bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Maternal role development following childbirth among Australian women
Authors: Emmanuel E. , Creedy D.K. , St John W. , Gamble J. , Brown C. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractTitle. Maternal role development following childbirth among Australian women.Aim. This paper is a report on the examination of demographic, birthing and social correlates of maternal role development in childbearing women.Background. Successful adaptation to the maternal role provides a mother with confidence and satisfaction in her ability to nurture and care for her infant. Despite the importance of this developmental process for maternal well‐being, little attention has been given to social and demographic predictors of positive role development in recent years.Methods. A prospective study was undertaken at three publicly‐funded metropolitan antenatal clinics in Queensland, Australia between March and November 2003. A total of 605 women completed a survey at 36 weeks gestation and 12 weeks postpartum, with a response rate of 78% (n = 473). A self‐report questionnaire was used to collect data about personal and birth variables, domestic violence, social support and maternal role development.Findings. The majority of women (81%) were of White ethnic background, modal age was 30–45 years (40%,n = 189) and 66 percent (n = 312) were in paid employment. Bivariate analysis identified age, marital status, length of relationship and social support to be statistically significantly associated with maternal role development. Optimal scaling showed social support to be the most important factor in maternal role development.Conclusion. Maternal role development following childbirth is complex and can be adversely affected by older maternal age, married status, inadequate social support and short partner relationships. A deeper understanding of this process is needed if healthcare professionals are to assist mothers in making a smooth transition to motherhood.
Diversity, attrition and transition into nursing
Authors: Mulholland Jon , Anionwu Elizabeth N. , Atkins Richard , Tappern Mike , Franks Peter J. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractTitle. Diversity, attrition and transition into nursing.Aim. This paper is a report of a study to explore the relationship between selected diversity variables (sex, country of birth, ethnicity, age, educational qualifications, and additionally visa status, application route, absence rates), and nursing students’ progression and attrition.Background. Debates on levels, forms and causation of nursing student attrition have been professional, academic and political concerns for some time on an international level. However, a more systematic approach to studying the topic is needed. We lack commonly operationalized national and international data on the relationship between attrition and diversity variables, and their implications for cost, social justice and demographic representativeness in nursing.Methods. A longitudinal cohort design was used. Data were collected from 2003 to 2005 from routinely collected data in student records.Results. Males had lower odds of completing the programme than females, as did younger students. Compared with United Kingdom‐born students, those born in Ireland, Zimbabwe, or other English‐speaking countries were more likely to complete the programme. Students born overseas in non‐English‐speaking countries did not differ statistically significantly from United Kingdom‐born students. Those at all qualification levels had similar odds of completion, except students already qualified at degree level, who were less likely to complete.Conclusion. Further national and international research is needed to understand better the causal variables underpinning differential attrition rates, with particular regard to understanding how different groups may experience the relationship between education and their broader circumstances and between the theoretical and the clinical elements of nurse education itself.
Development of an internet‐based intervention for parents of infants
Authors: Salonen Anne H. , Kaunonen Marja , Åstedt‐Kurki Päivi , Järvenpää Anna‐Liisa , Tarkka Marja‐Terttu 
Published: September 2008

AbstractTitle.  Development of an internet‐based intervention for parents of infants. Aim.  This paper reports on a study to describe the development of an internet‐based intervention for parents with infants and to compare the participants and hospitals at baseline.Background.  There is a need for interventions to support parenting and for more research into the use of information technology as an intervention strategy. The design and development of healthcare interventions is a complex task, but these are rarely discussed in research reports.Methods.  A quasi‐experimental study was conducted. The data (N = 1300 families) were collected using a structured questionnaire at the hospital or no later than 1 week after discharge during the winter of 2006. The results were used to develop the intervention and to compare the participants at baseline. Statistically significant differences were determined by chi‐squared or Fisher’s exact tests for percentages and one‐way anova for means. The internal consistency relialibility of the scales was analysed using Cronbach’s alpha coefficients.Findings.  Participants in the intervention (n = 469 mothers, n = 307 fathers) and control (n = 394 mothers, n = 218 fathers) hospitals were comparable in respect of parent and infant attributes. There were statistically significant differences between the hospitals in fathers’ overnight stays and their access to social support from professionals on the maternity ward. Exclusive breastfeeding was more common in the intervention hospital. More support for infants’ cues and behaviour, and day‐rhythm and sleep were needed in the intervention hospital.Conclusion.  More research is needed to gain a clearer understanding of the effect size of the differences for a reliable evaluation of the effectiveness of the proposed intervention.
Investigating the determinants of health‐related quality of life among childhood cancer survivors
Authors: Cantrell Mary Ann , Lupinacci Paul 
Published: September 2008

AbstractTitle.  Investigating the determinants of health‐related quality of life among childhood cancer survivors. Aim.  This paper is a report of a study to survey early childhood cancer survivors’ perceived health‐related quality of life and its determinants and to estimate the reliability of known psychometric scales used in the measurement of these determinants.Background.  Young adult survivors of childhood cancer are considered to be a high‐risk, vulnerable population for experiencing medical and psychosocial sequelae from their treatment that can adversely affect their health‐related quality of life. Achieving an adequate level of health‐related quality of life among childhood cancer survivors has been identified as a significant outcome in measuring the success of cancer treatment for these survivors throughout the world.Method.  An on‐line survey approach was used, and data were collected from December 2005 to May 2006 in the United States of America. Specific determinants measured were physical health status, perceived sense of hopefulness, self‐esteem, social support and affect. The internal consistency of the instruments to measure these constructs among early survivors of childhood cancer was evaluated.Findings.  Early survivors of childhood cancer had a lower level of health‐related quality of life, perceived self‐esteem, physical health status and social support when compared with previously reported findings among samples of adolescents in active treatment for cancer, healthy same‐age peers and other samples of childhood cancer survivors.Conclusion.  Investigations using web‐based approaches to measure determinants of health‐related quality of life among young adult survivors of childhood cancer have the potential to include international samples of childhood cancer survivors.
Celluloid angels: a research study of nurses in feature films 1900–2007
Authors: Stanley David J. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractTitle.  Celluloid angels: a research study of nurses in feature films 1900–2007. Aim.  This paper is a report of a study examining the influence on how nursing and nurses are portrayed in feature films made between 1900 and 2007, with a nurse as their main or a principle character and a story‐line related specifically to nursing.Background.  Nurses and the nursing profession are frequently portrayed negatively or stereotypically in the media, with nurses often being portrayed as feminine and caring but not as leaders or professionals capable of autonomous practice.Methods.  A mixed method approach was used to examine feature films made in the Western world. Over 36,000 feature film synopses were reviewed (via CINAHL, ProQuest and relevant movie‐specific literature) for the keywords ‘nurse’/‘nursing’. Identified films were analysed quantitatively to determine their country of production, genre, plot(s) and other relevant data, and qualitatively to identify the emergence of themes related to the image of nurses/nursing in films.Findings.  For the period from 1900 to 2007, 280 relevant feature films were identified. Most films were made in the United States of America or United Kingdom, although in recent years films have been increasingly produced in other countries. Early films portrayed nurses as self‐sacrificial heroines, sex objects and romantics. More recent films increasingly portray them as strong and self‐confident, professionals.Conclusion.  Nurse‐related films offer a unique insight into the image of nurses and how they have been portrayed. Nurses need to be aware of the impact the film industry has on how nurses and nursing are perceived and represented in feature films.
Genetic Variability in Phosphorus Acquisition and Utilization Efficiency from Sparingly Soluble P‐Sources by Brassica Cultivars under P‐Stress Environment
Authors: Akhtar M. S. , Oki Y. , Adachi T. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractPlants display an array of classical strategies to maximize phosphate (Pi) acquisition from sparingly soluble P sources. Acclimation to Pi‐stress via elegant Pi‐starvation induced (PSI) adjustments would reduce our current overreliance on expensive, polluting and non‐renewable Pi‐fertilizers. Nevertheless, differences in the ability of various species to solubilize sparingly soluble P‐sources have been often evidenced; inter‐cultivar variations are scarcely documented. Brassica is known as an effective, non‐mycorrhizal user of sparingly soluble P‐sources. Various growth parameters and biomass accumulation by genetically diverse Brassica cultivars were determined in four experiments using hydroponics and quartz sand culture media. Role of PSI root mediated pH changes, organic anions (OAs) exudation and altered root architecture in mobilization and acquisition of sparingly soluble P‐forms [Jordan rock‐P (RP) at 2 g l−1 and Ca3(PO4)2 (TCP) at 0.2 g l−1 respectively] was investigated. Cultivars showed considerable genetic variations in biomass accumulation, various growth parameters and root–shoot ratio. Concentration and total uptake of P, specific absorption rate of P, P‐transport rate and P‐utilization efficiency (PUE) were also significantly (P < 0.001) different for various cultivars and their dry matter was significantly correlated with P‐uptake [r = 0.94** (significant at 1% level)]. P‐tolerant cultivars showed substantial decrease in solution media pH because of H+ efflux and exuded more carboxylates than low P‐sensitive cultivars under P‐starvation. P‐uptake by cultivars increased linearly with decreasing pH. The amount and types of OAs exuded from the roots of P‐starved plants differed from those of plants grown under P‐sufficient environment. In split pot study, with TCP and RP supplied spatially separated from other nutrients, efficient cultivars were still able to mobilize RP and TCP more efficiently than inefficient cultivars. In rhizobox study, the elongation rates of primary roots decreased but the elongation rates of the branched zones of primary roots and the length of lateral roots increased under P‐starvation. Tested cultivars showed genetic diversity in accessing, mobilization, acquisition and utilization of Pi from sparingly soluble P forms. An arrange marriage of plant traits can explain cultivar’s access to different forms of sparingly soluble P, and in addition to altered lateral root topology and enhanced P‐uptake and PUE, enhanced H+ efflux and OAs exudation are key factors in Pi scavenging from extra cellular sparingly soluble P‐forms.
Sugarcane Response to Nitrogen Fertilization on a Histosol with Shallow Water Table and Periodic Flooding
Authors: Glaz B. , Reed S. T. , Albano J. P. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractSugarcane (Saccharum spp.) is increasingly exposed to periodic floods and shallow water tables on Histosols in Florida’s Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA). In the past, when these soils were usually well drained, they provided excess N for sugarcane through microbial oxidation. It is not known if supplemental N would now improve yields because microbial oxidation is reduced by shallow water tables and periodic floods. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of N fertilizer rates on two sugarcane cultivars exposed to a 25‐cm water‐table depth with and without repeated 2‐day floods. Two studies were planted in containers in 2001 and 2002 with two sugarcane cultivars and five equally spaced rates of N fertilizer from 0 to 200 kg ha−1. Leaf, stalk and root weights were reduced by periodic flooding and the magnitude of the reduction sometimes differed between cultivars. Plant weights, leaf chlorophyll content (SPAD) and leaf N content were often highest near an N rate of 100 kg ha−1. Usually, N fertilizer rate did not interact with water treatment. Nitrogen fertilization may be useful for sugarcane exposed to water‐table depths of 25 cm with and without 2‐day repeated floods on EAA Histosols.
Improvement of Time‐Driven Models of Lamina Cocksfoot Digestibility by a Process‐Based Model to Take Account of Plant N Nutrition and Defoliation
Authors: Duru M. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractFor management purposes, models of lamina digestibility (DW) that are thermal time driven (Tsum) fail to account for plant nitrogen status (0 < Ni < 1) and defoliation intensity (residual sheath height: Sr). The objective of this paper was to enrich them using a functional processed‐based model, which assumes that the decline in DW over time depends on the metabolic : structural tissue ratio and plant ageing. An experiment combining two N fertilizer rates and two defoliation regimes (differences in Sr) for two spring and two summer regrowth was done to analyse DW of laminae (youngest fully expanded) and tiller (whole green lamina) levels. For laminae, we show that both processes contribute to explain the decline in DW at a rate that depends on Ni but not on Sr. For tillers, consistent results were found justifying the use of a simple model: DW = f(+Ni; −Ni × Tsum; −Sr). Two different databases (from experiment and commercial farms) were used for validation: RMSD varied from 35 to 49 g kg−1. The process‐based model strengthened the empirical model and improved the comprehensiveness of how management practices change DW. We used both models to create applications for reasoning yield in function of herbage mass in complement than in function of time.
Optimal utilization of non‐additive quantitative trait locus in animal breeding programs
Authors: Li Y. , Van der Werf J.H.J. , Kinghorn B.P. 
Published: September 2008

SummaryOptimal selection on a single identified quantitative trait locus (QTL) with four modes of inheritance: normal autosomal, sex‐limited, imprinting and X‐linked, was evaluated in four breeding structures: single line selection (SLS), two‐way crossing (2WC), three‐way crossing (3WC) and reciprocal crossing (RC) by comparing extra benefit from mate selection over index selection to demonstrate effectiveness of mate selection in exploiting non‐additive QTL. The results showed that the superiority varied at different QTL inheritance modes, initial favourable allele frequencies and breeding structures. The superiority tended to decrease with the increase of the favourable allele frequency except for over‐dominant QTL and imprinted QTL in all breeding structures. Less superiority (below 9%) was observed for a recessive and a fully dominant QTL than for an over‐dominant QTL (up to 27.11%). Normal autosomal and sex‐linked QTL led to a similar trend of superiority from mate selection but the magnitude of the superiority with the latter was slightly higher than with the former for most combinations of the parameters. A high superiority (6.41–41.54%) was observed from mate selection over index selection for an imprinted QTL. A maternally imprinted QTL tended to lead to higher superiority from mate selection than a paternally imprinted QTL. X‐linked QTL led to less superiority from mate selection than the other modes of QTL. A larger superiority from mate selection was observed for a recessive and a fully dominant QTL in structures 3WC and 2WC than structures RC and SLS. The superiority from autosomal QTL and X‐linked QTL was lower in the structure RC than in other structures examined.
Visual inspection with acetic acid test qualities in a secondary setting
Authors: Chumworathayi Bandit , Eamratsameekool Wachara , Kularbkaew Churairat , Chumworathayi Pansu 
Published: September 2008

AbstractAim:  To evaluate the visual inspection using acetic acid (VIA) test qualities in a secondary (follow‐up) setting, 1 year after cryotherapy treatment performed as part of the Safety, Acceptability and Feasibility demonstration project designed to evaluate the safety, acceptability and feasibility of VIA. An immediate offer of cryotherapy was made to those who test positive and are eligible for treatment.Methods:  At 1 year after cryotherapy, 648 women received both a secondary (follow‐up) VIA test by nurse‐providers, and colposcopy with biopsy, if indicated, by trained physician colposcopists at a referral hospital. All pathologic specimens were sent for examination by a single pathologist.Results:  VIA nurse‐providers assessed 42 of the 648 women (6.5%) referred as abnormal (i.e. they tested positive or were suspected of having cancer). Among the 42, the final colposcopic‐based diagnosis was HSIL or higher in three cases (7.1%), of which two were HSIL and one was adenocarcinoma. Of the 606 VIA negative women, the colposcopic‐based diagnosis was HSIL in only two cases (0.3%).Conclusions:  The VIA test qualities in this setting were: a positive rate of 6.5%, a sensitivity of 60%, a specificity of 93.9%, a positive predictive value of 7.1%, a negative predictive value of 99.7% and an accuracy of 93.7%. These results are comparable to those of Pap smear in most settings.
A survey on Mesh Segmentation Techniques
Authors: Shamir Ariel 
Published: September 2008

AbstractWe present a review of the state of the art of segmentation and partitioning techniques of boundary meshes. Recently, these have become a part of many mesh and object manipulation algorithms in computer graphics, geometric modelling and computer aided design. We formulate the segmentation problem as an optimization problem and identify two primarily distinct types of mesh segmentation, namelypartsegmentation andsurface‐patchsegmentation. We classify previous segmentation solutions according to the different segmentation goals, the optimization criteria and features used, and the various algorithmic techniques employed. We also present some generic algorithms for the major segmentation techniques.
Statistical optimization of octree searches
Authors: Castro Rener , Lewiner Thomas , Lopes Hélio , Tavares Geovan , Bordignon Alex 
Published: September 2008

Abstract This work emerged from the following observation: usual search procedures for octrees start from the root to retrieve the data stored at the leaves. But as the leaves are the farthest nodes to the root, why start from the root? With usual octree representations, there is no other way to access a leaf. However, hashed octrees allow direct access to any node, given its position in space and its depth in the octree. Search procedures take the position as an input, but the depth remains unknown. This work proposes to estimate the depth of an arbitrary node through a statistical optimization of the average cost of search procedures. As the highest costs of these algorithms are obtained when starting from the root, this method improves on both the memory footprint by the use of hashed octrees, and execution time through the proposed optimization.
Displacement Mapping on the GPU — State of the Art
Authors: Szirmay‐Kalos László , Umenhoffer Tamás 
Published: September 2008

Abstract This paper reviews the latest developments of displacement mapping algorithms implemented on the vertex, geometry, and fragment shaders of graphics cards. Displacement mapping algorithms are classified as per‐vertex and per‐pixel methods. Per‐pixel approaches are further categorized as safe algorithms that aim at correct solutions in all cases, to unsafe techniques that may fail in extreme cases but are usually much faster than safe algorithms, and to combined methods that exploit the robustness of safe and the speed of unsafe techniques. We discuss the possible roles of vertex, geometry and fragment shaders to implement these algorithms. Then the particular GPU‐based bump, parallax, relief, sphere, horizon mapping, cone stepping, local ray tracing, pyramidal and view‐dependent displacement mapping methods, as well as their numerous variations are reviewed providing also implementation details of the shader programs. We present these methods using uniform notations and also point out when different authors called similar concepts differently. In addition to basic displacement mapping, self‐shadowing and silhouette processing are also reviewed. Based on our experiences gained having reimplemented these methods, their performance and quality are compared, and the advantages and disadvantages are fairly presented.
Surface Reconstruction from Unorganized Point Data with Quadrics
Authors: Vančo Marek , Hamann Bernd , Brunnett Guido 
Published: September 2008

Abstract We present a reverse engineering method for constructing a surface approximation scheme whose input is a set of unorganized noisy points in space and whose output is a set of quadric patches. The local surface properties, necessary for the subsequent segmentation, are estimated directly from the data using a simple and efficient data structure—the neighborhood graph. Our segmentation scheme, based on principal curvatures, constructs initial point subsets, which may be enlarged or further subdivided based on associated approximation error estimates obtained through approximation of the initial segments by quadric surfaces. Our method is highly efficient and produces a high‐quality piecewise quadric surface approximation of engineering objects, which we demonstrate for several simple and complex example data sets.
Interference Shaders of Thin Films
Authors: Sun Yinlong , Wang Qiqi 
Published: September 2008

Abstract This paper presents a systematic study of light interferences at single thin films. Based on Fresnel's law, we have derived generic expressions of reflectance and transmittance for film interference, as well as specific expressions for free thin films and films coated on transparent or opaque objects. By combining film interference and volume absorption, we have obtained the reflectances and transmittances of film‐coated thin objects such as ribbons. Illumination models for all interference cases of single thin films are presented, and they have been implemented and tested for various structures and materials.