The prediction of concrete materials service life is not easy, because the complex heterogeneous microstructure and the random nature of concrete materials. Study the presence of cracks in concrete and their effect on coupled reaction and transport are of great interest in civil engineering. Cracks with different widths and depths will reduce the cover thickness and accelerate the migration of chloride ions. So, it's highly desirable to develop a model to predict the chloride diffusion depth in cracked concrete while considering the real microstructure including cement, voids and aggregate. While current models consider a variety of concrete at varying levels of complexity, predicting the initiation of chloride-induced corrosion, considering the influence of cracking is generally beyond their scope. Previous research has used COMSOL Multiphysics to investigate the microscale corrosion of reinforced concrete cracking due to non-uniform corrosion (Pan and Lu 2012). The cracked and porous media was analyzed by COMSOL (Perko et al.). Reaction and diffusion processes were also studied by (Richter et al.). Digital image analysis was used to represent rock structures (Zhang et al.). In this study, the 3D image-based microstructure was provided by the advanced mathematical representation of random microstructure (Lu and Garboczi). Next, a 3D mesh representing true multiphase microstructure was written in Nastran mesh and imported to COMSOL Multiphysics. Two COMSOL interfaces, Transport of Diluted Species and User Defined ODE Mathematics, were employed in this study to examine the influence of cracking on chloride penetration into concrete. Moreover, we use COMOL to assign boundary conditions directly on 3D mesh, rather than on the geometry. Eventually, predicting the chloride penetration in heterogeneous microstructure of concrete can be accurately simulated with COMSOL Multiphysics. The chloride concentration gradient existed in the crack obviously, and it changed the chloride concentration along the crack and irregular aggregate surfaces continually. Comparison to experimental data indicates that the contributions of binding of the chloride ions by the cement paste play a significant role in slowing the ingress of chlorides and should be accounted for in any modeling efforts.


Arab Christianity has a long history, longer than the history Christianity has in many European countries, a fact we seem to have forgotten in the west. According to Acts 2:11, some Arabs together with several other people of different nationalities were present when Peter gave his address to the crowd on the first Pentecost day after the ascension of Christ. Even if this piece of information is not historically true, there is no doubt that Christianity spread to the Arab world fairly early, probably in the beginning with some Judaeo-Christians, who moved to Arabia, and later on as a result of a mission to the gentiles. Already in antiquity the Bible was translated from the Greek Septuagint into Arabic.


Dressing the Man is the definitive guide to what men need to know in order to dress well and look stylish without becoming fashion victims. Alan Flusser's name is synonymous with taste and style. With his new book, he combines his encyclopedic knowledge of men's clothes with his signature wit and elegance to address the fundamental paradox of modern men's fashion: Why, after men today have spent more money on clothes than in any other period of history, are there fewer well-dressed men than at any time ever before? According to Flusser, dressing well is not all that difficult, the real challenge lies in being able to acquire the right personalized instruction. Dressing well pivots on two pillars -- proportion and color. Flusser believes that "Permanent Fashionability," both his promise and goal for the reader, starts by being accountable to a personal set of physical trademarks and not to any kind of random, seasonally served-up collection of fashion flashes. Unlike fashion, which is obliged to change each season, the face's shape, the neck's height, the shoulder's width, the arm's length, the torso's structure, and the foot's size remain fairly constant over time. Once a man learns how to adapt the fundamentals of permanent fashion to his physique and complexion, he's halfway home. Taking the reader through each major clothing classification step-by-step, this user-friendly guide helps you apply your own specifics to a series of dressing options, from business casual and formalwear to pattern-on-pattern coordination, or how to choose the most flattering clothing silhouette for your body type and shirt collar for your face. A man's physical traits represent his individual road map, and the quickest route toward forging an enduring style of dress is through exposure to the legendary practitioners of this rare masculine art. Flusser has assembled the largest andmost diverse collection of stylishly mantled men ever found in one book. Many never-before-seen vintage photographs from the era of Cary Grant, Tyrone Power, and Fred Astaire are employed to help illustrate the range and diversity of authentic men's fashion. Dressing the Man's sheer magnitude of options will enable the reader to expand both the grammar and verbiage of his permanent-fashion vocabulary. For those men hoping to find sartorial fulfillment somewhere down the road, tethering their journey to the mind-set of permanent fashion will deliver them earlier rather than later in life.


Aldosterone-producing adenomas (APAs) are benign tumors of the adrenal gland that constitutively produce the salt-retaining steroid hormone aldosterone and cause millions of cases of severe hypertension worldwide. Either of 2 somatic mutations in the potassium channel KCNJ5 (G151R and L168R, hereafter referred to as KCNJ5MUT) in adrenocortical cells account for half of APAs worldwide. These mutations alter channel selectivity to allow abnormal Na+ conductance, resulting in membrane depolarization, calcium influx, aldosterone production, and cell proliferation. Because APA diagnosis requires a difficult invasive procedure, patients often remain undiagnosed and inadequately treated. Inhibitors of KCNJ5MUT could allow noninvasive diagnosis and therapy of APAs carrying KCNJ5 mutations. Here, we developed a high-throughput screen for rescue of KCNJ5MUT-induced lethality and identified a series of macrolide antibiotics, including roxithromycin, that potently inhibit KCNJ5MUT, but not KCNJ5WT. Electrophysiology demonstrated direct KCNJ5MUT inhibition. In human aldosterone-producing adrenocortical cancer cell lines, roxithromycin inhibited KCNJ5MUT-induced induction of CYP11B2 (encoding aldosterone synthase) expression and aldosterone production. Further exploration of macrolides showed that KCNJ5MUT was similarly selectively inhibited by idremcinal, a macrolide motilin receptor agonist, and by synthesized macrolide derivatives lacking antibiotic or motilide activity. Macrolide-derived selective KCNJ5MUT inhibitors thus have the potential to advance the diagnosis and treatment of APAs harboring KCNJ5MUT.


(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, this part shall apply whenever any power output (in watts or otherwise), power band or power frequency response, or distortion capability or characteristic is represented, either expressly or by implication, in connection with the advertising, sale, or offering for sale, in commerce as ''commerce'' is defined in the Federal Trade Commission Act, of sound power amplification equipment manufactured or sold for home entertainment purposes, such as for example, radios, record and tape players, radio-phonograph and/or tape combinations, component audio amplifiers, self-powered speakers for computers, multimedia systems and sound systems, and the like. (b) Representations shall be exempt from this part if all representations of performance characteristics referred to in paragraph (a) of this section clearly and conspicuously disclose a manufacturer's rated power output and that rated output does not exceed two (2) watts (per channel or total). (c) It is an unfair method of competition and an unfair or deceptive act or practice within the meaning of section 5(a)(1) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45(a)(1)) to violate any applicable provision of this part.


Legal geography is a stream of scholarship that takes the interconnections between law and spatiality, and especially their reciprocal construction, as core objects of inquiry. Legal geographers contend that in the world of lived social relations and experience, aspects of the social that are analytically identified as either legal or spatial are conjoined and co-constituted. The legal geography scholarship highlights that nearly every aspect of law is either located, takes place, is in motion, or has some spatial frame of reference. In other words, law is always "worlded" in some way. Likewise, every bit of social space, lived places, and landscapes are inscribed with legal significance. Distinctively legal forms of meaning are projected onto every segment of the physical world. These meanings are open to interpretation and may become involved in a range of legal practices. Such fragments of a socially segmented world — the where of law — are not simply the inert sites of law, but are inextricably implicated in how law happens. This introduction to the forthcoming book The Expanding Spaces of Law: A Timely Legal Geography (Stanford University Press) identifies and elaborates on three modes of legal geographic research. The first mode of legal geography includes disciplinary work in law or in geography that is modeled on the conventional image of import and export. The second is an interdisciplinary pursuit in which scholars in the eponymous fields draw on the work of each other and seek to contribute to the development of a common project. The third mode moves beyond legal geography to trans-disciplinary, or perhaps even post-disciplinary, modes of scholarship. Although these three modes exist concurrently, the general trajectory over time has been from disciplinary to interdisciplinary and, finally, to post-disciplinary orientations. This triadic classification helps organize the rich yet eclectic legal geography scholarship that has evolved over the last thirty years or so. While this introduction contains elements of each mode, it also urges interested scholars to move legal geography beyond the disciplinary boundaries into the horizons of a post-legal geography. Ironically, then, the ultimate success of legal geography will be in its ability to transcend the bi-disciplinary focus that has characterized so much of this scholarship up to this point. In addition to the introduction, the book consists of ten chapters. In the first three, Keebet and the late Franz von Benda-Beckmann, Mariana Valverde, and Nicholas Blomley identify gaps and obstacles in existing approaches to legal geography scholarship and offer remedies. An important sub-theme in each of these chapters is the importance of being more mindful of the temporalities of social, spatial, and legal phenomena. Authored by Alexandre (Sandy) Kedar and Irus Braverman, the next two chapters ask how a critical comparative legal geography might not only draw upon but also contribute to a rejuvenated project of comparative law and the methodological stakes of legal geography scholarship. The remaining five chapters expand legal geography into new spaces and make new connections. Specifically, Michael Smith, Antonio Azuela and Rodrigo Meneses, Lisa Pruitt, Melinda Benson, and David Delaney develop novel interpretive resources with the aim of enhancing interdisciplinarity, applying these tools to particular kinds of spaces and places: war zones, the street, the workplace, American rurality, and procedural spaces.


Abstract Evidence that more people in some countries and fewer in others are dying because of the pandemic, than is reflected by reported coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) mortality rates, is derived from mortality data. Using publicly available databases, deaths attributed to Covid-19 in 2020 and all deaths for the years 2015–2020 were tabulated for 35 countries together with economic, health, demographic and government response stringency index variables. Residual mortality rates (RMR) in 2020 were calculated as excess mortality minus reported mortality rates due to Covid-19 where excess deaths were observed deaths in 2020 minus the average for 2015–2019. Differences in RMR are differences not attributed to reported Covid-19. For about half the countries, RMR's were negative and for half, positive. The absolute rates in some countries were double those in others. In a regression analysis, population density and proportion of female smokers were positively associated with both Covid-19 and excess mortality while the human development index and proportion of male smokers were negatively associated with both. RMR was not associated with any of the investigated variables. The results show that published data on mortality from Covid-19 cannot be directly comparable across countries. This may be due to differences in Covid-19 death reporting and in addition, the unprecedented public health measures implemented to control the pandemic may have produced either increased or reduced excess deaths due to other diseases. Further data on cause-specific mortality is required to determine the extent to which residual mortality represents non-Covid-19 deaths and to explain differences between countries.


This paper discusses how the acquisition, development and exercise of knowledge and skills in relation to quality teaching (QT) practices have impacted upon professional learning within a number of QT inquiry projects. The emphasis is upon how the major challenges and limitations of professional learning have occurred within the social context of collaborative inquiry, and how these challenges and limitations helped shape the professional learning. The paper offers an interpretation of the methodologies and evaluative aspects of teacher professional learning as these have interacted with QT. From this perspective a metacognitive model of professional learning is proposed, aimed at linking QT evaluation to professional learning. This model incorporates qualitative and quantitative inquiry principles, for the purpose of framing a sustainable approach to professional learning that compliments individual differences in pedagogy as well as collaborative principles of action learning.


Gaussian processes (GPs) provide a principled, practical, probabilistic approach to learning in kernel machines. GPs have received increased attention in the machine-learning community over the past decade, and this book provides a long-needed systematic and unified treatment of theoretical and practical aspects of GPs in machine learning. The treatment is comprehensive and self-contained, targeted at researchers and students in machine learning and applied statistics.The book deals with the supervised-learning problem for both regression and classification, and includes detailed algorithms. A wide variety of covariance (kernel) functions are presented and their properties discussed. Model selection is discussed both from a Bayesian and a classical perspective. Many connections to other well-known techniques from machine learning and statistics are discussed, including support-vector machines, neural networks, splines, regularization networks, relevance vector machines and others. Theoretical issues including learning curves and the PAC-Bayesian framework are treated, and several approximation methods for learning with large datasets are discussed. The book contains illustrative examples and exercises, and code and datasets are available on the Web. Appendixes provide mathematical background and a discussion of Gaussian Markov processes.


Building design in Civil Engineering is characterized by the cooperation of experts in multiple disciplines. Close cooperation of engineers in different fields is the basis of high product quality, short development periods and a minimum of investment costs. For each building the engineers have to create a new fire engineering model. The consistent realization of the fire engineering model in all details has high demands on communication, collaboration and building models. Thereby, to preserve the related design models consistent to each other and compatible with the rules of fire engineering is a complex task. In addition, regulations and guidelines vary according to the building location, so the knowledge base must be integrated dynamically into the planning process. This contribution covers the integration of engineers and design models into a cooperation network on the basis of mobile agents. The distributed models of architectural design, structural planning and fire engineering are supported. These models are implemented as XML-based models which can be accessed by mobile agents for information retrieval and for processing tasks. Agents are provided to all planners, they are enabled to check up the distributed design models with the knowledge base of the fire protection regulations,. With the use of such an agent each planner is supported to check up his planning for accordance with the fire protection requirements. The fire-engineering-agent analyzes the design and detects inconsistencies by processing fire protection requirements and design model facts in a rule-based expert system. The possibility to check the planning information at an early state in the sense of compatibility to the fire protection regulations enables a comprehensive diagnosis of the design and the reduction of planning errors.


Abstract. Organic aerosol (OA) represents approximately half of the submicron aerosol in Mexico City and the Central Mexican Plateau. This study uses the high time resolution measurements performed onboard the NCAR/NSF C-130 aircraft during the MILAGRO/MIRAGE-Mex field campaign in March 2006 to investigate the sources and chemical processing of the OA in this region. An examination of the OA/ΔCO ratio evolution as a function of photochemical age shows distinct behavior in the presence or absence of substantial open biomass burning (BB) influence, with the latter being consistent with other studies in polluted areas. In addition, we present results from Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) analysis of 12-s High-Resolution Time-of-Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (HR-ToF-AMS) OA spectra. Four components were resolved. Three of the components contain substantial organic oxygen and are termed semivolatile oxygenated OA (SV-OOA), low-volatility OOA (LV-OOA), and biomass burning OA (BBOA). A reduced "hydrocarbon-like OA" (HOA) component is also resolved. LV-OOA is highly oxygenated (atomic O/C~1) and is aged organic aerosol linked to regional airmasses, with likely contributions from pollution, biomass burning, and other sources. SV-OOA is strongly correlated with ammonium nitrate, Ox, and the Mexico City Basin. We interpret SV-OOA as secondary OA which is nearly all (>90%) anthropogenic in origin. In the absence of biomass burning it represents the largest fraction of OA over the Mexico City basin, consistent with other studies in this region. BBOA is identified as arising from biomass burning sources due to a strong correlation with HCN, and the elevated contribution of the ion C2H4O2+ (m/z 60, a marker for levoglucosan and other primary BB species). WRF-FLEXPART calculated fire impact factors (FIF) show good correlation with BBOA mass concentrations within the basin, but show location offsets in the far field due to model transport errors. This component is small or absent when forest fires are suppressed by precipitation. Since PMF factors represent organic species grouped by chemical similarity, additional postprocessing is needed to more directly apportion OA amounts to sources, which is done here based on correlations to different tracers. The postprocessed AMS results are similar to those from an independent source apportionment based on multiple linear regression with gas-phase tracers. During a flight with very high forest fire intensity near the basin OA arising from open BB represents ~66% of the OA mass in the basin and contributes similarly to OA mass in the outflow. Aging and SOA formation of BB emissions is estimated to add OA mass equivalent to about ~32–42% of the primary BBOA over several hours to a day.


Each day we face a barrage of images and messages from society and the media telling us who, what, and how we should be. We are led to believe that if we could only look perfect and lead perfect lives, we'd no longer feel inadequate. So most of us perform, please, and perfect, all the while thinking, oWhat if I can't keep all of these balls in the air? Why isn't everyone else working harder and living up to my expectations? What will people think if I fail or give up? When can I stop proving myself?o In The Gifts of Imperfection , BrenU Brown, Ph.D., a leading expert on shame, authenticity and belonging, shares what she's learned from a decade of research on the power of oWholehearted Livingo u a way of engaging with the world from a place of worthiness. In her ten guideposts, Brown engages our minds, hearts, and spirits as she explores how we can cultivate the courage, compassion, and connection to wake up in the morning and think, oNo matter what gets done and how much is left undone, I am enough." And to go to bed at night thinking, oYes, I am sometimes afraid, but I am also braveo. And, oYes, I am imperfect and vulnerable, but that doesn't change the truth that I am worthy of love and belongingo.


Structural features and internal dynamics of inosine-containing RNAs are poorly understood. NMR studies of such RNAs require 13 C,15 N-labeling, which cannot be achieved using in vitro transcription as inosine and guanosine are not distinguished by RNA polymerase. Herein, we report the synthesis of an inosine phosphoramidite with selective 13 C8 and 15 N7-isotope incorporation in the base and uniform 13 C-labeling of the ribose. Chemical synthesis of an RNA duplex containing four consecutive IU base pairs with this optimized isotope-labeling scheme greatly simplifies NMR spectra and resolves signal overlap. The absence of detectable NMR signals of imino protons and unusual inter-residue NOE correlations in this RNA indicate deviations from standard A-form geometry, consistent with reduced stability of this duplex seen in UV melting studies compared to its nonedited RNA counterparts. These studies indicate that the introduction of IU base pairs distorts and destabilizes RNA helices significantly compared to the also noncanonical GU base-pairs. Our optimized isotope-labeling scheme enables high-resolution NMR studies of inosine-edited RNAs.


The advantages of cooperation between research library associations can be demonstrated quite clearly. Where cooperation becomes essential is where there is a common cause to champion or an initiative to pursue for the common good. Thanks in part to the power of information communications technology, research is becoming increasingly international in scope. The members of interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research teams are frequently drawn from across the world. Correspondingly, scholarly publishing (especially in medicine and the sciences) is dominated by a few multinational publishers. In this context, issues that play a vital role in global scholarly communication - such as copyright, journal pricing, the managing of datasets, digital preservation and open access - are issues for the research library community everywhere in the world. Certainly there are many challenges at the local or regional level. However there are definite roles that research library associations can play most effectively at the national or international level. It is clear that by sharing expertise, building partnerships and alliances, it is possible to address common issues much more effectively than when working alone. What is special is that potentially the most powerful form of cooperation is advocacy at the national and international levels. It is essential for research library associations to work together at the political level to move their agenda forward. Examples are lobbying about copyright legislation (nationally, or within the EC or at WIPO); or promoting the cause of Open Access. The unique value of LIBER is to provide a forum and a platform for European research library associations to explore and benefit from cooperation and their shared strength.


This article introduces this special issue on the substance of EU democracy promotion. It explains the research question that is central to this special issue: What is the democratic substance that the EU furthers in third countries? First, we provide a review of the literature, arguing that existing studies have mainly focused on the impact and strategies of EU democracy promotion without sufficiently analysing the very substance it furthers in third countries and regions. While academic research has made a rough distinction between a broad and a limited notion of democracy promotion, scholars have not yet systematically and comparatively analysed this topic. Second, we develop a conceptual framework in order to 'map' the substance of EU democracy promotion. Starting from a liberal conception of democracy and based on an adaptation of the model of 'embedded democracy', different components, types and agendas of democracy promotion are identified. Third, we formulate a number of expectations on the substance of democracy advanced by the EU, focusing in particular on the distinction between a 'one-size-fits-all' and a differentiation scenario. This article ends with a summary of the different contributions to the special issue.


This paper describes the development of security requirements for non-political Internet voting. The practical background is our experience with the Internet voting within the Gesellschaft fur Informatik (GI - Informatics Society) 2004 and 2005. The theoretical background is the international state-of-the-art of requirements about electronic voting, especially in the US and in Europe. A focus of this paper is on the user community driven standardization of security requirements by means of a Protection Profile of the international Common Criteria standard.


Why did some early Christians consider Mary Magdalene to be an apostle while others did not? Some Christian texts, underlining her role as one of the very first witnesses to the resurrection, portray Mary Magdalene as the "apostle to the apostles", while other sources exclude or replace her in their resurrection accounts. This book examines how the conferral, or withholding, or apostolic status operated as a tool of persuasion in the politics of early Christian literature. Drawing on both canonical and noncanonical literature in her comprehensive sd<"@tudy, the author reveals some intriguing correlations between the prominence of Peter in a text and a corresponding diminishment of women's leadership and apostolicity. This historical study of early Christian tensions has serious implications for current denominational discourse because authority, apostolic status and the ordination of women continue to be highly disputed topics within many Christian circles today.


This research was conducted in the town of Redencao of Gurgueia in the southern region of the state of Piaui. The region has a semi-arid tropical climate type, which corresponds to the high temperatures and dry climate, in the period of summer rainy season dragging for fall, common to all regions of northeastern Brazil. 27 adult crossbred horses race quarter mile aged (5-16 years) were used, nine males with white fur, with nine -nine sorrel coat with red fur. Heart rate (HR) and respiratory rate (RR) were performed. Thermal environment in a black globe with the purpose of recording the internal temperature of the animal at the beginning and end of each time of sampling, to calculate the rate of global temperature and humidity (BGT) was installed. The variations between the characteristics measured were significantly different (P < 0.05) between the two rounds of collections that corresponds to the 1st morning shift (T1) and 2 afternoon shift (T2) for heart rate (HR), respiratory rate (RR) and the rate of global temperature and humidity (BGT). The respiratory rate (RR) was positively correlated with FC (0.65).


IllumiRoom is a proof-of-concept system that augments the area surrounding a television with projected visualizations to enhance traditional gaming experiences. We investigate how projected visualizations in the periphery can negate, include, or augment the existing physical environment and complement the content displayed on the television screen. Peripheral projected illusions can change the appearance of the room, induce apparent motion, extend the field of view, and enable entirely new physical gaming experiences. Our system is entirely self-calibrating and is designed to work in any room. We present a detailed exploration of the design space of peripheral projected illusions and we demonstrate ways to trigger and drive such illusions from gaming content. We also contribute specific feedback from two groups of target users (10 gamers and 15 game designers); providing insights for enhancing game experiences through peripheral projected illusions.


America s doctors, Mehmet Oz and Mike Roizen, show you how to become your own medical detective and get the best health care possible. Everyone needs to become a smart patient. In fact, in the worst cases, your life may even depend on it. Number one bestselling authors and doctors Michael Roizen and Mehmet Oz have written this indispensable handbook to help everyone to get the best health care possible by making everyone into their own medical detective. Witty, playful, at times offbeat, but always authoritative, "You: The Smart Patient" shows you how to become your own medical sleuth, tracing your medical family tree and wending your way through the pitfalls of any health care situation. Written in conjunction with the health care community's leading oversight group, The Joint Commission, the book shows readers in clear, easy steps how to take control of their own health care and deal with all matters that may come up when facing a medical case: from choosing the right doctor, hospital, and insurance company to navigating prescription drugs, specialists, treatment options, alternative medicine, pain management, or any problem that might arise. Accessible, humorous, and filled with information that you need, "You: The Smart Patient" is a book for every patient and all those dealing with a loved one's medical issues."


Fifteen samples taken from interbedded sandstone, siltstone and claystone of Pliocene age, underlying the Bolinao Limestone, at the localities Anda, Roxas and Tiep (Pangasinan, Luzon, Philippines), were analysed for holoplanktonic gastropods; they have yielded 50 species (16 Heteropoda, one Janthinidae, and 33 Pteropoda, the latter consisting of 30 Euthecosomata, two Pseudothecosomata and one Gymnosomata). Faunal diversity between the localities sampled is restricted and explained by differences in sample size and/or preservation. The time interval represented by all samples taken together is postulated to have been brief. Fifteen new taxa (= 30% of the total number of encountered holoplanktonic molluscan species) are erected; Atlanta lingayanensis sp. nov., A. richteri sp. nov., A. seapyi sp. nov., Heliconoides sondaari sp. nov., Striolimacina andaensis sp. nov., Hyalocylis marginata sp. nov., Cavolinia baniensis sp. nov., C. perparvula sp. nov., C. shibatai sp. nov., Diacavolinia pristina sp. nov., Diacria italica Grecchi, 1982 f. fissicostata f. nov., D. microstriata sp. nov., D. paeninsula sp. nov., D. philippinensis sp. nov. and Sphaerocina convolvula sp. nov. Calibration with vertical ranges of holoplanktonic molluscan species as now known enables an age assignment for the Pangasinan assemblages of Pliocene (Piacenzian). A number of species, in particular Atlantidae (Heteropoda), were so far known only from Quaternary or extant assemblages. Comparisons with published data for Japan allow the conclusion that the Philippine assemblages are coeval with the Takanabe Member (Miyazaki Group) in Miyazaki Prefecture (southwest Japan), a unit which incidentally has yielded far fewer species. The absence of bathypelagic holoplanktonics, as well as littoral benthic species indicate an epi- to upper mesopelagic setting, with depth ranges extending to a maximal depth of c. 200 to 300 m.


The Element-free Galerkin Method has become a very popular tool for the simulation of mechanical problems with moving boundaries. The internally applied Moving Least Squares approximation uses in general Gaussian or cubic weighting functions and has compact support. Due to the approximative character of this method the obtained shape functions do not fulfill the interpolation condition, which causes additional numerical effort for the imposition of the essential boundary conditions. The application of a singular weighting function, which leads to singular coefficient matrices at the nodes, can solve this problem, but requires a very careful placement of the integration points. Special procedures for the handling of such singular matrices were proposed in literature, which require additional numerical effort. In this paper a non-singular weighting function is presented, which leads to an exact fulfillment of the interpolation condition. This weighting function leads to regular values of the weights and the coefficient matrices in the whole interpolation domain even at the nodes. Furthermore this function gives much more stable results for varying size of the influence radius and for strongly distorted nodal arrangements than classical weighting function types. Nevertheless, for practical applications the results are similar as these obtained with the regularized weighting type presented by the authors in previous publications. Finally a new concept will be presented, which enables an efficient analysis of systems with strongly varying node density. In this concept the nodal influence domains are adapted depending on the nodal configuration by interpolating the influence radius for each direction from the distances to the natural neighbor nodes. This approach requires a Voronoi diagram of the domain, which is available in this study since Delaunay triangles are used as integration background cells. In the numerical examples it will be shown, that this method leads to a more uniform and reduced number of influencing nodes for systems with varying node density than the classical circular influence domains, which means that the small additional numerical effort for interpolating the influence radius leads to remarkable reduction of the total numerical cost in a linear analysis while obtaining similar results. For nonlinear calculations this advantage would be even more significant.


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The study seeks for empirical evidence supporting the presence of weak form ans semi-strong form efficiency on the Vietnamese stock market. The sample includes the daily closing value of VN-index from 9th April 2009 to 3rd of December 2014. The results from both parametric and non-parametric tests provide the evidence, which implies the weak form efficiency in the Vietnamese stock market during the recent period from 4th June 2012 to 3rd December 2014. This period is used for testing the semi-strong form efficiency on the Vietnamese stock market. The results from event study do not support the semi-strong form efficiency in the Vietnamese stock market. The empirical evidence shows a delayed reaction of nine pharmaceutical companies' stock prices toward the earnings, dividend, insider trading and regulatory announcements. The findings in this paper are crucial for investors, analysts, academicians, regulators and the development of the Vietnamese stock market.


Ubiquitin is a versatile posttranslational modification, which is covalently attached to protein targets either as a single moiety or as a ubiquitin chain. In contrast to K48 and K63-linked chains, which have been extensively studied, the regulation and function of most atypical ubiquitin chains are only starting to emerge. The deubiquitinase TRABID/ZRANB1 is tuned for the recognition and cleavage of K29 and K33-linked chains. Yet, substrates of TRABID and the cellular functions of these atypical ubiquitin signals remain unclear. We determined the interactome of two TRABID constructs rendered catalytic dead either through a point mutation in the catalytic cysteine residue or through removal of the OTU catalytic domain. We identified 50 proteins trapped by both constructs and which therefore represent candidate substrates of TRABID. The E3 ubiquitin ligase HECTD1 was then validated as a substrate of TRABID and used UbiCREST and Ub-AQUA proteomics to show that HECTD1 preferentially assembles K29- and K48-linked ubiquitin chains. Further in vitro autoubiquitination assays using ubiquitin mutants established that while HECTD1 can assemble short homotypic K29 and K48-linked chains, it requires branching at K29/K48 in order to achieve its full ubiquitin ligase activity. We next used transient knockdown and genetic knockout of TRABID in mammalian cells in order to determine the functional relationship between TRABID and HECTD1. This revealed that upon TRABID depletion, HECTD1 is readily degraded. Thus, this study identifies HECTD1 as a mammalian E3 ligase that assembles branched K29/K48 chains and also establishes TRABID-HECTD1 as a DUB/E3 pair regulating K29 linkages.


Objective: Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is a clinically, genetically, and pathologically heterogeneous disorder. The aim of this study was to compare clinical features and perfusion patterns on SPECT of patients with familial FTLD–TAR DNA binding protein 43 kDa (TDP) and MAPT mutations. Methods: Patients were included if they had MAPT or GRN mutations, positive family history with pathologically proven FTLD in the patient or first-degree relative, or were part of FTD-MND families. All patients and 10 age- and gender-matched controls underwent measurement of brain perfusion using 99mTc-HMPAO SPECT. We used SPM8 to perform image processing and voxel-based group analyses (p < 0.001). Gender and age were included as nuisance variables in the design matrices. Results: Of the 29 patients with familial FTLD, 19 had familial FTLD-TDP (GRN mutations in 6), and 10 had MAPT mutations. At clinical presentation, familial FTLD-TDP patients were older at onset (p = 0.030) and had more memory deficits (p = 0.011), whereas patients with MAPT had more naming deficits (p < 0.001) and obsessive-compulsive behavior (p = 0.001). The between-groups SPECT analyses revealed significantly less perfusion in the right frontal lobe, precuneus, cuneus, and inferior parietal lobule in familial FTLD-TDP, whereas significantly less perfusion was found in the left temporal and inferior frontal gyri in MAPT. Post hoc analysis of familial FTLD-TDP with unknown genetic defect vs MAPT revealed less perfusion in the right frontal and parietal lobe. Conclusion: Familial FTLD-TDP shows relatively more posterior hypoperfusion, including the precuneus and inferior parietal lobule, possibly related to significant memory impairment. Patients with MAPT were characterized by impaired perfusion of the temporal regions and naming deficits.


"Open government" used to carry a hard political edge: it referred to politically sensitive disclosures of government information. The phrase was first used in the 1950s, in the debates leading up to passage of the Freedom of Information Act. But over the last few years, that traditional meaning has blurred, and has shifted toward technology. Open technologies involve sharing data over the Internet, and all kinds of governments can use them, for all kinds of reasons. Recent public policies have stretched the label "open government" to reach any public sector use of these technologies. Thus, "open government data" might refer to data that makes the government as a whole more open (that is, more accountable to the public), but might equally well refer to politically neutral public sector disclosures that are easy to reuse, but that may have nothing to do with public accountability. Today a regime can call itself "open" if it builds the right kind of web site — even if it does not become more accountable. This shift in vocabulary makes it harder for policymakers and activists to articulate clear priorities and make cogent demands.This essay proposes a more useful way for participants on all sides to frame the debate: We separate the politics of open government from the technologies of open data. Technology can make public information more adaptable, empowering third parties to contribute in exciting new ways across many aspects of civic life. But technological enhancements will not resolve debates about the best priorities for civic life, and enhancements to government services are no substitute for public accountability.


In 2012, an effort to establish a zone in the Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction ran out of momentum. In 2013, a chemical attack in the outskirts of Damascus nearly brought about US intervention in the Syrian civil war and ultimately led to Syria's accession to the Chemical Weapons Convention. Against this backdrop, some have suggested that the time is right to establish in the region a zone free of chemical weapons. Authors from three countries—Emily B. Landau of Israel (2014), Mostafa Elwi Saif of Egypt, and John Hart of the United States (2014)—explore whether a chemical-weapon-free zone in the Middle East might contribute to regional security and whether it could revitalize the initiative to rid the region of all weapons of mass destruction.


ATLANTA--A new study has found that many male cancer survivors who develop testosterone deficiency after receiving chemotherapy or radiation therapy have an impaired quality of life and reduced energy levels. Published early online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study suggests that young male cancer survivors with testosterone deficiency may benefit from testosterone replacement therapy. Testosterone deficiency is a late side effect of radiation therapy and chemotherapy that occurs in approximately 15 percent of male cancer survivors. Investigators led by Professor Richard Ross, MD, FRCP, of the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom examined the relationship between testosterone levels, quality of life, self-esteem, fatigue and sexual function in 176 young male cancer survivors compared with 213 young men without cancer. Young male cancer survivors said they experienced a marked impairment in quality of life, as well as reduced energy levels and quality of sexual function. These experiences were exacerbated in survivors with testosterone deficiency. Psychological distress was not elevated, self-esteem was normal, and sexual relationships were not impaired in male cancer survivors, however. Professor Ross commented: "This is an important study demonstrating that low testosterone levels are common in male cancer survivors and associated with an impaired quality of life. However, the relationship between testosterone levels and quality of life is complex and appears to depend on a threshold level rather than on a direct correlation. We now need interventional trials with testosterone to determine which young male cancer survivors will benefit from replacement therapy."


if thy soul check thee that i come so near, swear to thy blind soul that i was thy Will, and will, thy soul knows, is admitted there; Thus far for love my love-suit sweet fulfil. Will will fulfil the treasure of thy love, ay, fill it full with wills, and my will one; in things of great receipt with ease we prove among a number one is reckoned none. Then in the number let me pass untold, Though in thy store's account i one must be. For nothing hold me, so it please thee hold That nothing, me, a something sweet to thee. Make but my name thy love, and love that still; and then thou lov'st me, for my name is Will. —William shakespeare, sonnet 1361


This case study examines new literacy opportunities and practices of 28 Latino/a children from grades one to seven in a South Texas colonia, or unincorporated area. Data sources were 24-hour literacy logs, two rounds of interviews, and participant observations. The children reported limited school work related to digital literacies; the technology they accessed outside of school focused on entertainment, communication with friends, and mostly non-challenging video games. We discuss participants' ingenious ways of circumventing any lack of access, their underlying social practices of community sharing, and Thirdspace possibilities of the tutorial center that respondents attended.


For all the buzz about trendy IT techniques, data processing is still at the core of our systems, especially now that enterprises all over the world are confronted with exploding volumes of data. Database performance has become a major headache, and most IT departments believe that developers should provide simple SQL code to solve immediate problems and let DBAs tune any "bad SQL" later. In The Art of SQL, author and SQL expert Stephane Faroult argues that this "safe approach" only leads to disaster. His insightful book, named after Art of War by Sun Tzu, contends that writing quick inefficient code is sweeping the dirt under the rug. SQL code may run for 5 to 10 years, surviving several major releases of the database management system and on several generations of hardware. The code must be fast and sound from the start, and that requires a firm understanding of SQL and relational theory. The Art of SQL offers best practices that teach experienced SQL users to focus on strategy rather than specifics. Faroult's approach takes a page from Sun Tzu's classic treatise by viewing database design as a military campaign. You need knowledge, skills, and talent. Talent can't be taught, but every strategist from Sun Tzu to modern-day generals believed that it can be nurtured through the experience of others. They passed on their experience acquired in the field through basic principles that served as guiding stars amid the sound and fury of battle. This is what Faroult does with SQL. Like a successful battle plan, good architectural choices are based on contingencies. What if the volume of this or that table increases unexpectedly? What if, following a merger, the number of users doubles? What if you want to keep several years of data online? Faroult's way of looking at SQL performance may be unconventional and unique, but he's deadly serious about writing good SQL and using SQL well. The Art of SQL is not a cookbook, listing problems and giving recipes. The aim is to get you-and your manager-to raise good questions.


In previous articles, we have argued that European Court of Justice's reliance on nondiscrimination as the basis for its decisions did not (and could not) satisfy commonly accepted tax policy norms, such as fairness, adminstrability, production of desired levels of revenues, avoidance of double taxation, fiscal policy goals, inter-nation fiscal equity, and so on. In addition, we argued that the Court cannot achieve consistent and coherent results by requiring nondiscrimination in both origin and destination countries for transactions involving the tax systems of more than one member state. We demonstrated that - in the absence of harmonized income tax bases and rates - the Court had entered a "labyrinth of impossibility." Ruth Mason and Michael Knoll claim to have discovered a single, normative criterion that not only resolves this dilemma, but also explains the existing nondiscrimination tax jurisprudence of both the European Court of Justice and the United States Supreme Court. In fact, their crucial, but unrealistic, assumption that taxpayers can never move from one state to another confines the actual scope of their analysis to a very small set of cases involving cross-border workers. Although they endorse economic efficiency as the guidestar for judicial decisions regarding tax discrimination, Mason and Knoll fail to provide any evidence that their proposed norm would reduce tax-induced distortions more than competing norms, even in the limited situations to which their analysis applies. Nor do they make a convincing case that they have found the key to understanding the confusing and inconsistent U.S. and EU judicial decisions, which are not confined to cross-border workers. Finally, implementation of their proposed norm by legislation or litigation is not practical, given the particular tax systems that they say would be required. In short, their proposed norm does not provide a way out of the "labyrinth of impossibility" created by a nondiscrimination approach to taxation of international transactions.


Hyperphosphatemic familial tumoral calcinosis (HFTC)/hyperostosis-hyperphosphatemia syndrome (HHS) is an autosomal recessive disorder of ectopic calcification due to deficiency of or resistance to intact fibroblast growth factor 23 (iFGF23). Inactivating mutations in FGF23, N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 3 (GALNT3), or KLOTHO (KL) have been reported as causing HFTC/HHS. We present what we believe is the first identified case of autoimmune hyperphosphatemic tumoral calcinosis in an 8-year-old boy. In addition to the classical clinical and biochemical features of hyperphosphatemic tumoral calcinosis, the patient exhibited markedly elevated intact and C-terminal FGF23 levels, suggestive of FGF23 resistance. However, no mutations in FGF23, KL, or FGF receptor 1 (FGFR1) were identified. He subsequently developed type 1 diabetes mellitus, which raised the possibility of an autoimmune cause for hyperphosphatemic tumoral calcinosis. Luciferase immunoprecipitation systems revealed markedly elevated FGF23 autoantibodies without detectable FGFR1 or Klotho autoantibodies. Using an in vitro FGF23 functional assay, we found that the FGF23 autoantibodies in the patient's plasma blocked downstream signaling via the MAPK/ERK signaling pathway in a dose-dependent manner. Thus, this report describes the first case, to our knowledge, of autoimmune hyperphosphatemic tumoral calcinosis with pathogenic autoantibodies targeting FGF23. Identification of this pathophysiology extends the etiologic spectrum of hyperphosphatemic tumoral calcinosis and suggests that immunomodulatory therapy may be an effective treatment.


As a declining retail format, how is the department store managing to survive in Hong Kong? How has it transformed itself in response to contemporary retail environments? Are these institutional transformations different from those observed in the US and Europe? In what ways are they different and how have they shaped local department stores? This essay explores these questions through examining recent institutional changes of department stores in Hong Kong. Data for this study were collected through qualitative observation, documentary analysis, and in-depth interviews of department store managers and consultants. I find that Hong Kong's department stores have pursued a major and successful institutional transformation between 1998 and the present: they strategically abandon the conventional department store format and develop a concession-oriented one. I illustrate the special characteristics, structural benefits, and potentials problems of the concession-oriented department store format through analyses of the power relationship between concessionaire and department stores, the changing work processes in department stores, and the cost and risk implications of concessions in the contemporary retail context of Hong Kong.


Personality traits influence occupational choice and are valid predictors of managerial success. The primary objective of this study was to investigate whether a relationship exists between possessing certain personality traits and small business success. The personality dimensions of the five-factor model of personality, Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Openness to experience, Agreeableness and Neuroticism were the focus of this study. Convenience sampling was employed and 383 usable questionnaires were returned. The validity and reliability of the measuring instrument was assessed. Multiple regression analysis was undertaken to establish relationships between the independent variable (the five dimensions of personality) and the dependent variable, Business success. The findings of this study show that individuals who have high levels of the personality traits Extraversion, Conscientiousness and Openness to experience are more likely to have successful small businesses. Openness to experience is of specific importance as it demonstrates the strongest influence, and is the only trait that has a positive influence on both the financial and growth performance of the business. As such, insights are provided into the personality profile most suited to successful small-business ownership.


Abstract This paper will focus on two types of laser-aided diagnostics: Thomson scattering and laser-induced fluorescence. Thomson scattering is a very powerful diagnostic, which is applied at nearly every magnetic confinement device. Depending on the experimental conditions different plasma parameters can be diagnosed. When the wavelength is much smaller than the plasma Debye length, the total scattered power is obtained by an incoherent summation over the scattered powers of the individual electrons. The scattering spectrum in this case is a reflection of the electron velocity distribution, from which local values for the electron temperature and density can be derived. In case the wavelength is larger than the Debye length, Thomson scattering can yield information on the ion velocity distribution and/or collective behavior of the electrons, as is the case with density fluctuations. Laser-induced fluorescence is particularly suited for studies of the ion population at the cooler, not-fully ionized, plasma edge.


Hagakure ("In the Shadow of Leaves") is a manual for the samurai classes consisting of a series of short anecdotes and reflections that give both insight and instruction-in the philosophy and code of behavior that foster the true spirit of Bushido-the Way of the Warrior. It is not a book of philosophy as most would understand the word: it is a collection of thoughts and sayings recorded over a period of seven years, and as such covers a wide variety of subjects, often in no particular sequence. The work represents an attitude far removed from our modern pragmatism and materialism, and possesses an intuitive rather than rational appeal in its assertion that Bushido is a Way of Dying, and that only a samurai retainer prepared and willing to die at any moment can be totally true to his lord. While Hagakure was for many years a secret text known only to the warrior vassals of the Hizen fief to which the author belonged, it later came to be recognized as a classic exposition of samurai thought and came to influence many subsequent generations, including Yukio Mishima. This translation offers 300 selections that constitute the core texts of the 1,300 present in the original. Hagakure was featured prominently in the film Ghost Dog, by Jim Jarmusch.


This document is part of the Synthesis and Assessment Products (SAP) described in the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) Strategic Plan. This report is meant to reduce uncertainty in projections of how the Earth's climate and related systems may change in the future. It provides scientific information for supporting the decision-making audience and the expert scientific and stakeholder community.


Meeting growing demands for agricultural products requires management solutions that enhance food production, whilst minimizing negative environmental impacts. Conventional agricultural intensification jeopardizes farmland biodiversity and associated ecosystem services through excessive anthropogenic inputs and landscape simplification. Agri-environment schemes (AES) are commonly implemented to mitigate the adverse effects of conventional intensification on biodiversity. However the moderate success of such schemes thus far would strongly benefit from more explicit goals regarding ecosystem service provisioning. Providing key resources to beneficial organisms may improve their abundance, fitness, diversity and the ecosystem services they provide. With targeted habitat management, AES may synergistically enhance biodiversity and agricultural production and thus contribute to ecological intensification. We demonstrate that sown perennial wildflower strips, as implemented in current AES focusing on biodiversity conservation also benefit biological pest control in nearby crops (Chapter 2).
Comparing winter wheat fields adjacent to wildflower strips with fields without wildflower strips we found strongly reduced cereal leaf beetle (Oulema sp.) density and plant damage near wildflower strips. In addition, winter wheat yield was 10 % higher when fields adjoined wildflower strips. This confirms previous assumptions that wildflower strips, known for positive effects on farmland biodiversity, can also enhance ecosystem services such as pest control and the positive correlation of yield with flower abundance and diversity suggests that floral resources are key. Refining sown flower strips for enhanced service provision requires mechanistic understanding of how organisms benefit from floral resources. In climate chamber experiments investigating the impact of single and multiple flowering plant species on fitness components of three key arthropod natural enemies of aphids, we demonstrate that different natural enemies benefit differently from the offered resources (Chapter 3).
Some flower species were hereby more valuable to natural enemies than others overall. Additionally, the mixture with all flowers generally performed better than monocultures, yet with no transgressive overyielding. By explicitly tailoring flower strips to the requirements of key natural enemies of crop pests we aimed to maximise natural enemy mediated pest control in winter wheat (Chapter 4)and potato (Chapter 5) crops.
Respecting the manifold requirements of diverse natural enemies but not pests, in terms of temporal and spatial provisioning of floral, extra floral and structural resources, we designed targeted annual flower strips that can be included in crop rotation to support key arthropods at the place and time they are needed. Indeed, field experiments revealed that cereal leaf beetle density and plant damage in winter wheat can be reduced by 40 % to 61 % and aphid densities in potatoes even by 77 %, if a targeted flower strip is sown into the field. These effects were not restricted to the vicinity of flower strips and, in contrast to fields without flower strip, often prevented action thresholds from being reached. This suggests that targeted flower strips could replace insecticides. All adult natural enemies were enhanced inside targeted flower strips when compared to control strips. Yet, spillover to the field was restricted to key natural enemies such as ground beetles (winter wheat), hoverflies (potato) and lacewings (winter wheat and potato), suggesting their dominant role in biological control. In potatoes, targeted flower strips also enhanced hoverfly species richness in strips and crop, highlighting their additional benefits for diversity.
The present results provide more insights into the mechanisms underlying conservation biological control and highlight the potential of tailored habitat management for ecological intensification.


Interview with Cleatus A. LeBow, a serviceman in the U. S. Navy during World War II. LeBow joined the navy in 1943 and went from Lubbock, Texas to San Diego for recruit training. He shipped out to Pearl Harbor aboard an LST from San Francisco. At Pearl Harbor, he was assigned to a work detail aboard the USS Oklahoma, which had just been righted. Shortly thereafter, he boarded the USS Indianapolis to serve as a range finder operator on one of the gun turrets. Upon leaving Hawaii, the Indianapolis went to Tarawa and then the Marshall Islands. LeBow witnessed Japanese civilian suicides on Saipan. He also witnessed the flag-raising on Iwo Jima from his range finder position aboard the ship. LeBow describes being hit by a kamikaze off Okinawa. He also discusses delivering atomic bomb components to Tinian and being torpedoed on the way to the Philippines. He describes abandoning the ship and spending five days in the water, including his faith in God, hallucinations, rescue, and his recovery.


Who Moved My Cheese? is an amusing and enlightening story of four characters who live in a maze and look for cheese to nourish them and make them happy. Cheese is a metaphor for what you want to have in life - whether it is a good job, a loving relationship, money or a possession, health or spirital peace of mind. And the maze is where you look for what you want - the organisation you work in, or the family or community you live in. This profound book from bestselling author, Spencer Johnson, will show you how to anticipate change, adapt to change quickly, enjoy change and be ready to change quickly again and again. Discover the secret for yourself and learn how to deal with change, so that you suffer from less stress and enjoy more success in your work and in life. Written for all ages, this story takes less than an hour to read, but its unique insights can last for a lifetime.


Food waste is the origin of major social and environmental issues. In industrial societies, domestic households are the biggest contributors to this problem. But why do people waste food although they buy and value it? Answering this question is mandatory to design effective interventions against food waste. So far, however, many interventions have not been based on theoretical knowledge. Integrating food waste literature and ambivalence research, we propose that domestic food waste can be understood via the concept of ambivalence—the simultaneous presence of positive and negative associations towards the same attitude object. In support of this notion, we demonstrated in three pre-registered experiments that people experienced ambivalence towards non-perishable food products with expired best before dates. The experience of ambivalence was in turn associated with an increased willingness to waste food. However, two informational interventions aiming to prevent people from experiencing ambivalence did not work as intended (Experiment 3). We hope that the outlined conceptualization inspires theory-driven research on why and when people dispose of food and on how to design effective interventions.


This original commentary foregrounds at every turn the poetic genius of the Song of Songs, one of the most elusive texts of the Hebrew Bible. J. Cheryl Exum locates that genius in the way the Song not only tells but shows its readers that love is strong as death, thereby immortalizing love, as well as in the way the poet explores the nature of love by a mature sensitivity to how being in love is different for the woman and the man. Many long-standing conundrums in the interpretation of the book are offered persuasive solutions in Exum's verse by verse exegesis.The Old Testament Library provides fresh and authoritative treatments of important aspects of Old Testament study through commentaries and general surveys. The contributors are scholars of international standing.


Overcriminalization takes many forms and impacts the American criminal justice system in varying ways. This article focuses on a select portion of this phenomenon by examining two types of overcriminalization prevalent in white collar criminal law. The first type of over criminalization discussed in this article is Congress's propensity for increasing the maximum criminal penalties for white collar offenses in an effort to punish financial criminals more harshly while simultaneously deterring others. The second type of overcriminalization addressed is Congress's tendency to create vague and overlapping criminal provisions in areas already criminalized in an effort to expand the tools available to prosecutors, increase the number of financial criminals prosecuted each year, and deter potential offenders. While these new provisions are not the most egregious examples of the overcriminalization phenomenon, they are important to consider due to their impact on significant statutes. In fact, they typically represent some of the most commonly charged offenses in the federal system.Through examination of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and examples of these two types of over criminalization within that law, this article seeks to understand whether new crimes and punishments really achieve their intended goals and, if not, what this tells us about and means for the over criminalization debate and the criminal justice system as a whole.


Up to 2.5 billion people depend on indigenous and community lands, which make up over 50 percent of the land on the planet; they legally own just one-fifth. The remaining land remains unprotected and vulnerable to land grabs from more powerful entities like governments and corporations. There is growing evidence of the vital role played by full legal ownership of land by indigenous peoples and local communities in preserving cultural diversity and in combating poverty and hunger, political instability and climate change. The importance of protecting and expanding indigenous and community ownership of land has been a key element in the negotiations of the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on climate change, and is central to their successful implementation. This report launches a Global Call to Action on Indigenous and Community Land Rights, backed by more than 300 organizations all over the world. It is a manifesto of solidarity with the ongoing struggles of indigenous peoples and local communities seeking to secure their land rights once and for all.


Polymer-modified cement concrete (PCC) is a heterogeneous building material with a hierarchically organized microstructure. Therefore, continuum micromechanics-based multiscale models represent a promising method to estimate the mechanical properties. By means of a bottom-up approach, homogenized properties at the macroscopic scale are derived considering microstructural characteristics. The extension of existing multiscale models for the application to PCC is the main objective of this work. For that, cross-scale experimental studies are required. Both macroscopic and microscopic mechanical tests are performed to characterize the elastic and viscoelastic properties of different PCC. The comparison between experiment and model prediction illustrates the success of the modeling approach.


Parathyroid scintigraphy is based on the different accumulation and distribution of radiopharmaceutical 99mTc-MIBI (MIBI) in parathyroid and adjacent tissues. Different scintigraphic techniques can be used: subtraction scintigraphy is a combination of MIBI and 99mTc-pertehnetate (pertehnetate) scintigraphy; SPECT can be performed after intravenous injection of MIBI or in the combination with low-dose computerized tomography (SPECT/CT) which allows precise anatomical localization of enlarged parathyroid glands (EPG).
The objectives of our study were: to assess diagnostic performance of preoperative localization of EPG (adenomas and hyperplasia) of the early, delayed and combined SPECT/CT and of subtraction scintigraphy in patients with biochemically proven primary hyperparathyroidism (PHP); to determine whether size of EPG, serum parathyroid hormone (PTH), calcium (Ca) and phosphate (P) correlate with successful localization; to assess radiation exposure of patients with early and late SPECT/CT and subtraction scintigraphy
The study included 41 patients in whom early, delay SPECT/CT and subtraction scintigraphy were performed. For all scintigraphic methods sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy were calculated. Receiver Operating Characteristic analysis was used to express relationship between scintigraphy results and size of the EPG and serum Ca, P and PTH levels. ImPACT CT Patient Dosimetry Calculator and weighting factors for radiopharmaceuticals (MIBI and pertechnetate) were used for calculating patient expose dose.
Sensitivity and specificity were 51.1% and 98.3 for subtraction scintigraphy, 65.1% and 97.5% for early SPECT/CT and 65.1% and 95.5% for delay SPECT/CT. In combined early and delay SPECT/CT sensitivity and specificity were 74.4% and 95.1%.Only size of the EPG correlated with successful localization in our study (AUC of 0.791-0.810). The highest average ED per patient had subtraction scintigraphy (7.37±0.40 mSv), which was statistically significant higher in comparison to combined early and delayed SPECT/CT (6.81±0.44 mSv).
The most sensitive and most accurate method of preoperative localization of EPG in patients with PHP is combined early and delayed SPECT/CT. Only size of the EPG correlates with successful localization. The highest radiation exposure is after subtraction scintigraphy.


Health, safety, and environmental regulation in the United States are saturated with risk thinking. It was not always so, and it may not be so in the future. But today, the formal, quantitative approach to risk provides much of the basis for regulation in these fields, a development that seems quite natural, even necessary. This particular approach, while it drew on conceptual and technical developments that had been underway for decades, achieved prominence during a relatively short timeframe; roughly, between the mid-1970s and the early 1980s — a time of hard looks and regulatory reform. Prior to this time, formal conceptions of risk were rarely invoked in the effort to regulate the increasingly complex set of hazards associated with industrial society and quantitative risk assessment was considered too uncertain to serve as a basis for regulatory decision making. With few exceptions, safety, hazard, and endangerment provided the dominant framings, drawing on different conceptual and normative tendencies and leading to different regulatory outcomes. This Article investigates the emergence and development of formal approaches to risk in health, safety, and environmental law during the twentieth century. It focuses specifically on the concepts, tools, and practices that have underwritten risk thinking in these fields, developing a perspective on health, safety, and environmental regulation that seeks to historicize risk and situate the contemporary debate regarding the merits of risk versus precaution in its proper historical context. In doing so, the Article demonstrates how both approaches struggled to address the much more vast and complicated world of potential environmental harm brought into view as a result of substantial advances in analytical techniques during the 1960s and early 1970s, thereby revealing the contours of a more fundamental clash over environmental law's distinctive problem of knowledge. The Article covers the formative period from the New Deal through the 1970s, showing how efforts to operationalize safety in the middle decades of the twentieth century led to many of the foundational concepts and techniques that would structure risk thinking in subsequent decades, highlighting the critical role of analytical advances in pushing toward a re-definition of safety as acceptable risk and a corresponding move toward quantitative risk assessment, and revealing how earlier precautionary impulses were ultimately subsumed under an emerging administrative law of risk.


" The purpose of this study was to test the efficacy of traditional voice therapy approaches in combination with singing exercises and Melodic Intonation Therapy (MIT) to aid male-to-female transgender individuals gain a more feminine sounding voice. Participants from this study were recruited from a transgender support group in Greensboro, North Carolina. Six male-to-female individuals ranging in age from 37 to 63 years volunteered to participate in the study. Participants were randomly divided into two groups: Three individuals received traditional voice therapy plus feminine language structures/vocabulary and nonverbal communication (Group 1), while the remaining three received traditional voice therapy plus singing exercises and MIT (Group 2). All participants received traditional voice therapy techniques. Quantitative results suggested increased Speaking Fundamental Frequencies (SFFs) for participants in both groups, however, a slightly higher SFF was present in Group 2. Descriptive analysis of the results showed that by the study's end, all participants presented with self-voice ratings (1-7 scale) that were higher than the ratings given by the participants at the beginning of the study. Also, at the end of the study, all four judges (two first-year speech-language pathology graduate students and two random volunteers) rated the participants with voice ratings that were above the ratings at the beginning of the study."--Abstract from author supplied metadata.


Over the past several years, policy makers and private actors have developed an evolving set of approaches for addressing the orphan works problem — a problem that arises when "the owner of a copyrighted work cannot be identified and located by someone who wishes to make use of the work in a manner that requires permission of the copyright owner," preventing follow-on uses of works. These approaches usually attempt to address the orphan works problem by employing some threshold mechanism to differentiate true orphan works, to which the proposed solutions would apply, from non-orphaned copyrighted works. Satisfying a "reasonably diligent search" is one well-known formulation by which users can designate works as orphaned and therefore subject to a proposed solution, though — as this paper points out — alternative approaches certainly exist. Regardless of the specific formulation, the search for rightsholders (or conversely, the confirmation that no rightsholder can be located) is an integral component of almost every orphan works proposal. This paper examines in detail the core schemes for identifying rightsholders among the leading orphan works regimes and proposals. Although these schemes differ across many variables, three factors predominate: (1) who is expected to participate in the search process, (2) the nature and extent of the required search generally; and (3) specifically what types of resources, tools, registries or other information-sharing mechanisms are required or allowed. This paper compares existing proposals' approaches with respect to the first factor: who participates in a search? A subsequent paper will focus on the second and third factors.


A vertex colouring of a graph is nonrepetitive on paths if there is no path $v_1,v_2,\dots,v_{2t}$ such that $v_i$ and $v_{t+i}$ receive the same colour for all $i=1,2,\dots,t$. We determine the maximum density of a graph that admits a $k$-colouring that is nonrepetitive on paths. We prove that every graph has a subdivision that admits a $4$-colouring that is nonrepetitive on paths. The best previous bound was $5$. We also study colourings that are nonrepetitive on walks, and provide a conjecture that would imply that every graph with maximum degree $\Delta$ has a $f(\Delta)$-colouring that is nonrepetitive on walks. We prove that every graph with treewidth $k$ and maximum degree $\Delta$ has a $O(k\Delta)$-colouring that is nonrepetitive on paths, and a $O(k\Delta^3)$-colouring that is nonrepetitive on walks. A corrigendum was added to this paper on Dec 12, 2014.


Max Jammer's Concepts of Simultaneity presents a comprehensive, accessible account of the historical development of an important and controversial concept-which played a critical role in initiating modern theoretical physics-from the days of Egyptian hieroglyphs through to Einstein's work in 1905, and beyond. Beginning with the use of the concept of simultaneity in ancient Egypt and in the Bible, the study discusses its role in Greek and medieval philosophy as well as its significance in Newtonian physics and in the ideas of Leibniz, Kant, and other classical philosophers. The central theme of Jammer's presentation is a critical analysis of the use of this concept by philosophers of science, like Poincare, and its significant role in inaugurating modern theoretical physics in Einstein's special theory of relativity. Particular attention is paid to the philosophical problem of whether the notion of distant simultaneity presents a factual reality or only a hypothetical convention. The study concludes with an analysis of simultaneity's importance in general relativity and quantum mechanics.


Genetic algorithms are extensively used to understand, simulate, and create works of art and music. In this paper, a similar approach is taken to apply basic evolutionary algorithms to perform music live using code. Often considered an improvisational or experimental performance, live coding music comes with its own set of challenges. Genetic algorithms offer potential to address these long-standing challenges. Traditional evolutionary applications in music focused on novelty search to create new sounds, sequences of notes or chords, and effects. In contrast, this paper focuses on live performance to create directed evolving musical pieces. The paper also details some key design decisions, implementation, and usage of a novel genetic algorithm API created for a popular live coding language.


physiology, especially those papers emphasizing adaptive and integrative mechanisms. It is published 12 times a publishes original papers that deal with diverse area of research in applied


Abstract The paper presents the level of lead in the liver, gizzard, breast muscles and humerus of game birds, shot during the hunting season of 2016 - 2017 in Bulgaria. In quail gizzards (n=10) radiographic examination showed ingested pellets. In turtle doves (n=10), lead levels in the liver had higher values of 2,501 ± 1,404 mg/kg, compared to the maximum levels of <2 mg/kg. The content of lead in the humerus of partridges (n=10) showed a very high concentrations of 54,241 ± 36,731 mg/kg compared to the base level of 10<20 mg/kg. The high levels of lead in the tissues of the game birds, induced by lead shot exposure, are a significant risk to predators and scavengers.


OBJECTIVE Neuroendoscopic removal of intraventricular tumors is difficult and time consuming because of the lack of an effective decompression system that can be used through the working channel of the endoscope. The authors report on the utilization of an endoscopic ultrasonic aspirator in the resection of intraventricular tumors. METHODS Twelve pediatric patients (10 male, 2 female), ages 1-15 years old, underwent surgery via a purely endoscopic approach using a Gaab rigid endoscope and endoscopic ultrasonic aspirator. Two patients presented with intraventricular metastases from high-grade tumors (medulloblastoma, atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor), 2 with subependymal giant cell astrocytomas (associated with tuberous sclerosis), 2 with low-grade intraparaventricular tumors, 4 with suprasellar tumors (2 craniopharyngiomas and 2 optic pathway gliomas), and 2 with pineal tumors (1 immature teratoma, 1 pineal anlage tumor). Hydrocephalus was present in 5 cases. In all patients, the endoscopic trajectory and ventricular access were guided by electromagnetic neuronavigation. Nine patients underwent surgery via a precoronal bur hole while supine. In 2 cases, surgery was performed through a frontal bur hole at the level of the hairline. One patient underwent surgery via a posterior parietal approach to the trigone while in a lateral position. The endoscopic technique consisted of visualization of the tumor, ventricular washing to dilate the ventricles and to control bleeding, obtaining a tumor specimen with biopsy forceps, and ultrasonic aspiration of the tumor. Bleeding was controlled with irrigation, monopolar coagulation, and a thulium laser. RESULTS In 7 cases, the resection was total or near total (more than 90% of lesion removed). In 5 cases, the resection was partial. Histological evaluation of the collected material (withdrawn using biopsy forceps and aspirated with an ultrasonic aspirator) was diagnostic in all cases. The duration of surgery ranged from 30 to 120 minutes. One case was complicated by subdural hygroma requiring a subduro-peritoneal shunt implant. CONCLUSIONS In this preliminary series, endoscopic ultrasonic aspiration proved to be a safe and reliable method for achieving extensive decompression or complete removal in the management of intra- and/or paraventricular lesions in pediatric patients.


The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which the psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness were satisfied through participation in New Horizons International Music Association ensembles, and to identify the various variables that influence the satisfaction of these needs. Data were collected from individuals participating in New Horizons International Music Association Ensembles through an online survey (N = 237). Collected data were used to address past in- and out-of-school music activities and behaviors, current music activities and behaviors, participant subjective-well being, and perceived benefits of and barriers to participation. Satisfaction of psychological needs was measured using an adaption of the Basic Psychological Needs Scale (Deci and Ryan, 2009). Research objectives were answered using descriptive statistics, and correlation and regression analyses. The statistical analysis revealed that the demographic make-up of New Horizons International Musicians Association (NHIMA) participants was similar to other community-based music ensembles. Subjects most frequently participated in general music in elementary and band during high school. Band was the most frequently cited out-of-school and current music activity. Scheduling conflicts and music difficulty emerged as potential barriers to participation in community music activities and ensembles. Subjects' perceptions regarding the benefits of participation were generally positive. Subjects' psychological needs were all being satisfied to a certain extent by participating in NHIMA ensembles. Participation in band, honor groups, solo and ensemble festival, Garage Bands, ensemble directing, improvisation, 'family music time,' class piano, and music technology significantly contributed to satisfaction of psychological needs in the current study (p=.05). It was concluded that past music experiences as well as formal, informal, and non-formal music participation, and perceptions regarding one's own abilities contributed to the satisfaction of the psychological needs.


The goal of participatory IT design is to set sensible, general, and workable guidelines for the introduction of new information technology systems into an organization. Reflecting the latest systems-development research, this book encourages a business- oriented and socially sensitive approach that takes into consideration the specific organizational context as well as first-hand knowledge of users' work practices and allows all stakeholders -- users, management, and staff -- to participate in the process. Participatory IT Design is a guide to the theory and practice of this process that can be used as a reference work by IT professionals and as a textbook for classes in information technology at introductory through advanced levels. Drawing on the work of a ten-year research program in which the authors worked with Danish and American companies, the book offers a framework for carrying out IT design projects as well as case studies that stand as examples of the process.The method presented in Participatory IT Design -- known as the MUST method, after a Danish acronym for theories and methods of initial analysis and design activities -- was developed and tested in thirteen industrial design projects for companies and organizations that included an American airline, a multinational pharmaceutical company, a national broadcasting corporation, a multinational software house, and American and Danish universities. The first part of the book introduces the concepts and guidelines on which the method is based, while the second and third parts are designed as a practical toolbox for utilizing the MUST method. Part II describes the four phases of a design project -- initiation, in-line analysis, in-depth analysis, and innovation. Part III explains the method's sixteen t echniques and related representation tools, offering first an overview and then specific descriptions of each in separate sections.


This manual includes solutions to the odd-numbered exercises in Economic Dynamics in Discrete Time. Some exercises are purely analytical, while others require numerical methods. Computer codes are provided for most problems. Many exercises ask the reader to apply the methods learned in a chapter to solve related problems, but some exercises ask the reader to complete missing steps in the proof of a theorem or in the solution of an example in the book.


Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are chemicals that have been widely used as flame retardants and are now classified as persistent organic pollutants. Health concerns in humans have arisen based primarily on studies with laboratory animals exposed to high levels of PBDEs. Three commercial mixtures of PBDEs have been manufactured in or imported into the USA, which include penta-, octaand deca-brominated diphenyl ethers (BDEs). Of particular concern has been the penta-BDEs used primarily in foams in computers, televisions, mattresses, pillows, carpets and furniture. The components of penta-BDEs mixtures are present in water, soil, animal products and air, and people are exposed primarily through ingestion of food or inhalation. Penta-BDEs have been measured in human blood, fat, breast milk and umbilical cord blood. Since 2004, the pentaand octa-BDEs are no longer being manufactured in the USA and deca-BDE manufacture in the USA will be phased out by the end of 2013. Even so, due to their chemical nature, PBDEs will persist in the environment long after their use in manufacturing has ended. It is unclear what impact PBDEs have on human health as people are typically not exposed to the high concentrations of PBDE compounds that have detrimental neurological and endocrine effects in laboratory animals. There is a need to determine the impact of low doses of PBDEs in laboratory animals which approach the levels that humans are exposed to in daily life, and in addition to determine the effects of these compounds in offspring exposed during critical developmental periods. In the work published on page 445 of this issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine, Blake, LaVoie and coinvestigators set out to determine the effects of a relatively low dose of the commercial penta-BDE mixture, DE-71, on reproductive and endocrine function in a laboratory rat model. Female rats were orally administered 60 mg/kg body weight/day during pregnancy and lactation to expose them and their developing offspring to DE-71. The offspring were followed to adulthood and mated to evaluate their reproductive outcomes, thyroid hormone concentrations, body and organ weights and gene expression in selected organs. The work was carried out jointly by the laboratories of Charles A Blake and Holly A LaVoie at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine in Columbia, South Carolina. Dr LaVoie, who led the research team, stated 'we were happy to see that low doses of DE-71 did not overtly affect reproductive outcome of pregnancy in terms of resorbed embryos and number of viable offspring of either the mothers receiving DE-71 or their first generation offspring. However, gene profiling of reproductive organs of offspring identified a single gene spp1 that encodes osteopontin, which exhibited 3-fold or higher expression in both the immature testes of male offspring and adult ovaries of female offspring that were exposed to low dose DE-71 in utero and via their mother's milk. This shows that molecular changes are occurring in reproductive organs and that some of these molecular changes appear even after the penta-BDE delivery was ceased.' Additional cell culture studies further confirmed that the osteopontin gene promoter is a novel target of PBDEs. Osteopontin is a multifunctional extracellular matrix protein. The long-term implications of elevated osteopontin gene expression in gonads is unclear at this time; however, osteopontin protein is known to be elevated in ovarian and other cancers. PBDEs are formed by adding 1–10 bromine groups to a double ring structure to form different congeners. Different PBDE congeners can mimic or inhibit thyroid hormone, estrogen and androgen function. The mechanism of how PBDEs regulate the osteopontin gene will require further study. Also in need of further study are the long-term implications of altered osteopontin in ovaries and testes. In contrast to prior studies with much higher concentrations of penta-BDEs that demonstrated reduced serum thyroid hormone concentrations, the study showed that first-generation females during their own pregnancies had elevated serum thyroid hormones. Furthermore, the DE-71 exposed female offspring sacrificed two months after their own pregnancies, had enlarged thyroids without altered serum thyroid hormones. Dr Blake, who led the endocrine studies remarked, 'Our thyroid findings, taken together with previous work with high doses of penta-BDEs, indicate that these compounds may have biphasic effects depending on exposure levels where low dose exposures may increase thyroid hormone concentrations and higher PBDE doses may decrease them. In addition, the physiological status of the animal (i.e. pregnant versus non-pregnant) may determine if the thyroid hormone levels are affected. These studies could potentially be critical to understanding the effects of PBDE accumulation in the tissues of pregnant women. They also emphasize the potential importance of reducing exposure to PBDEs in homes and the environment and regulating the import of manufactured items that contain PBDEs.' The first-generation offspring in the study received DE-71 via maternal exposure to a low dose, showing that in utero and lactational exposure of offspring can have effects lasting into adulthood. Moreover, most differences were


Research on agent communication languages has typically taken the speech acts paradigm as its starting point. Despite their manifest attractions, speech-act models of communication have several serious disadvantages as a foundation for communication in artificial agent systems. In particular, it has proved to be extremely difficult to give a satisfactory semantics to speech-act based agent communication languages. In part, the problem is that speech-act semantics typically make reference to the "mental states" of agents (their beliefs, desires, and intentions), and there is in general no way to attribute such attitudes to arbitrary computational agents. In addition, agent programming languages have only had their semantics formalised for abstract, stand-alone versions, neglecting aspects such as communication primitives. With respect to communication, implemented agent programming languages have tended to be rather ad hoc. This paper addresses both of these problems, by giving semantics to speech-act based messages received by an AgentSpeak agent. AgentSpeak is a logic-based agent programming language which incorporates the main features of the PRS model of reactive planning systems. The paper builds upon a structural operational semantics to AgentSpeak that we developed in previous work. The main contributions of this paper are as follows: an extension of our earlier work on the theoretical foundations of AgentSpeak interpreters; a computationally grounded semantics for (the core) performatives used in speech-act based agent communication languages; and a well-defined extension of AgentSpeak that supports agent communication.


Alienation of affections. Claims for insult. Maintenance and champerty. Suits against saloonkeepers for spousal alcoholism. These are just a handful of the many torts that have disappeared, or are presently passing into history. Why Torts Die examines why these and other torts have vanished or are in danger of extinction. The central thesis of Why Torts Die is that the collapse of a tort typically owes to a confluence of compromising conditions or events. Changes in the ambient cultural atmosphere may threaten a tort theory, but the effects of these changes will be magnified or mitigated by several other factors: the nature, quality, and volume of critiques directed against the tort; the interests and limitations of the audiences that decide whether to retain or reject the cause of action; the relative power and influence of the tort's opponents and supporters; the availability and desirability of alternatives to the tort; and the intrinsic qualities of the threatened claim itself. To flesh out the hypothesis that most defunct torts haven't simply fallen victim to sudden cultural downdrafts, Why Torts Die offers three case studies, each detailing how a gravely endangered tort or torts came to find itself in that condition. This review of the diminutions of the tort of insult, of obesity lawsuits, and of the heartbalm torts (alienation of affections, breach of promise to marry, criminal conversation, and seduction) suggests that the disappearance of a tort is typically a complicated affair, implicating several of the factors discussed above.


Abstract The EU's practice of funding Israeli non-governmental human rights organizations (hereinafter 'HRNGOs') has in recent years encountered a counter-strategy, pursued by certain Israeli NGOs and members of the Israeli government, media and academia. This counter-strategy has succeeded in discrediting the HRNGOs and the EU and rendering their mutual collaboration less effective. The purpose of this article is to contextualize the counter-strategy within the sphere of Israel's collective memory. The article analyses the manner in which certain politicians and various members of the Israeli society (agents of memory), who themselves are the product of the evolving Israeli collective memory and identity (structure), attempt to draw on Israel's collective memory/structure in order to advance their particular political agenda.


This study examines how the east–west gradient of climate over South Africa is represented in terms of mean rainfall, tropospheric humidity and circulation, and surface latent heat flux in the satellite era 1980-2001. Inter-comparisons of NCEP2 reanalysis and GPCP satellite-gauge merged rainfall with coupled general circulation model (GCM) simulations from generic CMIP-3 are made, with a focus on the maize belt 25°-29°S, 25°-30°E. The summer climatology is analysed for the zonal gradient in vertical atmospheric structure and the annual cycle of rainfall. A wet bias is found in most simulations over the eastern mountains, but in two GCMs (CSM3, PCM) it extends over the western plateau. The east-west gradient in vegetation affects the vertical flux of surface moisture into the atmosphere. ECMWF reanalysis and SAFARI-2000 flux tower data reveal that this process is triggered during daytime heating, so model ability to handle the diurnal cycle is crucial. Inter-annual variability is briefly studied and two operational ensemble models (CFS and ECHAM4) simulate and forecast summer rainfall variations with positive correlation to observed values. The AIRS satellite night and day relative humidity structure is contrasted for dry and wet January months. All five generic CMIP-3 models: GFDL2, CSM3, PCM, HADen, ECHAM4 project a drying trend in the maize area over the period 2000–2050, using the SRES A1B scenario. Recommendations for observing the surface and mixed layer moisture fluxes are given.


This dissertation interrogates the network of social ideas and agents that rhetorically constructed the female prostitute through configurations of space and identity while participating in rhetorics of professionalization. While considering genre as cultural artifact (product) and social action (process), selected texts from diverse genres are analyzed, making transparent their claims about prostitution as articulated through representations of identity and space. Quite often, these claims were postulated through invocations of "contagion," which, as a cultural screen, operated to direct an audience's attention and interpretation. In addition, during the Victorian period, disciplines employed points of reference, like the prostitute, that within the dominant cultural codes facilitated their professionalization and carved their niches in the cultural milieu. Each chapter of this work analyzes a different genre (newspaper articles, medical treatises, and fictional works, respectively) to demonstrate how contagion anxieties influenced what the prostitute represented and how she was used rhetorically. This study is one of process and product, as spaces and identities are defined by expectations, functions, and locations. The spatial rhetorics of a genre define the dynamics between text, location, and conceptions of identity. This interdisciplinary study examines how the deployment of these ideas performs a social mapping and uses the prostitute as a navigational marker to guide readers' internalization of textual worlds and subsequent formation of knowledge.


This book is an attempt to profile important militant groups presently active in South Asian countries. It leaves out many militant groups that either have merged into some larger groups or have been in active for some years. Nevertheless, the book covers some inactive groups given their potential to regroup and get into action. The information related to these militant groups have been culled from open sources and due care has been taken to check the facts for consistency and reliability. The threat perception from each group has been covered in this book in details. The book will be useful for further research on militancy, terrorism, radicalisation and security related issues.