bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Body size development of captive and free‐ranging Leopard tortoises (Geochelone pardalis)
Authors: Ritz Julia , Hammer Catrin , Clauss Marcus 
Published: August 2009

AbstractThe growth and weight development of Leopard tortoise hatchings (Geochelone pardalis) kept at the Al Wabra Wildlife Preservation (AWWP), Qatar, was observed for more than four years, and compared to data in literature for free‐ranging animals on body weight or carapace measurements. The results document a distinctively faster growth in the captive animals. Indications for the same phenomenon in other tortoise species (Galapagos giant tortoises, G. nigra; Spur‐thighed tortoises, Testudo graeca; Desert tortoises, Gopherus agassizi) were found in the literature. The cause of the high growth rate most likely is the constant provision with highly digestible food of low fiber content. Increased growth rates are suspected to have negative consequences such as obesity, high mortality, gastrointestinal illnesses, renal diseases, “pyramiding,” fibrous osteodystrophy or metabolic bone disease. The apparently widespread occurrence of high growth rates in intensively managed tortoises underlines how easily ectothermic animals can be oversupplemented with nutrients. Zoo Biol 29:517–525, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Trainee Surgeons Do Not Cause More Conversions in Laparoscopic Colorectal Surgery if They Are Well Supervised
Authors: Maeda Takafumi , Tan Kok‐Yang , Konishi Fumio , Tsujinaka Shingo , Mizokami Ken , Sasaki Junichi , Kawamura Yutaka J. 
Published: August 2009

AbstractIntroductionThis study was designed to look at the conversion rates and morbidity associated with laparoscopic operations performed by trainee surgeons ascending the learning curve when they are well supervised by staff surgeons.MethodsA review of 204 consecutive cases was performed. We defined experienced staff surgeons as those who have performed more than 300 laparoscopic resection cases. The trainee surgeons had less than 50 cases of experience during the study period. All operations were performed by the experienced staff surgeon or by the trainee surgeon with the staff surgeon as the first assistant and supervisor.ResultsA total of 204 laparoscopic resections for colorectal cancer were studied. The dissection was D3 in 73% (n = 149) of cases with a mean lymph node harvest of 19.4 nodes (range 1–56). The staff surgeons performed 90 cases and trainees performed 114 cases. Twenty‐one cases (10.3%) required conversion. The overall morbidity rate was 17.6% and perioperative mortality rate was 1.5%. On bivariate analysis, trainee surgeons were not found to be significantly associated with a higher conversion risk. Multivariate analysis revealed that only the factor of T3 and above was an independent predictor of conversion (odds ratio (OR) 4.1; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09–15.48). Multivariate analysis of risk factors for morbidity revealed that it was not conversion (OR 2.37; 95% CI, 0.86–6.76) but rectal surgery (OR 4.09; 95% CI 2.04–9.9) that was the independent risk factor of morbidity.ConclusionsInexperienced surgeons do not cause more conversions or postoperative morbidity in laparoscopic colorectal surgery if they are well supervised. Conversion is not independently associated with increased postoperative morbidity.
Impact of Parallel Anesthesia and Surgical Provider Training in Sub‐Saharan Africa: A Model for a Resource‐poor Setting
Authors: Newton Mark , Bird Peter 
Published: August 2009

AbstractBackgroundThe lack of appropriate numbers of anesthesia and surgical care providers in many resource‐poor countries around the world, especially in rural populations, prevents adequate care of the large numbers of patients who require surgery in these settings.MethodsThis article provides a 10‐year review of a rural hospital located in East Africa which developed a training program based on parallel training of anesthesia and surgical care providers. We report the process of building the foundational aspects of a customized medical education program that addresses specific concerns related to the work in a rural African context, which may be very different from medical care provided in the urban settings of low income countries (LIC). We analyzed how the parallel training can provide the clinical tools needed to have a practical impact on the surgical burden in rural Africa.ResultsThe parallel training program combining training of nurse‐anesthetists with the training of multiple levels of surgical care providers, from interns to fellows, led to a fourfold increase in the number of surgical cases. Surgical subspecialty training and the development of an anesthesia care team with anesthesia consultant(s) oversight can serve to maintain a high level of complex and expanding surgical case volume in a rural African hospital setting.ConclusionsThis model can be applied to other similar situations in LIC, where the anesthesia and surgical care can be coupled and then customized for the unique clinical rural setting.
Evolutionary ecology of learning: insights from fruit flies
Authors: Kawecki Tadeusz J. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractEcologically and evolutionarily oriented research on learning has traditionally been carried out on vertebrates and bees. While less sophisticated than those animals, fruit flies (Drosophila) are capable of several forms of learning, and have the advantage of a short generation time, which makes them an ideal system for experimental evolution studies. This review summarizes the insights into evolutionary questions about learning gained in the last decade from evolutionary experiments on Drosophila. These experiments demonstrate that Drosophila has the genetic potential to evolve a substantially improved learning performance in ecologically relevant learning tasks. In at least one set of selected populations, the improved learning generalized to a task other than that used to impose selection, involving a different behavior, different stimuli, and a different sensory channel for the aversive reinforcement. This improvement in learning ability was associated with reductions in other fitness‐related traits, such as larval competitive ability and lifespan, pointing to evolutionary trade‐offs for improved learning. These trade‐offs were confirmed by other evolutionary experiments where a reduction in learning performance was observed as a correlated response to selection for tolerance to larval nutritional stress or for delayed aging. Such trade‐offs could be one reason why fruit flies have not fully used up their evolutionary potential for learning. Finally, another evolutionary experiment with Drosophila provided the first direct evidence for the long‐standing idea that learning can under some circumstances accelerate and in others slow down genetically based evolutionary change. These results demonstrate the usefulness of fruit flies as a model system to address evolutionary questions about learning.
The Letter-Number Sequencing Test and its association with potential to work among people with psychotic illness
Authors: Murtagh A. , Hurley A.L. , Kinsella A. , Corvin A. , Donohoe G. , Gill M. , O’Callaghan E. , Murphy K.C. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractPost hoc analysis of occupational attainment and performance on a standard neurocognitive battery suggests that performance on letter-number sequencing is strongly associated with work attainment. Letter-number sequencing may warrant further investigation as a clinically useful tool to inform decisions around vocational rehabilitation.
The organization of the psychiatric service and criminality committed by the mentally ill
Authors: Kramp P. , Gabrielsen G. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractIntroductionOver the past 40 years, a marked deinstitutionalisation in favour of social and community psychiatry has taken place in many countries. During this same period of time, there has been an increase in the number of mentally ill criminals. The purpose of this study is to analyse the correlations between the reorganization of the psychiatric treatment system, the growing number of forensic patients and the increase in serious crime, homicide, arson and violence associated with the mentally ill.Materials and methodsUsing registers and other data sources, we estimated the annual positive or negative growth rate of consumed psychiatric beds and in social and community psychiatry (explanatory variables) and in prevalence and incidence of forensic patients, homicide, arson and violence (response variables) from 1980 to 1997 for each of the Danish counties. We analysed the immediate effect of the changing treatment structure by relating response variables to explanatory variables. The long-term effect was analysed in the form of between county analysis with both single and multiple regressions.ResultsBed closure had no immediate effect on either the number of forensic patients or serious criminality. The between county analysis shows, however, that over time the (negative) growth rate in number of consumed beds is significantly correlated with the (positive) growth rates for forensic patients, homicide and arson. Social and community psychiatry have little effect, if any.DiscussionThe study is based on historical data, but the results are still valid. We have used two sets of data firstly the number of forensic patients and, secondly the reported number of crimes associated with the mentally ill. The uniformity of the results leads us to consider them for certain: That the decreasing effort invested in inpatient treatment is causing an increase in the crime rate among the mentally ill.ConclusionMany forensic patients suffer from schizophrenia. These patients are not only offenders, but also the victims of an inadequate treatment system. Modern inpatient treatment facilities should be established.
Evolving systems of care: Individuals found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder in custody of civil and forensic psychiatric services
Authors: Crocker A.G. , Côté G. 
Published: September 2009

AbstractFollowing psychiatric deinstitutionalization and changes in involuntary civil commitment laws, many individuals with severe mental disorders have been receiving mental health services through the back door, that is, the criminal justice system. Significant changes to the section of Criminal Code of Canada dealing with individuals with mental disorders have led to significant annual increases in the number of individuals declared Not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (NCRMD), many of whom are directed to civil psychiatric settings. The goal of the present study was to describe the psychosociocriminological and risk characteristics of individuals found NCRMD remanded to civil psychiatric hospitals (CPH) compared to a forensic psychiatric hospital (FPH). This study was conducted between October 2004 and August 2006 in the sole FPH of the province of Québec and two large CPH in the Montréal metropolitan area. The final sample for the current study consisted of 96 men: 60 from the FPH and 36 from the two CPH. Results indicate that individuals in both settings have similar psychosociocriminal profiles, including PCL-R scores, but that individuals in CPH have higher scores in the Risk subscale of the HCR-20 than do their counterparts in the FPH. This difference is due to a higher score on two items: exposure to destabilizing factors and noncompliance with remediation attempts. Results are discussed in terms of the need for civil psychiatric settings to implement risk assessment and management programs into their services, and the need for further research into forensic mental health services.
Infant response in the still-face paradigm at 6 months predicts avoidant and secure attachment at 12 months
Authors: Cohn Jeffrey F. , Campbell Susan B. , Ross Shelley 
Published: September 2009

AbstractWe tested the hypothesis that attachment security at 12 months can be predicted from infant response to the mother's still-face interaction during the first half-year. Subjects were 66 primiparous mother-infant pairs drawn from the working- and middle-socioeconomic strata (SES). Half of the mothers had experienced a postpartum depression. Infants were observed longitudinally in the still-face paradigm at 2, 4, and 6 months and in the Strange Situation at 12 months. Positive expressions in response to the still-face at 6 months predicted secure attachment at 12 months. Absence of positive expressions predicted avoidant attachment. In infants of postpartum depressed mothers, hours of nonmaternal care positively correlated with secure attachment. Variables associated with infant proneness to distress and sociability were unrelated to attachment security. These results suggest that attachment formation is underway by 6 months of age and that indicators of 12-month attachment security can be detected as early as 6 months. Similar mechanisms of affect regulation and coping may underlie infant response in the still-face and Strange Situation procedures.
Disorganized attachment behavior in infancy: Short-term stability, maternal and infant correlates, and risk-related subtypes
Authors: Lyons-Ruth Karlen , Repacholi Betty , McLeod Sara , Silva Eugenia 
Published: September 2009

AbstractThis study of 71 low-income mothers and infants examined whether the disorganized/disoriented (D) infant attachment classification is best viewed as a single category or whether at least two subgroups exist, corresponding to the forced-secure and forced-insecure alternate classifications. Correlates of the D classification as a whole, and of the two subtypes of disorganized behavior, were examined in five domains, including 6-month stability, maternal childhood history of loss, severity of maternal psychosocial risk, maternal behavior toward the infant at home, and infant mental development. Results indicated that the two subtypes of disorganized infant attachment behavior differed in age of emergence, maternal childhood history, severity of associated family risk factors, and the extent of the mother's lack of involvement with the infant at home. Across both D subtypes, disorganization of attachment strategies was associated with less optimal maternal behavior at home and with decreased mental development scores at 18 months. Results are discussed in relation to Main and Hesse's (1990) theory of the role of fear-inducing parental behavior in the genesis of disorganized infant attachment behavior and in relation to Aber, Allen, Carlson, and Cicchetti's (1989) concept of secure readiness to learn.
Attachment organization in maltreated preschoolers
Authors: Cicchetti Dante , Barnett Douglas 
Published: September 2009

AbstractAttachment theory predicts that maltreated children will form insecure patterns of attachment to their caregivers and that attachment relationships are open to change with development. In this cross-sectional/longitudinal investigation, we examined the attachment patterns of 125 maltreated and nonmaltreated preschoolers from the low socioeconomic strata (SES). Maltreated and demographically matched nonmaltreated comparison children were assessed in the Strange Situation at 30, 36, and 48 months of age, along with a subsample of children who were observed longitudinally across a 6- to 18-month period. Attachment relations were classified using a newly developed system for assessing attachment in the preschool years by Cassidy and Marvin (1991). Results revealed that, at each age, maltreated children were significantly more likely to evidence insecure patterns of attachment to their caregivers. The specific types of insecurity demonstrated by children varied with age. Longitudinally, the high percentage of nonmaltreated children who were classified as securely attached were likely to remain securely attached at subsequent assessments. In contrast, the small number of maltreated children who evidenced secure attachments were unlikely to be classified as secure at later assessments. These data provide new information on the patterns of attachment maltreated children exhibit in the preschool years.
Effects of peer influence on dietary intake and physical activity in schoolchildren
Authors: Finnerty Tara , Reeves Sue , Dabinett Jaqueline , Jeanes Yvonne M , Vögele Claus 
Published: September 2009

AbstractObjectiveTo investigate the dietary intake and physical activity of boys and girls aged 9–13 years, and the influence of peers on these behaviours.DesignCross-sectional study.SettingNine primary and secondary schools in south-west London.SubjectsA total of 315 children wore sealed pedometers, provided self-report measures of dietary intake and answered a questionnaire relating to peer influence. Anthropometric measures of height and weight were also obtained.ResultsObese children had the lowest reported energy intakes and the lowest step counts per day. Boys took significantly more steps per day than girls, however girls were closer to achieving their recommended cut-offs for physical activity. Girls had lower energy intakes per day and lower BMI Z-scores than boys, however both genders, across all age groups, had higher than recommended intakes of saturated fat. There were significant associations between peer influence and physical activity levels but not between peer influence and dietary intake.ConclusionsLow energy intake and physical activity levels but high saturated fat intakes among boys and girls across all age groups highlight the importance of promoting both physical activity and healthy food choices. The finding that peers have a significant effect on physical activity levels but not on dietary intake offers an important approach for the design of health promotion interventions and obesity prevention programmes. Such designs may be particularly beneficial for obese youth, since the low physical activity levels found could be a major contributing factor to the maintenance of the condition.
The Challenge for AGU
Authors: Austin James A. 
Published: September 2009

Our science today exists in a world of rapid economic, political, and technological change. Challenges to the importance of science in the world abound, yet science has never been more important to the future of humankind on Earth. The goal for AGU is to continue delivering quality programs and services that strengthen our international scientific community while undertaking new initiatives that will ensure that the Union remains a relevant and vibrant organization for years to come.You, AGU members, have made the Union the preeminent geophysical society in the world today.
Seeds banks of desert annuals in an aridity gradient in the southern Atacama Desert
Authors: Sotomayor Diego , Gutiérrez Julio 
Published: August 2009

Abstract
*Background/Question/Methods*
Annual plant communities are important components of the biodiversity found in the coastal southern Atacama Desert in Chile. Moreover, they are an important economic resource for the human communities living in that area. These plant communities develop, after heavy rainfall episodes, a phenomenon locally known as the “blooming of the desert”. Although the minimum rainfall thresholds for these plants to emerge are relatively well known, little is known about their seed banks, its composition, dynamics and variation across the latitudinal aridity gradient from south to north. This system is interesting to study species coexistence, as well as, to look for exotic plants invasion, since previous studies have shown that exotic annual plants decreases in importance northwards. We hypothesize that, as a result of the gradient, we should find more seeds of annuals in the southern part because of the increase of exotic species. The lowest diversity will be found in the northern limit, while the highest in the middle part of the gradient, coincident with a natural protected area, and less influence of exotics. In terms of seed size and viability, we should find larger and more viable seeds in the southern limit of the gradient, probably contrasting with smaller and more dormant seeds to the north. To test these hypotheses we selected 8 sites along the gradient and collected soil samples after seed set in December 2008 for seed bank determination.

*Results/Conclusions*
According to our hypothesis we found more seeds in the southern part of the gradient. The northern seed banks (Rodillo and Cisne) are characterized by their low number of seeds and low species richness, according with their more extreme aridity. The central and southern seed banks have more than two times higher number and species richness than the northern ones. Southern seed banks (Lagunillas, Romeral and Punta Choros) contain more exotics’ seeds; meanwhile central seed banks (Pajonales, Carrizal Bajo and Los Bronces) have less seeds, and less exotics’ seeds. These results suggest that the increased seed number in the southern portion of the gradient could be due to an increased number of exotic species, rather than an increased diversity of native annuals. More viable and larger seeds were found in the southern sites, meanwhile, smaller seeds were found to the north indicating the use of a cautious opportunism strategy by these species. This is the first report on seed banks composition of this Atacama Desert area.
Enhancing Jatropha Productivity by Canopy Management
Authors: Reddy Chalapathy , Naole Vishal 
Published: September 2009

AbstractJatropha seed and oil yield is function of planting material used, growing conditions, plant architecture development and maintenance. Jatropha is hardy plant; thrives well in arid and semi arid regions with an average rainfall ranging from 500 to 1200 mm. It has been planted in varied soil types, marginal and waste lands; where in utilization of in situ resources by agronomic practices and development and management of canopy by pruning are very crucial for harvesting higher seed for biodiesel production. Building ideal canopy by pruning during first growing season is very important. Pruning is done during winter season when plants are in dormant condition.
Elevated CO2 and O3 Effects on Fine-Root Life Span in Ponderosa Pine
Authors: Phillips Donald , Johnson Mark , Tingey David , Storm Marjorie 
Published: September 2009

AbstractAtmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and ozone (O3) concentrations are rising, which may have opposing effects on tree C balance and allocation to fine roots. More information is needed on interactive CO2 and O3 effects on roots, particularly fine-root life span, a critical demographic parameter and determinant of soil C and N pools and cycling rates. We conducted a study in which ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) seedlings were exposed to two levels of CO2 and O3 in sun-lit controlled-environment terracosms for three years. Minirhizotrons were used to monitor individual fine roots in three soil horizons every 28 days. Proportional hazards regression was used to analyze effects of CO2, O3, diameter, depth, and season of root initiation on fine-root survivorship. More fine roots were produced in the elevated CO2 treatment than in ambient CO2. Median life spans varied from 140-448 days depending on the season of root initiation. Elevated CO2, increasing root diameter, and increasing root depth all significantly increased fine-root survivorship and median life span. Life span was slightly, but not significantly, lower in elevated O3, and increased O3 did not reduce the effect of elevated CO2. These results indicate the potential for elevated CO2 to increase the number of fine roots and their residence time in the soil, which is also affected by root diameter, root depth, and phenology.