010. The extent to which otters rely on non‐native fishes was almost negligible (mean %RF = 4.8), with the number of non‐native fishes preyed upon by otters decreasing with both latitude and longitude.5. The %RF of non‐native fish in the diet increased slightly with time, with otters preying significantly more on non‐native fish in study areas where alterations of the fish assemblage had been highlighted in the reference papers. No relationship was found between otter diet breadth and the occurrence of non‐native fishes in their diet.6. The current role of non‐native species in otter diet suggests that effective otter conservation management plans should focus on the maintenance and/or enhancement of native fish assemblages.
Detrital diversity influences estuarine ecosystem performance
Authors: Kelaher Brendan P. , Bishop Melanie J. , Potts Jaimie , Scanes Peter , Skilbeck Greg 
Published: February 2013

AbstractGlobal losses of seagrasses and mangroves, eutrophication‐driven increases in ephemeral algae, and macrophyte invasions have impacted estuarine detrital resources. To understand the implications of these changes on benthic ecosystem processes, we tested the hypotheses that detrital source richness, mix identity, and biomass influence benthic primary production, metabolism, and nutrient fluxes. On an estuarine muddy sandflat, we manipulated the availability of eight detrital sources, including mangrove, seagrass, and invasive and native algal species that have undergone substantial changes in distribution. Mixes of these detrital sources were randomly assigned to one of 12 treatments and dried detrital material was added to seventy‐two 0.25 m2 plots (n = 6 plots). The treatments included combinations of either two or four detrital sources and high (60 g) or low (40 g) levels of enrichments. After 2 months, the dark, light, and net uptake of NH4+, dissolved inorganic nitrogen, and the dark efflux of dissolved organic nitrogen were each significantly influenced by the identity of detrital mixes, rather than detrital source richness or biomass. However, gross and net primary productivity, average oxygen flux, and net NOX and dissolved inorganic phosphorous fluxes were significantly greater in treatments with low than with high detrital source richness. These results demonstrate that changes in detrital source richness and mix identity may be important drivers of estuarine ecosystem performance. Continued impacts to estuarine macrophytes may, therefore, further alter detritus‐fueled productivity and processes in estuaries. Specific tests that address predicted future changes to detrital resources are required to determine the consequences of this significant environmental problem.
Discontinuous Steady‐State Analytical Solutions of the Boussinesq Equation and Their Numerical Representation by Modflow
Authors: Zaidel Jacob 
Published: February 2013

AbstractKnown analytical solutions of groundwater flow equations are routinely used for verification of computer codes. However, these analytical solutions (e.g., the Dupuit solution for the steady‐state unconfined unidirectional flow in a uniform aquifer with a flat bottom) represent smooth and continuous water table configurations, simulating which does not pose any significant problems for the numerical groundwater flow models, like MODFLOW. One of the most challenging numerical cases for MODFLOW arises from drying‐rewetting problems often associated with abrupt changes in the elevations of impervious base of a thin unconfined aquifer. Numerical solutions of groundwater flow equations cannot be rigorously verified for such cases due to the lack of corresponding exact analytical solutions. Analytical solutions of the steady‐state Boussinesq equation, associated with the discontinuous water table configurations over a stairway impervious base, are presented in this article. Conditions resulting in such configurations are analyzed and discussed. These solutions appear to be well suited for testing and verification of computer codes. Numerical solutions, obtained by the latest versions of MODFLOW (MODFLOW‐2005 and MODFLOW‐NWT), are compared with the presented discontinuous analytical solutions. It is shown that standard MODFLOW‐2005 code (as well as MODFLOW‐2000 and older versions) has significant convergence problems simulating such cases. The problems manifest themselves either in a total convergence failure or erroneous results. Alternatively, MODFLOW‐NWT, providing a good match to the presented discontinuous analytical solutions, appears to be a more reliable and appropriate code for simulating abrupt changes in water table elevations.
INTENTION AND IRONY: THE MISSED ENCOUNTER BETWEEN HAYDEN WHITE AND QUENTIN SKINNER
Authors: JAY MARTIN 
Published: February 2013

ABSTRACTNo contemporary intellectual historian has produced more influential reflections on the historian's craft than Hayden White and Quentin Skinner, yet their legacy has never been meaningfully compared. Doing so reveals a surprising complementarity in their approach, at least to the extent that Skinner's stress on recovering the intentionality of authors fits well with White's observation that irony is the dominant rhetorical mode of historical narrative in our day. Irony itself, to be sure, has to be divided broadly speaking into its dramatic or Socratic variants and the unstable and paradoxical alternative defended by poststructuralist critics. The latter produced in White an anxiety about the anarchistic implications of an allegedly inherent undecidability in historical interpretation and narration, which threatened to conflate history entirely with fiction. By recovering the necessary role of intentionality as a prerequisite for a more moderate version of Socratic and dramatic irony—in which hindsight provides some purchase on a truth denied actors at the time history is made—it is possible to rescue an ironic attitude that can register the frequency of unintended consequences without surrendering to the conclusion that no explanation or interpretation is superior to another. Against yet a third alternative, which tries to reconstruct the past rationally as a prelude to the present, acknowledging the ironic undermining of intentions avoids giving all the power to the contemporary historian and restores a dialogic balance between actors in the past and their present‐day interpreters.