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Selected AbstractsA graphical generalized implementation of SENSE reconstruction using MatlabCONCEPTS IN MAGNETIC RESONANCE, Issue 3 2010Hammad Omer Abstract Parallel acquisition of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has the potential to significantly reduce the scan time. SENSE is one of the many techniques for the reconstruction of parallel MRI images. A generalized algorithm for SENSE reconstruction and theoretical background is presented. This algorithm can be used for SENSE reconstruction for any acceleration factor between 2 and 8, for any Phase Encode direction (Horizontal or Vertical), with or without Regularization. The user can select a particular type of Regularization. A GUI based implementation of the algorithm is also given. Signal-to-noise ratio, artefact power, and g -factor map are used to quantify the quality of reconstruction. The effects of different acceleration factors on these parameters are also discussed. The GUI based implementation of SENSE reconstruction provides an easy selection of various parameters needed for reconstruction of parallel MRI images and helps in an efficient reconstruction and analysis of the quality of reconstruction. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson Part A 36A: 178,186, 2010. [source] Loop Diuretic Therapy, Thiamine Balance, and Heart FailureCONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE, Issue 4 2007Domenic A. Sica MD Thiamine, or vitamin B1, is a water-soluble B complex vitamin that was first discovered in 1910 in the process of exploring how rice bran cured patients of beriberi. Thiamine is not synthesized in humans, therefore its availability for necessary cellular processes hinges on its continual ingestion. The amount of thiamine one needs to ingest to maintain balance is disease state-dependent or medication-dependent. Severe chronic thiamine deficiency can have significant neurologic and cardiac effects, the latter is reflected in a particular type of heart failure called wet beriberi. This form of heart failure clearly benefits from thiamine supplementation. It is unclear, however, whether thiamine supplementation offers any benefit in other forms of heart failure. Despite this, it is not unreasonable for heart failure patients to routinely ingest a thiamine-containing multivitamin; patients using diuretics have an increased urinary excretion of thiamine and thus are at a higher risk for developing thiamine deficiency. The role of thiamine in heart failure, however, remains arguable. [source] Networks as a means of supporting the adoption of organizational innovations in SMEs: the case of Environmental Management Systems (EMSs) based on ISO 14001CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2007Fawzi Halila Abstract In spite of their large numbers, most SMEs have little knowledge of or interest in environmental questions and generally have difficulties when it comes to integrating environmental aspects into their activities. One way for SMEs to shift from a reactive to a proactive environmental behavior is to adopt environmental innovations. Environmental innovations consist of new or modified processes, techniques, practices, systems and products to avoid or reduce environmental harms. In this study, I focus on a particular type of innovation: organizational environmental innovations, such as an EMS in accordance with ISO 14001. ,,One objective of this study was to understand and describe how SMEs can use a network as a basis for initiating environmental work. Another objective was to develop a model that can be used as a guideline for the adoption of an ISO 14001 EMS by SMEs collaborating in a network. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] The European Service Mapping Schedule (ESMS): development of an instrumentfor the description and classificationof mental health servicesACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 2000S. Johnson Objective: This paper describes the development of an instrument for description and classification of mental health services and for measurement of service use. Purposes to be served by the instrument include: (i) identification of gaps in the spectrum of services in a catchment area; (ii) obtaining background information which may be important to understanding why apparently similar interventions lead to different outcomes in different areas; (iii) investigating how introduction of a particular type of service influences use of other local services; and (iv) understanding the relationship between sociodemographic factors and service use. Method: The instrument was developed through meetings of an international expert panel and pilot stages in several European countries. Results: Use of the European Mapping Service Mapping Schedule (ESMS) appears feasible in several countries and allowed description and classification of the full range of services identified within each of the study catchment areas. Conclusion: The ESMS promises to fill a gap in the technology available for mental health services research. Further practical experiences of its use for a variety of purposes in a variety of settings are now needed to indicate how far the ESMS does successfully generate data which are useful to researchers and planners. [source] Activation of src-family tyrosine kinases by LPS regulates cytokine production in dendritic cells by controlling AP-1 formationEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 10 2003Giorgio Napolitani Abstract The role of src-family tyrosine kinases in LPS-induced DC maturation has not been fully addressed. We show that LPS induces activation of c-Src and Lyn in human DC. Inhibition of these kinasesby PP1 uncoupled LPS-induced cytokine production from the up-regulation of costimulatory molecules, resulting in DC still capable of stimulating T cell proliferation but much less efficient in inducing Th1 differentiation. This is the first example of a pharmacological inhibitor able to modulate the capacity of DC to induce a particular type of immune response. Inhibition of src-family kinases impaired phosphorylation and accumulation of c-Jun, leading to reduced formation of AP-1 complexes upon LPS stimulation. Thus, src-kinases control cytokine production in LPS-induced DC maturation through a timely formation of AP-1. [source] Tonically active neurons in the primate striatum and their role in the processing of information about motivationally relevant eventsEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 11 2002Paul ApicellaArticle first published online: 11 DEC 200 Abstract Analysis of recordings of single neuronal activity in the striatum of monkeys engaged in behavioural tasks has shown that tonically active neurons (TANs) can be distinguished by their distinct spontaneous firing and functional properties. As TANs are assumed to be cholinergic interneurons, the study of their physiological characteristics allows us to gain an insight into the role of a particular type of local-circuit neuron in the processing of information at the striatal level. In monkeys performing various behavioural tasks, the change in the activity of TANs, unlike the diversity of task-related activations exhibited by the phasically active population of striatal neurons, involves a transient depression of the tonic firing related to environmental events of motivational significance. Such events include primary rewards and stimuli that have acquired a reward value during associative learning. These neurons also respond to an aversive air puff, indicating that their responsiveness is not restricted to appetitive conditions. Another striking feature of the TANs is that their responses can be modulated by predictions about stimulus timing. Temporal variations in event occurrence have been found to favour the responses of TANs, whereas the responses are diminished or abolished in the presence of external cues that predict the time at which events will occur. These data suggest that the TANs respond as do detectors of motivationally relevant events, but they also demonstrate that these neurons are influenced by predictive information based on past experience with a given temporal context. TANs represent a unique subset of striatal neurons that might serve a modulatory function, monitoring for temporal relationships between environmental events. [source] The police officer's terrorist dilemma: trust resilience following fatal errorsEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 6 2008Mathew P. White Suicide attacks have raised the stakes for officers deciding whether or not to shoot a suspect (,Police Officer's Terrorist Dilemma'). Despite high-profile errors we know little about how trust in the police is affected by their response to the terrorist threat. Building on a conceptualisation of lay observers as intuitive signal detection theorists, a general population sample (N,=,1153) were presented with scenarios manipulated in terms of suspect status (Armed/Unarmed), officer decision (Shoot/Not Shoot) and outcome severity (e.g. suspect armed with Bomb/Knife; police shoot suspect/suspect plus child bystander). Supporting predictions, people showed higher trust in officers who made correct decisions, reflecting good discrimination ability and who decided to shoot, reflecting an ,appropriate' response bias given the relative costs and benefits. This latter effect was moderated by (a) outcome severity, suggesting it did not simply reflect a preference for a particular type of action, and (b) preferences for a tough stance towards terrorism indexed by Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA). Despite loss of civilian life, failure to prevent minor terror attacks resulted in no loss of trust amongst people low in RWA, whereas among people high in RWA trust was positive when police erroneously shot an unarmed suspect. Relations to alternative definitions of trust and procedural justice research are discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Multi-Criteria Material Selection of Monolithic and Multi-Materials in Engineering DesignADVANCED ENGINEERING MATERIALS, Issue 1-2 2006P. Sirisalee Multi-materials are combinations of monolithic materials in a chosen configuration and scale. They can help populate the material property space and fill areas monolithic materials cannot reach. This paper presents a novel approach to compare the performance of monolithic materials and multi-materials in multi-criteria design problems, with the results being visualised through exchange constant charts. In this paper, a particular type of multi-materials, sandwich panels, is selected to demonstrate the approach. [source] Regional Devolution and Regional Economic Success: Myths and Illusions about PowerGEOGRAFISKA ANNALER SERIES B: HUMAN GEOGRAPHY, Issue 2 2006Ray Hudson Abstract The proposition that regional devolution in and of itself will lead to economic success has become deeply embedded in beliefs and policy discourses about the determinants of regional prosperity, and in turn has led to political demands for such devolution. In this paper I seek critically to examine such claims, using the case of the north-east of England as the setting for this examination. The paper begins with some introductory comments on concepts of power, regions, the reorganization of the state and of multi-level governance, and governmentality, which help in understanding the issues surrounding regional devolution. I then examine the ways in which north-east England was politically and socially constructed as a particular type of region, with specific problems, in the 1930s , a move that has had lasting significance up until the present day. Moving on some six decades, I then examine contemporary claims about the relationship between regional devolution and regional economic success, which find fertile ground in the north-east precisely due to its long history of representation as a region with a unified regional interest. I then reflect on the processes of regional planning, regional strategies and regional devolution, and their relationship to regional economic regeneration. A brief conclusion follows, emphasizing that questions remain about the efficacy of the new governmentality and about who would be its main beneficiaries in the region. The extent to which devolution would actually involve transferring power to the region and the capacity of networked forms of power within the region to counter the structural power of capital and shape central state policies remains unclear. [source] A geometric and kinematic model for double-edge propagating thrusts involving hangingwall and footwall folding.GEOLOGICAL JOURNAL, Issue 5-6 2010An example from the Jaca, Pamplona Basin (Southern Pyrenees) Abstract A new geometric and kinematic model is proposed for a particular type of fault-related folding based on the study of a natural example developed in Palaeogene carbonate rocks from the Jaca,Pamplona Basin (Southern Pyrenees). The example consists of a hangingwall anticline related to a reverse fault with variable displacement and a gentle footwall syncline. A detailed structural analysis of the structure and a cross-section, perpendicular to its axis and parallel to the transport direction, reveals that none of the previous published models of fault-related folds is able to simulate its main characteristics and reproduce its geometry. The main features of the new model are: double-edge propagating fault and folding developed in both the hangingwall and the footwall. A MATLAB-based program was created to calculate structural parameters such as shortening, structural relief and fault slip; obtain graphs of different parameters such as shortening versus slip along the fault, shortening versus fault length, and produce sections across forward models showing the different stages of fold growth. The model presented here gives an acceptable geometrical fit to the studied natural structure and provides a reasonable evolutionary history. In addition, the results obtained using the model are similar to those measured on the cross-section. As a final step the subsurface portion of the natural fold was completed following the constraints imposed by the model. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Differential contributions of the parahippocampal place area and the anterior hippocampus to human memory for scenesHIPPOCAMPUS, Issue 6 2002Stefan Köhler Abstract Past neuroimaging research has identified a parahippocampal place area (PPA) in the posterior medial temporal lobe (MTL), which responds preferentially to visual scenes and plays a role in episodic memory for this class of stimuli. In the present positron emission tomography study, we examined to what extent the functional characteristics of the PPA resemble those of other, more anterior MTL regions across various learning and recognition-memory tasks. We also determined whether the involvement of the PPA in recognition of previously studied scenes is specific to a particular type of scene information. We found that, like the PPA, anterior hippocampal regions showed a novelty response (higher activation for novel than repeated scenes) and a stimulus-related response (higher activation for scenes than objects) during learning, indicating that MTL structures other than the PPA contribute to the encoding of novel stimulus relationships in scenes. However, these anterior hippocampal regions showed no involvement during recognition of either spatial or nonspatial information contained in scenes. The PPA, by contrast, was consistently involved in recognition of all types of scene details, presumably through interactions with co-activated parietal and occipitotemporal cortices. We suggest that MTL contributions from the PPA are sufficient to support recognition of scenes when the task can be based on a perceptually based familiarity process. Hippocampus 2002;12:718,723. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Multi-tasking of helper T cellsIMMUNOLOGY, Issue 2 2010Yisong Y. Wan Summary CD4 T helper cells (Th) are critical in combating pathogens and maintaining immune homeostasis. Since the establishment of the Th1,Th2 paradigm in the 1980s, many types of specialized Th cells, including Th1, Th2, Th17, Th9, follicular helper T and regulatory T, have been identified. We have become accustomed to the idea that different Th cells are ,committed' to their paths but recent emerging evidence suggests that under certain conditions, seemingly committed Th cells possess plasticity and may convert into other types of effector cells. In this review, we will first introduce the major sub-types of Th cells that are involved in immune regulation. Then, we will describe in detail the inter-convertibility of Th cells among different sub-types under in vitro and in vivo conditions. Finally, we will discuss our current understanding of the underlying mechanisms on how a particular type of Th cells may convert into other types of Th cells. [source] Do allergic families avoid keeping furry pets?INDOOR AIR, Issue 3 2010R. J. Bertelsen Abstract, Studies addressing the relationship between pet keeping and development of asthma and allergies may be influenced by pet avoidance in families with a history of allergic disease. Following a cohort of 1019 children in Oslo till 10 years of age, we studied the association of pet keeping with socio-economic factors and allergic disease in the family. A family history of asthma and rhinoconjunctivitis was not significantly associated with pet ownership at birth or with pet removal by 10 years. Acquiring cats and dogs was less likely if the child had allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, whereas no association was seen with asthma (in any family member). Single parenthood increased the likelihood of acquiring a cat, smoking parents more often had cats or dogs, and having older siblings was associated with keeping dogs and other furry pets. Among 319 families reporting pet avoidance, 70% never had pets, 8% had given up pets, and 22% avoided a particular type of pet only. Twenty-four per cent of the parents failed to retrospectively report pet keeping during the child's first year of life. Overall, allergic rhinitis, but not asthma was associated with actual pet avoidance, whereas the strongest predictors for keeping pets were found to be socio-economic factors. Practical Implications Allergic disease in a child most often does not lead to the removal of the family's furry pet. Pet avoidance is associated with allergic symptoms, but not asthma. Socio-economic factors like parental education, single parenthood and smoking affects the families' decisions on pet keeping, including the type of pets the families will avoid or acquire. The large recall error demonstrated points to the need for prospective data regarding pet keeping. [source] Influences of Infant-Directed Speech on Early Word RecognitionINFANCY, Issue 6 2009Leher Singh When addressing infants, many adults adopt a particular type of speech, known as infant-directed speech (IDS). IDS is characterized by exaggerated intonation, as well as reduced speech rate, shorter utterance duration, and grammatical simplification. It is commonly asserted that IDS serves in part to facilitate language learning. Although intuitively appealing, direct empirical tests of this claim are surprisingly scarce. Additionally, studies that have examined associations between IDS and language learning have measured learning within a single laboratory session rather than the type of long-term storage of information necessary for word learning. In this study, 7- and 8-month-old infants' long-term memory for words was assessed when words were spoken in IDS and adult-directed speech (ADS). Word recognition over the long term was successful for words introduced in IDS, but not for those introduced in ADS, regardless of the register in which recognition stimuli were produced. Findings are discussed in the context of the influence of particular input styles on emergent word knowledge in prelexical infants. [source] Understanding postorganic fresh fruit and vegetable consumers at participatory farmers' markets in Ireland: reflexivity, trust and social movementsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 5 2006Oliver Moore Abstract This paper examines how trusting relations between consumers and vendors of organic fresh fruits and vegetables (FFVs) in a particular type of farmers' market (FM) in Ireland are established and maintained, and what the implications of this are. First, the food system is outlined, and then its attendant problems. These problems have led to various solutions, two of which are organic food and FMs. Then, the growth in these two areas is outlined, as is the accompanying growth in the academic literature on these two areas, some of which overlaps. Various pressures, including in particular the increasing distance food travels and disconnected stallholders and products at the FM, are suggested. In light of this, a need to apply an understanding of the reflexive consumer, trust and social movements is suggested. It is found that the consumers interviewed act reflexively by choosing to go to these FMs. They prioritize the trusting relationships built up through repeated personal contact at these FMs over and above organic certification. Along with and as part of this, they prioritize local, fresh, seasonal ,chemical-free' FFVs over and above imported certified organic produce. Various aspects of collective identity formation, including modes of behaviour, objects and stories, and language, are involved in this process. These elements, to some extent, act as a buffer against the pressures of distance and disconnection. Along with this, the essential meaning of the word organic is, in this particular context, reconstructed to include various socio-environmental values missing from some certified organic produce. The word postorganic is suggested. The main methodologies used are semistructured in-depth interviews and participant observation. [source] Is late onset depression a prodrome to dementia?INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY, Issue 11 2002Isaac Schweitzer Abstract Background Recent research suggests there are clinical and biological differences between late onset depression (LOD) and early-onset depression (EOD). Objectives In this paper we review clinical, epidemiological, structural neuroimaging and genetic investigations of late life depression that have been performed over the past two decades and offer evidence that LOD is often a prodromal disorder for dementia. Results LOD patients are more likely to have cognitive impairment and to have more deep white matter lesions (DWMLs). Evidence concerning cortical and temporal lobe atrophy is conflicting, while the ApoE 4 allele is not associated with LOD. Conclusions It is likely that LOD is not a prodrome for a particular type of dementia, but the majority of patients who do develop dementia will acquire Alzheimer's disease (AD) or a vascular dementia, as these are by far the most common causes of dementia. This issue requires further clarification with follow-up of patients over the long term. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Subsessions: A granular approach to click path analysisINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS, Issue 7 2004Ernestina Menasalvas The fiercely competitive web-based electronic commerce (e-commerce) environment has made necessary the application of intelligent methods to gather and analyze information collected from consumer web sessions. Knowledge about user behavior and session goals can be discovered from the information gathered about user activities, as tracked by web clicks. Most current approaches to customer behavior analysis study the user session by examining each web page access. However, the abstraction of subsessions provides a more granular view of user activity. Here, we propose a method of increasing the granularity of the user session analysis by isolating useful subsessions within sessions. Each subsession represents a high-level user activity such as performing a purchase or searching for a particular type of information. Given a set of previously identified subsessions, we can determine at which point the user begins a preidentified subsession by tracking user clicks. With this information we can (1) optimize the user experience by precaching pages or (2) provide an adaptive user experience by presenting pages according to our estimation of the user's ultimate goal. To identify subsessions, we present an algorithm to compute frequent click paths from which subsessions then can be isolated. The algorithm functions by scanning all user sessions and extracting all frequent subpaths by using a distance function to determining subpath similarity. Each frequent subpath represents a subsession. An analysis of the pages represented by the subsession provides additional information about semantically related activities commonly performed by users. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Opportunities for commercial accommodation in VFR travelINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TOURISM RESEARCH, Issue 4 2010Elisa Rose Backer Abstract This research explores the extent to which VFR travellers utilise commercial accommodation in the Sunshine Coast, Australia, and profiles the characteristics and behaviours of this particular type of VFR traveller. The research indicated that 26% of the VFRs stayed in commercial accommodation (CVFRs). This closely aligned with research using the same method in a comparative destination, Ballarat, Australia, indicating that 22% of VFRs stayed in commercial accommodation. CVFR travellers occupied similar types of commercial accommodation as non-VFRs and engaged in similar tourism activities. However, they came from different generating regions and used different sources of information for planning their trip. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] American Orientalism and American Exceptionalism: A Critical Rethinking of US HegemonyINTERNATIONAL STUDIES REVIEW, Issue 2 2009Meghana V. Nayak In this essay, we argue that critical International Relations (IR) scholars must consider American Orientalism in tandem with American Exceptionalism in order to better understand US identity, foreign policymaking, and hegemony. We claim that American Exceptionalism is a particular type of American Orientalism, a style of thought about the distinctions between the "West" and the "East" that gives grounding to the foundational narrative of "America." While Exceptionalism and Orientalism both deploy similar discursive, ontological, and epistemological claims about the "West" and its non-western "Others," Exceptionalism is also rooted specifically in American political thought that developed in contradistinction to Europe. As such, we demonstrate that different logics of othering are at work between the West and the non-West, and among Western powers. We implore critical IR scholars to interrogate how the United States and Europe alternatively collude and clash in wielding normative power over their non-Western Others. We claim such research is important for exploring the staying power of American hegemony and understanding the implications of European challenges to American foreign policy, particularly given recent concerns about a so-called transatlantic divide. [source] The Immobilization of Rhodium-4-(diphenylphosphino)-2- (diphenylphosphinomethyl)-pyrrolidine (Rh-PPM) Complexes: A Systematic StudyADVANCED SYNTHESIS & CATALYSIS (PREVIOUSLY: JOURNAL FUER PRAKTISCHE CHEMIE), Issue 12-13 2006Benoît Pugin Abstract A modular toolbox for the immobilization of homogeneous catalysts to various supports is described. It consists of functionalized chiral diphosphines and three different linkers based on isocyanate chemistry and it is used to attach the 4-(diphenylphosphino)-2-(diphenylphosphinomethyl)-pyrrolidine (PPM) ligand to a large variety of soluble, swellable and non-swellable solid organic polymers and to silica gels. As model reaction the hydrogenation of acetamidocinnamic acid derivatives, catalyzed with high enantioselectivity was chosen. Besides information on the usefulness of a particular type of support for synthetic applications, the experiments were also designed to address the question how parameters such as solubility, swellability, cage or pore size and solvent affect the rate and enantioselectivity of an immobilized catalyst. Rhodium complexes of ligands attached to soluble polymers and inorganic supports achieved ees up to 95,% and turnover frequencies between 700 and 1400,h,1, very close to the values of the homogeneous Rh catalyst (ee 95,%, TOF 1320,h,1). Insoluble or strongly cross-linked organic polymers led to catalysts with lower enantioselectivity and activity. PPM ligands attached to water soluble dendrimer fragments allowed hydrogenation in water solution with ees up to 94,%, albeit with much lower activity compared to reactions in methanol with the homogeneous catalyst. [source] High-pressure paint-gun injury of the finger simulating giant cell tumor of tendon sheathJOURNAL OF CUTANEOUS PATHOLOGY, Issue 2 2005Catherine M. Stefanato At this pressure, paint will penetrate the skin and spread quickly through fascial planes and tendon sheaths. The present case is that of a lesion from the finger of a 35-year-old white male in whom a history was initially unavailable. Histologic examination revealed diffuse fibrohistiocytic proliferation and giant cells, with numerous darkly pigmented, uniformly small-sized particles throughout the lesion. The initial impression was that of a giant cell tumor of tendon sheath. However, the pigment particles were negative for Perls stain, and polariscopic examination revealed clear refractile fragments. These findings raised the possibility that the lesion was the result of a traumatic event. On further inquiry, it was revealed that the patient had sustained a high-pressure paint-gun injury 1 year earlier. The simulation, histopathologically, of a giant cell tumor of tendon sheath by a high-pressure paint-gun injury has not, to our knowledge, been reported previously, nor has the histologic finding of small, uniformly sized pigment particles and polarizable refractile fragments in this particular type of injury. [source] The Symbolic Capital of Social Identities: The Genre of Bargaining in an Urban Guatemalan MarketJOURNAL OF LINGUISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 2 2000Brigittine M. French This article examines bartering speech in a Guatemalan market as a particular type of discourse, the genre of bargaining. It also investigates marketers' uses of that discourse as facilitating a process of negotiating their identities as social actors. The article examines, first, how the invocation of the genre of bargaining orders marketers' speech into a stable and coherent discourse; second, how the genre's connections with social, ideological, and political-economic relations invest marketers' speech with pre-established associations; and third, how marketers may manipulate social and ideological associations established by past conventions in order to negotiate the social value of their identities at present. [source] Historical Perspectives on Family StudiesJOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 2 2000Stephanie Coontz This article explores the relationship of historical research to contemporary family studies. Family history was influenced greatly by fields such as sociology and anthropology, leading it to make several contributions to those fields in turn. The continuing collaboration of these disciplines can significantly enrich current family research, practice, and policy making. History's specific contribution lies in its attention to context. Although historical research confirms sociologic and ethnographic findings on the diversity of family forms, for example, it also reveals that all families are not created equal. The advantage of any particular type of family at any particular time is constructed out of contingent and historically variable social relationships. Historical research allows researchers to deepen their analysis of family diversity and family change by challenging widespread assumptions about what is and what is not truly new in family life. Such research complicates generalizations about the impact of family change and raises several methodological cautions about what can be compared and controlled for in analyzing family variations and outcomes. [source] Visual Analysis or Semi-Automated Gray-Scale-Based Color Mapping of the Carotid Plaque: Which Method Correlates the Best with the Presence of Cerebrovascular Symptoms and/or Lesions on MRI?JOURNAL OF NEUROIMAGING, Issue 2 2009Isabelle Momjian MD ABSTRACT BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE To determine the correlation between carotid plaque morphology, assessed by two different ultrasonographic methods, and presence of cerebrovascular events and/or lesions on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). PATIENTS AND METHODS Visual analysis of plaque echogenicity using a five-type classification was performed. Further, a semi-automated gray-scale-based color mapping of the whole plaque and of its surface was achieved. RESULTS There were 31 (35%) symptomatic (23 strokes and 8 transitory ischemic attacks [TIAs]) and 58 (65%) asymptomatic carotid stenoses. MRI lesions related to the carotid stenosis if located in the ipsilateral cortical, subcortical, or watershed area, were present in 27 cases (30%). In a multivariate logistic regression model, degree of stenosis (P= .03) and a predominant red color on the surface (P= .04) were independent factors associated with the presence of cerebrovascular events and/or lesions on MRI. Sensitivity and specificity were, respectively, 80% and 63% by combining degree of stenosis and color mapping of plaque surface. CONCLUSION Degree of stenosis and a predominant red color on plaque surface were independent factors associated with the presence of cerebrovascular events and/or lesions on MRI. No correlation was observed with any particular type of plaque based on visual analysis alone. [source] Comprehend and analyze knowledge networks to improve software evolutionJOURNAL OF SOFTWARE MAINTENANCE AND EVOLUTION: RESEARCH AND PRACTICE, Issue 3 2009Christian Del Rosso Abstract When a set of people are connected by a set of meaningful social relationships we talk of a social network. A social network represents a social structure and the underlying structural patterns can be used to analyze and comprehend how people relate to each other and their emergent behavior as a group. Developing software is fundamentally a human activity. Developers cooperate and exchange knowledge and information, creating in fact, a particular type of social network that we call knowledge network. In this paper we investigate knowledge networks in software development teams by applying social network analysis and we use the Apache web server as a case study. By analyzing the structural communication and coordination patterns in Apache we have been able to identify the Apache knowledge network, highlight potential communication bottlenecks, and find brokers and important coordination points in the software development team. Furthermore, our work enables a software architect to analyze and maintain the organization and the software architecture aligned during software evolution. An important lesson that we have is that the analysis of knowledge networks constitutes an additional tool to be added to the traditional software architecture assessment methods. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] The Purchasing and Control of Supplementary Third-Party Logistics ServicesJOURNAL OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2000Remko I. van Hoek SUMMARY Mass customization poses a challenge to the development of competitive supply chains. Third-party logistics service providers are targeting customizing operations to supplement their transport and warehousing services. Their expansion is driven by strategies for adding value and upgrading customer relations. This article assesses the development of these relations by presenting the results of a survey conducted among service providers. The assessment covers the nature of the purchasing policy and governance structure applied in this particular type of interfirm relations, including the type of services, contracts, frequency, level, and content of coordination and communication among parties in the chain. It was found that the new transactional context does not represent a market environment in which third parties can escape traditional arm's-length fixed contracts. It was also found that supplementary customizing services are not often applied. Recommendations are made about purchasing these services and about initiatives for third parties to start expanding their competence within the governance structure. [source] Arteriolosclerotic ulcer of MartorellJOURNAL OF THE EUROPEAN ACADEMY OF DERMATOLOGY & VENEREOLOGY, Issue 8 2010JDD Vuerstaek Abstract In 1945, Martorell described ischaemic leg ulcers in patients with hypertension. He suggested that the ischaemic necrosis was secondary to a hypertensive arteriolar disease and referred to them as ,hypertensive ischaemic ulcers'. In recent years, the specific entity of these ulcers has been questioned. Others claim they have a much higher incidence, but presume the diagnosis is frequently missed. Almost 900 cases of Martorell's ulcers have been reported in literature since the first description. A systematic review and comprehensive search of literature (evidence-based) was needed to characterize this type of ulcer. Based on aetiology and histopathology, it seems to be justified to maintain the name ,arteriolosclerotic ulcer of Martorell'. We conclude that the arteriolosclerotic ulcer of Martorell is a specific entity with its own clinical and histological diagnostic keys, wound management and preventive measures. We introduce a set of criteria that may be used to facilitate diagnosing arteriolosclerotic ulcer of Martorell as well as a flowchart that includes diagnosis, treatment and prevention of this particular type of vascular leg ulcer. [source] Risk preference and employment contract typeJOURNAL OF THE ROYAL STATISTICAL SOCIETY: SERIES A (STATISTICS IN SOCIETY), Issue 4 2006Sarah Brown Summary., We explore the possibility that a systematic relationship exists between employment within a particular type of contract and risk preference. We exploit a set of proxies for risk preference, whereby some of the proxies capture risk loving behaviour (expenditure on gambling, smoking and alcohol) whereas others capture risk averse behaviour (expenditure on life and contents insurance, and unearned income). The empirical analysis, based on pooled cross-section data from the UK Family Expenditure Survey, 1997,2000, provides evidence of a systematic relationship between employment contract type and risk preference, with, for example, self-employed workers being more or less likely to engage in the consumption of ,risky' or financial security products respectively. The results are based on the ordered generalized extreme value model, a relatively infrequently used discrete choice model, which allows for ordering and correlation in the alternatives observed. [source] Toward multipurpose NMR experimentsMAGNETIC RESONANCE IN CHEMISTRY, Issue 1 2010Judith Schlagnitweit Abstract Standard phase cycled NMR pulse sequences were generalized such that for each individual step of the pulse phase cycle the free induction decay is stored separately without phase correction. This is in contrast to the usual practice, where pulse responses are phase shifted immediately (by applying a ,receiver phase') and co-added as they are stored. The approach used here allows one to extract different types of NMR information, which are usually referred to as different ,experiments', from the same raw data set a posteriori by using complex linear combinations. Storing the free induction decays of individual phase cycle steps separately and using specific linear combinations of these data to obtain a particular type of information increase the overall efficiency of a given set of NMR experiments substantially, because all information can be derived from a single multiplexed data set. This ,super-experiment' requires only as much time as the most complex of the derived specific experiments alone. The principle of this multipurpose approach was demonstrated by performing different multiple-quantum filtered COSY experiments. It also becomes possible to generate linear combinations, which differ from the conventionally acquired spectra a posteriori. For example, we implemented diagonal peak reduction by using zero- and single-quantum filtered COSY contributions without requiring additional experiment time. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] On the cotangent cohomology of rational surface singularities with almost reduced fundamental cycleMATHEMATISCHE NACHRICHTEN, Issue 11 2006Trond Stølen Gustavsen Abstract We prove dimension formulas for the cotangent spaces T1 and T2 for a class of rational surface singularities by calculating a correction term in the general dimension formulas. We get that it is zero if the dual graph of the rational surface singularity X does not contain a particular type of configurations, and this generalizes a result of Theo de Jong stating that the correction term c (X ) is zero for rational determinantal surface singularities. In particular our result implies that c (X ) is zero for Riemenschneiders quasi-determinantal rational surface singularities, and this also generalizes results for quotient singularities. (© 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||