Showing papers by "University of Hertfordshire published in 2001"
TL;DR: An initiative between the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries Associations and the European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods to provide the researcher in the safety evaluation laboratory with an up‐to‐date, easy‐to-use set of data sheets to aid in the study design process.
Abstract: This article is the result of an initiative between the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries Associations (EFPIA) and the European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ECVAM). Its objectives are to provide the researcher in the safety evaluation laboratory with an up-to-date, easy-to-use set of data sheets to aid in the study design process whilst at the same time affording maximum welfare considerations to the experimental animals. Although this article is targeted at researchers in the European Pharmaceutical Industry, it is considered that the principles underpinning the data sets and refinement proposals are equally applicable to all those who use these techniques on animals in their research, whether in research institutes, universities or other sectors of industry. The implications of this article may lead to discussion with regulators, such as those responsible for pharmacopoeial testing. There are numerous publications dealing with the administration of test substances and the removal of blood samples, and many laboratories also have their own "in-house" guidelines that have been developed by custom and practice over many years. Within European Union Directive 86/609EEC1 we have an obligation to refine experiments to cause the minimum amount of stress. We hope that this article will provide background data useful to those responsible for protocol design and review. This guide is based on peer-reviewed publications whenever possible, but where this is not possible we have used "in-house" data and the experience of those on the working party (as well as helpful comments submitted by the industry) for a final opinion. The guide also addresses the continuing need to refine the techniques associated with the administration of substances and the withdrawal of blood, and suggests ways of doing so. Data-sharing between laboratories should be encouraged to avoid duplication of animal work, as well as sharing practical skills concerning animal welfare and scientific problems caused by "overdosing" in some way or another. The recommendations in this guide refer to the "normal" animal, and special consideration is needed, for instance, during pregnancy and lactation. Interpretation of studies may be confounded when large volumes are administered or excessive sampling employed, particularly if anaesthetics are used.
1,238 citations
Book•
27 Mar 2001TL;DR: In this paper, the Foundations of Mainstream Views on Learning and Knowledge Creation in Organizations: Systems Thinking Mainstream thinking about learning and knowledge creation in organizations Transmitting knowledge between individuals, diffusing it across an organization and storing it in explicit forms Constructing knowledge and making sense in communities of practice Different levels of Learning and KCC in organizations -the individual and the social as separate mutually influencing levels Moving away from the split between individual and social.
Abstract: Introduction - can learning and knowledge creation in organizations really be managed?. Part 1 The Foundations of Mainstream Views on Learning and Knowledge Creation in Organizations: Systems Thinking Mainstream Thinking about Learning and Knowledge Creation in Organizations Transmitting knowledge between individuals, diffusing it across an organization and storing it in explicit forms Constructing knowledge and making sense in communities of practice Different levels of Learning and Knowledge Creation in Organizations - the individual and the social The individual and the social as separate mutually influencing levels Moving away from the split between individual and social. Part 2 Towards a Complexity Perspective: The Emergence of Knowledge in Complex Responsive Processes of Relating The Emergence of the Individual and the Social in Communicative Interaction Complex adaptive systems as a source domain for analogies of human acting and knowing The evolution of the mind, self and society Back to the complexity sciences for analogies Communicative Action in the Medium of Symbols The importance of feelings - protosymbols The importance of reflection-in-action - significant symbols, The multiple aspects of symbols Organization of Communicative Action - rule-based or self-organizing knowledge? Global rules and the structuring of communication Narrative forms of communication Local rules and the structuring of communication Communicative action as patterning process Themes organizing the experience of being together The Emergence of Enabling Constraints power relations and unconscious processes Turn taking, power and ideology The dynamics of inclusion-exclusion and anxiety, Fantasy and unconscious processes Organization as Communication in the Living Present - how knowledge emerges in complex responsive processes of relating Identity and difference - boundaries around a system or movement of process? Complex responsive processes of relating in the living present. Part 3 Systems Thinking and the Perspective of Complex Responsive Processes: Comparisons and implications Comparing Systems - thinking and the Perspective of Complex Responsive Processes From sender-receiver to responsive relating From storing to perpetually constructing memory From the individual-social split to individuals in social relationship From the individual tacit/unconscious to unconscious processes of relating From systems of language to the action of language Institutions, communication and power Dialogue and ordinary conversation in the living present The Organizational Implications of Complex Responsive Processes of Knowledge Creation, The limitations of mainstream prescriptions on knowledge management- Focusing attention on participative self organization.
888 citations
TL;DR: Results of Phase II/III hepatitis C clinical trials in humans confirmed the superior efficacy of pegylated interferon alpha-2a compared to unmodified interferons alpha- 2a.
673 citations
TL;DR: Phytoextraction of Cd and Zn by maize + EDTA was much smaller than that by T. caerulescens from the industrially contaminated soil, and was either smaller (Cd or similar (Zn) from the agricultural soil.
Abstract: A pot experiment was conducted to compare two strategies of phytoremediation: natural phytoextraction using the Zn and Cd hyperaccumulator Thlaspi caerulescens J. Presl & C. Presl versus chemically enhanced phytoextraction using maize (Zea mays L.) treated with ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA). The study used an industrially contaminated soil and an agricultural soil contaminated with metals from sewage sludge. Three crops of T. caerulescens grown over 391 d removed more than 8 mg kg(-1) Cd and 200 mg kg(-1) Zn from the industrially contaminated soil, representing 43 and 7% of the two metals in the soil. In contrast, the high concentration of Cu in the agricultural soil severely reduced the growth of T. caerulescens, thus limiting its phytoextraction potential. The EDTA treatment greatly increased the solubility of heavy metals in both soils, but this did not result in a large increase in metal concentrations in the maize shoots. Phytoextraction of Cd and Zn by maize + EDTA was much smaller than that by T. caerulescens from the industrially contaminated soil, and was either smaller (Cd) or similar (Zn) from the agricultural soil. After EDTA treatment, soluble heavy metals in soil pore water occurred mainly as metal-EDTA complexes, which were persistent for several weeks. High concentrations of heavy metals in soil pore water after EDTA treatment could pose an environmental risk in the form of ground water contamination.
645 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors reported the discovery of a giant stream of metal-rich stars within the halo of the nearest large galaxy, M31 (the Andromeda galaxy), which may have lost a substantial number of stars owing to tidal interactions.
Abstract: Recent observations have revealed streams of gas and stars in the halo of the Milky Way1,2,3 that are the debris from interactions between our Galaxy and some of its dwarf companion galaxies; the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy and the Magellanic clouds. Analysis of the material has shown that much of the halo is made up of cannibalized satellite galaxies2,4, and that dark matter is distributed nearly spherically in the Milky Way. It remains unclear, however, whether cannibalized substructures are as common in the haloes of galaxies as predicted by galaxy-formation theory5. Here we report the discovery of a giant stream of metal-rich stars within the halo of the nearest large galaxy, M31 (the Andromeda galaxy). The source of this stream could be the dwarf galaxies M32 and NGC205, which are close companions of M31 and which may have lost a substantial number of stars owing to tidal interactions. The results demonstrate that the epoch of galaxy building still continues, albeit at a modest rate, and that tidal streams may be a generic feature of galaxy haloes.
586 citations
TL;DR: Notable features of the Arabidopsis ABC superfamily was the presence of a large yeast-like PDR subfamily, and the absence of genes encoding bona fide cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), sulfonylurea receptor (SUR), and heavy metal tolerance factor 1 (HMT1) homologs.
497 citations
TL;DR: The results suggest that the lability of metals in soil, the kinetics of metal desorption/dissolution and the mode of EDTA addition were the main factors controlling the behaviour of metal leaching with EDTA.
492 citations
TL;DR: Major differences were found in victimization rates with 24% of English pupils becoming victims every week compared with only 8% in Germany, and fewer boys in England engaged every week in bullying than German boys; children in smaller classes were more often victimized.
Abstract: Differences in definitions and methodologies for assessing bullying in primary school children between countries have precluded direct comparisons of prevalence rates and school factors related to bullying. A total of 2377 children in England (6-year-olds/Year 2: 1072; 8-year-olds/Year 4: 1305) and 1538 in Germany (8-year-olds/Year 2) were questioned individually using an identical standard interview. In both countries the types of bullying to victimize others were similar: boys were most often perpetrators, most bullies were also victims (bully/victims), most bullying occurred in playgrounds and the classroom, and SES and ethnicity only showed weak associations with bullying behaviour. Major differences were found in victimization rates with 24% of English pupils becoming victims every week compared with only 8% in Germany. In contrast, fewer boys in England engaged every week in bullying (2.5-4.5%) than German boys (7.5%), while no differences were found between girls. In England, children in smaller classes were more often victimized. Further study of the group of bully/victims, schooling differences in England vs. Germany and implications for prevention of bullying are discussed.
490 citations
TL;DR: The multiplicative model corresponds to that used in the multivariate technique of factor analysis and provides a parsimonious and interpretable model for the genetic covariances between environments.
Abstract: The recommendation of new plant varieties for commercial use requires reliable and accurate predictions of the average yield of each variety across a range of target environments and knowledge of important interactions with the environment. This information is obtained from series of plant variety trials, also known as multi-environment trials (MET). Cullis, Gogel, Verbyla, and Thompson (1998) presented a spatial mixed model approach for the analysis of MET data. In this paper we extend the analysis to include multiplicative models for the variety effects in each environment. The multiplicative model corresponds to that used in the multivariate technique of factor analysis. It allows a separate genetic variance for each environment and provides a parsimonious and interpretable model for the genetic covariances between environments. The model can be regarded as a random effects analogue of AMMI (additive main effects and multiplicative interactions). We illustrate the method using a large set of MET data from a South Australian barley breeding program.
448 citations
TL;DR: A review of three families of statistically based models of soil variation that are currently in use and trace their development since the mid-1960s, which considers classification and geostatistics for modelling the spatial variation, time series analysis and physically based approaches for modelling temporal variation, and space–time Kalman filtering for predicting soil conditions in space and time simultaneously.
382 citations
TL;DR: Clifton-Brown et al. as discussed by the authors reported the performance of 15 Miscanthus genotypes at five sites in Europe and found that the genotype performance was similar to that of the non-genotype.
Abstract: John C. Clifton-Brown, Iris Lewandowskia, Bengt Andersson, Gottlieb Basch, Dudley G. Christian, Jens Bonderup Kjeldsene, Uffe Jorgensene, Jorgen V. Mortensene, Andrew B. Riched, Kai-Uwe Schwarze, Koeyumars Tayebic and Fernando Teixeirac (2001) Performance of 15 Miscanthus genotypes at five sites in Europe. Agronomy Journal, 93 (5) pp.1013-1019
TL;DR: It is shown that the heuristics can provide useful information in defining the appropriate network architecture and the resulting generalisation performance of the trained feed-forward neural network predictors is analysed.
Abstract: Neural Network approaches to time series prediction are briefly discussed, and the need to find the appropriate sample rate and an appropriately sized input window identified. Relevant theoretical results from dynamic systems theory are briefly introduced, and heuristics for finding the appropriate sampling rate and embedding dimension, and thence window size, are discussed. The method is applied to several time series and the resulting generalisation performance of the trained feed-forward neural network predictors is analysed. It is shown that the heuristics can provide useful information in defining the appropriate network architecture.
TL;DR: The level of burnout among hospice nurses was found to be low and it was concluded that the investigation of problem-focused and emotion-focused coping in relation to burnout, was oversimplifying the coping-burnout relationship.
Abstract: Aims. Stressors, coping and demographic variables were examined as predictors of burnout in a sample of hospice nurses. The study aimed to investigate the level of burnout among hospice nurses; to ascertain which aspects of nursing work were positively or negatively related to burnout; to examine the relative contributions made by these different variables and to suggest individual and organizational interventions to reduce levels of burnout.
Methods. Eighty-nine female nurses from nine hospices completed a battery of questionnaires comprising the Maslach Burnout Inventory, Nursing Stress Scale, Ways of Coping Scale and a demographic information form.
Results. In general, the level of burnout (characterized by high emotional exhaustion, high depersonalization of patients and low personal accomplishment) was found to be low. In multiple regression analyses, 'death and dying', "conflict with staff', 'accepting responsibility' and higher nursing grade contributed to emotional exhaustion. 'Conflict with staff', 'inadequate preparation', 'escape' and reduced 'planful problem-solving' contributed to depersonalization. 'Inadequate preparation', 'escape', reduced 'positive reappraisal' and fewer professional qualifications contributed to lower levels of personal accomplishment. Overall, stressors made the greatest contribution to burnout and demographic factors contributed the least.
Conclusions. The importance of not labelling individuals as good and bad 'copers' was discussed, as the effectiveness of a strategy may depend on the situation. It was concluded that the investigation of problem-focused and emotion-focused coping in relation to burnout, was oversimplifying the coping-burnout relationship. Suggestions for stress management included staff training in counselling skills, monitoring staff conflict, implementing stress inoculation training to teach appropriate use of coping skills and finally, monitoring particularly vulnerable groups of hospice staff such as unqualified nursing assistants and qualified nurses in management positions. It was concluded that despite the difficult nature of hospice work, the hospice is a positive environment in which to work.
TL;DR: In this article, the spectral dependence of the optical properties of stars in the Taurus region was investigated using data from the Two Micron All Sky Survey (TWAS) data set.
Abstract: Observations of interstellar linear polarization in the spectral range 0.35-2.2??m are presented for several stars reddened by dust in the Taurus region. Combined with a previously published study by Whittet et al., these results represent the most comprehensive data set available on the spectral dependence of interstellar polarization in this nearby dark cloud (a total of 27 sight lines). Extinction data for these and other reddened stars in Taurus are assembled for the same spectral range, combining published photometry and spectral classifications with photometry from the Two Micron All Sky Survey. The polarization and extinction curves are characterized in terms of the parameters ?max (the wavelength of maximum polarization) and RV (the ratio of total to selective extinction), respectively. The data are used to investigate in detail the question of whether the optical properties of the dust change systematically as a function of environment, considering stars observed through progressively more opaque (and thus progressively denser) regions of the cloud. At low visual extinctions (0 3, real changes in grain properties occur, characterized by observed RV values in the range 3.5-4.0. A simple model for the development of RV with AV suggests that RV may approach values of 4.5 or more in the densest regions of the cloud. The transition between normal extinction and dense cloud extinction occurs at AV ~ 3.2, a value coincident with the threshold extinction above which H2O-ice is detected on grains within the cloud. Changes in RV are thus either a direct consequence of mantle growth or occur under closely similar physical conditions. Dust in Taurus appears to be in a different evolutionary state compared with other nearby dark clouds, such as ? Oph, in which coagulation is the dominant physical process.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors focus on the abus et les malentendus les plus courants and indique l'utilisation correcte, and contrast the variance et l'ecart type for mesurer la dispersion de l'erreur standard which indique the confiance that l'on peut avoir dans les moyennes.
Abstract: Beaucoup de recherche en science du sol utilise les statistiques pour confirmer les impressions et interpretations dans les champs et en laboratoire. De nombreux scientifiques manquent de formation en methodes statistiques, et en consequence appliquent les techniques les plus elementaires dans un contexte errone et sans comprehension. Cet article se concentre sur les abus et les malentendus les plus courants et indique l'utilisation correcte. Il differencie la variance et l'ecart type pour mesurer la dispersion de l'erreur standard qui indique la confiance que l'on peut avoir dans les moyennes. Il souligne l'importance de presenter les moyennes et les differences entre elles par opposition a la significance statistique, qui est au mieux d'un interet secondaire. Il incite les lecteurs a examiner leurs donnees de pres et a les explorer avant de decider d'effectuer toute transformation en vue d'analyses plus formelles, et il met en evidence ce que l'on peut achever en utilisant des logarithmes des variables individuelles et des composantes principales des donnees multivariables.
TL;DR: Despite cultural differences, types of behavioural problems seen in EL BW children were very similar in the four countries, suggesting that biological mechanisms contribute to behavioural problems of ELBW children.
TL;DR: Elevated circulating lymphocyte levels after natalizumab suggest interrupted lymphocyte trafficking, which merits further investigation in active Crohn's disease, although the dose used may have been suboptimal.
TL;DR: Predicting the effects of climate change on insect pests and bene-cial insects of agriculture and forestry in the northern hemisphere's temperate zones focuses mainly on temperature because it is the one for which there is most confidence in predictions of future climate change scenarios.
Abstract: Global environmental change is amongst the greatest long-term threats to humans. We need suf®cient food, clean air and a comfortable environment in which to live and our current way of life threatens all of these. We have thrived as a result of the major changes that we have imposed on the planet, particularly with respect to clearing space for modern agriculture and the development and use of related technologies. However, we now understand suf®ciently the nature of interactions and feedbacks within and between abiotic and biotic components of the environment to realize the potential dangers from perturbation of any of these components. Insects are the most diverse class of organisms on Earth (May, 1990). As insects have many detrimental and bene®cial effects on humans and natural ecosystems, both directly and indirectly, it is not surprising that considerable thought has already been given to the impacts that global environmental change may have on them (e.g. Porter et al., 1991; Cammell & Knight, 1992; chapters in Kareiva et al., 1993; chapters in Harrington & Stork, 1995; Patz & Martens, 1996; Cannon, 1998; Epstein, 2000; Rogers & Randolph, 2000). The reason for trying to predict the impacts of climate change within the context of agriculture and forestry is to help to determine whether present systems will be sustainable. Relevant questions include: will we be able to manage insects and their habitats in the future the way we do today and, if not, what can we do about it; will we need to consider every insect in every situation independently or is there any hope of generalizing; can we expect to develop adequately predictive process-based models of change, and can statistical analyses of long-term data lead to useful predictions? This paper is concerned mainly with predicting the effects of climate change on insect pests and bene®cial insects of agriculture and forestry in the northern hemisphere's temperate zones, although the general principles may be applied more widely. Whilst mindful of interactions with other factors, we concentrate mainly on temperature because, of the climate variables, it is the one for which there is most con®dence in predictions of future climate change scenarios (Houghton et al., 2001) and for which we have most evidence from which predictions of impacts might be derived. The potential rate of increase of many insects is strongly dependent on temperature, and their survival is impaired at low and high temperatures. Changes in both mean temperature and the extent and frequency of extremes can hence have major impacts on insect populations. First we outline what one might intuitively expect to happen to insects as a result of a general rise in temperature and then we look at various complicating factors that have the potential to confound these expectations. Next we give examples of changes that are already occurring and are consistent with expectation. Finally we consider some of the possible implications of these changes for insect pest management and insect conservation.
TL;DR: Data implicate ascorbate concentration in the regulation of the compartmentalization of the antioxidant system in Arabidopsis in order to regulate growth, regulation of photosynthesis, and the partitioning of antioxidative enyzmes.
Abstract: Ascorbic acid has numerous and diverse roles in plant metabolism. We have used the vtc-1 mutant of Arabidopsis, which is deficient in ascorbate biosynthesis, to investigate the role of ascorbate concentration in growth, regulation of photosynthesis, and control of the partitioning of antioxidative enyzmes. The mutant possessed 70% less ascorbate in the leaves compared with the wild type. This lesion was associated with a slight increase in total glutathione but no change in the redox state of either ascorbate or glutathione. In vtc-1, total ascorbate in the apoplast was decreased to 23% of the wild-type value. The mutant displayed much slower shoot growth than the wild type when grown in air or at high CO(2) (3 mL L(-1)), where oxidative stress is diminished. Leaves were smaller, and shoot fresh weight and dry weight were lower in the mutant. No significant differences in the light saturation curves for CO(2) assimilation were found in air or at high CO(2), suggesting that the effect on growth was not due to decreased photosynthetic capacity in the mutant. Analysis of chlorophyll a fluorescence quenching revealed only a slight effect on non-photochemical energy dissipation. Hydrogen peroxide contents were similar in the leaves of the vtc-1 mutant and the wild type. Total leaf peroxidase activity was increased in the mutant and compartment-specific differences in ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activity were observed. In agreement with the measurements of enzyme activity, the expression of cytosolic APX was increased, whereas that for chloroplast APX isoforms was either unchanged or slightly decreased. These data implicate ascorbate concentration in the regulation of the compartmentalization of the antioxidant system in Arabidopsis.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present broad band spectra of a sample of 21 low luminosity sources in the Trapezium cluster, with masses in the range 0.008 - 0.10 M⊙ (assuming an age of 1 Myr).
Abstract: We present broad band spectra of a sample of 21 low luminosity sources in the Trapezium Cluster, with masses in the range 0.008 - 0.10 M⊙ (assuming an age of 1 Myr). These were selected for low extinction in most cases and are located west of the brighter nebulosity. The spectra are in the H bandpass (1.4-1.95 µm) and K bandpass (1.9-2.5 µm) also for most of the brighter sources, with a resolution of 50 nm. They were taken with the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) using the CGS4 spectrometer. Absorption by water vapour bands is detected in all the substellar candidates except one, which is a highly reddened object with strong H2 emission and an anomalously blue (I-J) colour, implying that it is a very young cluster member with circumstellar matter. The observation of prominent water vapour bands confirms the low Effective Temperatures implied by our (I-J) colour measurements in an earlier paper and would imply late M or L spectral types if these were older field dwarfs. However, the profiles of the H bandpass spectra are very different from those of field dwarfs with similar water absorption strength, demonstrating that they are not foreground or background objects. In addition, the CO absorption bands at 2.3 µm and the NaI absorption feature at 2.21 µm are very weak for such cool sources. All these features are quite well reproduced by the AMES-Dusty-1999 model atmospheres of Allard et al.(2000,2001), and arise from the much lower gravities predicted for the Trapezium sources (3.5 < log(g) < 4.0) compared to evolved objects (log g � 5.5), This represents a new proof of the substellar status of our sources, independent of the statistical arguments for low contamination, which are reexamined here. The very late spectral types of the planetary mass objects and very low mass brown dwarfs demonstrate that they are cluster members, since they are too luminous to be field dwarfs in the background. We also present additional UKIRT photometry of a small region in the south of the Trapezium cluster where the extinction and nebular brightness are low, which permitted the detection of objects with 1 Myr masses slightly lower than our previous least massive source at 8 MJup. Following a minor update to our previous J band photometry, due to a new UKIRT filter calibration, there are � 15 planetary mass candidates in the full dataset.
TL;DR: “Pure” bullies are healthier children compared to victims and bully/victims, suggesting that they have a constitution that allows them to be dominant in inappropriate ways and health professionals seeing children with repeated sore throat, colds, breathing problems, nausea, poor appetite or worries about going to school should consider bullying as contributory factor.
Abstract: AIMS—To examine the association of direct (e.g. hitting) and relational (e.g. hurtful manipulation of peer relationships) bullying experience with common health problems.
METHODS—A total of 1639 children (aged 6-9 years) in 31 primary schools were studied in a cross sectional study that assessed bullying with a structured child interview and common health problems using parent reports. Main outcome measures were common physical (e.g. colds/coughs) and psychosomatic (e.g. night waking) health problems and school absenteeism.
RESULTS—Of the children studied, 4.3% were found to be direct bullies, 10.2% bully/victims (i.e. both bully and become victims), and 39.8% victims. Direct bully/victims, victims, and girls were most likely to have physical health symptoms (e.g. repeated sore throats, colds, and coughs). Direct bully/victims, direct victims, and year 2 children were most likely to have high psychosomatic health problems (e.g. poor appetite, worries about going to school). Pure bullies (who never got victimised) had the least physical or psychosomatic health problems. No association between relational bullying and health problems was found.
CONCLUSIONS—Direct bullying (e.g. hitting) has only low to moderate associations with common health problems in primary school children. Nevertheless, health professionals seeing children with repeated sore throat, colds, breathing problems, nausea, poor appetite, or school worries should consider bullying as contributory factor.
TL;DR: The newest member of the capsaicin (vanilloid) receptor-like genes exist, the newest member, VRL-2 is found in airway and kidney epithelia and in the autonomic nervous system.
Abstract: Remarkable progress has been made recently in identifying a new gene family related to the capsaicin (vanilloid) receptor, VR1. Using a combination of in silico analysis of expressed sequence tag (...
TL;DR: It is concluded that maternal depression per se has negligible effects on children's cognitive development and long-term effects may be found when maternal depression is chronic, the child is a boy and neonatal risk-born, or the family suffers other social risks.
Abstract: The effects of postnatal depression on cognitive test scores at 20 months and 4; 8 years of age as well as the timing (onset in the early postnatal period versus later), severity, number of episodes, duration of longest phase, recency, and chronicity of material depression on children's cognitive scores at 6; 3 years was investigated. In South Bavaria, Germany, 1,329 mothers of singletons were screened when the children were 6; 3 years of age for the presence of depressive symptoms since the birth of their infant. A standard interview (SADS-L) was used to ascertain DSM-IV diagnosis and details of depressive episodes. Ninety-two mothers were diagnosed as having suffered DSM-IV defined depression (7%). Seven hundred and twenty-one mothers had no depressive episodes or symptoms from their children's birth until 6; 3 years and were used as control group. The children had been assessed with the Griffiths Scales of Babies' Abilities (20 months), the Columbia Mental Maturity Scales (CMM) at 4; 8 years, and the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) at 6; 3 years. No significant main effects of severity, timing of onset, duration, or chronicity of depression of the child's cognitive development were found. Significant interactions of gender with chronicity of maternal depression (i.e. early-onset major and repeated episodes) were detected. Low SES boys or boys born at neonatal risk of mothers with chronic depression had lower Achievement Scores in the K-ABC at 6; 3 years than children of mothers with less severe depression or controls. It is concluded that maternal depression per se has negligible effects on children's cognitive development. Long-term effects may be found when maternal depression is chronic, the child is a boy and neonatal risk-born, or the family suffers other social risks.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined employee's perceptions of their modal choice during the journey to work, and addressed what factors influence modality choice, and whether people can be moved out of their cars to other more sustainable forms of transport.
TL;DR: It is proved that the required resources are, necessarily, those needed for implementation by bidirectional state teleportation in the implementation of an arbitrary unitary operation U upon a distant quantum system.
Abstract: We consider the implementation of an arbitrary unitary operation U upon a distant quantum system. This teleportation of U can be viewed as quantum remote control. We investigate protocols that achieve this using local operations, classical communication, and shared entanglement. Lower bounds on the necessary entanglement and classical communication are determined using causality and the linearity of quantum mechanics. We examine in particular detail the resources required if the remote control is to be implemented as a classical black box. Under these circumstances, we prove that the required resources are, necessarily, those needed for implementation by bidirectional state teleportation.
TL;DR: In this paper, the effectiveness of foliar application of supplementary potassium (K) and phosphorus (P) to the leaves of plants grown at high NaCl concentration (60 mM) was investigated.
Abstract: Three tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) cvs., Rio Grande, Monika F1, and Marylin F1, were grown hydroponically in a controlled temperature (CT) room for 6 weeks to investigate the effectiveness of foliar application of supplementary potassium (K) and phosphorus (P) to the leaves of plants grown at high NaCl concentration (60 mM). Supplementary 5 mM K and P as KH2PO4 was supplied via leaves to the plants grown at high NaCl (60 mM) twice a week for 4 weeks. The plants grown at high NaCl produced less dry matter and chlorophyll than those at normal nutrient solution for all three cultivars. Membrane permeability increased with high NaCl application and these increases in membrane permeability were decreased by supplementary K and P. Daily water use by plant was decreased with high NaCl application and increased with supplementary P and K. Foliar application of supplementary K and P resulted in increases in dry matter and chlorophyll concentrations for all three cultvars. These increases were greater in Monika...
TL;DR: The Cognitive Dimensions of Notations (CDFN) framework as discussed by the authors has been developed to assist the designers of notational systems and information artifacts to evaluate their designs with respect to the impact that they will have on the users of those designs.
Abstract: The Cognitive Dimensions of Notations framework has been created to assist the designers of notational systems and information artifacts to evaluate their designs with respect to the impact that they will have on the users of those designs. The framework emphasizes the design choices available to such designers, including characterization of the user's activity, and the inevitable tradeoffs that will occur between potential design options. The resuliing framework has been under development for over 10 years, and now has an active community of researchers devoted to it. This paper first introduces Cognitive Dimensions. It then summarizes the current activity, especially the results of a one-day workshop devoted to Cognitive Dimensions in December 2000, and reviews the ways in which it applies to the field of Cognitive Technology.
TL;DR: To quantify the effect of different methods of spinal immobilisation on mortality, neurological disability, spinal stability and adverse effects in trauma patients, the Cochrane Controlled Trial Register was searched and no randomised controlled trials were found.
Abstract: Background
Spinal immobilisation involves the use of a number of devices and strategies to stabilise the spinal column after injury and thus prevent spinal cord damage. The practice is widely recommended and widely used in trauma patients with suspected spinal cord injury in the pre-hospital setting.
Objectives
To quantify the effect of different methods of spinal immobilisation (including immobilisation versus no immobilisation) on mortality, neurological disability, spinal stability and adverse effects in trauma patients.
Search methods
We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), the Cochrane Injuries Group's specialised register, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PubMed, National Research Register and Zetoc. We checked reference lists of all articles and contacted experts in the field to identify eligible trials. Manufacturers of spinal immobilisation devices were also contacted for information. Searches were last updated in July 2007.
Selection criteria
Randomised controlled trials comparing spinal immobilisation strategies in trauma patients with suspected spinal cord injury. Trials in healthy volunteers were excluded.
Data collection and analysis
We independently applied eligibility criteria to trial reports and extracted data.
Main results
We found no randomised controlled trials of spinal immobilisation strategies in trauma patients.
Authors' conclusions
We did not find any randomised controlled trials that met the inclusion criteria. The effect of spinal immobilisation on mortality, neurological injury, spinal stability and adverse effects in trauma patients remains uncertain. Because airway obstruction is a major cause of preventable death in trauma patients, and spinal immobilisation, particularly of the cervical spine, can contribute to airway compromise, the possibility that immobilisation may increase mortality and morbidity cannot be excluded. Large prospective studies are needed to validate the decision criteria for spinal immobilisation in trauma patients with high risk of spinal injury. Randomised controlled trials in trauma patients are required to establish the relative effectiveness of alternative strategies for spinal immobilisation.
TL;DR: The Central Kiloparsec of Starbursts and AGN: The La Palma Connection conference as discussed by the authors was held in May 2001 in Los Cancajos on the Spanish island of LaPalma.
Abstract: We describe selected highlights of the international conference ``The Central Kiloparsec of Starbursts and AGN: The La Palma Connection'', held in May 2001 in Los Cancajos on the Spanish island of La Palma.
TL;DR: Studies of wild-type and mutant Na channels of insects and mammals are providing a molecular understanding of kdr and super-kdr resistance in insects, and of the low pyrethroid sensitivity of most mammalian Na channels.
Abstract: Recent progress in the cloning of α (para) and β (TipE) Na channel sub-units from Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) and Musca domestica (housefly) have facilitated functional expression studies of insect Na channels in Xenopus laevis oocytes, assayed by voltage clamp techniques. The effects of Type I and Type II pyrethroids on the biophysical properties of these channels are critically reviewed. Pyrethroid resistance mutations (termed kdr and super-kdr) that reduce the sensitivity of the insect Na channel to pyrethroids have been identified in a range of insect species. Some of these mutations (eg L1014F, M918T and T929I) have been incorporated into the para Na channel of Drosophila, either individually or in combination, to investigate their effects on the sensitivity of this channel to pyrethroids. The kdr mutation (L1014F) shifts the voltage dependence of both activation and steady-state inactivation by ∼5 mV towards more positive potentials and facilitates Na channel inactivation. Incorporation of the super-kdr mutation (M918T) into the Drosophila Na channel also increases channel inactivation and causes a >100-fold reduction in deltamethrin sensitivity. These effects are shared by T929I, an alternative mutation that confers super-kdr-like resistance. Parallel studies have been undertaken using the rat IIA Na channel to investigate the molecular basis for the low sensitivity of mammalian brain Na channels to pyrethroids. Rat IIA channels containing the mutation L1014F exhibit a shift in their mid-point potential for Na activation, but their overall sensitivity to permethrin remains similar to that of the wild-type rat channel (ie both are 1000-fold less sensitive than the wild-type insect channel). Mammalian neuronal Na channels have an isoleucine rather than a methionine at the position (874) corresponding to the super-kdr (M918) residue of the insect channel. Replacement of the isoleucine of the wild-type rat IIA Na channel with a methionine (I874M) increases deltamethrin sensitivity 100-fold. In this way, studies of wild-type and mutant Na channels of insects and mammals are providing a molecular understanding of kdr and super-kdr resistance in insects, and of the low pyrethroid sensitivity of most mammalian Na channels. They are also giving valuable insights into the binding sites for pyrethroids on these channels.