Scientists at the Medical College of Wisconsin, in a team led by Carol Everson, PhD, Professor of Neurology, Cell biology, Neurobiology and Anatomy, have discovered abnormalities in bone and bone marrow in rats undergoing chronic lack of sleep. They discovered abnormalities in serum markers of bone metabolism in sleep-deprived rats, which led them to conduct direct measurements of bone parameters; this time in rats experiencing recurrent sleep restriction during a large portion of their young adulthood. The results show a dramatic imbalance between bone apposition and reabsorption, marked by an arrest in bone formation without reduced absorption. Furthermore, fat in the red marrow is greatly diminished and plateletgenerating cells are doubled in number, indicating changes to marrow plasticity. 'If the same processes are evoked in humans,' said Dr Everson, 'the potential medical implications are far-reaching and may include poor repair of microdamage from activities of daily living, introduction of osteoporotic processes, and changes to progenitor cells that may affect disease predisposition and disease resistance.' The results appear on page 1101 of this issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine. Co-authors of the paper are Jeffrey M Toth, PhD, Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin, and Anne Folley, now a graduate student at George Washington University. The researchers observed changes in intramembranous ossification and marrow hypercellularity resulting from chronic sleep loss. 'Marrow fat was greatly diminished and reflected increased blood cell production and differentiation. Our findings of increased megakaryocyte numbers, for example, suggest that there is an increased demand for cell delivery to the circulation consistent with an inflammatory response, and conceivably the promotion of thrombocytosis,' said Dr Everson. Dr Steven R Goodman, Editor-in-Chief of Experimental Biology and Medicine said 'With increased life stress due to work-related, financial and other issues, a large percentage of us are experiencing difficulties in sleeping. While we know that chronic sleep loss can affect our health, little specific information has been available on how it may impact bone formation or loss. Drs Everson and Toth, together with Anne Folley present exciting results indicating that sleep deprivation in rats arrests bone formation, decreases fat within the red marrow and increases platelet levels. If true in humans, and I expect that it may be, this work will have great impact on our understanding of the impact of sleep deprivation on osteoporosis and inability to repair bone damage as we age'.


To each coherent configuration (scheme) ${\cal C}$ and positive integer $m$ we associate a natural scheme $\widehat{\cal C}^{(m)}$ on the $m$-fold Cartesian product of the point set of ${\cal C}$ having the same automorphism group as ${\cal C}$. Using this construction we define and study two positive integers: the separability number $s({\cal C})$ and the Schurity number $t({\cal C})$ of ${\cal C}$. It turns out that $s({\cal C})\le m$ iff ${\cal C}$ is uniquely determined up to isomorphism by the intersection numbers of the scheme $\widehat{\cal C}^{(m)}$. Similarly, $t({\cal C})\le m$ iff the diagonal subscheme of $\widehat{\cal C}^{(m)}$ is an orbital one. In particular, if ${\cal C}$ is the scheme of a distance-regular graph $\Gamma$, then $s({\cal C})=1$ iff $\Gamma$ is uniquely determined by its parameters whereas $t({\cal C})=1$ iff $\Gamma$ is distance-transitive. We show that if ${\cal C}$ is a Johnson, Hamming or Grassmann scheme, then $s({\cal C})\le 2$ and $t({\cal C})=1$. Moreover, we find the exact values of $s({\cal C})$ and $t({\cal C})$ for the scheme ${\cal C}$ associated with any distance-regular graph having the same parameters as some Johnson or Hamming graph. In particular, $s({\cal C})=t({\cal C})=2$ if ${\cal C}$ is the scheme of a Doob graph. In addition, we prove that $s({\cal C})\le 2$ and $t({\cal C})\le 2$ for any imprimitive 3/2-homogeneous scheme. Finally, we show that $s({\cal C})\le 4$, whenever ${\cal C}$ is a cyclotomic scheme on a prime number of points.


New geological mapping combined with U–Pb ion microprobe zircon geochronology on the isolated but locally extensive exposures of crystalline basement inliers of eastern Graham Land has greatly improved our understanding of the region's early crustal evolution and has allowed a more thorough evaluation of Patagonia–Antarctic Peninsula connections prior to Gondwana break-up. At Eden Glacier, diorite gneisses yield Early Ordovician protolith ages of 487 ± 3 and 485 ± 3 Ma and represent the oldest in situ rocks recorded on the Antarctic Peninsula, and indicate a significant spatial extension of Famatinian-age magmatism of Patagonia. Zircon overgrowths in the Early Ordovician protoliths and granitic leucosomes developed within them record two phases of Permian metamorphism at c. 275 and c. 257 Ma, coincident in part with diorite plutonism of the area at 272 ± 2 Ma. At Adie Inlet, granitic leucosomes from paragneiss have been dated at 276 ± 3 Ma, and these are in turn cut by 257 ± 3 Ma xenolith-rich diorite gneiss. The diorite intruded during a second phase of deformation, which folded the paragneiss leucosomes into tight folds. This whole assembly is cut by intensely brecciated megacrystic granodiorite, which yielded a 259 ± 3 Ma age. South of Cabinet Inlet a very different sequence of events is evident, with Triassic magmatism at c. 236 Ma extensive along the Joerg Peninsula. Migmatitic leucosomes are dated at c. 224 Ma and magmatism and deformation events apparently continued to c. 209 Ma at Cape Casey. Our data indicate that the Devonian and Carboniferous magmatism at Target Hill, considered to represent the 'classic' basement complex of the Antarctic Peninsula, is not representative regionally. The Target Hill crustal block contains a major break along Cabinet Inlet; to the north, Ordovician and Permian protoliths were variably migmatized during two episodes of Permian deformation and metamorphism, whereas to the south, Triassic protoliths and Triassic metamorphism are encountered. Supplementary material: U–Pb isotopic data are available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18526.


This paper radically challenges two of the dominant theories about housing policy: (a) that promoting homeownership is the best way to achieve household and neighborhood stability; and (b) that rent regulation has no place in competitive and thriving rental markets. I argue that our national housing policy has failed by overemphasizing and over-subsidizing homeownership and by neglecting the rental market. These policies have not served the purported goals of individual and community stability. Indeed, over-subsidizing homeownership and home borrowing incentivized millions of households to overstretch their budgets in order to purchase homes, thereby contributing to the foreclosure crisis. The resulting housing instability has been further exacerbated by the failure of the rental markets to provide affordable and stable housing for low- and moderate-income households. To address this increasingly untenable situation, I propose a rental stability program that would offer tenants an option for longer lease terms, rights to lease renewal, temporary regulation of rents, and federal rental subsidies to cover rent increases for rent-burdened low- and moderate-income households, while maintaining market-based incentives for owners to create new rental housing units and maintain existing ones. While my program takes pains to avoid many of the pitfalls of some "strict" rent regulation schemes, I do not shy away from the need to regulate rents for some finite period. While they are not as dire as predicted by economists, I acknowledge that there are costs to rent regulation and my program is designed to minimize those costs. The specific consequences of rent regulation that often result, and that my proposal seeks to minimize, include: (i) the emergence of a "shadow" or "black" market for rental units; and (ii) incentives for landlords and tenants to litigate. My program would mitigate these and other unintended consequences by making the rent regulation time limited and subjecting all units in a jurisdiction to its purview. In the final assessment, states and localities considering my program would likely accept any small costs in market inefficiencies because of the gains achieved by increasing tenant stability.


Due to their unique morphology‐related properties, yolk@shell materials are promising materials for catalysis, drug delivery, energy conversion, and storage. Despite their proven potential, large‐scale applications are however limited due to demanding synthesis protocols. Overcoming these limitations, a simple soft‐templated approach for the one‐pot synthesis of yolk@shell nanocomposites and in particular of multicore metal nanoparticle@metal oxide nanostructures (MNP@MOx) is introduced. The approach here, as demonstrated for AuNP@ITOTR (ITOTR standing for tin‐rich ITO), relies on polystyrene‐block‐poly(4‐vinylpyridine) (PS‐b‐P4VP) inverse micelles as two compartment nanoreactor templates. While the hydrophilic P4VP core incorporates the hydrophilic metal precursor, the hydrophobic PS corona takes up the hydrophobic metal oxide precursor. As a result, interfacial reactions between the precursors can take place, leading to the formation of yolk@shell structures in solution. Once calcined these micelles yield AuNP@ITOTR nanostructures, composed of multiple 6 nm sized Au NPs strongly anchored onto the inner surface of porous 35 nm sized ITOTR hollow spheres. Although of multicore nature, only limited sintering of the metal nanoparticles is observed at high temperatures (700 °C). In addition, the as‐synthesized yolk@shell structures exhibit high and stable activity toward CO electrooxidation, thus demonstrating the applicability of our approach for the design of functional yolk@shell nanocatalysts.


Governments regulate risky industrial systems such as nuclear power plants in hopes of making them less risky, and a variety of formal and informal warning systems can help society avoid catastrophe. Governments, businesses, and citizens respond when disaster occurs. But recent history is rife with major disasters accompanied by failed regulation, ignored warnings, inept disaster response, and commonplace human error. Furthermore, despite the best attempts to forestall them, "normal" accidents will inevitably occur in the complex, tightly coupled systems of modern society, resulting in the kind of unpredictable, cascading disaster seen at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. Government and business can always do more to prevent serious accidents through regulation, design, training, and mindfulness. Even so, some complex systems with catastrophic potential are just too dangerous to exist, because they cannot be made safe, regardless of human effort.


During recent years a number of severe clinical syndromes, collectively termed laminopathies, turned out to be caused by various, distinct mutations in the human LMNA gene. Arising from this, remarkable progress has been made to unravel the molecular pathophysiology underlying these disorders. A great benefit in this context was the generation of an A-type lamin deficient mouse line (Lmna−/−) by Sullivan and others,1 which has become one of the most frequently used models in the field and provided profound insights to many different aspects of A-type lamin function. Here, we report the unexpected finding that these mice express a truncated Lmna gene product on both transcriptional and protein level. Combining different approaches including mass spectrometry, we precisely define this product as a C-terminally truncated lamin A mutant that lacks domains important for protein interactions and post-translational processing. Based on our findings we discuss implications for the interpretation of previous studies using Lmna−/− mice and the concept of human laminopathies.


When physics professor Chad Orzel went to the pound to adopt a dog, he never imagined Emmy. She wasn't just a friendly mutt who needed a home; she was a talking dog with an active interest in what her new owner did for a living and how it could work for her. Soon Emmy was trying to use the strange ideas of quantum mechanics for the really important things in her life: chasing critters, getting treats, and going for walks. She peppered Chad with questions: Could she use quantum tunneling to get through the neighbor's fence and chase bunnies? What about quantum teleportation to catch squirrels before they climb out of reach? Where are all the universes in which Chad drops steak on the floor? And what about the bunnies made of cheese that ought to be appearing out of nothing in the backyard? With great humor and clarity, Chad Orzel explains to Emmy, and to human readers, just what quantum mechanics is and how it works -- and why, although you can't use it to catch squirrels or eat steak, it's still bizarre, amazing, and important to every dog and human. Follow along as Chad and Emmy discuss the central elements of quantum theory, from particles that behave like waves and Heisenberg's uncertainty principle to entanglement ("spooky action at a distance") and virtual particles. Along the way, they discuss the history of the theory, such as the experiments that discovered that electrons are waves and particles at the same time, and Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr's decades-long debate over what quantum theory really meant (Einstein may have been smarter, but Bohr was right more often). Don't get caught looking less informed than Emmy. "How to Teach Physics to Your Dog" will show you the universe that lies beneath everyday reality, in all its randomness, uncertainty, and wonder. "Forget Schrodinger's Cat," says Emmy, "quantum physics is all about dogs." And once you see quantum physics explained to a dog, you'll never see the world the same way again.


We have built a world that no longer fits our bodies. Our genes - selected through our evolution - and the many processes by which our development is tuned within the womb, limit our capacity to adapt to the modern urban lifestyle. There is a mismatch. We are seeing the impact of this mismatch in the explosion of diabetes, heart disease and obesity. But it also has consequences in earlier puberty and old age. Bringing together the latest scientific research in evolutionary biology, development, medicine, anthropology and ecology, Peter Gluckman and Mark Hanson, both leading medical scientists, argue that many of our problems as modern-day humans can be understood in terms of this fundamental and growing mismatch. It is an insight that we ignore at our peril.


In this surprising and highly unconventional work, Harvard law professor Mark Tushnet poses a seemingly simple question that yields a thoroughly unexpected answer. The Constitution matters, he argues, not because it structures our government but because it structures our politics. He maintains that politicians and political parties-not Supreme Court decisions-are the true engines of constitutional change in our system. This message will empower all citizens who use direct political action to define and protect our rights and liberties as Americans. Unlike legal scholars who consider the Constitution only as a blueprint for American democracy, Tushnet focuses on the ways it serves as a framework for political debate. Each branch of government draws substantive inspiration and procedural structure from the Constitution but can effect change only when there is the political will to carry it out. Tushnet's political understanding of the Constitution therefore does not demand that citizens pore over the specifics of each Supreme Court decision in order to improve our nation. Instead, by providing key facts about Congress, the president, and the nature of the current constitutional regime, his book reveals not only why the Constitution matters to each of us but also, and perhaps more important, how it matters.


Foreign capital merging and acquiring China enterprises has recently become an economic and legal hotspot event that has attracted extensive attentions, and practice has proven that merging and acquiring leading enterprises and in turn controlling the overall industry to monopolize the industry have seriously endangered the industry security of China. Limited by various imperfections in legal force and application, the existing laws cannot fundamentally protect the industry security in foreign capital merger and acquisition. To improve the legal system for the supervision over foreign capital merger and acquisition, and establish the legal mechanism for industry security and industry policy are effective legal measures to solve the issue of industry security in foreign capital merger and acquisition.


In the fall of 2008, Minnesota public health officials became alarmed by an unusually high number of illnesses and deaths caused by salmonella poisoning. Federal and state regulators and the news media eventually traced the outbreak back to products supplied by the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA). Employees shipped batches that tested positive for salmonella from a plant with a leaking roof, mold growing on ceilings and walls, rodent infestation, filthy processing receptacles, and feathers and feces in the air filtration system. Under an agreement with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Georgia state inspectors visited the PCA plant nine times in 2006-2008 but took no effective action to terminate any of these conditions. When called to testify before Congress, Stewart Parnell, PCA's chief executive officer, invoked his Fifth Amendment rights, and the company itself is under criminal investigation. Food-borne illness causes 5,000 deaths, hospitalizes 325,000, and sickens 76 million annually. Incidents like those at PCA have spurred Congress to draft comprehensive legislation to strengthen FDA's food safety programs, which cover 80 percent of the American diet. (The Department of Agriculture has jurisdiction over meat and poultry.) Yet under the leading piece of Senate legislation, such egregious conduct would remain punishable as a misdemeanor, triggering at most 0-6 months in jail if the Department of Justice even considered prosecuting those crimes. Industry groups like the Grocery Manufacturers of America oppose enhanced criminal and civil penalties, urging the FDA to focus on cooperative efforts to achieve compliance. The paper argues that the nation cannot afford to forego the substantial deterrent effects provided by severe criminal penalties, especially under the "responsible corporate officer" doctrine that applies to violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act. That doctrine holds responsible any corporate officer who should know illegal practices are occurring and is in a position to stop them. In an era when regulatory agencies responsible for protecting health and safety cannot afford to inspect their way out of trouble, high profile enforcement is critical to efforts to improve the safety of the food supply.


The philosophy of every maintenance practice and operation in any organization is usually to provide a structurally sound and aesthetically appealing environment throughout the life of a property. Maintenance has generally been referred to as all works carried out to keep and restore an item to a currently acceptable standard. This work evaluates the performance of facilities maintenance management in the maintenance of sport complexes in South–West Nigeria. The study research method includes physical observation, administration of questionnaires to measure performance. In order to gather information, structured questionnaires were administer at the study area (the six stadia covered), the management staff, the maintenance staff and the user of the facilities in each of the stadia, covering kiosk owner, sport men and women, spectators, and lover of sports. The study revealed some factors affecting performance in the maintenance of sports complexes among which are: funding, organizational structure, political factors, ownership types, and security. The study concluded that it is only when adequate fund is provided and fully utilized in the maintenance of sport complexes that one will enjoy the initial investment in them and the consequent accruing benefits from the complexes will be achieved. The study recommended among others facts that the government should set aside part of her annual budget to maintenance of the sport complexes so as to ensure their fitness and world class standard at all time which will consequently reduce the operating cost and increase the revenue generating capacity of the stadium.


Consciousness is our gateway to experience: it enables us to recognize Van Gogh's starry skies, be enraptured by Beethoven's Fifth, and stand in awe of a snowcapped mountain. Yet consciousness is subjective, personal, and famously difficult to examine: philosophers have for centuries declared this mental entity so mysterious as to be impenetrable to science. In The Ravenous Brain, neuroscientist Daniel Bor departs sharply from this historical view, and builds on the latest research to propose a new model for how consciousness works. Bor argues that this brain-based faculty evolved as an accelerated knowledge gathering tool. Consciousness is effectively an idea factory-that choice mental space dedicated to innovation, a key component of which is the discovery of deep structures within the contents of our awareness. This model explains our brains' ravenous appetite for information-and in particular, its constant search for patterns. Why, for instance, after all our physical needs have been met, do we recreationally solve crossword or Sudoku puzzles? Such behavior may appear biologically wasteful, but, according to Bor, this search for structure can yield immense evolutionary benefits-it led our ancestors to discover fire and farming, pushed modern society to forge ahead in science and technology, and guides each one of us to understand and control the world around us. But the sheer innovative power of human consciousness carries with it the heavy cost of mental fragility. Bor discusses the medical implications of his theory of consciousness, and what it means for the origins and treatment of psychiatric ailments, including attention-deficit disorder, schizophrenia, manic depression, and autism. All mental illnesses, he argues, can be reformulated as disorders of consciousness-a perspective that opens up new avenues of treatment for alleviating mental suffering. A controversial view of consciousness, The Ravenous Brain links cognition to creativity in an ingenious solution to one of science's biggest mysteries.


The current controversy over territorial birthright citizenship in the United States links unauthorized immigration with slavery. Where ever one stands on birthright citizenship for US-born children of undocumented immigrants, everyone recognizes that the controlling legal standard was enunciated in the Fourteenth Amendment's Citizenship Clause – itself a response to the iconic Dred Scott decision denying that people of African descent were, or could ever be, citizens. The jus soli rule in the U.S. has an earlier common law provenance, but because it was explicitly constitutionalized in the wake of the slavery conflict, the fate and meaning of today's birthright citizenship controversy in the U. S. is necessarily refracted through the nation's slavery experience. Certainly, disagreements abound about what exactly the Citizenship Clause has to say about extending citizenship to children born in the US of unauthorized immigrants, but the debates take as given that our current discussions over assignment of territorial birthright citizenship issue from the Fourteenth Amendment, thereby traversing the ground of the nation's struggle over slavery and its aftermath. This geneology distinguishes the birthright citizenship controversy in the United States from debates on the subject in other national settings. In Ireland, for example – a country which recently eliminated birthright citizenship by constitutional amendment – a history of slavery does not figure as specific horizon or constraint. But other than recognizing the particular path dependency of the debate, what do we take from this fact? What is the significance of this historical sequencing? Are the institutions of slavery relevant to the current birthright citizenship debate in any internal, analytical sense? In other words, is their convergence by way of the Citizenship Clause simply a temporal happenstance which now distracts rather than enlightens, or does the slavery question represent something which – analytically and normatively – properly informs our approach to the citizenship question today? This essay is part of larger project on the specific nature of undocumented alien status in the liberal democratic polity.


When the Framers of the United States Constitution granted Congress the authority to create a patent system, they certainty did not envision a patent as an a priori entitlement. As it stands now, anyone who files a patent application on anything is entitled to a presumption of patentability. A patent examiner who seeks to challenge patentability faces the dual burden of building a prima facie case of unpatentability and carrying the ultimate burden of proof. Thus, from the outset, an applicant is in a very good position; but the examiner's limited resources, time pressures, and production goals tip the scales even further toward patent issuance. This entitlement regime increases the number of patent application filings on questionable inventions, contributes to the proliferation of low-quality patents, impedes patent reform, hinders innovation, and frustrates patent policy. Yet these problems are often attributed to other causes and the potential role of the presumption and proof framework has largely been overlooked. But can it be fixed? This Article proposes a way to rebalance the scales of patentability during patent examination. By demanding more from the applicant, it makes the issuance of a patent far from a sure thing. The proposed regime makes three key changes in the rules of patent examination. First, the locution of the dual burdens would be decoupled such that the initial burden of coming forward with evidence of unpatentability (building a prima facie case) would remain with the examiner but the burden of persuasion on the ultimate issue would now rest with the applicant. Second, the current presumption of patentability would be replaced with a presumption of unpatentability. As a result, an applicant who could not adduce proof of patentability by a preponderance of the evidence would face a rejection. Third, in an effort to produce more technically robust patents, the restrictions on amending patent documents after filing would be relaxed so that an applicant who adduces proof of patentability could incorporate the additional information into the issued patent. Aside from derailing questionable patents, this regime would lead to more efficient patent examination, improved patent quality, better inventions, better disclosure, and fewer obstacles to innovation.


Cerebral palsy (CP) remains one of the most common debilitating diseases in the world.
Factors such as neuromuscular incoordination, use of soft diet and delayed oral
clearance of food make maintenance of optimum oral hygiene a challenging task in
these children. The compromised oral hygiene in turn make these children highly
vulnerable to dental disease. Maintaining optimal oral/dental health in CP children is of
utmost importance as these children usually suffer from several associated general
health problems in addition to their primary condition. Poor dental health further
compromises their general health. Nevertheless, CP children often suffer from dental
diseases including dental caries more than healthy children. This underscores the need
for improvement in oral health of the CP children. The CP children are dependent on
those around them for their oral hygiene maintenance and dietary intake. CP children
spend most of their time with health care workers in special centers for them or with
their parents/care takers at home. Therefore, the attitude of special health care workers
and parents towards their dental health is of prime importance. The purpose of this
project included to determine the attitude of special health care workers towards their
dental health and oral health comprehension by parents of CP children. In addition, a
study on caries experience of CP children and associated risk factors was also completed.
The final objective was to identify various potential areas of improvement with ultimate
goal of improving dental health of the CP children.
The study involving special health care workers in a Disabled Children's Center revealed
that oral health knowledge and practices among the workers could generally be labeled
as satisfactory, however some weak areas (such as trend towards symptom-oriented
utilization of oral health care and lack of knowledge about fluoridated water) were
identified. There is a need to enhance the workers' knowledge in these areas.
The study involving parents of the CP children showed mixed results. Some areas of
strong oral health comprehension (such as importance of good dental health, harmful
effects of sweetened foods), others satisfactory (such as need for routine dental visits,
use of fluoride) and some weak areas (use of flavored fizzy drinks, bottled/canned juices
and sweetened/flavored milks, seeking early treatment) were identified among parents
of CP children. The results strongly indicated a need for enhanced efforts towards
improvement of oral health comprehension in the parents of the CP children.
The study about caries experience and risk factors in CP children has provided useful
information in an area where literature has been scarce. Almost all the studied children
had clinical dental caries, and most of the caries were untreated. Very few children in
the present study had optimal oral hygiene. This study confirmed the strong correlation
between high dental caries experience and poor oral hygiene. Routine dental check-up
visits and topical fluoride application clearly resulted in lower caries experience. Bottled
juices and crispy potato chips were the two predictors for high caries experience.
As stated before, the goal of the project was to identify various potential areas of
improvement in oral health attitude of special health care workers, oral health
comprehension of the parents of CP children and risk factors for dental caries in CP
children. It is contemplated that by addressing the identified weak areas, an
improvement in dental health and care of the CP children is expected. It is also expected
that the collected information will help in improvement of clinical preventive as well as
restorative services for the CP children. CP children and their parents lead a challenging
life. This project was an effort to assist these children and their parents/care takers with
ultimate goal of improving their oral health and in turn their overall quality of life.


"Worlds of Dissent" analyzes the myths of Central European resistance popularized by Western journalists and historians, and replaces them with a picture of the struggle against state repression as the dissidents themselves understood, debated, and lived it. In the late 1970s, when Czech intellectuals, writers, and artists drafted Charter 77 and called on their government to respect human rights, they hesitated to name themselves "dissidents." Their personal and political experiences - diverse, uncertain, nameless - have been obscured by victory narratives that portray them as larger-than-life heroes who defeated Communism in Czechoslovakia. Jonathan Bolton draws on diaries, letters, personal essays, and other first-person texts to analyze Czech dissent less as a political philosophy than as an everyday experience. Bolton considers not only Vaclav Havel but also a range of men and women writers who have received less attention in the West - including Ludvik Vaculik, whose 1980 diary "The Czech Dream Book" is a compelling portrait of dissident life. Bolton recovers the stories that dissidents told about themselves, and brings their dilemmas and decisions to life for contemporary readers. Dissidents often debated, and even doubted, their own influence as they confronted incommensurable choices and the messiness of real life. Portraying dissent as a human, imperfect phenomenon, Bolton frees the dissidents from the suffocating confines of moral absolutes. "Worlds of Dissent" offers a rare opportunity to understand the texture of dissent in a closed society.


[1] Coordinated flight legs of two aircraft above and below extended ice clouds played an important role in the Tropical Composition, Cloud and Climate Coupling Experiment (Costa Rica, 2007). The Solar Spectral Flux Radiometer measured up- and downward irradiance on the high-altitude (ER-2) and the low-altitude (DC-8) aircraft, which allowed deriving apparent absorption on a point-by-point basis along the flight track. Apparent absorption is the vertical divergence of irradiance, calculated from the difference of net flux at the top and bottom of a cloud. While this is the only practical method of deriving absorption from aircraft radiation measurements, it differs from true absorption when horizontal flux divergence is nonzero. Differences between true and apparent absorption are inevitable in any inhomogeneous atmosphere, especially clouds. We show, for the first time, the spectral shape of measured apparent absorption and compare with results from a three-dimensional radiative transfer model. The model cloud field is created from optical thickness and effective radius retrievals from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Airborne Simulator and from reflectivity profiles from the Cloud Radar System, both on board the ER-2. Although the spectral shape is reproduced by the model calculations, the measured apparent absorption in the visible spectral range is higher than the model results along extended parts of the flight leg. This is possibly due to a net loss of photons into neighboring cirrus-free areas that are not contained within the model domain.


From a distinguished clinician, pioneer in working with behaviorally challenging kids, and author of the acclaimed "The Explosive Child" comes a groundbreaking approach for understanding and helping these kids and transforming school discipline. Frequent visits to the principal's office. Detentions. Suspensions. Expulsions. These are the established tools of school discipline for kids who don't abide by school rules, have a hard time getting along with other kids, don't seem to respect authority, don't seem interested in learning, and are disrupting the learning of their classmates. But there's a big problem with these strategies: They are ineffective for most of the students to whom they are applied. It's time for a change in course. Here, Dr. Ross W. Greene presents an enlightened, clear-cut, and practical alternative. Relying on research from the neurosciences, Dr. Greene offers a new conceptual framework for understanding the difficulties of kids with behavioral challenges and explains why traditional discipline isn't effective at addressing these difficulties. Emphasizing the revolutionarily simple and positive notion that "kids do well if they can, " he persuasively argues that kids with behavioral challenges are not attention-seeking, manipulative, limit-testing, coercive, or unmotivated, but that they lack the skills to behave adaptively. And when adults recognize the true factors underlying difficult behavior and teach kids the skills in increments they can handle, the results are astounding: The kids overcome their obstacles; the frustration of teachers, parents, and classmates diminishes; and the well-being and learning of all students are enhanced. In "Lost at School, " Dr. Greene describes how his road-tested, evidence-based approach -- called Collaborative Problem Solving -- can help challenging kids at school. His lively, compelling narrative includes: tools to identify the triggers and lagging skills underlying challenging behavior. explicit guidance on how to radically improve interactions with challenging kids -- along with many examples showing how it's done. dialogues, Q & A's, and the story, which runs through the book, of one child and his teachers, parents, and school. practical guidance for successful planning and collaboration among teachers, parents, administrations, and kids. Backed by years of experience and research, and written with a powerful sense of hope and achievable change, "Lost at School" gives teachers and parents the realistic strategies and information to impact the classroom experience of every challenging kid."


Doctor | Resource Guide Diagnosis of Viral Upper Respiratory Infections (Colds and Influenza) by Ricker Polsdorfer, MD En Español (Spanish Version) Based on your symptoms and a physical exam, your doctor can diagnose a cold or influenza. In some situations, tests, such as throat culture or blood count, may be ordered to characterize the severity of the condition and identify other related problems. Identification of the specific virus causing your symptoms is not usually necessary because it usually does not make a difference in treatment. However, if influenza A virus is suspected, on the basis of the time of year and community public health reports, high-risk patients may be treated specifically for that virus. Diagnosis may include the following: Thermometer —Taking your temperature every 6-8 hours can help define the severity of your illness. Urinalysis —This is a routine check for conditions such as diabetes that may make your acute case of cold or influenza worse. This is not usually done for colds or flu unless there is another reason to suspect urinary infection. such as suggestive symptoms or a fever with few other symptoms. Blood Count —This is another routine test to assess your general health and your ability to fight off the illness. It is not done routinely in colds or flu, but only if necessary such as if a person is very sick. Throat Culture —This is done if there are signs or symptoms of sore throat in order to rule out strep throat. Chest X-ray —If your physician suspects that your upper respiratory infection has spread to your lungs, an x-ray may be done to check for pneumonia. REFERENCES: Beers MH, Berkow R. The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy . 17th ed. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons; 1999. Fauci AS, Braunwald E, Isselbacher KJ, et al. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine . 14th ed. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2000. Previous | Next


breast cancer diagnosis and management. Book lovers, when you need a new book to read, find the book here. Never worry not to find what you need. Is the breast cancer diagnosis and management your needed book now? That's true; you are really a good reader. This is a perfect book that comes from great author to share with you. The book offers the best experience and lesson to take, not only take, but also learn.


The problem of adversarial multi-robot patrol has gained interest in recent years, mainly due to its immediate relevance to various security applications. In this problem, robots are required to repeatedly visit a target area in a way that maximizes their chances of detecting an adversary trying to penetrate through the patrol path. When facing a strong adversary that knows the patrol strategy of the robots, if the robots use a deterministic patrol algorithm, then in many cases it is easy for the adversary to penetrate undetected (in fact, in some of those cases the adversary can guarantee penetration). Therefore this paper presents a non-deterministic patrol framework for the robots. Assuming that the strong adversary will take advantage of its knowledge and try to penetrate through the patrol's weakest spot, hence an optimal algorithm is one that maximizes the chances of detection in that point. We therefore present a polynomial-time algorithm for determining an optimal patrol under the Markovian strategy assumption for the robots, such that the probability of detecting the adversary in the patrol's weakest spot is maximized. We build upon this framework and describe an optimal patrol strategy for several robotic models based on their movement abilities (directed or undirected) and sensing abilities (perfect or imperfect), and in different environment models - either patrol around a perimeter (closed polygon) or an open fence (open polyline).


Recent experimental measurements, without any theoretical guidance, showed that isotropic polarization response can be achieved by increasing the number of QD layers in a QD stack. Here we analyse the polarization response of multi-layer quantum dot stacks containing up to nine quantum dot layers by linearly polarized PL measurements and by carrying out a systematic set of multi-million atom simulations. The atomistic modeling and simulations allow us to include correct symmetry properties in the calculations of the optical spectra: a factor critical to explain the experimental evidence. The values of the degree of polarization (DOP) calculated from our model follows the trends of the experimental data. We also present detailed physical insight by examining strain profiles, band edges diagrams and wave function plots. Multi-directional PL measurements and calculations of the DOP reveal a unique property of InAs quantum dot stacks that the TE response is anisotropic in the plane of the stacks. Therefore a single value of the DOP is not sufficient to fully characterize the polarization response. We explain this anisotropy of the TE-modes by orientation of hole wave functions along the [-110] direction. Our results provide a new insight that isotropic polarization response measured in the experimental PL spectra is due to two factors: (i) TM[001]-mode contributions increase due to enhanced intermixing of HH and LH bands, and (ii) TE[110]-mode contributions reduce significantly due to hole wave function alignment along the [-110] direction. We also present optical spectra for various geometry configurations of quantum dot stacks to provide a guide to experimentalists for the design of multi-layer QD stacks for optical devices. Our results predict that the QD stacks with identical layers will exhibit lower values of the DOP than the stacks with non-identical layers.


The graph model enables a broad range of analysis, thus graph processing is an invaluable tool in data analytics. At the heart of every graph-processing system lies a concurrent graph data structure storing the graph. Such a data structure needs to be highly efficient for both graph algorithms and queries. Due to the continuous evolution, the sparsity, and the scale-free nature of real-world graphs, graph-processing systems face the challenge of providing an appropriate graph data structure that enables both fast analytical workloads and low-memory graph mutations. Existing graph structures offer a hard trade-off between read-only performance, update friendliness, and memory consumption upon updates. In this paper, we introduce csr++, a new graph data structure that removes these trade-offs and enables both fast read-only analytics and quick and memory-friendly mutations. csr++ combines ideas from CSR, the fastest read-only data structure, and adjacency lists to achieve the best of both worlds. We compare csr++ to CSR, adjacency lists from the Boost Graph Library, and LLAMA, a state-of-the-art update-friendly graph structure. In our evaluation, which is based on popular graph-processing algorithms executed over real-world graphs, we show that csr++ remains close to CSR in read-only concurrent performance (within 10% on average), while significantly outperforming CSR (by an order of magnitude) and LLAMA (by almost 2×) with frequent updates. 2012 ACM Subject Classification Information systems → Data structures; Theory of computation → Concurrency; Theory of computation → Graph algorithms analysis; Computing methodologies → Concurrent algorithms


We show that the set of cluster monomials for the cluster algebra of type D4 contains a basis of the Z-module Z[x1;1; : : : ; x3;3]. We also show that the transition matrices relating this cluster basis to the natural and the dual canonical bases are unitriangular and nonnegative. These results support a conjecture of Fomin and Zelevinsky on the equality of the cluster and dual canonical bases. In the event that this conjectured equality is true, our results also imply an explicit factorization of each dual canonical basis element as a product of cluster variables.


Given an assignment of weights $w$ to the edges of an infinite graph $G$, a matching $M$ in $G$ is called strongly $w$-maximal if for any matching $N$ there holds $\sum\{w(e) \mid e \in N \setminus M\} \le \sum\{w(e) \mid e \in M \setminus N\}$. We prove that if $w$ assumes only finitely many values all of which are rational then $G$ has a strongly $w$-maximal matching. This result is best possible in the sense that if we allow irrational values or infinitely many values then there need not be a strongly $w$-maximal matching.


Elihu Thomson (1853-1937) was one of the most inventive scientists of his time and one of the few truly scientific inventors. Because he saw no reason for making sharp separations between the pure and the applied, between science and technology, he was able to illuminate each aspect of his work with the light of his experience in the other. The result, as his correspondence confirms, was a progressive reaching out into numerous areas, some far removed from the electrical studies on which his fame has chiefly rested.This collection of letters on scientific topics, both to and from Thomson, displays his interest in and knowledge of astronomy, telescope making, physical chemistry, x-ray studies, the history of science, industrial research and production, scientific education, military and naval armament, acoustics, air pollution, noise abatement, and other matters. His electrical and electromechanical interests are of course well represented in this selection.These areas the reader will in large part be able to match against the well-known scientists and inventors among those included in the book who shared concerns and exchanged letters with Thomson: Sir William H. Bragg, William D. Coolidge, R. E. B. Crompton, Thomas A. Edison, George E. Hale, Irving Langmuir, Robert A. Millikan, Michael I. Pupin, George W. Ritchey, George A. Sarton, Harlow Shapley, Samuel W. Stratton, and Willis R. Whitney.Thomson is credited with almost 800 electrical inventions. The process by which some of these were made are revealed in his letters in discussing generators, arc lights, measuring instruments, transformers, and other implements. Other letters reflect the rise of his company, which merged with Edison's to become the General Electric Company. It is of interest that Thomson chose to remain at General Electric all his life, as a consultant, even though he could have had almost any academic post he desired, including the M.I.T. presidency. Thomson was in fact an early advocate of the value of in-house industrial support of scientific activity of a sort transcending narrow and obvious self-interest; such support he felt would mutually benefit both science and industry.Some of the most interesting of the letters deal with his advice to Hale and others on the making of the great 100- and 200-inch telescope mirrors. Others describe how, as a young Philadelphia high school teacher, he was able to produce electromagnetic waves and detect them at a distance some twelve years before the experiments of Hertz. At that time, he realized their utility as a medium of communication twenty years before Marconi's successful transmissions.Thomson's letters to and from each correspondent are grouped together in order to show with greater continuity the development of Thomson's warm personal relationships and the unfolding of ideas and results in the various fields. The editors have provided an introduction, biographical accounts, and annotations. The latter are extensive and varied in nature, comprising explanations, anecdotes, commentaries, and identifications of now-obscure references.


Management of clutter is an important factor in the design of user interfaces and information visualizations, allowing improved usability and aesthetics. However, clutter is not a well defined concept. In this paper, we present the Feature Congestion measure of display clutter. This measure is based upon extensive modeling of the saliency of elements of a display, and upon a new operational definition of clutter. The current implementation is based upon two features: color and luminance contrast. We have tested this measure on maps that observers ranked by perceived clutter. Results show good agreement between the observers' rankings and our measure of clutter. Furthermore, our measure can be used to make design suggestions in an automated UI critiquing tool.


New Horizontal Merger Guidelines were issued jointly by the Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission in August, 2010, replacing Guidelines issued in 1992 that no longer reflected either the law or government enforcement policy. The new Guidelines are a striking improvement. They are less technocratic, accommodating a greater and more realistic variety of theories about why mergers of competitors can be anticompetitive and, accordingly, a greater variety of methodologies for assessing them. The unifying theme of the Horizontal Merger Guidelines is to prevent the enhancement of market power that might result from mergers. The 2010 Guidelines state that "[a] merger enhances market power if it is likely to encourage one or more firms to raise price, reduce output, diminish innovation, or otherwise harm customers as a result of diminished competitive constraints or incentives." The focus on enhancement of market power is not limited to price. Both the 1992 and 2010 Guidelines expressed a concern about mergers that might restrain innovation, but the emphasis in the 2010 Guidelines is greatly expanded.The agencies are increasingly concerned about excessive reliance on market definition mechanisms that are, at best, rough approximations of reality. This increases the relative weight that will be given to other factors. That is not to suggest that the Agencies will not employ technical methodologies. Indeed, the economic methodologies for delineating markets have become more technical and precise over time, thanks in large part to economists that have been working on merger analysis, whether independently or under the aegis of one of the Agencies. Rather, the Guidelines indicate a broader range of approaches. Under the 2010 Guidelines market definition essentially plays two roles: "First, [it] helps specify the line of commerce and section of the country in which the competitive concern arises. . . . Second, [it] allows the Agencies to identify market participants and measure market shares and market concentration." Market definition (and the measuring of market shares and concentration) is no longer an end in itself, though it is "useful to the extent it illuminates the merger's competitive effects." The 2010 Guidelines also place a heavier emphasis on direct evidence of competitive effects in defining markets: "[e]vidence of competitive effects can inform market definition, just as market definition can be informative regarding competitive effects."This essay attempts to integrate the 2010 Guidelines into merger enforcement policy in the United States, highlighting the most important differences between the approach taken in the 2010 Guidelines and that taken by both previous Guidelines, the enforcement agencies, and the courts.


This paper presents a new entropy minimization criterion and corresponding algorithms that are used for both symbol timing and carrier frequency recovery for underwater acoustic receivers. It relies on the entropy estimation of the eye diagram and the constellation diagram of the received signal. During the parameter search, when perfect synchronization is achieved, the entropy will reach a global minimum, indicating the least intersymbol interference or a restored constellation diagram. Unlike other synchronization methods, this unified criterion can be used to build an all-in-one synchronizer with high accuracy. The feasibility of this method is proven using a theoretical analysis and supported by sea trial measurement data.


La Jolla, CA - Nature is a seemingly endless storehouse of interesting - and potentially life-saving - biological molecules. But tracking down and harvesting those chemicals in their natural form can be time-consuming, expensive and unreliable. Now Salk scientists have discovered a new way of bringing "bio-prospecting" out of the rainforest and into the lab. Their findings are published in the June 16th edition of the journal Nature. Stéphane Richard, Joseph Noel and Tomohisa Kuzuyama isolated and examined a totally new enzyme that can mix and match biological chemicals to create a wide range of different molecules that could be used as the basis for new drugs. The enzyme, named Orf2, takes chemical building blocks known as small aromatic molecules and changes them by adding a fat-like molecule called a prenyl group. That modification can have a huge impact on where the aromatic molecule goes within the cell, and what sort of effects it has when it reaches its target. "When you make that so-called hybrid molecule, all the chemistry associated with the original compound changes," said Noel. He explained that the addition of a prenyl group, also known as prenylation, produces a relatively large change in the chemical's biological properties. "The molecule becomes a little bit more greasy, and so the kinds of targets that it might interact with change completely." "We actually have in our hands now the ability to do things that a chemist might not be able to do, or if a chemist was able to do it, it could be expensive and time-consuming," said Noel. "I think it's a completely novel way to approach the whole area of bio-prospecting and new natural medicines." The group was interested in manipulating the properties of small aromatic molecules because these bacteria- and plant-derived compounds are involved in a wide variety of important biological processes. Some are potent cancer-fighting anti-oxidants, while others have antibiotic or anti-fungal properties. Many of these molecules only become active once they have had a prenyl group added. The researchers tested whether their new enzyme could modify a wide range of small aromatic molecules, ranging from plant flavonoids - for instance, compounds found in hops that give beer its bitter taste or in other plants act as sunscreens, pigments, or antibiotics - to olivetol, a component in the production of THC, the active ingredient of marijuana. Unlike other previously known prenylation enzymes that only act on a small number of molecules, this new enzyme was able to attach prenyl groups to most of the different aromatic compounds tested. Some of the newly-formed hybrid molecules had previously been found in natural sources, but the enzyme also built some new compounds that had never been seen before. The key to Orf2's flexibility seems to reside in the active site, the region of the enzyme where the small aromatic molecules bind. In many enzymes, the structure of the active site only allows one specific molecule to interact with it, like a key fitting into a lock. But the scientists found that Orf2's active site is a surprisingly spacious barrel-like structure, unlike any protein fold ever seen before. Not only does this wide barrel allow Orf2 to act on such a wide range of aromatic molecules, its discovery could also shed new light on the relationship between an enzyme's structure, the way it has evolved, and the chemical reactions it is able to carry out. Although the researchers have not yet had a chance to test the modified molecules to see if their function has changed, they believe that Orf2 could be a powerful tool for creating biologically active compounds that could be used as drugs or as new methods of enhancing the disease-preventative properties of plants. Because the enzyme is able to modify such a wide range of compounds, scientists seeking to develop new drugs could use it in several different ways. If they had no particular end product in mind, they could feed interesting compounds to the enzyme and see what comes out. But researchers could also turn Orf2 into a more customized tool by using the techniques of genetic engineering to narrow its activity and tell it exactly which reactions to carry out. "The big advantage that we have with our system is that it's a small, soluble, easy-to-work-with bacterial protein that seems to be able to do reactions that you can find somewhere else in nature, but where people have not been able yet to isolate the proteins," said Stéphane Richard. "So it's kind of a short-cut - it's a way to bypass what is done already in nature, but for which we don't have the tools yet that nature has." The Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California, is an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to fundamental discoveries in the life sciences, the improvement of human health and the training of future generations of researchers. Jonas Salk, M.D., whose polio vaccine all but eradicated the crippling disease poliomyelitis in 1955, founded the Institute in 1960 on land donated by the City of San Diego and with the financial support of the March of Dimes.


This booklet gives an overview of surface weather maps as they relate to aviation. According to the scope notes on the title page, it includes information about "Surface Weather Map, interpretation of data from plotted station models, [and] analysis of maps to include pressure centers and fronts" as well as the "Use of map for flight planning." The text also has self-evaluation questions printed throughout, with the answers printed on the last page.


The lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) is a numerical solver for the Navier-Stokes equations, based on an underlying molecular dynamic model. Recently, it has been extended towardsthe simulation of complex fluids. We use the asymptotic expansion technique to investigate the standard scheme, the initialization problem and possible developments towards moving boundary and fluid-structure interaction problems. At the same time, it will be shown how the mathematical analysis can be used to understand and improve the algorithm. First of all, we elaborate the tool "asymptotic analysis", proposing a general formulation of the technique and explaining the methods and the strategy we use for the investigation. A first standard application to the LBM is described, which leads to the approximation of the Navier-Stokes solution starting from the lattice Boltzmann equation. As next, we extend the analysis to investigate origin and dynamics of initial layers. A class of initialization algorithms to generate accurate initial values within the LB framework is described in detail. Starting from existing routines, we will be able to improve the schemes in term of efficiency and accuracy. Then we study the features of a simple moving boundary LBM. In particular, we concentrate on the initialization of new fluid nodes created by the variations of the computational fluid domain. An overview of existing possible choices is presented. Performing a careful analysis of the problem we propose a modified algorithm, which produces satisfactory results. Finally, to set up an LBM for fluid structure interaction, efficient routines to evaluate forces are required. We describe the Momentum Exchange algorithm (MEA). Precise accuracy estimates are derived, and the analysis leads to the construction of an improved method to evaluate the interface stresses. In conclusion, we test the defined code and validate the results of the analysis on several simple benchmarks. From the theoretical point of view, in the thesis we have developed a general formulation of the asymptotic expansion, which is expected to offer a more flexible tool in the investigation of numerical methods. The main practical contribution offered by this work is the detailed analysis of the numerical method. It allows to understand and improve the algorithms, and construct new routines, which can be considered as starting points for future researches.


This book presents a technical review of ecological and life history information on a range of Bornean wildlife species, aimed at identifying what makes these species sensitive to timber harvesting practices and associated impacts. It addresses three audiences: 1) those involved in assessing and regulating timber harvesting activities in Southeast Asia, 2) those involved in trying to achieve conservation goals in the region, and 3) those undertaking research to improve multipurpose forest management. This book shows that forest management can be improved in many simple ways to allow timber extraction and wildlife conservation to be more compatible than under current practices. The recommendations can also be valuable to the many governmental and non-governmental organisations promoting sustainable forest management and eco-labelling. Finally, it identifies a number of shortcomings and gaps in knowledge, which the hope can interest the scientific community and promote further research. This review is, an important scientific step toward understanding and improving sustainable forestry practices for long-term biodiversity conservation. Even in the short term, however, significant improvements can be made to improve both conservation and the efficiency of forest management, and there is no need to delay action due to a perceived lack of information. In the longer term it is expected that the recommendations from this review will be implemented, and that further research will continue to help foster an acceptable balance among the choices needed to maintain healthy wildlife populations and biodiversity in a productive forest estate.


Abstract. Arctic haze is a seasonal phenomenon with high concentrations of accumulation-mode aerosols occurring in the Arctic in winter and early spring. Chemistry transport models and climate chemistry models struggle to reproduce this phenomenon, and this has recently prompted changes in aerosol removal schemes to remedy the modeling problems. In this paper, we show that shortcomings in current emission data sets are at least as important. We perform a 3 yr model simulation of black carbon (BC) with the Lagrangian particle dispersion model FLEXPART. The model is driven with a new emission data set ("ECLIPSE emissions") which includes emissions from gas flaring. While gas flaring is estimated to contribute less than 3% of global BC emissions in this data set, flaring dominates the estimated BC emissions in the Arctic (north of 66° N). Putting these emissions into our model, we find that flaring contributes 42% to the annual mean BC surface concentrations in the Arctic. In March, flaring even accounts for 52% of all Arctic BC near the surface. Most of the flaring BC remains close to the surface in the Arctic, so that the flaring contribution to BC in the middle and upper troposphere is small. Another important factor determining simulated BC concentrations is the seasonal variation of BC emissions from residential combustion (often also called domestic combustion, which is used synonymously in this paper). We have calculated daily residential combustion emissions using the heating degree day (HDD) concept based on ambient air temperature and compare results from model simulations using emissions with daily, monthly and annual time resolution. In January, the Arctic-mean surface concentrations of BC due to residential combustion emissions are 150% higher when using daily emissions than when using annually constant emissions. While there are concentration reductions in summer, they are smaller than the winter increases, leading to a systematic increase of annual mean Arctic BC surface concentrations due to residential combustion by 68% when using daily emissions. A large part (93%) of this systematic increase can be captured also when using monthly emissions; the increase is compensated by a decreased BC burden at lower latitudes. In a comparison with BC measurements at six Arctic stations, we find that using daily-varying residential combustion emissions and introducing gas flaring emissions leads to large improvements of the simulated Arctic BC, both in terms of mean concentration levels and simulated seasonality. Case studies based on BC and carbon monoxide (CO) measurements from the Zeppelin observatory appear to confirm flaring as an important BC source that can produce pollution plumes in the Arctic with a high BC / CO enhancement ratio, as expected for this source type. BC measurements taken during a research ship cruise in the White, Barents and Kara seas north of the region with strong flaring emissions reveal very high concentrations of the order of 200–400 ng m −3 . The model underestimates these concentrations substantially, which indicates that the flaring emissions (and probably also other emissions in northern Siberia) are rather under- than overestimated in our emission data set. Our results suggest that it may not be "vertical transport that is too strong or scavenging rates that are too low" and "opposite biases in these processes" in the Arctic and elsewhere in current aerosol models, as suggested in a recent review article (Bond et al., Bounding the role of black carbon in the climate system: a scientific assessment, J. Geophys. Res., 2013), but missing emission sources and lacking time resolution of the emission data that are causing opposite model biases in simulated BC concentrations in the Arctic and in the mid-latitudes.


The scientific evidence behind why maintaining a lifestyle more like that of our ancestors will restore our health and well-being. In GO WILD, Harvard Medical School Professor John Ratey, MD, and journalist Richard Manning reveal that although civilization has rapidly evolved, our bodies have not kept pace. This mismatch affects every area of our lives, from our general physical health to our emotional wellbeing. Investigating the power of living according to our genes in the areas of diet, exercise, sleep, nature, mindfulness and more, GO WILD examines how tapping into our core DNA combats modern disease and psychological afflictions, from Autism and Depression to Diabetes and Heart Disease. By focusing on the ways of the past, it is possible to secure a healthier and happier future, and GO WILD will show you how.


Background/Context The lack of court-ordered support for race-based policies that maintain and create integrated schools has forced communities of color to seek other avenues to obtain equitable education, such as school choice. Individual states and the federal government, as seen in grant provisions through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, are encouraging the expansion of choice at the very time that options for increasing student diversity, particularly racial diversity, are being narrowed by the courts. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study The article uses critical race theory to examine the outcomes of specific school reforms, based on market theory models of school choice, that were designed to alleviate schooling inequities in urban districts. Setting The context of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, serves as a microcosm of urban districts that have embraced school choice to create more equitable schooling options. Milwaukee, like most metropolitan areas, has a history of court-ordered desegregation that served as a temporary solution to racially segregated schools. Given the federal and district court turn from supporting race-based desegregation policies in schools, Milwaukee and other metropolitan districts are looking for new models to serve students of color in their districts and cities. Research Design This article is a conceptual paper that incorporates data from a variety of sources to support the authors' conclusions. Data Collection and Analysis Data for this project were taken from the U.S. Census Bureau, documents from newly created small high schools, such as Web sites and curriculum designs; current newspaper articles discussing issues of small high schools; archival newspaper articles documenting the creation of the 1990 choice and charter programs; professional experiences as a member of the Bill and Melinda Gates institutional selection and small-school team support system; and an empirical study that documents teachers' attempts to provide curriculum and instruction in newly created small schools. Conclusions/Recommendations In combination, these data sources tell the story of market theory reforms that will continue to struggle to meet reformists' goals to serve all Milwaukee populations so long as policy makers and the courts continue to deny the irrefutable power that race and class exercise in parental choice in U.S. urban schools.


The enamide moiety is an important substructure often encountered in biologically active compounds and synthetic drugs. Furthermore, enamides and their derivatives are versatile synthetic intermediates for polymerization, [4+2] cycloaddition, crosscoupling, Heck-olefinination, Halogenation, enantioselective addition or asymmetric hydrogenation. Traditional syntheses of this important substrate class involve rather harsh reaction conditions such as high temperatures and/or the use of strong bases. In continuation of our work on the addition of secondary amides to alkynes, we have developed a broadly applicable protocol for the catalytic addition of N-nucleophiles such as primary amides, imides and thioamides to terminal alkynes. The choice of ligands and additives determines the regiochemical outcome so that with two complementary catalyst systems, both the E-anti-Markovnikov products and the Z-anti-Markovnikov products can be synthesized highly regio- and stereoselectively.


The various uses of fiber-reinforced composites, for example in the enclosures of planes, boats and cars, generates the demand for a detailed analysis of these materials. The final goal is to optimize fibrous materials by the means of "virtual material design''. New fibrous materials are virtually created as realizations of a stochastic model and evaluated with physical simulations. In that way, materials can be optimized for specific use cases, without constructing expensive prototypes or performing mechanical experiments. In order to design a practically fabricable material, the stochastic model is first adapted to an existing material and then slightly modified. The virtual reconstruction of the existing material requires a precise knowledge of the geometry of its microstructure. The first part of this thesis describes a fiber quantification method by the means of local measurements of the fiber radius and orientation. The combination of a sparse chord length transform and inertia moments leads to an efficient and precise new algorithm. It outperforms existing approaches with the possibility to treat different fiber radii within one sample, with high precision in continuous space and comparably fast computing time. This local quantification method can be directly applied on gray value images by adapting the directional distance transforms on gray values. In this work, several approaches of this kind are developed and evaluated. Further characterization of the fiber system requires a segmentation of each single fiber. This task is treated in the second part of this thesis. Using basic morphological operators with specific structuring elements, it is possible to derive a probability for each pixel describing if the pixel belongs to a fiber core in a region without overlapping fibers. Tracking high probabilities leads to a partly reconstruction of the fiber cores in non crossing regions. These core parts are then reconnected over critical regions, if they fulfill certain conditions ensuring the affiliation to the same fiber. In the third part of this work, we develop a new stochastic model for dense systems of non overlapping fibers with a controllable level of bending. Existing approaches in the literature have at least one weakness in either achieving high volume fractions, producing non overlapping fibers, or controlling the bending or the orientation distribution. This gap can be bridged by our stochastic model, which operates in two steps. Firstly, a random walk with the multivariate von Mises-Fisher orientation distribution defines bent fibers. Secondly, a force-biased packing approach arranges them in a non overlapping configuration. Furthermore, we provide the estimation of all parameters needed for the fitting of this model to a real microstructure. Finally, we simulate the macroscopic behavior of different microstructures to derive their mechanical and thermal properties. This part is mostly supported by existing software and serves as a summary of physical simulation applied to random fiber systems. The application on a glass fiber reinforced polymer proves the quality of the reconstruction by our stochastic model, as the effective properties match for both the real microstructure and the realizations of the fitted model. This thesis includes all steps to successfully perform virtual material design on various data sets. With novel and efficient algorithms it contributes to the science of analysis and modeling of fiber reinforced materials.


The methods, techniques, and reliability of the forensic sciences in general, and the pattern identification disciplines in particular, have faced significant scrutiny in recent years. Critics have attacked the scientific basis for the assumptions and claims made by forensic scientists both in and out of the courtroom. Defenders have emphasized courts' long-standing acceptance of forensic science evidence, the relative dearth of known errors, and the skill and experience of practitioners. This Article reflects an effort made by a diverse group of participants in these debates, including law professors, academics from several disciplines, and practicing forensic scientists, to find and explore common ground. To what extent do the forensic sciences need to change in order to place themselves on an appropriately secure foundation in the 21st century? We all firmly agree that the traditional forensic sciences in general, and the pattern identification disciplines, such as fingerprint, firearm, tool mark and handwriting identification evidence in particular, do not currently possess – and absolutely must develop – a well-established scientific foundation. This can only be accomplished through the development of a research culture that permeates the entire field of forensic science. A research culture, we argue, must be grounded in the values of empiricism, transparency, and a commitment to an ongoing critical perspective. The forensic science disciplines need to substantially increase their commitment to evidence from empirical research as the basis for their conclusions. Sound research, rather than experience, training, and longstanding use, must become the central method by which assertions are justified. In this Article, we describe the underdeveloped research culture in the non-DNA forensic sciences, offer suggestions for how it might be improved, and explain why it matters.


Semantic desktop environments aim at improving the effectiveness and efficiency of users carrying out daily tasks within their personal information management infrastructure (PIM). They support the user by transferring and exploiting the explicit semantics of data items across different PIM applications. Whether such an approach does indeed reach its aim of facilitating users" life and—if so—to which extent, however, remains an open question that we address in this paper with the first summative evaluation of a semantic desktop approach. We approach the research question exploiting our own semantic desktop infrastructure, X-COSIM. As data corpus, we have used over 100 emails and 50 documents extracted from the organizers of a conference-like event at our university. The evaluation has been carried out with 18 subjects. We have developed a test environment to evaluate COSIMail and COSIFile, two semantic PIM applications based on X-COSIM. As result, we have found a significant improvement for typical PIM tasks compared to a standard desktop environment.


This paper investigates whether investors are compensated for taking on commonality risk in equity portfolios. A large literature documents the existence and the causes of commonality in illiquidity, but the implications for investors are less understood. We find a return premium for commonality risk in NYSE stocks that is both economically and statistically significant. The commonality risk premium is independent of illiquidity level effects, and robust to variations in illiquidity measurement and systematic illiquidity estimation. We also show that precision in commonality risk estimation can be increased by the use of daily illiquidity measures, instead of monthly.


This report assesses global experiences with Energy Efficient Purchasing (EEP) as a tool to help governments improve the efficiency of their facilities and public services. In many developed countries, EEP is increasingly becoming subsumed within broader Green Public Procurement (GPP) or sustainable procurement policies, where EE is only one indicator among many others. Global energy needs are increasing at a steady pace. Rapid industrial development and growing populations have led to an exponential growth in worldwide energy consumption. According to the international energy agency, demand for energy is projected to grow steadily from 2010 to 2035, representing a 40 percent increase. About 90 percent of this increase will come from developing countries. As these countries continue to urbanize, develop their industrial infrastructure, and provide universal access to basic services, strains on the existing energy infrastructure and resources will intensify. This, coupled with a substantial rise in the middle class in many of the emerging economies, most notably China and India, will also contribute to this increase in demand. This contributes to the expected rise in non-OECD (Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development) countries' share of global energy demand, from 54 percent in 2009 to 64 percent by 2035. This projected increase in energy demand will necessitate new solutions to help bridge the gap between supply and demand, while reducing the trillions of dollars required for new energy infrastructure investments. The study concluded that EEP policies and programs can be an effective way to promote energy efficient products by leveraging a government's purchasing power and influence. Countries with more advanced programs have a wealth of resources and experiences available for countries just getting started, which can dramatically lower the time and resources needed to launch such efforts. As countries improve enforcement and tracking efforts, enhanced methods will be developed and tested, providing models for adaptation and application in the developing world.


Demographers predict that the US population will grow by one hundred million in 2050. Newcomers will settle in suburbia, particularly to the fast growing big cities of the south and west, cities in the resurgent heartland of the country, exurbia and 'superstar cities'. Communities eager to appeal to these newcomers will use tax increment financing for public improvements such as stadiums, museums, plazas and promenades. These public improvements are often integrated into signature private redevelopment projects carefully designed to achieve environmental and planning objectives by being pedestrian-friendly, high density, and mixed use, accessible not only by automobile but public transit as well. After illustrating the beneficial use of tax increment financing, I describe six major criticisms often leveled against tax increment financing (TIF). (1) TIF helps outer suburbs lure jobs from center cities and inner suburbs; (2) TIF should be confined to seriously blighted areas and is not; (3) TIF is often used to subsidize the increased supply of retail development in markets where demand is static, achieving little except the displacement of sales from other locations; (4) cities sponsoring tax increment projects unfairly and inefficiently drain property tax revenues from other taxing entities including schools and counties; (5) There are few serious obstacles preventing local governments from sponsoring TIF projects in places that would have attracted private development anyway, or bestowing subsidies greater than necessary upon firms agreeing to locate in marginal areas; and (6) Many local governments don't bother to analyze whether TIF projects are net tax revenue producers or assess periodically whether actual yields match initial projections.


Concentrated purchasing patterns of plug-in vehicles may result in localized distribution transformer overload scenarios. Prolonged periods of transformer overloading causes service life decrements, and in worst-case scenarios, results in tripped thermal relays and residential service outages. This analysis will review distribution transformer load models developed in the IEC 60076 standard, and apply the model to a neighborhood with plug-in hybrids. Residential distribution transformers are sized such that night-time cooling provides thermal recovery from heavy load conditions during the daytime utility peak. It is expected that PHEVs will primarily be charged at night in a residential setting. If not managed properly, some distribution transformers could become overloaded, leading to a reduction in transformer life expectancy, thus increasing costs to utilities and consumers. A Monte-Carlo scheme simulated each day of the year, evaluating 100 load scenarios as it swept through the following variables: number of vehicle per transformer, transformer size, and charging rate. A general method for determining expected transformer aging rate will be developed, based on the energy needs of plug-in vehicles loading a residential transformer.


We use the theory of conceptual blending with material anchors to describe how people make meaning of the vector arrows representation of electric fields. We describe this representation as a conceptual blend of a spatial (coordinate) input space and an electric-field-as-arrows space (which itself is a blend of electric field concept with arrows). This representation possesses material features including the use of spatial extent (e.g., distance on paper) to represent the coordinate space and to represent the magnitude of electric field vectors. As a result, this representation supports a geometric interpretation of the electric field, breaking the field into components, and the addition of two fields at a point. The material features also emphasize the spatial relationships between the source(s) and points where the field is represented. However, the material features also necessitate sampling and do not generally support the rapid superposition of two fields at all points. We illustrate this analysis with examples from clinical problem-solving interviews with upper-division physics majors, and interpret students' errors in using this representation as resulting from conflict between the input spaces in the blend.


Past European collaborative research involving government bodies, vehicle manufacturers and test laboratories has resulted in a prototype barrier face called the Advanced European Mobile Deformable Barrier (AE-MDB) for use in a new side impact test procedure. This procedure offers a better representation of the current accident situation and, in particular, the barrier concept is a better reflection of front-end stiffness seen in today's passenger car fleet compared to that of the current legislative barrier face. Based on the preliminary performance corridors of the prototype AE-MDB, a refined AE-MDB specification has been developed. A programme of barrier to load cell wall testing was undertaken to complete and standardise the AE-MDB specification. Barrier faces were supplied by the four leading manufacturers to demonstrate that the specification could be met by all. This paper includes background, specification and proof of compliance.


When Felipe Alfau's novel Chromos was published in 1990, approximately fifty years after its creation, it was nominated for the National Book Award in the US and critics repeatedly commented on the novel's unique language. For most critics, Alfau's language was special because of the New York-based, Spanish-born author's decision to write in English. Alfau's profession as a bank translator has often been dismissed as having any relation with his literature save its disconnection from his creative writing. In this article, I argue that translation techniques are responsible for the extraordinary language of Chromos, and further, that the novel's existence relies on the narrator's role as a translator. Translation in Chromos is an integral and essential part of literary creation-- especially for an author working in a multilingual and multinational setting--to the extent that the novel, in its original version, impersonates a translation.


Methylparathion (MP) is an organophosphorus insecticide used world wide in agriculture due to its high activity against a broad spectrum of insect pests. The aim of the study is to understand the effect of methylparathion on the lipid peroxidation, detoxifying and antioxidant enzymes namely catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione S transferase (GST), total reduced glutathione (GSH), lipid peroxidation (LPO), acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and disease diagnostic marker enzymes in liver, sarcoplasmic (SP) and myofirbirllar (MF) proteins in muscles, lipids and histopathlogical changes in various organs of Labeo rohita of size 75 i 6g at lethal and sublethal level of exposure. The probit analysis showed that the lethal concentration (LC 50%) for 24, 48, 72 and 96h were 15.5mg/L, 12.3mg/L, 11.4mg/L and 10.2mg/L respectively which is much higher compared to the LC50 for juvenile fish. The LPO level and GST activity increased five folds and two folds respectively on exposure to methylparathion at 10.2 mg/L and the level of the enzymes increased, on sub lethal exposure beyond 0.25mg/L. AChE activity was inhibited by 74% at a concentration of 1.8mg/L and 90% at 5.4mg/L. The disease diagnostic marker enzymes AST, ALT, ALP and LDH increased by about 2, 3 ,3 and 2 folds respectively at pesticide concentration of 10.2mg/L when compared to control. On sub lethal exposure, however the enzymes did not show any significant changes up to 0.5mg/L. At a concentration of 10.2 mg/L, there was a three fold increase in myofibrillar proteins while the increase in sarcoplasmic protein was above 1.5 fold. On sub lethal exposure, significant alteration was noticed up to 30 days up to 1mg/L of methylparathion concentration. Further exposure up to 45 days increased sarcoplasmic proteins (upto 0.5mg/L). ln the case of myofibrillar proteins, noticeable changes were observed at 1mg/L concentration right from 15th day. The cholesterol content in brain tissues increased by about 27% at methylparathion concentration of 5.4 mglL. However at 0.25mg/L sub lethal concentration, no significant alteration was observed in enzyme activity, muscle proteins, lipids and histopathology of the tissues. The results suggest that methylparathion has the potential to induce oxidative stress in fish, and that liver, muscle and brains are more sensitive organs of Labeo rohita, with poor antioxidant potentials at higher concentrations of the pesticide. The various parameters studied in this investigation can also be used as biomarkers of methylparathion exposure.


This article's analysis of the Oslo Accords and their failures reveals important lessons about what in a bilateral peace agreement's text can maximize, and what can diminish, the likelihood that the parties will comply with the agreement's terms. Reviewing and building upon three key books, the article makes clear that the Oslo process and texts failed to take advantage of many of the most valuable contributions that international law can make to successful peace negotiations. The failure to take advantage of these tools meant the Accords were, from the beginning, weaker than they could have been. That congenital weakness was compounded by the parties' heavy reliance on two methodological pillars - open-ended gradualism and constructive ambiguity - that proved to be disastrously counterproductive. The logic behind open-ended gradualism was to defer issues that were hard to resolve in the hope that gradually intensifying cooperation between the two sides, and progressively increasing the concessions of each to the other, would build sufficient trust to enable later compromises. But the Accords' open-endedness as to final status arrangements enabled both sides' leaders to create dangerous expectations by promising their people unattainable results, fed each party's concerns about the other's good faith, deprived both sides' leaders of a vision of the future to sell to their people, left the process hostage to extremists, and encouraged the parties to unilaterally improve their positions on the ground for the final negotiations. Gradualism meant almost continual negotiations. These diverted policy analysis resources from permanent-status issues to incremental changes, and created business-sapping uncertainty. Public skepticism was increased by minor interim agreements that seemed to change nothing, friction between the two leaderships was fed by missed deadlines, and changing obligations meant the Accords were unable to benefit from the compliance-promoting efficiencies of routinization. The Oslo framers' extensive reliance on constructive ambiguity to paper over differences also seemed to create more problems than it solved. For example, it induced false public expectations as to what had been resolved and fostered dangerous misconceptions as to what had been gained or conceded. Tensions caused by ambiguity in certain areas (such as revision of the Palestinian Charter) wasted valuable negotiating energy and undermined the perceived legitimacy of the agreements as a whole. It is impossible to say whether an improved Oslo process and texts would have brought peace. The article notes the strong argument that a successful deal was impossible because Yasser Arafat was from the beginning acting in bad faith, but argues that the possibility of such bad faith does not mean that the only lesson to be learned from Oslo's failure is the danger of signing agreements with the likes of Yasser Arafat. The article finds that analysis of the flaws of the Oslo agreements is essential for two reasons. First, the open-ended gradualism and ambiguity of the Accords clearly had a corrosive effect in and of themselves. Second, any peace deal the Israelis and Palestinians ultimately reach will likely use the Accords as a point of departure. It is therefore critical to understand which aspects of the Oslo Accords should, on the basis of experience, be disqualified from reappearing irrespective of the leader on the Palestinian side of the deal. The article concludes with a discussion of lessons learned, including lessons specifically applicable to future Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and lessons generally applicable to designing peace negotiations, and peace agreement texts, to maximize compliance with their terms.


Ben Horowitz, cofounder of Andreessen Horowitz and one of Silicon Valley's most respected and experienced entrepreneurs, offers essential advice on building and running a startup-practical wisdom for managing the toughest problems business school doesn't cover, based on his popular ben's blog. While many people talk about how great it is to start a business, very few are honest about how difficult it is to run one. Ben Horowitz analyzes the problems that confront leaders every day, sharing the insights he's gained developing, managing, selling, buying, investing in, and supervising technology companies. A lifelong rap fanatic, he amplifies business lessons with lyrics from his favorite songs, telling it straight about everything from firing friends to poaching competitors, cultivating and sustaining a CEO mentality to knowing the right time to cash in. Filled with his trademark humor and straight talk, The Hard Thing About Hard Things is invaluable for veteran entrepreneurs as well as those aspiring to their own new ventures, drawing from Horowitz's personal and often humbling experiences.


Over a hundred different local governments around the country have adopted ordinances restricting high cost, small loans. This trend reflects the solid majority of the American public that opposes the legality of triple-digit interest rate loans and the long historical tradition of treating "payday" and car-title lending as a serious civil offense or even a crime. Nevertheless, perhaps owing to limits on municipal power, local payday lending law has generated relatively little scholarship or commentary. This paper describes the existing local law governing small, high-cost consumer loans and proposes a more emphatic ordinance that better reflects the policy judgment of many local leaders and a solid majority of the America public. In particular, this paper (1) introduces the historical background of regulation of usurious lending; (2) analyzes the recent growth in local ordinances attempting to control small, high-cost loans; (3) discusses the evidence of market failure in the small high-cost loan market; (4) proposes a model ordinance requiring that lenders who offer loans in excess of 45% per annum display a cautionary message that reads: "Warning: Predatory Lender," on their street, storefront, and other on-premises signs; and, (5) argues that the well-established municipal authority over signage provides a solid statutory and constitutional basis for such a law. An appendix with a model ordinance suitable for adoption by most local governments follows.


In this article, the proposal to create a truth and reconciliation commission (TRC) in Mississippi is examined. Nearly half a century after the dismantlement of legally sanctioned Jim Crow, many aspects of the state's violent history of racial oppression remain in the shadows. In the state with the highest number of lynchings after Reconstruction and a governmental agency committed to the preservation of segregation during the Civil Rights Movement, the African-American population continues to suffer disproportionately from lower quality education and housing segregation, as well as higher poverty, teen pregnancy and child mortality rates. Confronting the state's history of racism has proved difficult and unsatisfactory in many regards. Though they provided individual accountability in a handful of cases, the well-publicized trials of Ku-Klux-Klansmen have also produced a skewed and incomplete historical record, while failing entirely to address the legacy of past discrimination in present-day Mississippi. The shortcomings of traditional retributive justice – as epitomized by such trials – are at the root of current attempts to engage with the state's history from a different perspective. The TRC, an increasingly popular tool of restorative and transitional justice, is being used in a variety of geo-political contexts across the world. By focusing on the needs of victims and promoting a non-adversarial approach to the notion of justice, truth commissions aim to confront the ghosts of the past and foster societal reconciliation for the future. Drawing on the experiences of truth and reconciliation processes in other countries, the article examines the strengths and weaknesses of truth-seeking in Mississippi and develops normative proposals for the Commission's future operation. It evaluates the main challenges facing Mississippi's truth-seeking project, including the state's history of institutional racism, the complicity of ordinary Mississippians in Jim Crow, as well as the Commission's mandate in relation to symbolism, reparations, amnesties and traditional criminal justice. The article seeks to contribute to the growing literature on how restorative justice, in particular the TRC model, can be used to deal with America's history of racial injustice.


IMDB:5.3 | Leiras:A family lives an idyllic existence abroad until a tragic accident takes the life of their young son. The inconsolable mother learns of an ancient ritual that will bring him back to say a final goodbye. She travels to an ancient temple, where a door serves as a mysterious portal between two worlds. But when she disobeys a sacred warning to never open that door, she upsets the balance between life.