bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Association of Pioglitazone Treatment with Decreased Bone Mineral Density in Obese Premenopausal Patients with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial
Authors: Glintborg Dorte , Andersen Marianne , Hagen Claus , Heickendorff Lene , Hermann Anne Pernille 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Objective: Our objective was to investigate the effect of pioglitazone on bone mineral density (BMD) and bone turnover markers in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Design and Setting: We conducted a randomized, placebo-controlled study at an outpatient clinic at a university hospital.
Patients: Thirty premenopausal patients with PCOS and 14 age- and weight-matched healthy females participated.
Interventions: Pioglitazone (30 mg/d) or placebo was given for 16 wk.
Main Outcome Measures: Measurements of BMD [hip (neck and total) and lumbar spine (L2–L4)], bone metabolic parameters [alkaline phosphatase (ALP), 25-hydroxyvitamin D, C-telopeptide of type I collagen (ICTP), osteocalcin, and PTH], endocrine profiles (testosterone, estradiol, and insulin), and body composition (waist to hip ratio, body mass index, and whole-body dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans) were performed.
Results: Patients with PCOS had significantly higher levels of ICTP, fasting insulin, and testosterone than controls, whereas no differences were measured in ALP, PTH, body composition, or BMD. Pioglitazone treatment was followed by reduced BMD [geometric means (−2 to +2 sd)]: lumbar spine 1.140 (0.964–1.348) vs. 1.127 (0.948–1.341) g/cm2 (average decline 1.1%) and femoral neck 0.966 (0.767–1.217) vs. 0.952 (0.760–1.192) g/cm2 (average decline 1.4%), both P &lt; 0.05. Both ALP and PTH decreased significantly during pioglitazone treatment, whereas no significant changes were measured in 25-hydroxyvitamin D, ICTP, osteocalcin, sex hormones, and body composition.
Conclusion: Pioglitazone treatment was followed by decreased lumbar and hip BMD and decreased measures of bone turnover in a premenopausal study population relatively protected from bone mineral loss.
Circulating Levels of Inflammatory Markers Predict Change in Bone Mineral Density and Resorption in Older Adults: A Longitudinal Study
Authors: Ding Changhai , Parameswaran Venkat , Udayan Ray , Burgess John , Jones Graeme 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Context: IL-1, IL-6, and TNF-α play an important role in the pathogenesis of osteoporosis in animals; however, evidence that these play a similar role in bone loss in human studies is limited.
Objective: Our objective was to determine the associations between serum markers of inflammation and changes in bone mineral density (BMD) and urinary pyridinoline (PYR) to creatinine (Cr) ratio over 2.9 yr in older adults.
Methods: A total of 168 randomly selected subjects (mean 63 yr, range 52–78, 48% female) was studied. BMD was measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry at baseline (mean T score: −0.18 to −0.61) and 2.9 yr later. Serum high-sensitivity (hs) C-reactive protein (CRP), IL-6, TNF-α, and the urinary PYR/Cr ratio were measured on both occasions.
Results: The mean annual loss of BMD was 0.15, 0.15, and 0.34% at total body, spine, and hip, respectively. Change in total body BMD was associated with baseline hs-CRP, IL-6, and TNF-α, as well as change in hs-CRP (β: −0.41%/U, 95% confidence interval −0.68%, −0.15%) and IL-6 (β: −0.62%/U, 95% confidence interval −1.01%, −0.23%). If these markers were put in the same predictive model, only IL-6 remained largely unchanged. Changes in other BMD sites were significantly predicted by IL-6 (hip and spine) and TNF-α (spine only). Finally, change in the PYR/Cr ratio was positively associated baseline IL-6, hs-CRP, and their changes (all P &lt; 0.05) in women, but not men.
Conclusions: Variation within the low levels of inflammatory markers observed in this study, especially IL-6, predicts bone loss and resorption, suggesting that targeted antiinflammatory therapy has potential for the prevention of osteoporosis.
Sulfur-assisted Fabrication of Silicon Nitride Nanorods in Autoclaves at 250 °C
Authors: Yang Lishan , Guo Chunli , Wang Liancheng , Bai Zhongchao , Fu Li , Ma Xiaojian , Xu Liqiang , Qian Yitai 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Silicon nitride nanorods were fabricated from Si, NaN3, and sulfur powder at 250 °C. XRD patterns show that the final product is mixed α- and β-Si3N4. SEM, TEM, and HRTEM images reveal that the product was composed of crystalline Si3N4 nanorods with diameters in the range of 70–400 nm and lengths up to 3 μm. It is found that sulfur plays a crucial role in the low-temperature formation of Si3N4 powders. Low reaction temperature and cheap raw materials make it possible for large scale synthesis of Si3N4 nanomaterials.
Highly Active Nanostructured Co3O4 Catalyst with Tunable Selectivity for Liquid Phase Air Oxidation of p-Cresol
Authors: Kshirsagar Vikas S , Vijayanand Subramanian , Potdar Hari S , Joy Pattayil A , Patil Kashinath R , Rode Chandrashekhar V 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
This is a first report of highly efficient heterogeneous nanostructured Co3O4 catalyst (6–8 nm) having high surface area (95 m2/g) developed for selective liquid phase air oxidation of p-cresol under atmospheric pressure conditions.
Molecular Recognizable Cucurbituril/Silica Hybrids
Authors: Miyake Junpei , Chujo Yoshiki 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
The preparation of molecular recognizable hybrid materials with cucurbituril was achieved by applying sol–gel reaction in an aqueous formic acid without any functionalization of cucurbituril moieties. The hybrid materials obtained showed good film forming properties and benzene recognition abilities.
Attachment of Disilanylene–Oligothienylene Polymers on TiO2 Surface by Photochemical Cleavage of the Si–Si Bonds
Authors: Ohshita Joji , Matsukawa Junya , Hara Moeko , Kunai Atsutaka , Kajiwara Shotaro , Ooyama Yousuke , Harima Yutaka , Kakimoto Masaya 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
When TiO2 electrodes were dipped in chloroform solutions containing disilanylene–oligothienylene polymers and the solutions were irradiated (λmax&gt;400 nm), the polymer-bound electrodes were obtained, which could be used for dye-sensitized solar cells.
Poly(ethylene glycol)-mediated Steric Stabilization of Complexes Formed between Negatively Charged Liposomes and Folate-conjugated Poly(amidoamine) Dendrimers in Water
Authors: Ohori Ryo , Uchida Katsumi , Saito Asami , Yajima Hirofumi 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
In order to develop a new supramolecular complex for use as an active drug carrier, we prepared complexes of an anionic liposome comprising poly(ethylene glycol) (PEGn=50) monooleyl ether with folate-conjugated poly(amidoamine) dendrimers (FA-PAMAM). Regardless of the ratio of FA-PAMAM to liposome, the complexes were stably dispersed in water. These results suggest that the PEG chains play an important role in the dispersion stability of the supra-complexes, preventing the complexes from aggregating.
A γ-Keggin-type Dimeric Silicotungstate Sandwiching an Adamantanoid Tetra-nuclear Ruthenium–Oxygen Cluster Core
Authors: Yamaguchi Syuhei , Uehara Kazuhiro , Kamata Keigo , Yamaguchi Kazuya , Mizuno Noritaka 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
A novel ruthenium-containing silicotungstate of [(CH3)2NH2]8K2H2[(γ-SiW10O36)2Ru4Cl4O2(OH)4]·23H2O (1) was obtained as a single crystal suitable for X-ray crystallographic analysis by the reaction of a divacant lacunary γ-Keggin silicotungstate K8[γ-SiW10O36] with K2[RuCl5(OH2)]. The unprecedented dimeric silicotungstate consisted of two [γ-SiW10O36]8− units sandwiching an adamantanoid ruthenium–oxygen cluster core [Ru4Cl4O2(OH)4]4+.
Photocatalytic Activity of Au/TiOx Particles Stimulated with Visible Light: Gas-phase Reactions of Formaldehyde, Acetaldehyde, and Phenol
Authors: Takayanagi Mariko , Imai Yoko , Tajima Kazuo 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
This document will communicate that the Au/TiOx photocatalyst shows a high activity with tremendous efficiency for the degradation of volatile organic compounds, such as formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and phenol, with visible light. Also, we found that photocatalytic degradation of phenol could take place in dry air as a carrier gas but not in Ar atmosphere.
Nosocomial Infections Due to Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus: Relationships with Antibiotic Use and Cost Drivers
Authors: Mauldin Patrick D , Salgado Cassandra D , Durkalski Valerie L , Bosso John A 
Published: February 2008

Background: Increased incidence of nosocomial infections due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE) has been associated with the use of certain antibiotics and has resulted in increased morbidity, mortality, and costs of care. Objective: To describe relationships between vancomycin and linezolid use and incidence of these nosocomial infections over time and to determine factors associated with the increased costs of care (cost drivers) associated with affected patients. Methods: The association between institution-wide antibiotic use and the rate of nosocomial MRSA and VRE infections was assessed using segmented regression analysis for interrupted time series. The effect that patient characteristics and procedures, as well as certain antibiotic use, had on costs and length of stay of patients with MRSA or VRE nosocomial infection was also assessed and cost drivers for the 2 types of infections were compared. Results: Our analysis included 206 patients who developed MRSA (n = 187) or VRE (n = 19) nosocomial infection. Although small numbers of VRE nosocomial infection may limit generalizations from our results, we found no significant relationship between vancomycin or linezolid use and the rate of either infection. While mean hospital costs were similar, cost drivers varied somewhat between infection types. Conclusions: The incidence of MRSA or VRE infections does not appear to be related to the use of vancomycin or linezolid. Costs of care are quite high in some affected patients and, while mean total hospital costs are similar, cost drivers appear to differ between the 2 infection types.
Another kind of writing: reflective practice and creative journals in the performing arts
Authors: Evans Mark 
Published: February 2008

This article is part of a process through which my colleague Cecilia Macfarlane (Associate Senior Lecturer in Dance and Arts in the Community) and myself are seeking to further develop a long-term investigation into the use of creative writing and mark-making within reflective practice
in the performing arts. The investigation started with presentations given to PALATINE in 2002, and has involved a funded project, Another Kind of Writing (200405), in which students, staff and visiting artists within the School of Art and Design at Coventry University engaged in practical
workshops with a visiting expert in reflective performance practice, the performer and choreographer Miranda Tufnell.
The article seeks to explore the manner and extent to which creative writing offers students the possibility to reflect on their practical work without interrupting the
creative process. The suggestion is made that creative writing can play a valuable role in the development of reflective practice, encouraging students to develop a perspective on their creative work that enables them to make more confident objective analyses of their personal processes, as
well as sustaining their sense of subjective engagement with the process as it happens. This is an important but complex mental balancing act, which becomes part of the performer's collection of professional capabilities. Helping students to develop confidence and competence in this kind of
activity is seen as vital to their continuing success as artists after graduation.
Venus auf dem Weg zur Fotografie. Zur Spezifik der Bildlichkeit bei Leopold von Sacher-Masoch
Authors: Polubojarinova Larissa N 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Goethe's and Lessing's analyses of antique statues of Venus illustrate the classical concept of representation in art. The Austrian writer Leopold von Sacher-Masoch (1836–1895) deconstructs this concept. In his novella ‘Venus in Furs’ (1870), in which the Medici Venus statue plays a prominent role, Masoch changes the relation of signifier and the signified: not the statue but Vanda, the beautiful beloved of the protagonist, incarnates perfect beauty and serves as an analogue of the statue. Masoch's novel reverses the common process of creating a picture: the picture is staged first, and only afterwards is it projected on the canvas. The procedure imitates the phenomenology of photography.
“Übersetzungen aus der Sprache, die es nicht gibt.” Interkulturalität, Globalisierung und Postmoderne in den Texten Yoko Tawadas
Authors: Esselborn Karl 
Published: February 2008

AbstractWriting in two languages that are very alien from each other, the Japanese author Tawada has developed a poetics of translation that does not literally overcome the distance between the two cultures but confirms it by playing with linguistic differences and similarities and “translating transformation” (metamorphosis). For Tawada, writing in any language is the ceaseless attempt to produce a sensual translation from a “language that does not exist” – a language of objects, ghosts, dreams etc. This demands immense adaptability from the writer and the reader.
Kulturpoetische Funktionen der Literatur. Zum Verhältnis von Ethopoietik und Ethnoästhetik bei Hans Henny Jahnn, Heiner Müller und Hubert Fichte
Authors: Oster Angela 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Can the philosophical concept of ethno-poetics, as developed in Michel Foucault's “écriture de soi,” be made fruitful for literary analyses? In the ancient concept of “cura sui”, personal care for oneself, is immediately meant to be also an orientation in political discourse; Foucault's notion does not imply this. Furthermore, Foucault's concept of self-writing cannot be applied to Hans Henny Jahnn's and Heiner Müller's inter-culturally oriented versions of Medea, which are grounded in the coherence of a discourse of alterity that incorporates ruptures and discontinuities in the ethno-poetic process of its constitution. This feature is constitutive also of Hubert Fichte's texts, which cultivate, like those of Jahnn and Müller, a trans-personal code of ethno-aesthetics. The foreign can neither be reconstructed ideologically, nor be rehabilitated ethno-poetically. Fichte's provocative travel reports and sub-cultural documents systematically and programmatically resist the hermeneutic mediation of what is foreign. These texts plead, instead, for an ethno-aesthetic “wording of the world” (Weltverwörterung): writing opens a horizon of discourse, not one of understanding.
“Vitzliputzli” von Heinrich Heine und “Huitzilopoxtli” von Rubén Darío. Korrespondenzen zwischen zwei Kosmopoliten am Beispiel eines mexikanischen Mythos
Authors: Dröscher Barbara 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
The Nicaraguan modernist poet Rubén Darío often refers to the German poet Heinrich Heine. Intertextual references, and similarities in the two poets' socio-cultural positions, constitute the point of departure for a joint reading of Heine's poem “Vitzliputzli” (1851) and Rubén Darío's narrative “Huitzilopoxtli” (1914). The two authors examine colonization and violence by means of demystification and deconstruction. Rarely examined passages show that with respect to gender, which seems irrelevant at first sight, the myth stays virulent and reveals not only the dynamics but also the limits of cultural encounters.
Ein Ausblick auf die historische Stellung von Rilkes Zehnter Elegie im Vergleich mit Baudelaires Le Cygne, Apollinaires Le musicien de Saint Méry und T.S. Eliots The Waste Land
Authors: Por Peter 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Baudelaire's poem “The Swan,” has inaugurated a new topos in European poetry: the modern city as a necropolis. Expressly moving away from Verhaeren's celebration of industrial landscapes, Rilke adopts this topos in his Tenth “Duino Elegy”, just as Apollinaire and T.S Eliot rely on Baudelaire when writing their poems on the modern city. In Baudelaire's, as well as in Apollinaire's and T.S. Eliot's own particular visions, the city occasions an endless walk towards death, even towards emptiness. Rilke creates from this topos an imaginary space. The long walk of his poetic figure through repulsive spaces here below and radiant spaces in the beyond always retains a teleology. In the final constellation, the elements, with their earthly and celestial orientations, link in an absolute harmony. Rilke's transformation of the topos shows the singularity of his work, his unique trust in the creative power of language.
Walt Whitman – gelesen nach Spinoza
Authors: Zubiaur Ibon 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Relying on Spinoza's system, we may assume that a poem is – among other things – the verbal register of an affective process. This can yield valuable insights into the epistemological value of poetry and its ethical relevance. Reading Walt Whitman's work under such premises, we find in openness to affections a condition of knowledge: maximizing favorable affections to understand their adequate causes allows not only the passive expression of an affective balance, but also the active generation of affects and ideas, thus contributing to the growth of our living power.
A New Periodization of Fantastic Literature according to Owen Barfield's Evolution of Human Consciousness and Language
Authors: Chen Fanfan 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Formalist definitions of the fantastic in literature, such as the well-known one by Zvetan Todorov, overlook the historical and cultural variants of the genre. Fantastic stories from different cultures represent the unlikely, the invisible, or the supernatural phenomena (such as dragons and ghosts) in similar ways, which suggests that the fantastic is universal but conceived differently in different cultures and epochs. Fantastic literature can be defined as poeticized storytelling about the imaginary of the unknown. Yet the unknown today may be known tomorrow. As the Chinese writer Lao Zi remarks: “The unknown is the commencement of all becoming; the known is the mother of all becoming.” Owen Barfield's theory of the evolution of consciousness, and Goethe's view of the evolution of the human mind, can be used for a new periodization of the genre, that divides the poetic renderings of the fantastic into four stages.
Luther und Münzer – Forte und Blissett. Darstellung und Interpretation historischer Ereignisse in der mitteleuropäischen Gegenwartsliteratur
Authors: Zucchi Stefan Matthias 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Dieter Forte's German drama Luther und Münzer (1971), and Q (1999), a first novel by the young Italian authors' collective “Luther Blissett,” both depict social and religious revolutions in early-modern Germany. Beyond formal (and mostly superficial) differences, the analysis of narrative details reveals certain common patterns in these two examples of “alternative literature”: re-inventions of historical characters, representation of religious and political institutions, and, above all, a re-interpretation of historical facts. These works and their respective receptions show how social criticism and political discontent have changed in Western Europe in the last thirty years.
Perceived personality associations with differences in sense of humor: Stereotypes of hypothetical others with high or low senses of humor
Authors: Cann Arnie , Calhoun Lawrence G 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Having a high sense of humor has been found to be a general social asset, but there has been no assessment of the specific qualities that are assumed to be associated with variations in sense of humor. Two studies were conducted to examine the assumptions observers would make about the personal qualities associated with varying levels of sense of humor. In the first study, participants (150 female and 86 male college students) were asked to use a set of adjectives to rate individuals described as varying in sense of humor. The overall pattern of results indicated that, compared to persons described as “typical” or “below average” in sense of humor, individuals described as “well above average” were rated more highly on socially desirable adjectives, lower on socially undesirable adjectives, but no different on adjectives reflecting social sensitivity. In the second study, participants (120 female and 49 male college students) were asked to use a measure of the “big five” personality traits to rate individuals described as varying in sense of humor. Results indicated that individuals described as being “well above average” in sense of humor were perceived as lower in neuroticism and higher in agreeableness than “typical”, or “below average” sense of humor others. The findings of these two studies confirm the importance of a high sense of humor as a social asset, and provide some clarity concerning the likely underlying bases for the positive expectations sense of humor generates in observers.
Newsletter
Authors: Nilsen Alleen Pace 
Published: February 2008

Abstract

Humor in the news

As part of an announcement that he and his siblings were honoring their parents by establishing a lecture series and research institute on humor in public life at Wichita State University, outgoing U. S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman presented “More than Comic Relief: The Importance of Humor in Public Life,” as his farewell speech to the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. He recommended self-deprecating humor as a strategic tool of the political trade, a means of puncturing pomposity, defusing tense situations, attracting allies, and even getting people to focus on serious policy issues. He told about his father's “weakness” for the pun…“I went to bed one night worrying about how the sun came up, but then it dawned on me.” and “The other night, I had a nightmare that I swallowed a muffer … the next morning I woke up exhausted.” His father had a collection of jokes “annotated and indexed on note cards,” and he regularly faxed jokes for his son to use in speeches. Many of them Glickman saw only in passing while his staff was on their way to the shredder because they “would've made even Earl Butz blush.”
Newsletter
Authors: Nilsen Alleen Pace 
Published: February 2008

Abstract

Humor in the news

Judging by recent news stories, including the June demise of England's Punch magazine (a ghost of its former glory is still available on its website http://www.punch.co.uk), people worldwide are apparently losing their ability to recognize, much less to appreciate, satire. Perhaps the shocking nature of the September 11th terrorist attacks on New York's Twin Towers made people ready to believe anything, or maybe it is just that we are all so busy multi-tasking that we no longer pay close attention to what we are reading. Or what is even more likely is that in today's deconstructed society, educated people can know a great deal about many things while still missing the details that would allow them to recognize the ridiculousness of what they are reading.
Auto-évaluation : Daily Self-Assessment in the FSL Classroom
Authors: Klein Larissa 
Published: February 2008

Abstract: This article is about the benefits of self-assessment and its use in language education. The main focus is on auto-évaluation as a means of beginning class in an organized and motivating way. In contrast to ‘bell work’ or other start-of-period activities on random topics, auto-évaluation involves asking questions that are closely tied to what is being studied in class. Every day, students answer questions, discuss, and evaluate their responses, and record their mark on a marking grid. An example of the grid is provided along with sample questions related to Grade 9 core French. These questions illustrate how one can take into consideration students' ‘multiple intelligences,’ as well as their needs and interests. In addition to daily auto-évaluation, other ideas are presented on incorporating self-assessment into one's classes.