University of Alabama

About: University of Alabama is a education organization based out in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 27323 authors who have published 48609 publications receiving 1565337 citations. The organization is also known as: Alabama & Bama.

Viral Marketing or Electronic Word-of-Mouth Advertising: Examining Consumer Responses and Motivations to Pass Along Email

Abstract: Although viral marketing has garnered a great deal of attention in the trade press, almost nothing is known about the motivations, attitudes, and behaviors of the people (those sending the email to others) that constitute the essential component of any such strategy. This article reports the results of three studies that examine consumer responses and motivations to pass along email. Implications for target selection and message creation are discussed for advertising practitioners interested in implementing viral efforts, and suggestions for future research relating to computer-mediated consumer-to-consumer interactions are presented for academic researchers.These studies were sponsored by Planetfeedback.com (www.planetfeedback.com), an internet-based infomediary company based in Cincinnati.An earlier version of this work will appear as a chapter in the forthcoming book, Online Consumer Psychology, C. Haugvedt, K. Macleit, and R. Yalch (eds.).

The abundances of constituents of Titan's atmosphere from the GCMS instrument on the Huygens probe

Abstract: Saturn's largest moon, Titan, remains an enigma, explored only by remote sensing from Earth, and by the Voyager and Cassini spacecraft. The most puzzling aspects include the origin of the molecular nitrogen and methane in its atmosphere, and the mechanism(s) by which methane is maintained in the face of rapid destruction by photolysis. The Huygens probe, launched from the Cassini spacecraft, has made the first direct observations of the satellite's surface and lower atmosphere. Here we report direct atmospheric measurements from the Gas Chromatograph Mass Spectrometer (GCMS), including altitude profiles of the constituents, isotopic ratios and trace species (including organic compounds). The primary constituents were confirmed to be nitrogen and methane. Noble gases other than argon were not detected. The argon includes primordial 36Ar, and the radiogenic isotope 40Ar, providing an important constraint on the outgassing history of Titan. Trace organic species, including cyanogen and ethane, were found in surface measurements.

Three Approaches to Case Study Methods in Education: Yin, Merriam, and Stake

Abstract: Case study is one of the most frequently used qualitative research methodologies. However, it still does not have a legitimate status as a social science research strategy because it does not have well-defined and well-structured protocols (Yin, 2002), so emerging researchers who plan to utilize case study usually become confused "as to what a case study is and how it can be differentiated from other types of qualitative research" (Merriam, 1998, p. xi). Research methodologists do not have a consensus on the design and implementation of case study, which makes it a contested terrain and hampers its full evolution. In this paper, I aim to provide an analysis and synthesis of the differing perspectives which are held by three prominent methodologists, namely Robert K. Yin, Sharan Merriam, and Robert E. Stake, on the utilization of case study method in the field of educational research. I will zero in on the ensuing works: Robert K. Yin's Case Study Research: Design and Methods (2002), Sharan B. Merriam's Qualitative Research and Case Study Applications in Education (1998), and Robert E. Stake's The Art of Case Study Research (1995). I selected these three methodologists and their particular books for the following reasons. First, Yin, Merriam and Stake are the three seminal authors who provide procedures to follow when conducting case study research (Creswell, Hanson, Plano, & Morales, 2007) which aid educational researchers to construct a roadmap in their utilization of case study. They are seen as three foundational methodologists in the area of case study research whose methodological suggestions largely impact educational researchers' decisions concerning case study design. Second, previous work on case study detailed the design (Baxter & Jack, 2008), introduction (Tellis, 1997a), and application of case study methodology (Tellis, 1997b) for broader audience of novice qualitative researchers. I believe this paper would be most beneficial and fruitful by exposing novice researchers to a spectrum of different views and conceptualizations of case study that are provided by prominent research methodologists from differing vantage points. This exposure would help them construct or position their own understanding in this spectrum so that they can conduct their research with a dependable and defensible design. Therefore, I present each one of the three distinctive stances on the knotty design issues in case study methodology through points of divergence, convergence, and complementarity. Finally, I opted to concentrate on their particular books for the juxtaposition in this paper, because in these seminal volumes they conscientiously expound upon case study research in its entirety by providing valuable insights into its every step from how it is being conceptualized to how it is communicated to the readers. Thus, the readers of the current paper will have a synthesis and analysis of three complete guides to case study methods, from which they can select the tools that are most appropriate and functional for their own research purposes. In this paper, I endeavor to scrutinize the areas where these three perspectives diverge, converge and complement one another in varying dimensions of case study research. I am going to follow six categorical dimensions which the three scholars mostly converge upon in their seminal texts on case study method: Epistemological Commitments, Defining Case and Case Study, Designing Case Study, Gathering Data, Analyzing Data, and Validating Data. Researcher's Position Prior to moving on to present a comparison of three case study perspectives, I believe readers need to know my identity as a researcher, my investment in this topic, and my intentions in this project. I just completed my doctoral degree in the field of applied linguistics with a dissertation focusing on English as a second language (ESL) teacher candidates' professional identity development. …

Fibroblast Growth Factor 23 and Risks of Mortality and End-Stage Renal Disease in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease

Abstract: Context A high level of the phosphate-regulating hormone fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23) is associated with mortality in patients with end-stage renal disease, but little is known about its relationship with adverse outcomes in the much larger population of patients with earlier stages of chronic kidney disease. Objective To evaluate FGF-23 as a risk factor for adverse outcomes in patients with chronic kidney disease. Design, Setting, and Participants A prospective study of 3879 participants with chronic kidney disease stages 2 through 4 who enrolled in the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort between June 2003 and September 2008. Main Outcome Measures All-cause mortality and end-stage renal disease. Results At study enrollment, the mean (SD) estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was 42.8 (13.5) mL/min/1.73 m 2 , and the median FGF-23 level was 145.5 RU/mL (interquartile range [IQR], 96-239 reference unit [RU]/mL). During a median follow-up of 3.5 years (IQR, 2.5-4.4 years), 266 participants died (20.3/1000 person-years) and 410 reached end-stage renal disease (33.0/1000 person-years). In adjusted analyses, higher levels of FGF-23 were independently associated with a greater risk of death (hazard ratio [HR], per SD of natural log-transformed FGF-23, 1.5; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.3-1.7). Mortality risk increased by quartile of FGF-23: the HR was 1.3 (95% CI, 0.8-2.2) for the second quartile, 2.0 (95% CI, 1.2-3.3) for the third quartile, and 3.0 (95% CI, 1.8-5.1) for the fourth quartile. Elevated fibroblast growth factor 23 was independently associated with significantly higher risk of end-stage renal disease among participants with an estimated GFR between 30 and 44 mL/min/1.73 m 2 (HR, 1.3 per SD of FGF-23 natural log-transformed FGF-23; 95% CI, 1.04-1.6) and 45 mL/min/1.73 m 2 or higher (HR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.1-2.4), but not less than 30 mL/min/1.73 m 2 . Conclusion Elevated FGF-23 is an independent risk factor for end-stage renal disease in patients with relatively preserved kidney function and for mortality across the spectrum of chronic kidney disease.