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Action
Kinds of Action Terms modified by Action Selected AbstractsPREDICTING THE IMPACT OF ANTICIPATORY ACTION ON U.S. STOCK MARKET,AN EVENT STUDY USING ANFIS (A NEURAL FUZZY MODEL)COMPUTATIONAL INTELLIGENCE, Issue 2 2007P. Cheng In this study, the adaptive neural fuzzy inference system (ANFIS), a hybrid fuzzy neural network, is adopted to predict the actions of the investors (when and whether they buy or sell) in a stock market in anticipation of an event,changes in interest rate, announcement of its earnings by a major corporation in the industry, or the outcome of a political election for example. Generally, the model is relatively more successful in predicting when the investors take actions than what actions they take and the extent of their activities. The findings do demonstrate the learning and predicting potential of the ANFIS model in financial applications, but at the same time, suggest that some of the market behaviors are too complex to be predictable. [source] RESISTING CRIME: THE EFFECTS OF VICTIM ACTION ON THE OUTCOMES OF CRIMESCRIMINOLOGY, Issue 4 2004JONGYEON TARK This study assessed the impact of sixteen types of victim self protection (SP) actions on three types of outcomes of criminal incidents: first, whether the incident resulted in property loss, second, whether it resulted in injury to the victim, and, third, whether it resulted in serious injury. Data on 27, 595 personal contact crime incidents recorded in the National Crime Victimization Survey for the 1992 to 2001 decade were used to estimate multivariate models of crime outcomes with logistic regression. Results indicated that self-protection in general, both forceful and nonforceful, reduced the likelihood of property loss and injury, compared to nonresistance. A variety of mostly forceful tactics, including resistance with a gun, appeared to have the strongest effects in reducing the risk of injury, though some of the findings were unstable due to the small numbers of sample cases. The appearance, in past research, of resistance contributing to injury was found to be largely attributable to confusion concerning the sequence of SP actions and injury. In crimes where both occurred, injury followed SP in only 10 percent of the incidents. Combined with the fact that injuries following resistance are almost always relatively minor, victim resistance appears to be generally a wise course of action. [source] MINDFULNESS,SPECIFIC OR GENERIC MECHANISMS OF ACTIONADDICTION, Issue 10 2010CARLO C. DICLEMENTE No abstract is available for this article. [source] CAUSE FOR WORRY OR AGENDA FOR ACTION?EDUCATIONAL THEORY, Issue 3 2002Barbara S. Stengel First page of article [source] FROM SCIENCE TO ACTION?ADDICTION, Issue 1 2006100 YEARS LATER, ALCOHOL POLICIES REVISITED No abstract is available for this article. [source] COMBINATION WITH PLANT EXTRACTS IMPROVES THE INHIBITORY ACTION OF DIVERGICIN M35 AGAINST LISTERIA MONOCYTOGENESJOURNAL OF FOOD QUALITY, Issue 1 2008ABDEL-MAJEED ZOUHIR ABSTRACT The susceptibility of 11 strains of Listeria monocytogenes to divergicin M35, a bacteriocin produced by Carnobacterium divergens strain M35, and to aqueous extracts of garlic, onion, oregano, red chili and black pepper at 30 and 10C, was evaluated using a microdilution assay. The susceptibility of divergicin-resistant strains to combinations of these agents was also evaluated. Three strains were resistant to divergicin M35 (>500 µg/mL) at 30C but were more susceptible at 10C. Garlic gave the most inhibitory plant extract, followed by onion, while oregano, red chili and black pepper extracts were less active at both temperatures. Garlic extract and divergicin M35 combined or with other extracts increased inhibitory activity against the divergicin-resistant strains. The garlic/divergicin combination was the most effective at inhibiting these strains and was bactericidal at both temperatures. Log-phase cells were the most susceptible to the garlic/divergicin combination. Stationary-phase cells were much more resistant at both incubation temperatures. Furthermore, the effect of the garlic/divergicin combination at inhibiting divergicin-resistant L. monocytogenes in a food system was also studied using cold-smoked salmon as a food model. Results indicated that this combination could efficiently reduce the viability of L. monocytogenes in smoked salmon stored at 10C. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS There is increasing popularity worldwide for chemical preservative-free, ready-to-eat and minimally processed seafood with low salt, fat and sugar content. Bacteriocins produced from lactic acid bacteria can have a potential application to prolong the shelf life of cold-smoked salmon. Also, plant and spice extracts have been shown to contain antibacterial substances with potential for application in foods. Thus, this research explores the combination of divergicin M35, a bacteriocin produced by Carnobacterium divergens strain M35, and aqueous extracts of garlic, onion, oregano, red chili and black pepper to inhibit Listeria monocytogenes and to prolong the shelf life of cold-smoked salmon. [source] INACTIVATION OF BACTERIAL SPORES BY COMBINED ACTION OF HYDROSTATIC PRESSURE AND BACTERIOCINS IN ROAST BEEFJOURNAL OF FOOD SAFETY, Issue 4 2003N. KALCHAYANAND ABSTRACT Foodborne bacterial spores are normally resistant to high hydrostatic pressure; however, at moderate pressure, they can be induced to germinate and outgrow. At this stage, they can be killed by bacteriocin-based biopreservatives (BP-containing pediocin and nisin at 3:7 ratio; BPX, BP + 100 ,g/mL lysozyme; BPY, BPX+ 500 ,g/mL Na-EDTA). Based on this principle, spores of the meat spoilage organism, Clostridium laramie (1,2 × 102 spores/bag) alone or a mixture of four clostridial spores (5 × 103 spores/bag), Clostridium sporogenes, Clostridium perfringens, Clostridium tertium, and Clostridium laramie, were inoculated in roast beef in the presence of 5000 AU/g of bacteriocin-based biopreservatives. The roast beef samples were subjected to hydrostatic pressure (HP) at 345 MPa for 5 min at 60C and stored at 4 or 12C for 84 days or at 25C for 7 days. The HP treatment of roast beef samples inoculated with a mixture of clostridial spores could be stored for 42 days at 4C. The HP in combination with either BPX or BPY extended the shelf-life of roast beef up to 7 days at 25C. The combined treatment of HP and BP controlled the growth of C. laramie spores and extended the shelf-life of roast beef for 84 days when stored at 4C. [source] ACTION TO TAKE IF YOU ARE SUEDJOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF NURSE PRACTITIONERS, Issue 3 2001Article first published online: 24 MAY 200 No abstract is available for this article. [source] III. UNDERSTANDING INTENTIONAL ACTIONMONOGRAPHS OF THE SOCIETY FOR RESEARCH IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2005Article first published online: 1 SEP 200 First page of article [source] THE SPECIAL COMPOSITION QUESTION IN ACTIONPACIFIC PHILOSOPHICAL QUARTERLY, Issue 4 2006SARA RACHEL CHANT In the material objects literature, this question is known as the "special composition question," and I take it that there is a similar question to be asked of collections of actions. I will call that question the "special composition question in action," and argue that the correct answer to this question depends on a particular kind of consequence produced by the individual constituent actions. [source] PROCLAIMING AND PERFORMING THE GOSPEL: LANGUAGE, TRUTH AND ACTION IN POSTMODERN CHRISTIAN FAITHTHE HEYTHROP JOURNAL, Issue 3 2009MARK G. NIXON First page of article [source] THE CGP7930 ANALOGUE 2,6-DI- TERT -BUTYL-4-(3-HYDROXY-2-SPIROPENTYLPROPYL)-PHENOL (BSPP) POTENTIATES BACLOFEN ACTION AT GABAB AUTORECEPTORSCLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PHARMACOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 9 2008David AS Parker SUMMARY 1The pharmacological actions of 2,6-di- tert -butyl-4-(3-hydroxy-2-spiropentylpropyl)-phenol (BSPP), a putative presynaptic GABAB receptor modulator, were examined in electrically stimulated rat neocortical brain slices preloaded with [3H]-GABA or [3H]-glutamic acid. 2At 10 mmol/L, BSPP inhibited the release of [3H]-GABA in the presence of baclofen, but not that of [3H]-glutamic acid. This effect was sensitive to the GABAB receptor antagonist (+)-(S)-5,5-dimethylmorpholinyl-2-acetic acid (Sch 50911). 3Alone, BSPP had no effect on the release of [3H]-GABA or [3H]-glutamic acid. 4It is concluded that BSPP selectively potentiates the action of baclofen at GABAB autoreceptors, but not heteroreceptors and may be a useful ligand to discriminate between presynaptic GABAB receptor subtypes. [source] RAPID EFFECT OF PROGESTERONE ON TRANSEPITHELIAL RESISTANCE OF HUMAN FETAL MEMBRANES: EVIDENCE FOR NON-GENOMIC ACTIONCLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PHARMACOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 2 2008CH Verikouki SUMMARY 1The factors that regulate human fetal membrane transport mechanisms are unknown. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of progesterone on transepithelial electrical resistance (RTE) in the human amniochorion. 2Fetal membranes from uncomplicated term pregnancies were obtained immediately after vaginal or Caesarean deliveries. Intact pieces were mounted as planar sheets separating an Ussing chamber. Progesterone (10,4 to 10,7 mol/L), mifepristone (10,4 to 10,8 mol/L) and combinations of progesterone plus mifepristone were applied to the chambers facing the fetal or maternal sides of the membrane. The RTE was measured before and 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 45 and 60 min after each solution was added (at 37°C). The RTE was calculated in ,.cm2, according to Ohm's law. 3The mean (±SEM) basal value of RTE before the application of any substance in all experiments was 29.1 ± 0.4 ,.cm2., The net change in the RTE (,RTE) in relation to the basal value was calculated in each experiment. Progesterone, mifepristone and the combination of progesterone and mifepristone induced a rapid, surge-type increase in RTE during the 1st min on both sides of the membrane. The combination of progesterone plus mifepristone exerted a synergistic action. The effect was stronger on the fetal side than on the maternal side for all substances tested (P < 0.05). The highest ,RTE during the 1st min on the fetal side was seen with the combination of progesterone plus mifepristone (4.0 ± 0.3 ,.cm2) and the lowest ,RTE occurred with mifepristone (1.5 ± 0.1 ,.cm2). 4The present results demonstrated that the RTE of human fetal membranes increases rapidly in response to progesterone. It is possible that changes in RTE play a role in the control of membrane permeability during pregnancy. [source] COLLECT AND RELEASE DATA ON COERCIVE POLICE ACTIONS,CRIMINOLOGY AND PUBLIC POLICY, Issue 4 2007ROBERT J. KANE First page of article [source] BREAKING DOWN BUSINESS VALUATION: THE USE OF COURT-APPOINTED BUSINESS APPRAISERS IN DIVORCE ACTIONS*FAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 4 2006Donna TumminioArticle first published online: 11 SEP 200 This Note advocates for greater reliance on court-appointed business appraisers in divorce proceedings. After exploring the history of court-appointed experts in American jurisprudence and addressing the specific problems that arise when valuing a business, this Note demonstrates how neutral business appraisers can assist courts in assessing a highly technical matter while simultaneously providing both courts and parties with an accurate, reliable source of information. The Note further provides suggestions for when the appointment of a neutral appraiser may be beneficial. The second section of this Note addresses technical matters that the court must deal with in selecting a reliable expert, including where the court derives its power to appoint a neutral expert, what standards the court should use in appointing the expert, and who should pay the cost of the expert's appointment. [source] DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND HUMANITARIAN AID , THE MEDICAL RESPONSE TO THE INDIAN OCEAN DISASTER: LESSONS LEARNT, RECOMMENDATIONS AND RACS ACTIONSANZ JOURNAL OF SURGERY, Issue 1-2 2006Bruce P. Waxman FRACS No abstract is available for this article. [source] PARENTAL VIRTUE: A NEW WAY OF THINKING ABOUT THE MORALITY OF REPRODUCTIVE ACTIONSBIOETHICS, Issue 4 2007ROSALIND MCDOUGALL ABSTRACT In this paper I explore the potential of virtue ethical ideas to generate a new way of thinking about the ethical questions surrounding the creation of children. Applying ideas from neo-Aristotelian virtue ethics to the parental sphere specifically, I develop a framework for the moral assessment of reproductive actions that centres on the concept of parental virtue. I suggest that the character traits of the good parent can be used as a basis for determining the moral permissibility of a particular reproductive action. I posit three parental virtues and argue that we can see the moral status of a reproductive action as determined by the relationship between such an action and (at least) these virtues. Using a case involving selection for deafness, I argue that thinking in terms of the question ,would a virtuous parent do this?' when morally assessing reproductive action is a viable and useful way of thinking about issues in reproductive ethics. [source] To Commit or Not to Commit: Modeling Agent Conversations for ActionCOMPUTATIONAL INTELLIGENCE, Issue 2 2002Roberto A. Flores Conversations are sequences of messages exchanged among interacting agents. For conversations to be meaningful, agents ought to follow commonly known specifications limiting the types of messages that can be exchanged at any point in the conversation. These specifications are usually implemented using conversation policies (which are rules of inference) or conversation protocols (which are predefined conversation templates). In this article we present a semantic model for specifying conversations using conversation policies. This model is based on the principles that the negotiation and uptake of shared social commitments entail the adoption of obligations to action, which indicate the actions that agents have agreed to perform. In the same way, obligations are retracted based on the negotiation to discharge their corresponding shared social commitments. Based on these principles, conversations are specified as interaction specifications that model the ideal sequencing of agent participations negotiating the execution of actions in a joint activity. These specifications not only specify the adoption and discharge of shared commitments and obligations during an activity, but also indicate the commitments and obligations that are required (as preconditions) or that outlive a joint activity (as postconditions). We model the Contract Net Protocol as an example of the specification of conversations in a joint activity. [source] A Call to Action for Conserving Biological Diversity in the Face of Climate ChangeCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2010Malcolm Hunter Jr. No abstract is available for this article. [source] Targeting Conservation Action through Assessment of Protection and Exurban ThreatsCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 6 2003DAVID M. THEOBALD I developed a methodology to assess the level of threat to conservation of biodiversity to help guide conservation action. This method incorporates socioeconomic indicators of risk, including developed and roaded areas, and measures the proportion of conservation lands affected by developed areas. In addition, I developed a metric called conservation potential to measure the degree of fragmentation of patches caused by development. As an illustration I applied this methodology to Colorado (U.S.A.). Protection levels were determined by examining land ownership, resulting in protected lands (status levels 1 and 2) and unprotected lands (status levels 3 and 4). Areas were considered threatened (at risk) if a land-cover patch had >20% roaded area, >15% developed area, or was highly fragmented. Although 24 of 43 natural land-cover types were unprotected (49% of the state), 9 additional types were threatened. Combining conservation-status protection levels with patterns of threat targets the geographic area where conservation action is needed, provides a way to determine where so-called protected areas are at risk, and allows conservation strategies to be better refined. Resumen: Las evaluaciones de biodiversidad a nivel de paisaje se esfuerzan por proporcionar información para la planificación del uso del suelo y actividades de conservación mediante datos sobre áreas de alto valor de biodiversidad y bajo estatus de protección. Desarrollé una metodología para evaluar el nivel de amenaza para la conservación de la biodiversidad para ayudar a guiar acciones de conservación. Este método incorpora indicadores socioeconómicos de riesgo, incluyendo áreas desarrolladas y con caminos, y mide la proporción de tierras de conservación afectadas por áreas desarrolladas. Adicionalmente, desarrollé una medida llamada potencial de conservación para cuantificar el grado de fragmentación debido al desarrollo. Como un ejemplo, apliqué esta metodología a Colorado (E. U. A). Los niveles de protección se determinaron examinando la propiedad, resultando en tierras protegidas (niveles 1 y 2) y no protegidas (niveles 3 y 4). Las áreas se consideraron amenazadas (en riesgo) si tenían >20% de su superficie con caminos, >15% del área desarrollada o si estaban muy fragmentadas. Aunque 24 de los 43 tipos de cobertura natural no estaban protegidos (49% del estado), 9 más estaban amenazados. La combinación de estatus de conservación y niveles de protección con patrones de amenazas identifica al área geográfica donde se requieren acciones de conservación, proporciona una forma de examinar donde están en riesgo las llamadas áreas protegidas y permite que las estrategias de conservación sean mejor ajustadas. [source] Fringe Conservation: a Call to ActionCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2002John M. Marzluff No abstract is available for this article. [source] Political Action and Speech in the 2000 Presidential ElectionCONSTELLATIONS: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CRITICAL AND DEMOCRATIC THEORY, Issue 3 2001Martín Plot First page of article [source] The ,Iranian Diaspora' and the New Media: From Political Action to Humanitarian HelpDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 4 2009Halleh Ghorashi ABSTRACT This article looks at the shifting position of the ,Iranian diaspora' in relation to Iran as it is influenced by online and offline transnational networks. In the 1980s the exilic identity of a large part of the Iranian diaspora was the core factor in establishing an extended, yet exclusive form of transnational network. Since then, the patterns of identity within this community have shifted towards a more inclusive network as a result of those transnational connections, leading to more extensive and intense connections and activities between the Iranian diaspora and Iranians in Iran. The main concern of the article is to examine how the narratives of identity are constructed and transformed within Iranian (charity) networks and to identify the factors that contribute to this transformation. The authors use the transnational lens to view diasporic positioning as linked to development issues. New technological sources help diaspora groups, in this case Iranians, to build virtual embedded ties that transcend nation states and borders. Yet, the study also shows that these transnational connections can still be challenged by the nation state, as has been the case with recent developments in Iran. [source] Civic Driven Change: Citizen's Imagination in Action,edited by Alan Fowler and Kees BiekartDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 4 2009Udan Fernando No abstract is available for this article. [source] Transnational Advocacy Networks and Affirmative Action for Dalits in IndiaDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 2 2008Jens Lerche ABSTRACT In India, movements and parties representing the lowest ranking dalit caste groups have followed different strategies in their struggle against social, economic and cultural discrimination. In this article, a new dalit movement making use of a ,transnational advocacy network strategy' will be compared to a more ,classical'dalit political party. The main policy target for the new movement is an extension of existing affirmative action policies, while the dalit BSP party focuses more on emancipatory issues. Based on an analysis of the impacts of the BSP and of the new movement at the grassroots level, it is argued that the achievements of the new movement are tempered by the fact that in order to make use of international discourses and political pressure, the movement has had to develop a strategy and policy proposals compatible with existing mainstream neoliberal discourses. This depoliticizes the policies, and hence makes them of less importance strategically. It is argued that this is likely to be a difficulty for transnational advocacy networks in general. [source] Community Driven Development, Collective Action and Elite Capture in IndonesiaDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 2 2007Aniruddha Dasgupta ABSTRACT In response to the well documented limitations of top-down, modernist and authoritarian approaches that have dominated development, practitioners and academics increasingly promote more community-based approaches. The World Bank uses the term ,community driven development' to describe projects that increase a community's control over the development process. In an analysis of a community driven poverty alleviation project in Indonesia, this article examines the vulnerability of such an approach to elite capture. The expected relationships among a community's capacity for collective action, elite control over project decisions and elite capture of project benefits were not found. In cases where the project was controlled by elites, benefits continued to be delivered to the poor, and where power was the most evenly distributed, resource allocation to the poor was restricted. Communities where both non-elites and elites participated in democratic self-governance, however, did demonstrate an ability to redress elite capture when it occurred. [source] Beijing Plus Ten: An Ambivalent Record on Gender JusticeDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 6 2005Maxine Molyneux The 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women (the ,Beijing Conference') was a landmark in policy terms, setting a global policy framework to advance gender equality. Ten years after Beijing, in March 2005, the UN's Commission on the Status of Women presided over an intergovernmental meeting in New York to review the progress achieved on the commitments made in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. This ,Plus 10' event was decidedly low key. Its aim was not agenda setting but agenda confirming; not policy formulation but policy affirmation. Whether it proves to be part of an ongoing worldwide movement in support of gender equality, or whether it marks the decline of that process, is a question that many in international women's movements are asking. This article, drawing on research undertaken for the UNRISD report, Gender Equality: Striving for Justice in an Unequal World, reflects on the ambivalent record of progress achieved by women over the last decades and considers how the policy environment has changed over the period since the high point of global women's movements. It examines how the changing international policy and political climate over this period has given rise to new issues and challenges for those active in global women's movements. [source] Heterogeneity, Group Size and Collective Action: The Role of Institutions in Forest ManagementDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 3 2004Amy R. Poteete Collective action for sustainable management among resource-dependent populations has important policy implications. Despite considerable progress in identifying factors that affect the prospects for collective action, no consensus exists about the role played by heterogeneity and size of group. The debate continues in part because of a lack of uniform conceptualization of these factors, the existence of non-linear relationships, and the mediating role played by institutions. This article draws on research by scholars in the International Forestry Resources and Institutions (IFRI) research network which demonstrates that some forms of heterogeneity do not negatively affect some forms of collective action. More importantly, IFRI research draws out the interrelations among group size, heterogeneity, and institutions. Institutions can affect the level of heterogeneity or compensate for it. Group size appears to have a non-linear relationship to at least some forms of collective action. Moreover, group size may be as much an indicator of institutional success as a precondition for such success. [source] Collective Action and Property Rights for Poverty Reduction: A Review of Methods and ApproachesDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 3 2009Esther Mwangi This article provides a review of literature on the relationship between poverty and the institutions of collective action and property rights, as outlined in the conceptual framework of Di Gregorio et al. (2008). Using the elements of the framework as a guide, it offers an overview of how researchers and practitioners identify and evaluate these concepts. The article emphasises the multidimensionality of poverty and the necessity of applying various approaches and tools to conceptualising and measuring it. In addition to highlighting the crucial role that institutions play in poverty reduction, it shows power relations and the political context to be of fundamental importance in poverty-related studies. [source] Access to Land, Rural Development and Public Action: The When and the HowDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 1 2009Pablo Bandeira After being marginalised in the 1980s, land-reform policies came back to national and international development agendas during the 1990s, resulting in a revival of academic research on the subject. This article reviews the empirical literature on access to land, rural development and public action for evidence on when and how the state should intervene in the allocation of rural land. The review suggests that positive impacts are obtained if, and only if, public actions on the allocation of land are carried out under certain conditions and in a certain way. The article ends by highlighting the need to elaborate empirical models that take into consideration opportunity costs and interactions, and that integrate individual responses with aggregate effects. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||