"Slowmation" (abbreviated from "Slow Motion Animation) is a new yet simple form of stopmotion animation which enables learners to create their own animations of science concepts. This paper presents a study of preservice elementary teachers in a science method classes (14 in one class in 2009) to ascertain if they improved their science knowledge when using a three phase framework requiring them to: (i) create their own Slowmation about a science concept; (ii) upload them to a web site (www.slowmation.com.au) so that they could be reviewed by a peer and a content expert; and (iii) if necessary, modify the animation and reupload it to be published on the Slowmation website. The two research questions were: (i) How did the three phase framework change the preservice teachers' science content knowledge and (ii) What was the value and motivation of the web site, for uploading and reviewing the animations? Qualitative data (three interviews, two concept maps and the animations as knowledge artifacts) collected from each preservice teacher showed that all of them increased their science content knowledge as a result of using the framework. Uploading the Slowmations to the website was successful for the students and enabled them to view other animations and created a social motivation to make and improve their animations. Getting preservice teachers to create Slowmations is a new way for them to engage with science content knowledge and is a new way for them to represent their science understandings.


High-Resolution and Robust Signal Processing describes key methodological and theoretical advances achieved in this domain over the last twenty years, placing emphasis on modern developments and recent research pursuits. Applications-grounded, this sophisticated resource links theoretical background with high-resolution methods used in wireless communications, brain signal analysis, and space-time radar signal processing. Chapter extras include theorem proofs, derivations, and computational shortcuts, as well as open problems, numerical measurement, and performance examples, and simulation results Sixteen illustrious field leaders invest High-Resolution and Robust Signal Processing with: in-depth reviews of parametric high-resolution estimation and detection techniques; robust array processing solutions for adaptive beam forming and high-resolution direction finding; Parafac techniques for high-resolution array processing and specific areas of application; high-resolution nonparametric methods and implementation tactics for spectral analysis; multidimensional high-resolution data models and discussion of R-D unitary ESPRIT with colored noise; multidimensional high-resolution parameter estimation techniques applicable to channel sounding; estimation procedures for high-resolution space-time radar signal processing using 2-D or 1-D/1-D models; and models and methods for EEG/MEG space-time dipole source estimation and sensory array design.


In order to evaluate possible effects of climate change on freshwater discharge in
northeastern Canada, and to place recently observed changes in freshwater discharge in
an appropriate temporal and global framework of change, the sedime ntary record offshore
the Great Whale River (GWR) in Hudson Bay and in Nachvak and Saglek Fjords,
Labrador, were analyzed in terms of climatic and river discharge proxies.
Results of AMS¹⁴C mass accumulation rates at the GWR suggest that a warming
climate may lead to increasing water and sediment discharge. An inferred offshore shift in
sediment deposition during the past ~150 yr (determined from ²¹⁰Pb and ¹³⁷Cs sediment
radiochemistry) was re lated to a more energetic marine environment as a result of
decreased sea-ice coverage and may already be a signal of global warming. Additionally,
a fluctuati on in the magnetic susceptibility (MS) record of 195-263 years is inferred to be
a signal of te rrestrial minerogenic input related to variability in the hydrologic cycle.
Overall , consistent TOC, TN, C/N, and δ¹³C values suggest that no major changes in
paleoenvironme ntal processes controlling carbon and nitrogen burial conditions occurred
during the past ~2000 yr.
The sediment cores from Nachvak and Saglek Fjords date to ~9,800 yr BC and
~5,400 yr BC, respectively. Ice-rafted debris contents implies a continuous net decrease
in sea-ice cover until the end of the Holocene Thermal Maximum (-2,000 yr BC). After
2000 yr BC, sea-ice cover increased again during the Neoglacial cooling. This trend is
accompanied by increasing productivity (determined from TOC, TN, TOC, and δ¹³C).
These trends are likely related to orbitally-forced Milankovitch-scale variations in insolation. Relatively low sedimentation during the Temperate Period, which was of
supposedly high meltwater discharge, is inferred to the presence of glacial lakes, trapping
sediment and re routing freshwater discharge. Higher frequency variability in the MS
record appears to be related to a solar forced ~1000 yr cyclicity and in Nachvak Fjord
rates of input of terrestrial minerogenic matter appear to increase during warmer intervals
relative to colder periods. This is interpreted as a sign of increased precipitation and river
discharge during warm periods (the same trend like at the Great Whale River). Similar
cyclicity is apparent in Saglek Fjord. Dating uncertainties, however, preclude precise
correlations between the fjords or Labrador, and Hudson Bay. In Saglek Fjord, however,
an increase in sediment accumulation rate (SAR) was recorded during the Little Ice Age
(LIA) (the opposite trend to that of the Great Whale River). More detailed dating would
Improve the understanding of the ancient climate-river discharge interactions of NE
Canada.


We study the problem of finding the optimal dosage in early stage clinical trials through the multi-armed bandit lens. We advocate the use of the Thompson Sampling principle, a flexible algorithm that can accommodate different types of monotonicity assumptions on the toxicity and efficacy of the doses. For the simplest version of Thompson Sampling, based on a uniform prior distribution for each dose, we provide finite-time upper bounds on the number of sub-optimal dose selections, which is unprecedented for dose-finding algorithms. Through a large simulation study, we then show that variants of Thompson Sampling based on more sophisticated prior distributions outperform state-of-the-art dose identification algorithms in different types of dose-finding studies that occur in phase I or phase I/II trials.


The trees observed are grown at Ofeherto, Eastern Hungary in the plantation of an assortment (gene bank) with 586 apple cultivars. Each of the cultivars were observed as for their dates of subsequent phenophases, the beginning of bloom, main bloom and the end of bloom over a period between 1984 and 2001. during this period the meteorological data-base keeps the following variables: daily means of temperature (°C), daily maximum temperature (°C), daily minimum temperature (°C), daily precipitation sums (mm), daily sums of sunny hours, daily means of the differences between the day-time and night-time temperatures (°C), average differences between temperatures of successive daily means (°C). Between the 90th and 147th day of the year over the 18 years of observation. The early blooming cultivars start blooming at 10-21April. The cultivars of intermediate bloom start at the interval 20 April to 3 May, whereas the late blooming group start at 2-10 May. Among the meteorological variables of the former autumnal and hibernal periods, the hibernal maxima were the most active factor influencing the start of bloom in the subsequent spring.


Objectives This study aimed to assess whether the occurrence of skin problems in 2006 (baseline) was associated with response frequency, quitting a job due to health problems, and change in occupational skin exposures in 2009. Methods We conducted a three-year prospective study of the general working population of Norway. Associations between baseline indicators (sex, age, education, occupation), and occurrence of skin problems with response frequency at follow-up were assessed with Chi-square test and unconditional logistic regression. Associations between the occurrence of skin problems at baseline with quitting a job due to health problems and skin exposure at follow-up were also assessed with unconditional logistic regression. Results We found no evidence of an association between the occurrence of skin problems at baseline and a lower response frequency at follow-up. Age, sex, education, and occupation were the most important predictors for response at follow-up. Skin problems at baseline consistently predicted quitting a job due to health problems at follow-up. No evidence of change in the patterns of occupational skin exposures at follow up in 2009 was found for workers reporting skin problems in 2006. Conclusion While skin problems at baseline were not related to a lower response frequency at follow-up, our results suggest that workers reporting skin problems may quit their jobs due to health problems. Preventive efforts are still needed to reduce hazardous occupational skin exposures among workers reporting skin problems.


New institutionalism is an approach to the study of social events that is becoming increasingly popular. Different lines of new institutional research can be distinguished. In one line of research it is argued that the social sciences should transcend reductionist modes of explanation, in particular the methodological individualism exemplified by the theory of rational choice. In this view, reductionism does not permit the endogenous treatment of institutions and thus cannot account for important aspects of the social and political context in which agents act. In this paper the meaning of the terms 'methodological individualism' and 'reductionism' is discussed and illustrated by a description of some of the central assumptions of rational choice theory, in particular game theory. It is argued that the claim that reductionism should be transcended is unwarranted: reductionism is perfectly compatible with the new institutional concerns. First of all, the various institutional dimensions that have been distinguished in the new institutional literature can be systematically described in terms of a game–theoretic model. Furthermore, the dynamic models of game theory can be (and often already have been) used to explain the emergence of institutions


As the earth's climate continues to change, it is becoming increasingly clear that the
mitigation of anthropogenically released greenhouse gases, such as those emitted by the
growing aviation industry, is a high priority. Through the emission of short–lived and
long–lived climate–forcing chemical species, there are several ways in which the aviation
industry affects the climate. The long–lived greenhouse gas CO2 has been well–studied,
but the effects of the short–lived climate forcer NOx , which perturbs ambient O3 and CH4
in the atmosphere, is less well understood. Through changes in aircraft engine design and
behaviour, the relative emissions of these two climate forcers can be tuned to address
specific mitigation targets. However, a trade-off exists between aviation NOx and CO2
emissions as reducing one results in an increase in the other, and vice versa.
Here, the trade–off between CO2 and NOx is investigated using the MOZART–3 chemistry
transport model (CTM) and a simple climate model (SCM), LinClim. LinClim,
which is much less computationally intensive, assumes a linear relationship between aviation
NOx emissions and associated O3 burden and CH4 lifetime change. By using the
more sophisticated MOZART–3, it was found that both these NOx – O3 and NOx – CH4
relationships are linear while aviation emissions are below 3 Tg N Yr-1 but thereafter,
become non–linear.
A new non-linear net NOx RF parameterisation is developed from the results of the CTM
runs and used to investigate this trade-off. Experiments showed that a small CO2 increase
(+2 percent) raised the overall forcing from aviation, despite a larger reduction in NOx
emissions (-20 percent). When background NOx levels were high the experiments showed
that a 43 percent reduction in NOx emissions was required to counteract the radiative
forcing of the additional CO2 emissions, and when NOx was reduced by 20 percent, only
a 0.5 percent CO2 penalty could be allowed before an additional forcing was incurred.
When background NOx emissions were low, the results were more complex as net NOx
forcing became negative. Therefore, any reduction in aviation NOx emissions actually
increased the net forcing. In this case additional NOx emissions were necessary to reduce
overall forcing from aviation emissions.
These results indicate that the most important emission to mitigate in the aviation industry
is CO2 , its long–lived cumulative nature causes it to contribute substantially more to
global climate change than aviation NOx emissions, which, depending on the state of the
background atmosphere, contribute either a small positive or small negative, net forcing.


Measurements of retinal blood vessel using morphology have been shown to be related to the risk of cardiovascular diseases. The improper identification of vessels may result in a large variation of these measurements, leading to a wrong clinical diagnosis. In this paper, we address the problem of automatically identifying true vessels as a post-processing step to vascular structure segmentation. We model the segmented vascular structure as a vessel segment patterns. We design a method to solve this optimization problem and evaluate it on a large real-world dataset of 50 retinal images. The patterns are stored in the database. We use the stored patterns to perform authentication process.


The word biosecurity is not particularly well known amongst Australian households but in general, it refers to the protection of individual, communal, regional, state, territorial or national economies, environments and human health from the negative impacts of weeds, pests and disease. Although biosecurity is a relatively new term in an Australian context, Indigenous people recognise that the traditional custodians of the land have been caring for country for thousands of years. In contemporary times however, the intergenerational and collective sharing of local skills, expertise, knowledge and practice, that would otherwise identify and address potential threats to food, landscapes and well-being, have been replaced by modern science. While this has provided considerable benefits to food security, agricultural trade and community sustainability, the effective management of plant biosecurity, particularly in relation to commercial crops and domestic produce, has not been addressed by science in the same way. As such, there is a role for social science to examine the social, cultural, physical, political, economic and environmental composition of a community, the existing positions of power and decision making as well as the social connections that link differing sectors of the community. Of particular interest to this research, is to develop an understanding of the manner in which residents and visitors to a northern Australian agricultural community exchange information and take up new knowledge to bring about a change in attitudes, practice and behaviour. One of the main aims of information provision, particularly by governance systems in Western societies, is to introduce current and accurate material using any number of media to better inform a broad or specific population group about a range of issues. The downfall of this practice however, is the assumption that information provision equals new knowledge or more specifically, that the greater the volume of information, the greater the uptake of new knowledge and social change. In this community, the size, diversity and transience of the region's population might suggest that people are more likely to rely on their social networks and personal relations to access trusted, reliable and meaningful sources of information over any other formal or informal method. This research therefore uses a qualitative methodological approach to examine the characteristics that connect and separate people across six sectors of the community and the ways in which shared ideas, stories, energy, experience, cultural beliefs and traditions influence the capacity and willingness of individuals and groups to participate in community activities, take up new knowledge and instigate change. Specific attention is given to the concept of social capital and the manner in which active citizenship and resource sharing are more often fragmented or isolated within specific sectors of the community, as opposed to being universally applied across a broader population. The findings and conclusions of this research therefore provide greater insights into effective community engagement practices within and across different sectors of the community, which in turn can be used to develop and implement policies, practices and further research on plant biosecurity that are inclusive, relevant and meaningful to the people who live in the region.


In this article, a novel fully compliant spherical four-bar mechanism is introduced and its generalized design methodology is proposed. The original fully compliant mechanism lies on a plane at the free position (undeflected position); therefore, it has the advantages of ease of manufacturing, minimized parts, and no backlash. First, the mobility conditions of the mechanism are obtained. The dimensions of the mechanism are optimally calculated for maximum output rotation, while keeping the deflection of flexural hinges at an acceptable range. Using an optimization method, design tables are prepared to display the relationship between arc lengths and corresponding deflections of flexural hinges. Input–output torque relationship and stresses at compliant segments are obtained analytically. A mechanism dimensioned by this novel design method is analyzed by a finite element analysis method, and the analytical results are verified. Finally, the mechanism is manufactured and it is ensured that the deflections of the compliant segments are consistent with the theoretical results.


Relatively fast self-pumped phase-conjugate and four-wave-mixing rise times are reported in n-type cobalt-doped barium titanate. With the crystal oriented in a 45° cut as compared with the same crystal in a 0° cut we find a factor of 3 decrease in the 0–90% rise time to 800 ms with 25-mW input power at 514.5 nm. Also, the self-pumped phase-conjugate reflectivity increases from 20% to 40%. We deduce that the phase conjugation is from internally seeded stimulated photorefractive backscattering. The four-wave-mixing rise time of the 45°-cut crystal is 4 ms with a reflectivity of 48% when the pumping beams are derived from self-pumped phase conjugation that has an input power of 25 mW.


The rise of the application of computational methods in both the study and production of literature poses questions about how to best read works of electronic literature which engage a wider sphere of human context beyond the literary text itself. Taking a cue from modes of "distant reading" that have taken advantage of computational methods in order to pursue empirical and sociologically-influenced readings of traditional textual corpora, the liminal case of "ambient literature" is examined. As a form of electronic literature developed out of the field of ubiquitous computing, ambient literature presents a literature which is intimately connected to the situation of the reader, offering a text whose meaning is both variable and specific to the conditions of its engagement. Having confronted analogous issues in other domains, traditions of research in human-computer interaction offer methodological insight into how such works might be read. Developing an account of how literary texts may be read from a distance through user studies, an ethnomethodological analysis of the experience of these hybrid works of electronic literature is advanced. By drawing connections between literary studies and human-computer interaction, new methods which focus on the analysis of the experience of multiple readers as they encounter works of electronic literature establish opportunities for future research into the contextual, embodied, and computational nature of literature today.


1. An account is given of the functional morphology of the coxal articulations in the cockroach. The greater range of movements executed by the prothoracic legs is made possible by the mobility of the trochantinal condyle relative to the episternal condyle. 2. The movements of the individual legs were studied by means of films taken at speeds of 16-32 frames/sec. These show that more than three legs are in contact with the ground throughout the cycle of movements at normal speeds. Suggestions are also made concerning the mechanics of walking, but these require experimental verification. 3. The rhythm of walking movements in Periplaneta, Blatta, Dytiscus, Hydropkilus, Carabus, Blaps and Chrysomela obeys two rules: (i) no foreleg or middle leg is protracted until the leg behind has taken up its supporting position; (ii) each leg alternates with the contralateral one of the same segment. Other pterygote insects appeared not to differ from the species studied in any essential feature. 4. An increase in speed is accompanied by a decrease in the times of both protraction ( p ) and retraction ( r ), a shortening of the stride length, and an increase in the distance between the successive points d9appui . The range of speeds is continuous and no distinction could be recognized between walking and running. 5. Several gaits have been observed, the most common order of protraction being R1, L2, R3, L1 , R2, L3, R1, etc., but these grade into one another if the ratio p/r is altered and the two rules obeyed. A system of rigidly alternating tripods would result if the ratio p/r was unity, but this is never quite realized as there is always a delay, sometimes extremely short, between the protraction of the three legs of a triangle. At very slow speeds the rhythm R3, R2, R1, L3, L2, L1 , R3, etc., may be present. 6. It is concluded that insects are the end-product of a process of limb reduction among terrestrial Arthropoda in which p/r may be increased to nearly one and yet the animal retains static stability throughout the whole cycle. This is impossible with fewer than six legs.


Viruses play important roles in aquatic ecosystems. They drive nutrient cycling and maintain a diverse microbial community. Temperate phages, or those viruses that
have the ability to reproduce lysogenically, may also contribute to host survival and the
genetic diversity of their hosts. The study of lysogeny in various ecosystems is valuable
to understanding microbial communities. Information on freshwater ecosystems is of
particular importance, as lysogeny in marine systems is more widely studied This study
examined the occurrence of lysogeny in a hypereutrophic, freshwater lake in
Williamsburg, VA for the months of November and December 2009 and February and
March 2010. Mitomycin C was added to ambient lake water and inductions were
measured as the increase in viral direct counts from control sample counts using epifluorescence microscopy. March water samples were the only to demonstrate significant prophage induction. Burst size ranged from 0 to 98.53 and lysogenic fractions ranged from 2.67% to 54.50%. No significant correlations were found between water quality data and biological data. Experiments were also carried out with different inducing agents on a lake water sample and E. coli (λ) lysogens, including mitomycin C, ultraviolet radiation, and an herbicide (SedgeHammer). Mitomycin C induced the most viruses in E. coli (λ), while the highest concentration of the herbicide induced the most viruses in the ambient lake water. The results of the study indicate that lysogeny is more prevalent in March, when nutrient concentrations are lower as a result of curly pondweed (Potamogeton crispus) growth. Finally, mitomycin C, ultraviolet radiation, and herbicide were all shown to induce phage production from lysogenic cells, with the herbicide inducing the greatest number of prophages in environmental samples.


The current study examined the nutrient uptake efficiency of Ulva lactuca and Gracilaria chilensis cultivated in tanks associated with the wastewater of a land-based abalone culture. The experiments evaluated different seaweed stocking densities (1200, 1900, 2600, and 3200 g m -2 ) and water exchange rates (60, 80, 125, and 250 L h -1 ). The results show that both U. lactuca and G. chilensis were efficient in capturing and removing all of the inorganic nutrients originating from the abalone cultivation for all of the tested conditions. Furthermore, an annual experiment was performed with U. lactuca, cultivated at a stocking density of 1900 g m -2 and at a water exchanged rate of 125 L h -1 , in order to evaluate seasonal changes in the nutrient uptake efficiency, productivity, and growth rate associated with the wastewater of a land-based abalone culture. The results confirmed high uptake efficiency during the entire year, equivalent to a 100% removal of the NH4, NO3, and PO4 produced by the land-based abalone culture. The growth rate and productivity of U. lactuca presented a marked seasonality, increasing from fall until summer and varying from 0.5 ± 0.2% to 2.6 ± 0.2% d -1 and 10 ± 6.1% to 73.6 ± 8.4% g m -2 d -1 for sustainable growth rate and productivity, respectively. We conclude that there is sufficient evidence that demonstrates the high possibility of changing the traditional monoculture system of abalone in Chile, to a sustainable integrated multi-trophic aquaculture system, generating positive environmental externalities, including the use of U. lactuca as a biofiltration unit.


This research aimed to evaluate the contamination by staphylococci and its enterotoxins as well as to monitor the conditions of hygiene from a coalho cheese production line, using ATP bioluminescence assay. Staphylococcus sp. population varied from <1CFU mL-1, in pasteurized milk to 1.5 x 107CFU mL-1, in raw milk, whereas coagulase-positive staphylococci count ranged from <1CFU mL-1, in pasteurized milk to 5.0 x 106CFU mL-1 in raw milk. Coagulase-positive staphylococci were detected in 100% (25/25) of the raw milk samples and in 8% (2/25) of cheese samples. Twelve Staphylococcus species were identified within the selected 68 isolates, being nine negative and three positive for coagulase. Raw milk samples showed a high rate of coagulase-positive, being S. aureus the most common, whereas other product samples and equipment surfaces, pieces of furniture, utensils and manipulator gloves samples presented a high frequency of coagulase-negative and low frequency of coagulase-positive. Staphylococcal enterotoxin was detected in 20% of the raw milk samples and therefore in pasteurized milk, curd and cheese. ATP measurement permitted to assess the effectiveness of the surfaces cleaning, being considered adequate in 62.1% (36/95), "alert state" in 23.2% (22/95) and inadequate in 14.7% (14/95) of surfaces evaluated. Detection of staphylococci species with enterotoxigenic potential as well as enterotoxin presence reveal dissemination of contamination at the "coalho" cheese production line, possibly due inappropriate Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) from the initial milking step until the final cheese production.


This paper analyses the link between venture capitalists' sources of funds, such as banks and pension funds, and the specialization pattern of venture capital investments in particular industries and particular stages of enterprises' development. Based on a panel data set of Western European countries, the results of the analysis show that sources of funds and investment specialization patterns are linked. For example, the specialization in the early stage of enterprises' development depends positively on the importance of pension funds and negatively on the importance of banks as sources of funds. These results reject models that assume independence of sources of funds and investment patterns.


Historically, roles associated with instructional leadership in schools have been the sole responsibility of the school's principal. Increased accountability has intensified the pressure on school personnel causing a paradigm shift that has progressively acknowledged the contributions of teacher leaders as an essential component of the school improvement process. Traditionally, teacher leaders have fulfilled varying leadership roles in their schools, many of which have been administrative. With a greater call for accountability in the school improvement process, there has been a gradual shift from teacher leaders serving in administrative roles to teacher leaders serving in instructional roles. Although bureaucratic infrastructures within school systems sometimes impede teacher-focused reform, this paradigm shift supports the disposition in favor of teacher involvement in the school improvement process. In fact, scholars suggest that without the integral involvement of teachers who possess diverse and specialized skills, school improvement efforts could not achieve systematic progress towards sustainable goals (Tomal, Schilling, & Wilhite, 2014). As our nation continues to grapple with the complexity of sustainable school improvement, this dissertation introduces an innovative approach to school reform that focuses on building the instructional capacity of the teacher workforce through the development of a new group of teacher leaders—teacher instructional leaders (TILs). Three individual teacher cases and their respective school administrators participated in this qualitative case study. The following research questions guided the study: How do teachers practice as teacher instructional leaders (TILs)? How do school principals promote the development of teacher instructional leaders (TILs)? What is the impact of teacher instructional leaders (TILs) on the whole school and the teacher? Assuming that our nation is concerned with reforming our failing public schools, it would be beneficial to consider the contributions of this qualitative case study to scholarship related to educator effectiveness, teacher leadership, instructional leadership, and teacher instructional leadership. For the fate of our country will not be decided on a battlefield, it will be determined in a classroom (Weber, 2010).


Many manifold learning algorithms aim to create embeddings with low or no distortion (i.e. isometric). If the data has intrinsic dimension d, it is often impossible to obtain an isometric embedding in d dimensions, but possible in s > d dimensions. Yet, most geometry preserving algorithms cannot do the latter. This paper proposes an embedding algorithm that overcomes this problem. The algorithm directly computes, for any data embedding Y, a distortion loss(Y), and iteratively updates Y in order to decrease it. The distortion measure we propose is based on the push-forward Riemannian metric associated with the coordinates Y. The experiments confirm the superiority of our algorithm in obtaining low distortion embeddings.


OBJECTIVE There is ample evidence that extent of resection (EOR) is associated with improved outcomes for glioma surgery. However, it is often difficult to accurately estimate EOR intraoperatively, and surgeon accuracy has yet to be reviewed. In this study, the authors quantitatively assessed the accuracy of intraoperative perception of EOR during awake craniotomy for tumor resection. METHODS A single-surgeon experience of performing awake craniotomies for tumor resection over a 17-year period was examined. Retrospective review of operative reports for quantitative estimation of EOR was recorded. Definitive EOR was based on postoperative MRI. Analysis of accuracy of EOR estimation was examined both as a general outcome (gross-total resection [GTR] or subtotal resection [STR]), and quantitatively (5% within EOR on postoperative MRI). Patient demographics, tumor characteristics, and surgeon experience were examined. The effects of accuracy on motor and language outcomes were assessed. RESULTS A total of 451 patients were included in the study. Overall accuracy of intraoperative perception of whether GTR or STR was achieved was 79.6%, and overall accuracy of quantitative perception of resection (within 5% of postoperative MRI) was 81.4%. There was a significant difference (p = 0.049) in accuracy for gross perception over the 17-year period, with improvement over the later years: 1997-2000 (72.6%), 2001-2004 (78.5%), 2005-2008 (80.7%), and 2009-2013 (84.4%). Similarly, there was a significant improvement (p = 0.015) in accuracy of quantitative perception of EOR over the 17-year period: 1997-2000 (72.2%), 2001-2004 (69.8%), 2005-2008 (84.8%), and 2009-2013 (93.4%). This improvement in accuracy is demonstrated by the significantly higher odds of correctly estimating quantitative EOR in the later years of the series on multivariate logistic regression. Insular tumors were associated with the highest accuracy of gross perception (89.3%; p = 0.034), but lowest accuracy of quantitative perception (61.1% correct; p < 0.001) compared with tumors in other locations. Even after adjusting for surgeon experience, this particular trend for insular tumors remained true. The absence of 1p19q co-deletion was associated with higher quantitative perception accuracy (96.9% vs 81.5%; p = 0.051). Tumor grade, recurrence, diagnosis, and isocitrate dehydrogenase-1 (IDH-1) status were not associated with accurate perception of EOR. Overall, new neurological deficits occurred in 8.4% of cases, and 42.1% of those new neurological deficits persisted after the 3-month follow-up. Correct quantitative perception was associated with lower postoperative motor deficits (2.4%) compared with incorrect perceptions (8.0%; p = 0.029). There were no detectable differences in language outcomes based on perception of EOR. CONCLUSIONS The findings from this study suggest that there is a learning curve associated with the ability to accurately assess intraoperative EOR during glioma surgery, and it may take more than a decade to be truly proficient. Understanding the factors associated with this ability to accurately assess EOR will provide safer surgeries while maximizing tumor resection.


A series of batch laboratory studies were conducted in order to investigate the
practicability of palm kernel shell (PKS)-based activated carbon for removal of basic
dye, Basic Blue 9 (BB 9) and acid dye, Acid Orange 52 (A0 52) from their aqueous
solutions. Three different particle sizes of PKS were used and categorized as PKS -
S, PKS - M and PKS - L. The adsorption capacities of the PKS-based activated
carbons were compared with those of commercial grade coal-based activated
carbons at the same conditions. All batch experiments were carried out at a constant
temperature of 28°C (22°C) using incubator shaker that operated at 150 rpm.
Batch equilibrium study shows that Adsorption of BB 9 and A0 52 were highly pH
dependent. Removal of BB 9 increased with pH with maximum removal observed at
pH 7.0, and decreased thereafter with further increase in the initial pH. However, pH
effect on A0 52 removal shows that A0 52 removal decreased with an increase in
initial pH with the optimum initial was observed at 3.5.Batch equilibrium data also a had good agreement with the Langmuir, Freundlich
and Redlich-Peterson isotherm models with correlation coefficients > 0.9. Overall,
the Redlich-Peterson isotherm showed the best fit for all adsorbents under
investigation in terms of correlation coefficient as well as error analysis of the
results. For all the systems in this study, the analysis of isotherm shape factor
showed that adsorption was favorable.
For the adsorbents under investigation, PKS-S has the highest adsorption capacity
followed by PKS-M. PKS-L and commercial coal based pellet form have almost
equally-balanced adsorption capacity. Of all the adsorbents, commercial coal-based
in powder form exhibits the lowest adsorption capacity. Obtained results revealed
that PKS based activated carbon is a highly potential alternative adsorbent for
treatment of dye-containing wastewater. The maximum capacity of the adsorbents
for BB 9 were 333.33 mg/g, 322.58 mg/g and 212.77 mglg for PKS - S, PKS - M
and PKS - L, respectively, while for powder and pellet commercial grade coal
based, the capacities were 204.08 mg/g and 217.39 mg/g, respectively. On the other
hand, the maximum capacities of the same adsorbents for A0 52 were 344.83 mg/g,
333.33 mglg, 263.16 mg/g, 238.09 mg/g and 322.58 mg/g, respectively. Adsorption
capacities of the same adsorbents were found to be higher for adsorption of A0 52
compared to those of BB 9 due to the smaller molecular size of the former.
Batch kinetic studies were also performed to investigate the rate limiting of the
adsorption process. Results obtained revealed that the adsorption of both BB 9 and
A0 52 was rapid at the beginning, but approached equilibrium slowly.Experimental data can be modeled using pseudo-second-order kinetic model as first
order kinetic model does not represent the whole range of adsorption process. Other
than that, intraparticle diffusion was found to be prominent at a certain stage of
adsorption but it would not be the only limiting step that controlled the adsorption
dynamic.
Kinetic data also showed that the adsorption rates were a function of initial adsorbate
concentration, adsorbent particle size and adsorbent mass. For all systems under
consideration, the values of kZ increased significantly as adsorbent dose increases.
Nevertheless, the values of k2 were inversely proportional to the initial adsorbate
concentration and adsorbent particle size. On the other hand, values of k, were found
to be directly proportional to the initial adsorbate concentration but decreased
gradually as adsorbent particle size and adsorbent dose increases.


This book studies the Arabic-Islamic view of Byzantium, tracing the Byzantine image as it evolved through centuries of warfare, contact, and exchanges. Including previously inaccessible material on the Arabic textual tradition on Byzantium, this investigation shows the significance of Byzantium to the Arab Muslim establishment and their appreciation of various facets of Byzantine culture and civilization. The Arabic-Islamic representation of the Byzantine Empire stretching from the reference to Byzantium in the Qur'an until the fall of Constantinople in 1453 is considered in terms of a few salient themes. The image of Byzantium reveals itself to be complex, non-monolithic, and self-referential. Formulating an alternative appreciation to the politics of confrontation and hostility that so often underlies scholarly discourse on Muslim-Byzantine relations, this book presents the schemes developed by medieval authors to reinterpret aspects of their own history, their own self-definition, and their own view of the world.


A wide range of emitter composition, thickness, and doping is studied via dc current gain measurements on large area GaAs based heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) at both room and elevated temperatures. InGaP emitters offer the widest thickness and doping design window in terms of dc peak current gain, as compared with AlGaAs emitters. Remarkably, a 50 A InGaP emitter HBT retains 50% gain of a more standard 500 A emitter device. For state-of-the-art HBTs, a degraded peak gain is argued to be caused by an increased reverse hole injection current (IRHI). In light of previously published results which implicate IRHI as a mechanism for materials limited HBT reliability, we suggest dc current gain measurements on large-area HBTs give meaningful insights into the long term reliability of the structure. Specifically, the wider emitter thickness and doping design window offered by an InGaP emitter HBT could apply to reliability as well as to the demonstrated gain stability.


In this ground-breaking book, pastoral counselor Andrew Lester demonstrates that pastoral theology (as well as social and behavioral sciences) has neglected to address effectively the predominant cause of human suffering: a lack of hope, a sense of futurelessness. Lester not only looks at the reasons why addressing the ideas of hope and despair has been overlooked by pastoral theology and other social and behavioral sciences. He also offers a starting point for the development of addressing these important dimensions of human life. He provides clinical theories and methods for pastoral assessment of and intervention with those who despair. He also puts forth strategies for assessing the future stories of those who despair and offers a corrective to these stories through deconstruction, reframing, and reconstruction.


As part of the Swiss National Research Program for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, body weight and length of the participants were recorded and eating habits were assessed by the 24-h-recall method and dietary history. The body mass index was found to increase with age, pointing to excessive energy intake. The lower the socioeconomic group, the higher the index. Men eat more meat and meat products but less fruit than women, and drink more alcohol. In the French-speaking part of Switzerland, significantly more cheese and more alcohol, but less meat, brown bread and milk are consumed than in the German-speaking part. The consumption of edible fats and fat-containing food differs as between the two parts of the country. In certain age groups, a low positive correlation is observed between total plasma cholesterol and fat ingestion, and a low inverse correlation between total cholesterol and milk consumption and frequency of meals.


Researches on the influence of financial perfomance on corporate value have been widely conducted, however results inconsistency occured. Researches predicted that there are other influencing factors. This conditions drives researches to use CSR and GCG as moderating variables. This research aims to test the influence of financial performance on corporate value by considering the two moderating variables. This research uses 25 manufacturing firms listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange during 2009 - 2011 as samples with 75 observation. Hypothesis is tested using moderated regression analysis to find out the interactive influence of the moderating variables. The corporate value measured using Tobin's Q, while disclosure of CSR and GCG are measured with the allocation cost of soical responsibility and institutional ownerships. Result indicate that (1) EPS has a possitif effect on corporate value, (2) the allocation cost of social responsibility is able to moderate relation of EPS and corporate value, (3) but institutional ownerships are unable to moderate the relation of EPS and corporate value. This is possible because the institutional investor not only use EPS to make an investment decisions. Keywords: financial performance, corporate value, corporate social responsibility


President Sarkozy's proposed Union for the Mediterranean (or UMed) has so far been poorly conceived and, to say the least, awkwardly presented politically. However this does not mean that nothing good can come of it. The Barcelona process and its confusing combination with the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) have been neither a disaster nor a brilliant success. There is a case for streamlining a single European Mediterranean policy, rationalising and properly integrating Barcelona, the ENP and some new elements of the regional initiative that France is proposing.


Abstract:This persuasion brief suggests that the rhetorical concepts of techne and rhetorical work facilitate the creation of public health crisis communication. To illustrate this claim, we present findings from a case study with the Johns Hopkins Medicine Ebola Crisis Communications Team, a transdisciplinary group that collaborated with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the 2014 Ebola crisis. The team created multimodal documentation to support healthcare providers as they prepared to treat patients and crafted communication to alleviate the fear among health workers and the public caused by the threat of Ebola. Ultimately, we frame public health crisis communication as a rhetorical endeavor guided by a focus on failure, situated expertise, and techne. This focus pushes specialists to tend to the processes involved in creating a response, and it highlights how gut feelings factor into the process of designing and implementing a public health crisis intervention.


After two years of research and debate, the American Bar Association (ABA) voted in July to reject a proposal that lawyers be allowed to form multidisciplinary practices (MDPs). This continued the group's long-standing ban on lawyers' sharing of fees with other professionals. Such arrangements are increasingly common in Europe, however, where MDPs have met market demands by closely integrating legal services with those of nonlawyers. Nevertheless, despite reportedly strong client interest in the United States, the ABA rebuff has dimmed the prospects for MDPs here. Reflecting the finality of its decision, the ABA discharged the special commission it had convened to study them. The issue is now being examined at the state level, where the practice of law is actually regulated. However, because many states base their standards on rules issued by the ABA, its move has more than symbolic significance. The vote, taken during the ABA annual meeting, was far from close, with 75% of the 421 members of the ABA house of delegates casting their ballots for a resolution against MDPs. Delegates from Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New York and Ohio sponsored the resolution. Ethical aspects of the controversy were a key issue for the majority. "This was a victory for those who want to preserve the core values of the legal profession," said Illinois delegate Gary T. Johnson, a partner in the Chicago law firm of Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue. Johnson said that by combining lawyers and other professionals "under the same roof," MDPs would make it difficult to avoid conflicts of interest and preserve client confidentiality--fundamental responsibilities in the lawyer's code of professional conduct. Others, though, saw the vote as an attempt to maintain the status quo by stifling innovation. Jeffrey Peck, managing director of Arthur Andersen's office of government affairs in Washington, D.C., characterized the ABA's action as "clearly anti-competitive and monopolistic." Against the tide? The rejected proposal had originated with the commission on multidisciplinary practice, which the ABA appointed in 1998 to study MDPs. Its research, published last year, showed individual consumers and corporate clients want integrated teams of lawyers, accountants and financial planners to help them address challenges posed by new technologies, the globalization of markets and increased governmental regulation. (See "E&Y First of Big Five in the U. …


Private contractors have played key roles in recent high-profile scandals. These scandals hint at the degree to which the U.S. military has increased the scope and scale of its reliance on private security companies in recent decades. This trend offers many advantages, including nimbleness in the deployment of expertise and geographic flexibility. But it also departs from conventional methods of accountability through both public oversight and private market discipline. The lack of transparency in the use of private contractors compounds the problem of assessing the impact of their increasing role. Failures of basic governmental oversight to ensure contract enforcement by the Department of Defense are welldocumented. Departures from conventional government contracting procedures exacerbate these failures and obscure whether inherently governmental functions are in effect privatized. The large sums of money involved contribute to risks of corruption and a scale of private lobbying that can distort the legislative process. These developments jeopardize the effectiveness of military activities, the professionalism of the military, the integrity of the legislative process and foreign policy decision making, public confidence in the government, national self-interest, and the stability of the world order.


Modern wide-field-of-view and all-sky satellites (e.g. Gaia) and ground based surveys (e.g. OGLE) repeatedly cover a large part of the sky and are detecting new, transient astrophysical sources on daily basis.
In this thesis I analyzed the data from Gaia and OGLE transient surveys, with special focus on transients located near the centres of galaxies to detect possible Tidal Disruption Events. These occur when a star gets too close to a Super-Massive Black Hole, which lurks in the centres of most galaxies, and gets disrupted due to the black hole's gravitational tidal forces.

The goal of my research was to detect possible Tidal Disruption Events and eliminate false candidates, such as supernovae. The work involved daily inspection of new alerts, identified with Gaia and OGLE Transient Detection System. I searched for potential transients in galactic nuclei and in case there was such a transient detected, follow-up spectroscopic observations were initiated in order to help classify the object.

During the course of my work I analyzed spectra obtained with the largest telescopes in the world (SALT, VLT) and performed the spectral template matching, recognition of spectral features related to known classes of transients, determination of redshift etc.


Investigating West Virginia Students' Perceptions of the Factors Affecting Their Educational Aspirations The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of West Virginia students about factors affecting their educational aspirations and to determine whether these factors differed significantly over time, by gender, or by parents" college history. Research questions included: (1) To what extent will constructs emerging from West Virginia student data parallel the eight constructs identified as supporting student aspirations by the University of Maine"s National Center for Student Aspirations? (2) To what extent do students" perceptions of these factors differ over time, from seventh to ninth grade? (3) To what extent do students" perceptions of these factors differ by gender? (4) To what extent do students" perceptions of these factors differ by parents" college history? (5) What are the interactions among the independent variables of time, gender, and parents" college history? This study utilized extant survey data from 664 students who completed surveys in the seventh and ninth grades for the West Virginia Department of Education GEAR UP project. In addition to gender and parents" college history, 28 survey items originating from the University of Maine"s "Students Speak" survey were used. These 28 items are purported to comprise eight conditions that support students" aspirations. Factor analysis resulted in five factors with Eigenvalues above 1.0: Teacher Centric, Self-Efficacy, Curriculum, Self-Responsibility, and Connectedness. MANOVA analysis revealed statistically significant differences by time, gender, and parents" college history; no significant interactions were found. Follow-up ANOVA analyses revealed that mean scores for all scales except Curriculum decreased significantly from seventh to ninth grade; that mean scores for all five scales were significantly higher for females than males; and that students with at least one parent with college experience scored significantly higher on Self-Efficacy than students whose parents had no college experience. In conclusion, none of the original eight conditions emerged as exact replicas, but all were represented to some degree within the five factors. Findings support the literature in terms of a decrease in students" perceptions from middle to high school, gender differences, and the positive influence of parental college experience. The study emphasizes the importance of the school environment on students" aspirations.


The human β T cell receptor (TCR) locus, comprising a complex family of genes, has been sequenced. The locus contains two types of coding elements—TCR elements (65 variable gene segments and two clusters of diversity, joining, and constant segments) and eight trypsinogen genes—that constitute 4.6 percent of the DNA. Genome-wide interspersed repeats and locus-specific repeats span 30 and 47 percent, respectively, of the 685-kilobase sequence. A comparison of the germline variable elements with their approximately 300 complementary DNA counterparts reveals marked differential patterns of variable gene expression, the importance of exonuclease activity in generating TCR diversity, and the predominant tendency for only functional variable elements to be present in complementary DNA libraries.


Abstract. Atmospheric inversions are widely used in the optimization of surface carbon fluxes on a regional scale using information from atmospheric CO2 dry mole fractions. In many studies the prior flux uncertainty applied to the inversion schemes does not directly reflect the true flux uncertainties but is used to regularize the inverse problem. Here, we aim to implement an inversion scheme using the Jena inversion system and applying a prior flux error structure derived from a model–data residual analysis using high spatial and temporal resolution over a full year period in the European domain. We analyzed the performance of the inversion system with a synthetic experiment, in which the flux constraint is derived following the same residual analysis but applied to the model–model mismatch. The synthetic study showed a quite good agreement between posterior and true fluxes on European, country, annual and monthly scales. Posterior monthly and country-aggregated fluxes improved their correlation coefficient with the known truth by 7 % compared to the prior estimates when compared to the reference, with a mean correlation of 0.92. The ratio of the SD between the posterior and reference and between the prior and reference was also reduced by 33 % with a mean value of 1.15. We identified temporal and spatial scales on which the inversion system maximizes the derived information; monthly temporal scales at around 200 km spatial resolution seem to maximize the information gain.


Seismologists distinguish underground nuclear explosions from more commonly occurring earthquakes using moment tensor inversion, high-frequency P/S amplitude ratios, mb:Ms comparisons, and P-pP differential travel times. These methods are generally successful for large seismic events (M>3–4) well recorded at regional-to-teleseismic distances (>150  km); however, it is unclear whether they can be modified to work for small events (M<3) well recorded only at local distances (<150  km). Here, we evaluate a recently proposed, local-distance seismic source discriminant—the difference between local magnitude (ML) and coda duration magnitude (MC)—using seismograms of earthquakes and buried, single-fired chemical explosions recorded in three regions of the western United States. The quantity ML–MC was previously found to be sensitive to source depth, effectively discriminating mine blasts, induced earthquakes, and very shallow tectonic earthquakes from deeper crustal earthquakes. In this study, we report the first evaluation of ML–MC as a depth discriminant using data from buried, single-fired explosions that, unlike the seismic sources studied earlier, are good analogs for underground nuclear explosions. We find that even when using generic, uncalibrated methods of assigning magnitudes, ML–MC separates single-fired explosions and earthquakes. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve is 0.92 for 19 explosions and 14 earthquakes in Washington, 0.90 for 22 explosions and 90 earthquakes in Wyoming, and 0.99 for three explosions and 149 earthquakes in Nevada. ML:MC comparisons have the potential to enhance discrimination based on high-frequency P/S amplitudes ratios—which perform less well at local than regional distances—because the two metrics have complementary sensitivities.


The purpose of the current study was to test for gender differences among residents living in assisted living settings. This was a secondary data analysis using data from the first 64 facilities participating in the ongoing Function Focused Care for Assisted Living study using the Evidence Integration Triangle (FFC-AL-EIT). A total of 593 residents were recruited. Differences by gender with regard to function, physical activity, falls, total number of medications, and satisfaction with assisted living were tested using multivariate analysis of variance. There were 166 (28%) men and 427 (72%) women with a mean age of 88 (SD = 7.5 years). Participants had five (SD = 2) comorbidities and took on average 6.88 medications (SD = 3.47). Participants had moderate functional impairment with a mean of 64.13 (SD = 19.09) on the Barthel Index and engaged in 43.8 (SD = 76.12) minutes daily of moderate level physical activity. Women reported higher satisfaction with activities (4.32 [SD = 1.14]) than men (3.85 [SD = 1.51]), and women received more medications than men (7.09 [SD = 3.51] vs. 6.34 [SD = 3.31]). Current study findings suggest that deprescribing may be particularly important for women versus men and focusing on expanding activity options to include those preferred by men should be considered in assisted living settings. [Research in Gerontological Nursing, xx(x), xx-xx.].


Secret sharing approach and in particular Visual Cryptography (VC) try to address the security issues in dealing with images. In fact, VC is a powerful technique that combines the notions of perfect ciphers and secret sharing in cryptography. VC takes an image (secret) as an input and encrypts (divide) into two or more pieces (shares) that each of them can not reveal any information about the main input. The decryption way in this scenario is done through superimposing shares on top of each other to receive the input image. No computer participation is required, thus showing one of the distinguishing features of VC. It is claimed that VC is a unique technique in the sense that the encrypted message can be decrypted directly by the human visual system.


The rust fungi (Uredinales, Basidiomycota) are an expansive and diverse group of fungal species, consisting of approximately 7000 different species in over 160 different genera. Fungi of the genus Puccinia represent a large proportion of these rust fungi, many species of which are well known for their role in causing massive yield and subsequent economic losses in agricultural crops worldwide. Puccinia boroniae is one such rust fungus and is a significant pathogen of several species of Boronia (Rutaceae), a native Australian wildflower grown commercially in Western Australia as a cutflower. Complete control of the rust pathogen is rarely achieved using chemical fungicides. Improving the level of disease control is vital for the long-term sustainability and future growth of the Boronia industry, and requires an understanding of the pathogen. The objectives of this thesis were to investigate aspects of the epidemiology, the biology and the diversity of P. boroniae in Western Australia, providing a broad understanding of the pathogen, which in turn could be employed to improve disease control.

The lifecycle of P. boroniae was conclusively shown to be microcyclic by artificial inoculation of Boronia heterophylla with basidiospores released from germinating teliospores suspended over the host plant. Telia developed on the leaves within 21 days, with no intermediate rust spore stages (pycnial, uredial or aecial) observed. Rarely, low numbers of pycnia of P. boroniae were observed on field specimens collected from leaves of B. megastigma cultivated at one commercial floriculture plantation. This was the first record of pycnia of P. boroniae; however, as pycnia were not observed on other host species or plantations, or formed during controlled inoculation trials, their functional role in the lifecycle is currently unresolved.

Telia were subepidermal, erumpent and pulvinate, amphigenous on leaves, stems and parts of developing flower buds, and generally persistent year round. Intracellular hyphae resembling monokaryotic haustoria (M-haustoria) were observed in leaf mesophyll cells beneath and adjacent of telia. Occasionally Sphaerellopsis filum (teleomorph Eudarluca caricis), a known mycoparasite of rust fungi, was observed on the telia. Under favourable conditions, teliospores germinated immediately without a period of dormancy, with fully mature basidiospores formed within 3-4 h after telia were exposed to moisture. Basidial development in P. boroniae was unusual, in that only one basidiospore was formed from each germinating teliospore cell. Immature teliospores were initially binucleate undergoing karyogamy to form a single large (presumably diploid) nucleus that migrated into the developing metabasidium. Both binucleate and tetranucleate metabasidia were observed, with mature uninucleate, binucleate and tetranucleate basidiospores present. At this stage, more research is required to understand the complete nuclear behaviour during teliospore germination. The morphology of the pycnial stage was similar to other Puccinia species, being ampulliform, subepidermal, amphigenous and arranged in small clusters on leaves of B. megastigma. However, the spine-like periphyses protruded through stomata as apposed to penetrating the leaf epidermis.

Environmental conditions favouring the formation and dispersal of basidiospores were assessed in vitro and under field conditions with a spore catcher. Under field conditions, basidiospores were captured from February-August 2004, with peak numbers and daily incidence occurring during autumn (April/May) when the average temperature range was 9.1-22.6 degrees C. Daily basidiospore numbers were positively correlated with minimum daily temperature and total daily rainfall. A distinct diurnal periodicity of release was observed, with numbers peaking on average between 02:00 and 05:00 hrs. The hourly release of basidiospores was positively correlated with relative humidity and negatively correlated with temperature and evaporation. This data was in agreement with the in vitro experimentation, which showed that basidiospore formation occurred between 10-25 plus-minus 1 degrees C (apparent optimal temperature of 15-20 plus-minus 1 degrees C) with telia incubated in continuous darkness promoting a greater number of basidiospores.

The level of genetic variation of P. boroniae in Western Australia was assessed by PCR-RFLP of the nuclear ribosomal intergenic spacer 2 (IGS2) region. Two RFLP profiles were observed, separating three specimens (Group 1) from the remaining population (Group 2). Sequence analysis indicated that point mutations at endonuclease recognition sites were responsible for the changes in RFLP profile. Group 2 specimens had been collected from the same host species (B. megastigma) and plantation, and it is suggested that the variant specimens may constitute a subspecies of P. boroniae, isolated by geographic location and possibly host (cultivar) specificity. Further analysis, primarily pathogenicity trials, is needed to confirm this.

This study has improved our knowledge regarding the rust fungus P. boroniae and has laid strong foundations for future research into several aspects of the biology, epidemiology and population variation. The implications of the key findings of this research, with an emphasis on the management of P. boroniae in commercial situations, are discussed.


Improved living standards and the share of services sector to the economy in Asia, and the use of electronic equipment is on the rise and results in increased electronic waste generation. A peculiarity of electronic waste is that it has a 'significant' value even after its life time, and to add complication, even after its extended life in its 'dump' stage. Thus, in Indian situations, after its life time is over, the e-material changes hands more than once and finally ends up either in the hands of informal recyclers or in the store rooms of urban dwellings. This character makes it extremely difficult to estimate electronic waste generation. The present study attempts to develop a functional model based on a material flow analysis approach by considering all possible end uses of the material, its transformed goods finally arriving at disposal. It considers various degrees of uses derived of the e-goods regarding their primary use (life time), secondary use (first degree extension of life), third-hand use (second degree extension of life), donation, retention at the respective places (without discarding), fraction shifted to scrap vendor, and the components reaching the final dump site from various end points of use. This 'generic functional model' named SYE-Waste Model, developed based on a material flow analysis approach, can be used to derive 'obsolescence factors' for various degrees of usage of e-goods and also to make a comprehensive estimation of electronic waste in any city/country.


Background: The study was designed to assess the role of preoperative neutrophil, lymphocyte, and neutrophil?lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in predicting survival outcomes of ABO?incompatible liver transplantation (LT). Materials and Methods: We retrospectively collected the demographic and clinical  characteristics of 71 patients with end?stage liver cirrhosis following ABO?incompatible LT in this study. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis and Cox multiple factors regression analysis were performed to determine the independent risk factors from preoperative blood parameters for poor prognosis. Results: The 1?, 3?, and 5?year overall survival were 94.9%, 80.0%, and  80.0% in the normal NLR group, respectively, and 59.4%,55,4%, and 55.4% in patients with up?regulated NLR, respectively (P = 0.001). Furthermore, no significant difference was observed on post?LT complications between normal NLR and high?NLR groups. The high NLR was identified as the only independent prognostic risk factor for recipient survival (P = 0.015, 95% confidence  interval = 3.573 [1.284–9.943]). Conclusion: The preoperative high NLR could be considered as a convenient and available indicator for selecting ABO?incompatible LT candidates. Key words: ABO?incompatible liver transplantation, hepatitis B, liver failure, neutrophil?lymphocyte ratio


Temperature and precipitation are the most important factors responsible for agricultural productivity variations. In 2018 spring/summer growing season, Europe experienced concurrent anomalies of both. Drought conditions in central and northern Europe caused yield reductions up to 50% for the main crops, yet wet conditions in southern Europe saw yield gains up to 34%, both with respect to the previous 5‐year mean. Based on the analysis of documentary and natural proxy‐based seasonal paleoclimate reconstructions for the past half millennium, we show that the 2018 combination of climatic anomalies in Europe was unique. The water seesaw, a marked dipole of negative water anomalies in central Europe and positive ones in southern Europe, distinguished 2018 from the five previous similar droughts since 1976. Model simulations reproduce the 2018 European water seesaw in only 4 years out of 875 years in historical runs and projections. Future projections under the RCP8.5 scenario show that 2018‐like temperature and rainfall conditions, favorable to crop growth, will occur less frequent in southern Europe. In contrast, in central Europe high‐end emission scenario climate projections show that droughts as intense as 2018 could become a common occurrence as early as 2043. While integrated European and global agricultural markets limited agro‐economic shocks caused by 2018's extremes, there is an urgent need for adaptation strategies for European agriculture to consider futures without the benefits of any water seesaw.


An explicit method for the evaluation of singular and near-singular integrals arising in three-dimensional Galerkin BEM is presented. It is based on a recursive reduction of the dimension of the integration domain leading to a linear combination of one-dimensional regular integrals, which can be exactly evaluated. This method has appealing properties in terms of reliability, precision, and flexibility. The results we present here are devoted to the case of thin layers for the Helmholtz equation, a situation where the panels are close and parallel, known to be difficult in terms of accuracy. Nevertheless, the method applies as well to two-dimensional BEM, secant planes, or even volume integral equations. A MATLAB implementation of the formulas presented here is available online.


A study was conducted to delineate the groundwater potential zones of Nawada district of Southern Bihar using satellite-derived information layers, namely, elevation, slope, drainage density, land use, fractional impervious surface (FIS) and also using existing thematic maps (lithology, soil, pre- and post-monsoon water level) based on the weighted linear combination method. On the basis of the relative contribution of each datum towards groundwater potential, the weight of each thematic map has been computed. The normalized weights of the individual themes and their different features were obtained through Saaty9s analytical hierarchy process. Results showed that zones of 'very high' and 'high' groundwater potential are present in the central and northeastern part of the study area. 'Very low' and 'low' groundwater potential zones are found in the southeastern and very small pockets of the eastern corner of the district. Thus surface investigation of groundwater has proved that an integrated approach involving remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) technique can be successfully used in identifying potential groundwater zones in a short time and at low cost, while the yield could be ascertained with some sample ground truth 'test drillings'.


Mobility is something able-bodied people take for granted.
Approximately 132,500 people in the United Kingdom have disabilities which
permanently confine them to a wheelchair; 40,000 of these require a powered
wheelchair. The opportunity to lead a normal life and be accepted as an equal by the
able-bodied population is limited by their reduced mobility. As much freedom of
movement as possible is therefore crucial for these people.
Powered wheelchair users' mobility depends upon the manoeuvrability of the chair. For
optimum manoeuvrability a chair must be capable of moving in any direction. Currently
no omni-directional powered wheelchairs are commercially available.
This thesis describes the design and deVelopment of a powered base unit for a
wheelchair, controlled to instantaneously move in any direction.
The novelty is principally represented by the innovative design and configuration of four
omni-directional roller wheels* (LUMAN wheels) which, when individually controlled,
produce the omni-directional movement of the base unit. Further novelty within the
design is a set of bi-directional angled roller couplings that simultaneously disengage the
wheels from the motors, via a cable linkage mechanism, and simple control system.
Mathematical data models illustrate the theoretical performance of the wheel
configuration, and a prototype base unit is tested to prove these hypotheses.


The Software Factory of the ICT Research Center is currently implementing a research model that consists in the incorporation of undergraduate students of the Technological University of Panama in software development projects. This model aims to promote the participation of university students on real software development projects, and to build a research culture. The model consists of five phases: Project planning, selection of students, provide a 45-hour training to selected students on ICT Research Center development guidelines, assign and insert students in software projects (they will also be assigned to a mentor), and give the opportunity to high performance students to be recruited by an ICT Research group. It should be noted that student participation is voluntary, so they do not receive final compensation.Keywords: Student's insertion, volunteering, software development


This paper examines the response of higher education to globalization in India and discusses the major challenges that the globalization brought to higher education. The study used data over twenty five years, 1981/82-2004/05 and applied Ordinary Least Square (OLS) analysis with inclusion of various functional variables that may contribute to the higher education in the post reform period. A regression model is developed by using the perspectives of the heterodox model which does not conclude that the non-significant variables necessarily imply that the hypothesized causal links are invalid. The study reveals that the relationship between globalization and higher education was fragile revealing a gap between what the country has achieved on globalization and what it has achieved on higher education. The study cautions the policy makers that if they let present condition continue, it will be imminent that the capacity of higher education to produce right people would get jeopardized. It is therefore suggested that the government should ensure right allocation and correct appropriateness of budget on higher education. A fair controlling policy should be devised to monitor quality of education and training provided in the private sector. A compliance policy should be enforced to ensure a strong network and congenial interface between the institutions of mediocre and of excellence and also between the higher education institutions and industries, so that the application oriented education and employability could be effectively offered to meet out the challenges of globalization.


Numerical simulations are used to investigate the resonant instabilities in two-dimensional flow past an open cavity. The compressible Navier–Stokes equations are solved directly (no turbulence model) for cavities with laminar boundary layers upstream. The computational domain is large enough to directly resolve a portion of the radiated acoustic field, which is shown to be in good visual agreement with schlieren photographs from experiments at several different Mach numbers. The results show a transition from a shear-layer mode, primarily for shorter cavities and lower Mach numbers, to a wake mode for longer cavities and higher Mach numbers. The shear-layer mode is characterized well by the acoustic feedback process described by Rossiter (1964), and disturbances in the shear layer compare well with predictions based on linear stability analysis of the Kelvin–Helmholtz mode. The wake mode is characterized instead by a large-scale vortex shedding with Strouhal number independent of Mach number. The wake mode oscillation is similar in many ways to that reported by Gharib & Roshko (1987) for incompressible flow with a laminar upstream boundary layer. Transition to wake mode occurs as the length and/or depth of the cavity becomes large compared to the upstream boundary-layer thickness, or as the Mach and/or Reynolds numbers are raised. Under these conditions, it is shown that the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability grows to sufficient strength that a strong recirculating flow is induced in the cavity. The resulting mean flow is similar to wake profiles that are absolutely unstable, and absolute instability may provide an explanation of the hydrodynamic feedback mechanism that leads to wake mode. Predictive criteria for the onset of shear-layer oscillations (from steady flow) and for the transition to wake mode are developed based on linear theory for amplification rates in the shear layer, and a simple model for the acoustic efficiency of edge scattering.


We formulate low Mach number fluctuating hydrodynamic equations appropriate for modeling diffusive mixing in isothermal mixtures of fluids with different density and transport coefficients. These equations eliminate the fluctuations in pressure associated with the propagation of sound waves by replacing the equation of state with a local thermodynamic constraint. We demonstrate that the low Mach number model preserves the spatio-temporal spectrum of the slower diffusive fluctuations. We develop a strictly conservative finite-volume spatial discretization of the low Mach number fluctuating equations in both two and three dimensions and construct several explicit Runge-Kutta temporal integrators that strictly maintain the equation of state constraint. The resulting spatio-temporal discretization is second-order accurate deterministically and maintains fluctuation-dissipation balance in the linearized stochastic equations. We apply our algorithms to model the development of giant concentration fluctuations in the presence of concentration gradients, and investigate the validity of common simplifications such as neglecting the spatial non-homogeneity of density and transport properties. We perform simulations of diffusive mixing of two fluids of different densities in two dimensions and compare the results of low Mach number continuum simulations to hard-disk molecular dynamics simulations. Excellent agreement is observed between the particle and continuum simulations of giant fluctuations during time-dependent diffusive mixing.


Foreword. Preface. Acknowledgements. About the Author. 1. A Few Initial Remarks. 1.1 What is a hedge fund? 1.2 History of hedge funds. 1.3 Proprietary trading. 1.4 The growth of the hedge fund industry. 1.5 Main characteristics of the current industry. 1.6 Capacity. 1.7 Commissions. 1.8 Industry performance overview. 1.9 The hedge fund manager. 1.10 Alpha and beta. 1.11 Investment strategies. 1.12 Explorers and frontiers. 1.13 SEC's vigilance. 1.14 Considerations on performance sustainability. 1.15 Capacity and performance sustainability. 1.16 Ability or chance? 1.17 The importance of avoiding losses. 1.18 Decreasing returns with longer investment horizons. 1.19 Business case: A hedge fund start-up. 2. Arbitrage. 2.1 The transaction costs barrier. 2.2 ADR arbitrage. 2.3 Arbitrage between off-the-run and on-the-run thirty-year Treasury Bonds. 3. Short Selling. 3.1 A brief history of short selling. 3.2 What is short selling? 3.3 A simplified example of short selling on US markets. 3.4 Who lends securities for short selling? 3.5 Regulations governing short selling. 3.6 The risks of short selling. 3.7 Short interest and short interest ratio. 3.8 Wall Street's alter ego. 3.9 Stock picking in short selling. 3.10 The art of contrary thinking. 3.11 Measuring the strategy's historical performance. 3.12 Conclusions. 4. Long/Short Equity. 4.1 History of the first hedge fund. 4.2 Market exposure. 4.3 Management styles. 4.4 Specialized long/short equity funds. 4.5 Share class arbitrage. 4.6 Pairs trading. 4.7 Covered call and covered put options sale. 4.8 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 4.9 Equity market neutral. 5. Merger Arbitrage. 5.1 A brief history of M&A. 5.2 Strategy description. 5.3 Risk associated with the outcome of an extraordinary corporate event. 5.4 Types of mergers and acquisitions. 5.5 Risk management. 5.6 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 5.7 Conclusions. 6. Convertible Bond Arbitrage. 6.1 Why issue a convertible bond? 6.2 A brief history of convertible bonds. 6.3 The convertible bond market. 6.4 Definitions. 6.5 Quantitative models to value convertible bonds. 6.6 Implied volatility and historical volatility. 6.7 Convertible bond arbitrage. 6.8 Mandatory convertibles. 6.9 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 6.10 Risk control. 6.11 Conclusions. 7. Fixed Income Arbitrage. 7.1 Issuance driven arbitrage or snap trade. 7.2 Yield curve arbitrage. 7.3 Intermarket spread trading. 7.4 Futures basis trading or basis trading. 7.5 Swap spread trading. 7.6 Capital structure arbitrage. 7.7 Long/short credit or credit pair trading. 7.8 Carry trade. 7.9 Break-even inflation trades. 7.10 Cross-currency relative value trade. 7.11 Treasuries over eurodollars (TED) spread or international credit spread. 7.12 Leveraged loans. 7.13 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 7.14 Conclusions. 8. Strategies on CDOs. 8.1 A brief history of CDOs. 8.2 Hedge fund investment strategies. 8.3 Conclusions. 9. Mortgage-Backed Securities Arbitrage. 9.1 A brief history of mortgage-backed securities. 9.2 Originators of mortgage-backed securities. 9.3 The industry of mortgage-backed securities. 9.4 The sensitivity of mortgage-backed securities to interest rates. 9.5 Arbitrage on mortgage-backed securities. 9.6 Risk factors. 9.7 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 9.8 Conclusions. 10. Distressed Securities. 10.1 A brief history of distressed securities. 10.2 The distressed debt market. 10.3 Bankruptcy laws. 10.4 Strategy description. 10.5 Risks. 10.6 A brief consideration of the directional nature of distressed securities hedge funds. 10.7 Trade claims. 10.8 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 10.9 Conclusions. 11. Event Driven or Special Situations. 11.1 Activist investors. 11.2 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 12. Multi-strategy. 12.1 Multi-strategy funds. 12.2 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 13. Managed Futures. 13.1 What is a futures contract? 13.2 A brief history of managed futures. 13.3 Managed futures strategy. 13.4 "Do storks deliver babies?" and the predictability of financial time series. 13.5 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 13.6 Conclusions. 14. Global Macro. 14.1 A brief history of macro funds. 14.2 Investment strategies adopted. 14.3 The characteristics shared by great traders. 14.4 The legs of a trade. 14.5 The theory of reflexivity by George Soros. 14.6 Debt emerging markets. 14.7 Strategy's historical performance analysis. 14.8 Conclusions. 15. Other Strategies. 15.1 Holding company arbitrage. 15.2 Closed-end fund arbitrage. 15.3 Statistical arbitrage. 15.4 Index arbitrage. 15.5 Volatility trading. 15.6 Split-strike conversion. 15.7 Lending. 15.8 PIPEs or Regulation D. 15.9 Real estate. 15.10 Natural resources. 15.11 Energy trading. 15.12 Natural events. 16. Hedge Fund Performance Analysis. 16.1 Risks inherent in hedge fund investments. 16.2 Hedge fund strategies indices. 16.3 Statistical analysis of indices. 16.4 Value at risk. 16.5 Statistical analysis of data from the LIPPER TASS database. 17. Conclusions. Bibliography. Index.


An initial field based study was undertaken to measure and compare the intensity and directional sub-components of the state anxiety response in reflection to performance in cricket, in accordance with Hanin's (1980) Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning hypothesis. Following the results of the initial study, an alternative line of inquiry was followed. Subsequent investigations focused on the concept of 'repeatable good performance' as opposed to heightened performance states. More specifically, a triangulation of research studies, employing an inductive content analysis, a cultural consensus analysis and the repertory grid technique, attempted to understand what constitutes such a performance state in cricket. Additionally, the three studies attempted to establish what factors precede or are present during consistent good performance, and whether the antecedents for repeatable good performance are similar for varying roles within cricket. The triangulation generated a group of core element antecedents including: total self-confidence; optimal arousal levels; motivation and focus; and total match preparation, including, pre-match routines, set performance plans and use of imagery that are required by both batters and bowlers for the occurrence of repeatable good performance. An applied research study indicated that when the psychological requirements for repeatable good performance were included within an intervention, the potential for achieving repeatable good performance, and performance improvements, were increased. The study suggests repeatable good performance to be a viable construct within applied sport psychology. Despite such claims, further research is required to develop a scientifically valid definition of the construct, in addition to the further development of methods that allow for the identification and measurement of consistent performance.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Vaginal hysterectomy shortens surgery duration and may be performed with neuraxial block, which promotes better postoperative analgesia and lower systemic response to surgical procedure. This report aimed at describing hemodynamic changes promoted by exaggerated lithotomy position in cardiac patient.

CASE REPORT
Female patient, 33 years old, with history of abnormal uterine bleeding and anemia. Ultrasound revealed myomas of approximately 420 cm(3). Patient had thrombophilia and dilated cardiomyopathy, with history of two ischemic strokes and two acute myocardial infarction. Monitoring consisted of invasive blood pressure and pulmonary artery catheter for continuous cardiac output measurement. Spinal anesthesia was performed with hyperbaric bupivacaine and morphine. Patient was placed in exaggerated lithotomy position being total hysterectomy performed by the Heaney technique and bilateral salpingectomy. Intraoperative intercurrences were post-positioning decreased cardiac output and increased right chambers pressure requiring dobutamine.

CONCLUSIONS
Exaggerated lithotomy position may promote hemodynamic changes which should be considered when choosing the surgical technique.


Recent research (Hajnal, Wagman, Bunch, & Doyon, 2014) suggested that geographic slants feel steeper than they look. Visual perception of the stand-on-able-ness of an inclined surface is generally accurate and corresponds to an action boundary of approximately 30 degrees. Haptic perception underestimates the action boundary in laboratory settings. This may occur because more overt attention is dedicated to the perceptual task than is typical in performing everyday behaviors. Does focused attention lead to overthinking actions such as upright standing? When perceiving maximum reaching distance participants are more accurate when the judgment is embedded in another perception-action task (Heft, 1993). It was hypothesized that embedding haptic perception of stand-on-ability within another perception-action task would bring haptic judgments in line both with visual judgments and action capabilities. Specifically, haptic judgments were expected to be more accurate and judgments made near the transition point (30°-36°) would show longer response times and lower confidence ratings (Wagman & Hajnal, 2014). Observers placed a foot onto an occluded ramp while viewing a dangling light socket overhead and reported whether they would be able to screw a light bulb into the socket if they were allowed to stand on the ramp. Socket height was scaled to the observer's maximal vertical reach and presented at that height as well as 5" above or below. Ramp presentations consisted of 7 angles ranging from 12° to 48° in 6° increments. Perceptual boundaries were compared against actual action boundaries, i.e., the point at which the ramp no longer supports upright standing. Haptic perceptual boundaries (36.9°) matched action boundaries (34.0°). Confidence was lowest and response time was the longest at the angle nearest to the transition point (36°). Results suggest that the affordance of stand-on-ability is best studied in the context of embedded everyday tasks. Meeting abstract presented at VSS 2015.


This paper provides an empirical analysis of the impact of the approach to qualified immunity that the Supreme Court first suggested in Siegert v. Gilley and later made mandatory in Saucier v. Katz. That approach dictates that lower courts should resolve constitutional issues prior to deciding whether a government official is shielded from liability by qualified immunity. A primary justification for this sequencing approach is the notion that where courts decide that constitutional law is not clearly established, and thus qualified immunity is available, future defendants can also escape liability for the same behavior. But the empirical analysis provided in this paper indicates that courts forced to resolve constitutional questions that, prior to Siegert and Saucier, they would have avoided, almost uniformly hold that no constitutional violation has occurred. To the extent that Siegert and Saucier have led to an increase in the articulation of constitutional law, therefore, this increase has solely benefited defendant government officers.Advances in cognitive psychology suggest an explanation for courts' reluctance to hold that a constitutional violation has occurred yet then grant qualified immunity. Where the law is not clearly established, and thus a defendant will escape liability in any case, it may create cognitive dissonance to hold that a plaintiff's constitutional rights were violated. In anticipation of the Supreme Court's revisitation of the sequencing approach in Pearson v. Callahan, this paper suggests that sequencing should not be mandatory so that judges will not be forced to decide constitutional questions against this backdrop of dissonance.


BACKGROUND AND AIMS:Patients with Helicobacter pylori gastritis are more likely to have increased duodenal intraepithelial lymphocytes (IEL); this can be reversed by H. pylori eradication. We hypothesized that: (1) H. pylori-infected celiac disease (CD) patients could have different clinicopathological features from noninfected subjects; and (2) the histopathological responses to a gluten-free diet could be different in H. pylori-infected and noninfected patients.METHODS:Duodenal and gastric biopsies obtained from 80 adults with histologically and serologically confirmed CD before and after 12–18 months of a gluten-free diet were retrospectively evaluated. Gastritis was classified and scored according to the Updated Sydney System; duodenal biopsies were classified using both the Marsh-Oberhuber and a simplified classification proposed by our group.RESULTS:At baseline, 30 patients had H. pylori infection and 50 did not; at follow-up five new infections were detected. Fifteen patients (3 H. pylori-positive and 12 negative) had lymphocytic gastritis. At baseline, a greater proportion of H. pylori-negative patients had severe villous atrophy (p < 0.01), but milder forms were more prevalent in H. pylori-positive patients (p < 0.01). After a gluten-free diet, significant improvement occurred in all duodenal features (p < 0.001), irrespective of H. pylori status; gastric variables did not change, except for lymphocytic, which resolved in 2 infected and 10 noninfected patients.CONCLUSIONS:The clinical features of CD patients are unrelated to H. pylori gastritis, and a gluten-free diet is equally effective in infected as in uninfected patients. The higher prevalence of milder duodenal lesions in CD patients with H. pylori infection suggests that lymphocytosis induced by H. pylori gastric infection becomes less obvious as profound inflammatory and structural changes alter the mucosal architecture. This study also provides further support for a pathogenetic relationship between CD and lymphocytic gastritis.


The thermal desalination by Multi-Stage Flash (MSF) and Multi-Effect Distillation (MED) desalination plants are dominantly used in Qatar due to their maturity and reliability in dealing with the harsh seawater conditions of high (TDS, Seawater feed temperature, SDI, and HAB). Realizing the benefits and challenges of the thermal, there is a room of improvement to reduce energy consumption. Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) and Qatar Electricity and Water Corporation (QEWC) took initiative to improve the overall efficinecy and perfomance of thermal deslaintion plants in Qatar. In this work, a novel design and compact MED evaporator will be presented. The expected reduction in heat transfer area will reduce the capital cost of the evaporator as well as the footprint of the MED desalination plant. The present work describes a novel MED evaporator according to the GCC2016-31325 patent. The tubes are arranged in a way to allow generated vapor to flow in a smooth and minimized route to the following effect. The vapor route is designed to avoid shear losses and breakdown of film liquid around the tubes (dry zones) that will eliminate vapor entrainment, which will reduce brine carry over. Since there is no cross flow within tube bundle hence, eliminating the need for demister and vapor boxes. A well-developed Visual Simulation Program (VSP) is used to perform comparison between commercial MED desalination plant (63 MIGD, Rass Laffan, Qatar) and proposed novel design. The evaporator distillate production rate, seawater feed conditions (temperature and salinity), and heating steam conditions are specified as input to the software. The number of effects and the tube specifications are specified as input. The VSP software calculates the required steam consumption flow rate, the heat transfer area for each effect, the condenser and preheaters. The capital cost of the desalination plant was calculated using recent bidding of commercial desalination projects and the updated market material price. Process simulationm shows that, for a given gain output ratio of (GOR = 9), the required heat transfer area of novel evaporator is 20% less than of existing evaporators design due to thermal losses reduction. Moreover, the thermal losses reduction in novel evaporator were calculated via simulation and are in the range of 30% to 60%. Furthermore, removal of demister in novel MED evaporator decreases evaporator width by 65%. However, novel evaporator height is almost 1.25 times of the convnetional. In fact, the novel evaporator cost is 20 % less than that of the convnetional evaporator due to significant reduction of the evaporator width and vapor box. In addition to that, a 3D-CFD simulation have been conducted using COMSOL Multiphysics v.5.2a on the vapor route of the novel MED evaporator, to be compared with that of the convention MED evaporator. The engagement with QEWC to offer a site equipped with seawater intake/outfall, electricity will be highlighted. The detailed design of the pilot test, fabricate, installation, commission of MED pilot test of 25 m3/day at Dukhan will be used to develop the proof of concept.


Advanced composite materials are increasingly being adopted for applications in airframe structures due to their high stiffness-to-weight and strength-to-weight ratios as compared to metallic materials. However, advanced composites are susceptible to barely visible impact damage, which could lead to a catastrophic failure if their initiation and growth are not monitored. Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) systems based on acousto-ultrasound methods have emerged as a promising new nondestructive inspection (NDI) technique for monitoring the onset and progress of structural damage. Lamb wave based baseline-subtraction techniques are widely used for distinguishing the damage from other structural features. However, these techniques are only suitable for monitoring impact damage on large composite structures but cannot characterize and classify debond, delamination and core crushing types of damages in honeycomb structures. This paper presents an innovative damage characterization and classification techniques that are capable of detecting, locating and characterizing different types of damage in carbon fiber honeycomb structural components of rotorcraft vehicles. Tests were conducted on the system for characterizing and classifying debond, delamination and core crushing type damage on carbon-fiber Nomex-honeycomb-core structures. Details of the technique along with the results will be presented and discussed in this paper. However, composite and honeycomb structures are susceptible to impact damage due to foreign object impact on the structures. Debond between dissimilar materials is one of the common problems along with honeycomb core crushing and delamination within the plies for composite based airframe structures. Impacts on structure can create delaminations between plies (affecting in-plane stiffness of the structure) and/or debonds between skin and stringers or skin and honeycomb core which can affect the bending stiffness of the structure. The consequences of these damages and the corrective maintenance procedures differ significantly. The reduction in residual strength of the structure due to these impact damages could greatly affect the remaining useful life of the structure. Therefore, accurate detection, localization, quantification and classification of these damage types are important and critical for selecting appropriate life cycle management measures and for Prognostics. Acousto-Ultrasound (AU) based SHM techniques [1-4] using built-in piezoelectric sensors and actuators can be used to monitor damage, reduce inspection time and structural downtime, and move towards predictive maintenance. However, further refinements to the technology are necessary in order to classify damage, especially delamination, debonding and core crushing, for practical aircraft applications. doi: 10.12783/SHM2015/366