Anthologies and the anti-republic of Australian gay and lesbian poetry

This is the first article to examine anthologies of gay and lesbian poetry from Australia and New Zealand.

The relevance of role models to older aged generation Y consumers

This study assesses the relevance of role models, specifically sports role models, and the related concepts of anti-heroes and gender to Generation Y consumers in the older age group of 18-29 year olds. A qualitative study, following a post-positivist inquiry paradigm was conducted. The specific research strategy used was grounded theory, utilising deductive thought processes coupled with the process of constant comparison. A series of semi-structured in-depth interviews were carried out. Results suggest that direct relevance to the subject under investigation is a key determinant of role model choice. Gender is also found to have significant effect, as is media, both in the creation of role models and anti-heroes.

Fast mining of non-derivable episode rules in complex sequences

Researchers have been endeavoring to discover concise sets of episode rules instead of complete sets in sequences. Existing approaches, however, are not able to process complex sequences and can not guarantee the accuracy of resulting sets due to the violation of anti-monotonicity of the frequency metric. In some real applications, episode rules need to be extracted from complex sequences in which multiple items may appear in a time slot. This paper investigates the discovery of concise episode rules in complex sequences. We define a concise representation called non-derivable episode rules and formularize the mining problem. Adopting a novel anti-monotonic frequency metric, we then develop a fast approach to discover non-derivable episode rules in complex sequences. Experimental results demonstrate that the utility of the proposed approach substantially reduces the number of rules and achieves fast processing.

Metabolite profiles in the anterior cingulate cortex of depressed patients differentiate those taking N-acetyl-cysteine versus placebo

Background: Increased oxidative stress is thought to contribute to the pathophysiology of major depressive disorder (MDD), which is in part due to diminished levels of glutathione, the primary anti-oxidant of the brain. Oral administration of N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) replenishes glutathione and has therefore been shown to reduce depressive symptoms. Proton magnetic spectroscopy (1H-MRS) that allows quantification of brain metabolites pertinent to both MDD and oxidative biology may provide some novel insights into the neurobiological effects of NAC, and in particular metabolite concentrations within the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) are likely to be important given the key role of this region in the regulation of affect.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine whether the metabolite profile of the ACC in MDD patients predicts treatment with adjunctive NAC versus placebo.

Methods: This study was nested within a multicentre, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of MDD participants treated with adjunctive NAC. Participants (n = 76) from one site completed the spectroscopy component at the end of treatment (12 weeks). Spectra from a single-voxel in the ACC were acquired and absolute concentrations of glutamate (Glu), glutamate-glutamine (Glx), N-acetyl-aspartate (NAA) and myo-inositol (mI) were obtained. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to determine whether metabolite profiles could predict NAC versus placebo group membership.

Results: When predicting group outcome (NAC or placebo), Glx, NAA and mI were a significant model, and had 75% accuracy, while controlling for depression severity and sex. However, the Glu, NAA and mI profile was only predictive at a trend level, with 68.3% accuracy. For both models, the log of the odds of a participant being in the NAC group was positively related to NAA, Glx and Glu levels and negatively related to mI levels.

Conclusion: The finding of higher Glx and NAA levels being predictive of the NAC group provides preliminary support for the putative anti-oxidative role of NAC in MDD.

Teachers talking difference: teacher education and the poetics of anti-racism

This paper reports on a case study which explores the experiences of two teachers of ethnic difference working in secondary schools in rural Australia. In seeking an alternative way of telling their stories, transcript poems have been constructed from data obtained through semi-structured interviews with the teachers. The poems highlight the teachers' experiences of marginalisation and racism and their responses to their positioning in mainly white Anglo-Australian school communities. The study raises particular concerns about the effects of professional and cultural isolation on young and inexperienced teachers of ethnic difference as well as the need to view teacher education as an important site for the development of greater cultural awareness in "mainstream" teacher education students.

The problem of voluntariness: parents and the anti-discrimination principle

Examines the theoretical justifications for the anti-discrimination protection for working parents in Australia. Implication of discrimination, voluntaries and employment; Analysis of the tort principles; Factors affecting the justification for protecting working parents.

Cultured muscle cells display defects of mitochondrial myopathy ameliorated by anti-oxidants

The mitochondrial DNA A3243G mutation causes neuromuscular disease. To investigate the muscle-specific pathophysiology of mitochondrial disease, rhabdomyosarcoma transmitochondrial hybrid cells (cybrids) were generated that retain the capacity to differentiate to myotubes. In some cases, striated muscle-like fibres were formed after innervation with rat embryonic spinal cord. Myotubes carrying A3243G mtDNA produced more reactive oxygen species than controls, and had altered glutathione homeostasis. Moreover, A3243G mutant myotubes showed evidence of abnormal mitochondrial distribution, which was associated with down-regulation of three genes involved in mitochondrial morphology, Mfn1, Mfn2 and DRP1. Electron microscopy revealed mitochondria with ultrastructural abnormalities and paracrystalline inclusions. All these features were ameliorated by anti-oxidant treatment, with the exception of the paracrystalline inclusions. These data suggest that rhabdomyosarcoma cybrids are a valid cellular model for studying muscle-specific features of mitochondrial disease and that excess reactive oxygen species production is a significant contributor to mitochondrial dysfunction, which is amenable to anti-oxidant therapy.

A population-based approach to optimising the use of anti-hypertensives

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