This study examined the impact of learning through social media (WhatsApp learning groups) on university students' mathematics achievements in the first-year university preparatory program when they engaged in some form of social media learning interaction compared with students who did the same module with a traditional face-to-face interaction learning approach. The study was undertaken using a quantitative research method. It employed a randomised Post-Test-Only with a Non-equivalent Groups design to investigate the only statistically significant difference between university students who studied through the traditional face-to-face lecturing approach and students who utilised a blended approach to learning mathematics. The study population comprised first-year university students enrolled for the university extended programme offered by all universities in South Africa. The sample consisted of 192 experimental groups and 341 control group students conveniently sampled from a university in South Africa. The main instruments used in this study were two standardised semester exams. These tests were checked and moderated by senior mathematics lecturers to ensure they conformed with the module content and satisfied all assessment policies of the university. The Cronbach alpha coefficient was used to measure the consistencies in these two-semester exams. The study's main finding showed no statistically significant difference in results between students who studied Mathematics through a face-to-face lecturing approach and students who studied mathematics through a blended learning approach. The study concludes that the latter performed slightly better than students in the former, confirming that a WhatsApp learning group can be a viable alternative to the teaching and learning at the university when face-to-face learning is not possible, as for an example in the Covid-19 era. The study recommends that more profound research be conducted to identify and analyse positive indicators when learning is done through social media interaction.


Humans have a long history of activity in Mediterranean Basin landscapes. Spatial heterogeneity in these landscapes hinders our understanding about the impacts of changes in human activity on ecological processes, such as wildfire. The use of spatially-explicit models that simulate processes at fine scales should aid the investigation of spatial patterns at the broader, landscape scale. Here, we present an agent-based model of agricultural land-use decision-making to examine the importance of land tenure and land use on future land cover. The model considers two 'types' of land-use decision-making agent with differing perspectives; 'commercial' agents that are perfectly economically rational, and 'traditional' agents that represent part-time or 'traditional' farmers that manage their land because of its cultural, rather than economic, value. The structure of the model is described and results are presented for various scenarios of initial landscape configuration. Land-use/cover maps produced by the model are used to examine how wildfire risk changes for each scenario. Results indicate that land tenure configuration influences trajectories of land use change. However, simulations for various initial land-use configurations and compositions converge to similar states when land-tenure structure is held constant. For the scenarios considered, mean wildfire risk increases relative to the observed landscape. Increases in wildfire risk are not spatially uniform however, varying according to the composition and configuration of land use types. These unexpected spatial variations in wildfire risk highlight the advantages of using a spatially-explicit agent-based model of land use/cover change.


Electronic structure calculations, in particular the computation of the ground state energy, lead to challenging problems in optimization. These problems are of enormous importance in quantum chemistry for calculations of properties of solids and molecules. Minimization methods for computing the ground state energy can be developed by employing a variational approach, where the second-order reduced density matrix defines the variable. This concept leads to large-scale semidefinite programming problems that provide a lower bound for the ground state energy. Upper bounds of the ground state energy can be calculated for example with the Hartree-Fock method. However, Nakata, Nakatsuji, Ehara, Fukuda, Nakata, and Fujisawa observed, that due to numerical errors the semidefinite solver produced erroneous results with a lower bound significantly larger than the HartreeFock upper bound. Violations within one mhartree were observed. We present here a method for solving electronic structure problems where all numerical errors are taken into consideration. In particular this method provides rigorous error bounds without violations as mentioned above.


Regions of interest (ROIs) that are pointed to by overlaid markers (arrows, asterisks, etc.) in biomedical images are expected to contain more important and relevant information than other regions for biomedical article indexing and retrieval. We have developed several algorithms that localize and extract the ROIs by recognizing markers on images. Cropped ROIs then need to be annotated with contents describing them best. In most cases accurate textual descriptions of the ROIs can be found from figure captions, and these need to be combined with image ROIs for annotation. The annotated ROIs can then be used to, for example, train classifiers that separate ROIs into known categories (medical concepts), or to build visual ontologies, for indexing and retrieval of biomedical articles. We propose an algorithm that pairs visual and textual ROIs that are extracted from images and figure captions, respectively. This algorithm based on dynamic time warping (DTW) clusters recognized pointers into groups, each of which contains pointers with identical visual properties (shape, size, color, etc.). Then a rule-based matching algorithm finds the best matching group for each textual ROI mention. Our method yields a precision and recall of 96% and 79%, respectively, when ground truth textual ROI data is used.


The Luderitz upwelling cell and Orange River cone (LUCORC) area, a transboundary region between South Africa and Namibia, is considered to be an environmental barrier to transport of ichthyoplankton from the southern to the northern Benguela upwelling ecosystems. We use envi- ronmental data and modelling to assess the potential mechanisms responsible for this barrier: envi- ronmental data were extracted from the 1 × 1° World Ocean Atlas 2001 database and used to build maps of annual mean salinity, temperature, chlorophyll, dissolved oxygen and nutrient concentra- tions; outputs of a regional circulation model were used in an individual-based model to assess the transport of passive particles from the southern to the northern Benguela. The data show no clear environmental barrier at sea surface, but the model results suggest that particles released there would be largely transported offshore. The model also shows that particles released below the sur- face could be transported alongshore from the southern to the northern Benguela, but low subsurface temperatures would increase ichthyoplankton mortality and hence be a strong limiting factor to northward transport. We conclude that the combination of a surface hydrodynamic and a subsurface thermal barrier could limit the possibility for ichthyoplankton of epipelagic species to be transported from the southern to the northern Benguela, but that ichthyoplankton of mesopelagic species, having a wider tolerance to low temperatures, would be less affected.


The biggest challenge, human kind facing in the 21st century is to
cope up with the impacts of the climate change which is affecting
the sustainable development globally. The IPCC (Inter
Governmental Panel on Climate Change) has clearly established
that climate change is reality now and going to affect food security
and sustainability in different regions (IPCC, 2013). Our
generation is the first generation to assess the impacts of the
climate change and also is the last generation which can do
interventions to minimize/reverse the climate change on the
globe. The dryland agriculture which is globally 80% and
contributes 60% of the food is the most vulnerable systems for the
impacts of the climate change. Dryland areas are also the hot-spots
of poverty in developing countries of Asia, Africa and Latin
America and are more vulnerable to the adverse impacts of
climate change. In order to sustain the growth globally as well as
the livelihoods and achieve the goals of food and nutritional
security, there is an urgent need particularly in thickly populated
countries like India and China. In India, 58% of arable land is
dryland agriculture and will be severely affected as l/3rd of the
developing world will be facing physical scarcity of water by 2030
(Rockstorm et al., 2007). There is an urgent need to develop
climate smart agriculture by adopting appropriate adaptation and
mitigation strategies to build the resilience of the systems as well
as livelihoods for small farmholders in the country...


Identifying the correlations between the attributes of severe accidents could be vital to preventing them. If such relationships were known dynamically, it would be possible to take preventative actions against accidents. The paper aims to develop an analytical model that is adaptable for each type of data to create preventative measures that will be suitable for any computational systems. The present model collectively shows the relationships between the attributes in a coherent manner to avoid severe accidents. In this respect, Association Rule Mining (ARM) is used as the technique to identify the correlations between the attributes. The research adopts a positivist approach to adhere to the factual knowledge concerning nine different accident types through case studies and quantitative measurements in an objective nature. ARM was exemplified with nine different types of construction accidents to validate the adaptability of the proposed model. The results show that each accident type has different characteristics with varying combinations of the attribute, and analytical model accomplished to accommodate variation through the dataset. Ultimately, professionals can identify the cause-effect relationships effectively and set up preventative measures to break the link between the accident causing factors.


Pakistan is a least developed country with limited development in every era due to the junk of problems; as faced today by Pakistan as a country. Unfortunately, it has been initio non-exist. During 60s, realizing its significance, measures were taken for its development and since then the experts have been emphasized the balanced growth between industrial and agriculture sector. About 50 years ago, agriculture sector were overlooked considering their electricity traditionally an outdated sector. Electricity is pivotal in running machinery factories, mills, distillery units, industrial units, as well as lighting societies for the State. This area demands attention. Governments may focus on this subject seriously with the consultation of specialize people then it may cover electricity debit at certain level. Essential requirement of latest technologies like Bagasse/Biogas Energy plants as currently to instate, and fulfill the aggregate demand of electricity for the country. Pakistan needs around 15000 to 20000 MW electricity per day, however, currently it is able to generate about 10500 MW per day hence there is a shortfall of about 5000 to 10000 MW per day. This shortage is badly hampering the economic growth of the country. Electricity crisis has, moreorless, plagued all sectors of Pakistan's machinery ranging from economy to industry, agriculture to social life, inflation to poverty and it is hampering national progress in a drastic manner. Electricity is the major problem of Pakistan is facing today. We should learn a lesson from China, Germany, Malaysia, Australia and Bangladesh are enormous Biogas/Bagasse cogeneration electricity producers. Since it is not possible to escalate area under sugarcane cultivation the suggested second step is to undertake efforts to develop new varieties offering higher yield and recovery through Agriculture Research Institutes and more effective measures required for disease control and better pesticides used. Availability of adequate supply of water, appropriate use of fertilizer and proper spraying of insecticides & pesticides can improve yield per hectare. Improvement also required in procurement and storage to reduce wastages, other than sugar it can diversify and produce Ethanol which has been proved to be very helpful in developing economies.


Abstract—This paper focuses on parametric analysis of reinforced concrete structures equipped with supplemental damping braces. Practitioners still luck sufficient data for current design of damper added structures and often reduce the real model to a pure damper braced structure even if this assumption is neither realistic nor conservative. In the present study, the damping brace is modelled as made by a linear supporting brace connected in series with the viscous/hysteretic damper. Deformation capacity of existing structures is usually not adequate to undergo the design earthquake. In spite of this, additional dampers could be introduced strongly limiting structural damage to acceptable values, or in some cases, reducing frame response to elastic behavior. This work is aimed at providing useful considerations for retrofit of existing buildings by means of supplemental damping braces. The study explicitly takes into consideration variability of (a) relative frame to supporting brace stiffness, (b) dampers' coefficient (viscous coefficient or yielding force) and (c) non-linear frame behavior. Non-linear time history analysis has been run to account for both dampers' behavior and nonlinear plastic hinges modelled by Pivot hysteretic type. Parametric analysis based on previous studies on SDOF or MDOF linear frames provide reference values for nearly optimal damping systems design. With respect to bare frame configuration, seismic response of the damper-added frame is strongly improved, limiting deformations to acceptable values far below ultimate capacity. Results of the analysis also demonstrated the beneficial effect of stiffer supporting braces, thus highlighting inadequacy of simplified pure damper models. At the same time, the effect of variable damping coefficient and yielding force has to be treated as an optimization problem.


We present a new feature representation method for scene text recognition problem, particularly focusing on improving scene character recognition. Many existing methods rely on Histogram of Oriented Gradient (HOG) or part-based models, which do not span the feature space well for characters in natural scene images, especially given large variation in fonts with cluttered backgrounds. In this work, we propose a discriminative feature pooling method that automatically learns the most informative sub-regions of each scene character within a multi-class classification framework, whereas each sub-region seamlessly integrates a set of low-level image features through integral images. The proposed feature representation is compact, computationally efficient, and able to effectively model distinctive spatial structures of each individual character class. Extensive experiments conducted on challenging datasets (Chars74K, ICDAR'03, ICDAR'11, SVT) show that our method significantly outperforms existing methods on scene character classification and scene text recognition tasks.


Although problem-based learning (PBL) is widely used in medical education for its many virtues, a number of deficiencies exist. As means of enhancing the experience of PBL for students, two relatively simple adjuncts to PBL are presented. What Ifs are short hypothetical scenarios, appended to the end of a PBL case, that require students to revisit elements of the PBL case just completed and apply their newly acquired knowledge to clinical reasoning in an altered scenario or to explore anew another dimension of the PBL case. Multi-directional symptoms PBL cases are cases where a common presenting symptom, rather than a specific pathology, is the focus of the PBL case and, following a core narrative of the initial patient presentation, a series of independent continuation narratives with appropriate histories, examination findings and investigation results, lead students to divergent diagnoses and management issues. In addition to keeping the PBL process fresh by rotating new materials regularly, these adjuncts extend the PBL process in the direction of case-based learning.


ABSTRACT Research Findings: Various cross-disciplinary STEM learning activities were implemented in the early childhood context. Young children and their parents had rather positive attitudes towards STEM learning. In addition to educational values, the economic value of STEM learning for their family was perceived by a good number of parents, which believed that learning STEM could pave a path for their children toward future economic prosperity. Early childhood teachers perceived the values of STEM education from the learning and social perspectives while they realized various practical constrains of time, support and resources, worried about teachers' capacity and subject knowledge, and considered students, developmental differences and safety. They were not confident to implement STEM lessons with their young students. Practice or Policy: It is urgent to present teachers a holistic picture for STEM curriculum in the EC context, covering strengthening discipline-based content learning, enhancing discipline-based integration, and preparing for the innovation-driven integration. The complete process of transferring professional knowledge (including awareness, acquisition, transformation, association, application, and externalization) should be embodied in the design of STEM professional training programs. Parents also needed more training on how to work with their children in STEM activities and scaffold their children' learning.


The effects of a short-term organic enrichment on growth of the 2 brittle stars Amphiura filiformis (0. F. Muller) and Amphiura chiajei (Forbes) were studied in undisturbed sediment cores obtained from a coastal and an offshore site of the Kattegat and Skagerrak, and then maintained in the laboratory as microcosms. Growth was measured as arm regeneration (somatic growth) and oocyte size (germinal growth). Macrofaunal abundance and biomass were higher in the offshore sediment compared to the coastal site. Organic enrichment was studied by adding concentrated phytoplankton (diatoms) to mimic the sedimentation pulse of a spring bloom in terms of quality and quantity. The experiment was run for 2.5 mo (April to June 1993). Somatic growth of A. filiformis increased in response to the phytoplankton additlon in the coastal site sediment but not in the offshore site sediment. Arm regeneration in A. chiajei increased in both sediments in responsc to the food pulse. A positive correlation between regenerated arm length and oocyte size was obtained for both species. The results show that the brittle stars were capable of increasing t h e ~ r growth and gonad development in response to the short-term organic enrichment. The difference between sites also suggests negatively density dependent growth indicative of space or food competition in the densely populated offshore sediment.


This review focuses on the application of nanomaterials for neural interfacing. The junction between nanotechnology and neural tissues can be particularly worthy of scientific attention for several reasons: (i) Neural cells are electroactive, and the electronic properties of nanostructures can be tailored to match the charge transport requirements of electrical cellular interfacing. (ii) The unique mechanical and chemical properties of nanomaterials are critical for integration with neural tissue as long‐term implants. (iii) Solutions to many critical problems in neural biology/medicine are limited by the availability of specialized materials. (iv) Neuronal stimulation is needed for a variety of common and severe health problems. This confluence of need, accumulated expertise, and potential impact on the well‐being of people suggests the potential of nanomaterials to revolutionize the field of neural interfacing. In this review, we begin with foundational topics, such as the current status of neural electrode (NE) technology, the key challenges facing the practical utilization of NEs, and the potential advantages of nanostructures as components of chronic implants. After that the detailed account of toxicology and biocompatibility of nanomaterials in respect to neural tissues is given. Next, we cover a variety of specific applications of nanoengineered devices, including drug delivery, imaging, topographic patterning, electrode design, nanoscale transistors for high‐resolution neural interfacing, and photoactivated interfaces. We also critically evaluate the specific properties of particular nanomaterials—including nanoparticles, nanowires, and carbon nanotubes—that can be taken advantage of in neuroprosthetic devices. The most promising future areas of research and practical device engineering are discussed as a conclusion to the review.


This paper presents a digital neural/EMG telemetry system small enough and lightweight enough to permit recording from insects in flight. It has a measured flight package mass of only 38 mg. This system includes a single-chip telemetry integrated circuit (IC) employing RF power harvesting for battery-free operation, with communication via modulated backscatter in the UHF (902-928 MHz) band. An on-chip 11-bit ADC digitizes 10 neural channels with a sampling rate of 26.1 kSps and 4 EMG channels at 1.63 kSps, and telemeters this data wirelessly to a base station. The companion base station transceiver includes an RF transmitter of +36 dBm (4 W) output power to wirelessly power the telemetry IC, and a digital receiver with a sensitivity of -70 dBm for 10-5 BER at 5.0 Mbps to receive the data stream from the telemetry IC. The telemetry chip was fabricated in a commercial 0.35 μ m 4M1P (4 metal, 1 poly) CMOS process. The die measures 2.36 × 1.88 mm, is 250 μm thick, and is wire bonded into a flex circuit assembly measuring 4.6 × 6.8 mm.


Abstract A populist backlash to globalization has ushered in nationalist governments and challenged core features of the Liberal International Order. Although startling in scope and urgency, the populist wave has been developing in declining regions of wealthy countries for some time. Trade, offshoring, and automation have steadily reduced the number of available jobs and the wages of industrial workers since at least the 1970s. The decline in manufacturing employment initiated the deterioration of social and economic conditions in affected communities, exacerbating inequalities between depressed rural areas and small cities and towns, on the one hand, and thriving cities, on the other. The global financial crisis of 2008 catalyzed these divisions, as communities already in decline suffered deeper and longer economic downturns than metropolitan areas, where superstar knowledge, technology, and service-oriented firms agglomerate. We document many of these trends across the United States and Europe, and demonstrate that populist support is strongest in communities that experienced long-term economic and social decline. Institutional differences in labor markets and electoral rules across developed democracies may explain some of the variation in populists' electoral success. Renewed support for the Liberal International Order may require a rejuvenation of distressed communities and a reduction of stark regional inequalities.


Transportation fuel is the greatest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in Washington State. To curb emissions, Governor Jay Inslee has charged the Washington State Department of Ecology with developing a Clean Fuel Standard ("CFS") proposal, which may be proposed in future legislative sessions. The goal of a CFS is to reduce the overall carbon intensity of transportation fuel. California enacted a similar program in 2010—the low carbon fuel standard—which was challenged in federal court. One issue that remains open is whether a state low carbon fuel standard would be preempted by the federal Clean Air Act. This Essay considers whether the Clean Air Act would preempt a CFS in Washington. It concludes that a Washington CFS is unlikely to conflict with the purpose of any portion of the Clean Air Act and is therefore unlikely to be preempted.


The aim of our study was to determine if using the Epidrum to site epidurals improves success and reduces morbidity. Three hundred parturients requesting epidural analgesia for labour were enrolled. 150 subjects had their epidural sited using Epidrum and 150 using standard technique. We recorded subject demographics, operator experience, number of attempts, Accidental Dural Puncture rate, rate of failure to site epidural catheter, rate of failure of analgesia, Post Dural Puncture Headache and Epidural Blood Patch rates. Failure rate in Epidrum group was 9/150 (6%) vs 0 (0%) in the Control group (P = 0.003). There were four (2.66%) accidental dural punctures in the Epidrum group and none in the Control group (P = 0.060), and 2 epidurals out of 150 (1.33%) in Epidrum group were re-sited, versus 3/150 (2%) in the control group (P = 1.000). The results of our study do not suggest that using Epidrum improves success or reduces morbidity.


Objectives Fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) was revealed to have divergent, even opposite roles in different neoplasms. In pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), its impact on biological behavior and prognosis was not well elucidated. Methods Fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 was downregulated by RNA interference to explore its impact on cell proliferative proclivity in PDAC cells. Furthermore, tissue microarray-based immunohistochemistry for FGFR3 was performed in 326 patients with PDAC who underwent radical resection, and its clinicopathologic and prognostic implications were then evaluated. Results First, successful FGFR3 knockdown remarkably decreased its expression, cell proliferation, and S-phase ratio in the cell cycle in 2 PDAC cell lines, BxPC-3 and AsPC-1. Meanwhile, alterations in p-Akt, cyclin D1, cyclin B1, and p21 were also observed. Subsequently, high nuclear FGFR3 expression, but not cytoplasmic, was significantly common in tumor tissues and positively associated with N stage and dismal overall survival in the entire cohort. In addition, nuclear FGFR3 expression was also prognostic in 10 of 14 subsets. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses identified nuclear expression of FGFR3 as an independent prognosticator in the entire cohort. Conclusions Our data showed that FGFR3 nuclear translocation contributes to cell proliferative potential and predicts poor long-term prognosis in PDAC after surgical resection.


Abstract Magnetotactic bacteria are known to mediate the formation of intracellular magnetic nanoparticles in organelles called magnetosomes. These magnetite crystals are formed through a process called biologically controlled mineralization, in which the microorganisms exert a strict control over the formation and development of the mineral phase. By inducing magnetite nucleation and growth in resting, Fe-starved cells of Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense, we have followed the dynamics of magnetosome development. By studying the properties of the crystals at several steps of maturity, we observed that freshly induced particles lacked a well-defined morphology. More surprisingly, although the mean particle size of mature magnetosomes is similar to that of magnetosomes formed by constantly growing and Fe-supplemented bacteria, we found that other physical properties such as crystal-size distribution, aspect ratio, and morphology significantly differ. Correlating these results with measurements of Fe uptake rates, we suggest that the expression of different faces is favored for different growth conditions. These results imply that the biological control over magnetite biomineralization by magnetotactic bacteria can be disturbed by environmental parameters. Specifically, the morphology of magnetite crystals is not exclusively determined by biological intervention through vectorial regulation at the organic boundaries or by molecular interaction with the magnetosome membrane, but also by the rates of Fe uptake. This insight may contribute to better define biomarkers and to an improved understanding of biomineralizing systems.


Norms from a sample population (38) of normal-achieving children in grades 4 and 5 are reported using three different perceptual tasks: tachistoscope, 5 digits at .1 and .01 seconds; grooved pegboard, dominant hand; and auditory-visual integration test (AVIT). Percentiles provide within-group norms. Central tendencies are developed using means, standard deviations, and ranges. The perceptual tasks are correlated with reading vocabulary and comprehension and written and mental arithmetic. The results suggest the developmental nature of the tasks from kindergarten through grade 5. When combined with previously published data, the norms presented should enable the optometrist to conduct the tests described using standardized procedures and to interpret the results, albeit with some caution, based on data derived from the performance of normal-achieving students.


The Department of Defense (DoD) uses over two million rounds of high-explosive (HE) munitions per year (Defense Science Board Task Force, 2003). A small percentage does not explode, thus generating unexploded ordnance (UXO) in current range areas at a substantial rate. As these ranges are closed, the DoD becomes responsible for the environmental restoration of the affected properties. Current methods of UXO remediation are costly because of high false alarm rates. Our current research is to develop a complementary technology that will alleviate false alarm rate by detecting, classifying, and locating UXO in near real time (less than 1 minute) as a munition impacts the range. This technology will utilize an array of buried seismic sensors in a calibrated range area, along with a set of algorithms based on theoretical and applied seismology and statistical analysis. Initial field tests at three sites focused on developing concepts of the seismic and acoustic location of ordnance impacts. Our research program developed from these initial field tests has four primary objectives: 1) fully implement a wired seismic-acoustic ordnance impact location system for live fire ranges; 2) develop a system capability to discriminate high-order (HE), loworder (partially exploded), and zero-order (UXO) events; 3) reduce location error to a stringent program metric of 1–2 m; and 4) investigate the feasibility of developing a wireless implementation of the technology. This paper describes the procedures and results from follow-on tests that were conducted in two locations at the U.S. Army Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG), Maryland. These tests were used to evaluate potential seismic-acoustic methods and system configurations for a Seismic-Acoustic Impact Monitoring Assessment (SAIMA) system for mitigating UXO hazards. Significant results from this work include: 1) seismic impulses from low-order impacts were detected at distances up to 1,000 meters; 2) classification features based on measurements of the amplitude of acoustic and seismic phases produce clear discrimination between HE and UXO impacts; 3) calculated location solutions for HE and UXO impacts yield an average location error of 10–20 meters; and 4) empirical observation and waveform modeling demonstrated that surface waves dominate the signal at all distances and therefore should be the primary phase used for all components of analysis. Furthermore, these tests demonstrated the current system design, allowing further enhancements, is capable of meeting the initial research objectives (1) and (2). Future research will focus on improving system performance with refinement of the sensor-layout geometry and the detection and location algorithms through system error analyses and follow-on field testing.


This paper presents a method for automatic earthquake signal phase picking based on the continuous wavelet transform (CWT) of the seismogram, namely, the wavelet phase picker (WPP). A characteristic function is defined using the envelope function of CWT coefficients of the vertical component seismogram. The performance of the WPP method is evaluated on a database consisting of more than 460 local seismograms, and the P-phases detected by the algorithm are compared with those reported in the database. This evaluation confirms the high accuracy of automatically detected picks for the majority of seismograms. In addition, the results obtained by the algorithm are compared with a well-known method of P-phase picking referred to as the autoregressive Akaike information criteria. This comparison demonstrates the reliability of the proposed method.


This new volume in the "Advances in Management Information Systems" series presents the latest cutting-edge knowledge in IT outsourcing. As part of the growing business trend to outsourcing various operations, IT outsourcing both determines the governance of a vital organizational function and influences the processes of exploitation and exploration in all other functions of an enterprise. In keeping with the mission of the "AMIS" series, the editors of this volume have framed the domain of research and practice broadly. "Information Technology Outsourcing" provides leading edge research on both the variety of decisions regarding the outsourcing of IS services and the management of the relationship with service suppliers.


Current hot mix asphalt (HMA) mix design procedures used to determine the optimum asphalt content for permeable or porous friction course (PFC) mixtures are based primarily on total air void (AV) content. Durability and functionality of PFC mixtures are also related to the total AV content. However, the connected AV content (defined as the proportion of AV that form connected pathways for air and water transport through PFC mixtures) may provide more insight into the mixture structure in terms of the AV content directly associated with functionality and durability properties and constitute an alternative parameter to conduct PFC mix design and evaluation. This study evaluated two laboratory methodologies (vacuum and dimensional analysis) for determining water-accessible AV content and two types of analysis to compute interconnected AV content based on X-ray Computed Tomography (X-ray CT) and image analysis techniques. Although both the interconnected AV content and water-accessible AV content constitute determinations of connected AV content, different nomenclature was used to differentiate the origin of the calculation. Dimensional analysis with application of vacuum and X-ray CT and image analysis with inclusion of surface AV are recommended for determining water-accessible AV content and interconnected AV content, respectively. Future work should focus on investigating the use of connected AV content as an alternative parameter to integrate in mix design and laboratory and computational evaluation of PFC mixtures.


Hyperhomocysteinemia HHcy, a pathological condition characterized by an increase in plasma concentration of total homocysteine Hcy, and recognized as a risk factor for several diseases. Rutin is a flavonoid component of plants that possess several pharmacological activities. This study aimed to evaluate the protective effect of supplementing high and low doses of Rutin on the experimentally induced mild Hyperhomocysteinemia. Sixty adult male Wister rats were used, divided into 6 groups as follow: G1: Control ,G2 : Hyperhomocysteinemia, induced by dietary feeding of 10 g/kg of L-methionine ; G3: Rutin (Low dose) rats received Rutin orally (25mg /kg bw/day); G4 : Rutin (High dose) rats received Rutin orally (200 mg/kg bw/day);G5: HHcy+Rutin (Low dose);Group 6: HHcy+Rutin (High dose). The study evaluated serum levels of homocysteine, cystathionine B-synthase, brain indices neurotransmitters, 8Hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine, oxidative biomarkers , DNA fragmentation and histological assessments. Results showed that, Methionine increased levels of serum homocysteine, LDH and 8Hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine, and reduced serum levels of cystathionine B-synthase, dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine and gamma amino butyric acid. Also, caused dramatic disturbance on levels of oxidative stress biomarkers in brain homogenates. These findings were further supported by the histopathological evaluations and DNA fragmentation. Moreover, results suggested that, consumption of Rutin either in high or low dose posses a protective effect against neurological disorders, induced by methionine. Comparing treatments revealed that, high dose of Rutin was more potent than low one.


The demand for deepwater (>1000 m) autonomous underwater vehicles is increasing but scientific applications are restricted due to complexity and cost of development and operation. We have acquired a commercially-available deep- water AUV and are presently operating it from vessels of opportunity. Experiences gained from both the development process and field operations are discussed and generally applicable recommendations are abstracted from specific events.


This paper presents the experimental study of fibre Bragg grating sensors for measuring strain inside composite laminates during fatigue loading. The optical fibres are imbedded inside thermoplastic CFRP test-coupons which have an ultimate strain of about 1.1%. Tension – tension fatigue cycling at a rate of 5Hz is been carried out at 314MPa with a maximum strain of 0.51%. At such extreme strain levels the use of high strength sensors becomes inevitable. Neither the sensor nor the composite test-coupons showed any significant degradation even after more than 500000 cycles. Fibre optic Bragg grating sensors are known to be very accurate strain sensors but one should be very careful interpreting their response once they are imbedded inside composite materials. In this study high strength fibre Bragg grating sensors with coating are imbedded in composite test coupons and a pretty good correlation was found between the strain measurements of an electrical extensometer and the imbedded sensor during the complete cycling. The high strength sensor show to be very feasible for extreme and long term strain measurements.


Although English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) eyewitnesses interact regularly with police officers in the US and Canada, little research has examined their testimonies. This study sought to assess the testimony accuracy of 17 ESL witnesses, and the contemporaneous notes the officers made during free and cued recall questioning. We assessed accuracy using two methods: A checklist approach (CL) that has been used in past studies (e.g., List, 1986) and an inductive microanalysis of face-to-face dialogue (MFD) approach that was developed for this study. We found that witnesses gave more accurate information in free recall and made more errors in cued recall when both the CL and MFD methods of analysis were used. The same pattern of results held for the officer note data. When we directly compared the MFD and CL data, however, we found that the MFD method captured more information (both accurate and inaccurate witness details), suggesting that it provides richer accuracy data for eyewitness testimony and officer notes. Future research on ESL witness testimony using the MFD approach is discussed.


Whichever the type of combustion installation, liquid fuels burned in gas turbines tend to generate particulate matter (PM) emissions, which consist in soot only or in ash plus soot, according to their ash-free or ash-forming character.
 Standard diffusion flame combustion systems are known as "universal" combustors, capable to burn both ash-free (naphtha, light and heavy distillates) and ash-forming (crude and heavy) fuels. In contrast, DLN systems are designed to burn gaseous fuels and light distillates.
 PMs in the range of a few parts per million represent a solid micropollutant, the measurement and abatement of which creates specific technical challenges.
 In order to fully characterize soot emission and investigate their reduction, GE has undertaken a multi-year investigation program covering (i) an exploratory engineering study starting from the EN13284-1 standard and (ii) the testing of a number of inorganic oxidation catalysts used in the form of fuel additives ("soot inhibitors").
 In this framework, a joint work involving GE and Electricity Authority of Cyprus has been conducted in the first half of 2017 and a full-scale test plan has been performed at the Vasilikos power plant in Cyprus, involving a Frame 6F.03 DLN2.6 that burns light distillate oil and is equipped with a DeNOx water injection system. Four types of soot inhibitor additives: cerium (IV) and (III), iron (III) and (II) were tested. This paper reviews the results of this field test and compares them with data previously acquired at other power plants featuring different liquid fuels and combustion systems.
 Its goal is to provide the gas turbine community with a better understanding of PM emissions and their abatement using various soot inhibitor candidates, in function of liquid fuel type and combustion system.


A number of drugs classed as calcium antagonists, spasmolytics, non-specific receptor antagonists or receptor antagonists with multiple sites of action were tested to determine whether they prevent the stimulation of phosphatidylinositol turnover caused in various tissues by the activation of receptors which increase cell-surface Ca2+ permeability. The experiments were done with fragments of longitudinal smooth muscle from guinea-pig ileum; these were incubated in vitro with 32Pi and either 100 muM-carbamoylcholine or 100 muM-histamine, in the presence of antagonistic drugs at concentrations at least sufficient to cause complete blockade of smooth-muscle contraction. The phosphatidylinositol response to carbamoylcholine was not changed by cinchocaine, papaverine, nifedipine, dibenamine, amethocaine, cinnarizine, lidoflazine, methoxyverapamil, prenylamine or two antimuscarinic alkane-bis-ammonium compounds, and the response to histamine was unaffected by the first four drugs. In contrast, phenoxybenzamine prevented the increase in phosphatidylinositol labelling caused by either carbamoylcholine or histamine. The insensitivity of the phosphatidylinositol response to most of the drugs provides further experimental support for the conclusion that the receptor-stimulated phosphatidylinositol breakdown which initiates the increase in phosphatidylinositol turnover is not caused by an increase in intracellular Ca2+. The simplest interpretation of the available information appears to be that phosphatidylinositol breakdown plays a role in the coupling between the receptor-agonist interaction and the opening of cell-surface Ca2+ gates [Michell, R. H. (1975) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 415, 81-147]. If this is correct, then phenoxybenzamine must exert its inhibitory effects on phosphatidylinositol breakdown early in this sequence of events, but the drugs must act at a stage later than phosphatidylinositol breakdown. The unexpected difference in the effects of dibenamine and phenoxybenzamine, which are chemically very similar, may provide a useful experimental tool with which to explore the way in which activated receptors provoke the opening of cell-surface Ca2+ gates.


We have investigated the mechanism of tunable luminescence in a bismuth doped ScVO4 matrix by using the first-principles calculations. It is found that some intrinsic defects generally exist in the matrix due to their low formation energies, while they have no remarkable effect in the optical band gap of the compound. The calculated formation energy of substitutional Bi at the Sc site is 2.0–3.3 eV lower than that of replacing V by Bi in various chemical environments. Yet, once there is an oxygen defect (vacancy) around a Bi atom, it is energetically preferable to form a defect complex, BiSc + VacO. Based on the calculated formation energy and the imaginary part of the dielectric function, the defect complex transfers between the neutral charge state and the 1+ charge state, which is ascribed to be responsible for the red bismuth photoemission observed in experiment. With the defect complex, tunable bismuth photoemission could be achieved by selectively controlling the content of hydrogen. Our calculations have shown that there is a passivation effect resulting from the re-padding of the oxygen defect by the hydrogen atom. This confirms the experimental observation of tunable bismuth luminescence due to the defect complex, leading to a potential facile design of other defect-controllable, micro- and nano-sized luminescent materials ranging from the visible to the near- and far-infrared spectrum.


Summary.  Family studies are frequently undertaken as the first step in the search for genetic and/or environmental determinants of disease. Significant familial aggregation of disease is suggestive of a genetic aetiology for the disease and may lead to more focused genetic analysis. Of course, it may also be due to shared environmental factors. Many methods have been proposed in the literature for the analysis of family studies. One model that is appealing for the simplicity of its computation and the conditional interpretation of its parameters is the quadratic exponential model. However, a limiting factor in its application is that it is not reproducible, meaning that all families must be of the same size. To increase the applicability of this model, we propose a hybrid approach in which analysis is based on the assumption of the quadratic exponential model for a selected family size and combines a missing data approach for smaller families with a marginalization approach for larger families. We apply our approach to a family study of colorectal cancer that was sponsored by the Cancer Genetics Network of the National Institutes of Health. We investigate the properties of our approach in simulation studies. Our approach applies more generally to clustered binary data.


We study the axion-type curvaton model, with emphasis on the large field regime where analytic results are very difficult to obtain. We evaluate the tensor-scalar ratio r using WMAP normalization and the non-linearity parameters fNL and gNL by solving the equations numerically using the δN formalism. We compare them with results for the curvaton with quadratic potential. We find that r is much smaller for the axion-type case compared to the result from the quadratic potential, with the difference increasingly more pronounced at larger field values. gNL is found to be positive, unlike the quadratic case where it is negative, and the amplitude of gNL is much larger. Moreover, there is a nearly linear scaling between gNL and fNL, with small deviation from linearity at large field values. The slope between gNL and fNL depends on the parameters characterizing the axion-type curvaton model. We further consider a mixed scenario where both the inflaton and the curvaton contribute to the primordial power spectrum and the non-Gaussianity parameters are found to be much larger than those in the case with quadratic potential.


Results available: Results available Area of research interest: Emerging challenges and opportunities Research topics: Emerging issues , Supporting research Project code: FS900278 Authors: Food Standards Agency and Camrosh Conducted by: Camrosh DOI: https://doi.org/10.46756/sci.fsa.amd172 Project status: Completed Date published: 8 June 2023 PDF View Food System Strategic Assessment 2023 as PDF(Open in a new window) (3.59 MB)


Health Assessment and Physical Examination is designed to teach students to assess a patient's physical, psychological, cultural and emotional dimensions of health as a foundation of nursing care. The skills of interviewing, inspection, percussion, palpation, auscultation, and documentation are refined to help students to make clinical judgements and promote healthy patient outcomes. A strong emphasis on science encompasses all the technical aspects of anatomy, physiology, and assessment, while highlighting clinically relevant information. Emphasis on caring is displayed through themes of assessment of the whole person, which also encourages nurses to think about care for themselves as well as patients.


Ongoing monitoring of streams in the Bavarian Forest National Park (BFNP) is focused on the effects of climate changes and natural disturbances on the community composition and diversity of benthic macroinvertebrates in the Bohemian Forest. This study provides the data on macroinvertebrate assemblages of ten streams draining the area of the BFNP (BF streams), which are included in the monitoring survey, and 48 sites distributed evenly in the Grose Ohe stream network (GO catchment). The GO catchment serves as a model stream network to study environmental and spatial structuring of macroinvertebrate assemblages on the local scale. We aim to evaluate species richness, abundance and species composition of macroinvertebrates along the main environmental gradients and to consider the possible impact of acidification. Species recorded at all studied sites are compared with available literature data from the BFNP. Altogether 40,682 individuals of 184 species were recorded in our study, 130 and 168 species in the BF streams and GO catchment, respectively. Macroinvertebrate assemblages of the BF streams are significantly influenced by substrate roughness and water quality. Within the GO catchment, stream size and acidity are the main ecological gradients forming the assemblages, with a significant influence of local habitat properties (such as amount of CPOM, concentration of Ali, depth of water, and water chemistry). More species of Ephemeroptera, Coleoptera and Diptera, including several acid sensitive species, were found in the GO catchment in comparison with earlier data from the period of strong acidification, which indicates ongoing recovery of streams from acidification. Streams are recently inhabited by numerous moderately acid sensitive species, which is mirrored by their favourable acid status (prevailing acid class 2, predominantly neutral to episodically weakly acidic conditions) assessed based on scoring of acid sensitive species. Overall, acid status of streams is not aligned with the altitude, stream size or any habitat property within the model GO catchment suggesting that the stream network is a mosaic of various local conditions determining water chemistry. Thus, macroinvertebrates can find suitable conditions or refugia in some parts of the catchment.


This study aimed at investigating the dependence of the ultrasonic (US) effects on the structure and properties of the polymer mixtures with different viscosity values. It should be noted that in the current study, polypropylene and high-pressure polyethylene of different brands were selected. The polymer composite materials (PCM) of various compositions treated with and without ultrasound were used. The formation dependence of the phase structures of polyolefin compositions on composition and viscosity of polymer systems was established. The regularity "structure-properties" of modified mixtures of polyolefins was determined. The influence of ultrasonic on the restoration process of the structure and the formation of new chemical bonds in polyolefin mixtures was discussed. The structure of the compositions of the polymer and technological conditions for their processing, which providing high physical and mechanical characteristics of PCM, were also proposed. The results indicated that to create compositions with high physical and mechanical characteristics, it is recommended to use a mixture of polyolefins containing 70% PE, modified by ultrasonic treatment.


We study how advancements in automation technology affect the division of aggregate income between capital and labor in the context of long-run growth. Our analysis focuses on the fundamental trade-off between the labor-displacing effect of automation and its positive productivity effect in an elementary task-based framework featuring a schedule of automation prices across tasks linked to the state of technology. We obtain general conditions for the automation technology and technical change driving automation to be labor-share displacing. We identify a unique task technology that reconciles the Kaldor facts with the presence of automation along the balanced growth path. We show that this technology aggregates to the Cobb–Douglas production function—thus providing novel task-based microfoundations for this workhorse functional form. We employ our theory to study the connection between the recent declines in the labor share and the unique nature of the current, IT-powered wave of automation.


The phenomenon of brittle fracture occurs too often in various branches of engineering being the reason of unexpected termination of anticipated service lives of an engineering objects. This leads to unfortunate catastrophic structural failures resulting in loss of lives and in excessive costs. The theory of fracture mechanics enables the analysis of brittle and fatigue fracture and helps to prevent the occurrence of brittle failure. This field has engaged researchers from various fields of engineering from the early days until today. As its own scientific discipline, it is now less than fifty years old and encourages scientists and engineers to speak the same language when dealing with the design and manufacturing of the classical machinery as well as various intricate devices of nanometer scale, or even smaller, reasoning significant scale effects that arise. Attempting to strike a common ground will connect various physical events/phenomena as a natural result of curiosity arising in course of joint research activities. The interpretation provided by the strain energy density to face different problems and applications is presented in this paper considering some recent outcomes at different scale levels.


Reliable testing of effects of various natural and synthetic substances on cells is critical in searching for effective inhibitory or stimulating agents. Such work is essential in the discovery of anticancer drugs and testing toxicity of newly synthesized compounds. We use the TSITOMIR ("World of Cells") computer video complex developed in cooperation with the Planar Corporation (Minsk). This complex is intended for time-lapse video microscopy of living cells (mouse and human fibroblasts, cells from human hair follicle and urine, cancer cultures). We elaborated a method for counting cells in low-density cell cultures to calculate the number of cells in the same growth substrate areas during cultivation, and to build cell genealogy trees. We also developed a non-invasive technology for receiving and analysing cells from human hair follicle and urine. It was shown that the cells obtained aged after a two-week cultivation, and therefore were not prone to immortalization, i.e., suitable for use in research for regenerative medicine. The method allows to obtain cell numbers in dynamics and makes it possible to get statistically valid quantitative data by using a minimal number of culture flasks. This approach can be exploited for testing antiproliferative and apoptosis-inducing effects, as well as the action of various substances and their combinations.


A case of a chronic remittant blistering eruption on the left temple in a 62-year-old woman is described. Only after repeated biopsies did direct immunofluorescence (DIF) studies reveal a linear staining of the epidermal basement membrane with anti-IgG, C1q, C4, C3 and C5. In addition, heavy deposits of fibrin were observed. The importance of repeated DIF examination in initially negative cases has been stressed. Localized chronic pemphigoid should be considered as a distinct subform of the pemphigoid syndrome.


ABSTRACT Regulation of iron acquisition genes is critical for microbial survival under both iron-limiting conditions (to acquire essential iron) and iron-replete conditions (to limit iron toxicity). In fungi, iron acquisition genes are repressed under iron-replete conditions by a conserved GATA transcriptional regulator. Here we investigate the role of this transcription factor, Sre1, in the cellular responses of the fungal pathogen Histoplasma capsulatum to iron. We showed that cells in which SRE1 levels were diminished by RNA interference were unable to repress siderophore biosynthesis and utilization genes in the presence of abundant iron and thus produced siderophores even under iron-replete conditions. Mutation of a GATA-containing consensus site found in the promoters of these genes also resulted in inappropriate gene expression under iron-replete conditions. Microarray analysis comparing control and SRE1-depleted strains under conditions of iron limitation or abundance revealed both iron-responsive genes and Sre1-dependent genes, which comprised distinct but overlapping sets. Iron-responsive genes included those encoding putative oxidoreductases, metabolic and mitochondrial enzymes, superoxide dismutase, and nitrosative-stress-response genes; Sre1-dependent genes were of diverse functions. Genes regulated by iron levels and Sre1 included all of the siderophore biosynthesis genes, a gene involved in reductive iron acquisition, an iron-responsive transcription factor, and two catalases. Based on transcriptional profiling and phenotypic analyses, we conclude that Sre1 plays a critical role in the regulation of both traditional iron-responsive genes and iron-independent pathways such as regulation of cell morphology. These data highlight the evolving realization that the effect of Sre1 orthologs on fungal biology extends beyond the iron regulon.


We are nowadays increasingly presented with information about greenhouse gases in our everyday life. However there seems to be a gap between this increase in the exposure to carbon dioxide information and the understanding of how to interpret it, making behavioral change difficult. This article presents examples of how different applications have dealt with this problem by representing the carbon dioxide information in different ways. Based on the existing examples, an application called carbon.to was developed and released. This service tries to improve the understanding of carbon dioxide information by simulation in a playful way. Feedback from the users points towards that the gap in understanding existed and that carbon.to was successful in helping closing it.


This article will illustrate through a case study of the intervention of the Catholic Women Speak Network (CWSN) at the Synod of Bishops on the Family, the dynamic movement within Steyn's Critical Diversity Literacy theory from 'reading' the social script of injustice to conscientisation and finally actions for transformation, a methodology similar to that of feminist theologies. In the Catholic Church power, privilege and leadership are institutionalised in the hands of celibate males, and in the context of the Synod they had power to vote on teachings on family life. This hegemony that excludes women's voices and essentialises women was challenged by the CWSN, illustrating connections between theory and praxis as well as diversity as a critical tool of resistance.


Gilt progeny are born lighter, have lower weaning weights and require more medication throughout their life time than do sow progeny. Therefore, strategies to improve their post-weaning performance are of importance to pork producers. Dietary fatty acids have been shown to be potent modulators of physiological processes. Studies in other species have reported that dietary fatty acids affect in utero development, cognitive behaviour, immune system function, carcass composition as well as feed efficiency of offspring. However, little information is available that details their use in gilt progeny and when fed throughout their lifetime. In the present study, two experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of feeding three different types of fat to gilts and their progeny on the growth, body composition and performance post-weaning. Diets were enriched with either saturated fatty acids (SFA; tallow), or n-3 (fish-oil extracts) or n-6 (safflower oil) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and were fed to gilts through gestation and to their progeny post-weaning. In Experiment 2, half of the female progeny from n-3 and n-6 PUFA litters were fed SFA post-weaning. For both studies, there was no significant difference in weaning bodyweights. However, in Experiment 1, pigs fed n-6 PUFA diets post-weaning were significantly lighter 7 days post-weaning than were pigs fed SFA- and n-3 PUFA-enriched diets. Despite feed intake of n-6 PUFA-fed pigs becoming comparable to that of the other groups during the finisher period, bodyweight for this group remained significantly lower than that of the other groups at the conclusion of the experiment. No effect of dietary fatty acid type on the carcass composition of finisher pigs, as determined by computed tomography, was found. The results of Experiment 2 showed that feeding pigs n-6 PUFA diets post-weaning through to slaughter significantly compromised their growth, being in agreement with those from Experiment 1. Feed consumption for this group was significantly less during the post-weaning and the finisher periods. However, pigs from n-6 PUFA litters that were fed SFA diets post-weaning showed no compromise in growth and performance and were comparable to pigs from the other treatment groups. During the grower and finisher periods, pigs fed n-6 PUFA diets had a significantly higher rate of mortality that was as much as 13 times that of pigs fed SFA diets. Pigs from n-6 PUFA litters that were fed SFA diets post-weaning were not affected in this manner. The results of the current study showed that feeding diets enriched with n-6 PUFA to pigs significantly compromised their growth and performance and that this fatty acid type may also have negative health effects with prolonged consumption. The data suggested that the type of fatty acid used in pig diets may be an important consideration for nutritionists when formulating diets to optimise post-weaning growth and performance.


In the species-rich overstorey of tropical and subtropical closed-forests (rainforests), a series of life-forms (emergent trees, canopy trees, subcanopy trees, mid-stratum trees and shrubs, interlaced with lianes) of increasing basal area, height and foliage attributes (leaf area, leaf specific weight and internode length) develop in equilibrium with aerodynamic fluxes (frictional, thermal, evaporative±atmospheric salinity) in the atmosphere as it flows turbulently over and through a plant community. In both closed-forest and open-forest communities in eastern Australia, the translocation of high-energy nitrogen and phosphorus compounds into developing leaves - during the driest season of the year - increases as soil water becomes more available in the climatic gradient from the subhumid to the per-humid zone. Foliage attributes (leaf area and leaf specific weight) of vertical shoots are determined by the rate of input of high-energy compounds into developing shoot apices. Increasing nutrient input in the transpiration stream results in a greater number of leaves (with similar leaf specific weights) on vertical foliage shoots. The leaf area index of the tree is thus enhanced and leads to increased biomass, basal area and height at maturity. In each life-form within a closed-forest, the size of the root system is allometrically related to aboveground attributes. The ability of the root system to explore available nitrogen and phosphorus stored in the surface soil thus determines the attributes of developing foliage shoots in each of these life-forms. Both leaf areas and leaf specific weights decrease from maxima in canopy trees to leaves of subcanopy and mid-stratum trees in the milder climate under the dense structure of per-humid rainforests. In contrast, in the open-structured, subhumid rainforests, although leaf areas decrease in the gradient from canopy to mid-stratum trees - all exposed to direct solar radiation - leaf specific weights increase as temperatures in the boundary layer around growth-apices increase. The production of nitrate ions in soil, exposed to solar radiation in gaps, increases the uptake of nitrogen into leaves of pioneer trees. Larger and thinner leaves, with higher foliar N:P ratios and nitrate reductase activity, result in and enable rapid regeneration of the rainforest.


The Balanopaceae, whose flowers were poorly known, have, in the past, been variously allocated to the Fagales, Euphorbiaceae, Salicales or other hamamelids and rosids (these groups being in Fagales, Malpighiales and Saxifragales, according to the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group). This paper attempts a clarification based on flower morphology. Female flowers and cupules were studied in Balanops vieillardii, young fruits in B. australiana. The cupules are simple involucres of bracts which are spirally arranged (according to a Fibonacci pattern) on the floral axis preceding the flower. They contrast with the complicated cupules of Fagaceae which consist of a condensed cymose ramification system of axes of several orders around the flower. Flowers appear later than most of the cupular bracts, in contrast to Fagaceae. In addition to a terminal flower there may be several smaller lateral flowers in the axil of cupular bracts, each surrounded by its own small cupule. The female flowers do not have a perianth. They consist of two to three large carpels. At anthesis, the ovary is completely septate; the syncarpous part (ovary and lower style) is completely symplicate. The carpels are free for most of their length, with the free parts once, twice or three times bifurcate, in contrast to simple in Fagales. The stigmatic surface covers the ventral side of each stigmatic branch and at the margins also spreads to the dorsal side. The stigma is wet and secretion appears holocrine. The two ovules per carpel are collateral and axile in early development. However, at anthesis they appear one above the other, because in one ovule the funicle greatly elongates. As the ovary elongates only above the placenta, the ovules appear basal at anthesis. The ovules are (weakly) crassinucellar, bitegmic (not unitegmic), anatropous, and intermediate between apotropous and epitropous (not apotropous). The ovules are mature at anthesis, in contrast to Fagales. In mature ovules the upper part of the nucellus disintegrates, and a weakly differentiated endothelium is present in the inner integument. The morphological results of this study support a position of Balanopaceae in Malpighiales, and not Fagales or other orders, and are thus in accordance with recent molecular results based on chloroplast rbcL sequences data. However, within Malpighiales, as opposed to molecular results, Balanopaceae agree more with Euphorbiaceae s.l. than with Dichapetalaceae/Trigoniaceae and Chrysobalanaceae/Euphroniaceae.


Background: Anti-TNF prevents postoperative Crohn's disease recurrence in most patients but not all. This study aimed to define the relationship between adalimumab pharmacokinetics, maintenance of remission and recurrence. Methods: As part of a study of postoperative Crohn's disease management, some patients undergoing resection received prophylactic postoperative adalimumab. In these patients, serum and fecal adalimumab concentration and serum anti-adalimumab antibodies [AAAs] were measured at 6, 12 and 18 months postoperatively. Levels of Crohn's disease activity index [CDAI], C-reactive protein [CRP] and fecal calprotectin [FC] were assessed at 6 and 18 months postoperatively. Body mass index and smoking status were recorded. A colonoscopy was performed at 6 and/or 18 months. Results: Fifty-two patients [32 on monotherapy and 20 on combination therapy with thiopurine] were studied. Adalimumab concentration did not differ significantly between patients in D ow naded rom http/academ ic.p.com /ecco-jcc/articract/12/6/653/4827053 by M oash U niersity user on 11 uly 2019 endoscopic remission vs recurrence [Rutgeerts ≥ i2] [9.98μg/mL vs 8.43 μg/mL, p = 0.387]. Patients on adalimumab monotherapy had a significantly lower adalimumab concentration [7.89 μg/mL] than patients on combination therapy [11.725 μg/mL] [p = 0.001], and were significantly more likely to have measurable AAA [31% vs 17%, p = 0.001]. Adalimumab concentrations were lower in patients with detectable AAA compared with those without [3.59 μg/mL vs 12.0 μg/mL, p < 0.001]. Adalimumab was not detected in fecal samples. Adalimumab serum concentrations were lower in obese patients compared with in non-obese patients [p = 0.046]. Conclusion: Adalimumab concentration in patients treated with adalimumab to prevent symptomatic endoscopic recurrence postoperatively is, for most patients, well within the therapeutic window, and is not significantly lower in patients who develop recurrence compared with in those who remain in remission. Mechanisms of anti-TNF failure to prevent postoperative recurrence remain to be determined in these patients.


We develop and evaluate a novel hybrid tractography algorithm for improved segmentation of complex fiber bundles from diffusion magnetic resonance imaging datasets. We propose an approach inspired by reinforcement learning that combines the strengths of both probabilistic and deterministic tractography to better resolve pathways dominated by crossing fibers. Given a fiber bundle query, our approach first explores an array of possible pathways probabilistically, and then exploits this information with streamline tractography using globally optimal fiber compartment assignment in a conditional random field. We quantitatively evaluated our approach in comparison with deterministic and probabilistic approaches using a realistic phantom with Tractometer and 88 test-retest scans from the Human Connectome Project. We found that the proposed hybrid method offers improved accuracy with phantom data and more biologically plausible topographic organization and higher reliability with in vivo data. This demonstrates the benefits of combining tractography approaches and indicates opportunities for integrating reinforcement learning strategies into tractograpy algorithms.


PTEN loss and constitutive activation of the PI3K signaling pathway have been associated with advanced androgen-independent prostate cancer. PTEN-deficient prostate cancer C42Luc cells survive in serum-free media and show relative resistance to apoptosis even in the presence of the PI3K inhibitor ZSTK474. Yet, when ZSTK474 is combined with the translation inhibitor cycloheximide, C42Luc cells undergo apoptosis within 6 hours. We identified dephosphorylation of BAD (Bcl2-associated death promoter) as a main apoptosis-regulatory molecule downstream from PI3K, and loss of MCL-1 (Myeloid cell leukemia -1) as a major target of cycloheximide. The combination of MCL-1 knockdown and expression of phosphorylation-deficient mutant BAD2SA is sufficient to trigger rapid apoptosis in prostate cancer cells. These results establish the mechanism for the synergistic induction of apoptosis by the combination of a PI3K inhibitor and of a protein synthesis inhibitor in PTEN-deficient prostate cancer cells.


In Caenorhabditis elegans, germline injection of Cas9 complexes is reliably used to achieve genome editing through homology-directed repair of Cas9-generated DNA breaks. To prevent Cas9 from targeting repaired DNA, additional blocking mutations are often incorporated into homologous repair templates. Cas9 can be blocked either by mutating the PAM sequence that is essential for Cas9 activity or by mutating the guide sequence that targets Cas9 to a specific genomic location. However, it is unclear how many nucleotides within the guide sequence should be mutated, since Cas9 can recognize "off-target" sequences that are imperfectly paired to its guide. In this study, we examined whether single-nucleotide substitutions within the guide sequence are sufficient to block Cas9 and allow for efficient genome editing. We show that a single mismatch within the guide sequence effectively blocks Cas9 and allows for recovery of edited animals. Surprisingly, we found that a low rate of edited animals can be recovered without introducing any blocking mutations, suggesting a temporal block to Cas9 activity in C. elegans. Furthermore, we show that the maternal genome of hermaphrodite animals is preferentially edited over the paternal genome. We demonstrate that maternally provided haplotypes can be selected using balancer chromosomes and propose a method of mutant isolation that greatly reduces screening efforts post-injection. Collectively, our findings expand the repertoire of genome editing strategies in C. elegans and demonstrate that extraneous blocking mutations are not required to recover edited animals when the desired mutation is located within the guide sequence.


The absorption of CO2 in aqueous NH3 solutions occurs with high efficiency and loading capacity at room temperature and atmospheric pressure producing the ammonium salts of bicarbonate (HCO3−), carbonate (CO32−), and carbamate (NH2CO2−) anions. 13C NMR spectroscopy at room temperature has been proven to be a simple and reliable method to investigate the speciation in solution of these three ionic species. Fast equilibration of HCO3−/CO32− anions results in a single NMR peak whose chemical shift depends on the relative concentration of the two species. A method has been developed to correlate the chemical shift of this carbon resonance to the ratio of the two anionic species. Integration of the carbamate carbon peak provided the relative amount of this species with respect to HCO3−/CO32− pair. No other species was detected in solution by 13C NMR, and no solid compounds separated out under our experimental conditions. Finally, the relative amount of HCO3−, CO32−, and NH2CO2− in solution have been correlated to the molar ratio between free ammonia in solution and absorbed CO2.


Water conservation efforts have become increasingly important as spiralling population figures and snowballing economic development continue to pile pressure on fresh water resources across the world. In South Africa there are a number of water conservation initiatives to ensure optimal use of dwindling water resources. But not all citizens, particularly in rural communities, consider water conservation a social priority. The apathy has been attributed to the failure of current conservation communication to galvanise people in a way that they come to regard conserving water as a critical factor in achieving sustainable water use. The water conservation efforts rely heavily on persuasive communication, which encourages rural residents to take on new behaviours adjudged beneficial by the promoting agencies, often without seeking their commitment and understanding or appreciating the sociocultural dynamics underpinning their water use behaviour. This study used the participatory action approach to explore the effectiveness of indigenous media in engaging and mobilising rural residents on water conservation initiatives. Given its grassroots nature and interpersonal attributes, indigenous media provide a communication approach with the potential to negotiate the issues around water conservation.


The thermal control in many systems is widely accomplished applying natural convection process due to its low cost, reliability and easy maintenance. Typical applications include the heat exchangers, cooling of electronic equipment and nuclear reactors, solar chimneys and Trombe walls in building industry, etc.
Numerical and experimental studies of natural convective flows in two dimensional channels, opened to ambient conditions at both end sections, are extensively reported in the literature but most of them are treated severely idealized situations. CFD code of natural convection with variable properties and slip condition are presented in the present work. The 2D, laminar simulations are obtained by solving the governing equations using a Fluent 6.2.16. It is considered that the temperature variations are not so high and the Boussinesq approximation is applied. The latter leads to the simplification of the system of equations. The computed results for Nusselt number, velocity and temperature profiles and heat transfer rate are directly compared with those proposed in the bibliography letting therefore the validation of the employed numerical procedure.


Other than renal transplantation a maintenance programme with intermittent haemodialysis preserves life in patients of end stage renal disease. One hundred and eighty-three patients of end stage renal disease were taken for maintenance haemodialysis during last 7 years from April 1, 1991 to March 31, 1998 in a private set up in a north Indian city of Dehradun. There were 126 males (68.8%) and rest 57 (31.2%) were females. The youngest patient was 16 years old and oldest being 78 years old. Diabetic nephropathy in 55 (30.1%), bilateral contracted kidneys of unknown origin in 52 (28.4%), hypertensive nephropathy in 28 (15.3%), chronic glomerulonephropathy in 22 (12%), obstructive nephropathy in 11 (6%), tubulo-interstitial disease in 7 (3.8%), polycystic disease in 5 (2.7%) and post-transplant rejection in 3 (1.6%) contributed to the patients' pool. Only 35 patients (19.1%) had enough financial support to carry on clinically adequate dialysis with erythropoietin treatment on a regular basis. Average duration of haemodialysis therapy was only of 4 months. Only 3 patients were dialysed for more than 2 years and one patient is on haemodialysis for more than 5 years. Haemodialysis procedure perse was quite safe and accepted well with due care of technical considerations. Economic inadequacy was the major hurdle in providing more effective treatment and was also responsible for high fall outs.


Experiments have been carried out to investigate the damping behaviors of commercially pure aluminum (L2) prepared by equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP). The damping characterization was conducted on a DMTA-V apparatus. The internal friction was measured at frequencies of 0.1, 0.3, 1.0, 4.0 and 8.0 Hz over the temperature range of 20~150°C. The measured damping capacity shows that ultra-fine grained structure pure Al (L2) prepared by ECAP has a damping capacity that is enhanced in comparison with coarse one, especially when the temperature is higher than 60°C. The dependence of the damping capacity at room temperature on the strain amplitude shows a nonlinear characteristic, and increases rapidly with the strain amplitude (0) when 0 is comparatively low. While the strain amplitude is higher than certain value, the damping capacity will become saturated slowly. The high damping capacity of the pure Al prepared by ECAP was attributed to the high density of dislocations and ultra-fine grained structure.


The viral protein R (Vpr) is an accessory virulence factor of HIV-1 that facilitates infection in immune cells. Cellular functions of Vpr are tied to its interaction with DCAF1, a substrate receptor component of the CRL4 E3 ubiquitin ligase. Recent proteomic approaches suggested that Vpr degrades helicase-like transcription factor (HLTF) DNA helicase in a proteasome-dependent manner by redirecting the CRL4-DCAF1 E3 ligase. However, the precise molecular mechanism of Vpr-dependent HLTF depletion is not known. Here, using in vitro reconstitution assays, we show that Vpr mediates polyubiquitination of HLTF, by directly loading it onto the C-terminal WD40 domain of DCAF1 in complex with the CRL4 E3 ubiquitin ligase. Mutational analyses suggest that Vpr interacts with DNA-binding residues in the N-terminal HIRAN domain of HLTF in a manner similar to the recruitment of another target, uracil DNA glycosylase (UNG2), to the CRL4-DCAF1 E3 by Vpr. Strikingly, Vpr also engages a second, adjacent region, which connects the HIRAN and ATPase/helicase domains. Thus, our findings reveal that Vpr utilizes common as well as distinctive interfaces to recruit multiple postreplication DNA repair proteins to the CRL4-DCAF1 E3 ligase for ubiquitin-dependent proteasomal degradation.


In 2009 the IDDP-1 borehole at Krafla, Iceland unexpectedly intersected rhyolitic magma at 2.1 km depth [1,2], providing unprecedented opportunities to investigate silicic melt formation and storage, and potential for powerful geothermal energy production. A key objective is to constrain the nature of the rhyolitic melt and its response to drilling. As no intact core was extracted, evidence is fragmental - from glassy rhyolitic clasts retrieved from the cuttings. These exhibit a range of glass colours, vesicularities and phenocryst contents [1,2]. Here we use benchtop infra-red spectroscopy and petrological microscopy to characterise the H2O concentrations and bubble number densities within diverse glassy clasts, complemented by 1 Atm bubble growth experiments with a heated stage to investigate vesicle growth. Juvenile glassy clasts were divided into three categories (brown>banded>very dark glass). H2O concentrations within clasts showed some spatial variability, with enrichment towards bubble-rich areas that may be resorption-related but could not be adequately characterised with a benchtop source. However, mean values ranged from 1.41-1.68 wt %, with no statistically significant difference between clast types. This is broadly consistent with previous studies [1,2]. Bubble growth rates in all clast types were determined during isothermal dwells at 600, 650 and 700 C, for which bubbles grew at 0.03-0.09, 0.11-0.31, and 0.46-0.82 m s-1 respectively. The highest growth rates were measured for the most water-rich clast analysed - a banded clast with mean H2O of 1.68 wt %, and initially-larger bubbles also grew more rapidly. Measured bubble number densities (BNDs) range from 10[11.7] m-3 in banded clasts to 10[13.1] m-3 in very dark clasts, corresponding to decompression rates of 0.1-1 MPa/s [3], although experimentation on IDDP-1 magma is needed to properly calibrate BNDs as a decompression rate meter. Nonetheless, such decompression rates suggest nucleation occurred over tens-hundreds of seconds, as pressure dropped from magmastatic towards lower borehole values. The duration of vesicle growth was roughly estimated from measured bubble sizes, which range from 5 m in very dark clasts to 30 m in banded clasts, and extrapolated bubble growth rates at magmatic temperature (900 C) and appropriate pressure. Results suggest only brief pre-quenching growth occurred, over seconds. We therefore propose that magma adjacent to the drill head experienced decompression prior to interception, leading to a brief period of bubble nucleation and a briefer period of growth prior to fragmentation and quenching. The high bubble strain, low bubble number density and largest bubble sizes in banded clasts all point towards slower decompression and more protracted viscous flow in this part of the rhyolitic magma. However, better temporal constraints are required on the extraction of distinct clast types to determine how magma response evolved through time, and better piece together this enigmatic magmatic jigsaw.


A variety of training approaches have been shown to improve running economy in welltrained athletes. However, there is a paucity of data exploring lowerbody determinants that may affect running economy and account for differences that may exist between genders. Sixtythree male and female distance runners were assessed in the laboratory for a range of metabolic, biomechanical, and neuromuscular measures potentially related to running economy (ml·kg(1)·min(1)) at a range of running speeds. At all common test velocities, women were more economical than men (effect size [ES] = 0.40); however, when compared in terms of relative intensity, men had better running economy (ES = 2.41). Leg stiffness (r = 0.80) and moment arm length (r = 0.90) were largeextremely largely correlated with running economy and each other (r = 0.82). Correlations between running economy and kinetic measures (peak force, peak power, and time to peak force) for both genders were unclear. The relationship in stride rate (r = 0.27 to 0.31) was in the opposite direction to that of stride length (r = 0.320.49), and the relationship in contact time (r = 0.21 to 0.54) was opposite of that of flight time (r = 0.060.74). Although both leg stiffness and moment arm length are highly related to running economy, it seems that no single lowerbody measure can completely explain differences in running economy between individuals or genders. Running economy is therefore likely determined from the sum of influences from multiple lowerbody attributes. Abstract 1


The Multivesicular Body (MVB) Sorting pathway provides a mechanism for the delivery of transmembrane proteins into the lumen of the vacuole/lysosome for degradation. It has been shown that the MVB sorting pathway plays a critical role in biological processes including receptor downregulation and retroviral budding. Studies by the Emr lab and others have demonstrated that ubiquitin modification acts in cis as a signal for the sorting of cargo into this pathway. Using a genetic selection designed to identify mutants that missort MVB cargoes, we isolated the ubiqutin ligase Rsp5. This selection identified a point mutation in ubiquitin ligase Rsp5 (Rsp5 -326). At the permissive temperature, this mutant is specifically defective for ubiquitination and sorting of the ubiquitin-dependent MVB cargo pCPS (precursor Carboxypeptidase S) but not ligand-induced ubiquitination of Ste2. Thus, Rsp5 plays an essential role in the ubiquitination and targeting of cargo proteins into the MVB pathway. The ESCRT complexes associated proteins are required for the sorting of cargo into the MVB pathway. While the crystal structures of two ESCRT complexes have have been determined, the molecular mechanisms underlying the assembly and regulation of the ESCRT machinery is are still poorly understood. Here, we identify a new component of the ESCRT-I complex, Mvb12, and demonstrate that Mvb12 binds to the coiled-coil domain of the ESCRT-I subunit Vps23. We show that ESCRT-I adopts an oligomeric state in the cytosol, the formation of which requires the coiled- coil domain of Vps23 as well as Mvb12. Loss of Mvb12 results in the disassembly of the ESCRT-I oligomer and the formation of a stable complex of ESCRT-I and ESCRT-II in the cytosol. We propose that Mvb12 stabilizes stabilizes ESCRT-I in an oligomeric, inactive state in the cytosol to ensure that the ordered recruitment and assembly of ESCRT- I and -II is spatially and temporally restricted to the surface of the endosome, following activation of the MVB sorting reaction


Weaning a patient off mechanical ventilation, especially when they have been dependent on it for a long time, can be a difficult task. Many physical and psychological factors contribute towards dependence on the ventilator. We re. port a case of a 28-year-old female patient that developed anxiety and a psychological dependence on the ventilator thereby making weaning off difficult. Timely psychiatric intervention resulted in successful weaning off the ventilator.


We thank Drs Raininko and Bajic for their interest in our recent article and welcome the opportunity to clarify certain issues. We would like to emphasize the distinction between the collection of 10 findings termed "hippocampal malrotation" (HIMAL) by Barsi et al and the isolated finding of an under-rotated hippocampus or "incomplete hippocampal inversion." We do not dispute the idea that abnormal hippocampal rotation is a failure of the complete rotation that is an accepted part of normal brain development. Variation in other authors' terminology for this isolated finding is acknowledged in the article by Bajic et al. The differences between our lower reported rate in individuals without epilepsy and those of Bajic et al may be due to the different criteria used. We used the stricter criteria requiring all the elements to be present, whereas they accepted partial forms, which will clearly result in higher rates and may also account for the frequency of bilateral findings, which are rare when stricter criteria are used. Given that there is still a debate about whether HIMAL represents a finding of pathologic significance, we believe that a strict definition is more appropriate because if HIMAL is of pathologic significance, the stricter criteria are more appropriate for identifying associated pathology. If HIMAL becomes established as a pathologic finding, then expanding the spectrum to partial forms and clarifying whether they are also associated with pathology will be the next step. However, if one expands the criteria to partial forms, one may well lose the association between HIMAL and epilepsy. In any case, that would have to be identified in a case-control study by using the same criteria.


Purpose: Increasing students' political interest has been a longstanding goal of civic education. One way to trigger students' interests in political issues is by engaging them first in an attention grabbing activity (i.e., assigning them to roles). Because it is important to examine not only how roles may trigger political interest, but also students' political interest afterwards, we asked: What happens to students' interest in political issues after engagement first? Methodology: Drawing from Schwartz and Bransford's (1998) 'A Time for Telling', we conducted a case study of three students, who experienced 'engagement first' activities in a class, and report on their interests about political issues in one particular activity. Findings: While role-play can help trigger students' political interest. Our findings show that for students to maintain political interest, they need follow-up opportunities to engage in meaningful activities around politics. Research implications: Role assignment is a good way to trigger political interest, but productive disciplinary engagement can be coupled with engagement first to extent students' political interest. Practical implications: Classroom activities that hope to support students' political interest may need to include both 'engagement first' and further scaffolds for students to engage productively with politics.


Brain decoding is a data analysis paradigm for neuroimaging experiments that is based on predicting the stimulus presented to the subject from the concurrent brain activity. In order to make inference at the group level, a straightforward but sometimes unsuccessful approach is to train a classifier on the trials of a group of subjects and then to test it on unseen trials from new subjects. The extreme difficulty is related to the structural and functional variability across the subjects. We call this approach decoding across subjects. In this work, we address the problem of decoding across subjects for magnetoen-cephalographic (MEG) experiments and we provide the following contributions: first, we formally describe the problem and show that it belongs to a machine learning sub-field called transductive transfer learning (TTL). Second, we propose to use a simple TTL technique that accounts for the differences between train data and test data. Third, we propose the use of ensemble learning, and specifically of stacked generalization, to address the variability across subjects within train data, with the aim of producing more stable classifiers. On a face vs. scramble task MEG dataset of 16 subjects, we compare the standard approach of not modelling the differences across subjects, to the proposed one of combining TTL and ensemble learning. We show that the proposed approach is consistently more accurate than the standard one.


Many global fisheries have transitioned to rights-based management to improve bioeconomic outcomes, but several fishing communities have experienced negative social impacts. Negative social impacts are often attributed to a focus on economic efficiency and resource sustainability, with less focus on the distributional equity among fishery participants. Among rights-based systems, limited entry has been used for over a century to reduce excess fleet capacity. In 1991, a limited entry permit system was initiated in the Hawai'i longline fleet, following years of rapid growth. The Hawai'i system did not set an ownership cap, which presented a natural experiment to examine distributional equity in the fleet over time. We examined permit ownership changes in the Hawai'i longline fishery using 27 years of permit transactions, then linked it to logbook landings and commercial dealer data to examine revenue inequality using the gini coefficient. We also analyzed property rights components to better understand how institutional factors affected ownership changes. We found that three distinct permit ownership groups emerged and permits, landings, and revenue became increasingly consolidated among multiple permit owners. The gini coefficient indicated that how the fishery was analyzed significantly affected measures of revenue inequality. One measure indicated that revenue inequality in the Hawai'i limited entry system was similar to other U.S. fisheries managed by catch shares. Without an ownership cap, distributional equity in the Hawai'i longline fleet changed significantly over time. Our findings indicate that distributional equity should be considered prior to initiating rights-based transitions in other global fisheries


The global phytoplankton community, comprised of aquatic photosynthetic organisms, is acknowledged for being responsible for half of the global oxygen production Prominent among these is the pico-eukaryote Micromonas commoda (formally Micromonas pusilla of the genus Micromonas), which can be found in marine and coastal environments across the globe. Cell death of phytoplankton has been identified as contributing to the largest carbon transfers on the planet moving 109 tonnes of carbon in the oceans every day. During a cell death organic matter is released into the local environment which can act as both a food source and a warning signal for nearby organisms. Here we present a novel motility response to single cell death in populations of Micromonas sp., where the death of a single cell releases a chemical patch triggers surrounding cells to escape the immediate affected area. These so-called "burst events" are then modelled and compared with a spherically symmetric diffusing patch which is found to faithfully reproduce the observed behaviour. Finally, laser ablation of single cells reproduces the observed avoidance response, confirming that Micromonas sp. has evolved a specific motility response in order to escape harmful environments for example nearby predator-prey interactions or virus lysis induced cell death.


There are many things that medical and premedical students can and should get out of a course on medical ethics. Many topics relevant to the practice of medicine require genuine philosophical contemplation. For instance: What is voluntary informed consent? How should "death" be defined and what difference does this make in specific situations? And perhaps even, What is a person? Questions such as these are appropriate for medical ethics courses because of the bearing they have on ethical decisions made by physicians and others in the health care field. That is, encouraging reflection on these and other such questions is a means by which most of us who teach medical ethics hope to enable our students to become better—more ethically aware—health care workers.


Over two decades ago, scientists developed a push-pull intercropping strategy that received critical acclaim for synergizing food security with ecosystem resilience in smallholder farming. The strategy suppresses Lepidopteran pests in maize through a combination of a repellent intercrop (push), commonly Desmodium spp., and an attractive, dead-end border crop (pull). Key is the intercrop's constitutive release of volatiles that repel herbivores. Surprisingly, however, we found that Desmodium does not constitutively release volatiles, and only minimally upon herbivory. Further, in oviposition choice settings, Spodoptera frugiperda, a devastating invasive pest, was not repelled by Desmodium volatiles. In search of an alternative mechanism, we found that neonate larvae strongly preferred Desmodium over maize. However, their development stagnated and none survived. In addition, larvae were frequently seen impaled and immobilized by the dense network of silica-fortified, non-glandular trichomes. Thus, entirely different from repelling adult moths, Desmodium intercepts and decimates dispersing offspring. As a hallmark of sustainable pest control, maize-Desmodium intercropping has inspired countless efforts trying to emulate a stimulo-deterrent diversion in other cropping systems. However, detailed knowledge of the actual mechanisms is required to rationally improve the strategy, and translate the concept into other cropping systems.