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Selected AbstractsCSR in business start-ups: an application method for stakeholder engagementCORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, Issue 6 2009Jose Luis Retolaza Abstract In this paper, we propose a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) method to apply in business start-ups or newly created firms, whose main aim is the engagement of stakeholders. Several different CSR resources have been developed from various initiatives, both public and private. However, these initiatives do not highlight and consider the characteristics of newly created firms; moreover, most CSR theories and methods of applying social responsibility in firms are focused on medium and large firms, whose characteristics are so different, compared to start-ups and newly created firms. The method proposed in this paper shows the possibility, at least theoretically, to implement a CSR method to tackle all of the interests of future and potential stakeholders in business start-ups. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] Situations of opportunity , Hammarby Sjöstad and Stockholm City's process of environmental managementCORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, Issue 2 2008Örjan Svane Abstract Hammarby Sjöstad is a large brownfield development in Stockholm guided by extensive environmental objectives. This case study focuses on the environmental management of the city's project team. A main aim was methodology development related to the concept of situations of opportunity , how to study those periods when the team had great influence over the process. Goal conflicts on for example energy use and the lake view were identified. The team used policy instruments such as development contracts and design competitions. Some of the situations identified contributed little to the environmental management, for example the detailed planning. Others were more successful, for example the integration of infrastructural systems. Success situations were unique or created by the team, and had less formal power. Other situations had more power, but were burdened with a prehistory of routines and agreements. The methodology should also be applicable to other processes of environmental management. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] The use of self-expandable metallic stents for palliative treatment of inoperable esophageal cancerDISEASES OF THE ESOPHAGUS, Issue 1 2010A. Eroglu SUMMARY Most patients with esophageal carcinoma present in the advanced stage die from tumor invasion and widespread metastases. Because radical regimens are not appropriate for the majority of patients, and their expected survivals are as short as to be measured by months, the main aim of therapy is palliation with minimum morbidity and mortality. Among the palliative modalities are surgery, external radiotherapy or brachytherapy, dilatation, laser, photodynamic therapy, bipolar electrocoagulation tumor probe, and chemical ablation. The placement of self-expandable metallic stents is another method that improves dysphagia for these patients. In this study, the aim was to evaluate retrospectively the effectiveness of metallic stents deployed because of inoperable malignant esophageal stenosis and esophagotracheal fistulas. The results of 170 patients with 202 stents administered because of inoperable malignant esophageal stenosis and esophagorespiratory fistula between January 2000 and October 2008 at the Ataturk University, Department of Thoracic Surgery, were investigated. Despite epidemiological and clinical data, information regarding relief of dysphagia and quality of life were also examined. One hundred seventy patients with stents were between 28 and 91 years old (mean age 63.7 years ± 11.4 years). Ninety-seven were male and 73 were female. Stent indications were advanced tumors with distant metastasis (82 cases, 48.2%), unresectable tumors (51 cases, 30%), patients who cannot tolerate surgery or chemoradiotherapy (18 cases, 10.5%), local recurrence after primary therapy (1 case, 0.5%), esophagorespiratory fistulas from tumor or therapy (14 cases, 8.2%), and refusal of surgery (4 cases, 2.3%). Dysphagia scores evaluated by a modified Takita's grading system improved from 3.4 before the procedure to 2.6 afterward. The overall complication rate without chest pain was 31.7% (occurring in 64 cases). Mean survival was 177.7 days ± 59.3 days (2,993 days). Quality-of-life scores (The European Organization of Research and Treatment of Cancer QLQ C30) improved from 73 ± 10.3 (57,85) to 112 ± 12.6 (90,125). In therapy of malignant esophageal obstructions, metallic stents provide a significant improvement in dysphagia and require less frequent re-intervention according to other methods of dysphagia palliation such as dilatation, laser, and photodynamic therapy, nearly completely relieve esophagotracheal fistulas and improve quality of life to an important degree. [source] Towards a new Bradshaw?ECONOMIC HISTORY REVIEW, Issue 1 20071960s, Economic statistics, the British state in the 1950s SUMMARY This article outlines the attempts of British central government to react to the perceived inadequacy of official economic statistics. A huge amount of work went into this project, the main aim of which was to speed up the production of statistics so that the economy could be analysed in more detail, and thus better managed. If this was to work, more data was required on the labour market, on productivity, on production, and on the interlinkages between those indicators. British official statistics clearly were more comprehensive and more detailed at the end of this period than they had been at the start. Even so, the effort was usually thought to have been a failure by the early 1970s. More detail took time to produce; it was difficult to recruit the necessary staff; successive administrative reorganizations also absorbed energies. The devolved informality of British government hampered the emergence of an overall picture. Businesses and trade unions resisted attempts to collect more data, especially when it showed them in an unflattering light. Above all, the elite, specialist, and technical nature of the reform process meant that very little political and popular pressure built up to force through further changes. [source] Comparison of repeatability and multiple trait threshold models for litter size in sheep using observed and simulated data in Bayesian analysesJOURNAL OF ANIMAL BREEDING AND GENETICS, Issue 4 2010W. Mekkawy Summary Bayesian analyses were used to estimate genetic parameters on 5580 records of litter size in the first four parities from 1758 Mule ewes. To examine the appropriateness of fitting repeatability (RM) or multiple trait threshold models (MTM) to litter size of different parities, both models were used to estimate genetic parameters on the observed data and were thereafter compared in a simulation study. Posterior means of the heritabilities of litter size in different parities using a MTM ranged from 0.12 to 0.18 and were higher than the heritability based on the RM (0.08). Posterior means of the genetic correlations between litter sizes of different parities were positive and ranged from 0.24 to 0.71. Data sets were simulated based on the same pedigree structure and genetic parameters of the Mule ewe population obtained from both models. The simulation showed that the relative loss in accuracy and increase in mean squared error (MSE) was substantially higher when using the RM, given that the parameters estimated from the observed data using the opposite model are the true parameters. In contrast, Bayesian information criterion (BIC) selected the RM as most appropriate model given the data because of substantial penalty for the higher number of parameters to be estimated in the MTM model. In conclusion, when the relative change in accuracy and MSE is of main interest for estimation of breeding values of litter size of different parities, the MTM is recommended for the given population. When reduction in risk of using the wrong model is the main aim, the BIC suggest that the RM is the most appropriate model. [source] Bullying among mentally-ill patients detained in a high-secure hospital: an exploratory study of the perceptions of staff and patients into how bullying is definedAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 5 2006Jane L. Ireland Abstract The present study is the first to explore patient-to-patient bullying within a secure psychiatric hospital housing mentally-ill patients. Its main aim was to provide an outline of the perceptions held by both patients and staff with regards to patient-to-patient bullying as opposed to providing an objective study of bullying. The total sample comprised 104 participants, 44 patients and 60 staff. These were sampled from wards housing male patients and wards housing female patients. All participants took part in a semi-structured interview based on that developed by Ireland and Ireland [2003] and Ireland [2005, 2004]. One quarter of participants stated they had seen a patient being bullied in the previous week, with staff perceiving a higher extent of bullying than patients. Differences between wards were minimal. It was predicted that theft-related bullying would be reported most frequently, that staff would identify a wider range of bullying behaviours than patients and that direct forms of aggression would be identified more readily as bullying than indirect forms. All predictions were supported. Problems in attempting to obtain a definition of bullying were also identified, with participants operating broader definitions than those found in the school-based literature. For example, bullying was not generally considered a repeated form of aggression, the severity of the aggression or provocative behaviour of the victim were not defining features, and it was felt bullying could be accidental. In summary, the current study highlights how patient-to-patient bullying does occur in services housing mentally-ill patients and that researching the behaviour may require the adoption of broader hospital-specific definitions of bullying. Aggr. Behav. 32:1,13, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Using soft computing techniques for improving foot trajectories in walking machinesJOURNAL OF FIELD ROBOTICS (FORMERLY JOURNAL OF ROBOTIC SYSTEMS), Issue 7 2001Elena Garcia Walking machines have been investigated during the last 40 years and some basic techniques of this field are already well known. However, some aspects still need to be optimized. For instance, speed seems to be one of the major shortcomings of legged robots; thus, improving leg speed has been chosen as the main aim of this work. Although some algorithms for optimizing trajectory control of robot manipulators already exist, we propose a more computationally efficient method that employs fuzzy set theory to involve real dynamic effects over leg motion instead of an inaccurate mathematical model. In this article, we improve leg speed by automatically tuning the acceleration of legs. For this purpose, we define fuzzy rules based on experiments and we find the optimal acceleration for every given trajectory. A simple fuzzy inference system is used to compute the required acceleration. It is based on five rules using three linguistic variables. Final results show that foot acceleration tuning for straight trajectory generation is a suitable method for achieving accurate, smooth and fast foot movements. Also it is shown that under some conditions average leg speed can be increased up to 100% using the control methods herein proposed. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [source] Penetrating injuries in children: Is there a message?JOURNAL OF PAEDIATRICS AND CHILD HEALTH, Issue 5 2002AJA Holland Objectives: To determine the frequency, management and outcome of penetrating trauma in children. Methods: A retrospective review of penetrating injuries in children under 16 years of age admitted to the Children's Hospital at Westmead (CHW), and deaths reported to the New South Wales Paediatric Trauma Death (NPTD) Registry, from January 1988 to December 2000. Patient details, circumstances of trauma, injuries identified, management and outcome were recorded. Results: Thirty-four children were admitted to the CHW with penetrating injuries during the 13-year period. This represented 0.2% of all trauma admissions, but 3% of those children with major trauma. The injury typically involved a male, school-age child that fell onto a sharp object or was assaulted with a knife or firearm by a parent or person known to them. Twenty-five children (75%) required operative intervention for their injuries and 14 survivors (42%) suffered long-term morbidity. Thirty children were reported to the NPTD Registry over the same interval, accounting for 2.3% of all trauma deaths in New South Wales. Of these, a significant minority was injured by falls from a mower or a tractor towing a machine with blades. Conclusions: Penetrating injuries are uncommon, but cause serious injury in children. There are two clear groups: (i) those dead at the scene or moribund on arrival, in whom prevention must be the main aim; and (ii) those with stable vital signs. Penetrating wounds should be explored in the operating theatre to exclude major injury. Young children should not ride on mowers or tractors. [source] Antigenicity of chimeric and cyclic synthetic peptides based on nonstructural proteins of GBV-C/HGVJOURNAL OF PEPTIDE SCIENCE, Issue 4 2006T. Pérez Abstract In this work, new putative epitopes located in nonstructural proteins of GBV-C/HGV were synthesized using solid-phase chemistry for their use in immunoassays. The antigens were obtained in linear, chimeric and cyclic forms with the main aim of improving the sensitivity of the enzyme immunoassays. Our results showed, on one hand, that the combination of different antigens seems to be necessary to ensure good sensitivity and more specificity and, on the other hand, that cyclic compounds show higher ability to recognize anti-GBV-C/HGV antibodies than its parent peptide. Furthermore, CD and FTIR have been used in conjunction to characterize the conformational changes therein with synthetic constructs that could explain their different antigenicity. Copyright © 2005 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Understanding and Treating Patients With Alcoholic Cirrhosis: An UpdateALCOHOLISM, Issue 7 2009Giovanni Addolorato Alcoholic cirrhosis represents the terminal stage of alcoholic liver disease (ALD) and one of the main causes of death among alcohol abusers. The aim of this review was to provide an update on alcoholic cirrhosis, with an emphasis on recent findings. Increased alcohol consumption in developing countries is expected to increase cirrhosis mortality. There is a need, therefore, to develop new approaches to the prevention of ALD, including more attention to co-factors that may increase risk of ALD (i.e., obesity and diabetes, chronic HCV infection, and smoking). Furthermore, a better understanding of the pathological mechanisms on the basis of alcohol cirrhosis represents a cornerstone in order to develop new pharmacological treatments. Inflammatory and immune responses along with oxidative stress and alterations in adipokine secretion might contribute in different ways to the evolution of alcohol-induced fibrosis/cirrhosis. As of this date, patients with severe alcoholic hepatitis with a Maddrey Discriminant Factor (MDF) 32 should be offered pentoxifylline and/or corticosteroids unless contraindications exist. For ambulatory patients, S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe) may be considered in a motivated patient with nutritional support. Current studies do not support use of anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha antibody. Finally, achieving total alcohol abstinence should represent the main aim in the management of patients affected by any stage of cirrhosis. In the last decades, several drugs able to increase abstinence and prevent alcohol relapse have been evaluated and some of them have obtained approval for alcohol dependence. Patients with alcoholic cirrhosis; however, are usually excluded from such treatments. A recent study demonstrated the efficacy and safety of baclofen in inducing and maintaining alcohol abstinence in cirrhotic alcohol-dependent patients with cirrhosis. All together the information available suggests the need of a multimodal approach in the clinical management of these patients. [source] ,On MSN with buff boys': Self- and other-identity claims in the context of small stories1JOURNAL OF SOCIOLINGUISTICS, Issue 5 2008Alexandra Georgakopoulou This is a study of self- and other-identity claims such as ascriptions, assessments and categorizations in the classroom interactional data of female adolescent students of a London comprehensive school. The study follows an identities-in-interaction approach and attends to the occurrence of identity claims in stories of recent mediated interactions (e.g. on MSN, by text) between tellers and male suitors, which I collectively call small stories. In a narrative-interactional analysis of such claims in two small stories, I postulate a distinction between taleworld and telling identity claims that allows me to show how the sequential context of the claims has implications for their interactional uptake. I specifically focus on the relational organization of the identity claims in contrastive pairs of positive and negative attributes and on their contribution to the stories' tellership rights and tellability. My main aim is to show how identity claims can be intimately linked with and discursively invoke solidified roles (cf. known, habitual) that hold above and beyond the local context. I argue that the three interactional features of iterativity, narrativity and stylization hold the key to uncovering the links between identity claims with solidified roles. [source] Turn-taking patterns in deaf conversationJOURNAL OF SOCIOLINGUISTICS, Issue 4 2001Jennifer Coates This paper will focus on the turn-taking patterns of Deaf signers and will compare them with turn-taking patterns found in spoken interaction. Turn-taking in the conversation of hearing people has been the subject of considerable attention, but the way conversation is organised by Deaf conversationalists has received less attention. This paper reports on a small project involving conversational data obtained from two Deaf friendship groups, one all-female and one all-male. Our main aim was to establish whether Deaf interactants orient to a one-at-a-time model of turn-taking, or whether there was any evidence to suggest they can also orient to a more collaborative model. It has been assumed by researchers in the field of Deaf Studies that Deaf interactants orient to a one-at-a-time model since, where the medium of communication is visual rather than sound based, participants can attend to only those sources of talk that they can see. The paper also examines the data to see if there are any gender differences in the way Deaf interactants organise conversation. [source] Cloud systems leading to flood events in Europe: an overview and classificationMETEOROLOGICAL APPLICATIONS, Issue 3 2003Federico Porcú Over recent years most European countries have experienced destructive precipitation events, many of which have generated floods resulting in the loss of lives and economic damage. Rather surprisingly, Europe has no common database for flood events, which continue to be monitored by different national and/or local authorities, with different criteria. In the light of this situation, the main aim of the present work is to propose a classification scheme for a European-level flood database, in which severe flood episodes are related to meteorological conditions and mesoscale settings. The meteorological systems relating to the most severe events (22 events) over a five-year period (1992,1996) were analysed using Meteosat imagery and conventional meteorological data. Most of the observed events were related to extra tropical cyclone development. The results are discussed in terms of conceptual models currently used for extra tropical cyclones: the structure and dynamics of Atlantic cyclones can very often be interpreted in terms of well- known conceptual models, while characteristics of Mediterranean systems are not fully rendered by current descriptions. Our study underpins the need to improve the knowledge of Mediterranean systems, possibly introducing new conceptual models and/or refining the current ones. Copyright © 2003 Royal Meteorological Society [source] Geographical patterns of micro-organismal community structure: are diatoms ubiquitously distributed across boreal streams?OIKOS, Issue 1 2010Jani Heino A topic under intensive study in community ecology and biogeography is the degree to which microscopic, as well as macroscopic organisms, show spatially-structured variation in community characteristics. In general, unicellular microscopic organisms are regarded as ubiquitously distributed and, therefore, without a clear biogeographic signal. This view was summarized 75,years ago by Baas-Becking, who stated "everything is everywhere, but, the environment selects". Within the context of metacommunity theory, this hypothesis is congruent with the species sorting model. By using a broad-scale dataset on stream diatom communities and environmental predictor variables across most of Finland, our main aim was to test this hypothesis. Patterns of spatial autocorrelation were evaluated by Moran's I based correlograms, whereas partial regression analysis and partial redundancy analysis were used to quantify the relative importance of environmental and spatial factors on total species richness and on community composition, respectively. Significant patterns of spatial autocorrelation were found for all environmental variables, which also varied widely. Our main results were clear-cut. In general, pure spatial effects clearly overcame those of environmental effects, with the former explaining much more variation in species richness and community composition. Most likely, missing environmental variables cannot explain the higher predictive power of spatial variables, because we measured key factors that have previously been found to be the most important variables (e.g. pH, conductivity, colour, phosphorus, nitrogen) shaping the structure of diatom communities. Therefore, our results provided only limited support for the Baas-Becking hypothesis and the species sorting perspective of metacommunity theory. [source] Reconsideration of Economic Views of a Classical Empire and a Nation-State During the Mercantilist AgesAMERICAN JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS AND SOCIOLOGY, Issue 3 2009Article first published online: 3 JUN 200, Mehmet Bulut While the main aim of the economic policies of European nation-states was to use the power of the state to promote trade and economic growth and to build up national industries and manufacture, the Ottoman Empire continued to follow its provisionist, fiscalist, and traditional economic policies of land expansion in the early modern period. In Western Europe, this experience gave birth to a new class that gradually improved its trade ability and expanding industries and markets under a capitalist system. The Ottoman imperial policy was mostly concerned about the continuity of strong central authority and land expansion, which never meant improving the industry or trade concerns. Instead, the economic policies of the Ottomans were subsistence of the people, provisioning the major population centers, collection of taxes, and maintaining freedom of trade. The balance and stability in society explain the priority for the Ottomans in the economy. However, commercialization and profit explain the priority for the Dutch nation in the economy. This article elaborates the economic views of the Dutch Republic and the Ottoman Empire in the mercantilist ages. [source] Mammalian Sperm Energy Resources Management and Survival during Conservation in RefrigerationREPRODUCTION IN DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Issue 2006JE Rodriguez-Gil Contents The present review has as its main aim to present an overview regarding the mechanisms utilized by mammalian sperm to manage its intracellular energy levels. This management will strongly influence the sperm's ability to maintain its overall function during its entire life span. Thus, the precise knowledge of these mechanisms will be of the utmost interest to optimize the systems utilized to conserve mammalian sperm for a medium-to-long time-lapse. Briefly, utilization of hexoses as energy substrates by mammalian sperm is very finely regulated from the very first step of its metabolization. Furthermore, the equilibrium among the separate, monosaccharide metabolization pathways in mammalian sperm depends on many factors. This prevents the possibility to draw a general vision of sperm energy utilization, which explains the results of all mammalian species in all points of the sperm life-cycle. To complicate the matter further, there are separate energy phenotypes among mammalian spermatozoa. The precise knowledge of these phenotypes is of the greatest importance in order to optimize the design of new extenders for sperm conservation in refrigerated conditions. Moreover, sugars can act on sperm not only as passive metabolic substrates, but also as direct function activators through mechanisms like specific changes in the tyrosine phosphorylation status of distinct proteins. Finally, mammalian sperm utilizes non-glucidic substrates like citrate and lactate to obtain energy in a regular form. This utilization is also finely regulated and of importance to maintain overall sperm function. This implies that the exact proportion of glucidic and non-glucidic energy substrates could be very important to optimize the survival ability of these cells in conservation. [source] A comparison of cloud-resolving model simulations of trade wind cumulus with aircraft observations taken during RICOTHE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, Issue 624 2007S. J. Abel Abstract This paper presents results from simulations of trade wind cumulus with the Met Office Large Eddy Model (LEM) based on observed environmental profiles from the Rain In Cumulus over the Ocean (RICO) field experiment. Comparisons of updraught core parameters are made with the in situ data collected onboard the three research aircraft that participated in RICO. The default set-up of the LEM was unable to produce sufficient amounts of rainwater content when compared to measurements by the aircraft. As a main aim of RICO was to quantify the importance of precipitation in the trade cumulus regime, we test the sensitivity of the model to changes in the rain microphysics, the large-scale forcing, and horizontal resolution. By changing these model variables we are able to obtain reasonably good agreement with the observations of updraught core vertical velocity, cloud and rainwater contents. Furthermore, the LEM produces comparable surface precipitation rates to those derived from radar measurements during RICO in a previous study. This gives us some confidence in the ability of the LEM to simulate realistic precipitating trade cumulus. Copyright © 2007 Royal Meteorological Society [source] Analysis of Case-Only Studies Accounting for Genotyping ErrorANNALS OF HUMAN GENETICS, Issue 2 2007K. F. Cheng Summary The case-only design provides one approach to assess possible interactions between genetic and environmental factors. It has been shown that if these factors are conditionally independent, then a case-only analysis is not only valid but also very efficient. However, a drawback of the case-only approach is that its conclusions may be biased by genotyping errors. In this paper, our main aim is to propose a method for analysis of case-only studies when these errors occur. We show that the bias can be adjusted through the use of internal validation data, which are obtained by genotyping some sampled individuals twice. Our analysis is based on a simple and yet highly efficient conditional likelihood approach. Simulation studies considered in this paper confirm that the new method has acceptable performance under genotyping errors. [source] New Allosteric Modulators of Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor 5 (mGluR5) Found by Ligand-Based Virtual ScreeningCHEMBIOCHEM, Issue 4 2005Steffen Renner Ligand-based pharmacophore searching identified new allosteric modulators of metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5), a class III G protein-coupled receptor. This virtual-screening approach can be seen as a working alternative to more demanding structure-based design techniques with the main aim of developing novel lead series. [source] Sensory ocular dominance based on resolution acuity, contrast sensitivity and alignment sensitivityCLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL OPTOMETRY, Issue 1 2009Catherine Suttle PhD MCOptom Background:, Ocular dominance is the superiority or preference of one eye over the other in terms of sighting, sensory function (for example, visual acuity) or persistence in binocular rivalry. There is poor agreement between sighting and sensory dominance and findings are equivocal on the possible neural basis of ocular dominance and its significance. Thus, there are questions on the meaning and importance of ocular dominance. Despite the lack of clarity in this area, ocular dominance is used clinically, for example, as the basis for decisions on monovision in contact lens wear and on treatment of anomalies of binocular vision. Methods:, Sighting dominance and three types of sensory dominance (based on resolution acuity, contrast sensitivity and alignment sensitivity) were compared within individuals, with the main aim of determining whether sensory dominance is consistent across spatial visual functions. Results:, Our findings indicate that each type of sensory dominance is insignificant in most individuals and in agreement with previous work that sensory and sighting dominance do not generally agree. Conclusion:, These results demonstrate not only that different types of ocular dominance are not in agreement but also that in the normal visual system sensory dominance as measured here is insignificant in most individuals with normal vision. [source] Comparison between aortic annulus motion and mitral annulus motion obtained using echocardiographyCLINICAL PHYSIOLOGY AND FUNCTIONAL IMAGING, Issue 5 2006K. Emilsson Summary Earlier studies have shown that the aortic root, in analogy with the mitral annulus, moves towards the left ventricular apex during systole. However, there are no earlier studies comparing the amplitude of the aortic annulus motion (AAM) with that of the mitral annulus (MAM), which was the main aim of the study. Another aim was to study the intra- and interobserver reproducibility (IIOR) of measuring AAM with M-mode and 2-D echocardiography as it is not obvious which of the methods that should be used. Twenty-one healthy subjects were examined by echocardiography. AAM and MAM were measured at different sites. IIOR was measured in 10 of the subjects. There was no significant difference between average AAM (15·3 ± 1·5 mm) and average MAM (15·6 ± 1·5 mm) and there was a rather good agreement between the variables. There was also no significant difference between AAM at the septal site (16·3 ± 2 mm) and average MAM, but a significant difference between AAM at the lateral site (14·2 ± 1·6 mm) and average MAM (P<0·001) and between the both sites of measuring AAM (P<0·001). The significant difference between the two sites of measuring AAM may have anatomical reasons but may also depend on difficulties in measuring AAM at the septal site where it has lower reproducibility than at the lateral site. IIOR of measuring AAM was good when using M-mode but poor when using 2-D echocardiography and AAM should preferably be measured using M-mode and not using 2-D echocardiography. [source] Danger,early maladaptive schemas at work!: the role of early maladaptive schemas in career choice and the development of occupational stress in health workersCLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY (AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF THEORY & PRACTICE), Issue 2 2008Martin Bamber The schema-focused model of occupational stress and work dysfunctions (Bamber & Price, 2006; Bamber, 2006) hypothesizes that individuals with EMS (unconsciously) gravitate toward occupations with similar dynamics and structures to the toxic early environments and relationships that created them. They subsequently re-enact these EMS and their associated maladaptive coping styles in the workplace. For most individuals, this results in ,schema healing', but for some individuals with more rigid and severe EMS, schema healing is not achieved and the structures and relationships of the workplace, together with the utilization of maladaptive coping styles, serve to perpetuate their EMS. The model hypothesizes that it is these individuals who are most vulnerable to developing occupational stress syndromes To date, this model has been subjected to very little empirical investigation, so the main aim of this study was to address this gap in the literature by testing out some of its main assumptions and to provide empirical data, which would either support or reject the model using a population of health workers. Specifically, it was hypothesized that ,occupation-specific' EMS would be found in health workers from a range of different healthcare professions. It was also hypothesized that the presence of higher levels of EMS would be predictive of raised levels of occupational stress, psychiatric caseness and increased sickness absence in those individuals. A cross-sectional study design was employed and a total of 249 staff working within a NHS Trust, belonging to one of five occupational groups (medical doctors, nurses, clinical psychologists, IT staff and managers), participated in the study. All participants completed the Young Schema Questionnaire-Short Form (Young, 1998); the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Form (Maslach & Jackson, 1981), and the General Health Questionnaire-28-item version (Goldberg, 1978). A demographic questionnaire and sickness absence data was also collected. The results of a between groups analysis of variance and further post hoc statistical analyses identified a number of occupation specific EMS. Also, the results of a series of multiple linear regression analyses indicated the presence of some EMS to be predictive of higher levels of burnout, psychiatric caseness and sickness absence in health workers. In conclusion, the findings of this study provide empirical support for the schema-focused model of occupational stress and work dysfunctions (Bamber & Price, 2006; Bamber, 2006), and it appears that the existence of underlying EMS may constitute a predisposing vulnerability factor to developing occupational stress.,Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Applications of PAT-Process Analytical Technology in Recombinant Protein Processes with Escherichia coliENGINEERING IN LIFE SCIENCES (ELECTRONIC), Issue 2 2008C. Kaiser Abstract Monitoring of bioprocesses and thus observation and identification of such processes is one of the main aims of bioprocess engineering. It is of vital importance in bioprocess development to improve the overall productivity by avoiding unintentional limitations to ensure not only optimal process conditions but also the observation of established production processes. Furthermore, reproducibility needs to be improved and final product quality and quantity be guaranteed. Therefore, an advanced monitoring and control system has been developed, which is based on different in-line, on-line and at-line measurements for substrates and products. Observation of cell viability applying in-line radio frequency impedance measurement and on-line determination of intracellular recombinant target protein using the reporter protein T-Sapphire GFP based on in-line fluorescence measurement show the ability for the detection of critical process states. In this way, the possibility for the on-line recognition of optimal harvest times arises and disturbances in the scheduled process route can be perceived. [source] Gender and New Public Management: Reconstituting Academic SubjectivitiesGENDER, WORK & ORGANISATION, Issue 4 2002Robyn Thomas This article is located within the context of British Higher Education. It examines the ,radical reforms' of New Public Management (NPM) (marketization and managerialism) in the management of university organizations. The article has two main aims. First, to explore the extent to which NPM initiatives have influenced individual women academics's day,to,day experiences of the gendered academy and their professional identities. Second, to understand individuals' active responses to NPM to develop theorizing of individual resistance in public service organizations. Adopting a Foucauldian feminist framework, it is suggested that the introduction of NPM presents a site for political struggle for women academics. The article explores the gendered nature of NPM, to determine how, in three individual universities, different women academics have responded to the ,managerialist challenge'. Finally, the article focuses on the ways in which different women academics might accommodate, resist, or transform the discourses of NPM, the factors facilitating this, and the material outcomes. [source] Caffeine levels in saliva: associations with psychosocial factors and behavioural effectsHUMAN PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY: CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL, Issue 7 2001Carolyn Brice Abstract The present study had two main aims. The first was to examine associations between psychosocial factors, health-related behaviours, regular level of caffeine consumption, time of day and levels of caffeine in saliva following acute caffeine challenges. The second aim was to determine whether individual differences in changes in performance following ingestion of caffeine were related to levels of caffeine in saliva. One hundred and forty-four young adults participated in the study. Questionnaires were administered prior to the study to measure psychosocial characteristics, health-related behaviours and habitual levels of caffeine consumption. Two double-blind acute caffeine challenges were then carried out 1 week apart. Volunteers were given either placebo or 1.5 or 3,mg/kg of caffeine on each occasion. The challenges were carried out at 8,:,00, 11,:,00, 14,:,00 or 18,:,00,h so that the impact of time of day could be assessed. In the week between the two challenges the volunteers consumed either caffeinated or decaffeinated products. This allowed investigation of the effects of caffeine withdrawal on caffeine metabolism. Prior to each caffeine challenge volunteers performed a range of tasks, and a baseline saliva sample was taken. The tasks were repeated 1,h after ingestion of the caffeine, with saliva samples being taken at the start and end of the 1,h test battery. The results showed that the level of caffeine in the saliva was a good indicator of the dose of caffeine consumed and of compliance with the withdrawal manipulation. Caffeine levels were not influenced by time of day, habitual caffeine consumption, psychosocial factors or health-related behaviours. Individual differences in caffeine levels in saliva were not related to the individual variation in the effects of caffeine on performance. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Foreign subsidiary perspectives on the mechanisms of global HRM integrationHUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT JOURNAL, Issue 2 2008Adam Smale Often in connection with the integration-responsiveness dilemma, research on HRM in multinational corporations (MNCs) speaks more to explaining the appearance of HRM practices in foreign subsidiaries than to the mechanisms through which such practices are globally integrated. Accordingly, and adopting a subsidiary perspective, the present study has two main aims. The first is to identify the key mechanisms of global HRM integration, how they are used and by whom, and the second is to investigate the factors that explain their usage. The study uses qualitative data from 40 personal interviews conducted with general managers and the most senior HR personnel across 20 Finnish-owned subsidiaries in China. Based on the contingency view of organisations, explanations for mechanism usage are attributed to certain internal characteristics of the subsidiaries and to the Chinese institutional environment. [source] Preliminary climatology and improved modelling of south Indian Ocean and Southern Ocean mid-latitude cyclonesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLIMATOLOGY, Issue 10 2004Bruce W. Buckley Abstract The intense mid-latitude cyclones that traverse the southern waters of the Indian Ocean, between South Africa and southwestern Western Australia, are among the strongest depressions found anywhere in the world, outside tropical waters. Near-surface winds that exceed storm force (i.e. 24 m/s or 48 knots), and central pressures of 960 hPa and lower, are relatively common for these systems. They pose a constant threat to both open ocean and coastal shipping, and regularly generate severe weather over the populated southwestern corner of Australia. Large ocean waves and swell produce extensive coastal inundation and erosion. There were two main aims in this study. The first aim was to develop a preliminary climatology of these intense mid-latitude cyclones, for the region 20,60 °S, 30,130 °E. The climatology, which is the first that we are aware of for this notoriously data-sparse region, is based largely upon satellite observations, particularly scatterometer data, and is supplemented by ship, buoy and all available land observations. The climatology revealed that, historically, the frequency and intensity of the mid-latitude cyclones in this domain have been significantly underestimated. This underestimation has resulted in analyses that have serious flaws, and the resultant operational forecasts provided to the duty forecasters in the regional forecast centre located in Perth, Western Australia, are of highly variable quality. A number of other climatological features of these storms are discussed in this article. The second aim was to identify the factors that can contribute to a significant improvement in model forecasts of these storms. So far, there have been very few studies of explosively developing cyclones over this part of the world. Results are presented here from a series of high-resolution numerical simulations of an intense cool season Southern Ocean cyclone that developed in 2003, using the HIRES numerical weather prediction model developed by L.M. Leslie. Here, we examine the sensitivity of the cyclone predictions to both model resolution and the initial analyses. The predicted variables of most interest are the central pressure, maximum sustained near-surface wind speeds, extent of storm-force winds, and the horizontal and vertical structure of the storm. Increased detail in the initial state is provided mainly by the assimilation into the archived global operational analyses of high-resolution satellite-derived data, including QuikSCAT scatterometer winds and sea-surface temperatures. The combination of increased horizontal and vertical model resolution, and improved initial model states, was found to produce numerical forecasts with significantly more accurate wind speeds than those obtained from the coarser resolution operational models, which also did not have the benefits of all the additional data. Finally, areas of future research are outlined, including coupling the HIRES atmospheric model with ocean and wave models, to improve forecasts of the sea state, including wind wave heights, swell and storm surges. Copyright © 2004 Royal Meteorological Society [source] Will agri-environment schemes deliver substantial biodiversity gain, and if not why not?JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2007MARK J. WHITTINGHAM Summary 1One of the main aims of agri-environment schemes (AES) is to increase biodiversity on farmland. Common conservation practice is to identify areas containing valuable resources (e.g. habitats, ecosystems and species) and then to protect them: ,protected area' schemes. AES differ from typical protected area schemes because they are often applied to small patches of land, such as field boundaries, and are sometimes located in areas where the target species does not occur. 2AES require an enormous amount of funding and they have been applied across a large geographical area, i.e. the European Union. However, recent evidence suggests mixed results regarding the effects of AES on biodiversity. 3It is hard to predict the consequences of AES on biodiversity because a number of factors are seldom accounted for explicitly. For example: (i) the occurrence of target species will vary between patches; (ii) there will be variation in habitat preference by species in different geographical areas; (iii) both optimal foraging theory and metapopulation theory predict that the distance from breeding individuals is likely to determine patch use; (iv) if resources are widely spread then the home ranges of some species may need to increase to encompass the multiple resources needed for breeding. The potential for these factors to affect the outcome of AES on biodiversity is discussed. 4Synthesis and applications. AES are likely to increase biodiversity if a lower number of larger resource patches are provided, in contrast to current practice that promotes many small fragmented areas of environmental resource. One way of achieving this may be to run these schemes more like traditional protected area schemes, with farms or groups of farms managed using extensive farming methods. Such an approach negates some of the problems of current AES and may help to address a wider range of concerns held by different countryside stakeholders. [source] Managing the transition from bricks-and-mortar to clicks-and-mortar: a business process perspectiveKNOWLEDGE AND PROCESS MANAGEMENT: THE JOURNAL OF CORPORATE TRANSFORMATION, Issue 3 2004David Barnes This paper reports from case study-based research that investigates the impact of the transition from bricks-and-mortar to clicks-and-mortar businesses on the management of core internal business processes. It has two main aims: firstly, to identify the business models for the processes of order fulfilment and delivery used in clicks-and-mortar e-businesses, and any organizational and environmental factors affecting these processes; secondly, to identify the main factors involved in the adoption and use of Internet-based ICTs for e-commerce in clicks-and-mortar e-businesses, and any organizational and environmental factors affecting adoption and use. Results from eight UK-based companies that have been changing from traditional bricks-and-mortar companies to clicks-and-mortar e-businesses are reported. Five main conclusions are drawn from a cross-case analysis: (1) increased integration in e-commerce business processes is inhibited by both technological and business barriers; (2) organizations display various and often confused motives for adopting e-commerce; (3) barriers to the increased adoption of e-commerce are not just technological, but also sociological and economic; (4) the adoption of e-commerce challenges existing supply network relationships; (5) the adoption of e-commerce is tending to automate rather than redesign existing business processes. A three-pronged approach to future research work in this under-researched area is recommended. This encompasses undertaking longitudinal case study research to track e-commerce developments over time, extending the range of cases to include other industry sectors (such as not for profits), and undertaking survey research across a large number of organizations, using quantitative methods, to test the generalizability of the findings from this research. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Introduction: Investigating Form-Focused InstructionLANGUAGE LEARNING, Issue 2001Rod Ellis The Introduction has three main aims. First, it provides a historical sketch of form-focused instruction research, documenting the origins of this branch of second language acquisition, the research questions that have been addressed, and current trends. Second, it seeks to define and conceptualize what is meant by "form-focused instruction" by distinguishing it from "meaning-focused instruction" and by describing three types of form-focused instruction in terms of whether the primary focus is on form or meaning and whether the instructional attention to target forms is intensive or extensive. Various instructional options relating to each type are also described. Third, the Introduction offers a discussion of the main research methods that have been used to investigate form-focused instruction in terms of a broad distinction between confirmatory and interpretative research. Methods of measuring "acquisition" in form-focused instruction research are also considered. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||